The cities caught in the crossfire of war were, without exception, collapsing into ruins amidst the billowing smoke.
If a Spirit with immense destructive power were added into the mix, all that would remain would likely be a zone reduced to wasteland.
In the distance, beneath a sky dyed blood-red by the setting sun, DEM Corporation’s armed forces stood in neat formation.
However, the advanced anti-Spirit weapons in their hands were not aimed at Shiratori; instead, they were held upright, motionless.
They acted like a guard detail maintaining order at an execution ground, simply waiting for the executioner to arrive.
Then, under Shiratori’s watchful eyes, her executioner arrived.
A platinum-gold figure slowly emerged from the afterglow of the setting sun.
Judging by the slender silhouette, it was a woman.
Her pale long hair caught a reddish hue from the sunset, and her proud, cold face carried a trace of contempt.
Her platinum-gold mecha and longsword were clearly custom-made, their exquisite craftsmanship immediately hinting at her extraordinary status.
Ellen Mira Mathers.
Humanity’s strongest Wizard, and DEM Corporation’s ultimate ace.
Shiratori had a slight memory of this Wizard.
When she previously hacked into the database, she had paid special attention to her because that platinum-gold equipment looked somewhat similar to her own Astral Dress.
Shaking her slightly groggy head, Shiratori began to reevaluate the situation before her.
Those six Wizards didn’t seem to have any intention of joining the battle; they looked more like an honor guard gathered to watch a show.
Shiratori had no intention of waiting for them to complete their battle array.
Regardless of how the opponent acted, they were enemies to her—and when facing enemies, there was no need for even a moment’s hesitation.
Yet, just as the attack was about to launch, Ellen, the strongest human Wizard, snapped her closed eyes open.
—The sharp sword in her hand slashed through the air at a dizzying speed.
Even Shiratori could barely keep up with the speed of those sword swings.
In just the blink of an eye, all the drones approaching Ellen had been reduced to Reiryoku dregs.
“Looks like I’ll have to take this seriously.”
The triumphant smile on Ellen’s face made Shiratori feel threatened.
To destroy her drones so effortlessly meant Ellen possessed enough strength to tear apart the defense network formed by those drones.
Shiratori’s greatest reliance had always been her absolute defense and intensely aggressive offense provided by her drones.
Ordinary anti-Spirit equipment couldn’t leave a single mark on them; any hostile entity entering the drones’ detection range would be subjected to a devastating strike.
Therefore, against Ellen, who could destroy her drones, Shiratori naturally had to ensure absolute concentration.
“Interesting.
Trying to test me?”
Ellen stared with playful amusement at the cautious Shiratori in the distance, the corners of her lips curling up in excitement.
“Then shouldn’t I offer something in return?”
Immediately after, the longsword in Ellen’s hand began to shift like a Transformer, the metal parts rapidly rearranging themselves until it turned into a long spear in an instant.
Then, she aimed it straight at Shiratori.
“Director, isn’t it a bit much to pull out your ultimate move right from the start?”
A Wizard on the side, who had virtually no presence, suddenly spoke up.
“The opponent is Shiratori, the Spirit with the greatest destructive power.
Taking a direct hit from Rhongomiant shouldn’t be much of a problem for her, right?
Even if she can’t take it, it doesn’t matter.
As long as we bring the Sephira Crystal back to Isaac, he won’t have anything to complain about.”
“All you need to do is recover as many of her drones as possible when she falls.”
“Understood.”
While the two were exchanging information, Shiratori had already set up her drone firepower network.
The dense swarm looked like a honeycomb built by bees, multiplying layer by layer until they organized into a pyramid formation.
This was her first time adopting such a cautious stance.
After all, no title of ‘strongest’ ever came out of thin air.
Without fighting through blood and death, it was impossible to reach such a summit.
“Rhongomiant!”
BOOM—
A golden light coalesced at the tip of the spear, shining so intensely that it seemed to rival the sun itself.
The blinding radiance roared with an unfathomable burst of massive energy, like the staff of a god.
“Last Instruction!”
SHUUU—
The drones went into full firepower mode.
The flashing azure light on the drones instantly turned a terrifying red, spitting out equally powerful Reiryoku shells from their barrels that merged into one.
Every single drone was transmitting Reiryoku at double its power capacity.
Rolling thunder brewed within the attack, creating a scene whose momentum felt like two nuclear warheads colliding head-on.
BOOM—!
The moment the two forces collided, they triggered a cataclysmic shockwave.
The tremors were in no way inferior to a super earthquake.
It was no longer just the ground shaking—the entire city trembled under this apocalyptic power, and everything touched by the light was annihilated in an instant.
A long time passed before the power of both ultimate moves finally dissipated, leaving a massive crater in the city center that was no less devastating than one left by a spacequake.
“Unscathed?”
Ellen felt a prickle of annoyance that her defense hadn’t been pierced by her pride and joy, Rhongomiant.
“Though, your Reiryoku must be completely drained by now.”
As the dust and smoke kicked up by the explosion gradually cleared, Ellen’s provocative voice echoed in Shiratori’s ears.
Shiratori’s pale face betrayed the fact that she had expended far too much energy.
She kicked off the air, flying backward to put more distance between them.
Her drones had all dispersed.
Unlike the machines from her past life, maintaining these drones relied heavily on Shiratori’s own Reiryoku, which was why her Reiryoku reserves were the highest among all Spirits.
Still, even she couldn’t withstand such rapid depletion.
To conserve Reiryoku, Shiratori had no choice but to recall them for now.
She had about one-fourth of her Reiryoku left, while Ellen still looked completely at ease.
“Well, it seems Shiratori, the Spirit with the greatest destructive power, is utterly fragile when faced with my absolute strength.”
“Though it looks like those drones can’t be recovered after all.
Isaac is probably going to scold me again.”
Treating Shiratori—who had lost her Reiryoku—as if she were no threat at all, Ellen approached her while complaining helplessly about her own mundane troubles.
Refusing to let her get any closer, Shiratori re-manifested weapons in her hands and opened fire with a bombardment.
“Is this all you’ve got?”
Ellen spoke calmly, closing the distance.
Shiratori’s Reiryoku shells slammed against Ellen’s Territory, showering sparks in all directions.
“No good…
I need to retreat first.
I’ve already obtained the data anyway.”
Suddenly, just as Shiratori prepared to use her remaining Reiryoku to execute a space-time teleportation, a wave of dizziness washed over her.
Recognizing what this sensation portended, Shiratori offered Ellen a faint smile.
In the next instant, Shiratori vanished into thin air right before Ellen’s eyes.
“Hm?
Lost?”
With a hint of regret in her voice, Ellen turned around, holding her laser blade.
This wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened while hunting Spirits.
A ‘Lost’ meant the Spirit was forcibly pulled back into the Neighboring World.
Humans couldn’t enter the Neighboring World, nor could they survive inside it.
Yet, being just one step away made her feel thoroughly annoyed—like being a single inch away from putting a sweet fruit into her mouth, only for it to disappear into thin air.
“Though you won’t be so lucky next time.
Because I am the strongest!”
Ellen smirked slightly, as if already catching the scent of her next victory in advance.
“D…
Damn it…
If I knew it’d turn out like this, I shouldn’t have clashed head-on…”
Having returned to the cold, dark space of the Neighboring World, a weakened Shiratori clutched her chest.
Although she still had some Reiryoku left, the massive burst of consumption in a single moment had severely overdrawn her strength.
A sensation of coldness began creeping into the tips of her limbs, and the cold, sharp pain in her chest grew more intense with every breath she took.
“Did I lose my mind…
or what?
Why didn’t I just use the space-time teleportation device to jump away?”
Shiratori indeed felt she had been too arrogant.
She had thought she could easily clash head-on with the opponent, leaving that proud face wiped clean of all self-esteem.
Looking at it now, however, it was her own pride that had been completely shattered…
“Is this how human behavioral psychology works?
But what was this situation called…
again?”
She no longer had the energy to overthink it; her exhausted mind couldn’t support so many thoughts.
After driving those messy ideas out of her head, she let out a gentle sigh.
Then, she quietly placed her hand over her chest.
“…”
“So cold…”
PS: Why is it that when I type single angle brackets, the content inside disappears along with them?
Do any veteran readers know how to fix this?
Also, the protagonist’s picture seems a bit blurry.
How strange…
I clearly uploaded the original image…