✦ ✦ ✦
Next, Tatsuya aimed his left index finger at the base of Minoru’s right arm. Minoru didn’t have time to react; another hole was drilled into his right shoulder. Tatsuya then pulled back.
However, Minoru counterattacked midway. His left hand, which should have been immobilized, suddenly grabbed Tatsuya’s left wrist. A sudden sense of weakness overwhelmed Tatsuya. Minoru was draining something from him. It wasn’t psions, but something akin to life energy. Minoru was using the parasite’s ability to absorb vitality.
Luckily, the process was brief. Immediately after Minoru grabbed his left wrist, Tatsuya reflexively twisted his arm to break free from his opponent’s grip. He then swung his right hand down like a knife, severing Minoru’s left hand below the wrist. Minoru caught his left hand as it fell to the ground, and he jumped backward. Though he didn’t exert much force into the jump, he managed to retreat an entire five meters.
He placed his severed left hand against the stump of his arm and left Tatsuya to marvel at the sight of its seamless reattachment in the blink of an eye. Minoru glanced at Tatsuya with a smirk. But despite his demeanor, there was not a trace of malevolence in Minoru’s face.
“Is this your first time seeing parasite recuperation powers?” Minoru asked.
Tatsuya could think of only one previous example—the parasite who had infiltrated First High as an employee of Maximilian Devices, hiding among Lina’s associates. That parasite, which Lina referred to as Mia, had swiftly healed a wound inflicted by Erica’s blade, even after being pierced through the chest.
Upon closer inspection, not only had Minoru’s severed wrist reattached, but the holes in his right leg, left shoulder, and right shoulder were also healed. He had clearly acquired the same ability as the parasite known as Mia.
“I see,” Minoru said, gleaning the answer he was looking for from Tatsuya’s subtle expressions. “I guess not all parasites are alike.”
“Parasite abilities vary widely in type and level,” Tatsuya said. “You might have overcome your physical weakness by becoming a parasite, but there is no guarantee that Minami will heal in the same way.”
Minoru gasped. Tatsuya took this opportunity to thrust his right fist forward. Using a technique he’d learned under Yakumo’s guidance specifically for combating parasites, he unleashed the typeless magic Piercing Psion Bullet. The spell soared through the air, just as it was intended.
Psion Bullets could theoretically travel at any speed. With no mass and no physical form, they weren’t even bound by the speed of light. However, Piercing Psion Bullets were no ordinary psion bullets. They weren’t just hard; they also transcended the information dimension as they soared through the air.
Under usual circumstances, there was no concept of movement in the information dimension. While information that moved may have existed, any change in the information itself was discontinuous and instantaneous, requiring no time at all. All changes merely involved a rewriting of where the information would be applied, which could be done in less than a second.
The Piercing Psion Bullet introduced the concept of movement into that information dimension. It consisted of psions imbued with the definition of continuous and exclusive movement. As a result, its alternative path was limited within the magician’s—in this case, Tatsuya’s—movement perception. The bullet was also restricted to the speed at which Tatsuya could throw it himself. In short, it was regulated by Tatsuya’s own physical limits.
Tatsuya’s bullets could exceed 100 kilometers per hour, but their speed fell short of both regular bullets and arrows. This made it possible to track and evade them. As soon as Minoru caught sight of the Piercing Psion Bullet, he instinctively leaped toward the sky with a flight spell. The bullet pierced through his Parade illusion left in the information dimension and disappeared.
The flight spell Minoru used was not the same modern magic spell that Tatsuya had developed. It was a flying program from the ancient magic system of Daoism. Minoru’s spell condensed a cloud beneath his feet, imbued with stability, levitation, and horizontal movement, allowing him to speed through the air.
Tatsuya tried to dismantle the cloud, but Minoru didn’t fall. This time, he used modern weighting magic to neutralize gravity and float in place. While flight magic was considered a major challenge for weighting magic, given the difficulties posed by free aerial movement, floating was a different story. Minoru extended his hands toward the ground and fired a series of plasma bullets from his palms.
Meanwhile, Tatsuya used a simple magic technique to compress air into ionized golf ball–sized spheres. While defensively thwarting plasma bullets or dispersing plasma in midair, he cast Mist Dispersion at Minoru.
Unfortunately, the spell failed to activate. Instead of floating in place, Minoru began moving through the air with a series of jumps. He still wasn’t flying; he was simply leaping off self-created platforms while leaving behind mirages of himself with Parade. At this rate, capturing Minoru’s true form was the least of Tatsuya’s problems.
He faltered. Even if he managed to wound his opponent with Partial Dismantle, Minoru had his parasite healing abilities. To stop him, Tatsuya would have to knock him unconscious. But even severing his hand hadn’t worked. Mist Dispersion was the only way. Then again, that would inevitably lead to Minoru’s death. Tatsuya was hesitant to go that far.
Minoru’s attacks, though potentially lethal, couldn’t kill Tatsuya. Even with plasma bullets, he couldn’t stop Tatsuya in his tracks. The real problem would be magic that went beyond his regeneration abilities and attacked his mind. Luckily, Minoru had not attempted to use mental interference magic so far. Maybe it was because he couldn’t. Either way, his current magic repertoire didn’t pose a real threat to Tatsuya.
Most importantly, Minoru had yet to aim at Miyuki. His focus was on Minami’s treatment, so his hostility was probably temporary. He may have turned into a parasite, but he could potentially be useful in the future. The question was whether it was worth losing such a valuable asset here and now. This dilemma gave Tatsuya pause.
But at this rate, nothing will be resolved, he thought.
If he dismantled Minoru’s body entirely, it might render the parasite regenerative abilities ineffective. Even if he didn’t reduce the entire body to dust, dispelling the image of death might make the parasite retreat. He could also try dismantling Minoru’s heart and quickly blowing away the parasite with Program Demolition. He could then regenerate Minoru’s heart and return him to his human form.
Here goes nothing.
Just as Tatsuya prepared himself to put an end to the battle, Minoru stopped attacking.
“Do you have a feeling we’ve reached a stalemate?” he asked, as if reading Tatsuya’s mind. “I don’t think I can break through your defenses without killing you.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” Tatsuya said.
Minoru smiled. “I believe the best option to restore Minami’s health is for her to become a parasite.”
“I disagree.”
“Yes, I know. Our opinions are like oil and water.”
He looked up at the hospital window where he had jumped out.
“What’s important is Minami heard what I think.”
He glanced back down at Tatsuya.
“That’s enough for me right now.”
Minoru’s body rose into the air. A cloud appeared again at his feet, and he rode it into the distance. Once Minoru had disappeared, Tatsuya sighed.