Jack of All Trades, Party of None

Closing the distance between us, the "hero" made the first move.

He swung his sword, aiming to cut me.

I narrowly dodged it.

Aiming for the exposed chest of the "hero" immediately after his sword strike, I swung my sword as well.

Since my sword still had the support magic of [sharpness nullification], it wouldn't be cut in half.

The blade approached the "hero," but suddenly it was blocked by something invisible, and the blade couldn’t reach him.

(Again. It feels like I’m being pushed back with equal force from the opposite side... But what is this strange sensation...?)

I immediately relaxed the force I was using to swing the Schwarzhase and didn’t resist the pushing force, creating distance from the "hero."

As I jumped backward, I activated [wind strike (aero shock)] near his face, but it didn’t reach him either.

However, the dust raised by the [wind strike (aero shock)] allowed me to see clearly. An invisible spherical force field covered the "hero."

This force field was likely the reason why neither sword nor magic could reach him.

Bit by bit, I started to understand his supernatural ability.

After putting distance between us, I activated multiple [thunder arrows] at once.

The lightning arrows approached the "hero," but he stood still, showing no sign of dodging.

The moment the lightning arrows touched the spherical force field, they seemed to avoid the "hero," following the surface of the sphere and passed around him.

Where the thunder arrows passed, the "hero’s" body wavered.

In the next moment, the "hero," who had moved to my left side, tried to sweep his sword horizontally.

I activated the [reflective barrier] at the "hero’s" feet just as he stepped forward to sweep his sword.

The foot that stepped on the [reflective barrier] bounced, and the "hero" jumped straight up.

At the peak of his jump, he activated [thunder shock], and a multitude of magic circles appeared, covering him.

The lightning attacks came from all directions at the confused "hero" who had been abruptly thrown into the air.

But the "hero’s" supernatural ability blocked the attacks, and none of them landed.

(Can he handle all directions simultaneously? Then next—)

"[demonic sword unification (alteration)]...!"

I transformed Schwarzhase into a demonic sword and swung it.

I released the concentrated mana as a slashing attack aimed at the "hero."

Since the all-around attack didn’t work, I thought to try a more powerful attack. But even when hit with mana dispersion at close range, the "hero" remained unscathed, hovering in the air as he looked down on me.

The corners of the "hero’s" mouth twitched, and an indescribable chill ran through my entire body.

"—!? [fifth form (mont fünf)]!"

Trusting my instincts, I instantly transformed Schwarzhase into a shield.

I held the shield towards the "hero," who was carelessly swinging his sword down.

There was physical distance between us, so even swinging the sword there, the blade wouldn’t reach me. It didn’t look like he was sending a slashing attack either.

Yet—

"Ugh—!?"

I felt an incredibly heavy force fall on me, like an invisible mass of air.

I desperately held up my shield, struggling to withstand the crushing weight.

The oppressive force showed no sign of weakening. Even if I could endure it, the ground beneath me could not.

Within a radius of several meters around me, the ground caved in.

The unstable ground caused me to lose my footing and fall to the ground.

"…Ugh…ugh…"

Barely maintaining consciousness, I immediately cast healing magic on myself and stood up, keeping the "hero" who was still looking down at me in sight.

"…Is that all the damage you took from that?"

Thanks to the activation of my qi, not only were my physical abilities enhanced, but my senses were sharper. My hearing caught the "hero’s" soft muttering.

(Just by carelessly swinging his sword down, he changed the terrain… I’m sure it’s a combination of supernatural abilities, but still…)

I searched for a way to buy time, and concluded that I couldn’t withstand a prolonged battle head-on.