People Should Use Their Heads
People ought to use their heads.
Crack!
I slipped past Chloe's lightning blade as smoothly as flowing water and sent that same power-packed strike straight back at her.
"Kh...!?"
I don't usually rely on Retaliation.
There's no need to advertise my greatest strength to the whole world.
The only people who know about my Retaliation are Shiina, Charlotte, and — if I'm being generous — Alice. Just those three.
In other words, Chloe knew nothing about it.
Faced with the bizarre experience of having her own attack flung right back at her, she should have been helpless to do anything but take the hit...
Crackle-zap!
The instant my blade was about to touch her, Chloe's body transformed into a single bolt of lightning and shot out of my range in a flash.
That was... Lightning Transformation, a technique Chloe only learned upon reaching the four-star realm. Had she already climbed that high?
The lightning that had retreated so swiftly reconstituted itself into Chloe once more. Her expression hardened as she turned her question on me.
"Just now... what was that?"
"That's my line, Lady Chloe. Don't tell me you've already reached the four-star realm?"
"No. I'm still three-star. That technique just now is something I devised based on Lady Astorius's advice."
Holy shit, Shiina. Are you some kind of growth accelerator? What am I supposed to do when you raise a kid like this? I'm happy and devastated at the same time.
If I'd sent a clone, I would've been finished for sure. Bringing the real body was the right call.
While I was still reeling inwardly, Chloe flashed a triumphant little smile and spoke up.
"There. I've revealed my technique, so now you tell me about that strange skill of yours."
I shrugged at her perfectly reasonable demand.
"Oh? Did I ever say I would answer that? Aren't you putting on quite the one-man show all by yourself?"
"One-man... what? Are you calling me an idiot right now?"
"Haha, well. Why don't you figure that out yourself? Anyway — you there, senior whose name I don't know, the one who's been pointing an arrow at me this whole time. Doesn't your arm get tired holding the string drawn like that?"
Having stalled just long enough for Retaliation's cooldown to tick down, I turned my provocation on the male student aiming a bow at me from the rear.
"Aren't you going to shoot?"
I'd had my fun. Time to start luring them. Hang around here any longer and the timing would fall apart. Controlling my clone to keep the Green Team occupied was also starting to push its limits.
"....."
"Ah — surely you don't mean you don't know how to shoot a bow?"
One more thoroughly snide jab, and an arrow came screaming toward me.
Thanks to the title Ruinous Mouth, goading enemies into attacking was almost effortless. Convenient.
I deflected the arrow with a Light Counter and took off at a deliberately aggravating pace, heading for the place I'd chosen to lead them.
"Whoopsie~ I'll be taking my leave first, then. Everyone, please do carry on with whatever you were doing~"
"Get that bastard!!"
At the shout of the girl who seemed to be their leader — Tracey — the entire Green Team surged after me.
Every one of them had better physical specs than I did, so catching up to my snail's pace looked like child's play.
"Die!"
Tracey's blade whipped viciously at my back.
But her sword never found my body.
Tap!
I stomped on a foothold of Tao Power I'd formed beneath my feet and sprang high into the air; the sharp edge merely grazed past my calf.
"....!"
Tracey's eyes went round as saucers, unable to process the sight of me vaulting off empty air.
"Hup-cha~"
Still floating, I planted a foot square on the face of the floundering Tracey and launched myself farther forward.
"Captain!"
"I'm fine — just catch that bastard!!"
Apparently she hadn't expected anyone to step on her face; Tracey crumpled bonelessly to the ground. A few of her teammates rushed over, but she scrambled up on her own, face scarlet, and screeched for them to kill me.
With Nature Realm active, I don't even miss a comedy like this.
Whether Tracey's yelling had done the trick or not, the chase picked up speed again.
I twisted my head aside to dodge a streaking arrow and deflected throwing knives with Tao Power, barely hanging on.
Piloting both my clone and my real body at once was murder, but the special training from before seemed to be paying off; I could manage.
"Wings of Crimson Flame!"
At that moment, a bird wrought entirely of fire came hurtling at me as I drifted through the air.
A fairly refined magical construct. Not a first-year — a second-year, maybe? A sharp attack. Best to let this one slide past.
"Hup!"
Just as I had during my exchange with Charlotte, I formed a Tao Power foothold off to my side and wrenched my trajectory midair.
The firebird skimmed past my ribs by a hair's breadth.
But the thing seemed to possess a will of its own; it wheeled around and came at me again.
Did it have a homing function?
In that case—!
Right before the firebird could collide with me, I formed another Tao Power foothold, kicked off, and spun a full rotation through the air.
Then, with all nine pursuing students fixed in my sight, I set my hand to my scabbard.
"Sorry, but I'll have to pass on that~!"
I answered the diving firebird with a Heavy Counter.
CRACK!!!
The ink-black sword aura that burst from my blade forced their feet to a dead stop.
And immediately after, the firebird — now twice as ferocious as before — crashed down on the suddenly defenseless pack of them!!
BOOOOM!!!
"Heh~ That landed perfectly!"
The explosion was loud enough to rattle the buildings. The moment my feet touched the ground I pumped my legs for all they were worth, putting distance between us.
Through Nature Realm I could feel that the attack had just eliminated two of them — meaning they'd been knocked out of the capture-the-flag match.
Not a bad haul for countering an ordinary student's spell. It had only been meant to buy time, so this was a welcome bonus.
Good. I needed to get out of here before they resumed the chase.
I was almost at the place I'd planned on. Just a little more push.
"Cough... Stop right there!"
"Would I stop just because you asked, Lady Chloe?"
From the billowing black smoke, several figures recovered their wits and came after me again.
Their speed hadn't dropped an inch — tireless, apparently — but they were already too late.
"Whew.... Lady Chloe, you really do love to run. If you enjoy it that much, you should try jogging more often in your free time."
"Do I look like a dog to you?!"
I reached the wide open ground of the training field, turned to face Chloe and the others, and managed a strained smile.
"Haa.... Somebody really needs to do something about that mouth of yours. I don't know what you're scheming, but I'm not falling for that cheap stalling."
"Oh? If you see through my intentions that easily, I'll have nothing left to say."
I gave a suitably casual reply and slid my sword back into its sheath. Then, wearing the same sly smile I always did, I folded my arms and went on.
"Well, I figured dragging this out any longer was a lost cause myself. Still, I'm glad I managed to finish my role."
"Role?"
"Curious?"
Chloe looked ready to take the bait at once, then shook her head firmly.
"Curious.... No. I'm not curious. You'll just say it's a secret and mess with me if I ask. I'm not going to fall for it as easily as Miss Astorius does. So...."
Shing!
"Just go down quietly already! This is mortifying!"
She drew her blade without another second's hesitation; she was well and truly furious.
"Whoopsie."
Chloe closed the distance in a blink and swung. Having been trying to buy time by running my mouth, I had no choice but to draw again and catch her blade.
"Kh.... I clearly don't have the strength to withstand Lady Chloe's power."
With roughly twenty-six seconds left on Retaliation's cooldown, all I could do was tank the attacks head-on.
I strained with everything I had, locked in a contest of pure force with her.
My blade was being pushed back bit by bit. How that slender frame could produce this much strength was beyond me — utterly absurd.
"But tell me, Lady Chloe.... doesn't something feel off?"
Even as my arms and legs trembled, I forced a smile and kept talking.
"Have you never wondered why none of my teammates have shown themselves....?"
".....!"
The brief flicker of uncertainty that ran through her was all the opening I needed. I tilted my blade slightly to the side and shoved hers outward with every scrap of Tao Power I could muster.
Her sword slid free and skated past.
Screeeech!
Metal shrieked against metal, throwing sparks.
Having barely managed to slip her blade aside, I leapt back and spoke again.
"The truth is, Lady Chloe — and all you fine members of the Yellow Team behind her — luring you here was my role all along."
I flung my arms wide, pointing toward the main gate of the open ground. Chloe and every member of the Yellow Team followed my gesture with their eyes.
Creeeak!
And before long, the gate swung open. Beyond it—
"Fuck! Where'd that slit-eyed bastard who called me an orc go!"
"Wrong. He said you looked like an ogre."
"Shut up!"
"H-he couldn't have gotten far..."
—stood the Green Team, faces flushed an angry red. My clone's provocations had apparently worked a little too well.
"Hey! There he is!"
"Oh yeah? Got you now, you little shit. This time we're finishing it!!! You're dead!!!"
They spotted me mid-sweep of the area and came charging with a roar.
Rage had eaten them alive; their eyes had gone completely wild.
I met their charge head-on, flashed a broad grin, and called out.
"Haha! Everyone from the Green Team! I may have done nothing but run just now, but this time will be different!"
Then I spread my arms again — this time pointing straight at Chloe and the Yellow Team.
"This time, I'll face you together with my reliable teammates!"
.
.
.
"What?"
After a beat of silence, Chloe's expression soured as she tilted her head.
"Bring it on!! I'll make your companions regret ever teaming up with the likes of you!!"
"No, wait — this is a misunderstanding....!"
Before Chloe could even finish, Green Team magic came flying our way.
They had thoroughly mistaken the Yellow Team for my allies.
The Yellow Team, for their part, weren't about to just stand there and take it, so they counterattacked — and in no time the open ground had devolved into a battlefield between Yellow and Green.
I carefully slipped out of the fray and cheered both sides on from a corner.
Go, go, Green Team! Go, go, Yellow Team! Whichever side wins is my side!
And then, while I was busy cheering my heart out, Chloe's sharp blade-strokes came raining down on me.
I barely twisted clear with the help of Nature Realm.
"Urgh.... Shion, you!!!"
Chloe glared at me, face burning red, and swung again.
I slipped past the murderous strike by a hair and grinned.
"Lady Chloe, do you know why Itachi is so strong?"
I pulled a teleport scroll from my inventory, beaming as I continued.
"Because he's a runaway ninja!"
"Stop—!"
Fwoosh!
I tore the teleport scroll and made a leisurely escape from the battlefield.