If I had to put a name on the sensation, it would have been the curse skills that Motoyasu had unleashed, Ressentiment and Temptation! In the next moment, with a mighty crash, my hand with the shield on it was dragged violently forward.

I gave a grunt of surprise. Itsuki was experiencing the same thing with his bow, which was currently still a gun. I barely had time to wonder what was going on, and faster than I could think, I felt something being . . . removed from me. I looked at the shield.

It was already off my arm, spinning in the air. Then it turned into light and returned to my hand, becoming a small accessory.

What the hell is going on?!

“Oh my!” Miyaji was laughing his head off. “What a stupid look you have on your face, dumbass! I simply can’t hold my laughter in!” He laughed even harder, pushing back his hair with one hand.

“Mr. Naofumi!” Now it was Raphtalia shouting for me. Her face was pale.

“What?!” I replied.

“The support magic you applied to us has run out!” she responded.

“What?!” I exclaimed. I checked my status. It was true. The effect of Liberation Aura X had been completely cleaned away. Nullified, perhaps. We had experienced support magic being removed when fighting S’yne’s enemies. This could very well have been the same thing.

“Naofumi,” Itsuki said, his brow furrowed as he looked at his own hand.

“My incantation of Liberation Down got cut short. I’m trying to start it again, but I can’t,” he said.

“What?!” I said a third time. Thinking this was some kind of joke, I gave Liberation Aura X a try myself. But there was no sign of the incanting even starting, let alone the magic activating.

“He’s sealed off our magic?” I asked.

“No, that’s not quite it,” Itsuki replied. “When magic is sealed, you simply can’t concentrate when you try to cast it. This is something else . . . It isn’t incantation interference either . . .” There was no weapon in Itsuki’s hands.

“My, my, even I didn’t expect such a stunning result! I really wasn’t sure it would work until I saw it for myself,” Miyaji said. I hated to have to ask him, but it seemed like the only choice. I wasn’t even sure he would reply.

“What have you done to us?!” Glass questioned. Thankfully, she beat me to it.

“I heard some arrogant vassal weapon holders had called in aid from another world. That demanded I take steps myself,” Miyaji revealed, pointing his musical instrument weapon at us. In that moment, I noticed something—an accessory on his weapon. Takt’s weapon had been fitted with the same one. That definitely suggested a link between them. That said, I didn’t have the time to think about that now.