“Do I really have to say it?” Shizuru stood in the corner of the abandoned greenhouse, clutching her newly summoned scythe, her expression looking as though she were going through some agonizing struggle.
Kizuna, already holding her bow, nodded seriously. “Of course you do! Star-trail said that shouting out your move names or a slogan during transformation helps the magic circuits run more smoothly.”
“Even though we've already transformed, reciting a slogan before the battle starts should have a similar effect. Besides, this is our first official team deployment. Don't you think it's worth commemorating?”
“When did Star-trail ever say something like that?” Yuki, who had already transformed into Snowrealm, asked in confusion as she adjusted the ice-dust chains on her wrists.
“During our last training session!” Kizuna raised her bow, mimicking Star-trail's tone. “'Self-suggestion during transformation can enhance the mana in your circuits'—that's exactly what it said.”
“It was just trying to get you to relax,” Snowrealm pointed out flatly.
“Even so, slogans are very important! And since we're a team, of course our slogans should follow a unified format. I've already come up with them for us! Look—”
She pulled three sticky notes from her waist pouch. Written on them in highlighter were three lines of text in a round, bubbly handwriting, decorated with little stars and music notes.
Shizuru took a sticky note. As she read the words by the sunlight filtering through the greenhouse roof, her expression instantly froze.
Snowrealm took another one. After reading it, she fell silent for a moment.
“Well? What do you think? I spent a really long time thinking about them!” Kizuna clasped her hands together, her bow tucked under her arm, looking at the two with sparkling eyes. “I tailored each one specifically to our individual combat styles!”
“Tailored... Do we really have to recite them here?”
Shizuru looked around. The abandoned greenhouse contained nothing but a few half-dead potted plants and a dust-covered bench. Sunlight streamed through the broken glass panes of the roof, illuminating Kizuna's expectant face.
“Of course! While there's no one around, let's say them and head out!”
“Fine.” Shizuru held the sticky note before her eyes, took a deep breath, and read in a completely flat, robotic tone, “The crescent scythe that tears through the night sky and severs fate—Mingyue, has arrived!”
“The blade of ice that freezes all darkness and paves your way—Snowrealm, has arrived...”
“The melodic player who shoots arrows of hope and lights up the stars—Seina, has arrived!” Kizuna raised her bow high above her head, hopping in place as she finished. “You guys read that way too half-heartedly! Especially you, Mingyue-senpai!”
“Pfft.” A snicker came from the top of an old shelf in the corner of the greenhouse.
Star-trail was lying next to a stack of empty flowerpots, its tail dangling over the edge of the shelf. Starlight particles gently shook off its body as it tried to stifle its laughter.
“Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I just happened to be sleeping here, and then I heard someone about to tear through the night sky—”
“Star-trail!” Kizuna pointed her bow at the top of the shelf. There was no arrow on the string yet, but the threat was loud and clear. “You've been there the whole time? How much did you hear!”
“Right from 'Do I really have to say it?'” Star-trail hopped down from the shelf, landing in front of the three girls.
It looked up at them. “So, are you done chanting? If you're done, let's head out.”
“You were clearly snickering.” Mingyue rested her scythe on the ground, the blush on her ears from reciting the slogan still not fully faded.
“I wasn't.” Star-trail padded past their feet, leading the way toward the greenhouse exit.
Just as it rounded the dusty row of flowerpot shelves, a soft, jingling sound echoed from behind.
It stopped. Before it could turn around, something soft and fluffy gently bumped against the back of its neck.
“Wait for me!” Nuomi hopped down from Mingyue's shoulder and chased Star-trail to the greenhouse door. “Mingyue said this is a team mission, so the Contract Spirits need to cooperate too. That means the two of us have to work together.”
Star-trail glanced sideways at Nuomi, then looked back at the three girls standing not far away.
Mingyue was hoisting her scythe onto her shoulder, pretending she wasn't listening to their conversation.
“...You're not staying with Mingyue?” Star-trail asked.
“I'm in a group with you.” Nuomi pointed at Mingyue, who was adjusting her gear behind them. “Mingyue said she only needs her scythe, so she told me to help you. Besides, if you're by yourself—no, if you're just one beast, it'll be really inconvenient if you run into a situation that requires close-quarters combat.”
“Understood.” Star-trail nodded. Nuomi followed close behind, its twin tails held high in the air.
Qiluo leaned back in the shadow of the water tower, taking off her wig and setting it aside, letting the gentle breeze blow through her hair, which had been stifled for most of the day.
The sunlight was just right, neither too hot nor too cold, and the faint beat of drums from the distant sports field could be heard.
Her consciousness was split in two: one part remained in her main body, resting with her eyes closed, while the other sank into Star-trail, flying through the clouds behind Nuomi.
During the high-speed flight, only the sound of the wind and occasional breathing could be heard over the communication channel.
Seina was the first to break the silence. “Since this is the first time the three of us are officially teaming up, shouldn't we have a team name?”
She was clearly still dwelling on the fact that Star-trail had overheard their slogans in the greenhouse.
“We can think of a team name after the fight. For now, let's confirm our tactics.”
Shizuru remained cautious. “I'll handle close-range offenses, Snowrealm will manage mid-range crowd control, and Seina will handle long-range precision elimination. Maintain a triangular formation, and don't drift too far apart.”
“Understood,” Snowrealm's response was short and crisp.
“Roger that!” Seina followed immediately.
The mountain range rapidly expanded in their field of vision.
The entire surface of the mountain was covered in a layer of dark green vines that were still writhing, like countless massive serpents wrapping around the slopes.
The trees at the foot of the mountain had completely withered, their bare, twisted branches stretching toward the sky.
The core of the Erosion Body was at the peak of the mountain—a massive, twisted, tree-like structure.
Its canopy blotted out the sun, its drooping branches resembling the bars of a cage, and the surface of its trunk was covered in dense cracks.
In the middle of the trunk, a face formed by folds of bark slowly turned, two pools of dark purple light glowing in its hollow eye sockets.
“So this is a B+ Tier.” Mingyue hovered a short distance from the foot of the mountain, her scythe held horizontally in front of her.
“There's a mana barrier around it.” Snowrealm raised her hand, and several ice crystals flew from her palm toward the mountainside. The crystals hit an invisible wall a few meters away from the outermost vines, shattering into tiny points of light.
“The barrier is quite strong. We need to focus our attacks on a single point to break through.”
Rate on N.U.
