A/N: Hello again! I am back once again!
Sorry, I have left this fic on hiatus for so long. Some of you might notice that I have been uploading new fics (for Hyperdimension Neptunia and War Academy City Asterisk in case you wonder) and updating for my other less important ones, even though I am in a "recovery"
I don't mean to abandon this, but after recovering and getting out of the hospital, I was out of touch, thanks to college zapping my free time with assignments, exams, and extracurricular activities. Heck, even in this "holiday" I still have work to do, guiding exchange students by becoming their Buddies and making sure they enjoy their stay in my country.
So, I wrote those "Side" fics as a warm up for this, my "Main" fic. But it turns out, I am plagued by another internal doubt, which I would explain at the end of this chapter.
But enough with my sorry excuses! However, before I start, do you notice the change of the cover picture of this story? That it is now a drawing?
It will be important later, so you might want to pay attention to it. I will explain it later, as well!
Now, let's begin Chapter 16, "An Angelic Date"
"Is this it? Is this the hangar?"
Miku - or rather, Shido who had taken her form using Rio's [Aspect of the Sephiroth] - voiced her question as she crossed her arms against her chest, all while calmly stepping into the hangar in question.
Watching from within their shared body, Shido was almost certain it was indeed the place.
The weapons hangar was huge, almost like an underground chamber in video games. Shido was no expert in math, but he could grossly estimate that it was as large as the warehouse where [Ratatoskr] was hiding [Fraxinus].
Speaking of the airship, the walls and the ceilings of this place looked quite similar in design to the insides of Fraxinus as well, only much larger. It certainly could store a huge number of weapons.
It was indeed rather odd that the hangar was almost empty; a few [DEM] officers were lying around unconscious courtesy of Kurumi's City of Devouring Time, but the number seemed disproportionately small in comparison to the size of the hangar.
Shido and Miku could agree that it was unnerving.
"It's empty. Is a hangar supposed to be this clean?"
"It isn't empty at all. You have a very poor self-preservation instinct, Miku-san."
Casually walking past Miku, Kurumi spoke with a mocking tone without even glancing at her.
The songstress was irked, but before she could even retort, the goth girl continued.
"Come out, [Mes]."
Almost immediately as she said that, a mind-boggling amount of dark portals appeared on the floor and the walls; and from each of them, a number of [Kurumis] emerged.
Miku and Shido couldn't help but to physically and mentally gulp. Neither of them had sensed the Kurumis hiding within the floor and the walls.
In retrospect, Kurumi was probably right - as much as Miku hated to admit it - their sense of self-preservation were really bad. Both Shido and Miku knew Kurumi could do this, and yet they were not expecting it.
There were so many Kurumis in the room now; Miku didn't even bother to count. Their number was probably approaching a hundred, if not more.
"Fufu, do not forget, [I] am everywhere. And, the one who emptied this place was probably you, with your stunt earlier in the surface."
The Diva raised her brows.
The meaning of those words were not lost on her; the [Bandersnacthes] in the surface probably came from this place, considering this hangar was probably the closest to the ground level.
However, the one who destroyed them was-
"You mean [Tohka-chan], Kurumi."
Miku noticed as she corrected Kurumi, the Nightmare Spirit widened her eyes for a second, before smiling.
"Ara, yes indeed. It was [Tohka-san], not you."
She turned to the groups of Kurumis that had crowded the room.
"As for [our] part… barricade every entrance to this place. Allow no intruder to enter without permission."
Kurumi ordered with a commanding tone before dismissing them.
"Fufu, mission acknowledged."
"So, we will be security officers instead of hunters? That's a shame."
"We will be forced to listen to that little idol? Tch, this is going to be a long day."
The Kurumis responded with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Some were excited, while the majority seemed to be disheartened.
However, Miku didn't miss the insult that was thrown her way.
"Wh… what did you say!? Which one of you said that?!"
Miku yelled to the departing clones of Kurumi, however, not one of them acknowledged her frustration before they phased back into the floors and walls.
It took Miku a few moments before realizing that she was ignored.
"H-hey! Don't ignore me!"
"Kihihi. They only listen to me. Don't waste your breath, Miku-san."
Hearing the obviously amused tone from yet another Kurumi - which Miku didn't even know whether she was the original one or not - only made the idol's patience thinning further.
However, she held herself from screaming in frustration. Her [voice] would respond to that, and as annoyed as she was, she didn't want to harm Kurumi with her powers.
With a deep breath, Miku calmed herself down.
"Forget it. Let's just find the speaker! It should be here!"
"Indeed. It's right there…"
Kurumi raised her hand and pointed to a window positioned high in the walls, about half the height of the entire hangar.
A normal human wouldn't be able to see what was inside, but Miku's enhanced senses were able to discern what was inside the window; a room with a few computers, quite similar to Fraxinus' control room.
"Miku-san, I suppose you should stay where you are. I shall prepare the equipment and backstage for your performance."
Kurumi curtsied with a smile, before her own shadow expanded in size to become a portal and her body slowly submerged into it.
"Amuse me with your grace, Diva."
Was Kurumi's parting words, before she disappeared into the floor.
Miku couldn't help but smile at that challenge.
"Oh, I will do more than just amuse you."
The songstress Spirit closed her eyes, and inhaled a deep breath to calm her nerves.
To think, Miku would do a performance with Shido's body.
It was probably one of many things she didn't knew she need to do with her darling.
As her Spirit mana focused to her throat, Miku opened her mouth.
"[Gabriel]!"
That next instant, round ripples expanded on the floor, with her as the center.
As loyal as ever, her Angel manifested behind her; a gigantic pipe organ that served as the true manifestation of her power over sounds.
Smiling in satisfaction as her preparation was complete, Miku turned her gaze to the control room where Kurumi was going.
Seeing the goth girl was already there, she decided to throw in a joke as a payback for earlier.
"Assistant! Are the preparations complete?"
All of a sudden, Miku could heard a loud, unnerving, yet heartily cheerful giggle that seemed to come from all directions within the room; a sign that the speakers had been turned on.
"Fufu, yes. Now then, shall we begin?"
Thanks to the speakers, Kurumi's voice was booming inside the large chamber; if Miku wasn't resistant to sound-based attacks she was sure her ears would be ringing.
No doubt, her [voice] would be amplified several times like this across this whole base.
"Alright! Show time!"
Swinging her right hand from left to right, Miku materialized the keyboard of Gabriel, made of pure, concentrated mana.
"Sing with me, oh my dear Angel! We will perform a dual performance today!"
Miku spread her fingers, and brought them down on the keyboard with a force that matched her excitement, ready to play the melody that would sway hearts and empower souls.
"Mesmerize my audience, [Solo]! Be their strength, [March]!"
"...Ara?"
Surprised by an echoing sound in the distance, Kurumi halted herself.
"Is this… the idol's performance?"
To say she was surprised was an understatement. She had been exposed to the Spirit of Sound's brainwashing music before, and she didn't like it one bit.
Beautiful as it was, the sound carried a supernatural essence that amplified the request of its owner several times over. Such a performance was not enough to sway Kurumi - clones or not - but the way it tried to burrow into her very mind was anything but pleasant.
This time however, the mental-assaulting feeling was overwhelmed by a different sensation; something that calmed both her mind and the tension she had been feeling since engaging in battle.
It even eased Kurumi's hunger for Spirit mana, because the [voice] fed her with it to increase her strength.
Kurumi could even call it… comforting.
"So… this is March, the song of empowerment."
The Nightmare Spirit smiled. Even though she was not in a room with a speaker, the voice coming from the adjacent rooms were powerful enough to reach her ears anyway, and it still had an effect this strong.
Kurumi could only imagine how it would feel like if she was in the same room as the performer, but this was no time to imagine such fantasy.
"My original would never admit that Miku-san's performance is actually good, anyway."
Plus, she had things to do now.
"Now then, where was I?"
Without glancing, Kurumi aimed her flintlock next to her head, and fired a bullet at something behind her.
There was a mechanical screech, but it was brought into a halt.
Kurumi didn't need to see the remains of the [Bandersnatch] to know that the mechanical doll had been rendered quiet. Instead, Kurumi continued to the other dolls in the room.
"Who is next?"
Oh, how she wished that these robots could feel fear.
"Phew."
Rinne let out a relaxed sigh as she allowed the razor-sharp, constantly vibrating strings of her Angelic Lyre to destroy the last [Realizer] generator that was powering up the [Territory] dome erected around the island.
It was the one the Ruler had saved for last, which was suspiciously planted openly on the beach on the southern part of the island.
She had expected traps to activate as soon as she destroyed it - like the ones under the water earlier - but as it turned out, nothing happened, except the Territory dome that was protecting the island and keeping it out of sight faded out of existence.
"Well, good for me."
It was then, Kannazuki's voice was heard from the communicator in her left ear.
"...I see that the barrier is taken down. Good work, Ruler."
"It's nothing. What about Shido and Kurumi's condition?"
Rinne knew that neither Shido nor Kurumi would not be hurt that easily, but that didn't stop her from asking out of concern.
"Shido has started Gabriel's performance to support our troops, so I have to cut Shido's line due to the extreme noise. However, Kurumi's line is still functional. Nightmare, your status?"
There was a clicking sound before Kurumi's voice was heard speaking, more serious than she normally was.
"My clones are keeping the [Bandersnatches] busy as we speak, and as for myself, I can infer that I am about to enter the lower half of this facility."
"How did you come into that conclusion?"
"Miku-san's performance allows the humans I have neutralized to regain consciousness, which allows me to interrogate them about the facility."
"So things have been going in our favor thus far. Did you interrogate them about the Spirit locked in the facility?"
"I did, but all of the officers in the upper half of the facility are essentially pawns. They know nothing except for the basic layout of the facility, and the fact that the lower half of the facility is even more well-guarded than the surface."
"Hum?"
"Excuse me?"
Both Kannazuki and Rinne couldn't contain their surprise.
"It is as I say. The floors and the walls of the lower half of the facility are reinforced by Territory barriers, powered by Realizers within the construct. Not only it makes them harder to destroy, but it also prevents me and my clones from simply phasing through with my powers. I was forced to destroy the floor to get there."
"Is that so? That means despite the effort they put into hiding this base, the DEM is still expecting this place to be breached at some point."
After saying that, Kannazuki then hummed in thought, no doubt contemplating what that could possibly mean.
Rinne was not sure if she was taking conclusions too early, but she decided to speak anyway.
"That means the Spirit is very likely to be located down there. Right, Kurumi?"
"Most likely, Rinne. I have tested that these reinforced walls also cut off our communication line. A few minutes before you contacted me, I sent a clone of mine through the hole I made to try contacting you with the earpiece, but it seems that you didn't hear anything. Am I wrong?"
The Ruler opened her mouth, but Kannazuki beat her to replying.
"Indeed. We didn't pick up your clone's voice at all."
"There is little doubt that the Spirit is located down there, but there is also no doubt that it will be quite risky for me to infiltrate by myself. I think it's about time for my back up?"
Despite the rather grim message she was conveying, Kurumi's tone was back to her usual, playful tone. Rinne rolled her eyes at that.
"Oh, Kurumi. At least try to sound like you are actually troubled."
Rinne refrained from commenting, though. Kurumi really liked being dramatic, after all.
Meanwhile, Kannazuki seemed to agree with Kurumi.
"I suppose we can agree on that. Ruler?"
"Alright, I will catch up with her."
Rinne turned her sights to the destroyed land behind her, caused by Shido's [Halvanhelev] earlier.
The sight of the ruined forest - if it could even be called that anymore - made her pause momentarily, but Rinne refocused her mind.
"Kurumi, I know you will not wait for me, so I'll say this, at least. Be careful, ok?"
The Spirit on the other end of the line let out a chuckle.
"There is no need to worry about me."
Just as she said that, the Nightmare Spirit leaped through the hole she just made on the floor.
Soon after, darkness greeted her as Kurumi gently landed on the lower floor, her flight powers aiding her descent.
There was no light source, if she didn't count the hole above her. It was quite fortunate that Spirits like Kurumi did not require light to see.
After a moment's observation, Kurumi could tell that she was in yet another hallway. The design was roughly similar to the one in the upper floors, but this one was larger in both width and height, resembling actual tunnels.
If she took into account the metallic floor and the lack of light, it was even more similar to an abandoned excavation tunnel.
"..."
As far as she could tell, nothing was hiding within the darkness. However, Kurumi didn't trust her senses in this situation. With that in mind, she allowed her shadow to expand from her feet, ready to summon her reserve clones at a moment's notice.
Slowly, the Nightmare Spirit moved forward with a slow, careful pace.
"You finally arrived."
Kurumi halted her step at the distant, yet very loud, feminine voice that echoed within the darkness. It was probably spoken through a speaker of some sort.
"Hmm… earlier than my calculation. Although Ratatoskr's Spirit is helping you, I don't expect you to bypass the upper defenses this quickly."
The polite, surprisingly welcoming tone was unexpected for Kurumi, to say the least. However, Kurumi was not so easily surprised.
"Ara ara, I am flattered. To whom do I owe this pleasure?"
"Ah, where are my manners?"
The tone of the voice was outwardly polite, but Kurumi knew better. Underneath the formality, it was dismissive, and didn't have any respect at all.
"I am the security system of [Cage of Judgment]. Ars Unit 1, [Marina]."
Kurumi narrowed her eyes.
"She calls herself 'the security system'?"
It was not human?
Then, what could it be? A robot? Artificial intelligence, perhaps? If it was, it was certainly several times more advanced than the Bendersnatch.
Those combat dolls spoke with programmed voices, and with a robotic, monotonous tone. On the other hand, this Marina clearly sounded human, if the false politeness was any indication.
As she was in thought, Marina spoke again.
"I know what you are. Classified threat level S, codenamed Nightmare. There is no one within the DEM who isn't aware of the atrocities you have committed."
The Spirit of Time almost wanted to laugh at the statement. The Deus Ex Machina, accusing her of atrocities?
Kurumi didn't even want to point out the sheer irony and hypocrisy of that.
"How rude. And, what are you going to do about it?"
"Oh, it's simple."
Marina let out a chuckle.
"I will just kill you, that's all."
All of a sudden, Kurumi could feel killing intent from within the darkness.
Expecting an attack since earlier, the Nightmare Spirit instantly summoned her temporal selves from her shadow, forming a human barricade both in front of and behind her.
An instant later, Kurumi could hear several gunfire shots from within the darkness. Several projectiles pierced and killed some of her clones - the Spirit of Time could feel their dying agony as the memories returned to her - but none of the attacks managed to breach through and reach her.
"Ha ha ha! As expected from the worst Spirit. There is no way I could kill you with a simple ambush."
Much to Kurumi's surprise, Marina's voice didn't come from a speaker this time. In fact, this voice sounded more natural.
Reabsorbing what were left from her clones back to her shadow, Kurumi turned to see the source of the voice.
What she saw made her widen her eyes in surprise.
"...Astral Dress?"
Kurumi couldn't help but voice her shock as her eyes fell on a black-haired, golden eyed young girl who seemed to pop out of existence in the midst of the dark.
Indeed, the first thing that Kurumi noticed was what Marina was wearing.
It was a black dress that was vertically cut in the middle - exposing the girl's body - with a frilly white collar around the neck. The girl also wore a very small shorts that matched her 'dress.'
However, what would otherwise just be an exotic clothing was complimented with several dozens of black ribbons - or perhaps, cables - that sprouted forth from the back of her dress, as well as around the hip of the dress, all shrouded with a dark energy that Kurumi knew all too well.
Spirit mana.
"You are… a Spirit?"
"Hmm…"
Unexpectedly, Marina crossed her arms in front of her chest, and made a posture as if she was thinking.
"Hmm… that's right, I'm a Spirit. But I guess… you can also say that I'm not a Spirit?"
Then, she shrugged.
"Whatever. You are going to die anyway, so why should it matter to you?"
As if on cue, Marina summoned a pair of anti-material rifles that were similar to the ones carried by [Anti Spirit Team]'s Wizards, one in each hand, and aimed it at Kurumi.
The Nightmare Spirit also noticed that this new Spirit was not the alone- behind Marina, there were about seven girls with suspiciously identical features; and Kurumi could also sense nine people with Spirit mana behind her.
"Seventeen of them, surrounding me… but there could be more."
From what she could sense, all seventeen were Spirits. That was impossible for there to be that many though; so most likely, it was a self-duplication power… just like hers.
Knowing that she was surrounded, Kurumi quickly used her flight powers to dive toward the ceiling - narrowly avoiding the magical bullets fired at her - and flew through the hole she made earlier to enter this floor.
"Humph! Are you running away, Nightmare?!"
Apparently offended, one of the Marinas screamed at her with a mocking tone.
The Nightmare Spirit didn't pay heed to it.
"Kihihi. [Mes]! Fire!"
The instant she returned to the upper floor, Kurumi commanded her army of temporal selves - that had been waiting there since earlier - to fire down shadow bullets upon the floor.
After only a second of preparation, thousands of shadow bullets were fired; damaging the whole floor and causing it to crack; and, in a short order, crumble and fell down below.
As countless rubble of metal collided with the tunnel below, Kurumi could vaguely make out several female screams among the loud crashing noise, no doubt belonging to the Marinas that were buried by the floor her army had destroyed.
Kurumi smirked at the carnage.
"It seems that she doesn't understand the meaning of tactical retreat."
Clearly, Marina had underestimated Kurumi. Although this Spirit had managed to take Kurumi by surprise, Marina failed to capitalize on that.
Kurumi couldn't deny that she was surprised, though. She had not expected the existence of another Spirit inside this cage, let alone one who would serve DEM.
However, the Nightmare Spirit wasn't worried about her chances.
There was no one alive who was more experienced in killing Spirits than her, after all.
Still, if Marina had duplication powers, Kurumi couldn't underestimate her, either. There was little to no possibility that the real Marina was among the ones she had buried alive.
The Spirit of Time was confident, but there was a fine line between rightful confidence and foolish arrogance. Although she was sure she could take on this Spirit by herself, it would be better to wait for Rinne to help her, in this case.
Now that Kurumi was back to the upper half of the facility, the communication should be available again.
"I should report this while I still can…"
"Ha… ha ha ha!"
Kurumi widened her eyes at the feminine, sinister laughter coming from below.
Roughly seventeen figures emerged from the rubble and levitated into the air - without the slightest hint of injury on their form. Their bodies were not even dirtied.
The Marinas.
"...I see."
Surviving those rubble without a single scratch, meant that these Spirits were not just protected by their Astral Dress. From head to toe, they were protected by Territories; which meant they were also carrying Combat Realizers like Wizards.
"Not bad, Nightmare!"
"Using our own environment against us… you really are the worst Spirit."
"But did you really think we could be beaten that easily?"
All of the Marinas looked up to face Kurumi's army, all with a smug grin that seemed to scream 'not enough firepower.'
Kurumi could hear some of her temporal selves being insulted and shot back their own insults, but Kurumi didn't bother to do the same.
"...Well, this will take a while. I suppose calling Rinne over was a good idea, after all."
"Phew… thanks for listening, everyone!"
Even though there was no visible audience, Miku bowed her head slightly as Gabriel stopped its singing.
Unable to contain her smile, Miku turned toward the Kurumi inside the speaker room.
"How was my performance, assistant? It was spectacular, wasn't it?"
"I have to admit… it was different than the innocent performance I heard back then. I'll retract my words, Miku-san."
Much to Miku's surprise, Kurumi praised her with a straightforward, sincere tone; leaving her speechless.
Miku was expecting the insufferable woman to begrudgingly admit that she was amazing, so that she could pay back all those insults… but hearing a genuine praise made it rather difficult to rub it on Kurumi's face.
However, her pride as an idol was strong, and she was never one to turn down a praise anyway.
"Ufufu, I see that I have won your heart over!"
Miku crossed her arms pridefully as she dispelled both her keyboard and her Angel, prompting Kurumi to let out a questioning 'hum'
"What are you doing, Miku-san?"
"I don't need to stay here, you know. A performance only needs to be done once. If I want to energize your clones and captivate everyone again, I only need to leave a few pipes there-"
To match her words, several silver long round tubes appeared near Kurumi's feet within the speaker room, surprising Kurumi.
"Ara, there are…?"
"Those pipes are part of my Gabriel. So long as it's there, no matter where I am in this base, my [voice] can reach the speakers in that room."
"I see… sounds travel through any medium, so your Angel can also manifest and phase through surfaces… hump, my original really have underestimated you."
Miku positively smiled at the praise, although she didn't miss what those last words implied.
"So you are not the original Kurumi, eh? Do you know where she is, then? I need to catch up with her."
"Far, far deeper beneath the earth than us. I'll have a convoy prepared for you, songstress."
The Diva frowned. That meant it would take some time to reach the Nightmare Spirit; considering Miku couldn't phase through solid objects like Kurumi and her clones could.
She could simply destroy the floors… but spending Spirit mana too much while her role was for support was unwise.
"Very well then. Let's depart!"
"Izayoi-san?"
A voice called out her surname.
"Ara?"
"Eh?"
Both Kurumi and Miku recognised it - it was a voice belonging to the third Spirit involved in this invasion.
"Rinne?"
"Mama?"
Ignoring Shido and Rio's mental voice, Miku's thoughts turned their body to face the entrance of the room. As her indigo eyes met Rinne's veiled yet intense crimson red, the Spirit that just entered the room smiled.
"I was looking for you. Seems that I missed a live performance."
The Diva somehow felt slightly nervous, now that she was face-to-face with the Spirit that made Shido fell into a coma.
In her silence, the Kurumi clone in the speaker room spoke in Miku's place with a pleased tone.
"You have arrived, I see. This will make clearing the obstacles in our path much easier."
"Why do I feel like I am considered some sort of heavy artillery force…"
While Rinne and Kurumi made their usual back and forth bickering, though, Miku's thoughts became dormant, as Shido and Rio took over.
"Rio, can I transform back to my usual form and keep using Gabriel like Miku did just now?"
"Hmm…"
Shido could imagine Rio's poking her chin, deep in thought.
"It's a little difficult for Papa, but Rio can control the Angel while Papa is talking to Mama."
"Eh? How do you know that I want to…"
He stopped his mental question. What was he thinking? Of course Rio could tell.
"Thank you, Rio. I don't know how many times I will say this."
"It's fine, Papa. Rio only exists for Papa and Mama."
Feeling the large, happy smile that was no doubt forming on Rio's imaginary face, he wished he could mentally hug her.
"Then… let's cancel our transformation."
"Um!"
After transforming twice, Shido thought that transforming back to his original form would feel strange again, but surprisingly, the familiar sense of reconfiguration was absent.
Rather, it felt as if the Spirit mana that sustained his transformation returned back to him, which felt quite similar to the sensation he had when he sealed a Spirit, apart from the… kiss, of course.
Closing his eyes, the light that was Miku's Astral Dress, [Shaddai El Chai] faded away from his form, and the familiar feeling of his school uniform returned.
"Phew…"
Letting out a sigh, Shido opened his eyes to find Rinne's familiar veiled gaze.
"Shido? Why did you return to your human form?"
At that moment, Shido felt something.
For some reason, an overwhelming urge came over him. The instant he saw Rinne, he felt he had to do something. Something he usually did… something he had to do, because only he could do.
It was a strangely familiar feeling.
"Something… is urging me to capture her."
Without understanding why, Shido flashed a smile with as much confidence as he could muster to answer Rinne.
"Isn't it obvious? I want to talk with you. And obviously it isn't appropriate if I use Miku's form to talk with my date partner, ain't it?"
"...!"
Rinne was silent, but even her posture made it clear that she was surprised.
Shido had expected that reaction. He had thought that Rinne was the modest type. Thus, a bold move would be effective, and it was perfect, he managed to catch her off-guard.
Time to be on the offensive.
"What's wrong, Rinne?"
With a cheeky tone, Shido asked teasingly - but much to his chagrin, Rinne ignored it.
"...I think your personality changed somewhat. That bold reaction… is not like the usual you, Shido."
"Huh?"
As if snapped out of a daze, Shido let out a dumbfounded sound.
"Wait a second… I said what?"
Shido knew, he was once again not being his usual self. Normally, Shido would have been blushing like a tomato if he said things like that. Yet, he could not even feel any sense of embarrassment, it was as if he was always this shameless.
"What happened to me, this time? How could I say all of that?"
"Don't worry, Papa. It's a side effect of our power…"
"Side effect?"
He was surprised. Rio's power had a side effect?
"No matter how Rio smooths the mana flow, it still flows through Papa's body. So, slight influences on Papa's behavior is unavoidable."
"Influences?"
Did Rio mean his altered personality? The one that Reine claimed was like a gigolo of some sorts? The thought of him hitting on girls, especially Rinne, made him a little hesitant.
Not to mention… was he alright? This felt like de ja vu. Didn't he overheat his Spirit powers before with these symptoms? Could the transformation, [Aspect of the Sephiroth], cause him to lose control over his Spirit powers again?
"Are you sure I will be alright?"
"Papa will be okay. Rio promises that Papa isn't in any danger like last time."
The reassuring, gentle voice was all Shido needed.
Erasing hesitance from his thoughts, Shido spoke again.
"It's probably nothing. Just a side effect from using Tohka's and Miku's form for too long, I guess. Why don't we ask Kannazuki-san? He should be able to check whether my Spirit signature is abnormal."
"Please check, Kannazuki-san."
Speaking to the communicator that was likely in her ears, Rinne directly asked their operator.
Shido could hear a clicking sound in his own communicator, and Kannazuki's voice came in.
"It's true. There is no abnormal or dangerous sign on Shido-kun's body."
"I see…"
Rinne was clearly still skeptical, but she held her tongue.
Once more, Shido smiled against his will. For some reason, he felt like this was a chance for him to capitalize.
"It is not the one I promised yesterday, but shall we go for our date, Rinne?"
Shido smirked as he confidently said that.
The Ruler's expression was hidden beneath the veil like always, but Shido didn't need to see in order to know Rinne was embarrassed.
"You don't have to put it like that… are you sure you are alright?"
Shido decided to reply that with the most gentlemanly smile he could make with his lips.
"Ever since I met you, I knew you have a kind heart. But I didn't expect you to be such a worrywart…"
"T-that's…!"
Bull's eye. Shido knew he was spot on. Rinne was not quite like the girls he knew. She would think for everyone, not just herself. With that kind of leniency, Shido had a lot of ways to woo her.
Shido was clearly doing well, but this was not enough. He had to press on.
"No matter. That's what makes you such a wonderful lady, anyway."
"...You are definitely not being your normal self."
At the accusing tone, Shido finally frowned, slightly. It seemed that Rinne was worrying about the same thing that he thought earlier… the disaster he could never recall.
If that was the case, the only way to reassure her was to tell what Rio had said.
On impulse, Shido aggressively moved toward Rinne.
"Wh, what are you-"
Rinne instinctively backed off him, but Shido didn't let her escape. The Angelic Lyre in her left hand wasn't active, so he was free to enter her personal space.
Without missing a beat and not allowing her to resist, Shido grabbed Rinne's right hand, and pulled her closer to his embrace.
"Whoa… Papa is awesome! Mama is absolutely stunned!"
Smiling at Rio's cheerful applause within his own mind, Shido resisted the urge to take off the veil that stood between him and his final goal - her lips - and instead moved his head close enough to let out a whisper.
"...Rio told me that this is a side effect of my transformation. I am really okay, Rinne. Trust me, and Rio."
Up close, the veil that usually made Rinne's features indiscernible was almost transparent; something that Shido was grateful for since it allowed him to keep his eye contact and make out the girl's expressions.
Needless to say, Rinne was shocked senseless. It remained that way for several moments… just as Shido had hoped.
But then, Rinne's lips was contorted into a something like an embarrassed frown - which was good - but her eyes turned accusatory, and then she whispered back.
"So you are taking advantage of this side effect to win me over? Shido, maybe you really are a gigolo."
Shido smirked.
"If you realize that just now, then Kurumi hasn't been telling you enough about me."
Rinne's frown, unexpectedly for Shido, turned somewhat amused.
"It can't be helped, I guess. Then, I will play along."
The Ruler proceeded to gently push him away - much to Shido's disappointment - before backing a few steps from him.
Shido intended to come closer again, but then Rinne's voice stopped him.
"Stay where you are. I said I am about to play along, right?"
As if to emphasize her point, Spirit mana began to appear around Rinne, surrounding her Astral Dress.
"Eh? This flow of mana… Mama is about to transform?"
Inside Shido's head, Rio seemed to be able to recognize what Rinne was about to do.
True to Rio's words, Rinne's Astral Dress suddenly glowed brightly, forcing Shido to cover his eyes with his arm.
It lasted for only a moment, before-
"[Elohim Mikarov]"
Upon hearing Rinne utter an unfamiliar name, Shido unconsciously lowered his arm.
What greeted his sight made his jaw drop.
It was Rinne.
But- she was different.
Standing upright before him, Rinne's appearance had changed from her usual Astral Dress, to say the least; the purple veil covering her face was gone, revealing her beautiful face for the world to see.
The large purple headdress on top of her head lost its large curtain, now only reaching her neck. Her ankle-reaching pink braids were also gone, and her hair became shorter too; Shido could see that her hair only barely reached her hips.
Shido also noticed that her purple clock dress lost most of its lower part as well, exposing Rinne's bare legs and thighs, now resembling a minidress more than anything.
On both sides of her hips, purple materials resembling coattails billowed elegantly, reaching down just below her knee. Her feet wore a pair of high-heeled shoes that seemed to be made of gold, the same material that forged the emblem on her headdress.
Wrapped around her hands were purple ribbons that seemed to be composed of metallic strings, not unlike the one in her lyre. Their lengths probably exceeded Rinne's own height, as the two ribbons were floating in the air around her, as if protective of their owner.
To say Shido was surprised was an understatement.
Opening her crimson eyes, now brighter than ever, Rinne smiled at him.
"Hee hee. Surprised?"
His mind blank for a moment, Shido found himself unable to speak, and could only manage a slow nod in affirmative.
Rinne giggled at him.
"Don't be speechless like that! I haven't even begun to play."
His common sense returning at the somewhat taunting words, Shido finally managed to regain his ability to speak.
"Wh, what's with that? I thought your earlier appearance was your Astral Dress?"
"It is, but that doesn't mean it's the only form it has. This is my half-formed Astral Dress."
Shido couldn't help but feel surprised and curious at the same time. It was true, Astral Dresses could be changed to whatever form the Spirit desired. Manifesting them partially would change its form as well, although it would result in a lower defense.
However, the Spirit mana that Shido could feel from Rinne remained as strong as ever; and since Rio was not physically present now, it felt even stronger than it was back inside the [Hraesvelgr].
As if aware of Shido's eyes checking her form, Rinne opened her mouth and smiled in an innocent, yet alluring expression - one that made Shido's heart beat faster.
"This is my form for a [date]. What do you think, Shido?"
"...You mean, it's your form for combat?"
It took Shido a second to understand that by [date] she meant [battle].
"Yes. With this form, I can focus more of my strength to my Angel. This is the true form of my [Cassiel] (Fate Shaman)… [Laharos] (Prophecy of Ruin)."
Rinne lightly swung her right arm, and the floating metallic ribbon to her right quickly dissolved into dozens of threads, before quickly reforming and becoming a single ribbon once more.
"Now then, shall we have our [date]?"
The Ruler smiled confidently, and extended her hand toward him.
Shido was stunned just now, but his composure had returned. He could see that Rinne indeed decided to play along with him now; she used that transformation to buy time and recover from his offensive.
What a clever move. Shido couldn't help but feel excited.
"Yes, let's begin our [date]."
So… how was it?
I am still somewhat out of touch, so I doubt I am writing at my finest now. However, drop your thoughts, if there is anything not sitting right with you, please point it out!
My internal debate which delayed this chapter for so long is the Spirit introduced in this chapter, "Marina" which I was unsure whether I should add or not.
In the light novels, Westcott created spawns from his Demon King Beelzebub, which look, talk and act like Marina, called Nibellecoles. Because of that, I am hesitant to add Marina, since Nibellecole could be the new Marina of the light novels.
But after seeing Volume 17, I am somewhat sure Nibellecoles won't ever take part as Marina. Thus, I am free from my own internal debate!
Anyways, the new cover picture of this fic is Rinne's new transformation, which is original to this fic and was drawn by my brother. It was made because of; Rinne's original Astral Dress is too impractical for combat (not that it matters, since with Eden Rinne barely needs to raise a finger to wipe the floor with the asses of her enemies. This Rinne, however, is nowhere as overpowered), which is why she has a new one to match her Angel's true form.
"Laharos" is the name of Cassiel's weapon in Kabbah, being … an otherworldly weapon that is said to scream 'ruin' to the angel's opponent, and used against all who is not worthy of seeing God.
This is also why both of Cassiel's forms are highly unconventional here (a lyre that could extend its strings to tear enemies apart, and hovering ribbons composed of dozens of the same strings, all controlled with the mind).
Meanwhile, Elohim Mikarov means "God is always near" and is one of the many, many Names of God, which are used for the names of Astral Dresses in Date a Live.
But enough of this, I am now free, and I will - must - update the next chapter as soon as I can. I have been delayed enough! Spoiler alert: Marina is NOT Material B, although I can't deny that there is a connection between them!
For you readers who have patiently waited, thank you for following the development of "Alternate Reincarnation"!