“What the hell is this?!”

Before the team match, the positions of the participants were decided at random as a side show, but… aren’t they all paired up in a way that would make it a disadvantage for all the current heroes?!

Mirack’s fire is going against the previous water hero Sarasa that extinguishes it; Celestis’ water is going against the previous earth hero Yoneko that absorbs it; Hyue’s wind is going against the previous fire hero that disturbs it; and Sasae-chan’s earth is going against the wind that dries it…who is that?

At any rate, with this, aside from the light heroes that have no weaknesses to mention, every current hero has been pitted against all the elements they are weak against.

Everyone was spread on the stage facing their respective ‘random’ opponents.  

“It is incredibly unlikely something like this could happen, but there’s still the chance.” (Yorishiro)

“What are you being so easygoing about this?! It is clearly the doing of someone!” (Haine)

The highest possibility is the contra-reconciliation side that wants to bring down the current heroes and Founders.

They are doing whatever means possible to become the new political power. Without minding that what they are doing is underhanded and cowardly.

But there’s no way I would forgive that!

I will find them this instant and choke them—!

“?!!”

I was going to stand up, but Yorishiro grabbed my hand.

“Take your seat.” (Yorishiro)

Her tone gave no room for a no.

“You are not the one fighting, it is those girls. Look at the expression of those girls. Even if they have been cheated on, do you think those are expressions of people that have given up right from the beginning?” (Yorishiro)

Being prompted by Yorishiro, I strain my eyes towards the battle stage.

Karen-san, Mirack, Celestis, Sasae-chan, and Hyue had stiffened faces because of the disadvantageous situation, but there’s no sign of them having given up.

“Ku…”

I groan in their place; for those girls that can’t even voice out their complains in the battlefield.

***

“Everyone! Converge!” (Celestis)

Seeing the situation, the first one to shout was Celestis.

“Fighting in a one vs one just like this is a definite no!  We will gather at once and make it a melee fight! In terms of teamwork, we are the ones in the advantage!” (Celestis)

“Yeah!” “Ou!” “Understood!” Dasu!”

The role of decision making in an emergency situation is taken by the most weakest builded one out of all the five heroes, Celestis.

This time’s command was precise, but it is exactly because the command was precise that the enemy would get in the way.

“I won’t let you do it~.”

The one who blocked Celestis when she was trying to run to the center of the battle stage was the previous earth hero, Iemon Yoneko.

Her plump body that would make you think that she is Mother Earth had become a wall standing in the way of Celestis.

“This is the first time we meet. I will at least introduce myself. I was the earth hero, name’s  Yoneko~. In my active days, I was called ‘Leg Hunter’~.” (Yoneko)

Saying so, Yoneko-san takes out what seems to be a personal divine tool of hers, a scythe.

Compared to the earth scythe of Sasae-chan, this one is pretty small, and it was as if it was a normal sickle.But for a normal scythe, it was quite thick and the length of its blade was big. Its fearsomeness was prominent.

“Earth Scythe, Magdala~~. But too bad~, to think I will be takin’ the legs of such a loving girl~.” (Yoneko)

“Eh?”

“To think that I would have to hunt them!!” (Yoneko)

Yoneko-san lowered her body as if crawling on the ground, and attacks Celestis with a posture as if she were a cat.

“Hiwawawawa!! What’s this?!” (Celestis)

If the one being attacked wasn’t Celestis, it would have most likely ended with that one attack.

The scythe’s blade that was basically licking the ground with super-low altitude headed directly at the legs of Celestis as if trying to reap them off, but she jumped by a hair’s breadth and managed to evade it.

“You! [Water Rage]!” (Celestis)

At the same time as she dodged, she countered with a water bullet. However, Yoneko-san received it with her scythe as she turned around and easily broke the water bullet into small droplets.

“Uwaa?!”

“This is the elemental affinity~.” (Yoneko)

That’s right. This fight is paired up in a way where our side is practically all in an overwhelming disadvantage.

Even in the other fights…

“Right Fire Fist, Fernando! Left Fire Fist, Pelarius! Both fists make up the Twin Fire Fists!” (Kyouka)

Previous fire hero, Abi Kyouka.

Both of her hands were equipped with divine tool knuckles. These steel knuckles, that would originally cover the fists with their toughness and would pulverize the punched enemy, had become a divine tool that controls fire in the hands of the fire hero. Moreover, the current hero Mirack only has one fire fist equipped in her left hand, and yet, the previous hero Kyouka has them in both hands?!

“These two fire dragons that are released from these two fire fists! If you consider them the same as that pale-comparison of Mirack, you will get instantly burned to death! Better resist frantically, person from the Wind!!” (Kyouka)

The one confronting Kyouka is the wind hero Hyue.

She was shooting air bullets without rest from her wind gun, En no Ozuno, but they all hit the swirling fire tornado that has Kyouka at its center.

Wind’s affinity against fire is originally terrible. Even so, with the sniping level of Hyue, it should be possible for her to shoot through the slight openings that the fire dragons have and snipe Kyouka.

But even in the time it takes to travel through those small openings, the air bullets were rendered powerless by the fire divine power that was filling the air.

That is the elemental affinity.

Moreover…

“How noisy. The idiots of the Fire are all noisy to a tiring extent. What about you?” (Sarasa)

Mirack vs the previous water hero, Sarasa.

The affinity goes without saying.

“…Ku.”

“Well, if it’s screaming, please go ahead and raise it even if it is noisy. Scream by the hands of the water dance of my divine tool, Water Folding Fan, Dahyu.” (Sarasa)

The folding fan that is unfolded right in front of Sarasa’s face, that was her divine tool?

“This folding fan is made from the same material as the Miki-Moses of Celestis-san. Well, that girl utilizes her weapon as it is without any sort of improvement, but me, by properly fixating the end part of it, I can do something like…this!” (Sarasa)

Sarasa swings her folding fan horizontally, and from there, a line-shaped thing flew out. Mirack reacted to it by crouching.

“Uooo?!” (Mirack)

“Good good. If you weren’t able to properly avoid it, you would be split in two by now. This is what’s released from the water folding fan, Dahyu, the ‘Water Blade’. A high water pressure cutter. Such a sharp water pressure can’t be made by a fluttery cloth like the Miki-Moses.” (Sarasa)

Due to the problem of affinity, the fire wall was easily cut in two by the water blade. The only method left for Mirack was to avoid.

They are steadily being cornered.

• 187: Ghost

“Everyone is managing to immediately utilize properly the divine tools that were bestowed once again to them. Should I say, as expected?” (Yorishiro)

“…”

The words that Yorishiro spoke out bothered me.

“Originally, no matter how good humans are at controlling their divine power, they themselves are unable to make divine power attacks without assistance. The reason they are able to is thanks to the divine tools.” (Yorishiro)

I have heard about that much before.

The divine tools are made from minerals that are particular to their respective church, and -to describe it in short words- are divine power amplifiers.

They resonate with the divine power that the wielder releases and amplifies it several times over before shooting it out, so humans are able to use divine power in battle.

By the way, the minerals that resonate with each element are already settled, and only the elements designated are able to resonate with them.

That’s why, for example, the Light Church has the Holy Sword Saint-George that only resonates with light divine power, and the Aurora Knight corps use light swords which are only provided to people that have the aptitude for light element.

“The hero and the combatants that work under that church are obligated to return their own divine tools to the church when they retire. It would be troublesome if they were to act violently with their divine power even when they have retired from the church after all. But the previous heroes were temporarily lend the divine tools they used in their active days for this occasion.” (Yorishiro)

And those are the divine tools that Yoneko-san, Kyouka, and Sarasa are currently using huh.

“Every generation, the divine tools of each hero are order-made, but this might be the first time that the old and new divine tools and heroes clash-desu wa ne. I can’t begin to imagine what will happen.” (Yorishiro)

***

It is certain that they are being steadily cornered.

Celestis, Hyue, and Mirack are being cornered into an overwhelmingly disadvantageous situation.

The earth hero, Gonbee Sasae.

Her opponent is someone that…I have never seen before.

I truly don’t have an inkling as to who it is. But I can say something for certain. She is scary and eerie.

I can tell that she is a woman, but her unkempt hair extends to around her waist and is completely hiding her face, and that’s scary. Her posture is also hunchback and that’s scary. She is wearing a one piece that looks like a pajama a person wouldn’t wear in public at all. And that’s scary.

At any rate, it is scary.

What’s with that scary woman?!

“Hiiih!! Scary-dasu!! This person be scary by simply standin’ there-dasu yo!!” (Sasae)

Sasae-chan is also obviously scared like crazy.

The audience was also gulping their breath at the scary mood that’s coming from that one person in the battle stage.

At that moment…

“Sasae-dono! Be careful! That person is dangerous!” (Hyue)

It was the wind hero Hyue.

Even though she herself is having a hard time, she desperately gave advice to her comrade.

“Hyue-neechan! Ta call me with honorifics as well, ya really be kind-dasu!” (Sasae)

“That woman is Brastor Jui! A wind hero that had her title revoked!” (Hyue)

So she is the remaining mysterious one.

“She is actually the greatest researcher in the Wind Church. She is skilled at both divine power and ethereal matters, and she even gave birth to a new theory! Due to this, she reached the spot of wind hero, but she didn’t try to do her duty properly and was always shut in her research room, and in the end, her hero title was revoked. She has quite the history!” (Hyue)

“What the hell be that?! I never heard of a shut in hero-dasu!!” (Sasae)

Really, what’s with that person?

“But her skills are the real deal! To think that she would come to the outside—Uwaaa!!” (Hyue)

Hyue is also being attacked by the previous fire hero she has the worst affinity against, and is by no means in an easy situation.

Sasae-chan and the wind hero proxy, Juo, glare at each other.

“S-Scary-dasu~~! Only this side be horrific-dasu!” (Sasae)

I feel like Juo had smiled behind that unkempt hair of hers. And at the same time as that happened, a number of falling sounds on the floor were heard.

When I noticed, there were several black ball-looking things at the feet of Juo.

“What be those balls-dasu? Eggs-dasu?” (Sasae)

Are you saying Juo gave birth to them?

The black balls seem to be of metallic property, and there’s around 12 in total.

Those balls suddenly cracked open at its center. And then, what came out were propellers that looks like those of bamboo-copters and began rotating. Several tens of balls began to fly into the sky at once.

“I don’t understand anything at all for a while now-dasu!” (Sasae)

Sasae-chan had fallen into confusion.

An explanation came flying from Hyue once again.

“There’s two schools in the Wind Gun techniques! The first school is twin-style gun that specializes in mid-range marksmanship and close-quarters combat. The other school is the one I do, the wind long gun techniques that specialize in sniping faraway targets. But that woman, Juo, has created a third school that doesn’t fall into any of the two techniques…that is, the gun rebellion technique!” (Hyue)

Several tens of black balls fly in the air, and from the newly cracked openings, something that seems to be muzzles come out from it?!

“…Wind Gun Rebellion…Koumei……go.” (Juo)

For the first time, I hear the fragile voice of Juo.

But the attacks were not fragile at all, they were a raging gale.

Several tens of black balls surround Sasae-chan in the air, and shoot at her from all directions.

“Uwawawawawawa! Abbu! She plannin’ on making me a beehive-dasu ka yo?!” (Sasae)

Wind Gun Rebellion, Koumei. That is the wind divine tool name of those black balls huh.

Equipped with a set of propellers for propulsion and pistols for offensive, the user Juo can send divine power through the air and make it so that she can freely control them even when far away from them. A way of utilization that can only be possible because she is a wind divine power user.

But to think that she would be able to make them do such elaborate movements when she is utilizing the air as intermediary.

Just like what Hyue warned, she is not simply a scary woman.

“Damn iiiitt!! It be taking my all just to avoid, I can’t get close-dasu yo~~!” (Sasae)

As expected. Because of the elemental affinities, even the earth divine power, that prides on its toughness, is unable to block the wind bullets that are being shot, and she is forced to evade.

Since those things are using wind bullets, she can’t expect them to run out of bullets.

Isn’t this a situation that will gradually become worse for Sasae-chan?!

It is not only Sasae-chan; Celestis, Mirack, and Hyue are in the same state.

Rather than the factor of being seniors and juniors, they are being pushed back by the disadvantage of elemental affinities, and they have been cornered to the edge of the stage already.

“Do you get it, Karen-san? This is the limit of you people.”

And so, the last pairing.

Karen-san and Ates; the one-on-one fight between the old and new light heroes.

It is the only place where it is free from the elemental disadvantage, and yet, due to the difference in experience, Ates was in a defensive stance and tiring out Karen-san by deflecting all her attacks.

“Coward! Just defending all this time, don’t you have any intentions of fighting?!” (Karen)

“If I wait like this, the others will defeat your comrades. We can just gang up on you after that. That is the most efficient way of winning.” (Ates)

Today, Ates was wearing battle clothes that fits her body perfectly, and in her hand, she wielded a spear.

“The Light Spear, Kain. As I thought, you really fit in my hand… Oh, I won’t let you go to where your comrades are.” (Ates)

Karen-san tried to run pass Ates’ side, but she was obstructed.

“I will have you stay here having a staring contest with me for a while longer. Until your comrades are wiped out, that is.” (Ates)

Karen-san was grinding her teeth.

The silk wadding that was coiled around her neck was slowly tightening.

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