Chapter 4: Epic Finale
The palace gates swung open with a roar, releasing the trio into the inner chambers. Hikaru pulled on new pants (a gift from one of the courtiers, who was still wondering why he did it) when a chill ran down his spine.
"Strange," he muttered.
"What's strange?" — Ayame was wary.
"It seemed to me…"
Somewhere in the darkness a mechanism clicked.
Click.
Click.
Click.
"..that he gave up too easily."
At that moment, a massive chain with a hook fell from the ceiling, piercing through Sakura.
"Ugh..." Her eyes widened as the hook jerked upward, lifting the bloody body towards the ceiling.
"SAKURA!" Ayame screamed.
Kuroi Kirei emerged from the shadows.
But this was no longer the same hysterical maniac.
His eyes were cold as blades.
The blades, by the way, were now not just fused iron—they were elegant, almost organic surgical instruments woven into the flesh.
"You..." Hikaru hissed.
"I made a mistake," Kuroi's voice sounded like the grinding of steel on marble. "I tried to play by your rules."
He snapped his fingers.
The chain jerked - and Sakura's body was torn in half, falling to the floor in a bloody rain.
"BUT..." Hikaru froze. "SHE HAD 500 HP…"
"Whisper of the Funeral Bell poison," Kuroi licked the blade. "Reduces maximum health to 1."
Ayame collapsed to her knees next to the bloody remains.
"You... you…"
"I learned," the maniac took a step forward. "I watched. Analyzed. You are imba. But your girlfriends…"
His hand shot out - and Ayame howled as her left eye suddenly burst, bleeding across her face.
"...just meat."
System notification from where:
[ [Ayame] affected by Rotting Wound status — regeneration blocked]
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Hikaru's roar shook the walls of the palace.
"I started the game correctly," Kuroi spread his hands. "You see, 'op'..."
SHIIIIIIIIIIIIING!
Dozens of wires, thinner than a spider's web, flashed in the air, entangling Hikaru.
"...a real maniac first cripples the audience."
The wires twitched—and Ayame roared as her fingers flew off her hands one by one.
"STOP!" Hikaru rushed forward and stumbled.
Wires were tied to her tendons.
"A very old technique," Kuroi approached the writhing Ayama. "But effective."
His blade touched her stomach.
"Let's check... how many hits does your girlfriend have left?"
Hikaru felt fear for the first time.
Somewhere in the depths of the palace:
Shogun Tenryu watched the battle through a magic crystal. His right-hand man, a huge, muscular man with a scarred face, laughed hoarsely.
"Finally this idiot will get what he deserves."
"Take your time," the adviser whispered. "Kuroi Kirei... he's not on our side."
"Doesn't matter. If only he would kill this 'chosen one'."
The crystal showed Kuroi slowly, methodically slicing Ayame while watching Hikaru's reaction.
"Perfection," the shogun sighed.
In the hall:
"...seventeen, eighteen," Kuroi counted the cuts on Ayame's body. "There is still a lot of space left."
Hikaru twitched as the wires dug deeper into his skin.
"Oh yes," the maniac smiled. "These threads are saturated with the poison 'Dragon Tears'."
"..."
"Blocks your '999 abilities'."
Hikaru tried to summon magic — nothing.
"Surprised?" Kuroi leaned towards him. "I spent three days studying your 'random' destruction."
The blade touched his throat.
"You don't control the power. You are a child with a nuclear button."
"..."
"Do you know what they do with dangerous toys?"
The blade entered the throat a millimeter.
"They break it."
CRACK.
Suddenly, Ayame's body jerked—and her bloody hand grabbed onto Kuroi's leg.
"..."
"..."
"...you… should have..." the maniac blinked.
"'Rotting wound' huh? - Ayame raised her face. Her one eye was burning. "I have Pain Resistance."
BANG.
Her fist slammed into Kuroi's groin.
The maniac didn't even groan—he just bent over.
"And… Counterattack at 1 HP," she spat blood.
Hikaru felt the threads loosen.
"YOU..." Kuroi straightened up, his face contorted with rage.
But it was too late.
Hikaru was already standing.
His fist was already flying.
And the world...
Exploded?
When the smoke cleared, only half of the palace remained.
Kuroi Kirei stood on the edge of the abyss, his left half of his body missing.
"..."
"..."
"...interesting," he whispered.
And fell into the abyss.
…
Somewhere in the depths of the dungeon:
The body, missing half its flesh, twitched in a pool of blood.
"Master…" a whisper from the darkness. "Are you alive…"
"..."
"What are we going to do?"
Kuroi Kirei opened his only remaining eye.
"..."
"..."
"...find the best blades."
…
Three days later. Or two... I don't give a fuck.
Ruined palace.
Hikaru sat on a piece of a column and looked blankly at his hands.
"..."
"..."
"You've been silent for six hours now," said Ayame, wrapping bloody bandages on her stumps instead of fingers.
"I think."
"Oh my god."
Sakura, whose lower half of her body had been temporarily replaced by a magical prosthetic in the form of a walking barrel of sake, slammed the lid:
"He 'thinks'. This means that something will explode again soon."
Hikaru raised his head. His usually empty eyes sparkled strangely.
"I understand."
"What exactly?" Ayame was wary.
"I'm an idiot."
"..."
"..."
"Well, we've known that for a long time," Sakura shrugged.
"No, you don't understand!" Hikaru jumped up, his voice sounding... conscious for the first time. "All my strength is based on the fact that I'm a virgin, right?"
"Well... technically yes…"
"What if…"
He paused dramatically.
"...will I become an even bigger virgin?"
Ayame and Sakura looked at each other.
"..."
"..."
"How is this even possible?"
Hikaru raised his finger in triumph.
"I won't just give up sex! I WILL GIVE UP THE VERY OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE IT!"
"..."
"..."
"You wanna…"
"VOLUNTARILY REMOVE MY OWN BALLS."
Silence.
Somewhere in the distance another piece of the palace fell.
"You..." Ayame tried to find words. "Do you understand that this…"
"GENIUS? YES!"
"I rather thought about 'this is fucking idiotic'."
Sakura slowly poured sake directly into her mouth through the tap built into the barrel body.
"OK. Let's say. How will this make you stronger?"
Hikaru thought about it.
"Well... um…"
"ALL OF US"
A golden inscription flashed above his head:
[New title: HOLY VIRGIN]
[Bonus: +500% to all parameters in the absence of balls]
[New skill: "Aura of Purity" - all enemies within a 1 km radius receive the "Sexual Frustration" debuff]
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Well," Hikaru smiled joyfully. "Does anyone know where the nearest doctor is?"
…
Village barber-surgeon.
An old grandfather with shaking hands and eyes full of horror.
"Young man... are you sure…"
"ABSOLUTELY!"
"But…"
"DO IT, OLD DAMMIT!"
SKR-R-R-R-R
"AAAAAAAAA"
(It was the barber shouting)
Meanwhile, in the dungeon:
Kuroi Kirei, now more reminiscent of a cyborg killer than a man, suddenly stopped.
"..."
"Master?" his student, a teenager with blades instead of nails, became wary.
"Something... has changed."
"Hikaru?"
"No... this is…"
Kuroi suddenly grimaced with a strange feeling.
"Why did I... remember my first love…"
"..."
"..."
"Master, blood is flowing from your eyes."
"THESE ARE NOT TEARS!"
Back to Hikaru:
[System message: Castration successful!]
[New options:
Strength: 6969
Agility: 6969
Invulnerability: ∞]
[Hidden Ability Unlocked: Idiot Purity - Your stupidity is now contagious]
Hikaru stood up from the operating table.
"Wow."
Ayame and Sakura looked at him with a new feeling - a mixture of horror and strange respect.
"Well..." said Sakura. "You are now officially the most powerful moron in the universe."
"THANK YOU!"
Somewhere in the distance there was an explosion—another accidental training of a new skill.
Kuroi Kirei, even with his new upgrades, was clearly not prepared for what awaited him.
Somewhere between the worlds, in a space where even time flowed sideways, stood two creatures.
On one side is Kuroi Kirei.
His body was now an abstraction of pain: his eyes were replaced by spinning saws, his spine was a chain of sharpened daggers, and even his hair had become liquid nitrogen, dripping onto the floor with a hiss.
On the other hand, Hikaru.
Holy simplicity in its purest form: pants (already full of holes from the aura of purity), the shining halo of the "Eternal Virgin" above his head, and an absolutely empty expression on his face
"YOU..." Kuroi's voice creaked like an ungreased guillotine. "EVEN AFTER EVERYTHING... YOU REMAIN AN IDIOT."
"Well, yes," Hikaru nodded.
Silence.
BANG BANG!
They rushed forward at the same time.
Kuroi attacked first - his hand turned into a drill made of hundreds of razors, piercing Hikaru's stomach.
"Gah!"
"DIE! DIE! DIE!"
But Hikaru only yawned and slapped the maniac on the forehead.
Ding!
"HUH?" Kuroi looked at his chest, where the "Good Boy" sticker now appeared.
"I... WHAT IS THIS…"
"Minus 50% damage from shame," Hikaru explained.
Hikaru crossed his arms.
"My turn."
He took a step...
And the pants suddenly fell off.
"Oh."
Kuroi froze.
"..."
"..."
"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?!" he yelled, pointing at Hikaru's dignity, which was glowing with a golden light.
"Oh, this is the 'Virgin Sword'," Hikaru explained. "+999 to charisma."
"THIS IS THE SAME…"
"Yes, he is alive."
The sword twitched.
Kuroi jumped back in horror.
At that moment, Ayame, who was trying to help, slipped on a pool of blood.
"Oh!"
Her kimono caught on a protruding piece of debris.
T-t-time!
"..."
"..."
"..."
Hikaru turned around.
Ayame stood in what her mother gave birth to.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"OH."
His "Virgin Sword" twitched harder.
Kuroi, taking advantage of the moment, rushed to the attack:
"WILD BLOW OF SHAME!"
The blade pierced...
But not to Hikaru.
In Ayame.
Which...
By a strange coincidence...
Fell straight onto the Sword.
Smack…
Silence.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Oops."
The world shook.
"WHAT'S HAPPENING?" Kuroi yelled.
[System notification: Rule violation - the hero lost his virginity]
[Cancel all bonuses]
[Initiating the Apocalypse]
Hikaru looked down.
"Oh."
Ayame looked at him.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"SORRY?"
Crack.
Reality began to crumble.
Kuroi Kirei, despite all his hatred, suddenly laughed:
"YOU...YOU LOST BECAUSE OF THIS?!"
"Well..." Hikaru shrugged. "Yes."
BANG!
The universe collapsed.
Emptiness.
Absolute silence.
Somewhere in the darkness a window appeared:
[Game Over]
[Cause of Death: Sex]
Hikaru, now a normal spirit, scratched his head.
"Well... at least I tried."