It felt like I was dreaming.
I'd been avoiding reality inside the bathroom for several dozen minutes. When I finally worked up the courage to step outside, what greeted my eyes was—Clahi and a man wearing a fox mask standing right in the center of the arena.
To make matters worse, there I was—lying collapsed in a corner of the venue. Even I couldn't make sense of what I was describing.
With so much happening, the brain that already didn't work very well had completely shut down.
The arena was in chaos. No one seemed to have noticed me hiding in the shadow of a pillar. I crossed my arms and mumbled to myself.
"So... this means... in other words... what you're saying is...?"
What was I even saying? I couldn't even form a hypothesis...
Come to think of it, something had been off ever since the water pitcher screamed. I was supposed to have come out earlier, to begin with.
For some reason, I couldn't leave the bathroom. When I opened the stall door and took a step out, I found myself back inside the stall.
Even I couldn't make sense of what I was saying. When things got this nonsensical, I had to question my own sanity.
Resigned, I wandered around the bathroom, and when I tried to retreat into a stall instead of leaving, I ended up outside instead. Looking at the current situation... perhaps I should have hidden in the bathroom a bit longer.
This scene was a complete bloodbath.
The fox-masked man raised his right hand. Black clothing, white fox mask.
I could only see his profile, but the design matched the mask I'd had earlier. However, his build wasn't the same as Gafu's.
With a hard-boiled expression, yet surveying the arena without a single thought, the man— And then he swung his hand down.
It was as if an invisible bomb had exploded. Sound, shockwave—the force tore through the arena.
Of course, I couldn't react in time. But this time, the Barrier Ring—which shouldn't have been needed—activated and completely blocked the shockwave and sound.
Right nearby—the barrier stretched across the arena cracked with a fragile sound. Dust billowed up, and the me who had been lying on the ground, along with several mages who had gathered nearby, were sent flying violently through the air.
Screams rose. Through the dust that blinded everything, I caught Clahi's panicked voice.
"Wh-what are you doing!? It's not your turn to fight yet—! And this power is...!"
"......!"
I couldn't see a thing. I never could see anything—past, future, or present.
Amid the terrible visibility, explosions rang out one after another. Several seemed to trigger the Barrier Ring's attack detection and were blocked by the barrier.
This was bad—I had no idea what was going on, but I was going to die. But I didn't know what to do. A classic story.
For now, I ducked behind the shadow of the gate pillar and took a deep breath.
Calm down, calm down, Klye Andrich. It should be my turn to fight now. If I solved each problem one by one, a light at the end of the tunnel would appear.
For starters... right, I should prostrate myself!
"Gu... calm... down.
Heavenly Thunder Fang!"
A massive bolt of lightning descended from the sky. Because Anthem wasn't nearby, it struck me as a matter of course, but the Barrier Ring blocked it.
Because I was hiding, the gate beside me was half-destroyed, and screams erupted from the surrounding spectator seats.
"My target was—gkh"
"How much of a... power... did you think you were... to challenge us with... that level of... strength... Don't make me laugh!"
I couldn't tell who it was, but the voice was trembling—they were clearly not laughing.
Bursting sounds occurred intermittently. From my vantage point, I could see dust swirling into a vortex.
It was a familiar sight.
This was—a magic barrier. A secret technique that achieved absolute, invincible defense by releasing the pure mana sealed within one's body.
At the same time, releasing pure mana was about the worst thing you could do for energy efficiency. In theory, anyone could do it, but unless you had a massive mana pool like Lucia, it wouldn't last long. It seemed the fox-masked man was a practitioner on Lucia's level.
The sky screamed in pain. I heard what sounded like Clahi enduring agony.
"I won't... lose!"
He was about to cast a large-scale spell. A lightning spell, no less. I didn't understand the situation, but I instinctively shouted.
"Clahi, aim properly!"
"!? Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! 'Thunder of Heaven'!!!"
The sky was swallowed by light. Lightning, sound, shockwaves—they flooded the arena. It was obviously a lethal spell.
When I said "aim," I hadn't meant for him to hit the enemy—I'd meant for him to not hit me.
Lightning rained down on my entire body. All the attacks were blocked by the Barrier Ring, but because I had the chain, I was probably drawing the lightning toward me. Without Anthem serving as a lightning rod, I was helpless against lightning.
But that fox mask... who on earth was he?
Being someone used to getting scolded, I could see through everything.
That fox-masked man was—completely furious.
He delivered one final crushing blow toward me, and the lightning stopped. I heard Clahi's stunned voice.
"Impossible. I made contact. After being hit by that much lightning—unharmed!?"
"It's futile. Thousand Transformations—if you are the heavens—then my power is... the sky. This deviates from the plan, but regret crossing my wrath and die!"
That was when my eyes went wide. It felt as if every puzzle piece had clicked into place.
Could it be—no, I was certain.
That person... wasn't he someone important from the Fox Mask Enthusiasts Club (tentative)?
Even if it wasn't intentional, could he be angry because I'd impersonated someone important and issued various orders?
I didn't know why he was targeting Clahi, but given that his titles and name bore a striking resemblance to mine, there was a high chance the message had gotten twisted along the way. Being someone who'd experienced his fair share of miscommunication, I understood.
Honestly, Sora. That's why I told you to clear up the misunderstanding and apologize quickly—this is what happens with people who aren't used to getting scolded.
The fact that he'd come all the way to the Martial Emperor Festival was a bit odd too... maybe the Fox Mask Enthusiasts Club was full of eccentrics? At the very least, don't cause trouble for other people.
At this point, the only thing I could do was offer a sincere apology. But the problem was how to get close enough to that Fox Mask Enthusiasts Club member on this battlefield to clear things up.
A battle between high-level Hunters was practically a natural disaster.
Screams and roars, shockwaves and lightning. The earth shook, and despite this being an irregular brawl, no one could intervene. The aftershocks alone would easily send someone like me flying, and the Barrier Ring probably wouldn't hold either.
But pushing everything onto Clahi—even I felt bad about that. I knew better than anyone the pain of being blamed for something you hadn't done.
In times like this... it was that thing. That thing, that thing... that thing?
What should I do?
"...You've broken through the barrier. But you're too late."
I felt a poke on the top of my foot and looked down. The little fox girl was staring up at me—I had no idea when she'd appeared.
Her white kimono was filthy with dirt in every place, but she didn't seem to be injured.
As I struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing situation, the little fox girl was fidgeting restlessly, then spoke in a small voice.
"I turned into Sense of Crisis."
"...!!"
So that was it—the collapsed version of me had been her transformation. I'd seen her do it once before, so I should have realized sooner.
But why would she go to such lengths...
Seeing how slow on the uptake I was, the little fox spoke again, clearly frustrated.
"...I took on the form of Sense of Crisis, and lost. Now... my honor... is ruined."
"What... did you... say...?"
Because of the mask, the little fox girl's expression was hard to read. But the movement of the tail at her back told the whole story.
This girl...
...Could she possibly be an incredibly good kid?
"Th-thanks? You really saved me, you know?"
"!?"
The little fox girl's cheek twitched, and as if in some kind of reflexive reaction, her ears popped up from the top of her head.
Had she sensed my reluctance to participate in the Martial Emperor Festival, taken my place, and then lost—damaging her honor in the process? ...Well, what more was there to say?
I'd thought she was just a creature that ate fried tofu, but this was a brilliant play. (Sora's) hard work in providing massive amounts of fried tofu had paid off.
"That's... no way..."
The little fox girl took a step back with an expression of utter disbelief, so I showered her with excessive praise.
"No, really, truly. I was wondering what to do about the Martial Emperor Festival. If you lost for me, I don't have to participate anymore—it's a weight off my shoulders."
As for the ruined honor, I needn't elaborate.
All that was left was to apologize to that misunderstanding fox-masked bastard and get forgiven. Would he do that for me too?
I reflexively reached out to touch the little fox girl's ears, but my hand was slapped away.
The little fox girl was trembling, but she said one thing in a cold voice.
"I hate Sense of Crisis."
"...Huh?"
"Sense of Crisis has no sense of crisis."
Wasn't that becoming his catchphrase?
Whatever—this was an unfounded insult. It wasn't that I had no sense of crisis.
"I'm just used to this kind of thing, that's all."
"...Try... to get it."
The little fox girl spun in a wide circle on the spot. Her tail hit her leg.
—And in that instant, my vision shifted.
My feet wobbled, and I barely stayed upright. Lightning, shockwaves, and sound all hit my body simultaneously.
I felt the Barrier Ring activate. Remaining charges—if I hadn't miscounted—were one. And right before my eyes, just a few tens of centimeters away, I saw a fox mask.
"!?"
"!?"
For a split second, I thought my heart had stopped.
But as surprised as I was, the other party was equally caught off guard. The attack stopped, and the fox-masked man slid smoothly backward a considerable distance.
I looked around frantically, my mind processing the situation at maximum speed.
It seemed the little fox girl had cleverly teleported me right to the center. Truly a divine being's descendant—versatile to a fault.
I crossed my arms and put on a hard-boiled grin.
"So she really is a good kid after all..."
...Though I wished she'd at least given me some time to prepare.