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**—Hom’s POV—**

I braced myself for the impact of the crash, but Altered—together with Selem Salkh—was caught by a soft current of wind.

Even as Selem Salkh should have been slammed onto its back, it continued to block my attacks with its blade. For it to hold its ground against my full-force strike, never once retreating, spoke of truly extraordinary willpower.

*—Why…?*

Selem Salkh was not increasing the output of its thrusters. But Lady Estea possessed the power to control the wind.

“It can’t be…”

Almost at the same moment I realized it—Lady Estea had created wind behind Selem Salkh to absorb the impact—the machine began to push back Altered’s kick with all its might.

The storm encircling the machines gradually gathered speed, raging more violently.

“—!!”

I let out a ragged, reckless cry and pushed the output of the charged cloth beyond its limit. This was it—this was my last card to play.

Yet Lady Estea refused to yield. She kept blocking Altered’s lightning-charged strike with her blades of wind, and our two machines had fallen into a deadlock.

With the acceleration from the Plasma Vernier, I could just barely hold the balance. But I could push the unit no further. In fact, I had begun to hear the sound of its deceleration, the herald of its end.

The machine had lost so much black blood oil it could no longer sustain the Plasma Vernier. Even the massive charge Lady Alfe had poured into the charged cloth with her unparalleled lightning magic was now nearly spent.

Despite Lady Alfe and Master sending me this far, my technique was about to fizzle out.

“A magnificent technique. I respect the effort you’ve devoted to it. But the one who will win… is me!”

Lady Estea began to move in earnest to secure her victory. The pressure of the wind-blades rose still higher, and the Altered—once holding even—started to be pushed back.

The machine creaked and screamed. But it could still move.

I wanted to win. Absolutely. I never wanted to lose again— I had to overcome this trial to remain myself. For Master, for Lady Alfe, and above all, for my own sake.

“I… will not lose!!”

The words burst from my own mouth, and no one was more shocked by them than I was. Before I knew it, I was clutching the protective charm Master had given me—the Hiraishin—so tightly in my left hand that blood seeped from my palm.

*—I will not give up.*

As if engraving the vow into myself, I focused my own magic into the Hiraishin. It drank in my aether, crackling with countless small bolts of lightning.

The answer I had reached was surely reckless. Charging the external charged cloth from inside the cockpit—something only possible with Altered, the machine Master had built for me—was a wild, impossible move otherwise.

Resolute, I released aether from my whole body.

“Aaaaaaahhhh!!”

My entire body went numb and burned, pain tearing through me until I realized I was screaming loud enough to shred my throat. Considering that the Hiraishin was never designed to charge a mecha’s parts, it was no wonder. The magic tool went berserk, and my body, serving as the conduit, was scorched by lightning. But if it meant winning, I could endure anything.

The Hiraishin reached its limit and shattered in my left hand. But with that, everything was ready.

Altered still had not been forced back. We were maintaining the deadlock with Selem Salkh.

This was, in a sense, a clash of wills between Lady Estea and me.

**“Charged Cloth: Charge Rate 200%—Plasma Vernier: Ready”**

Like a blessing, the system voice rang out from Altered. It was more than a mere mechanical announcement. It was the beloved voice of Master herself—the one I admired beyond measure.

*—Master had believed in me.*

“Here I go, Master!”

I was not alone. That was why I could still fight.

“Blitzraid!”

The rebooted Plasma Vernier began to discharge violently. In the instant of its restart, I had already shaken off the ground I’d lost to Lady Estea.

“Contestant Hom!! She’s accelerating even further at this point—!!”

Johnny, the announcer, let out a shocked cry. Drawn along by his voice, a roar of cheers rose from the stands.

The lightning in Altered’s legs grew stronger, pushing the unit forward even more.

“Haaaaaahhh!!”

Unable to withstand the crushing pressure any longer, Lady Estea finally thrust both of Selem Salkh’s arms forward, bracing her blade with its spine.

“I will not lose…! As the Student Council President of Canalford, I must be the strongest. I will win for the sake of changing this school!!”

Lady Estea gathered every ounce of her power into the wind. A violent storm swept the colosseum, hurling up splashes of mud as it struck Altered.

Once again the balance of power began to even out, but I drew on the last of my strength.

“I will not lose either!!”

My whole body smoldered as if screaming. The stench of scorched flesh filled my nose.

But none of that mattered—my body burned with heat, my soul shouting that I would never accept defeat.

Yet Lady Estea stood like a rock. I could feel the storm cutting into Altered, pushing it back.

*—Something. Just one more thing. Just a little more…*

With a prayer-like desperation, I tightened my grip on the controls. At that moment, a sensation like a violent jolt ran through my body—and then the world was swallowed by darkness.