A fundamental rule of wielding Orga Luxes is that each person can only use one at a time!
Every Orga Lux possesses its own consciousness. They are extremely sensitive and hostile toward external powers, refusing to allow their wielders to possess any other Orga Lux besides themselves. This is precisely why witches and magicians are disliked by Orga Luxes—their abilities can be sensed by them.
Even if one were exceptionally fortunate to gain recognition from two Orga Luxes, they should still only be able to wield one at any given moment. While one is active, the other must remain dormant. To use the second, the first must first be deactivated.
Yet this man had activated the Sword of the Guardian Goddess while simultaneously activating the Goblin Hunter—and even managed to use it successfully!
"Rare, you say?"
Roy gripped the Sword of the Black Furnace, his eyes unblinkingly locked onto the blond man opposite him, as he sought confirmation from Sylvia.
"Not rare—it's never happened before!"
Sylvia's voice grew gravely serious, the scene before her striking her as utterly absurd.
"Being recognized by multiple Orga Luxes isn't impossible. There have even been cases where witches or magicians gained their acknowledgment. But wielding two Orga Luxes simultaneously? Since the Invertia, such a thing has never occurred!"
The impossibility of wielding two Orga Luxes at once was common knowledge—no, it was practically an indisputable fact.
Yet this blond man had shattered that very notion.
I see.
So this blond man was an anomaly who had broken a century-old rule.
Roy finally grasped the weight of the situation.
No wonder Fan Xinglou had warned that Roy might die if he wasn't careful.
Roy's vigilance rose another level.
"An assassin like you shouldn't be nameless... I've heard rumors. They say Rewolf Black Institute has three students with overwhelming strength—the Three Strongest."
Sylvia's voice was laden with speculation.
"One of them is Ereshkigal, Orphelia Landlufen—ranked first, two-time Gryps champion, the uncrowned ruler of all Asterisk. The second is the strongest troublemaker in the Entertainment District, the ruffian Kurabushi Hyougo."
"The third is the strongest operative of the Cat intelligence agency. No one knows his real name—some even doubt his existence. But those who do know of him call him the king of Asterisk's underworld, its greatest spy. His alias is 'Faceless'—could that be you?"
"Ehh—? Do you have to spell it all out like that?"
The blond man dragged out his words, his face twisting in annoyance.
"If I'm called 'Faceless,' I'd prefer you didn't go announcing my alias."
Wow.
Roy let out a silent gasp in his mind.
From his tone, he was practically admitting to being one of Rewolf's Three Strongest—Faceless. He must have aged out of Óðrerir's rankings. Moreover, as an intelligence operative whose identity couldn't be exposed, he wasn't even listed in the school's official records—a man who truly left no trace.
But on the other hand, if he's one of the top three, doesn't that mean he's someone comparable to Ereshkigal?
Quite the compliment from the student council president of Rewolf, that guy named Dirk!
"Attempting an assassination with the Songstress present really isn't the wisest move."
The blond man, Faceless, sighed as he deactivated the Goblin Hunter and returned it to its holster.
The Goblin Hunter's ability was to temporarily paralyze an enemy's sense of balance upon hit, but its drawback was that it required physical bullets that needed manual reloading when depleted. With no time for that now, he had no choice but to abandon it for the moment.
As Faceless reached for the third holster, Roy didn't hesitate to charge forward with his sword.
Faceless paid him no mind, the Sword of the Guardian Goddess in his left hand humming once more.
Roy's strike suddenly felt like it was sinking into quicksand, as if he was pushing himself backward.
But in that instant, Roy reacted swiftly—his right arm's strength instantly zeroed out before he actively swung his blade in the opposite direction!
The Sword of the Guardian Goddess's ability was to reverse the direction of force, not freely alter it.
Thus, if Roy applied force away from Faceless the moment he entered its defensive range, the Sword of the Guardian Goddess would instead pull his blade toward Faceless!
"Quick reflexes. But did you really think mine would be slow?"
Faceless praised him, though his tone remained flat, his expression seeming to ask, "Are you underestimating me?"
Immediately after, Roy felt the opposing force on his blade vanish entirely—his sword swung harmlessly in the opposite direction, not even grazing Faceless.
Roy's slashes were fast, but stopping and reversing his swing created a gap—one far longer than the time it took to strike.
Faceless couldn't match Roy's speed, but his reflexes were sharp enough to exploit that gap, deactivating the Sword of the Guardian Goddess's ability in an instant.
The activation and deactivation of an Orga Lux's ability relied on thought—completed in a flash.
At the same time—
Faceless drew a third weapon from the holster, which unfolded into a hammer-type Orga Lux with a small, cane-like head.
"This one's called the Sandstorm Hammer—also an Orga Lux!"
Faceless chuckled lightly. Since Sylvia would recognize it anyway, he might as well introduce it himself. Then he crouched and slammed the hammer into the ground.
In an instant, the impact shattered the concrete beneath him, the fragments transforming into grains of sand that coiled around Roy's limbs like serpents.
Roy immediately retreated beyond the Sword of the Guardian Goddess's range, severing the sand snakes with two swift slashes.
"A third one?!"
Sylvia's voice rang out, even more stunned.
"Not the third."
Faceless grinned, raising the claw-type weapon he'd been wearing since the start.
Then, as if sensing something, Roy suddenly dodged aside, leaping to a new position.
Faceless's triumphant smile froze. His eyes widened in surprise as he stared at Roy.
"Don't tell me... you can detect the movements of 'Arachne's Thread'?"
"Those threads spread all around, they're extending from the grappling hooks you're carrying, aren't they?"
Roy's expression remained completely unchanged. He didn't even glance at his surroundings, as if he already had perfect understanding of the threads.
"Didn't I ask you from the very beginning—haven't you finished setting up your formation yet?"
"You noticed the threads even back then?"
Faceless twitched the corner of his mouth as if finding it hard to accept, forcing an awkward smile that said "you must be joking."
"The threads of Arachne Silk are invisible to the naked eye..."
"One doesn't necessarily need to see to 'see' them."
Roy gave a light snort, his face breaking into an eerie smile.
"Moreover, I was previously distracted by your threads and didn't notice. But now that we're face to face... heh... have you noticed the threads on yourself?"
"Don't be ridiculous. I know these pure stars inside out—how could I possibly get threads stuck on myself?"
Faceless curled his lip in displeasure.
"Are you looking down on me or something?"
The threads of Arachne Silk were not only invisible to the eye but also extremely adhesive—once stuck, there was no escape. They were perfect for setting traps. Unfortunately, this guy had somehow managed to avoid them. Guess the Festa champion really had some skills after all.
"No, of course I'm not looking down on you. I'm just concerned about you."
Roy smiled and pointed to his own head, looking at Faceless with pity in his eyes.
"It seems you really haven't noticed. There's a thread stuck in your ear—it's probably already reached your brain. You're nothing but a puppet in someone's palm now."