"If Yhwach attacks, I will destroy them with absolute power."
After Yoriichi's voice faded, silence returned to the Great Spirit Book Gallery.
No one responded to his decision.
Only the points of Reishi light suspended overhead continued moving along their original paths.
Yoriichi took one last look at the seemingly endless shelves, then turned toward the exit.
When he arrived, he had wanted to find an answer.
When he left, what he had gained was more questions.
The Soul King.
Hell.
The Quincy.
And Soul Society's past, buried beneath its order.
These truths had not shaken Yoriichi.
But they had made him truly understand what he was protecting.
Not the laws established by Central 46.
Nor the glory the nobles recorded in their books.
But the people who lived here.
The heavy doors slowly opened.
Light from outside passed through the gap and fell before Yoriichi.
The two guards stationed outside bowed their heads in unison.
Yoriichi stepped over the threshold.
A cool wind blew against him, gently lifting his Captain's Haori.
He looked back at the Great Spirit Book Gallery.
The tower stood silently in the depths of the Seireitei, its white walls tinged pale gold by the setting sun.
When Yoriichi had entered, the sky had still been bright.
When he emerged, the sun was already about to set.
Only a few hours had passed.
Yet he felt as though he had witnessed a thousand years of Soul Society inside.
The tower had not changed at all.
The one who had truly changed was him.
Before, Yoriichi had only needed to draw his sword when danger appeared.
Slay Hollows.
Defeat Aizen.
Protect the people standing behind him.
But now, the Wandenreich had awakened within the Seireitei's shadows.
They possessed an army that had remained hidden for a thousand