Another World Trigger: Take Back the World with the Ultimate Duo - The Hellish Curtain Rises

A thudding at the door jolted Yuuto awake as he rolled over in bed. Bam, bam, bam! It was a racket utterly devoid of restraint, like someone slamming a wooden crate directly against a wall. With no windows in the underground living quarters, there was no sense of time at all. For a moment, he couldn't remember where he was, or whether it was morning or night. "...Nngh." His body felt heavy. Yesterday's events—the rift opening in the road, being sucked in, chased by monsters, saved by Mumei, and something about a Word Copy—all came flooding back at once. It wasn't a dream. It was real. He was now in a secret base, forty meters underground. "Yuuto." A muffled voice came from beyond the door. A voice that always sounded sleepy, yet had a core as cold as ice. Mumei. "If you're not out in one minute, I'm leaving you behind. We're starting morning training now." "Wha—already?!" He barely got the reply out before tumbling off the bed. The concrete floor was cold and hard. He slipped on the clothes he'd been issued just yesterday and secured the Voice Gear at his throat. The small device flickered with a single blue light, signaling that the comm line was open. He still didn't really understand how to operate it. Just putting it on had taken everything he had. When he burst out of the room, Mumei's back was already retreating down the hallway. Her long silver hair was tied up in a high ponytail, and she wore a thin jacket over her black combat suit. She didn't look back. "We're running to the training ground, Ground Zero." "Right." Mumei's walking speed was such that Yuuto could barely keep up even at a near-full-power brisk walk. The corridors of Under Cove were all equally bleak, with lifeless pipelines running along the walls and ceiling lights casting thin, white light at regular intervals. Agents they passed glanced at Yuuto for a split second before immediately looking away. No one said anything, but Yuuto figured they were probably thinking, "What's with this guy?" By the time they reached Ground Zero on the third basement level, Yuuto was already out of breath. He had a habit of touching his ear when he got nervous. His hand started to move but he stopped it. This wasn't the time for that. "This is Ground Zero." When Mumei opened the heavy iron door, a vast, somewhat chilly space opened up before them. The ceiling was about fifteen meters high, and the walls gave off a pale blue light. Lumina-reinforced concrete—a special building material reinforced with energy extracted from Tsukigami cores to withstand the impact of Words. That's what the documents they'd been handed last night had said. The space was about three times the size of a school gymnasium. The floor was covered in scorch marks and cracks, telling the story of countless serious battles fought here. Mumei turned around. Her large crimson eyes fixed directly on Yuuto. Usually half-lidded and sleepy, they were now fully open. "You have your Voice Gear on, I see." "Ah, yes." "Good. Copy my Word. The Word is—" Mumei drew a breath. The Voice Gear at her throat shone brightly. "—Shatter." The air trembled. The word released from Mumei's mouth tore through the space with physical force. An iron humanoid target set up about ten meters ahead snapped and crumpled from the middle with a crack-crack-crack. Faint, pale blue phosphorescence from the Lumina lingered on the cut surface. Yuuto gasped. This was the "Word" he'd seen countless times in games. But this was real. The air was buzzing. His skin prickled. This was the impact of a real Word. "Copy that. We don't stop until you can use it." "That's impossible." "Work yourself to death trying." Mumei's lips twisted slightly. He couldn't tell if she was smiling or angry. Probably both. Yuuto steadied his breathing. His heart was pounding. But he had no choice. There was no turning back now. He closed his eyes. In his mind, he replayed the Word from just now. The pitch of her voice. The way she exhaled. The way the air vibrated. He copied it all. "—Shatter." Nothing happened. "Again." "Shatter...!" Still nothing. Just a slightly dry feeling at the back of his throat. "Not yet." "Shat...ter...!" Only his futile voice echoed through the vast training ground before fading away. Yuuto bit his lip. (Why? I could do it yesterday.) "Your image is lacking. A Word isn't just a word. You knead your will into it. Put your desire to 'destroy' into your voice." There was no anger or exasperation in Mumei's voice. She was just stating facts plainly. That made it hit even harder. Yuuto clenched his fist. Destroy. Destroy. Destroy—What? (That Tsukigami.) The black, fog-like mass that had chased him yesterday. (The me who couldn't do anything.) The pathetic version of himself who could only run until Mumei saved him. (That moment I was called dead weight.) Something hot welled up deep in his chest. He didn't know if it was anger or frustration. But something, somewhere in his heart, definitely ignited. "—SHATTER!!" The air... wavered. Just for an instant. A truly fleeting instant. A small crack appeared on the surface of the iron target. It vanished immediately, but there was definitely a change. "Not bad. Continue." "We're... still going?" "Until you can use it." What followed was a long ordeal. Every time he fired a Word, the back of his throat burned hot. It felt less like vocalization and more like grinding his internal organs together. After five, then six repetitions, his voice grew hoarse. His accuracy against the target improved, but the power was completely lacking. Compared to the real one Mumei had unleashed, it was like a child's water pistol. "Deeper. Draw the will from the pit of your stomach." "I'm... trying...!" Sweat dripped into his eyes. Breathing was painful. His knees began to wobble. Around the tenth shot, the taste of iron spread from the back of his throat. Blood. The Voice Gear started emitting a high-pitched warning tone. A steady electronic beep, beep, beep. The strain on his vocal cords had exceeded its limit. "Not yet." Mumei's voice remained cold. Eleventh shot. Twelfth. The taste of blood grew stronger. The warning beeps shortened in interval, becoming frantic—beep, beep, beep. The moment he fired the fourteenth shot, he felt something snap at the back of his throat. "—!" No voice came out. It hurt. "One more." Mumei stood motionless, arms crossed. Her crimson eyes simply watched Yuuto. (Like hell I'm gonna let it end here.) Yuuto gritted his teeth. His mouth filled with the taste of blood. He mustered all his strength and wrung out one final shot. "Shatter—!!" A loud bang echoed. The target's chest visibly dented. At the same time, the Voice Gear's warning tone shifted to a continuous, shrill sound, and the system forcibly shut down. The blue light at his throat went out. "——" No voice came out. Tears welled up from the pain. Yuuto dropped to his knees on the spot. He placed his hands on the floor and gasped for breath over his shoulders. His throat burned as if on fire, yet his body was drenched in cold sweat. Mumei slowly walked over. Only the sound of her shoes striking the floor echoed unnaturally loud. She stopped right in front of Yuuto. Her face was hard to see against the backlight. Only her crimson eyes flickered in the dimness like two flames. "Is that all you've got?" Her voice was as cold as ice. Yuuto couldn't say anything. There was so much he wanted to say. What a pain, seriously, I want to quit. But he couldn't voice it. Mumei turned her back and walked towards the center of the training ground. "Stand up. We're moving on to simulated combat." "S-Simulated combat...?" Yuuto somehow squeezed out his voice. It was a raspy, broken sound. "It's the same as real combat. The only difference is, you won't die." The Voice Gear on the chest of Mumei's combat suit glowed blue once more. "Come at me. With the intent to defeat me." —In that instant, the air around Mumei changed. It felt like the temperature in the training ground dropped by about five degrees. Her usually sleepy eyes were now fully open. A faint, smile-like expression played on her lips. But it wasn't a kind smile. It was the smile of a predator who enjoys cornering and hunting its prey. "...You've gotta be kidding me." There was no time to think beyond that. Mumei kicked off the ground. The fifteen-meter distance closed in an instant. Her martial skill wasn't just about Words. Her movements were supple, like swinging a long whip, yet incredibly fast. Coming from the left. Yuuto instinctively tried to dodge. But his body couldn't keep up. A heavy impact slammed into his side. His vision blurred. The floor tilted diagonally, and he was slammed hard onto his back. Unable to breathe, his mouth gaped open and shut. "Do you use a Word before or after dodging?" Mumei said, looking down at Yuuto. Her voice was matter-of-fact. "You stop the opponent's movement first, then you move. That's basic." "I... know that...!" "Stand up." Yuuto somehow forced his unsteady legs to move and stood up. His side throbbed with pain. This time, he'd attack. "Shatter...!" He activated the Word. A shockwave raced towards Mumei. But it was too slow. Mumei shifted her body just half a step and dodged it. As if she never expected Yuuto's Word to hit in the first place. "Too slow." And then, she came from the right. Thud. He was slammed to the floor again. Pain shot through his shoulder, and his arm went numb. After that, he was knocked down again, and again, and again. As he was knocked down five, then six times, blue bruises multiplied all over his body. The taste of blood in his mouth never went away. Some spots hurt so much he thought bones might be broken. But Mumei didn't hold back. Every time he was knocked down, she said, "Stand up," and every time he stood up, she said, "Too slow," and knocked him down again. Around the tenth time he was sprawled on the floor, Yuuto noticed something. (I predicted that one just now.) Mumei's movements had a habit. When dodging, she always shifted her weight onto her left foot before moving. Her attacks weren't alternating left and right; every other one came from the right. Also, she tilted her head slightly just before Yuuto fired a Word. Probably gauging the start of the opponent's Word. Pattern analysis of games, sketched in the margins of his notebooks back in his high school classroom. Codifying a boss enemy's attack patterns and devising a strategy. That was now, in the midst of this fight, clicking away in a corner of his mind. (Next is... left.) Lying collapsed on the floor, Yuuto steadied his breathing. "Can't you stand?" He could. Yuuto stood up once more. His entire body screamed in protest. But his eyes never left Mumei. (Here it comes. Weight on her left foot.) Mumei leaped to the left. "There!" He'd read it right. Yuuto twisted his body to the right and dodged. Mumei's kick grazed the tips of his hair and cut through empty air. His first successful dodge. Mumei's movement stopped for just a fraction of a second. Her crimson eyes narrowed ever so slightly. (I did it!) In his mind, Yuuto did a victory pose for just a moment. But that was his mistake. The next instant—Mumei's ponytail swayed softly, and the area around her neck was exposed. Through the gaps in her silver hair, he saw it. The base of her neck. An old scar running from right to left. It was large, like a mark left by a deep slash from a massive blade. (What is that—) It wasn't a wound from dodging a Word attack. It was deeper. Someone had aimed for her neck. The moment he saw it, Yuuto's focus wavered for just a second. "Don't look away." Mumei vanished from his sight. The next instant, a violent impact struck his back. He heard the grinding creak of bone. He was slammed face-first into the floor. Stars burst befo

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Episode 2

Name: Another World Trigger: Take Back the World with the Ultimate Duo
Author: Novelia

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