MTLNOVEL Chapter 235: The Rude Natlan
As a member of the Oni clan, Arataki Itto was a born fighter. He wasn't even afraid of the Raiden Shogun back in Inazuma—how could he possibly fear some monster from Natlan?
Seeing the massive creature charge at him, Arataki Itto raised his greatsword and swung it head-on.
The blade clashed with the door-sized slab in the monster's hand. Itto felt a crushing force—his arms stung from the impact.
He was strong, no doubt about it.
But against something this huge, he could only barely hold his ground.
Still.
As the two sides locked into a deadlock, Itto shouted, "Ushi! Now's the time—Akaushi Burst!"
Before the words had even finished leaving his mouth, Itto seized the opening, freed one hand, grabbed Ushi, and hurled him straight at the monster.
In the next moment, Ushi smashed into it, actually managing to knock it back.
"Ushi, nice one...!"
Then, Itto turned his eyes back to the towering Ethereal.
"I don't care what you are. Whether you're a dragon from Natlan or a creature from the Abyss—who's going to beat you down? That's right! It's me, the ultimate Oni king, Arataki the one and only...!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Itto stopped holding back. His aura exploded as he transformed into the Raging Oni King.
His greatsword morphed into the Oni King's Kanabou.
"Arataki Itto—has arrived!"
He raised the massive club and swung it with force toward the monstrous Ethereal.
Now transformed, his power had surged. That one blow sent the monster stumbling back several meters.
He gained the upper hand, for the moment.
However.
Itto had no idea that the monster he was facing was actually a Notoriety Ethereal.
Trying to take it down alone in a short time? Practically impossible.
Just as Itto was getting fired up in the fight...
Suddenly.
Ushi let out two urgent moos: "Moo—Moo—!"
Itto blinked in confusion.
"What's wrong, Ushi? Don't tell me you got hurt just now?"
Ushi mooed again, this time toward another direction: "Moo—!"
Itto got it instantly.
Ushi was warning him—something else had shown up.
Sure enough, looking where Ushi pointed, Itto saw three or four more towering monsters appear at the end of the street.
Each of them stood at least five or six meters tall.
Fighting one? He could handle that.
Four or five? Even he had to admit, that was pushing it.
"Statues of the Seven, did you just drop me into a monster nest or something?!"
"Moo—"
"Ushi, let's move. We need to find the Traveler!"
Canceling his transformation, Itto scooped up Ushi and bolted in the opposite direction from the monsters.
First priority: get out of this area.
Best case scenario—they'd run into the Traveler and Paimon. Worst case—they could at least find a local to ask for directions.
Itto ran.
But the Notoriety Ethereals had already locked onto him.
The moment he took off, they took off after him.
Luckily, Itto was fast.
If he hadn't been, he would've been caught before reaching the end of the street.
Still, no matter how fast he ran, he couldn't shake them.
Just as he was about to stop and scout the area, two of the Ethereals came rushing straight at him.
"Looks like I really showed up just in time. If I hadn't, it might've been the Traveler and Paimon running into these things..."
These Notoriety Ethereals were relentless—like glue stuck to his back.
He couldn't beat that many at once, and he couldn't lose them either.
Man, he really regretted not bringing more people.
If Kuki Shinobu were here, she'd definitely have a plan.
Right then—
He suddenly noticed a crack in space appear up ahead.
He had no clue where it led.
But whatever, it was better than being stuck with these things.
With that, he didn't hesitate and dove straight into the rift.
Everything went dark.
Moments later, the ground beneath him vanished. The sudden weightlessness made him yell:
"Hey, hey, hey! Where the heck are you dumping me now?!"
"Moo—"
"Ushi, hang onto my clothes—!"
Thud!
Itto slammed into the ground. Before he could even get up, Ushi came tumbling out of the sky and landed right on top of him.
Once he got up, he found himself in what looked like the same place as before—abandoned buildings, not a soul in sight.
But—
Ushi let out a moo: "Moo!"
Itto raised a brow.
"What is it now, Ushi? Don't tell me it's more monsters...?"
He turned in the direction Ushi indicated—and sure enough, he spotted several humans in foreign outfits lugging around strange boxes.
They noticed him too.
Before Itto could even go ask what was going on—
The group—clearly raiders—had already drawn their weapons.
Knives, guns... even a rocket launcher?!
Itto hadn't caught on yet.
"Hey, hey, hey! Quick question—have you guys seen the Traveler and Paimon...?"
He didn't even finish the sentence.
One of the raiders pulled the trigger.
Bang!
A bullet shot toward him.
Instinctively, Itto raised his blade and blocked it.
"Hey! If you're not gonna help, fine—but why are you attacking me?! Do you even know who I am? I'm the Traveler's best buddy—the king of kids in Inazuma—"
"Kill him!"
"The intel's out—eliminate him and pull back!"
They didn't care what he was saying—or who he was.
To them, he was just a member of another raider group.
Without a word, they opened fire.
Thankfully, Itto was quick.
Otherwise, he'd have been riddled with holes by now.
Under fire, Itto growled in frustration.
"Man, Natlan folks sure are rude. Do you all think I'm just some helpless kitten if I don't show my strength?!"
Just as he was about to retaliate—
He sensed something strange behind him.
Turning around, he saw it—another spatial rift had opened on the street.
And a massive claw was reaching out.
Damn it.
Those monsters were still chasing him down. Relentless as ever.
He was done wasting time on these rude "Natlan people."
Let the monsters deal with them instead—that'd buy him some time too.
With that thought, he sheathed his blade and picked up Ushi.
Before the raiders could attack again, he was already sprinting down another street.
And not long after—
Notoriety Ethereals poured out from the rift between Hollow Zero and Hollow C41, pouncing straight at the stunned raiders.
...