She definitely would.
If Kurumi actually did this, then Mio Takamiya would certainly try to go back in time.
Kurumi isn't the only one who can manipulate time.
With this in mind, Takumi smiled faintly.
Then he sealed off the time axis.
A powerful force locked this world's timeline.
From that moment onward, no one in the future could return to this specific time.
It was like Takumi had placed a checkpoint in the river of time.
Future travelers could only return to a time when Takumi wasn't aroundafter the Spirits were already gone.
If the future had already happened, no one could alter it.
He simply locked this period of time.
As the Spirit of Time, Kurumi immediately noticed the temporal change.
"This??? What happened?"
She was stunned by the sudden shift.
Something had clearly changed, but she didn't know what.
Mio Takamiya felt it too.
What was this? Why did she suddenly have a bad feeling?
What had happened?
Yet, upon closer inspection, nothing seemed amiss.
She gave up thinking about it.
To Mio Takamiya, nothing was a problem she couldn't solve.
That was how confident she was.
The current issue was: what happened with the Princess?
The spacequake occurred, but then disappeared?
Did something go wrong?
Did she emerge, but not fully?
Were the Spirits acting up again?
For now, Mio Takamiya fell into deep thought.
She didn't even consider the possibility of sabotage.
To her, it was more likely the Spirits were malfunctioning.
No big deal.
If anything really went wrong, she could just reset everything.
She didn't need to suspect someone was interferingperhaps the Spirits themselves were the problem.
If they didn't appear, just wait a bit.
It was fine.
Besides, Itsuka Shiori wasn't ready yet.
This gave her more time to prepare mentally.
With that thought, she started making preparations.
...
Meanwhile, after suppressing Tohka, Takumi nodded in satisfaction.
"Let's go! I'll take you to meet the other Spirits."
Kurumi was stunned.
"The other Spirits? You're going to take them all?"
Realizing what he meant, she looked at Takumi.
"Of course! Didn't you hear what I just said?"
"If we take all the Spirits, what do you think she'll do?"
"Isn't that fun? Oh right, did you finish reading the materials?"
"You should know who the original Spirit is now, right?"
Takumi looked at Kurumi.
Among the data he had sent her was information about Mio Takamiya.
Hearing this, Kurumi went silent.
She had indeed seen it.
Chapter 383: The Entire Island Was Blown Away
Mio Takamiya is the original spirit.
And the purpose of their creation was to resurrect a certain person.
This kind of revelation made Kurumi Tokisaki extremely upset.
She wanted nothing more than to eliminate that person immediately.
However, just as Takumi had said, even if she knew who the opponent was, she couldn't defeat her.
Based on the information provided, Kurumi now understood that all the spirits' powers originated from Mio Takamiya.
How could they possibly stand a chance against her?
Realizing this made Kurumi even more frustrated.
After all, it was infuriating to be unable to exact revenge despite knowing the truth.
It was a deeply powerless feeling.
So, after thinking over what Takumi had proposed, she felt it might actually be a good idea.
"Alright! Let's take away all the spirits!!"
Having made up her mind, Kurumi was resolute.
Wasn't the enemy trying to resurrect that person?
Then let her do it all by herself in this world.
The spirits were merely her pawns.
If she lost all her pawns, what would she become?
With this idea in mind, Kurumi had nothing more to lose.
"Okay!! Then let's go. Let's start capturing the spirits."
Saying that, Takumi's lips curled into a small smile.
Many of the spirits had already appeared:
Yoshino, the Yamai Sisters, Miku Izayoi, Natsumi Kyouno, Nia Honjou, and Mukuro Hoshimiyathey were all already present.
Except for Origami Tobiichi, who had not yet become a spirit, the rest were basically all accounted for.
As for Tohka Yatogami, they could just retrieve her from the Neighboring World.
With the plan set, Takumi began moving with Kurumi.
"Do you know where the other spirits are?"
Just as they were about to begin their operation, Kurumi asked in confusion.
"Of course I do! Maybe you're not aware, but the network of your world is basically transparent to me."
"I can go in and out freely. There are no secrets."
"Little Kurumi, you'll understand how powerful your big brother is in due time."
Takumi smiled warmly at her.
Since she had only just joined the group, she didn't yet know the extent of Takumi's abilities.
But she would come to know in time just how strong he was.
"Oh? Is that so~?"
Hearing that, Kurumi was even more astonished.
She truly had no concept of Takumi's strength yet.
After all, ever since she joined the group, Takumi had come straight into her world.
She hadn't even had time to explore the chat group.
She hadn't even signed in yet.
But that was fine.
Takumi seemed easy to get along with, and he knew a lot.
Even if she knew nothing about him, she could learn slowly.
Takumi began leading Kurumi to locate the other spirits.
Their first stop was to find Nia Honjou.
At that moment, Nia was still being held on a certain island.
Though it was isolated, Takumi had already pinpointed its location.
Sure, it was remotebut too conspicuously so.
Takumi had completely copied DEM's data, so he knew exactly where it was.
Opening a spatial portal, Takumi appeared directly inside the lab on that island.
Kurumi followed closely behind.
As the two arrived, the alarm system immediately triggered.
Takumi, unfazed, directly took control of the system.
All the weapon systems and Realizer Units were instantly disabled.
The combat personnel who had responded to the alarm immediately collapsed.
With the Realizer Units locked down, they were just ordinary girls.
Though physically strong, they were otherwise nothing special.
Worse, with the Realizer Units now inert, they had become burdens.
Takumi had completely frozen the systems.
Then, he led Kurumi deeper into the lab.
Looking around at the setting, Kurumi felt a deep aversion.
She hated the atmosphere of this place.
"I really hate it here. Can I destroy it later?"
Scanning the surroundings, she asked Takumi.
Takumi nodded.
"Of course. I hate it too."
"This place was built specifically for experimenting on spirits."
With that, Takumi walked toward the main lab doors.
As he approached, the doors opened automatically.
Kurumi finally saw what was inside.
The researchers inside immediately pointed their guns at Takumi and Kurumi.
But in the next moment, they were all frozen in place.
Under Takumi's control, their weapons turned on each other.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A flurry of gunfire rang out as the staff inside were eliminated by their own comrades.
Takumi didn't hesitate at all.
He headed straight toward the restrained Nia Honjou lying on the test platform.
At this point, Nia was sedated, completely unaware of what was happening.
Seeing the surgical scars on her body, Takumi frowned.
Damn it!
Look at what they did to a shut-in otaku girl.
The fact that Nia hadn't gone completely insane was remarkable.
Takumi sighed.
The next moment, a magic circle appeared beneath her.
Her injuries began to heal rapidly before their eyes.
Kurumi watched in amazement.
"Magic?"
Wasn't this the kind of thing that only appeared in anime?
"That's right! Magic."
"In the future, you can come train on my side too~!"
"We even have instructors who teach time magic."
"I think you'd be quite interested."
Kurumi nodded.
She was definitely interested.
She could actually learn that kind of thing?
That was amazing.
After healing Nia, Takumi transported her into imaginary space.
She would likely wake up soon.
Having finished that, Takumi turned to Kurumi.
"Do you want to absorb the time of the people here?"
"If not, I'll just destroy this place."
Even garbage had its use.
Kurumi needed time, and the people here were full of it.
Hearing that, Kurumi frowned.
"Time, huh... Not necessary right now."
"Since I've already decided to leave with you, I'll let these people go."
After a moment's thought, she gave up the idea.
It wasn't necessary.
She didn't know what Takumi's world was like, but she imagined she wouldn't lack time there.
"Is that so?"
"Then forget it."
"Later, I'll find you a dragon-kin to drain."
"They have loads of time."
"If everything's settled, then let's go."
"Next stop: the Yamai Sisters."
With that, Takumi opened a new portal and walked out.
Kurumi hurried to follow.
Chapter 384: I Will Rudely Enter Your Mind
When Takumi and Kurumi left that island, the entire island began to undergo a fission reaction. Gigantic magical formations appeared in the sky above the island. As this terrifying energy emerged, agencies worldwide capable of detecting energy fluctuations immediately picked it up. When satellites zoomed in on the area, a mushroom cloud was seen rising.
The island was completely wiped off the map. In addition, a massive void appeared over the sea, with thick steam gradually enveloping the surrounding area, obscuring what had happened.
Mio Takamiya also sensed the powerful energy eruption. The unfamiliar energy baffled her. What was going on? Why was there such an energy signature?
Standing aboard her ship, Mio was confused. Strange events were unfolding one after another. What exactly had happened?
"Unknown energy fluctuation. Everyone, isn't that DEM Corporation's territory? Did they conduct some kind of experiment again?" Kotori Itsuka stared at the screen showing the white fog, deeply confused.
Could those people have created some terrifying weapon? No one aboard the ship could answer her question. Once the steam slowly cleared, the sea was void of any island. The sudden energy burst left everyone puzzled.
...
Takumi, however, didn't bother with these things. Anyone who had seen him and Kurumi had been dealt with. The networks were also intercepted. So no one knew it was their doingnot even Kurumi knew what Takumi had done when they left.
At this point, Takumi and Kurumi had found the Yamai sisters. Their sudden appearance stunned the two sisters.
"A male Spirit?" they both asked in unison. Seeing a female Spirit beside Takumi and knowing he was the one who opened the spatial gate, they assumed Takumi was also a Spirit.
"Not really," Takumi replied. "I'll explain everything later. For now, please go into my space. I'm quite busy right now."
With a smile, he didn't wait for their response. He opened Imaginary Space and swallowed them into it, not giving them a chance to react.
Kurumi's mouth twitched at his actions. This guy... he seemed a bit too practiced at this! Had he kidnapped people like this before?
After storing the Yamai sisters, Takumi moved on to the next targetNatsumi.
Their sudden appearance startled Natsumi.
"You two..."
She looked like a dignified older girl, but seeing Takumi and Kurumi appear suddenly, she was terrified. As someone timid and insecure, she immediately assumed someone had come to capture her.
Takumi didn't bother explaining.
"Natsumi, you're busted! Come with me."
Without waiting for her response, he tossed her into Imaginary Space.
"Is this really okay?" Kurumi asked, her expression turning odd as she watched Takumi capture Natsumi without consent.
"Of course it's fine! We'll explain later. Hmm... there's one more in space, then just Yoshino and Miku left."
With a thought, Takumi opened a spatial portal in outer space and brought in Mukuro Hoshimiya, who was in a shutdown state. That was easy.
Now only Yoshino remained, but she didn't seem to be in the present worldmost likely in the Neighboring World, like Tohka.
Takumi had already taken control of the world's entire network. He had reviewed every area under surveillance and hadn't found Yoshino, confirming she was currently inside the Neighboring World.
As for Miku, he'd just grab that yuri girl casually when needed.
Thinking of this, Takumi turned to Kurumi.
"Let's go deal with someone, and then we'll head to the Neighboring World."
They would go to the Neighboring World last. Now, it was time to handle Isaac Ray Pelham Westcott.
Takumi locked onto DEM Corporation's headquarters. In the company president's office, Westcott was discussing the island incident with Ellen. His face looked grim.
With the second Spirit missing after the incident, how could he not be upset? He was clueless about what had actually happened.
"No intel at all?" Westcott asked, staring at Ellen.
The ditsy and elegant Ellen shook her head.
"No data came out from there. The last thing we received was the previous experimental report. No one knows what happened afterward. The entire island vanished."
Ellen also looked worried. After all, there had been many people on that island, and now none survived. It was undoubtedly a massive disaster.
Westcott frowned at her reply. Just as he was about to say something, a spatial rift suddenly appeared. Takumi and Kurumi stepped out.
"Hello~! Nice to meet you!"
The moment Ellen saw Kurumi, her expression changed drastically. Without hesitation, she activated her Realizer Unit. But as she tried to transform, her body uncontrollably collapsed to the ground.
"Mm-mm-mm, I don't want to deal with that hassle. So just lie down obediently. You toodon't move! There are things I need your cooperation with."
With that, Takumi instantly immobilized everything in the room, including Westcott.
Westcott found his body completely under Takumi's control.
"Nightmare and... an unknown? You two were behind what happened on the island, weren't you?" Westcott quickly calmed himself and glared at Takumi, then glanced at Ellen, who couldn't move an inch no matter how hard she struggled.
"Yep~! That was me!" Takumi said with a grin.
"Now, aside from the Spirits in the Neighboring World, I've already collected all the rest. And now... I just need the knowledge inside your head."
"Once I'm done with this, I'll head to the Neighboring World."
