You Still Owe Me a Victory

"Shhh..."

Amidst the sound of a blade sliding against its scabbard, Kurusu Kunoichi slowly drew his longsword.

"Kunoichi?" Kibito Aragane called out in surprise.

"What do you think you're doing!" Ikoma demanded, his voice sharp with accusation.

The surrounding samurai exchanged glances, looking at one another in confusion.

Even Fang Li, watching Kurusu's movements, furrowed his brow, momentarily unsure of what the man intended.

Ignoring the reactions of those around him, Kurusu stepped forward, leveling his blade at Fang Li, his gaze sharpening.

"You want to save those two Kabaneri, don't you?"

Kurusu's words made Fang Li's frown deepen, but he answered honestly.

"At the very least, I won't stand by and watch them die at your hands."

Neither Mumei nor Ikoma had known Fang Li for even an hour.

That span of time was so brief that they hadn't even had a chance to grow familiar.

Logically, Fang Li had no reason to concern himself with Mumei and Ikoma. If he simply obeyed the samurai, he could walk away unscathed, return to the Main God Space with abundant rewards.

But Fang Li couldn't ignore this.

Fang Li, who felt nothing toward "death," naturally wouldn't be moved by sympathy to save innocent Mumei and Ikoma.

However, Fang Li owed Mumei and Ikoma a debt.

Without Mumei, Fang Li might never have reached the garage or boarded the Iron Fortress. Moreover, she had later done her utmost to cover for him, allowing him to slaughter through the Kabane horde and reap massive gains.

Without Ikoma, when Fang Li had been caught by a Kabane earlier, he would have been bitten, turned into a monster, and then overwhelmed by the incoming Kabane army, dying without a burial place.

To put it bluntly, Fang Li's survival until now, his acquisition of over twenty thousand Exchange Points, and even his completion of Main Mission Two—all of it was thanks to Mumei and Ikoma.

This debt, Fang Li had to repay.

"Besides, I already promised that little girl that I'd handle what comes next."

Fang Li looked at Kurusu, speaking each word clearly.

"So I'm going to protect these two."

The entire scene fell silent.

Ikoma's gaze toward Fang Li had completely changed.

It was filled with gratitude.

Kurusu's expression, however, remained largely unchanged. Hearing Fang Li's words, his eyes grew even sharper.

"Then you'll have to get through me first."

With that, Kurusu gripped the hilt of his sword with both hands, his piercing gaze shooting toward Fang Li like an arrow.

"You still owe me a decisive match."

Hearing this, Fang Li finally understood what Kurusu intended to do.

"I see. Simple and crude, isn't it?" Fang Li let out a light laugh, but his hand reached behind him, gripping his Dagger. "And if I win?"

"I won't interfere anymore." Kurusu's voice was cold. "Whether you can convince the rest is none of my concern."

"Kunoichi?" Kibito Aragane was stunned.

"Kunoichi!" the samurai cried out in shock.

In response, Kurusu gave the samurai only one sentence.

"Don't get in my way. This is between him and me. Once the victor is decided, do whatever you want. But until then, no one interferes!"

The crowd fell speechless.

At the same time, the system's familiar chime arrived belatedly.

"Number 11273 has triggered a Rank B Side Mission: The Beloved Decisive Match."

"Mission Objective: Defeat the story character Kurusu Kunoichi."

"Victory Reward: 5000 Exchange Points."

"Failure Penalty: None."

"Note: In the Instance World, only failure of a Main Mission incurs penalties; failure of a Side Mission carries no penalty. However, depending on the situation, mission failure may provoke actions from story characters."

"Reminder for the Main God Envoy: Should this mission fail, you will be regarded as an enemy by the story character, and will be shot to death alongside the story character Mumei and the story character Ikoma."

The prompt from the space made Fang Li's eyes sharpen as well.

"Wait!" Ikoma couldn't help stepping forward, shouting at Fang Li. "This has nothing to do with you! You don't need to go this far for us!"

"Nothing to do with me?" Fang Li gave an ambiguous smile, shaking his head. "Whether it does or not isn't for you to decide. It's for me to say."

With that, Fang Li gave Ikoma no further chance to speak. He stepped forward, coming face to face with Kurusu.

Just like the standoff on the training platform three days ago.

Fang Li and Kurusu Kunoichi's gazes met silently, yet they sparked a fierce clash unlike before.

"Let me warn you," Kurusu Kunoichi said coldly. "This time, even if you use your hand to block, I won't stop."

"Then let me warn you too," Fang Li replied, quietly drawing his Dagger and lifting his head to look at Kurusu Kunoichi. "This time, I won't hold back about whether I take your life."

The moment his words fell, Fang Li's eyes suddenly transformed into Ice-Blue Demon Eyes.

Mystic Eyes of Death Perception—Activate!

"You...?!" Kurusu Kunoichi's eyes abruptly tightened, his voice shocked. "Your eyes..."

A faint smirk curled at the corner of Fang Li's mouth, and paired with those Ice-Blue Demon Eyes, it looked eerily sinister.

"You'd better be careful—these eyes can definitely take your life!"

In the blink of an eye.

Just like the previous spar, this time, Fang Li was the first to move.

"Slap—!"

With a crisp sound, Fang Li stomped hard, his form instantly bursting forward like a blurry shadow, streaking toward Kurusu Kunoichi at extreme speed.

That speed was naturally much faster than in the last spar.

After all, unlike before, Fang Li had now acquired a skill, gaining a dual boost to both movement speed and attack speed.

Unaware of this, Kurusu Kunoichi saw the scene and formed a different thought.

"So he really was hiding his strength!"

Thinking this, Kurusu Kunoichi suddenly raised his longsword, stepping forward instead of back, and stomped the ground just as hard, charging to meet Fang Li.

Compared to Fang Li, Kurusu Kunoichi's speed was no less impressive.

Thus, their charges erased the mere few meters between them in an instant.

In the span of a single breath for those around, Fang Li and Kurusu Kunoichi had already met.

"Hyaaaaaaah—!"

Amid the shout, the sharp Dagger and the keen longsword simultaneously sliced through the air.

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