"Go! Sonic Shooter!"
"...Hao-oh-ryu, 'Sen-shoha'."
Rainbow-colored light orbs appear around Vivio. They are bullets made of magic. Facing her is Einhart. There is nothing visible around her.
However,
(Einhart isn't the type of girl to bluff. A counterattack is definitely coming!)
Kuro didn't underestimate Einhart. She wasn't letting her guard down just because it was a two-on-two match. The Einhart in front of her was brimming with a quiet fighting spirit.
She was like a completely different person from when Kuro had faced her in the park before, with all the distracting thoughts she had felt a couple of weeks ago now completely transformed into pure concentration.
Fortunately, her partner was Vivio, who had "good eyes." Vivio was a master of counters, but Kuro knew that thanks to their special training, her strength had been extended even further.
Even if Einhart was preparing a counter, Vivio could keep the damage to a minimum.
However, Kuro's judgment was wrong.
"Wha—...?"
To their disbelief, Einhart began to grab the magic bullets that were approaching from the front, bullets that were moving slightly faster than Vivio and were designed to block her escape routes.
To be precise, she wasn't gripping them firmly in her palm. She was smoothly sliding her hand over them, killing their momentum so that the magic bullets wouldn't explode.
"Whoa!! (She's not even letting the shape of the bullets break!?)"
Even Vivio, as expected, couldn't comprehend the sight.
From an outsider's perspective, it looked as though she was catching and receiving the magic bullets. Of course, this was a far more difficult feat than simply deflecting them. The fact that she went to the trouble of doing this meant that there was another action to follow.
She inserted that action into Vivio, whose mind had gone blank.
Even though Vivio had closed the distance herself, her thoughts were completely empty.
Against the now-distracted Vivio, she threw the magic bullet she was holding.
"Hao-oh-ryu, 'Sen-shoha'!!"
It hit her directly, its power completely undiminished, and exploded.
Vivio was perfectly countered, losing a significant amount of her life and falling to the ground. She was cornered to the point where one more hit would knock her out of the match.
Judging that she would be in a difficult position if Einhart continued her attack, Kuro, aware of the magic consumption, teleported behind Einhart. In both of her hands, she held Kanshou and Bakuya.
The two lightning-fast slashes from either side were like a guillotine closing in like scissors.
However, as if she had predicted it, Einhart blocked both swords. The flow of the battle was completely in Einhart's hands.
"I've never seen that technique before...! You could do that too...!"
"Half-hearted ranged attacks don't work against the Hao-oh-ryu."
Kuro used the blade of Bakuya to defend against Einhart's retaliatory punch, but the impact caused a crack in the blade.
"It looks like you've gotten a lot stronger! Honestly, the last time I saw you, you were a mess! But you're a completely different person today. What happened?!"
Kuro had also noticed Einhart's feelings. She had figured out the extent of her worries and had planned to act as a bridge to help her.
Since the problem seemed to have been resolved on its own, she had a feeling that Sho had something to do with it, but she hadn't heard the details yet.
(Well, I guess Einhart wouldn't confess herself. It's probably something like he was just nice to her or something—)
"Sho-san and I... we're together now."
"...Huh? What are you talking about?!"
Understanding the meaning of the words, Kuro screamed and slashed at her.
The two fists and two swords clashed in mid-air.
"Together, what do you mean?! How far did you go?!"
"Well, I... I don't think that's something for you to know yet, Kuro-san... Wait until you're a little older..."
"I understand EVERYTHING, you little jerk!!"
What a blind fool she had been. Kuro swung her swords with an incredible expression. She had no idea Einhart was such an aggressive girl. This was not the time to be so relaxed.
"Just tell me all the details already!!"
Meanwhile, the fallen Vivio. She couldn't hear the conversation happening in the air. She was lying spread-eagled on the road, having created a crack in the asphalt, but her face was filled with joy at the sight of a new technique, a joy that outweighed the pain of being hit.
(Amazing... Amazing, amazing, amazing! Einhart-san had a technique like that too!)
She stood up and put strength into her body. It was a waste to lie there. She had to rejoin the battle as soon as possible...
"Alright, alright. I'm sorry to interrupt your motivation, but Vivio, you need to retreat once."
"What?! No way..."
A message came in from Lutecia, who was in the very back. However, the order was not what Vivio had hoped for.
She swung her arms back and forth in front of her chest like a child throwing a tantrum.
"Don't complain! If an attacker gets shot down this early in the game, the whole plan will fall apart! We'll get you healed up so you can come back in at the end!"
"Ugh, okay..."
If she continued to attack, it would be difficult to win a damage race against Einhart. Fortunately, the other positions were well-matched. And even if Einhart broke through, they had the strongest defender.
"Kuro too! Get back so you don't take any more hits! You'll be a sniper for a while!"
"Tch! Fine...! Einhart, you'll remember this!"
"Definitely! Next time it'll be one-on-one!"
With those words, the two of them fled. If they put distance between them, Einhart's offensive options would be severely limited. To land an effective blow, she would have to get closer, but—
"You don't have to chase them, Einhart."
This time, a message from Tiina came in for Einhart.
"Should I retreat too?"
She had won against the two of them, but the accumulated damage was not insignificant. She had also consumed magic to heal. She asked Tiina if she should also retreat to recover.
"...No, you can go ahead and attack. I'm going to have Yozuki-kun force his way through. The two of you... charge at Nanoha-san."
"(Nanoha-san... Vivio's mother, the Ace of Aces of the Time-Space Administration Bureau...!) Yes, understood!"
Having received her orders, Einhart took a great leap in a different direction from where the two had fled.
---------
Riko and I faced Aria and Yami. The first to move was Aria.
"Get out of here, you pervert!!"
I wondered who the words were directed at. At the very least, the bullets were coming toward me.
With the menacing line, Aria's gun spat out bullets. But there was none of the muzzle flash or the smell of gunpowder that I was familiar with. The roar was spectacular, a sound you wouldn't expect from a pistol.
The bullets that were spat out were not the usual lead balls either. They were ceremonial 13mm exploding steel-piercing rounds made by melting the silver cross of the Lanchester Cathedral. And ceremonial mercury-filled rounds with a pure silver Macedonium-processed casing. A rain of silver came at me, capable of completely obliterating even otherworldly monsters.
Two handguns (454 Casull Custom Automatic & Anti-Creature Combat 13mm Handgun 'Jackal')
The two handguns used by the protagonist 'Alucard' in HELLSING. Since they are meant to be used by the vampire Alucard, they are impossible for a normal person to handle. Although they have a set number of rounds, they are a "Cosmo Gun" that never runs out of ammo, even if you fire a million rounds as long as you feel like reloading.
When I drew this, I really agonized over whether to give it to Aria. Aria is the one known for using two handguns. Riko can also use two, but her image is more that of a bomb specialist. No one else could master this weapon more than Aria.
That was a good thought, but the specifications of these two handguns, which were for a vampire, made it highly questionable whether a human could handle them. Just one shot would be enough to completely destroy a person's shoulder.
But Aria's power easily tamed this unruly beast. The description said "impossible for a normal person to handle," but since Aria wasn't normal, it wasn't a problem at all.
Such bullets rained down on me.
Defense was difficult. So I had to dodge.
"Tusk Act 1!"
No matter how great the attack power, it can't enter the hole created by the rotation.
"Tch! What a pesky ability!"
However, the rotational hole can't move that quickly. I'd like to stay inside it, but I can't. If the timing is off, I could be targeted and shot down the moment I come out.
And Aria is capable of doing that.
"Kufu..."
Of course, that's only if there are no interruptions.
Riko's new power, 'Killer Queen'. The cat-like creature that only I could see launched something out of place at Aria from its fingertip.
Softly, softly. The thing carried by the wind—a soap bubble—was sucked towards Aria, who had been waiting for me—
"Don't underestimate me, Riko."
Without even looking in Riko's direction, Aria shot it down. The fired bullet pierced the thin film of the soap bubble and exploded in mid-air like a silver firework.
"Don't underestimate me either, Holmes."
Two small rockets peeked out from under Riko's skirt.
But Aria's attitude didn't change. She tried to shoot them down as well, but it was impossible for her to shoot down the rockets while also maintaining her concentration on me.
Taking advantage of that opening, I jumped out of the hole and quickly took cover behind a building.
I saw that Riko was taking a hit from Yami's attack. She was deflecting the lightning-fast slashes using her Stand, but she seemed to be at a disadvantage. Now, Aria, who had lost me, was about to join in.
"Tch! Sorry, Yami-chan. I can't let myself get taken down this fast..."
"I won't let you get away."
Riko was pressing the attack using her Stand's characteristics, but she couldn't quite land a decisive blow.
"Even though you can't see me, I'm right here. If you narrow down the places you're aiming at like you just did, I can avoid it."
"So you can't be too overconfident with a Stand..."
Yami also chose not to chase her recklessly. She decided to slowly and methodically press her advantage.
Aria joined up, and they began to sandwich Riko.
"It's two-on-two now, so we shouldn't just focus on one person, right?"
I'll return that line to Aria verbatim.
I've also gained a new power from the other day's act.
Book of the Demon's Child (Konjiki no Gash Bell, Gash Bell)
A book from Konjiki no Gash Bell that contains spells and is held by a demon and their partner. This specific book belonged to the pair of Gash Bell and Kiyomaro Takamine. By holding this book and chanting a spell, you can activate the spell. Currently, up to the third spell is unlocked. Higher-level spells can be unlocked through certain triggers. The energy used is 'the power of the heart', not magic, but the spells activated here are treated as magic in this world.
Virility
The strongest male member that will never wither. No matter what, it will never lose its power.
The abilities I've acquired... well, the second one is useless right now, but the Book of the Demon's Child is different.
It's a large, red book with a simple cover. The writing inside is in an unknown language that no genius could decipher. No, to begin with, most of the pages are completely blank.
Even though it's so thick, there are only a few pages with writing.
The writing contains spells. There are three of them.
I aimed, pointed my right palm forward, and shouted.
"First spell, ZAKERU!!"
Electricity shot out from my right hand.
It was originally supposed to be fired from Gash's mouth, but here, I can use it as my own magic. I don't lose consciousness like Gash does. The image is closer to how Zeon uses it.
The power itself isn't that great. But electricity can't be deflected by bullets. Unless you're an insulator, it's bound to leave some damage on your body.
"!!"
Aria and Riko were surprised and backed away from the attack, which could have even hit Riko. Since I was firing from a position only visible to Riko, she wasn't in any danger of being hit.
A new battle began, with the two of us glaring at each other in almost the exact same formation as when the battle started.
In the middle of this fierce battle, a communication came in for me.
"Yozuki-kun, can you hear me?"
The voice belonged to Tiina.
"Yes! What is it?!"
"I'm going to have Tiina give you support now. Somehow, break through those two and link up with Einhart!"
"To Nanoha-san's position?"
"That's right!"
"I'll do my best!"
The core of the opposing team was undoubtedly Nanoha-san.
With Einhart, who had grown stronger from training, and me, who could now fight Servants, we should be able to defeat her if we both attack her, even if she's the Ace of Aces!
"Do you think I'll let you get away?!"
Aria, who had quickly noticed the change in my strategy, intensified her attacks. Her assault was nothing but offense, but Aria's potential and the bullets from Alucard's handguns didn't give the "Pink Devil" any room to breathe.
"Then! Tusk Act 3!"
I escaped into the rotational hole of Tusk Act 3 and moved along the side of the building.
"I won't let you get away!!"
The bullets fired in a ferocious barrage hit the building I was moving on, where the rotation had landed.
The building materials were completely obliterated, and the building in the path of the rotating energy vanished.
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
I was thrown out of the rotational hole.
Could she really produce such immense firepower?! Could she master it to this extent in such a short amount of time?!
Riko grabbed Aria, who had stopped to attack, and was using her Stand to attack her. But it was not easy to catch Aria, who was focused on escaping.
I was impressed by her talent, but I had to focus on my own situation.
Just when I thought I had dealt with the Pink Devil, a blonde assassin appeared.
There was no longer a path of magic at my feet. But Yami, who could fly freely, had already transformed her right arm into a blade and was within my range.
"Inherent Time Control, Time Alter, Double Accel!"
I felt my clothes being torn.
By accelerating to double speed, I barely managed to escape the range, avoiding the main slash.
But the distance between Yami and me was still close. Close enough for a punch to land if she took one step.
Yami was flying with white wings growing from her back, so the expression "taking one step" isn't quite right. Furthermore, even if Yami was swinging both of her arms as weapons with all her might, she could simply grow more arms through her Transformation Trance.
I glanced over and saw that her stray blonde hair was gathering and forming a giant iron ball.
If something like that were to hit me, my life would be drained to the point of incapacitation. But even though we're in a strange space where no one gets hurt, that iron ball seems to have way too much killing intent...
Yami's eyes were also fixed.
I didn't have time to turn to face Yami. I was about to use Dark Shadow, which has resistance to physical attacks—
"To show your back to me—!!"
Yami's wings were shot through by a sniper. The bullet went through her and hit the wall of a nearby building. The result of her aiming at Sho's back was that she was shot in the back herself.
But when I saw the bullet hole, I was horrified. The power was enough to completely take off a person's head if it hit. Was it an armor-piercing round designed to go through bulletproof material?
The sniper, who I assume is Tiina, was using a little too much power to fire where her teammate was nearby.
Why are you so motivated?!
"You got me...!"
I wasn't shot down, but it was a lot of damage. I was able to get far enough away that she couldn't catch me anymore.
However,
"Tiina, huh. I know where you are."
The genius Aria had roughly figured out her opponent's location from just one sniper shot. An annoying sniper is someone you want to eliminate early, but—
"But you two can't move from here, can you?"
Riko stood in front of the two of them.
"Riko! I'm counting on you!"
"Heh, okay, Sho-kun."
"I'll crush you in an instant."
"Go on, try it, Holmes."
I was out of the fight, but the battle was set to continue.
---------
"Nanoha-san, we're being pushed back overall!"
"Yeah, I guess it's about time to make a comeback."
Nanoha and Lutecia were having a strategy meeting via communication.
"All the pressure is going to be on you, though..."
"Don't worry about it! I'd rather have it that way."
She had wanted to find out how strong Einhart, Vivio's friend and user of the ancient martial art Hao-oh-ryu, really was.
And as for Sho, it goes without saying. Hayate, who was the team captain and was watching the match from the sidelines, had told her that she wanted her to draw out Sho's full potential as much as possible.
If they were coming toward her on their own, nothing could be more convenient.
"Please. Give those two a really harsh hit!"
"You got it! ...A Team, everyone! Einhart-chan and Yozuki-kun will be engaging soon! The support fire will stop!"
"Roger!"
Nanoha took aim at the two approaching youths with her device—Raising Heart.
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