The ‘Bone-Devouring Empress’

"She's here?! How did she find me?"

Was it because of the emotional fluctuation just now?

The figure of 'Phantom,' cloaked in a mosaic-like distortion, raised its head with a hint of surprise in its voice. Judging by the energy fluctuations of Esdeath, they were clearly below her level. Normally, while she was deliberately concealing herself, no spiritual energy waves should have leaked out.

"But now is not the time for battle. 'Shinji' is still waiting for me…" Without the slightest hesitation, 'Phantom' turned around, her figure starting to twist and distort.

"…."

However, instead of disappearing as she wished, her form remained in place.

"What… what's going on? I can't teleport?"

She realized that the entire space around her had become encased in an invisible prison. The environment, which previously felt like water to a fish, was now rejecting her every move.

"I expected you to try and escape. Did you think I wouldn't be prepared?"

Floating about twenty steps away, Esdeath raised a cube radiating a purple-red glow. Her icy blue eyes flashed crimson as she declared coldly:

"In the name of Selene, Space Lockdown!"

Upon hearing the word "Lockdown" and seeing the cube twisting and turning in Esdeath's hand, an inexplicable sense of foreboding rose in 'Phantom's' heart.

"Wait—"

"Space Exile!"

With a crisp metallic click, 'Phantom' saw the cube align into a precise configuration. A tiny hole, no thicker than a finger, appeared on its surface, from which a deep, radiant purple light began to radiate.

In the next instant, her premonition turned into reality.

Her vision lost all color, plunging into darkness. A weightless sensation overtook her as she lost all connection to Earth's spiritual ley lines and even her link to Shido Itsuka.

Cold, trembling, oppressive, and repelling…

As colors returned to her vision, 'Phantom' glanced around.

This place bore no semblance to Earth. She found herself in a strange, kaleidoscopic void where distant horizons emitted infinite purple-red light. Twisting blotches and lines solidified into an erratic network scattered throughout the space.

What were these purple-red particles that resembled spiritual energy? They possessed all the traits of spirit particles, yet felt entirely alien.

"Where… is this?"

A clash of memories between the desolate cityscape in her mind and the chaotic void around her threw 'Phantom' into brief confusion, but within a breath, she regained clarity.

The space existed somewhere between formlessness and form. At a vague distance, she glimpsed what seemed like a pale blue planet orbited by a silver-gray satellite. This celestial body appeared to be under assault from a 'steel jungle.'

"Outer space?!"

Clap, clap, clap…

Suddenly, faint clapping echoed through the void. Despite its small volume, it stood out clearly amidst the soundless vacuum of space.

Wait… there's no air here. How can sound propagate? And I didn't use spirit energy either… how is this happening?

"Correct," came the reply. "By using the Honkai Crystal Cube, I've managed to emulate a fragment of a higher-dimensional virtual space. While it's far from the capabilities of Her Majesty, it's enough to trap you here."

"You live up to your reputation as the original Spirit. From the moment of your birth, you caused the deaths of 150 million people and carved a massive scar into Earth's surface."

Standing on a faintly glowing purple platform, Esdeath's tall and commanding figure reappeared. Her cold, ice-blue eyes locked onto the phantom with unwavering resolve as she lowered her hands from their clapping position.

"Kurumi Tokisaki wasn't lying about you, was she? Spirit of Origin, Mio Takamiya."

Confident now that Mio couldn't escape, Esdeath took the opportunity to scrutinize this elusive entity who was allegedly the strongest being in this world.

Her form, previously obscured by mosaic-like distortion resembling visual static, was now vaguely discernible. Even so, her features and voice seemed degraded, as though filtered through the poor quality of a damaged VCD.

So, this is some kind of advanced cloaking technique. Without Her Majesty's cube, I might not have been able to detect her at all, Esdeath mused silently.

"…."

Hearing Esdeath directly call her by name, Mio Takamiya decided there was no longer any need to conceal herself.

Buzz—

Radiant white light erupted from her figure. The mosaic-like shell surrounding her shattered audibly, falling away like a broken eggshell and revealing the true form hidden within.

Soft strands of glowing white hair cascaded down her shoulders, and her delicate features seemed sculpted by divine hands. She looked like a goddess descended from heaven.

Mio wore a pristine white goddess-like dress, her waist adorned with a small teddy bear accessory. She stood barefoot, exuding an air of purity and grace.

"Now that's more fitting."

Esdeath's gaze remained fixed on Mio. She took no notice of the latter's apparent age—around fifteen or sixteen—or the sadness lingering in her serene, ocean-blue eyes.

Instead, Esdeath's attention was drawn to the radiant halo-like structure floating behind Mio.

"You're not at full power, are you? I can sense a fracture in the source of your strength."

"…."

After a moment of silence, Mio nodded. Her light ring seemed to hover in slow, deliberate motion, embedded with ten dimly glowing stars.

These stars corresponded to the Kabbalah Tree of Life's ten Sephiroth and represented the Spirits born from Mio's distributed Spirit Crystals.

If these crystals were returned to her, their stars would light up, signifying the restoration of her full power.

Despite her frantic desire to escape and return to her beloved 'Shinji,' Mio tried to take the diplomatic route.

"You… you are not a Spirit. You're from beyond this world. If your goal is merely to conquer Earth, then our interests do not conflict. We could even… cooperate."

Freed from her camouflage, Mio's voice was gentle and soothing, imbued with a saint-like compassion. Her words, combined with her delicate and sorrowful appearance, naturally evoked a sense of trust and protection.

However, Esdeath merely shook her head. "Cooperate? I'm afraid that's impossible. The one leading this conquest is Grand Commander Robert of the Thirteenth Legion. And the mastermind driving the Great Crusade is Her Majesty Selene."

Recalling her earlier communication with Selene, Esdeath thought of her empress's palpable curiosity about Mio's spirit-crystal creation methods. From that, Esdeath was certain that the interests of Selene and Mio were fundamentally incompatible.

Knowing Selene's 'devour everything' approach, Esdeath had no doubt that with Selene personally involved, every last ounce of this world's value would be mercilessly extracted.

"As for me, I'm merely a soldier of the Empire. I hold no authority to make decisions. My only goal in finding you… is to fight."

"Conquest, the Thirteenth Legion, Grand Commander Robert, the Empire, Selene…"

Mio muttered the terms Esdeath revealed, her mind racing to analyze the clues.

The Earth had undoubtedly been invaded by a civilization from a higher dimension. The mention of the Thirteenth Legion implied that there were at least thirteen such legions, possibly more.

The implications were staggering.

The mention of "Her Majesty" by Esdeath, accompanied by the reverence in her tone, clearly indicated that the civilization she belonged to was an absolute monarchy.

Although both were pure Spirits, Mio Takamiya was vastly different from the simple-minded and carefree Tohka Yatogami, who disliked intellectual pursuits. Mio was a highly intelligent Spirit.

Her capacity to learn was extraordinary; within a single day, she had mastered an entire language system, grasped historical and worldview concepts, and later went on to excel in everything from foreign languages and violin playing to medicine and piloting aircraft.

"So, you're not the one in charge."

Although framed as a question, Mio's tone carried a certainty. Knowing that a battle was inevitable, the spirit energy around her began to stir. The ferocious aura she exuded churned the thick Honkai particles surrounding her.

Unlike any of the Spirits Esdeath had faced before, this one's power was in a league of its own. Feeling the surging spirit waves emanating from Mio, Esdeath's vigilance heightened.

Assuming a combat stance, Esdeath spoke sternly:

"Defeat me, and you'll earn the right to face Her Majesty."

"As you wish." Opening her eyes again, Mio's gentle gaze was gone, replaced by unyielding determination.

"Imperial General of the Sacred Selene Empire, Esdeath," she declared, adhering to her clan's ancient dueling traditions.

"Mio Takamiya."

As the words fell, shimmering petals of light appeared at Mio's fingertips like a blossoming flower.

"Ain Soph Aur (Sanctuary of All Things In Creation)!"

"Grand General of Frost and Storms!"

Tengu City

The orbital bombardment had ceased, leaving the ruins of the city smoldering. Soldiers from Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and members of the AST, hurriedly redeployed from other regions of Honshu, continued to mount fierce resistance.

Whether they were fortunate or unfortunate was debatable. Many soldiers had been dispatched for disaster relief following Esdeath's earlier cataclysm, sparing them from the orbital strikes by the Imperial fleet.

However, their fortune quickly turned grim as they faced the devastating assault of the Empire's landing forces.

In the air, AST members equipped with combat Realizer units flitted around the towering Astartes warriors like flies, desperately trying to hinder their advance.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The flashes of high-explosive bolts tore through the air as they detonated, blooming into grotesque flowers of blood and gore. With their Realizer units shattered, AST operatives fell from the sky, one by one.

Some AST members didn't even reach the ground before being cleaved in two by the roaring chainswords of the Astartes warriors.

Zip! Zip! Zip!

Rat-a-tat-tat!

Meanwhile, the mortal auxiliary troops of the Astartes' 13th Legion had begun their ground assault.

Their equipment was far superior to regular armies, armed with laser rifles, electromagnetic railguns, beam axes, beam sabers, compact chainswords, and thermal whips.

In the midst of the fierce firefight, lives were extinguished in droves. A relentless torrent of lasers and bullets filled the shattered city streets, shredding the once-peaceful urban landscape into unrecognizable rubble.

"Satou!"

Squelch!

"Pathetic! Facing you lot doesn't even require the intervention of the Warriors of Astartes," a lightly armored auxiliary soldier sneered as he breached the defensive line of the Self-Defense Force.

Wielding a compact chainsword, he unleashed a horrifying whirlwind of blood and entrails, slaughtering and maiming indiscriminately.

Witnessing their comrades dismembered so mercilessly, the remaining Self-Defense Force soldiers fell into unavoidable despair and terror.

"Damn it! How are these guys so strong…?"

Hurled nearly seven meters by a single auxiliary soldier, a squad captain of the Self-Defense Force managed to gasp his disbelief before succumbing to unconsciousness.

These foes, even their most ordinary soldiers, were like superhuman monsters. Not even a group of four or five could restrain one of them.

"Advance! For Her Majesty!"

DEM Headquarters, Tengu City.

Located in the northeastern part of the city near the Tokyo metropolitan area, the DEM Headquarters had escaped the devastation that struck the western and southern districts. As a designated research and technological hub, it had been spared from the Legion's heavy bombardments.

Within the underground bunker of the building sat a man in a tailored black suit, reclining on a sofa with his eyes closed in thought. His white hair and youthful appearance suggested an age of about thirty.

This was Isaac Ray Pelham Westcott, one of the founding members of DEM Industries, its executive director in name but its true powerbroker in practice.

"It seems we've miscalculated terribly," he mused aloud. "Coming to Japan's Tengu City to capture spirits, only to encounter an alien invasion that has trapped us here. Well… I suppose it doesn't matter—London or Tengu, the entire world is in chaos now."

Turning to the blond woman standing beside him, clad in a custom-made platinum-colored [CR-UNIT] combat device called Pendragon, he asked:

"Ellen, do you not intend to take action?"

In response, Ellen Mira Mathers, the second executive director of DEM Industries and Westcott's trusted confidant, merely shook her head indifferently.

"There's no need."

"The disparity is too vast. Our world hasn't even reached the threshold of spacefaring civilization. Against a power capable of interstellar colonization, even if we detonated every nuclear weapon on Earth, it likely wouldn't harm them in the slightest."

Her slender figure and silken blond hair exuded elegance as she narrowed her light purple eyes thoughtfully.

"To provoke them would risk the annihilation of the entire planet. If they haven't used nuclear weapons themselves, it's either out of reason… or because they simply have no need."

"...."

Westcott interlaced his fingers, his expression contemplative as though calculating how best to sell out the planet.

"If it were me," Ellen added pragmatically, "I would choose unconditional surrender, ensuring the safety of my loved ones. The gap between us is so vast that no amount of suicidal resolve can bridge it. We don't even qualify to negotiate."

Suddenly—Boom! Boom! Boom!

"Wise choices…" came a voice, cold and commanding.

"I accept your terms."

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