Aoyama's heart raced as he used Mana Amplification.
[(Spell: Shield (Common) + Mana Amplification (Beginner))]
"Shield!!"
A pale blue sphere formed around the unlikely duo—
Crackkkk!
The two-pointer wasn't like the first ones they'd encountered.
Those were weak street drones that rolled on heavy-duty wheels and attacked with simple robotic appendages—easy to dodge.
They weren't forward-facing one-pointers you could handle by denying them time to turn. Once they charged, their lower bodies couldn't adjust to sharp movements.
Two-pointers were different.
They didn't have built-in wheels. Instead, their bodies were supported by three iron legs, a 360-degree rotating torso for mobility, and a single scorpion-like tail for offense.
With it, the robot could generate over four thousand newtons of bone-shattering force.
Crackkkk!
Aoyama willed his mana to reinforce his half-shattered shield.
He wasn't disappointed—he knew it was rushed. In fact, he was surprised the spell activated at all without relying on his Anodite form.
It held for one more second against the full-force strike aimed at both him and Ochaco.
"Be prepared to drop it," he said, gripping the end of his rope.
"Kay!"
Ochaco Uraraka nodded, touching him before pressing her fingers together to stop their fall.
They hovered halfway to the ground while the two-pointer continued rising.
Let's try this again… mana, compress in my palm…
Then push!
He flicked the rope forward, releasing his mana.
[(Industrial Rope (Uncommon) + Mana Amplification (Beginner))]
The rope shot forward like a solid spear, piercing through the robot's shell and forcing it higher into the air.
"Drop it, Uraraka-chan!"
She released her Zero Gravity.
Her heart rate spiked as they began falling too.
She shut her eyes, bracing—clutching tightly onto Aoyama's back—
Bang!!!
The sentinel shattered as it crashed into the asphalt.
…We're okay?
Ochaco slowly opened her eyes—
Pew—!!
Her hair whipped back as her body was suddenly launched toward a building.
"Ahhhh!"
She screamed, shutting her eyes again.
Her body tensed—
Pew—
A sharp whistle cut through the air from her left.
Then her stomach dropped.
Her legs tightened around his waist as she shrieked.
They swung off a street pole, spinning in a loop—
Argh… my head's spinning…
Ochaco gagged as her motion sickness surged. Her eyes barely opened, catching a glimpse of the rope dragging them away from the corner.
"Hurrgh—!?"
She was about to throw up—
But a green light washed over her.
Aoyama held her thigh with one hand as they spun again.
"Sorry, but I don't want you vomiting your breakfast all over me~"
Mana flowed from his palm—his healing spell amplified.
He didn't know if it would fully work, but it would at least help.
Ochaco covered her mouth, swallowing hard.
"Ugh… I feel like I'm going to taste that for a while…"
She slumped slightly against his neck.
"Well…"
Aoyama started, then paused as he released the rope mid-swing.
He slid down it smoothly, catching the lower end.
"All I can say is—if you feel sick again, give me a heads up."
He infused mana into the rope again and launched it toward the next lamppost.
It hooked—
"HEADS UP—!!"
Too late.
Ochaco's cheeks puffed—
"Blegh—!!"
It didn't take more than a second for her nausea to return, and she vomited onto his neck.
Once it started, it didn't stop.
"Eeghhh—!!"
Tears welled in her eyes.
I'm sorry…
—West of the Testing District—
Aoyama #4—one of the four bodies created at the starting line—skidded to a stop atop a cracked sidewalk, scanning the battlefield.
Seven clones active…
Let's make that ten.
Silver light pulsed from his body—
Two more figures split off beside him.
Clone #9.
Clone #10.
Their strength dipped, their bodies growing thinner—but the coverage was worth it.
Ahead—
A chaotic skirmish unfolded.
A girl with grape-purple hair—small but aggressive—hurled sticky spheres that latched onto a one-pointer's wheels, locking them in place.
"Ha! Try rolling now!"
A porcupine-like boy followed up—
Thwip! Thwip! Thwip!
Sharp quills embedded into the robot's sensors, blinding it.
The machine staggered—malfunctioning.
Aoyama's eyes lit up.
Good setup.
He moved instantly.
"Hey—grape girl!"
She turned.
Aoyama tossed two spray cans toward her.
She caught them midair.
"What am I supposed to do with—?"
"Stick them to your spheres and throw them!"
She grinned.
"Heh… I like that."
Pop! Pop! Pop!
She slapped her sticky balls onto the cans—
Then hurled them at the immobilized one-pointer.
Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.
The cans stuck perfectly across its body.
Clone #7 stepped forward.
Aoyama pulled out a lighter and another spray can.
He pressed the nozzle—
Hissss—
Click.
A stream of fire burst forward.
A makeshift flamethrower roared to life.
Heat surged when the air freshener ignited.
Flames engulfed the robot.
Hissssss—FWUSHH!!
Pressure built inside the attached cans.
The smell of burning chemicals filled the air as one began to leak.
"Back up!" Aoyama warned.
Too late.
BOOOOM!!!
A compact explosion ripped through the one-pointer—
Metal plating blew apart—
Fire and debris scattered outward—
The machine collapsed into smoking scrap.
"YOOO!!"
The porcupine kid cheered.
"No way that worked!"
The grape-haired girl laughed, hands on her hips.
"Okay—that was awesome."
She smirked.
"But don't forget who made it possible."
She puffed out her chest.
"That was all my sticky balls."
Aoyama's clone exhaled, already scanning ahead.
"Yeah, I won't forget."
His eyes locked down the street.
"I'll make sure to pay you back for the assist, Minette-chan."
He skated forward and scooped her up.
"Let's run it again. This time—you take the kill."
"Onwards, Team: Pop-Off!!!"
She pointed forward dramatically.
They surged ahead.
The porcupine boy dropped to all fours, sprinting after them.
Ahead—
A cluster of one-pointers rolled into view.
Three.
Then five.
Then more from the side streets.
Aoyama's eyes sharpened.
Targets acquired.
"Same combo—fast!"
Minette hurled spheres—
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Wheels locked.
Robots stalled.
The porcupine boy fired quills—
Blinding sensors.
Clone #9 and #10 peeled off—
Each grabbing cans.
Hiss—Click—WHOOSH!
Flames erupted across multiple targets.
Three more clones split for #4 and stretched ropes between them, circling a group of one-pointers—
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The machines were trapped—
—but suddenly—
A massive examinee suddenly expanded—
Growing from human size to nearly twelve meters tall.
His eyes locked onto their targets.
He was trying to steal their points.
—East of the Testing District—
"SHIELD!!!"
Aoyama #3 shouted, forming a barrier just in time to block a two-pointer's tail strike aimed at another examinee.
—North of the Testing District—
"Heal!!"
Aoyama #6 released a burst of green light.
Kohaku's injured arm began to mend under his touch.
She had just been struck by a rampaging three-pointer, the impact fracturing her arm and scraping her shoulder raw against the pavement.
"That thing's fists are too fast," she gritted through her teeth.
"Be extra careful, Hikari."
Hikari, in her smaller form, leapt off a lamppost—
Ting!!!
The metal pole bent and sparked as the three-pointer's strike smashed into it instead.
The robot recoiled—
Target located. Target located.
Its systems flared, scanning—
Then locked onto another Aoyama.
Its heavy-duty wheels crushed debris beneath it as it charged.
—Aoyama #2—
Huff… huff…
Aoyama #2 fired his rope—
Swishhh—
He swung away just as the three-pointer barreled forward—
Its tank-like body smashing through the first floor of a nearby building.
"Target. Target. Target."
The machine turned—
Scanning—
Unaware of the boy now hanging above it.
Aoyama's grip tightened.
His vision blurred.
He forced every drop of mana he had left into his palm—
Channeling with his right hand—
Holding the rope with his left—
"SHIELD!!!"
A small, translucent blue sphere formed—
Inside the robot's head.
For a split second—
Nothing happened.
Then—
CREEEAK—
Metal strained.
Circuits sparked.
The sphere expanded—
Forcing outward—
Tearing through internal components—
BURST!!!
The robot's head detonated from within—
Fragments of steel and sparks exploding outward—
Its massive body froze—
Then collapsed.