Hope born of solitus

*

I grit my teeth and continue running. I wondered if I bought enough time... I could absorb enough magic to match up to her. Clearly, it wasn't realistic. I need to fight her with my current specs. However I have a gut feeling... She's not just more powerful by measure of physicality and magic, she's likely stronger in martial arts or fighting techniques too...

There's no option, I have 3 weapons I could use. My wits, {Feed}'s main ability, and the environment. Rather, I have other things I could do, but by process of elimination only these 3 things would do anything substantial. I kept running, an awful part of this environment is that it was the underground section of the train station. It only has a super wide corridor facing a single direction, running from her meant turning my back. I risked dying just by running.

There's nothing else I could do at the moment. I used 'Ingest' to consume all the magical energy in her 'territory', she's constantly releasing more energy to compensate. So if I focused on my sense while running at the same time, it could work like a make shift radar that tells me... There's a big concentration of magic heading my way, she launched a projectile attack!

I swung my arm back and enhanced it with magic.

"...?!" (Lastia)

No... Use... I kept going as fast as my legs could carry me, but... Even reinforced, my arm still got obliterated by her attack. Becoming a Remnant had strengthened her beyond my imagination. She will be the first A rank that Lastia encounters after all, just as the gap between C and B rank was noticeable, the gap between B and A was gargantuan. Like a ravine that spread into the earth's belly with its maw.

Right, I was running with all my might. I don't have to see it to confirm it myself, my arm... Everything below the elbow was gone. All my magic did after reinforcing my physicality, was deflect the attack... Even so, the vibrations still tore away half my arm... It was half an arm too many... If she hit my leg and prevented me from running, it might have been over, but at least now I know what she was capable off. On the second ranged attack that she launched, I hopped to the side.

The attack was so impactful that it blew a large 5 metre crater into the ground and launched me forward with its shock waves. It barely grazed my leg, but it felt like they were simultaneously punched by a hundred people. Resisting the pain, I continue to run. There was a T-junction coming up, a corner I can turn around and use to hide, even if only momentarily.

In {Feed}, after 'Ingestion' comes 'Digestion'. 'Ingestion' is the ability to cover a large volume of area with {Feed} and absorb the raw magical energy within it, 'Digestion' is the ability to instantaneously convert the raw energy to usable energy, it was the reason why I don't have to wait to gather magical energy like other magical girls do. Lastly, is 'Assimilation', I can use the usable magic energy to reinforced my physicality, my body's robustness and kinetic strength. But that... All of that is useless, except for 'Digestion'.

A large mass akin to wave sprouts forth from the Remnant's location, was this the end? I was a step away from the corner, but... This attack would surely crash through that wall and take me out. It was early, way too early. I turned around and ran towards the attack, pointing my hand forward.

"{Feed} (Digestion)" (Lastia)

A deep scarlet spreads forth. The very first encounter that 'Lastia' had with a Trace was in the classroom. It was a weakling, yet it had the ability to shoot deadly lasers that tore through wood. It was likely of a magical nature, it didn't exert enough power to break concrete. It was then, a scarlet tentacle sprouted forth from my finger tip... And swallowed it whole! Sending the attack back completely. Raw magical energy was not the only thing I could convert, I've converted the idea of gravitational potential energy, kinetic energy, and even Eldritch energy.

Theoretically pure energy, a mass less abstract that eroded and decompose. The light swallows the wave of vibrations at the point of collision... And sped up to smash into the cloaked figure. The impact erupted near her body and swallowed the surroundings in a deluge of smoke and debris. A defeaning boom engulfed my ear drums as I made my way around the corner and kept running. I didn't turn back once as I made my escape, soon I reached the tracks for another train line. Following it I sprinted to the next station...

I can't defeat that opponent, now that I have a chance to preserve my life, I should squash my hubris... I need to inform the rest... This monster...! If other magical girls were to be defeated, she would only get stronger... Is there some network that magical girls have? Sariel should have some connections since she joined up with an advance party to fight off that raid boss... In reality, the previous Lastia... She wrote that it didn't feel like a fight.

At a glance, anyone would say it was completely one sided, but that wasn't what she meant. She really wanted to say... Rather than a fight, it was more like she was poking at a corpse. The advance party had pretty much defeated it until its dying breath, but weren't able to finish it off. That's where Lastia came in... In other words, 'I' only stole their glory... Well, I didn't really steal any credit.

When everything was restored with the wish Lastia made, the credit was attributed to the advance party. Any mention of Lastia was omitted, only the people who were actually there at the time knew... Only the advance party understood, because they kept the memories they had of dying. I hope such a thing wouldn't bring any adverse after effects like trauma... Well, if it happens then it happens. It isn't something that a person could avoid, everything they feel is their own feeling, only they can put a value on it.

Just like this fear encapsulating my ego. My pride... If I had any of it... Is thoroughly broken. In exchange, I got to keep my life. It can't be helped, okay? She was way out of my league!! It's ridiculous to expect more, I'm not some sort of main character.

I'm just a student suffering from amnesia.