Oshiro wasn't sure what to think at the moment.
He moved his eyes from looking at Misó's face to the horns on his head.
He was stunned.
His former teammate's face didn't look like he was lying.
So he would always cover his head to...hide his horns...
But there was no time to think.
Oshiro's thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of footsteps moving back.
Oshiro lifted his head up.
"Kirai-kun...!"
Misó didn't respond to Oshiro's shout.
The boy just faced Oshiro silently.
They were about a hundred meters away from each now. Oshiro recalled all the times he had fought with Misó and gulped. One hundred meters wasn't a distance to Misó.
But Oshiro still believed that everyone could talk it out. He still believed so.
He casually walked forward and then said, "Hold on, Misó. Something's not right. I know you like playing jokes on others...and I don't know how you got such an...interesting Trigger, but-"
Before he could finish, Oshiro froze up.
His body was trembling.
From the trion body of Misó Espanástasi...
No.
From the body of Misó of Aftokrator, there seemed to be something spraying out. Oshiro's feet were just nailed to the ground. His head could feel a tremendous pressure, and his breathing was erratic. There was a sense of pain deep within his brain that was like fireworks, and he stopped thinking.
Was this some sort of gaseous attack coming from Misó? Of course not. Misó didn't do anything, but that was enough to force Oshiro to be unable to move.
Killing intent.
The killing intent alone was enough to turn Oshiro to stone.
The tremendous pressure that was released made him feel like the surrounding gravity was increased by ten times.
Something like that shouldn't be an issue when in a trion body, but the feeling that Misó was giving off made Oshiro think he was in his real body, ready to die. The fear he felt had stopped him from even giving his body simple commands.
"Hold it- Misó...listen to me!"
Oshiro still tried to talk to Misó, but Misó didn't respond. Which was very odd on its own.
A gust of wind blew by, and Misó's bangs started to wave.
Behind the bangs, the eyes that looked like lightning were completely emotionless.
If a killer's eyes could be said to be wild and agitated, Misó's eyes were the complete opposite. They were no longer a human's eyes. A human couldn't possibly have those eyes that covered all emotional sense. It seemed like those eyeballs were two glass balls or crystals.
Misó of Aftokrator didn't say anything.
He just stretched his arm aside, glancing at Oshiro as if he were watching him.
He was numb.
Oshiro didn't say anything now.
Slowly, Misó raised his hand as if he was holding an axe.
An unknown attack? Could Oshiro dodge in time? Oshiro's body started to tremble.
But he wouldn't back away.
Oshiro's hand went to the blade at his hip.
Suddenly, a growl came from somewhere.
"Move aside! Hogo!"
The sound of wind being cut could be heard.
An extended slash passed between Oshiro and Misó, forming a wall of dust and debris. Misó, who had been intending to launch the attack, was instantly distracted. At that moment, a girl appeared between the two of them. The girl was in a short-sleeved t-shirt, a jacket and pants. The end of her pants were tucked into a pair of combat boots that went a quarter of the way up her leg.
Following Kanzaki, who was giving off killing intent, was Kimura, who's voice came through to his ear.
Manager: "There is no reason to hesitate in a fight. Especially during an invasion. No matter the reason, Captain."
Though it was known what Kanzaki did, she seemed to be remaining vigilant.
Though Oshiro was shocked, he was still staring at Misó, who was acting strangely.
"Hey, Kawa-chan! What's with him?"
Manager: "Does that matter right now? He had always been a psycho who would disregard everything around him just because he was bored and attacked everywhere at once. ...That's why I had sent Kanzaki to follow you guys from a distance."
"?"
.
"This name: Misó Epanástasi."
Kanzaki carefully glared at Misó and said, "Whether that is his real full name, or just something he made up, there is no point to use it."
Misó himself didn't rebut this.
He just narrowed his eyes and pointed his hand from Oshiro to Kanzaki.
"What...?"
"We checked around multiple sources, including ones from Greece, where he supposedly came from, and they said that there has never been anyone with the name Misó Epanástasi. It seems he had even lied about his information. Hm. That is ironic. I have been keeping an eye on him since then though. What is more, Kimura and I had asked Shitokei-dono about certain calculations concerning this guy. It seems that she was right on the mark."
Oshiro stared at Misó.
At that moment, Misó widened his eyes.
A loud boom could be heard.
"This guy really is the worst."
With a sharp and icy look, Kanzaki's voice sounded like a blade.
"Meteora."
Yuki watched as his attack was easily fended off by his opponent.
The pole in his hand had a ball attached to the blunt end of it.
The area all around them had turned from an urban area to flat land with some debris here and there.
"Well that was one way to start this off. But really, is that the best you've got?" Pyr started walking forward. "I want my pet to be strong, so you better go all out against me. I have a job to do here, but that doesn't mean I can't have some fun."
Letting out a small sigh, Yuki ran forward with his weapon at the ready.
He spun the pole in his hand and the ball at the end of the blunt side was gone.
A crescent blade appeared on the pointed end of the pole.
Yuki made a slash with the new blade, but missed when his opponent jumped in the air.
He jumped into the air and spun the pole again.
This time the blunt end had the ball back on.
Yuki brought it down with enough power to send Pyr smashing to the ground. He didn't relent as he used the fall to land another hit. The hit caused debris to fly into the air and obscure his vision.
"Nice try, but not good enough."
Yuki saw a hand going for his head and ducked under it.
He reacted by using his own hand to swat the arm away, going for a hit right after.
He felt the impact.
.
Pyr went flying across the battlefield.
Yuki spun the pole again and it reverted to its base form. He put it in the holder at the back of his waist while rushing forward again with a Scorpion blade in hand and a trion cube next to him.
"Next one."
Pyr saw the head-on attack and brought her arm up to block.
She came to understand that this attack was an explosive one with power behind it. That meant she had the advantage since the power and explosion was something she could understand.
It wasn't until she saw Yuki directly in front of her did she think something was off.
She was quick to get out of the way of the bladed attack and kick him away. The issue came as a secondary attack by the explosive shots he had been using.
She clicked her tongue while bringing up her hand.
A large explosion went off that sent the two of them back.
The two readied themselves once more.
.
"Hey, hey. How'd you get in front of me so quickly?"
"I wonder about that as well."
Yuki remained stoic as he got rid of Scorpion.
"Maybe if you pay more attention, you will figure out the answer."
"Hm. Nice to know that my future pet has spunk. Although, I really do need to cut off that silver tongue of yours. Maybe I'll feed it to another one of my pets. Yeah. That should be good. But what to do about your legs?"
She picked up a rock and examined it for a few seconds before tossing it at Yuki.
"A little present from me."
Yuki raised an eyebrow, but still got ready to defend.
"...?"
Then...
"—!"
The rock began to glow for a moment.
He moved back as it did so.
A moment later the space was filled with an explosive sound.
"That's-"
When he looked back up, he saw multiple rocks being thrown at him.
He brought up a shield as he moved back and away from the rocks.
Each one would start to glow briefly before filling the space around them with explosive noises and heat. The light that came, as well as the remaining pieces of rock, had caught his attention more than Pyr herself.
And so...
"Keh!"
A kick came from the side, sending him through the air.
Once he came to a stop and regained his balance, he noticed something.
"This is..."
A "15" was on his side where he had been hit.
Not giving it much thought, he used Scorpion to cut the piece off and throw it to the side.
I'm glad I use this type of fighting over what others do.
It had always been a trivial thing when using a Trigger to decide if the user wanted to be able to take off their clothes or have them remain in place. This had always felt like it meant nothing, so most decided to have their clothes and everything on them unremovable.
But Yuki was different in that regard.
Sensei's teachings really come in handy during the strangest times.
As someone who used feints and tricks to fight, Yuki preferred to be able to take his clothes off when using his Trigger. It allowed him to use those removable clothes to blind others or distract them in certain ways.
And in this case, it allowed for him to remove a tainted part that would soon explode.
Fifteen, huh...?
As he thought that, the piece of clothing exploded in the air.
It had not been as quick as the rocks, but the damage and range seemed to be greater than those as well.
So that's how things are.
Nodding to himself, Yuki pulled out the pole again and spun it.
The crescent blade appeared again.
.
The boy ran forward.
Pyr reacted to the rush by swinging her body around the slashes that he tried.
She retaliated by reaching out her arm.
Her target was not the boy himself. He had been moving too quickly for her to properly grab with her hand. So instead, she went for something else.
His clothes!
Her hand managed to touch the tip of his uniform while he moved around her reach and moved back.
That was no issue.
She saw her Trigger's ability activate on the spot she had touched.
But this kid...
The boy thought nothing as he cut off the tip of his uniform while moving back.
Her explosion went off.
It was not a large one, but it was enough to cause dust and debris to fly into the air.
By the time it went off, she had already started moving.
Her arms were prepared to grab for whatever came in front of her.
But what that was had not been what she expected.
"—!?"
The jacket from the boy's uniform had appeared in front of her without any warning.
The piece of clothing covered most of her vision, forcing her to make a sudden action.
Back!
Using one of her own explosions, she forcibly threw herself back.
From in front of her she would see the boy had been trying to reach her from the side. He needed to move back before the explosion caught him.
Take that, you damn idiot!
Even with some marks on him, the boy straightened himself up and smirked.
"So that's how it is."
"What?"
What was he talking about?
"I figured it out."
Was he talking to himself or talking to her?
"That's right. I know now. That's why I can say this without any issue."
What would he say?
"You're the worst one of your group...aren't you?"
Everything stopped.
Pyr stared blankly at the boy who had said something she did not fully comprehend.
"You don't have a Black Trigger. Besides that, you are being held up by a single boy. A boy who is already at the end of his life. That means you're the weakest one."
His words were coming through, but they were something else.
Something she refused to believe.
This boy continued talking as Pyr extended out her arm.
"Yeah. You're the worst. Especially since you gave me the time to say all of that."
That was it.
"You little shit!"
Murakami starred the three of them down.
One Rabbit had been something to deal with as it was, now he could only look as the two who had arrived moved closer with the first.
Each one of the three Rabbits had marks across their bodies and cracks littering them as well. They were otherwise unharmed though. Their cores are still intact.
Opposed to them...
Different colored ones have different abilities. But...
Murakami held strong.
If I take them all on, no one else has to deal with them.
With only Raygust in his grasp, he prepared for the next attack.
Cracks ran along his body with trion leaking from the gash at his shoulder and opposite stump where his arm use to be.
Even so, he stood his ground.
Even if I can't take them all on, I can at least keep them here!
The first one came forward as it's arm began to turn into something akin to mud.
This would be the next strike.
"!?"
But it was not.
.
"Hey, Murakami. I've got orders from Shinoda-san to destroy these. Mind if I take over?"
Murakami could only sigh as he lowered Raygust.
There was no longer a need for him to fight here.
After all...
"They're all yours...Tachikawa-san."
Border's #1 was here.
"Senkū Kōgetsu."
It was a momentary lengthening of Kōgetsu's reach that came from Tachikawa.
And it's most deadly at the tip of the blade.
Murakami watched in amazement as the three Rabbits giving him trouble were taken out in that single moment by Tachikawa.
Each one of them flew over their heads in parts. None of them had even managed to attack them proper before they had been cut up.
And standing in front of him was the one who had done so without any issue and now held a hand to his ear.
Kōgetsu: "Kunichika. What's the ranking like against these new models?"
Kuni: "Arashiyama: 3. Kazama: 3. Konami: 2. B-Ranks: 2. Kitora: 1. Akasora: 1. Yuki: 1. Mei: 3. And one by...Mikumo? With that third kill you're tied for the top, Tachikawa-san."
Kōgetsu: "Give two of mine to Murakami. He dealt the most damage."
Kuni: "Gotcha!"
"Isn't that great, Murakami? Now you're ahead of Yuki and I get to rub this in his and Akasora-san's face."
It took a moment for those words to register in his mind.
Once they did, he could only nod his head.
"While it's nice to have one over Yuki like that, you should watch out for Sensei. Remember what happened the last time you tried something like that?"
The visible shiver Tachikawa gave was proof that he did remember what had happened.
That may have also been why he turned away with a nervous laugh and spoke again, this time changing the subject.
"Okay! Where to next?"
It had been a simple question, but Murakami knew better than that.
Considering I was only spared that time because he and Yuki took the blame, I can't say anything about that.
So he answered readily with the current situation.
That being...
"It looks like Kazama-san was taken out by a Black Trigger. There's also a B-Rank squad engaging a humanoid Neighbor."
"Both of those sound interesting. But aren't you leaving something out?"
"..."
"No need to hide it from me. I'm not the commander this time. ...So what is it?"
Leave it to him to push the subject.
"Yuki is also fighting a humanoid Neighbor, and Misó has defected to their side as well. Hogo and Kanzaki are fighting him now."
"So his true colors finally show, huh? No, it would be better to say that he is just 'going home.'"
It was the truth he did not want to think about right now.
Tachikawa gave nothing away with his expression as a voice came through to them from the base.
Shinoda: "Kei, head east. Take Kazama's place in eradicating trion soldiers there. Protect the C-Rank trainees and civilians."
Netsuki: "Director Shinoda! What about the Black Trigger!?"
Kinuta: "Now that Kazama's been defeated...who besides Tachikawa could fight it?"
Shinoda: "According to Kazama and Azuma's reports, the humanoid Neighbors are targeting the agents. That means that they are doing what Sekai had figured out. They are leeching the defenses away from the new models. The enemy's ultimate goal is to capture the C-Rank trainees using the new models. If we confront the humanoid Neighbors with force now, we'll be playing right into their hands."
So Sekai-san figured this out too...
That was not surprising when taking that man's thought process into account.
Murakami felt something begin to rise up at that, but he quickly pushed it down to focus on what Shinoda was saying.
Now was not the time for personal matters to come up.
Shinoda: "Should the Neighbors head out into the city to target C-Rank trainees and civilians, I will allow a fight. Cut them down."
Kōgetsu: "Roger. Tachikawa, out."
Murakami straightened his face when he looked at Tachikawa.
It was clear what had been on his mind from the moment Shinoda had finished speaking.
That may have been why a final comment came through for him.
GM Aide: "As a note: Akasora is currently going around the city to help out where he can. That means you have a chance to run into him."
The reaction to that had been just as fast.
Looks like he's really out of luck here.
Tachikawa had just lost hope for what he wanted.
"Hah. I guess I might as well do this then..."
"?"
"Hey, Mei. You hear me?"
It was Murakami's turn to freeze up.
He wanted to make a leap for Tachikawa to make him stop, but it was already too late.
.
Kōgetsu: "Are you busy?"
Wisteria: "I am only going over to help Yuki."
Kōgetsu: "Good. Glad you aren't busy."
Wisteria: "You should be pretty busy yourself. Make this quick."
Kōgetsu: "I'm with Murakami over here and got to see what he's been up to. Looks like he was fighting three of the new models on his own. He was doing pretty well too, until I showed up. I'm sure that getting some praise from you would make his day."
Wisteria: "I see. Murakami."
Black Wolf: "...Yes?"
Wisteria: "Well done over there. As your former upperclassman, I am very happy to know that you managed something like that. Oh, but I guess you don't want to hear that if I am your former upperclassman. Anyway, please keep up the good work. I will treat you to something once this is all over."
Black Wolf: "No need for that, Senpai! And I still consider you my upperclassman, so it's really nice to hear you say that!"
Wisteria: "In that case, I will make sure to give you some head pats as well."
.
"Well this has been fun. Looks like you get some pretty good rewards for your hard work, Murakami."
As he spoke, the #1 turned to look at the #4. What he saw was what he expected.
"Hm... That's unfair... And I'm not a dog, Senpai!"
A completely defeated wolf.
"Hm, hm. Nice going here."
"Jin!"
Responding to the two greetings, Jin waved with a smile.
The destruction around him was negligible as the two Arashiyama Squad members and Kuga walked towards him.
"I thought you were in charge of the western area."
"I had Amō cover for me. But besides that..."
Jin moved behind the trio until he stood directly behind Kuga. Lifting his hand, he placed it atop the white head of hair with a grin.
"Sorry, Arashiyama. You mind if I take Yūma?"
"Of course I don't mind. But if you are the one taking action, does that mean something big is coming up?"
"I'm worried about Megane-kun and Chika-chan."
That's right, he had seen it.
It was something only he had been able to see, but something he was slightly glad about.
The fact it turned out this way just means that it can still be changed. Unchangeable futures are always the worst.
But something could be done about this one.
"We're at a crossroads right now, where we could end up with a number of futures."
"I thought you and Takato had already figured things out though."
"We could only reach a conclusion on the basic matters. This is something that came up due to the situation."
It was troublesome to say it, but even the combined effort of the two of them had not been enough to guarantee the outcome of the whole invasion.
But still...
"Didn't Konami-senpai and the others join up with Osamu? Does that mean they're fighting someone who can beat Konami-senpai?"
"Even if Konami doesn't lose, things can still turn out for the worst. Not just victory and defeat determine the future."
He had seen it happen before.
Loss came in all forms. That much would always remain in his mind.
"What does the worst future look like? Chika gets captured?"
"No, that's one step short of the worst."
"...!?"
"In the worst future, Megane-kun...dies."
As he ran, Maki listened to the conversation happening a distance away from him.
Jin had called him over earlier on, but he was only now reaching the location. Neighbors had been all over the area and he had been taking out whichever ones he could without using too much trion. It was troublesome at times, but no new models had shown up just yet.
It was something he was grateful for.
But then he had been put into an ongoing conversation.
It was uncertain who had done it, but the voice of a Tamakoma member came through to him.
2.7 Maime: "Megane-kun...dies."
Maki felt his feet begin to stop at hearing that, already knowing that it was Jin who had said those words. There could not have been anyone else to say them.
The thing that prevented him from making a full stop was the simple fact that he did not know the context of the conversation. Guessing would only get him so far, and it would do no good if he guessed wrong and acted out of his own thoughts.
So instead he listened.
UMA: "Osamu's going to die!?"
#5 Mountain: "What are you saying!?"
So Yūma and Arashiyama are with him.
That gave more context to the situation Jin was in, but not to what he had meant.
2.7 Maime: "Nope, that's not for sure yet. I just meant in the worst-case scenario. And of course...we're going to keep that from happening. Isn't that right...Maki-kun?"
Maki felt something start to boil up in him in the casual way Jin spoke to him.
It was now clear who had been the one to patch him through to their conversation.
Toki: "Will Commander Kido be okay with you bringing Yūma-kun?"
2.7 Maime: "I already spoke with him about it at the base. He's okay with it as long as we don't leave the Forbidden Zone."
#5 Mountain: "Then you really can't go save Mikumo-kun!"
If those two could not reach Osamu and the others in time for the future to reach them then it would be pointless to even try and go there.
But there was more to it than that, Maki knew.
This would not be brought up so casually if there was not already a plan set in place.
So he continued to listen.
UMA: "Does that mean we'll wait for Osamu and the others at the edge of the Forbidden Zone?"
2.7 Maime: "No. They're heading to us. By the time we rendezvous, they'll be in the Forbidden Zone. And more than that..."
Here it was.
2.7 Maime: "They will have Maki-kun to guide them."
"There it is," Maki sighed out.
He knew that it was leading up to this since he was being sent this conversation.
"You want me to change directions and move towards them since I don't have the restriction of not being able to leave the area, right?"
2.7 Maime: "Exactly. Kyōsuke is already guiding them, but having you there as well will make things go smoother. So all you need to do is turn a bit and make it there to help."
This was what everyone had been dealing with for some time now. Jin knowing what to do and telling others the outcomes.
Maki had only recently joined Border and was already being thrown into something like this.
There was only a glimpse of what others were dealing with daily, but he felt like he understood properly now.
The training at Tamakoma while the others were gone was a good way to ease into the lunacy that is that branch.
But as he thought that, another thing came to mind.
"This is fine. I'll go help out since I don't want him to die.
Other battles were going on at the same time.
One consisted of multiple B-Rank Border agents against a single, red-haired Neighbor.
Another had just finished up between the #3 A-Rank team and a black-haired Neighbor with an odd Trigger.
The last battle was the one that was meant to protect the C-Rank agents that were there.
The last battle was the one that was meant to capture the C-Rank agents that were there.
The ones who were on this battlefield were an old and young Neighbor and a team from the Tamakoma Branch.
"Resistance is futile."
As the brown haired Neighbor spoke, a shield of magnets floated in front of him, protecting him from the gunfire Karasuma Kyōsuke and Kizaki Reiji were letting out.
Karasuma changed the type of bullets he was using.
He started firing again.
This time the shots moved around the shield of magnets and came from multiple directions.
Most of the shots were blocked by the magnets floating around the brown haired Neighbor, but some managed to get through and strike the brown haired Neighbor.
Konami came from above and behind with her large battle axe - known as Sōgetsu - ready to strike. She grinned as she fell.
The brown haired Neighbor looked back to get ready for the strike.
An old man with a cane appeared in front of Konami, blocking her attack with relative ease.
"Ho ho. What an energetic young lady."
"—!?"
"Hmph. And quick on the update as well."
Konami narrowed her eyes as the old man moved closer to his partner.
There had been something odd about the old man, forcing her to move back.
.
What was that just now? This guy's Trigger gives me a really bad vibe...
As he moved closer to the brown haired Neighbor, the old man started to speak. His tone remained as calm as when they first arrived.
"Hyuse. There's no need to waste your skill in this skirmish. Let's achieve our goal and withdraw."
"Understood."
The brown haired Neighbor lifted his arm up. The magnets followed along before starting to clash and morph together. They started to take a new form in the shape of, what could be compared to, a shotgun-sized railgun.
Small electrical discharges came off of the new weapon as it seemed to be charging up for a new attack.
What is he making down there!?
A railgun was a sort of battleship weapon that fired metal shells using super powered electromagnets. The principle behind them was similar to a linear motor train.
Konami watched in surprise as such a weapon was created with ease as if it was a simple gun.
.
Hyuse lifted his weapon up as if aiming for something.
Before anyone could really register what happened, something shot forward from the shotgun-sized railgun. That something slammed into Amatori, who had been retreating with Mikumo and the other C-Rank agents.
It was more like a laser than say something like a spear. They could only tell that it had originated from the boy's weapon because the aftermath of light stretched back to it.
"Target captured."
Mikumo and Kizaki were quick to turn their attention to see the few magnets embedded into Amatori's shoulder.
With a small zapping sound, Amatori was lifted into the air. Smaller magnets made a sort of link to Hyuse as electricity seemed to run through it.
Mikumo wasted no time in grabbing Amatori's hand while also grabbing a nearby fence.
That didn't seem to do much though as the two were still being lifted into the air.
"Kyōsuke!"
"Roger!"
Seeing Karasuma firing the same trajectory-changing shots as before, Hyuse commanded the magnets around him to create a dome around him. This defense seemed to work as no shots had made it through.
Although...
"!"
Hyuse was sent flying out of his own protective dome by a hard punch from Kizaki.
It was obvious to everyone who saw that Kizaki had taken the chance to hit where the defense was the weakest, letting him land the hit.
Noticing something familiar, Kizaki looked down to see the same magnets now stuck in his arm.
Tamakoma's Muscle: "I see. I've figured out how his Trigger works. It's magnets. Those reflective shards operate like magnets... All of them are pushing and pulling toward each other, they're manipulated by the power he gives off. That's what killed the force of my attack."
Kizaki turned his attention from his arm to the two black haired agents behind him.
"Kyōsuke. Osamu. Hurry to HQ with the C-Ranks. Keep Amatori out of this guy's magnets' range."
"Are you sure? You won't have numbers on your side anymore. Not to mention that Ketsu-san is still a good distance away."
"We're in no position to retreat a little at a time. Konami and I will keep them here."
"Roger."
Karasuma put his hand to his ear as he started moving with the others.
"Director Shinoda, this is Karasuma. I'm heading from the southwest to HQ with the C-Rank trainees."