I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit

Sara glanced at the massive, monstrous beast lying on the ground, howling in pain, then turned to look at the longbow in Kiichi Hougen's hand. A sense of unreality welled up inside her.

She had witnessed the entire sequence of events.

As the Abyssal King Rifthound was about to unleash its breath attack, Kiichi Hougen calmly drew her longbow—without nocking an arrow.

Then, as the destructive torrent descended from above, something seemed to block it, splitting the catastrophic flood into two streams that veered off to either side, leaving them untouched just two meters away.

Even from this close range, merely glimpsing that purple-black torrent made Sara's heart pound, her mind thrown into disarray.

At that moment, red flames unexpectedly ignited along the bowstring Kiichi Hougen had drawn.

The flames, obedient and precise, coalesced into a single arrow in her hand.

With a calm demeanor, she aimed her flaming arrow at the oncoming flood and released it.

What happened next left Sara stunned. The slender, seemingly insignificant arrow pierced into the torrent and surged upward, unstoppable, ultimately striking and severely wounding the terrifying beast.

"Stay here and don't wander off. I'll be back shortly."

Kiichi Hougen stepped forward lightly, and in the blink of an eye, she was fifty meters away.

Sara watched her master's retreating figure before looking down at the ground beneath her feet.

She and Chika stood within the charred marks left behind from when Kiichi Hougen annihilated the rifthounds. Only now did Sara notice that the scorch marks formed a complex network of intricate runes.

These runes exuded a protective power, clearly designed to shield her and Chika. No wonder Kiichi Hougen felt confident leaving them behind.

Personal Skill: Onmyōdō (Law) A

Ordinary onmyoji needed to write runes on paper using special materials like cinnabar, pine soot ink, or chicken blood for them to have any effect.

However, as a renowned onmyoji from the late Heian period, drawing runes out of thin air was child's play for Kiichi Hougen. She could even use scorch marks from flames to create charms, their power far surpassing that of most other onmyoji.

For instance, Chika's father required pre-drawn charms to cast five-element spells. In contrast, Kiichi Hougen could perform the same feats with a mere gesture. Such was the gulf in their abilities.

The Abyssal King Rifthound's sharp claws dug into the ground, leaving deep gouges as it struggled to rise.

Once upright, it spotted a figure as small as an ant standing calmly before it.

"Not coming at me? Don't feel like shredding me with those claws of yours? Or gnawing on me with those teeth?" Kiichi Hougen stood with one hand on her hip, a playful tone in her voice. "Anyone would want revenge after being hit that hard, right? Or did I knock you silly? What's that phrase again? 'The blow was just right—not too hard, not too soft—just enough to leave you dazed without breaking your brain.'"

The Abyssal King Rifthound lacked the intelligence to understand human words.

But precisely because it lacked intelligence, its instincts were sharper.

It knew one thing: this tiny ant of a person was the one who had struck it down from the sky.

That alone was enough.

The beast's enormous claw lashed out, raking through the air with such force that even space itself seemed to tear, leaving behind a visible scar.

"Perfect!"

Kiichi Hougen grinned, stepping forward to meet the attack. She unsheathed the long blade at her waist and swung it in a single decisive motion.

BOOM!

A dark shadow shot backward like a cannonball, while a deep gash appeared on the Abyssal King Rifthound's claw.

The figure that had been flung back stabilized mid-air. Kiichi Hougen spread her pure white wings, shaking out her arm as if testing its strength.

"...Seems I don't have the upper hand in brute strength."

Despite her EX-level magic power and A+ agility, Kiichi Hougen's physical strength was only rated D—the lowest of all her stats.

Below, the Abyssal King Rifthound rose into the air once more.

Though there were still two ants on the ground, the beast's instincts told it that the one before it posed the greater threat. It needed to eliminate her first.

To the Abyssal King Rifthound, Kiichi Hougen and Sara were akin to a bullet ant that could deliver a painful bite and a regular ant that could be crushed with a single press.

This time, the beast forewent its claws, opening its maw wide and snapping at Kiichi Hougen.

With a gentle beat of her white wings, Kiichi Hougen moved like a gust of wind, effortlessly evading the beast's jaws.

Her A+ agility was no mere decoration; in the air, Kiichi Hougen boasted some of the best maneuverability among Servants.

But she wasn't simply dodging. After weaving through the air, she landed on the Abyssal King Rifthound's back, plunging her long blade into its body.

The blade met resistance as it struck the beast's tough exterior. However, when Kiichi Hougen channeled her magic into the blade, it sharpened instantly, piercing through the monster's shell.

Of course, a single stab wasn't nearly enough. For a creature spanning 800 meters, Kiichi Hougen's sword was hardly more than a toothpick, even with an extended blade imbued with magic.

Realizing there was a "mosquito" clinging to its back, the Abyssal King Rifthound swiped at Kiichi Hougen with its massive claws.

BOOM!

The beast held nothing back, slamming its own body with full force.

Yet, in the next moment, a massive gash appeared, stretching from its claws all the way to its tail. From the wound erupted a black mist, thick with the Abyss's tainted energy, like a fountain of dark blood.

"Ga-ha-ha! Don't think it's over yet!"

Kiichi Hougen's manic laughter echoed through the skies.

From the spraying black mist, a fiery serpent rose.

In the blink of an eye, the serpent transformed into a towering pillar of fire.

From the beast's tail to its head, segment after segment erupted in a brilliant crimson blaze, each burst as radiant as a lotus of fire.

The falling sparks resembled a meteor shower, breathtakingly beautiful. Among them were fragments of the Abyssal King Rifthound's shattered, blackened shell.

The beast now appeared utterly battered, firmly under Kiichi Hougen's relentless assault.

However, its massive size posed a unique challenge. No matter how devastating Kiichi Hougen's attacks were, dealing a fatal blow remained difficult.

Even causing explosions from within its body was insufficient. The Abyssal King Rifthound, like the rifthounds, defied conventional biology.

It appeared to have a head, limbs, and a torso, but it lacked essential organs like a brain or heart—or even a core.

If it had a core, the battle would be far simpler; destroying it would mean instant death.

Fortunately for Kiichi Hougen, her EX-level magic power allowed her to draw on the planet's mana at will, replenishing her reserves endlessly.

Any other Servant would have run out of energy long ago, incapable of sustaining such an unrestrained barrage.

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T/N: stellaris HSR got bonked again :((, off to the hub the scribble one (will be reuploaded there this week will put in end of chapter when it has been)

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(who let this old man here?)