Limitless (2)

At the 30-second mark, Iruki tied the score, and Shirone accelerated the sequence formula.

'Faster, faster.'

His condition was at its peak.

As he leaped over an immense number of arrays, the world flashed before his eyes like rapid blinking.

The students erupted in cheers.

"Shirone is leading by four points again!"

Even Iruki was starting to feel anxious. Unlike during practice, he was now focusing all his efforts on precise targeting.

"Yet I'm still falling behind? My calculation speed?"

He couldn't understand. Just three days ago, he had been overwhelmingly ahead. What kind of magic had Shirone pulled off in such a short time?

Shirone clung desperately to his consciousness.

'I'll remove the restrictions on modularization.'

Until now, he had been evenly processing 100 numbers at a time. Now, he was calculating indiscriminately.

187, 293, 378, 423…

If he missed even a single array, the sequence itself would collapse like a tightrope walk. His concentration soared to an unprecedented level.

469 to 432.

As Shirone suddenly surged forward, the entire student body leapt to their feet, roaring.

Even Ethella, who usually remained composed, couldn't tear her eyes away from the screen, unable to predict the outcome.

Iruki saw through Shirone's strategy.

'He shattered the calculation routine. A kind of mental doping. He's aiming for absolute victory.'

A grin formed on his lips.

'Do you have any idea how long I've waited for this?'

A rival who could push him to his absolute limits.

'I'll accept your challenge, Shirone.'

Facing the greatest rival of his life, Iruki also embarked on his own tightrope battle.

'But my gamble is on a whole different level.'

The change happened immediately, and the students squinted in confusion.

A new rhythm emerged, overlapping with the rapid-fire bursts.

"Huh? What's that?"

542 to 558.

Not only had Iruki caught up, but he had overtaken Shirone with astonishing speed.

Mark turned to Seriel.

"Senior Seriel, what's going on? Did Shirone make a mistake…?"

"No, Shirone's speed is increasing as well. It's just that Iruki's is even faster."

"But! He gained 100 points in an instant! Is it even possible to double your speed like that?"

Seriel bit her lip. It still seemed impossible, yet there was no other explanation.

And if it truly was possible, then everything happening right now made perfect sense.

"That guy… He has two Spirit Zones."

The juniors narrowed their eyes and focused on the Image Zone.

Faintly, two afterimages twisted at different angles.

"Th-That's real?"

Seriel's expression turned grave. Not just because of the match, but because another formidable competitor had emerged within the Magic Academy.

'I knew he was exceptional, but a Double Spirit Zone?'

A unique trait of the Detached Type—Mental Division.

Even for those adept in the Detached Type, this was a high-level technique reserved for the chosen few.

'I've never seen it firsthand. As far as I know, Iruki is the only one in school capable of it, even among the seniors. And yet…'

His speed didn't drop at all.

'He's executing two sequence formulas simultaneously. Is that even humanly possible?'

Iruki was proving that it was. And not just any sequences—both were logarithmic.

'Solving all of this in his head… This isn't just talent. This is a mutation.'

The true power of a Servant was now reflected on the scoreboard.

692 to 845.

A gap of over 100 points, with Iruki several levels ahead.

"It's over. This match is decided."

Most of the students believed the outcome was clear. But Shirone refused to give up.

'Bundle even more numbers together!'

The number of figures processed through modularization had now exceeded an average of 1,000.

732 to 911.

Shirone had set a new personal record.

But Iruki wasn't just surpassing his own best—he was on track to break Amy's record as well.

The students were in awe.

"Iruki… He's incredible. At this rate, he'll rewrite the history of Class Five."

Yet, as the others marveled, Shirone's mind was occupied by a single thought.

'I can't reach it through calculation alone.'

He had to surpass it.

'Can I do it?'

Was this even a power humans were allowed to attain?

No one answered him, but he felt as if he had received a response.

'I must transcend numbers!'

Limitless.

His calculations accelerated further.

But the place he aimed for was beyond the reach of sequences.

Not numbers, but the concept beyond them.

'Infinity.'

The limits of modularization, which once grouped hundreds or thousands of numbers, began to disappear…

'Further.'

It was as if every number in existence converged into a single point.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The rhythm of exploding targets escalated sharply, and everyone's eyes turned to Shirone.

Twin streaks of light shot out simultaneously.

"Shirone-senpai has a double as well! B-But isn't it too late? There's only…."

"No, it's not just a double."

Seriel couldn't believe what she was seeing.

The number of streaks kept doubling until, eventually, they merged together.

Shirone shivered in ecstasy.

"Ah…."

A sensation of detachment from the world.

His every sense dissolved into the universe, his very identity vanishing.

The beams of light spread in all directions, fusing into a massive curtain that enveloped the space.

The moment a target appeared, it exploded, and the speed gun's level continued to rise.

Tears streamed down Shirone's face.

'Ah… Ahhh!'

He was fading away.

His name, his existence—everything that made him who he was—was dissolving into the world.

Meanwhile, Iruki focused on himself even more.

"Grrr!"

He saw Shirone's rapidly climbing score, but it didn't matter.

No matter how fast Shirone became, he just had to go even faster.

'There's no limit to Servant's calculations! I will calculate everything! I will see the end of numbers itself!'

Iruki's Double Spirit Zone shattered targets at speeds that left even afterimages behind.

'I'll win! I can win! Only 1 second left! 0.9 seconds! 0.85—damn it! Why is time moving so slowly?!'

Beep—!

The longest minute of his life ended.

As the targets vanished into holograms, Shirone and Iruki collapsed to the ground.

"Haa… Haa…."

Iruki panted for breath, but Shirone remained completely still, his head drooped.

He had already lost consciousness.

Iruki checked his score.

1,247 points.

A historic record, surpassing Amy's highest score by 260 points.

'Not bad. I won… right?'

But then why was it so quiet?

Iruki turned toward Shirone, who remained motionless, his face buried in his chest.

'Wait…'

He glanced at Shirone's score.

1,253 points.

Mark, after double-checking the numbers, stammered in shock.

"S-Senpai… Shirone-senpai…."

"Shirone won!"