Chapter 72: Final Countdown
Andrey pushed himself upright, ignoring the protests of his battered body. "Sein. What’s the situation here?"
Sein gestured broadly at the chaos around them, heroes fighting desperately, monsters swarming, Ernando cutting through defenders like a blade through wet paper. "You can see for yourself. We’re overwheld." Her green eyes flicked to him, sharp despite her exhaustion. "What about the woman who took you? Is she coming back?"
Andrey shook his head, his voice steady. "She won’t be appearing for a while. I managed to wound her, and the chaos from the disruptor will keep her busy."
Before Sein could respond, a shockwave ripped across the hall.
Ernando raised his sword, dark energy gathering at its tip, then slamd it into the ground. A pulse of force erupted outward, cracking marble, sending debris flying, and knocking several heroes off their feet. The wave raced toward Andrey’s group.
Lisa reacted instantly. "Prismatic Wall!"
A shimring mint-green barrier snapped into place in front of them. The shockwave slamd against it, spiderweb cracks spreading across the surface, but the barrier held. The force diverted around their small group, sparing them the brunt.
From the front line, Yuliet Hiji, still astride his lion Noel, glanced back. His black eyes swept over the barrier, then at Lisa. "That’s a useful barrier. Not bad for a C-rank."
Noel growled softly, golden eyes fixed on the advancing Ernando.
Yuliet’s gaze shifted to Andrey, then to Sein. "So," he called out, his voice carrying over the din, "is this your master, Sein? The one you ntioned earlier?"
Sein’s eye twitched. "I told you, he’s not my master! We’re partners, damn it!"
Andrey stepped forward, offering a small nod despite the chaos. "Andrey Thompson. C-rank. Sein’s teammate. Nice to et you, even under these circumstances."
From behind a broken pillar, Hope pushed herself to her feet, leaning on her crystal sword. Her silver gown was in tatters, her golden hair matted, but her blue eyes lit up with relief when she saw Andrey and the girls.
"You’re all right," she breathed, her voice hoarse. "Thank the stars. I was so worried when that woman took you."
Andrey gave her a brief nod but didn’t have ti for more.
Simmon Flanks slid backward across the cracked marble, his twin swords sparking as he parried a dark projectile from Ernando. He landed near the group, his white hair disheveled, one lens of his black glasses cracked. He straightened, pushing the glasses up his nose with a casual motion.
"The party’s getting livelier," Simmon observed dryly. "Did you bring reinforcents, or just more mouths to feed?"
Yuliet’s expression was grim. "We need to finish this quickly. We’re running out of stamina, and Ernando doesn’t look tired at all." He gestured toward the S-rank hero, who was still advancing, his movents as precise and relentless as when the battle began.
Andrey adjusted his glasses, ignoring the cracked lens. "I have a plan. Listen carefully."
Yuliet’s internal thought surfaced, ’A C-rank, speaking with such calm confidence. It wouldn’t hurt to hear him out.’
He t Andrey’s gaze. "What’s your plan?"
Andrey spoke quickly, laying it out. "I have a way to amplify a Magical Girl’s power temporarily. Synchronized Heart Mode. I’m going to use it on Sein. She’s pure DPS. With the boost, she should be able to punch through Ernando’s S-rank defenses. But the skill has a long cooldown, five minutes before I can activate it."
Hope’s face went pale. "Five minutes? Andrey, we’re barely standing as it is! Our mana is nearly gone, and the barrier is still suppressing our powers. Five minutes might as well be an eternity."
Delphine, the S-rank healer, stepped forward from where she had been tending to the wounded. Her silver-blonde braid was coming undone, her white robes stained, but her hands still glowed with a faint golden light. "I still have so strength left," she said quietly. "But five minutes... I don’t know if any of us can last that long."
Yuliet shook his head firmly. "Don’t push yourself, Delphine. You’re the only healer we have left. If you collapse, people will die. But..." He glanced at Andrey, then at Ernando, who was advancing again. "We don’t have a choice, do we?"
Sarah, who had been catching her breath beside Andrey, straightened. Her transformation had faded, the pink glow dimming, but her eyes were sharp. "Lisa can help," she said, nodding toward the mint-green Magical Girl. "She has a Mana Transfer skill. She can distribute her mana to others, keep them fighting longer. It won’t be a full restore, but it might stretch our resources enough to survive five minutes."
Lisa nodded, clutching her wand. Her face was pale, but her grip was steady. "I can do it. Just tell
who needs it most."
Hope’s eyes widened slightly, looking at the young Magical Girl with new respect. "That’s... actually a chance. If we rotate who gets the mana, we might just hold him off."
Simmon twirled one of his swords, a faint smirk appearing despite the blood trickling from a cut on his forehead. "Five minutes of fighting an S-rank at full power while we’re all hobbled. Risky? No, it’s suicidal. But I’ve done worse on a slow Tuesday."
Sein cracked her neck, her gauntlets flaring with fresh crimson light despite her exhaustion. Her green eyes t Andrey’s, fierce and steady. "Five minutes, Glasses. You’d better not be a second late."
Andrey held her gaze. "I won’t be."
Yuliet turned to his lion, Noel, and whispered sothing. The beast growled softly, lowering its stance. Then Yuliet raised his sword, blue-white energy flickering along the blade.
"Then let’s buy him those five minutes. Simmon, you take the left flank. Hope, you’re with
on the right. Delphine, stay back and heal who you can. Lisa, start transferring mana to anyone whose glow is fading. And Sein—" He glanced at her, his black eyes steady. "Don’t die before your boyfriend finishes his countdown."
Sein’s face flushed. "He’s not my—" She cut herself off, growling. "Just shut up and fight!"
Andrey stepped back, positioning himself near the center of the group. He closed his eyes, focusing his Ki, reaching for the connection to the system.
’System,’ he thought. ’Initiate Synchronized Heart Mode on Sein Alphis. Maximum power. Consu whatever Affection Points are needed.’
System: Synchronized Heart Mode initiated. Affection Points will be consud to amplify power. Duration scales with consumption. Confirm?
’Confirm.’
System: Synchronization initiated. Estimated ti to full activation: 5 minutes.
Andrey opened his eyes. Around him, the heroes of the grand hall surged forward, throwing themselves against Ernando’s relentless assault. Lisa’s mint-green light flickered between them, transferring mana from herself to Delphine, to Hope, to any hero whose aura dimd.
Simmon’s twin swords clashed against Ernando’s blade, sparks flying. Yuliet and Noel harried from the flank, their strikes carving shallow wounds in Ernando’s layered defenses. Hope’s crystal sword blazed with what little mana she had left, driving the S-rank hero back a step.
Sein stood at the front, her gauntlets blazing brighter by the second, waiting. Her green eyes flicked toward Andrey, then back to Ernando.
"Co on, you brainwashed bastard," she muttered. "Five minutes. We can do five minutes."
The grand hall shook with the impact of another shockwave. A hero fell to his knees nearby, too exhausted to rise. Lisa sprinted to him, transferring what little mana she had left, her own glow dimming further.
Andrey didn’t waste a second. His fingers flew through the system shop interface, spending his remaining points on a set of high-grade mana potions. They materialized in his hands, and he imdiately pressed them into Lisa’s hands.
"These are for you," he said quietly. "You’re our battery. If you run dry, everyone falls. Drink them as needed."
Lisa looked at the vials, then at Andrey. Her fingers curled around them, and she nodded. "I understand. I’ll keep my mana up so I can keep transferring."
She uncorked one and drank half, her mint-green aura flickering back to life, steadier than before.
"Are you still strong enough for this?" Andrey asked, watching her face.
Lisa wiped her lips with the back of her hand. "I can hold on. Don’t worry about , Andrey. Just focus on the synchronization."
She stepped back, wand raised, already reaching out with her mana sense to the exhausted heroes on the front line. From a distance, she began transferring energy, keeping their flas from dying out.
Ernando’s assault was relentless.
Simmon and Hope worked in tandem, their blades flashing. Simmon’s twin swords moved in elegant, brutal arcs, each strike aid at Ernando’s joints, his exposed neck, the gaps in his dark armor. Hope’s crystal sword blazed with golden light, her movents less graceful than before, but no less determined.
Still, Ernando pushed them back.
Sarah, her transformation flickering but holding, raised her wand. Pink energy gathered at its tip, not in a massive storm, but in a concentrated, needle-thin beam.
"Eat this, you brainwashed puppet!" she shouted. "Heart Stinger!"
The pink beam lanced forward, striking Ernando directly in the face. It wasn’t a powerful attack but it was precise. It hit his eye.
Ernando flinched.
His head snapped back, and for the first ti, his expressionless mask cracked. Annoyance flickered across his features.
"You..." His voice was flat, but there was heat behind it now. "Annoying insect."
He turned away from Simmon and Hope, his dark blade raised, and charged directly at Sarah.
"Sarah!" Lisa scread, already pouring mana into a barrier around her.
Simmon was faster.
His twin swords crossed in front of Ernando’s blade, stopping the deadly arc inches from Sarah’s face. Sparks exploded from the impact. Simmon’s arms trembled, but he held.
"Hope!" he shouted. "Now!"
Hope lunged from the side, her crystal sword blazing with concentrated light. "Radiant Cross!"
A golden crescent of energy erupted from her blade, slamming into Ernando’s side. The impact staggered him, his dark armor cracking where the light touched it. He growled and stumbled back a step.
Yuliet didn’t give him ti to recover.
He launched himself from Noel’s back, his sword blazing with blue-white energy. "Luminous Arc—Full Charge!"
The crescent of light was massive, twice the size of his previous strikes, and it struck Ernando square in the chest. The S-rank hero’s feet dragged across the marble floor, carving trenches as he was pushed back. Another step. Then another.
Yuliet landed in a crouch, breathing hard. "That’s... all I’ve got..." he panted. "Sein... now!"
Sein was already moving.
Her gauntlets blazed with crimson fire, brighter than they had all night. She leaped over the fallen debris, over the exhausted heroes, and drove her fist into Ernando’s chest, right where Yuliet’s attack had cracked his armor.
"Crimson Impact—MAX!"
The explosion of fla was deafening. A shockwave of crimson energy erupted from the impact, sending debris flying, forcing even Simmon to raise an arm to shield his face.
Ernando flew backward.
He crashed through a pillar, through a second, and landed in a heap of rubble at the far end of the hall.
For a mont, silence.
Then, slowly, the rubble stirred.
Ernando pushed himself to his feet.
His armor was cracked. His lip was bleeding, dark ichor dripping down his chin. His empty eyes were no longer empty, they burned with sothing dangerous.
"You..." His voice was hoarse, trembling with rage. "You insects... DARE..."
Sein stood her ground, her gauntlets still smoking. "We dared. What are you going to do about it?"
The system’s voice echoed in Andrey’s head.
System: Synchronization progress: 60%. 2 minutes remaining.
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