anwhile, on a quiet and empty road, a car was speeding through Tengu City.
"Hmm~ Hmm~"
As if out for a joyride, Isaac Westcott sat in the driver's seat, humming a leisurely tune while steering the wheel.
"Honestly, this car is way too slow. At this rate, I'll miss the main event."
Stepping on the accelerator that had already reached its limit, Westcott complained sowhat helplessly.
Even though he was the first to leave the hotel, the reality was that his subordinates had already reached the battlefield and engaged in combat, while he was still dawdling on the road.
"Heave-ho!"
Entering a curve, he abruptly downshifted, hit the brakes to cut to the inside lane, and turned the steering wheel hard in the opposite direction.
The friction between the tires and the asphalt produced wisps of light smoke. The car, with its center of gravity shifted to the front, instantly drifted sideways. The rear end swung out like a dragon's tail, sharply taking the corner.
A perfect drift.
"Driving for the first ti feels pretty good. I should ask the developnt departnt to customize a car for next ti."
Enjoying the thrill of speeding wildly on an empty road, the unlicensed driver Westcott couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
"Now then, how are my dear subordinates doing?"
Activating the terminal installed in the car, Westcott analyzed the current battlefield situation while driving.
"Hmph... To actually be able to subdue Artemisia, they're quite capable."
Westcott raised an eyebrow in slight surprise.
"Well~ If they couldn't even manage this level of resistance, it wouldn't be any fun at all."
Saying this, a joyful curve lifted the corner of the dead-eyed man's mouth.
—Fwoosh!
Just then, a blue smoke trail suddenly shooting into the sky appeared in Westcott's line of sight.
"It seems my lovely newbie has completed her task."
Westcott turned on the communicator.
[Ike, I am currently engaged in combat with the Spirits. Please keep your explanation as brief as possible.]
Ellen's voice ca through the earpiece. Westcott shrugged and replied.
"Understood, then please work hard according to my instructions, my dear Ellen."
And so, the car, already exceeding 120 kiloters per hour, sped towards the distant battlefield.
———————————
(Strange)
Tobiichi Origami felt a slight sense of incongruity.
Right now, she was cooperating with Yatogami Tohka and the other Spirits to stall Ellen, preventing her from entering the other battlefield where Honjou Nia was.
In a head-on clash, Spirits who could only deploy partial Astral Dresses were absolutely no match for this Wizard. Origami, who had fought her before, knew this very well.
So she took the initiative to shoulder the responsibility of commanding the battle. Using the teleportation ability of her Angel, tatron, she constantly shifted the Spirits' positions, deploying them strategically, and used the buildings of Tengu City for cover to wage a guerrilla war focused on harassnt.
The operation proceeded quite smoothly. Forced to remain vigilant against sudden ambushes from the Spirits, Ellen currently had no ti to pay attention to the situation on Shido's side.
However, the problem was that it was too smooth.
Throughout the entire engagent, while Ellen's attitude couldn't be called passive, she wasn't going all out against them either.
Although there was a possibility she was maintaining vigilance and not acting rashly, Origami didn't dare make such a hasty judgnt.
(Too calm.)
A normal person, suddenly entangled in another matter while executing a mission, would feel so degree of ntal pressure. Like having your hands tied to two ropes pulled in opposite directions, the inability to cope would generate a sense of anxiety.
However, Origami didn't see anything similar in Ellen.
(Is her ntal fortitude as a warrior just that strong? Or perhaps... are we the ones being stalled?)
While Origami pondered, the battle raged on.
Fierce sparks flew between clashing blades.
During one instance when Tohka was teleported right in front of Ellen, Tohka swung Sandalphon, the heavy greatsword slashing towards Ellen with overwhelming ferocity.
However, this ti, contrary to Origami's expectations, Ellen actually lost in the test of strength against Tohka, her body sent flying into the air.
"Is she out of strength?"
"No... she didn't deliberately try to match my strike, she let herself be sent flying on purpose."
Tohka shook her head in denial.
At this mont, Ellen, floating in mid-air, pulled the weapon mounted on her left shoulder under her arm. The cold muzzle aid at them, gathering terrifying magic power.
Origami's pupils contracted sharply. She knew that was the strongest armant equipped on Ellen's CR-Unit, its power comparable to a full-force strike from a Spirit.
(But why use it now?)
A sliver of doubt flashed through Origami's mind.
Logically, while Ellen's attack possessed imnse power, it also had significant restrictions on its use.
According to the blueprints provided by Yutsuki, when using that move, the user needed to brace their body against the ground to disperse the recoil generated by the attack into the earth.
If their control over their Territory reached a certain level, they could also rely on gravity manipulation to disperse the recoil mid-air. But right now, the airborne Ellen clearly hadn't adjusted her posture in the air. Launching an attack in such an awkward state might actually cause harm to herself.
With Origami's ability, she was fully capable of taking Tohka and dodging Ellen's attack.
[This is bad, Origami!]
Just then, Kotori's anxious voice suddenly ca through the earpiece.
"What's wrong, Kotori?"
[According to Marina and Maria's analysis, if Ellen fires like that, it will hit a large underground air-raid shelter.]
"—!"
Origami's eyes widened in shock.
Right now, due to the spacequake alarm, the ordinary citizens of Tengu City were all taking refuge in the air-raid shelters. That's why Origami and the others could fight without reservations.
If Ellen's attack really hit the air-raid shelter, who knew how many people would die.
(—I won't make it in ti!)
Ellen's current position was already beyond tatron's teleportation range. Even if Origami wanted to stop her, it would be futile.
"Everyone present! Quickly get behind us!"
A commanding voice suddenly rang out. Origami turned her head and saw that, at so point, the Yamai sisters had landed behind them.
At this mont, they had deployed their Astral Dresses to the absolute limit possible while sealed. A fierce aura erupted from the two.
The single wings on their backs had rged into one, transforming into a massive longbow. The chains wrapped around the ends of the wings like spirit snakes, acting as the bowstring. The assault spear was nocked onto the longbow, serving as the arrow.
Winds gathered and clouds scattered. All the wind in Tengu City converged around the two from all directions.
In an instant, Origami understood their intention and decisively ordered all Spirits to retreat behind the Yamai sisters.
"Are you ready? My other half."
"Affirmative. Yuzuru has no reason to back down."
They exchanged a glance. Kaguya and Yuzuru interlocked their fingers, tightly gripping the longbow, aid at Ellen in the sky, and drew the bowstring to a full moon.
""Raphael—El Kanaph!!""
"Pierce through, Rhongomiant!"
As their voices fell, the hurricane arrow and the spear of light clashed together.
"Zadkiel!"
"Haniel—Kaleidoscope!"
Simultaneously, Yoshino and Natsumi poured their Spirit power into their Angels, raising two solid ice walls in front of everyone.
"————————————————————————————!"
The next mont, accompanied by a deafening explosion, a massive shockwave expanded in all directions, completely obliterating all the buildings in the area.
User Comments
0 comments from readers