It was a war fought with the smallest number of participants.

The sound of clashing swords echoed, as if playing a melody.
In the central district at night, red lights and silver shooting stars raced freely through the streets.

“Hahaha, you’re really good at this kill-or-be-killed stuff, aren’t you?!”
“This is fun. Though, I find this tune a bit dull.”
“In that case, I’ll make it more intense just for you!”

The battle, growing fiercer, had already moved beyond the buildings and spread across the entire central district.
And that made sense.
An S-rank title refers to humanoid monsters with strength surpassing that of a single academy.

Given that, a battle between two S-ranks could only be called a war.

“Eina, I’m begging you, don’t get fooled by illusions again!”
“Got it. I’ve updated my perception data, so it should be fine… probably.”
“Hey, hey, say it with more confidence. Well, next time, I’ll crush this guy before I even see any illusions!”

With his feet planted on a building wall, Rokuhara leaped in one swift motion.
The impact shattered all the glass in the buildings beneath him.

The glass raining down caused a commotion among the onlookers, making them scream in fear.
However, it seemed to only serve to excite Rokuhara.

“I’m gonna cut that clunky outfit to pieces!”
“You really don’t know how to treat a lady properly.”

Rokuhara closed the distance to Sorciera in a single jump, swinging his twin swords toward her abdomen.
But it was deflected by a large scythe that slid into place.

“Tch.”
“Not even close. Try again.”

Sorciera, without even looking at Rokuhara, summoned a magic circle, which formed a cannon that mimicked a convergence blast.

“You’re not so hot yourself!”

Rokuhara, having thrown himself into the air, used Aina to defend against the blast.
However, the momentum of the cannon sent him plummeting straight to the ground, about thirty meters below.

The sight of Rokuhara crashing down caused the students to scream in panic and flee.
Even those with physical abilities beyond human limits, like explorers, had no choice but to run from the fight between two S-ranks.

“Hahaha, look at that, Aina. My clothes are all dirty now. It’s been a while.”
“Are you okay?”
“Who are you talking to? It’s not like getting knocked off a rooftop is going to hurt me.”
“Ah…”

Cracking his neck, Rokuhara looked up.
But Sorciera was nowhere to be seen.

“Huh?”
“—I prefer intense music.”

A cold voice came from behind him.
Without turning, Rokuhara instinctively pressed his twin swords to his neck.

Soon, with a high-pitched sound, Rokuhara’s swords clashed against Sorciera’s strike.

“Come on, with that look, you like rock music? With an outfit like a doll’s, you should be listening to something more refined, like classical.”
“I don’t like that. It’s boring.”

Rokuhara’s twin swords deflected the scythe upward.
As he turned, he raised his swords again—but as a feint, he kicked out instead.

The kick aimed for her chin was blocked by a barrier Sorciera summoned at the last moment.

“…I see.”

Rokuhara closed the distance and shifted to a close-combat style, incorporating his twin swords and kicks.
Sorciera, with a calm demeanor, avoided and parried with her barriers, countering when she could.

Their back-and-forth seemed almost like a dance, but it was Rokuhara who made the first move.

“Come on, where did all that fun cannon fire go?”

In response, magic circles began to form around Rokuhara.
But before they could activate, he stepped in even closer.

If it fired, it would hit Sorciera as well, but she quickly realized this and dispelled the circles, moving to avoid.

Sorciera attempted to jump backward, but Rokuhara seemed to anticipate it, following her movements.

“Men who are persistent are unpopular, you know?”
“I’ve always been like this. Sorry about that.”

Again, Rokuhara’s twin swords came down toward Sorciera.
At that moment, another magic circle was activated.

(This magic array is different from the last one.)

In less than a second, Rokuhara realized it was a different magic array.

(This one, I recognize it—could it be?)

“Aina!”

Just before the array activated, Rokuhara shouted.
At the same time, the array shone brightly.

It looked like a flash of light meant to blind him, but Rokuhara already knew its true nature—an illusion-casting light.

“I’m fine. I blocked it this time.”
“Good… but now we’re back at a distance.”

Rokuhara’s caution against the illusions left him vulnerable, and Sorciera took advantage of the opening to teleport behind him.
She was already positioned above him, summoning several magic circles.

“Leader…”
“Huh? Don’t worry. A hit like that won’t bother me. More importantly… we can win this fight.”

Rokuhara grinned viciously as he readied his twin swords.

“Eh? You think you can beat Big Sis!? So, I don’t need to think of a death poem then?”
“Stop wasting resources on stupid stuff. She’s strong, but that’s all. Her fighting style is basic, like a beginner’s.”

Rokuhara’s instincts from fighting many strong opponents told him that Sorciera, being naturally strong, hadn’t refined her combat style.

“Being strong means you don’t need to be creative. There’s no need to think of the next move. It’s obvious. You don’t need skill or strategy to crush an ant.”

Faced with a large number of magic circles, Rokuhara stood still.

“Really annoying, those born with strength.”

The magic circles continued to activate.
In the center of them, Sorciera aimed her scythe at Rokuhara and spoke.

“Know the brilliance of the stars.”
“I’ll bring down that star.”

Silver flashes of light were unleashed.
At the same time, from all the surrounding magic circles, similar cannon blasts fired.

Before the devastating light that had once defeated Ouroboros, Rokuhara simply scratched his head and laughed.

“Aina, you should have locked onto it by now.”
“Got it, Leader.”

A red light flickered.

To counter the incoming silver light, it grew brighter, and soon, all the converging cannon fire was scattered into mist.
The shockwave sent violent winds through the area, shattering every window in the surrounding buildings.

In the center of the upheaved asphalt, Rokuhara stood alone, gazing up at Sorciera.

“Ah, it’s been a while since I felt this way.”

Around him, magical energy swirled like a red wind.

“Yeah, if we’re up against Demonsgear, we’ve gotta be Demonsgear too!”

Rokuhara connected the two sword hilts together.
With a satisfying click, his twin swords transformed.

It became a massive bow, nearly as tall as Rokuhara himself.

“The board told me I could use this with restrictions. So, I shouldn’t hold back, right?”

A red string appeared across the bow.
Rokuhara focused his magic into his hands, forming it into an arrow.

“Let’s start with a greeting.”

As he released the arrow, the condensed magic energy shot toward Sorciera.
Sorciera swung her scythe to intercept it, sending it flying into the air.

But, that wasn’t the end.

“It’s useless.”
“Wha!?”

The arrow, having been sent into the air, suddenly changed its trajectory as if it had a mind of its own, flying back toward Sorciera.
She briefly showed a look of surprise, but quickly countered with a magic blast that destroyed it.

Rokuhara observed the scene, muttering to himself.

“Aina never lets go once she locks onto something. There’s no such thing as escape for her.”

“Leader, are we actually pushing Big Sis back!? We can do it, can’t we!?”
“Don’t get excited until we win.”

Rokuhara once again pulled the bowstring back.

The next arrow shot toward Sorciera, only to be destroyed by another blast.

“Now, you’ll have to deal with my arrows one by one. No escaping.”

Rokuhara smiled, eyeing Sorciera like prey as she readied her scythe.

“Now, let’s dance to my tune.”