339 Tamamo no Mae? (1/2)

Well, regardless of the actual defensive prowess, Seiji gave this effect full points for looks.

”We need to go over here in order to test defensive magic.”

Natsuya took Seiji to another section of the practice field and indicated for him to stand in front of a machine that resembled a cannon, with him facing the ”cannon's mouth.”

'Come, fire at me!' Seiji couldn't help but think of this classic line.

Natsuya manipulated the ”cannon's” controls and activated it. The ”cannon's mouth” began to glow.

'No way, it's really going to fire at me?' Seiji felt the sudden urge to dodge the attack.

But this was a test… a test of his defensive spell's capabilities, which meant that he had to take this attack.

”Ready to fire. Three, two, one.”

*Boom!*

A bullet of light shot out from the cannon's mouth and hit Seiji's barrier.

Right at the moment of impact, all the ”water” gathered in front of the projectile and blocked the bullet of light.

The bullet of light's true identity was actually that of a baseball.

This baseball, engulfed by the ”water,” was left floating in midair. It rapidly corroded and turned a burnt-yellow color. Finally, it crumbled into tiny pieces and fell to the ground.

His barrier had the same effect as [Mana Bullet].

”This corrosion effect is so strong; just what power could it be?” Natsuya muttered to herself.

She had already inspected the spell with her own Astral Vision. Seiji's current spirit seemed like a mid-low-level spirit—one slightly less powerful than Minamoto no Raiko.

However, the powerful corrosion effect the spirit added to Seiji's spells had greatly exceeded her expectations.

She didn't know the limits of this corrosion power, but based on the results of the tests, it was definitely incredible.

Although Natsuya was confident of her abilities, she knew that her Astral Vision wasn't powerful enough to see through everything. Due to this, occasional mistakes in judgment were unavoidable.

With such a powerful effect, the new spirit's actual level should be much stronger than what she had estimated!

Taking this corrosion power into consideration, this spirit's overall power level was probably even higher than Minamoto no Raiko's.

'Perhaps… it's a high-ranked spirit...'

Even if it wasn't a high-ranked spirit, this corrosion power alone was astonishing.

This mysterious female spirit was actually even stronger than the heroic spirit Minamoto no Raiko… just who could she be?

Natsuya thought of several possibilities. After some consideration, she felt that the most likely one was Tamamo no Mae—one of the three strongest and evilest demons in existence.

Although she was a great demon, she possessed a few qualities of a heroic spirit.

After being exorcised, she repented partially and transformed into the ”Killing Stone,” which possessed the power to slay anything which touched it.

Only the part about loving to sleep was missing from Tamamo no Mae's legend.

However, demonic spirits' forms were uncertain, and there were multiple versions of the same demon, each one with a different personality. One particular Tamamo no Mae who loved to sleep seemed perfectly within reason.

The real question was this: Tamamo no Mae's poison was supposed to only affect living creatures. It was meant to have little effect on non-living objects. Her power didn't seem to entirely fit with the corrosive power that they had witnessed.

Even if that corrosion was related to Tamamo no Mae's poison, the computer had information on that already and should have been able to analyze it. However, the computer was unable to complete an analysis.

Not only that, according to legends, Tamamo no Mae was exorcised by Seiji's ancestor Seimei Kamijou. There was a deep connection between Seiji's bloodline and Tamamo no Mae, but it was one of enmity, not friendship, like Minamoto no Raiko. Would she really descend upon Seimei Kamijou's descendant, Seiji Haruta?

Natsuya was uncertain about everything.

There were numerous parts that didn't match up, and there was no way for her to currently confirm if this mysterious female spirit was Tamamo no Mae or not. It was just the most likely possibility Natsuya had in mind.

They continued testing Seiji's abilities. Next, Seiji cast [Astral Vision] and [Telekinesis].

Under the effects of his bonded spirit's power, Seiji's eyes turned golden when he cast [Astral Vision], and his field of vision became clearer. He was also granted a 360-degree view! He could everything behind him clearly without needing to turn his head.

Basically, his [Beginner-level Astral Vision] had leveled up to [Total Vision]. His upgraded sight was rather strange to Seiji, and it took quite a while before he got used to it.

As for his [Telekinesis]'s evolution, it transformed into a large golden hand!

The large golden hand didn't have the corrosion effect. It could grab objects, form a fist and attack, or even act as a shield. It was quite flexible in its applications.

Finally, he tested the [Body-Strengthening Technique].

After mentally preparing, Seiji cast the [Body-Strengthening Technique] using the power of his bonded spirit.

Then, he looked at his reflection in the mirror. His entire body was enveloped by a golden mist, and golden runes had appeared on his skin. His hair shone with a golden luster as well, making him seem like a blonde god with a long, carefree hairstyle…

Was it merely on the level of a golden glow? No, he was basically a Super Saiyan!