"Einhart-san! It's a rematch! Please, let's do this!"
"...Yes. Sho-san, I'm sorry but..."
"Go get 'em. I'll..."
"Okay. I won't get in your way. Vivio, go on."
"Okay! I'm going!"
Einhart and Vivio-chan ran off.
"That's a lot of responsibility..."
I had to break through the Ace of Aces right in front of me and reach that battlefield.
"Well then, this is the last one, isn't it, Yozuki-kun?"
"I guess I have no choice but to make it happen."
Lutecia wore a provocative smirk.
The final battle was about to begin.
---------
"Hah!"
"Hmph!"
The fists of two girls clashed. It wasn't a ring, but the bare asphalt. Vivio's golden hair, tied back, and Einhart's silver hair danced as if chasing each other.
Einhart was on the offensive, but she was the one with the bitter expression.
Even though they had only seriously sparred a handful of times, Vivio had almost completely learned Einhart's offensive style from those encounters.
It was clear just how much Vivio had focused her training on Einhart.
*(And this growth rate...!)
This wasn't a level where Einhart could "lightly toy" with her like before. The result of having a clear goal and training with excellent coaches was that Vivio was beginning to catch up to Einhart's skill, despite her real-world combat experience.
The rate of "growth" was leagues ahead of Einhart, who for certain reasons, couldn't focus on her training until recently.
If both of them were in peak condition, Einhart might still have the upper hand. However, Einhart had just fought Nanoha and hadn't had a chance to recover. Even if her life bar hadn't gone down, her stamina had.
"There!"
"Gah!?"
A fast, precise punch aimed at a specific spot depleted her life bar. Both of them were using transformation magic to eliminate the handicap of their short reach, so there was almost no difference in their physiques.
However, only one person's punches were landing.
"You've been training, Vivio-san. I can't land a hit...!"
"Hehe, thank you! My weapon is this 'eye' that can see through my opponent's attacks! I focused on training that for this tournament!"
(That's not all. She has the courage to charge forward and strike without fearing her opponent's attacks.)
Einhart's strikes were heavy. A small mistake could lead to her being overwhelmed. But Vivio willingly entered Einhart's range, as if to provoke her to strike more.
(All of that combines to form this fighting style... a counter-hitter!)
Einhart realized that if this continued, she would just get worn down. She decided to risk taking a hit and launched a strike aimed at a mutual knockout.
A blow that sliced through the air, one that couldn't be avoided by someone who just had a good eye.
"Overlord—Splitting Sky Fist!"
(It's here! Now!)
Vivio took a big step forward.
A special move isn't something that can be launched suddenly. There's always a momentary pause to build up power. And from the moment the move begins, a large opening is created.
And the current Vivio didn't miss that opening.
"One Flash, Certain Hit—Accel Smash!"
A powerful uppercut landed on Einhart, who was wide open after launching her big move.
(It connected clean—)
The sensation that traveled up her fist made Vivio think of the words "perfect hit," and her face softened.
The blow had definitely caught Einhart on the jaw, one of the human body's weak points. When the brain is shaken, even a master can't stay on their feet.
The strength completely drained from Einhart's body. The tension also left Vivio's body as she became certain of her victory.
"Gah!?"
By the time she realized it, a heavy kick had slammed into the side of her head.
The two girls' bodies flew into the air from their respective attacks and then fell to the ground. As if time had stopped, they remained motionless, a stark contrast to their furious exchange of blows just moments before.
They were enveloped in light, and their barrier jackets changed back to their normal jerseys. At the same time, their bodies, which had transformed into adult forms for battle, returned to normal.
Both of their life bars had been depleted. They were completely unconscious.
The match ended in a draw.
---------
"MAX HENSHIN!"
I transformed into Perfect Knockout.
"Yozuki-kun, don't push too hard on the offense. Just think about how to break through."
"If I don't push hard, I don't think I can break through."
"Worst case, you don't have to save me."
Facing us were Nanoha and Lutecia.
"So, Yozuki-kun. Are you getting excited? This is a desperate situation, isn't it?"
"Not at all. Our team is tenacious from here on out."
With those words as a signal, the battle began.
I couldn't win if I got shot from behind. I attacked Nanoha. Lutecia didn't try to stop me. She knew there was no point in getting between the two of us. She, in turn, seemed to intend to hold Caro back so she couldn't do anything.
"It's a one-on-one this time, Yozuki-kun."
"Looks like it. By the way, how would you rate me so far? Do you think I can get into Section 6?"
"Haha, I don't know yet. The final decision isn't mine, it's the section chief's. Maybe this battle will decide it?"
"Then I'll have to give it my all."
Even as we spoke, we didn't let up on our attacks.
I knew I couldn't win a shooting match against Nanoha, so I tried to get close and occasionally looked for a chance to head toward the central battlefield.
However, none of my attempts worked due to the freely moving guided projectiles. They kept me pinned in place, blocking my path whenever I tried to move too far.
The tip of Nanoha's staff was aimed at me, trapped in her web.
"Divine—BUSTER!"
The blast rushed toward me.
<7 Consecutive Hits!>
"Uuuoooohhyaaaaa!"
I swung my Parabraygun with all my might to meet the blast.
The correct expression wasn't to slice through it, but to hit it back with the large blade.
<5 Consecutive Chains!>
I scattered more light bullets, shooting down the Accel Shooters that were blocking my escape route.
After handling all the attacks, I accelerated and closed in on Nanoha.
Once I got this close, she couldn't use a big attack. The only remaining obstacle was her magic barrier.
My flaming fist shattered the shield. There was another one behind it, and my fist was stopped.
"Gah!"
A pink chain emerged from the shield and wrapped around my arm.
This was the same thing that had caught Einhart. I could predict the next attack, too. A deadly blast against a immobilized opponent—but she shouldn't underestimate Perfect Knockout.
I drew and acquired an energy item.
At that moment, another Perfect Knockout appeared next to me. Of course, he wasn't restrained by a chain.
He charged straight toward Nanoha without a second thought.
"Gah!?"
Nanoha, who had been preparing her blast, was startled and stopped her preparation.
I had lost my weapon, but Perfect Knockout still had his burning fists.
Fists and Raising Heart clashed, scattering fierce sparks.
The clone me had thrown his Parabraygun at the chain restraining me before he charged. It was so accurate it was unbelievable for a no-look throw, and it sliced through the chain.
Now free, I began providing support from behind.
On the other side, Caro and Lutecia were engaged in a magic battle. The flying magic bullets weren't flashy, but they were sufficiently powerful.
"Alchemic Chain!"
Countless chains shot out from the magic circle at Caro's feet. Just as they looked, the magic was meant to entangle and restrain her opponent. She aimed for Lutecia, but her control of the chains was a bit sloppy.
"Hehe, you can't hit me with that!"
"...It's fine if it doesn't hit. This is a setup to shoot you down—!"
"Behind you—!"
Nanoha shouted, but it was too late.
The chains that seemed to be aiming for Lutecia were actually coming for me.
When I grabbed the chain, my arm was pulled as if it was being reeled in. My destination was, of course, Lutecia.
Nanoha was dealing with my clone, so she couldn't do anything here.
"Wait, wha—!"
Defense didn't matter. I would steal Lutecia's life bar completely!
"Take this—!"
Paradox's deadly Rider Kick exploded against Lutecia.
"Yes!"
"Victory V!"
I gave a thumbs-up, and Caro gave a V-sign.
"Woah!"
A pink ring wrapped around Caro's body.
Had my clone's effect run out, or had she shot it down? Nanoha, with burn marks on her barrier jacket, was there.
"Yozuki-kun, go!"
"Right!"
"I won't let you!"
There was no time to help Caro. If I couldn't complete the mission by the time Tianna had specified, this victory would be for nothing.
But of course, Nanoha tried to stop me.
I hid behind a building and checked the time. 30 seconds left. I might be able to survive if I just hid, but it would be difficult to break through Nanoha and get to the other battlefield.
Maybe it was because she had been with Fate-san since childhood, but she was hitting me with her attacks without any issues, even when I was using my "High Speed" energy item.
Even if I hid within my signature ACT 3 spin, I couldn't hide forever, and the movement speed wasn't that fast. I would just be an easy target.
There was no time.
Her blasts were too strong, and I couldn't get close to Nanoha. I couldn't escape either. I was cornered.
All Nanoha had to do was hold me back. There would be no comeback for our team in the central battlefield, and as long as Sakura was there, the "trump card" wouldn't be a fatal blow.
To win, I would have to use Imagine Breaker to do something about Sakura.
"But how...? Huh?"
My foot crushed something that felt different from asphalt. When I moved my foot, I saw shattered glass. The field for this battle had many abandoned buildings. It wasn't strange at all to find broken glass.
"That's it!"
I put my belt on my waist.
"HENSHIN!"
I transformed into Kamen Rider Zi-O Ryuki Armor and found the biggest piece of broken glass. I dove into it like I was diving into a pool, with both hands together.
My being sucked into that world and Nanoha flying behind the building happened at almost the same time.
If my toe had disappeared one second later, this action would have been meaningless.
"He's... gone?"
But Nanoha didn't see it. To her, it would look like I had suddenly vanished. The most likely suspect was ACT 3, which I had shown her so many times.
She thought I was hiding somewhere, waiting for a chance.
In that case, it was my turn to hold Nanoha back. Nanoha, who began to use her search magic to check her surroundings, focused her consciousness on not letting me escape and not taking a surprise attack.
As she did so, I started running.
I was running toward my destination in the Mirror World, the world on the other side of the mirror. There were no obstacles. There was no one on this battlefield who had the ability to interfere with this world.
I ran toward the battlefield using the shortest possible route.
I had a rough idea of the path, terrain, and buildings from my perfect memory. I made a rough guess and looked for a suitable exit. Now it was just a matter of timing, but there wasn't much time. I immediately jumped out of the Mirror World.
"Huh!? Sho-kun—"
Sakura, who was controlling the giant, was startled by my sudden appearance—but my target wasn't her, unfortunately. I could achieve my goal by defeating Sakura, but this was a more precise method.
I de-transformed, and my right hand held Imagine Breaker.
My target was right in front of me. It was a black object so large it filled my entire vision, so large it felt like I was being sucked into it.
"Gah—!"
Sakura was screaming something, but it was too late.
"GOOOOO!"
My right hand, now imbued with Imagine Breaker, touched the giant, and it shattered into nothingness.
Exactly two seconds later.
"Hah—"
My vision was enveloped in light.
---------
(Enough time has passed since the battle started. There's enough magic scattered around the battlefield.)
Tianna jumped off the roof of a building with a good view. She hid behind a building and pictured the center of the current battlefield.
Corona's golem was getting bigger and bigger by absorbing the surrounding rubble. And Sakura's shadow giant. Everyone was fixated on the different-scaled attacks clashing in the center of the field.
(The balance of power has been broken in that battle. There's no way to start over now. It's an all-out brawl from here on out. If I miss this opportunity, a tactical victory is impossible. If I'm going to make a move—it has to be now!) Team B, this is the critical moment. Maintain the front line in the center of the field."
Tianna gave her orders to her teammates, who were likely fighting.
But even while fighting, there was one person who was keeping an eye on her surroundings. The Ace of Aces, Takamachi Nanoha.
(Not just Sho-kun, Tianna has disappeared at some point—she's aiming for a single, decisive blow somewhere. In that case, I will, too.) Team A, I'm giving an order!)
Just like at the start of the match, their thoughts were in sync.
"We'll take them all out with a Convergence Breaker!"
A Convergence Breaker. A technique that re-converges the scattered magic in the area to cast a powerful spell. By its nature, it can't be used to its full potential until a certain amount of time has passed since the start of the match.
Enough magic had been scattered around from the fighting. If there was ever a time to use a strategic attack, it was now, when everyone was gathered together.
"To all surviving members of Team B! We will fire a wide-area blast centered on Nanoha! Corona, hold the enemy back there until the end! The rest of you, escape at my signal!"
"We'll use a Multi-Raid Multi-Shot to annihilate the remaining enemy forces and nullify Tianna's Convergence Breaker!"
Tianna and Nanoha sent their final orders. There was no time to spare before the launch.
"Blaster 1, Mode 'Multi-Raid.' Starlight—!"
"Shift 'Phantom Strike.' Starlight—!"
The two of them fought over the invisible particles of magic suspended in the air, making it their own. The magic, which had swelled up to the point of bursting, was then unleashed.
"—BREAKER!"
The battlefield was enveloped in light. The two Convergence Breakers that clashed in the center of the field caused a massive explosion, as if two nuclear missiles had collided head-on. The barrier that was supposed to contain the damage screamed in protest and looked as if it would burst if someone poked it with a finger.
The buildings at the epicenter were completely gone, and the surrounding buildings collapsed from the blast. The explosion was far larger than anyone had anticipated.
Most of the players were caught in the two Breakers.
--------------------------------------------
🚀 Want Early Access (80+Chapters ahead ) & Bonus Content?
"Loving this story so far? You can read ALL chapters RIGHT NOW by joining my P4tr3on!
✨ Unlock instant access to the full completed novel
✨ No waiting for daily updates
✨ Support your favorite degenerate author (that's me!)
Only $5.99 for the full experience!
🔗 Check my profile for the Link!!