Bab 1456: -1437- The unwelcomed victory
The victory conditions for ranking battles are to either seize the emblem hanging around the neck of the opposing team's squad leader or to knock down the squad leader. If either condition is met, victory is achieved.
Therefore, before the battle begins, both the squad leader of Team E601 and the squad leader of Team E571 will wear the emblem symbolizing the Valkyrie around their necks before entering the field.
Aside from these two victory conditions, any other actions leading to success do not count as a win. Even if the members of a squad are successively knocked down, as long as the squad leader is still in the air or the emblem around their neck has not been taken, it is not considered a loss.
With the referee's command, both teams immediately took to the sky and scattered.
However, with this single move, the difference between the two teams became apparent.
Team E571 swiftly dispersed its members according to predetermined tasks, and the squad leader coordinated with the current situation by issuing instructions, allowing the members to quickly form a formation.
For an E-rank squad, this action was impeccable.
On the other hand, the three members of Team E601 scattered without any order.
The vanguard, Lecty, almost immediately cast a suggestive spell on herself, causing the ring on her finger to glow. Her expression quickly faded, replacing timidity and fear with calmness and a blank face. After deploying her magic dual swords, she charged forward without hesitation.
At this moment, Misora also drew her magic cannon sword and activated the collar around her neck to boost her telekinesis, making herself glow as she charged forward, shouting loudly and raising her magic cannon sword high for an aggressive attack on the enemy.
As for Rico, she retreated without hesitation, raising her magic gun but not deploying her floating lenses.
That was natural.
The arena was only so large, and with Rico's natural eyesight and sniping skills, she could handle any situation without needing full vision unless she aimed for complete surveillance. Rico's decision not to use Clairvoyance was quite accurate, as it avoided unnecessary mana consumption.
However, Rico was unable to provide support fire.
There was no choice.
Due to Misora and Lecty's charge, the enemy's vanguard had engaged both of them tightly, and if Rico were to shoot, she would likely hit both Misora and Lecty as well.
At this point, Rico could only click her tongue, having her highly accurate shooting ability rendered useless.
However, the fierce attack by Misora and Lecty did have an effect.
Although Misora had not yet mastered swordsmanship, in a state of enhanced telekinesis, not only could she move more freely, but she also no longer swung the magic cannon sword aimlessly like a club. Under the guidance of telekinesis, she could finally form slashes and suppress the enemy with aggressive attacks. The broad magic cannon sword swung around, causing the enemy's vanguard to almost be knocked down several times.
If this was the case with Misora, it was easy to imagine what happened when facing Lecty.
When Lecty's extremely fast and dazzling magic dual sword techniques bloomed in the arena, causing her magic dual swords to trace lightning-fast paths like fluttering butterflies, not only did the audience let out exclamations of surprise, but even Chloe, Kanata, and Yuri began to discuss it with either surprise or excitement.
Clearly, Lecty's magic dual sword technique was enough to astonish the members of the Special Task Force.
Even Freon's eyebrows raised slightly as she seriously assessed Lecty, likely changing her opinion of Lecty from this day forward.
The vanguard of Team E571, facing both Lecty's magic dual sword technique and Misora's aggressive slashing, nearly got knocked down within a few exchanges. If it weren't for the fact that the airmen's protective suits reduced damage and could deploy magic barriers to absorb attacks, this vanguard might have already been defeated.
It can be said that Rozen's improvements to the airmen's protective suits allowed this vanguard to avoid direct defeat.
However, this still startled the mid-range and long-range members of Team E571, prompting them to raise their magic guns and bows in support fire.
Surrounded by magic bullets and arrows, Misora and Lecty were forced to halt their pursuit and retreat.
Only then did Rico's shooting finally come into play. She immediately pulled the trigger, shooting numerous magic bullets to snipe the rear members of Team E571, forcing them into support mode.
Ironically, because of Rico's barrage, Misora and Lecty were unable to charge forward, leaving them stuck in place.
What was supposed to be a three-on-three match turned into a two-on-three or even a one-on-three due to the performance of Team E601, resulting in a stalemate with no clear winner.
This left the audience both surprised and booing.
The surprise was due to the unexpectedly strong performance of Team E601, which greatly astonished everyone, making them look at the three girls in a new light.
The boos naturally stemmed from the fact that despite holding a strong hand, Team E601's coordination was terrible, turning what should have been a one-sided battle into a deadlock.
Team E571 managed to withstand the fierce attack from the now stronger members of Team E601 through their teamwork and support.
Meanwhile, Team E601 had significant improvements in strength but failed to coordinate, making the situation extremely dire.
In the end, Lecty used the Eisenach-style magic dual sword technique to successfully eliminate the enemy's vanguard, knocking them down.
Misora then took the opportunity to fire her magic cannon sword, using her abundant telekinesis to create a barrage, despite her poor accuracy, and pinned down another enemy member.
Finally, Rico delivered a soul-stirring shot, striking down the enemy squad leader's emblem and securing the victory.
However, when the referee announced the victory, the entire audience erupted in boos.
"That was such a terrible fight!"
"With that kind of strength, what were you even doing!?"
"Indeed, I didn't expect you all to be so strong, but you were completely dragging each other down. Do you even understand what team combat is?"
"You've undergone a complete transformation, yet you still fought like that. It's so disappointing!"
"I think it's because of Rozen senpai's guidance that you've become so strong, right?"
"But you fought terribly, how can you face your senior?"
"As expected of the weakest squad, even with strength, you still fight like this!"
"What a waste!"
One after another, the audience began to shout, showing how agitated they were.
Under such scolding, Misora, Lecty, and Rico also looked grim, without a hint of victory's joy.
Rozen and his group silently watched the scene unfold.
"So this is what they are most lacking as a squad?"
"Impressive strength, no wonder Rozen picked them, but I can only say their individual strength is remarkable, their coordination is terrible."
"It seems they haven't practiced team combat at all."
Chloe, Kanata, and Yuri, members of the Special Task Force, each gave their evaluation.
"..."
Freon quietly observed the scene or perhaps was observing one person in Team E601, lost in thought.
"As expected."
Rozen looked as though he had anticipated this.
Then, Rozen left his seat and walked outside.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone