Chapter 553 - A Hero's Tale for You, A Hero's Tale for Another, Part IX
"...Tch."
Having successfully concluded her grand performance with the magic she was so poor at, her concentration momentarily lapsed. She quickly pulled herself together and controlled her descent.
Following the path of the downed Rep-ra Nobody, she landed safely—and at the same time…
"Whoa, careful…!"
A somewhat flustered voice tickled her ear right beside her.
Turning to see what it was… she saw him, truly right beside her, close enough to touch. A boy, frozen with his hands awkwardly outstretched, a hasty, forced smile on his face.
"—, ————"
She was doing what she wanted, how she wanted, without fear of exhaustion. Her head, now undeniably feeling the fatigue, quickly assessed the situation, and—
"…Nn."
"Whoa, now that's a bit of a stretch."
She deliberately let her feet tangle, falling into the arms of the boy who had surely been trying to catch her. She gallantly pretended not to hear the words that immediately followed.
Time and place could be set aside for now. It was a rare occasion for him to reach out to her, and it would be a waste not to take advantage of it, even if she had to force it.
—Whether he was correctly reading her inner thoughts or not…
"A-anyway, brilliant. Only three left…!"
While discreetly but surely supporting Iris's body, Haru fixed his gaze on the 'enemy', likely half-serious and half-hiding his embarrassment.
To be honest, a whirlwind of emotions ill-suited for the occasion was sweeping through her, but—
"Yes—I suppose it's about time."
"Ah… Well, situationally, it's probably time to wrap this up."
She would save it all for later.
This was the dream she had waited for. There would be plenty of time to lay bare the endlessly swelling feelings in her heart after everything was over.
So for now, just a little longer.
To make this moment of bliss, which she would surely never forget for the rest of her life, shine even brighter.
"Can I count on you for fifty seconds?"
"Leave it to me. No matter what happens—"
From the depths of the swirling dust, the 'shadow' with three lives remaining began to emit a pressure that grew explosively, built from its wounds, its rage, and its murderous intent.
"I won't let them lay a single finger on you."
She summoned her 'Sword' and, without hesitation, took a step forward.
A smile touched both their lips at the words that reached her from behind: "That's not something a 'Princess' would say." —Her heart soared, and as it guided her forward, she took another step, savoring the fortune of being able to walk with nothing but anticipation and elation.
"[Anciel Illsee, Goddess of Dreams]—[Celestial Clearbellfa]."
Her ever-changing armored dress became a second 'Sword'. The hem of her pure white dress, now devoid of all color and ornamentation, swayed as the [Sword Queen] advanced.
In her right hand, the God-Given Sword created by the world. In her left, the sword that was a part of her very soul. A stance of 'absolute defense' with blades aligned, one she had used only a handful of times.
A form not for herself, but solely for the protection of another.
'—'
A sound, not quite a voice, echoed.
Cutting through the dust at the point of impact, the arm of a giant beast appeared.
Then, the rest of the 'shadow' crawled out—its only commonality with its previous form was the nine tails, now cracked and leaving only three intact. The creature, having now completely shed its human form, had truly become a monster, a demon fox that looked down upon the small human.
Its ragged breathing brushed against her skin.
Its sinister killing intent caressed her consciousness.
Alicia White was by no means a fearless 'Queen'.
The reason her expressions were more subdued than others, the reason she spoke less than others…
…was simply because her exceptionally quick mind delivered the 'answer' to her too soon, allowing her to process all emotions 'internally' before they could manifest in response to any event.
So, yes. What was scary was scary.
Even if it was just a game, in Arcadia, which presented an overwhelming sense of reality that defied fact and logic, she was always trembling before monsters.
So, yes.
Iris was neither a 'Queen' nor was she ever a 'Hero'.
But—
"…Hey, Haru."
Her whispered words, for this moment alone, held no trace of fear.
"…This is fun, isn't it."
With a single emotion that erased all fear, terror, and awe.
The glass crown she wore on her head. The name of that crown, which she once despised more than anything—
"[Braver]."
—the girl who had rewritten it in her heart as a 'hero for one person',
'—————————!!!'
"Tch…—"
—met the colossal beam of magic fired from the great shadow beast's maw head-on with her twin swords.
◇◆◇◆◇
The [Sword Queen], in yet another unfamiliar form, was taking the ridiculous, view-filling flash of violet-black light head-on with her two 'Swords' and cutting it apart.
How many times has it been since this fight started? I've been shown one unparalleled act of heroism after another, and frankly, my emotions are about to hit their limit.
However, this is no time to be mesmerized. Therefore—
"[Trance]."
With a trust that now knew no bounds, I closed my eyes without hesitation.
An instantaneous switch of my avatar's status, equipment, and skill set.
And what I began to weave, at long last, was of course—
"—'I am one who soars through the sky.'"
The greatest and most vicious trump card I could play.
"'One falling star connects all, clad in green, it sways with the hurricane.'"
The 'Star' song, activated in place of my usual 'Water' song. The chanting time for this unique attribute, which permitted neither movement nor haste, was an irreducible fifty seconds flat.
"'A tune of fleeting moments plays, a step in haste becomes a flash.'"
It's almost certainly impossible to use one-on-one, no matter the opponent. A spell with an overwhelming lack of flexibility that cannot even be activated without someone to protect me.
"'Clad in white, bursting forth in blue, the thunderhead spies the birth of chaotic red clouds.'"
Honestly, it's hard to say it's a spell suited to my style of always being the first to charge in, whether solo or in a party. If I didn't have two separate status sheets, I'm not even sure I would have set it instead of the [Water Magic Aptitude] I've finally gotten used to.
"'The time of encounter has come; with the sin of treading into the divine realm, I proclaim it to the moonlit heavens.'"
But if I'm pursuing the single-minded goal of enjoying this with everything I have…
"—'I am one who steals the sky.'"
…then not using this stupidly powerful magic is simply not an option.
"'This body is the end and the beginning's first arrow.'"
The 'sounds' reaching my ears grew more intense.
"'Banish the veil.'"
The breathing I could hear nearby was clearly losing its composure.
"'Transcend the canopy.'"
The sound of something shattering echoed.
"'The fate yet unseen lies in the distant future, and for that very reason'—…!"
Still, I kept my eyes closed until the very, very end—
"—'The Swift Heavenly Storm Resides in the Soul Yearning for the Beyond (here)'!!"
—trusting in my world's strongest comrade-in-arms, I finished chanting the long, long 'song'.
And then,
'—, ————'
'Hey there, monster fox. Playtime's over.'
The roar of bursting 'wind' and 'lightning'. The breath of a beast that had shed its human form, and the voice of a man (me) that had shed his humanity.
Pale blue, shimmering 'hair-lightning' drew an arc in a truly lightning-fast step that took less than an instant. My casually raised left hand was the process; the massive body of the 'shadow' sent flying high was the result.
Star attribute magic, [Lightning]—the authority it inscribed upon the world was the magical transformation of the body.
In other words, from this moment on, my body is an 'attack spell woven from the excessive magic of over 1000 MID,' and every single motion, every single gesture, is a manifestation of lethality, equivalent to a grand magic strike.
Furthermore, it comes with two game-breaking enhancements: [Azure Thunder's Blessing], which 'doubles all body movement speed,' and [Jade Wind's Blessing], which 'nullifies all bad statuses,' plus the far-too-generous bonus of being a magical body, making me immune to physical damage.
Its duration is exactly thirty seconds. However, with the boost from [Azure Thunder's Blessing], my agility has gone beyond excessive and become genuinely uncontrollable, making it impossible to handle with a clear head….
Activate [Eyes Oculus], eyes wide open, maximum acceleration at ten times speed (full throttle).
I can only move properly for the brief time it takes for my thought-acceleration skill to devour my MP. With equipment bonuses, my transformed body's MID of 1450 will run out of gas in just under seven seconds—
More than enough time. A long, long hero time.
And one more thing.
'Awaken.'
I grabbed the swaying pendant at my storm-wrought avatar's chest and called forth its 'memory'.
Zero-Type Magic Power Evocation Manifestation Armament [αtiomart -Sakura=Memento-] activated—and in my right hand appeared the sword of a sacred cherry tree, scattering flakes of demonic light like petals.
Alright, let's go.
I no longer need any other skills, not even [Rocket]. I just take one careful step, then another, and another—from activation to here: one second.
After completely annihilating the magic circles, which had already fallen silent from the previous lightning, by cutting them down and devouring them with my Sakura Sword, I came to a stop beside Ashe, who had been frozen in place.
The flow of time is now on a fundamentally different level. Even she can't keep up… no, wait, the fact that her wide eyes are still tracking me is nothing short of incredible, but—
…Good job, Ashe.
Her left-hand sword was shattered from the midpoint, and her soul-bound equipment (clothes), whose form I couldn't even identify, were in tatters. Damage effects still scattered from her entire body, and her HP was dyed red—she was undeniably in critical condition.
But, just as she declared, she didn't let a single finger, not even a remnant of a magic cannon, pass behind her. And on top of that, she survived. I sent her my heartfelt, unreserved praise.
It's not like she'd be able to hear me if I said it out loud now. And if I tried to pat her on the shoulder to show my appreciation, touching her in this form would mean a direct grand magic hit—friendly fire—so that's unfortunately off the table.
So at the very least—
Thanks. Rest up.
—I burned my best possible smile into her wide-open garnet eyes, and then,
Just for five seconds.
The next instant I kicked off the ground, my body, now lightning itself, fell upon its prey.
My head spun at explosive speed thanks to extreme concentration multiplied by my acceleration skill. Even with a thought process that was likely well over ten times faster than normal, this raging beast was barely on the edge of my control.
There's no ease, no room to spare.
However, with the seal of approval from the sublime [Sword Saint], I will make a bold declaration. For a mere seven seconds, the Acrobat (me) who pulled off this absurd 'magic' is—
'—Game set. Brace yourself.'
—an invincible, fastest-in-the-virtual-world monster that no one can ever hope to catch.