Chương 40: Chapter 11 The Day the World Learned the Truth(Part 1)

At the signal, Miyafuji and I unleashed streams of fire from our hands. The flames streaked across the battlefield like hunting hounds, slamming into the monsters ahead. As explosions bloomed among them, Tachibana and the others charged forward. Within the sea of fire, particles of light rose into the air. One came from a Three-Eye. The other from one of the Brutes. When the flames finally cleared, a crystal clattered onto the stone floor. One down.

The three scarf-wearers moved to engage the remaining Three-Eyes, while Tachibana intercepted one of the Brutes. That left the last one for me.

"Camera girl! Cover Tachibana's team!" My body felt light. Low to the ground, fast, agile—almost wolf-like. Think. How do I kill this thing? I fired another flame bullet while closing the distance and swung my rod downward. If nothing had changed, it would have connected. Instead, the Brute twisted its body sideways, presenting its left shoulder toward me. The strike never reached. The lens embedded in its shoulder, which had been blinking moments ago, now glowed brightly.

"The lens on its left shoulder acts as a shield!" I shouted the warning toward Tachibana. Now then. Do I retreat? Keep hammering at it until the shield breaks? The decision took only an instant. The monster wasn't going to wait. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Still maintaining its angled stance, it raised its right arm like someone drawing a bow. A beam of light erupted from the barrel-like limb.

I spun to the side, dodging the shot, then aimed a sweeping strike at its back. My rod slammed into invisible resistance. Damn. The barrier covered more area than I'd expected. Judging by the impact, it was shaped like a half-cylinder. About as tall as the monster itself. If I could get around its left side, I might be able to reach its body. As if sensing my intentions, the tentacles hanging from its head lashed toward me. I batted them away with my rod and jumped backward.

The Brute bent its knees slightly and glided backward almost five meters in a single leap. Another beam followed. Long intervals between shots. No rapid fire. Either it couldn't—or wasn't designed to. At range, it used beams. Up close, it relied on barriers and tentacles. And its mobility wasn't bad either. The entire exchange had lasted less than a minute. The Brute crouched behind its shield, aiming carefully at me like a living artillery platform. I glanced sideways.

Tachibana had transformed her metal sphere into a whip and was hammering her opponent. The three scarf-wearers were each locked in combat with their own Three-Eyes. As for Miyafuji—"Tachibana! Get back!" The Brute in front of Tachibana vanished inside a pillar of fire. Tachibana immediately retreated, narrowly avoiding being caught in the blast.... Right. Of course. Magic didn't have to be fired from your hands. What a ridiculous assumption. We'd entered an impossible world and gained impossible powers.

Yet we'd still been using them in the most ordinary ways imaginable. In games, anime, and movies, magic came from staffs or palms. But there was no rule saying it had to.

"Now then... dance." The ground behind the Brute exploded. The monster stumbled forward two steps.

"Dance more." Another explosion. Two more unwilling steps.

"Bow your head... and rejoice." A final blast erupted overhead. Invisible force pressed down. The Brute collapsed to its knees directly before me. I smiled. This was fun. Ridiculously fun. How stupid I'd been, trembling in fear before. This was exhilarating. Far too exhilarating. And yet it was already ending.

"I'll take you for myself." The Brute obediently offered its head. My rod came down. Its neck snapped. Its head flew free. Wonderful. This was pure entertainment. The joy of crushing something weaker. The pleasure of reducing a helpless opponent to nothing. The sort of thing no human should ever do to another human being. But here? Here it was allowed. Wasn't it?

"Tachibana, can I have that one too?" I pointed at the Brute she was fighting.

"Right now, I'm having so much fun." Maybe I'd tear off its limbs one by one. Maybe rip out its head. Maybe skewer it alive. There were so many possibilities. How could I choose?

"Sorry, but this one's mine." Tachibana's spear pierced through the monster.

"Go take a smoke break or help the others."

"What a shame." I sighed dramatically.

"Looks like the fun's already over." I lit a cigarette. The excitement faded. The Witch. That had to be it. The strange thoughts. The overwhelming euphoria. The loss of restraint. It had started when I'd activated the skill through self-hypnosis, but now I was certain. This was the Witch's influence. Whether that was good or bad, I still couldn't say. One thing was undeniable. When I became her— I enjoyed it. Far more than I probably should have.