You say you're alive because of the earth...?! That's hilarious!"
Below my line of sight, the third prince, Gangastora, still couldn't let go of his arrogance.
He acted arrogantly even though he had dropped one level lower due to the ground he had broken and was now in a position where he was looked down upon by me.
"My skill can easily crush the earth! I have obtained the ultimate skill, and I am an existence that surpasses even nature! The earth should be grateful for being trampled under my thumb! I will become the strongest existence!!"
"I see, then it will just make you even less alive."
Don't think that all you've been given is a foothold on the earth.
The power that had just turned the ground into mud and robbed the Third Prince of his footing was the power of ``Ah Stigma'' bestowed upon him by the earth spirit Blasthole.
Now let's try using the gift from the fire spirit Napalm, "Pyro Stigma."
"...Ugh, what is it?"
The change was immediate.
The Third Prince himself immediately noticed something strange and shivered.
"What's wrong? Are you cold? Is your body getting cold? Did you do this? What did you do?"
"It's taking the heat from your body."
Napalm, the spirit of fire, is a spirit that controls not only raging flames but heat itself throughout the world.
Therefore, it is easy to disrupt the normal body temperature of 36 degrees, which is suitable for normal human vital activities.
This time, I decided to try and take some heat away from the Third Prince's body.
The reverse is also possible, but I wanted him to experience the hell that can occur when something that you take for granted is taken away.
"Gooooooooooh!? It's cold!? It's cold!? What is this!? It's like my body is freezing...!?"
"Thirty-six and a half degrees. If the temperature deviates from that optimum level by even just a few degrees, a person's normal biological rhythm will be thrown off balance, and they will fall into serious trouble. And the most important thing for maintaining an appropriate body temperature is the temperature of the outside air that touches the body."
Geothermal energy conveys heat from the sun and the heat of magma emanating from deep within the earth.
They warm people who are freezing in the cold.
The clothing that humans have created using their own ingenuity is also woven from fibers from plants that grow from the earth.
The body temperature that humans need to maintain in order to survive is also simply something given to us by nature.
"Those who can control heat can also steal heat. They can even lower the temperature to absolute zero. Do you think you could survive in that state?"
"Damn youuuu! What a despicable thing to do...!?"
There's no need to turn you into an ice statue.
Even without going to such extremes, a human's muscles will stiffen if their body temperature drops below 35 degrees, they will fall into a coma if their body temperature drops below 28 degrees, and they will freeze to death at below 20 degrees.
The low temperature reduces blood flow, causing frostbite and causing the extremities to rot in a horrible way.
Although the Third Prince tried to somehow fight back, his feet were still stuck in the mud and he couldn't even stand up, let alone run towards me.
He put both his hands on the ground and even his hands were sinking down up to his elbows.
Since it was only the Third Prince whose body heat was being stolen, the mud around him did not freeze.
Such fine adjustments are possible thanks to the power of the spirits.
"Do you understand anything now? How much nature has given you in order to continue living..."
I won't kill you. I'm going to stop keeping you alive. Do you understand what I mean?
I'm just cutting off your supply of many of the things you need.
The ground, the temperature.
They have simply stopped giving you the things that you have been given every day, things that you have taken for granted and that you live your life receiving.
They haven't even taken it.
But could you at least get a sense of how small you are, that just that alone is making it impossible for you to survive?
"Survival of the fittest... you say so shamelessly, don't you? But humans, all beasts, and plants too. They are all equally weak in front of the true and absolute power that is Mother Nature. Those weaklings barely manage to survive thanks to handouts from the powerful. That is the truth of this world."
It is shameful to not understand this truth and to be arrogant, brandishing the idea of being the strongest, something that is only understood among humans.
I'll make him realize his arrogance.
By taking away something that you take for granted.
"Oh, oh, oh, oh...! I am the strongest... I am invincible... There is nothing in this world that can stop me...!?"
Even though he was sinking in the mud and shivering from the cold, the third prince still did not change his foolishness.
"God, nature, and everything else will obey me! If I use this power to control them, I can take away the earth's hardness, its heat, and everything else!"
Shall I say more?
What a disgusting guy. I guess we'll just have to stop supplying him with more.
Using the power of the third crest he had just obtained, "Air Stigma"...
"Ahh?! Owwwwwwwww...?!"
"The power of 'Air Stigma' that you desire... you should experience it for yourself."
The harp is the spirit of the wind.
By using his power to control the flow of air, what can he "stop giving" to the Third Prince?
"It's hard to breathe...!?"
Yes, we cut off the supply of air for it to breathe.
Humans cannot survive without constantly breathing in air and filling their bodies with fresh oxygen.
It's something that even a child knows.
Using the power of "Air Stigma", I prevented the guy from taking in air through his mouth and nose, sealing off his breathing.
Even breathing, which humans must do constantly and cannot stop for even a moment, is possible only because of the fresh air provided by nature.
This time it's something more urgent than the ground or body heat.
A matter of seconds can mean the difference between life and death.
Will the haughty prince be able to continue enduring this supply cut?
"Gooooooooooohhh!? Damn it...!?"
"The more noise you make, the more oxygen your body consumes, and the closer you get to death. But that doesn't mean I killed you. It's simply your own self-destruction."
None of the methods I took were intended to kill him.
The result of denying it the things it needs to live is that it will simply die on its own.
That's what I meant when I said "I'll stop keeping him alive" and not kill him.
It is not easy for humans to live. We can only survive by being supplied with various things from various places. It is a kind of miracle.
Without understanding this, they become arrogant simply because they are strong, forget gratitude, and neglect many things.
I think that's a fitting end for such an idiot.
"So, self-proclaimed strongest? Have you become aware of your own weakness and smallness?"
"Gghhhhhhhhhhh?!"
"You call yourself the strongest, but you're nothing but a worthless piece of trash in front of Mother Nature. There's no need to do anything to defeat you, nature is always giving you various things to keep you alive. If you stop doing that, you'll die."
"Whaaaaaat?!"
"You are nothing more than a small being. If you accept that and surrender, I will allow you to resume the supply of what you need."
"Huh...?"
Hmm, what?
Can't you hear me? My voice is too quiet.
"I give in. Give me back the air!"
"Is that how you should ask someone for something?"
"Please, give me some air! If this keeps up I'll die! The heat and the ground too!"
"Then there's more I can say, isn't there? What did you do to me, Gangastora-kun? The third prince of Niosebuku, Gangastora-kun?"
Po po po po po po po po?
"I, I've lost...! I've lost!! I've been completely defeated by you!! So I'm begging you, please help me...!!"
"Hmm, maybe there's something else you want to say? Is Gungastra-kun the strongest? Or the weakest? Which is it?"
"Y-y-yes...! I'm the weakest! I'm the weakest man who challenged you without knowing my place in the world! So please...!!"
"..."
"Gughh ...
The third prince's eyes rolled up and he began foaming at the mouth.
Just when it looked like he was about to suffocate to death, I changed the situation and started giving him air again.
"Haha!? Haaaaaaahhh!!"
The third prince opened his mouth wide and took a breath.
At the same time, body temperature and the muddy ground will return to normal.
With that, I stepped forward right in front of him.
"How is it? Have you come to understand your own weakness?"
"Geh...geh...!?"
"No matter how powerful your power to beat someone to death is, it's meaningless. Especially in the face of nature. Everyone survives thanks to what nature gives them... and to those weaker than themselves. Those who don't understand that won't live long."
"S-Surprising power...!!"
The third prince steadied his ragged breathing and began to say something.
Something disturbing.
"Those who bear the spirit's crest are granted the power of the spirit... If I could obtain the power of all six spirits, I could obtain everything in the world...! The legends written in our Kingdom of Niosebuku were absolutely true. That power is truly worthy of me...!"
Wow.
"You idiot...! Do you think you've won by merely submitting in a formal manner?! In a battle, the winner is the one who survives to the end!! You foolishly stopped attacking and approached me of your own accord, so you have no right to be the winner!"
Saying so, the third prince slammed his fist into the air at the closest distance.
Of course, it comes with the skill "Molecular Collapse".
"There's no one else who can control the power of the spirits other than me! Die for my path to domination! Gugyaaaaaaaaaah!"
Blood splatters.
At the same time, something as thick as a log flew through the air, spun around, and then was pulled by gravity and fell to the ground.
"Molecular Collapse was broken... It was a very simple and powerful skill to overcome."
"My arm?! My arm got torn off?!"
The Third Prince writhed in pain as he held his shortened right arm and bled everywhere.
Certainly, this skill is the most destructive.
No one can defend against it, and there is probably no other skill with ultimate destructive power that can surpass this.
However, no matter how destructive a skill is, it is meaningless if it cannot be activated.
On the other hand, my staff skill, "Extended", allows me to instantly extend or retract the stick I hold in my hand.
The speed is hundreds of times faster than the speed of sound.
There was no time lag and the moment I thought "I'll do it" everything was finished, it was an incredibly amazing skill.
I've had the opportunity to see his skills many times, including during execution events in the city.
The time it takes to activate, measured in seconds.
Preliminary action.
A little quirk that makes the movement predictable.
Having grasped all of this, I can thwart my opponent's attack with the Lightning skill "Stretch".
Speed is strength.
Thanks to this, no matter what Absolute Destruction skill I use, I don't feel like I'll lose to this guy face to face.
"You thought I would believe what a bastard like you said?"
"Grrrrrrr?! Grorrrrrr?!"
"I knew he'd betray me. He'd say things like he didn't mean it, and then when I, a good-natured person, showed an opening, he'd reveal his true ugly nature and attack me."
Of course, helping him despite knowing this was not done out of a Buddhist heart.
Because I wanted to make him taste defeat.
A perfect, flawless, and flawless defeat that accepts no excuses whatsoever.
In order to prevent him from making false accusations like, "I lost because of the power of the spirits, not because of your own ability," I want to defeat him with my own skills.
In addition, he first begs for his life in a humiliating manner, then goes back on his word and launches a surprise attack before killing him in return.
It's just so embarrassing.
"The guy who said he was the strongest... is so pathetic."
I say, pointing the tip of the stick at him.
"It must have been humiliating, right? If you had been boasting about your strength up until now, then surely your pride has now been completely shattered? You must have been hurt emotionally. For the sake of those you have caused so much suffering. Your pain is necessary."
People living near the border have been threatened by the Niosebuku.
The people of the Commerce Alliance who were forced to accept unreasonable conditions. The people of the Dwarven nation who were forced to swallow their bitterness under semi-occupation.
People whose country has been destroyed by you Niosebuku and whose small happiness has been taken away.
You will never get back anything that you have taken from us. It is all irretrievable.
That is why you must suffer to the utmost, to provide some consolation to those who are grieving and suffering.
I hope that it can help people feel even a little better.
"You idiot... you think you've won just by cutting off my right arm... against the strongest, Gangastora...?!"
"law?"
"Even a child knows that people have extra arms!"
Saying this, the Third Prince came swinging his left arm at me.
You're the fool. You completely blocked it with your right arm, and now you think you're going to succeed by doing the same with your non-dominant arm?
Another botched start and it's over.
Thinking that, I tried to poke it with a stick...
Someone is holding his hand and he can't move it.
"Huh?!"
The one who grabbed my arm was... Tamagushi.
A final betrayal at this timing?!
This is bad, the Third Prince's fist is approaching while I can't use my stick!?
If this continues, it will fall apart at a molecular level!