On the gray-white plains of the dimensional space, the two stood facing each other.
Tsubaki Shinra slowly drew the long blade at her waist. The edge gleamed coldly in the dim light of the alternate dimension.
It was a standard Japanese sword, long and slender, with an elegant curve and delicate patterns carved into the guard.
Her stance was textbook-perfect. Her feet were set slightly apart, her center of gravity lowered, and the tip of her blade angled toward the ground.
Genichi looked at her while quickly recalling what he knew about Tsubaki Shinra.
She came from one of the Five Principal Clans, a family renowned for exorcism.
But her childhood had not been a happy one. Because of the Sacred Gear within her, she had been isolated by her clan since she was young and treated as an abnormality.
Only after Sona Sitri took her into her peerage had she finally found a place where she belonged.
Her Sacred Gear was called Mirror Alice. It could absorb damage, and once the damage it had absorbed reached a certain threshold, the mirror would shatter and reflect all of that damage back at double the force.
It was an extremely troublesome ability. Attacking her meant attacking himself. Not attacking her meant taking her attacks head-on.
"Careful. I'm coming."
Tsubaki's voice was calm as she gave him a warning.
Before the words had fully fallen, her figure vanished from where she stood.
Fast!
Genichi's pupils narrowed slightly.
Tsubaki was faster than he had expected. Her long blade cut through the air with a sharp whistle as it went straight for his neck.
The edge traced a silver arc through the air, swift and precise.
Just as the blade was about to touch his skin—
"Apparition."
Genichi's figure warped like a reflection on the surface of water, then vanished into thin air.
Tsubaki's sword struck nothing but empty air, the blade slicing through with a shrill hiss.
Genichi appeared behind her, only three meters away.
He raised his hand, demonic power gathering in his palm as Flame Volt activated instantly.
A bolt of fire shaped like lightning shot from his hand and streaked toward Tsubaki's back.
The flame condensed into a thin beam of light, moving so quickly its path was almost impossible to follow.
Tsubaki had no time to turn around. She could only take it head-on.
The instant the fire struck her, a faint film of light appeared over her body. It rippled like the surface of water, spreading outward from the point of impact and absorbing the full force of the flame.
Flame Volt hit her, but it did no damage.
Genichi frowned. He had not used full power in that attack, but it still should have been enough to pierce an ordinary devil's defenses.
Yet on Tsubaki, it had not even left a mark.
Tsubaki turned around, holding her long blade across her body. Her expression remained calm. The film of light flickered over her once, then disappeared.
Genichi thought of Tsubaki Shinra's Sacred Gear—Mirror Alice.
It absorbed damage, and once the accumulated damage reached a certain level, the mirror would shatter and reflect all of it back at double strength.
His last attack had already been absorbed.
What an interesting Sacred Gear.
The thought passed through Genichi's mind, but his hands did not stop. He raised his hand again. This time, he cast in rapid succession.
"Flame Volt!"
"Flame Volt!"
"Flame Volt!"
Three beams of fire shot out one after another, attacking Tsubaki from different angles.
Tsubaki did not dodge.
She did not need to.
The film of light appeared again and absorbed all three flames.
Her body did not move an inch. Even her expression remained unchanged.
Genichi did not stop.
He continued casting, throwing spell after spell at Tsubaki.
The air of the dimensional space filled with the roar of demonic power. Fire and explosions intertwined, swallowing Tsubaki's entire body.
Far away, the spectators watched with different expressions.
Rias folded her arms, the corner of her mouth lifting slightly.
She could tell that Genichi was testing her—testing where Mirror Alice's limit was.
Sona pushed up her glasses, her expression calm, but her fingers clenched slightly inside her sleeves.
Tsubaki's Sacred Gear was powerful, but there was still an upper limit to how much damage it could absorb.
With Genichi bombarding her like this, Sona did not know how long Tsubaki could hold out.
Akeno watched with a gentle smile, curiosity glimmering in her eyes.
Tsubaki stood in place, enduring wave after wave of magical attacks.
The film of light kept flickering over her body, rippling each time it absorbed another impact.
Her expression remained calm, but the hand gripping her sword had already begun to turn faintly white.
Genichi stopped attacking and looked at her.
"How much longer can you hold out?"
Tsubaki did not answer. She merely raised her blade and pointed it at him.
Genichi smiled.
"Then let me see just how much damage your mirror can absorb."
This time, Genichi did not hold back.
"Gospel!"
Tsubaki's expression finally changed.
She tightened her grip on the sword and leaned forward slightly, preparing to meet the attack.
Then the ground beneath his feet suddenly stirred.
He looked down and saw countless tiny cracks spreading across the ground.
The cracks had extended from beneath Tsubaki's feet, spreading like a spiderweb.
No. The ground was not cracking.
Her Sacred Gear was releasing.
Tsubaki raised her head, a glint flashing through her calm eyes.
"You attacked seventeen times."
Her voice was steady.
"The damage stored inside the mirror has reached its limit."
Genichi's pupils narrowed slightly.
Tsubaki lifted her hand and waved it lightly.
Crack.
The sound of shattering glass rang through the air.
The film of light appeared over her body, then began to split.
Cracks spread outward from the center, growing more numerous and dense.
"Mirror Alice—release."
The moment her words fell, the mirror shattered.
Countless specks of light flew out from the broken fragments, each one containing one of the attacks it had absorbed earlier.
Every attack Genichi had unleashed came pouring back toward him at double strength.
The counterattack beams fell like a storm, covering every space around Genichi and leaving him no room to dodge.
Genichi watched the overwhelming wave of attacks rush toward him and took a deep breath.
Then he smiled.
"King of Shadows."
The shadow beneath his feet expanded instantly, like ink dropped into water.
In the blink of an eye, those shadows swelled into a pitch-black wall in front of Genichi.
Every attack landed on the black shadow and was devoured.
After leaving the DanMachi world, Genichi had discovered a change in the King of Shadows spell. It no longer merely allowed him to create shadow clones. He could now manipulate shadows in finer detail.
For example, he could use them for defense, as he was doing now. As long as the damage did not exceed the limit of what the shadows could withstand, it could not harm him.
The dimensional space fell silent.
Genichi stood behind the shadow, completely unharmed.
The pitch-black wall slowly contracted and returned to the shadow beneath his feet.
Tsubaki stood in place, the long blade in her hand trembling slightly.
Her Sacred Gear had shattered and could not be used again for a short time.
She looked at Genichi, a complicated emotion flashing through her eyes.
"I lost."
Her voice was calm, with a faint trace of relief.
Genichi looked at her without saying anything.
Far away, Sona pushed up her glasses. Her expression remained calm, but the corner of her mouth twitched slightly.
Rias's smile grew even brighter.
"Well, Sona? My peerage member isn't bad, is he?"
Sona did not answer. She simply looked at Genichi, a strange light flickering in her eyes.
(End of Chapter)
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