Chapter 1682: Founding Festival with Shallow Vernal ④

When we entered the huge tent, wondering what exactly this Super Dimensional Sniping Action was, I found a good number of people inside.

Large numbers were floating in the air with some kind of illusion magic, and a “5 minutes before start” tag was displayed. It seems to be an attraction where the time is fixed to some extent. If that’s the case, will all the people here in this tent be able to enjoy this attraction at the same time?

While I was thinking about this, someone who looked like an attendant came around and I was handed something like an L-shaped piece of wood. What is this wood? I wonder if they’re gonna give an explanation when that time starts?

[Shiro-san, you know what target shooting is, right? What is this wood used for?]

[I dunno?]

[……Eh? Arehh?]

[That is something you don’t normally use for target shooting. However, something that’s like the other world’s gun…… gun? Anyhow, there was something that looked like the gun in the other world here, but it’s a magic tool that Kuro thought up and made based on the information I gave her, so it may look strange for Kaito-san when you see it, but at any rate, they use guns for target shooting. Is that wood perhaps a replacement for that?]

[Fumu, I see……]

It’s true that when it comes to target shooting, a cork gun is used. Now that she mentioned it, the shape of the wood is somewhat like a gun…… No, more specifically, it looks like a handgun……

[By the way, what is regular target shooting like?]

[……I’d like my reliable lover Shiro-san to teach me……]

[I- I’d like my reliable lover Shiro-san to teach me~~]

[It can’t be helped. If Kaito-san’s going to say that much, then I will explain it to you.]

[T- Thank you very much.]

[Generally speaking, target shooting is a competitive sport. Ten people simultaneously engage in combat, shooting special crystals attached to each player’s body with magic bullets within a designated field. There are various detailed rules, but each person has 5 crystals, and if all of them are hit by magic bullets or if the player themself was knocked unconscious due to the magic bullets, they are eliminated. The last person remaining in the end is the winner.]

I see, so it’s something like a battle royale game? I think there are probably some restrictions on the power and speed of those magic bullets as well.

[Rather than magic bullets, there are restrictions on the guns used. Each gun has its own magic crystals attached, and it’s prohibited to create magic bullets using one’s own magic power, so the players must use the magic power from that magic crystal. It seems like there are limitations on the magic crystals’ specifications and the number of magic crystals that can be attached, which in turn restricts the available magic power for each player. While one can technically replenish their magic power ammo by channeling their magic power into the magic crystal, the purity of the approved magic crystals is limited to 50% or less, making the process quite time-consuming.]

[Ahh, I see, so it’s like adjusting the power and bullet speed within a certain limited amount of magic power, while balancing your magic power consumption. That sounds interesting, as it seems to bring out the individuality of each player.]

High-power magic bullets consume a lot of magic power and can’t be fired in quick succession, but they pack a punch. On the other hand, smaller magic bullets have lower power, but allow for rapid fire. Each of those can also be used in various ingenious ways.

Because they are magic crystals, one can also engrave magic formulas in them, so it may also be possible to shoot magic bullets that bend and split. Of course, magic power consumption would also be larger for that……

There were a lot of strategies and it looked interesting…… Well…… That’s not even close to the target shooting I knew though!

[When I had talked about target shooting before, I heard something about aerial combat, but what is that?]

[Having limitations on the size of the field means it’s more advantageous to make use of not just the horizontal space but also vertical space. While there are restrictions on using one’s own magic power for attacks, that isn’t the case for levitation or flight.]

[Fumu fumu, thank you for teaching me about this…… It looks like fun to watch. Seems difficult for me to actually participate in though……]

[……Kaito-san, this is just a suggestion, but as expected, why don’t we have a match?]

[Eh? No, I don’t even know what the Adjusted Version is like yet……]

[It’s alright. I know what it was like.]

She probably did something like Future Sight, checked the contents of the Adjusted Version in advance, and made that suggestion. I don’t think Shiro-san has the kind of personality that would be happy to one-sidedly beat me, so does that mean it’s something I have a chance of winning to some extent?

[No, it would be impossible for Kaito-san to beat me if we were to do things normally.]

[Well, I suppose that’s true.]

[And so, I’ll give you a handicap. “I can only hit the same number of targets as you hit” and “I must not score more than 50 points on a single target”. Those two are the two handicaps.]

[Hmm?]

[You can decide if you want to take this match or not when it’s time to start and you’ve heard the explanation. Our wager is that the loser will “do any one thing” that the winner says.]

[…………………]

Although that was a very standard thing to bet on in friendly matches like this, that’s precisely why it’s a matter of concern. Does the fact that Shiro-san suggested that…… mean that she’s going to ask me to do something that I would reject if she had just normally suggested it?

H- Hmmm. I’m not sure…… That does sound like a lot of fun, and with the corners of Shiro-san’s lips slightly raised, I don’t feel like it could lead to anything bad.

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [Huh? What’s that airhead God aiming for now?]

? ? ? : [1. Flirting 2. Flirting 3. Flirting…… I could only guess those three things.]

Serious-senpai : [……The heck of a multiple choice is that? It all just leads to the same thing……]