Jack of All Trades, Party of None

As Ms. Fuuka and Ms. Philly glared at each other,

“Luna, if you stay here, you’ll just get in Fuuka’s way. Take the marquis to the guild,” Mr. Haruto called out.

It seemed they had no intention of stopping Fuuka from facing Philly alone.

Indeed, she now exuded such an intense aura that she seemed like a completely different person from before.

It was obvious that my exhausted self would only be a burden here, so it was best to leave immediately.

“Understood. —Lord Forgus, can you stand?”

“Ah, ah. I’m fine. You’re heading to the guild, right? Could you explain the situation along the way?”

Judging from their exchange, Philly seemed involved in the marquis’s amnesia, perhaps linked to her supernatural ability.

“...Understood. First, let’s get out of here.”

Mr. Haruto and the others had already begun moving toward the North Gate.

I, too, stayed alert as I carried the marquis, heading toward the guild.

◇　◇　◇

“In recognition of your bravery in putting yourself at a disadvantage, I’ll let you strike first. Now, come at me.”

Philly said this to Fuuka with an air of confidence.

Since their earlier fight, Philly was certain she would not lose.

However, that was only true if Fuuka was still relying on party coordination to buy time.

Until now, Fuuka’s goal had been to stall until she could use her future sight again.

Fuuka’s future sight let her see a few seconds ahead, but if she took a risk, she could see further into the future.

That risk was that after looking further ahead, she couldn’t use future sight for some time.

On the carriage ride back from Maranto, Fuuka had seen a future where Luna lost to Philly, so until recently, she couldn’t see the future.

Now, though, she was able to use future sight again.

Currently, Fuuka was a far cry from her previous self who had suppressed her power for coordination and refrained from using her ability.

――It didn’t take Philly long to realize this.

Without any tricks, Fuuka closed the distance on Philly.

“—!”

Philly, unlike when she took Fuuka’s first strike earlier, was now fully focused on her movements.

Even with her superhuman reflexes, it was barely enough to track Fuuka’s genuine attacks.

She managed to spot Fuuka’s movements and tried to block the approaching sword with her staff.

――But before Fuuka, who could see the future, defense and evasion were meaningless.

Fuuka’s blade avoided the staff and struck Philly.

“Ugh...ngh...”

Philly collapsed, critically wounded.

“...I know this is a fake. Hurry and send out the next one, will you? I’ll keep going until you reach your limit.”

Fuuka said to the Philly she assumed was still present.

Then, the collapsed Philly vanished, and an unhurt Philly appeared a short distance away.

“...Die.”

Philly muttered with no effort to hide her displeasure, and countless offensive magic spells assailed Fuuka.

Fuuka dodged them all with light, graceful movements.

Then, in an instant, she closed the distance to Philly and swung her sword.

This time Philly chose to evade, but Fuuka already knew how Philly would move, and slashed the spot where she would land.

――It was as if Philly had come to be cut herself.

Philly, who thought she had evaded, was shocked by the searing pain and died.

◇

Philly disappeared again, and another unhurt Philly appeared nearby.

For the first time, a look of panic crossed her face.

Philly’s supernatural ability was cognitive alteration.

As the name suggests, it rewrites the perception of the chosen target.

The two Philadelphia Fuukas had slashed earlier were mere illusions created by Philly’s ability.

By altering Fuuka’s perception, it made her believe Philly was present.

This was the true nature of the phenomenon.

The tricky part was that for the target, it was as real as reality.

Philly cast offensive magic and simultaneously altered Fuuka’s perception to prevent her from sensing it.

It was impossible to withstand the attack.――However, Fuuka calculated backward from the future vision of being attacked and dodged.