Solo Factory Annihilation

Steam filled the factory, obscuring everything from view. Zien's first move was to close his eyes.

'I can feel them.'

His senses sharpened beyond anything before.

The mana surging through the enemies' bodies.

The air resistance from their movements.

The words they spat amid the chaos. There was no need to cling to his blurred vision.

Even with his eyes shut, their movements were plain as day.

'Time to wipe them all out here.'

This wasn't bravado. Zien became one with his surroundings. The enemies' blind strikes scattered harmlessly into empty air.

"Where is it? Party leaders, fall back for now!"

The factory was guarded by nine people.

Three from the same school meant the other six were strangers. A party thrown together today for the first time wasn't going to mesh smoothly.

Voices overlapped from every direction.

"Fall back? It's right in front of me!"

"Eek! Calm down, Plea! You're the party leader, so—"

"It's right in front of me!"

In the midst of it, someone spotted Zien and swung their sword. The blade grazed his collar, leaving a faint scratch.

'They got me. Whatever.'

In this steam, who the enemy was or what weapon they wielded was trivial. To Zien, there was only one guiding principle.

'Dodge the attacks. Cut down the foes.'

Treating everyone but himself as an enemy worked wonders in a situation like this.

"Here!"

"Gah! Hey! Are you nuts? I almost got hit! Where the hell are you shooting?!"

"Everyone, focus!"

The calm voice issuing orders nonstop. Zien channeled mana into his legs and kicked off the ground.

Clang!

He parried sword with sword.

Using the recoil, Zien slashed the enemy behind him. The fight was brief, but shrouded in the steam's veil, he rampaged like a tyrant.

But on the factory's second floor.

Plea was quicker on the uptake than her party members.

'Idiots. Numbers mean nothing if you're this useless? Getting wrecked by one guy? Sigh, I wanted to conserve MP, but...'

The moment the battle started, she'd climbed the ladder to the second floor.

Then, she drew back her bowstring fully, loading it with mana.

All for this exact moment.

"Eat this!"

Whoosh!

The arrow Plea had charged for a full minute was a Magic Art devoted entirely to destructive power.

A mana-infused fire arrow that exploded on contact, sweeping everything in its radius. It endangered her own party too, but Plea didn't care.

'If we keep getting dragged along by this guy's pace, we're all dead anyway. Can't be helped if a few get caught.'

Plea curled her lips into a smirk.

That's when numerical superiority shone. One-on-one, charging a Magic Art for a minute would've been impossible, but with meat shields? Different story.

'No monster can block this.'

Her confidence stemmed from the unique trait she'd received before the event.

Her already powerful Path of Fire buffed by the trait was beyond devastating.

'Heh, bet he's got some decent items too?'

Plea smiled as she watched Path of Fire fly.

More fireball than arrow, the blaze evaporated the steam with its heat, revealing the intruder's face to Plea.

'That face... Arcana's A-rank? Figures. Hmph, too late now.'

Plea was the one who was too late.

She didn't know Zien's Magic Tool.

The hero's weapon from his past life, Black Fragrance, was a sword that negated impurities. A blade that cleaved space itself saw this fireball as mere prey.

Fwoosh!

"Good thing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I drank that earlier."

Zien spoke as the flames closed in.

'Perfect timing.'

A clash of Magic Arts.

To Zien, this was a chance to captivate the viewers.

So he waited as long as possible.

When the fireball reached the brink, mana infused his sword, glowing with a subtle light.

Slash!

A clean bisect.

Black Fragrance cleaved the fireball, and the arrow, stripped of its flames, thudded harmlessly to the ground.

"Too bad."

Zien smiled up at the second floor. Black Fragrance's Anti-Magic Magic Art negated mana itself.

Plea dropped her bow at the absurd sight of a sword slicing fire ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and screamed.

"Hey! That's straight-up bullshit!!"

Her face twisted in despair.

With all the steam evaporated.

Plea locked eyes with Zien looking up from below, his smile chilling her.

'Wh-what?! Scary! He shot at me? He found me?!'

Plea thought to herself.

If the 4th zone's demon king manifested from a textbook, it'd wear exactly that smile.

'He's not right in the head. Better bail now!' A shiver crawled down her spine. Despite ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her party's numbers, she felt no advantage.

"The steam's gone!"

"Magic Arts aren't working?"

"Forget Magic Arts—rush him all at once!"

Her team's hopeful words just made them look like fools.

'Don't you get it? We can't win. You idiots...'

Cold sweat trickled down her cheek.

Plea forgot they were broadcasting and pondered escape.

'At least with party members left, this is my last shot.'

But it was far too late. Zien had lowered his stance, preparing his technique.

Forcing his way into the enemies' center had been for this moment.

His sword traced a straight line, emitting a clear, moonlit glow.

Normally a qi-draining ultimate technique, but in this virtual space, it only cost MP.

Yet.

Its power was undiminished.

A straight line.

A perfect semicircle, ruler-straight in its beauty.

Every foe closing in on Zien was literally bisected.

Splash!

Party members all eliminated.

Zien approaching her.

Plea pressed a hand to her forehead, sighing through weary eyes.

"Fuck. How do you lose 9v1?"

Slash!

Zien's strike eliminated Plea too. Items rained down from her spot.

"They said no item drops, but she hoarded anyway."

Archers fought from the rear, safest position. Of course, with her party wiped, it was pointless cleverness.

Alone in the factory now.

Zien sheathed his sword and asked for proof.

"Kill score."

'Yeah. First place.'

The obvious result.

Zien had taken down every opponent solo. In a teamplay-focused game, clearing obstacles without teammates was pure individual prowess.

But it was too early to celebrate.

Boss fight. Melee chaos. Teamplay. Strategy.

Zien planned to showcase every ounce of his past-life experience in this Battle Survival event.

'Next up: boss fight.'

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Cheers engulfed Central Arena!

Unlike Twitch viewers struggling with the steam, main cam audiences saw Zien's moves crystal-clear via thermal imaging.

His combat was agile, seasoned, overwhelming. Enough to steal hearts from Celia fans.

"Arcana! Arcana!"

Chants of the school name shook the stands. Vernon finally closed his gaping mouth at the roar.

"Incredible. Taking a factory defended by nine alone..."

Even Vernon, who favored Celia alumna Lucia, had to acknowledge Zien's feat.

'That skill in a first-year?'

First-years couldn't enter real gates. They only did virtual ones, so comparing them to second-years was tough due to experience gaps.

'But this guy...'

Combat. Judgment. Experience.

To Vernon, a 5th-rank Saber, Zien was a monster with all three in spades.

'No wonder Bluma was interested...'

Bluma herself stared gravely at the screen.

'Celia's teamplay versus Zien's solo show. But that alone won't beat Lucia. Parties need synergy above all.'

Finishing her thought, Bluma flashed a grin.

"Can't take my eyes off these underclassmen's skills. Makes me want to scout them for our guild right now."

"Exactly. In close combat, he'd hold his own against an active 3rd-rank!"

Bluma smirked at Vernon's words.

'Just a 3rd-rank active? From a 5th-rank...'

Bluma had Zien pegged precisely.

The reasons behind his subtle movements, the secrets in his strikes.

'He'd chew up 4th-ranks too. And that last move? More skill than Magic Art.'

Stigmata power: Magic Tools.

First-years using Magic Arts was normal. But skills were unknown forces. Most Sabers acquired them postnatally in gates.

'Rare cases of learning skills outside gates do exist...'

Freakish luck, countable on one hand.

But her guess was spot-on. Zien's skills came from past-life memories.

Coincidence or fate, fortune favored Zien.

'Poor other contestants. At least they're up against Croa and Celia?'

Bluma kept her thoughts to herself. Hey, feigning suspense was broadcasting 101.

"Is it Zien's performance boosting the hype?"

Ding!

With a gesture, the screen shifted from the dingy factory to viewer scores.

"Arcana's Twitch viewers have overtaken Celia for first place!"

Madness.

"Kyahahahat!!"

Amy spun her uniform jacket overhead.

"I knew it!!"

The impossible 9v1.

Zien tore space with a Magic Art to infiltrate, burst pipes for steam cover, sliced the fireball.

"And that! Big sword swing—bam, one-shot! Grraaah~"

Amy reliving Zien's highlights fired up the chat.

As the hype peaked, Amy muttered.

"Just buff his trait and he'd get even stronger..."

She glanced slyly.

Teasing the audience, Amy eyed the donation window coyly.

A sudden donation flood.

Viewers were utterly hooked on Zien's feats.

Plus, he was a student destined to become a Savior protecting humanity. Seeing such power in those risking their lives for them thrilled the audience even more.

'Over 10 million coins!'

Amy grinned inwardly.

'Classic: fundraise after the highlight reel. 10 mil buys...'

Amy was a pro streamer.

Even now, picking items with donations, she pondered what viewers craved.

'Karman's Swift Talisman?'

An artifact boosting physical speed. Perfect at 10 million coins, but Amy scoffed.

'Hell no.'

Gifting body-boost artifacts risked downplaying Zien's strength as "item carry."

'He's fast and strong without artifacts.'

That preserved his "Sword God" character. Amy skipped it without a second thought.

"Alright, what to buy with the donations? You've all been dying to know, right? My pick is..."

Tension rivaling the 9v1.

What item for the Sword God? After milking the suspense, she grinned wide.

"This one!"