A chilling magical energy slowly began to radiate outwards.
The Flat Snark let out a silent screech in the sky.
The fairy-tale bounded field it had unfolded was violently constricted by the Divine Machine, who used it as a shell for her incubation, wrapping it tightly around herself.
The Divine Machine was gaining a sense of self.
Had Yumina been resurrected using the Divine Machine? Seriously?!
"Miss Alice, this is bad!" Robin shouted sharply from Alice's shoulder, his wings fluttering uncontrollably.
Black feathers from Suigintou carried the group backward as a storybook appeared in Alice's hand.
A cerulean light shimmered around them, and a girl resembling Alice materialized at her side. Feeling the joyous surge within her Magic Circuits, Alice breathed a sigh of relief.
'You're still here. The First Magician isn't someone just anyone can touch.'
Alice's gaze returned to the cocoon, the oppressive feeling emanating from it still slowly expanding.
Which meant… whatever was inside had merely absorbed some of Yumina's magical energy.
Charlotte and the others felt an inexplicable difficulty breathing, their eyes involuntarily welling up with tears.
A suffocating storm of magical energy, enough to seem to shake reality itself, whipped up around the Divine Machine, sweeping through everything within the academy grounds.
Soon after, a dazzling light suddenly overflowed from the plant-wrapped cocoon.
Like a chick breaking free from its shell, a small humanoid figure was born from within the radiance.
The figure changed rapidly within the light, instantly taking on a human form in the blink of an eye.
She had shoulder-length black hair, and her slightly budding chest was concealed by a white dress.
Her skin was pale as jade, and a strange smile graced her delicate face.
Though hers was a beauty enough to make one forget to breathe, the only things everyone felt from her were a sense of dread and a terrifying, oppressive pressure.
A mist appeared with the birth of the Divine Machine, the white fog filling the school campus in an instant.
The Divine Machine blinked, and then—
She snapped her gaze toward Alice.
A bizarre smile bloomed on that beautiful face, her cherry lips parting slightly. "My darling Alice~"
An ethereal voice echoed through the night sky, and a feeling of disorientation flooded Alice's mind.
"Alice!"
In her dazed state, Alice seemed to hear a frantic voice calling out.
She shook her head, slowly regaining her senses, and a sticky sensation immediately clung to her ankles.
For some reason, Alice found herself standing in a pool of blood; thick white mist swirled around her like steam from a hot spring.
Before Alice could ponder it further, ripples spread across the blood's surface, and the girl abruptly sank into the pool.
Meanwhile, Suigintou stared at the blood on her hand, frozen in place.
Alice had... right before her eyes... dissolved into a puddle of blood.
Rage burned in her crimson eyes. Countless black feathers gathered behind her, and the wings capable of blotting out the sky once again manifested on Suigintou's back.
"Calm down."
Shinku grabbed Suigintou's shoulder; she knew exactly what state her sister was in.
She spoke before Suigintou could even open her mouth. "Focus. The magical connection to Alice hasn't been severed yet."
Suigintou frowned. Alice's magical energy was still flowing steadily into her.
It really wasn't broken...
She grabbed Charlotte, who was about to charge forward, while her black feathers simultaneously swept Sigmund back.
"What are you doing?!"
Charlotte whipped her head around, the color of anger also flashing across her face.
But it vanished just as quickly.
It was as if she had seen something unbelievable, her mouth hanging open.
Suigintou slowly turned her head; blue feathers filled her vision.
Azure-blue feathers drifted in the air, and Alice's figure stepped out from among them.
The girl gently tossed a cat bell, her black eyes turning to Charlotte and Suigintou. "I'm fine."
As if responding to her words, a chorus of chirp chirp chirp came from behind them.
Robin, straining his voice, stood on the head of Hinaichigo, who had just arrived, singing an off-key rendition of "Who killed Cock Robin."
Suigintou immediately put on her usual haughty smile. Shinku also smiled, standing by her sister's side.
White thorns began creeping toward the Divine Machine. Kanaria brought out her violin. The twins simultaneously produced a watering can and scissors.
The giant dragon reappeared on the Night Party grounds, its massive form shielding the group as it let out a high-pitched roar toward the Divine Machine.
A wind spirit whipped up a gale around Charlotte, slightly dispersing the spreading white fog.
'So that's Robin's Magic Circuit.'
Her golden hair danced in the fierce wind, a smile on her face as Charlotte stared intently at the distant Divine Machine.
The Divine Machine tilted her head, curiously watching the dispersed fog, seemingly puzzled as to why the mist wasn't obeying her.
The mist split apart, revealing enormous teeth within.
Crunch.
Bestial jaws snapped shut violently, yet the sharp teeth couldn't pierce the tender, smooth skin. The fair, delicate skin was like some impossibly hard object, blocking the beasts' bites.
'No use, as expected...'
The Divine Machine's body was like flawless diamond. Was it impossible to harm her?
Alice pressed a hand to her chest. Her Magic Circuits trembled faintly, as if urging her to eliminate that impostor.
"Look out!"
Charlotte's warning voice rang in her ears.
The Divine Machine raised her hands once more, and an unknown ripple spread out from her feet.
The fairy-tale bounded field began to expand without end, human fantasies starting to fill every corner of the world.
A wooden horse, made by a father for his child, began to sway. A child's doodle on a wall blinked its eyes. A rabbit by the roadside put on a top hat. A cat appeared out of thin air, grinning widely.
Like thin skin being gently blown away, the reality of this world was being peeled back by the Divine Machine, replaced with fairy tales.
'This is a bit troublesome.'
'Now it's time to face the boss I created myself.'
Alice watched the changing surroundings, and a faint, summoning voice reached her ears.
It was very soft, so soft that Alice almost doubted its existence.
Yet it was also profound, as if whispering directly to her soul.
Alice knew—it was her lost child, coming to find her.
Listening to the murmurs coming from who-knew-where, a somewhat heavy book appeared in her hands.
A cerulean light enveloped the book.
"It seems... I may have underestimated the existence known as the Divine Machine," Edward let out a soft sigh, feeling the world changing.
His fingers moved without pause through the empty air, the trails they left forming lingering bands of light, depicting a special hexagram magic circle with complex ornamentation.
From the center of the magic circle, a thick book emerged.
This was the grimoire, the Key of Solomon—a catalog for summoning legendary automata.
"The Divine Machine is an existence created by humanity in its own image—the 'next generation of humanity,'" he proclaimed solemnly, like a prophet. "Although the Divine Machine has undergone some unknown change, our era... will likely end tonight."
The grimoire floated in the void, opening on its own.
A faint phosphorescent light drifted from its pages, illuminating Edward's face from below.
A wave-like torrent of magical energy spilled from him, and about fifty figures of varying sizes appeared behind him.
Using the Divine Machine to save his daughter was his wish, but if they couldn't survive, there would be no saving anyone.
"Final Movement!"
The sound of a violin resonated around them as Kanaria took the lead, summoning a hurricane.
Black feathers mixed with petals shot forward, thorns following close behind.
Facing these attacks, the Divine Machine didn't even turn her head, focused solely on spreading her fairy tale across the world.
The violent hurricane merely ruffled her hair. The sharp feathers and petals couldn't cut her skin. The pristine white thorns turned to dust the moment they touched her.
The Divine Machine still wore that strange smile, as if mocking their overestimation of their own abilities.
But the next moment, a strange sensation registered in her perception.
The Divine Machine looked back. A towering spire of light stood within her view.
The cerulean radiance had transformed into a pure, white brilliance.
The expansion of the fairy-tale world halted. The reality she could once so easily peel away had become firm and solid.
As if tightly stitched fabric, reality was anchored to the planet by some unseen fastener.
Just like the Queen of the Fairy Kingdom, the Holy Lance that binds the World—Rhongomyniad—manifested in Alice's hand in the form of magecraft.
Gray's memories of releasing the Holy Lance flashed in Alice's mind. She slowly raised her right hand, and a light similar to the tower shone once more.
"Rhongomyniad."
The Holy Lance, Anchor raised.
A second holy lance appeared in Alice's hand. Yumina, residing within her body, was boiling with excitement.
She thrust her palm forward. The pure light rampantly shot forth, illuminating the Divine Machine's puzzled expression in the night sky.
Alice watched the galloping light and raised her hand once more.
Sorry. But in a world of fairy tales, she was omnipotent.
And so, beneath this night sky, the brilliance of the Holy Lance shone once again.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.