Only I Am A Reader

'This is working even better than I expected.'

As shaken as Aurora was by Leo's first reveal, she was still able to come to her senses and attempt to initiate an attack. However, faced by Clara's Nightmare, she was frozen in place even as the vengeful porter was coming right at her.

'...Would it be possible in this state?'

Contemplating something, Leo paused in place for a second as he snapped his fingers a second time.

Just as he was about to personally handle Tina as he did with Ken, an interesting idea popped into Leo's mind once he saw the frozen Aurora.

The play's planned 1st act was already great as it was, but what if rather than subduing Tina himself… He could get Aurora's Nightmare to do it for him!

While Leo felt that he was slightly taking it over the edge, he wanted to check the feasibility of such a plan first. However…

Fizzle.

As soon as Aurora's shadow started wriggling, her body shone brightly even before she noticed anything, causing the shadow to fade away.

'Should have expected as much.'

Once again, Leo confirmed that plans should be made around protagonists and not through them. Not everything could be left to his imagination.

Thud!

Going back to plan A, Leo dashed towards Tina. At this point, the angry Nightmare had just reached Aurora. This time, the main character finally reacted, but it wasn't an attack.

Aurora's sole response was defending herself by blocking the Nightmare's smack!

Although her face was still distorted with confliction, her agile body moved to respond. Since that was the case, Leo made it so the Nightmare maintained its current form as much as possible.

Even then, its blows weren't anywhere near light, yet Aurora handled them effortlessly. If she was in her normal state, fighting a different opponent, she could have easily torn it apart.

'I would have let the Nightmare go wild in that case, but that seems unnecessary.'

Since Aurora was basically 'offline' in her current state, it all came down to handling Tina within the correct time window.

Naturally, that wasn't a matter of worry for Leo. Tank or not, Tina wasn't any harder to handle than the rest of her teammates. The only thing that concerned him was how he presented his act!

"S-stay a-away."

Tina's face was in a much worse state compared to her last pillar of hope. The only thing that plagued Aurora's mind was the sudden conflicted emotions that she felt.

Her inability to extend a helping hand in all circumstances, her failure to recognize an enemy, the weird hint of relief that was mixed along all of that… Almost everything was a mental problem.

Whether it was on the surface or deep inside, Aurora had no fear for her life. She wasn't being arrogant, that was a completely instinctive reaction.

On the other hand, Tina was in a state of existential horror. She fully understood that her life was at risk… Rather, she only had a slim chance of survival fighting against an SSS-class Villain.

Tina didn't care if his rank was inflated or whether he was really a victim as some people claimed. She had just seen his masterpieces and perceived his obvious hostility, this was no longer a hypothetical situation.

'I really shouldn't have left home.'

Was the money, fame, and recognition worth it? Tina used to think it was. Her ideal life was that of a neet, but always being urged to be better by her mother left her vulnerable to the offer she received to stand next to Aurora.

Now? Everything was meaningless. Aside from the momentary gratification, nothing truly mattered when your life was flashing before your eyes.

Initially, Tina thought she was lucky not to be separated from Aurora, but even if the scary Cassian spared her life, she was sure she would be done in by whatever the Gate was preparing for them.

Thud!

While Tina was busy imagining a more introverted life, Leo finally made an impact. Since she was holding such a large shield, using a sword or spear wouldn't make a difference, so he just used Shadow Armaments to make his fist heavier and struck the shield.

Following Leo's expectations, Tina was only pushed back by very few centimeters! At the very least, she was still able to activate her ability even when color was drained from her face.

"Good resistance."

'Weight Assignment.'

While Tina's ability might not appear as impressive as Ken's flashy barrier or Clara's impenetrable bubble, she was by no means useless.

With just a single thought, she could assign her entire weight into the shield, doubling her stability. Of course, at that level, it barely passed for a good sports-aid rather than a monster tanking ability.

However, as long as she met certain conditions, Tina could multiply the weight she assigned!

One or two times were still a joke, but starting from ten times, things got serious. Most importantly, the conditions weren't too stringent.

Standing in place without moving, having both feet on the ground, standing in a certain stance… with just some small adjustment, an immovable wall could be created!

Rather than making a barrier that blocked everything, Tina's shield was one that withstood it all. If used at the right time, she could then apply all the weight forward to topple the attacker.

That being said, when it came to actual battles, Tina wasn't really that dynamic. However, it wasn't her ability that was inadequate, she was the one who chose to be useless and leave everything to Aurora.

After all, the only thing that was better than receiving credit was receiving credit without having to do anything. The few instances where Tina had to help so her uselessness wouldn't be too obvious didn't count!

'Regardless, this is no longer a battle of strength.'

With her life on the line, Tina was bound to give her all. In that state, was her shield strong enough to stop Leo's fist, or was Leo ultimately stronger?

None of that really mattered!

This was a battle of information. While Tina knew almost nothing about Leo, Leo knew all that he needed to do to reduce her ability to nothing.

Thud! Thud!

Putting out two more punches, Leo let Shadow Domination do its thing. Rising from under Tina, the Shadow tendrils wrapped her up and separated her from the ground, a detail that was very necessary for almost all of her ability's conditions.

Having just lost an incredible amount of weight, the big shield instantly collapsed to the ground as if momentum was created by the sudden transition of physical values.

"Ah! G-get it off m-me!"

Unlike Miyu and Jane, Tina didn't show any intent to negotiate for her survival. Leo wasn't sure if she truly understood that there was no way out of it, or if she was just too scared to think properly, but the simple response was better.

"I know it's a sad reunion, but don't get too distracted, make sure to watch properly."

After throwing a friendly remark at Aurora, Leo lowered Tina down. While still keeping her suspended in the air, he reached forward to grasp her Enigma Stone.

"Gah!"

It only took a few more seconds before Tina started writhing in pain…