Everything is Anime! Chapter 81: A Fool with Power... (Patreon)

A Campione is a “tyrant,” because they have slain the gods of heaven and seized the supreme divine powers those gods once held.

A Campione is a “king,” because they wield the Authorities wrested from Heretic Gods and can thereby rule over all mortals on earth.

A Campione is a “devil king,” for there is no living human capable of matching their might.

But there is also another, seldom-heard description:

A Campione is a “fool,” for they dare to fight the terrifying Heretic Gods themselves. If one lacks such foolhardiness, they can’t even qualify to become a Campione in the first place.

All sorcerers in this world, when faced with a god, experience boundless terror and instinctively flee for their lives. It’s the most primal survival impulse.

Only a fool can find that lone miraculous chance within a situation that seems utterly hopeless.

However, Hikaru did not think of himself as a fool. He wasn’t the hot-blooded type who’d overreach, nor did he act rashly. He simply did everything he could, within his current capabilities.

Thus, in his eyes, the “Campione’s foolish act” of taking on a Heretic God was no more than an objective he believed was within his power.

…

“I, who am about to awaken,

<It started.> <Looks like it will start.>

Am the Heavenly Dragon who has stolen the principles of domination from God

<It was always like that, no matter what.> <That's not right; it was like that every time.>

I laugh at the "infinite", and I fret over the "dream"
<The one the world seeks….> <The one the world rejects....>

I shall become the Red Dragon of Domination
<It was always power.> <It was always love.>
<<You guys choose destruction no matter how many times!>>

And I shall sink you to the depths of the crimson purgatory!'’

“…”

Reciting words of awakening, Hikaru intoned the “spell” of the Juggernaut Drive. Though he’d never used it before, the incantation was engraved into the deepest layer of his God-destroying Sacred Gear. Simply by willing it, he could call it forth. But harnessing it came at a price.

Space quaked violently. The air ignited in a crimson aura like fresh blood, creating a heatwave that surged and expanded until half the city glowed red beneath it, that toxic brilliance searing skin and shaking hearts.

At that moment, Rahu and Vishnu—each about to deal the finishing blow to the other—froze in unison. Both gods turned toward Hikaru’s location. A crimson sun had risen there without their noticing, shedding a dangerous light across the world.

They both activated their “God’s Eyes,” peering into that radiance. What they found inside made even these Heretic Gods stare in astonishment.

Ordinarily, when Hikaru used his Balance Breaker, he stood over two meters tall, armored in crimson plating much like a tokusatsu rider. But now, having triggered the Juggernaut Drive, summoning the Red Dragon Emperor’s peak power, the armor on his body shifted once again.

Countless red spikes sprouted around each joint; broad, massive wings stretched out behind him; and his limbs were tipped with fearsome claws. Even the helm now bristled with several golden dragon fangs. If his Balance Breaker form was seven parts human, three parts dragon, then once he invoked the Juggernaut Drive, it flipped to seven parts dragon, three parts human.

Raw power hammered his flesh and bones, forcing out deep groans of stress. It was easy to imagine that if Hikaru hadn’t already elevated his body to superhuman limits, he wouldn’t have been able to activate the Juggernaut Drive in the first place. Even if he had forced it, the overload would have wrecked his body, leaving him critically injured even after victory.

Now, though, aside from an initial sense of unfamiliarity with his new armor, his condition was excellent. Thanks to having long since wiped out the vestiges of previous Red Dragon Emperors’ souls, he avoided any mental backlash as well.

Maintaining a roughly humanoid shape, Hikaru’s right hand still gripped his Demon-Slaying Holy Sword. And once his “Juggernaut Drive Dragon” form took hold completely, both Vishnu and Rahu showed open shock and wariness. Was this a third Heretic God descending all of a sudden?

They felt certain of it. Who else but a Heretic God could emit such violent and colossal energy? Those on earth who claimed the might of gods—so-called “Devil Kings”—would still be immediately sensed by a Heretic God if they drew near, sparking inevitable conflict. Yet the two did not detect that sort of presence from this crimson dragon.

They weren’t fools, either. Clearly, revealing such power at this critical juncture had a very obvious purpose.

Meanwhile, sorcerers who’d been watching from afar reacted with alarm.

“A crimson dragon? Did another Heretic God appear because of the conflict between those two?”
“That’s impossible. We’ve been monitoring the area—there’s no way a new Heretic God could just pop up!”
“Shut up! Then how did Rahu show up out of nowhere?”

No one else spoke, but all their thoughts swiftly shifted from the two battling gods to this newly arrived unknown entity. In a frenzy, they flipped through their reference texts, hoping for any clue. After all, this was the capital, New Delhi. With Rahu and Vishnu’s fight, the entire city’s systems had already ground to a halt. Let them keep fighting, and the scale of destruction would be unimaginable.

Yes, they had Vishnu under their control, but because she was a Steel-type Heretic God, she instinctively attacked any being with dragon-snake traits. The sorcerers realized it: That dragon-like creature—wasn’t it a dragon?

…

Liliana, out in the rain, had rejoined her companions. She felt that crimson flare of energy and instinctively looked up. After staring in a daze for a moment, she abruptly thought of the man who had saved her earlier—who had walked without hesitation into the domain of the gods.

…

Amid the howling storm, radiating scarlet light, Hikaru flew toward Vishnu. Vishnu seemed puzzled about his identity, but with her Steel attribute, she quickly sensed the draconic aura surrounding him, and her fighting spirit surged. She also saw that, though he radiated a staggering power, he was not a Heretic God, nor a Devil King of the earth—he was a “fool.”

That realization relieved much of Vishnu’s tension. With a casual slash of her sword, she unleashed a white-hot divine fire meant to burn everything away. Even a champion Holy Knight at the peak of human power could only face utter despair against a blow like this from a god.

But Hikaru merely lifted his right hand, the one clutching the Demon-Slaying Holy Sword, gave a nonchalant slash, and the roaring flames parted—torn like cloth and vanishing on the spot.

This took Vishnu completely by surprise.

“A fool with such power? You’re worthy of my praise,” she said. “But…you’re a fool who doesn’t act like one. Allow me to show you just how foolish your arrogance truly is!”

She abruptly reversed course, charging him on her white horse like a gallant knight. An ordinary human would have no way to react, yet Hikaru blocked her strikes with ease.

Steel clashed on steel, sparks shooting everywhere. Vishnu’s face betrayed her disbelief. How had a mere “fool” managed to repel an attack from a god?

(Tyrant -> Juggernaut Drive… well)