RE.Femboy:Reborn as a VTuber

The mansion’s indoor training room was well suited to testing my new ability.

Thick, impact-resistant plates covered the walls. Light from the ceiling illuminated the entire room, while lines on the floor marked out a large fighting area in the center.

With the door closed, none of the noise inside escaped.

No matter how much I practiced here, I didn’t have to worry about someone hearing the noise and coming over.

Over the past few days, I had become more comfortable using Umbrella. I no longer needed to spend so long thinking about what I wanted when changing its shape. Turning a shield into a spear, then the spear into a shorter weapon, took less time than before.

I had made progress with Azure Flame too.

At least I could create a small flame without letting it shoot up to the ceiling. I could adjust its size and spread it in the direction I wanted for a few seconds.

But doing that during a fight was another matter entirely.

While my opponent attacked, I had to think about my breathing, my feet, Umbrella’s shape, and the flames all at once.

Whenever I got one right, I forgot another.

I looked at the humanoid golems lined up along the wall.

Then at the one in front of me.

It was a little taller than I was. Its dark gray body consisted of interlocking hard plates, and the thin lines at its joints gave off a faint light.

Beneath the symbol on its chest was a single number.

1.

It was the weakest one.

I hadn’t managed to beat it even once.

Using the wall panel, I activated only the model in front of me and started the training session.

"Any chance you’ll be a little gentler this time?"

The golem didn’t answer.

It raised its arms and turned toward me.

"Guess not."

The black bracelet on my left wrist dissolved and flowed into my palm. Umbrella stretched between my fingers, forming a spear with a narrow blade at its tip.

I set my feet and gripped it with both hands.

When the golem took its first step, I thrust the spear toward its chest.

Before the tip could reach the line between its plates, its arm moved sideways.

A metallic clang rang out.

The spear swung wide in my hands.

As I tried to regain control, the golem’s other fist came toward my face. I moved my head aside and stepped back. The ridges resembling knuckles passed just in front of my cheek.

I ducked beneath its arm and struck its knee with the spear’s shaft.

There was a dull thud.

The golem didn’t even stagger.

When its elbow struck my shoulder, however, I was driven several steps backward.

I gritted my teeth.

My body had grown stronger.

This thing was still stronger than me.

I shortened the spear into a sword. As the golem approached, I tried to move around its right side, but it turned faster than I expected.

When its fist came at me, I widened Umbrella.

The black shield caved inward under the blow.

The vibration traveled through my arms and into my shoulders. As my foot slid back, I bent my knees to steady myself.

’Don’t stay still after blocking.’

Eris’s voice came to mind.

I narrowed the shield and pulled back.

The golem’s second fist passed through the spot where I had just been standing.

This time, I didn’t miss the chance.

I activated Storm Heart for a brief moment.

The sudden burst of strength in my legs sent me darting sideways. Once I had moved past the golem’s arm and closed in on its body, I turned Umbrella into a spear again.

I drove the tip beneath the plates resembling its ribs.

It sank a few centimeters into its torso.

I smiled.

Then the golem grabbed the spear’s shaft.

"Ah..."

It pulled the entire weapon toward itself.

Realizing I would be dragged along if I didn’t let go, I liquefied Umbrella. As the black substance slipped between its fingers and returned to me, I jumped back.

Even so, I couldn’t avoid the knee strike entirely.

The hard surface struck my lower stomach, knocking the breath out of me.

I retreated and pressed a hand against my stomach.

The golem didn’t wait.

It advanced toward me.

"Just a minute..."

Instead of answering, it raised its fist.

I dodged sideways and created a blue flame in my palm. When I extended my hand toward it, the fire spread in a short wave.

It engulfed the golem’s shoulder and part of its chest.

For a moment, I thought it would retreat.

But it didn’t.

When I saw its arm reaching through the blue flames, I cut off the fire and threw myself to the side.

The fist passed over my shoulder.

A dark mark remained on its plates, but the golem was still moving.

I, on the other hand, was starting to struggle to catch my breath.

Using Storm Heart and Azure Flame in the same fight was draining my stamina faster than I had expected. As I closed my hand, I felt a faint tremor in my fingers.

If I wasted any more time, I would end up on the floor again.

I turned Umbrella into a sword with a wide blade.

When the golem swung its right arm, I angled the blade sideways and tried to deflect the blow.

My timing was off.

The sword was pushed in the opposite direction. My body turned with it, leaving me exposed.

The golem’s other hand struck my chest.

My feet left the floor.

When my back hit the ground, the air rushed out of my lungs. For several seconds, I couldn’t breathe.

My eyes drifted toward the ceiling.

Then a dark gray body entered my field of vision.

The golem stood over me.

It clasped its hands together and raised them above its head.

My heart sped up.

Again?

I pressed my elbow against the floor and tried to sit up. My body didn’t respond as quickly as I wanted.

Was I really not going to beat this damn thing even once?

I gripped Umbrella with both hands.

The golem’s arms began to descend.

I wasn’t going to get out of the way in time.

As I raised the sword in front of me, I focused entirely on the hands coming down.

I wanted to stop the blow.

To push the golem back, break it apart, and never let it come at me again...

Blue light appeared in my palms.

Before I could think about what was happening, flames flowed from Umbrella’s hilt toward its blade.

They covered the black surface from end to end.

The golem’s hands struck the sword.

A sharp crack rang out before the heavy pressure I expected could settle on my arms.

My eyes widened.

I pushed Umbrella upward.

Dark fragments scattered through the blue fire. The blade split the golem’s joined hands, passed between its arms, and continued toward its chest.

The plates parted.

The light inside flared for a moment.

Then blue flames poured into the opening.

The golem stopped.

Its body gave a brief shudder above me. The lines at its joints flickered, and the light in its chest went out.

As its weight tipped forward, I pulled myself aside.

The hard body fell to the floor.

The impact echoed through the room.

For a while, I didn’t move.

I looked at the golem’s face.

Then at its shattered hands.

It wasn’t moving.

Breathing hard, I pushed myself up and sat back on my knees. My arms were shaking, and the sweat running down my back had plastered my shirt to my skin.

But I couldn’t take my eyes off the body on the floor.

I had beaten it.

I really had beaten it.

As I tried to figure out how I had done it, I noticed the light in my hand.

I slowly turned my head.

Umbrella was still covered in blue flames.

Fire rose along the black blade’s edge, curling at the tip before flowing back toward the surface. My hands didn’t burn as I tightened my grip on the hilt. The weapon’s shape hadn’t changed either.

The flames I had used on their own just a moment ago hadn’t been able to stop the golem.

But now...

I lifted the sword a little.

Blue light fell across my face.

"Ahh..."

My lips parted.

"I could use it like this?"