I was taught what the first thing you should do when fighting a Nen user is. It is 'Gyo'. Gyo is a technique where you concentrate your aura into a specific part of your body. Normally, aura is spread evenly to strengthen the entire body, but by gathering it in one place, the reinforcement of that specific part becomes much stronger.
When this technique, Gyo, is used without a specific object in mind, it refers to the 'strengthening of the eyes.' That is how important it is to focus aura into your eyes. Carefully observing the opponent's aura is the very first step of combat. It is the standard tactic against a first-time enemy whose abilities are unknown.
However, since I have not undergone proper training, I cannot use Gyo yet. Despite that, I had been told to observe every single move and gesture of the enemy without missing a thing.
But Jack's opening move was an attack that struck right at the heart of that logic. An intense flash of light and sound erupted from the direction where my attention was focused. I didn't feel any impact like a blast wave, so I knew the purpose was to blind me, but the stimulus alone was effective enough.
The retina suffers damage when it receives light beyond its capacity. In response to a level of brightness that carries the risk of blindness, the body instinctively tries to close its eyes. But I suppressed that reflex.
Most likely, this flash was not a product of a Nen ability. I didn't sense any aura. It was powerful, but it was nothing more than a simple flash grenade. If so, the enemy's main attack would surely follow. If I closed my eyes here, my reaction would be delayed.
Even if my eyes were ruined, Six's body could recover. That was why I didn't close them, but the result might have been the same anyway. The light was so intense that I could barely maintain my vision.
Even so, if I had just stood there, let the enemy play me, it might have all ended without me being able to do anything. I couldn't see, but I felt like something was rapidly approaching. I ducked low and pushed over Noah, who was panicking right next to me, to evade.
"M-M-M-M-Mom!? To think you'd dive into my chest of your own accord...!"
When my vision returned, I saw something pierced into the spot where I had been standing just moments ago. I couldn't immediately find the words to describe it. It looked like a long, flat piece of paper or cloth. That cloth was extending straight toward me from the direction where Jack stood.
The cloth raised its head like a cobra and lunged at me again as if it had a will of its own. My body couldn't keep up with that speed. Even if I could dodge, it would be by a hair's breadth. I didn't have the luxury of dodging while taking Noah with me.
I instinctively kicked Noah's body away and used the recoil to jump sideways myself.
"Of course, I am always welcome to Mom's love—bufoh!?"
I managed to get through it, but with the next move, either I or Noah would be cornered. I considered attacking the cloth as a last resort, but I changed my mind after looking around.
"Nuoohhhh!! Dammit, how could I let this happen to meeee!!"
In a direction different from us, another length of cloth had extended toward Blade and was coiled around his body, binding him tightly. I didn't think I could do anything against an attack that could restrain even someone like Blade.
The cloth serpent immediately turned toward me. It was a desperate situation; well, if I was only restrained, I probably wouldn't die, but I would certainly be placed in a predicament either way.
I had been taught about Nen abilities and, despite being an amateur, I thought I had the power to fight, but I can only say I was shallow. He was an opponent I simply couldn't handle. I couldn't even find a moment to regain my footing or think of a countermeasure, and could only watch the approaching cloth serpent.
"Honestly, you people are so much trouble."
A gust of wind containing frigid air blew through. A single shadow passed by at incredible speed. The serpent that had been closing in to bite me was sliced in two, and the severed scraps of cloth danced in the air. Furthermore, the cloth restraining Blade was cut away in the blink of an eye.
The one who came to a stop while gently braking with a slide across the ground was Velvet. Before I knew it, edges like those on ice skates had been attached to the soles of her shoes.
This was her ability, 'Pride Rail.' Using the edges materialized on her soles, she can slide and advance at high speeds as if she were racing across a skating rink. It seems Nen users generally don't like to boast about their abilities even among close acquaintances, but she had revealed her ability, saying, 'It's no problem even if it's found out.'
"So that is the true identity of the 'Binding Lion'?"
On the other hand, because we had been attacked, I could now roughly guess Jack's ability. A mass of long cloth was wound around the top of his head. It was a turban. I wonder if he had been hiding it under the tricorne hat he was wearing until now. The cloth attacks launched at us were also extensions of that turban.
This is likely a Manipulation-type ability called 'Material Manipulation.' He moves the turban, which should be mere cloth, as if it were a living creature to attack. There is a possibility it is Conjuration-type, but judging by the severed fragments of cloth, the manipulated fabric appears to be an actual, physical object.
Moreover, this isn't just cloth reinforced with aura. It easily restrained Blade, a Reinforcement-type user with extremely superior characteristics in physical enhancement. It is better to assume that some kind of troublesome special effect has been added to it.
An end of the turban, which hid such a terrifying ability, chased after Velvet. Its movements were agile, but Velvet's speed was superior. Rather than just dodging Jack's attacks, she was counterattacking and shredding the extended turban.
She has two abilities. One is 'Cool Down,' a Transmutation-type Hatsu that gives her aura the properties of cold air; the other is 'Pride Rail,' which materializes ice skate edges. By using these two together, she can glide at high speed over the ground while freezing it.
However, the true worth of this ability lies elsewhere. Right now, the place where she is running is on the artificial turf of the stadium. Simply freezing this wouldn't allow her to glide smoothly over it. Naturally, it wouldn't be like skating on a maintained rink.
Yet, there was no sense of hindrance in Velvet's run. After she passed, frozen lines were drawn as if two rails had been laid down. This is the special effect of 'Pride Rail'—the place where the materialized edges pass is 'leveled' into an environment suitable for skating.
In addition to the powerful effect of overwriting the environment, just as the name 'Edge' suggests, the sharp metal pieces on her soles can also become weapons by reinforcing them with aura. The power of her kicks was enough to forcibly neutralize Jack's ability.
"Oh, not bad. But there's more."
Jack released several strands of cloth from his turban. It was just like a lion tossing its mane. No, perhaps it should be compared to Medusa, the monster with hair made of snakes. The cloth serpents, unleashed in all directions, attacked Velvet.
Velvet smoothly slipped through that swarm of serpents. To think she could control her glide on what should be unstable ice with such precision while maintaining speed. And her balance—not just avoiding, but delivering kicks with one leg while gliding on the other.
I found myself watching in a daze, but this was no time to be leisurely spectating. For now, I headed toward Blade, who had been restrained.
"Nuoohhhh!! Fuohhhhh!!"
He was jumping and flopping around like a fish washed up on land. In other words, he still hadn't escaped the restraints. When I approached to help, I was stopped by Blade himself.
"Don't come any closer-muscle! If you touch it carelessly, there's no telling what might happen-muscle!"
Blade was writhing with all his might, his face turning so red that his veins were popping, but the coiled cloth didn't budge. Despite being severed by Velvet, the cloth serpent continued to exert its binding force.
It would be fine if Velvet defeated Jack, but it didn't look like it would be that easy. Jack, positioned at the center of the serpent swarm, had set up an ironclad defense. The situation was at a stalemate.
Jack tried to catch Velvet with his numerous cloth serpents, but he was losing in speed. If he attacked poorly, his cloth would instead be shredded. For a Manipulation-type user, their favorite weapon is the foundation of their fighting strength. He surely wanted to avoid having it sliced to bits.
On the other hand, against Jack, who was sticking to long-range attacks, Velvet was unable to get within her own attack range. She was using kicks to sweep and keep him in check, but the only part of her that was safe to hit the cloth serpents was the edge. If any other part of her body were caught, she would follow the same fate as Blade. It certainly couldn't be called an advantage.
Even if I wanted to help, Blade was currently restrained, and I felt that if a combat amateur like me or Noah jumped in, we would only be in the way. There was the option of using Noah's Nen ability, but that was a poor match for a long-range type like Jack. The range of the disease onset is 10 meters, but the effect weakens the further away the target is. To neutralize him all at once, he would have to get much closer. There was also no guarantee that Jack's ability could be stopped by the disease.
"This is bad-muscle... At this rate, we'll eventually be overwhelmed...!"
It looked as though Velvet and Jack were fighting on equal terms. However, the one on the offensive was Jack. Velvet wasn't just on the defensive; it was a fight where she would lose if even a single blow landed.
Still, her expression remained as it had always been. Her weary, cold gaze did not falter. While dodging Jack's attacks, she took something out. It was a plastic bottle.