Ex-Machina on a Dimensional Journey

Dressed in pristine white, Origami looked like an angel descending from the lower realm.

At this moment, Origami had completed her Spirit transformation, and her purpose in returning here was precisely...

Origami raised her hand above her head.

"Metatron!"

Metatron

This was the Angel manifested by Origami after her Spirit transformation, composed of countless floating turrets shaped like feathers of light.

One golden floating turret after another emerged from the light, hovering around Origami.

To prevent the Spirits from escaping, Origami immediately launched her attack.

"Shemesh!"

A large number of floating turrets appeared, enclosing the area below and the Spirits within their range. Countless points of light appeared from the sky; those were the light bullets fired by the floating turrets.

Innumerable light bullets rained down from the sky, indiscriminately bombarding every patch of land in this region.

Because he was standing relatively close to the Spirits, Xiu Er was also caught within the attack range.

Yet unlike Tohka and the others, who continuously dodged the attacks,

he merely used No Passage to completely shroud himself, calmly staying within the shield while analyzing Origami's data.

Data collection complete, analysis successful.

Meanwhile, on the other side----

"Shido, look out!"

Shielding Shido behind her, Yoshino watched the "person" ahead with wary eyes.

She was no longer that timid girl of the past; she could protect Shido well!

Looking at Xiu Er, who was blocking the path ahead, Shido's eyes were filled with disbelief.

The Spirit Hunter who had once vanished had now actually appeared once again, and right here in this place where the Spirits had gathered.

"It's you! What purpose do you people have this time?!"

Xiu Er looked indifferently at the three figures who were wary of him: Yoshino, who wore a resolute expression as she protected Shido; Shido, who looked anxious right behind Yoshino; and Natsumi Kyouno, who was hiding behind Zadkiel.

"Notification: blocking you is this unit's mission for this trip."

"Why are you doing this?!"

Looking at the forest behind the opponent where explosions continuously erupted, Shido grew extremely anxious right now. Origami and Tohka were fighting, so how could Shido possibly not worry?

"..."

Xiu Er kept his mouth shut, making Shido grow increasingly impatient.

Natsumi only trembled as she hid behind them, not daring to face Xiu Er.

All of her abilities failed to produce any effective impact on Xiu Er, and Yoshino could not defeat him either; the two of them combined were not enough to fight the opponent.

Moreover, to protect Shido, they did not want to start a conflict with the other party either.

"Announcement: wait here for a moment, and this unit will grant passage of its own accord."

Knowing he could not force his way through, Shido and the others had no choice but to stop. During the wait, watching the forest not far away where explosions kept erupting, Shido could only pray in his heart.

Please, you must not get hurt.

"Gokurokugai! Final Sword!"

"Metatron, Artelif!"

Gokurokugai, fused with the throne fragments, displayed its final form, while Origami's floating turrets also aggregated together to form a gigantic Artelif.

Both of their weapons pointed straight at each other, mutually charging energy into their respective armaments.

As for Xiu Er, he was currently situated right between the two of them, choosing to collect data on both sides at close range.

In the end, no one interfered.

The attacks from both sides collided with each other.

The massive shockwave completely destroyed the trees and structures in this locale.

Yet Xiu Er, who had deployed No Passage, stood unscathed within the crater formed by the two people's attacks.

"Notification: data collection complete, analysis finished, mission successful."

Disregarding the two Spirits lying on the ground, Xiu Er took off from where he stood after completing his mission, leaving at the speed of light.

Meanwhile, on Shido's side----

"Notification: mission complete, target acquired."

"...Understood."

He looked at Shido before him.

"Announcement: you may now depart."

Having spoken, he stepped to the side to indicate passage.

Shido exchanged a glance with Yoshino and Natsumi, then cautiously passed in front of Xiu Er.

Only after confirming that the other party truly would not block them did they quicken their pace and rush toward the spot where the largest explosion had just occurred.

After letting Shido go, a golden portal opened behind Xiu Er, enveloping his entire body...

At a certain mountain peak--

Xiu Er sat at the edge of the cliff, gazing into the distance.

Here, the zoom function of his mechanical eyes could clearly see the far-off place where the Spirits were fighting.

Three portals opened in succession behind him, and three "Xiu Er" figures stepped out one by one.

Among them, the "Xiu Er" responsible for blocking Shido and the others returned last.

"Notification: mission successfully completed." ×3

With those words spoken, the three doppelgangers stood motionless in place, subsequently dissolving into golden particles that dissipated into the air.

As for Xiu Er himself, he began checking the data in the Weapon Vault, confirming that everything he was supposed to take had been fully acquired.

It was time.

The timing was calculated to perfection; the time limit for coming to the future had reached its final second right as Xiu Er completed this series of objectives.

In the blink of an eye, Xiu Er returned to his original time.

He returned to the presence of Kurumi, who was still under his control...

Chapter 31: Coming Looking for Trouble

Having returned to the original point in time, Xiu Er looked at Kurumi before him.

Now that he had obtained all the Angels, he ought to have been able to choose to leave this world directly.

Dimensional Device Energy... 100%, ready to launch at any time

No rush, let's wait a bit longer.

Yet there was no need to be in too much of a hurry just yet; certain things could still be supplemented.

Looking at Kurumi, who remained under his control, Xiu Er thought of an excellent plan.

He looked at Kurumi...

Following that, he had Kurumi use all the abilities of Zafkiel right in front of him, further obtaining and analyzing the relevant data, and ultimately successfully copying and completing all of Yud's bullet capabilities.

After draining Kurumi of her remaining value, Xiu Er abandoned her.

He ordered her to return home on her own; as for the matter of her memories.

To be honest, erasing memories had no effect whatsoever on Kurumi.

One of Zafkiel's bullets, Yud, could convey the past memories of a hit target. As long as Kurumi used Yud on herself once, she would immediately remember all these events that had just transpired.

Therefore, Xiu Er could not be bothered to perform such futile work.

After letting Kurumi go, Xiu Er's plan had only a single item remaining.

Once that was done, it would be the time for him to leave this world.

The purpose of his arrival in this world in the first place was merely the "Angels" of the Spirits. As for the "Demon King" of the reversed Spirits...

Truthfully, his personality was not malicious enough to deliberately guide the Spirits toward a reversal, so this idea was absent from the very beginning.

Then, for the present, before leaving this world, there was only one thing left to do.

Aboard the Fraxinus--

"Reine, how come your complexion has felt even worse these past few days than usual?"

Kannazuki had already noticed Reine's abnormality, only having waited for an opportunity to inquire about it.

Facing his colleague's kind inquiry, Reine merely shook her head.

"I'm fine."

"Are you really fine?"

Kotori, standing beside them, was also worried about Reine's physical state.

Honestly, if she had been like that earlier because of the Spirit Hunter, then what about Reine?

Kotori didn't know, and she couldn't get an answer out of her either.

When it came to this issue, Reine would either change the subject or keep her mouth shut entirely.

"Whatever, since you won't talk, there's nothing I can do. Go and get some rest for now."

"Stop working for now, your health comes first."

"..."

Kotori's kindness finally moved Reine, so she put down the work in her hand and headed to the ship's medical bay, which had a bed for patients to rest on.

She opened the door to the medical bay, and it was completely empty.

Even though she really didn't want to, for the sake of Kotori's good intentions, she still sat down on the bed.

Right then, even so, her mood was already rock bottom.

Yet the moment she sat down on the bed, a second voice rang out inside the medical bay.

"Question: are you Muramasa Reine?"

Reine abruptly turned her head to look behind her.

A mechanical girl with a halo floating above her head was standing at the doorway of the medical bay, and the door had already been locked shut.

Realizing the situation at hand, Reine frowned deeply, her already unsightly expression covered in dark lines.

"I am. May I ask what business you have with me, Miss Hunter?"

She had pressed the bedside alarm long ago, but unfortunately, the expected alarm bell never rang.

It seemed the equipment inside this room had already been taken over by the other party.

The other party didn't speak, and her only response was the giant assault rifle that suddenly appeared in her hands.