This Device Makes It Rain Pork Bone Broth – Part 04
Beneath the summer sky, in the middle of a street wedged between apartment buildings, I finally found them. Right there in the center of a plain residential road—no signs or markings—stood a monster in a school uniform and a chestnut-haired girl. It was the kind of place where kids might normally be playing catch.
Even as her shirt and underwear, the only clothes she had on, were torn to shreds, Haruna held her ground. No matter how many times she was hit, she kept striking back. But her attacks had zero effect on her opponent.
The Megalo looked like it was having the time of its life.
“Hooorse.”
It was a grayish horse, easily over three meters tall. The school uniform alone told me it was a Megalo.
The horse never neighed properly, just kept shouting “Hooorse,” like it thought that was what a real horse sounded.
Haruna’s attacks were wide. The horse was able to dodge them with just a slight step back.
“Horse, horse, horse!”
The horse sneered, while Haruna’s face twisted in frustration.
It didn’t have fingers, just hard hooves. One little tap from those, and Haruna rolled away like a rubber ball. Still, her eyes stayed fierce. She stood right back up, swinging her chainsaw like a club. The horse didn’t even bother dodging. It just let her hit.
Not even a flinch. Haruna’s eyes widened in shock, but she didn’t quit. She swung again. And again. And again.
The reason her hits didn’t work wasn’t because she hadn’t transformed into a Magiclad Girl. It was because every time she faced a Megalo, she instantly grew weak. Her legs would give out, and she’d just collapse to the ground.
No way that kind of attack could do anything. Still, Haruna refused to give up. Her pride wouldn’t let her.
“Hooorse.”
A puff of purple mist blasted from the horse’s flaring nostrils. The toxic air made Haruna’s knees shake.
“Y-You piece of shit.”
Her legs couldn’t support her anymore. She tried to use the chainsaw to push herself up, but she ended up plopping back down to the ground. Her cheeks were flushed as soft breaths escaped her lips.
At last, the chainsaw slipped from her hands. Her eyelids drooped halfway, and her body swayed unsteadily. She was losing consciousness. She shook her head in an attempt to stay awake, but her cowlick had already gone limp.
The horse brushed its hoof along her soft skin. Its eyes glinted with lust, its breathing heavy. Circling around her, the horse then slowly moved its hoof toward the inside of Haruna’s clothes.
But before it could do anything, I slipped in from behind and yanked its mane like I meant to rip it out. Finally, a cloud had blocked the sun.
“Ayu…mu?”
Haruna, her eyes hollow, wasn’t able to process what was going on right away. That strange mist from earlier might’ve had some kind of mind-numbing effect.
I kicked the horse away with full force, then raised a hand toward Haruna.
“Hey, fancy meeting you here,” I said. “I’m here to take care of this Megalo. What are you doing out here?”
“Huh? I…”
“You okay?”
I took the chainsaw from Haruna, then spun around and sliced upward. The blade caught the ugly horse’s chin perfectly. I followed with an elbow strike, stretched my hand for a backfist, checked my spacing, spun, and slammed its jaw again.
Haruna shook her head wildly, her cowlick bouncing straight up, then sucked in a deep breath.
“You should’ve gotten here way sooner!”
Well, at least she looked okay.
“I didn’t think you’d actually go off on your own.”
“Even if I’m alone, even if I can’t win, I’ve still gotta fight.”
She looked downcast. I wanted to apologize, but before I could open my mouth, the horse’s hooves slammed against the asphalt, and it charged straight at us. I lost my chance to say anything.
The sun was still up, so my usual boosted zombie strength wasn’t doing much. I thought I’d end it fast, but the horse looked completely unfazed.
So, now what? Did I really have to become a Magiclad Girl? Honestly, I never wanted to wear that outfit again.
“Come on! Just transform already! That thing’s a Double-A class Megalo, the Kneecap of Terror: Wanderneigh Silva!”[1]
Purple mist spewed from the horse’s nostrils, making Haruna shudder.
Yeah, wasting time thinking wasn’t helping. I wasn’t beating this thing unless I transformed anyway.
Fine, fine. Let’s just get it over with.
I recited the incantation like I couldn’t care less.
“Htaed fo regnibrah a tub gnimrahc dna ylevol!”
My school uniform burst apart, and that painfully perfect cosplay outfit wrapped around me. Before the transformation even finished, the horse lunged with both hooves stretched forward.
I spun, slipping past the horse in one fluid motion to get behind it. That landed me in direct sunlight.
But no problem. I could still move the way I imagined, even under the sun. I might not have my full zombie powers, but as a Magiclad Girl, I could still fight. No way I’d lose.
“Gah!”
All the air rushed out of my lungs as I flew backward through the air, mouth wide open. There was a deep hoof mark in my chest. A sheer force like nothing I’d ever felt before had crushed my lungs.
I looked up just in time to see the horse lowering its head, front hooves planted on the ground, and hind legs raised in the air.
A buck. I’d just been buck-kicked.
And it packed a ridiculous punch. A normal Magiclad Girl might’ve died from that.
Trying to get behind a strong opponent was classic strategy. That thing baited me by launching an attack that was easy to dodge.
“Horse? Neigh matter!”
I wasn’t sure if that meant, “What? It didn’t work? Hmph, whatever.” Or it was more like, “You’re a guy? Hmph, whatever.” Either way, this horse was very expressive.
It turned its left side toward me, raising its right hoof near its cheek. When I moved in, it poked out a left jab to keep me back. One slip and that right straight would come flying. Nasty form.
But I had a longer reach thanks to the chainsaw. I gripped the weapon in both hands, held it high, and inched closer with sliding steps.
The scorching sunlight made the air shimmer. The chainsaw absorbed the heat and began glowing ruby red. Its teeth started spinning, not with an engine growl, but with a sharp, whirring screech.
The horse circled me. I ignored the left jab. The plan was to counter hard when it overcommitted to a right strike. Once I landed that first hit, I’d hammer it with a full combo.
No way I’d lose like this. If it wanted a real fight, it better bring five or six more like it.
Man, if I had my usual strength, I could’ve floored it in one clean shot. Damn daytime.
My healing was slower too. I was having a hard time breathing. Was it just from the kick to my lungs, or from that weird mist it emitted?
The horse suddenly closed the gap. I poured all the strength I had into my arms and brought the chainsaw crashing down, trailing ruby-red light.
“Ayumu!”
I wasn’t sure how many seconds passed before Haruna’s voice finally reached me.
Everything felt slow as I stared down the horse in front of me.
The horse slid to the side. I saw it coming. My chainsaw came down diagonally. I angled the blade tighter, tracking the horse’s motion.
It leaned forward and swung its hoof like a backfist. Too slow. The chainsaw would get there before it did.
As the blade began tearing into the horse’s side, its left jab struck my right arm. So it was just going to keep attacking while getting shredded?
Even as the chainsaw cut into it, the horse threw a right straight. I let go of the chainsaw, caught its hoof with my left hand, and slammed my right elbow straight into its smug horse face.
Its jaw snapped sideways, and it started to stagger.
Easy. I could afford to toy with it a little. I intentionally let a perfect opportunity slip.
Just as I was basking in the fact that I was stronger than this horse, I finally managed to clearly hear Haruna’s voice.
“Ayumu, you idiot! I said behind you!”
Behind me?
Before turning, I dropped my head. Just in case something was already mid-swing.
My hunched back suddenly arched like a drawn bow. Something smashed into me from behind so hard, I arched backward.
Zombie blood burst like buckshot, splattering the horse’s black school uniform.
Something had pierced me. Some kind of thick, tube-like thing. Not just one. They kept stabbing through me, one after another. Electric shocks surged through my body, numbing my limbs completely.
I was lifted off the ground, high into the air, and then slammed down hard onto the asphalt. Damn it. My body wouldn’t respond.
The horse’s hoof came crashing down toward my face. It stomped on me, grinding my cheek against the asphalt.
Rage boiled in my gut, but the paralysis stopped me from doing a damn thing.
Beside the horse was a jellyfish. Or something like a jellyfish. Some kind of stinging, floating creature dressed in a school uniform.
So that’s what hit me. The jellyfish.
And it wasn’t alone. Five… ten… no, there were more. A lot more. I remembered the notice about a massive Megalo outbreak.
This was bad. My consciousness started drifting. Maybe I’d taken in too much of that weird purple mist.
I was such an idiot. Why didn’t I finish the horse when I had the chance? Showing off could wait until after the fight was over.
Shit. I couldn’t die, but Haruna wasn’t like me. There was no way she could escape from this many Megalo.
1. A reference to Wanderlei César da Silva, a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who competed in Japan’s Pride Fighting Championships and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
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