Horizon:Volume 1 Chapter 19

Status: Incomplete

50% completed (estimated)

   

Chapter 19: He who Dashes through the Air

Do ideas come from courage or recklessness?

Point Allocation (Victory)

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Sounds were heard.

Swords clashed, feet treaded on the ground, and breaths were taken.

Those sounds were sent via divine transmission and heard all over the world.

“————”

There were two warriors. One of the west and one of the east. One who was young and one who was old. One with a new weapon and one with an old weapon. There were several differences between them. However…

“———!”

The music of battle they played together created equally loud cries which were broadcast in all places.

The sounds moved, flowed, passed by, and conveyed it all without stopping.

Someone standing before that broadcast spoke.

“What is going on?”

As a result of this, what would happen to Mikawa and what would happen to the world as it approached the Apocalypse. And…

“Which one will win?”

But there was one phrase none of them said: please do something about this.

The one thing none of them could do was ask for help.

After all, this battle would not save anything.

Motonobu’s voice could be heard giving one reason why.

“Yes. Even if this battle ends, that alone will no longer be enough to do anything. After this battle ends, everyone will have to do something about the world.”

So…

“This battle is the beginning. Go, Honda Tadakatsu. Ensure that the people can do something about the homework that is the Apocalypse!”

His words rang out.

“Show them where your loyalty ranks on a national level!!”

“Sure thing!” roared Tadakatsu in reply.

Immediately afterwards, Muneshige circled around behind Tadakatsu.

This was his high-speed movement using the Clásica Firma.

But Tadakatsu had already begun moving. He let loose a strike to cut Muneshige off.

…I suppose this will not be easy!

Muneshige took action. He raised his speed further.

“…!”

He struck with Lype Katathlipse’s blade, moved back, and fired repeatedly.

However, Tadakatsu deflected all of it.

“You’re pretty fast! Can you go even faster!?”

“I can! The Testamento Firma has no limit!!”

And so he raised his speed.

Muneshige’s speed achieved acceleration with the Testamento Firma and was controlled with his body.

A Testamento Firma was normally carried out by using a spell contract obtained at a church.

A spell contract was obtained in exchange for Catholic-style devotions or an offering of Worship. By stamping the written seal of approval it would activate and disappear. Catholic contracts were disposable, but they were highly effective and did not consume any of the user’s Worship when used.

Muneshige’s spell contracts were compressed to the size of a postage stamp and tens of thousands of them were stored in a cartridge below the radiator on his back. This spell had two effects.

The first was to raise the speed of his physical body.

The other…

…It creates multiple simultaneous footholds below my feet.

When he stepped on the ground in order to run, he would be stepping on those many footholds simultaneously.

Creating five simultaneously multiplied his speed by five. Ten at once multiplied it by ten.

Both of these were powerful spells, so they were not something that could be used in units of tens of thousands. However, Muneshige had used the fortune earned through the occupation he had inherited to alter the spell such that it was possible.

He had set the spell up so that it gave no thought to recoil.

Lessening the recoil would have made the spell more expensive, less effective, and more complex.

He had lowered the unit cost by eliminating that portion.

Also, he had shortened the active time so that the acceleration only lasted an instant. This had lowered the unit cost even further and allowed him to gather even greater numbers.

Those alterations allowed him to cheaply achieve high speeds with a great number of instantaneous accelerations, but his body took the full burden. It hurt his organs, affected his vision, and numbed his arms and legs.

However…

…That is necessary for an opponent such as this!

He moved.

The spell contract cartridge on his back vibrated and the scraps of the used compressed contracts scattered from the ejection port of the device. The pieces looked like ash or scattered scraps of light. A shimmering of heat shot from the cross-shaped radiator on his back that was a part of his body cooling system. That shimmering rose like smoke made of light.

Each time the light scattered, his speed increased.

On the other hand, Tadakatsu had no speed. He was also injured.

However, Tadakatsu more than kept up with Muneshige.

…This is…

Muneshige watched Tadakatsu’s movements.

His footwork looked relaxed as he swung his body and drove Tonbokiri into Muneshige’s path.

Tadakatsu was constantly moving slowly backwards. However, he would lure Muneshige in to circle behind him and then turn in the opposite direction. He was moving in a repeated S pattern.

“…”

The repeated circular motion of this S movement pattern allowed Tadakatsu to circle behind Muneshige by using Muneshige’s own attempts to circle behind him. And…

…He keeps getting closer!

It was a bit too late to activate Lype Katathlipse’s overdrive.

Pulling the trigger and waiting for the virtual cannon to appear would take three seconds. Once he fired it, it would be unavoidable even if the results would only arrive after about a dozen seconds. That was why the first three seconds were what mattered.

At the moment, he would never be given those three seconds.

He wanted to do something about it, but…

“Lype Katathlipse! Normal drive!”

The normal drive was a small activation that scraped off anyone whose name was on the blade.

The system was the same as Tonbokiri’s, so it was unavoidable for anyone reflected in the blade.

Muneshige was able to avoid Tonbokiri’s slicing because he could use his speed to escape the reflection range of the blade.

However, Tadakatsu had no way of moving at high speed, so he could not avoid it.

Or at least, he should not have been able to.

“Bind! Lype Katathlipse!!”

As soon Muneshige gave that cry, Tonbokiri moved.

…This is…?

Tadakatsu calmly pointed Tonbokiri toward Lype Katathlipse’s blade.

That was all.

“…!!”

With a sound like someone scratching at glass, light burst from Lype Katathlipse’s blade.

Lype Katathlipse’s normal drive had been neutralized.

And why?

…Lype Katathlipse’s blade was reflected in Tonbokiri’s blade!

It was a mirror.

He had used Tonbokiri’s blade as a mirror to reflect the image of Lype Katathlipse as it activated its normal drive. That caused Lype Katathlipse to lose sight of its target and to cancel the effects of its normal drive when it almost sent that power into itself.

…It sounds simple enough.

But he could not do the same himself.

After all, it required reflecting the tip of the spear being swung at him. Tadakatsu had to have perfectly read Muneshige’s every action. If the angle had been off even slightly, he would have been struck by the technique.

But Tadakatsu had pulled it off.

“Kh!”

The word “skill” appeared in Muneshige’s mind.

…That is not something one can do with speed alone!

Muneshige had the greatest combat speed in Tres España.

According to the Testament descriptions, Garcia de Ceballos whose name he had inherited had been a man of the postal system. Muneshige viewed that power as being one of high-speed movement and actions. While studying the military arts, he had also earned a fortune supported by the Testament descriptions by working as a mensajero.

However, after many twists and turns, he had trained as a warrior and gained Tachibana Muneshige as a double inherited name.

For that reason, Muneshige had possessed the power of speed before he began fighting.

With his speed, he could move to a more advantageous position.

With his speed, he could increase the force of his attacks.

With his speed, he could instantly evade any attack.

After training both his speed and combat skills, he had appeared on countless battlefields and learned to control that instantaneous speed so that it did not destroy his body.

His results in battle were appropriate for the man the Testament descriptions called the Peerless in the West.

…However…

The man before his eyes was handling him without that speed. That man had no spells or anything. In that case…

…What is this!?

Muneshige had obtained a single thing to live up to being the Peerless in the West.

“Kh!”

He raised his speed.

The shimmering of heat rising from the radiator grew thicker and the amount of scraps from the compressed contracts grew.

He felt as if his feet were stepping on thick books. It felt as if those books were sticking to, sinking into, and staining the bottom of his feet. The multiple footholds interfered with each other and vibrated but still produced their effects.

Repeated metallic-sounding noises came from the bottom of his feet and produced speed.

“…!”

As he accelerated as if struck, his bones creaked. The flesh on his cheeks, upper arms, thighs, and calves was all pinched and tugged backwards.

But that was the evidence of his speed.

He circled around Tadakatsu to the left and drove his sword toward the man, but…

“…!”

Tadakatsu rotated around on his S path and swung Tonbokiri backhanded from his right shoulder. That strike moved right toward Muneshige’s back as he circled around.

It was the same pattern as before. The swing of the spear was gentle and looked like it could be easily knocked out of the way, but it had definite power contained within. By the time Muneshige had avoided the attack, Tadakatsu had already rotated his body around in his S path such that he was standing behind Muneshige.

And then the S path began anew.

Muneshige could not allow it to repeat again. The more it repeated, the more time would be taken.

Tadakatsu has only one goal, thought Muneshige.

That was to stall for time.

…He wants to let the ley line run fully out of control.

And so Muneshige had to stop this pattern.

But how could he stop this repeating S shape?

Muneshige thought back to his ability: speed.

That speed would not work on Tadakatsu as things were.

…In that case…

Muneshige took action as Tonbokiri was swung backhanded toward him.

He took the action he had thought up.

In the next instant…

“———”

Tadakatsu saw it.

…This is…

He saw Muneshige’s idea.

He saw Muneshige’s new action meant to cut off Tadakatsu’s footwork which was sealing off his speed.

Muneshige took action to create a foothold.

This was the foothold he used for his acceleration. This foothold would allow him to reach high speeds in an instant. What he used was…

“Tonbokiri!?”

Muneshige stepped on Tonbokiri’s blade as it was swung backhandedly.

It was a light step.

Tadakatsu felt no more movement than if a single feather had been laid on top of it.

But that foothold gave Muneshige one hundred times the counterforce.

And a noise rang out from below Muneshige’s foot.

It resembled a metallic noise.

It was the sound of a Testamento Firma. As the noise came to an end, the acceleration spell activated.

A sound rang out for an instant.

And as that sound rang out, Tadakatsu thought.

…An excellent decision.

Tadakatsu assumed Muneshige intended to circle behind him like this.

…Yes, truly an excellent decision.

“But!” shouted Tadakatsu. He gripped the socket portion of Tonbokiri’s extension mechanism. “Don’t think a common method like that will work in this day and age!!”

As his body swung to the right, Tadakatsu dropped down with all his strength.

The spell Muneshige had chosen multiplied the counterforce of the foothold he placed his foot on.

In that case, the foothold would disappear if it was lowered down before he could step on it.

And that was exactly what Tadakatsu did.

Immediately afterwards, a space was created between Muneshige’s foot and Tonbokiri.

“…!”

Light ran across the bottom of Muneshige’s foot and that light scattered through the air. A sound similar to shattering glass could be heard.

That proved Muneshige’s spell had been neutralized.

And Tadakatsu opened his mouth.

“Bind! …Tonbokiri!”

Long, narrow sign frames opened around Tonbokiri’s blade one after another.

Those sign frames were filled with writing in an instant.

And this produced the power of cutting. He was targeting Muneshige as he floated in midair.

He took action.

But in that instant, Tadakatsu heard a new sound.

It resembled a metallic noise.

It was the sound of a Clásica Firma. It was the sound of the acceleration spell.

“…!?”

A roar came from the bottom of Muneshige’s airborne foot.

What had happened? What was about to happen? The answer to both questions came to Tadakatsu.

He realized what Muneshige had done.

“You used the air as a foothold!?”

Muneshige stepped on the air.

Stepping on the blade had not been a feint. If his acceleration had succeeded at that stage, he would have used it. However, Tadakatsu had not allowed the fight to remain at that level.

And so he had gone further.

He carried out an acceleration method he had never used before and had never even thought of before. He stepped on the air to accelerate in midair.

The method was simple.

The air was not completely empty. It had the moisture of humidity and it had the minute pieces of dust. The ley line expression and Lype Katathlipse’s earlier overdrive had left an abundance of dust in the air.

But that was far from being enough to use as a normal foothold.

To step on that dust and accelerate would require thousands or even tens of thousands of accelerations in an instant.

Muneshige’s acceleration spell used charms. They produced massive and instantaneous effects, but put a great burden on his body.

If he went too far, it would damage his body.

But…

…I must do it!

Muneshige estimated the necessary level of acceleration on instinct alone.

“Seventeen thousands times acceleration!”

Seventeen thousand steps’ worth of burden was placed on his right leg all at once.

A cross-shaped cadena firma appeared to the right of his face. It displayed a warning about the excessive burden. It said the administrative church held no liability if the spell was used like this.

He ignored it.

“…!!”

He heard a snapping sound come from his right leg.

It was the sound of his muscles splitting and bursting.

It was possible the bones and tendons had been taken out as well.

But the limb had not been severed. And as proof…

“Ohhh…!!”

Muneshige kicked off the air and accelerated.

He leaped while wrapped in the shimmering of heat and a band of light.

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