One down, Canopus thought, after hearing Regulus scream.
He hadn’t intentionally set a trap for his colleague. He had simply been trying to neutralize Vega without causing too much harm while keeping Regulus at bay. In other words, contrary to Regulus’s calculations, Canopus hadn’t allowed Vega to capture all of his attention.
With Regulus out of the way, the battle became much easier. Regulus wasn’t a particularly skilled magician, but the shift from a three-on-one to a two-on-one fight made all the difference.
Suddenly, Canopus’s ears were assaulted by two shrieks. He instinctually turned toward the sound, while putting some distance between himself and Vega. In the distance, Algol had stabbed Deneb in the side with his knife.
You went too far, Canopus scolded silently.
It wasn’t just Deneb who staggered and fell. A few moments later, Algol also collapsed toward her. Though he appeared to be pushing Deneb down, it was clear even from a distance that he wasn’t attacking.
From his position, Canopus couldn’t see Algol’s blood-soaked back. Had he taken a closer look, he would have been able to make it out, but he needed to stay alert for enemy attacks. All he knew was that Algol had been attacked by a third party. A third party who was now targeting Canopus himself.
A thin, piercing force field, formed by Atomic Divider, extended toward him. He slashed through it with his own magic.
Lieutenant Spica! Canopus gasped.
Canopus knew the attacker’s identity before she came into view. There was only one Stars member who used the modified version of Atomic Divider—Atomic Divider Javelin: Zoey Spica, first star lieutenant of Team 4. She was impeccably dressed in her summer uniform despite the early hour, and she was aiming her right hand directly at him.
The straight-edged metallic claw on the tip of her extended index finger served as a sighting device for Atomic Divider Javelin.
Once again, a thin, piercing atomic destruction force field extended toward Canopus. Atomic Divider Javelin made up for its narrow area of effect by increasing its reach and enabling ranged attacks. Canopus once again used Atomic Divider to block the spell just as it was about to hit him and swiftly cut through the gravitational field Vega had created to trap him.
Atomic Divider was not capable of cutting through gravity-controlling magic, however. Gravity-controlling magic altered the spatial property known as the “degree of distortion,” and Atomic Divider could modify spatial properties. Modifications to the gravitational field of space collided with modifications to the electromagnetic properties of space, and both spells were disrupted and broken down.
Suddenly, Canopus’s Atomic Divider was also disrupted as Arcturus’s tomahawk came flying his way. Canopus leaped sideways as fast as he could while reactivating the spell. The tomahawk sliced through his afterimage and crashed into the dry training ground just as he rolled to his feet. He didn’t even have a moment to recover as the tomahawk reversed its trajectory and came at him again.
This shouldn’t have been possible with Dancing Blades. Normally, the spell involved preprogramming the flight path of the user’s weapon rather than remote-control manipulation. Applying the concepts of spirit magic, though, Arcturus created a sort of sympathetic resonance with his tomahawk. This ability let him overwrite the initial Dancing Blades spell via psychological connection. Mastery of both modern and ancient magic gave him this ability.
Overwriting a magic definition always required increased interference. A new trajectory could be set five times at most. Dancing Blades, however, could send weapons in more than just straight lines or arcs. The spell allowed a weapon to go up, go down, and turn freely. Typically, changing the trajectory a mere three times during a single throw was enough to ensnare most enemies.
Once he merged with a parasite, Arcturus lost access to independent information entities called spirits and the magic that controlled them. That didn’t mean he lost his proficiency in ancient magic techniques, though. In fact, his skills in ancient magic, which did not rely on spirits, improved after assimilating with the parasite.
With an upward slash, Canopus intercepted Arcturus’s tomahawk, swinging his blade more like a staff than a sword. The attack lacked speed and power. Yet even as the tomahawk was magically enhanced by Arcturus’s thoughts, Canopus sliced clean through it.
Though it resembled a Japanese sword, Canopus’s weapon wasn’t meant for cutting through things. The blade was merely a guide; magic did most of the work. If he formed an atomic bond reversal field just right, any slight blade misalignment became inconsequential.
The tomahawk split into two and fell to the ground. Once it lost its defined form, even a weapon infused with its owner’s will would still fail, just like a regular combat device. Arcturus’s attacks came to a halt. Dancing Blades required a tangible weapon, and there was a limit to the amount of ammunition that could be prepared in advance. Arcturus had run out of gas.
Canopus still couldn’t pinpoint Arcturus’s location. However, the lull in attacks gave Canopus a chance to rid himself of his other two enemies: Vega and Spica. Spica’s Atomic Divider Javelin could initially catch opponents off guard, but now that Canopus knew the spell affected only a narrow range along a straight trajectory, dealing with it became much less difficult.
He decided to take down the more vulnerable Vega first. He cast a confinement spell on Spica, followed by what, at first glance, seemed to be an Atomic Divider attack at Vega. In reality, it was an ionized-air Plasma Bullet.
Vega was caught completely off guard and suffered a direct hit. Canopus kept the bullet density low to avoid any fatalities, but it was still powerful enough to temporarily paralyze his opponent. Vega slammed into the ground. She stayed conscious, but her limbs appeared to be frozen in place.
Canopus then turned in Spica’s direction. He would deal with her before taking on Arcturus. To his surprise, though, Arcturus now stood beside Spica.
“Major Canopus,” Arcturus said, “it’s about time you stopped resisting.”
Two more figures appeared—Lieutenants Ian Bellatrix and Samuel Alnilam, both from Team 6. They held Algol between them, his consciousness fading due to his injuries. Spica looked surprised by the three new members’ arrival. Clearly, not even she had anticipated the reinforcements.
“Are you taking me hostage?” Canopus spat, unafraid to show disgust.
Arcturus dodged the question.
“Lieutenant Shaula was just taken into custody. I believe your objective was to help Major Sirius escape? Well, you’ve succeeded. Risking any more casualties is meaningless.”
“The only meaningless thing here is the mutiny you started,” Canopus retorted.
Arcturus didn’t respond. Reason wouldn’t work on a parasite. Canopus relinquished his katana-shaped device.
“Fine,” he said. “I surrender.”
“Then I can guarantee your physical safety.”
“Only physical?” Canopus asked wryly.
“Major Canopus.” Arcturus’s voice lacked even a shred of amusement. “I have no intention of being allies.”