My Magical Girl System

Chapter 55: Mana Disruptor

Sein deflected a claw swipe from the possessed hero, her gauntlet screeching against his dark blade. She shoved him back and glanced over her shoulder at Andrey, her expression fierce but her voice unexpectedly soft.

"Don’t you dare die, Glasses."

Andrey adjusted his glasses with a calm that bordered on infuriating. "Relax. I’m the tank, remember? I can take anything."

He turned and strode toward the demon, katana in hand, his footsteps steady despite the chaos around them.

The demon raised an eyebrow, his crimson eyes gleaming with amusement. "Hmm? So now I’m fighting you directly? Don’t disappoint me, you lowly creature."

Andrey didn’t answer. He lunged, katana flashing in a diagonal slash aimed at the demon’s neck.

The demon’s clawed hand shot up, catching the blade between his fingers. Sparks flew as the metal scraped against his dark nails. He smirked. "Is that all?"

He flicked his wrist, and Andrey was forced back a step. Then the demon raised his other hand, and a stream of violet fire erupted from his palm, forcing Andrey to dive sideways. The flames scorched the ground where he’d been standing, leaving molten craters.

Andrey rolled to his feet and charged again. The demon kept his distance, launching wave after wave of purple fire. Each blast forced Andrey to evade. Every time he tried to close the gap, the demon’s flames pushed him back.

"You have no ranged attacks, do you?" The demon laughed, his voice echoing through the twisted cavern. "How pathetic. I’ll just keep my distance and burn you to ash. Hehehe."

A blast caught Andrey on the shoulder. He staggered, but Damage Absorb flared, drinking the energy. His chest glowed red beneath his shirt, storing the impact. He gritted his teeth and kept moving.

’This is bad,’ Andrey thought, his mind racing even as his body dodged another fireball. ’This demon is exploiting my weakness. I have no long-range offense. My Ki can only enhance my body and weapons. And Weapon Mastery—’

His hand brushed against his belt.

’—lets me use anything as a weapon.’

Andrey’s eyes narrowed. He reached down, unhooked his belt, and pulled it free from his waist in one smooth motion. The leather strap hung from his hand, the metal buckle glinting in the purple light.

He channeled Ki into the belt, feeling the energy seep into the leather, reinforcing it, making it more than just an accessory.

The demon watched, his flames momentarily ceasing. "What’s this? Have you given up? You’re going to attack me with that?"

Andrey didn’t answer. He wrapped the end of the belt around his palm, leaving the buckle free. The leather felt different now humming with Ki.

’If I can master any weapon,’ he thought, ’then this belt becomes a whip. And a whip... has range.’

He snapped his wrist.

The belt cracked through the air like a thunderclap. The metal buckle shot forward, aimed directly at the demon’s face.

The demon’s eyes widened. He raised his arm to block—too slow. The buckle struck his cheek, leaving a gash that oozed dark, viscous blood.

"Guh—!" The demon stumbled back, his hand flying to his face. He stared at the blood on his fingers, then at Andrey. His expression shifted from amusement to something colder.

"You... insolent worm..."

Andrey didn’t give him time to recover. He snapped the belt again—this time aiming for the demon’s legs. The leather wrapped around his calf, and Andrey yanked, pulling the demon off balance.

The demon caught himself, flames erupting from his palms to scorch the ground. But Andrey was already moving, circling, keeping the belt in motion. The leather whip cracked again and again, each strike finding its mark—an arm, a shoulder, the side of his head.

"You think this changes anything?!" the demon snarled, launching a wide wave of purple fire.

Andrey leaped over it, the belt snapping downward as he passed, catching the demon across the wrist. The demon hissed, his concentration breaking, the flames faltering.

’It’s working,’ Andrey thought. ’But I need more than just harassment. I need to take him down.’

He landed, spun, and lashed out with the belt one more time—this time wrapping it around the demon’s throat.

The demon’s eyes bulged. He clawed at the leather, dark energy sparking from his fingers, but the Ki-reinforced material held.

Andrey pulled, dragging the demon forward, and drove his knee into the demon’s gut.

The demon doubled over, gasping. Andrey released the belt, stepped back, and drew his katana in one fluid motion.

"You said I had no ranged attacks," Andrey said, his voice cold. "You were right. So I made one."

The demon looked up at him, his crimson eyes blazing with fury and fear.

"Who... are you...?"

Andrey raised the katana. "Just a guy who doesn’t like losing."

He swung.

The demon barely blocked with his claws, the impact sending him skidding backward across the shadowy ground.

Sein, still fighting the possessed hero nearby, caught a glimpse of the exchange. A fierce grin spread across her face.

"That’s my Manager," she muttered, and drove her fist into the possessed hero’s chest.

The demon’s laughter echoed through the crumbling cavern, dark blood dripping from the gash on his cheek. "Ahahahah! Not bad... not bad at all, you little worm." He straightened slowly, his crimson eyes blazing with renewed fury. "But your little tricks won’t save you. Playtime is over."

He raised both hands, and the shadows around him began to swirl violently. Dark energy coalesced in his palms, pulsing like a malignant heartbeat. The air grew heavy, thick with menace.

"I’m going to kill you all," the demon snarled. "Every last one of you."

Andrey’s Ki senses screamed danger—immediate, catastrophic danger. He lunged forward, katana raised, determined to strike before the demon completed whatever he was preparing.

A wall of monsters interposed itself. Hounds, imps, goblins—they threw themselves at Andrey, Their bodies formed a living shield around the demon, their eyes vacant, controlled.

"Tch!" Andrey slashed through two goblins, but three more took their place. He couldn’t get through.

Sein fought beside him, her gauntlets blazing, but the possessed hero was on her again, his dark blade forcing her back. She dodged a thrust, countered with a punch that sent him staggering, then glanced at Andrey.

"We need to kill him before he finishes whatever he’s doing!" she shouted.

The demon’s laughter rang out again, colder this time. "Ahahaha... you fools. This is my domain. My territory. You cannot win here. The Sacred Artifact’s power flows through me. You’re already dead—you just haven’t realized it yet."

Andrey felt it—the dark energy building, swelling, about to erupt. His mind raced. ’We can’t stop him in time. If that attack hits, we’re done. I need something that disrupts mana. Something—’

His hand flew to his belt pouch.

The Mana Disruptor. The small orb he’d bought from the shop and never used. It was meant for suppressing enemy skills, buying a few seconds of advantage. Against a demon in his own domain?

’It might not work. But it’s all I have.’

Andrey pulled the orb free, felt its cool weight in his palm, and activated it.

The Mana Disruptor blazed to life—a pulse of white-blue energy erupted from the orb, spreading outward in a shockwave that cracked the air itself. The demon’s eyes went wide.

"What—what is this?!"

The wave hit him. His dark energy faltered, flickered, then shattered into chaotic fragments. The purple flames around his hands sputtered and died. The shadows writhed, no longer obeying his command.

"My mana... it’s unstable... WHAT DID YOU DO?!" the demon screamed.

The entire cavern began to shake. Cracks spiderwebbed across the walls, the ceiling, the ground beneath their feet. The Mana Disruptor wasn’t just suppressing the demon—it was interfering with the gate’s very structure.

System: Emergency! Gate integrity failing! Mana destabilization spreading uncontrollably. Recommend immediate evacuation—!

Sein stumbled, catching herself on a rock. "Andrey! What did you throw?!"

Before Andrey could answer, the ground beneath them shattered.

The shadowy floor crumbled into a void of swirling darkness. Andrey lunged, grabbing Sein’s arm and pulling her against his chest. He wrapped his body around hers, shielding her as they fell.

"Hold on!" he shouted.

The darkness swallowed them whole.