This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 604

I had no reason to hesitate once I figured out the other person’s intentions.

Crack-

Immediately, I shifted my posture and froze all the water surrounding me.

As soon as the water turned to ice, its volume increased, causing things that were previously disconnected to touch each other.

The sound of something being ground down began to resonate, probably because of that.

And as the ice chunks contacted the sandstorm, they started to grind away in real-time, causing the previously somewhat warm temperature around me to rapidly cool down, in turn slowing the speed of the sandstorm.

It was because something that couldn’t be controlled with the opponent’s talent got mixed into the sandstorm.

“Tch.”

Did the opponent dislike this change, considering their intention was to trap me in the sandstorm and slowly dry me out?

The furious sandstorm, which had been swirling around, suddenly scattered without a trace as if to say, “When did that happen?”

‘…Now!’

Not missing the gap, I fired the attack I had been preparing from earlier towards the opponent.

Whoosh-!

The overwhelming sound of something piercing through sand filled my ears.

However, perhaps that was within the range of things they had anticipated.

A wall of sand that had formed out of nowhere stood in front of the bullet made of water.

They must have thought that would be enough to block it.

But one thing they overlooked was the destruction power of my shot, which had been tempered through brutal fights with the extremely tough Another Ones—far beyond what they imagined—and—

“…?!”

The attack I had sent was, from the start, not just one but two shots!

The first shot that flew out undoubtedly passed through the sand wall, its momentum naturally diminishing, but the second shot followed right behind, piercing through the dead momentum and flying towards the opponent.

However… it never hit the opponent’s body.

The opponent, realizing the existence of the second shot just a moment too late, narrowly dodged it by what felt like the width of a single sheet of paper.

And that close encounter grazed past them and crashed into the wall behind.

The protective barrier of the Training Ground, set to maximum for the duel, began to shake with a loud noise as if an earthquake had struck just after that moment.

They succeeded in dodging by a hair’s breadth, but had they been hit, there was no way they would have gotten away unscathed.

Perhaps because of that, the carefree expression that the opponent had maintained from the beginning finally cracked.

The nonchalance that had occupied their face vanished, replaced by a distinctly pale expression showing ‘anger’.

Perhaps they believed they had been embarrassed just now in front of everyone.

And for some reason, that emotion of anger got ignited even further by Miss Almighty’s declaration that followed immediately after.

“Alright, that’s enough.”

I clearly remember the voice echoing from a distance, but how did it come up to here?

Miss Almighty, standing proudly in the center of the Training Ground, declared the end of the duel in an utterly nonchalant tone.

It might be an obvious statement, but there was no way the opponent, whose pride was utterly crushed, would willingly accept such treatment.

“What…!”

Maybe that was why a rebellious shout came forth as if it were a matter of course, but…

“And what of it?”

“…Huh?”

“Isn’t this enough of a duel to get to know each other? If we continue any longer, it’ll turn into a fight, not a duel…”

The opponent truly was a personification of ‘my own pace’.

They had no intention of listening to protests or anything; instead, they replied with a tone that suggested, “Isn’t that the case?” effectively shutting down the person’s attempt at protest.

But to be fair, they were correct.

What was the purpose of this duel in the first place?

It was to have a time to understand each other before the expedition.

However, the attitude of trying their best to finish it off like that woman named ‘Shamsir’ just a moment ago was against that intention.

If they had calmly explained, I was sure that the woman from the Arab Federation would eventually understand.

In the absence of any room for rebuttal, even if it took time, that would have likely happened.

If they had explained in a gentle tone, surely it would have turned out that way… But the problem was that the speaker had no intention of doing so whatsoever.

“And… to be honest, I don’t think you would win even if we continued. Do you still want to try?”

If this goes on, it would ultimately end in a public humiliation, so would they still continue?

Those words dripped with precisely that nuance, driving Shamsir’s tanned face to flush crimson.

Naturally, it wasn’t due to shame.

To some extent, that was true, but overwhelmingly, it came from anger.

Yet, still unable to say a word, perhaps it was because they weren’t the kind of opponent who could be messed with.

Seeing them with their pointless face turned beet red, unable to utter another word, I felt I might burst out in admiration.

It was straightforward; they had transcended mere ‘my own pace’ and reached the level of skill in getting under the opposing party’s skin.

The particularly malicious point was that, even if they were enraged, they could suppress the opponent with their own power or status so that not a single word would make it out.

“Haah… Fine, as you say, let’s call it a day.”

Isn’t it a bit surprising for them to act so composed as a representative hero of a country?

From the moment they appeared, they had embodied the very definition of arrogance, much like the third-generation chaebols from dramas or movies, yet despite that, their response was remarkably agreeable.

Perhaps it was the surge of anger that had risen to their head, but their previously angered complexion had restored to its original tanned state.

And then, after showing compliance against Miss Almighty, the opponent turned their gaze towards me.

At that sudden shift, I wondered if they were going to pick another fight…

Before I could finish that thought, what echoed in my ears was an utterly unexpected comment.

“And… Miss Almighty, I apologize to you as well. I’m sorry.”

An apology at this timing?

Did I hear that correctly?

To be honest, it was a bit, no, tremendously bewildering.

It wasn’t something I expected from someone who had been so blatantly provoking.

It felt like I needed to question whether their personality had switched at that moment.

I couldn’t dare to say that this situation was quite embarrassing, despite them kindly apologizing with a smile, so I just swallowed those words back down.

“To be honest, I thought you lacked the skills to be part of the Expedition Team and were just looking for glory from the results. But…”

Having fought directly, it seemed they realized it wasn’t the case.

But as soon as they tried to say that, perhaps their lips stuck to each other, they sighed as if shedding something.

“Now I understand. Why you were chosen as a member of the Expedition Team.”

Honestly, I didn’t want to accept it.

They provoked me at every turn, and now, out of nowhere, they suddenly extended their hand like this when things didn’t go as expected?

It was astonishing, to say the least.

However, with so many eyes watching, it was a bit awkward to just reject their hand outright…

“Well, I’m just glad you realized it at last.”

I shook hands with the outstretched hand, delivering my retribution in words.