— — — — — —
Inside the ice coffin, the original soul of the Fourth Primogenitor slowly turned her gaze toward Ryo, who had just materialized in front of her.
This time, she didn't summon her Familiar —The Bewitching Princess of Azure Ice, Pisces Dodekatos.
The earlier attack had missed, and that was enough to tell her that this man wasn't someone she could casually dispose of. No need to waste energy.
Still, she felt no fear toward this mysterious figure radiating with power.
"So... you're the one who forcibly woke me?"
Her tone was cold, and the glare in her eyes made it very clear — she wasn't happy about being abruptly dragged out of slumber.
Sealed inside this ice coffin, trapped in Avrora's body, she hated her current form with a burning passion. Naturally, the one responsible for her awakening—Ryo Yagami—earned the brunt of that hostility.
Ryo glanced at the mermaid beast still lingering in the frosty air, then looked over at the girl inside the coffin and sighed.
He wasn't surprised. He'd seen this coming a mile away. And it was obvious that the one in control wasn't Avrora—but the original soul of the Fourth Primogenitor. That much was clear from her aura and voice alone.
From what Ryo knew, Avrora was just a child—mentally and emotionally immature despite having memories. No way a kid would speak with that kind of oppressive intent and cold dignity.
The Fourth Primogenitor narrowed her eyes at Ryo but didn't say anything.
Ryo took a moment to think, then said casually, "How about we make a deal?"
Different people called for different strategies. And for someone like her, directness was best. She wasn't the type you could reason with—at least not in a traditional sense.
The Fourth Primogenitor studied him carefully, her gaze sharp, almost... amused.
"A deal, you say?"
Ryo shrugged. "I'll set you free, and in return... you invite me into your world and let me handle a little problem for you. No guarantees, though—whether I actually fix it depends on my mood."
Invitations didn't have to result in successful missions.
Just like the dimensional forum never said the answer had to be right—just that it had to be an answer. Their relationship had always been one of mutual exchange, not obligation.
The Fourth Primogenitor narrowed her eyes further, a glimmer of rainbow-colored light flickering in them. Then, she chuckled.
"How interesting. Very interesting. You've come at the perfect time. I do have a problem that needs fixing."
"Oh?" Ryo raised an eyebrow. He could hear the malice hiding behind her polite tone.
Inside the ice coffin, she suddenly smiled.
"I need a proper vessel. So—why don't I borrow yours?"
Before Ryo could react, a translucent, blue-tinted soul erupted from Avrora's body and launched straight at him.
He didn't flinch. In fact, he just mumbled to himself, "Man... I never bothered studying soul manipulation."
In a blink, her soul invaded Ryo's body.
Not long after, his eyes shimmered with rainbow-colored light. 'He' lifted his hands, clenched them experimentally, and broke into a wide, manic grin.
"This body... incredible! I wasn't wrong! The life force inside this man—it rivals my power at full strength!"
"Marvelous. Simply marvelous. If I weren't sealed, I'd drain his blood right now—just to taste its richness!"
CRACK!
The ice coffin shattered. With the original soul no longer inside, the seal lost its power.
The Fourth Primogenitor—now in Ryo's body—looked down at Avrora, still in the coffin, and said with certainty, "Number Twelve... you're awake, aren't you?"
As expected, now that she had vacated the body, Avrora's consciousness returned.
With a blank expression, Avrora opened her eyes, kicked the coffin lid aside, and stepped out barefoot, walking toward the being that had stolen Ryo's body.
"Excellent," the Fourth Primogenitor smirked. "Once I reclaim you, I'll collect the other eleven dolls and become whole again."
"With this vessel... even the Three Primogenitors and the entire devas wouldn't be able to seal me again!"
She reached her clawed hand toward Avrora's chest—toward her heart.
Squelch.
A hand punched straight through her heart instead.
"What?"
She looked down in disbelief at the arm that pierced her chest... then looked up again.
Avrora —still wearing that same blank expression—was smiling faintly.
From her mouth came a voice that did not belong to her.
"Body-jacking, huh? You think that's fun?"
It was Ryo's voice.
"You?!"
The Fourth Primogenitor's eyes widened in pure shock. "Impossible! Your consciousness should've been buried deep beneath mine! I took your body!"
Ryo grinned inside Avrora's body, his voice teasing: "You really thought the body you took over... was just human?"
She froze. Her senses flared—but still, she couldn't detect anything wrong.
This was clearly a human body! Wasn't it?
"Don't play games with me!" she screamed, grabbing Avrora's arm in a panic, trying to rip away her power.
Ryo—still inside Avrora —sighed. "You couldn't even tell it was an artificial construct made from Cosmos-level soulwave. Honestly, kind of disappointing."
Behind her, a new Ryo Yagami slowly approached.
Fresh from using her own invitation—since she had agreed to make a request—he fully descended into this world.
Ryo calmly adjusted his shihakushō as he walked.
"You couldn't even see through a decoy made from my soulwave. I really expected more from the Fourth Primogenitor."
The Fourth Primogenitor turned around, horrified. "How—?!"
Ryo unsheathed his Zanpakutō, stepped forward, and said lightly,
"Goodbye, little tyrant. You've got a nasty attitude."
Slice.
The body she had possessed was cleanly cut in half at the waist.
"No... this can't be..."
Her eyes were wide with disbelief, even as her form collapsed to the ground. She couldn't understand what had just happened.
Ryo calmly slid his sword back into its sheath and looked down at her.
"So weak."
[Warning: 'Questioner' Avrora of World 003 is in critical condition.]
Ryo paused, blinking in confusion. A giant metaphorical question mark might as well have appeared over his head.
[Warning: 'Questioner' Avrora of World 003 is in critical condition.]
The alert came again. Ryo turned toward the real Avrora —now visibly trembling and still under the effects of the soulwave decoy.
"She's fine though?"
[Correction: 'Questioner'Cyrora of World 003 is in critical condition.]
[According to forum rules, if a Questioner is killed by a Responder, the Responder will be fined 10,000 points.]
Ryo's eye twitched.
He crouched down next to the collapsed Fourth Primogenitor — Cyrora — and looked at her seriously.
"Hey... can I ask you a favor?"
Cyrora weakly opened her eyes, barely conscious. Her soul had been slashed by a Zanpakutō—she was on the brink of death.
Ryo looked her dead in the eye and said sincerely:
"Could you... maybe not die?"
.
.
.