On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

As I flick Rexorem to the side to see how much power I have after the Power-up, I can see Brianna tense up from the corner of my eyes. I smirk faintly before slowly turning to face the bewildered duo.

Information is the strongest weapon. The inability to understand what your opponent can do will lead you to your doom. Brianna and Barnabas don't understand how my Origin works. I believe they have tried their best to figure it out but got nothing in the end. Pride is not a flashy Origin. It is easy to hide it; therefore, it is hard to figure out what it can do.

The case would have been different if my technique was not impeccable. Each of my opponents believed that I sealed some of my power until I found myself in a pinch because how I fought was reminiscent of how powerful individuals fight.

Had I sucked, they would have figured out what Pride allows me to do the moment I got a Power-up. This is the reason why I don't only hunt stronger opponents but also keep training my techniques.

That aside, you may be wondering what the correlation between [Virimisce] and my Power-up is. To explain it simply, because of [Virimisce], Pride decided that the four Heroes were the same entity. Even though they utilized their power individually, Pride considered their combined power the power of this new entity. Therefore, I received a huge Power-up after I killed them.

Had they not used [Virimisce], I wouldn't be able to reap anywhere near the Power-up I got. They were barely stronger than me individually; so, after killing one of them, I would stop receiving any Power-ups from the others.

"So, we are not the only ones who have something up their sleeves, huh?" Barnabas remarks. "I thought you couldn't control your Demonic Essence to that degree. I shouldn't have listened to the words of someone unreliable."

"Phoebesius told you, didn't he?" Barnabas says nothing but his eyes slightly widen. "No one knows how well I can utilize my Demonic Essence—not even my close aides. They have only seen my true form once and none of them has fought me in that state. Hence, only one being can make that assumption."

"You are brighter than the rumor makes you."

"It was part of the deal, wasn't it? I wonder what you offered to the Light Elf to make them willing to put their Guardian Beast in danger. I am sure the faulty heart was not the reason. No Elf would be able to stay alive after replacing their heart with it."

From how Barnabas slightly lowers his gaze, I can tell he knows something. Brianna looks clueless about the matter, so it must be something that influential people in the Holy Land know about.

Assuming a stance, Barnabas leans forward. He held his sword at his eye level, pointing its tip at me. The ground explodes and the air is blasted as soon as his Mana bursts forth. Golden light covers his entire being, making him look holier than any Priests I have encountered.

I can feel my skin burning. I thought I had already developed an absolute immunity toward Divinity but I am still affected by the absurd amount of Divinity that Barnabas is exuding.

"Brianna, we will win. Support me to the best you can."

"You didn't have to say that!"

I can't help humming to myself as Brianna extends her hands and enhances the Divinity Barnabas is exuding. My skin immediately develops a rash, which is amusing to me since it is the last thing I expected to get in this world.

Utilizing my Demon King's Seal after months of not using it, I heal the rash in the blink of an eye. I coat my skin with my Mana, stopping the influence of the corrosive Divinity. Holding Rexorem's hilt with two hands, I tilt it back until its tip is pointing downward, and position it to the side. Right after this moment, Barnabas becomes a golden streak.

He is moving at a speed that my eyes can't follow and my sense can't track. I am not worried in the slightest, though, because I have Luxia with me. With her keen sense of detecting Divinity, she tells me where Barnabas will appear. Keeping the same posture, I turn on my heel and block Barnabas' sword.

Clank!

The impact of the clash sends me skidding on the ground and breaks my ribs. I can quickly recover from the injury but the fact that it was just a casual attack surprised me slightly. With how much power he has, I expected Barnabas doesn't have perfect control over it. He just showed that he could use the exact amount of power to lightly injure me which means he does have perfect control over it.

This type of opponent is the most annoying since I can't make him accidentally attack me with his full power. The process of getting Power-ups from this type of opponent is a long one because I have to gradually put him on edge.

I could use a large amount of Mana in my attack right off the bat and put him on edge but doing that is risky since it could trigger his defense mechanism. He would use his full power to defend himself and return my attack—which is honestly a desirable development—but there would be no guarantee that I will survive it.

Do I have to waste my time then? Fortunately, no.

Boom!

"You are holding back. Do you think I am still not powerful enough to fight you?"

"I can say the same thing to you, Grand Paladin. I may get serious when you manage to make me bleed."

As soon as I finished my sentence, a tiny blade made out of Divinity flies at me. I tilt my head to the left but it still manages to nick my cheek therefore making me bleed. Barnabas smirks condescendingly and I can't help doing the same. Immediately asking for Teanosvera's help, I teleport to Brianna's side.

The accursed Holy Maiden is shocked to her core. Her eyes dart to where Barnabas is. She wants to scream but the tree roots that Luxia controls are faster in shutting her up and immobilizing her. Barnabas widens his eyes in panic and I watch that with a soft manic grin on my face.

"Well, let's get things slightly more serious, shall we?"

Brianna is a liability; therefore, she is a tool that I can use. She is my strongest tool to agitate Barnabas, which will allow me to extract his power faster.

"How is this possible!?"

"What? Are you surprised that I can affect this world with Nature Energy?"

"How can you even use it?"

Just like my Origin, no one but a few know about Luxia's existence. She may show herself to people sometimes but she never did that in front of people whom I am not close with.

Either way, it is amusing that Barnabas is more curious about that. If I were him, I would wonder about how my opponent could control plants in a made-up world that are not even alive. Since it is a very brilliant method, I will tell you how it is possible. I told Teanosvera to bridge this alternate world to the outside world.

Because of that, some parts of the alternate world are part of the outside world. One of them is the land and the vegetation; therefore, Luxia can manipulate the plants using her Nature Energy. The alternate world is still separate from the outside world, though, so whatever happens inside doesn't affect the outside and vice versa.

Swish!

The disturbance in the air makes me discard my thought and refocus my attention on Barnabas. Using Brianna as a hostage is a right choice indeed since he looks extremely agitated as he rushes at me.

Extending my hand, I create ten thousand cherry blossom petals with [Senbonzakura] and send them to him. He seems to know something is coming at him but he pays no mind to it. he only stops when [Senbonzakura] entraps him in a sphere. Before he can process what happens, I use [Radiant Core].

The petals of [Senbonzakura] revolve around him faster and close the gap between them. I clamp my index and middle finger together, point them at the entrapped Barnabas, and shoot out a scorching fireball.

Swish!

The fireball hits the [Senbonzakura] sphere and instantly lights it up on fire. Barnabas disappears from our view, engulfed by the radiant and scorching human-sized fireball before us.

"Barnabas!"

Brianna's shout startles me slightly, prompting me to turn my head to her. The worry in her tone is extremely genuine. I am sure the harlot has never held any genuine feelings toward anyone in her life before this. It is as amusing as it is fascinating that she found her first love in this world.

I have my priorities sorted, so I immediately ignore her afterward and refocus my attention on Barnabas. As soon as I do, the Grand Paladin emerges out of the burning sphere he is trapped in. Small cuts decorate his exposed skin. His skin is also slightly burned but he is fine nonetheless, which is something I have to commend.

Whoosh!

Clank!

"Let. Go. Of. Her!" the Grand Paladin exclaims angrily as he appears before me.

In exchange for managing to block Barnabas' attack, my palm is ripped open. Blood flows down Rexorem as I fight Barnabas' strength.

"You are not serious yet. You should have been able to cut my hand off had you been serious."

Despite so, I don't think it is challenging enough. I kick Barnabas square in the stomach. He is caught off guard, so he gets launched a few feet away to the back. When he regains his balance, I rip Brianna's clothes, exposing her bouncy chest.

"Let's see if it is enough to anger you, Barnabas!"

Two of the many roots that Luxia controls wrap around Brianna's mounds and squeeze them tightly. When they pull the pair of flesh to the point they are going to rip, she screams in pain.