Good Thing No One Was Here... Otherwise, It'd Be So Embarrassing

At last, in the school building at the center of this area, Qian Huanyue found the location where the "Puppeteer" was hiding.

The reinforced building was bombarded by the increased output of [Seraph of Thousand Blades].

The walls on the surface of the school building had collapsed. If a few more pillars were destroyed, the entire structure would come down easily.

"3900... 3901... 3902..." Qian Huanyue smoothed her slightly messy bangs to one side with one hand while controlling [Seraph of Thousand Blades] to kill the dolls.

"3953... 3989... 3999..." Qian Huanyue folded her arms and counted on her fingers with an indifferent expression.

She clearly paid no attention whatsoever to the Quasi-Spirit beneath her feet.

The blonde, Western-dressed Quasi-Spirit surrounded by dolls—

The "Puppeteer," Supanye, could not move. Or rather, her inability to move was itself her flaw. As a defective Quasi-Spirit, everything below her head was completely immobile.

In a panic, she summoned her Angel and shouted:

"[Talos]!"

[Kill her and turn her into one of us.]

[Ah~ The other side is a Spirit? Let's make the Spirit our friend.]

[I really like her, hehe. Of course, I mean when she's made into a doll.]

[Yes~ Either kill her or be killed.]

The dolls clamored noisily, chattering and giggling.

The attack-type dolls summoned [Nameless Angel] and charged forward.

The support-type dolls used [Nameless Angel] to apply effects to the other dolls.

The defense-type dolls used [Nameless Angel] to add shields to the dolls.

The long-range attack-type dolls were using [Nameless Angel] to charge up in the rear, intending to unleash a devastating attack this way.

The dolls had been stripped of their hearts, yet at this moment, they were united as one. Devoid of excess thoughts, they retained part of the personalities and abilities they had possessed while alive.

All the dolls had only one goal in their hearts—to protect their master, the "Puppeteer" Supanye.

The dolls fought desperately to stop her, their voices raised high.

The dolls were powerless.

The dolls screamed.

Though traces of the girls they had been in life could still be seen, they were being controlled, their expressions horribly broken, their stiff movements lacking all sense of proportion and looking utterly ridiculous.

"...4000..." Qian Huanyue softly breathed out the number, smoothed her bangs, and elegantly lowered her fingers. Her right hand lightly cupped her cheek. "Oh, it's a whole number again."

"You're pretty good at working together. You tried so hard." Qian Huanyue spoke in a tone that sounded almost admiring, even clapping cutely. "Good job, you all."

"W-why..." The "Puppeteer" Supanye's voice trembled uncontrollably. Her opponent was like a monster—why did all her resistance seem to leave the other side entirely unaffected?

Was this... a true Spirit?

She watched helplessly as her dolls were nearly exhausted. How could she possibly still have any chance of winning?!

By then, she would not even have the ability to escape.

"Please! Please don't hurt me! As long as you spare me, I'm willing to give anything—"

"Do you want a Soul Crystal? I can give it to you! I can! I can give you the competition reward directly, and even more besides!"

"I'll serve you," the "Puppeteer" Supanye said, tears and snot streaming down her face. She seemed unable to understand why she had provoked such a terrifying existence. "Even if I become your dog... and let you command me however you wish... I don't mind... Please forgive me!"

The "Puppeteer" Supanye was such a cowardly and cautious, yet incomparably selfish being.

"Oh, let me think about it," Qian Huanyue said, actually resting her hand against her chin and putting on a thoughtful expression.

Please, forgive me.

Agree to it.

The "Puppeteer" Supanye screamed in her heart.

If praying could save her from death, then she would surely become an incomparably devout believer.

Although the silver-haired Spirit before her had said the words she longed to hear—

The "Puppeteer" Supanye gradually calmed down.

That was right. How could the other side possibly spare her?

If she had not greedily created so many doll friends from the start,

If she had not manipulated them into slaughtering one another and entering the competition—the winner was always a doll—

Then turned those dead girls into new dolls—

She had been wrong. She should not have believed that, with so many dolls under her command, she could fight even a Spirit.

She could clearly have escaped directly.

She could clearly have avoided her.

Countless opportunities had been placed before her.

Yet the "Puppeteer" Supanye had—wasted them.

"I still think I'd rather kill you." Qian Huanyue said this, and the innocent expression she had put on while pretending to think faded from her face, replaced by a nearly icy indifference.

That voice completely crushed the last trace of hope in Supanye's eyes.

"W-why?! I can give you everything! Power! Loyalty! Why do you have to kill me?!"

Supanye cried out in collapse. The dolls made one futile final struggle before being sliced into pieces.

"Goodbye, Puppeteer."

[Seraph of Thousand Blades: Cannon Form]

Unlike the several floating light cannons she had formed earlier, there was only one this time.

This was a cannon-barrel form Qian Huanyue had created by taking inspiration from Itsuka Kotori's Angel, [Camael] Cannon (Megiddo).

Of course, its range might be a little greater.

As for accidentally hurting her friends? The moment she considered using this brilliantly destructive area attack, [Seraph of Thousand Blades]' auxiliary ability had already safely teleported Kurumi, Hii Hibiki, and the remaining Quasi-Spirits to the nearby Ninth Domain.

This was power Qian Huanyue had never used in the present world, an attempt to better familiarize herself with the offensive power of the Angel [Seraph of Thousand Blades].

At this moment, within this ruined school building, upon this stage piled high with sin, only she, the dolls, and the "Puppeteer" Supanye remained.

The remaining dolls, the sturdy school pillars, even Supanye's desperate cries... the instant everything touched the light, it was silently erased and disintegrated like writing rubbed away by an eraser.

The light gradually faded.

Qian Huanyue slowly lowered her hand. The cannon form before her quietly dispersed, turning back into flecks of silver light that merged into her body.

She stood where she was, her violet eyes calmly watching the empty, "pure" area ahead.

Yet that calm lasted less than three seconds.

She lowered her head and looked at her hands—the skin that had once been fair was now faintly reddened, as though scalded by high-temperature steam. Some of it had even peeled away, exposing the more delicate skin beneath.

Then, a searing, dense pain surged over her like a tide.

"..."

Qian Huanyue lightly pressed her lips together. Her eyes quickly reddened, a thin layer of moisture gathering in them. She sniffed, trying to endure it, but ultimately failed.

"Ugh..." A weak whimper escaped her throat.

Large tears fell from her violet eyes like pearls from a broken string, pattering down one after another.

"It hurts...!" she cried in a tearful voice, sweat beginning to bead faintly on her cheeks, her voice filled with disbelief.

The image of the "great villain" who had coldly counted and wiped out thousands of dolls with a wave of her hand instantly collapsed. All that remained was a girl crying from pain because of poor planning and improper control.

She felt that she must look incredibly ridiculous right now, enough to bring endless amusement to others.

While sobbing, she channeled spiritual power to heal her damaged skin. The process was numb and itchy.

Qian Huanyue was most afraid of pain.

In her previous life, she had chosen death in order to escape pain.

The damage to the hem of her skirt could indeed be repaired with spiritual power, but the pain in her hands was completely real.

She had personally experienced that if overwhelming power was not controlled properly, the first one to be hurt might be herself.

Next time, she needed to cover her hands with a layer of protection.

Fortunately, all the Spirits had already been teleported away. As for here, there couldn't possibly be any survivors left, right?

There were so many dolls. It should be fine if she went over a little later...

Good thing no one was here.

No one but herself knew.

Otherwise, it would be so embarrassing.

Qian Huanyue would keep her mouth shut.

With tears still falling, Qian Huanyue thought this with a resolute expression.