Kurumi's Seduction

Chapter 05 - Chapter 07 (END)

By : SleepingGeneral

...

Summary

After Shido saves Kurumi from Kotori on the top of Raizen High, Kurumi is a bit more assertive on thanking Shido. (Warning: Explicit) Story is now FULLY REWRITTEN

Chapter 05: Punishment

Shido was on the cold ground, a giant hole at where his heart would normally be and a sword pierced through his head.

A pool of blood gathered beneath him as the embers of life continued to ebb away slowly but surely. Camael's flames, which had always healed him without fail, was nowhere to be seen. They had already dwindled, his injuries too severe. The sharp pain that had filled his entire body was residing away but so were all his senses. A still coldness had already taken over, as it lured him to close his eyes. His body had already stopped breathing and his heart wasn't beating. Blood stuck in his throat with no strength left inside him to cough, hazy nausea filled his head.

Death. Shido realized that was what he was experiencing.

"Why… does it always end like this?"

Shido realized he wasn't alone as a weak voice was faintly heard near him. He tried to turn his head, wanting to see who was with him but he had no strength to do so. However, from the corner of his eyes, even with his fading sight, he could make out a girl in a crimson Gothic dress.

"Is fate telling me that no matter how hard I try, the outcome will always be the same? That I'll have to see this same scene over and over again?"

It was clear that the girl was suffering based on how unsteady her voice was.

"Ne, tell me, Shido-san."

The girl clenched her fist so hard that blood was drawn.

"How long… do I have to do this?"

"!" Shido abruptly woke up.

With sweat dripping from his brow, it was only when Shido saw that he was still in his bed that he realized it was a dream.

Again? Shido frowned. This wasn't the first time. Lately, he had been having strange dreams and visions like the one he just had. Closing his eyes, he tried to recall his dream but soon shook his head in resignation. Like always, the details would always elude him, not letting him grasp the full picture. However, while he wouldn't exactly remember them, he always remembered one thing.

His death.

Whether it was being stabbed or beheaded by a sword, riddled with bullets, crashed by a car, crushed by a falling building, poisoned to death, he had always ended up dying. Hell, there was even a time when he was ripped to pieces by identical Spirits that looked similar to Nia.

With all this, Shido couldn't help but stay on guard throughout his day. After all, weren't these dreams foreshadowing him of something terrible?

However, it was the exact opposite.

Whether it was buying groceries, picking up supplies, checking out clothes, although they were soon going to war with DEM, Shido was on the streets of Tengu City, spending his daily life as usual.

…it's not supposed to be like this.

Shido couldn't describe why. There was nothing he could find unnatural in this peaceful city. Yet, goosebumps would rattle his body. It was the hand of death grazing him, the grim reaper only missing slightly. Shido once again recalled his dream again as his hands moved towards his chest. As wrong as it sounded, there should be a hole there.

Stop, me. It was just a dream, right? Shido thought, shaking his head as if trying to get rid of the uneasy notion but he couldn't get rid of the anxiousness inside him. Despite his body and mind telling him that his recent visions and dreams were nothing more than delusions, his soul was telling him that they were all real, that he was supposed to die.

Shido sighed. "Maybe I just need a break from all the life-threatening situations. I must be going crazy, to think that I'm dying despite nothing happening." Lightly clapping his face, Shido cleared his head, trying to think of something else more positive.

Now that I think about it, I wonder how Kurumi is doing.

Three days had already passed from when Shido had sealed Kurumi. And whenever Shido remembered that he had actually succeeded in sealing Kurumi, he also remembered how they had sex in tandem. Shido lightly blushed. After losing his virginity to her, Shido realized why so many people had sex just for the fun of it. Because it just felt that good. Just recalling the experience created an ache inside of him.

He still remembered the taste of her lips and their sweetness. And her tongue. Oh God, her tongue. If kissing was like that, he would gladly kiss Kurumi all day. He also couldn't forget how tight she felt when he went into her. The way her walls just clenched around him each time her hip rolled against him. If he closed his eyes, he could see Kurumi's smiling face over him as she bounced on top of him over and over again…

Shido snapped back to reality when he felt his pants become tight. Looking down, he found that there was a noticeable bulge sticking out to his embarrassment.

…is it bad that I find this normal now?

Or not. After everything Shido went through, he had come to accept the fact that having an erection about Kurumi was just a natural process. The problem now was how to calm himself down, whether it was through deep breaths or….

"… ten minutes. Then, I need to make dinner for Tohka and the others." Taking a deep breath in, Shido quickly returned home with a sigh. Kurumi, as much as I love you, you really did a number on me this time.

Shido didn't realize however that Kurumi was doing more than just that for him.

"I apologize for my inadequacy of getting rid of him."

At the DEM Industry headquarters, Ellen Mathers, the Strongest Wizard, was bowing her head. Standing next to her was Artemisia Ashcroft, who was silently listening and observing the situation. Both of them were currently reporting to Isaac Westcott, who was sitting in his office at his desk.

"Hm." Giving a small hum, Westcott put a finger to his chin. "With Nicelbol's manpower and Beelzebub's omniscience, there were plenty of opportunities to kill Itsuka Shido. Even if we factor in variables, the fact that not a single one of our attempts has succeeded is quite disturbing."

Just as he said this, the Nicelbol gathered around him with grumbling faces.

"Father, if it wasn't for that pesky Spirit, we would have killed Itsuka Shido by who knows how much times!"

"She's so annoying, always mocking us and killing us!"

"That Nightmare called us counterfeit, insulting Father!"

"Nightmare… I wonder…" Westcott, hearing about this, opened his hand. "Beelzebub." Upon calling the Demon King, darkness apparated above his palm, forming into a demon-black book. Opening the book with a serious gaze, he waded through the pages as his eyes adopted a serious tone.

Ellen, Artemisia, and the Nicelbol, once realizing what Westcott was doing, immediately turned silent to not disturb him. Of course, that didn't stop them from staring in fascination at the scene of Beelzebub gleaming upon Westcott's face with its dark light.

After a little while…

"I see." Westcott closed Beelzebub with a light clap, a colorless smile on his face. "This explains how Nightmare outsmarted our plans constantly."

"What do you mean, Ike?" Ellen was confused but Westcott continued. "It seems that she's already experienced our attacks and by utilizing her Angel, she's able to go back in time with knowledge of the future. Thus, she's able to take preventive measures beforehand and as a result, stop our attacks."

"What?!"

Ellen, Artemisia, and the Nicelbol could only shout in shock and disbelief at the absurdity of what they heard.

"Ike, doesn't that mean Nightmare will always know and stop whatever we do?"

Tap. Tap. Tap.

In contrast to Ellen's worry, Westcott calmly tapped his fingers on his deck in a light manner, his face still the same despite the surprising information. "Nightmare's mind and psyche must be quite exhausted from constant time loops. After all, for us, this is just one time but for her, this might be the hundredth time."

Tap.

Westcott's finger stood still.

"We will mobilize everything we have so that even if Nightmare knows of our attack, there will be nothing she can do. Once she gives up and Itsuka Shido, who is loved by all the Spirits, falls by our hand, we shall achieve our desired dream."

Wescott stood up from his chair as he turned to face Ellen.

"We shall prepare immediately. Ellen, show them the might of the strongest Wizard. Bring me victory."

"I won't disappoint you, Ike." Ellen saluted and together with Artemisia and Nicelbol, they headed out the door.

After seeing them leave, Westcott turned to face the window.

"Kuku." A chuckle that could barely be heard rang out in the room.

"Kuku, hahahahahahahahaha!" It soon grew into uncontrollable laughter. If Ellen saw this, she would be shocked at the rare sight of Westcott laughing. "Itsuka Shido, you continue to exceed my expectations! Going back in time and sealing the First Spirit? What a ridiculous yet brilliant idea!"

Amusement couldn't be hidden from Westcott's expression as he put his hand over his chest, a dark light shining dimly from within.

"You desire my Qlipha crystal and would declare war just for a single girl? Very well. Itsuka Shido, if it's war you want, I'll gladly give it to you. However, it will be your death that will be the result. It will be the start of a new worl-"

Kaboom!

It would have been an ominous scene had not an explosion rang out inside the building.

The impact shook the room, creating dust from the cracks of the ceiling. Stabilizing himself, Westcott's expression quickly changed as what soon followed was a series of yelling and screaming alongside the sounds of bullets. Before he could fully comprehend the situation, a voice from the darkness rang out.

"Ara, we finally get to meet, Isaac Westcott.

…

204 times.

The number of times Kurumi had to reset the world to save Shido. Using the Sixth Bullet, Vav, she found herself turning back the hands of time, always going back to the time she was just about to enter Shido's school again.

In the beginning, she had been hopeful that she would be able to save Shido. However, with every repeat, with each failure, her mind became more exhausted and her soul wearier. Even though she would hold off one plot, DEM would quickly find another way to kill Shido, not letting her have a moment's rest.

Through all this, Kurumi could barely hold her sanity together. Each time she thought she had succeeded, she would find herself in front of Shido's dead body. No matter what she did, no matter how many times she went back, he died. It was to the point where Kurumi wanted to just give up.

However, whenever she began her reset and saw Shido, whenever she saw him smile at her, she couldn't bring herself to give up. It was through pure determination and willpower that she decided that no matter what happened, she would definitely see things through to the very end.

And it was finally the 204th loop that everything paid off.

Kurumi was finally able to have an uninterrupted date with him. Technically speaking, this would be the first proper date between the two of them. Of course, that didn't stop her from being "intimate" with Shido. She figured that she deserved this much after going through countless loops of planning making sure this date would go without a hitch.

She also didn't expect the date to end in such a passionate night…okay, she actually did but the process that led to it was quite different; she was planning to have sex to convince him to give her his Reiryoku but she was happy with how things turned out. Mm, Shido made her very happy that night, if she must say.

However, when she woke up, she was immediately reminded that Shido's life was still in danger and that there was one more thing she needed to do in order to seal the deal.

So, after she woke up and left Shido, she immediately left to head to the DEM headquarters. The risk was much greater than expected, considering that she had been recently sealed but thankfully her clones didn't disappear upon sealing so her main advantage and method were still there.

She quickly restrained Nibelcol with the Seventh Bullet, Zayin by shooting the pages that they came from before Ellen could throw them out, preventing more Nibelcol from joining the fray. and used her clones to hinder Ellen and Artemisia while she dealt with Isaac Westcott, the mastermind of everything.

"Ara, we finally get to meet, Isaac Westcott." Kurumi stood in front of Westcott with her guns pointing at him.

"Ya~, Nightmare. You came at quite an unexpected time. Or rather, did you plan to attack this time because it was unexpected?" Despite the grim situation, Westcott maintained a calm expression as Kurumi began laughing.

"Kihihihi, of course. The only time your people weren't attacking was at this moment, discussing with you why their previous attacks weren't working. I merely took advantage of this moment."

Kurumi acted as if what she did was simple but Westcott knew better. How long exactly was his private meeting with Ellen and the others? It couldn't have been more than 15 minutes. Yet, she was able to organize such a grand attack. Even if she did have knowledge of the future, Westcott had to give her credit for being able to checkmate him.

"Nightmare, it's quite surprising that the Worst Spirit would help a single human and fall in love. How ironic that out of all the people, you chose him. After all, Itsuka Shido isn't who you think he is."

"Excuse me?" Kurumi asked but Westcott continued as if he didn't hear her with an eerie laugh.

"How vexing that everything seems to be going according to her plans. Do you think you've succeeded in saving Itsuka Shido? You're only presenting him on a silver platter to her. If I knew that this was going to happen, I would've killed Itsuka Shido immediately the moment I saw him."

Bang!

The bullet grazed Westcott's cheek. However, Westcott had not so much as flinched, only smearing his finger with the drawn blood on his face. His eyes continued to remain on Kurumi's seething glare as she spoke.

"As much as I hate the First Spirit, I hate you just as much for bringing her into existence. I'll never forgive that, you bastard. I'll be taking the Qlipha Crystal that you stole. Also…"

Shadows immediately began to violently flicker around her. Manifesting a giant gold clock behind her, Kurumi pointed her gun towards Westcott.

"…it takes guts to kill my Shido-san. I won't let off anybody who'd dare try to take him away from me."

"Haha, if you're this adamant, I guess there's nothing more to talk about."

With those words, the two engaged in battle.

…

Kurumi was the winner while absorbing the Qlipha Crystal from him. However, before she could finish Westcott off properly, Ellen had broken through with the last of her strength and ran away with him to someplace else. However, with their leader and strongest soldier missing, DEM was basically finished.

"Rasiel."

After Kurumi purified and absorbed the Crystal from Westcott, she immediately manifested Rasiel to figure out where Shido was. Isaac's provocation had shaken her more than she revealed on the surface.

Sweat ran down her face as she quickly browsed through the book, focusing with all her might. She hoped it was just a taunt but if what Westcott said was true, then she would be making her move at this time.

Shido-san, please be safe.

Kurumi prayed as she rushed to where Shido was.

Shido was called by Reine who said that she had something to discuss in private before the war. Reine had made reservations at a hot spring, saying that they should discuss after they were relieved and rejuvenated. Seeing no reason to refuse and wanting to thank her for all the help that she's given in sealing the Spirits, Shido agreed and went with her.

"Ah~, that felt really good."

Shido wondered when was the last time he went into a hot spring. It was a refreshing experience, letting the hot water wash away all his worries and stress. Donning a blue yukata, he took a seat across from Reine, who smiled at him warmly.

"I'm glad to hear that, Shin."

As usual, Reine's eyes looked as if she hadn't slept at all but having just come out of the hot spring, her pale skin had a light glow to it and, with the bluish-white yukata she was wearing, a fairy-like beauty could be seen from her.

"I never expected Reine-san to invite me out like this. Why the change of mood all of a sudden?"

"Do you not like this, Shin?"

"Of course, I do. I'm thankful for Reine-san's support for everything and for giving me advice continually. I couldn't have done it without you." Shido wasn't exaggerating. Reine was with him ever since the beginning and although he was doubtful of her capabilities in the beginning, he soon realized how important she was, whether it was her role as an analytic officer or as emotional support.

Reine gave a slight smile before stating, "You give me too much credit, Shin. You were able to save them because of your good heart. Being able to put your life on the line for a stranger despite the danger is something that not anybody can do. I really am amazed by your courage."

Shido's face turned light red from the compliment. "You're overexaggerating."

"I'm not exaggerating. After all, you were able to save Kurumi because you were willing to lay your life down for her, right? Even when she took almost all of your Reiryoku, you never gave up on her to the last moment."

"Haha, I guess that's true but Kurumi was a special case. After everything she did to me…" Shido stopped. The conversation was going so smoothly that Shido had almost missed it.

How did Reine know about Kurumi almost devouring him? He and Kurumi were alone that time in a forest. There was no way Reine could have known about that.

He looked at Reine again carefully.

She was still smiling.

But, that only made Shido's anxiety grow.

"Did Nia tell you?" Shido hoped that was the case. Because if it wasn't…

"I knew from the very beginning." However, Reine's answer crushed his hopes. "All of your meetings with Kurumi, whether it was the one after she attacked Raizen High or the one after you saved Tohka from DEM, I know about all of them."

"Wh-what…" are you saying? Shido tried to ask but words couldn't come out.

"Shin, I don't mean to berate you. In fact, I'm quite happy that you were able to open that girl's heart. After all, I wished for that girl to find happiness after what I did to her. And, thanks to her, you're still alive. As expected of my friend. If it wasn't for her wonderful efforts, you would be dead right now from DEM's hands. But, she went through 204-time loops to save you and even succeeded."

"Time loops?" Shido asked. He was confused on why Reine was talking about Kurumi so familiarly but this caught his attention. Reine had also said that he should be dead which coincided with his recent dreams. "Then, those dreams were actually… memories of my death?"

"Ah, that's most likely a side-effect from sealing Kurumi. Since you gained her Reiryoku and established a pathway between the two of you, you were able to gain memories from past parallel timelines."

Shock only continued to spread over Shido's face. He felt this whole situation was off-putting. The reason wasn't because of what Reine was telling him. It was how she was telling it to him. Even though she was explaining knowledge that seemed to go beyond a normal analytic officer, she acted as if they were having a normal conversation.

"Reine-san, who are you?" Shido asked.

Reine paused at the question, hesitant on something.

"Shin, you know who I am." Reine pursed her lips, firming her resolve. "Kurumi should be obtaining the last Sephira Crystal as we speak. It's a bit early but… I've waited long enough." With those words, Reine immediately shined with dazzling white light.

Forced by the brightness, Shido averted his eyes away to not be blinded. Only when the light started to dim did he turn his head back. When he did….

Gasp.

…he was met with ethereal beauty. Reine appeared to look much younger and with an Astral Dress: a beautiful white dress with flower ornaments at her head and bosom. Her hair had become polished and lustrous with her clear white skin. If goddesses existed, the person standing before him was one of them.

However, it wasn't her beauty that stunned Shido. It was from how his chest pounded from familiarity, how a wave of nostalgia washed over him. Emotions, such as longing and yearning, sprouted uncontrollably. It was similar to how he felt when Kurumi shot him with the Yud bullet, but the difference was that these emotions came from deep inside of him. As if there was another self inside of him.

"…Mio?"

Out of Shido's mouth came a name that he shouldn't have known.

Mio slowly moved toward him and before he could react, she put her hand on his chest. Leaning in and putting her forehead on top of his, she whispered in a younger and soft voice, "Remember, Shin."

Upon contact, a migraine manifested inside Shido's head. Mio was awakening his locked memories as the information began to overwhelm his head. Soon, memories of another boy, of Shin began to mix with his. Suddenly, he couldn't tell whether he was Shido or he was Shin.

"I finally get to see you again, Shin. I missed you so much," said Mio softly.

"I… also missed you, Mio," Shido replied. At that moment, that was how he truly felt.

Mio gently smiled and caressed his head. "Let's be together forever this time. I love you, Shin."

Mio leaned in and kissed Shido. When their lips met, Shido suddenly felt the longing from Shin overtake him, not being able to resist his other self's emotions and the burning desire that it created within him as he reciprocated the kiss in full. Mio gave a little moan when he pushed forward with his lips. His arms on her shoulder, Shido was about to further the kiss…

"What do you think you're doing?"

Bang!

A bullet shot at the place where Mio previously was.

Shido immediately woke up from his stupor as he turned around to see Kurumi smiling. However, Shido could immediately tell that she was not happy at all; in fact, he could sense intense energy radiating from her, causing Shido to shiver in fear.

"Takamiya Mio, or should I rather say Murasame Reine? Get the fuck out here. Shido-san is mine." Shido could only gasp at Kurumi's crass words. Did he already say that she wasn't happy? Because that was an understatement.

Bullets had already begun flying before Kurumi finished her sentence. Shido had to scurry out of the way due to Kurumi's fierce firing.

Unlike him, Mio gracefully dodged all of the bullets by flying. She stated, "Tokisaki Kurumi, to be able to harness 2 Sephira crystals at the same time, despite one being partial, is a first in history. Your compatibility with them is indeed amazing. I knew I chose well when I gave you the Sephira crystal." Hearing Mio, Shido realized that Kurumi's Astral Dress looked different than before. It was reminiscent of Nia's nun-like Astral Dress, crucifixes ordaining her dress.

"You're the last person I want complimenting me. If anything, you should've never given me this Sephira crystal." Kurumi snarled at Mio's praise. If anything, it only sounded like mockery to her. If it wasn't for foolishly accepting Mio's offer, she would have never have killed her best friend, Sawa, and was one of her greatest regrets.

Mio sighed. "I see. Then, I hope you don't mind if I reclaim those crystals." With a wave of her hand, she suddenly sent a blast of pure Reiryoku towards Kurumi. Kurumi tried to block with her guns but could only mitigate the attack slightly as it proceeded to knock her to the ground.

"Kurumi!" Shido yelled in concern towards Kurumi, coughing from the impact. He could only watch as Mio stretched her hand out, a tree made of light familiarizing behind her. Shido instinctively felt that this was Mio's Angel and could already feel a huge density of Reiryoku gathering around Mio.

"Ain So…" Mio was about to attack but stopped, to Shido's confusion.

What happened? Why did she stop? Shido could only wonder as Mio turned her head, her eyes narrowing slightly in turmoil. Shido looked in the same direction that she was looking in but saw nothing. However, something had seemed to have caught Mio's attention as she made no further signs to attack, only looking into the distance.

"I'll stop for today. Something requires my attention, unfortunately." Mio withdrew her hand as the tree of light faded away. "Shin. I'll come back when everything is settled." She looked back at Kurumi who was now on one knee, heavily breathing but vigilantly staying on guard after the attack. It would be easy for Mio to finish the job but, deciding to show mercy, she disappeared in a flash of light.

"…sigh." I was scared for a second. Shido finally let out the breath he was holding as he looked around. The room was filled with bullet holes, the tatami floor, and walls a complete mess.

"Dalet." However, Kurumi immediately called out her Angel and shot the room and herself, which reversed time, which turned the room back to normal and reset her injuries. She then turned her attention to Shido, her expression full of scorn.

"Ara ara, I must give Shido-san my admiration for being able to frolic with another girl behind my back."

"Ku-Kurumi…" Seeing Kurumi's expression, Shido suddenly felt like a cheating husband who had just been caught by his wife. Needless to say, said wife was barely holding back her wrath.

When Kurumi identified that Shido was in an isolated place with Reine, she immediately headed over to his location, assuming the worst had happened. However, imagine her distress when she instead found him kissing Mio. Not a kiss for the intention of sealing but out of love. Just remembering the scene sent Kurumi's heart to turmoil.

Kurumi grabbed the front collar of his yukata with one hand and growled, "Shido-san, you love me, right?" Shido quickly nodded his head, trying to show his sincerity but Kurumi wasn't appeased.

"Shido-san, do you love that girl?" she asked. Although her tone was demanding, there was a hint of desperation in her voice.

"I…" Shido tried to deny Kurumi's suspicion but the words got stuck in his throat. Whenever he thought of Mio, he felt his emotions swirl and could feel how much Shin had loved her. He couldn't repress the warmth he felt when thinking about her.

Even though Shido didn't finish his sentence, Kurumi already got her answer as she bit her lips in frustration.

"…what the hell is this?"

Her hand started to shake uncontrollably.

"I gave everything I could so that I could save Shido-san! Countless times I failed to but not once did I give up! The reason wasn't that I wanted to take Shido-san's Reiryoku! I did it because I loved Shido-san! I loved Shido-san so much that I was willing to walk through that hell! Yet, what the hell is this?! Why is Shido-san kissing her?! Why?! Why?!

"Why?!"

Upon the cracking of her voice, darkness began to wrap around her. However, these weren't the usual shadows that Kurumi controlled. This was a murky, pitch-black darkness that was defiling Kurumi.

"Kurumi!" Shido immediately recognized this phenomenon. Unfortunately for him.

Inversion. The state when a Spirit is overwhelmed by despair to the point where their emotions descend towards the negative.

Kurumi, who had not inverted even when she saw Shido's death during her time loops, was now on the verge of one. It was the worst-case scenario.

"Even if Shido-san failed to keep his promise, I would've just been content with just his love! But, if Shido-san would rather give his love to Mio, to that wretched woman, then what was the point?! What was the point of everything I did?! I would have rather…!"

Kurumi was already changing. Her beautiful black hair was slowly losing color and her gold eye was changing into a different color. Darkness began to form a demonic saber in front of her.

Shido knew that if he didn't act now, he would be too late. So, he did the only thing he could think of.

Going in, he pressed his lips against hers.

Kurumi widened her eyes, placing her hands against his chest to push him away. However, Shido didn't give up as he continued to hold her, pulling her into his embrace. Kurumi, who wanted to initially refuse the kiss, found her hands becoming weaker and weaker with each push. The corrupting darkness that had surrounded Kurumi soon disappeared as she closed her eyes. Her appearance that had been affected by the Inversion had now reverted to her normal self.

Once Shido saw that she calmed down, he gave an inward sigh. Thankfully, it seemed that the storm had passed.

"Mmmph?!"

However, just as he was about to end their kiss, he found himself being pulled in. His eyes widening, he tried to push Kurumi away but this time, it was Kurumi who made sure that the kiss didn't end. With no intention of separating, she held on to his yukata tightly and began to dominate the kiss.

"Mmmm! Mmmm! Mmmm!" Shido desperately needed to breathe but it was useless. Only after kissing for a full minute did Kurumi let go of his mouth, allowing Shido to gasp for air.

"Kurumi… ha… that was… ha… too much…ah!"

Thud!

Without warning, Shido found himself on the floor, Kurumi pinning him down with her slender arms. In just a moment, he was beneath her, unable to move. A shudder ran through Shido when he saw the look Kurumi was giving him. Although a simple smile adorned her face, a dangerous gleam could be seen in her eyes.

"Then, Shido-san would have rather kissed Mio-san instead?"

He found himself gulping at her fiery gaze. Kurumi was so beautiful that even when she looked down on him with a fiendish aura, her face still was able to dazzle him. Despite knowing that she was angry, Shido couldn't help but feel aroused. It didn't help when she traced her hand on his chest, letting her finger send electric jolts down his bare skin. When she reached the sash around his hip, her finger hooked around the knot before pulling, immediately loosening his yukata.

Kurumi gave a smirk once she saw the bulge in his underwear. She cupped her hand on it and began to palm it, making Shido gasp in pleasure. She gently rolled his balls between her fingers and massaged them, making the area feel good. In an instant, she had him melt like putty with her hands alone.

"Tell me you want it," Kurumi demanded him. His cock twitched as she continued to play with him, heat gathering to the area uncontrollably.

"I… want it."

"Want what exactly?" Kurumi's hand slowly slipped his underwear down, directly touching his dick as she squeezed it hard. Shido found it hard to focus, trying to restrain his desire to just mindlessly buck his hips into her hand but it was so tempting to just stop thinking and do so. Her fingers were soft and expertly making his dick erect.

"I want to… fuck you," Shido confessed with a flush on his face but when he thought about their first time, he couldn't help but want to experience that again.

Kurumi's grin widened at his response. Her head slowly leaned down towards the side of his head. Letting her breath tickle his ear, she slowly whispered into his ear.

"No."

Her hand left his dick alone, leaving it unattended as it stood painfully stiff. Shido let out a whine of disappointment but Kurumi ignored his plea of want.

She continued, "I'm going to take my sweet time with Shido-san. Shido-san's been a bad boy so I'm going to thoroughly teach you what it means to anger me, Tokisaki Kurumi. I'll make sure that by the end of this, you'll be cumming and moaning my name only. You won't be able to think about anything else but me. Even when you think you had enough, I'll have you be begging me for more.

"Or…" Kurumi playfully tilted her head. "…does that actually turn you on?"

It did. He already wanted to beg her. To just take him and fuck him to oblivion. He was already desperate and Kurumi knew that, drinking in his lust for her.

"But, first…"

Kurumi lifted herself off from him, making him lift his head. She then slowly took off her clothes, her dress slipping off of her in a seductive manner. Shido found his eyes locked on as Kurumi was left in just her bra and underwear. They were the same ones he had picked out for her on their Valentine's date: white. While simple, it added to her clear porcelain skin and bewitching pure aura. Soon, they came off as well, allowing his eyes to be blessed with the sight of Kurumi in her natural, naked beauty.

Kurumi, knowing she had all of Shido's attention, sat down on a nearby low table. She raised one of her legs, her foot pointed at him.

"Kiss it."

Any other time, Shido wouldn't do something so humiliating but when he saw Kurumi's expectant and stern gaze at him, he couldn't refuse. Going to her, he went and held the foot in his hands. He placed his lips on them and began to kiss them. Her foot was surprisingly soft. When he used his tongue, he was met with an odor that was a bit strong but undeniably of Kurumi. The taste was intoxicating as he began to passionately kiss them. Shido felt her toes curling against him during this process, inviting him to suck on them. Gosh, why was everything about Kurumi just so addicting?

Kurumi gave a sound of approval at seeing Shido's eagerness. "Don't forget the other foot now, Shido-san." At her prompt, Shido let go of the foot he had currently and moved to do the same process to the other foot. He couldn't resist the softness as he began to lick and kiss her feet, worshipping her. Every part of her was perfect, whether it was breasts or her feet. Hearing Kurumi's mewls of delight only encouraged him as he continued his endeavor.

"Shido-san, you're doing very good. I'm glad to see that you're working hard but that's enough for now." Disappointment filled Shido upon hearing Kurumi's words. However, he immediately reprimanded himself for the notion.

Kurumi laughed upon seeing his conflicted expression.

"Is there something wrong, Shido-san? If you're that reluctant to part from my feet, then, by all means, keep kissing them."

"Yo-you have the wrong idea!" He only did this because Kurumi told him to, not because he was obsessed with her feet. Definitely not… and even if he was, it was only because it was Kurumi he was obsessed with.

However, that all went to the back of his mind as Kurumi snapped her fingers. Immediately, two hands from the ground appeared and grabbed at Shido's ankles.

"Agh!" With a shout, Shido tried to shake free but more hands appeared from the darkness on the ground, each of them grabbing onto him and his clothes. As a result, Shido was forced to the ground where he ended up lying flat naked on the floor in a widespread position, bound by the wrists and ankles.

"To think that we would be used like this to vent me's jealousy."

"Ufufu, how cute. Shido-san, please forgive me for her childness."

"Shhh, me will hear us if we're too loud!"

Shido faintly heard such voices, so faint that he would've questioned if he had heard them if it wasn't for Kurumi's frowning after. Apparently, her clones were whispering while holding Shido down and although he could only see their hands from the dark portal, he could imagine their faces laughing and smiling mirthfully.

Tch, those girls… Kurumi clicked her tongue, keeping in mind to punish those clones later. But for now, she wanted to punish the person in front of her.

She stepped on his dick and used the heel of her foot to grind it. Shido cried out slightly in pain but because of his restraints, he couldn't push her leg away and was forced to endure Kurumi's grinding.

"Does it hurt, Shido-san? But, I want you to know that the pain I felt was much worse when you betrayed me. But Shido-san doesn't need to worry. After I'm done with you, you'll never even think about that woman that way ever again."

Shido could barely pay attention to her words due to the pain. It hurt, but… the friction and wetness of her still saliva-covered foot… he soon found that he found the line between pain and pleasure blurred as he tried to hold back a moan.

"Ung…" However, when she put more of her weight on her foot, he let out a low grunt. When he did, Kurumi raised an eyebrow questioningly. Then, she saw the flush on his face and the way he was panting. Her beautiful lips curled.

"Ara ara, could it be that Shido-san enjoys me stepping on him? How dirty of you."

"N-no, I…ah…" Shido tried to deny it but when Kurumi pressed harder, he accidentally let out a loud moan instead. It wasn't as if the pain had disappeared but the longer it went, he got used to it and eventually, the pain started to feel like pleasure. God, was he ashamed but it felt so good.

Kurumi continued to grin as she started to grind methodically, making him pant and moan for more.

"It's okay, Shido-san. If you want to moan, just moan. If you even beg me, I can step harder on you. It'll feel so good, won't it? Go on. Beg. Aren't we past formalities at this point?" She looked down with her signature smile as she watched him buck his hips against her foot, trying to get more pressure.

"…pl-please… step on me more." Shido didn't know he had it in him to say something so embarrassing but in face of the pleasure that Kurumi was offering him, he found his pride to be inconsequential.

"Of course, Shido-san. As you wish." With that, Kurumi went faster. Kurumi pushed with her foot again, eliciting a loud moan from him. She moved her foot up and down against him, rubbed the underside of his dick with the sole. Her toes would occasionally brush against his tip and press on it in a stimulating manner.

"Kurumi… Kurumi…" He could feel an orgasm building up inside him. He was so close. The pressure at the base of his dick was so overwhelming. His dick was already pulsing against her foot. He was… he was about to-

"!"

However, just as he was about to brace himself, Kurumi dug her sole into his cock. Hard. She forcefully stopped his cum from being released, keeping it locked and denying him the sweet release.

"Kurumi!" Shido whined, looking at her in a betrayed manner but Kurumi didn't show any mercy.

"Ara ara, did Shido-san think it would be that easy? Only when I allow it will I let Shido-san cum."

With those words, Kurumi lowered herself down to straddle him, taking a seat on his thighs. She began to trace her fingers on his inner thighs, edging toward his balls but never touching them.

"Kurumi, please!" Shido was about to break. If he could, he would touch himself to finish himself off but because of the restraints, he could only helplessly watch as Kurumi smiled at him sadistically. Having been denied his orgasm, he desperately wanted to cum for her. He would do anything for her to just touch him, to do something, anything. His erection was achingly hard and swollen, just waiting desperately for her touch.

"Do you want me?" Kurumi asked casually as she looked down at Shido's erection. She stroked it one time, which earned a needy moan from him.

"Yes, I do! Oh God, I want you so much!" Shido yelled. He never felt this horny before, causing him to speak deliriously.

"Mm, that's good to hear. So, does Shido-san still love Mio then?" Kurumi started to give harder strokes, almost making Shido cum right there and then.

"No! I don't!" Shido instantly replied.

Kurumi gave a wide smile. That's right, that's how it should be. She may not know what kind of relationship Shido may have had with Mio but in the end, all that mattered was that Shido was hers.

She stopped stroking his erection which earned Shido's gaze. She placed her hands on his chest and positioned herself. Excitement brewed in Shido as he watched her slowly lift her hips, his tip right at the entrance of her vagina. And then…

"Ohhh!"

Shido let out a moan of pure bliss. He could feel her inner walls sliding so deliciously against him. Kurumi continued to take him in more and more until soon, he was completely inside her. Shido's brain exploded from the overload of turbulent pleasure. He would've cummed instantly if it wasn't for the tightness of her sex. That's how compact she was, the sensation that he would be willing to die for.

Kurumi also gave a loud moan before smiling confidently at Shido. However, she made sure to go at an extremely sluggish pace. When she pushed down on him, she would take her time, taking him in with occasional clenching, and then pull away until only the tip was inside. She would push down again and repeat the process. Shido groaned in want. The friction of her inner walls against his dick was so amazing yet excruciatingly slow. It was sweet torture at this point as he tried to buck his hips but it was a futile attempt.

"Would Shido-san like it if I went faster?"

"Kurumi! Please, please, please! Kurumi! Just fuck me!"

"Ara ara, how desperate you sound. It makes me just want to tease you and hold back."

"Kurumi! Please! It feels so good that I'm going to die! I'll do anything! Kurumi! Kurumi!"

Shido was wrapped around her finger, unable to hold back his lust for her. Kurumi smiled as she leaned down and whispered into his ear in a sensual tone,

"Good boy. I won't hold back then."

With that, Kurumi slammed down. Shido's entire body shook as she dropped herself onto him. She wasted no time as she began to ride him in an unrestrained manner.

Oh God, I can't…! Shido breathed heavily as he rolled his hips into her. She felt so good that his mind go blank. Her cunt felt as if it was about to swallow him whole and squeeze him dry. He tried his best to meet her bouncing hips but each of her thrusts was pounding him in an irregular but powerful rhythm. Each drop of hers filled him with a burst of unadulterated pleasure as Shido trembled underneath her.

"Shido-san, doesn't it feel sublime?!" Kurumi quickly sped up if that was even possible as Shido felt an enormous pressure building up inside of him. "I bet Mio never made you feel this way, had she?!"

She clenched around his dick, making his vision black out for a second. Shido could barely speak from the sensation. He barely heard what Kurumi said as he was already moaning out her names in breathless pants.

"Kurumi… Kurumi… Kurumi…"

A particular hard bounce from Kurumi made his breath hitch. His orgasm, which was denied before, was now coming again with greater force than ever.

"Kurumi… I'm… I'm about to…"

Kurumi heard him and yelled.

"Cum inside me! Fill me with your seed, Shido-san!"

Kurumi dug her nails into his chest, letting her have a better grip as she also approached her own orgasm. Her whole body gleamed in sweat as she looked down at Shido with a sensual smile.

When Shido saw the beautiful Spirit before him looking so intently at him, he found a reserve of energy flowing through him. He bucked with more fervor and braced himself for the inevitable orgasm. And then…

"Kurumi!"

… with one final buck, his back arched upward, he erupted like a volcano.

A gush of cum entered Kurumi, who gloatingly took it all in, wringing out everything he had to offer. Squeezing around him, she made sure that not a single drop was left as she savored the feeling of her insides being filled with warmth.

Shido's body twitched constantly from the huge orgasm that he had. He could barely register when Kurumi's lips met his as her tongue slowly wrapped around his. It was a sweet moment as Shido returned the kiss with all he had.

When they finally separated, Kurumi leaned in and whispered something into his ear. While her voice was faint, Shido was able to hear it and blushed immensely.

"Again?" His voice was filled with bewilderment and astonishment but Kurumi didn't miss the anticipation inside his voice.

"Ufufu, don't you want to do it without restraints this time?"

Shido realized that his wrists and ankles weren't grabbed anymore, giving him free mobility now. He had desperately wanted to hold Kurumi with his own hands during their session but couldn't. And…

"This is Shido-san's reward for being such a good boy. I'm all yours now."

…once Kurumi leaned back and spread her legs open for him, cum still dripping from her, he already felt himself becoming hard. How was he supposed to hold back with Kurumi tempting him like this?

And so, he got busy.

…

Shido was laying down next to Kurumi. After a long time, both of them had finally run out of energy.

"Shido-san, you love me, and not her, right?" Kurumi asked in a soft voice. Shido looked at her. Her expression looked calm but he could tell from the way her eyes slightly shook that she was slightly nervous, which he found cute.

"Shin may have loved her which confused my own feelings but I love you, Kurumi. Not Mio." You helped make that very clear to me. Shido didn't say the last part but his words were already enough for Kurumi, who smiled in contentment.

Shido smiled. "Also, thank you, Kurumi. I can never thank you enough for saving me. I can't imagine the pain you went through. I can't ever repay what you've done for me but… I really am grateful."

Kurumi brightened as she snuggled closer to Shido.

"It's fine, Shido-san. You don't need to repay me anything. I did it because I loved Shido-san."

"I love you too, Kurumi."

"Ufufu, then, can Shido-san show me his love with his actions?"

"Huh?! Wait, we just-"

They got busy again.

Shido and Kurumi both returned to Ratatoskr. There, they explained everything to the other Spirits: Kurumi's time loops, her infiltration of DEM, and how Reine was actually Mio, the Spirit of Origin.

While the Spirits were shocked at the information, they had no choice but to accept it. If what they heard was true, then they had to start preparing immediately to confront Mio.

Also…

"Umu? Is that true?" Tohka asked with wide eyes.

"Haha, yeah." Shido scratched his head in embarrassment. "I hope it's not too much of a shock."

"…I'm amazed. To think that Kurumi would be the one that Shido chose. Umu, I'm glad for you." Tohka smiled.

Shido decided to announce that he and Kurumi were together as a couple, much to the surprise of all the Spirits except Origami and Nia, who already knew. Shido had expected an outbreak to occur but aside from the initial commotion, they were surprisingly accepting, stating that if that was who Shido chose, then they would come to terms with it.

"Shido, I think I got the gist of the situation." Kotori talked to Shido once he was separate from the others. Shido looked at his sister worryingly; even though she made sure to keep a strong appearance, she was the one who took the fact that Reine was Mio the hardest.

"It must've been hard."

"Don't worry about me." Kotori waved her hand, but she was inwardly happy at his concern. However, there was a specific reason that she wanted to talk to him alone.

"I have a question. You said that you learned that Reine was the Spirit of Origin on the day you arrived at the hot springs place. That was a week ago. Why didn't you come back immediately to report this?"

"… Ummm, I was…" That's right. Shido had spent an entire week with Kurumi at the hot spring. He would have come back earlier but Kurumi was very… energetic and they ended up both losing track of time.

"Ah, didn't you say that Kurumi came to save you almost right after Reine revealed her true self? Does that mean that you were with Kurumi that whole time? For an entire week? What were the two of you doing during that time?"

"… exercising?" That was the only thing Shido could think of in the short amount of time he had.

"…yes, I'm sure you were exercising real hard with Kurumi." Exercising in bed, in fact! Who exercises at a hot spring! That was the best excuse you could come up with?! Kotori was getting second-hand embarrassment for her brother as Shido just stayed silent with a furious blush.

On the other hand, Nia had some things to say to Kurumi.

"Ne, Kurumin. You said that you got the Crystal from Westcott, right? So, where is it? Where is it?" Nia had a happy expression while Kurumi stared at her blankly before smiling.

"Ah, I absorbed it."

"What?! You can't do that! You're lying, right? Right? If you take my only role, what else will I have?!"

At an unknown place…

"Ellen, is it ready?"

"Yes, Ike."

Ellen stepped aside, giving way to Westcott who looked up towards a unique, large Realizer. The Realizer was shaped like a huge ring. The Realizer was a transportation device. Its purpose was to open a gateway. As to where…

"I finally did it! I finally found a way to the Neighboring World, the dimension of Spirits!" Westcott laughed. "After all our experimentations on Sister and with Beelzebub's knowledge, we finally were able to discover the Neighboring World. With this, we'll be able to gather the necessary amount of Reiryoku to carry out the Spirit Formula."

Westcott had initially hoped to accomplish this with the Inversion of the Spirits but this was his alternate option. As the dimension of Spirits, the Neighboring World was not lacking at all in Reiryoku but only Spirits were able to have access to it. However, with the gathered data of Reiryoku through experimentations on Sister and using Beelzebub's omniscience to create this Realizer, he was able to do the impossible. Of course, Beelzebub was now taken away from him but that didn't take away the information he learned from it.

"Ellen, activate it."

At his words, Ellen used her Territory and began to pour Maryoku into the Realizer. The Realizer started to glow in mechanical light as energy began to flow through its circuits. Soon, a portal formed in the middle of the ring.

"Ike, it's a success."

"As we expected. We made this based off of Beelzebub's calculations so it would be stranger if it didn't work." Ike smiled reassuringly.

Bzzz! Bzzz!

"?!"

However, the portal started to act up, becoming more violent out of the blue. Ellen looked at Westcott, hoping to get an answer but Westcott was just as surprised. What he didn't calculate was that a portal wasn't just a one-way path. He couldn't predict that there would be someone who also wanted to travel between this world and the Neighboring World. However, unlike him, who wanted to go to the Neighboring World, there was someone who wanted to come to this world.

Thus, when a person stepped out of the portal, both Ellen and Westcott were shocked. Even more so was the identity of the person.

"Nightmare? No…who are…!"

Crash!

…

A few minutes later…

A girl appeared in the same place. However, there was nothing except the broken remains of what seemed to be a Realizer and traces of battle.

Was I too late? Mio pondered as she walked around. She had sensed a pathway between the Neighboring World and this world forcibly opened and had immediately left Shido and Kurumi to investigate.

She reached her hand out towards a specific area.

"Space distortion? Is it Zodiac? No, this Reiryoku doesn't seem to belong to her… who in the world…?"

Mio was dumbfounded for once. She looked around one more time, wondering if she missed anything but there was nothing. She wondered if she should go back to Shido and the others to obtain the Sephira Crystals but she hesitated.

…it wouldn't hurt to give them some time. In the end, Mio decided to hold off. That would be her form of thanks to Kurumi for saving Shido. For now, she decided to try to find the culprit of this situation.

But, inevitably, she would have to go to Shido and put an end to everything. After all, she had come too far to stop now.

Shin, wait for me. We'll finally be together after 30 years.

Omake

"Mukuro-san, may I have a moment with you?"

The blonde-haired girl, upon hearing her name called out, turned to see a beautiful black-haired girl smiling at her. Hoshimiya Mukuro recognized the girl as Tokisaki Kurumi as gold eyes were met with a pair of red and gold eyes.

"Does thou need something from Muku?" Mukuro asked, tilting her head in slight confusion.

"Yes. In fact, I've been wanting to talk to Mukuro-san for a long time."

"Mun, thou did?"

"Ara ara, does that surprise Mukuro-san?" Kurumi asked to Mukuro.

"Yes." Mukuro nodded her head slightly. "After all, Kurumi shouldn't have known about Muku until recently."

She didn't have that much of a connection with Kurumi as she had spent most of her time in space back then and had only been in Ratatoskr for a short time compared to the other Spirits. In fact, this was the first time that Mukuro was having a conversation with Kurumi.

"Kihihihihi, I suppose that is true. But once I learned about Mukuro-san, I became very eager to meet her."

"Muku is honored." Mukuro slightly bowed her head.

"Don't be." Kurumi waved her hand nonchalantly with a giggle. "After all, I always wanted to see the Spirit that had dared seal away my memories of Shido-san."

"…ah." Mukuro realized what had happened.

While Mukuro was still an unsealed Spirit, she had sealed away everybody's memories of Shido besides herself in Tengu City. Thus, she had also sealed Kurumi's memory as collateral damage and in doing so, she had angered one of the Spirits that should never be angered.

"I understand that Mukuro-san had her reasons and circumstances but I really detest having my memory tampered with after the first time." Kurumi's voice continued to remain pleasant but the hidden bloodlust could now be detected by Mukuro. It was enough to make her skin crawl with goosebumps.

Mukuro had to quickly remedy the situation. She said, "Let Muku give her apologies…"

"I don't need it." Kurumi quickly replied.

Mukuro immediately closed her mouth at Kurumi's words. If she only listened to the sound of Kurumi's voice, it would be very polite and charming. Yet, Mukuro felt only more scared. It was like standing in front of a ticking bomb, wondering when it would explode right in your face. She desperately wanted to run but her instincts knew that the moment she did that, everything would fall apart.

"Does Mukuro-san understand how it feels when you're trying to sort out your feelings about a person and then all of a sudden, you can't remember who that person is and all your emotions suddenly have no place to go? When the person you care about has vanished from your thoughts? When the goal that you swore your life upon and was close to completion suddenly felt far away? All because you couldn't remember one person? It was really…"

Kurumi had a short pause.

"…stressful."

"…please forgive Muku." Although Mukuro had been devoid of social interactions for a long time, she knew that "stressful" was putting it lightly for everything that Kurumi felt.

All hope in her life felt lost when she couldn't remember Shido. After all, back then, her plans had depended on devouring Shido. Adding to the fact that she had a complicated relationship with Shido at that time, when all of that suddenly disappeared, it was enough to make Kurumi almost go crazy.

If it wasn't for Kurumi immediately using the Tenth Bullet, Yud on herself to regain her memories, just as she did when her memories were changed by Mio, she reckoned she would've gone through an inversion.

In hindsight, this helped Kurumi realize how important Shido was to her and helped smooth out her feelings toward Shido.

However, Kurumi wasn't going to thank Mukuro for that. To be exact, she wasn't feeling any sort of positive emotion with Mukuro as she leaned in closer towards Mukuro's ear.

"Mukuro-san, I can barely forgive what you did to me, and I emphasize barely… but there's one thing we need to make clear between us."

While Kurumi felt she could let the matter be water under the bridge, there was one thing that Mukuro did that she didn't like. It was the reason for the memory wipe as Kurumi's voice dropped a pitch lower.

"Shido-san is mine. Mine. If Mukuro-san tries to take Shido-san away from me again…" Kurumi didn't finish the sentence but the message got across.

"…yes, Muku understands." Mukuro wanted to argue that she wasn't exactly trying to take Shido away from her specifically but she restrained herself after seeing the craziness and hysteria in Kurumi's eyes.

"That's good. I'm glad we came to an understanding." Kurumi's bloodlust immediately disappeared and gave a charming smile. However, instead of feeling warmth, only a cold sense of dread ran through Mukuro's body.

For the first time, Mukuro understood why Tokisaki Kurumi was called Nightmare.

.

.

.

Chapter 06: War Part 1

Kurumi wasn't a stranger to social gatherings. Having come from a rich background, she had more than her share of meetings together with her parents and Sawa. However, after becoming a Spirit, she naturally drifted away from such luxuries.

"Kurumi, are you free tonight? The Spirits are planning to have get-together at the Spirit Mansion."

"Ara ara, this is quite unexpected."

So, when Kotori came to her with this question, she was pleasantly surprised. That being said…

"But, what should I do?" Kurumi muttered. "I was planning to have fun with Shido-san tonight…"

Despite her voice being soft, Kotori's face slightly twitched. When Kurumi saw her face, she lightly chuckled and waved her hand dismissively.

"…but it's been a while since I attended this sort of thing. You may notify the other Spirits that I'll be there."

In the end, Kurumi gave her compliance but Kotori wasn't all too pleased, a forced smile on her face.

"Look here. Onii-chan hadn't explicitly told me but it's very obvious you're doing that with my brother."

"Ara ara, what could you mean by that?"

"You know, that!"

"Now then, I have no idea what Kotori-san is implying."

"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" Kotori's smile only grew more strained. It was clear that Kurumi knew exactly what she was referring to, based on her reaction.

However, her face quickly turned to bafflement when Kurumi suddenly closed in on her. In a rush, Kotori tried to step back but was caught by her arm around her waist.

"What are you…?!"

"Ssshhh." Kurumi placed her finger onto her lips with a teasing smile. Kotori found her face becoming red at the embarrassing position they were in, as if they were lovers. Because of the way Kurumi was tightly holding her, her face was right next to hers.

Kurumi laughed at Kotori's reaction. "Since Kotori-san insists that she knows so much…" Her lips formed a sultry smile and her half-lidded eyes gazed at her in a seductive manner. "Shall I give Kotori-san a firsthand presentation of what I do with Shido-san? It'll be quite amazing."

"Wha… what are you saying?!… That's…" Kotori could feel her mind going blank. The sheer amount of lust inside Kurumi's voice flustered her as her eyes pierced into Kotori's soul. Different scenarios began to play out in her mind, all of them not appropriate for the general. She tried to push her away but Kurumi's arm held her tight as Kurumi's head came closer and closer.

"Although you don't seem as delicious as Shido-san, I'll make sure to savor you."

"Please… don't…" Kotori's eyes began to shake as she could only helplessly watch Kurumi lick her lips. She closed her eyes, not being able to handle Kurumi's passionate gaze. It was then she heard a playful whisper in her ear,

"Just… kidding…"

Just like that, she was let go. Kotori collapsed to the floor, her legs weak from what she just experienced. She looked at Kurumi who was giggling at the sight.

"Ara ara, was Kotori-san that scared? Perhaps I went too far with my joke."

After Kotori realized Kurumi was just playing with her, an infuriated expression appeared on her face. "You…!"

"Kotori, I'm home!" Shido, who was out on some errands, had walked through the door.

"Shido-san!" Kurumi left the befuddled Kotori by herself and rushed towards Shido with a happy smile. Kotori who was just about to yell at Kurumi closed her mouth. This damn fox! If anything, Kotori had to admire on how quickly she was able to change gears. She was the perfect image of a girlfriend elated to see her boyfriend.

"Kurumi?! What are you doing here?!" Shido asked in surprise.

"Ara ara, how saddening. Is this how Shido-san reacts when your girlfriend greets you? Poor me's heart is going to break." Assuming a sad expression, Kurumi closed in on Shido and rested her cheek and hands on his chest.

Shido's face turned red as her fingers playfully brushed the near sides of his chest. Even though it was just simple show of affection, Shido has been very sensitive to Kurumi's touch lately. Ever since he had sex with Kurumi, any contact with her would immediately get him tense.

"Shido-san, I was thinking about having some dessert." Moving in more, she wrapped her arms around his chest. She pressed her generous breasts against him as her beautiful eyes gazed up at him.

"Dessert?" Shido found himself repeating but he could barely pay attention. His heart began to race faster as a nice scent from Kurumi's hair wafted towards him. She was enticingly close to him as she made her approach less subtle and more sensuous. Her touch sent a rush of yearning through his spine and made his body respond with primal excitement.

"Mmhm," she nodded. "And I think I know exactly what I want."

Pressing her smooth thigh up between his legs and against his crotch, she smirked as she felt his arousal grow. His erection twerked against her and although Shido tried to remain stoic, it was hell of a task when Kurumi was smiling invitingly at him, her finger grazing his bulge.

"Ara ara, what's wrong, Shido-san? You're all red." Her face was mere centimeters away as she raised herself up, her warm breath tickling his face. "Does Shido-san want something else besides dessert? Maybe something more? Sure. I'll do anything Shido-san wants."

"An-anything?" The words tumbled out of his mouth. The implication within the word would make any person's imagination go wild, including Shido's. He fixed his eyes upon her playful eyes, falling into a trance. He was barely holding himself back until she caressed his cheek and softly whispered into his ear with a smile in her voice.

"Yep, anything. So, instead of looking at me like that, why don't we go back to my house and I can let you have a closer look?"

Everything was a blur from there.

As if his body was moving by itself, he wrapped one arm around her waist and kissed her like there was no tomorrow. Turning their bodies around, he trapped her body between himself and the wall. She felt so good, the way her perfect body pressed against him and her hands running through his hair, pulling him in.

"Mmnn, Shido-san…" Kurumi lightly moaned. Her lewd voice only stimulated him more as he dipped his head down again eagerly for another kiss. His tongue poked at her mouth for permission to enter to which Kurumi gladly opened for him. Her mouth was rich and engrossing as she made him melt with desire. When her soft tongue gently caressed his tongue, he lost it. Moaning into the kiss, he…

"Onii-chan, I'm still here, you know."

A dry cough from Kotori's end immediately woke Shido from his stupor as he stumblingly separated from Kurumi in embarrassment. Kurumi let out a slight groan of disappointment, a little annoyed that he stopped just when it was getting good but that was none of Shido's concern as he frantically looked at Kotori, who had a disconcerted expression on her face.

"I'm glad to see that Onii-chan is someone who gets off from making out in front of your sister."

"Eh?! Of-of-of course not! I just forgot about you!"

"Oh, that makes me feel better." Kotori sarcastically replied. She continued to glare at him until Shido finally couldn't take it anymore.

"I-I'm going back to my room!" Shido tried to dart off but was stopped by Kurumi who grabbed his hand.

Although her dress was wrinkled and her hair was lightly ruffled up due to Shido's quick make-out session, she still managed to put up a beautiful smile. "Shido-san, we were just getting started and you're going to bail on me? Kihihihihihihi, that won't do. Not after I had only a little taste."

Tapping her foot lightly, she opened her shadows and began to drag him in together with her. "Eh, wa-wait! Ku-Kurumi, calm down!" Shido struggled against Kurumi's hold but it was useless as they slowly descended into the darkness.

Kotori tried to stop them but found that multiple arms were holding down her legs from the floor. She realized this was Kurumi's doing and could only watch as Kurumi whisked Shido away with her, licking her lips before her delicious meal.

Kotori was the only one left in the house now. Yet, instead of looking frustrated, she had a blank expression on her face instead. She was remembering her brother's expression. On the surface, it seemed he was trying to escape Kurumi's grasp but why did it look like he didn't put that much heart into it? In fact, his eyes seemed to be filled with a sense of anticipation as he sunk into the shadows…

"Agh, really! I don't care anymore!" This stupid brother of mine is already ruined by that seductress!

…

It was now night in the Spirit's mansion, where all the Spirits had gathered around a kotatsu with snacks and drinks in the middle. Without exception, Kurumi was also there, drinking tea in an elegant manner. While she appeared calm on the outside, Kotori noticed there was a light glow to her face.

"…you seem awfully happy."

"Ara, is that so? To be honest, I'm feeling quite sore." Kurumi inwardly smirked into her cup. She wasn't lying; if she moved so much as an inch from her current sitting position, her legs would cry in pain, particularly her inner thighs. But, that didn't stop a smug expression from appearing on Kurumi's face; she was satisfied like a full cat after a delicious meal.

"Tch." Kotori clicked her tongue. She was going to need a thorough talking later with her brother who was hiding from her in his room.

"Kurumi-chan, I'm glad you could be here with us today!" Miku cheerfully sat down next to her and showed her happiness at her presence.

Kurumi, not one to be impolite, replied, "The pleasure is mine, Miku-san… or rather, please get off of me. It's uncomfortable." Kurumi's usual laidback composure showed signs of cracking as Miku shamelessly hugged her arm much to her dismay.

"Mm, now that I'm up close, Kurumi-chan really does have a nice figure. You look very soft too…eh?! It was a joke! A joke! So, Kurumi-chan, please put away that gun!"

"I will once Miku-san's hands gets away from my chest."

Only when Miku backed away with her hands up did Kurumi lower the gun with a sigh. She forgot what kind of tendencies this girl had and foolishly allowed her to come close to her.

The night began as the Spirits began to talk with each other, whether it be talking about their day, playing board games, discussing strategy for the war, or whatever that may come up their mind. As for Kurumi, she had attracted Kaguya's and Yuzuru's attention, who had their thoughts on a certain matter.

"Tokisaki Kurumi! To think that you would get the upper hand before me, the great Kaguya! What sorcery or witchcraft did you do to obtain Shido?!"

"Agreement. Yuzuru is surprised how you, who was considered an enemy until recently, were able to capture Shido's affection."

In response to them, Kurumi put down her cup of tea and chuckled. "Who knows? Perhaps Shido-san was just attracted to my womanly charms." Kurumi gave a cute smile, enchanting them for a moment.

"That's impossible!" Kaguya was the first to get a hold of herself. "If you're talking about womanly charms, I have them also!" Standing up, she struck a sexy pose that a typical model person would do for a cover page.

Yuzuru immediately snorted. "Negative. Kaguya is still a child with small breasts, much less womanly charms." "What did you say?!" Kaguya snapped back. The two of them soon got into an argument, which Kurumi left for themselves to handle as she resumed drinking her tea.

"Ummm…" Hearing a soft voice, Kurumi turned to see Yoshino, who had quietly approached her. "Di-did Kurumi-san and Shido-san do anything…b-bad?" she asked.

"Ara ara, what do you mean?" Kurumi smiled shrewdly as Yoshino immediately hid her face behind her hands in embarrassment before softly speaking, "Kurumi-san seems to …love Shido-san… a lot so…"

Anxiousness filled Yoshino's face which Kurumi didn't miss. Giving a playful smile, she answered, "Don't worry, Yoshino-san. I definitely did not do anything bad with Shido-san."

Yoshino sighed in relief but Kurumi wasn't done. "Yes, I could say that Shido-san had a good time with me. Ufufu, I still remember the first time I grabbed his cock and how hot and hard it grew in my hand."

"!" Kurumi's voice wasn't exactly quiet and caused everybody to turn their heads in bewilderment.

"Hi-hi-hi-hi-hi-his co-co…" Yoshino's face became red as a tomato but Kurumi was only getting started.

"Oh how cute Shido-san was. He was so stubborn at first but once my hands laid upon him, he was already mine. It's like I thought. When it comes to seduction, there's nothing more effective than simply pushing him down and making him submit. But don't worry; Shido-san enjoys it when I take control. Ah, did you know that Shido-san loves it when his cock is in my mouth? If only you could see how ecstatic his face became when my tongue-"

"Stop! Stop! TMI! TMI!" Nia frantically interrupted Kurumi before she could get into any more explicit detail. Kurumin, she's already dead! She looked at the passed-out Yoshino, who couldn't handle the explicit information, her eyes swirling in dizziness and what seemed to be her soul was slipping out of her mouth. Out of concern and embarrassment, Natsumi carried Yoshino onto her back and secretly excused themselves, going back to their rooms. "Ooh, let me help you with that, Natsumi-chan~!" Miku however noticed them and proceeded to follow them with drool leaking out of her mouth, causing a cry of dismay from Natsumi.

"Mun, to think Nushi-sama was this lascivious. Muku is shocked." Mukuro was blushing heavily as her first impression of Shido was very kind and compassionate. To think that Shido was this erotic was…honestly very stimulating. She shook her head, trying to maintain the pure image she had of Shido.

On the other hand, Tohka was only confused as she asked, "Kurumi, is cock some kind of food?" Tohka was inexperienced with dirty talk, causing her to come up with that conclusion. "I never had Shido's cock before. Does it taste good?" Kurumi chuckled at Tohka as she stated, "Ufufu, I only had it twice but it's quite delectable."

"Ooohh!" Tohka opened her mouth in amazement before stating, "I'm going to ask Shido for his cock and see-!"

"No! Definitely not!" Kotori immediately stopped Tohka before her misunderstanding spiraled out of control. Oh God, she could only imagine the disaster if Tohka actually asked Shido that question. Kotori glared at Kurumi who only tilted her head as if asking what was wrong but not without a teasing smile. Kotori wanted to reprimand her but had a gut feeling that if she pressed the matter, the atmosphere would only get more awkward, and decided to only click her tongue at her.

Kurumi laughed as she finally paid attention to the white-haired girl who was staring at her quite intensely from the very beginning. "Ara, ara, Origami-san. You look as if you have something to say to me. Are you dissatisfied with something?"

Origami shook her head. "Tokisaki Kurumi, I had my reservations about you in the beginning but now… I understand why Shido chose you."

"Ara, how surprising." Kurumi thought that Origami would have more of an ill will towards her but she was surprisingly accepting. Origami noticed her confusion.

"I will always love Shido. However, Shido personally told us about what you did for us, about how you went back in time multiple times and prevented him from dying and stopped the rest of us from inversing. Back then, I thought that you were merely playing around with his feelings. However, I now know that your love for him was true. That's why, for protecting Shido…" Origami deeply bowed her head. "…thank you, Nee-sama."

"Wait a minute! Nee-sama?!" Kotori was in disbelief.

"Let's see, let's see, what does Rasielmon have to say for this. Oh, I already know there's a juicy story behind this!" Nia had manifested her Angel instantly.

"…say that again," Kurumi said.

"Thank you, Nee-sama." Origami instantly replied.

"Again."

"Thank you, Nee-sama."

"… forget it. The fun isn't there if it's this easy." Kurumi said with a sigh. "So, Origami-san is fine with the fact that I'm in a relationship with Shido-san?"

"It's fine. Because, once Shido breaks up with you, I'll be ready to steal him."

"Ara ara, how scary."

After Kurumi and Origami made up (?), the girl's night continued as normal as Kurumi genuinely enjoyed the talks and banters. It was a nice change of pace from all the battles and violence that recently took place and hoped that times like these would continue to happen in the future.

"There's an emergency!" Ratatoskr's alarms were ringing with red light as Kotori entered her commander mode. "What's the situation?"

"A spacequake is about to manifest in the middle of the city! The cause seems to be the Spirit of Origin!" The officer quickly relayed the information as Kotori nodded. "Got it. Sound the spacequake alarm and allow the civilians to evacuate. Send Shido and the Spirits to the scene also." "Yes, Commander!"

Shido and the Spirits, except Nia and Kotori who were still on the ship, arrived at the scene to see Mio in the air with her full Astral Dress on. All the Spirits had their full Astral Dress on; Shido realized when he got the power of 10 Sephira Crystals that he was able to control the Reiryoku pathway as he pleased without any risk and was able to grant the Spirits their full Astral Dress instead of their limited ones. Even with this, however, Shido knew that they wouldn't be able to win that easily against the Spirit in front of them.

"Shin, you finally came." Mio had a happy expression as she slowly descended toward Shido although Shido immediately backed up out of caution. "Mio, you don't have to do this. We can still work things out."

Mio sadly smiled. "No, everything is useless without Shin. I can't forget about him even if I want to. No matter what I did, no matter who I met, nothing brought me joy anymore. There's no meaning to live if it's without him. That's why these past 30 years, I did everything to bring him back. For Shin, any sacrifice was possible.

"Shin, I really love you." Mio's eyes held a purity that Shido couldn't deny. No malice, no evil, just simple but tremendous love, and hope. He felt Shinji inside of him wanting to respond in kind. However, …

"Mio." Shido looked straight at Mio and gave his answer. "The Takamiya Shinji you knew already died in the past. The one standing before you is Itsuka Shido. So, I can't accept your confession and that's because I love Kurumi." Hearing Shido's declaration, all the other Spirits sent subtle gazes toward Kurumi, who was embarrassed but happy as well.

Mio looked at Shido before giving a smile but not without a tear falling. "I see. Even though I expected this, being rejected still hurts." Mio wiped away her tears quickly and put on a smile but Shido could see her red eyes still. "Thank you for everything, Shido." Shido realized that this was the first time that she had actually addressed him by his actual name but that was the least of his worries. "Please understand that I'll need to erase only your memories so that Shin can truly be revived."

Once Mio declared her intention, the Spirits readied their Angels to prepare for battle. However, Mio already made the first move.

"Ain Soph Aur." At Mio's command, a huge flower manifested with a beautiful girl in its middle. At her command, the flower bloomed and emitted particles of light constantly, surrounding Mio and drifting towards the other Spirits. Although the lights seemed harmless, all the Spirits couldn't help but feel a sense of dread.

"We!" Kurumi shouted as identical clones emerged from the shadows. They began to fire ceaselessly but once a light touched a clone, the clone would cry out and dissolve into particles. They served their purpose as the Spirits were able to escape untouched but it wasn't hard to imagine what would happen if one of those lights touched them, a solemn expression on their faces.

"Gabriel, March!" "Haniel, Kaleidoscope."

Miku and Natsumi, who copied Gabriel, quickly enhanced the others' strength as the Yamai sisters, Origami, and Tohka immediately followed up with their own attacks.

"Raphael!" "Metatron!" "Sandalphon!"

Rampaging winds, light rays, and sword energy immediately flew towards Mio. In response, Mio raised her hand to block the attack. Her move seemed meager in front of the ferocious attack but her still face showed she was confident in receiving the attack.

"Latalb." However, Mukuro opened a space portal in the middle of the attack's trajectory, absorbing all the attacks before Mio could block them. Before Mio had the chance to question the situation, however, the previous absorbed attacks had struck her back from a back portal in full strength.

Boom! An explosion immediately rang out, sending out shockwaves as a result and sending up smoke that obscured Mio from their view.

Kaguya cheered upon seeing the attack connect.

"Ka ka, how did you like our combination special? This is the power of friendship!"

"Vigilance. Don't let your guard down. Also, please refrain from saying such cringe phrases." Yuzuru chided.

The two of them, along with the rest of the Spirits, watched the smoke slowly dissipate. Soon, the smoke revealed Mio who was completely fine despite the attack fully connecting.

"Seriously, no damage?" "Shock. Her Astral Dress is ridiculously sturdy." Kaguya and Yuzuru's faces fell when they saw this. Even though an Astral Dress was able to defend against attacks better than the typical armor, for Mio to come out unharmed despite receiving multiple Angels' attacks revealed that her Astral Dress was of a much higher authority than theirs. She couldn't even be compared to a normal Spirit.

"Henet." A small flower bud appeared in front of Mio's hand and unleashed a small beam of condensed light. As for her target…

"Miku!"

Shido cried out as the ray of light pierced Miku's abdomen. The attack was so fast Miku only realized she was hit after the impact. Shock could be seen in her eyes before the life in them disappeared and her body fell lifelessly to the ground.

A bright violet Sephira crystal emerged from Miku's corpse and floated towards Mio. The crystal then was absorbed into Mio. When she saw the look Shido and the others were giving her, she sighed in despondence.

"It pains me also to kill my cute daughters. However, I doubt that you all will be obedient and hand me your Sephira Crystals willingly. That's why…" Mio hardened her gaze. "…this is the only way.

"Ain Soph." This time, a huge tree that reached the atmosphere emerged. Its branches spread across the sky and its roots began to change the landscape, transforming the area. Soon, a monochrome, chessboard-like appearance covered the ground.

All the Spirits had pale faces, as like Ain Soph Aur, this Angel was telling their instincts to keep themselves alive. They were forced to dodge in a messy manner as the branches began to attack them.

"Michael, Jerez!" Mukuro swung her key at the branches, trying to decompose the branches into nothing but when the key touched the branches, nothing happened. When Mukuro realized it was useless, she immediately opened a space portal and escaped before the branches could touch her.

"It's useless," Mio explained. "Ain Soph can rewrite reality; if I so will it, then it shall be done. You cannot harm my Angel no matter what."

"Everyone!" Shido immediately wanted to join the battle but before he could, he was grabbed by the waist by Kurumi and pulled back away from Mio. "Kurumi!" He protested but she firmly shook her head.

She said, "No, Mio-san's main target is, in the end, you. If you try to seal her without any plan and carelessly get close to her, Mio-san will be able to erase your memories."

"But…" Shido looked at Tohka, Kaguya, Yuzuru, and Origami fighting at the forefront. Mukuro and Natsumi were acting as support and Yoshino as defense. However, their grave faces showed that things were not looking good. Mio had killed Miku, one of their vital supporters, so the battle would only become more uphill as more time passed by.

Kurumi reassured him, however. "Don't worry. We will definitely open a path for Shido-san." Kurumi tapped her earpiece lightly. "Kotori-san, Nia-san, did you learn anything?"

"Only a few things." Shido heard Kotori's voice from his earpiece. "Mio has Ain Soph which can rewrite reality but she doesn't do it automatically. Didn't she say it herself? If she wills it. That means if we're able to catch her off guard, she won't be able to rewrite it immediately. The timing will be pretty tight though. And, we can only afford one chance. Based on what we've seen so far, Mio's Astral Dress is in the realm of absolute defense. If we attack her halfheartedly, it'll be meaningless. What we need are overwhelming power and perfect coordination.

"Kotori, just leave it to me." Nia, who was together on the ship, reassured her. "With Rasiel, I'll make sure that everything is optimal. Boy, wait for my timing, or rather… since Kurumin also has Rasiel, just follow her. I'll be directing the other Spirits."

"Got it." Shido voiced his agreement. On the other hand, Kurumi drifted towards Yoshino, who was currently blocking stray attacks with ice barriers. "Yoshino-san, are you ready? We're going to be doing that."

Hearing Kurumi say, "that", Yoshino immediately understood what she was talking about. After a brief moment, she nodded her head.

"I'm still unused to this so it may take a while…"

"Don't worry! You'll do great, Yoshino!"

Under Yoshinon's encouragement, Yoshino lent her hand and allowed Kurumi to hold it. Almost immediately, Yoshino winced as she felt her Reiryoku being drained from her to Kurumi.

Shido widened his eyes. At first glance, it only looked as if Kurumi was merely taking Yoshino's Reiryoku for herself but when he looked closer, Yoshino's Reiryoku was actually merging with Kurumi's, while still retaining its characteristics! Kurumi's shadows, which were always beautiful black, now had a tint of blue.

With Rasiel floating in front of her and Zafkiel's flintlock pistol in one hand, Kurumi controlled two different Angels as she chuckled at Shido's shocked face. "Let me show you, Shido-san. What a Spirit with two Sephira Crystals can do."

Mio thought they would've given up at this point. None of their attacks were working; any attacks that came her way could be rewritten and any stray attacks that happened to land on her were too weak to harm her. Yet, defeat couldn't be seen on the Spirits' faces, and instead, a firm determination.

What are they planning? As the battle continued, suspicion began to grow inside Mio. However, it was only that. She was confident that no matter what they attempted, she would be able to put a stop to it. All she had to do was to continue her pressure and wait for the Spirits to exhaust their Reiryoku.

On the other hand, Tohka, Origami, Mukuro, and the Yamai sisters were fending off the branches, making sure that none of them reached Shido. However, they weren't planning to stay on the defensive forever as they gave a silent nod to each other.

"Latalb!" Lifting her finger up, Mukuro opened a huge portal in the atmosphere up above. With a shout, a blazing meteorite peeked through the portal and began to descend blazingly towards the battlefield. It was an impressive sight and had the potential to wipe out the entire city. Even Mio would be injured if she were to be hit by that but even in front of such destructive power, Mio only scoffed.

"Ain Soph." With a stretch of her hand, she sent Ain Soph's branches to interrupt the meteorite's fall. Once the branches touched it, it would disappear into particles of light, meteorite or not.

Pop!

However, contrary to her expectations, it exploded instead. It didn't explode naturally but with comical stars and sound effects, taking Mio by surprise. Not only that…

"Kihihihihihihihihihi!"

In the meteorite's stead, a whole bunch of Kurumi clones appeared and immediately rushed towards Mio, laughing and giggling as they quickly filled up the battlefield.

"Wha-?!." This is Haniel's work! Natsumi, Haniel's owner, had used her power of transformation beforehand to turn Kurumi's clones into a single meteorite. The number of clones was innumerable, causing Mio to be caught off guard. Due to this, Mio's reaction was a second too late as they quickly filled the battlefield, some of them even latching onto her. Although they were weak, the sheer mass of them was hindering her vision and her movement.

"Mio." Mio turned around to see one of the Kurumi's clones turn into Shido. "I love you." He smiled at her, his gentle expression shaking her heart violently. However, she quickly frowned.

"Guh!" The branch pierced through Shido.

An instant later, Shido's body shone with light before turning into a petite figure. It was Natsumi, the true identity of the fake Shido. "Kuh… this is the first time someone saw through my disguise this quickly…" Giving a strained smile, she attempted to swing her broom but not before Mio extracted a green Sephira crystal from her body. However, her sacrifice wasn't in vain, distracting Mio for valuable moments.

"Raphael, El Kanaph!"

A giant arrow fully struck the unaware Mio, who was still amidst all the clones. An absolute and invincible single concentrated attack. The wind pressure dragged Mio through the city and mowed down everything in its path.

"Hng!" I have to… rewrite… Mio gritted her teeth. "Ain So-"

"Metatron, Artelif!"

"Camael, Megiddo!"

Before Mio could use her Angel, she was run down by a dense beam of pure shining light and a fiery pillar of intense flaring heat.

This is…! Mio realized that she was in a difficult situation. She didn't have time to question when had Kotori joined the battlefield. She was being hit by each of the Spirit's strongest attacks, one by one. Not even she would be able to come out unharmed if this continued!

Not only that, the fact that the attacks were being linked simultaneously terrified her. El Kanaph, Artelif, Megiddo, these were all ultimate attacks that couldn't be done instantly. However, not even a second had passed after she had been hit by El Kanaph before being hit by Artelif and Megiddo. In other words, the other side had already prepared their attacks and attacked before the wind arrow had even hit her. Because Kurumi's clones filled the entire battlefield and covered Mio's view, she wasn't able to see their preparation.

Flash!

At the crucial moment, Mio teleported. However, even though she was able to escape, she still sustained considerable damage. Unsettlement grew in her heart. She was forced into a position where she had to actually run away!

However, she didn't have time to check her surroundings or heal herself as she heard a loud sound behind her.

"Halvanhelev!"

The sword of the end. She didn't have time to dodge or put up a barrier. To put it more accurately, the moment she had arrived, the sword was already descending onto her head.

How?!

Mio would admit that she had teleported in a rush so she had looked for the nearest safest place but for Tohka to understand that she would do so and predict where she would teleport, that kind of intuition could only be gained through many battles. By the time Mio realized that, she was already razed to the ground.

Rumble!

Heaven and earth both split into two. Shockwaves pulsated from the ground up. It was total destruction but a faint light could be seen in the giant crack. The light soon grew and finally, erupted out of the ground as Mio emerged.

She was in a rough condition but for someone who had just been hit by four extreme attacks, she was in relatively good condition. However, that didn't change the fact that she was extremely battered up.

Swish. Mio felt a cold breeze and looked up. What she saw blew her mind.

In the air, Kurumi, holding Yoshino's hand, was pointing the gun towards Mio's direction with shadows coming from the 7 on Zafkiel's huge clock but contrary to its normal black, the shadows had a blue tint as well. Why did Kurumi's Reiryoku, whose attribute was shadow, also have the attribute of ice? Was it due to Yoshino's help? No, even despite that, it should be impossible to fuse two attributes of a different type!

Mio quickly acted. Sending Ain Soph's branches towards the two of them faster than the eye could follow, she hoped to kill the two of them before Kurumi could fire her gun. Her instinct was telling her that Kurumi's attack was beyond her usual attacks. However, she was blocked by Yoshino, who used her own body as a wall and blocked the branches from reaching Kurumi, sacrificing her own life. Kurumi's face contorted but she didn't hesitate to fire.

"Zafkiel!"

Kurumi's Angel had twelve bullets, each of them related to time in a certain way. The seventh bullet was "Zayin," capable of stopping the opponent's time. It was one of Kurumi's most powerful bullets and guaranteed instant victory if landed on the opponent. The problem was that the opponent was the Spirit of Origin. Kurumi doubted that Mio would let herself be hit by "Zayin" and even if it did, it probably wouldn't work on Mio due to her Astral Dress.

But, what if she upgraded her bullets?

Kurumi didn't have only Zafkiel anymore. She also had Rasiel, the Angel of omniscience. After gaining Rasiel, Kurumi's knowledge of Reiryoku became omnipotent. The Angel allowed her to have a complete understanding of the intricate characteristics of Reiryoku, including its attribute which was different for each Spirit. So, if she had a complete understanding of another Spirit's Reiryoku, she was capable of merging it with her own Reiryoku but only with Rasiel's navigation; the merging process was too complicated to do by herself.

So, with Yoshino's Reiryoku, which had the nature of ice and the power to freeze, Kurumi was able to "upgrade" her seventh bullet. It wasn't a simple 1+1; the bullet's power had increased exponentially in scale. Needless to say, such an increase in power also required an extraordinary amount of Reiryoku from both Kurumi and Yoshino. Their Reiryoku was almost all but nil, which was why they couldn't properly guard against Mio's last attempt to attack and thus, resulted in Yoshino's sacrifice.

But, thanks to her, Kurumi successfully fired her new bullet.

"Seventh Frozen Bullet, Zayin Kafa!"

The gold bullet coated with bluish-black shadows was shot, slipping through all the branches and towards Mio. Mio tried to put up a barrier but it was useless. Once fired, it couldn't be blocked or dodged. And, that's because it had already hit its target.

The world.

Bang! The bullet exploded into a flash of blue light and time stopped for the world.

The tree from Ain Soph, the lights from Ain Soph Aur, and Mio, who had her eyes opened in shock, wasn't moving. All the Spirits, which weren't affected by Zayin Kafa due to Kurumi's will, were astounded by the unreal phenomenon happening before them.

Zayin Kafa had the power to freeze the world's time. And for Mio who was close to the bullet, it had a stronger freezing effect on her. Additionally, because all the Spirits had weakened Mio temporarily with their strongest attacks, she was even more susceptible to the bullet's time stop.

Shido didn't miss this opportunity as he immediately teleported towards Mio, using Origami's power. He quickly grabbed her shoulders and leaned in to kiss Mio's lips.

"Shido?!" However, to his surprise, Mio was actually able to move again! Zayin Kafa was still in effect but, being the Spirit of Origin, Mio had done her best to free herself from the frozen time and was only frozen for 3 seconds. There was still enough time for her to push Shido away.

"!" But, Mio found her body stiffening when she tried to move. It was as if her body wasn't listening to her. This was because of Nia, who had used Future Entry and depicted a drawing of Shido kissing Mio. Mio was only affected by it for a second but that was enough.

"Mmph!" By the time she could move, Shido's lips were already on hers.

Soft but not without force, his lips pushed against hers. Mio's first thought was that he was a really good kisser. Her second thought was that her powers were being sealed. …haha. Mio couldn't help but laugh; the sealing process wouldn't work unless the Spirit opened her heart toward Shido. She thought that she loved Shin only but it seemed that after all the time they had spent together, she had come to love Shido as well.

As for Shido, he realized that Mio's memories flooded into him including all her struggles and sorrows over the past 30 years. He felt the despair she felt when Shin died and how she did her best to carry out her plan to revive Shin. However, Shido was disoriented as Mio immediately pushed him away, not letting him completely seal her.

"Mio!" The Reiryoku path between him and Mio was interrupted. Only a few more moments and he would've been able to seal her completely. He was frustrated with himself. They were so close to victory yet he couldn't close the deal.

"That was close, Shido." Mio touched her lips briefly, numb to the touch. Her lips were still savoring the taste of Shido's lips. "But, it's over now." Mio's hand reached out towards him. They had just kissed so he was in close range of her. He couldn't escape even if he wanted to.

"Nushi-sama!" A portal opened from behind Mio and Mukuro emerged in an attempt to try to stab her with her key.

However, Mio dodged with a simple sidestep. "Ain Soph, Anaph." A branch from Ain Soph appeared in her hand, shaped like a long sword. She thrust it into Mukuro, giving a fatal injury and absorbing a gold Sephira Crystal from her.

"Mukuro!" Shido cried out. He could only watch as Mukuro's body collapsed onto the chessboard-like floor, her Astral Dress disappearing into particles of light.

"What are you doing, Onii-chan?! Hurry up and get away from her!" Shido was abruptly pulled back. Together with the rest of the Spirits, Kotori had arrived and grabbed his shirt and thrown him a distance away but not without having Anaph stabbed in her chest as a result. Mio then, with her other hand, shot Henet at Yuzuru's forehead at point-blank range.

"Kotori!" "Yuzuru!"

"Onii-chan… don't… give up!" Those were Kotori's last words as red Sephira crystal emerged from her body and into Mio's body.

"Yooooouuuuuu!" Kaguya immediately rushed towards Mio, screaming with rage as she spiraled her lance with fierce wind surrounding her. "Stop, Kaguya!" Tohka cried out. They had already saved Shido so it was safer to disengage and regroup but Kaguya wouldn't listen.

"Raphael, El Re'em!" Like a berserker, she attacked without abandon, killing intent clear in her bloodshot eyes.

Without expression, Mio raised her hand and blocked her lance with a small barrier. Once the lance lost all momentum, she grabbed Raphael so Kaguya couldn't escape. Then, branches emerged from the ground like spikes and impaled into Kaguya's body.

"Kaguya!"

The tree branches disengaged from her body while taking out the Sephira Crystal inside of her. Once the Crystal was taken out, Kaguya's Astral Dress immediately disappeared into particles of light. The same thing happened to Kotori and Yuzuru as all the Crystals were all brought to Mio.

Shido couldn't believe it. How was Mio still this strong despite being partially sealed?

On the other hand, Mio looked at the palm of her hand. There was a slight nick of blood. She wasn't able to completely block Kaguya's attack. If she wasn't partially sealed, let alone being able to block, her Astral Dress would have been able to tank the hit and come out completely fine. However, in her current state, her Astral Dress was weakened. Although it was still much stronger than a regular Astral Dress, it wasn't to the point of absurdity where almost no attacks would be able to affect her.

Her Angels were also affected. Ain, her trump card which allowed her to erase whatever she wanted from reality, was completely sealed. Ain Soph couldn't distort reality as easily anymore, the tree of light barely maintaining its form and flickering weakly. Her branches couldn't spread across the entire battlefield as they did before, only being able to reach 5 meters radius. Ain Soph Aur's particles of light wouldn't be a huge hindrance to those with Reiryoku and Maryoku. Henet was now reduced to a normal laser; the only reason it had killed Yuzuru was that she had aimed at the head.

However, even with my Angels being sealed, I still have the complete advantage here. Mio wasn't overestimating herself. She had personally killed multiple Spirits after Shido had sealed her. Her current state may be a far cry from her strongest but it was more than enough to deal with the remaining Spirits: Tohka, Origami, and Kurumi.

"Give Shido to me," she said. "No matter what you do, you have no hopes of victory."

But, she was only met with refusal.

Tohka raised her sword. "Mio, Shido taught me to love this world. If it wasn't for him, I would've never been able to experience so many different things or feel so many emotions. That's why I won't let you erase Shido, never!"

"Shido saved me when I was in the bottomless pit of despair." Origami took a stand next to Tohka. "This time, it's my turn to save him. With this power you gave me."

Kurumi lifted her guns in defiance of Mio's declaration. "Mio-san, no matter what happens, I'm never giving Shido-san to you. This Tokisaki Kurumi won't allow it."

"Everyone…" Shido was touched by all of their proclamations. Seeing their resolve gave him confidence, even despite this hopeless situation.

Mio gave a nod. "To resist is a right that I cannot take away from you all. In respect, I won't make the suffering any longer than it has to be."

The fight would've ended in Mio's victory but an unexpected factor came into play. Nobody could have expected it because its existence in itself was an abnormality. Because she existed, it is impossible for her to also exist. However, because she existed, her existence was undeniable.

Crack!

It was the trigger to the start of a previously impossible victory.

To everybody's surprise, a large crack could be seen in the air. Space began to distort…no, split apart forcefully as the crack began to grow larger and larger.

"Ahh, elegant and charming as always, Kurumi-san."

The space shattered and a voice echoed across the battlefield.

Then, sheappeared.

Emerging from the opened crack, she wore a military dress with an admiral's cap on her twin-tailed hair. She donned a saber in one hand and a pistol in the other. Her dress, gloves, high-heeled boots, everything was white. However, the most shocking thing was that they knew who this person was, or at least looked like.

A spitting image of Tokisaki Kurumi, except that instead of a gold eye, there was a blue clock eye.

Descending from the shattered sky, the white Kurumi landed in front of Shido and the others.

"King, the man that all Spirits love. I give my greetings." Taking off her cap and pressing it against her chest, the woman gave a slight bow as she gave her introduction. "People call me many names but I am commonly known as Queen."

"Queen…" Shido never heard that name. Also, King? He never heard himself called by that manner. The enigma surrounding this person only continued to grow but for now, she didn't seem to hold any hostility against them.

Shido was confused on this person's identity but Kurumi's agitated face did. She recognized the person's identity instantly after hearing her voice the first time and hearing it up close only confirmed her decision. But that was impossible because Kurumi definitely killed her with her own hands. However, she would never forget that voice even if she wanted to.

"…Sawa-san?" Kurumi asked in disbelief. She looked at her best friend, Yamauchi Sawa, who for some reason had the exact same appearance as her but with a different color scheme. Sawa waved her hand slightly.

"Ya, Kurumi-san." Her face became noticeably warmer. "Long time no see…but I guess that only applies to you."

"What…why…how…?" Kurumi was at a loss for words. Too much questions were popping up in her head that her tongue fumbled.

Sawa giggled at her dumbfounded face. "Kurumi-san's face is exactly what I expected to see. Of course, I understand that you have many questions. But, it's a fact that the person that is standing here is Yamauchi Sawa…" Sawa's eyes narrowed. "…the person that you ruthlessly killed."

"!" Kurumi's breath hitched. For a second, she didn't recognize the person in front of her, that disfiguration of malignant anger. Was this really the kind and gentle Sawa she knew? She tightened the grip on her gun.

"Haha, did I scare Kurumi-san?" Sawa asked. The cruel white queen was nowhere to be seen as she laughed, returning back to normal. "You don't need to worry. That matter has already been settled and to be frank, I don't want to fight with Kurumi-san again to the death."

Although Sawa reassured Kurumi, Kurumi was only left with more confusion.

"But…"

Queen turned her gaze to Mio. "… you." She started to walk over to Mio, who instinctively took a step back from the sheer amount of malice in Queen's eyes. "You are something that shouldn't been allowed to exist. Because of you, my relationship with Kurumi-san was twisted. You took away my precious days with Kurumi-san and left within me an ugly anger. It festered inside me and destructive impulses would stimulate me every moment! I hurt so many people because I was forced to, even when guilt would continue to grow inside my heart! I was torn when I had to do something I didn't want to!"

Queen clutched her chest tightly, as if to emphasize her hurting heart but Mio narrowed her eyes.

"You say all that but… why are you smiling then?" Mio saw the large smile on Queen's face even as tears were falling down her face. "You enjoyed it, didn't you?" Queen looked surprised at first. Then…

"Hahahahaha!" All traces of sorrow and anger disappeared from Queen instantly, replaced with a thrill expression. "You're right, Spirit of Origin. Seeing the anguish on their faces as I brutally tortured them, hearing the sound of bones breaking, blood splattering, flesh rotting, all of it was exhilarating. The pain and suffering that my beloved Kurumi-san gave me, isn't it unfair that only I get to experience this? Shouldn't I share this feeling with others as well? That's why I yearned to make everything mine and then destroy it! By making all those Empties fall in love with me only to later destroy all of them, maybe then, I could finally understand how Kurumi-san felt when she killed me!"

Mio shook her head. "You're insane." She could already tell the person before her had already sunk into the depths of insanity.

Mio's response only made Queen laugh. "You can call me insane but aren't you as well? For the sake of your own feelings, you thought it was okay to do anything, didn't you? For the sake of one person's life, you had others give up their own. I understand because I was the same! As long as my wish came true, I didn't care about anything else!"

Brandishing her sword and her pistol, she widely grinned. "If you hadn't come into mine or Kurumi-san's life, I would've never been able to experience such amusement. How could I not repay you back?"

Mio's face hardened. The moment the other side expressed her intention to fight her, she used Henet without precursor. However, scorn could only be seen in Queen's eyes as she smiled crazily.

"Lucifigus!" A huge white clock formed behind Queen. "Libra Bullet, Moznaim." Raising her pistol, she pulled the trigger with a condescending smile. The causality within the space was reversed and Queen allowed the light ray to strike her.

Yet, it was Mio who was damaged, a hole was in her stomach to her dismay. "Reversing cause and effect?" Mio furrowed her eyebrows. Unlike all the other Spirits, she didn't have any information on this one so she didn't know what to be wary of. That's why she tried to end the fight before her opponent could properly put up a fight but it ended up backfiring on her.

Mio decided to retreat temporarily and tried to heal her injury. She had to; her own attack which she meant to kill the opponent had hit herself instead. It took only one second to heal it but in a middle of a battle, that one second was fatal. For Queen, one second was more than enough time to load her finishing blow.

"Sagittarius Bullet, Keshet." Queen didn't hold back at all, using her strongest and fastest attack. It was a bullet that was a sword yet a sword that was a bullet. It was an attack that exceeded Mach 10, with enough destructive power to gouge out the surrounding space. Even if Mio wanted to dodge, by the time she saw the attack, she had already been hit.

The unstoppable attack containing all of Queen's power enveloped Mio in a white light. It was a blow that all the Spirits who witnessed it had their hearts racing in awe. For such firepower was capable from a mere pistol was shocking, to say none the least.

"Amazing…" Origami couldn't help but praise. However, her eyes quickly widened.

What should've been an empty nothing of space, Mio was standing in what was the remnants of a cocoon of branches. Having used Ain Soph, she had protected herself but not completely. Standing in an unsteady gait, her tinged hair sprayed across her face and her dirty skin covered with bright red blood. But, her Astral Dress was glowing dimly and her injuries were already beginning signs of recovery.

Queen harrumphed. "I hoped to finish you with Keshet but as expected, you won't go down that easily." Despite Mio's weakened state, Queen didn't want to risk getting close to her. Spinning the saber in her hand into a reverse grip, she drew back her hand, loading up her arm.

"Virgo Sword, Betulah." Queen threw the saber, landing right square into Mio's chest. Running through her, the tip of the sword created a crack in space behind her.

She's trying to remove me away from the battlefield! Mio didn't know where she was being sent to and would take time for her to come back. She tried to pull the saber out but ended up only coughing a copious amount of blood. Keshet had dealt serious damage and with the momentum of the thrown saber, Mio was pushed into the crack successfully and disappeared.

"Hmph, that should buy us some time. Though, at most, it will only be a few minutes." Once Queen saw that Mio was gone, she made her way back towards Shido's group. Needless to say, all of them were cautious of her. They all saw the lunatic smile Queen had as she had dealt with Mio.

Tohka approached Shido from behind. Looking carefully at Queen, she said, "Shido, that power…"

"Yeah, a Demon King," Shido confirmed Tohka's suspicions. "And an especially powerful one at that too." Even if Mio was partially sealed, the power that Queen displayed was nothing short other of dominating.

"Sawa-san…" Kurumi thought there was something sinister about Sawa but it was greater than she could ever imagine. "You hate me, don't you?"

There was a short pause. "If someone asked me who I hated the most, it would be you, Kurumi-san." Sawa's voice was stoic as her eyes coolly rested on Kurumi.

"I… see," Kurumi replied.

"But the more I hate you…" Sawa closed her eyes resignedly. "…the more I realize how much you mean to me. We were best friends, after all. If one person was happy, the other was also happy. If one person was sad, the other was also sad. We did everything together and it was fun.

"But, I'm not the same Sawa you know. I'm also a monster that wants to make everything mine and destroy it. I can't deny this side that has already become a part of me. Yamauchi Sawa cannot exist without Queen existing too. They are the same person now. Tokisaki Kurumi, I love you but at the same time, I hate that I love you. That's why I…" Sawa's voice sharpened for a moment. Once again, the cruel white queen persona appeared and then disappeared as Sawa took a deep breath, getting herself under control. "Enough. Right now, I'm Yamauchi Sawa, Kurumi-san's best friend."

Although Sawa had said that to reassure Kurumi and the others, it was as if she was also speaking to herself.

Sawa once again focused on Kurumi with a gentle smile. "I remember your wish of hoping to find someone dear to you…" She turned her head to glance at Shido. "…and I see that you finally found one. I'm glad your love blossomed."

Kurumi also turned to look at Shido. "Yes. He's the most wonderful person I ever met. I won't let go of him no matter what."

Sawa giggled. "Yes. I've been watching from afar and from what I've seen, Kurumi-san is very happy with her current life. Although, make sure to not have too much fun with him." Sawa gave a knowing look to Kurumi, causing her to slightly blush. She teased, "I never knew Kurumi-san could be so indecent."

"Ara ara, if you had a taste, you would understand too…" Kurumi teased back but stopped.

She saw Sawa sporadically blink like an unstable holographic image. Noticing Kurumi's shock, Sawa looked at her hand which flickered in and out of existence.

She explained, "Since I'm not in the Neighboring World anymore, my body is quite unstable. I'm surprised I lasted this long to be honest. But, I overexerted myself with that last attack of mine. There won't be much time for me left."

Sawa pointed her gun at Kurumi. "Before I disappear, I'm going to pass on all my power to you. With this bullet, I'm certain Kurumi-san will be able to defeat her. Is that alright, Kurumi-san?"

Kurumi looked at Sawa with shaken eyes. Seeing her best friend again was something that she never thought would happen yet when she did, she was going to have to separate again from her. "Sawa-san, I…"

"I know. I already know. Everything that Kurumi-san wants to tell me, I've already received from you." Sawa said. "I also have much more to say to you but I believe that it would be quicker if you used your Yud bullet on me. So, please, accept it, this piece of my existence."

Kurumi wanted to say more but once she saw Sawa's expression, she could only nod.

Both of them lifted their guns, arms crossing with the barrel aimed at each other's heads. There was no malicious intent on either side as they prepared to pull the trigger.

"Ne, Kurumi-san. I've done some really bad things that you'll soon see. Even knowing that, am I still… your friend?"

"The best."

They both smiled.

"Scorpio Bullet, Akrab."

"Tenth Bullet, Yud."

Both of them fired at the same time, the bullets reaching their respective targets. Almost instantly, Kurumi collapsed to the floor, unconscious. Sawa also staggered but not as severely as Kurumi, merely clutched her head.

"Kurumi!" Shido, who was waiting on the side, rushed towards Kurumi, worry on his face but Sawa reassured him.

"Don't worry. Akrab gave all of my power at once so there's just a temporary shock. She's not in danger."

Shido sighed in relief. "Thank you. Are you okay?" He noticed that there was a slightly pain look on her face.

"Haha, I'm fine. Thank you for asking though."

With a smile, Queen lightly approached him with graceful steps. Her white attire made her stand out in the wasted battlefield. Shido once again unsettled by how she looked exactly like Kurumi as she watched him in a sophisticated manner, as if pondering about something.

After a while, she opened her mouth. "King, before I disappear, can you grant a selfish wish of mine then? I would like to confirm something."

"Gladly." Shido nodded.

However, he was taken aback when her face took up his view. Queen tiptoed to slightly raise herself and grabbed the back of his head with a soft touch. His head had already turned blank as he felt something wet squeeze between his lips.

"Mmm?!"

As if a beast who had been waiting for all her life for this, Queen thoroughly violated his mouth. Her long tongue wrapped around his and plunged as deep as it could in his mouth. Shido couldn't help but notice how familiar the kiss was, as if he was kissing Kurumi.

Shido didn't know how much time had passed but it was Queen who ended the kiss. He found himself letting out a short breath as she looked at him in a profound manner. She touched her bottom lip tentatively with a finger.

"…you taste more delicious than I thought."

"…" Shido, who was mesmerized with pleasure and shame, had no answer.

Queen chuckled. "If Kurumi-san hadn't already taken you, I would've claimed you for myself. After all, you returned my kiss so passionately as if you were trying to take me to bed. Ah, is it because I look like her? I wouldn't mind letting you have another taste then."

"I…" Steam erupted from Shido's bright red face. Wasn't this their first time meeting? Why was she acting so intimate with him? Of course, he knew he was also in the wrong for losing himself in the kiss but her eyes were scaring him. It was the same look that Kurumi gave him during their nights.

Shido looked at Queen, who licked her lips, her lithe tongue sneakily making lewd sounds. When he imagined how that tongue had lapped with his own, he couldn't take it anymore and collapsed to the ground.

"Shido!" Tohka and Origami immediately rushed to his side before glaring at the White Queen, who chuckled at their open hostility before looking at herself.

The fact that nothing is happening… Queen looked at her Astral Dress, which showed no signs of disappearing despite the fact that she had kissed Shido, a person capable of sealing Spirits but only under one condition. I guess I was obsessed with the idea of being in love and not love itself.

Queen laughed, causing Shido and the others to curiously look at her but she didn't care as she felt her heart become lighter at the revelation.

It was only after a while did Queen finally regain control of herself. She looked at Tohka and Origami. "If you two want to defeat the First Spirit, it's best to utilize the power of a Qlipha Crystal. It'll be easier to damage her that way."

"Qlipha Crystal…" Shido muttered. Mio originally created the Qlipha Crystals but since their nature was incompatible with humans, she purified them which resulted in the birth of Sephira Crystals but in the process, the Crystals became weaker. So, Shido understood why Queen wanted them to use the power of Qlipha. However, for a Sephira to revert back to a Qlipha, the Spirit needed undergo an Inversion and for that to happen…

Queen noticed his hesitation and assured him. "Don't worry. I know this is usually impossible without experiencing despair but according to my observation, the two of them are special cases."

When Tohka and Origami heard this, a strange expression appeared on their face. They didn't completely understand what that meant but something in their subconscious stirred when hearing those words.

"King… no, Itsuka Shido." Shido focused his attention upon hearing Sawa's voice. Sawa's condition was now severe, her body constantly flickering but despite this, Sawa calmly looked at him.

"Please take care of Kurumi-san."

"I will." Shido nodded without hesitation to which Sawa smiled gently. She understood why Kurumi loved this person.

"Thank you."

With those words, Sawa was erased from the world, leaving no traces as if she had never been there.

.

.

.

Chapter 07: War Part 2

The cross exchange of bullets between Kurumi and Sawa allowed Kurumi to gain two things.

Sawa's bullet, Akrab allowed Kurumi to gain all of Sawa's power, which included Lucifugus and its abilities. The transfer was smooth as Zafkiel and Lucifugus are two sides of the same coin.

Kurumi's bullet, Yud allowed Kurumi to gain Sawa's memories, reliving Sawa's entire journey in the Neighboring World: from her gaining the Inverse Kurumi's body to her final match with Kurumi's clone and the Quasi-Spirit, Hibiki. She learned everything Sawa had went through, including the atrocities she caused and her goal of destroying the Neighboring World. It was only at the very end with the help of Kurumi's clone was she able to regained her original kindness.

Once Kurumi finally opened her eyes, she had assumed the form of the white queen.

"Are you alright, Kurumi?" Shido was by her side, waiting for her to regain consciousness.

She replied. "Yes, in fact, I feel as if I have all the power in the world. Ah, so this is how a Qlipha Crystal feels like. Perhaps I should've inversed a long time ago." Kurumi teasingly joked, making Shido laugh awkwardly at the notion.

Tohka had closed her eyes, sending her conscious deep inside her Sephira Crystal. After hearing Queen's words, she realized what she had to do. Please, help Shido, other me! She thought loudly. Soon enough, she heard a dark but warm voice, "You've done well against our mother. Leave it to me and get some rest." That was the last thing Tohka remembered before her consciousness blacked out.

"Tohka?" Shido was alerted as darkness wrapped around Tohka. Her Astral Dress became dark-purple and more revealing. Her gaze became sterner, her cold face exuding an unapproachable aura.

"You dare call me by that name, human?" Shido flinched at her brutal response but the inverse Spirit expanded. "That name is specifically for the other me. If you make that mistake again, I'll kill you."

"O-oh, I see. Then, how about… Tenka?" To his suggestion, Tenka turned her head with a humph but she didn't seem to dislike it.

Origami had also changed as her white dress became black, and her face became more expressive with a red tint of shyness. "Ah, Itsuka-kun, it's been quite a while since you've seen me like this." Shido instantly recognizing that pattern of speech. "Are you that Origami?"

Origami smiled. "I'm glad Itsuka-kun recognizes me. I already got the gist of the situation since I share memories with my other self. Itsuka-kun, how do you feel being protected by three Inverses?"

"Haha. I never expected things to turn out this way." Shido realized that this situation was one of a kind. But, there was no time to savor the situation.

The scenery around them suddenly turned into a space of black and white. Shido was surprised by the sudden shift but before he realized what was going on, Origami had already grabbed Shido and blinked a few meters away in a dark flash.

Boom!

The place where Shido was standing in before now had a huge crater. In the center was Mio, who had tried to capture Shido but failed due to Origami's intervention. Seeing that Shido had escaped, she dashed towards Origami with a branch sword in hand.

"You bastard, I still haven't repaid you for last time." Tenka dashed towards Mio and swung her sword. Mio had no choice but to lock swords with her as they soon engaged in a flurry of exchanges. Shockingly, the two of them were dead even, not one of them overwhelming the other in terms of sword skill.

However, Tenka's ankle was caught by one of Ain Soph's branches that had emerged from the ground. Tenka clicked her tongue and exerting more strength into her leg, quickly freed herself. Mio knew such a move wouldn't be able to stop Tenka but she had only wanted to disrupt her tempo and forcefully create a moment of opportunity.

"You're mine…!" Mio was brandishing her sword when she suddenly felt goosebumps crawl over her body. Quickly changing the route of her sword, she raised her sword to protect herself.

Endless penetrating black rays fell from the sky like rain from the sky. They overwhelmed Mio's sword and stabbed into her, making blood spurt from her body. Such an instantaneous yet oppressive attack was only capable from Satan, Origami's Demon King.

In a battle against multiple opponents, it was hard to gain the upper hand if the enemy had splendid teamwork, covering each other's weakness while combining their strengths. Mio couldn't help but lament at her sealed state; if she was at full strength, teamwork or not, she could've easily dominated the battle.

However, she was one being dominated now as Tenka's sword once again came to bite her. As if karma was at work, Tenka was the one who was granted a moment of opportunity instead of Mio, who was distracted by Origami's attack.

Slash!

A huge gash was made into Mio's Astral Dress, sending Mio flying. However, Tenka frowned. She knew her sword didn't cut deep enough based on the lack of resistance from her sword; Mio had jumped back at the last moment and had used the momentum of Tenka's attack to escape Origami's oppressive firing.

"Cancer Sword, Sartan."

While Mio was escaping, Kurumi swung her saber and sent multiple sword slashes towards her. Having read Mio's movement, she timed the attack, coordinating with Origami and Tenka so that the attack would corner her.

You leave me no choice! Mio was wary of Kurumi's bullet and saber abilities and if possible, wanted to avoid them. However, with Origami's relentless coverage of the air and Tenka's position which covered her retreat path, she decided that it was better to block the attack then waste time dodging and allowing the others to flank her.

Turning her sword into a shield, she planned to bulldoze her way through the slashes and allow her shield to take the brunt of the attacks.

Slash! Slash!

The attacks phased through the shield as if they didn't exist to Mio's horror. Blood was sprayed everywhere as the slashes brutally lacerated Mio from the front… and the behind at the same time. She didn't know but Sartan had two abilities. The first was to warp space-time with its blade, including permeating through space. That's how it went through the shield and hit Mio.

The second ability was that for each slash Kurumi made, it was copied from the opposite direction, causing the target to be sandwiched in both directions in a pincer attack. Mio realized this too late as she took the full brunt of Kurumi's attack from both ends.

However, Mio didn't halt as she rushed towards Kurumi with recklessness, determined to kill her. She decided that Kurumi was too much of a variable to leave on the battlefield. Although she had already encountered Tenka's Nahemah and Origami's Satan before, this was her first time seeing Kurumi's Lucifugus and thus, couldn't come up with a concrete plan to counter it. The sooner she got rid of her, the more her heart could be at ease from the fear of the unknown.

"Ain!" A small seed of blinding light formed in Mio's palm. Although it was sealed, Mio used every bit of her strength to form her Angel. She advanced through all of Kurumi's slashes and incorporated all her strength, sent a palm strike with Ain towards Kurumi.

Ain was Mio's trump card and had the power to erase whatever she desires from reality. Mio would've been able to illuminate an entire area with Ain's light but since it was sealed, the tiny seed was only able to manifest its original form. However, Mio knew this was enough to induce death the moment it touched Kurumi.

Kurumi immediately felt terrifying fear upon seeing the seed of light. Her instinct telling her that if the attack hit her, death was inevitable. Use Moznaim? No, she had just finished using Sartan and didn't have time to ready the gun. Mio's decisiveness to disregard everything else was enough to deliver a blow that Kurumi had no chance of dodging or blocking. It was an attack that would 100% succeed.

Kurumi's blue clock eye ticked.

"Castle of Conquering Space."

With a single thought, Kurumi opened her personal domain that was unique to Lucifugus and the mirror to Zafkiel's "City of Devouring Time." In an instance, she had brought everybody, excluding Shido, into a separate independent space.

The space was completely white and empty, the marble white floor spreading limitlessly such that none could see the ends of the space. It gave off a simple but serene ambience. Mio observed the space in a split second but was left confused. She didn't feel her Reiryoku being siphoned away like with Zafkiel's "City of Devouring Time" and there was nothing here that would stop her from killing Kurumi. So, why did Kurumi deploy this space?

"…?" A perplexed reaction was seen on Mio's face. Something had changed in Kurumi's gaze, as they became profoundly deep and mysterious. It was as if she digging out every little detail about her. Mio continued her attack unfalteringly but an unpleasant feeling rose in her heart.

Slow. In Kurumi's eye, Mio, who had seemed so fast just a moment ago, looked as if she was moving in slow-speed. It was as if a whole new world was revealed to Kurumi. She was able to see things she couldn't see before and move in a way that she hadn't thought was possible.

This was the power of Lucifugus "Castle of Conquering Space". Unlike Zafkiel's "City of Devouring Time" which was the ultimate replenishment, Lucifugus "Castle of Conquering Space" was the ultimate enhancement.

In this space, everything was revealed to Kurumi. Every movement, even a blink of an eye, was seen and analyzed by Kurumi. Every single detail was being thoroughly broken down in Kurumi's eyes as she determined the perfect attack and defense, drawing her white saber in front of her in an unhurried manner despite the apparent certain death blow in front of her.

Rip!

Mio's hand that would've pierce Kurumi's heart was instead sent flying away by Kurumi's saber instead.

Mio's eyes shook as her right arm was severed from her body. However, the pain wasn't what shocked her but the instinctual helplessness that Kurumi's deep gaze invoked; she felt everything she did would be analyzed and countered no matter what she did.

"Taurus Sword, Shawl." Kurumi's speed suddenly increased as she performed multiple thrusts per second towards Mio who was currently disarmed. Most opponents wouldn't have been able to adapt to the sudden acceleration and be defeated but Mio competently endured even without a weapon. Yet, Kurumi's sword mercilessly stabbed into Mio and no matter what counterattack Mio tried, whether it was using Ain Soph Aur's light or Ain Soph's branches, they were all useless in front of Kurumi, who easily predicted and moved in a manner of attacking and defending at the same time.

"Nahemah." Tenka rose up in the air while Mio was tangled with Kurumi's attack. An intense pressure was released as Tenka gripped her sword, her throne broken and added to her sword. "Paverschlev." Descending down with ferocious momentum, her dark sword swung down with heavy pressure, the space rippling in response to her descent.

I will lose if I get hit. Mio immediately judged. Kurumi was persistently latching on to her, not letting her escape. If she was distracted for even a split-second, Kurumi would seize the opportunity to kill her. However, she knew that unless Kurumi also wanted to be hit by Tenka's attack, she would eventually have to move.

Mio was correct. However, it was only until the very last moment did Kurumi instantly dashed away. Mio had only 0.4 second until the dark sword crushed her. However, that was enough time for Mio to put up a solid defense.

"Ain Soph!" Mio put up her only remaining hand and using all of her power, created an impenetrable shield. The sword instantly pushed down on the shield, causing Mio to go down a knee but the shield's resistance was steadfast, not letting the attack go through.

Even so, Tenka didn't stop and only pushed down on her sword more. As if encountering something insignificant, she clicked her tongue and increased the pressure of her attack, pouring more of her weight into the sword.

Wounds began to rapidly increase on Mio's body. Mio felt as if the shield would smash her into the ground but she gritted her teeth, not letting herself fall.

"Satan."

Mio's face turned pale as hundreds of black rays rained from the side and pierced her body. The number of them was too high for Mio who had to endure Tenka's sword. The shield that had showed no signs of breaking before immediately collapsed.

Boom!

…

Mio survived the attack. However, her body was in a catastrophic state. She could barely stand, her bones cracking with each step she took and blood was dripping from all over her body due to various of lacerations. There was a specific cut on her forehead that kept causing blood to seep into her right eye. Due to the Tenka's attack, there was too much smoke for Mio to properly see, not being able to identify where the other Spirits were.

"Gemini Bullet, Teonim." Mio could her a gun shot in the near distance. Mio braced herself, preparing to get hit but no bullet came in her directions. However, the gun shots continued nonstop.

"Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim. Teonim…"

When the smoke finally cleared, Mio laughed in vain.

The battlefield was filled with a multitude of white Kurumis, the number too many to count. If she had to guess however, the minimum was at least a hundred. Kurumi smiled hysterically. "Now then, Mio-san, please struggle as much as possible. An easy checkmate isn't fun after all, right?"

Mio understood then that the conclusion of the battle had finally drawn near.

When Mio was about to stab Kurumi in the heart, Shido's heart almost stopped.

"Kurumi!"

Yet, before he even started saying her name, Kurumi had deployed the "Castle of Conquering Space". By the time he finished her name, he was the only one left on the battlefield and was instead, found facing a white distorted space. He had tried to enter but it wasn't any use.

Seeing that Tenka and Origami was also gone, he deciphered that Kurumi had intentionally left him out so that Mio wouldn't be able to take him. And, considering how this space was a result of Kurumi's ability and didn't disappear yet, Kurumi had at least survived Mio's attack.

Shido initially decided to wait.

But, one minute passed. Then, two minutes passed.

Once three minutes went by, anxiousness was starting to show on his face. Even though three minutes could be considered a short amount of time, in a fight, a single second could decide the result. This was especially the case for Spirits. These Spirits were making dozens of instantaneous decisions where a split-second delay of action could cost one their life.

It would be one thing if he was able to see Kurumi and the others but he couldn't, causing his heart grow uneasy. Just when he couldn't take it anymore, the white space shivered away.

Shido immediately shifted his focus. He noticed Origami, Tenka, and Kurumi were all safe. Even though they were all roughed up a bit, their life wasn't in any critical condition.

Where's Mio? Shido wondered, while running towards the three of them. However, the moment he arrived, an involuntary trauma took hold of his body.

Blood. An overwhelming amount of blood spilling from what could barely be a body. It was an abhorrent sight that would cause any bystander to instinctively turn their eyes away due to the gruesomeness. It was Mio, who was alive but on the verge of death.

Her body were full of deep injuries and vicious slashes. She was on her knees…no, her left leg was missing which was why she was on the ground. Her disconnected right arm was seen next to her, blood still leaking from the severed area. Her Astral Dress was in poor shape, part of it dissolving into particles of light.

Gari gari gari gari.

A noisy sound could be heard. Shido realized that there was a bullet leaving a white trail and while it wasn't as fast as a normal bullet. it seemed that this bullet was able to be moved manually. As for how he knew that, that was because he was personally watching the bullet gnaw through Mio's body, going in and out of Mio's body in a loop. Mio's face was blank and unmoving however, her mind already overloaded from shock and pain. If it wasn't for Shido's faint connection with her, he would've thought she was already dead.

Even though Mio was their enemy, this was too much for Shido.

"Mio!" Shido tried to help Mio but Tenka immediately held him back by holding the back collar of his shirt. "Don't go there, human." Shido tried to argue back but Tenka pointed towards the white trail left by the bullet. "The trail left behind by that bullet is devoured space and right now, that woman is basically surrounded by that. If you touch that, you'll be annihilated. Understand now, human?"

Tenka let him go once he expressed his understanding. Shido then turned to Kurumi. She didn't even seem to have detect his presence. Instead, her entire attention was on Mio as she pierced Mio's body with her bullet. With a psychotic smile, her moniker as the Worst Spirit could be seen.

"Kurumi, stop!" Shido ran towards Kurumi and grabbed the gun, grabbing her attention. When she realized Shido was in front of her, she immediately put her "Leo Bullet, Arie" on hold but not releasing it.

"Ah, Shido-san. I didn't even notice you. Look, Shido-san. We won." Kurumi gave a smile but Shido wasn't in the mood for celebration. "Kurumi, that's enough. Our objective is to seal Mio, not kill her." Kurumi's mood was dampened as her gaze slightly sharpened. "Yes, that was initially our goal but that was based on the preconception that Mio-san was impossible to kill. However, we now have the perfect opportunity to get rid of this Spirit once and for all."

Shido shook his head. "No, that goes against Ratatoskr's policy. Our goal is to give Spirits a chance for a normal life through sealing them." Kurumi gave a glance at Mio before stating, "Yes. That's true but how can the same be applied for Mio? If she wanted a normal life, with her power, she could've easily attained such a thing but she didn't. She knew the consequences and willingly hurt many people with her choices. Even if we spare her, she won't give up and will eventually kill the rest of us in order to revive Shin. Killing her is our safest option."

"That's…" Shido went silent, not being able to answer.

Kurumi sighed. "I know Shido-san never killed anybody before so I understand your hesitation. I won't force Shido-san to watch me kill her. Rest assured, I'll properly kill her without subjecting her to further torture out of consideration for Shido-san. So please step aside now."

Kurumi gave him a final look. This was the last warning. No matter what he would say, nothing would change her mind. She was dead set on killing Mio.

"But…" Shido was still conflicted. There was nothing wrong with what Kurumi said. Mio had mercilessly killed their friends; if they were to kill her, nobody would berate them for it.

Shido looked at Mio. Her eyes had already given up and any hint of resistance that might've existed was completely gone. She already accepted her fate of death the moment she lost.

Drop. Yet, something fell from Mio's dress and caught Shido's eye. Right next to Mio laid a small blue teddy bear. Although it was old and had lots of patches, Shido recognized from Mio's memories that it was the gift Shin had given to her. Even after all this time, she had held on to it.

Mio, who hadn't even moved a single inch ever since Shido came, finally turned her head and looked at the blue bear. A tear fell from Mio's pale face as her eyes trembled and her lips pursed.

The moment Shido saw Mio in that state, he knew his decision.

"No, Kurumi. I won't let you kill her." Shido said with a resolute voice, tightening his grip on Kurumi's gun. He might be being foolish here but he couldn't abandon a person who was clearly suffering in front of him.

"Shido-san, there's no other choice." Kurumi glared at Shido but Shido didn't back down. "That's not true. Before, the only thing that mattered to her was Shin and those feelings shackled her for 30 years. She felt she had no choice but to revive Shin."

Shido turned his head towards Mio. "But, I believe that's not completely the case anymore. She may not know it herself but I believe her world had expanded to more than just Shin. As for how I know, amn't I proof?" Shido pointed to himself. "Even if I have all 10 Sephira Crystals, Mio wouldn't have been able to be sealed if she didn't open her heart to me."

"Kurumi," Shido said, looked at Kurumi straight in the eyes. "I won't deny that Mio was wrong. But, she isn't an evil person. I believe that she's able to change."

"… what if I said I didn't care about any of that and want to kill Mio for my own personal satisfaction?"

"Kurumi, I know how you feel but please, give her another chance. I also… don't want to see you kill another person."

"…" Kurumi looked at Shido with an unreadable expression. She found herself in front of those eyes again, the same ones he had when he first protected her from Kotori and the reason why she fell in love with him.

"Aaghhh!" Kurumi screamed stressfully, giving everybody else a little jump. She raised both of her hands up and roughly ran them through her hair. Why did she have to fall in love with this hopeless idiot who's willing to spare the person that about to kill all of them for her own purpose?

But… it was that same hopelessness that Shido was willing to save herself and the same thing that she fell in love with.

While Kurumi was deliberating heavily, Origami spoke up.

"Kurumi-san, I think we should believe in Itsuka-kun. Wasn't he always like this? Always willing to save those in need. That's why we fell in love with him in the first place." Origami smiled at Shido, who scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

"Hmph, to be honest, I personally think we should get rid of that monster." Tenka gave a steely face as she looked at Mio. Shido opened his mouth to retort but Tenka wasn't done. "However, when 'Tohka' was suffering – human, you were the one that reached out towards her and let her feel something other than solitude and despair. So, do whatever you want."

"Really?" Shido's surprised but happy expression garnered Tenka's ire. "Don't look at me like that. This is not my decision. Tohka seems to be strongly agreeing with you so I'm just going along with her."

"Thank you, Tenka." Shido smiled brightly at her.

"…hmph." Tenka quickly turned her head away but Shido thought he saw a small smile on the corner of her lips but that might have been his imagination.

Kurumi saw that everybody agreed on sparing Mio and could only sigh helplessly. She canceled her "Arie", making the bullet disappear. Naturally, the white trail that had surrounded Mio also disappeared. She then nodded a little towards Mio, gesturing for Shido to go.

Shido gratefully acknowledged Kurumi's permission. Walking towards Mio, he knelt down in front of her and grabbed her attention.

"Shido, I…" Mio wanted to say something but was stopped as Shido kissed her softly. Mio shook a bit before closing her eyes in relief and allowed the sealing process to be completed.

Mio was still in critical condition so Shido tried to use Camael's power. Putting his palm on her shoulder, a gentle flame sprouted from his hand and immersed Mio. Although she showed signs of healing, Shido furrowed his eyebrows.

It's not enough. The severity of her wounds and his unfamiliarity of healing other people made the healing process very slow. At this rate, Mio would die before he got the chance to recover enough of her life force.

"Aquarius Bullet, D'li." Out of the blue, Kurumi raised her gun and shot at Mio's forehead before Shido could react. Shido first thought that Kurumi had a sudden change of heart but realized that wasn't the case.

"This is…" To Shido's amazement, Mio's body started to rapidly heal, all of her injuries disappearing and her missing limbs being completely restored. It was as if her previous condition was just but a lie.

"What?" Kurumi asked when she saw Shido staring at her in surprise. "If we're planning to spare her, might as well heal her as well. Besides, I wouldn't want Shido-san to waste any more energy on her."

Kurumi continued. "Takamiya Mio, don't ever forget that you're only alive because of Shido-san's kindness. If you ever harbor even the slightest hint of ill-intent towards him again, I'll make sure you regret it for all eternity."

"I'll keep that in mind," Mio replied. She was actually surprised. Kurumi should've wanted nothing more than to kill her yet Kurumi had foregone it for Shido's sake. It meant that Kurumi's life, which once only solely revolved around getting revenge on her, now had something else more important to her. Of course, she knew what it was.

Shin, I'll be moving on. Mio smiled. If Kurumi was able to change, she should be able to as well. Her life that had stopped for 30 years now had something else besides Shin. Even if it was only for one year, the time she spent with Shido and the others had opened her heart. She made the resolve to protect everybody in the future and protect their happiness.

"Shido, your friends may have a chance of resurrection." Mio gave a ridiculous proposal as Shido looked at Mio in shock. "I thought that you couldn't revive people…" If Mio was able to revive people, she would have immediately revived Shin the moment he died and none of this would've happened.

"I'm not 100% certain but …" Mio looked at Kurumi as she continued. "…it may be possible to revert time and bring them back using the Sephira Crystals as the catalysts. But, time is one of the few things I can't manipulate so I will be needing Kurumi's help."

In a way, Mio was jealous of Kurumi for having power over time. If she had such power, she would've saved Shin by going back in time and preventing his death just like how Kurumi had saved Shido from the throes of death. Mio sighed but she knew there was no point of thinking about such things.

When Shido heard Mio's explanation, he looked at Kurumi hopefully. Kurumi noticed his look and sighed. "To think I would be working again with Mio-san, how cruel fate can be. Very well, give me your hand, Mio-san."

Kurumi released her Inverse form and returned back to her original Rasiel dress. Having Rasiel float in front of her and holding Zafkiel in one hand, she took Mio's hand and began to fuse their Reiryoku together. Both of them closed their eyes, not wanting to be distracted. They couldn't afford a single room for mistake with such an important matter.

Soon, Zafkiel's clock and Mio's Ain Soph's tree appeared as shadows and light began to merge with each other. Kurumi set her pistol to the number 4, planning on using the Fourth Bullet, Dalet. Dalet rewinds the time of the shot target but it wasn't able to resurrect those already dead. However, with Mio's assistance, a miracle was able to take place.

"Fourth Origin Bullet, Dalet Chayim."

Kurumi's bullet shot into the sky and radiated a beautiful light. It illuminated the entire sky and shone down on the entire battlefield. Everything the light touched had its life restored or rather, regained its previous life. "Dalet Chayim" had basically reset the environment as if the battle had never taken place. The ground became green again, the trees turned back to full blossom, the roads and buildings became fixed. All the Sephira Crystals which had emerged from Mio began to glow with their respective colors, giving off a beautiful shine of multitude colors. Soon enough, the deceased Spirits had their bodies restored with their Sephira Crystal inside them.

Once they opened their eyes, they saw Shido with Kurumi, Tohka (Tenka had switched out seeing that the battle was now over), Origami, and Mio. Although they were disoriented at first, Shido explained everything that had happened, including how Mio was now sealed and how she helped Kurumi revive them.

"I know what I did was unforgivable to all of you. I'm willing to atone for the rest of my life and if you so wish, will offer my life if you so desire."

Mio gave her promise that she would never harm them again and while some of the Spirits were initially skeptical of her intentions, when they saw how earnest her face was and how Shido was vouching for her, they quickly made up with Mio.

When Mio saw their warm reactions to her, she realized again how wrongly she had treated them and promised herself that she would never forsake these precious relationships ever again.

Shido was glad to see that the Spirits getting together as Kotori transported them onto Ratatoskr to return home. They had celebratory victory as they were able to spend time with Mio and saw that she acted the same way as Reine, except with more care and motherly. All was well as the Spirit Mansion was filled with laughter and smile.

"Shido-san, thank you for the meal today. It was delicious."

Shido had just finished washing the dishes when a sultry voice in his ear caught him off guard. However, he calmed down as soon as he saw who it was.

"Ah, thank you, Kurumi," Shido responded after calming down from his initial shock. He still wasn't used to her whispering into his ear out of nowhere.

Seeing that she had his full attention, Kurumi asked, "May I have a moment of Shido-san's time? I have something I want to talk about in private."

"Right now?"

"Yes, is that a problem?"

Shido hesitated. He looked towards the side to see the chaos that was ensuing: a half-delirious Nia trying to convince Yoshino to drink, the Yamai sisters making a mess from their competition, Miku chasing around Natsumi per usual, and Origami brewing a pot that had purple smoke coming out for some reason.

He felt if he left at this state, the house would be in shambles. However, Mio seemed to have noticed his dilemma as when she caught his worried gaze, she gently smiled and gestured with her hand that he could leave it to her.

"No, it's fine." Shido finally answered to Kurumi, who after seeing his compliance, gave a little nod.

"Then, please come with me to my room."

Upon Kurumi's invitation, they left the living room, discreetly leaving the other Spirits amongst themselves. Of course, some of the Spirits were aware of their exit.

"Umu, I wonder what Kurumi wants to talk about with Shido?" Tohka curiously tilted her head. "Should I check on them?"

"I wouldn't suggest doing that," Kotori replied. "What Kurumi wants to talk to him about is probably sensitive."

"Umu?"

"Kurumi's life mission was to kill the Mio. Yet, in the end, we decided to spare Mio. How do you think Kurumi is feeling then?"

"Are you saying…" Tohka finally caught on to what Kotori was trying to say.

Kotori nodded. "It mustn't be easy for her. She killed many people in her path and her heart must be worn out from the negative sentiments. She must've only been able to handle it because she thought it was necessary to kill Mio but due to Shido, killing Mio is out of the question. To dedicate her entire life for a goal only for it to go down the drain, the despair she must be hiding from us is something I can't even imagine."

She sighed in sympathy. "Let's give them some privacy for now." Tohka nodded in agreement.

Of course, Kotori considered the small chance that they were actually just fooling around but she quickly discarded it. The face Kurumi had made when talking to Shido didn't seem to give off that vibe.

I'm sure that they wouldn't do something like that when we're all here, right?

…

"Mmmm, Shido-san~."

Kurumi moaned sensuously as she passionately kissed Shido, her hands latched onto his head. If Kotori had seen this, she would've asked for them to return her consideration.

Shido had followed Kurumi upstairs and into her room. When they both entered, Kurumi closed the door and without restraint, immediately threw herself into his embrace and pressed her lips against his. Half expecting this would be the case, Shido was already prepared and wrapped his arms around her.

The kiss which initially started off soft and gentle turned more passionate as she opened her mouth, inviting his tongue in. Their tongues heatedly clashed with each other, tasting each other's saliva with fervor. He felt her well-endowed breasts press against him and her leg wrapping around him.

"Wait, we shouldn't do this." Shido quickly regained his senses as he gently pushed her away, much to Kurumi's dissatisfaction. However, he further explained, "Someone could see us!"

Even though they were alone in Kurumi's room, the Spirits were right downstairs. It wasn't like all the other times when they were in an isolated place. There was still a possibility that one of them could walk up and catch them in the act.

"We need to hurry ba-mmph!" Shido stopped as he quickly stopped a moan from being let out, the reason being Kurumi's soft fingers that were lightly stroking his dick.

"Ara, what a cute sound that was." Kurumi smiled as her hand flicked deftly. His face went unbearably red as he felt his erection grow in her hand. "Don't be shy. I would love to hear you moan." Kneeling down, she pulled down his bottoms, revealing a huge rod in front of her. With a smirk, she gently blew on it and with her soft lips kissed the tip, making him tremble immensely.

"May I?" she teasingly asked. She looked so seductive as she looked up at him with his dick in her hand, smiling invitingly. Shido's resolve weakened tremendously when he saw the stirring scene in front of him.

"…you have to be quick," he said weakly.

"Ufufu, that depends on Shido-san then, doesn't it?" Kurumi giggled once she saw his compliance, stroking it in a maddening manner, his member already twitching nonstop in her grasp. "Of course, I have no doubts that Shido-san is eager to cum in my mouth, right?"

"Do-don't make fun of me." Shido stammered with a blush, causing Kurumi to giggle. Kurumi thought it was too cute to see him act in such a chaste manner, despite everything they've done now. She loved that part of him endearingly.

But, she secretly got off from seeing his innocent face twist into a more degenerate and perverted one. Call her crazy but she loved the way his pure face would turn red and how his clear eyes would go into a slight daze as he would pant and moan, consumed in lust for her. It was why she enjoyed seducing him and watching his self-control and resistance break because of her.

Parting her soft lips, Kurumi slid the head of his dick inside her mouth. Shido was doing his best to look composed but once her tongue came into play, he was lost.

"Kurumi…"

Gently and slowly, she took long licks across the underside of his shaft, covering every inch with her saliva. Her fingers holding the base, she moaned as his stiffness twitched against her lips. Motivated, she wrapped her tongue around his head before she began to suck it like a lollipop, sending Shido to euphoria. The soft and wet feeling his dick felt from being in her mouth was shocking to say the least.

"Ahh, Kurumi…" Despite trying to stay quiet in fear of being heard by others, Shido couldn't help but let out a deep moan. This only encouraged Kurumi as she saw the lustful look that he was giving her. That was exactly what she wanted to see: that unrestrained yearning and desire. At this moment, the only thing he could see was Tokisaki Kurumi and only her.

"Mmmm…"

Hearing Shido's groans were only encouraged Kurumi further. She tucked her hair behind her ear, not letting it get in her way as she took more of him inside her, deepthroating him. She could feel the tip pushing at the back of her throat and she loved it. Her lips started to stroke his shaft as his cock pushed in gratifyingly. Kurumi would pull back a little, but not because it was too much for her but only to push down harder with more momentum and take him deeper than he could ever imagine into her throat. At this point, he was basically fucking her mouth as he started to buck his hips with breathless moans.

"Ku-Kurumi, I'm… I'm gonna…" Shido gritted his teeth as he grabbed onto her hair to stabilize himself. He hoped he wasn't being rough; thankfully, Kurumi seemed to like it as her stroking became more intense. His groans became louder and his dick was pulsating uncontrollably. He was about to release it and she knew it as well. She sucked in and squeezed his dick between her tongue and the roof of her mouth as if to swallow it whole. The hot pressure was deathly to the delirious Shido.

"Uuuggghhhh!"

With that, the dam inside Shido broke and he came into her mouth hectically. He could only shudder as he felt Kurumi swallowing everything, not letting him out of her mouth and sucking him as if she was trying to drain him dry. It only added to the sensual pleasure as he closed his eyes in bliss, leaning against the wall so that he wouldn't fall down from the exertion.

Once Kurumi finished swallowing the last drop, her eyes glazed over him in a seductive manner. "Is it just me or does it taste better than before?" She softly smacked her lips with light exhale, her red cheeks giving her face a soul-stirring aura.

"!" Shido didn't know how he was supposed to reply to that and embarrassedly lowered his head. When Kurumi saw that, she giggled. "Well, now that I had my fill, I suppose we can go back." Standing up, she stretched her arms out, locking her hands in the process. "Shido-san did say that we should be quick."

It was then he was reminded that he did earlier say that. "I guess… we should," Shido responded but on the inside secretly, he felt a bit let down.

"But," Shido looked up to see Kurumi with an ambiguous smile. "if Shido-san happens to tell me otherwise, I can acquiesce."

She continued. "For example, if Shido-san decided to be honest and told me that he wanted nothing more than to put his dick inside of me and ravage my body," Kurumi's lips curled. "I suppose I have all night to keep company."

Shido gulped. His heart began to beat crazily when he recalled the feeling of entering Kurumi's sex. His body couldn't help but want more.

"You shouldn't say things like that. Otherwise, I might really…" Shido looked away from her, doing his best to hold onto the little self-control he had left but Kurumi laughed.

"Shido-san, what if that's exactly what I want?"

Kurumi used her two hands to hold his cheeks, forcing him to stare into her eyes. Shido found himself lost for words. Her dichromatic eyes had a peculiar rapture that Shido couldn't deny, an irresistible attraction that was much more than physical but rather instinctual. Yet at the same time, he felt he would be eaten if he fell in too deep. That kind of danger had his heart race but not out of fear but…

Kurumi chuckled. "Shido-san used to be so afraid and wary when he saw me but now, just the mere sight of me makes you aroused, right?"

The look in Shido's eyes shifted. Deciding to throw all reservations out the window, he surged towards Kurumi and kissed her lips. He aggressively grabbed her breasts, eliciting a yelp from her as he pushed her down onto the bed. He soon proceeded to take off all of her clothes in a quick work. Of course, Kurumi had a delighted expression during all this, happy to see that Shido finally broke.

Shido knew he was falling straight into Kurumi's hands but he didn't care. It would be too hypocritical for him to deny his lust at this point. To put it bluntly, he wanted to fuck her and based on the way she was seducing him, Kurumi wanted him to fuck her as well.

Shido moaned as he kissed her. Her soft pink lips were sweet as usual. When they parted, he found her panting but not without a slight mischievous smile on her face.

"Am I pretty?" she asked.

Shido blushed but he responded, "Yeah, you do." Shido wanted to say more, like she was the most beautiful girl in his entire life. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that her beauty was otherworldly and that there wasn't another girl who exuded such elegance or charm like her, not even the other Spirits. Yet, when he looked into her gorgeous eyes, he answered in a simple but earnest manner, thinking that it was best this way.

He was right as Kurumi's smile became even more alluring. All the unsaid things were delivered to her through Shido's voice and eyes.

"Then, with such a beautiful girl in front of you, are you merely going to look?"

"Well, I have all night, don't I? I don't see a problem with taking my time."

"Ara ara, how bold."

Kurumi smirked at him but soon, her cheeky face turned red when she felt his hand press against her chest. His fingers squeezed into them, earning a stirring moan from her.

"Mm, do go on, Shido-san," said Kurumi in a seductive voice.

Shido gave a semblance of a nod. He began to knead her breasts, testing to see how soft and plump they really were. Squeezing them so that her nipple perked out, he hungrily leaned in. He ran his tongue along the soft texture of her breasts before proceeding to suck her. God, she was so sweet. He sucked harder while his fingers continued to massage her breasts as if trying to milk her.

"Ah~, ah~, Shido-san, that's it… don't hold back… go to your heart's content- ah! ~"

A cute squeal escaped her mouth when his tongue flicked against her nipple. Her hands instinctively grabbed his hair and her legs wrapped around his waist, trying to steady her trembling body as she pulled him closer to her perfect body. Her wet folds grinded against his abdomen in an attempt to satisfy the aching need that was starting to grow inside her.

Shido groaned. The way her slender body wrapped itself around him as her smooth skin rubbed against him was exhilarating, not to mention her humping was really starting to get to him. He enjoyed the way her playful fingers would run through his hair yet at times, stiffen and push his head in desperate want. His hands moved to a more comfortable position as they moved away from her generous breasts, caressing the slender curves of her body and sliding across her gorgeous body before resting on her torso.

A few minutes later, he lifted his head away from her breasts and gently pushed against Kurumi's legs to free himself, earning a questioning gaze from her. However, after giving her a quick soft kiss, his lips made his way down her breasts, stomach, pelvis, and then finally her vagina.

"Mmgh!" A low grunt came from Kurumi as she opened her legs wide open for him in implicate permission. Something snapped in Shido when he saw such a compromising position and with a animalistic hunger, buried his head between her thighs. He slid her tongue into her wet folds and eagerly tasted the sweet nectar that emitted from it. Of course, that only made Kurumi moan without restraint as she tightened her thighs around his head. "Shido-san~…"

Such a soul-taking voice only encouraged Shido as after a few licks, he quickly found her clitoris. Enjoying the taste and texture while carefully keeping an eye on her reactions, he let the tip of his tongue flick the small bulb albeit roughly, which only made Kurumi gasp and squirm. Her fingers roughly grabbed his hair and pulled him, clearly wanting more as her breathing became more labored and her moans became louder and louder. Soon, they reached the final crescendo and with her back arched and head thrown back, she came hard.

Shido felt a powerful shudder from Kurumi before wet juices sprayed onto his face. He eagerly lapped up every drop he could.

"Shido-san…" Kurumi lewdly breathed. Her face flushed with red, she was clearly out of breath from the exertion, one arm resting above her head and the other on top of her chest. Her beautiful body slowly relaxed into a lying position but it didn't look inelegant. Rather, her defenseless appearance only showcased her allure. Her fair and tender skin glistened with sweat and her usual well-arranged hair was scattered across the bed.

To Shido, such a bewitching sight only further aroused him and he was already worked up from all the stimulating moans Kurumi made when he was eating her out. He was painfully hard, so much that he decided to go to the main course immediately.

Placing two hands beside her head, Shido lifted himself up to position his length at her entrance and looked at Kurumi, showing that he was about to go in.

"Can I?" he asked to which Kurumi lightly laughed.

"Does Shido-san really have to ask?" It wasn't their first time so it would've been fine if he just did it. But, I guess that is part of your charm. She caressed his cheek with her right hand. "Go ahead, Shido-san. Fuck me as hard as you want. In fact, I'll get angry if you don't."

Kurumi was already bucking her hips, not being able to wait for the eventual penetration.

Shido nodded as he immediately lowered himself, feeling Kurumi's tight and wet walls around him. "Kurumi!" Shido felt the pleasure envelop him as he began to buck his hips, ramming himself into Kurumi. Kurumi wasn't in better shape as she began to moan relentlessly. "That's it! Harder! Right in there!" She bucked her hips as she felt his length filling her up and sending her to ecstasy.

Shido realized that with him being on top, he was able to dictate the pace as he pleased. Using her breasts as his handhold much to Kurumi's delight, he tried out many different paces. He found a tempo that suited him most as he began to push faster and deeper into her. He thought he may have been a bit too extreme with how hard his hips were slamming into her but Kurumi's face expression revealed that she was enjoying it as much as he did.

"?!"

Suddenly, Kurumi grab his shoulders and with great force, pulled Shido to the side. Shido found himself rolling over until his back was to the bed. He watched Kurumi towered over him, pinning him down in a cowgirl position.

"Ufufu, in the end, it's only this position that feels the most right. Right, Shido-san?" She rocked her hips, drawing out a loud moan from him.

"Zafkiel." Calling out her Angel, a flintlock pistol manifested in Kurumi's hand. A confused look appeared on Shido's face, wondering if there was something wrong but Kurumi only snickered. "Shido-san, prepare for the greatest fuck you'll ever have."

She then pointed the nozzle towards her head. "First Bullet…"

"Wait…!" Shido widened his eyes, realizing what she was about to do, and tried to open his mouth but it was too late.

"Aleph!" She pulled the trigger and a resounding gunshot echoed through the room. Almost immediately, Shido felt something change from the way her walls clenched around his dick. Of course, before he could think any further, Kurumi had already begun to bounce on him, riding him with indescribable speed.

-!

He barely chocked out a cry of ecstasy. Every single cell in his body was bombarded with unbridled pleasure. It was so perfect and abundant that it was almost to the point of pain. His brain could barely handle the influx of sensation that his body was sending as his vision went blank.

Aleph had accelerated Kurumi's speed to the point so that by the time Shido's nerves could properly register the stimulation from a single bounce, her hips had already bounced two more times, stacking the pleasure to heights never before. Even in his wildest dreams could he ever imagine such euphoria was possible.

When his vision finally refocused, he was met with the fantastic view of Kurumi's flawless body riding him like a bucking bull, her breasts rapidly jumping up and down and her hair drifting recklessly in the air. He could only watch in unabashed worship as her hips continued to drop down on him in a frenzied manner. He was actually surprised his dick wasn't breaking from handling such force.

"Shido-san, you can cum now!" Kurumi aggressively shouted as she tightened her grip on his shoulders. She herself was on the edge as her eyes were filled with lust and mania, a wild smile on her face.

"I…!" He could only cry out in relish when she clenched around his dick hard.

"Do it! Cum for me! Say who you belong to!" She pressed down even harder.

"Ku…Ku…!" His mouth opened and closed wordlessly. He could barely stay sane, much less speak coherent words. It was only with sheer effort and will was he able to say something but even that wasn't enough. An uncontainable pressure began to build inside him and was threatening to erupt.

"Shido-san! Who do you love?!" Kurumi shouted maniacally. "Who loves you the most?!"

Finally, Shido screamed out. "You, Kurumi!"

Kurumi broke into laughter. "That's right! Now, cum inside me! Give me everything!"

There was no way Shido could last any longer. With a primal moan, he erupted deep inside of her, his back arching into her as he gripped the sheets of the bed tightly. Kurumi continued to ride him as his cum continued to eject into her wave after wave. It was only after a solid minute did his cock finally loosen up.

"Ahhh…" Kurumi gasped as she pulled herself out and laid right next to him. She could still feel her insides hurting but in a good way as the pleasure felt ingrained in her.

On the other hand, Shido was exhausted. Yet, he didn't let sleep overtake him, or rather, he couldn't. His body was too sensitive right now and was tingling all over.

"Shido-san, I don't think I'll turn back time after all."

"Hm?" Shido looked at Kurumi, who was staring at the ceiling, seemingly heavy in thought.

"Of course, I know that means that all the lives I've taken won't be changed but… if Mio-san is capable of atoning for the rest of her life, then I'm certainly as capable to do the same. That much I'm still able to do."

Kurumi sighed.

"Before, I wanted nothing more than to get rid of Mio-san. I felt if I did so, my heart wouldn't be filled with pain and regret every day. But now," Kurumi looked at him with a smile. "I'm happy. Never would I've thought that I would experience such happiness yet here I am. And it's all because of you, Shido-san. You healed my scarred heart with your kindness."

"Kurumi…" Shido continued to stare at her, touched.

Kurumi snuggled closer to him. "Thank you, Shido-san, for saving me."

She leaned in and kissed him. Shido wrapped his arms around her as their lips conveyed all their feelings, love, and more.

When their lips parted, Shido let out a breath of contentment. Yet, he missed Kurumi's glint and before he knew it, she swung her legs over him and straddled him. She leaned in close and whispered with a playful voice.

"Ne~, Shido-san, do you still masturbate about me?"

Shido opened his mouth in bafflement. "Wha-what are you-?!"

"Answer the question."

"…yeah, I do." Shido turned his head in embarrassment to which Kurumi grinned.

"From now on, don't."

"O-oh, sure. After all, I guess it's demeaning to you…" Shido responded but Kurumi hushed him.

"That's not what I meant." She continued, "Why masturbate when you have the real thing available to you? Just come to me and I'll handle everything for you."

Shido only opened his mouth in awe of Kurumi's rather tempting offer as he could only stutter, "A-are you sure? It's embarrassing but it's not just once or twice a day. Whenever I think about you, I…"

"I know. And I'm saying that it's fine. In fact, the more times, the better." Kurumi smirked as Shido just opened his mouth in stupefaction. Seeing he was taking too long to respond, Kurumi began to rock her hips up and down slowly against his crotch, causing his breath to hitch as he felt himself already hardening.

"So, your response?" Kurumi asked with a mischievous smile. She watched as Shido opened and closed his mouth before finally, nodding his head albeit embarrassingly.

Kurumi knew then that fun times were in store for the future as she furiously kissed the boy in front of her.

Life had returned to normal as the Spirits continued to hide their powers from the rest of the world. Spacequakes had stopped occurring and Ratatoskr had shifted their goals to protecting the Spirits and managing them, making sure that the world would never find out about their existence. DEM had shut down and ceased to exist as Asgard Electronics took over.

All the Spirits were content with their current life and there was nothing more they could ask for. However, there was one thing they had an issue with.

"Did Shido… not make breakfast yet?" Tohka asked Kotori with a downcast manner. It was morning and Tohka was getting ready to go to school. By this time, Shido usually was done preparing breakfast and their lunch bentos but for some reason, he was nowhere to be seen.

A growl came from Tohka's stomach while Kotori had a bad feeling. Don't tell me…not again.

Kotori immediately ran upstairs and when she neared Shido's room, she heard grunting and moaning coming from the room.

She could already guess what was happening.

"I'm coming in!" She yelled with a loud knock on the door.

"Ah, wai-wait…!" Shido's voice faintly protested.

However, Kotori didn't wait as she opened the door with a loud burst, and low and behold, Shido and Kurumi were in bed naked with just a blanket loosely covering them.

"What is with it with you two?! Why is it that every time you guys are alone, you always fucking each other?!"

Kotori angrily glared at the two of them to which Shido turned his face away, looking at everywhere else besides her. On the other hand, Kurumi wasn't at all embarrassed as she looked straight at Kotori.

"Kotori-san, it's quite rude to interrupt when Shido-san and I are having an intimate moment."

"You say that but aren't you just acting on your lustful desires?"

"Ara ara, how can feelings between lovers be called lustful?"

"Don't play semantics with me! Do you realize how many complaints I'm getting about you guys?!"

Shido and Kurumi's trysts were getting to the point where it was getting ridiculous. For heaven's sake, Kotori was shocked when one day, she received a picture from Ratatoskr's cameras of Shido and Kurumi fucking on the school's roof in broad daylight!

"Shido, school is about to start and you're not even out of bed yet! Are you planning to skip school?"

"Sorry, sorry. I'll get ready now." Shido scratched his cheek. "I'll change once you exit."

"Tch!" Once Kotori confirmed that he was getting up, she finally left him with a loud slam of the door.

Shido lightly laughed at his sister's reaction as he began to put on his clothes. He looked at Kurumi who was also changing now into her school uniform. She was so beautiful that even the sight of her changing was enchanting.

Before he realized it, he had already grabbed Kurumi and began to kiss her passionately. Kurumi, not one to refuse such intimacy, quickly grabbed his head to further the kiss.

When their lips parted, Kurumi giggled.

"Ara ara, is Shido-san trying to undress me just when I put on my school uniform? How naughty."

"Haha."

He knew also that he may have been a little too extravagant lately but with Kurumi, he can't help but feel the way he does.

Kurumi had already made her way into his heart and he would never be able to get enough of her. Her beauty, her voice, her power, her kindness, everything about her seduced him.

"Kurumi, I really love you," Shido confessed. Kurumi's teasing expression grew softer with a tender smile. Hugged Shido, she whispered in his ear, "I love you too, Shido-san."

Shido could only smile in return as he knew that he would be in love with this girl for all eternity.

THE END