Chapter 235: Barraging Active Skills

Endless strength.

That is the aptest description that they could give to the armed lady who kept launching mana blasts every five seconds. The rate at which she recovers mana outdoes her output, making her an infinite mana cannon that can easily level an entire city. While she is in a world with a will similar to Alaya and Gaia, all "it" does is eject her whenever she crosses a threshold. However, everything became different a few days ago.

The restrictions became loose as the "restorative forces" were damaged from that fight. Add to that the fact that it is Shiro's world, it became a world that does not restrict her whatsoever. Shiro, who is watching this fight from the outside, is feeling quite indignant.

'When will she come..?'

At this moment, he is vigilant for Altair's arrival. He sensed her trace when Excalibur's seals were partially released. He was shocked that it did not work based on the conditions that he knew before. Rather, it was simply unlocked with no warnings whatsoever. It was brute-forced through Altair's power.

'Her power... Is its omnipotence? Or is it something that is already beyond that? Fuck.'

For the first time, Shiro felt suppression by their enemy. This wasn't the same as that over-leveled enemy like the Incubators last time. It stems from the fact that this is the first time that he's facing a possible <Beyond Creator> enemy. Even at his peak, these are not common. One of those times was when he fought against an Outer God who threatened the safety of his world. He handled this fight well, but it is during his peak period.

'I need to find out what's wrong with this world.'

In the end, he decided to put most of his energy towards the anomaly of this world. Seeing formidable characters in a single world isn't something that he expected to see after accepting this mission, but it shows the need to learn more about their enemies.

'No wonder we were warned that this mission will pose great danger.'

While he focused on maintaining his realm while not being caught by others, the battle inside ensued.

BAM-!

Rumble-!

Mirror Tokyo's current state can be said to be pathetic. It is entirely leveled by dozens of mana blasts that came from Salter's Excalibur. Kuroneko's shadows kept decreasing while Kal'tsit and Mon3tr is becoming worn out. Turns out, releasing four seals has an effect that far surpassed their expectations. Overall, it increased Salter's combat power by a few dozen times. Her sword, Excalibur, is a Holy Sword that focuses on enhancing mana. It is all about the compression of mana. Meanwhile, she has Avalon to keep her safe. Thus, the stalemate.

"This fallen knight..! She's formidable!"

Kuroneko utilized her [Ruler's Authority] to manipulate Salter's surroundings before pushing her down with it. As it does not use mana, it bypasses [Magic Resistance]. It is not a form of magic nor something that uses mana. It is more of an "authority", just like its name.

Instantly, she opened a portal towards her shadow and appeared behind Salter.

[Dagger Rush]-!

[Mutilation]-!

[Quicksilver]-!

<<Rapid Bite>>-!

<<Swift Stab>>-!

<<Concentrated Attack>>-!

...

She activated more than a dozen of skills, both from her inheritance and Aincrad, and used them all on Salter. The sheer power that they had distorted the space around her daggers.

"..!"

Salter, who noticed this belatedly, only has the time to use Excalibur to block before a flurry of dagger strikes flooded her. With more than 1,000 points to her Agility, she's already comparable to an S-ranker in her inheritance's origin world. They have the power to destroy buildings with ease–cities even. Add to that her skills, and her attacks became her strongest at this moment.

Bam-!

Bam-!

Crack-!

Crack-!

BAM-!

Salter was sent flying as a result. Her plate armor is severely damaged, with most of them being reduced to golden particles.

Sou-!

Suddenly, a rapier came at her. It stabbed her right shoulder, piercing through her damaged armor.

Clang-!

She dropped the Holy Sword in her hand before staggering backward. It is evident that she was surprised at the turn of events. No matter how she thought of it, she did not expect Kuroneko to burst out of power that exceeds her normal state by dozens. In fact, Salter estimated both Kal'tsit's and Kuroneko's strengths as they fought. Ironically, this judgment brought her defeat instead.

"You–"

Hum-!

Blue pixels surrounded her before taking her away. Excalibur wasn't spared as it disappeared in its place, too. Also, the place started crumbling down. A strong force suddenly pierced through Shiro's [Realm of Mysteries], making it unstable for a second. That second is all that's needed to disrupt its existence–with his power detected by the world will, restorative forces will push it out from this world.

Shiro: "I can hold it out for five seconds..!"

Seeing this, the two girls swiftly did their post-battle actions.

[Cleanse]-!

[Restore]-!

Kal'tsit cast these spells on both of them, removing any traces of the fight just now.

"Thank you."

"Mn." Kal'tsit nodded. "I will report this battle to the others. Go with Shiro for now."

"...Alright."

Having decided on their next movements, the illusory world crumbled down.

*****

"Tokyo... It's been a while."

Touka recalled her moments as a chef back then. She had only started back then, which is why she worked hard to meet the quality threshold of each dish. Not once did she take them any lightly, for she is Rikka's sole support when their father died. While they might have lived more easily if they relied more on their grandparents, Touka refused to do so. She's not the type of person to irresponsibly rely on others.

'I can already work on my own.'

She thought that she already has the capabilities to sustain themselves, which is why she trod the path of a professional chef. A few years later, she's already known in Tokyo, Chiba, and Kyoto. Though, she did not expect the intrusion of 'Chat Group' in her daily life. There, she met many interesting people, each with a strong resolve. Most of them have the responsibility of an entire world to themselves while others are fighting to protect others or reach their simple goals.

Romani has to protect humanity from extinction.

Kal'tsit worked for ten thousand years to preserve her world's order.

Madoka is responsible for ridding the suffering of all the Magical Girls in her world.

Shinji is working hard to be a better person than his original self.

Kuroneko resolved to keep moving forward despite the cruel circumstances that she was exposed to in the Chat Group.

Cardinal dreamed to experience the life of a human and see all the colors it has to offer.

Shino overcame her previous inner struggles and is now working hard to become stronger as a person.

Lelouch is fighting for the liberation of an entire country, nay, the entire world.

Seol is working hard to resolve the external invaders that threatened the balance of an entire world.

Hajin is finding every possible way to go back to his home, to his loved ones.

Shiro sacrificed himself once for the sake of many worlds.

Looking back at it, everything has been a nice journey. Somehow, she understood that the Chat Group chose such people to be its members. Each one of them is strong in their own way.

'There's also that girl...'

Ghostly Girl. That is her nickname in the Chat Group. Strangely enough, she did not give her real name during their meeting. The others respected her privacy too, which is why they did not pursue it. If Touka were to be asked, that girl is the incarnation of the sun. Her personality is as bright as the sun, capable of pushing back any negativities in their minds. Her tone, words, and expressions, they all point out that she is a bright girl.

However, Touka felt it is not everything. Her intuition is simply pointing out that there is more to her.

'The people with the brightest smiles are the ones who suffer the most.'