Chapter 56: Sphere Boundary

Spirits.

In this world, they are beings who cause destruction at every turn. Just like Honkai, it is kept well-hidden to the normal denizens of this world.

Spirits have an unimaginable power. Some could cause strong tornadoes while others could raze their surroundings to cinders.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The downpour of the rain became stronger. In the midst of everything, several thin humanoid robots surrounded a blue-haired girl. Her green hoodie didn't get wet amidst the rain.

'Sigh… It's them again.'

Her aqua-blue pupils scanned her surroundings.

Bang-!

Bang-!

Bam-!

Bam-!

The volley of gunfire was blocked by her trustworthy friend. It was akin to a white flying shark.

For a moment, the sounds of gunfire and beams of light filled the air. The girl was extremely passive, only defending herself when necessary. Not once had she attacked her assailants.

Just then—

Hum-!

It wasn't only the girl. Her assailants also felt the waves in surroundings. 

The girl, Yoshino, saw them talk frantically.

"It's… a person?"

"That'a a Spirit. We can use this time to escape!"

A blue sock puppet spoke in her hands.

"No. What if that person needs help..?"

"You have a point."

The appearance of the new spirit presented himself to their eyes. It was a young boy, perhaps only a few years older than Yoshino. His blue pupils were bright enough for them to notice.

The most noticeable thing was the bloody hole in his chest.

"... Let's test him out. Kyrie Two to Six, take care of him."

The moment their captain declared that command, five robots rushed straight to him. A huge pressure pressed upon him caused by the Kyrie's Realizers. In a way, Realizers allow the manipulation of laws of physics within a specific radius, which is known as a "Territory".

Inside a Territory, the users of Realizers could perform acts nothing less like magic. One of them was the basic control of gravitational force.

Crack-!

The boy's feet sunk into the ground. His bright blue pupils looked straight at the six people within the Kyriees.

{Analysis complete. This phenomenon is resulted by artificially interfering with the laws of the world. Similar subjects further explain it: magic, magic control, aspectual magic…}

'Tell me. How do I counter it?'

{Answer: The magic spell [Anti-magic Area] accomplishes similar effects.}

Great Sage explained its principles to Aleph. As he learned more about it, his mind was dumbfounded.

'Isn't this quite similar the principle of Sphere Boundary? I am the world; the world is I…'

His accelerated thoughts and split minds worked in full force. It didn't take long for him to fall to a state of realization.

Eighty five centimeters… Ninety centimeters… Ninety five centimeters…

The coverage of his Sphere Boundary drastically increased. It only stopped increasing when the radius increased to three meters.

"So that's it."

Crack-!

Shatter-!

An invisible thing shattered into nothingness. The area around Aleph was covered in an invisible translucent light. Inside it, he could sense everything. That control extended to removing any unusual phenomena on him.

A vague connection was formed between it and the fragmented Sephira Crystal inside him.

Little did he know it was also a technique utilized with cursed energy. 

Unfortunately, he hadn't used the [Training Cards] due to his busy schedule. Right after the MOTH Night, he flew straight to Nagazora.

"Huh?!"

For the first time, the Kyrie pilots encountered this thing.

Bam-!

Sou-!

Aleph turned into a blur. He traversed a hundred meters in three seconds.

A ratio line appeared in one of the robots. Great Sage saw through its structure and saw its pilot sitting at the center of its torso.

'Spirits… I shouldn't indiscriminately kill without knowing much.'

Finally, the seventh line appeared on the robots' neck.

Bang-!

Bang-!

Fuzz-!

It was his turn to experience the volley of light and bullets.

"The Bandersnatch team is about to arrive! Kyrie Three to Five, continue pressuring Hermit!"

However, much to their surprise, Aleph was able to leap more than ten meters in one jump. His blue eyes glinted as he neared the robot's head.

Clang-!

Psshk-!

His cursed energy-powered fist went straight through the robot's neck. Its head was separated from the rest of its body. It tilted before it fell to the ground.

Thud-!

A cloud of dust was kicked up. It briefly blocked the pilots' visions. They proceeded to use their Realizers to 'see' without their eyes.

Once again—

"Captain, it's gone!"

"His visuals are gone!"

Clang-!

Psshk-!

Another robot was pierced on its neck. Just like the prior one, it also fell to the ground. The more clouds of dust that appeared, the more elusive Aleph's presence became. He had truly utilized his surroundings to his greatest advantage.

He didn't have any cover, thus all he had to do was to create one!

"Hum… The unity of man and world. Is this what it's all about?"

Aleph strode farther from the battle site. All that could be seen was the collapsed robots. Their pilots remained seated inside the cockpit due to their safety protocols.

He was about to get farther when a notification alarmed him.

[Name: Yoshino Himekawa]

The sound of [Information Retribution] alerted him. It didn't take long before he found out the girl's location.

His gaze met with her surprised look.

"Ah… Eh..?"

"Yoshino! Get away! That guy—"

Before Yoshino could react, Aleph was already nearby.

{Analysis completed. The girl in front was the source behind the strong downfall. Possible scenario of her possessing water-based phenomena control is 68.70%. Possible scenario of her possessing ice-based phenomena control…}

"Huff…"

Aleph was decisive. He came in front of the surprised girl. The blood leaking in his chest became more and more serious.

Hum-!

A large white shark slowly came out beside her. The temperature of the surroundings fell several degrees upon its appearance.

"Can you freeze this..?"

******

That day was the worst thing that could happen to Kurumi.

Her friend "died" right in front of her eyes. It caused her to inverse in one go. The power of Dalet—which unironically didn't affect Aleph's injuries one bit—was the one that saved her from the fate of an inverted spirit.

A state that deprived one's humanity completely...

That was what an inverted spirit was all about.

Nevertheless, that portion of Kurumi remained. Instead of being discarded, that "moment" lived with her.

"Ah..?"

At this moment, she was holding an unconscious girl by the neck. The sense of establishing a connection appeared inside her mind. 

'That day…'

Before Aleph 'died', he passed on a part of the mirrors' power to Kurumi. It was something that suddenly appeared inside his mind. He didn't hesitate on this decision.

Up to this day, it kept Kurumi ahead of the rest of other spirits, turning into an uncontrollable variable by her enemy. It was so potent she could escape that person's gaze.

"...Ain?"

She didn't hesitate to throw the unconscious girl inside her shadow. With swift speed, she headed towards Japan once more.