Interstellar Travel Starting from Demonic Inferiority Chapter 20

However, this length of time was sufficient for Kudo Mitsunobu to activate his defensive magic, Solid Stone, even if it was only the lowest-tier C-rank defensive magic of the Kudo style.

Since both were relying purely on physical techniques without any physical reinforcement, this level of magic was more than enough to defend against Shiba Tatsuya's kicks.

Shiba Tatsuya made a prompt decision; as his kick failed to land, he immediately utilized the recoil to perform a few backflips, distancing himself from Kudo Mitsunobu.

Neither of them chose to continue the offensive, instead locking eyes with one another.

The onlookers were already dumbfounded by the intensity of the battle, having initially assumed it would be a conflict resolved in an instant.

Yet, who could have imagined that these two would reach such a state of deadlock, especially considering Kudo Mitsunobu was a Course 1 Student and the heir to the Kudo Family.

His opponent was merely a Course 2 Student with no family background, though this is not to say they were disappointed in Kudo Mitsunobu's combat prowess.

After all, following Jumonji Katsuto's explanation, the technique of Flash Time alone was enough to prove Kudo Mitsunobu's strength.

To achieve a level comparable to triple-acceleration magic without any magical reinforcement, relying solely on muscular power and a forceful stomp on the ground—

—was enough to show the kind of training Kudo Mitsunobu had undergone at his age.

Yet, what truly shocked them was that Course 2 Student, Shiba Tatsuya.

Although it felt as if Kudo Mitsunobu had been on the offensive the entire time, with Shiba Tatsuya merely passively dodging attacks—

—whether it was the acceleration-based physical technique that rivaled Kudo Mitsunobu's from the start, or his perfect response to what could be called a lethal strike from Kudo Mitsunobu, they believed that if they were in his position, they wouldn't have lasted a single moment, as they would have been defeated by the lack of reaction time the moment the two closed the distance.

Hattori Hanzo's previously dismissive gaze had undergone a transformation akin to a violent earthquake.

It shifted from disdain to shock, and finally to silence, because after witnessing Shiba Tatsuya's performance, he could no longer afford to ignore him.

Shiba Tatsuya's performance had proven the excellence of his combat capabilities, to the point where he didn't even want to admit he was inferior.

The silence between the two did not last long; about half of the three-minute window had passed, and while he had tested that Shiba Tatsuya's physical skills were quite good, his physical prowess alone was not enough to give him a full picture.

"Tatsuya-kun, although I cannot fire any powerful magic, how about we end this battle after you take this final move of mine?"

Shiba Tatsuya nodded; the battle had already met his expectations, and there was no need to continue, as doing so would only expose more of his secrets.

There was simply no necessity for that.

As he raised Night, a fluorescent green light gathered at the muzzle, the Psion Bullet becoming increasingly dense as time passed, and a magic circle quietly unfolded in front of the Psion Bullet.

After writing this, no matter how I revise the battle sequence, it doesn't feel quite right; I hope to improve in the future.

As always, thank you all for your support.

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Chapter 17: Dispersion Bullet

"Not a registered magic sequence. The startup sequence is programmed for dispersion-type and acceleration-type magic; there are too many components."

The moment Kudo Mitsunobu activated his magic, Shiba Tatsuya engaged his Elemental Sight to determine a countermeasure.

But once activated, Shiba Tatsuya had only one thought: this magic must not be fired.

With a grave expression, Shiba Tatsuya pulled the trigger of Silver Cluster, and simultaneously, the magic circle in front of Kudo Mitsunobu's muzzle shattered.

"Cast Jamming. I never imagined you would know such magic, Tatsuya-kun."

Kudo Mitsunobu immediately recognized the technique Shiba Tatsuya had used, but he had no intention of continuing.

Every technique Shiba Tatsuya had used today had nothing to do with the Ten Master Clans, and under such restrictive conditions, it seemed there was nothing more to be gleaned.

Besides, he had already declared it to be the final move; there was no need to drag it out.

Seeing this, Shiba Tatsuya quietly breathed a sigh of relief. Today's battle had exceeded his expectations; he had originally intended to rely purely on his physical skills to survive those three minutes.

But he had realized he couldn't dodge Kudo Mitsunobu's final move, so between restoration and Cast Jamming, he had chosen to use Cast Jamming to counter it.

The people who had been in the corner now gathered around; Shiba Tatsuya's performance today had truly opened their eyes.

"Shiba, with such excellent combat capabilities, why are you assigned to the Course 2 Students?"

Jumonji Katsuto looked at Shiba Tatsuya, who was currently being pestered by Nakajo Azusa. Nakajo Azusa had no interest in combat or magic, but she was currently very interested in the CAD in Shiba Tatsuya's hand.

When Shiba Tatsuya pulled out Silver Cluster, her sharp eyes had noticed it immediately, but she had been held back by Saegusa Mayumi, preventing her from rushing in on a whim.

Shiba Tatsuya ignored Nakajo Azusa's request to examine Silver Cluster and calmly placed the weapon back into its carrying case.

"My strengths lie in processing speed, calculation scale, and the intensity of interference."

"Currently, both social examinations and school tests measure the speed of magic activation, the scale of the magic sequence, and the intensity of interference used to rewrite target information."

"That is understandable." Jumonji Katsuto asked no more; in the end, this was merely a disaster caused by an imperfect system.

Hattori Hanzo, who had been standing in the back, finally abandoned the internal conflict he had been feeling, even though today's events had been a shock to his convictions.

However, he was not a stubborn man; his look down on Course 2 Students was only because previous Course 2 Students truly lacked anything of value.

Since a deviant like Shiba Tatsuya could emerge from the Course 2 Students, while he couldn't control what others said, he would at least stop viewing Course 2 Students through a biased lens from this day forward.

"Shiba-kouhai, my apologies."

Hattori Hanzo walked up to Shiba Miyuki, bowed to apologize, and then left the room.

"Still, Tatsuya-kun, I'm surprised you chose Cast Jamming so decisively back there!"

"I honestly thought you would choose to rely on taijutsu to dodge instead."

Kudo Mitsunobu said to Shiba Tatsuya, his tone laced with a hint of curiosity; after all, he had specifically used his own original magic to guard against Shiba Tatsuya's eyes.

"If I had chosen to use taijutsu to dodge, I would have been struck by your dense barrage of Split Bullets by now, wouldn't I?"

"You actually knew I was going to use Split Bullets?"

"Mm. The first thousand characters of your magic sequence activation were identical to most emission-type magic, and the latter half was interspersed with a large number of formulas used in acceleration-type magic sequences."

"Based on that, I deduced that what you were firing was a wide-area Split Bullet."

"In that situation, it would have been impossible for me to dodge using taijutsu or by activating acceleration-type magic, so I had no choice but to use Cast Jamming."