Volume 7 Chapter 2 Ah, It's Split End Hair! Look, Noroa! Split End Hair!
――The Sonon Holy Kingdom.
This is the country where we currently reside.
This country, governed by the Church, is notorious for having the world's strictest regulations on cursed equipment.
If you touch cursed equipment, your life is over.
In other countries, possessing cursed equipment might be considered "illegal" at worst, but... in this country, you can't escape or hide, and the Curse Inspection Officers will kill you on the spot. It doesn't matter whether the cursed equipment is dangerous or not, or whether you touched it intentionally or not.
Without a trial or investigation, you'll be beheaded on the street.
A "curse holder" is――either dead or dead.
That's the stance of the Sonon Holy Kingdom.
Naturally, this is a harsh environment for me as well.
"That's why, Juju,"
'What's with you? I'm busy searching for split end hair right now.'
"Split end Hair is fine, but please don't show your face in public too much. It's bad if someone sees you."
While walking down the street, I gently scold Juju, who's peeking out from behind my waist bag. It was okay on top of the tower where there were no people, but it's a no-go in the middle of the city.
This country is quick to perform curse checks if they suspect something's off, and saying "it's just a weird monster" might pass in other countries, but it's questionable whether it'll work here in the Sonon Holy Kingdom.
I explained the situation in detail, but...
'I refuse.'
Juju cuts me off sharply.
'Because I'm bored.'
"Bored, you say..."
'I'm really bad at staying still, you know?'
"Even though that's supposed to be your specialty as a doll."
'And if I don't show my face occasionally, my fans all over the world will be sad, won't they?'
"Haha, you're just joking."
What's with this doll...?
'You're making a sour face, and it's affecting my mood too.'
"No, I'm just thinking about what to do next..."
'Ah, it's split end Hair! Look, Noroa! Split end Hair!'
"Yeah, that's great."
'Yay!'
This doll looks so carefree, it's enviable.
Well, worrying won't do any good.
Let's think about what we can do from now on, that's way more constructive.
"Uh... is this place okay?"
I stopped in my tracks, scanning my surroundings.
A dimly lit alley with no one around, only red butterflies fluttering.
The walls of the houses on both sides of the alley had no windows.
If we were "ambushed" here, it'd be the perfect spot.
"Well..."
I muttered, and in an instant, I dove to the ground.
The blade barely missed my head, almost simultaneously.
My afterimage was cut in 2, and my hair was blown back by the wind pressure.
The faint light of the lanterns reflected off the crimson blade's residual glow.
No hesitation whatsoever ―― an ambush.
"Tch..."
He probably thought they could take me down with one hit. The weight of his large weapon was throwing him off balance.
I'm not kind enough to let him get away with that.
Using my hands on the ground as a pivot, I launched a foot sweep.
"...!?"
The man stumbled backward, caught off guard by my counterattack.
He let out a low, strained cry, frantically retreating.
I took advantage of the opening and stood up, facing the equipment hunter once more.
He was a death god-like man.
He wore a tattered black robe, holding a gruesome large scythe in his hand.
He looked utterly intimidating.
The scythe was adorable.
"Just to confirm... you're an equipment hunter, right?"
"Tch..."
The man didn't respond to my question, but his silence was answer enough.
He glared at me with a mixture of annoyance and suspicion.
"...what's with you?"
'I'm Juju! My weight is equivalent to 3 apples! This is trivial knowledge!'
"No need for introductions."
'Mugyu!'
I hastily stuffed Juju into my waist pouch.
"...where's that voice coming from?"
"It's my inner voice, duh!"
"Why are you using your inner voice now?"
"It's my boom!"
I'm trying to cover it up, but the equipment hunter was now looking at me with suspicion.
Well, whatever. More importantly...
"I'm sorry, but I'll have to hunt you down"
I sent a thought to the aqua-colored bracelet on my right arm.
As a signal, the bracelet swelled up and transformed into a sword, like one made of blue crystal.
The equipment hunter took a step back in surprise at the sudden appearance of the sword.
"You said you'd hunt me, the hunter...?"
The equipment hunter burst out laughing.
"Hah...it's impossible. You don't know the rank of this great scythe, the Soul Breaker, do you? It's S-rank. That's even higher than the world's top A-rank. Do you know what that means? It means I'm the strongest and the most amazing!"
"......"
"What's wrong? Are you too shocked to speak?"
The equipment hunter boasted, puffing out his chest.
"With this Soul Breaker, I can cut through any equipment like it's paper. Any equipment at all. Even the judges aren't enemies anymore. There's no one who can beat me, the one chosen by the strongest weapon"
Then, the equipment hunter readied his great scythe and charged forward.
He quickly closed the distance and swung his scythe down.
His target was the sword in my hand.
The blade that was sure to kill with one hit aimed at my sword...
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