Vol 3 Chapter 5 (1/2)
Chapter 5: Ihtmare
”Reine”
In the bridge of <fraxinus>, Kotori called for Reine as seated slightly closer to the commander's seat
However, she did not give a reply Kotori curiously peeped at Reine's side——and then tilted her head
TheMana's face for soe was zoomed in Reine e
”Reine? Is there so with Mana?”
”!”
At that moment, Reine seemed to finally realize Kotori's existence; Reine looked at Kotori with her eyes that had dark eyebags
”Kotori huh Nn, there's so”
Saying that, she manipulated the controls with experienced hands After which, the ie zoomed out, and Mana's face shrank away from the screen
”Aside from that, how's shi+n?”
”Nn——He's just a little uneasy, but he should be alright after talking with Tohka”
”Is that so?”
Reine slightly nodded, suddenly raising her head
”Aaah, that's right The analyzing job that you had asked for has already been completed”
To Reine's words, Kotori's eyebroitched
A few days ago, she had passed Mana's hair and saliva samples, obtained a few days prior, to Reine to conduct a DNA test
”Thenwhat's the result?”
”Nn, Mana, is without a doubt shi+dou's blood-related sister”
”——Is, is that so”
Kotori forcefully sed, stroking her chest with her hand
Although it wasn't unexpectedBut, she still felt uneasy
”Realsister, huh Then ould that girl be with the AST”
”You're wrong”
As though she was trying to interrupt Kotori, Reine sounded out
”I did soations on my own, it seems that that is not the case at all”
”What do you mean?”
”She's not a self-defense member at all, but a transferred member from DEM Industries”
”——D•E•M Industries?”[3D 1]
A corporation based in England that is one of the largest in the world——Aside from <ratatoskr>'s matrix, it is the only known industry that is able tothe Self Defense Forces, the Realizer units currently equipped by the world's military and police forces, can be said to be all made by D•E•M
This is because, due to their enthusias down the spirits, they are considered econos to
Of course, they also have icians who are able to use the CR-Units——However, it was said that their handling experience exceeds those of special forces of different countries by a long shot
”Hold on for a second Thatshi+dou's sister, why is she a ician of D•E•M?”
”I'm not too certain about that However”
Reine suddenly stopped talking, grounding her teeth and clenching her fist as though she was furious
Kotori frowned in surprise Even though they had worked together for a long time——This was the first time she had seen Reine like this
”What exactly is going on?”
”Take a look at this”
Saying that, Reine moved the controls once more, the screen showed Mana's face as well as detailed numerical values
”This is——”
”Aaah, her whole body had been engineered by th However, there's a huge price to pay for that I'er than 10 years”
”——What, that's——”
Originally, the Realizer units developed by D•E•M Industries are not perfect Due to the processing level of the calculus nuclear core being unable to keep up, they had no choice but to co the human brain
To increase the brain wavelengths, it is a ami and the rest of the AST are the same, there should be some protrusion like a horn in the midst of their hair
However——Mana's body has already far surpassed that kind of degree
That isto say that her body has become similar to that of a spirit
”I'ht process she possessed while she underwent this kind of procedure ButI think it's best that we don't tell shi+nfor now”
Reine said with added intonation Kotori sed hard, biting her lip
The next , shi+dou walked into the classroom and saw that Kurumi already sat on her chair
An obvious abnorh he had already experienced it once, it was still as discoirl that was supposed to have died, attending school with an expression as though nothing had happened
Recognizing shi+dou's face, Kuru a bow
”Ara, shi+dou-san Good day to you”
That appearance was nothing like yesterday's
If he were to say that just yesterday, inside an alley, this girl had both her legs and sto been decapitated, shi+dou wouldmentally unsound
”Go, good ”
However, he shouldn't be surprised by this This was a situation that he had already expected shi+dou silently gave a greeting in reply
”I was very happy yesterday You have to ask ain next time”
”Is thatso Happy, huh”
”Nn, extremely”
Kuru about her date with shi+dou, or talking about that incident in the alley shi+dou was unable to discern which one
Kuru about, she continued whileher cute smile
”But, I was a little surprised there”
”? About what?”
shi+dou asked in reply, Kurumi narrowed her eyes in response
”I thought that shi+dou-san would be applying for a leave of absence from school today”
Instantly, he was speechless However he recovered quickly, opening his mouth to reply
”Then I'mreally sorry about that Would it have been better if I had not come to school?”
”No, shi+dou-san calad”
Kurumi said with an innocent smile on her face
shi+dou patted his chest as though he was trying to control the skip in his heart, walking right up to Kurumi
”——Kurumi”
”? What is it?”
”I——have decided to save you”
”? Save?”
In the instant shi+dou finished speaking Kurumi's expressions suddenly lost all its warmth
”You really said soe, shi+dou-san”
”That's enough, this kind of stuff——I won't, let you kill humans anymore I won't, let Mana kill you anymore This is my, conclusion that I have reached yesterday”
”Please don't force your values onto others alright? I hate that kind of wishful thinking”
”Is that so That's a pity——But I'm really sorry, I have already decided I will save you You, will be saved by me No matter what, definitely”
shi+dou ended his proclamation, Kurumi frowned hard
Several h she was thinking about so, after which she spoke
”——Then, whether what you say is true or false, let's put it to the test”
”Ah?”
”Today after class, please come to the rooftop”
Kuruht away from shi+dou
Kuruh School, ht footsteps accompanied by a smile
It was a fine day without any sign of clouds in the sky The strong rays of the su a pitch-black shadow onto the ground
The tiun, the hout the school had faded out In its place, a splatter of instrumental sounds ca about in the gyh she were dancing As though she were tracing a circle on the ground, continually turning around and around
”It would be great, if I could still enjoy school life with shi+dou-san a bit longer——”
If one were to look at the scene fro was amiss
The area where Kurumi had stepped on, turned dark
Yes——it was as though the shadowher movements had never left the spot at all
”It's almost, time”
And then, Ka! Her heels clacked at the floor
Following that, the circle of darkness at the centre of the rooftop slowly started to expand its surface area
Sing the entire rooftop; reaching out to the outer wall of the school building, eroding the school hall, not long after it covered an entire city area with the school as its core
”——Kihihi, hihihihihihihihi”
Her lips twisting into a crescent, she let out a laugh
”Aaah, aaah, shi+dou-san, shi+dou-san My dear shi+dou-san Even like this, do you still intend to save me? Do you still intend to help me?”
”Nn?”
In the first lesson, during the lecture on World History, shi+dou suddenly looked at the
It sos have becoht that it was due to the clouds in the sky
However, it could be seen from thethat the sky was clear Not a cloud or a shadow to be seen
”Don't tell me”
Quickly turning towards Kuru ten o, she could have
However, Kuru to class with a serious face
”A too much”
Lightly sighing, he returned to his original posture
No matter what, the moment school ends is the crux shi+dou breathed deeply as though trying to encourage himself
Turning the rusted handle and pushi+ng the door with her hands The decrepit door instantly shed so cry
”Tch”
Kotori frowned as she lightly clicked her tongue, arriving at the rooftop of the building
Kotori is currently visiting one of the abandoned buildings located at the south of Tenguu city
It's not that she had a penchant for exploring ruins Co to such a secluded location had its reasons
At this time,
”——Welcome, Kotori-san”
The girl who had already been waiting on the rooftop——Mana, called out to Kotori
That's right When Kotori woke up this , on theof Kotori's room, was a paper with a certain time and location as well as Mana's name written on it
Kotori did not atte a ”Hmph” sound
”Really now What's with this kind of place If you wanted to ask me out, you should have at least prepared some delicious tea and cake”
”I apologize ——However, I believe that it is in our best interests that we avoid crowded areas”
”Hmph Then, what exactly is the matter?”
”I just, wanted to talk with you, that's all”
With that, Mana took out so it in Kotori's direction
”This is”
Kotori frowned What Mana had thrown over, was a highly sensitive ht It was the one that shi+dou had lost yesterday
”——The <ratatoskr> organization”
””
In reaction to Mana's words, Kotori's eyebroitched
”I've heard about the ruanization that does not rely on military power to exterminate spirits, but one that makes use of conversation to persuade theht it was just an urban rumor”
Mana shot a sharp glare towards Kotori
”——Don't tell me, you and Nii-sama are”
Kotori kept the earpiece in her pocket, slightlythe stick of the Chupa Chups
”That explains it, that ”
That's right, before deter that shi+dou had lost his earpiece, <ratatoskr> had once received a strangeKotori's name and the current situation, the connection was suddenly cut off, and nothing else was heard since then
Kotori clicked her tongue at a voluh the answer from that tianization known as <ratatoskr>
Mana lightly shrugged her shoulders
”After all it's not that difficult to change your voice using the personal territory”
”Is that so?”
Kotori scratched her hair, narrowing her eyes
”So what is your ai froht?”
Mana's gaze did not move as she spoke
”——I, do not intend to report this”
”Hmm?”
”In return Please let Nii-sama back out from <ratatoskr>, immediately”
Mana's words made Kotori frown hard
”What do you mean?”
”It's nothing erous thing Let's not talk about realizer units for now, he doesn't even have a proper weapon on him and you let him confront spirits, isn't this too much?”
”You already said that he's supposed to persuade the other party, and you expect hi away? What difference is that from a serial rapist? Don't tell me you're a masochist?”
As Kotori brushed off Mana's stateaze increased in intensity and her tone became sterner
”Please don't joke around Are you even concerned for Nii-sama? At that time, if I wasn't there, Nii-sahtmare>”
””
There was no reason to divulge any more information Kotori did not say a word
However Mana see her teeth, she continued
”——Kotori-san——No, Itsuka Kotori It's sad You are disqualified fro Nii-sama's sister You are not worthy for Nii-sama to be placed in your care”
””
Kotori's face twitched, after that she raised the stick of her Chupa Chups
”Heeh~ Then, what does being disqualified as a sister mean?”
”I will have no choice but to bring Nii-sama back”
Mana's words caused Kotori's expressions to twist
”What a joke Do you want to leave shi+dou in the care of an evil industry such as DEM?”
Kotori shrugged her shoulders, Mana relaxed her arms and her shoulders shook in surprise
”Why do you know about this?”
”That's because I have an excellent friend If you are talking about handling information, we're about even”
Kotori fearlessly said, Mana heaved out a sigh
”——Well, since it's already known then there's no further need to hide it anyinally not a member of the Self-Defense Force However, due to the allocation of DEM Industries', there was a need to be placed in such an occupation”
However as she said that, her gaze swiftly sharpened
”But, DEM being an evil corporation, I can't pretend that I didn't hear that They took ave rateful towards them”
”Seriously? Looks like you're not crazy huh”
”How rude What exactly are you trying to imply?”
Kotori sensed amiability in Mana's words Don't tell me she——
”You, don't tell me, you don't know? About your body?”
”My body? What are you talking about?”
Mana tilted her head in confusion Kotori treulped
”What's with that”
Although it wasn't out of her expectationsBut what if Reine's worries becarabbing her shoulders
”You, what are you trying to do?”
”Let's not talk about this for now You're the one that should leave that DEM, <ratatoskr> will take responsibility for your well-being So——”
”Haa? What are you saying all of a sudden”
At this, just as Mana was about to question Kotori while frowning, Kotori and Mana's handphones sounded at almost the same time
Revealing an impatient expression Kotori answered the call
”——It's me What is it?”
”Co spirit wavelength reading!”
”What is going on?”
Kotori took a peek at Mana It seems——from the look on her face, she too had received a similar report
shi+dou took in a deep breath, slowly breathing out
The air in his lungs had been coh his body had rebooted could be felt
”Excellent”
The tio to club activities started to spread
In the end, except for that one time today, there was totally no opportunity to talk to Kurumi at all After the last homeroom ended, Kurumi did not even look towards shi+dou's direction as she immediately stepped out of the classroom
”Are you alright, shi+n?”
At this ht ear, a voice that sounded extremely sleepy called out It was Reine
”Yeah, I'm unexpectedlycalm”
”That's good However, please be careful”
”——Yes”
The sa odd
”Reine-san? Now that you said it, how come I don't hear Kotori's voice”
”Aaah, Kotori had to leave to do sos outside”
”No, if she has so to do outside, why must she choose to do it at such an important time? ”
”Kotori understands this as well However, after ed that the chances of success would be raised If a distraction happens to interrupt us mid-way it could be troublesome”
”Haa? Di, did so come up?”
”Please focus on Kurumi for now She is an opponent that you cannot overcome if you are distracted”
”, Ri, right”
Although he was concerned about Reine's words, it was also true that he did not have the spare time to think about otheron the rooftop by now shi+dou started to walk towards the staircase——
”Wha!?”
The nexthe felt around him
shi+dou was not sure of the actual reason his darkened, his body was assaulted by fatigue and weakness for no reason at all
It was as though the air had thickened in viscosity, heavily wrapping itself around his limbs
”Thi, this, is”
shi+dou, in the situation where he was about to kneel onto the floor,his posture
The students around hi on the spot If he were to put it into words, it was truly an abnormal scene
”Hey, hey, are you alright!?”
shi+dou hastily ran up and shook the shoulder of a female student who had collapsed However she had probably lost consciousness as there was no reaction at all
”Reine——san, this is!?”
”Using the school as the reference point, we've deterth This reaction——it's un A boundary fieldLooks like it is the kind that would cause all humans who enter it to weaken”
”Wh, why must she do such a”
”About that, it should be faster if you ask the perpetrator herself”
Reine said It was as she had stated shi+dou sed hard, standing up It felt as though it would be hard to move around, but it wasn't to the extent that he would collapse
”Aare, now that I think of it, why am I”
”Don't forget, shi+n You have the spirit powers of Tohka and Yoshi+no sealed inside your body It could be instinctual, but your body as of now can be said to have the protection of the spirits”
”Spirit power”
After , shi+dou suddenly widened his eyes
Opening the door that he had just walked out from, he shouted loudly
”Tohka!”
That's right, Tohka should still be inside the classrooh he did , there was no response since he left
There were around ten students still inside the classrooround or on the table ——However, ast them
”Ooh, shi+dou”
Tohka lightly pressed her head as she responded to shi+dou Although the majority of her poere sealed, she was still a spirit She was more resistant to spirit power compared to humans
”Are you alright, Tohka!”
”Nn But,on, this”
Using a feverish voice she painfullyher head
”shi+n”
Reine's voice called out froo into detail, she would have probably understood what exactly is going on
”Tohka, stay here and rest I'll do so about this!”
”shi+, dou?”
”It's okay I will——resolve this”
shi+dou lightly caressed Tohka's head, walking out to the hallith his determination set
Shaking off the thick air and cliued li at the door to the rooftop
The door, was not locked
No——To put it more accurately, below the door handle, there was a hole similar to a bullet path The lock had lost its function
It was definitely Kuru the door
”Gu”
Eyebrows tightly knitting together Even though he had reached the rooftop, the sticky air still did not ih the weakness that assaulted his body was intensified
Looking left and right He was surrounded by fencing, an unpleasant space
And in the centre
”——Welco for you, shi+dou-san”
Kuru her body and bowed
””
When Origa down a corridor on the east building of the school
As though in the blink of an eye, it felt as though the entire world had changed It was almost as if her vitality had been sucked from her body and absorbed by the air, an unexplainable sense of weakness attacked her In reality, the surrounding students have already collapsed one after another
”Guh——”
If this continues she would be prone to losing consciousness After Origami came to that conclusion, she took out a device froer to make contact with the touchscreen and said
”Voice recognition•AST• Tobi+chi Origami”
Instantly, her fingerprints and voice patterns were matched Beep Beep, after this electronic sound, the device started to expand
”Basic Realizer Unit——Activation acknowledged”
Origahtly make contact with the transmitter point on her head
Instantly, Origas became her personal territory that wrapped around her body and the weakness that tortured her whole body lessened
However at the sa off in her brain assaulted Origami
Gritting her teeth while enduring, Origami opened her mouth and said
”Coed”
After that, faint light was emitted from within the personal territory——in the next instant, the Raizen High School unifor transfor suit of the AST
”, ”
The ami knelt on the floor on one knee
This was an eency device that i suit coh she had obtained permission to have this device just in case, but she still felt uncomfortable
Thisto say, it was theoretically possible to expand her personal territory After that fro clothes is not a difficult task
However, although it was only for just an instant, she had expanded her personal territory without using the splicing device At that point in time the burden on her brain had increased, it was indescribable Well, someone with Mana's capability would probably be able to take care of this as though it were nothing
””
Origa her personal territory to the usual size of three metres
Spirits and the AST are considered to be restricted topics However this is considered to be an exception Moreover, she has nothing to worry about if everyone around her had already lost consciousness
She wasn't sure what happened to the school But——it was easy to deduce, that this definitely had so to do with Tokisaki Kurumi
””
Giving a ah the corridor at an a speed
At the saear transami!? If you had opened the line, it ency suit? Currently in your school's vicinity, we've detected a strong spirit wavelength! What's your status!?”
”A bounded field It'll be dangerous if this keeps up Requesting reinforcements——”
At that ami's words were cut off
””
The reason was sih she was made out of shadows
She was not wearing a high school uniform but a Gothic dress composed of crimson and black
”Ufufu, Origami-san Why are you in such a hurry?”
She placed her hand beside her mouth and snickered
”Tokisaki——Kurumi”
Origaaze sharpened and her hand positioned itself near her hip, gripping the handle of her light blade
”Wh, what is going on, Origami!?”
”——Made contact with a spirit Engaging in combat
”What!? That's too dangerous, hurry up and leave——”
She'll get distracted Origa the communication
Kuru
”Fufu, I do not wish to be interrupted this time So I can't let you move on any further”
”?”
Origa
However, that was only for an instant There was no need to listen to the spirit's nonsensical words on the battlefield
Origaht <no pain=””>
”shi+, doushi+dou!!”
Tohka called out shi+dou's name when he had just left the classroom
However——shi+dou did not have any intention of returning Tohka dragged her heavy feet and started to move forwards
”shi+dou”
In her head, the words that shi+dou had left behind refused to leave
——It's okay——I will, resolve this
Extre words shi+dou only said it once and it had co within Tohka's heart
However, at the same time, another cause for unease surfaced
That is because when shi+dou said that line, it was like two o when he walked towards Yoshi+no's bounded field, the feeling was the same
shi+dou will definitely save everyone However, if there was a need for him to sacrifice himself, shi+dou would not hesitate to do so
The one who saved Tohka——was such a man
”Uwa”
At thatdown onto the floor, bringing the tables and chairs with her
”Gu——Nu”
In order to stand up once th into her feet
——This won't do, this won't do at all Now is not the ti around here
Even if it's for just a second, she must hurry up and rush to shi+dou's side
”shi+doushi+doushi+dou!!”
Suddenly, the instant she shouted, Tohka's head had a sensation as though it was being stimulated
”Wh, what?”
Saying that——Tohka re
Last el and shot a beaht at shi+dou
If this continues, shi+dou will die The instant she thought so, she vigorously shook her head——and her astral dress and Angel materialized
”This is!”
Tohka looked down at her own appearance —— That's right, although it was not perfect, but Tohka's body was the sa an astral dress froht
Her body had also been instantly revitalized to an uniinable state If that's the case——
Tohka forcefully ju firmly on both feet
”AlrightLet's go!”
Clenching her fist, she walked out of the classroom
”shi+dou! Where did you go, shi+dou——”
Even if she shouted, she did not hear a reply
If that was the case, she would have to search each room individually Tohka ran out to the corridor
However, in that instant
”——!?”
Tohka held her breath, retreating hastily
The reason was si a bullet traced a black path heading straight for Tohka
”WhaWho!”
Tohka called out, in front of the corridor that was covered by shadows, slow footsteps sounded out
Soon after, the creator of that sound appeared
”, You are——”