Overlock! Solo Takedown of a B-Rank
I can do this! Mantis's body bounced off the water's surface and flew through the air.
But the bastard spread his wings mid-flight, regained his balance, and landed lightly on a nearby artificial structure.
The shockwave crumpled the structure grotesquely.
He's strong!
I thought I'd nailed him dead-on, but the damage seemed minor.
Monsters do have this overwhelming presence from their size and looks. Big means strong, scary-looking means strong.
This Mantis guy was just a bit bigger than a human and didn't look that terrifying. The plaster statue I met before was scarier, if anything.
But he wasn't ranked B-rank for nothing—he was tough. Especially his mana density, rivaling mine.
This... is B-rank!
I channeled mana into my toes and leaped. Closing the distance in an instant, I threw another punch straight at his face.
"Kieeeek!"
Mantis screamed and spread his wings.
The wind from his flapping turned into razor-sharp gusts that swept over my entire body. Oh no...!
I instantly switched to Sword's costume.
Druruk, now an ego weapon, spewed threads that wrapped around me like a cocoon.
Kagagak!
Sparks flew across my costume. Even with the quickest response, scratches etched my whole body.
If those threads hadn't wrapped me, I'd be covered in wounds right now.
"Ugh...!" "Nee, Neff unnie!"
Hasol-a looked at me with worried eyes, but I was fine. More importantly, I wished she'd get out of here quick.
"You think those sluggish punches can take me down? Your arrogance knows no bounds, Neff!"
Mantis clashed his sickle arms together, producing a metallic screech.
He's right.
I flipped backward and landed lightly on the water. Straightening my clothes, I looked up at him.
Rock Fist. I'd borrowed Terra's mana to shape it, but it was just mimicry.
Bella's performance wasn't just raw power—it was speed and insight so overwhelming the enemy couldn't react. And that came from five years of experience!
Mimicking alone won't cut it.
I had to admit it. I wasn't Bella. Or Terra or Sword.
Clinging awkwardly to their styles meant I couldn't even beat this one B-rank monster.
"Die!"
Ppeong!
The moment Mantis stomped, the structure shattered, and he vanished from sight. Oh right, mantises can fly.
At tremendous speed, his sickle arms unleashed a barrage.
Shyaaak! Shuk!
Too fast to track with my eyes.
But thanks to absorbing Terra's mana? Mana flowing from my body let me sense his movements not visually, but as vibrations.
"Druruk!"
I hit the pedal, and multicolored threads burst from the needle eye, weaving a rainbow net in the air.
The threads cascaded like a waterfall, blocking my front.
Chaeng! Chaeng! Kang!
Metallic clashes rang out in succession.
Each time Mantis's sickles bounced off the thread curtain, his rhythm faltered a bit more.
But.
"What do you think these pathetic threads can do!" "Ack!" Jjiik!
I screamed as the threads snapped and fell. That'd never happened before.
Thinking about it, threads are weak to scissors or blades. I'd just been lucky with favorable matchups till now.
Now it was the worst matchup. He specialized in slashing, and my durability was at a disadvantage.
I flung a needle at the highest skull-shaped structure in the waterpark.
Contracting the thread, I swung up into the sky along the line.
I snapped my fingers, and the scattered threads in the air surged toward Mantis's limbs.
Sasasak! But he just swung his arms a few times and sliced through all the binding threads.
What do I do?
Bella would've crushed him with sheer force. Sword would've sliced him apart. Terra would've bounced him off a sturdy barrier.
But me?
I'm none of them. And yet, all of them at once.
My power. My identity.
Understanding, absorbing, and reinterpreting magical girls' mana in my own way.
Then.
I turned my gaze to the churning wave pool. A massive amount of water rippling everywhere.
"Haat!"
I boldly released Prism Neff.
Normally, the backlash from detransforming would've left me wracked with muscle pain, unable to move. But thanks to all that training? My body just creaked a little and obeyed my will.
And.
"Dress Code. Type: Aqua!"
Whoosh!
The clothes wrapping my body turned into a blue dress. At the same time, the surrounding water surged up all at once.
Aqua could probably use water control in a desert with no drops around. Obviously, I can't.
But here? Water everywhere.
"Wh-what is this?!"
Mantis looked around in panic. Water on all sides.
I elegantly extended my hand. Like a villainous lady.
The floating water streams formed five dragon shapes, surrounding Mantis.
Kuwaaaa!
Water dragons bound his limbs. Immense pressure crushed his wings and joints.
"Kuh, this crap!"
Mantis spun at high speed, flapping wildly. The water enveloping him scattered in an instant.
"Kraaaah!"
I shouted again.
"Nunu! Mixmatch!"
[Gumul!]
Nunu read my will and reworked the mana.
First time in my life using a kaleidoscope twice in one fight. I loaded in new fabric.
[Ignis!] [Aurora!] [Aqua!] [Terra!] [Sword!] [Neff!]
Ignis instead of Bella, Aqua instead of Pluto.
Now, the Aqua water that should've vanished on transformation stayed bound to my mana, still restraining Mantis.
"Magical Girl Prism Neff, making her entrance!"
Got to nail the intro line every time.
Pajijijik!
I immediately used Aurora's lightning. High-voltage current crackling with electricity poured through the water streams into Mantis.
"Kaaaaak!"
Seizing the moment, I reformed Terra's rock fist on my right hand.
And slammed it straight into his exposed torso.
Kwang!
"Kuhuk!" "Heavy enough?"
I'll make it heavier.
Threads from Druruk burst along the rock fist.
Each thread infused with earth mana weighed like stone, burrowing into his joints.
"Dress Code Type: Sword."
I switched to Sword's outfit right there. This time, my ego weapon wasn't Druruk.
Wooong!
The rock fist coiled around my right arm. I turned it into a living weapon and smashed him to the ground.
He slid far before crashing into the waterpark's steel outer wall. Pinned by the rock on my arm, he couldn't budge.
Now's the time.
"Ku, kuh! But you can't take me down with this...!"
I know. This was just to restrain him from fleeing. The real deal was separate.
"Ignis."
"...?"
I infused mana, and the rock fist embedded in Mantis's body glowed red-hot.
Kwakwakwang!!
Ignis uses fire mana like Bella, but the difference? Hers specializes in explosions.
Zero-point explosion.
"Kieeeek!"
Mantis's scream shook the waterpark. His tough shell cracked. His muscles tore.
Finally.
Tududuk! Tuk!
One massive sickle flew high into the sky.
Cheolpeodeok.
The severed arm splashed limply onto the water. Off-balance, Mantis staggered and face-planted into the pool.
"Hah, hah..."
I landed right in front of his nose, panting hard.
My whole body tingled. Mixing multiple attributes in such a short time had drained my mana massively, but it worked.
"See that?"
I nudged his floating arm with my toe.
"Not as clean as Bella unnie, but."
"...Ku... ugh?!"
"I did good, right? Praise me."
Mantis looked up at me.
The reflection in his eyes wasn't the newbie who'd tried to run before.
"Well then."
I smiled at his remaining arm.
"Shall I take the other one too? Gotta keep things balanced, or it'll be uncomfortable."
"Kuku... Kuhahaha!"
Missing one arm, Mantis burst into mad laughter. Ominous purple mana rose from his body.
"Fine, I admit it. You're strong. But!"
Wooong!
His sole remaining sickle bent straight, absorbing unprecedented dense mana.
"You can't block this!"
"...!"
"Signature move!"
Signature move? I'd heard monsters use finishers like magical girls, but seeing one up close was a first.
Mantis raised his arm high, and instinctively, I leaped back.
Whatever was coming, I had to dodge.
"Gladius!"
Shuaaaak!
The moment he swung, the world seemed to split diagonally before my eyes.
A transparent, rippling slash wave surged toward me.
Space cut?!
I reflexively rolled aside to evade.
Flash!
"Haat!"
My vision went red. What? I thought I dodged.
Pain like burning flesh shot from my left shoulder.
The mana cloaking my body tore away instantly, flesh sliced off. Blood from the wound had splashed into my eyes.
I saw Hasol-a freaking out and yelling, but tinnitus drowned it out in a buzz. Whatever, not important.
It hurt like hell, but I couldn't back down. I'm a magical girl. I gritted my teeth and stood.
Signature moves cost massive mana. That goes for monsters too.
The brief stun right after—reckless, but this was my only shot.
"Druruk!"
Threads from Druruk wrapped his remaining arm and wings like they'd been waiting.
"Wh-when?!"
Threads I'd secretly scattered during the aerial fight.
Hidden in the mist from Ignis's explosion clashing with the water streams, transparent and unseen.
Deureuk! Drururuk!
Druruk reverse-spun, threads tightening and sealing his movements again.
"L-let go! I said let go!"
I dove right up to his thrashing face and condensed all remaining mana into Druruk.
Druruk grew massive, prepping the final blow.
My signature move.
"Overlock!"
The giant Druruk swallowed Mantis whole and roared to life with a boom.
Pabababak!
"Ku, heuk...?!"
Mantis's eyes rolled back, head the only part sticking out of the sewing machine. I kept stomping the pedal. Faster, harder!
Then.
Pachang!
A clear, glass-shattering sound echoed. His exoskeleton shattered to pieces.
Repair...
Oh. Meant to say the finisher line, but my voice wouldn't come.
Instead, I glared at the fallen Mantis till the end. Monsters sometimes self-destruct at times like this.
Thankfully, no sign of that.
"Ku, kuku..."
Spitting purple blood, he stared at me with fading eyes.
And then.
"Vessel of the Demon King... indeed..."
"...What?"
"You have... sufficient qualifications..."
What the hell?
Leaving those cryptic words as his last, Mantis's body vanished.
Only then did the tension drain, my legs wobbling.
"Haa, haa..."
I won. Without help from the vets, all on my own. Against a B-rank, no less.
I can do this.
Confidence welled up from deep in my chest.
With this much power, I won't have to helplessly watch anyone leave anymore. I can protect my people, my daily life.
With this...!
That was when.
"Kraaaaa!!!"
A roar shattered my victory high.
Kugugugu!
The whole waterpark shook like an earthquake.
Far off, in the artificial forest, blue flashes clashed with green mana. The A-rank monster Bital Cruise vs. Terra—their fight wasn't over.
If anything, Terra's mana waves flickered unstably.
Terra!
No matter how strong Terra is, that's an A-rank. And magical girls always have these fateful bad matchups.
I started toward her—
"Neff unnie!"
Hasol-a ran up and grabbed me.
She'd seen my shoulder wound, so she clutched my hem, avoiding the blood-soaked spot.
Her sparkling eyes welled with tears. Hollow cheeks shaking her head.
Don't go. Don't get hurt anymore.
I shook my head back. I couldn't.
Before, I'd have run. Hid behind the vets yelling for help. But now?
"...Churros later, okay?"
With those words, I bolted to the other battlefield.