Chapter 29 Please Come with the Intention of Killing Me
Salvatore Doni's mastery of swordsmanship was beyond question. Even before becoming a God slayer, he was already a very famous figure.
Because he had absolutely no talent for magic, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to the sword.
As for whether this was due to his lack of magical talent or simply his nature, no one knows.
But his talent and determination as a swordsman were outstanding. He had apprenticed under many teachers and mastered their sword techniques in a very short time. This included the one known as the Holy Grail Knight, Saint Raphael—Doni learned her swordsmanship in just one month.
In comparison, Hikigaya Hachiman's abilities were clearly inferior.
Not just in terms of ability, but also time. From the moment the Demon God Fist picked him up and he began training in martial arts, it had only been about a year, with half of that time spent as a God slayer.
So now, with Hikigaya actually gaining the upper hand, it was clear that Salvatore Doni had been careless. After all, this is common in battles between martial artists—no matter how strong someone is, a moment's carelessness can lead to defeat by a weaker opponent.
What Salvatore Doni was thinking, Hikigaya didn't know. What he did know was that he was becoming increasingly proficient at using the spiraling undead move.
He even dared to say that even the Demon God Fist himself might not be able to use this move as smoothly as he could now.
The martial arts he had learned from the Demon God Fist had now been fully mastered, with no awkwardness remaining.
Leaving aside the identity of a God slayer, purely in terms of martial arts, he felt that he had definitely reached the level of Nine Fists. This was hard to explain, but he simply had this confidence—after all, no one understood this transformation better than himself.
Power distribution, adaptability in techniques, and the ability to seize combat opportunities had all entered another dimension.
It seemed that, just as Tamamo-no-Mae had said, leveling up as a Godslayer was really that simple—and the leap was so large that ordinary people couldn't keep up.
Salvatore Doni's body was already clearly showing significant signs of wear. His speed was now worlds apart from what it had been at the beginning. Hikigaya could now easily approach and unleash a combo.
By all appearances, Doni had lost the ability to continue fighting.
Yet this man still kept going. No matter how many times Hikigaya threw, slammed, or locked him, he always stood back up.
Partly because the God slayer's body was freakishly resilient, and partly because this showcased the shortcomings of Pencak Silat in terms of raw power.
Even though he still retained the human body's weaknesses, a God slayer wasn't truly human. Moves that could instantly kill or cripple a normal person might not have that effect on a God slayer.
Hikigaya himself was a God slayer, so he understood this well. That's why he continuously struck at Doni without letting up—otherwise, with a God slayer's regenerative powers, Doni would quickly recover.
However, once the damage reached a certain threshold, Hikigaya realized he could no longer rely on this move alone to reduce his opponent's physical capabilities.
He took this to heart, because the body of a god is even more powerful than that of a God slayer—completely free from the limits of once having been human.
"Time to draw some blood." After once again knocking Doni down, he spread his fingers wide and reached for Doni's sword arm. "I'll take your arm first!"
The Demon God Fist's Pencak Silat also included a spearhand technique.
If this claw strike connected, he could definitely disable Doni's right hand in a short time.
A martial artist's battle allows for no carelessness. One mistake can mean life or death. That's what the masters of Yomi always told their disciples. Even as a God slayer, Hikigaya kept this in mind.
Salvatore Doni clearly hadn't done the same. As a veteran of martial arts, he had underestimated his opponent, and he would now pay the price.
Just like now—even though victory seemed within reach, Hikigaya didn't forget to use a Pencak Silat-style pseudo-clone technique, with all his clones reaching for Doni's vital points.
Caution never hurt, especially against a strong opponent.
If this claw strike landed, it could very well tip the scales of victory in his favor.
He refused to believe this guy even stronger with his left hand after losing his right.
But… he couldn't shake the feeling he'd forgotten something...
His curse-powered hand had no hesitation, darting forward like lightning.
But just before he made contact, his hand hit resistance.
One by one, wedge-shaped characters began to appear from Doni's body, surrounding him.
From the outside, it looked like all of Hikigaya's hands had stopped at the surface of that layer of script.
Finally, he remembered what he had forgotten. Damn it—they were both God slayers! God slayers have Authorities!
What the hell?! As a God slayer, he actually forgot about Authorities!
Come to think of it, from the very beginning, both of them had only been using martial arts to duke it out. Neither had used any Authorities. Maybe Doni had also forgotten?
In the next moment, with Doni's movement, a huge force of rebound erupted.
All of Hikigaya's copies were flung away. The only difference was that his phantoms, being composed of curse energy, quickly dissipated under the force.
"You look just like Ultraman…" Hikigaya landed with a roll and curiously asked, "What's that Authority of yours?"
"Just something to protect myself. You've got something like this too, don't you?" Doni climbed up from the ground, cracking his neck and stretching his back. "But honestly, it would've been a headache if not for this. After all, I am battling a fellow God slayer like you. Hmm, I underestimated you. I didn't expect you to be such a skilled fighter. So in this match of martial arts, I've lost. But next time, I definitely won't be so careless."
Having loosened up, he smiled brightly and raised his sword once more.
"Well then, my dear friend, let us continue our battle—with all our strength."
"Stop calling me 'dear friend' at the drop of a hat. Are your friendships that cheap?" Hikigaya shook out his hands and relaxed his body a little.
In the next moment, the air around him began to heat up.
"Then let's start round two. This time, I'll go first—no objections, right?"
"Of course not! By all means, come at me with the intent to kill, my dear friend!"