Summer’s illusions continued to multiply, now reaching the scale of battalions numbering in the hundreds. With so many, they had become a veritable army mimicking Summer. Moreover, with the increased numbers, all of them were moving so violently that the visual information was more chaotic than if they were actual people.
The Spring’s Black Hole, which had been small during its initial throw, had now absorbed the collapsed earth of White Wing Land as it advanced, becoming quite enormous. Along with its size, its suction power had also been strengthened, making it suicidal to approach carelessly.
Facing these, one would feel as if they were confronting the embodiments of light and darkness. Of course, Kelvin, with a delighted frown, was no more troubled than to ponder such matters and considered these dire straits to be nothing more than a reward. The promise to destroy as little of White Wing Land as possible was the only point of concern, but he optimistically thought it would balance out, plus “plus.” He had clearly decided that there were more important things at the moment.
(The Black Hole heading straight for me. That seems like it’ll arrive first. Even at this distance, there’s quite a strong gravitational pull… Yeah, it’s probably safer to retreat sideways with the katana-ko army before then. I want to confront it head-on, but greed is not good. Maybe another time then.)
The Black Hole’s speed was tremendous, but its trajectory was always straight. If Kelvin deviated from its path, avoiding it wouldn’t be too difficult. Kelvin surmised that the purpose of creating the Black Hole was likely not for attack, but to subdue the turbulent winds and weaken their mobility. In fact, the winds of gravity that had been advantageous to Kelvin until just a moment ago were now working in favor of Spring and Summer.
(Even from a distance, this gravity. Up close, escaping on foot would likely be tough. And for some reason, that Black Hole doesn’t seem to be hindering the katana-ko army’s movements. Well, since most of them are illusions, it might just look that way…)
In a battle of this level, it wouldn’t be strange if they could create effects that only hindered the enemy. Assuming and anticipating the worst, Kelvin began his interception against the Summer’s army that he had lured in.
“「「「「Holy Enchant」」」」”
“Watch it!”
Just before the clash, Summer made all hundreds of the swords glow brilliantly, attempting to scorch Kelvin’s eyes again. Kelvin, anticipating this development, had transformed his Hard into sunglasses. Perhaps it was a quirk of Hard, which tended to transform into futuristic weaponry, but the sunglasses were also quite futuristic in design. In any case, the intensely strong light that would have burned his eyes was now neutralized.
—Grind grind grind!
However, one misfortune had passed, and another one arrived. Just before engaging in a bout with Summer, Spring’s projectile, entering as an interference, rapidly approached. Unlike the Black Hole, this magic bullet, changing its trajectory with a strange rotation, seemed to be equipped with a homing function as it tore through the air and headed towards Kelvin. It effectively and boldly caught him off guard, sometimes appearing from Kelvin’s blind spot, and sometimes emerging from Summer’s illusions. He used the Dark Black Sword, which he had generated for Summer’s interception, as a shield, but the magic bullet felt heavy, as if compressing the air.
(Whoa, really? It’s almost shattered by a single shot. This is a Black Sword enhanced by ‘Mana Overload,’ you know? But I can’t afford to have my attention divided like this, can I!)
After deflecting the magic bullet a few times, Summer’s army finally reached Kelvin. He didn’t know where the real one was. So, if he attacked all the illusions, Kelvin decided to launch a simultaneous interception using the slashes of his scythe, his remaining Black Swords, and the Spiral Wind Guard Wall.
“That one, and that one, and that one are all fakes… You’re quite cautious, katana-ko!”
Most of what he directed his attacks at were illusions, so naturally, he felt no impact from his attacks. If he had hit something, it would have meant it was the real Summer, but there was no sign of that at the moment. The only reaction was the heavy attacks from the magic bullet, which continued to approach at sharp angles.
(I know the army in front of me is an illusion. But I can’t ignore this number and number of attacks—! ?)
—Thud.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen. Based on his experience with previous damage, Kelvin immediately understood it was from a bladed weapon. And if it was an attack with a bladed weapon, of course, it was from Summer.
“You made all these fakes, and yet you’ve made yourself invisible…!?”
Yes, Summer had applied optical camouflage to herself to trick Kelvin. The increase in the number of illusions, and the unnaturally bright glow of their swords, were all for the sake of this single thrust. It was a level of preparedness that was astonishing for a magical creature.
Even so, Kelvin managed to grip the blade with all his might before it could fully penetrate. By doing so, he somewhat killed the momentum of the attack, preventing the real Summer from escaping. The damage was immense, but for every injury received, he would retaliate even more fiercely. Kelvin’s counter-attack, with his Grim Reaper face, approached Summer.
“Bitter Suffering Slash”
“Wha—!?!?!”
However, that approach halted. It wasn’t because of a minor injury caused by the impaled sword. Spring had spoken. That was all. But in that moment, Kelvin was suddenly assaulted by an overwhelming mental burden. It was, in essence, overwhelming stress. It was like being attacked by Colette, who wanted to express her faith, or facing a full-course meal prepared by the trio of bad cooks composed of Mel, Silvia, and Ariel—a desperate moment too dreadful to imagine. It echoed in his mind, and the worst, which felt eternal, continued within Kelvin.
(Guh—…! A power that directly affects my mind, huh…!? This is bad, it might be the worst pain yet—!?)
Even in despair, the situation relentlessly changed moment by moment. As if grinding salt into his wound, Summer kicked him in the abdomen. At the same time, she pulled the sword from his body, and Kelvin found himself on the receiving end of being blown away. His hand that had gripped the sword was unharmed thanks to the Hard he had prepared beforehand, but the situation was heading in a bad direction, making that fact seem irrelevant.
(I wasn’t just kicked away. I’m being pulled backward…!)
As Kelvin moved backward, he sensed a new threat approaching from behind. The source of the threat was the Black Hole, which should have passed far behind him. And behind the Black Hole, he could see Spring, who had moved there at some point.
(After being deflected by me in magic bullet form, did they secretly regroup behind me? No, more importantly right now…)
Kelvin focused on Spring’s pose. Spring was in a posture, as if shooting a soccer ball. That posture meant, therefore.
(No way, did she kick it? The Black Hole?)
It was exactly that. With the logic that if she could throw, she could also shoot, a ridiculous reasoning, Spring had accomplished it. After regrouping behind Kelvin, she had corrected the trajectory of the oncoming Black Hole by kicking it back.
Now that he had been kicked away by Summer, evasion was extremely difficult. The Black Hole’s speed was also likely at its maximum now. Should he destroy the threat directly, or employ some defensive measure? Kelvin pondered. …He pondered, but.
(Argh, this stress is making me feel awful. I never thought I’d feel this way during a battle… My thoughts aren’t coming together. Yeah, they aren’t. So—)
—Clink.
“?”
Immediately after kicking Kelvin, Summer noticed something attached to her own neck. It appeared to be a collar with a chain.
“So, I’ll fight however it goes. Come with me to that Black Hole over there, won’t you.”
