I will win. Putting that single-minded thought into it, I leveled the tip of my wand.
"Heh... you're an interesting one..."
The tension rose. In a time like walking on thin ice, both stared each other down, and then, moved.
The point where I surpassed Milky was the high rate of fire. Using that as a weapon, I just fired. Every single one of those attacks was dodged, but it still served as a distraction. It was better than allowing the opponent freedom of movement.
In contrast to me, who relied on numbers, Milky's attacks excelled in precision. As expected of a veteran who showed elite-level skill in numerous FPS games. Her aiming ability, her skill in lining up the sights by reading the enemy's movement and the time until impact, was worthy of praise. But I wasn't going to be beaten forever either.
"Wait, hasn't her movement improved...?"
I dodged Milky's light ball. And I hit it back. Milky hurriedly dodged the reflected ball, which had increased in speed.
"What!? What on earth is happening...?"
We both fired light balls and dodged. The shootout continued without either side getting hit.
"If she's a beginner, she shouldn't even be able to move properly in this puke-inducing VR space! How is she using such high-level control techniques!?"
Sensory numbness arising from the difference in perception between the virtual world and the real world. This VR game had a unique feel to its controls, and it's true that until you got used to that feeling, there were major restrictions on your actions.
But if we're talking about differences in perceptual sensations, I've experienced an even greater gap. It's the difference between an insect and a human. The body of the insect, which is the main body, and the human body it controls. When I first shared sensations, I experienced a difference in sensation that was fundamentally different based on the biological structure.
Compared to that, syncing my sensations with VR wasn't that difficult. It took a little time, but I finally got used to it. With this, I could control the character with almost the same physical sensation as in reality.
With light balls at normal speed, no matter how many were fired, they would never hit me anymore. The same was true for my opponent. Gradually, the stage of the battle shifted from a shootout of balls to a rally involving reflected balls.
Reflected balls were powerful, but if you tried to hit back the opponent's ball poorly, an opening would be created. Milky fired balls one after another, predicting even those actions. It was a deep game despite the simple rules. If I didn't think carefully, a split-second error in judgment would lead to being hit.
"Huff... this is a game Mil-pyon made... huff... for me to lose to a beginner in a game... wheeze... there's no way that's possible-pyon!"
Milky hit back the reflected ball I had returned. A magic ball came flying with a terrifying amount of speed added to it. I met it head-on. The magic ball accelerated even more and flew toward Milky.
And Milky hit back that super magic ball once again. A rally like tennis continued. It wasn't like there was a rule saying you couldn't drop the ball, so I could just dodge it, but I deliberately stuck to hitting it back.
Milky was the same. In other words, it was stubbornness. The exchange of heavy hits was a clash of hearts, with each of our pride on the line. Every time it was reflected, the speed of the magic ball increased without limit.
"UOOOOOOOO!"
"UOOOOOOOO!"
The balls flying around exceeded the limit of the display speed. I couldn't see them, but they were certainly there. I calculated the speed being added based on previous acceleration trends and hit them back relying solely on sensation. Zeros were being added to the world of 0.1 seconds.
I was reacting to the magic ball by mobilizing my heightened senses through split thinking. However, even with thoughts branched out into many, Milky clung on. What strong will and obsession. I was in awe of her reaction speed and technique, which had been polished as a gamer.
But even so, I will win. The rally, which seemed like it would last forever, was probably less than a minute in actual time. An end was put to that condensed time.
The ball I hit back last never returned to me again. An explosion occurred where Milky was standing. The energy accumulated every time it was hit back had drastically increased not only the speed but also the power. All the stored magical power exploded, engulfing Milky.
"K... O!! THE WINNER, SIX!!"
Cheers erupted from the spectator stands. While steadying my breath, I tried to wipe away sweat, forgetting I was wearing a helmet. Just then, Milky, who had been blown high into the sky by the blast, fell down. In reality, it would have been an accident causing serious injury, but seeing Milky land with a deflating sound effect, I remembered it was a game.
"Waaaaah! I lost!"
However, seeing Milky crying, my feelings, which had begun to relax, tightened again. Milky, who had 9 health left, was hit by an explosion strong enough to cause an instant game over; her battle costume was destroyed.
I obviously couldn't look directly at her in that scandalous state, which wouldn't be an exaggeration to call almost naked, and I looked away with all my might.
"Sniff... sorry for being mean. To tell the truth, Mil-pyon just wanted a friend who was also a magical girl..."
I get it, so please put some clothes on first. The match is already over, and since you're the game's creator, you should be able to do that easily.
"It might be strange to say this... but if it's okay, would you be friends with Mil-pyon?"
Toward Milky, who was asking for a handshake while looking up at me, I responded to it while facing away. A lot happened, but if we can become friends and I can get her cooperation, nothing could be better. Or so I thought, at that moment.
"Don't get cocky, you sow..."
It wasn't Milky's voice; a low voice of someone else echoed. Startled, I looked around to see the magic wand Milky had been holding floating in the air while emitting an ominous miasma. The eyes of the Evil God Illumin statue carved on that wand snapped open.
Immediately after, things like giant octopus tentacles sprouted from under my feet, and my body was restrained. I became unable to perform any operations.
"Oh no! That's the legendary magic wand 'Baculus Illuminans,' in which the soul of the Evil God Illumin is sealed! It's an Intelligence Weapon with a will of its own-pyon! Mil-pyon was supposed to have it sealed, but to think its power would go out of control!"
Milky explained it in an overly explanatory tone, but as someone who regularly watches her videos, I already knew about it. There was a setting that the world would be destroyed if the seal was broken, but this wand went out of control quite frequently, interrupting her streams to fire off a series of crude dirty jokes. It had become a routine for Milky to respond with her natural airhead persona.
"Hehehe... it's been a while since I've tasted the fresh magical power of a magical girl. I'll suck you dry to the very last drop!"
"Please stop! That person is Mil-pyon's friend!"
Stop or whatever, I'm pretty sure Milky is the one making this wand talk. While enduring the unpleasant electric current running through me, I could only watch how things unfolded.
"What's wrong! Shiver more in shame! The disgrace of exposing your scandalous appearance is what makes magical power more delicious! Where did your bashfulness from earlier go!?"
I didn't think I felt any bashfulness about my appearance. Every time my health was drastically reduced, the damage to the clothes Six was wearing also increased, but no matter how much my clothes were torn, I didn't particularly care.
"It seems the punishment is still not enough... very well. Until you cry out, I shall slowly expose your young body before the public eye, like plucking petals one by one."
Six's swimsuit was already quite tattered, and it was in a state where her chest and private parts were barely covered. If the goal was to strip her of her clothes, I wished they would just get it over with.
"Are you an idiot! In things like this, the process is more important than the result! Stripping everything off all at once with no emotion or anything, you don't understand at all!"
I had no idea what it was saying.
"Huhuhu, you can act tough for now. If I use my dark magic, the pinnacle of my wisdom, I can even [BEEP!] your [BEEP!] with [BEEP!], and then [BEEP]!"
More than half of what it was saying was inaudible due to the beeping sounds.
"And of course, I am recording this footage! The record of the shame that is about to happen will be scattered across the sea of the cyber-world. I can almost hear the agonizing howls of the dogs who worship you... Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
In the end, I didn't understand what Milky wanted to do. No matter what was done to this body, it was just messing around with a created image. If she wanted to do it, she could do as she pleased.
I thought we had built a relationship as players on the other side of that image. At least, I believed that existed during the game just now. Was that something that didn't matter to Milky? Was engaging in this kind of farce her goal?
"Please, don't do anything horrible to my friend!"
"It's useless! No one can stop my released dark magic!"
I felt as if the distance between me and her, who had been close by until just now, had drifted far apart. The difference between the virtual world and reality; it didn't just represent a difference in perceptual sensations. Milky seemed to be trying to hide herself behind that empty wall.
Unless that wall is removed, we probably won't be able to understand each other any further than this.
Ring-ring-ring-ring...
At that suddenly ringing sound, the voice of the magic wand that had been laughing loudly stopped. It sounded like a phone's ringtone, but was it a game sound effect or something? While I was thinking that, Milky picked something up from under my feet.
"Why is there a smartphone? Did I prepare a gimmick like this...?"
Milky voiced her doubt. What she was holding in her hand was a smartphone. In the real world, I have a smartphone with a very similar design.
Ring-ring-ring-ring...
The ringtone was coming from the smartphone. Looking at the incoming call screen, Milky muttered suspiciously.
"Luan Almeiza...?"
Ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring-ring...
The call gradually turned into a piercing, high-pitched ringing in the ears, and block noise generated on the small screen of the smartphone began to overflow into the virtual world.
Blade, watching Six while he was gaming:
"Six-kun, what is that intense movement of your hands!? What on earth... what are you fighting!?"
Status Update:
Busted: Pomerni
Hunter-type: Blade Max
Idol-type: Noah Heliodor
Magic-type: Answer Bat
Controversial-type: Velvet Alecto
Animal-type: Six
6 remaining.