Re:Zero: No Job, No Magic, Just a Stupid Romance System

Then the real "cannonball" rolled in front of him.

It was a dense water ball, each nearly a meter in diameter, clustered together in the air like blue balloons, forming a thick "water wall" of magic. And the release of water balls didn't stop—the wall kept growing thicker.

Allen squinted, pressing his knife.

The wind seemed to quiet down.

"It's got presence... but this time, I'm not just relying on the Sword God Style. I need to cut through the water balls at high speed with a deep enough attack. Twenty slashes won't do. Then—"

"North God Style – Practical School – Normal Form II!"

The dirt behind Allen's feet exploded. He raised his right leg, twisted his body in mid-air, and his blade swept around him in a full-circle rotation. As he launched the slash, the wall of water balls loomed ahead, close enough to see the sunlight reflecting off them.

His fighting spirit surged.

'Round Sky Slash!'

The fighting spirit wrapped around the blade, the arc of the slash extending unnaturally far.

The water wall was sliced cleanly through, and Allen burst from the gap!

He chopped the next row of water balls in a single slash, weaving through them. The orbs had grown larger, but each burst uselessly against his body. Waves rolled across the grass as he sprinted atop the splashing water, gaining speed.

In the distance, Rudy raised his hand, water ball spells continuously launching from his palm. At the same time, his body bounced backward, propelled by wind magic in quick succession.

'No wonder the water balls are scattered. Rudy can't aim while jumping. He uses wind magic mid-air—once to launch himself back, once to soften the landing and keep jumping.'

'But… he's not fast enough.'

The dense, imprecise water magic couldn't slow Allen's advance. His dynamic vision pushed to the limit, Allen avoided each orb, the exploding magic turning to harmless turbulence around him.

The distance shrank—50 meters!

Rudy gritted his teeth.

"Waterfall! Icicles!"

Allen instinctively dodged underfoot—but there was no ice below. He looked up.

A massive cylinder of water surrounded Rudy and came crashing down!

The sheer amount of water flooded the hillside, forming a shallow river. Then—

Icicles! A barrage erupted beneath Rudy's feet.

"Rock Cannonball!"

Rudy compressed the spell into a bladed rock and threw it. The icicle shattered into a flat sheet of ice Rudy could ride.

He stood on the ice, raised a hand, and yelled:

"Rock Cannonball!"

Allen prepared to dodge—nothing came.

He looked again.

Rudy wasn't attacking—he was bluffing. In truth, he used wind magic to push himself across the slick surface. The ice skated across the water and grass at twice the speed of before.

Allen's jaw dropped.

"You can do that?"

Just then, a real rock cannonball flew in. Allen sliced it away. His Dragon Saint Dou Qi core contracted sharply, pumping energy through his limbs.

He cleaved the next wave of icy magic, water rising around him as he advanced, mud and rock erupting behind him.

His Dou Qi surged.

His speed—nearly leaving an afterimage!

In just a few breaths, the distance closed again—30 meters!

But Rudy wasn't panicking. His eyes lit with excitement.

"Allen, watch out—this is mixed magic!"

"Swamp!"

Allen's eyes narrowed.

'Swamp magic—Rudy's signature move. But he can't cast it large-scale yet... in the original novel, he could only make a two-meter-wide swamp in childhood.'

Allen smirked, slashing at the ground. The wind pressure blew apart the incoming swamp terrain.

He leapt out of range and cut down a sneaky flying ice spear midair.

He landed—five meters forward.

And his foot sunk into the ground.

"...?"

Allen stared at his trapped leg, confused.

Rudy shouted from a distance:

"My water magic wasn't just for show! Look around! I prepared all this for you!"

Allen knocked away another ice spear and quickly scanned his surroundings.

The hillside was completely soaked.

'He can't cast a swamp instantly—but if the ground's saturated beforehand…'

The waterfall and water ball spells had drenched the field. All Rudy needed was a trigger to turn it into a trap.

The entire hillside had become a giant swamp.

Allen stood silently as Rudy launched another volley of ice spears.

"But!" Rudy raised his arms triumphantly. "Even if you're trapped, I still can't stop you. Your Water God Flow senses magic and lets you cut it down."

Allen narrowed his eyes, smirking.

"So?"

Rudy crushed a water orb with a fireball.

The collision of fire and ice unleashed a massive cloud of steam. Mist began creeping across the swamp.

He pointed at his own eyes.

"So I'm going to blind your senses!"

He crouched and placed both hands on the ground.

"Intermediate Magic—Geothermal!"

"Mixed Magic—Thick Fog!"

"Feel the charm of physics, Allen!"

Steam rose rapidly from the swamp. The area quickly filled with fog.

Allen clicked his tongue.

'Cocky brat… You even explained your whole strategy out loud. You think I don't get it?'

He cracked his neck, raised his sword, and pointed at Rudy—still crouching, slightly blurred in the fog.

"But geothermal has a fatal weakness."

"If the caster dies while channeling, the spell is cut off."

Rudy flinched.

"…What are you saying? You can't even reach me—"

Allen raised his blade behind his ear in a throwing stance.

"The North God Style… has a technique for throwing the blade."

He locked eyes with Rudy and said, slowly and clearly:

"If this were a real battle… the moment you squatted down, you'd be dead."