The moment I pulled my trigger, a blade of light manifested, aiming for Chris Esse Eisbert’s throat, and the sharp tip slashed her shoulder.
“……?!?!”
The Magic Eye—The Tale at Dawn—was open.
Its magic was to see the best move that continued infinitely.
It would align the infinite possibilities that its users would choose, selecting the option that brought them the best results.
The object being seen would lead the owner of the Magic Eye to choose their best move.
If they looked at the possibility of cutting someone’s throat, it would be cut, regardless of what evasive actions they took.
If they looked at the possibility of hitting a target with an arrow, the target would be hit, no matter where they were.
If the Magic Eye showed the possibility of a white bird, a white bird would be generated in this world, no matter how improbable it might be.
However, my current Tale at Dawn was incomplete and could not fully demonstrate its effectiveness.
Countdown—fourteen seconds.
The blade flowed with the sound of the wind, and I aimed for her leg—an enormous number of slash patterns were displayed—and her side was cut open.
Chris Esse Eisbert’s face was stained with anger as she splashed blood all around her.
“You piece of trash!!”
The purple light flashed continuously, and she stepped back, dodging the spears of earth that were created from the ground.
Her eyes were twisted.
Magic Eye—spiral wand.
The magic that thus resided was to see the magic power that had become a phenomenon.
It was a causal law that would see and confirm the magic that was generated, manipulated, and changed, which meant the immediate activation of magic.
The image seen and confirmed varied, depending on the user of the Magic Eye.
A magic handler with average abilities would probably be limited to seeing the generation of a single spear, but with Chris Esse Eisbert, I could see thousands of spears created.
It was proof that she was indeed a genius at magic and an alchemist. This was the execution of magic that proved how gifted she was.
Countdown—thirteen seconds. Twelve seconds.
“Hiiro! Don’t back off! Don’t waste your fifteen seconds! I can’t keep it open any longer than that!” I heard Alsuhariya shout. “You won’t get any more time than that like some convenient work of fiction!! Dance!! Run through the border between life and death!!”
A sharp pain ran through Hiiro’s eyes, and I groaned—and stepped forward.
Countdown—eleven seconds.
I stretched my magic line down to my feet. And—reinforce magic power. Activate console. Start inflow—activate and enhance projection!!
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!!”
Both my legs dug into the ground. Blue particles spurted out, and I plunged headfirst into the dazzling light.
Swords, spears, hooks, axes, floats, arrows, bullets—all kinds of intent to kill manifested as weapons and were hurled in my path.
They cut through my skin and pierced my body.
“……?!?!”
My field of vision flashed.
My eyes. My eyes hurt.
I almost closed them. My brain screamed, and my vision became bright red.
I closed my eyes—and recalled Mule’s lonely whisper—that she’d be alone from start to finish—and I opened my eyes in the midst of the intense pain.
“—Did you think I could befriend that failure at this point?”
Listen.
If that girl wants to grab a star, then I’ll breathe.
I had to—open my eyes.
Countdown—ten, nine—the Tale at Dawn— Tracing Hiiro’s potential, I swung my sword and repelled everything that came at me.
I ran with everything I had, sacrificing my body—countdown—eight seconds—and saw the only path to the future I wanted to reach.
“You,” Chris Esse Eisbert whispered as she continued high-speed generations.
“What the hell are you…?”
I heard the sound of metal.
High-pitched sounds hammered into my ear, and I continued to recover the shattered blades of my sword of light as she generated, generated, and generated.
She was way too fast.
I couldn’t move forward.
I stopped and kept swinging my sword in a pool of blood. As my vision narrowed, I saw Chris Esse Eisbert sneering at me.
“It’s useless, you idiot! A being like you could never reach me! You and my sister are both failures!! Trash!! It was decided from the start! The heavens choose the individuals they give talent to! Understand that by now, you filthy pieces of trash!!”
Countdown—seven, six, five.
I shot an invisible arrow—turning away because the pain was so intense—and then the arrow was deflected in front of Chris Esse Eisbert’s eyes and disappeared into the twilight.
“Being prepared for a surprise attack is a basic skill for a high-level magic handler. Remember that as you die and move on to hell.”
Countdown—four.
Panting, I continued to envision possibilities amid the pain.
My vision was red. My head felt like it was about to split open and fall off. My lungs weren’t taking in oxygen, and I couldn’t breathe properly. I had no feeling in my hands or feet, and all the bones in my body were bent. No part of my body wasn’t in extreme pain. It was so excruciating that I thought I was going to die.
But oh well.
I—laughed.
“I’m not such a fine human being that I’d be willing to die here!! Alsuhariya!!!”
I abandoned my defenses and used my Magic Eye only to avoid blows that would be fatal.
As I was stabbed from all directions, I extended my index and middle fingers straight ahead.
The demon gently placed her hand on my arm.
Human and demon overlapped and laughed, covered in blood.
“You know what I want to do.”
The demon laughed.
“You only get one chance. Are you ready to put everything on the line?”
“You’re asking me now?”
Countdown—three.
“I was ready—”
Countdown—two.
“—a long time ago.”
Countdown—one.
Boom—!!
Hiiro’s body emerged in the darkness.
In all directions, up and down, left and right, the four corners of the earth and its eight poles, the visible and the invisible— From among the seemingly infinite lines of power, he chose the line that shone a dark, intense red, and a blow was unleased from his fingertips, which the magic lines had fortified.
Everything led to a single torrent.
And it went straight at Chris Esse Eisbert, and—
“Ngh! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!!”
The torrent was repelled upward.
Chris Esse Eisbert laughed triumphantly.
“Fifteen seconds. That’s your limit! I win—!” she was saying, when her face was overshadowed with surprise.
With my Magic Eye closed, I had already stepped forward.
As I slashed down from overhead, Chris Esse Eisbert took a defensive position, her eyes looking up to the heavens with fear, and as she looked away from the stars—I swung my sword.
“……”
The blade was pointing toward the heavens.
Reflecting the starlight, it flashed silently.
“……”
Chris Esse Eisbert placed a hand on her chest.
Her right hand was stained bright red, and in the blink of an eye, her feet were also crimson as they sank to the ground.
“It’s my Magic Eye that has a limit of fifteen seconds,” I whispered as I wiped the blood off my sword.
“Not me.”
Chris Esse Eisbert collapsed, shivering.
She crawled around on the ground, drawing a red line, and I followed behind her.
“Y-you filthy piece of trash… Th-there’s no way…that I would lose… No way…would I, Chris Esse Eisbert…allow trash…a failure like you…to d-defeat me…!”
“That’s precisely why you lost.”
Showing her my blade, I slowly followed her.
“I did everything I could to deal with you. I hammered everything about defeating you into me, including the Alpha Aquilae light. I knew that the only time you’d be vulnerable was when you switched between attack and defense during generation. You underestimated me and did nothing. You relied solely on my Magic Eye. Did you think you’d win after holding out for those fifteen seconds? That was just one element. That’s what happens when you depend on the talent you’re born with.”
I thrust my blade in front of her eyes.
“I didn’t have a chance at beating you. You saw me as nothing but trash and underestimated me. You didn’t demonstrate your true ability, and that’s why you lose.”
I looked down at her.
“The only thing you could do was look down at me to the end.”
“You scumbag… No… I—I…don’t want to die… N-not in a situation like this…at the hands of such trash… No… M-Mother…!”
“Unfortunately for you, I’m out of patience in listening to a loser’s ranting. See you in our next life.”
I raised my blade—and stopped midair.
“……”
A girl stood between me and Chris Esse Eisbert with her arms outstretched.
Mule Esse Eisbert was crying and shaking all over, looking straight at me.
The extraordinary was stunned, protected by the ordinary.
“I—I know my sister is to blame…a-and that H-Hiiro Sanjo…y-you’re right… But…but…”
Mule whispered, “B-but she’s my family… Please forgive her… I apologize on her behalf… You can slash my body…but…p-please forgive my sister… Please, Hiiro… Please…”
“……”
“I—I…I’m…a failure…b-but even so…I’m…this woman’s sister…”
The tears kept flowing as Mule smiled.
“And I love her…”
Looking up at the single starlight that appeared in her eyes, Chris Esse Eisbert reached out to her sister with trembling fingers.
“Oh, God… It was always here… It was here all along…”
The corners of her lips turned upward as she whispered, a shy smile on her face.