Chapter 37: Old Man, When Did You Start Thinking I Could Only Fight Up Close?

Chapter 37: Old Man, When Did You Start Thinking I Could Only Fight Up Close?

Silence fell.

A deathly, absolute silence.

Tachibana stared at Tendou—who had once again steadied himself on his feet—and at Cromwell, who was dragging himself up from the crater he’d been smashed into.

Her red lips parted slightly, eyes wide with disbelief.

As a seasoned second-order Starbearer, Tachibana knew all too well the vast gulf that separated a first-order from a second-order.

Yes, the term “second-order” only meant that one’s base star energy exceeded 1000 points and their Star Origin had undergone a single awakening—it wasn’t a perfect measure of true combat strength.

But Cromwell was no ordinary Starbearer.

His star energy limit reached an impressive 2100 points, and his Star Origin—Sea-Spine Coral—was a pure, combat-type star core.

By any standard, he was among the stronger second-orders.

And yet, despite all that… he was being completely overwhelmed by Tendou—an opponent only at first-order.

No tricks, no luck, no room for debate.

‘Tendou… every time I think I’ve finally seen through you, you show me something even more unbelievable.’

‘Is it because you’ve been hiding your true strength from me all this time… or have you simply grown too fast for me to keep up?’

For the first time, Tachibana couldn’t tell.

While she stood there, shaken to her core, Cromwell—having just regained his footing—was equally stunned.

He touched his chest instinctively.

There, on the once-gleaming coral armor he was so proud of, was a deep dent—hammered in by Tendou’s bare hand.

But that wasn’t what truly shocked him.

What truly terrified him… was Tendou’s first strike.

That elbow—that single, precise blow—had somehow pierced straight through his armor, bypassing his outer defense and crushing his body beneath.

By comparison, Tendou’s second attack—the one that had looked so devastating, that thunderous axe kick—had barely done anything.

Most of its force had been absorbed by his armor.

And that difference told Cromwell everything he needed to know.

“Tendou,” he said, his voice low, his eyes narrowing, “if I’m guessing right… your Vector Control only extends about… one centimeter from your body, doesn’t it?”

Tendou didn’t bother denying it.

“Mm. To be exact—nine millimeters.”

“…No wonder.”

Cromwell finally understood.

That first elbow strike had pierced him only because, at that moment, his armor had been a mere ten millimeters thick.

Which meant Tendou’s vector field—reaching nine millimeters outward—had left only a single millimeter of real protection between his energy and Cromwell’s flesh.

The second attack, on the other hand, had been completely neutralized—because by then, Cromwell had reinforced his defense with a fifty-millimeter-thick layer of his Coral Armor.

Tendou’s control field simply couldn’t reach through it.

Satisfied with this revelation, Cromwell began to move again.

His Coral Gauntlet started to retract, the armored segments thickening and hardening—sacrificing speed for defense.

At the same time, his Spear Gauntlet extended, the coral fibers becoming softer, more flexible—like the tail spine of some deep-sea predator.

Its reach grew longer, its lethality more refined.

Tendou watched him quietly and sighed.

“I see… so you’ve decided that as long as you keep your distance, my Vector Control won’t be able to touch you.”

Then, with a faint smile, he raised his hand.

And in the next instant, a sphere of pure black energy, deep and devouring like a miniature black hole, began to gather slowly at Tendou’s fingertip.

Stellar Technique—Dark Grey

The moment that eerie black sphere finished forming at Tendou’s fingertip, an oppressive pressure rolled through the air.

Beneath his helmet, Cromwell’s expression twisted.

In just that single instant, he knew—whatever that black orb was, it was no ordinary attack.

It felt like death itself condensed into a sphere, a silent promise of annihilation.

“Old man, when did you start thinking I could only fight up close?”

The words had barely left Tendou's lips when the black orb shot forward.

It wasn’t just fast—its sheer rotational velocity and gravitational pull tore the air apart, carving out a swirling vortex in its wake like the exhaust of a launched missile.

In the blink of an eye, Dark Grey became a streak of black light and closed the distance.

Cromwell’s eyes widened. Though the sphere was no bigger than a ping-pong ball, every instinct screamed that this tiny thing could kill him.

He crossed his arms before him, the purple coral covering his body surging outward once more—thick, hard, and unyielding.

Deep Blue Flow—Coral Armor!

A dense coral shell enveloped him completely.

But this time—unlike before—the armor that had once withstood Tendou’s blows could no longer protect him.

No blinding light. No thunderous explosion.

Only the quiet, horrifying sound of cracking.

When Dark Grey struck Cromwell’s chest, the heavy armor splintered instantly, fracturing into a spiderweb of cracks that spread in all directions.

A moment later came the shrill, grating sound of energy cutting through matter—metallic and sharp enough to set teeth on edge.

The black sphere drilled straight into the armor, burrowing deep within.

Then—

BOOM!

The impact energy burst outward from within his body, its kinetic force rippling through flesh and bone, piercing organs and shattering balance.

On Cromwell’s back, the armor bulged outward in a perfect ring, as if an invisible cannon shell had passed straight through him.

“Guh—!”

He dropped to one knee, coughing up a thick spray of blood.

The crimson liquid trickled down through the cracks of his helmet, dripping onto the broken concrete below—each droplet blooming into a short-lived, dark red flower before fading away.

Drip... drip...

In the quiet of the underground parking lot, the sound of blood hitting the floor was painfully clear.

And painfully loud.

From not far away, Tachibana’s pupils contracted.

Her gaze swept past Tendou—calm and unscathed—and fixed on the five-meter-long gouge that now marred the floor behind Cromwell.

That mark… had been carved by Dark Grey’s aftershock alone.

Just the aftershock.

She didn’t need to imagine what the full impact must have done.

In the heavy silence that followed, Tendou walked slowly toward the kneeling Coral Knight.

His voice was calm—almost gentle.

“So, Old man… do you still want to continue?”

Cromwell stayed silent for a long time.

Then, slowly, he raised his head.

Underneath the battle-scarred helmet was a square, weathered face—lined with age and experience.

He removed the helmet fully, exhaled, and gave a weary smile.

“No… there’s no need to continue.”

With that, the coral armor around him crumbled away into glittering fragments, and he dismissed his coral lance and shield.

Beneath the armor, he now wore a neatly pressed black suit.

Gone was the rugged warrior from moments ago—what stood before Tendou now looked more like a dignified old butler than a front-line fighter.

But even as he conceded, the memory of Tendou’s last attack lingered in his mind.

That black orb.

That strike.

And the spot it had hit.

“Tell me, boy,” he asked quietly, “that last attack of yours… did you just happen to hit one of my old injuries? Or were you aiming for it from the start?”

Tendou’s lips curved faintly.

“Does it matter?”

Cromwell froze—then gave a tired chuckle.

“You’re right. It doesn’t. Because a real corpse…” He met Tendou’s gaze. “…doesn’t talk.”

His tone was calm, but the implication was anything but.

Because in that single sentence, he’d admitted the truth—If Tendou hadn’t held back … He would already be dead.

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