In the center of the training grounds, bathed in the scorching morning sun, I—Lilia Welt—take a small breath and focus.
Before me stands a woman with her back turned—Seena, the Witch of Absolute Barrier.
Five adventurers were gathered under the guise of a "workshop." Including myself, everyone was desperately trying not to miss a single move of Seena's, bracing themselves.
The magic of this world is roughly divided into two systems.
One is the Body Enhancement type Enhancer, which greatly enhances physical abilities by circulating magical power through the body.
The other is the External Output type Shaper, which shapes magical power outside the body and releases it,
Body Enhancement type Enhancers require different aptitude values depending on whether they specialize in speed or strength.
For example, I have a high "endurance" for constantly circulating magical power, so I continuously enhance my body and fight as a "speed type."
My role is to move like a whirlwind at all times, confusing the enemy.
On the other hand, types like Gald, who carries a greatsword, are "burst types" who increase power with a momentary burst of energy.
By using magic only at the moment of swinging the greatsword, they can inflict high damage on the enemy. Compared to the "speed type," where endurance is important, the "burst type" values speed from thinking to activating magic—instantaneous power.
Meanwhile, External Output type Shapers materialize magical power outside the body, manipulating it into shapes such as arrows, bullets, or barriers.
Eugene, who carries a sniper rifle, is a "sniper type."
By using a sniper rifle, he specializes in delivering powerful strikes from a distance.
And even among Shapers, Leon and Flora are types called "multi-shapers," who mainly generate and manipulate various magical substances within a mid-range area.
They can create barriers or magic arrows outside their bodies, flexibly switching between offense and defense.
Among them, Flora excels at creating barriers, while Leon mentioned that he is skilled at handling magic arrows.
Magic arrows have a shorter range than sniper rifles but excel in rapid-fire and trajectory manipulation. When combined with Flora's barriers, they provide a good balance of offense and defense.
Because each of the five fights differently, there is a high possibility of covering each other's weaknesses.
—However, to what extent that will work against the Witch of Absolute Barrier is completely unknown.
"Now then. Don't hold back. If you value your lives, come at me with everything you've got."
Seena's calm voice sounds rather eerie. Everyone, including me, felt a shiver down their spines.
Simultaneously with those words, Gald, who carried the greatsword, was the first to move. As part of the original plan, Gald had volunteered to act as bait.
"I'll do it! Everyone, support me in the meantime!"
Gald kicks off the ground with his well-trained legs and heads straight for Seena. The strike unleashed from those muscles should have considerable destructive power. A swing of the greatsword with momentum can bisect small monsters in one go.
"Crushing Impact!!"
Gald roars.
At that moment, his arm muscles swell up, and it's clear that magical power is being poured into the greatsword with pinpoint focus. This is the "burst type" body enhancement. The greatsword groans and is swung horizontally.
However—.
Seena didn't dodge; she simply thrust out her fist.
A fist and a greatsword are not comparable. Normally, the arm would be deflected by the sword and shattered, and no matter how much you enhance your body, you can't reasonably defend against it.
But this is the witch for whom that common sense doesn't apply.
Zugaann!... A dull bursting sound that made my ears ring.
The instant Gald's greatsword—or rather, that strike—collided with Seena's mere fist, Gald was the one who was blown away.
"Guh...!"
As if struck by a giant hammer, the large man was blown several meters backward, rolled on the ground, and stopped moving.
Fortunately, he doesn't seem to have lost consciousness in one blow, but he hit his back and was groaning in pain.
"No...that's a lie, right?"
Flora shudders beside me.
That's right. Even my heart is pounding loudly. For a greatsword and a fist to collide head-on, and for Gald, who swung the sword, to be crushed instead, despite the difference in size and mass...
But I can't afford to be dazed. Gald was supposed to be bait, so we have to make our next move.
"Eugene, provide covering fire!"
Leon shouts sharply.
Eugene hastily gets into a sniping stance, and seeing that, Flora begins chanting.
"I...I'll put up a barrier! Lilia, aim for Seena's back in the meantime!"
I reply briefly.
"...Understood. I'll take her from behind at top speed and catch her off guard!"
Judging from what I've seen in this instant, there's no doubt that Seena's attack power and durability are off the charts. But no matter what, she shouldn't be able to handle it if she's completely caught off guard—or so I believe.
Believing that, I circulate magical power through my body. The footwork that secured my position as the top student at Astra Academy. I concentrate magical power on my legs and accelerate at once—.
"Wind Boost...!"
At the same time, Eugene's magic gun emits a dazzling flash.
A dense magic bullet, vibrating the air with a veen! sound, flies toward Seena.
Furthermore, Leon follows up with a barrage of magic arrows. Multiple arrows drawing curves attack Seena simultaneously, surrounding her.
"Hee...not bad teamwork."
Seena seemed to mutter with a relaxed smile—the next moment, an unbelievable sound of pakiin! chained through the air.
Both the bullet and the magic arrows were deflected the instant they hit Seena's fist. The thrusting fist was accurate and powerful, like a small shield, shattering the magic bullets and arrows into pieces.
"I-Impossible..."
Eugene loses his voice. His aim wasn't bad. In fact, it should have been a perfect shot, but she casually deflects it with one hand—that's just cheating.
"Alright, next!"
Seena steps forward lightly and charges at Eugene, who is still holding his magic gun. She mercilessly swings her fist down on Eugene, who is crossing his arms to defend.
"Gua...!"
With a violent impact, Eugene's body sinks into the ground.
Fortunately, Flora had layered a small barrier, which seemed to have softened the impact, but even so, Eugene is breathing heavily with his shoulders heaving, saying "gah...!"
"Everyone, don't be intimidated...continue attacking!"
As Leon raises his voice, Flora quickly continues chanting and deploys a new magical barrier. Her aim is probably to protect Eugene as much as possible.
"Good judgment, but...too slow."
As she says that, Seena clenches her fist tightly. It seemed as if even the magical power in the air was vibrating.
The next moment, she collides head-on from above the deployed defensive barrier without slowing down.
"Flora-san, run away...!"
It was already too late when I shouted.
The barrier that Flora had erected was desperately resisting while sparking and crackling, but Seena's fist was grinding and shattering the barrier.
"D-Dangerous...!"
Flora desperately pours in magical power, but she is solely on the defensive.
Eventually, she is blown away along with the barrier, and she herself rolls on the ground. Looking, I see that her grimoire had flown off somewhere from the impact.
"Alright, three down."
Seena swings her finger around in satisfaction. The teamwork that the three of them had just used to attack had collapsed in an instant. Gald, Eugene, and Flora are all collapsing.
"Damn...what a monster...!"
Leon cursed. Only Leon and I are left.
But honestly, Leon is almost the only one who seems able to stand up. I can still move my body, but it's obvious that if I charge in carelessly, I'll end up the same way.
"Hmph...weren't you the one who said you were the strongest in town?"
Seena directs an almost provocatively taunting smile at him.
"Shut up...the real show starts now!"
Leon is clearly shaken, but he forcibly increases his magical power. An eerie amount of dense magical power is pouring out from his back. It seems he's about to unleash his trump card.
"Uoooo...my maximum output! Arrow Storm!!"
Gagaga! The magic arrows being fired in rapid succession are attacking Seena with speed and volume that are incomparable to before. The power is so great that it carves up the ground, and sand dust billows up.
"How's that...this is my strongest firepower...!"
The next moment Leon roared, Seena slowly emerges from the depths of the sandstorm. She's almost unharmed. Looking closely, I can see that a faintly wavering layer of magical power is formed around her.
"What's this? Is that all you've got for all that boasting? I'm disappointed."
Seena shrugs her shoulders and gives a disappointed voice.
"N-No way!?"
Leon makes a bizarre sound, as if he hadn't even anticipated being completely unharmed.
But he shouldn't have had the luxury of making such a sound. Seena had instantly stepped into Leon's space before he knew it. It was like instantaneous movement.
"I'll take you down in one hit too."
"Wh...!"
Leon tries to retreat in a hurry, but it's already too late. Seena's fist deeply pierces Leon's abdomen.
"Gueeeeeeh...!"
Letting out a not-unexaggerated scream, he was blown away several meters. He rolled on the ground while writhing in pain, and finally made a strange sound, "Ah, ah...", and fainted.
"That makes four...done. Now, you're the only one left, right?"
Saying that, Seena looked at me.
Comments
Post a Comment