How truly wonderful... not only were we caught, but the gas was completely and utterly dispelled, to the point not a single trace of it remains.
Now, what next? Time for some planning.
Due to the useful skill I got when I reached level thirty, called 'Thought Acceleration,' I can think many times faster than a normal person, around fifty times faster at its current level of five. And yes, I'm not exaggerating. Took a while to get used to, although.
Now, taking that into consideration, I should have a good enough time period to think. Should take only thirty seconds or so.
With that said, with the help of the skill I acquired at level ten or so, 'appraisal,' I can glean a lot of information on this person. So, I activate it.
>Alert. Appraisal blocked. Possibility exists that the opponent is level eighty or above. That, or they have a skill that blocks appraisal.<
Well, would you look at that? That, there, is a problem, A big one. Well, there's three of us, and one of them, and each one of us is level forty-five or above, with me at fifty. Despite the possible power difference, we still have a good chance.
Alright, so, thinking about it, a careful approach wouldn't work so well. This guy seems like the kind of person who thinks things through pretty well, the type who's smart and can easily predict what people will do. With that all in mind, instead of carefully planning what to do next, charging in headstrong is the right course of action.
So, I activated a simple strength-enhancing skill, unsheathed my sword, and charged at them.
"Really, not even a hello? What a joke." He raised his hand forward, blocking the blow of my sword with the palm of his hand alone. Strangely enough, there seemed to the noise of two pieces of metal hitting each other when he blocked my hit, "then again, I didn't exactly say hello either."
Damn it, he blocked my hit without breaking a sweat... Right, can't get distracted even if I can think faster. I go for a sweep in order to knock him off guard, however, he simply stepped back a bit and completely dodged me.
"Heh, oh, hell yeah! Now that's my kind of style!" Togeshi practically yelled out, running up to catch up with me. Looks like they're both finally reacting.
"Fine! Looks like fighting or not isn't a choice anymore..." Akane began to ready a spell, raising forward her hand and finally casting it. It seemed to be a wind spell, one that focused on piercing rather than brute force.
And while this was happening, Togeshi closed the distance in an instant and went for a basic, but incredibly strong punch right for the face of the man.
"Insolent, despicable humans... don't you understand how powerless you are?" And in a mere moment, a cocoon of what seemed to be a black metal surrounded the man, protecting him from both attacks.
That's it, this man is a mage. And from the looks of it, his attribute is metal. That must be how he blocked the blow from my sword with his hand alone despite not having any armour on that part of his body. I wasn't even able to see the metal appearing on his body, so he must have cast the spell at the exact moment I hit him, then de-cast it right after. He must be insanely talented in magic to pull something like that off...
"Ghg..." Togeshi grunted, "Damn it! Get out of there, you coward!" He sent out a relentless barrage of punches and kicks, but it was all in vain as it didn't even dent the metal cocoon.
"And why should I listen to a disgusting human like you?" The muffled voice of the man spoke from the metal casing, still as monotone as ever.
"Oh, shut up! You're the disgusting one!" And with that, Togeshi, even more irritated, continued his endless attacks of punches.
Maybe I should intervene before this guy attacks somehow...
"Togeshi, calm down. All you're doing is tiring yourself down. Think about it, this is obviously no ordinary metal. Judging from its colour and durability, it's probably black steel, and with that, it's most likely enhanced with this guy's magic."
"Right..." Togeshi sighed, scratching the back of his head, "I guess you're right."
"Why, aren't you a clever boy? You not only deduced what my magic is but also the exact kind of metal that is my specialty. Correct you are, and my 'Cocoon of Black Steel' is impenetrable. Try as you might, your attacks are useless against me. Now, what futile attack will you try next? Or should I just kill you rodents now?" Despite his both insulting and painfully cocky words, I wasn't particularly mad. I've luckily always been able to keep a cool head... However, these other two...
"Oh yeah? You won't be saying that when I rip you and your dumb magic to shreds!" Akane began to prepare a different spell, one from a completely different attribute altogether. Summoning magic, huh? Akane's second attribute. Seeing how every person only has two attributes, one from the basic category, and one from any of the others, showing off what your other attribute is in a fight like this isn't exactly the smartest decision... Although, it was me who said carefully thought-out plans wouldn't work too well against an opponent like this.
"Summoning Magic: Middle-Spirit of the Wind, Vernix Eagle!" And with that, She finished the incantation, summoning a humongous eagle many times larger than a human. Immediately as the spirit was summoned, the wind around both it and Akane became restless, the pressure alone was formidable, I have to admit.
When summoning a spirit, it not only, well, gives the spirit a usually temporary physical form to exist in the physical realm, but as well gives a large boost to all stats of the summoner. Such, it makes both the summoner and spirit stronger. As well as that, both the spirit and summoner can use the skills and magic of the other. However, this comes at the cost of the two having to make a pact, one that puts both at risk. If one of the two dies, the other dies too. It's risky, but it's pretty hard to kill a spirit for real. Sure, you can kill its physical form, but for it to actually die, you have to completely eradicate its soul, and not a lot of people can do that. That's what makes fighting people who can summon spirits so difficult... not even I would want to go against Akane in a real fight, she'd honestly most likely win if she took it completely seriously.
But even then... against something like this, does that even stand a chance? Black Steel is incredibly resistant to magic, to the point it almost nullifies it. I have to admit, this guy is incredibly powerful. Even if you don't take into consideration his level, his ingenuity when it comes to this spell he developed, 'Cocoon of Black Steel,' he called it, makes him pretty much invincible.
"Hell yeah! We're not gonna go down without a fight-- Scratch that, we're not going down! I'd die before I'd lose a fight to someone like you!" Togeshi grinned, obviously excited at the idea of beating this guy to a pulp. Can't say I blame him.
Now, Togeshi doesn't really have anything at his disposal as flashy as Akane, but he makes up for it in pure physical strength. His overall pure power is unrivalled among us, even when I buff myself with my skills.
However, in a situation like this, Togeshi is perfect in this situation due to a certain skill of his, 'Charged Strike.' Like how it sounds, he can charge up an attack with raw energy, making it even more powerful than it would be in the first place. With a fully charged hit from that, I'd probably die instantly, and the same stands for most people.
With that said, Togeshi began to activate that very same skill, a surge of energy radiating from his fists.
Alright, if they're going all out, I might as well too.
"Light Magic: Holy Power." And with the short incantation, a bright light spread out from me, enveloping both Togeshi And Akane. This spell was something I happened upon when reading about the applications of Light magic in a book I bought. It turned out to be a good investment, considering I learned a lot about how to use one of my greatest assets. Light magic is one of the most versatile magic attributes, as it can attack, heal, defend, and buff. And Holy Power fits into the last of those categories. It increases the stats of all people in a ten-meter radius that I consider an ally by around thirty percent, including my own.
With that out of the way, I recast my own buffs from my skills and move closer to the cocoon of steel. Unsheathing my longsword, I cast one other spell.
"Light Magic: Holy Envelopment," I spoke these words as I spread my fingers across my sword, it becoming completely enveloped in light. This spell not only increases effectiveness of dealing with the dark attribute but also increases the slicing power of my sword.
I could tell the man inside the cocoon was growing more and more nervous. Good, he deserves it.
"And finally, Severing Slash." I held my sword above myself and finally brought it down upon him, just as Togeshi and Akane attacked as well.
The combined attacks of all of us caused dust to scatter across the room, but when it finally settled, the room grew silent.