110. Academy Labyrinth 2 — Kotone's Case

"Alright, Kotone, two Kebe Cows are approaching from ahead. Let's try a battle using your spirit contract."

Shiro said.

"Yes, senior. Watch closely!" Kotone nodded vigorously.

The other members who came with her were all intensely curious about how Kotone's spirit contract would perform in combat.

"Kotone, I'll help with control if things get rough—just say the word," Shestia said.

"I can assist anytime," Mitoka added.

"Thank you, both. But I've got this!" Kotone replied firmly. She stepped forward a little, then called out:

"Let's go, Ham-Chans!"

A magic circle flared on the ground ahead, and a procession of three-centimeter-tall hamsters emerged, scurrying en masse toward the Kebe Cows.

"...Wait, Kotone. Why a horde of hamsters?!"

Shiro couldn't help but blurt out.

"Eh? Senior, aren't hamsters cute? And Ham-Chans are strong, right?"

Kotone tilted her head, gave him a look of genuine confusion, and answered seriously.

"..."

Shiro was speechless, staring ahead.

The hamsters first aligned side by side, then simultaneously cast Fire Wall. The synchronized spell formation lit up as one massive magic circle, and a wall of flame materialized.

The two Kebe Cows halted their charge just before the wall.

In that instant, the Fire Wall vanished. The hamsters surrounded the Kebe Cows, then all stood up on their hind legs at once.

And with a soft “kyu,” each of them activated their rune arrays, summoning ice arrows—slightly larger than their own bodies, about six centimeters in diameter—unlike anything befitting them, which shot toward the Kei-Cau with tremendous speed.

The Keibu Kau, overwhelmed by ice arrows raining from all directions, groaned dully, letting out a guttural cry.

And then, with another "kyukyu" sound, a different magic circle activates.

A synchronized burst of laser beams shot from the hamsters, piercing through the Kei-Cow herd.

The hamsters returned to Kotone once Keibu Cow collapsed. When Kotone said, “You guys did great!” they chirped, “Kyuu!” and vanished.

“…Just as expected from Shiro’s childhood friend. Fighting way beyond imagination.”

And Aria calmly interjected.

"...What do you mean by that, Aria?"

And Shiro glared at Aria.

"Kotone, you're incredible. Handling that many spirit familiars with ease. You’ve got latent potential—should be looked into."

And Shestia, likewise calm, cut in.

“…I see. It’s all in how you phrase it,” Aria said.

“No, controlling an array of that size—managing them as if each had its own will—isn’t something that normally happens. Being able to command 128 spirit familiars like they’re each acting independently means she must have processing power on par with a spirit king, like me,” Mitoka said.

There, Kotone returned.

"Senior! Did you see it? What do you think? Aren't Ham-chan and the others cute and strong?"

And innocently asked.

……ah, cute. And I’ll admit—strong too.

And Shiro could only respond with a微妙な表情,

“Hehehe. Thanks, senior!” Kotone’s smile burst forth, brimming with joy from her first battle and victory.

Incidentally, the Caou Bull is a magical beast similar to Earth’s bullfighting bulls. It’s strong enough to require a full four-person Rank C adventurer party to handle. So everyone understood that Kotone’s battle was, in a way, impressive—but no one could quite grasp her fighting style.

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