Chapter 676 - Excessive Overkill
Even if I say she's in command, there's no need for detailed instructions with a group of this caliber. My partner, who sighed with a mix of reluctance and resignation, naturally understood that.
Therefore,
"Haaah… —Kanata-kun."
It took her only a beat to accept and switch gears. Sora-san, her expression and tone now composed, said only that one thing. After uttering the call that was barely an instruction,
"'Rising sun, falling moon, a chain of stars to dye the dark—'"
She abruptly began to chant a song.
And that 'command' was more than enough. If it's a party where each member can think and make their own decisions, and if there's trust that they can read her intent from her brief actions.
Then letting them run wild is the most efficient 'command' of all.
"Senpai!"
"You got it."
As Kanata, whose name was called, crouched down, I turned in response to the voice. We faced opposite directions, towards the front and the back—
"[Fire Enchant]."
"[Shadow Enchant]."
A pair and a single blade, drawn from their respective waists. With the flash of differently colored magical light on the dagger and short sword as the final signal, our feet took the first step.
Leaving my junior to activate his Anima and enter his signature sliding maneuver, I, too, prepared to unleash my own specialty, [Rocke— ...Walk]. I restrained myself at the last second, and instead, kicked off the floor with all my might within this strange, still-unfamiliar sensation.
The newly acquired aerial walking ability is an optional extra skill. The mysterious power known as 'Critical Jump,' which I've been fond of since my [Land Insulate] days, still lives on within [Talaria Record].
Furthermore, upon evolving to its grandiose new name, the jump action enhancement from [Rega-Lielta] has been boosted to an even greater power than before.
And if I throw in various boosts using my own techniques on top of that… I can kick away any minor hindrances and lightly touch the tail of the sound barrier.
"Hup!"
Up, down, left, right—there was no shortage of footholds on the ceiling and walls. I soared through the 'water,' which offered far less resistance than its real counterpart, and like a pinball with a blade, I charged.
Behind me, I estimated eleven of them. As if we were both sizing each other up, I haphazardly and casually slashed through the gently swaying [Leapis Aquia], passing them by—
"…Isn't that cheating?"
There was no feedback from my blade. When I looked back, the traces of my slashes were already gone. All that remained were the forms of the water spirits, swaying slightly as if their bodies had been disturbed, but truly undamaged.
Kanata, who knew the general idea, and Tetra, who had enchanted my Rabbit Short Sword. I understood that against a fluid entity that was clearly resistant or immune to physical attacks, magic attacks like this would be effective.
And the same goes for its weak point. Just like the [Leapis Aisia, Exfoliating Ice Spirit] I encountered on the snow mountain ruled by the Great Ice Spirit, it wasn't hard to imagine that the glowing letter (the core) inside its body was the key.
So then, why did I, who had naturally swung my blade aiming for that core, declare it "cheating"? That's for no other reason than the fact that the weak point moved at high speed.
Inside the body of the nearly two-meter-tall seagull-imposter, a single letter darted about so randomly that its original shape was impossible to track. The light spread to every corner of its body, improving visibility, but faced with this extremely annoying trick, I held back a wry smile.
"'—Heaven's stakes, a rain of light, a falling judgment to fill the holy grail.'"
My initial probing attack, which served to buy a few seconds, was complete. Next, let's see whether the main follow-up attack will land.
The moment the song ended.
A brilliance incomparable to that of the dimly glowing water spirits was born, and the magic that formed its body created a distinct current in the water through sheer pressure.
Intermediate Light Magic, [Geo Stake]—a short distance away, with the water spirits in between. What manifested in the hands of the girl, protected by the excessive bodyguards, the [Sword Saint] and the [Undying], was a great spear of light that rivaled the bodies of the giant water birds.
No, it wasn't. After a moment of aiming, what was unleashed without hesitation was,
"—!"
An aggregate of countless stakes of light that pierced the enemy according to the caster's will.
From one, first came two. The light split in two, flying towards the front and back. As soon as it reached the center of the water spirits, the light scattered in response to Sora's action of tightly clenching both fists.
Needless to say, she's a master of controlling swarms. The fragmented and shrunken stakes unerringly locked onto all targets—the light burst, and an explosion devoid of flames was born.
It was a terrifyingly perfect precision. I understand that it's not a big deal compared to over a thousand magic swords, but understanding it and being able to do it are two different things.
I have checked out the standard [Geo Stake] in the archives, and it's supposed to be a carpet-bombing spell that you just scatter around…
"Oh, more than I expected…"
The light cleared, revealing the figures of the enemies, their forms partially collapsed.
Their HP bars, floating above their heads, showed that all of them still had about thirty percent remaining. As I withstood the blast wave—or rather, the current—and confirmed the results, I was about to voice my admiration with my usual lack of tension.
"Tough, aren't they—"
The moment the words left my lips.
Not her familiar odachi, but a more maneuverable kodachi for adventuring.
However, in her small hands, it looked like a reasonably long uchigatana… The moment I saw the [Sword Saint] draw it.
The moment I saw her unique stance, resting the back of the drawn blade on her right shoulder, the edge flowing along her back—I instinctively tried to call out to stop her.
"—Thirteenth Strike."
"Kh…!?"
Realizing I couldn't stop her, I ducked down with a half-scream in the split second that followed.
"[Sea's Roar]."
In a full three-hundred-and-sixty-degree circle. A blade that traveled through the water shot out from her as the epicenter, racing through the space and tearing to shreds the water spirits that had survived the explosive light stakes.
Whoa…