kscans

Chapter 702 - Flame and Blaze Dance

“—Whyyy won’t you go down already?!”

“—For various reasons, I’m used to opponents with spatial control, you see…!”

From beyond the curtain woven by the ceaselessly attacking black flame threads, a retort filled with a mixture of impatience, exasperation, and anger shot back, to which I yelled a random reply.

It wasn’t that I was just saying whatever came to mind; I simply didn’t have the spare resources for conscious thought. I was constantly maintaining the pseudo-`Shukuchi` technique, selecting the precise points to strike to disrupt the encirclement, determining the limit of how long I could stay put, and calculating the timing to reposition… I had absolutely no leeway.

The lethal threads clad in black flame—the fourth-tier Anima, [Little Snow Besen]—are semi-physical, semi-magical puppet strings that pour forth until their master Natsume’s mana runs out.

Driven by both the physical manipulation of her ten fingers and her thoughts, they paint a picture of exquisitely鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼挙動鬼-perfectly precise and demonic movements. I have their patterns memorized from our last encounter, but…

Damn it, I can’t find an opening to counterattack.

“Hey! Seriously, for real…! She’s like five times stronger than I expected!”

“—You seem to have had a pretty low estimate of me, didn’t you!”

“That wasn’t my intention at all—!”

Seventy percent prediction, twenty percent intuition. I instantly ducked my head, and just as I did, an invisible thread, mixed in with the conspicuous black glow, danced through the void and constricted the air.

If I had been caught, it’s easy to guess what fate my head would have met. Of course, it didn’t end there—the darkness, my true foe, swarmed the prey that had lost its rhythm.

Separate from the attacking threads, there were no holes in the black flame prison completely surrounding me.

In other words, there was no escape route. If I were to attempt an evasion, the minimum requirement would be a precision pinball maneuver through a closed space where lethal embers danced like crazy.

Ha—like hell I can do that.

“Hah, a second strike…!”

External rotation output ‘Spin,’ converging at the critical point.

“`[Shizuku]`!”

I unleash the trajectory of my blade, tracing countless circles in an instant. A flash of pure wind, devoid of magic, tears apart the imminent death approaching from all sides, and the black flame dragons crumble in mid-air.

But it’s not over yet.

The remnants raining down like black snow are also a ridiculously lethal touch-and-you’re-out hazard. To hope for a break time, I need one more thing—[Reject Sentence].

I summon the crimson tube, the [Ruby Rabbit Bullet]. The barrel, sprouting a staggering number of crimson crystals, is a custom large-bore version, far exceeding its usual matchlock rifle size.

“Matchlock Linked Twelve-Style Spread Warhead—‘Sparrow’.”

“W-Wait—”

Beyond the torn curtain, I can see the [Thread-Weaver] about fifteen meters away. It’s a shame she’s out of range, but at the very least, I can threaten her with a deafening roar.

“[Mayhem Bunny]!”

The muzzle is aimed at the floor, the trigger pulled without hesitation.

Thanks to a rule-bending skill that selectively tricks the system, the hit detection on me has been nullified. Thus, the blast wave from the unleashed chain-exploding warhead blows away only the surrounding flames.

The explosive wave from the [Ruby Rabbit Bullet]’s warhead is a pure mass of mana. Normally, it would be nothing more than a snack for the black flames, but the absurd aftershock from the twelve-linked grand cannon doesn’t give them time to grow.

And so, for a single moment.

I activate `[Rocket]` before the forcibly blasted-apart prison can reform. Catching a glimpse of the frenzied red flames kicking up a storm on the other side, I make a bold move and create a large gap…

“…Hey, didn’t you just blow yourself up? Why are you still alive? Give me a break.”

“Well, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve…”

A senior, looking utterly exasperated, complains as she glances at my HP bar, which is still at full.

I was forced to play a card I had been pre-charging in hopes of landing a shot, just to reset the situation. But it can’t be helped; better than dying.

That aside… man, this is tough.

“But still, that felt a little refreshing—you don’t look so confident anymore.”

“Damn it, you look like you’re having fun…”

This person is seriously strong.

To begin with, powerful individuals with ‘placement skills’ like Sora and Rinne are my ultimate natural enemies.

The public might be skeptical, but I lose almost all my vision during my signature high-speed maneuvers. Plus, it’s impossible to perform near-sonic actions on the fly, so any movement I make without thought acceleration is entirely a pre-set routine.

Once I commit, I can’t stop until the route I’ve laid out is finished. In other words, if someone trips me up mid-way, I can’t react.

It’s like an un-cancellable macro. It’s not automated, I’m doing it myself, but it’s impossible to make detailed adjustments to my movements based on the situation.

That’s why dealing with this type of opponent is so incredibly tough.

The black flame threads, obstacles that are fatal on contact, are inexhaustible. They dance freely, of course soaring through the air, blocking my path at every turn. On top of that, she lays traps with her hard-to-see plain white threads… It’s literally a checkmate from all sides.

“…Alright, what should I do now?”

But it’s not like I’m completely out of options. If I’m going to mercilessly snatch victory, I just need to draw the sword that possesses the same ‘magic-slaying’ power as her black flames.

The blade of the [Atiomart -Sakura=Memento-] would likely rival the darkness, or even overpower it, and easily reach and sever her threads.

But, you know. That feels kind of… eh?

Against an enemy mob, it’s fine.

Equipment is a legitimate form of power that a player has honed, and a victory won by mercilessly unleashing it on the enemies of players is something to be proud of.

But in Arcadia, a game that originally has no need for PvP; in a simple friendly match for fun, or entertainment for an audience, or a brawl with pride on the line…

Or even in a dialogue where we exchange our full power to deepen our bond… winning by relying solely on a single tool feels like it misses the point, don’t you think?

Even if I use a tool, it should at least be something—fun.

“Tch… that’s why…!”

Reacting to who knows what, the girl’s cheek twitched as she manipulated her threads.

“That’s what I mean when I say you’re not cute, you little punk!!!”

She sent a manifested dragon of black flame hurtling towards me without mercy—while letting a smile that wasn’t entirely honest show through, she yelled her complaint at the junior who was, in her heart of hearts, probably not cute at all.

Now, now, don’t say that. Please forgive me.

When faced with an absurdly strong opponent, a smile just naturally creeps onto my face.

“—Shine.”

It’s an undeniable instinct for every boy.

“[Hellgread Ignis].”

In that moment, betraying the crowd’s expectations, the shadow stood its ground and accepted the attack. The black flame swallowed it whole—and from its center, a brilliance that passed through pink and deep crimson to reach a colorless, pure white…

…let out a birth cry, along with a wildly blooming inferno.