The unknown murderous maniac died at Moyu's hands, and the crisis was over.
However, Monica felt no joy at having survived. She could only curl up as if walking on thin ice, not daring to look at Moyu again.
How exactly had that murderous maniac died?
Frightened to the point of losing all ability to think, she had not witnessed Moyu kill the man.
She had only suddenly heard the sound of a throat bone breaking, followed by the dull thud of something heavy hitting the ground. When she looked over, she found that the man had become a corpse.
Then she saw Moyu smile.
Monica, already on the verge of collapse, instantly realized—
The absurdly handsome boy before her might be an even greater "monster" than that murderous maniac.
Moyu did not care what Monica was thinking. His smile slowly faded, and he sat cross-legged beside the corpse.
"Let's do a brief review."
With his arms folded, Moyu tilted his head slightly as he looked at the dead man's unclosed eyes. Then he shut his own eyes and recalled the battle that had lasted less than a minute.
Setting aside his proficiency with Nen Ability, the opponent had been an exceedingly crafty fellow.
He had first pretended not to notice Moyu hiding nearby, then deliberately struck up a conversation with Monica. Finally, halfway through speaking, he had abruptly launched an attack at Moyu to seize the initiative.
Although both sides knew there was another Nen Ability user here, this killer who delighted in slaughter had not been willing to let even a single opportunity for deception slip by just to gain the first strike.
"I was already prepared for the possibility of my position being exposed. But in my initial plan... there hadn't been the preliminary step of 'talking to the bait first.' Instead, I considered that he might use the 'bait' to launch a preemptive attack, such as throwing the 'bait' directly at me."
"He didn't do that. Instead, he used his abruptly cut-off words as the moment to attack. It wasn't ineffective, but I was already on guard."
"After that, I deliberately acted flustered by taking advantage of my age, but it had almost no effect. Even the weapon I hid beforehand was noticed immediately."
"He was perceptive and cautious."
"Still, the trap plan I had prepared in advance accounted for those 'worst-case outcomes,' so the overall process wouldn't change."
"My only advantage was that he didn't know about the Shadow Trump Card. Only by exploiting that information gap could I end the battle at the lowest Price."
"The one thing I didn't expect was that he would trade one hand for a chance to restrain me. He clearly held an overwhelming advantage in Manifestation Aura, yet he still used such a ruthless method to speed up the battle."
"But because of that... I didn't need to put on a performance that might have seemed clumsy to him, and naturally, there was no risk of him discovering my 'intentions.'"
"So his decision actually helped me use the information gap surrounding the Shadow Trump Card to end this battle faster and with less effort."
"If we had fought head-on, the gap in Manifestation Aura and physical ability would have meant I could only be pressed down and beaten."
"Maybe I could have regained some advantage with Soul Echo, but I couldn't rule out the possibility that he also possessed a Nen Ability."
"Overall, his aura reserves, basic Nen techniques, physical qualities, strength, explosive power, and other aspects were all far superior to mine..."
"Yet I was able to win so easily."
"Sure enough, using an information gap and strategy to make up for differences in raw power and defeat the strong while weak might be the most interesting part of Nen Ability battles."
"The reason I found pleasure and satisfaction in it... wasn't merely because it was interesting. It was also because defeating the strong while weak was, in itself, something that brought satisfaction."
Moyu opened his eyes, looked at the man's face, and smiled.
"You let me experience all of this firsthand. Though our actual exchange in battle lasted only about '10 seconds,' I'm certain that these '10 seconds' will become the most important nourishment for the direction of my Nen Ability in the future."
With that, Moyu slowly stood up and brushed the dust from his pants.
"Unknown murderer, thank you for this encounter."
Moyu withdrew his gaze from the man's corpse.
Winning this battle and reviewing it afterward—
Not only helped Moyu understand what he wanted, but also gave him a clearer understanding of the "variables" that existed in Nen Ability battles.
He had only just awakened Nen, yet he had defeated an opponent who was not weak...
Moyu was not complacent.
Because he knew that beyond the Four Major Principles of Ten, Zetsu, Ren, and Hatsu, there were even more advanced application techniques.
Gyo, which wrapped Nen around weapons or external objects to increase their durability and offensive power.
In, which concealed the presence of Nen to catch opponents off guard.
Gyo, which concentrated aura in one place to increase offensive and defensive power and could see through In.
En, which spread aura outward from oneself as the center to sense everything within its range.
Ken, which covered the entire body with the maximum amount of Manifestation Aura to achieve the highest level of offense and defense.
Ryu, which rapidly adjusted the flow of aura for swift offensive and defensive exchanges.
Ko, which gathered all released aura into a single point.
The existence of these advanced application techniques made Nen Ability battles even more complex and unpredictable.
Moyu knew very well that he was still only a novice.
To better handle any battles he might encounter in the future, he would do everything he could to continuously deepen his understanding of Nen.
The Temple returned to silence.
Moyu stepped over the corpse and came to stand before Monica.
"Monica, it's all right now."
As he spoke, he examined Monica's injuries.
Her clothes were torn in several places and stained with blood.
The exposed skin on her body was covered in cuts from branches and leaves.
If there had only been a few wounds, it would not have mattered to leave them alone. But there were so many that they needed treatment.
"Hm?"
After examining Monica's condition, Moyu found that she was still curled into a ball, her trembling plainly visible.
"Was she scared stupid? Still, that's understandable. That guy poured his killing intent completely into his aura. It wouldn't be strange for an ordinary person standing too close to be frightened to death."
Moyu muttered softly.
He still did not know that he was the one who had frightened Monica.
"Can you hear me? It's all right now, Monica."
Moyu casually patted Monica on the shoulder.
The pat was clearly very light, and he had deliberately avoided her wounds.
Yet Monica reacted as though she had been electrocuted. Her whole body first stiffened, then her eyes rolled back as she fainted.
Moyu stared at Monica, utterly baffled by how decisively she had fainted.
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