Chapter 472: O Dragon, O Dragon! Part 49

Author's Preface

I'm writing this with so much energy I don't even remember what I wrote three lines ago.

Wait, could this be...

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The battlefield fell utterly silent, as if frozen in place.

With the appearance of a mechanical narwhal that had literally smashed its way through the ocean, absolutely everything ceased its movements and turned its gaze in that direction.

『──────』

Even Siegwurm was no exception to this.
His movements ground to a halt with eyes dyed in astonishment, his reptilian pupils widening to their absolute limits.

A colossal steel fish that had been swimming through the sea of stars—a sight that, even if blurred and faded, still unmistakably remained within the distant, distant memories of the Dragon King.
Perhaps seeing the genuine article from his memories manifest right before his eyes had caused a flood of forgotten memories to resurface, or perhaps he was simply shaken by raw emotion.

Witnessing Siegwurm stop his movements, his thoughts practically short-circuiting, the starting pistol rang out within Akitsu Akane's mind.

『Here I go!!!!』

Akitsu Akane was looking at nothing but Siegwurm. She was vaguely aware that some loud noise had echoed from the ocean and that everyone had turned to look at it... but even knowing that, Akitsu Akane kept her eyes fixed solely and entirely upon Siegwurm.

───No matter what happens, do not take your eyes off Siegwurm.

That was the message from Sunraku, who wasn't even here right now. Even while pulling off a "distraction" massive enough to draw the attention of even Siegwurm, he was still telling her to look forward—a display of absolute trust that she, of all people, would be able to do it.

And for Akitsu Akane, something like this was practically an everyday occurrence.

『Hah!!』

Projecting her sharpened concentration onto her physical body, she released the tension built up in her legs much like an arrow being loosed from a bow.

Forward, ever forward; people were in the way... Jump.

Looking for a place to land, it was too far; she dashed through the air with the skill "Hermes Boots" to close the distance... Landing.

But there were too many people, though not enough to completely block her path. Sometimes left, sometimes right, sometimes leaping forward, ever forward!

『───You!』

『Dragon Breath! Layered with 【Dragon's Breath】!!』

Having been spotted, Akitsu Akane opened her mouth wide in order to conceal her figure once more.
A double-helix grand light cannon, layering the properties of her current form atop the Dragon's Breath Secret Art.

The double-helix of black and gold scored a direct hit on Siegwurm's lower jaw; despite having perceived her, he was caught completely off guard, and his head was forcefully thrown backward as if he had just taken a massive uppercut.

『Guh, insolent, you.........!!?』

"...Mhm, good angle."

『Gugoaaaaaa?!?!』

Adding insult to injury, what assaulted Siegwurm's left eye was not the stinger of a bee, but the talons of Suzaku... the incinerating blade designed to sever magic.
He had visually confirmed her, but because the barrier's deployment required his conscious activation, the flaming wings slipped through the momentary gap between his realization and his reaction.

Shing, with her wings blasting flames at maximum output, the heel of Lustrous Feather [Suzaku]—which had been diving from the heavens to the earth in a flying kick pose—drove its heel-like deployed blade deeply into him, slicing right through his flesh on its way past.

The Dragon King screamed in agony as an unprecedented amount of damage effects sprayed from his left eye.
Though the flaming bird had successfully severed the dragon's eye, the price for that strike was meant to be paid by crashing into the earth... or so it should have been.

◇◇ 

"Aah... Rust is really good at those ultra-low altitude recoveries, huh."

"...Amazing, even the sensation of getting flattened is super realistic. Is Nephilim Hollow 2 seriously going to be at this level too?"

"Well, it's still in the project announcement phase, so I really can't say much..."

Lightly brushing off Rust, who had become a bit weirdly talkative, Mold gazed at Suzaku, whose operational lights were beginning to fade.

"...Ugh, Suzakuuu~ Good work out there~"

『Good work. I will be... waiting... for the time we can fly together again.........』

"...She's way too cute, this is bad, this is super bad."

"Does it go all the way up to super-duper bad?"

At this rate, she was going to start rubbing her cheeks against it right in the middle of the battlefield. Mold somehow managed to persuade the completely mesmerized Rust to step back from the absolute frontlines.

◇ 

Siegwurm's left eye had been crushed; the one who did it was Suzaku... or rather, Rust.
But Akitsu Akane didn't bring that fact to the forefront of her thoughts. Her actions remained laser-focused solely on Siegwurm.

She had managed to circle around to Siegwurm's back for the time being, which was great, but the Reverse Scale was located at his throat... meaning she absolutely had to get around to his front no matter what.

『............』

Pushed to the absolute limits of her concentration, Akitsu Akane grew surprisingly silent. Much like how one doesn't chat while sprinting track in real life, Akitsu Akane's body was naturally wired to act that way.

『.........!!』

She dashed off once more. Sprinting clockwise in a wide arc, she closed in on the Reverse Scale by staying within the blind spot of Siegwurm's crushed left eye.

『Guaa!!』

『Ugh,』

However, before her thrusting shortsword could even reach the Reverse Scale, a shockwave unleashed from Siegwurm's entire body slammed into Akitsu Akane, blowing her away.
At the same time, Siegwurm used his remaining right eye to recognize the blown-away Akitsu Akane.

『A dragon! And a human! Fighting together to strike me down?! Very well! If that is the path humanity has chosen!!』

『I'll personally hand you your final rites, Siegwurm!!』

Taking the place of the silent Akitsu Akane, Noirlind borrowed her mouth to roar back.
It was only then that the players—who had been entirely distracted by "something" that Akitsu Akane hadn't even registered—finally returned their gaze to Siegwurm.

"Gah, we got way too distracted... Everyone, snap out of it! We're almost out of time!!"

"Akitsu Akane-chan! Switch!!"

As if swapping places with the blown-away Akitsu Akane, PT Overwerke vaulted to the front. The man gazed at his own sword with a hint of regret for a mere fraction of a second... before fixing his eyes solely on Siegwurm the next instant and shouting the spell.

"Offering my other half, I enact the ritual of destructive contract!!"

A fatal crack ran along the Ritus that he had painstakingly crafted piece by piece throughout his grueling private life—but this was the conclusion the user himself had chosen.
Sacrificing absolutely everything to achieve a single strike of overwhelming firepower───

『Kuuuuu.........! 【Last Geass】!!』

The Ritus shattered completely, and from the fading hilt, a pitch-black blade of pure magical power drove into Siegwurm like a pile bunker.

"Push it innnn!!!"

Using that massive burst of firepower—bought at the cost of a beloved sword—as a signal, the players unleashed a concentrated barrage upon Siegwurm.

『Gu, ga, guooooaaaaaaa!!!』

『Hey, you over there, the one named Sickle or whatever!』

"By any chance, are you referring to this humble one?!"

『Start from this guy! Make a path!!!』

Those who accurately heard his words tilted their heads, thinking, "Bamboo...?", but the intended recipients understood perfectly.

"Acknowledged! Nuuuu! A grand feast for everyone...... 【Bamboo Lightning (Take-no-Mikazuchi)】!!"

The earth surged upwards, drawing a circle with Siegwurm at the center. Bursting through the ground that had been trampled over and over by both humans and dragons alike, lush green bamboo shot up like a towering wall.

It surrounded the Dragon King as if to isolate him from the vanguard, yet simultaneously functioned as a conical path with its spear-like tips pointed directly at Siegwurm.

『!!』

Another sprint; she raced up the bamboo slope, aiming for the Reverse Scale...

『Naive!』

『Aguh!?』