We were teleported into the forest.
Though it goes without saying now, Shouko’s phantom beasts weren’t summoned to the white void.
Since they’re present when the match begins, I assume they’re being transported separately from us.
However, these phantom beasts carried me, Chiyu, and Shouko on their backs—specifically, atop Black Dragon Micron.
Mashiro looked at Shouko with a puzzled expression.
Until now, it had always been her who rode them.
“We’re going with this strategy for this match, Mashiro. Please handle it.”
Shouko said that and then explained the plan.
After hearing out the explanation, Mashiro nodded in agreement.
While entrusting base defense to Fukaho and Genchu, we rushed toward the enemy base.
Just like in the previous two battles, Mashiro tracked the scent of people, so we didn’t get lost.
And then, it came suddenly.
With a short bark, Mashiro leaped to the side. In the exact space where his head had been a moment before, something passed through at an incredible speed.
“Right.”
“Ayahime, get ready.”
I gave Chiyu a brief instruction.
She chanted 『Might Enhancement』, and my body was enveloped in white light.
What had shot past was——an arrow.
He had possessed a bow even during the negotiation——it must be Hayate’s power.
Since the archer was invisible, it seemed to have been fired from a considerable distance.
It was likely something based on an ability.
That conjecture quickly turned into certainty.
Mashiro barked again, turning his neck to look behind him.
Prompted by that, I glanced back. The arrow I should have dodged moments ago was heading straight toward me.
Moreover, it wasn’t targeting Mashiro. It was aiming at me.
“Yo—!”
Thanks to 『Might Enhancement』, I managed to brush it away from the side.
The arrow snapped in two and fell to the ground, never to move again.
——So it has homing capabilities… Is the release condition destruction? Or does it require contact with the target?
“Arrows and bullets that track enemies no matter how far they flee, abilities like the manifestation of a man’s fantasies.”
Senju murmured from behind me.
“Don’t say it out loud. I do love it, though.”
It was threatening, but with our comrades’ power, it wasn’t impossible to deal with.
The arrows were not just a single shot; they fired in rapid succession.
We pressed forward, sidestepping and destroying the threats as needed.
Then a sudden gust of wind swept through.
—No… that’s not it!
Mashiro turned to look over her shoulder once again.
Not only that, Mashiro made a sharp U-turn and headed back toward our base. “Chiguru!” “Yeah. ‘Muscle Enhancement’.”
Faint light enveloped Mashiro’s body, and he accelerated sharply.
It was super-acceleration, achieved by combining Chiguru’s magic with the phantom beast that Yukiko had summoned.
There were enemies in the direction Mashiro was heading.
The sudden gust earlier had been caused by a member of the opposing team sprinting past.
Mashiro pursuing them was proof of that.
We identified the candidates on the enemy team and shared information about their members.
Besides the archers from the Archery Club, there were also girls from the Track and Field Club.
If you were an Archer, it wasn’t unnatural to choose a skill that enhanced your marksmanship for securing prey or repelling enemies.
Something like ‘Archery Enhancement’ or ‘Hundred Shot Hundred Hit,’ perhaps.
So what about the Track and Field Club members?
It was equally natural for them to select abilities that maximized their proud leg strength.
Whether escaping from enemies, chasing down prey, or traveling along uncharted terrain, it wasn’t easy. Such skills were also useful for alleviating the inconveniences of life on this desert island.
An ability to strengthen one’s legs had been listed as one of the candidates.
And in fact, Mashirosu, who reacted to the scent of someone passing by at high speed, went after them.
Had anyone else appeared with such incredible mobility, I had already decided to have him chase them down just like before.
Leaving the fast enemies for Mashirosu, we pressed on.
Just as in our second battle, we successfully located the enemy base shortly thereafter.
Rather than approaching from ground level, we secured a position above the enemy camp.
Besides the archer aiming at us from a nearby tree, three female students attempted to intercept us.
“Fenrir’s not here…”
The archer muttered with obvious regret.
Mashiro’s absence must have tipped them off, leading the agile members of the enemy side to believe they were being hunted.
I used my Placement ability to rain down countless fist-sized rocks onto the enemy base.
It took only three such impacts for a base to crumble.
“W-wait…”
The one showing visible panic was a girl with two braids dangling in front of her shoulders.
She was on the Library Committee, a group I had also been part of during my first year.
As if mirroring her emotions, shadows writhed into existence, instantly enveloping the enemy base.
The hail of stones was deflected by the shadows, none managing to strike the base directly.
“No way.”
“Manipulating shadows… that’s the superpower So-kuun wanted when he was in fifth grade.”
“Don’t say things like that, you.”
My childhood friend knew everything about me.
But it’s a cool power, so why not?
Honestly, it still ranks among my most desired abilities today.
However, the immediate problem was that my attack had been blocked.
Even as we hesitated, arrows kept flying relentlessly from Maruha’s bow.
“Suusuke! Mikron says he can break through that level of defense himself!”
“Mikron, you’re amazing! Alright then, I’ll draw their attention and create an opening. You’ve got this!”
I dropped several boulders onto the tree where Tsubasa was standing.
“Kyaa…”
I’m sorry about that, but please cut me some slack this time.
In this event, you don’t actually sustain physical injuries. She knew that, which is why she dared to shoot arrows at us. We’re even.
While her balance was disrupted and she fell from the tree, I dropped stone cages onto the remaining three enemies.
The girl from the library committee was briefly trapped, but she lifted herself out using a shadow that had gained physical form.
Of the two remaining, one was a female member of the Kendo club, wielding a wooden sword.
“Si—ch!”
As the girl swung her wooden sword at the approaching stone cage, it was cleanly sliced in two.
—Enhanced Swordsmanship? Or maybe something like ‘Cut Two Things with One Stroke’?
It was a magnificent yet utterly unrealistic scene.
“The swordsman who can split rocks. That’s the one Kuu has loved since he was in kindergarten.”
«The boys all love swords, you know.»
Seeing moves that look like fiction actually happen in real life really is incredibly cool.
Maybe I should have chosen a combat-oriented ability, the kind you see in battle stories.
Nah, but since my 『Craft Ability』is so damn handy, I probably would have picked it again even if I could start over.
The last guy was simply trapped in a stone cage, but the kendo club girl carved through the stone surface and cut him out to escape.
――Since you’re on the main team, you can’t possibly be an ability-less person, right?
While answering my childhood friend’s quips, I was pondering how to win this one.
«I need to verify two things. Chiayu, I’m counting on you for support.»
“Mm. I’ll heal your injuries, and make sure you never run out of [Bone-Marrow Strengthening].”
“Good luck, Sou.”
“I know.”
I jumped down from the Micron and kicked between the surrounding trees to land on the ground, facing off against the three girls standing in front of the base.
Rest assured, there’s no title fraud here.
The girls who appeared this time might also become close with Sousuke, depending on how things develop.
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