A Wonderful Aspect of Autumn: Action (24)

After Genzou arrived, the finals for the pairs division began in the arena. Since this division also had level-based brackets, Kanna and Raga, who were competing, would not be up for quite some time.

However, just because the levels were low did not mean the matches were uninteresting. The coordination between pairs and the tactics involved in two-on-two battles were thrilling. Sometimes they made use of each other's strengths, and sometimes they protected one another. In fact, the lower-level players seemed to have better coordination. Honestly, it was quite educational.

"Hey, Genzou-san! Show me the sword you won!"

"..."

However, some people were uninterested in matches their companions were not participating in. Shitake was the foremost example. Shitake went behind Genzou, massaged his shoulders, and begged him to show the sword he had won. It was pointless because he had an exoskeleton... Wouldn't some other method of ingratiating themself have been better?

Genzou kept all four arms folded as he concentrated on the match currently taking place. It was the final for the level-sixty range. One side consisted of a heavy warrior like Eiji paired with a mage like me, while the other consisted of a warrior wielding a one-handed axe and shield paired with a warrior wielding a poleaxe.

The heavy warrior kept protecting the mage, weathering the two warriors' fierce attacks. The mage, protected behind him, fired magic at the warriors, preventing them from dealing much damage to the heavy warrior. Whenever they tried ignoring him and attacking the mage instead, the heavy warrior threw an iron ball at them from behind.

The coordination between the heavy warrior and the mage was excellent, but the warriors' coordination was just as good. Without exchanging a word, they maneuvered from side to side, leaving the heavy warrior completely unable to counterattack. Thus, the evenly matched battle continued.

The heavy warrior's health was gradually whittled down by blades slipping through his defenses, while both warriors slowly took damage from the magic. The mage was the only one still unharmed, but his magical power was limited. Sooner or later, he would run out and become unable to attack.

It was still impossible to tell how things would turn out, but at this rate, I felt the heavy warrior would fall before he could whittle down both warriors' health. As if to support my prediction, the mage seemed to be growing impatient. He unleashed powerful spells one after another, frantically trying to defeat one of them quickly. Apparently deciding that even that was not enough, he began attempting to activate a secret technique...