Chapter 718 - The Selfish White Who Smiles on the Silver Screen, Part Two
'—Whoaah!? Water! So many water spears—whoa, as expected of [Screen]-san, the conductor of the stage is unleashing a barrage of lawless attacks with ease—huh!? A Terror Armament fired right off the bat—hyawaah, a giant heat ray instantly wipes everything out!!?'
'…What are you even saying?'
'Are you okay?'
'`I'M DOING THE COMMENTARY!! On behalf of certain people who are being so prim and quiet!! I'm trying my best even if I don't understand what's happening!!`'
'Yeesh… Okay, okay, just don't slam the desk.'
'I'm, sorry…?'
'`I don't need apologies, I need analysis! Please, do the analysis for me, a non-combatant!!`'
'…………'
'…………'
'Well, you're up.'
'Mm.'
'`YES, THEN, IRIS-SAMA! Please give us a quick explanation of the situation, mainly why [The Acrobat] is so casually playing the role of a grand magus on the silver *screen!!`'
'So loud…'
'`You're the one who's loud, Tet-kun! Don't get in Nono-nee's way when she's trying her best!!`'
'Yeah, yeah. I'll shut up.'
'`Iris-sama!`'
'I-I understand…—Then, please, enjoy the stage as I explain.'
'`Thank you very much!!`'
'Mm. First, the fundamentals. Magic skills are, ultimately, all about thought manipulation. This is why, in the early days of the service, the population ratio of warriors to mages was extremely skewed toward the former.'
'`Ah, that period when the majority of players couldn't use magic properly because they hadn't adapted to the system of thought manipulation, which doesn't exist in reality! `'
'There were a few exceptions, though. The reason the number of players switching to mages exploded after a year or two was because players began to adapt to the virtual world.'
'`I see, I see.`'
'And from there, we get to why he (Haru) is so calmly handling [Screen]'s "Decadent Song." —And by extension, to his own aptitude.'
'`Ooh, aptitude!`'
'It's simple. Magic is all about thought manipulation, or to put it more simply, it's all about imagination. It's the same "power of image" theory you often see in fantasy stories.'
'`The idea that if you can picture it, it will take form!`'
'Exactly. So… you should understand the rest, right?'
'`I'm sorry, I'll zip my lips, so please explain to the end…!!`'
'Mm. So, just as Nonomi said, in Arcadia, the scope of your imagination becomes your "talent." How clearly you can form an image, that's what determines your aptitude.'
'…And when you combine that with senpai's ridiculous situational judgment and processing speed, well.'
'Yes. He's been doing similar things as if it were natural since he first rose to prominence, hasn't he?'
'`The [Quick Change] skill…!`'
'Correct. Of course, if we get into the details, there are plenty of other technical factors like chanting… but he (Haru), with his Gift of Memory, which specializes in learning, copying, and reproducing, if you set aside his personality and preferences…'
'`If you set those aside…?`'
'In terms of his true aptitude and talent, he is without a doubt—fundamentally a mage type.'
'`Oooh… so [The Acrobat] is actually a mage type…!!`'
'Senpai himself probably isn't the least bit aware of it, though. But that's also…'
'Yes, it can't be helped. When you have someone so close to you with thought manipulation and spatial awareness skills that are equal to or even greater than your own, and an outrageous aptitude for swarm control thanks to an absurdly high parallel processing limit…'
'`Ahhh…`'
'In this case, you can't really blame him for his mistaken underestimation of himself. …That's all for the "why." Now, let's focus and enjoy the rest of the fight.'
◇◆◇◆◇
Come to think of it, this was my first real, full-blown magic battle.
Actually, it went beyond full-blown, straight into an extraordinary grand magic battle. Thrown into such a situation, there was naturally only one cry filling my heart.
—Seriously, this is terrifying!!!!!!!!
A fatal torrent of power grazing my cheek is a daily occurrence, so that's fine. The problem is the fact that I can't run away from such things that so casually bring about virtual death.
With both my [Status] and [Skills] sealed away, my body is left with specs just a little better than a real person's. With what are basically real-life civilian specs, trying to dynamically evade a threat bearing down on me at high speed is nothing but a pipe dream.
In other words, it's an extreme situation where the moment I realize, Ah, this is going to kill me, I have no choice but to give up and quietly accept it. As someone who subscribes to an evasion-first philosophy, that is just—
"—That was close!?"
"—Seriously, how you can just brush that off with 'that was close' makes no sense!!?"
—so terrifyingly scary that I can't stand it… is what I'd say if I had the time, but the truth is, I don't, and that's what's truly unbearable. While constantly fending off [Screen]-dono's non-stop carpet bombing of Earth-attribute—no, a level above that, Geo-attribute—magic with a barrage of water needles, or rather, water spears (Hakens) and water rings (Maelstroms).
It's a brutally difficult forced performance where I have to deal with Tonic-san's attacks, the only one running wild on this stage controlled by a lawless conductor, with normal human specs.
I really don't have a moment to breathe. I block his approaching hands with the [Giant's Hand Axe] I summoned, just like at the start of the match, and at the same time, I force the hero-suit-clad man back with a sweeping slash of a reloaded "ring." He yells a complaint, but I don't have time to react.
Furthermore,
"Crap—"
A moment's premonition, and the space where I just dodged is filled with an explosion of flames, but…
"—that was close…!"
Still unscratched. The fact that he emerges from the aftershock of a coordinated explosion in one piece after a single 'Crap' just goes to show that, of course, he's just as much of a top-tier pain in the ass as [Screen].
Northern Faction, Rank 6, Tonic [Dispersion]. The powers he commands are 'Dissipation' and 'Overflow'.
To put it simply, his power is… ah, there. As he casually holds out a bare hand toward the fatal cascade of water I just sent his way—yep, it just vanishes into thin air.
In addition, as the various parts of his stylish hero suit fill with light,
"Here we… go!!"
The moment he swings his right fist, a blue shockwave is unleashed, blowing away the subsequent water spears… it clashes with the red flames I sent as a counter-counter, scattering an impact that's a bit much for someone with no stats.
That 'payback' is extremely troublesome, but more than that, it's that suit. The basic ability of his Fifth Tier Anima, [Aloneness Quality], 'Perfect Personal,' is the biggest problem.
He repels the influence of the domain laid down by [Screen], making him the only wild card on this field who can move freely without any 'restrictions.'
It's a small mercy that his base stats aren't noticeably specialized in agility. I can see the telltale signs of wind-attribute support magic whenever he moves at high speed, so I've somehow managed to deal with it for now using my rampaging magic and Recall guards, but—
Honestly, this is tough. And I'm not the only one who feels that way. The gazes and presence I feel at my back… that is, Hina-san, who's supporting me by intercepting the Geo-attribute barrage I can't handle and following up on attacks to drive Tonic-san back, is likely in the same boat.
Since our total number of cards is just too different, this third dance is basically set up for her to match my lead.
In other words, I have the audacity to be the lead. And on top of that, we're already in a pinch, playing catch-up from the very beginning, so this is no time to be leisurely pondering my next move.
It would be utterly pathetic to be crushed so easily after making such a bold challenge. Therefore…
"—Alright… Hina-san! I'm going to try something a little unconventional!"
"Hah…! What kind of thing is it!"
"Something interesting!!"
"Then I have no objections! Leave the support to me!!"
Blocks of rock, stone pillars, countless pebbles constantly coming and going, threatening to fill my vision. On top of that, a superhuman's hand closes in on my neck through the gaps. As we exchange words while desperately fending off both threats, her reply is a 'GO' so reassuring it makes me crack a smile.
Then I truly have no objections. It's a first-time performance, I haven't even tried a practice run, but I have more than enough memory data from the last time and this time combined.
But I'm no match for the original, playing with one hand. If I focus like my life depends on it, I should be able to manage. Senpai, I hope you're surprised by your junior's little show from the other side of that screen!
"Alright, here I go…—'Sen'!!"
[Nine Tail] activate. With the shadow "threads" that dance forth from my right bracelet—now, this is a brand new, sparkling secret weapon.
Let's begin the "thread-pulling."