She swept Sandalphon in a perfect arc; every attack that touched the violet light was deflected or annihilated. Fiery explosions blossomed around her, but none could reach her.
"Why must this happen"
Biting her lip, she remembered Rei Ao's warning in the chat:
"AST will try to kill Spirits."
The AntiSpirit Team had been created to destroy Spiritsits members often victims of the spacequakes Spirits inadvertently triggered, seething with hatred for them. That explained the murderous glare in their eyes.
Yet Tohka had caused no spacequake; she had harmed no one.
Even so, they had attacked without a word.
A faint pain pricked her heart
~~~
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Chapter 768: TokisakiKurumi
YatogamiTohka looked up at the AST operatives who kept firing on herespecially at the silverhaired girl whose eyes burned with grim resolve.
Tohka could tell that the hatred in that girl's gaze was not directed at Spirits as a whole, but at her personally.
There was no time to ponder it furtheranother volley was incoming.
Drawing a deep breath, Tohka made her decision.
"Final Sword: Halvanhelev!"
A vast mass of violet energy gathered on the King's Sword, swelling into a radiant blade dozens of meters long.
Yet Tohka did not swing it at the AST. Instead she angled the tip toward the ground and brought it down with all her might.
The earth shuddered. A yawning chasm opened at her feet, and the column of dust and the shockwave briefly blocked the AST's line of sight.
When the dust settled, Tohka's silhouette had already vanished into the sky.
"Target has fled. Awaiting instructions," an AST member reported.
Origami lowered her weapon, expressionless, staring after Tohka.
"Mission failed. Withdraw," she ordered.
"Inform HQ: a Princesstype Spirit has displayed a new form and formidable powerthreat level should be reassessed."
Boosters flared as the AST members pulled out.
No one noticed the tall figure standing under the shade at the edge of the battlefield, watching with keen interest.
A girl leaned against an oak, heterochromatic eyes gleaming with amusement.
"Interesting," she murmured, her voice a mix of velvet and manic delight.
"That princess is even morecaptivating than I expected."
Her gaze followed the direction Tohka had gone, lips curving into a meaningful smile.
"A Spirit who refuses to harm humans I simply must make her acquaintance."
Her body melted into the shadow at her feet, leaving only a whisper drifting on the breeze: "Let's see how long you can keep this up, YatogamiTohka"
Meanwhile
Tohka landed in a patch of woods on the city's outskirts.
She dismissed Sandalphon; the glow of her Astral Dress faded.
In its place appeared an ordinary purple dresspart of the "worldly disguise" she had learned from Rei Ao.
"Now then, what should I do next?"
Dusting off her skirt, she surveyed her surroundings with curiosity.
Beyond the trees lay a bustling metropolis: skyscrapers sparkled in the sunlight and streets teemed with people.
She stepped carefully out of the woods and merged into the crowd.
No one gave the beautiful girl with purple hair and eyes a second glancehair dye and colored contacts were common in such a diverse city.
Strolling along, Tohka was captivated by the shop windows, especially the display cases of pastry shops. The colorful cakes and sweets made her stop in her tracks.
"These desserts don't look as tasty as the ones Rei Ao gave me, but I still want some"
She pressed her face to the glass, eyes shining.
"Spirit.'Princess.'"
A sweet yet menacing voice sounded behind her.
Tohka stiffened and whirled around, hand instinctively reaching into the airwhere Sandalphon should have appeared.
But she had sealed her power to avoid drawing attention.
Before her stood a girl in a redandblack gothic dress.
Her twin tails were asymmetrical; her left eye gleamed gold like a clock face, while her right was winered.
She held an ornate parasol and wore a mysterious smile.
"Who are you?" Tohka asked warily, body tilting forward, ready to fight.
"Araara, no need to be so tense~"
The girl giggled and spun; her skirt blossomed like a flower.
"I'm TokisakiKurumijust like you, a Spirit."
"A Spirit?"
Tohka relaxed slightly, though her confusion deepened.
"But you look different."
Kurumi narrowed her golden clock eye.
"Every Spirit is unique, dear Princess."
"What fascinates me is youyou appeared in this world without triggering a spacequake, and you chose to flee rather than retaliate when AST attacked."
She stepped closer, whispering in Tohka's ear.
"I've never met a Spirit like that."
Tohka backed away to widen the gap.
"I don't know what you mean. I just don't want to hurt humans."
"How noble~"
Kurumi clapped theatrically, though the smile never reached her eyes.
"But you know, sometimes sparing others means harming yourself."
Tohka frowned. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
This person didn't feel friendly.
Kurumi's smile faded; her expression turned solemn.
"I'm simply curious what role an unconventional Spirit will play in this twisted world."
Her enigmatic smile returned.
"Perhaps one day, we'll be allies."
"Allies?"
"Indeed~ For the sake of this world~"
Kurumi turned to leave, then glanced back.
"Of course, my idea of 'salvation' might differ from yours."
Tohka wanted to ask more, but Kurumi's form melted into the crowd like wax, leaving only a belllike laugh.
"What a peculiar person"
Shaking her head, Tohka let the matter drop.
She glanced at the sky: the sun was already sinking westward.
"Time to find a place to spend the night," she muttered, continuing down the street.
She never noticed the figure perched on a rooftop across the wayTokisakiKurumi, legs dangling, watching her every move.
"A kind Spirit, a dangerous Spirit," Kurumi mused, producing a glass of red wine from the void and raising it toward the sunset.
"And with me in the mix this play just keeps getting better."
~~~
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(Bonus Chapter) Chapter 769: Nia Honjo
A bright, sundrenched afternoon.
The shopping district of Tengu City was teeming with people.
Tohka Yatogami stood outside a dessert shop, her nose almost pressed against the glass display.
Her violet eyes were locked on the lavish parfaits insidelayers of strawberries, chocolate, and whipped cream so tempting that she swallowed unconsciously.
"I really want to eat that" she mumbled, tapping the glass with a fingertip as though she could taste the sweetness through it.
Then she patted her completely empty pockets and sighed.
She had learned from Erica that in the human world you needed money to buy things.
But she had none, so all she could do was look.
Leaving the dessert shop, Tohka wandered aimlessly down the street.
Everything in the modern world was new and wonderful to her: colorful signs, delicious aromas, laughing crowds
Yet, as Spirit who possessed nothing, she couldn't enjoy any of it.
She turned a corner and noticed a large crowd ahead.
People were lined up, books in hand, excitement on their faces.
Curiosity drew her closer.
Through a gap in the crowd she saw a long table covered with a white cloth.
Seated behind it was a silverhaired woman wearing glasses and a mask.
"Honj Niasensei! Please sign my copy!"
"Sensei, I'm your biggest fan!"
"The new volume of Crimson Knight was amazing!"
Amid the cheers, Tohka realized it was a signing event for a manga artist.
She rose on tiptoe, eager to see the creator everyone called "Honjsensei."
Just then the silverhaired woman seemed to sense something.
She looked up, her gaze cutting through the crowd and locking directly onto Tohka.
In that instant Tohka felt a strange ripplean aura no ordinary human could give off, one very much like her own.
The woman's expression shifted.
She spoke hurriedly to the staff, then, under puzzled stares, left her seat and walked briskly toward Tohka.
"Come with me."
Grabbing Tohka's wrist, she pulled her into a narrow side alley before Tohka could react.
"Who are you? Let go of me!"
After several turns, certain they weren't being followed, the woman finally released her.
Glancing around warily, she lowered her voice. "You're a Spirit, aren't you?"
Tense, Tohka's right hand moved instinctively toward empty air, ready to summon Sandalphon at any moment.
"How do you know that?"
"Because I am too."
The woman sighed, removed her glasses, and rubbed her brow.
"I'm Nia Honj, Spirit codename 'Sister.' You must be 'Princess,' right?"
Tohka's eyes widened.
"Youyou're a Spirit as well? But how can you live in the human world so normally?"
She couldn't sense any Spirit aura from the other woman.
Nia gave a bittersweet smile. "Long story best saved for later. The point is, you shouldn't wander around so openly. Someone is hunting Spirits."
She herself had been on the run for years.
"Those people in the strange armor?" Tohka recalled a previous attack.
"They said they wanted to eliminate and drive out Spirits."
"You've already encountered them?"
Nia's face went pale. "That's worse than I thought. Their activity's been ramping upthey've stationed forces in almost every major city."
"Why are they after us?" Tohka frowned.
"I haven't caused any spacequake disasters."
Nia started to answerbut a low mechanical hum rose from all directions.
Both women looked up.
At each end of the alley loomed several menacing mechanized suits, and three more hovered overhead, blocking any escape above.
Each suit bore a striking redandwhite emblem: the letters DEM stylized into a sharp blade.
"Target Spirit located: codename Sister. Secondary target detected: codename Princess," an icy electronic voice intoned from the lead unit.
"Under DEM Corporation Special Ordinance, Chapter 7, Article 3, both Spirits are hereby placed under arrest. Resistance will result in escalated force."
Tohka immediately stepped in front of Nia.
With a sweep of her right hand, Sandalphon materialized in her grasp.
"Nia Honj, stay behind me!"
"Wait, don't fight them headon!" Nia clutched Tohka's arm.
"DEM's Realizer units are built specifically to counter Spiritsthey're all equipped with reiryoku jammers!"
Before she finished, three blue energy bolts shot in from different angles.
Tohka swung Sandalphon; a violet blade of light shattered the bolts, the shock wave cracking the alley walls.
"No time to explainwe have to get out of here!"
"Wwait, take me with you! I can't fight!" Nia yelled.
Tohka wrapped an arm around Nia's waist, pushed off the ground, and shot skyward, breaking through the mechanized cordon.
"Alert: Targets escaping. Initiate pursuit protocol."
The electronic voice echoed behind them.
Clutching Nia, Tohka streaked across the city skyline. Five DEM units gave chase, blue flames roaring from their thrusters.
Their arms morphed into cannons, launching tracking missiles in rapid succession.
"Hang on tight!"
Tohka banked sharply; the missiles skimmed her hair and exploded in the distance.
She wove an erratic pathdiving between skyscrapers, then climbing abruptlybut the DEM suits stayed on her tail.
"Why won't they give up!"
A glance back darkened Tohka's face.
Nia clung to her neck, pale and trembling.
"Their Realizer sensors lock onto our reiryoku. As long as we use Spirit power, we can't shake their Mark0.8 trackers!"
"Ugh!"
A missile streaked in from the side. Tohka barely twisted clear, but the blast wave knocked her off balance.
Spinning downward, she slashed with Sandalphon, the immense swordflash cleaving the two nearest suits in half.
"Two left" she muttered, feeling her power drain.
"Head for the forest outside the city!" Nia pointed to a distant stretch of dense woods.
"There's less reiryoku interference theremaybe we can lose them!"
Tohka nodded and poured everything into a final burst of speed, racing toward the greenery beyond the urban sprawl.
~~~
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Chapter 770: DEM! Ellen Mira Mathers!
The mechanical soldiers at their backs gave relentless chase, energy bolts howling past their ears.
Just as they were about to clear the treetops,
one of the machines suddenly accelerated, cutting in front of them and spreading its arms to form an energy shield.
"Not a chance!"
Tohka gripped Sandalphon with both hands and slashed downward with all her might.
The violet blade of light struck the barrier, releasing a blinding flash.
In the instant it shattered, Tohka pulled Nia through the gap and plunged into the dense forest below.
Branches whipped against their faces as Tohka fought to slow their fall; the two finally tumbled into a small clearing.
Tohka immediately dismissed her Angel and dragged Nia into a thicket.
"Don't make a sound"
She spoke in a hushed voice, eyes fixed on the sky.
Three mechanical soldiers circled overhead, clearly searching for them.
After roughly ten minutes they finally wheeled away, heading back toward the city.
"Whew we're safefor the moment."
Tohka let out a long breath and collapsed to the ground.
Nia also sighed, though her expression remained grave.
"They won't give up. DEM never stops hunting Spirits."
Tohka wiped the sweat from her brow.
"Can you tell me now? What exactly is this 'DEM,' and why are they after us?"
Nia sat against a tree, resignation written on her face.
"DEMDeus Ex Machina. Publicly they're the world's leading manufacturer of Realizer Units, but in truth"
She inhaled, then exhaled slowly. "In truth, they're an organization whose goal is the complete eradication of every Spirit."
"Their Realizer technology lets ordinary humans gain the power to oppose Spirits.
Those mechanical soldiers are only their most basic weapons."
"Why wipe us out? What have we done wrong?" Tohka asked, bewildered.
