Chapter 18 ~ Water Vs Stone
The stone gorilla glared at Hikari, who stood unwavering before her. She had already lost one of her massive arms, yet his expression remained firm, serious. Behind him, Rintarou stood frozen in awe.
The gorilla tilted her head back and unleashed a guttural roar—a sound so deep and thunderous that it rattled the air. Rintarou flinched in fear, his shoulders tightening as the tremor echoed in his chest. Meanwhile, Hikari subtly shifted his grip, tilting the blade of his water-forged sword forward in preparation, steady as stone.
Then, suddenly, all the crumbling stone pillars that ringed the circular arena began to tremble and crack. A cascade of fractures spidered down their surfaces, grinding noises erupting as ancient rock splintered. Hikari's eyes darted side to side, watching the chaos unfold. This pattern... this is exactly how the stone monkeys appeared last time...
From behind him, Rintarou's voice cracked through the tension. "That sound... She's summoning them—the stone monkeys. They're the ones who chased me before."
"Pick up your sword and shield," Hikari replied without looking back, his tone calm yet final. "If too many come out, I won't have time to protect you."
With a seismic crack, the pillars began to collapse, exploding into a cloud of gray dust that surged outward like smoke. The arena, once bare, was now encircled in a thick haze of ash and crumbled stone. Hikari moved his head slightly, scanning the perimeter, while Rintarou—his hands trembling—reclaimed his gear from the ground. He looked around, spinning slowly as panic set in, eyes darting across every point of the circular battlefield.
From within the fog, piercing triangular red eyes began to glow—everywhere. The sharp, furious shapes blinked into existence along the edges, surrounding them from every direction.
Rintarou swallowed hard, tightening his grip on the hilt of his sword. Hikari's blue eyes narrowed, steady. The gorilla's roar had fallen into silence, and now she met his gaze directly. Neither moved. Only their eyes spoke—unyielding and alert.
Then the mist began to thin.
From the veil of gray emerged the stone monkeys—dozens of them. Each bore the title Stone Monkey Lv.10 above its head, marked in white with a thin black outline. They chattered menacingly, pounding their stone chests. Their bodies were carved from light gray rock, their teeth jagged, eyes red and wild, and their long tails thrashed behind them like whips.
Rintarou stared, trembling. "No use... this is the end," he murmured, despair creeping into his voice.
But Hikari stood firm, his fingers tightening on his blade. A soft glow surged through it—the Water Otter Fang pulsed with radiant blue energy. Thin streams of glowing water seeped from the blade's edge.
Turning his head slightly, Hikari spoke as if preparing to strike down a foe. "Water Mill."
He spun.
For a moment, it looked as if he'd sliced clean through Rintarou. But the boy stood unharmed, as a full 360° arc of blue light exploded from Hikari's blade. A wave of water surged forward in a perfect circle, its edge razor-sharp and glowing.
The arc raced across the arena.
The shimmering ring of water passed harmlessly through Rintarou, its motion swift yet smooth. It grazed the chest of the stone gorilla—leaving only a shallow horizontal mark—but continued onward.
The wall of water met the onrushing horde.
And tore through them.
Each stone monkey was split in a single, fluid motion. No resistance. No time to react. They collapsed instantly—crumbled into heaps of sandy stone as if they had never drawn breath.
Shhhhk-KRAK!
The sound of water slicing through rock echoed across the arena, a clean, haunting note followed by a cacophony of crumbling debris.
Rintarou gasped as the entire swarm fell in unison. A barrage of damage notifications flared in his vision and Hikari's:
Damage dealt: 1500 – appeared above the gorilla, her HP bar dropping sharply: 6000 / 9000.
Each stone monkey had taken the same 1500 damage—enough to erase their health completely.
Air rushed outward from the collapsing remains. Dust and stone fragments filled the arena. In the center, the gorilla let out a low, rattling groan. A crack ran shallowly across her torso, a sign that the blow had reached deeper than her body was prepared for.
Rintarou stood in stunned silence, eyes wide as he processed the aftermath of a single swing from Hikari. Slowly, he placed his shield-bearing hand over his stomach—right where the wave of cutting water had passed through.
"I wasn't hurt…" he muttered.
His gray eyes shifted toward Hikari—specifically, to his hands. Reflected in those pale irises was the gleam of the sword's glowing blue blade. "Just one swing… and it caused all that damage. Incredible."
Then came the voice of his AI companion—Nora—a soft, curious tone that resembled a young girl's:
That's the Water Fox Fang. A rare B-class weapon. No wonder it dealt such massive damage to those monkeys and the gorilla. They're only D-class beasts. Even though Rising Star's level is low, that sword alone makes up for it. But… there's something that puzzles me…
Rintarou blinked. "What is it, Nora?"
How did he even get such a weapon at his level?
The Water Fox Fang only drops from the Water Fox in the third region—where the monsters range from level 20 to 29. That means this weapon isn't even supposed to be obtainable here…
Doubt flickered through Rintarou's expression as the thought settled in—until a more mature voice cut in.
Alright, alright, that's enough, said Seniora, the AI companion assigned to Hikari. Her voice was sharper, more composed, and carried a quiet authority.
You both know we can hear each other since we're in the same party. I'd appreciate it if you didn't poke around in Hikari's business.
Hikari, meanwhile, remained locked in a combat stance, eyes fixed on the gorilla as she raised her massive arm again. "You all…" he said, voice calm but steeled, "really think this fight is over already?"
The gorilla roared—still in frenzy—and brought her massive stone fist crashing down.
Hikari tightened his grip on the sword, ready to slice the arm off completely. But before he could move, the ground beneath him surged upward. His golden hair whipped around him as his balance slipped—eyes flaring with surprise.
A pillar of stone had risen from under his feet, and the gorilla's giant fist slammed down on it with crushing force.
BOOM!!
Dust exploded around the area, a thick gray cloud blooming outward.
Hikari had already darted away, circling fast to reach the gorilla's back. But his health bar ticked down nonetheless:
-250 HP
[HP: 650/900]
As he ran, the wind whipping his hair, Hikari clenched his jaw. I lost 250 HP… even though I dodged at the last second. So she can control the terrain itself…
He reached the gorilla's rear and lifted his glowing blade, water energy pulsing through it. He raised it overhead, preparing to unleash a vertical slash of blinding water.
But the gorilla shrieked—an agile, sharp cry—and suddenly the rubble of the shattered monkeys began to stir.
Chunks of stone erupted from the ground, launching toward Hikari like a storm of jagged missiles.
His blue eyes widened. What—!?
Dozens of mid-sized rocks hurled through the dust toward him. He began to swing, again and again, each strike launching a crescent of cutting water.
Each wave intercepted and sliced through multiple projectiles, but still—
-50 HP
-50 HP
-50 HP
[HP: 500/900]
His health bar shifted from green to orange.
More rocks flew. He kept striking.
Then came the gorilla's spinning blow—a massive backhanded sweep with her titanic fist.
Hikari's eyes trembled as the colossal fist approached. He crossed his blade to block.
BAAASH!!!
The shockwave of stone hitting steel rang out. Hikari was flung across the arena.
As he flew, his hair and beginner's brown adventurer garb rippled in the air. He gritted his teeth as his HP dropped again:
-100 HP
[HP: 400/900]
As he sailed through the air, he tilted his head upward—toward the edge of the platform he was being thrown toward.
His sapphire eyes narrowed. This is bad. I can't leave the boss zone… and Rintarou only has 70 HP. If I get knocked out and he takes a hit, her HP will refill and we'll have to start over.
He twisted his body midair and stabbed his glowing sword into the stone floor.
CRACK!!
The blade dug in, carving a line through the ground, slowing his momentum.
He steadied himself—half-crouched—and then slowly raised his gaze back toward the gorilla.
Blue light shimmered along his sword as he yanked it free, eyes hard.
"This is your end," Hikari said.
[ A/N ]
The Next Two Chapters, 19 and 20, Are now Free-To-Read On
Pat-reon! Just join as a Free member.
You can find 10+ advanced chapters waiting here:
Pa treon .com/Ayaka00 (with spaces removed)
You can also support the story with your power stones^^