Because in a fight, someone dies. Always.
Combat should never be glorified. You must not "enjoy" the act of fighting. To do so was nothing less than falling into the path of a monster.
".....Huh!?"
Hearing Rikka's answer, Quetzalcoatl froze, her momentum vanishing.
"I'm so sad I've turned to stone... To not enjoy the fight... that is a total rejection of everything I am..."
Rikka's heart ached for her, but she didn't take it back.
"I'm sorry. But... I can't bring myself to like fighting. No matter what."
"Mmmgh... fine! Then I'll ask you! Rikka-chan, what is 'battle' to you!?"
"—"
...Ah.
"That's easy."
If that was the question, the answer was simple.
"—It's something you overcome with everything you have, just so you can 'understand' each other, Sis."
She took a solid stance.
Everything was for the sake of mutual understanding.
To clash, to push each other higher... and then, to finally see each other.
Battle was the obstacle you had to surmount to get there.
An unavoidable necessity.
"And—to not be afraid of that obstacle... that is how I live!"
That was the pride of Rikka Fujimaru!
"...I see. So that is the kind of human you are. What a lovely answer. Truly."
Hearing those words, a look of pure, maternal affection spread across Quetzalcoatl's face.
"Fine! Then show me! Surmount me! Ah, I'm so excited! It's wonderful! To think that if humanity can grow to your level, the world we dreamed of might actually come to pass!"
Her fighting spirit exploded—Here it comes!
"You are a hard worker, a striver—always moving in a straight line! But there is one thing you lack. And that is—"
With a flurry of handsprings, she vanished, reappearing instantly inside Rikka's guard and seizing her body with an iron grip.
"—!"
"—You don't have enough height!"
With a gale of wind—
"~~~~!!!"
Rikka was launched into the air—flung two hundred meters straight up into the sky.
"Oh! Quetzalcoatl is going for the finish!! High! She's been thrown incredibly high! How far is she going to go?!"
"So, Quetzalcoatl intends to end it here."
—Master!
—Senpai!!
「Rikka!!」
While everyone else's faces were masked in despair...
(—Now!!)
Rikka... had the look of someone certain of victory!
"I am the Serpent! I am the Flame!! Xiuhcoatl...—Eh!?"
Quetzalcoatl, who should have been in total control of the move, widened her eyes in shock.
"—You're right. I lacked height. On my own, I never could have reached this far. But—!"
Rikka flipped her posture in mid-air. From her mana-generated costume, "wings" woven from mud unfurled and beat against the air—
"—I believed that you would bring me here!"
In a single breath, she dove straight down toward Quetzalcoatl!!
"Wh-What?! No way—! You were aiming for this from the very beginning?!"
Quetzalcoatl realized it then.
In the entire match, Rikka had never once...
"UOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH!!!!"
...She had never once attempted a Lucha move!
"Hahaha! Hahahaha!! So everything up to this point was a setup! Fine! Give it to her! You absolute fool!!"
Gilgamesh roared with laughter at the sheer audacity of Rikka's plan.
She knew Quetzalcoatl would use a big move.
She knew Quetzalcoatl would come at her with everything she had.
Because that was Lucha Libre.
A struggle woven from mutual trust and passion!
Therefore, Quetzalcoatl would definitely take her to the heights!
"She's accelerating! Faster! Faster!! Rikka is plummeting straight toward Quetzalcoatl like a meteor!!"
—Master!!
Ea screamed, praying with all her soul.
Please, let them both be safe!!
"You're really falling...?! From that height, even if I'm a Lucha Master, there's no way I don't die! And yet—"
As the figure plunged toward her, Quetzalcoatl saw it.
"Even so—you're going to hit me with a Plancha?!"
"Of course!! This is my—!!"
Quetzalcoatl saw the silhouette of a black, wicked dragon—!
"My resolve to understand you!! ULTIMO DRAGON PLANCHAAAAA!!!"
With a thunderous impact, the Serpent and the Dragon collided in the center of the ring!!!
A deafening roar. A shockwave. Jaguarman was blown away.
Megatons of kinetic energy dissipated into the surroundings, a destructive gale howling through the stadium.
"What! What happened?!"
As the dust settled, every eye was glued to the ring.
—Master...!
—Senpai...!
"...I knew it. You're still alive."
Pinned beneath Rikka, Quetzalcoatl let out a breathy whisper.
"Hi... still alive. You should be grateful I'm a legendary Luchadora..."
"My head is spinning... wait! The count—1!"
The crowd joined in a thunderous chant.
"Aerial moves... they require two masters, you know? The one giving and the one receiving. If either is second-rate, people die... Rikka-chan, your breakfalls are elite, but your offensive moves are such amateur work... I was so nervous for you..."
"「「「「2—!!」」」」"
"But why such a reckless move? Did you never think... 'What if she dodges?'"
"Haha, well... I decided that would be my only move. I practiced the breakfalls for everything else. That way, your moves would look spectacular, and more importantly—"
That was the reason.
"I trusted you to catch me. A struggle for freedom where we trust each other, rely on each other, and understand each other without killing. That's Lucha Libre. Right?"
Rikka had trusted her from the very start.
"~~~~~!!!"
She trusted her partner in the ring.
"「「「「3—!!!」」」」"
"Aaaah—honestly! I love you, Rikka-chan!! I'm so glad I joined the Goddess Alliance!! And now, I'm leaving it! Because I'm making a contract with you! Thank you! —I lost! Master! No one has ever beaten me like this! I am the Goddess of South America, Quetzalcoatl! From here on out, I'll swing this power just for you—!"
"It's over!! The match is decided!! The winner is—Rikka Fujimaru!!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"
—Gracias!! Mucho! Muchooo!!
(Is Ea turning Mexican?!)
"She actually won. A human actually beat a Goddess..."
"Senpai~~~~!!!!"
And so, the battle between God and Man came to a close.
"Nice fight, Quetzalcoatl!"
"Right back at you! Gracias, Rikka!"
They shared a firm, bone-crushing handshake, their hearts still racing with the thrill of the ring.
"Man, that was a rush. I'm glad I moved around enough to nearly overheat. Yes, quite satisfying."
「...Mapo.」
"Wait. What are you eating?"
"Mapo Tofu. It's nutritionally balanced and delicious. I even sent some over to that fellow at the Ziggurat. It should be quite the tonic for him."
"—So that was why you were so hyped up—"
—Wait! You gave that to the Wise King?!
"Yeah. It tasted good, so why not?"
—Oh no. Oh no no no no...
"You fool... what have you done—?!"
[The Underworld]
"...Where am I? What happened to the broadcast? After I put that red-tinged dish Siduri prepared into my mouth, I..."
He looked around at the dark, desolate plains.
"————I see. So, if a King consumes a dish presented to him by a certain someone, the shock is enough to cast him into the Underworld, is it? Was it so foul that it killed me? ...Wait, this is no time for jokes!! I am actually dead!!!!"
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