Chapter 572 |
Defensive Battle of All Worlds ⑱ Mrs. Witch Who is Always Full Power to The Max
――Loo~~~vveeeeee~~~~~~~~!!
「Stooopp~~~~~~~~」
Aiko’s heart yelled her love at the center of the world (putting aside whether it was really so or not). Naturally her shame hit the limit break.
『Aiko-sama……? A-are you alright?』
「I’m alright! There’s no problem at the slightest! Please pay no attention to me!!」
G10’s bewilderment hurt her heart.
『I-I also love the captain like you!』
「No need for considerationnn–」
――I – lo – ve – hi – mmmm~~~~~!!
「Stoooppppppp!!」
It was true to life. Like someone desperately stopping an enemy’s ruinous attack while their important person was behind them, or like a driver stomping on the brake with all their strength while ahead of the out of control car was approaching right in front of……the shriek felt like it really came from someone in such situations, but what she wanted to stop was her own feeling.
『Umm, Aiko-sama? How about using magic to calm the soul?』
「How can I forget that. G10-san, I might be beyond help already」
『Keep your composure』
Just now, she already did “Soul Repose” through her self-slapping, but it was something extremely light. Rather it was the slap that was the main action while the “Soul Repose” was only just extra.
Because, there was a limit even in having one’s mind addled with lust like immersing herself in memories in lewd and private cosplay photograph session with Hajime and so on while in this kind of situation. The slap was because she wanted to scold herself.
(No, wait a second. No matter what, for me to do something like that in this situation……HAH, this is also the alignment magic’s fault!)
All the riddles have been solved! Aiko-san looked like she wanted to say so.
Also, it was certainly the effect of alignment magic that her strongest feeling got incorporated into the “thought wave” unconsciously, but the lewd reminiscing itself was due to Aiko herself. It was the very natural flow of thought from her outfit to that event.
She was faintly aware of that but she put the blame on other as much as possible.
「Hi-hi-fuuu~~h, hi-hi-fuu~~!」
She instead performed a breathing technique like she was going to give birth, but it seemed this time she successfully applied “Soul Repose” on herself properly.
She freed herself from her regular panicky circular thought. Her calm thought returned and she firmly focused on the deployed soul magic circle of “Thought Wave” to rewrite it.
(It’s nice and all that I become able to do magic with “Imaginary Construction” in this apostle mode, but I’m still inexperienced with it. Perhaps that’s also the cause of this blunder?)
By obtaining apostle mode through Yue’s secret technique, she became able to use “Magic Power’s Direct Intervention” and “Magic Circle’s Imaginary Construction”. In other words she was using magic chantlessly and without physically drawing magic circle.
In this matter, Hajime’s artifacts were too excellent that it was possible to use magic almost like the user had both the skills, however, it didn’t change the limitation that it was limited to the magic that had been incorporated into the artifacts beforehand.
At the same time, the user would also become too reliant on Hajime’s artifacts that they would never be able to master the skills even though they had obtained it after much hardship, which was a waste. It would also be truly unsightly if they immediately became helpless the moment they lost their artifacts.
Because of that she was using the magic on her own as much as possible but, because of that too she blundered……maybe. Aiko calmly self-analyzed herself like that and heightened her concentration even more,
「――”Absolutely protect human”」
This time a “Thought Wave” that was exactly like she intended was spread out.
The enemies somehow were grasping the position of Coltran and the plant even inside this white mist. Although the mist managed to drastically reduce their advance speed, they were still heading toward those two locations.
But now through the white mist she could feel that they had completely stopped still. As though they hesitated to advance any further than this, like they were getting cold feet.
『Magnificent work, Aiko-sama.』
「G10-san」
『I’ve asked you many times that there’s no need to use san with me……』
「G10!」
『Yes, Aiko-sama.』
Even while feeling somewhat pressured by G10 who absolutely wouldn’t allow anyone to use honorific term of address with her, Aiko continued her words.
「How is it going over there?」
『Currently I’m in an even match both in fleet battle as well as electronic warfare.』
Perhaps it was because she had become the Holy Tree’s avatar. Apparently G10’s “telepathy” now also had the ability to share image.
The scene of space battle exactly like in science fiction movie unfolded at the back of Aiko’s mind.
Not long ago, G10 showed them the video of spaceships firing beams at each other during their visit to the machine world. What was happening right now felt like that but in scale of more than ten times bigger.
However, this time there were many different points.
First, the UFO――the flying saucer spaceship like in the old film was changing to something else that could barely be seen as spaceship, or perhaps battleship if you squinted.
Bluntly speaking, perhaps the enemies ought to be called as spaceship-things that were covered in black tar with thick tentacles like octopus legs growing here and there.
They weren’t only round-shaped, there were also sharp-shaped huge battleship that was like a spear tip, and diamond-shaped ship, and also fork-shaped ship. But, all of them had the texture of black tar.
And, there was a giant sphere that was particularly big, so much so that it made the depth perspective vague when looking at it. As expected it was also similarly covered with tar.
Most likely it was the mothership. Perhaps its size was about as big as half of the moon.
The enemy fleet was taking off one after another from that star of black tar……appearance-wise it looked like they were being born from a sea of tar, but anyway they kept emerging.
The enemy fleet also had gun turrets that fired beam cannon, and sent out small planes――aircraft fighters for dogfight flying out in great number like flies――from opening and closing parts that looked like living thing’s jaw no matter how you looked at it.
Like, when the mouth was opened *nuchaa~* it felt like tar drooled out from there. And, the internal part that was faintly visible when that part opened looked completely like the throat of a living organism.
More than a hundred of such fighter aircrafts already flew out. And they were still increasing.
This being was different than the previous spaceship that somewhat looked similar to the Roswell incident or earth movies, like a joke. This being invoked intense feeling of revulsion and terror from its viewers. Certainly this was a “void god” that only had a shape like spaceship.
『My apologies. I managed to prevent them from accessing the electronics, but I will need a bit more time to block the navigation signal they’re sending to their force on the surface.』
It seemed that was the cause of the surface force being able to head to Coltran and the plant even while inside the thick mist. The void god kept sending the coordinates that it managed to confirm from the outers pace before the surface got covered by the white mist.
Their route naturally deviated because of the thick mist’s influence and they were forced to correct route every time so they couldn’t move in full speed. But they were still closing the distance with certainty.
「To be able to make G10 has a hard time……I can’t believe there’s also “void god” that specialize in electronic warfare.」
『Yes. I might lose against it without Holy Tree-sama’s power and the drastic increase in my specs thanks to the facilities that captain devised. Its calculation ability is astounding.』
It went without saying that G10 was currently in the center of the holy land Shaia. She grasped everything from there, and she was also moving the fighting force protecting the machine world.
『Capita’s request when he stayed here for me to expand the defensive force here just in case also bore fruit.』
Facing the space fleet type “void god” was a hundred space battleship as expected.
They weren’t hastily made battleships that G10 produced by repurposing Mother’s inheritance and the artifacts Haijme left behind for Avenst. They were genuine fleet that Hajime improved using those as the base.
“This is just too similar with a movie plot. And, the voice that you said you heard……let’s just prepare for any case”, G10 recalled Hajime’s words.
(The last time, they might be a kind of advance troops that also doubled as scouting force. Considering the state of my cohorts who were with them, perhaps they were also being used without being aware of it……)
There was the question of why they knew of material that earthling recognized but, in any case, there was the possibility that it was to observe their side’s reaction.
And on top of that.
(Captain, my thanks. You seriously believe in something like “AI’s instinct” and prepare for the worst case……my deepest respect to your wisdom and thoroughness.)
The voice of someone that G10 heard when she defeated the enemy fleet.
It didn’t remain at the slightest in her record, but Hajime very naturally treated it as “fact”, and thus he accepted it as a matter that ought to be treated with cautiousness even after receiving the report that there was no way there was survivor of the enemy.
As the result, was the defensive force that they assembled by using Hour Crystals to work without sleep for many days.
Yes, Hajime didn’t use that time just for improving Avenst. He got into crazy tension and decorated Avenst with gaming setup was also because he was splitting time for this work too without sleeping.
『The total strength in the possession of the enemy mothership is unknown. However, surely it’s not unlimited.』
「For the state of the battle to be even despite it is continuing to send out more force, I see. The battle itself is moving in our favor then.」
『Yes, Aiko-sama.』
Even with the enemy possessing the number advantage, G10’s fleet was steadily destroying the enemy’s ships with their overwhelming specs.
Further, G10 was perfectly blocking the enemy’s hacking and cracking that were still ongoing even now. Not only that, she was progressing in her analysis of the enemy’s information even at this moment and breaking through its electronic defense even if only little by little.
G10 would either physically destroy the enemy ships until it run out of force, or she would win the electronic warfare and cracked into the enemy where she could neutralize its force or sending them into a state of confusion where she could then move on with extermination battle.
Either way, against G10 who had the backup of the Holy Tree’s power and the demon god’s backup, the enemy fleet was currently being blocked by an impregnable defense.
Aiko let out a relieved sigh when she understood that.
At the same time, she focused herself again as she realized this was exactly why the defense of the surface was important.
「Will there be more enemies descending down?」
『I won’t allow even a single battleship to pass. I swear it. But, when it come to the fighter aircrafts……my apologies. I’m not able to deal with all the units that breakaway far from the battlefield here is the current state of affairs.』
「No no! That’s why I’m here to take care of that!」
Only the aircraft type that succeeded in coming down to the surface. G10 prioritized intercepting the battleships and she succeeded in not letting a single one of them from coming down.
The aircrafts didn’t try to go up to escape from the thick mist was exactly because of that.
The white mist that Aiko deployed reached until the low-level region of the mesosphere in the atmosphere. In other words, it covered the area until the sky fifty kilometers above the ground, but the sky further above that was where G10 was laying the final and greatest air defense net within the atmosphere of Coltran and the plant.
In other words, any enemy that left the white mis barrier would be immediately shot down like in the game of whack-a-mole.
Incidentally, they didn’t directly attack Coltran and the plant from the sky was also thanks to this air defense net. It was impossible to breakthrough right from the front even when using battleship as bait. Because of that the enemy aircrafts had to withdraw from the battlefield in a long way first before going down and heading toward Coltran and the plant.
『However, a barrier of white mist is it. Holy Tree-sama is sending me the image of it somehow so I feel like I can also use it but……』
「Ahaha, as expected you don’t really get magical thing is it?」
『Yes. The interference to gravity and space can be explained scientifically. However, how can mist have confusion effect toward thought and perception, much less allowing the caster to sense faraway location? I can comprehend it if the mist is composed of some kind of drug, or a type of nanomachine but……』
It seemed the heaven-sent child of science was still unable to fully comprehend magical theory. Especially the avatar’s authority. It looked like the feeling that she was able to do something just because was making her feeling “???” all the more.
If she requested the Holy Tree, the tree would be able to do it in her place to some degree. But this was in the end the result of the tree reflecting the intention of the avatar. It wasn’t something that the Holy Tree was doing by its own will.
And so, by the way of imitation, or rather by asking the Holy Tree to “please do the same thing like in this mental image”, currently G10 was able to cover only the holy land Shaia with the barrier of white mist, but it seemed it was still difficult for G10 to do the same things like the other goddesses like locking the world or deploying a barrier that cover the whole planet.
G10’s apologetic thought was conveyed to Aiko. But her thought was also filled with respect toward Aiko who was creating a vast sea of trees with her own strength skilfully.
Aiko unconsciously smiled wryly.
「Originally, my “Sea of Trees Manifestation” has no ability to create the white mist barrier, and the white mist itself has no ability to observe faraway place.」
『Is that so?』
That is so. Actually, the barrier of white mist to the end was one of the self-defense functions that the great trees had.
And so, the white mist wouldn’t form even if Aiko activated “Sea of Trees Manifestation” using random seeds.
During the decisive battle in Mountain Fuji’s sea of trees, Aiko who was protecting the King Tree’s sanctuary could produce the white mist was simply by borrowing the King Tree’s power. With the artifact called “Staff of Protection” that was made from the King Tree’s branch, it had the effect of her getting recognized as proxy in using the goddess’s authority.
「I also don’t know much when it come to an avatar’s authority. But in this case……my broom, it’s a new artifact that was made from Hajime-kun’s Treasure Tree. The sea of trees surrounding Coltran are also from the sees produced from the Treasure Tree the unique plants in Miniature Garden.」
『……In other words, although limited Aiko-sama is also something like an avatar right now?』
「It’s reaa~lly limited or perhaps you should call me as “pseudo-avatar” though. The trees aren’t taking root into the planet so if nothing is done the sea of trees will dry up and vanish in several days.」
Because the trees weren’t connected to anywhere, they would break down without Aiko’s magic power. The sea of trees here was literally limited. The big tree that served as the starting point was from a branch split from the Treasure Tree.
And then, it was none other than Aiko’s broom that was the artifact made from the Treasure Tree that possessed the right of interference to this “limited Treasure Tree”. In other words it was a medium so she could exert authority as “the avatar of the limited Treasure Tree”.
Even the limited ability to detect anything inside the territory using the white mist that originally didn’t exist was a secondary effect of being this “pseudo-avatar”.
And even while the two were sharing information like that,
「Ah, the enemy started moving. H~mm, the number attacking each other is less than I hoped……」
She recalled the talk that “void god” was hungry. As expected their instinct might be overwriting their thought. Or perhaps, the magic’s effect was simply weak because it was targeting “void god”.
Either way there was no problem. After all the “Thought Wave” wasn’t her only method to hold them back. She put her hand on her Staff of Protection, or rather her Broom of Protection.
「Sixth Limit……Break. Concentrated – Soul Magic――”Soul Impact”!!」
The direct attack magic that Aiko used the most, or rather it could be said as practically her only direct attack magic.
Just from the appearance the magic only looked like fancy wave with faint pink color, but it was a vicious shockwave magic that directly walloped the soul.
The pink wave was rushing to three directions through the thick mist like the search lights of a lighthouse.
By the way “Thought Wave” was a magic that simply needed to reach the target. With just that the target would be affected and so there was no problem with deploying it thinly through a wide range. That was exactly why it could work at wide area.
But, “Soul Impact” was different. To put it into words, if “Thought Wave” was a magic that could still work as a breeze, “Soul Impact” was a magic where the impact mattered, so naturally it had to be in the level of a gust. If the magic damped down because of distance into the level of gentle breeze than naturally its power would go down.
And yet the “Soul Impact” that Aiko unleashed right now reached until more than a hundred kilometers from her, and,
「Yosh, I managed to blow the consciousness of around ten percent of them!」
『Wow』
The magic had the power to firmly blow away the targets’ consciousness.
The magic didn’t radiate indiscriminately to all directions but to the directed directions, and furthermore while she was conversing with G10, she took more than a minute to knead her magic power because she needed to “amass” the power, but even with those factors the result was still astounding.
「If the enemies have soul and my magic work on them……looks like things will be fine ever here too. There’s also my sea of trees waiting as the main battlefield, and it will be our win as long as we can buy time.」
An image was sent to Aiko. It seemed the enemy’s mothership was losing patience and started to move. G10 didn’t know what it was planning to do but she must be focusing her effort at it.
Aiko guessed G10’s intention and made a small guts pose with both her hands to fire up herself.
「Please leave this place to me! I’ll absolutely protect it!」
『Yes, Aiko-sama. Please take care of the people at Coltran and the plant.』
G10 sent her a thought that was filled with utmost faith before cutting off the communication.
Aiko sent her supportive yell from inside her heart to G10 who was giving all her effort into the space battle while in order to refocus to her own battle, she took a deep breath. One of her hands touched her broom’s handle while her other hand pressed on her chest. She closed her eyes for a bit.
「Yep, I’m fine.」
She confirmed her own condition and the artifacts, and also the condition of the white mist barrier and the sea of trees that was continuously expanding.
The position and image of the enemies were transmitted to her through the white mist.
The enemies looked like they were launched from battleship so they were described as small fighter aircrafts, but in reality they had shape that she couldn’t say anything about and made her face grimaced.
Their shape was like chambered nautilus with shape ranging from three to five meters composed of endlessly flowing black tar. That kind of description was the closest she could describe them. They were moving through air freely and smoothly.
The tips of their tentacles had bizarre shape like two clawed hands clasping together from up and down, but they possessed numerous functions from stretching, firing heat rays, or firing compressed tar like bullet for offense, and also for assistance.
It was unknown whether there was pilot inside or if they were simply a single living creature.
She didn’t know but there was no doubt that every single one had soul. Then without mercy,
「――”Soul Impact” ”Soul Impact” ”Soul Impact” ”Soul Impact”」
She rapidly fired shockwaves targeting the soul without pause.
The total number of the enemy force was roughly less than a thousand. Eighty percent was heading to Coltran while the rest was targeting the plant.
「――”Absolutely protect human”」
Those enemies were gradually getting taken off the board from the outside. Their consciousness was whittled with impact to the soul, then “Thought Wave” was reapplied which formed conflict with their instinct, causing some degree of conflict between allies.
The sea of trees that was formed surrounding Coltran and the plant was currently in the scale where intruder needed to traverse across more than ten kilometers to pass through, but even the closest approaching enemies still needed to go through a hundred kilometers of distance to reach it.
The thick mist caused them to need to confirm the direction often, even so their moving speed was fast. Even with “Thought Wave” slowing them even more, perhaps the vanguard would only need ten more minutes to arrive at the sea of trees.
「But, I think I’ll be able to reduce their number by forty percent till then……hm? Their movement changed. They’re heading here?」
Around two hundred of the enemies changed their route drastically. They were heading straight at her.
「The magic created light no matter what after all……although the white mist is camouflaging it, they were able to roughly calculate my location after observing multiple spots of the effect huh.」
Even while muttering that, the current Aiko didn’t feel anxiety like when the baboon apparitions rushed toward her at the sanctuary of the King Tree.
「Rather, this is convenient.」
This was the point of having a mobile starting point. As long as she was inside the thick mist, the Broom of Protection and the limited King Tree were connected no matter where she was. She could interfere from remote location.
Then there was no reason for her to stay in one place.
The broom that was gently floating in the air drastically accelerated *FHUM*. Due to its protective function, the rider wasn’t affected not only by wind pressure, but even by inertia and centrifugal force.
If she wanted then the broom could also move with “Godspeed” or acting as Gate Key substitute to do teleportation to a location that had been set up beforehand, but actually she was a bit scared flying in the sky on a broom so she was doing physical high speed flying to get used to it too.
「Hi, hiii~~~, t-this is scaryyyyyyy~~~」
Even though it wasn’t needed she was holding on her witch’s pointy hat with one hand desperately, while her other hand was holding tightly for her dear life on the broom’s handle. She was also pressing her legs together really tightly with her eyes becoming a bit tearful.
She was above a wasteland so there was no obstacle even from her altitude but, she was inside a pure white thick mist with zero visibility as well as moving in supersonic speed in the flesh so her body unconsciously stiffened.
Timewise it was around three minutes. She switched the speed back to the gentle cruising after she had evacuated to the edge of the sea of trees north of Coltran.
「As expected it might be better to travel in Godspeed……」
There was no burden to her body at all but the mental burden caused her breathing to turn rough. She breathed Suu~ haa~ to calm herself down for a second.
Then when she used the white mist for detection once again, she sensed that the force just now had just arrived at her former location. They were desperately searching the area but they found not even a shadow of their target and could only move every which way in confusion.
「The concealment function is also excellent.」
Aiko slightly sighed in relieve and lightly patted the hat that she was pressing.
Her outfit was wholly white was so she could blend visually in the pure white thick mist.
But, Aiko was practically powerless when enemy closed the distance to her because her close-quarter combat capability was non-existent. There was no way Hajime would just give her physical camouflage for her protection.
This pointy hat was an artifact that specialized in concealment. It could completely assimilate herself in the thick mist from outside perspective, in addition it deflected all kind of detection. If needed veil(liquid metal) would also flow from the brim and covered the wearer and changed the wearer’s appearance to camouflage among the trees or plants.
It went without saying that the white robe was barrier. As expected it was the type that could deploy various barriers that excelled in concealment. It isolated her presence and as long s she didn’t radiate magic power she would be completely hidden.
If she was constantly on the move inside the thick mist of bewilderment with this, it was nearly impossible to capture her.
On top of that with apostle mode the toughness of her body itself was strengthened tremendously. Considering that, it was a level of protection that perhaps could be called as overprotective.
「Ehehe, Hajime-kun……」
Aiko felt Hajime’s love and hugged her robe while a slovenly and goofy grin formed――
「Wait that’s not ittt!! Just now is absolutely the fault of the alignment magic!」
She returned to sanity with self-Soul Repose slap! While she was at it she also did her best to shut out 「The new combat outfit feels incredibly great! I’m feeling Hajime-kun’s love from it! Eheheh, I’ll have to service Goshujin-sama when I return home……night battle! Night battle!」 the unconscious mind (?) that flowed into her from Kaori!!
Apparently Kaori was also feeling Hajime’s love that was packed full with his personal obsession and outstanding functions and became merry from it, but as expected her act just now was only because Kaori dragging her along. No, really. I’m saying that’s the case, honesttt! She defended herself to nobody in particular while,
「Seventh Limit……Break! ――”Demonic Tree Manifestation”」
She made the “Miniature Garden seed” that she planted before evacuating to sprout. With her vocation “Farming Master” she interfered with “limited Treasure Tree” and through the thick mist she remotely made the seed to grow rapidly.
As the result, what happened was,
「The “Miniature Garden” is already a demonic region isn’t it……」
“The forest swallowed”.
The chambered nautilus-shaped aircrafts became swallowed by the rapid growth of the “forest” that suddenly split the ground and shot up.
Like being swallowed by muddy stream, twisting trees’ trunks and branches and roots were growing while swallowing them up inside.
They were assimilated with the trees that were growing into big trees with age of several centuries in the blink of eye.
「――”You ought to be one with the forest”」
Naturally they tried to dodge agilely, or perhaps trying to attack so they could escape because only a part of their body got swallowed, but the “Thought Wave” that Aiko sent at that timing was the worst.
Even their will to counterattack or escape got hindered. They were made to feel that it wouldn’t be bad to become a part of the forest just like that, like aged elf in story.
And then, the most terrifying thing was how the prey that had gotten seized by demonic tree even if it was just a part of them would have their nutrient(energy) sucked in by the roots.
The Miniature Garden’s demonic tree that had the trait of absorbing nutrient was the result of Aiko using soul magic to grant them the absorbing effect to their prey’s internal energy.
All the manifested trees became a forest composed of demonic trees that were like insectivorous plants.
How truly horrifying. But, naturally the enemies weren’t so soft that they could be exterminated completely with just that horrifying surprise attack.
There were also a lot of units that were able to dodge or destroy the growing trees and escaped the disaster. Only about forty percent of the total number got whittled off by this fast attack.
The remaining sixty percent hurriedly attempted to escape from the forest.
「You won’t get away」
Cold eyes that the usual Aiko would absolutely never show were directed toward the battlefield.
The Broom of Protection was tinged with pink color. At the same time the plants that were similarly going through rapid growth all moved simultaneously.
Plant vines stretched like spider web, seeds flew around like bullets, and unknown spores and pollens filled the air.
The aircraft fighters flew around quickly and intercepted using weapons that looked like heat ray, but, the home field advantage was just too great.
Vines entangled around them one after another, units that got hit by seeds had plants growing inside their bodies that turned them into plant fertilizer, those who were affected by spores and pollens had white specks forming on their bodies and fell from the air.
Horizontal was no good. Their vision got blocked by overwhelming growth speed and density of plants that were growing one after another while causing tremors on the ground. They were losing exit paths. They wouldn’t make it in time at all.
Then the sky! The enemy thought and flew vertically, but of course the queen of the sea of trees wouldn’t allow them.
「――Eight Limit – Break」
There were a lot of enemy units that got their consciousness blown away even when they were still more than a hundred kilometers away.
Then if they were just within dozens of kilometers away?
「Concentrated – Soul Magic――”Soul Impact”!!」
A full strength attack. Even against an opponent that could use soul magic and defend their soul, the impact of this magic could pierce through the average defense.
It had extraordinary range, effect, and deployment speed. Against opponents that didn’t have any way to protect their soul――
――＃＃＃＃＊＊ッッ！！？
It felt like she could hear wordless shrieks of death agony.
It was the shrieks of those who had their soul pulverized. Half of the survivors that made a steep climb to escape from the demonic forest dropped, and further thirty percent were rendered unconscious and fell. They vanished inside the demonic forest.
「It also depend on the range and the enemy’s toughness but……I see. It’s possible to destroy their souls with the break of the eighth limit.」
Aiko muttered with a grave expression, like a part of her heart somewhere was feeling pain, like she was engraving the horror, the weight of what she had done into her heart.
The eighth limit――that was the “Limit Break” that Aiko performed using soul magic.
“Limit Break” forced tremendous burden to the body in exchange of explosive increase in all specs. Her technique divided the greatest strengthening of Limit Break that included “Supreme Break” to eight stages and by activating each stage gradually, it reduced the burden to her body.
To describe it in words, it was like the “Limit Break” of “abyss lord” that strengthened him more the more time passed turned into a technique. It was also the strengthening method that the Liberator Laus Barn specialized in.
But, Aiko’s “Limit Break” didn’t stop there. It had one more special trait that even the abyss lord and perhaps even Laus couldn’t achieve.
That was,
――Aiko Original Soul Magic Ultimate Flow – Limit Break
“Limit Break” increased all specs when activated. However was there really any need to increase all?
For example, Aiko was a non-combatant. She couldn’t do close-range combat no matter what. Then was there any need to strengthen her body over the limit? Rather, wouldn’t it be something extremely pointless?
Couldn’t the resource for that part be reallocated to more necessary place?
The result was as could be seen.
「Yeah……I can do it. Concentrated – Soul Magic――」
She made the energy that diffused through her whole being to strengthen her to flow and focus at the parts and abilities that she selected. Just her arms, just her legs, just her sight, hearing, sense of touch, or perhaps just her brain. She strengthened the needed parts to go over the limit only as needed depending on what the situation needed.
In exchange of some parts of her staying in zero percent strengthening, the “Concentrated-Style Limit Break” made it possible to do partial strengthening with strengthening rate that surpassed even “Supreme Break”.
Therefore, she strengthened only the necessary parts with the use of soul magic, and she could also strengthen her magic’s strength until it could destroy soul, and until it could have the range that reached several hundred kilometers ahead.
Then, because this was done not by skill but by another magic, it w3as also possible to do focused strengthening on the “Limit Break” itself.
「――”Ninth Limit – Break”」
Her body itself wasn’t strengthening at all, however, the “Limit Break” itself improved to an unprecedented degree. By allocating all the resources only to the magic usage, it was amplified with rate that surpassed “Supreme Break” and Aiko arrived at her special move.
「――”Soul Impact”」
The remaining twenty percent. The chambered nautilus aircrafts splendidly escaped the demonic forest and flew to the sky. However, they failed to grasp “life”.
The pink wave rushed past them and dispersed their souls. Like rock that was smashed to small pieces as though it had just gotten hit by spatial blasting.
「Uu……as expected, this might be, a bit hard……」
Her consciousness swayed. *Tsuu~* Blood trickled from her nose. It went without saying that the brain played the most important part in magic usage. She felt dangerous heat there like her brain almost overheating.
「Calm down, me. The clone magic is for something like this.」
The spheres floating around Aiko this whole time since the battle started.
Actually, those were clones.
A being that possessed autonomy which copied Aiko completely. She didn’t know how much effort she gave in order to create it.
The reason was so that she could carry out her teaching activity completely even during the summer vacation. So that she could be close to her students even while she was going to a long trip, and, so she could interact with her students properly as “Hatayama-sensei”, not just leaving behind a doll. That was her explanation to Hajime.
It wasn’t a lie. That was without a doubt her true feeling.
But, in reality that wasn’t all. Aiko wanted to master soul magic to the limit because of her feeling toward Hajime.
Aiko didn’t acquire new age of god magic like Kaori and others. She was aware of her own clumsiness better than anyone else. She was sure that any of the other age of god magic would be just wasted on her and refused them.
The work of teaching was like the synonym of busyness. She didn’t have a lot of free time. But, she absolutely couldn’t make light of her work, nor she had the intention to do so. Hajime too surely didn’t want to see Aiko being like that.
In exchange, how could she become useful for everyone even if just for a little? Could she reassure Hajime from his worry? When she thought that, she arrived at the conclusion that there was nothing she could do other than mastering soul magic.
The creation of perfect clone also lied in mastering soul magic. It was truly a subject that was like killing two birds with one stone, and so she used that subject as her practice board.
「First – Maintaining sea of trees – expansion, no problem. Second – maintaining white mist – detection, no problem. Third – Maintaining Limit Break, no problem」
Clone magic that created a perfect body. But, there was no need for the body to be constantly perfect.
Flesh body was unnecessary. Talking capability was also unnecessary. The formula to form personality in order to deal with other individual was also unneeded. She removed all components for forming the ideal teacher and focused only on the required parts.
Because what clone magic was, in essence the ultimate assistance magic.
If the clone was limited to only assisting in the user’s magic usage then it wouldn’t be limited to just one body. The maximum could reach until five, no, if it was now where the limit of the limit had been transcended then it was possible to form until six bodies.
「Fourth – Distribution of Limit Break’s burden……yosh, success!」
One more light sphere floated up.
「Next is fifth – Assisting the flow of Limit Break……also-, success!」
A total of five assistance magic revolved around Aiko like satellites.
All of them were simple clone with autonomy. Therefore, despite being assistance magic they all operated together with no need for Aiko to give more thought and will to them and no time lag either.
It was a special move.
There was no denying it, that this was a special move.
――The most delicate and outstanding user of soul magic in the world
Yue was consulted about the new type Limit Break’s idea and the clone-type assistance magic and requested to examine whether there was any problem with them. That was the evaluation that she gave to Aiko at that time.
It went without saying, that was the greatest evaluation from the world strongest magician.
「Nn, they finally arrived at the sea of trees.」
While she was exterminating the detached force, the other force seemed to have arrived at the boundary line of the sea of trees surrounding Coltran.
Although, the sea of trees was expanding even now. The distance until Coltran had surpassed more than 50 km.
The defensive line of a demonic sea of trees that was more than 50 km in distance.
Of course, being the defense base, there was no way it was a soft battlefield where its threat only came from the nature trait of the demonic trees. In there a proper fighting force――”army corps” was waiting.
「Everyo~~ne!! It’s your turnnn!! Please beat them uu~~pp!!」
Uu~~pp!! Uu~~pp!! Uu~~pp!! “Thought Wave” echoed through the whole demonic sea of trees.
It was the imperial command of the queen of the sea of trees.
The chambered nautiluses that invaded the sea of trees must have heard it. And then, they must be instinctually feeling the threat, or perhaps feeling fear.
And then, there was no doubt they also realized. That they were stepping into an area that they must never entered no matter what.
Yes, they heard the war cries of the demonic tree army responding to the queen.
They felt fighting spirit so great it felt like the whole sea of trees shook. Shouldering the role as the army’s core was the “guardian treants of the King Tree’s sanctuary” temporarily dispatched here so they wouldn’t get dragged into Shia’s fighting, and also to help Aiko.
The powerfulness of they who were likened to chess pieces didn’t even need to be said.
Such force was entrusted to the swarm of demonic trees that Aiko personally created to form an army of even greater scale.
All those fighting forces,
「Sixth – Maintaining demonic tree army……complete!」
The clone-type assistance magic that would allow them to automatically absorb the surrounding nature and revive no matter how many times even if they were destroyed as long “Aiko’s pseudo soul” and “Miniature Garden’s seed” that were their core were safe was activated.
Of course, the sea of trees itself was wholly composed of Miniature Garden plants that possessed vicious traits the same like the “demonic forest” that Aiko produced just now.
「! So the next force has come.」
The white mist’s detection ability notified here of a new medium scale force flying near. This time they approached from the completely opposite direction.
Aiko took a deep breath 「Fuu~」. It would be the main event from here and she fired up herself even more.
But, she applied “Soul Repose” moderately to herself so she wouldn’t panic in vain like usual.
「Yue-san judged that I’m alone would be enough here. I’ll answer her expectation. Yes, I shall answer it! And above all else――」
She met them. This time with the concentrated “Soul Repose”.
The attack’s effect had gone past calming down the heart. It negated all emotions, and even all wills to act.
The enemy force that was dragged into a state total apathy was dropping down in succession like bird with its wings plucked as though even simply flying felt tiresome for them.
「So I can tell Hajime-kun that nothing at all is lost when he return home!」
In contrast to that fierily overflowing innermost feeling.
That magic staggered, broke, and push the enemy’s mind to rock bottom using all kinds of methods.
Truly, rather than calling such person as the queen of the sea of trees, or the goddess of bountiful harvest.
It would be more suitable to call such horrifying person as the “white witch ruling over the sea of trees”.
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AN: Thank you very much for reading this every time.
Thank you very much too for the thoughts, opinions, and reports about misspelling and omitted words.
As expected around 5000 to 7000 words are just right. It’s also not too excessive for the writing time or for the eyes. That’s what I’m thinking but for me to still feel that I haven’t written enough that the content isn’t enough is perhaps because recently there’re many chapters that’s more than 10000 words.
Well, this time it’s simply because my focus couldn’t continue though. Each time I went out for business the heat dealt DoT that exhaust me. In short Shirakome is already suffering from summer heat. Everyone too please be careful with the heat……
Also, it’ll be the desert world next chapter. The opening might touch G10’s side a little but the chapter will be mainly Myuu and Shizuku’s side in my planning.
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