“Is this distance enough? If not, I can give you some more room?”
“No, that won't be necessary. This is fine.”
...
On the arena stage, although Mayuzono Mitsuaki was red-hot with rage at Alisa's arrogance, he maintained the smile on his face as he replied.
Hypocrite.
This display was something not only Alisa but even Lan Qingyou looked down upon.
Witches detested hypocrites.
“Is that so? Then, can our battle begin?”
Alisa tilted her chin up slightly.
“Of course.”
Mayuzono Mitsuaki nodded with a smile.
“I see...”
As she spoke, Alisa took out a chair and sat down. Then, she reached out a hand toward Mayuzono Mitsuaki.
“Go ahead and attack, then.”
“Huh?”
Mayuzono Mitsuaki's smile froze on his face.
He had originally thought that since it was a battle, the opponent would surely take the initiative to attack him immediately.
Instead, she had unceremoniously taken out a chair and sat there, doing absolutely nothing?
Wait, this was completely against the normal way of doing things.
“I watched your previous battle where you defeated Number 333. You lured the enemy in and then performed a counterattack;”
“Those spirits you sprayed out just now... they should be poisonous, shouldn't they?”
“Actually, I should say that the area around you is a small-scale poisonous domain you've created yourself;”
“Any living creature that enters that poisonous domain will die of poisoning.”
“Although I haven't done a detailed analysis and am not entirely sure of the toxin's composition, judging by the way Number 333 looked when you killed her, it should be a neurotoxin.”
Alisa showed no signs of agitation regarding the death of a witch under her command. Instead, she sat there and analyzed Mayuzono Mitsuaki and his fighting style with clear logic.
Counterattacking.
Waiting for the opponent to strike first, then using a prepared trap to lure the enemy deep before completing the kill.
This was likely a fighting style many people hadn't considered.
So, when his combat method was exposed by Alisa, even Mayuzono Mitsuaki, with his standard ‘gentle’ smile, couldn't quite keep it together.
While the smile on his face didn't exactly vanish, it became considerably stiffer than before.
“What are you talking about? I was just thirsty and had a little drink.”
Mayuzono Mitsuaki, having been seen through, threw away the liquor bottle in his hand and argued back at Alisa, attempting a final struggle.
After all, his fighting style was just like that.
Having developed a path dependency, he wouldn't even know how to take the initiative to attack if he wanted to.
“You should know that while the Witch race might lack raw combat power, we cannot lack analytical skills.”
Seeing that the opponent was still trying to make excuses even now, Alisa shook her head and stood up from her chair.
“I've been observing you since then. In fact, I could simply sit here and wait for your toxins to completely evaporate.”
“Once that layer of barrier is gone, it will be the moment of your death.”
“However, I'm a bit impatient to watch the other battles now, so... do you want to surrender?”
Standing up, Alisa began walking toward Mayuzono Mitsuaki's location.
Closer! Very close!
Two more steps! Just two more steps!
The large man, who had been sweating profusely from Alisa's words, felt the fire that had almost been extinguished flare up again when he saw her stand up and walk toward him.
But then...
Alisa stopped two steps away from the edge of the poison circle he had laid down.
Damn it!
Seeing his newly ignited ‘flame of hope’ doused like this, he cursed inwardly.
“Didn't I say it? The Witch race is a race that understands analysis very well. I only needed a glance to understand the range of your domain; it poses no threat to me at all.”
“So, I'll ask again... do you want to surrender?”
Standing outside the circle, Alisa placed one hand on her hip and asked Mayuzono Mitsuaki inside the circle with a grand wave of her other hand.
Surrender?
Right! There was still the option of surrendering!
In any case, he couldn't die in a place like this. There were still many things the sect needed him to do.
And so.
After less than three seconds of mental preparation, Mayuzono Mitsuaki made a difficult decision.
I—
!!!?
Mayuzono Mitsuaki, who had intended to open his mouth to surrender, found that he couldn't make a sound!
No matter how hard he tried or how many times he attempted, he could only manage to ‘open his mouth.’
After that, not a single word could be uttered.
“I see. I didn't expect you to be such a tough person. In that case, let me send you on your way!”
Seeing that Mayuzono Mitsuaki remained silent, Alisa shook her head in disappointment, then nodded as if in recognition.
Hearing that Alisa was getting serious, Mayuzono Mitsuaki frantically clawed at his own neck with his hands.
But this action did nothing to help him speak; it only tore the skin on his neck.
Ugh...
Thud...
Mayuzono Mitsuaki collapsed to the ground, losing his life in a horrifying state—hands still scratching at his neck, eyes wide, and mouth agape.
From start to finish, Alisa had never approached him.
Compared to the previous battles involving the other witches, the bizarre nature of this fighting style was no less unsettling.
“Referee, it's time for you to announce it.”
After glancing down at Mayuzono Mitsuaki's corpse with disdain, Alisa turned her head toward the Transparent Man standing not far away.
However, at this moment, the Transparent Man was also dazed.
Uh... wait...
Can't you all fight like a real battle, with special effects at full blast and magic flying everywhere, to give the transmigrators watching from the outside a little bit of that quarter-finals shock?
Why is everyone finishing their battles in minutes, as if they're rushing to be reincarnated?
It was true.
Although it seemed like Alisa had spoken a lot to Mayuzono Mitsuaki.
In reality, from the moment the battle was announced to start until Alisa called for the referee, only about a minute or two had passed.
It wasn't even enough time to cook a pack of instant noodles properly.
According to his plan, this battle was supposed to follow the first one and get the atmosphere completely heated up.
As it turned out, the first match took less than ten seconds, and the second match took less than two minutes.
At this speed, forget about him, a mere worker; even the audience watching outside felt somewhat confused.
Are we here to watch a fight?
Is this just going through the motions?
Yes, some people even thought it was entirely just for show.
If the organizer hadn't been the world consciousness, someone would have probably accused them of having a staged fight by now.
【Ahem, well then, congratulations to the Witch of the Workshop, Alisa, on winning the second match!】
【Now, let us interview Alisa and ask how she feels at this moment.】
Since none of you want to present a visual feast for the audience, then he could only try to make up for it in other ways.
However...
“Sorry, I don't have time. Go ask him.”
Alisa tilted her chin, gesturing toward Mayuzono Mitsuaki's corpse.
Then, with a tap of her finger in the air, a glowing portal with a slight vortex appeared before her.
And on the other side of that portal, one could clearly see Lan Qingyou sitting in the resting area, cracking sunflower seeds...
Rate on N.U.
