kscans

Chapter 810 - And So Come, O Children of Blue, There Is No Way to Close the Door, Part Four

The Anima belonging to Natsume, the seventh-ranked member of the Southern Faction and holder of the title [Thread-Weaver]—[Little Snow Besen, Playing and Weaving White Snow Thread]—is not, by nature, a weapon for combat. It is nothing more than a powerless thread.

It is only through the skills and techniques honed by one of the virtual world's greatest geniuses, polished through overwhelming talent and dedication, that the glittering snow-white radiance is imbued with "power."

As proof, all the abilities hidden within that Anima are unrelated to direct combat—for example, the power to tie bonds.

The fundamental ability of [Little Snow Besen, Playing and Weaving White Snow Thread], known as 'Enmusubi (Distant Binding),' allows for limited remote communication with anyone who has a thread tied to them as a marker. It can announce one's location, send signals, and even… pull the markers towards each other. That is the extent of its power.

In other words, it is an irreplaceable authority in extremely limited situations, such as when long-distance coordination is required in a large-scale raid.

""""—What is this, what's going on?!""""

"That's the enemy. If we beat it, there's a high chance something will progress."

"I see!"

"Then let's take it down!"

"We'll help out!"

Ten minutes had passed since the battle began, which meant five minutes had passed since the first reinforcements, Kanata's group, arrived. Now, a third squad that had just joined the battle nodded instantly at the concise explanation from Tetra, who was providing support from the rear. The three combatants, leaving their artisan behind, joined the front lines of the impromptu raid.

That brought the total number of combatants to twelve. In terms of numbers, it was only a two-party link-up, a one-third raid, but when every single member was one of the virtual world's top elites—

"Are we… pushing them back?"

"Looks like it…"

"That enemy is a monster, but our side is full of monsters, too…"

—The whispered words of the artisans, including Nonomi who had arrived last, huddling together so as not to get in the way behind the [Undying] one who controlled the shadows and guarded everyone's backs, said it all.

"We can do this…—Everyone, let's close in!"

It is the way of the player to band together to defeat an enemy they cannot face alone. The torrent of roots that had seemed so overwhelming when four people were desperately fighting it was now something they could handle, with three times the number of hands to resist.

And so, ten voices responded to Lilac's cry, who was now certain of victory. They couldn't hope for the quiet, black-clad boy to join them, but their morale was no longer fragile enough to be dampened by such a small thing.

The torrent of shadow devoured countless roots.

The swords and fists of the defenders struck down threats closing in on their allies.

The blades of the charging attackers chipped away at the enemy's life.

The artillery barrage shook the stage, and the presence of the healers in the rear supported their footing.

It was the movement of an ideal party. And at the end of what was an extremely high-level execution, despite being a hastily assembled unit brought together by circumstance, was the inevitable conclusion.

"—, —…—…"

It was nothing less than the end for the mighty one, now battered, broken, and covered in countless wounds.

"—…, Kanata!"

"Tch… It's charged! Ready when you are!"

Observing from the rear, Tetra, sensing that everyone saw the opportunity, called out to his partner for this operation. A prompt response confirmed his readiness, leaving no hesitation in the hand that drew the bow.

"Tch—Vanguard, fall back!"

In that instant, Lilac, sensing the pressure swelling from behind, let out a command.

Of course, not a single fool missed it. The tanks and skirmishers supporting the front line retreated in unison, and once a vacant space was created on the battlefield, holding only the enemy,

"[Promeia, Shadow's Elegant Conquest]."

A small arrow of shadow, released without a sound, struck true at the feet of the stag—[Administrator:02]. In that moment, the monster's shadow erupted as if in an explosion, turning against its master and piercing its wooden body with countless blades.

And then, a momentary opening arrived.

One rising star, whose growth never ceases, dashed forward.

"—'Awaken.'"

He carried twin blue swords. The "water"-colored blades, a gift from the renowned 'Yuukajin,' were no ordinary weapons. They bore the title of the second masterpiece from the original creator of the 'Alpha Timart, the man-made art that rivals divine creation.'

Its name was [Atiomart -Rain=Memento-]—and the power it held was simple and clear.

The crystal blades, imbued with the quietly raging power of water, used the trajectory of the wielder's path as a starting point, and,

"'Phantom Raindrop.'"

It converted the 'speed' of the drawn flash into 'power,' bringing forth a magical blade of watery light to sunder the enemy.

And so, [Rebellion] raced across the ground, and Kanata's twin blades touched nothing and no one… without breaking the taboo of being unable to attack while sliding, they danced through the air.

They danced, they drew, and in a fleeting moment, just as when he first joined the battle, they moved again. Unseen by any eye, a double ring of blades deployed to surround the enemy and shot forth at divine speed—

"—[Wadatsumi no Harae (Exorcism of the Sea God)]…!"

The crisp sound of a clean slice echoed.

The wooden monster that had wielded its might without a sound was cut in two, its horned head sent tumbling to the ground.

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◇[Atiomart -Rain=Memento-] Weapon created: Type-1 Magic Power Manifestation Armament.
A memory of the sound of rain that soothed and quenched the world in the distant past, in the age of gods.
Though it has ceased, though it has dried, the tune of mercy bestowed by the earth is still here.
O you, what do you seek? O you, who do you see? O you, are you worthy of walking through eternity?
I ask this of the wielder, our beloved child. Is it the path you desire, or the end?

This is the second, and first successful, 'Yuukajin'-style Alpha Timart, created using the [Lost Echoes] artifact [Rain Crystal of Oblivion]—a fossil of rain (???)—as its core, with an overwhelming amount of rare materials from the [Great Water Spirit Rapharn] poured into it. By relying on the Rapharn materials and the [Water Spirit's Blessing] skill, which were a perfect match in various senses, it has succeeded in minimizing the cost incurred by activating its ability. In addition to the 'full consumption of power stored through high-speed movement,' the cost is kept within a barely acceptable range of a 'Level 5 down for one full day' for several uses. The level down cost follows a 'first-in, last-out' system, meaning the most recently gained levels are subtracted first. To mitigate the resulting loss in combat power, Kanata reset his stats and focused his later points into MID. In other words, one use of 'Awaken' is equivalent to 'MID -50.'

As for the power it holds, its performance in the chapter tells about eighty percent of the story. It manifests an ultra-powerful water blade that can coordinate with Kanata's [Rebellion] without any adverse interference. The direction and projection of the blade can be controlled by thought. While he still can't seamlessly launch an attack directly from his sliding motion, by upgrading the sliding motion itself into an attack action, he has succeeded in closing the 'one-beat' gap to a 'split-second' gap.