Black Iron Magician

(With this level of pressure, they won’t show an opening so easily, huh? Hmm, they’re doing well. I guess it’s because the master was good. Oh my, it’s embarrassing. …… Well then, it’s about time for the next step.)

The name of Deris’s staff is 『Bardock』. The main material is the black magic stone, and Deris completed this unique staff by using all of Maria’s blood during the manufacturing process.

Deris, the world’s best magic item craftsman, made it at the world’s most advanced facility in the machine country Al Nova using Maria’s blood, the world’s strongest catalyst, and was assisted by Lilyvia, who copied the world’s highest technique―― it may sounds exaggerated, but everything is true. It has the disadvantage that only Deris can use it due to the characteristics of the black magic stone, but the performance is worthy of it.

Earlier, Haruna and the others thought that it was a gun, and a staff is just in name only. Well, considering its appearance, it can’t be helped if they evaluate it that way. However, its performance is unparalleled even as a staff. In the first place, why does a magician uses a staff? To strengthen magic? To shorten the time it takes to chant? To use magic more efficiently? Well, there are many answers, and all of them are correct. And yes, Deris’s Bardock has all of these functions.

Bardock can memorize up to ten types of Deris’s magic. The memorized magic does not require chanting when invoked, and the consumption of magic power is reduced to the utmost limits. Just by pulling the trigger, the magic power is solidified as bullets, and they can be fired continuously at a long distance at super high speed. However, since setting targets and selecting bullets must be done one by one, it will put a huge burden on the user’s brain. If an ordinary person were to do the same thing, their brain won’t be able to keep up with the instructions and the capacity would be exhausted in an instant. However, it can only be used by Deris in the first place, so this point is not a problem. Anyway, this Bardock has monstrous functions as a staff.

(Today’s weather is super-gravity spear bullets, magic-disabling bullets, and――)

A bullet is fired from the muzzle that’s still firing continuously. Like the super-gravity bullets that repelled Haruna’s black balls, and the magic-disabling bullets that negated Touko’s ki bullets, the bullets are colorless and transparent, and the existence itself couldn’t be perceived unless one has a high-level detection skill.

(――fake universe bullets!)

The new bullets are mixed with the intercepting bullets. It looks as if they were going to intercept the attacks, but they changed direction on the way and approached Haruna and the others.

(They finally came!)

(Yeah, they came!)

(They came! Yay!)

Although the nuance of the words may be a little different, Haruna and the others properly activated their detection skills to grasp the stray bullets. And then, they decided what they should do after this.

(I and Touko-chan――)

(――we will continue to attack without worrying about them!)

(And I alone will do something about Deris-san’s counterattack!)

Haruna and Touko will attack with all their might, and Chinatsu will defend with all her might. Surprisingly, it isn’t different from before.

(The speed of the firing sound hasn’t changed! It means that Shishō reduced the amount of the intercepting bullets for the counterattack!)

(Then, if we continue to concentrate on attacking, our attacks will reach Danna!)

「「We just need to believe in Chinatsu(-chan) and attack with our all!」」

Haruna and Touko’s shouts overlapped. Listening to the shouts, which are proof of their trust in her, Chinatsu smiled as she watched their backs.

(This is the most difficult position, though…. Well, I’ve already confirmed again and again that this is my role. Ugh, the speed and number of bullets are crazy…)

Well, it was a wry smile, or an expression that’s difficult to describe. However, there’s a meaning behind it.

(Alright, the stress is enough! With my Unique Skill, even this stress would become a weapon! Deris-san, I’m sorry if you go bald!)

After feeling enough pressure, Chinatsu begins to turn all of her thought processes to defense. Still, she doesn’t know what kinds of bullets are approaching them.

(If I don’t know, then I just need to find out!)

The shield-shaped barriers that were generated beforehand are placed in the path of the approaching threat, sensed by the detection skill. At this point, Chinatsu’s concentration was at its highest limit.

(The important thing is the moment of contact….)

At the moment the bullet made contact with the barrier, Chinatsu determined the effect of the magic bullet that was activated at that moment. Most of the magic that Deris mastered had already been drilled into her head in Alezel’s lectures and she had already learned how to deal with it. Still, there are a lot of them. It would be impossible at normal brain processing speed to instantaneously derive the correct answer from among the numerous options and immediately execute the prepared countermeasures before Deris’ magic is fully activated.

(――! I sensed an absurd gravity vortex! In all probability, it’s Fake Universe!)

However, she’s the goddess that Deris worships. She’s a girl who can get things done when she has to, even if it’s a source of stress for her. While having a nosebleed from overworking her brain, Chinatsu arrived at the right answer in a split second. At the same time, she was chanting 『Miracle Regul』, a level 60 Holy Magic that Deris has been using since a while ago. It’s a magic that shots a small light ball at the speed of light, and it activates when hits the target. The target that gets hit will have its magical effects nullified in an instant. However, it’s necessary to know in advance what kind of magic the target is, so it’s hard to use because it can’t be used thoughtlessly.

(I did it…!)

The absurd gravitational space continued to shrink and then disappeared completely. Chinatsu perfectly defended against Deris’s counterattack.

After that, new bullets flew in, but Chinatsu continued to block and nullify them over and over again. Now, the distance between the two parties is so close, and in a few seconds, they will be in a position to directly exchange blows.

(Hmm, Bidove Advas bullet doesn’t work either, huh? Good grief, she’s using the difficult-to-use Miracle Regul at a reflexive speed, huh? She must have learned all about my magic…. It’s a different kind of mastery that Haru can never imitate. As expected of Goddess Chinatsu. It seems that she’s also continuously using recovery magic on herself, so she can keep going――whoa!)

A black mass suddenly entered Deris’s field of vision. It was Haruna’s black ball that was shot at Deris’s face. While continued to shoot his gun, Deris set up a barrier and defended against the ball just in time.

(That was close. My face was almost crushed. Was it the fourth time that the attack reached me? Nobody got injured, so let’s call it a draw for the skirmish. Well then, now that we’re so close, let’s do it seriously.)

Thinking so, Deris prepared something that looks like a hand grenade in his pocket.