* Featured Character
Haphuco ♂ - The main character
Sanda ♂ - Haphuco's schoolmate
Lucky ♂ - A staff of the Hakyo Assassin Gym, an Orthopedic Doctor
Jowi ♂ - The owner of the Orphanage where Haphuco and Biani lived during their childhood
Barami ♀ - Mayo's daughter who Haphuco is working as a Bodyguard for.
Mai ♀ - A 12 years old girl, Sanda's sidekick
Hakyo - The name of the city where Haphuco is living in
As mentioned in Chapter 8, a Duel is a battle of honour between two Assassins where they pull out everything they have to beat each other...
even KILL them.
All to prove that one person is better, one person is superior than the other.
A proof needs a witness...
As a matter of fact, a Duel is often taken place with the observation of other people, the audience.
Sometimes, when the Duel is serious enough, there will be a person called the Harbinger from the Organisation to direct the fight.
It's rare for two Assassins to challenge each other to a Duel.
Because of the consequences that the battle can end up with.
But because Sanda has challenged Haphuco to a Duel so frequently during the time they were at the School.
Sanda : Hey Haphuco, let's have a Duel !
Sanda : Haphuco, how's about a Duel ! ( Not even a question )
Duel, Duel and Duel...
The "sarced" word was kept firing from Sanda's mouth...
And the answer of Haphuco is always :
Haphuco : Sure !
Haphuco : Why not ?!
And so to people who have witnessed the frequent Duels between Haphuco and Sanda...
Their Duels are just like a practice match...
Where each other tries to beat the hell out of other !
Because of that reason, there is no need for anyone to witness their Duel right now.
Which is not supposed to be like that but both Haphuco and Sanda have no such care about that.
Sanda takes out his Specialized Weapon.
The word Specialized Weapon has been mentioned in Chapter 8, like the Specialized Weapon of Biani is Dagger.
Nothing deep about the term, Specialized Weapon is simply a weapon that the user is most confident with.
To Sanda...
It's Brass Knuckle !
Brass knuckles (also referred to as brass knucks, knuckledusters, iron fist and paperweight, among other names) are a melee weapon used primarily in hand-to-hand combat.
The weapon is designed to preserve and concentrate a punch's force by directing it toward a harder and smaller contact area, they result in increased tissue disruption, including an increased likelihood of fracturing the intended target's bones on impact.
Basically...
You get more f*cked when being hit by a brass knuckle wearing fist than normal.
This is Sanda's Specialized Weapon.
Seeing the Brass Knuckle, Haphuco smiles.
Haphuco : Something never changes, huh, Sanda ?
Haphuco : Except your beard though.
Haphuco : Why did you grow your beard ?
Haphuco : They made you look like an old man.
But Sanda is not here for sh*t talking.
Sanda : Where's your weapon, Haphuco ?
Haphuco : Huh ?
Sanda : Take out your Specialized Weapon, Haphuco.
Haphuco : ...
Haphuco : Sigh...
Haphuco ( Raise his fists ) : My fists are already enough, Sanda.
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Bullsh*t !
Haphuco : !
Sanda : What's the bluff for ?
Sanda : You are never the arrogant type.
Sanda : And I am sure you don't underestimate me so much to think that...
Sanda : You can beat me with your bare hands.
He is right...
Sanda : Why ?
Sanda : Why don't you want to go all out, Haphuco ?
Sanda : It doesn't make any sense !
Sanda : You are ruining this Duel, Haphuco !
Sanda : Take
Sanda : Your
Sanda : Weapon
Sanda : OUT !!!
Haphuco : ...
Haphuco : You have to beat me down first...
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Alright...
Sanda : So be it !
I will beat you to the point that you have no choice but show your true color, Haphuco.
BATTLE START
Fushhhhhh !!!
Sanda : What's the f*ck !
Right when the battle begun, Haphuco instantly threw something like a capsule-shaped metal lump towards Sanda.
To Haphuco's idea, holding this metal on his left hand whenever his hand is available will help practice his non-dominant hand.
This is one of the weapons Haphuco uses in combat, used to throw to the opponent.
These metal blocks thrown at people only hurt a little but do not cause any serious injury to the opponent.
So why does Haphuco use these metal blocks.
That's actually the point...
And also to create surprise.
Taking advantage of Sanda having to dodge and wondering about the metal block Haphuco had just thrown, Haphuco quickly approached Sanda using the Blitz Footstep.
Unlike the Silent Footstep mentioned in Chapter 5 and 6 which focus on making sure your movement make the minimum sound, therefore slow, Blitz Footstep focuses on reaching the destination as fast as possible.
Therefore, the sound it makes is like an explosion.
Sanda receives a heavy punch to his face from Haphuco.
But it's not very effective.
Sanda : Is that all you have, Haphuco ?!
Haphuco : !
Unfazed by the punch, Sanda then grabs Haphuco's shoulder, intending to give him a knee to the face.
Haphuco managed to uses his hands to block the attack.
But...
Why's it so hurt !
He clearly blocked the attack.
It turns out that behind his jacket and jeans, Sanda has metal plates on his knees and elbows.
And if you look closely, the top of Sanda's shoes are also covered with a layer of metal to increase damage when colliding with opponents.
Of course, Sanda is not bothered to tell Haphuco about that.
Sanda : My turn !
It's Sanda's turn to attack.
Sanda is someone people called a martial artist.
Boxing, Karate, Muay Thai, Taekwondo,...
He has learnt and will keep learning more and more about different types of martial art.
Throughout time, Sanda has constantly trained to get better at collaborating the martial arts to each other.
Sanda took a defensive stance, closed himself off, jumped up and down, and then approached Haphuco with karate's footwork.
Among every martial art, karate is one of top when it comes to footwork.
Karate's footwork is great not because it's flashy, but because it's practical, fast, and deeply connected to the art's philosophy of striking efficiently while minimizing exposure.
In karate, people move using controlled, grounded steps—often sliding the feet to maintain balance, stay ready to attack or defend, and quickly shift directions while keeping a stable stance.
As soon as he approached, Sanda launched his attacks.
Sanda's punches were both fast and dangerous.
It would be hurt if I got hit.
Furthermore, Sanda not only used his fists but also used kicking techniques from Muay Thai and Taekwondo.
Taekwondo specializes in acrobatic, high, and spinning kicks while Muay Thai focuses on practical, powerful, and low-to-mid-range kicks, especially those using the shin for maximum damage.
By combining Taekwondo and Muay Thai, Sanda has an incredibly versatile and complete kicking game.
However...
Lock-On Mode !!!
Despite receiving many attacks, Haphuco still managed to dodge by activating Lock-On Mode, a technique that makes his eyes highly focused to slow down everything around him and thus make dodging easier.
This is a very difficult technique but Haphuco manages to learn it from Jowi.
Haphuco : Your techniques get more and more diverse and fluent, Sanda !
Haphuco : You must have been training constantly.
Prasing the opponent during a fight...
When that bastard himself has not even pulled out his weapon ?
It pisses Sanda off !
Sanda : When will you...
Sanda : WHEN WILL YOU FIGHT SERIOUSLY, HAPHUCO !
Haphuco : ...
Haphuco : I told you...
Haphuco : I don't want to...
Sanda : ...
Sanda : F*ck then !
Sanda : I will force you to use your weapon !
Haphuco : Huh ?!
As hinted in Chapter 5, Haphuco is quite sensitive to the Bloodlust, something like an aura of killing intent.
The Bloodlust from Sanda, emitted right from the beginning of the battle, now grows exponentially.
Haphuco can clearly feel it.
Finally, Sanda activates his Kill Zone !
Kill Zone Activated !!!
Boxing Ring
The surroundings suddenly changed into a Boxing Ring where Haphuco was placed in the corner.
Kill Zone is formed when the user's Bloodlust reaches a certain level, causing the surrounding area to transform into an environment that reflects the user's playing style, affecting the opponent.
For example :
Kill Zone of Sanda is Boxing Ring.
The opponent will feel like they are being stuck in the corner of a boxing ring.
Being in the corner of the boxing ring is bad because it limits your movement and makes you an easier target for your opponent's attacks.
Being affected, despite still being in an open area, Haphuco strangely feels limited, as if he is actually in the corner of the boxing ring.
It's time to beat him up !
And so Sanda launches a series of attacks on Haphuco.
Punch
High Kick
Low Kick
Knee Kick
Moves after moves
Keep firing towards Haphuco.
Haphuco struggles to block one move from another.
The only reason why he can keep up to the attacks now is because of his Lock-On Mode Technique.
But the technique itself still has its limitation.
Eventually, because the attacks are too intense...
Haphuco can not defend anymore.
Haphuco : Ah !
Punched to the stomach...
Kicked to the legs...
Hit to the face.
And so Haphuco received a series of blows to the body ending with a punch straight to the face sending him flying towards the wall.
Sanda : Hah...hah...
Sanda : IS THIS ENOUGH, HAPHUCO !!!
No response from Haphuco.
Sanda : ARE YOU SERIOUS NOW ?!!
Still no response from Haphuco.
Sanda : Hah...hah...
Sanda : What's about the mayor's daughter ?
Sanda : Are you going to let her DIE ?!
Haphuco : Cough !
Haphuco spills out something...
It's his blood.
It is all spilled on his hand.
Haphuco : Sanda...
Haphuco : If you want me to show you what I have this badly...
Realizing he had no other choice in this situation...
And also for Miss Barami...
Haphuco decided to do as Sanda said.
Haphuco : I will show you...
Sanda : Good !
Each Assassin usually has their own Specialized Weapon like Sanda's Brass Knuckle.
But this Haphuco guy during his time at School often tried out all kinds of weapons for the simple reason that it was fun to use many different weapons.
So Sanda was very curious to know what Haphuco's Specialized Weapon was.
But then Haphuco says :
Haphuco : Hey, Sanda...
Haphuco : Do me a favour...
Haphuco : Don't die...
And he then pulls out something from his pocket which is...
a Box Cutter !
...
Huh ?!
Sanda is shocked.
That's paper cutting tool is Haphuco's Specialized Weapon ?!
It's ridiculous.
If you look closely though...
The Box Cutter on Haphuco's hand looks different from the average box cutter we see.
It looks tailor-made.
In addition, its blade...
It's certainly not something only sharp enough for cutting paper...
But it's still ridiculous.
Confused
Curious
But then Sanda feels a shiver.
Because the atmosphere from Haphuco has completely changed.
I don't want do to this...
But...
"ToOk YoU LoNG EnouGH !" An unknown voice echoes.
"FIGhtIng IS fUn..."
"BUt KIllinG is BETTER !"
"RigHT ?!"
In front of Sanda is a face that not even him has seen from Haphuco before.
No expression on his face.
Simply a cold face...
And so, without a need to talk, Haphuco attacks.
Approaching Sanda fast, Haphuco launches the first slashes.
"Dammit, so this is his real speed ?!" Sanda thought while dodging the attacks.
Before this, Haphuco simply moved to dodge Sanda's attacks.
But now...
He is going full offensive.
"But it is still manageable..." Sanda concludes.
Using a Box Cutter as your Specialized Weapon ?
That's crazy !
But it is still a knife.
And Sanda clearly knows how to handle it.
Knives are very dangerous at close range, just one cut can cause serious or fatal injury.
Therefore, the first step is always to avoid, maintain a safe distance, and not rush into a direct confrontation.
When the opponent stabs or slashes, the knife will rush forward.
The moment the knife is pulled back to prepare for the next attack often reveals an opening in the defense or slows down the momentum.
This is the moment you can take advantage of to approach, lock the weapon, or control.
Once close, the goal is to control the knife holder by any means (grip the hand, lock the joint, lose the weapon).
Then finish him !
That's the plan inside Sanda's head.
However...
Sanda : Uh !!!
Sanda has got hit !
Sanda : What's the hell ?
Sanda : I am sure that I have moved away from the knife's range.
Yeah...
But it was the INITIAL knife's range.
You see...
A characteristic of a box cutter is that it can move in and move out.
This means that with just one action of moving a finger, Haphuco can easily change the length of the knife.
So when Sanda was familiar with or more correctly speaking, was LED to be familiar with the range of the knife at the beginning...
Haphuco changed its length.
Making it longer.
And so, Sanda got slashed simply because his prediction for the range has been faulty.
Sanda : Dammit, that's surprising !
This is the first characterisitc of Haphuco's Box Cutter.
But the Box Cutter of Haphuco has more than that.
As Haphuco swings the knife from the top to the bottom, Sanda manages to dodge the attack.
Taking advantage of Haphuco having moved his body to the ground, Sanda thought it is his opportunity to counter.
But...
Fushhhhhh !!!
Sanda : What ?!
From below, Haphuco swung an upward slash that grazed Sanda's chin, surprising him.
In just a moment, Hapuco switched to holding the Box Cutter in reverse grip.
This is the second characteristic of Haphuco's Box Cutter.
Haphuco's Box Cutter has two ends so Haphuco can pull the knife straight up or straight down and freely use the paper cutter in a forward or reverse grip as desired.
An incredibly flexible and full of surprise element weapon.
"That weapon is just too suitable for that bastard !" Sanda thought.
Haphuco continues to approach Sanda.
The tide of the match has turned 180 degree since Haphuco pulled out his Specialized Weapon.
"Here's he come again !" Sanda tries to gain focus after several surprises.
Fushhhhhh !!!
Another capsule-shaped metal lump has been thrown towards Sanda.
"Damiit" Sanda can not stop cursing as he dodges the metal.
The introduction of Haphuco's Box Cutter has made him completely forget about the piece of metal that Haphuco threw at him at the beginning.
Like mentioned, the point of throwing these pieces of metal is to create surprise.
And the metal has fulfilled its job in this case.
Haphuco immediately approaches Sanda, apparently intending to deliver a high slash towards Sanda.
Sanda, in a hurried state, has thought so but...
Fushhhhhh !!!
Sanda : Ah !!!
Taking no time, Haphuco lowers his body to target Sanda's legs.
V-Slash !
A slash down on Sanda's left leg and then a slash up on Sanda's right leg.
Creating a V-shaped slash.
It was a super effective move.
Sanda quickly retreated but it was clear that the blow had greatly affected Sanda's ability to move.
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Heh !
Sanda : F*cking hell, Haphuco !
His legs are shaking.
Sanda : I have not seen you for a while...
Sanda : But what's monster have you become ?!
Sanda : I did not expect that you would hide such skills behind, Haphuco, you bastard !
Despite being disadvantagous, Sanda is feeling so excited.
That's something that maybe only Assassins can understand each other.
The joy of fighting.
Even if you are entirely disadvantagous.
But there is one thing that would make him even more excited than ever.
Haphuco's Kill Zone
He must have one.
With that thought, Sanda shouts :
Sanda : Now, then...
Sanda : Show me, Haphuco !
Sanda : Your Kill Zone !!!
Wrong move, man !
Wrong move...
And from Haphuco's cold face...
A round smile forms.
Kill Zone Activated !!!
???
Sanda : ?!
Haphuco's Kill Zone has been activated, hasn't it ?
But what Sanda is seeing...
...
...
Is nothing !
Just a pitch a black !
Sanda feels so confused...
And scared ( ? )
Sanda : Am I...
Sanda : Scared ?
Suddenly, Sanda saw a light.
Sanda : A light ?
Sanda : Huh ?
...
And he gets slashed.
Slashes after slashes.
And what he sees...
Is Haphuco smiling.
"ONe SLaSH..."
"Two SlaSHES..."
"tHRee sLASHes !"
"GIVE HIM MORE !"
"GIVE HIM MORE !"
What happens is completely brutal.
Sanda helplessly receives several slashes from Haphuco.
He tries to resist but it's helpless.
A thought eventually arises inside his head.
Am I gonna die ?
He is not scared of the death.
He is an Assassin.
He just did not expect it would be from his rival...
And his best friend.
Haphuco !
"KILL HIM !!!"
A thrust to the neck of a no longer resisting Sanda.
The thrust has been launched !
Bumpppppp !!!
But before the blade can reach Sanda's neck, Haphuco uses one hand to stop his other knife holding hand...
From piercing Sanda's neck !
A brief silence happens...
Before Haphuco opens his mouth.
Haphuco : I almost killed you, man...
The face of Haphuco.
The usual caring eyes of Haphuco has returned after a moment of fading away for some reasons.
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Yeah, you did...
His shock...
His fear ( ? )
have been thankfully replaced by...
Relief.
BATTLE END !!!
Haphuco WIN !
Haphuco puts Sanda against the wall.
His face is filled with worry.
Haphuco : Oh man, I wish we have some bandange here...
The man who had just mercilessly slashed Sanda was now worried about the wounds he had caused.
"This guy is ridiculous..." Sanda thinks.
The same as what he has shown him today.
While Haphuco is wondering how can he treat Sanda's wounds, Sanda says :
Sanda : Don't worry...
Sanda : I will call Lucky.
Lucky is the staff of the Assassin Gym that Haphuco met on Chapter 8.
He is an Orthopedic Doctor.
Basically, he treats wounds like this.
Sanda : Before this, I told him to come here when our battle is over...
Sanda : So that he can treat your wound after losing to me.
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Turned out that I am actually the person to get treated.
Sanda : So don't worry to much.
Hearing that, Haphuco feels relieved, he then sat next to Sanda, also leans against the wall.
Haphuco : Oh right, about Miss Barami !
Haphuco : Because I won, could you stop...
Sanda : About that, it was just a joke.
Haphuco : What ?!
Sanda : There is actually no Order to target the mayor's daughter.
Sanda : I was just saying that to force a Duel against you.
Sanda : Knowing that you are her Bodyguard.
[ Meanwhile ]
Mai : Sister Barami, Sister Barami, did you enjoy the lunch ?!
Barami and Mai are at a restaurant inside the shopping mall.
Barami : I don't know...
Barami : Maybe Haphuco is worrying about me.
Consider the person he is, that must be the case.
Mai : No worry, Sister Barami.
Mai : I am sure he is busy fighting with Sanda.
Yeah, that's the story.
When Barami met Mai inside the female toilet, Mai said :
Mai : Please cooporate with me.
Barami : Huh ?!
An unknown girl suddenly asked for her cooporation.
Mai : I am actually a friend of a guy named Sanda who knows Haphuco, your Bodyguard.
Mai : That guy is Haphuco's rival and he has been furious these days because Haphuco broke their promise to fight each other.
Mai : So could you please go with me so that Haphuco has no choice but to fulfill his promise with his rival ?
A little girl can't do anything bad, right ?
Apparently the target is actually Haphuco, not her
And finally
It sounds fun.
Barami is actually a more adventurous person than she thought.
And so, she accepted and that's how Haphuco was forced to accept the Duel.
That's how Haphuco almost killed Sanda.
As expected, no harm happened.
Barami and Mai are in a restaurant with numerous people eating inside.
Mai : Oh, I just received a message from Sanda !
Mai : It seems like the Duel is over.
Mai : I guess he won.
Mai : Let's go then, Sister Barami !
"I should apologize Haphuco when I get there." Barami thinks.
Back to Sanda and Haphuco.
Sanda : Okay, Lucky should be here soon.
Sanda : And the mayor's daughter too. She will come with Mai, my sidekick.
Haphuco : That's a relief then...
Haphuco : Ouch !
The pain from the battle with Sanda.
They hurt more than Haphuco expects
Well, he did get beaten up pretty bad on the first half of the fight though.
Sanda : Heh, it seems you need a treatment too.
Haphuco : Yeah...
Sanda : ...
Haphuco : ...
A brief silence happens.
Haphuco : It was a good fight...
Sanda : ...
Sanda : Yeah...
Sanda : You beat me badly though...
End of Chapter 14 : Don't die
Next Chapter - Chapter 15 : HAphUcO, hAPuCo