Breathe.

Issei, you need to breathe.

Panicking will not help in this situation.

Yes, this man may have a gun, but that doesn't matter.

If I can rush him, push the pistol away from me, and snatch it off him, I should be fine.

So, I should breathe.

I won't be able to follow such an optimistic ideal if I am not overcome by waves of peace.

But I couldn't breathe.

Despite my clear train of thought, I was screaming out and hyperventilating in my mind as I stared at the pistol, eyes wide in fear and apprehension, as its user approached.

And then I was hit with the harsh reality of the situation.

There was nothing I could do.

There was absolutely nothing I could do when confronted with such an opponent.

I glanced at my stat sheet as I willed it into existence, eyeing the ten spare status points I had.

Although it would be wise to dump my points into agility or dexterity, so I could move faster than the guy could react, my instincts were screaming at me to not fight this guy. Whoever he was, my instincts were warning me of my death if I tried to fight him in a physical battle.

I was once again reminded of my powerlessness and I cursed myself for not visiting the dungeon again, even if it was frightening and dangerous.

"Hoo, you haven't fought back yet. Are you a coward, or are you smart?" The perverse grin shifted into a more sinister smile and I felt sick to the core. Yet I managed to offer the man a shaky grin as he waved his gun around in my face. "Either way, it doesn't matter. I mean, it seems as if your instincts are telling you something. What are they telling you, boy?"

"They're telling me that your emphasis on 'boy' was useless." I snapped my mouth shut and kicked myself for the unnecessary remark, yet the quiet chuckle that escaped the man's mouth eased my heart just a little.

And then he pressed the cool barrel of his pistol against my forehead.

"I thought you'd be more fun and fight back like that whore over there, but oh well, what can you do?" His lyrical and melodious way of speaking made me furrow my brow, however, I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat instead as I knew that my end was just around the corner.

In fact, I could already feel the water of the river Styx on my feet.

Although, there was still a few questions I wanted to ask. Despite the sudden calm that had come over me because I had recognised there was no way out of this situation, I wanted to speak up and ask who this man was and what exactly it was he was doing.

"Before you kill me, I want to ask you a couple of questions. Nothing harmful, I promise. Just something to satiate my curiosity." A glimpse of the man's crimson eyes as he glanced up at me was all I needed to confirm the fact that he was probably unhuman in some way. But, as he was now staring me straight in the eyes, I took that as a signal to ask my question.

"You… Do you have any connection to Yuuma Amano – no, the girl called Raynare?"

The man flinched, clicked his tongue and holstered his pistol on the inside of his coat, his hand pulling his hat down to cover his eyes. This all happened in a single second.

"So you're the bitch's boytoy, huh? This is too unfortunate for me." And, with that, he dashed out of the room after a heavy, almost exaggerated sigh. I stared at empty air in disbelief before I blinked a few times, my lips pursed.

Following that, the chaos of my mind returned to me. My thoughts were in disarray, I was hyperventilating for real this time and I truly didn't know what to do now.

So I had to weigh the options.

In option number one, I stayed behind and took care of this girl until the police and ambulance arrive. I am ultimately questioned and am possibly detained for a period of time until my innocence is proven. After that, all of the women love me, and I am automatically better than that princely fiend Yuuto Kiba.

In option number two, I chase after this strange man and ultimately meet my death. I'm not doubting my slim chances of survival, but with my horrendous stats, there's no way I can beat anything. However, my curiosity is sated, and I can die knowing the truth.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and quietly dialled the emergency services hotline as I left the room.

I mean, who said I couldn't choose both?

[Sprint: Level 1 has become Sprint: Level 2!]

[Because you feel as if your lungs and heart are going to explode, your AGI has increased by +2 and your VIT has increased by +1!]

Outside of this godforsaken church, behind a bush, I was literally dying. I mean, my heart was beating way too quickly and way too hard for it to be normal and there was a slight pain in my chest every time I breathed in.

But, well, this is what I was expecting when I followed the guy all the way here. Hunched over, hands on my knees and awkward rasps escaping me, I couldn't imagine a better outcome. How far did I run though? It must have been at least several kilometres. Maybe five? I think it's between five and ten and sprinting that entire distance is certainly not a normal thing to do.

You know, I think I deserve those extra stat points.

Anyway, after I took a few moments to calm my heart and lungs, my chest feeling a little light and fluffy after the intense pain it suffered, I straightened my back and clothes and approached the building with as much calm as I could muster.

I mean, my presence would have been revealed by now by the strange man so there was no point in hiding the fact that I was here. It would straight up be stupid. I was also thinking that Yuuma might save me in someway if I'm attacked out in the open, but I wasn't counting on her to do that.

As I finished that thought, the double doors slowly swung open, the ominous creaking of the hinges being carried by a sudden gust of wind. I stopped in my tracks, halfway to the doors, and stared into the darkness that lay beyond them, my brow furrowing.

Out stepped a bundle of black that had blonde twin tails sticking out of their head.

I instinctively swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat as I immediately knew who this person was. They were Yuuma's friend, the loli girl Mittelt who is looking to kill me as soon as possible.

"You're a brave one, Hyoudou." Hyoudou? Why the hell would she callously call me by my last name like that, ignoring how I live in a Japanese society and how, despite this, no one ever calls me by my last name? Also, what's with her get up? She's literally only wearing black on such a dark night whereas when I saw her last her clothes were white that was accentuated by black? There are too many details to observe!

"Well, I do like to think I'm courageous, not brave." Mittelt, as she approached me, rose an eyebrow.

"There's a difference?"

"Yup," was my quick reply as I instinctively felt a conglomeration of energy form around me, "bravery is where you feel no fear when confronting danger where courage is feeling fear instead."

"Oh? That's interesting. Anyway, I'm going to kill you now." As she finished her sentence, a row of thin, pale rods formed in the air, their luminescent light brightly illuminating the surroundings. I frowned as I glanced up at where the moon should be, dark clouds obscuring the object.

"Before you kill me, there's something I want to ask you." Oh look, a feeling of déjà vu that correlates to a question I asked literally twenty minutes ago.

"Depending on what you ask, I might be gracious enough to answer your question."

"…What exactly are you?" If there was any sound other than our conversation, it would have ceased at once as my heavy question pressed down on the comfortable atmosphere Mittelt was building with her arrogance. Her frown was telling me she wanted to kill me immediately yet the slight twinkle in her eyes revealed her true feelings.

"Hmph. I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you. You're going to die anyway."

Don't tell me this girl is some kind of…tsundere.

I shuddered as I realised the possibility was high.

"To answer your question, Hyoudou, I'm just a human." I noticed Mittelt's smug grin and glanced at the magical rods.

"Yeah, I'm going to have to ask you to not lie." And with that, Mittelt harrumphed, crossed her arms, and turned her head away in pure tsundere fashion. Following that, I sighed and callously approached her, ignoring the instinctual need to push everything out of my way. "…Aaaaaand you just missed a good chance to kill me."

"Wait, what!? When the hell did you get there!?" I frowned and was taken aback by her statement. I mean, yeah, Mittelt's eyes were closed, but she should have been able to hear me approach her…

Wait a second. I have a stealth skill or something like that, don't I? Although its effects seem to be a little overpowered in such a scenario, it might have an attack bonus against tsunderes!

…Or not. It's worth considering, though.

"Well, did Yuuma tell you I'm a ninja?"

"You're a ninja!?" And with that, Mittelt hopped back not once but twice, covering a decent amount of distance, and summoned more of those magical rod things.

"No, I'm not really a ninja, but I would say I'm fairly lucky."

"And what does that have to do with anything!?" I sighed and rubbed the back of my head, acknowledging the fact that I'm not acting in a suitable manner for this situation. Is it because of the sheer stupidity and unrealistic scenario? Or is it my resistance skills taking effect because I somehow don't find this small girl to be…scary or threatening.

"Well, I'm trying to insinuate that I'm only lucky and that it's my only chance to get out of these kinds of situations alive. That's how I beat Yuuma the first time, you know." It was Mittelt's turn to be taken aback by her opponent's words.

"What do you mean!? As if she'd let someone like you lure her into such an easy trap!" I felt a shit-eating grin form on my face.

"What if I told you it was Yuuma's suggestion?" There was a short moment of silence as Mittelt's face reddened. "Just so you know, I'm not joking. You can ask her yourself." It seems as if that was the last straw as a few rods flew towards me at speeds that were way too fast for someone to react to.

"Don't lie, you filthy human!"

However, because I'm influenced by video game stats and whatnot, I easily dived to the side and avoided a painful death. After that, a cluster was hastily thrown towards the vulnerable me. I quickly pivoted onto my back and rolled backwards, landing on my butt after a full rotation, and watched as the rods landed in a neat row that was a few millimetres in front of the tips of my toes.

A cold sweat broke onto my back as I glanced up at the foe that was approaching me, my eyes mostly fixated on the rods that were appearing around her.

"I'm surprised you managed to dodge those, Hyoudou. However, don't think I'm going to go easy on you anymore!" And with that, rods of light began to appear one after another, rapidly filling my vision as Mittelt appeared to be fuming where she stood. I don't understand why she's so angry, but it seems to be a good thing as she'll eventually run of out mana.

And it's not like I can do anything other than wait.

I mean, I have practically no magical abilities, no physical abilities and no battle skills. I've literally only invested myself in LCK so far and, even though I have ten spare skill points, its not as if dumping them into AGI or STR will do anything in this situation.

Like, I can't even see Mittelt. There's no way ten more AGI stats will get me past an impenetrable magical wall that's formed from magical spears. I either wait for Mittelt to run out of mana, or I die. They're my only options.

So, to live, I need to aggravate Mittelt even further.

Even if it means I need to desecrate the holy image I think I have.

"Hey, Mittelt. You wanna know more about my interactions with Yuuma?"

"What!?" Was her…very aggressive response. I mean, I wasn't expecting anything less, but the amount of bark hurt just a little.

"Well, Yuuma and I made a little bet. If I won that game of rock-paper-scissors, she'd show me her panties. If I lost, she'd probably have killed me."

"The way you speak is telling me you won!" And with that, to avoid becoming a pincushion on one side of my body, I had to drop to the ground faster than an asteroid. There wasn't any crater or anything, but there was a lot of pain in my ribcage.

"Yeah, I won, and what about it!? It's all Yuuma's fault, isn't it? Sure, I may have…err…persuaded her to follow through on her end, but still, she made a conscious decision to do that!"

"No, she didn't! I know you forced her to!" And then it hit me.

"Do you only want to kill me because of that one incident that one hundred percent had consent!?"

"Yes! What of it!? I know that Raynare would willingly make a bet, but she'd never do something that stupidly erotic and romantic!" Wait a minute, this goth loli isn't jealous, is she?

"You…you're not some jealous, yuri obsessed yandere, are you?"

"Who do you think I am!?"

"A jealous, yuri obsessed yandere. Also, someone that isn't human."

"I'm not into that stuff, dammit!"

"I could care less. Anyway, stop attacking me already! It's not fair!" There was a short moment of silence before Mittelt sighed and crossed her arms, a disgusted look being pointed my way. I glanced behind me to make sure there wasn't anyone else here.

"Pathetic. You're not strong enough, so you start to beg for your life? Absolutely pathetic!" What the hell is this girl talking about? And what's with the sudden shift in attitude!? Can this girl make her mind up already!? I furrowed my brow as I pushed myself onto my feet, one hand held over my ribcage as I resisted the urge to wince.

"I have no idea what you're talking about as I haven't started begging yet."

"So the keyword is 'yet', huh?"

"Yup. So, if you really want me to beg, you're gonna have to make me!" And with that, I recklessly charged at Mittlet with a stupid grin, my ambitions soaring as I foolishly took advantage of her implied kindness.

She was quick to react though and quickly summoned more of those magical spears, however, she finally seemed to be running out of steam as there was only a few left. I dove to the ground with my arms over my head and felt them soar over me, a few thunks from behind indicating they had hit some trees.

I quickly scrambled to my feet and closed the remaining few meters in an instant, Mittelt's eyes clenched shut as I pounced at her.

With a loud roar, I had tackled to her ground.

[Skill acquired: Battle Cry]

Panting, straddling her stomach with my knees on her elbows, I had won. A quiet, yet shaky laugh escaped my mouth as I trembled.

"…What's up with you now, you weirdo?"

"I did it! I beat my first real enemy!" The upside was, I didn't even need to use Rock-Paper-Scissors! That proves that I'm a manly man that is fairly lucky anyway! And what did I say earlier about not being strong enough to beat anyone?!

"So what are you going to do now? Are you going to kill me?" My expression drooped at the sudden change of mood. Staring up at me, with no visible light in her eyes, this prideful loli had suggested she wanted to die.

"What, is losing too much for you?" I tried to crack a joke to improve the mood, but it clearly didn't work. There was now a fire present inside of her, though, as she growled and started to struggle. She wasn't strong enough to throw me off her, so I was able to maintain my dominant position.

"What's the point in winning if you don't kill the loser at the end!?"

Eh? What? Why the hell would Mittelt have such an ideal?

I hadn't realised it, but in my confusion and mixed feelings, I had lowered my head enough for a loud crack to reverberate throughout my head. I fell back off Mittlet and quickly held a hand to my forehead as I jumped to my feet, a wave of dizziness assaulting me. "Do you seriously want to die or something?" I spoke as her chest quickly rose and fell. She seemed to be affected by the headbutt too as she stumbled back a few steps.

"If you don't kill me, I won't be forgiven for losing to a human like you. There would be no point in living."

This situation. It has become unexpectedly dark.

"What exactly do you mean?" Mittelt awkwardly laughed, her exhaustion present in her voice as she stepped towards me. I took a half step back, my muscles tensing as I expected another battle.

"You won't understand and that's why you won't be able to do anything. You want to save that foreigner, right?" I nod my head. "There are many more people who are stronger than I am that are guarding her, Raynare included. You better prepare for your death."

I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat as Mittelt fell onto her back.

Boom. Procrastination prevails New record for longest break between updates set at ten weeks. Let's see if I can beat it. Long story short, super busy in real life. Lots of work, lots of school, that kind of stuff. Anyway, because it's still relevant, how did everyone feel about the first episode of Goblin Slayer? I thought it was sad, but it hasn't deterred me from the series.

Thank you for reading Rock-Paper-Scissors.