With a thunderous boom—

A tremendous tremor shook the ground. Standing atop the watchtower, Klaha felt a momentary fear that the high platform might collapse under the impact.

From there, the battle in the town began.

“Commencing combat communications!”

As she shouted, those atop the watchtower—clerics and magicians more skilled than Klaha—began providing assistance through communication magic.

The combat zones were northeast and southwest, alternating in turns.

What she needed to convey was—

“I will continue to provide real-time position updates! Valdfried, prepare for interception!”

Instead of a reply, a gunshot echoed.

The Gate Beast—the tiger—had now appeared once more, but in the area where Valdfried was not. Emerging again in the chaos of group combat.

Of course, Klaha had not spent the days leading up to this battle idly.

Broadly speaking, she had worked on two things.

The first—her collaborative efforts with the church and the magic federation were now proving invaluable.

It was a skill she had honed in the center of town—developing a keen sense of symmetrical positioning when viewed from the watchtower.

Now, Klaha could predict, with no more than the length of a pinky’s deviation, where the northeast tiger would reappear in the southwest after a Magic Mirror Shift.

Constantly relaying that information to Valdfried.

That meant, effectively, a guaranteed kill in the southwest.

With a sharp crack—

Lightning flashed in the northeast.

“—Northeast combat team, drive the Gate Beast as close to the town center as possible! If both fall within Valdfried’s secret sword range, victory is automatic!”

A response came from the transmission officer on the other end.

“Two steps left, three steps forward—move to the red-roofed house! Potential reappearance in seconds, be ready!”

Step by step—

The tiger was steadily advancing toward the town’s center.

At first glance, it seemed as though the beast was invading the town.

But in truth, it was being herded—cornered—by human hands.

The Gate Beast was powerful.

Even if Ziel had said the current species were incomparable to the Thirteen Gate Oni—

That did not mean they were not a threat.

Even Icca, the fourth-ranked fighter in town, could not face one head-on.

And yet now, the dojo, the church, the magic federation—everyone was working together.

Bit by bit—

Forcing it toward the place where the battle would be decided.

Klaha clenched her sword.

That was the second thing she had prepared for on the days leading up to the final battle.

First phase cleared.

Watching as a Thirteen Gate Oni reappeared in the northeastern part of Resonating Mountain, Ziel—

Understood that in the southwest, Chikano had just unleashed a decisive strike against her opponent—

And he couldn’t help but feel conflicted.

Since leaving this land, he had spent years—

Even conquering a labyrinth of the highest difficulty, an extreme ordeal that had forged his current strength.

“She does it so effortlessly, doesn’t she—?!”

But lamenting his lack of natural talent wouldn’t change anything.

Ziel once again called upon it.

The secret sword.

“—Still not enough on the second try, huh?!”

With a slash—

Yet it still could not disrupt the activation of Magic Mirror Shift.

Ziel’s eyes darted around the area, following the glow of magic circles, tracking them, always keeping his aim.

“—There!”

The moment the Thirteen Gate Oni reappeared—

A single slash.

But once again, it failed to land a decisive blow.

And yet—

“How long—”

“—Do you think you can keep running?”

A flash of iai.

In the southwestern part of Resonating Mountain, Chikano’s blade once again drove the oni back.

Unlike Ziel, she did not claim victory in a single strike—

The oni’s claws intercepted the blade with a ringing clash. Purely because Chikano, compared to him, lacked both raw strength and speed.

“One move—”

Yet swordsmanship—

Was not merely determined by strength and speed alone.

With a fluid motion, her blade curved, wrapping around the oni’s arm, bending as if to snap it.

“Two moves—”

The oni, sensing danger, leapt backward—

But soundlessly, Chikano’s thrust followed in pursuit.

“Three moves…”

Just as the oni attempted to grab her blade—

Like a flower slipping from a child’s grasp, the sword flicked away.

A decapitating strike—

Once again, aimed at the Thirteen Gate Oni.

“Your turn—”

“—Too soft.”

Simultaneously with a Magic Mirror Shift, the oni launched a sneak attack.

But Ziel had anticipated its emergence from the magic circle’s glow—

And intercepted it effortlessly.

“Hah—!”

Slashing diagonally, then following through into a sweeping cut at the waist.

The oni twisted into an unnatural posture to evade—

“—Too slow!”

Mid-swing, Ziel altered his motion, lowering his blade while spinning, closing the distance by a step.

And with a heavy thud, he drove a kick straight into the oni’s gut.

That blow—

Marked the first time the oni had taken real damage.

The fact that it did not use Magic Mirror Shift to escape immediately—

Was proof that it had begun seeing the risk of doing so under non-fatal circumstances.

It meant the oni had decided that, even if it had to take some damage, eliminating one opponent first and then finishing off the other was the best strategy.

That in itself was a rational decision.

But—

“If you think you can take one of us down first—”

“—You’re sorely mistaken.”

One strike.

Three moves.

Though they were far apart, the rhythm of the two swordsmen—

Within the resonance of Resonating Mountain, was beginning to synchronize.

One strike, three moves. One strike, three moves. One strike, three moves—

The exchange accelerated.

The end was drawing near.

If there is such a thing.

Klaha had thought it through beforehand.

"Just a little more-- just a little more and it will be within the range of the secret sword!"

At first glance, the plan seemed perfect.

Constant pressure from Valdfried. By doing so, they steadily drove the tiger into the center of the group battle. And ultimately, Valdfried would swiftly take care of it.

It was an ideal and highly certain plan. However--.

"Whoa!!" "Grrr!!"

The voices could already be heard without the need for communication.

They were almost right below the lookout post-- both positions of the Gate Beast were about to fall within the range of Valdfried's secret sword.

At that moment, the tiger roared.

"Maz—Fall back!"

"But just a little more and—"

"Idiot! Stick to the plan! Switch to bows and attack from a distance!!"

As expected, Klaha saw it.

Just as predicted. There was no way the tiger, a magical beast, would move so conveniently.

If it knew Valdfried would take it down in one blow—then it had no reason to care about Magic Mirror Shift. Instead, it just had to rampage wildly in the middle of the battlefield, disregarding everything else.

There was no longer any aversion to injury, no sense of intelligence in its movements.

Only raw, unrestrained violence—that was all that remained.

And that was precisely why—

"Klaha! Should I go?!"

"No! It's not within secret sword range yet!"

For Valdfried to charge in would be pointless.

If the Gate Beast used Magic Mirror Shift in that brief opening, the southwest side—already thinly defended—would be left completely vulnerable. All their efforts to corner it would go to waste as it fled back to the mountains. Worse, it might even manage to flank Chikano, who was still engaged in battle with the oni.

That’s why—

"—I'll go."

Her heart pounded fiercely.

But this too was part of the plan—something they'd accounted for beforehand.

She had talked to so many people.

And she had made this decision herself.

Klaha planted both feet on the edge of the watchtower.

Then, she chanted the communication spell and signaled Icca to begin the operation.

"...! Understood!"

He glanced up at her once.

Then, with a firm nod, he began channeling power into the magic crests on his arms.

The tiger’s rampage continued. But for now, the people of the dojo, the church, and the Magic Federation—those three factions—were still holding the line.

"—Loading initiated."

Klaha closed her eyes, focused, and began chanting.

She still hadn’t mastered this technique.

She had trained for twelve days—the necessary components were already in place. But executing it on instinct in the heat of battle was another matter entirely.

So.

She had to prepare in advance. Carefully.

"—Blow, stronger—To the powerless, grant steel arms—"

The wind stirred.

Her entire body was enhanced.

She continued chanting.

She used spells she had learned while serving as a support mage—versatile reinforcement magic. Weapon strengthening. And the internal energy technique Ziel had taught her, a method of enhancing the body without relying on spells.

She was not strong.

No one knew that better than she did.

But this technique—this was one that allowed someone weak to momentarily combine, merge, and explode with borrowed strength.

And so, surely—

"—Huh?"

Suddenly, Klaha realized something.

This preparation—this Loading. The amount of energy exceeded her limits. It felt far greater than during training.

She turned around.

The priest and the mage who had been with her in the watchtower—

"Go get 'em, Klaha!"

"We're counting on you!"

They were assisting her.

Ah, Klaha thought.

So that’s it.

"—Thank you. I'm going!"

Being supported by others—was something so—

She leapt.

By sheer coincidence, it all happened at the same time.

Four battlefields. And in each, the conclusion arrived in perfect synchronization.

"This is the end—!"

"It's over—"

In the northeast and southwest of Resonating Mountain.

Ziel and Chikano. Amidst their simultaneous battle, their breathing synchronized, their footwork, their swordplay, their sense of timing all aligned perfectly.

"—Not bad, brats."

In the small town, slightly south-southwest of the center.

Valdfried, having received the transmission spell from the watchtower, sensed the battle was reaching its conclusion.

And—

"Klaha!"

"Icca!"

In the town center, slightly north-northwest.

Klaha, having completed Loading, fell from the watchtower, launching a surprise attack from above upon the Gate Beast. Meanwhile, Icca, closing the distance on the ground, activated his magic crest to its very limit.

At the exact same moment—

"Secret Sword—!"

"Floral—"

Ziel raised his sword. Chikano gripped her katana.

"Secret Sword!"

Valdfried lifted his greatsword.

And—

"Unfinished Sword—"

"Great—"

Riding the force of the wind, Klaha split the night in two as she plummeted.

The Gate Beast noticed and raised its head in defense.

But naturally—

She shifted her trajectory midair—outside the reach of its fangs and claws—

And she shouted:

"—Tailwind!"

That slight moment of speed made all the difference.

It was an all-out strike. Using all her strength, all the power she had been given, all the support of those who believed in her—delivering it at the most advantageous angle.

Even so, all she could manage was to cut the tendons of the Gate Beast’s hind leg, making it stumble.

If there had been even a moment after that—her life would have been forfeit.

But that moment never existed.

In Resonating Mountain—

"—Moonlit Dream"

"—Revolving Burial"

Ziel and Chikano unleashed their final slashes.

In the town's southwest—

"Heavensfall!"

Valdfried swung his greatsword down, cutting off any escape route.

And in the northeast—

The situation was simple. The same Icca who had once grappled a bull-shaped Gate Beast and thrown it to the ground despite being weakened by illness—

Now, receiving the strength of countless allies—

Faced the staggered tiger, now in its most defenseless state—

And, like a reckless young fool, with unbelievable force—

"—Thunder God Twins!!"

A thunderous flash ripped through the twilight.

And so,

The battles all ended at the same time.

The result was the same for all.