Ursula Belzebute (5)

"Well now — right from the opening, we've been treated to a fierce exchange between Ursula-senshu and Naoto-senshu.

"She landed a clean strike each on Naoto-senshu, who's renowned for his defense.

"And Saria's follow-up attack she evaded without breaking a sweat — she really showed off that famous defensive skill."

"Yes. To an outside eye it probably looked easy, but Ursula's attacks were truly splendid.

"That perfect feint…

"Even to me, Naoto's evasion timing looked flawless.

"For Ursula to surpass even that is genuinely amazing. Wonderful.

"Of course, Naoto's technique — which would dodge anything short of an attack that perfect — is also wonderful."

Anneroese-san and Silvana-san were heaping on the praise.

"This match… neither side is going to let it drag on.

"The leads are the two attackers, Ursula and Adelia, and the two defenders, Libera and Kanan.

"Of course Saria and Luna, the two sub-attackers, have important roles too. It's a fight you can't take your eyes off of, even for an instant."

Silvana-san summed it up neatly.

"… Fuu…"

I quietly exhaled, settling my mind.

I couldn't relax for a second. I focused every nerve on Kanan's and the clone's movements.

"Divine Art - Balmung!"

"Dragon Art - Naga, complete-defense activated."

Luna and Saria felt a little sidelined, sorry to say.

Of course that wasn't really the case at all.

If Libera defended Saria, Ursula would be felled that turn. Saria had to be left alone.

On our side, similarly, Luna had to be left alone.

The two of them just had to fight it out — whoever won would have a one-sided advantage. That was the only way to look at it.

In the sense that the winner gained the advantage, it wasn't an exaggeration to say Luna vs. Saria decided everything.

… Or rather: if Luna lost, it was over; but even if Luna won, that didn't guarantee our victory. That kind of decisive battle.

Saria, surely, we could take down next turn.

Since we knew Libera would shield Ursula, there was the option of taking Libera down first… but…

No, I feared the disruption that messing with extras would cause to my concentration.

I'd target nothing but Ursula. Deliberately, I'd go head-to-head.

"… Here I come. Demon Art - Demon-Blood Awakening."

Ursula walked calmly forward… Ah, this beautiful, charming, beloved Ursula…

Right now, she was utterly terrifying.

The Ursula before me was, without a doubt, a Demon Lord scattering death.

… Here it came.

"Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

Ursula's target was Adelia.

"Kanan!"

Ursula too understood: as long as she felled Adelia, Luna alone couldn't break through Libera's defense.

For our side, if Adelia fell, it was over. Defend her, no matter what!

Kanan instantly teleported the clone to Adelia's side.

Teleport over, scoop her up, teleport again.

A movement we'd drilled over and over. By now, it was as natural as breathing.

But…

"Haaa!"

Ursula's aim shifted instantly to Kanan's clone… or perhaps, from the very beginning, she'd been aiming at the clone flying in to protect Adelia.

That shift threw off my timing — I'd matched the teleport to an Adelia-aimed strike.

Dogo!

The clone was shattered in a single hit.

"Phantom Mist Clone!"

I immediately deployed a new clone!

"Dragonic Aura, Dragon Art - Ultimate Breath!"

While Saria was building up her dragon-flame,

"Demon Art - Lævateinn, re-attack!"

Ursula targeted her second strike!

Which would it be? The clone, or Adelia? There was also the possibility she'd suddenly target Kanan herself.

If so, that played right into my hand.

Dodging with Kanan alone, this time I wouldn't fail.

I squinted at the last-possible-second timing.

"Kanan!"

The clone scooped Adelia up and teleported, dodging the Ultimate Breath — dodge, dodge, dodge, dodge!

"There!"

But, reading the timing perfectly, Lævateinn was unleashed aimed at Adelia.

After teleport after teleport, like endless lateral sprints, the clone's posture had inevitably broken down.

Aimed at that clone, at an undodgeable position, at an undodgeable angle, at an undodgeable speed — Ursula's attack came in.

It looked like the black flames could burn everything to ash with even a brush.

But that perfect attack…

"Teleport!"

I gave the teleport order to Kanan and the clone simultaneously.

In that instant…

Thud.

Only Adelia teleported to Kanan-prime's arms. A splendid success!

That last move was actually a rather high-level technique.

It was a composite skill achieved by the clone and Kanan opening Gates simultaneously.

Kanan's Otherworld Gate skill worked by creating a Gate and passing through it.

Only Kanan or the clone could pass through that Gate.

Adelia could pass through too, but only because if Kanan or the clone went with her, she could come along.

… Now, the clone could open a Gate, but there was nowhere near enough time to actually pass through it with Adelia.

As mentioned before, Adelia alone couldn't slip through.

So Kanan-prime teleported, grabbed Adelia, and together passed through the Gate the clone had created.

Through this solo-coordination play, we'd successfully extracted Adelia.

… Wait, couldn't we just use Kanan's Gate alone? But then Kanan would be the one passing through, which meant entering the attack's effective range.

The Gate was one-way; you couldn't just stick a hand through and pull it back. You had to pass all the way through.

By combining Kanan's and the clone's two Gates, Kanan could, the instant she teleported, grab Adelia, pass through the Gate the clone made, and teleport back to her original position.

This was high-level usage I prided myself on — one I'd never have reached without drilling 60 teleports a day.

Pan!

… The clone was crushed once again.

"Whaaat…!?"

No, no, this part was the amazing one!

The thing was, guaranteed-hit attacks had the property that, when the target disappeared, they were nullified.

So a guaranteed-hit attack that would otherwise chase you down endlessly no matter where you fled was, through teleport, defended against.

… But just now, Ursula had absolutely been guaranteed-targeting Adelia.

With Adelia gone, the Lævateinn should absolutely have ended in misfire.

… And yet, in the instant before Lævateinn would be nullified, Ursula stepped in further and forced the attack into the clone instead.

It looked plain at a glance, but it was a super-super-high-level out-of-skill skill that required ridiculous concentration and timing-reading.

I still couldn't pull it off myself. It was the kind of high-difficulty technique on par with Colette's once-in-100 guaranteed-hit block.

Strong…! If I couldn't make any number of clones, I'd already have lost.

"Ohh… that just now was amazing!"

"Yes… An exchange of unbelievable divine plays.

"So… the clone wasn't going to make it through the Gate in time.

"So the clone opened a Gate and pushed Adelia through, and Kanan-prime also opened a Gate, went to retrieve Adelia, and slipped through together.

"That she can pull off that kind of stunt — amazing."

Silvana mimicked my movement with two upturned palms standing in for the Gates.

… That was exactly it. She'd watched that split-second teleport sequence carefully.

"Of course, the Ursula who pushed even that defense-specialist Naoto this far is also amazing.

"Especially that out-of-skill skill just now! After a guaranteed-hit was evaded, she stepped in and forced contact!

"A super-high-level out-of-skill skill: re-purposing a misfired attack by slamming its built-up magical energy into the target just before it disperses.

"If she pulled that off on purpose, it's beyond incredible. Even by accident, it's incredible!

"Aah, an exchange at this level really makes my blood race. Wonderful."

To perfectly commentate that exchange just now — Silvana was the truly amazing one!

"You two are welcome to fuck my daughter already!"

… No, if she'd just refrain from saying stupid things like that, she'd be genuinely amazing!

Aah, but I couldn't go slack now.

… Two clones taken down in one turn, lost just like that, was truly dire.

… This meant on the next turn, I'd have to dodge Ursula's two consecutive Lævateinn strikes using Kanan-prime herself.

"… Luna, take Saria down.

"I can't have Saria pile on with attacks any more. Treat this one strike as the make-or-break."

"… Yes. Leave it to me."

Luna answered with confidence.

Good — with Saria left to Luna, I could concentrate fully on Ursula.

… Libera was now fully in Ursula-guarding mode. She was resolved not to let Ursula take so much as a scratch.

Another problem: I hadn't been able to put Realm's Blessing on Adelia at all. Too busy.

… At this rate, attack power was lacking.

Turn 2: 450. Turn 3: 675. Turn 4: 1,012. We'd have to attack on turn 5.

We were on turn 3 now?

… Unbelievable. Each single turn left me as drained as a whole match against a strong opponent.

Even concentrating this hard, she was still surpassing me…

Ursula, truly amazing.

But…

I gave a small chuckle.

That was exactly why… I wanted her!

This was the fight to claim Ursula Belzebute herself, wasn't it? This level of difficulty was just right!

"All right, here we go, Kanan!"

"Yes!"

Kanan was already holding Adelia in her arms. From here on, I just had to get the teleport timing right.

… So far Ursula had combined high-level feints to land her attacks.

A decisive opportunity where Kanan had no time to deploy a clone.

In times like this…

The Ursula I knew would go in for a quick kill. Of course, there was also a strong possibility she'd read me and do the opposite.

But seeing me composed, she'd likely judge that feints would be harder to land.

… I was concentrating very well.

My prediction: Ursula's fastest attack. I figured roughly 1.3x the speed I'd seen three months ago, and…

"Demon Art - Demon-Blood Awakening, Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

"Kanan!"

Shuba!

… The teleport succeeded splendidly!

Ursula's attack flew in at exactly the speed I'd calculated.

"… Mm!"

Ursula held her fist-extended posture.

… Finally, I'd misfired an attack.

It had been a complete gamble, but for now, I'd won.

"… To have read it on first sight, despite my saving up the fastest attack until now?

"… Truly… thou art amazing."

Ursula gave a wry smile.

But the turn wasn't over. Ursula's re-attack was still coming.

"Kanan!"

"Phantom Mist Clone!"

"Realm's Blessing!"

Finally, the clone could put Realm's Blessing on Adelia.

And with the clone guarding Adelia, we'd have a bit more breathing room. In a pinch, the clone could take a hit as a stand-in.

But that level of resolve wouldn't dodge Ursula's attacks.

If we dodged here, the next turn was even more in our favor…!

"Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

The fastest attack once again!

My reaction was a hair late, but just barely, I got Adelia clear.

… I'd had to use the Kanan-composite play again.

That left Kanan-prime with 4 teleports remaining.

"Haa, haa, haa…"

The clone had been taken down again…

She really nailed it.

Ursula had completely mastered the misfire-attack re-use after a guaranteed-hit evasion.

… Amazing.

Meanwhile, Luna and Saria were in their final showdown.

"Divine Art - Balmung!"

Zan!

"Dragon Art - Ultimate Breath!"

Don don don dooon!

Luna and Saria were trading their final blows. Had Saria survived with one more Endure?

She unleashed a counter Ultimate Breath, 4-hit combo.

"Aaaaaa! Balmung!"

But then, Luna's Speed re-action Balmung pierced Saria through.

"… Gh… ah… Ursula-chan… Naoto-chan… You two, do your best…"

Thud.

Saria collapsed quietly.

All 4 of Saria's Ultimate Breath strikes had connected on Luna.

Dragon attribute was 2x effective vs God attribute. Plus Dragon Art Naga's 2x attack. Even with 2x defense, Luna couldn't withstand it.

Luna sank to her knees and toppled forward.

"And — inside the arena, Luna and Saria's clash ends in a spectacular double knockout!"

"Unusual, but it happens occasionally. After Saria's Breath activated, Luna's sword landed first and finished Saria.

"Then Saria's Breath continued on to hit Luna and finish her.

"Before that, Luna's intercept slipped in between Saria's 4-hit combo — truly splendid.

"Wonderful."

Silvana commentated, and Luna's hard work came through to me.

In the middle of that consecutive attack, she'd slipped in a re-attack. Truly splendid. Wonderful.

Luna had done well.

"… Thank you, Luna."

"… Do your best. Naoto-kun… Kanan-san…"

With Saria there, evasion was that much harder. Luna had fulfilled her role precisely.

Luna smiled and collapsed.

Saria, too, had taken out the God-element Luna whom Ursula struggled against — she'd fulfilled her role.

Both Luna and Saria had each done their parts properly, but…

No matter what, the leads of this fight were Kanan and Ursula.

Turn 4. Here Adelia could still only stack buffs.

Turn 5. This turn, finally, we could attack.

But if she used Demon-Blood Awakening, she'd steal preemptive, so in the end we'd have to take two more turns of attacks.

Dodge all 10 of Demon-Blood Awakening's strikes.

From the start, that was the only path.

"Fuu…"

I exhaled quietly. Kanan's teleports remaining: 4. Plenty.

The clone could be deployed 2 more times.

… I'd use them up this turn and next.

The second strike, where the clone could be deployed, was fine.

… But the problem was the first strike. So far I hadn't been able to read Ursula's newly-acquired feints.

She'd approach casually, then strike with a feint mixed in.

If I teleported carelessly, the destination would be attacked.

So… I'd thought of a method.

Two consecutive teleports.

This, I could pull off.

Get fooled by the feint and teleport.

Teleport again immediately at the destination.

Done at perfect timing, even fooled by a feint, I'd evade.

A backwards-feeling approach, but…

Aah, well, this was the only way.

Through it, I'd buy more chances to observe Ursula's feints, and next time I'd see through them and dodge!

"Demon Art - Demon-Blood Awakening, Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

It came.

… The attack was absolutely coming. If I didn't teleport, I'd be hit. At the moment I was certain of that…

"Kanan."

Teleport.

Gyun!

But, as expected, it was a feint. Ursula, reacting instantly, leapt to the teleport destination.

"Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

Reacting at this timing was pure spinal-reflex level.

It wouldn't have been possible without pre-instructing the double consecutive teleport.

But if I'd instructed two consecutive jumps from the start, I couldn't have adjusted to Ursula's movements or subtle timing shifts.

I absolutely needed the second jump to be at my instruction.

And… that was the kind of training Kanan and I had built up.

"Kanan!"

Pa!

Teleport…!

Kanan was… perfect. She'd carried it out flawlessly.

Ursula's attack, evaded… no!

"You thought it was just one feint! Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

That just now was also a feint!? Two consecutive feints, and this was the real one!

One more feint and the gathered power would dissipate, the attack misfiring — a magical-art activation at the absolute timing limit, with that risk borne!

Ursula had committed maximum risk to put it away!

"Kanan!"

For an instant the thought "we'll be down to 1 left" flashed through my mind, but I too had no choice but to spinal-reflex order another teleport.

Pa!

Aah, but…

Kanan executed the teleport with utter, matter-of-fact success.

Aah, how deeply did this girl believe in me, trust me from the bottom of her heart, follow my instructions?

I felt like I could cry.

"Kanan! Phantom Mist Clone!"

"Yes!"

Brought out the clone.

"Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

Ursula's immediate re-action. But the clone scooped up Adelia and pulled off a perfectly-timed teleport.

"… Tch. To dodge… this far. Thou art… truly amazing…"

Ursula too… had a sorrowful expression as if she might cry.

"But… not yet. Not over yet.

"I am the child of Esta Belzebute. Born as a Master, raised to be a Master.

"For me to lose to thee, to want to be thine… I could never say such a thing, even were my mouth torn open.

"If thou wantest me, then take everything from me by force! Naoto…!"

At last… the final exchange.

Of course Adelia had been steadily stacking Boost Power.

… By now, she should be able to put out breakthrough damage capable of felling Ursula in one hit.

… A clone that couldn't use teleport was just in the way now, so I dismissed it.

This skill cancellation was possible through an out-of-skill skill.

"… Oh? Teleports remaining, 1, is it? Truly the final exchange."

"… Yeah."

I was very… calm.

This would decide everything. If Ursula landed it, I lost. If I dodged… I won.

Ursula Belzebute herself would be mine.

Normally, holding such ulterior motives and lust would disrupt concentration. But here, I was at peak concentration.

The sounds around me came through crystal-clear… Ah, Ruria was over there.

In a loud voice, together with Meifa, she was cheering me on.

… I felt, just a little, like having fun.

"… Demon Art - Demon-Blood Awakening. Demon Art - Lævateinn!"

Ursula came flying in. Most likely the fastest attack combined with a feint.

If I couldn't read it, I could only call it. But I had confidence in this read.

Precisely because it was the best attack Ursula could succeed with, the odds were high she'd choose it here.

The Ursula I knew would do that!

To dodge the fastest attack, I had only about 0.1 seconds of leeway.

I had to give the teleport order immediately.

Anticipating that moment, an instantaneous feint.

She'd let my teleport misfire, then unleash the real attack the next moment!

So I'd give the teleport order at exactly that moment. An exchange within 0.2 seconds!

"Kanan."

Pan!

Shuba!

… And so.

Ursula's final strike, clad in darkness…

Pierced through empty, undefended space.

"… Splendid."

Ursula quietly exhaled.

"Demon Art - Beast-Blood Awakening, Fire Boost, Demon Art - Flame Severing Claw!"

And then…

Adelia, who up till now had only been protected like a treasure, displayed her strongest power.

Dogoooo!

Striking into the instant of Ursula's openness from realizing she'd lost — the maximum, strongest blow landed.

"Ursula-sama! Holy Shield! … Aah!"

"… Goho."

"Ursula-samaaa!"

Libera, who'd been single-mindedly concentrating everything on protecting Ursula.

Her defense was pierced through, and Ursula's HP plummeted in a flash.

Dogooooooon!

Re-attack!

"… Gh… aaa…"

In just 2 strikes, Adelia had wiped out Ursula's HP.

Eh, two consecutive critical hits? Against the defensively-skilled Ursula?

… Adelia had simply been held and tossed around like luggage, over and over…

How much concentration had she been forging?

To this single point.

Aimed at just one point, she'd forged concentration upon concentration, and then… unleashed it all explosively.

Ursula, having exhausted her attacks and realized her defeat, couldn't withstand that blow.

"Nyaaaaa!"

Dogoooon!

Speed re-action activated. Adelia delivered the finishing blow to Ursula, whose equipment-effect Endure had triggered.

Then she struck Libera for good measure. One blow that wiped out her HP.

Libera Endured, but…

"… I surrender."

Libera had lost all remaining will to fight.

Or perhaps she'd been ordered from the start, "If I fall, surrender."

"Decision! It's decided! Akai Naoto-senshu wins! Defeating S-Class No. 24 Ursula Belzebute, he secures his promotion to S-Class!"

"My, that was incredible. A bout full of substance, a wonderful match! Applause for both contestants!"

Clap clap clap…!

Silvana stood and applauded.

Immediately, everyone in the venue gave me their applause.

Aah… aaah…

I won. I won… I really won!

"Yaaattaaaa!"

"Naoto!"

"Goshujin-samaa～!"

Kanan and Adelia clung to me.

I thrust both hands to the sky, my whole body trembling with emotion in the joy of victory.

Aaah… at last, at last, I'd beaten Ursula Belzebute!

S-Class, and… I'd claimed Ursula!

Yes, yes, yes…!

I scooped up Kanan and Adelia and spun around.

I was wrapped in a joy so vast it felt like I'd taken hold of the world.