The Legendary Old Man Becomes a Dungeon Streamer: When the World's Strongest Tried Streaming in His Second Life, He Instantly Went Viral and Gained S-Class Disciples. - Chapter 5

“Reina, stay back.”

“Okay.”

Sensing the point of no return had passed, Reina also stepped away to maintain distance.

“Karin, if you hurt Sensei, I’ll never forgive you.”

“Hmph! Didn’t expect you to go that far.”

“…! That’s irrelevant! Just stating facts!”

Reina waved her hands frantically in denial. Well, I guess she’s worried about me. Wouldn’t want either of us getting hurt for nothing.

“Alright.”

I exhaled deeply, shifting my mind into combat mode.

Fusing body and reflexes, I honed my mana to perfection, flawless as still water.

Clear mirror, still water; bright clouds, autumn moon.

Calm and unshaken, ready to receive.

This is the fighting style I’ve cultivated over thirty years.

Meanwhile, Karin was lightly stepping in place.

“Mind if I make the first move?”

“Go ahead.”

My reply was brief. Words were unnecessary.

No bloodlust needed. No fighting spirit required. Just pure power.

“Alright, here I come!”

Karin unleashed her mana and charged straight at me.

Bold approach.

Then, her entire body shimmered, transforming into blue water. Even her bikini merged, turning her into a slime-like liquid while barely retaining human form.

So that’s why she wears that swimsuit specialized for her ability.

“This is my power!”

A rare ability to liquefy her entire body. Undeniably powerful. Compared to flesh, it grants overwhelming strength and drastically boosts physical resistance. In this state, most wouldn’t stand a chance normally.

But even as Karin closed in, my mind remained steady. I’ve fought dozens, hundreds of shape-shifters before. Experience guided my response.

Karin threw a punch.

Freed from the constraints of flesh, her strike far surpassed human limits.

“Sensei!!”

Yet, I reacted. Just before impact, I caught her liquefied arm.

“What?! You grabbed me?!”

“With concentrated mana, it’s possible.”

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

“How?”

“First time I’ve seen someone catch Karin’s punch barehanded.”

“Can you even block like that?”

“Not even top-rankers can do that.”

“If it was an ability, maybe, but…”

“What kind of technique is this?”

“Legendary old man’s just built different.”

Karin strained, trying to pull free, but her arm didn’t budge.

“Guh! Can’t break free!”

“Even transformation abilities have limits.”

Right now, Karin’s strength could flip a compact car. But I held firm. Mana overrides all exceptions and mine vastly outmatched hers. That’s why she couldn’t escape.

“Tch, don’t take this personally!”

Karin twisted her body, leaping up to wrap her legs around my neck. A chokehold smart. Water constricting my throat or face could suffocate me. Efficient.

But before she could lock it in, I moved. Using her caught arm as leverage, I slammed her into the floor.

“Guhhh! You saw through that?!”

Karin’s movements were fast, but their predictability came from their efficiency.

She launched a relentless assault straights, jabs, low kicks, all leading into grapples.

I simply defended. Parrying with my hands, sidestepping kicks.

Hmm, her trajectories are too straightforward. Still rough around the edges.

But I couldn’t attack recklessly. Half-hearted mana strikes would be nullified by her liquid form, leaving me vulnerable to a counter-grapple.

This wasn’t the time for all-out offense. Pure defense would suffice.

Yeah, that’s best. Avoiding injuries is priority.

“Hah! hah.!!” “Karin’s attacks not landing at all.”

For ten minutes, Karin kept attacking nonstop. But she was finally running low on mana. Full-body liquefaction drains it fast.

Though, against anyone else, she’d have won by now.

My counter-focused, defense-heavy style was the only reason I held out.

“Phew! hah! haah!”

Finally, Karin dropped to her knees, reverting to solid form.

Sweat poured from her entire body. She’d hit her limit.

“You’re strong.”

“I’d prefer ‘experienced’ over ‘strong.'”

I once chased strength too training recklessly to be the best. But “strongest” means little. I just wanted power to slay beasts and conquer dungeons. Too old to care about rankings now.

Karin plopped down cross-legged.

“Whew! First time in ages I’ve gone this long. Seriously, what kind of training gets you like this?”

“That’s thanks to training and real combat, right, Sensei!”

Reina answered smugly, parroting my earlier words.

Stop this is being streamed! Don’t say that with such a proud face, it’s embarrassing!

“Karin lost?!”

“No way.”

“Nah, old man just defended the whole time.”

“Blocking Karin’s attacks alone puts him in elite territory.”

“Even A-ranks get wrecked by Karin instantly.”

“S-ranks are usually first-strike kills, yet he held out.”

“Legendary old man’s just built different.”

After a deep breath, Karin flashed a grin at the drone.

“Alright, that’s a wrap for the stream. Chat later, so stick around!”

Waving at the drone, she snapped her fingers.

“Live stream over! Good work!”

A boy’s voice replied from the drone. The stream had ended, meaning the test was done too.

“So, about the results.”

“Passed, obviously! No question!”

Well, I wouldn’t call it a disgraceful performance, but who knows the grading criteria? Pure defense might not cut it.

Then, I sensed someone at the dojo entrance, their mana at master level. No ordinary person.

“Really, Reina, you jump to conclusions so easily.”

A slow, drawn-out voice. There stood a girl about middle-school height, with fluffy, pale blonde hair in a side ponytail. An angelically cute girl. But seeing her froze my thoughts.

“You!”

Bitter memories seeped through my chest.

“President! You came after all?!”

“You were here the whole time?!”

The girl waddled over, looking up at me with calm, lidded eyes.

That face, still hard to read despite its cuteness some things never change.

“Tatsuya, did you forget me?”

“Like I could, Kaede.”

Even if I tried, forgetting her would be impossible.

The girl before me was Shijou Kaede. Her ‘Hyper-Regeneration’ ability halted her aging, so her real age was nearly the same as mine, pushing forty.

“Wait! Sensei and the president know each other?”

“For real? What’s your history with her?”

“Listen, you two, keep this between us, okay?”

Kaede chirped to Reina and Karin.

What’s she planning to say?

“Back then, for a little while Tatsuya and I were dating.”

[Character Profile]

Mizuryu Momosaka Karin
Age: 23 | Height: 172 cm | Weight: 59 kg
Reina’s recognized rival. Her swimsuit is custom-made to fuse with her ability.
Special Ability: Liquefaction
Awakener License: S-Rank
Affiliation: Rosen Maiden
Channel Subscribers: 3.41 million