Chapter 42: The Winner is Decided
Dazzling fire pierced the sky. The mountain peak behind King was reduced to ash by the violent beam, leaving only a flattened hillside.
Genos hadn't even caught his breath when he realized he couldn't pull back his right hand, which had just fired the Incineration Cannon.
The smoke cleared. King was almost completely unharmed.
With his majestic Vitality combined with the psychic shield, Genos's attack hadn't even scratched him.
Seeing this, Genos fell silent and lowered his head deeply.
He had watched King fight several times, so he knew what this meant.
King-sensei's true strength lies in his physical power... Yet I'm not even qualified to make him use it...
Are you kidding me?!
Genos snapped his head up. His mechanical eyes burst with blinding golden light. Two micro-cannons extended from his pupils, firing rapid laser beams instantly.
The lasers tore through the air, striking the faint green barrier on King's body, but they couldn't penetrate an inch.
Hm?
King was surprised. This move had never appeared in the original story. Was this a new technique Genos came up with?
Looks like another butterfly effect. My arrival really has changed a lot of minor details.
"This move is excellent for sneak attacks, but its power is ultimately lacking. Its range is also far inferior to the Incineration Cannon."
King objectively critiqued the intensity of the lasers while enduring them.
Critiquing during battle wasn't out of disrespect for Genos, but to fulfill his duty as a teacher.
In a spar between master and student, what the student needed was for the teacher to point out flaws in real-time so they could improve.
"It's not over yet!"
Genos roared. The lasers from his eyes stopped as his thrusters ignited. He vanished from his spot, leaving a trail of fire as he zipped through the air.
With a mechanical roar, Genos flashed behind King. Flames erupted from his heels, adding immense momentum to a vicious kick aimed at the psychic shield.
"Incinerate!"
A cannon port extended from the tip of his foot. An Incineration blast erupted point-blank against the surface of the psychic shield. Tongues of scorching fire and golden energy instantly swallowed King's figure.
Genos retreated to create distance. Blue arcs of electricity jumped across the surface of his mechanical body, and his gaze was heavy.
Using so many moves in succession, especially firing an Overclocked Incineration Cannon right at the start, had put his chassis under heavy load.
Did it work...? Or at least... did it break King-sensei's defense...?
A figure slowly walked out of the firelight. The surrounding flames and energy were kept a meter away by the psychic shield wrapping his body. King was still untouched.
Facing the wary Genos, the corner of King's mouth curled up. He finally offered praise:
"Good concept. Turning every part of your body into a cannon, not limiting yourself to your hands. It can catch enemies off guard in battle. Did you come up with this yourself?"
Hearing this, Genos shook his head.
"This concept was not my original idea. It is an improvement I made based on observing your combat style, King-sensei.
"When you fight, you subconsciously use every part of your body as a weapon. Therefore, I also added cannon ports to every part of my body that can attack the enemy, allowing for energy strikes at any moment."
So I gave him the inspiration?
King had to marvel. Whoever invented psychokinesis was a genius. It was really useful.
The reason he kept the psychic shield up wasn't because he feared injury from Genos's attacks, but simply because he cherished his clothes.
This kid Genos was crafty. Every time he fought, he unleashed super-high-temperature Incineration Cannons, clearly aiming to burn off his opponent's clothes and leave them naked.
If King took a direct hit from Genos's blast, his body would be fine, but his clothes would be vaporized instantly, turning him into a streaker.
Just then, Genos changed the topic, his tone becoming urgent:
"King-sensei! Please stop defending blindly! Attack me! Please use your full strength!"
From the start of the battle until now, Genos had been attacking relentlessly, while King had never launched a single attack, only defending and critiquing.
Genos believed that a battle for improvement should be a mutual exchange of blows. Only in a life-or-death crisis could one feel the significance of becoming stronger, not just one side endlessly dealing damage!
Seeing the persistence in the mechanical boy's eyes, King scratched his head. This guy has probably used up most of his attacks. It's time to end this.
The moment Genos finished speaking, King turned into a crimson streak of light, closing the distance in the blink of an eye.
So fast!
Genos's pupils constricted. His heavy mechanical fist tore through the air with a metallic clang, smashing toward King's approaching face.
But in the next second, King's figure vanished from his mechanical scanners.
"Too slow. Don't always rely on mechanical scanning. Learn to sense your opponent's position."
The deep voice came from behind him. Without turning his head, Genos instantly transformed his back into a cannon port. An Incineration blast covered the entire area behind him, kicking up a storm of yellow sand.
Did I hit him? No!
Genos froze. He stared blankly at the hand already pressed against his core, right in front of him. Golden short hair fluttered in the sand-filled wind.
King had somehow moved from behind him back to the front. His fist, containing immense power, was mere centimeters away from Genos's core.
As a cyborg, even if his body was torn apart, Genos wouldn't die. His true lifeline was that blue core.
In other words, if King extended his hand just a few centimeters forward, Genos's core would be crushed, and he would die instantly.
He stood there, stunned. He hadn't expected the spar to end so quickly.
If this were a real battle, the moment the opponent's attack was centimeters from his core, Genos would already be dead.
He said nothing more. He just stared at King, his eyes filled with confusion.
The winner was decided.
♧♧♧
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.patreon.com/c/Segais
(Just remove the hyphen to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you