I parried Kobayashi's blade easily and threw him off, causing him to stumble off balance. While Kobayashi staggered from the unexpected deflection, I ducked under his flailing sword and thrust my blade at him, piercing his armor and stabbing through his heart.

"Ugh!"

Kobayashi shrieked in pain before he unleashed a holy energy blast at pointblank range. Despite my Redwood jacket absorbing most of the blast, I was sent skidding away, fumes pouring off my body. Taking a deep breath, I kicked off the ground and charged at the faltering Kobayashi, who desperately deflected my sword away from his chest. Even as he escaped what could prove to be a fatal blow, I slammed my palm against his golden armor and cast a Doombolt.

"Gaaaah!"

Kobayashi was flung backward, a smoking hole carved into his extravagant breastplate. He slowly sat up, blood dripping down from his mouth, and stared at me in disbelief.

"This is not possible. How am I losing to a pathetic weakling loser like you?! This just can't be real! It's not possible!"

I was really getting tired of his ranting and raving, so I ignored his blabbering and attacked him instead. Kobayashi's eyes widened and he threw up a hand to cast a spell. A golden beam of light flared out and seared across the distance between us, but I casually hacked it apart with my Blood Dragom Sword, dissipating Kobayashi's attack.

"No way!"

Kobayashi gaped at me, only to duck under my sword to prevent himself from being beheaded. He was, however, unable to avoid a kick from below, and my foot connected with his torso, breaking a few ribs and sending him crashing across his throne room.

"Gah!"

Kobayashi spat out blood and coughed, heaving heavily as he clutched his chest. He glanced up at me, terrified, and began to back away.

"Midori! Yume!" he hollered.

"Yes, Kenji-kun!"

"Right away, Kenji-kun!"

The two girls leaped forward and cast a healing spell on their beloved leader simultaneously. Glowing green light wreathed the wounded Kobayashi for a few seconds, giving off an eerie visual impression. Right before my eyes, Kobayashi's injuries vanished and he straightened up, completely restored to his former glory.

"Thanks."

"No problem!"

"It's nothing!"

The two girls clearly had been brainwashed or were so deeply in love with Kobayashi that they were ogling him like some sort of god. Or their husband. Or something. Then again, just like Yamada Yuji, Midorikawa Midori and Yoshida Yume had been infatuated with Kobayashi Kenji and following him around back in the previous world.

Watching them flirt like this was making me sick.

"Hah! You can't kill me!" Kobayashi sneered. "You got lucky the first time, but I won't let you put a scratch on me again!"

I didn't even bother to dignify his statement with a response. I darted forward, evading his spells, and then slashed him with my sword. Kobayashi staggered back, shocked, but he swung his sword in retaliation. I effortlessly deflected it before delivering a riposte that cut a strip of flesh from his supposedly handsome face, causing him to roar in pain and anger.

"You..!"

Slamming his foot forward with such tremendous strength that the ground shook, Kobayashi counterattacked with a thrust. I slightly deflected it away to the side with my blade and then smashed my elbow into his nose, causing him to bellow and stagger backward, blood spraying all over his features. Before he could right himself, I landed a knee into his groin, causing him to double over and emit a high-pitched scream that no man should ever be able to make.

"Kenji-kun!"

"You bastard!"

The girls dashed forward, already casting their healing spells. Even as Kobayashi's injuries healed and disappeared, I didn't care and slammed my foot into his gut, sending him flying. Before the still-healing Kobayashi landed, I swung my Blood Dragon Sword and unleashed a gigantic Shadow Lunar Fang that engulfed him in destructive energies before exploding. Gravel, concrete and marble rained down in huge debris as the throne room shook.

If Kobayashi was going to rely on the two girls to continue healing him, then I would just continue beating him up until their mana ran out and they could no longer cast any healing spells. In fact, this battle of attrition was favorable for me. It meant that Kobayashi wouldn't experience a swift, merciful death. I could drag out this battle and made it as long, tormenting and agonizing for him as possible.

I was so looking forwad to this.

Unfortunately, Kobayashi hadn't realized the sort of hell that was awaiting him. Pushing the rubble off his body, he swayed to his feet, still glowing in that sickly eerie light of healing magic that his two wives were casting on him.

"Hah..I don't believe it. I underestimated you. I didn't think you were able to cheat somehow, to gain such strength and power. Even though I threw my entire army at you, you were still able to come here without even a single scratch."

"You sacrificed your entire army, and you still weren't able to slow me down." I shook my head sorrowfully. "I really pity your soldiers. You used them as expendable pawns and discarded them when you no longer need them."

Honestly, there was no need for Kobayashi to send his army after me. He was just uselessly and pointlessly throwing lives away for nothing. He could have just challenged me from the start to prevent such wanton loss of lives.

But no, he decided to spend all these lives on the extremely tiny chance he thought they had of putting even a single scratch on me.

"Are you an idiot?" Kobayashi sneered. I frowned as I stared at him blankly.

"The lives of my soldiers are a currency that I don't spend lightly. In fact, they are something I treasure. I would never willingly send them to their deaths unless absolutely necessary."

"Then you're na?ve!"

Kobayashi laughed mockingly, despite the blood on his face. He wagged his finger at me.

"Well, it's you, after all..of course you wouldn't understand. You're someone who will be stuck and rooted to the bottom forever. You're the type who should be stood on..you're the same as these useless idiots, an expendable pawn who should just die when I tell you to."

This guy was just unbelievable.

Kobayashi spread his hands and grinned.

"I'll use those people who have value, and discard them once they are no longer of any use to me. I'll cast away unnecessary people. This is the natural right of those who stand above others. Like me! The Emperor of Humanity!"

Like I said, the guy was completely deluded. Then again, I already knew that from the start, so this didn't come as a surprise.

Despite that, I couldn't help but feel exasperated when forced to listen to his nonsense all over again.

"Even so, I'm still astonished by how you've managed to come this far."

Kobayashi glared at me, his eyes glinting with malice as he held me under close scrutiny.

"I don't believe it. I wonder, what sort of cheats did you use? Or maybe you're not Tanaka..you must be someone else, taking on his guise and pretending to be him so as to annoy me."

Even to the end, Kobayashi was still refusing to believe that I was stronger and better than him. The delusional, arrogant idiot continued to deceive himself, his mind twisted both by his distorted personality and probably the work of goddesses.

It didn't matter. I wasn't here to entertain him. I was here to kill him. I would prefer to eliminate him as quickly as possible because I knew the constant danger of him escaping, growing stronger and returning for revenge was ever present. It was a tale of heroes that had been told countless times. I was the villain here, and Kobayashi was the hero. In a normal narrative, he would be driven to a corner, and somehow escape before gathering his forces, growing much stronger and returning for a revenge match where he would eventually prevail.

I refused to give him that chance. I was going to kill him. I wasn't going to make the same mistake as every other villain out there, gloating and slowly toying with my opponent, only to inadvertently give them the chance to survive and escape, then return to take revenge. I couldn't allow myself to get complacent. That was how every villain died.

No, Kobayashi had to die as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, the presence of Midorikawa and Yoshida meant that he was surviving everything I threw at him. Despite dealing massive damage to him again and completely dominating him in terms of swordsmanship, they were repairing every damage I dealt to him.

"How?!"

Even as I lashed out and cut open another grievous wound on the shocked Kobayashi, he staggered backward and stared at me in disbelief.

"How are you winning against me?! This cannot be possible! I stand above you! You're just a pathetic weakling loser!"

Oh, just shut the fuck up..

Despite that, to Kobayashi's credit, he was avoiding the most lethal blows and refusing to die from just one hit. I couldn't believe it, but as expected of a hero, he was downright tenacious if nothing else. Or he simply had the luck of the devil. Despite suffering severe injuries, he avoided those attacks that would downright kill him if he had been a bit slower.

Something's wrong here..

I couldn't help but had a feeling that something was amiss here. A premonition of some sort. I couldn't shake off the feeling that Kobayashi was toying with me..deliberately allowing me to win, to allow me to lower my guard down. After all, he couldn't be stupid enough to continue fighting against me when he was clearly at a disadvantage. Any normal, sane person would be retreating by now instead of recklessly throwing himself at me over and over again.

This guy..

Not only that, but the way he avoided fatal blows that would kill him instantly was too choreographed to be coincidental. It was as if he was deliberately allowing me to land wounds on him while ensuring he wouldn't suffer one that would kill him outright.

"Oh, so you've noticed?"

Kobayashi's sudden blubbering changed and he lashed out.

"!"

That strike was much sharper and a lot stronger than any of his attacks from before. Despite parrying it, I was sent skidding back. Kobayashi straightened up, his face healing under the benevolent spells of Yoshida and Midorikawa, who stood behind him determinedly.

"Hmm.."

Instead of pressing his advantage, Kobayashi twirled his sword a little and then tested it out with a couple of swings. Then he turned to me, tilting his head with a sly smile.

"That's..Kureha's Sword Saint Ability, isn't it?"

"!?"

I didn't reply, but my stunned silence was more than enough to offer Kobayashi the answer that he was seeking. He grinned.

"I see. I have no idea how you managed to obtain Kureha's Sword Saint special ability, but it truly is a troublesome ability."

"..."

I didn't reply. Instead, I crouched down and readied my stance for another attack. However, thanks to the Sword Saint special ability that Kobayashi was talking about, I could see no openings or gaps in his defense.

The guy..he was completely different from before. I knew it, he was toying with me earlier!

"Ah..and I was hoping to fool you for a little longer. I thought you would continue to dance in the palm of my hand and get complacent enough, lowering your guard so that I can finish you off in one hit. A pity..you're much smarter than I give you credit for, despite being a mere weakling trash."

Kobayashi shook his head tragically.

"It was..amusing to see you struggle, but I guess that all comes to an end now."

"?!"

A sudden flash, and then I was flying.

"Gah?!"

I crashed against a pillar, demolishing it. My Redwood jacket flickered, its twelve barriers smashed in an instant.

What the hell just happened?!

"Huff..huff.."

"Oh..so you have Regenerative powers as well?"

Kobayashi strolled across the throne room, watching as my injuries closed up.

"I knew it..you're one troublesome opponent. If I don't kill you in a single blow, you'll keep standing up again and again like the pesky cockroach that you are."

The tables had turned, and I found myself in an exact reversal of the circumstances we were in earlier. Now I was the one struggling to keep up and survive Kobayashi's onslaught. The bastard had been toying with me all this while.

"Or maybe you can just make things easier for me and simply die right now?"

I blinked when Kobayashi's voice rolled over me. There was some sort of hynoptic tune to it, a tone that sounded almost alluring, but..

Adamantium Will.

"Oh? You're resisting my command? Impressive."

Kobayashi looked down on me haughtily, stunned that I hadn't gone and killed myself yet. I merely stared at him, my Absolute Appraisal automatically activating. I actually used it earlier, but because of timing and the way this stupid story was written, I didn't have time to reveal what I saw until a plot twist like this happened.

Name: Kobayashi Kenji

Species: Human

Job/Rank: Emperor of Humanity/King of Heroes

Special Abilities: Kingly Disposition, Knights of the Round, Almighty Emperor

I see. So he was using his Kingly Disposition to attempt to command me. Fortunately, Adamantium Will allowed me to be immune to all sorts of mental attacks and mind control, which almost made it seem like I was fated to fight him.

But what the hell is Almighty Emperor?

Absolute Appraisal couldn't tell me anything more than the name, other than..

"What are you waiting for?"

Kobayashi taunted as he strolled toward me, spinning his sword casually.

"If you won't come to me..I'll come to you, you know?"

The moment he finished his sentence, he immediately appeared in front of me. I barely blocked his strike before I was sent crashing backward. I dug my feet in to arrest the skid, but Kobayashi dashed at me again, his sword swinging down upon my position.

"You're finished!"

With a triumphant laugh, he cleaved me in half, his sword sinking deep into my shoulder and carving a bloody path all the way to my ribcage. Blood flooded from my mouth and I staggered, red-hot agony lancing through my body.

However, I didn't block his attack with my Blood Dragon Sword for a reason. Reaching up, I grabbed his blade with my left hand and held it where it was.

"?! You..!"

Kobayashi reacted in horror, but he was too late. I stabbed him with my sword and released a pointblank Lunar Shadow Fang.

"Gwaaaah!"

Kobayashi was almost ripped apart from the inside out, but he slammed his palm against my chest and hurled me away with a blast of golden energy. I crashed onto the ground, my momentum digging out a trail of broken concrete, but my Regeneration kicked in and the fatal wound began mending and knitting together.

The same couldn't be said for Kobayashi. However, even as he lay on the ground, Yoshida and Midorikawa hurried over to heal him and bring him back from the brink of death. This time, it took them both much longer to heal, perspiration dripping down their faces, but I was in no condition to capitalize and finish them or Kobayashi off, not when I was trying to regenerate from my own lethal injury. By the time I was in a good enough condition to stagger to my feet, Kobayashi was no longer in danger. His two wives shielded him, placing their bodies between him and me.

To take out Kobayashi, I might have to target the healers first.

It wasn't that I didn't think of the idea from the beginning, but Kobayashi had been occupying my attention and diverting my focus away from them with his constant attacks. Now I fully understood why he allowed me the illusion of winning against him earlier. Whenever I shifted my attention to the healers, he would immediately jump in and distract me away from them with his clumsy attacks, lulling me into the mistaken belief that I could attack the healers after dealing with him.

How intelligent.

"I don't believe it. You really are a reckless one."

Kobayashi wiped the blood from his mouth, his royal aura flaring up furiously as he glared at me. In a second, the entire throne room was saturated with his killing intent.

"I have no choice but to go all out. I'll crush you with everything I have."

Another bluff. If he could do so, why didn't he do it already?

..at least that was what I thought, but suddenly I was crushed onto the ground.

"?!"

Gritting my teeth, I tried to stand or at least lift my head, but something was pressing my whole body into the ground. My limbs were immobilized, and even though there was nothing above me, I felt as if several tons of something was pinning me to the ground. I couldn't even lift up my face to glare at Kobayashi defiantly.

This is..

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"Oh, it's nothing much. I merely increased the gravity in your area."

What the fuck!? He could do that?!

I bit my lip and focused. A Doombolt seared through the space between us and struck Kobayashi, only to dissipate harmlessly in front of him. The guy seemed to have an invisible barrier in front of him, negating my attacks.

However, it was more than enough to lift the spell away from me. Feeling the sudden massive weight disappear, I quickly hauled myself to my feet and leaped away, trying to stay out of Kobayashi's sight.

"Oh? Well..I don't blame you. I would have come to that conclusion myself."

Kobayashi smirked. I kept my eyes on him, wary of whatever new tricks he would pull out of his sleeve.

I was too careless.

"Argh!"

Several golden spikes of holy energy burst from the ground, impaling me. I dangled helplessly in the air for a few seconds before destroying those spikes with a slash of my Blood Dragon Sword. Dropping back to the ground, I hurled myself away even as my body regenerated from the multiple wounds.

"Do you think I can't see you?"

Kobayashi didn't even bother to turn to look at me. The moment I landed on the ground, a cluster of golden spikes burst from the ground and tore through my foot.

"Ugh!"

I yanked my foot out from the ground, blood spurting from it. As I staggered back, Kobayashi spun to regard me with disdain.

"You're still alive, huh?"

BOOM!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

An explosion engulfed me, golden flames roaring as they consumed me. I crashed onto the ground, shrieking as the inferno wrapped me in its destructive embrace, melting flesh off my bones and vaporizing blood.

"Ugh!"

I staggered out of the flames, my body fuming. Even as my Regeneration kicked in, restoring my disintegrated flesh and replenishing my blood, I weaklly flopped onto the ground.

"Still not dead yet?"

Kobayashi shook his head, scorn filling his expression.

"You really are an irritating, tenacious cockroach. Just die already."

He pulled his arm back and summoned a gigantic, glowing spear of golden energy. With a single motion, he hefted it back and hurled it at me.

"Guh?!"

A mushroom cloud blossomed in the titanic throne room, spreading out and consuming everything in its wake. The single spear that Kobayashi summoned had the power of a nuke, almost obliterating my entire body.

Almost.

Even from just a single scrape of flesh, I managed to pull myself back together and regenerate. It took me a while, but I managed to restore my body amidst the smoke and divine flames. Kobayashi didn't even notice until he saw me slowly crawling back to my feet.

"You survived even that?"

"Huff.."

I pushed my damaged glasses up my nose. Despite the pseudo nuclear explosion, my glasses and Redwood jacket remained roughly intact. My clothes could be regenerated along with my body, another privilege of being a Vampire King.

"It's useless." Kobayashi sighed and strode toward me, sword in hand. "This is my special ability, Almighty Emperor. As long as you're within my domain, you can't win."

"..domain?"

"What, have you already forgotten?" Kobayashi sneered. "How you are unable to summon your Thousand Astral Graves or whatever? Because this whole thing is my domain. As the Almighty Emperor, everything within my domain is under my control. I can do anything..anything! Inside my domain. I am a god here. You were foolish to attempt to invade my territory. The moment you stepped into my domain, your fate was sealed."

While he spoke, another cluster of golden spikes surged from the ground and impaled me, hefting me high into the air and literally crucifying me."

"You cannot defeat me," Kobayashi scoffed as he stabbed me in the chest with his sword. "Before I kill you, I'm going to sink you into the darkest depths of despair and make you regret ever thinking that a pathetic, weak loser such as you had the right to challenge me."