kscans

Chapter 831 - Because You Think of Me, I Am. Because I Wish It, the World Endures. Part Six.

"""""—Huh…?"""""

"—The hell?????"

"…………Hey, disciple, why are you the most surprised one here?"

An invisible 'something' that distorted space unleashed a thunderous slash, its impact easily swallowing up the spectacle of the invincible samurai who had begun to rampage with his crimson and azure flames. Following the artisans, who had their attention inevitably drawn to the sight of the [Sword Saint] displaying a ridiculously and nonsensically powerful ability…

…I, who was more aware of her capabilities than others, let out a voice of utter disbelief.

Master, what was that? This disciple has never heard of such a thing.

And so, with a joke-like tremor and impact, the 'something'—most likely an impossibly large 'sword'—was swung with tremendous speed. It lifted, carried, and sent flying the massive black monster that had, until then, only flinched but never faltered.

Then, a few seconds of silence—followed by another massive tremor.

"—, —, —, —, ——————"

The unknown entity, now crumpled on the ground like a tattered rag, let out a bizarre, grotesque, and utterly unpleasant cry, its giant body thrashing violently.

I think it's safe to say it now. It's definitely in pain.

"Well, yeah, that's gotta hurt…"

"I think we're beyond that dimension at this point…"

By now, the overwhelming sense of invincibility had brought such a feeling of relief that the tension from a minute ago had completely vanished. It was only natural that I and my senior, who had reeled me in with her fishing 'thread' from the front lines, would exchange drained words.

And, beside us.

"A-At any rate, it's a huge help that she put some distance between us!"

"Y-Yeah, you're right. Now we can focus better. Let's do our best…!"

Their voices betrayed their barely concealed shock. The head artisan, and the vice-head who was slightly breaking character, spoke up, and the dazed artisans shook their heads and re-immersed themselves in their respective formulas.

Just as the two had said, the current location of the violently thrown black mass was quite far away.

It had been pushed back so far that it more than made up for all the ground it had gained. Needless to say, this must have given everyone a considerable amount of mental breathing room.

And, furthermore,

"—Well now, what's the situation here?"

…the reasons for that mental breathing room began to chain together.

One flash of teleportation light, one figure appearing. The amount of reassurance they brought with them was infinite.

The Northern Faction's second-in-command, [Wolf Pack]—a man said to have no equal in anti-enemy combat, especially in situations involving large groups, whether they be mobs or bosses.

With his arrival, the situation could be called well and truly safe. Any sense of tension was now less than dust in a trash can where deleted data goes to be shredded.

"Hmm…"

Then, the slender man who held the title of 'strongest against hordes,' surpassing even the [Sword Queen] and [Sword Saint], turned his sharp, yellow eyes to each person present.

"Natsume-chan?"

He addressed the little cat, who was likely the most skilled in combat command, to inquire about the situation. This seemed perfectly natural to me, and I anticipated a sharp order from Natsume-senpai—

"Haru, pass."

"Why'd you say that like you're passing me jerky?"

—I was spacing out when, for some reason, the pass came flying my way.

Why me???

"Isn't it obvious? The most incomprehensible one here… well, the [Sword Saint]-sama is tied, but you're the only one who knows Sora's limits and all that jazz accurately."

"Ah, well…"

When she put it that way, she was absolutely right. I'd said something foolish, but frankly, my brain wasn't working in the slightest anymore, so I hoped she'd forgive me… and with that,

"Gin-san, could you take over for my partner?"

Leaving aside my master's side, from which ridiculous roars continued to echo as if there was nothing to worry about, I turned my attention to one side only.

My partner has been working on her stamina recently, but… that's her one weakness. Sora isn't very good at maintaining all-out combat for extended periods.

Well, given her combat style, it's only natural that she requires an inhuman level of concentration—

"Yep, roger that. Leave it to me."

Ignoring me as I shook my head, my mind still cluttered with miscellaneous thoughts despite its sluggishness, he responded and acted instantly, as expected of a ranked player. Gin-san smiled and replied,

"It's your turn, [Wolves, Moonlit Wandering Wolves (Ulvs)]."

…and without moving a single step from where he stood, he simply turned his gaze and calmly spoke the name.

In the next instant, an endless 'presence' overflowed from his body like a waterfall—an invisible pack of wolves, unable to interfere with anything but their designated prey, heading for their target.

Within the power of the Sixth Tier Anima, [Wolves, Moonlit Wandering Wolves (Ulvs)], the authority of 'Kin Summoning,'

"Alright, tear 'em to shreds."

…while there was a limit to the number of summons for each individual target, there was no limit to the number of designated targets.

And so, a literal countless number of wolves rushed forth, revealing—

""Whoa…………""

—a true hellscape that swallowed up the pandemonium of demons, which was already being trampled.

Precisely because we couldn't see the spiritual wolves he commanded, the scene was exceptionally bizarre. Watching the horde of bosses being torn apart by invisible jaws filled us with a sense of pity.

I'd heard that it wasn't an Anima that could be used carelessly due to its somewhat special resource management, but still, the impression that came to mind was…

""That's brutal…""

"Haha, you're making me blush."

…best summed up in a single word.

---

[Wolves, Moonlit Wandering Wolves (Ulvs)]
Anima: Ring
One of the few Sixth Tier Anima in the virtual world, formerly ranked third in the unofficial Anima rankings for the weapon category. Although it dropped one rank with the emergence of [Cradle of Sword-Craft], it is no less lawless in its power.

Its hidden authority, as depicted this time and during the Triangle Duo, is the 'Summoning of spiritual wolves that are invisible, intangible, and unable to interact with anyone but the user and the target.' The maximum number of summons per target is 101, and there is no limit to the number of designated targets. There is, however, a limit in terms of resources.

Its summoning resource is not HP, MP, or a common catalyst like Luna, but the number of prey hunted alongside its pack. In other words, the number of summonable wolves accumulates and increases based on the number and quality of enemies defeated using [Wolves]. The amount of increase varies greatly depending on the 'class' of the hunted prey. It won't increase at all for obviously lower-class enemies, but can jump by triple digits against powerful raid bosses.

Additionally, the pack's numbers are not automatically replenished, so they decrease if defeated. This means that a string of major defeats could leave one empty-handed, which apparently caused a lot of trouble back in the early stages when his own strength and that of the wolves were not very high.

The reason the [Wolf Pack] who wields this Anima is said to surpass the two great sword masters in anti-horde combat is its ridiculously high cooperative performance. Besides his individual specs, the key point is that as long as one is mindful of the 'enemy's reaction to the invisible support,' one can establish a joint front with a player of any style without any concern for friendly fire.

For example, if the [Wolf Pack] and the [Acrobat] were to team up, the enemy would be faced with a hellish, desk-pounding scenario where they are simultaneously attacked by a pack of spiritual wolves that fills their vision, while also being forced to deal with an absurd, sound-barrier-breaking lunatic who passes through them all.