The frigid chill instantly froze the entirety of Kamishina Lake, covering almost everything in ice. The shrine maidens conducting the ritual hurriedly retreated. Even though they desperately tried to resist this overwhelming power, they failed.
"This is..."
"It's Airi!"
Looking at Nagisa, frozen within the ice, Akatsuki Hisano's expression turned grave. Before beginning the ritual, she had examined Nagisa and knew that she carried quite a few protective magical tools. But what Hisano had not expected was that Airi had another trump card—at the very moment they began the ritual, the power hidden within Nagisa's body abruptly activated. If Hisano had not reacted quickly enough, she would probably have been trapped inside as well.
However, that was not the only problem.
When they used their Spiritual Power to make contact with the Black Shell at the bottom of the lake, Hisano was shocked to discover that it had instead absorbed the Spiritual Power they had released and completely awakened!
This meant that the Black Shell at the bottom of Kamishina Lake was not some seal containing a calamity!
Unfortunately, it was already too late.
Bang!!!
The thick ice shattered, and countless bizarre monsters flew out. They had bee-like heads, snake-like bodies, and bat-like wings. These strange creatures swarmed out in all directions, attacking everything they saw.
Akatsuki Hisano cut down five monsters, but her sword shattered completely upon the sixth. She showed none of the frailty of an elderly woman. Instead, she charged forward barehanded and knocked the seventh monster that lunged at her to the ground. At the same time, the Self-Defense Forces stationed around the area quickly assembled and began attacking the monsters with heavy weapons, temporarily halting their advance.
Only then did the old woman sigh. Carrying another white-haired girl on her back, she walked into a