CHAPTER 65: THEY CALL IT THE REALM OF GODS (END)

“The Commandment of the Unseen Deity: Gravity Chains!”

The moment Laura activated the spell, she felt her strength violently drain from her body.

It was like the mana inside of her evaporated in the blink of an eye.

The sense of lethargy hit her like a train; it was unlike anything she’s ever felt until now.

“Guh…”

However, she couldn’t afford to lose consciousness here.

That’s because—

The spell had yet to activate.

The power source of Laura’s spell was still coiled around her wand.

Laura’s inner mana storages weren’t enough.

She expected as much before activating the spell.

The Witch of Calamity was a magician that went down in the annals of history, and this was the divine-class spell she used; there was no way a student like Laura could use such a thing so easily.

This was a typical case of a spell failing to activate.

Normally, the caster would lose control of the spell as it faded away.

However—

“UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!”

Laura refused to give up.

Because she wanted to help Albert.

Because she wished to help Albert.

Because she swore to help Albert.

No matter the cost, she wanted to activate this spell and raise Albert’s chances of victory, even by a little.

There wasn’t a single shred of mana left in Laura’s body anymore.

Nevertheless, she wrung out every little ounce.

Even if it cost her everything she had, Laura needed to help Albert succeed.

Even so, her willpower alone was far from enough. The realm of gods created by the genius Witch of Calamity resided in the heavens above, far from Laura’s reach.

The spell was on the verge of fading away at any moment.

No matter how much mana Laura offered, the spell’s power wouldn’t respond to her.

Laura gritted her teeth.

Even so, she had to cast it.

Recalling the face of the person that always gave her strength, she called out his name.

“ALBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERT!”

Just then—

She thought she heard someone whisper by her ear.

“—!?”

Pain shot through Laura’s head.

It was just like when she read that spellbook—

“Uu…uu…uu…uu…uu…”

The pain dimmed her consciousness.

However, Laura realized something.

A massive amount of mana overflowed from her once-dried-up mana reserves.

However, Laura failed to realize something.

Her own eyes were being dyed blood-red.

Laura didn’t have the slightest idea as to why this was happening. But it didn’t matter. She no longer had the strength to even think.

Laura had only one desire.

It was to activate the spell before her eyes.

And now, I can fulfill that wish!

Laura shouted the words that acted as the trigger once again.

“The Commandment of the Unseen Deity: Gravity Chain!”

The very next instant, the power source accumulated on the tip of her wand was unleashed.

Laura knew.

The spell was a success.

Laura’s pupils rapidly went back to blue from red. Her consciousness, which she had been barely maintaining, sunk to the dark depths of her mind.

With her level of ability, the spell’s effect probably wouldn’t last very long. However, it should slightly slow the Hydra down.

Watching the scenery before her fade away with her consciousness, she thought of one last thing.

Albert…

This is the best I can do. Please take it…!

Laura was already at her limit.

She lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground with a thud.

—

“Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow—”

How many hours have passed already?

I endlessly fired Magic Arrows from my right hand.

The heat I felt deep in my body now coursed through my body. It was especially hot in my right hand, to the point where I couldn’t ignore it.

However, by no means was it unpleasant.

Rather, it felt comfortable, like I was being bathed in the warm light of the sun.

…What was this feeling…?

Just then—

I noticed the Hydra was moving strangely. How should I put it… It looked like it couldn’t move its left foreleg properly.

It seemed like it was struggling to walk.

Seeing this sudden turn of strange events, I knit my brows.

Did something happen to it?

I was intrigued, but a chance was a chance.

Should I run away right now? If I recuperate and maintain my distance, I’ll definitely be able to finish it off once and for all.

However, I felt a little apprehensive.

I couldn’t make precise turns or anything while flying, so it wasn’t very adaptable. Using my Magic Arrow to gain a small amount of distance was difficult.

Which means if I decided to run, I would need to go back another 12 or so kilometers and start fresh. But if I did that, the Hydra might just decide to ignore me and destroy this area.

There was also the possibility that this was a feint.

The instant I ease up my barrage, it’ll use that chance to instantly close the gap between us. If that were to happen, I’d end up dead.

All sorts of possibilities crossed my mind.

What’s the best card I can play here—

“Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow—”

Let’s stop wasting time thinking.

Firing at it with Magic Arrow was all I could do.

A moron like myself could only keep on piling on the pressure.

I’ll fire away and overcome the Hydra.

At the very least, I had some more time to work with. I’ll take this advantage and use it to heap up my barrage.

White arrows endlessly rained down onto the Hydra’s body.

It was probably mad that it couldn’t move as it wanted—

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

The Hydra bellowed out in rage.

Did you really think I’d falter at that attempt of intimidation?

“Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow—”

I single-mindedly fired away.

It happened when the Hydra was down to three heads.

I noticed that the Hydra adjusted its posture and regained its previous speed.

I guess the Hydra’s abnormality solved itself.

…I suppose it wouldn’t let me win so easily, after all.

I unconsciously clutched my left hand.

I clutched… my left hand.

My left hand—?

The thought slipped right into my head.

If I didn’t regain my composure from the Hydra’s slight abnormality, I don’t think I would’ve been able to notice.

I stared at my left hand.

Could it be that the heat I’m feeling is due to the mana inside of me being stimulated?

Come to think of it, how many times have I shot Magic Arrow today alone? Even just accounting for my preparations for the Full Blast this morning, I’ve fired upwards of 10,000 Magic Arrows.

I’ve continuously shot Magic Arrows for eight hours straight as an experiment before, but I didn’t go all out.

This was the first time I spent this much time continuously firing serious Magic Arrows in my life.

It wouldn’t be all that strange if my body reacted differently than usual.

And then, this heat in my left hand.

Isn’t my body signaling to me that it wants to release mana from my left hand?

It was possible to cast spells from either hand; I’ve fired from my left hand as well.

In that case, would switching from my right hand and shooting with my left hand calm this heat down a little?

However, I thought of something else.

There was one more possibility to consider.

…I’ve never once tried it until now, but—

Could I fire from both hands simultaneously?

Obviously, shooting two Magic Arrows at once with both hands would be stronger than shooting one Magic Arrow with my right hand.

It’d just be double the firepower.

But could I really do such a thing?

It was common sense that spells were fundamentally cast one at a time, so that would never happen. As a result, I hadn’t even thought of trying it.

Would something so absurd really be possible?

This was truly a foolish idea, the product of my fantasies and aspirations.

However, was there ever a magician in the past stuck in the same situation as I am now, firing the same spell for hours on end?

Was there ever a magician that felt this upsurge of heat coursing throughout their body like I am now?

Was there ever a magician that stimulated their mana as far as I have now?

…I didn’t really believe my own reasoning.

However, I felt it.

This left hand of mine was attempting to clutch at something new—attempting to open the door to a new realm of possibilities.

I had nothing to lose if I was just testing it out. This was the eleventh hour; I’ll try out everything I can.

“Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow, Magic Arrow—”

While my right hand shot Magic Arrows, I raised my left hand next to it.

I tried saying the words that acted as the trigger.

“Magic Arrow.”

I felt mana surge into my hot left hand.

This was the usual sensation.

The sensation of power flowing through my veins; the sensation of Magic Arrow being released.

The stream of endless Magic Arrows finally carved its way into a novel world of potential.

Right here, in both of my hands—a miracle was born.

I saw it:

A pair of vivid radiance emitting from both of my hands.