Chapter 152: Frey's Rampage
"ROAR—"
"BUZZ—"
Cyan and purple mana were injected into Gabriel and Rabi respectively. Under the blessing of their respective masters, the two automatons, produced by the same workshop but with completely different abilities, rushed towards the enemy standing in the distance.
Rabi ran back and forth around Kobayashi at an extremely high speed. At the same time, its howls were continuous. The shockwaves produced by the [Sonic Operation] tore up the turf and dug up the dirt, flying towards the center of the field with a terrifying momentum.
And Kobayashi still stood his ground calmly.
But RyuZU reacted, stepping forward to protect her master.
She swung the scythes from under her skirt, scattering the mysterious cannonballs. In that instant, Charlotte, who was in the stands, felt a wave of mana fluctuate from Kobayashi's body. Even she had only felt it slightly; most of the students probably didn't even notice that he had used magic.
"—[Barrier]."
Kobayashi explained voluntarily.
[Barrier] was just an ordinary defensive magic spell... or it should have been. But if it was attached to a rapidly swinging scythe, the effect was completely different.
This was another clever use he had developed.
"You're in the way," Loki grunted, frowning. "If you can't help, then get lost!"
He operated from a distance, and Gabriel, connected by his mana, was rotating rapidly. It came from the sky to a position behind Rabi, using Rabi's burly body to block Kobayashi's line of sight and hide its own figure. Then, the moment Rabi leaped up, it accelerated, bringing a fierce gale as it spun and charged towards him.
"Nice coordination," he praised.
Letting Rabi harass on the ground, while the flying Gabriel looked for an opportunity from the sky. The two cooperated with each other.
Frey was definitely incapable of effective cooperation with others. It was clear at a glance that Loki was the one providing integrated support from behind.
As expected of the man who would eventually ascend to the throne of the Wiseman. His potential was perfectly demonstrated in this moment.
But—
"It's useless. Now that I've dismantled your floating daggers, you can't harass me from multiple angles. A single spinning greatsword is no way to harm me when I don't have to waste energy guarding against sneak attacks."
Kobayashi once again held out his hand.
The transparent film still enveloped him, holding open a small, safe space. In this way, the spinning greatsword would surely be sent flying by a burst of mana after a stalemate, just like before.
"Hmph."
Loki let out a cold laugh, the corners of his mouth curling into a dangerous arc.
Alarm bells went off in Kobayashi's head. The sigil Charlotte had given him once again came into play at this moment. Instinctively feeling that something was wrong, he leaned back, doing a backbend bridge to narrowly dodge a silent and colorless "cannonball"!
"Sonic Operation?"
He had thought that the magic of sonic operation was all about loud shockwaves, so he hadn't been on guard. But now, it could actually fire a silent cannonball? And it could even break his defensive magic by vibrating the air?
Frey shouldn't know this move... I see. Is it Yomi?
That old-timer who had lived for a long time must know a lot. It wasn't a big deal for him to teach Frey a trick or two.
Honestly, for the "family" he had saved to cause him trouble... was this what they called lifting a rock only to drop it on one's own foot?
At this moment, the controlled Gabriel had already changed its path and was now above him.
"Got you!"
Loki also couldn't quite hide his excitement. With a wave of his right hand, the spinning greatsword fell straight down. Due to the double acceleration of gravity and magic, its speed was much faster than before!
Furthermore, Rabi was still roaring in the distance, a terrifying shockwave heading straight for him!
A pincer attack, with no escape!
The shockwave and the greatsword landed on his position at the same time.
—BOOM!
Along with the piercing sound of an explosion, a large amount of dust was kicked up, obscuring the battlefield and the vision of all the students.
"Kobayashi!" x2
Frey, on the stage, and Charlotte, below it, cried out in concern at the same time.
"Why did you do that, Rabi!"
Frey, for the first time, loudly blamed her own dog-type automaton. She hadn't given the command to attack just now.
Rabi, who couldn't speak like Yomi, let out an aggrieved whimper, as if to explain that the attack just now was not under its control, nor was it its own intention.
It seemed someone had been controlling it from behind just now.
And in the distance, Loki scolded, "Hey! Why was your attack just now slow? What were you thinking, holding back in a battle!"
"But..."
"No buts! On the battlefield, we are enemies! You can't hold back against an enemy! What's more...!"
Loki wanted to say more. But when he saw Kobayashi and RyuZU slowly walk out of the smoke, he was speechless.
Following the "smoke but no harm" law, the coordinated attack just now had not caused him any damage.
"What a man to make one worry."
"It seems you care about him a lot, Charlotte."
"Wh-what are you talking about!"
Charlotte let out a relaxed breath. The little dragon on her head, Sigmund, teased her, which made the tsundere girl excitedly retort in a low voice.
Under Loki's hostile and angry gaze, the unharmed man said with a smile, "Hahaha, and you're telling others not to hold back? Weren't you also slowing down just now, Loki?"
"...Hmph, don't be ridiculous. I didn't slow down at all. It was you who got faster."
Loki, with his excellent knowledge, successfully refuted his teasing.
Indeed. At that time, he had no way to successfully avoid the pincer attack. But that didn't mean RyuZU couldn't. Using her [Imaginary Switch], she had saved him at the last moment.
Loki narrowed his eyes. His wariness of him grew even stronger.
He's still hiding his strength at this point? What a dangerous man!
Not just his combat power, but also his intention in getting close to his sister... in his eyes, it was all with ill intent.
"Mmm. Since it's turn-based, then it should be my turn to attack...!"
One moment he was speaking leisurely, the next, his figure was already beside the angel-type automaton. He kicked it in the chest, pressing it to the ground.
Mana eruption!
The tyrannical mana rampaged through Gabriel's body, causing the automaton, which should have felt no pain, to twist unconsciously, and the synthesized steel plates on its body also made a violent noise.
"Gabriel!"
Loki rushed forward excitedly.
Originally, as long as he used his mana to connect with the automaton, he could have easily escaped from under his foot by spinning. But now, he had also lost his cool a bit.
Kobayashi raised an eyebrow.
He still had no intention of destroying Gabriel and taking his gloves. After all, he was a strong contender for the throne of the Wiseman. It would be too much of a waste for him to be out at this stage.
And his goal was to lure out their father.
It wasn't impossible to defeat the siblings and take both their Night Party qualifications, but it wouldn't be good if their father Bronson, in a fit of rage, stopped the siblings' hearts. After all, he didn't know if he could resurrect a human whose heart had been embedded with a Magic Circuit.
But for them to have been so ruthless to him, he had to punish them harshly, even if he was his little brother-in-law... pah, even if he was Frey's brother, it was no good!
The mana turned into a chaotic current that rampaged through the angel-type automaton's body, fighting against Loki's mana.
In the end, the angel-type automaton automatically disintegrated. The two door-panel-like sword bodies began to collapse, and along with the other panels, they all fell off, leaving only a slender main body.
"This should be enough."
He muttered, then kicked Gabriel out of the battlefield. It no longer had the ability to join the fight. And Loki, because he had fought with him for control, was already weak. After losing a large amount of mana, he fainted on the spot. He grabbed his scarf and threw him to the students who were watching to take care of.
He turned his head to look at Frey.
Even without any intimidating or threatening expression or gaze, it still made her tremble with fear. The burly dog-type automaton Rabi stood in front of her, but its constantly retreating feet and trembling limbs showed that it was also very scared.
Am I that scary?
He complained in his heart, at the same time approached her, bent down, and said gently, "Rest assured, I didn't do anything to Loki, and of course I won't do anything to you. Frey, you performed very well tonight. You were very much like an older sister."
"Really... was I... like a... proper older sister...?"
"Ah, really. But it would be even better if you were a little stronger. Don't be discouraged. Keep working hard."
"Mmm..."
Hearing his affirmation, a happy smile bloomed on her face. The first step successfully taken is the key to success, isn't it?
He extended his hand to her, wanting to help the kneeling girl to her feet.
Frey also placed her right hand in his palm.
—Just at this moment, a sudden change occurred!
Her entire body erupted with a mana that was enough to send him flying!
So thick! Even the air looks dark and turbid!
Is this the kind of mana a human can produce?
This thought arose in the hearts of the surrounding spectators, and their legs unconsciously retreated backwards.
He also frowned slightly.
This unnatural amount of mana was even greater than his, and was even close to rivaling the great Archwizard Megumin!
On the other side.
Under the moonlit sky, an elegant middle-aged man stood on a distant city wall. This was the highest and best viewing platform.
When he saw Loki being defeated, he let out a disappointed sigh. But then, he moved his fingers, and seeing a large amount of black mana emerge from Frey's body, his expression instantly became frenzied and excited.
"Come on, come on, Frey! Show me your true form!"
How high can you reach? Let me have a good look!
On the battlefield, very suddenly, Rabi's body underwent a change.
Its shoulders bulged, its claws extended, and the fur on its entire body stood up like a porcupine's. Its body had more than doubled in size. Rather than a wolf-dog, it was more like a tiger. Most importantly, its expression was different. It had changed from dazed and cute to ferocious, and the face with its bared teeth looked like that of a wild beast.
The black mist that was emanating from its body colored it, making it look like the evil dog that guarded the entrance to the underworld—Garm.
"Rabi... Rabi...?"
Frey was releasing a huge amount of mana, but she was clearly wavering. Her appearance was quite strange.
"Don't tell me this isn't Frey's magic?" Charlotte was also puzzled. Her dragon automaton Sigmund, however, spread its wings and stood in front of her.
ROOOOAAAAAR~~~~~~
Rabi barked madly, its roar shaking the atmosphere, releasing a mana so great that it made Kobayashi's skin ache.
"Ngh..."
Frey let out a whimper, her knees went weak, and she fell to the ground. Her big eyes revealed a strange look. She probably didn't know what was going on either. At the same time, her body began to crack, and blood seeped out.
After all, to release such a large amount of mana, the burden on her body must have been considerable.
"Aaaaaaaaaah!!!"
She let out a miserable cry, struggling and in pain. She couldn't even stand up or walk, but could only curl up on the ground. And beside the blood-covered Frey, Rabi's teeth were chattering, threatening him.
Sigmund, who was standing in front with its wings spread, said in a low voice, "This is bad. Frey's mana is being forcibly extracted!"
"Forcibly? Wait, what does that mean?" Charlotte looked at it, anxious and uncomprehending.
"If this goes on, that little girl... will die."
As it explained, Rabi violently launched an offensive against RyuZU.
Suddenly, its ankle was cut by a scythe.
"To dare to bare your fangs at Master Kobayashi means you've already made your resolve to die, right? You guard dog that can only yap madly. Besides being a little bigger, which makes it more convenient for me to slash, you don't seem to have any special features."
After her usual sharp-tongued remark, she asked him, "Can I cut it down, Master Kobayashi?"
"You've already cut it, haven't you?" he sighed. "Of course not in this situation. Rabi is Frey's most important family."
"...What a pity."
RyuZU lowered her head slightly, but the scythes under her skirt showed no courtesy at all.
The moment Rabi stepped into her defensive range, what answered it was an extremely sharp slash, cutting towards it without mercy.
Stab, pierce, flesh and blood flying.
In an instant, countless small wounds appeared on its body. Even if it didn't kill it, under normal circumstances, it would be enough to immobilize it.
However—
The moment it was cut by the daggers, blisters immediately appeared on its body, repairing the wounds.
A terrifying regenerative ability!
But it seemed it was not without a cost. Every time Rabi was injured, blood would overflow from Frey's body, evaporate into a cloud of black smoke, and merge into Rabi's body.
"Her blood is being converted into mana?!" Charlotte cried out from the audience.
Raishin also looked at what was happening on the field with a grave expression.
Actually, someone had given him an order long ago to seize Rabi's Magic Circuit. At the time, he didn't know the reason, but now he finally understood why.
If this technology were to be used on the battlefield... the consequences would be unimaginable!
Living blood is a high-purity magic material, just like gasoline. The current situation seemed to be that it was being forcibly converted into mana through a special machinart or magic program.
But the amount of blood in a human body is limited. If this continued, only death awaited her.
This was the situation Sigmund had spoken of.
But it could be solved with [Drain Touch].
Of course, the target was not Rabi, but her.
Draining Rabi's stamina and mana would only make it more frantically draw blood from her and convert it into mana. In the end, she would be the only one who was hurt.
Then he would change his approach. He would make her lose consciousness.
The one who was rampaging was not Rabi, but her. To be precise, it was the Magic Circuit in her heart that was rampaging. So as long as she lost consciousness, the Magic Circuit at her heart would be unable to operate, and the rampage would naturally stop.
While RyuZU was holding back Rabi, he came to her side.
He held the slumped girl in his arms. Seeing her dazed eyes and blurred focus, as if she had been broken, his heart ached slightly.
"I'm sorry. It must be painful. Wait a moment. I'll calm you down now."
He placed his hand on her full bust. The Lich skill instantly activated, draining her stamina. In just three seconds, the little stamina she had left was completely sucked away.
The weakened girl leaned in his arms and passed out.
Seeing its master being restrained, Rabi still wanted to break free from RyuZU's obstruction, but without a supply of mana, it could not be strengthened. It could only shake its body painfully, dig at the ground with its front paws, and continuously shake its head. Its steps were unsteady, and its tail had also lost its strength.
The giant body that had just swelled up also gradually shrank.
Under the astonished gazes of everyone, it fell to the ground with a thud. Then its shoulders suddenly exploded, and flesh and blood scattered everywhere.
The second night of the Night Party ended with a result that no one had expected.
(End of Chapter)