บท 182: Chapter 182: Shinji Matou vs. Souren Araya(Bonus)

"—Kongou!"

Souren Araya brought his open palms together as if he were crushing something.

Almost simultaneously, the "rune bullet" made of a special material experienced a certain pressure and turned into a fine powder, scattering downwards.

It was an impact that the eyes couldn't perceive. In that instant, Shinji grasped the essence of the impact he had just experienced. This enclosed bounded field was Souren Araya's magecraft. He could interfere with this enclosed space, such as applying pressure to a target through specific gestures.

However, Shinji didn't feel alarmed by this revelation. Through the previous attack, he had already realized that Souren Araya's control over this place hadn't reached the level of a magus workshop. It seemed that this was just a temporary bounded field he had prepared.

In that case, the assault of the rune bullets was not yet over.

Shinji snapped his empty right hand, and the dust of the bullets suddenly erupted with a silver glow—sparkling and densely scattered, accompanied by crackling sounds.

Those were electrical sparks radiating through the air, and such a large quantity of sparks indicated that a grid of electricity had been deployed in front of Souren Araya.

The 24th derived rune, "Thursaz," also known as the "Hammer of Thor," symbolized the power of thunder and lightning. This rune was attached to the shattered rune bullet.

The all-pervading electric current pierced through the invisible barrier set up tracing dazzling trajectories in the air.

Right before the trajectories reached Souren Araya's body, the tall middle-aged man spoke for the third time.

"Kongou!"

"Fugu!"

The flow was interrupted—the flow of air, the flow of electrons, everything came to a halt.

The area around Souren Araya seemed like a closed, stagnant space where all movement came to a halt.

Electrons that couldn't flow couldn't become an electric current, and the electric grid generated by "Thursaz" shattered on its own.

Seeing his attack neutralized by his opponent in this manner, Shinji couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "The strongest bounded field magus truly lives up to his reputation."

Souren Araya was an anomaly among magus. He was quite ordinary as a magus, but when it came to creating bounded fields, he possessed exceptional skills that were few and far between in the world. His representative work was the "Six Realms," and three of them were used to block Shinji's attacks.

"Fugu" for defense, "Kongou" for stagnation, and "Dakatsu" for enclosure.

Immediately after, the fourth bounded field emerged prominently.

"Dakatsu!"

The circular shape that had expanded into a planar structure suddenly became three-dimensional, extending lines made of magical energy, resembling a spider's web hunting its prey.

And that prey was none other than Shinji Matou, not far away.

Shinji crouched halfway, his right hand touching the ground.

"EIHWAZ!"

The protective power contained within the rune was released. The web generated by the "Dakatsu" boundary couldn't penetrate the range of "EIHWAZ" and could only roam around its periphery.

"The Primordial Rune?" Souren's serious expression was finally broken, and his voice carried obvious fluctuations. "Has she made new progress in deciphering rune magic?"

"Such a ridiculous question."

A silver slingshot sprouted magical blade forks. On a physical level, the magical blades were no different from ordinary steel swords, but when it came to magical constructs, they were no less than legendary weapons like the Heaven-Smiting Sword or the Dragon-Slaying Blade.

With a swift motion, the web generated by the "Dakatsu" boundary, possessing the power of restraint, was split in two.

"Even an 'Origin' like you, an ancient relic of 'Stillness,' is growing. And Miss Touko, she's so skilled at treading in place—Isa!"

Isa, the rune of ice, the freezing rune, is also the rune that best aligns with the water attribute of the Matou family.

Freezing is a form of static confinement, and since Souren Araya's boundary characteristic is stagnation, using the same concept might have been effective.

Unfortunately, this attempt failed.

"Foolish!"

Souren Araya said indifferently, but because of his strong aura, his calm voice carried a sense of reprimand.

"Since you knew about my 'Origin' from Aozaka, you should know that I am protected by 'Stagnation,' and all the concepts of 'Stagnation' in this world are ineffective against me."

The man, ignoring the power of freezing, moved. His black coat merged into the darkness of the night and rapidly closed in on Shinji, swiftly like an undead.

The combat magic that Souren Araya could wield was limited to a bounded field. Bounded fields are means of separating the inside from the outside, techniques of protection and isolation, but they severely lack offensive capabilities. While they may serve as fortresses, they cannot be compared to spears and cannons. Souren Araya's true winning technique was his physical prowess.

With his black coat fluttering, he appeared before Shinji in an instant. Souren Araya extended his enormous left hand, his palm wide open as if it possessed the strength of a thousand catties, reaching out as if to crush Shinji's head.

If it were an ordinary magus, their skull would have likely been crushed by such a grip. But Shinji was not an ordinary magus. He was the disciple of the legendary Queen of Shadow, Scáthach, standing at the pinnacle of combat skills. His physical prowess was no less than his magical abilities.

Before Souren's left hand could make contact, Shinji lowered his body, not only evading Souren's grasp but also counterattacking with a backhanded strike that landed on Souren's wrist.

"Fugu!" Souren Araya exclaimed once again.

The wrist that was indeed grazed by the blade of the dagger did not falter. Although the blade cleanly passed through as if cutting tofu, his hand didn't have a single scratch.

"Taiten !" His right hand moved.

Souren Araya, as if predicting Shinji's evasion from his left hand, released his right hand, still in a claw-like motion, aiming for Shinji's face. In his eyes, Shinji, who was now weaponless, would be unable to withstand this attack.

However, reality exceeded Souren Araya's expectations. Shinji, who appeared to be only eleven years old with a slender and far-from-muscular physique, actually managed to block his claw—using only his right hand, which was half the size of Souren's.

The incredible force transmitted through Shinji's fist, the explosive technique of focusing power in a single point, and the unmistakable magical energy fluctuations on his fist, all indicated to Souren that the boy before him was, like himself, a magus skilled in physical combat.

The clash of these two immense forces resulted in both of them being pushed back. Due to the difference in size and physical abilities, Souren only took a few steps back before stopping, while Shinji had to retreat more than ten steps to release himself from the grip of Souren's claw.

This slight time difference was enough for Souren to launch his next attack.

"Dakatsu!" The bounded field web used for restraint spread out once again, pursuing Shinji, who hadn't yet regained his balance, like maggots on rotting bones.

Shinji hurriedly swung his Gun blade to cut through the "spider threads," but this time there were twice as many threads as before, and their resilience was even more astonishing. Shinji was temporarily unable to completely sever them.

At this moment, Souren Araya clenched his left hand once again and let out a low growl.

"Chougyou !"

The air compressed.