A pure white light. If one had to describe it, that phrase felt fitting. As Shidou and the others watched, Unknown merely raised her right hand. It seemed as though she chanted something, but her words were drowned out by Thunder Temple Kerubiel's roar, vanishing into "nothingness"—much like the scene unfolding before them.
If Shidou had to put a name to what his eyes beheld, it would be something as cliché as the collapse of the world.
"What… what's happening!?"
Even Shidou, who had witnessed spirits manifest every fantasy, and the spirits themselves, wielders of cataclysmic power, stood stunned, unable to comprehend the spectacle. Their eyes questioned reality itself.
Space was being erased. Whether that was the right term, no one could say. It was the only way Shidou's knowledge could frame it. The white-clad girl radiated light, and the space it touched vanished. Something—something that surpassed Kerubiel's time-warping barrier—existed.
That invincible force, shielded by the law of time, was being enveloped by the light.
"The barrier's fading… Is this an attack on space itself? Ugh, Kurumi, don't you know what that is!?"
"No, this is the first time I've seen that power. But… from what I can sense, it's not akin to Zafkiel."
Responding to Kotori's question, Kurumi analyzed the force with her characteristic calm, offering a limited answer. Only Zafkiel, which governed time, could counter a time-manipulating force. The white-clad girl was challenging the irrational with an incomprehensible power, overturning Reine's analysis with an unknown force.
Kotori, frustrated yet trusting, called out to Reine. "Reine!!"
"…Unanalyzable."
"…What?"
"…It's similar yet different from the 'angel' she wields. It's beyond our analysis—a different dimension. All I can say is it's something powered by reiryoku."
"What does that even mean…?"
The state-of-the-art Realizer and Reine's analytical prowess yielded only "unknown." It was truly an enigma. Yet, it was unfolding before them.
"…But—it might be bad."
"What do you mean?"
Reine's words, more a personal murmur than a direct response, couldn't be ignored in this dire situation. The barrier was enduring, but not resisting—it was being steadily stripped away. What was Reine worried about?
"…No. This can't go on…!!"
The answer came not from Reine but from Mayuri, her face etched with panic.
"Mayuri?"
"Her body… it won't hold…!"
"What!?"
Mayuri's words silenced everyone. Before Shidou could speak, Kurumi, ever the calmest, rushed to Mayuri, her expression betraying a rare trace of panic.
"Mayuri-san, explain."
"…That power surpasses Kerubiel's. But using it comes at a cost. If this continues… her body might collapse."
"…Her spiritual waves, previously undetectable, are now faintly registering. Any more, and her body's in danger."
"We have to stop her—it's too dangerous!!"
"…She's not the type to listen. The die is cast."
"But—!!"
"I know…!!"
Kurumi understood. She knew the futility of shouting, how panic killed clarity. The girl's body collapsing—her death. A single choice could erase the life she'd chosen to bear. Kurumi Tokisaki couldn't afford mistakes. Possessing the power to redo the past meant she couldn't judge lightly. Changing the past altered the present and future—a paradox where relying on that power was untenable.
Her heartbeat pounded unpleasantly. Kurumi faced two choices: stand by or risk massive reiryoku on a gamble. Mutual annihilation sounded simple, but success wasn't guaranteed. Having spent reiryoku in battle, Kurumi couldn't be certain she could match an angel fueled by multiple spirits. Earlier, she'd have been confident. But the girl's actions introduced the risk that stopping her could undo everything.
Stand by. Ignore the danger for her own goals as a spirit. The spirit Kurumi urged it—but the girl Kurumi rejected it.
"…!"
She glanced at the pistol in one hand, clenching the other until it bled, lost in thought.
How soft she'd become. The worst spirit, Kurumi Tokisaki, had been ruthless for her purpose. That was her strength. Yet, a devil's human-like hesitation bred weakness. The worst spirit had fallen, embracing that weakness, losing the strength to fight alone.
"—Kurumi!!"
"…!"
But in that weakness, she'd gained those who supported her. A gentle hand unraveled her clenched fist—Shidou's.
"Calm down. I know time's short and you're worried about her. Don't bear it alone. We're all here—let's think together."
It wasn't just him. Around her were kind people, connected unknowingly.
"Kurumi, is there anything we can do!?"
"We might not match you, but…!!"
"This hurricane maiden repays her debts!"
"We'll find a way together."
"For Kurumi-san and her, I'll sing with all I've got!!"
Toka, Yoshino, Kaguya, Yuzuru, Miku—all cared for Kurumi and the girl. They, who should've been enemies targeting Shidou—
"Don't waste time thinking about enemies or allies," Kotori snapped.
"Kotori-san…"
"Ratatosk protects spirits—including you two. Be a bit more honest."
Grinning, Kotori threw out words that echoed a playful Fraxinus conversation.
Kurumi had thought she was the one helping. But she'd been arrogant. Just as she refused to let Shidou's ideals fade, these girls, saved by those ideals, believed in them too. Of course—they were kind.
"…!!"
A new answer sparked in Kurumi's mind—one she couldn't achieve alone. Relying on others, borrowing their strength, an idea only possible because she knew the white-clad girl and was supported by everyone now.
Returning Kotori's grin, Kurumi gripped Shidou's hand, looking straight at Kotori.
"Very well. I'll borrow your strength… future sister-in-law?"
"…Huh?"
"What?"
Kurumi's playful words drew a dumbfounded sound from Shidou and a chillingly low growl from Kotori.
Time clashed with the aurora of nothingness, emitting fierce light.
"…Ugh…!!"
Her right arm, trembling as if it might slip, was braced by her left, but the pain was excruciating. The toll of excessive power was eroding the girl's imperfect body.
"…Can you hear me?"
"…What…!? I'm a bit busy…!!"
Reine's voice crackled through the earpiece, but the girl had no energy for composure. All she had was the strength to tear down the flawed wall of time.
"…Your spiritual waves are showing abnormal readings. Stop that power now—it's too dangerous."
"…Oh, using this weakens it over there? That's… unexpected… ugh!!"
A wave of nausea surged, blood spilling from her mouth as her body tilted—but she didn't fall. Swallowing the taste of iron, she poured everything into sustaining her power.
"…If I don't finish this, my queen will overdo it…!! I can't back down…!!"
The angel of nothingness, a power unique to her. Her imperfect body couldn't wield it fully. Full power would collapse her spiritual core. Thus, she used less than half, balancing Kerubiel's regenerating barrier, requiring time to destroy it. A twisted effort, sacrificing her body to overpower regeneration. She'd called Kerubiel's use of time distasteful, yet she was doing the same, biting down on blood with a bitter smile.
"…Aren't you afraid to die?"
"…Hah. My life's not worth clinging to. More importantly, I have a duty—you'd understand, right?"
Trampling life, no matter the cost.
"…!!"
"See…!!"
As Reine gasped, the barrier's regeneration surged, slightly pushing back the angel of nothingness.
"…This is a gamble now."
To overcome regeneration, she needed output to erase it entirely. But whether her body could withstand it… there was no hesitation.
She understood Kurumi's and Shidou's words. Yet—
A flame enveloped her. The sensation of a hand on her back. Turning, she saw the impossible—Kotori.
"What are you slacking for!?"
"…Itsuka… Kotori!?"
Kotori's fiery eyes blazed with encouragement, strong enough to make the girl flinch. Flames crawled over her, not to harm but to heal. A miraculous flame, unique to Shidou and its true wielder, Kotori.
"If you're gonna talk big, do it right…!!"
"What are you doing!? If you're here…!"
The flames consumed internal and external wounds, unhindered by Miku's song or the girl's weakened angel. But that wasn't her point. Kotori supporting her meant diverting reiryoku from Toka, making it impossible to defeat Kerubiel even if the barrier fell.
"If you've got time to worry about me, get back—!!"
"Idiot! You think your master didn't plan for this!?"
"…!!"
Hellfire healed and re-damaged her in a loop of pain and heat. Grasping Kotori's intent, the girl looked up—black spiritual waves intertwined. Shidou's hand linked to Mayuri, then Toka, with Kurumi filling the gap Kotori left. For whose sake? Obvious—and absurdly counterproductive.
"You're burning reiryoku for me?"
"Didn't you hear her lecture…!?"
"I did, and I'm still saying it…!!"
"You're as stubborn as she is! She's not one to abandon you easily!"
Kotori didn't know the old Kurumi, nor did she need to. She trusted the current Kurumi—a contradictory, stubborn spirit who vowed to consume Shidou yet protected him.
"Stubborn, obstinate, childish, and clueless—but greedier than you think!!"
"…Thanks to some meddling people."
Kurumi Tokisaki was the worst spirit. She'd accepted it, as had the white-clad girl. A kind girl who sealed her compassion to walk a path of vengeance as Nightmare. Yet that capricious, dishonest spirit was reclaiming her heart—and the girl didn't mind. Being part of that kindness was… reluctantly acceptable.
"…Well, I don't want to tarnish my queen's name…!!"
"Then get it together!!"
Kotori's divine encouragement fueled the girl's rebirth. Pouring all her reiryoku, the girl flapped her wings powerfully. White feathers, wreathed in flame, became fiery wings supporting the angel.
"AAAAAAAAAA—!!"
The light intensified, purifying the visible wall of time. Kerubiel's scream was unmistakably another Mayuri's. A crystal reflected her feelings, but they weren't hers alone. The girl sympathized, accepted, affirmed them.
But—
"Step aside, 'angel.' That path is for my queen."
The world filled with light.
"We… did it…!!"
The blinding aurora forced Kotori to squint, focusing on healing. When she opened her eyes, she shouted in triumph. The bizarre, distorted space around Kerubiel had vanished.
But it also meant Kerubiel's reiryoku cannon was free to fire. Plasma swelled, too much for Kotori's depleted reiryoku to block.
"Crap, we gotta move…!?"
The touch on the girl's back vanished—she'd collapsed forward. Kotori grabbed her, eyes widening at the blood staining her white garb. Feathers scattered, symbolizing her fading life. But Kotori wasn't one for sentiment.
"…Reine!!"
"…Preparations are ready."
"I'm bringing her now!!"
Igniting her remaining reiryoku, Kotori enveloped the girl in flames and took flight. She wouldn't let her die—not on Ratatosk's watch.
But the blue light of the cannon reached critical mass, mocking her resolve.
"Kotori!! Damn…!!"
Shidou gripped Sandalphon, ready to buy time—
"—Creating time is my specialty."
A click. The light lost color, freezing. Kurumi's bullet, perfectly timed, read Shidou's move.
"…!!"
"Whoa…!?"
Spiritual waves from the rainbow halo surged, knocking Mayuri back. A visible pillar of reiryoku enveloped Toka. Kurumi's freedom meant the preparations were complete.
Here stood the strongest spirit, fueled by seven.
"…Toka."
"Leave it to me, Shidou."
Her amethyst eyes gleamed, her Adonai Melek Ensphor—a fusion of seven spirits' traits—captivating Shidou. With a gallant smile, Toka vanished, too fast for Shidou's eyes.
In an instant, she stood before the frozen aurora.
Yoshino, Kotori, Kaguya, Yuzuru, Miku—Kurumi. And Mayuri's reiryoku formed her majestic armor.
"AAAAAAAAAAAA—!!"
She sliced through the unleashed energy with twin blades, shattering it in a cross. A meteor shower of photonic energy followed, far surpassing the initial attack.
"Incredible…"
Yet Toka parried hundreds of lightning strikes, her swordplay imperceptible. With a cry, she hurled her blades, severing Kerubiel's wings—the first true damage.
"That could…!!"
"Not yet," Kurumi said, narrowing her eyes.
"What…!?"
The severed wings regenerated at a visible rate. Shidou groaned, but reality held. The girl had erased the time barrier, Toka matched its power, yet its regeneration…
"We've come this far…!! How do we…!?"
"…To stop Kerubiel, we need an external strike and to halt its reiryoku simultaneously."
"!! Mayuri-san…"
Kurumi's gaze met Mayuri's, understanding her words' weight. Feeling something stir within, Mayuri smiled faintly. She was ready, having received more than she deserved. Casting aside hesitation and fear, she acted.
"—Shidou."
"Mayu—!!"
Mayuri gave everything to the boy she loved. The overwhelming sensation ravaging her was… blissfully fitting for her end.
"Zafkiel—"
Cut off from reiryoku, Kerubiel struggled instinctively.
I don't want to vanish. A primal desire. Mayuri transcended it, seeing only the remnants of an unfulfilled wish.
This was unnecessary, sentimental. Yet, for an unsaved end, she wished for peace—for both.
"—Seventh Bullet Zayin."
Like an offering of flowers, black bloomed, easing suffering toward a serene end.
"—Sandalphon!!"
The king's blade, turning all to dust, returned to Toka's right hand.
"—Shekina!!"
A twin blade, born for this moment, appeared in her left—a royal sword of annihilation, adorned with gold, crimson, blue, and amethyst. The sky trembled, unable to contain the overflowing reiryoku as Toka soared.
A mural-like angel. On Kurumi's path of flowers, Toka spoke one word. With her twin blades, she played not destruction but a requiem of mercy.
"—Sleep."
The end was anticlimactic, silent within severed time.
Peaceful.
"…Is it… over?"
Kerubiel faded. Toka's slash annihilated its components. Its quiet end, after such ferocity, stirred complex emotions in Shidou. But it was done—they'd saved everyone, saved Mayuri.
"Ma… yuri?"
He realized his mistake as Mayuri faded in his arms, her body trembling.
Light overflowed, like an astral dress dissolving, as if her very composition was unraveling. Shidou shouted in disbelief.
"Why…!? How!?"
"…I'm a crystal of reiryoku. Without a 'core,' sealing me means I vanish. It's only natural."
"Sealing…!?"
It was meaningless. He'd fought to save her, only for her to disappear? No way. Rage and sorrow surged, questioning her words. Sealing required shared feelings, a bond.
"We just met…!!"
"…Pfft. Hahaha!!"
Her laugh was bright, impossible for someone fading. A genuine smile Shidou thought he'd never see. In her final moment, Mayuri answered the oblivious boy.
"You're saying that? So very Shidou."
"…!"
He realized. Meeting briefly yet opening her heart—he knew that better than anyone. He, who fell in love with a girl at first sight.
Seeing him finally understand, Mayuri, a girl born from others' feelings and loving him, spoke.
"I was born from everyone's reiryoku—their feelings. How could I not love you?"
That subjective acceptance made her, a mere system personality, Mayuri. Because of that—
"From the moment I was born… I loved you."
In her fated existence, loving him was her chosen purpose.
Light accelerated, returning to the heavens, to nothingness.
"Wait, Mayuri!! Don't go… don't disappear!!"
"…Tell her… I was satisfied."
"Say it yourself!! Don't just say you're satisfied!! If you die… if you're gone, there's nothing…!!"
"…No. It remains. You all will make it remain."
Born to vanish, Mayuri gained value in Shidou's arms, watched by those who cared.
How… blissful.
"I'm no longer just born to vanish. Because… I met you."
With value, she could leave something behind—a meaningful end, not resignation or fear, but happiness. She caressed his cheek, feeling love.
"That's… enough."
"Mayuri…!!"
"Thank you…"
With heartfelt feelings, her own, she spoke her final words.
Her last expression—
"Goodbye, Shidou."
She returned to the heavens.
"…Ah… aaah…"
Mayuri was gone.
"Shidou-san!!"
"…!! Aaaah…!!"
Unable to focus even as Kurumi held him, Shidou shook his head. The proof of what he couldn't grasp, what slipped away, was only the warmth in his hands.
"—MAYURIIIIII!!"
The boy's wail echoed.
Golden feathers blew away—and vanished.
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