186-Episode 172: Sage, Impressed




 Hmm.........
 The "number kid" is not a fool, is it?

 It seems that they knew about our strength in advance.
 Well, they must have thought about this to some extent.
 Otherwise, they wouldn't have taken advantage of the guidance that was obviously a trap.

 I noticed that it was the team they were after.

 Normally, you would think that the weaker team would be hit by your strong numbered children.
 But in fact, it was the opposite.
 They put their strong numbered children (numbers) against the stronger teams.

 You may think that he was challenging them head-on, but that is probably not his intention.
 This is just my personal opinion, but they are buying time by playing the strong numbered children against the stronger teams.
 By stalling the strong team, he is trying to prevent the other weaker teams from following his strategy.

 It's a pretty effective strategy.
 As a matter of fact, I've been organizing my team with that move in mind.
 But there must be a smart guy.
 They've seen my team formation and have guessed a high numbered magician on a strong team.

 But it's a pity.

 Apparently, they hadn't thought about me being able to [duplicate] myself.
 At this point, the plan they had made was about to fall apart.
 If we follow the 17 who are on the move right now, we'll be able to get the location of their hideout pretty quickly.
 We might be able to put an end to this unrest sooner than we think.

 And there's something else they've miscalculated.

 They wanted to hit the strong "numbered kids" and destroy our ace class, but the students of Branch 5 aren't soft enough to defeat them so easily.

 Especially the students I trained myself.


 ◆◇◆◆◆.


Ggh!

 Cecil's face contorted.
 Right now, held in his hand is a giant sword of fire.
 Using [Object Acceleration], he pushed it in.
 Even though he used his specialty of multiple activation, Cecil's sword and body did not advance.

 With a high-pitched sound, Cecil's sword is flicked off.

 Unable to resist the pressure, Cecil was blown away.
 He turned himself around in the air and managed to land on his feet.
 He raised his face and gave a sharp look.
 A heavy drop of sweat dripped between his wine-red eyes.

 Immediately after, a laugh rang out like a lightning strike.

''Kukakaka! What's going on, woman? Is that all you got, huh? AAN!

 It was a hulking man who lifted his chin and turned his so-called smug face.
 A head like a radiating hedgehog.
 Thick lips and a large, square face.
 His shoulders were broad and he wore a jacket woven of black gold thread that was highly resistant to magic on his bare skin.

 In his hand, he holds a large, single-edged sword.
 It was an unusual sword type with a large curved tip.

 The man is 'Number Child (Numbers)' 20.
 Immediately after the wolfsbane of the attack, he attacked Cecil's team.

''Cecil-senpai!

 I heard a scream.
 Cecil kept his stance pointed at 20 and only moved his eyes.
 The junior second class students were looking at Cecil with concern.

 Cecil smiles to reassure the juniors.

''It's okay. More importantly, you shouldn't get away from me.''

Yes!

 If it were true, I would tell them to run, but that is also a dangerous situation.

 The enemy would concentrate their forces on the weaker team, Lacelle had expected.
 But the result was different.
 The opponent is 20, clearly the top number.
 And as I found out after beating them, they are quite strong.
 I think it's a matter of whether or not you can beat them with all your strength.

(The fact that the enemy's top number is trying to get at me suggests that they don't want me to follow the weaker team.

 In addition to the physical training, Cecil, who has been strengthened in the tactical aspect by Lacelle and has been on more occasions, reads the intentions of his opponent.

 Hence, he couldn't let a team member leave this place.
 It's not always the case that other 'numbered children' (numbers) are not lurking away from you.

 This is also something I found out after fighting, but fortunately it's not a problem if you just want to strike each other.
 The strength, and the strength of the prey is unmatched, but in terms of technology, Cecil was superior.
 I've been fighting against these monsters (Lacelle) almost every day.
 Compared to that, it was a pretty thing.

''Cecil-senpai, would you like to join us?

 One of the juniors asked a question, but Cecil shook his head.

We don't need him. He's too big and tall. I'm doing fine on my own.

 Cecil regripped his sword.

 Then, 20 eyes settled on him.
 He turned his small eyeballs, small for the size of his face, toward Cecil with a giggle.

I've been licked. Do you want to compete with me in a sashimi contest?

'Didn't it sound like that? I don't need you.

f*ck you!

 20 opens his eyes with a snap.
 A moment later, he flashes on the spot.
 The distance between him and Cecil is still far.
 However, the shockwave was launched at high speed.

 Against that haphazard physical force, Cecil calmly turns to evade it.

 Zudong!

 I heard a grim sound.
 A shockwave pierced the store behind Cecil.
 He heard a gong, a metallic sound that was familiar to Cecil, and turned around.

 It was a weapons store.
 The owner of the store was not there, but the weapons displayed in the store were reduced to pieces of wood.
 It was a tremendous blow.
 If it had been a direct hit, Cecil's body would have been torn apart.

 However, it wasn't the 20 attack power that Cecil was concerned about.
 It was the broken weapons.

''The weapon........''

"Cut it out! What, do you care so much about the weapons?

d*mn!

Don't be so angry. They're all lame to begin with. All it takes is the shockwave from my Diva to destroy it.

"Diva?

It was the name of my sword.

 20 lifted the great sword, which he himself called 'Diva', with one hand.
 The tip of the sword is pointed at the angry dwarf girl, who is trembling with rage.

This is the best sword in the world that I have forged with my own fists and magic. Other than that, everything else is a lull. We don't need any weapons in the world. I don't need a weapon, I don't need a weapon.

You don't need a weapon, do you? I see. I agree with you about that. I don't know how much better it would be if we didn't have an armorer.

 Cecil meditated.
 He gently put away the feelings that came to his mind.

 Eventually, they snapped open.

'But. Even if it's a tool to kill people, it has the soul of its creator in it. I will not allow you to taunt it.

"Ka-ha-ha! Ho! You'll never forgive me? Then what are you going to do about it, woman?

I was going to play around with you for a bit, but then I changed my mind.

 Then Cecil also raised his own sword.

''I'm going to smash through that disgusting sword of yours!

 They were declaring war.