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Chapter 72: Illusion
While Bell was suffering through Reborn's training, Tsuna and the others had successfully rescued Lili from the Soma Familia.
Afterward, the group relocated to the Blue Pharmacy, the home base of the Miach Familia.
"Your supporter's Conversion is complete."
Hestia and Lili emerged from the back workshop, signaling the end of the ritual.
"I'm so glad, Lili. It's great that your withdrawal was approved."
"Y-Yes. It is all thanks to you, Tsunayoshi-sama, and Hestia-sama. Thank you so much."
"I didn't really do anything. I couldn't force them to let you leave with my power."
"I only did the bare minimum myself. Soma only listened because you overcame the allure of the divine wine on your own. You don't need to thank me."
Lili's withdrawal from her former Familia was granted because Soma had challenged her to drink his divine wine—promising to listen to her request only if she could resist its absolute charm. Lili drank the wine and conquered its allure. Soma had been genuinely shocked that a mortal could resist it, but he kept his word.
Following that, Hestia presented her terms: she offered a portion of the prize money from the upcoming War Game as Lili's buyout fee. Should they lose, the Hestia Knife would be used as collateral. With those conditions, Soma approved Lili's withdrawal.
"Umm… by the way, where is Bell-sama? Tsunayoshi-sama mentioned he was training, but…"
"Bell-kun went outside the city to train with Reborn-kun… Tsuna-kun's master."
"Tsunayoshi-sama has a master? This is the first I'm hearing of this. What kind of person is he?"
"…He was a baby wearing a yellow pacifier around his neck…"
"A baby!? What are you talking about, Naaza-sama!?"
"I know it sounds unbelievable, but it's the truth."
"Indeed. Furthermore, he stood on his own two feet and spoke fluently."
"Eh…"
Lili couldn't believe the bizarre description coming out of Naaza's mouth, but when even the Gods Hestia and Miach nodded in agreement, she had no choice but to accept it.
"More importantly, can Bell-sama actually get stronger…? From what I've heard, I'm nothing but worried…"
"He is absolutely not okay… He's probably half-dead right now… Worst case scenario, he might actually die before the War Game even starts…"
"Bell-sama might die!? What do you mean by that, Tsunayoshi-sama!?"
"Reborn's training is way too spartan… I've nearly died so many times myself…"
Tsunayoshi-sama is terrified!?
Tsuna's face was pale, his body visibly trembling. Seeing the incredibly powerful Tsuna paralyzed by fear over this 'Reborn' filled Lili with both shock and terror.
"Oh god… I feel sick just remembering it…"
"Pull yourself together, Tsuna-kun!! Don't think about it anymore!!"
"Calm down, Tsuna!! Deep breaths, take deep breaths!!"
"…I-I'll go get some medicine!!"
Can we really win this…?
Seeing Tsuna experience a flashback to his past training, Hestia, Miach, and Naaza scrambled in a panic to calm him down. Lili could only watch, her anxiety regarding their odds in the War Game skyrocketing.
Oh. Right.
Ten minutes later. Having finally recovered his composure, Tsuna remembered something important.
"Hey, Lili. I have a favor to ask."
"What is it?"
"Could you train me?"
"Excuse me!?"
Lili let out a squeak of surprise. She never in her wildest dreams imagined Tsuna would ask her for training.
In the past, asking for guidance would have been difficult since they belonged to different factions, but now that they were in the same Familia, Tsuna felt comfortable asking.
"W-Why would you want training from me, Tsunayoshi-sama!?"
"I awakened a new skill, but I need your help to figure out how to master it."
"What do you mean?"
"It's a skill that lets me use illusions… but I just can't seem to grasp the trick to it. So, I was hoping you could teach me how you do it."
"I see…"
Her transformation magic wasn't an illusion, but the concept of generating something that wasn't originally there was fundamentally similar. Lili understood why Tsuna had come to her.
"I don't mind. I owe you my life, Tsunayoshi-sama."
"Thanks, Lili."
.....
The next day. Tsuna and Lili headed to the Dense Forest of Seoro, located to the east of Orario, to begin their training.
"[Your wounds are mine, my wounds are mine.]"
As Lili chanted, a pair of feline ears materialized on her head.
Her magic allowed her to transform into anyone of roughly the same build. The resulting transformation relied entirely on the mental image she held during the incantation; if the image lacked detail, the spell would fail. Transforming into a beast-person also granted her their heightened senses of smell and hearing.
"[The chime of twelve.]"
Lili recited a different incantation, and the cat ears vanished.
This was the cancellation chant for Cinder Ella. Without it, she couldn't undo her transformation.
"This is my magic, Cinder Ella. Though I suppose you already realized that, Tsunayoshi-sama, so this is old news. Anyway, let's begin the training."
"I'm in your hands, Lili."
I never thought the day would come where I'd be training someone else…
Lili had gathered intel and advised others plenty of times, but she had never actively served as a martial or magical instructor. It was a strange feeling.
"Listen closely, Tsunayoshi-sama. Just now, I consumed Mind to construct those cat ears. When doing so, I pictured my own true appearance on the right side of my mind, and the cat ears on the left side. Then, I pulled the two images to the center, imagining a form where I and the cat ears merged. Only then did I chant the spell to complete the transformation."
"So imagination is the key?"
"Yes. My magic will fail if I don't construct a clear, precise image in my head. However, this is just my personal trick for transforming, so I can't guarantee it will work perfectly for your illusions. Please just use it as a reference."
"Got it."
Taking Lili's advice to heart, Tsuna entered Hyper Dying Will Mode without equipping his gloves. The flame on his forehead and his eyes immediately shifted to the indigo of the Mist Flame.
Imagination…
Tsuna closed his eyes. On the right, he pictured his normal self. On the left, a pair of cat ears. He brought the two together, imagining his own figure sporting the feline traits.
Instantly, Tsuna's body was enveloped in indigo flames. When the mist cleared, Tsuna stood there in his normal form, but with a pair of fluffy cat ears resting atop his head.
"How's this?"
"I-It worked…"
Unable to see his own appearance, Tsuna asked Lili for confirmation. Lili was completely dumbfounded that he had succeeded on his very first try.
Alright, I've got the hang of the sensation. Next is…
Tsuna closed his eyes and focused again. The indigo flames flared up around him once more.
"Me!?"
The mist dissipated, revealing Tsuna completely transformed into Lili. The Pallum let out a yelp of pure shock, having never expected him to mimic her.
"How is it? Did I get it right?"
"Why did you turn into me!?"
"Ah… you were right in front of me, so I just kinda…"
"And could you please stop mimicking my voice!?"
Seeing a perfect replica of herself staring back, speaking in her exact tone and cadence, was a deeply unsettling experience for Lili.
"I'm not mimicking you. You're just hearing it that way. Illusions control human perception… which means they manipulate all five senses."
With that, Tsuna deactivated the illusion. His eyes and forehead flame returned to their familiar vibrant orange.
"Anyway, thank you, Lili. Thanks to you, I've figured out the trick."
"…Please give me back all the time and effort I spent struggling to learn this!!"
"W-What's wrong, Lili…!?"
"What do you mean 'what's wrong'!? It took me forever to learn how to transform properly, so why are you casually pulling it off like it's nothing!?"
"I-I just did exactly what you told me to do…"
Tsuna could only stand there utterly bewildered as Lili threw a completely irrational tantrum.
"And you even transformed into someone with a completely different body type!! I can't even do that!!"
"You can't?"
"Yes!! I can only transform into targets of a similar size!! At this rate, my reason for existing will disappear!!"
"No. Your ability is still vastly superior to mine."
"Please don't patronize me…"
"I'm not patronizing you. I can transform into other people, but at the end of the day, it's just an illusion. Anyone with a sharp eye for illusions or the ability to use them themselves will see right through it. But unlike me, you manifest a tangible, physical reality. The chances of an enemy seeing through your disguise are much lower than mine. That's why I said you're better at this. And we're going to need your power for the upcoming War Game."
"What do you mean?"
"During the Denatus yesterday, they decided on the format for the War Game. It's going to be a Siege War. Our victory condition is defeating the commander of the Apollo Familia. Our defeat condition is if their commander survives for three days."
"A Siege War… But that means we'll be facing the entirety of the Apollo Familia at once…"
"Exactly. And on top of that, Apollo apparently stated that we are allowed to add one helper from a Familia outside the city."
The Apollo Familia boasted over a hundred members. Meanwhile, the Hestia Familia consisted of exactly four people: Bell, Tsuna, Lili, and one outside helper. In a straightforward clash, their defeat was painfully obvious.
"I mentioned this yesterday, but the whole reason this War Game is happening is because Apollo wants Bell. Bell will likely want to settle this with his own two hands. Which means we need to isolate the enemy commander and force a one-on-one duel between him and Bell."
"In other words, the rest of us will have to hold off the entirety of their forces by ourselves."
"That's the gist of it."
"That's easy to say, but… wait, don't tell me!!"
Hearing Tsuna's explanation, Lili suddenly realized exactly how his illusion strategy fit into the picture.
"But even if that works… it'll only buy us a temporary advantage…"
"Right. Which is why if my other plan succeeds, we might be able to flip the entire board. That said, I still haven't figured out exactly how to execute it, and even if I do, it's a massive gamble."
"A gamble?"
"I had Eina and Hermes tell me everything they knew about the Apollo Familia."
Judging that it was better to leave the search for Lili to the Hermes Familia rather than himself, Tsuna hadn't just been sitting around. He had actively gathered intelligence on the Apollo Familia's inner workings and personnel to prepare for the War Game.
"Based on what I learned about their members and internal politics, I came up with an idea."
"What kind of idea?"
"Well…"
As Lili asked, Tsuna detailed the strategy he had devised to win the War Game.
"That is certainly an all-or-nothing gamble…"
"Do you think we can pull it off?"
"It will be extremely difficult. But… if this plan succeeds, Bell-sama will get his duel, and the rest of us might actually survive… I'd say it's more than worth the risk."
"Are you sure? It's highly dangerous."
"I don't mind. In fact, if we don't go this far, we have zero chance of winning. Besides, if Bell-sama were here, I know he would agree with your plan."
"Got it."
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