Aozaki Aoko Case File

Credits: Nicholas Berenguer

Looking up at the dense, dark gargoyle mist swirling above the castle in the city center, Aoko decided to employ a deceptive strategy.

She unleashed a massive amount of magical energy, having her spindle circle around an illusionary duplicate of herself created through magic, continuing to attack the gargoyle swarm at the front of the castle. Meanwhile, she used advanced invisibility to sneak into the castle undetected.

The battle in the air was still raging, but Aoko had slipped silently into the castle through a window on the central tower, using her stealthy Misty Step spell to enter the castle's interior.

The interior of Cromclay's castle was quite opulent, with a heavy Gothic religious aesthetic. However, none of the patterns depicted on the stained glass and artwork were connected to Christian figures. Aoko guessed this was probably because the castle's owner had been ambushed and attacked by the Holy Church multiple times in the past, leaving him with lingering resentment toward them.

Large numbers of hollow living armors were being mobilized like real soldiers, rushing to the frontlines in waves. It seemed that the pressure from Aoko and her two companions had been significant enough that even these ceremonial guards were now being pressed into combat.

To avoid alerting the castle's owner of her infiltration, Aoko refrained from using detection-based magic. Instead, she relied on Arcane spells from a world outside of Type-Moon, which were imperceptible to the inhabitants of this one.

Through successive uses of spells such as Instant Search, Detect Thoughts, and Arcane Eye, Aoko explored the castle's internal structure and the distribution of enemies. After about ten minutes, she pinpointed the room where the two Ancestors were located.

On the throne sat a middle-aged man dressed in flamboyant European aristocratic attire. His expression seemed a bit panicked but was still manageable.

Beside him, seated on a high-backed chair, was an old man with gray hair and a strange bird-like mask.

Aoko guessed that this must be none other than the White Winged Duke.

As the Arcane Eye spell expired, Aoko lost the effect of her divination magic and immediately used a teleportation spell to move to a location closer to the Throne Room. This room was positioned roughly a quarter of the way down from the top of the central tower.

"No, this is impossible!" Cromclay stood up from the throne, pacing back and forth in panic. "The gargoyles can't stop Miss Blue at all—they can't even counter her ability to ignore gravity shifts! And the core of Einnashe is about to be exposed!"

Ortenrosse, sitting nearby, also seemed uneasy. However, because his face was hidden behind his mask, it was impossible for outsiders to accurately gauge his emotions.

"Calm yourself, Chromclay," Ortenrosse said. "If Einnashe fails, then we retreat. There's no need to face two Magicians at once."

"Retreat? Yes, yes, we can retreat!" Cromclay wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Those three women are terrifying. I can't even extract a single drop of blood from their bodies…"

Seeing his ally's panicked demeanor, Ortenrosse sighed. It seemed that his plans had failed once again. Despite the enormous cost of obtaining the soon-to-awaken core of Einnashe, he hadn't anticipated that Magicians—such exceptional wildcards—would get involved. Truly, life was full of unexpected twists.

"Well then, Chromclay, it's time to prepare ourselves," Ortenrosses said, standing up from his chair.

He walked toward the pacing Cromclay, seemingly intending to pat him on the shoulder and offer some reassurance. "It seems our defeat is certain today. If we leave now, we can still salvage some dignity..."

"I doubt he'll have any dignity left."

A strange voice suddenly echoed in the throne room, but neither Ortenrosse nor Cromclay could see anyone. Moreover, their magical detection barriers gave no response.

The next instant, a gloved black hand pierced through Cromclay's chest. Blood gushed from his mouth and chest as he collapsed.

Ortenrosse watched as the red-haired figure violently extracted the conceptualized Principle from Cromclay's body. Without hesitation, he immediately activated his teleportation technique, smashing through the stained glass window behind him without a second thought.

The White Winged Duke's cloak, resembling the wings of a bird, flapped violently as he fled the horrific scene at full speed.

"Ara~, that was a quick escape. Aren't you supposed to be the King of the Dead Apostle?"

Considering that her intended target was already in hand, Aoko made no effort to pursue Ortenrosse. Or rather, she simply didn't care about the troublemaker. All she wanted was the sphere now in her possession.

Cromclay, with a gaping hole in his chest, was already lifeless. The moment Aoko violently extracted the Principle from him, his soul had been obliterated by the Third Magic artifact. His corpse quickly ignited with blue flames, reducing him to ashes in moments.

The strange sphere in Aoko's gloved hand was the core of this entire world, or rather, the manifestation of the Reality Marble itself.

Aoko examined the sphere closely. It resembled a precise mechanism made of unknown gray metal, constantly rotating and clicking as its intricate internal gears meshed together in a way she couldn't comprehend.

After a moment of thought, Aoko clasped the sphere with both hands, closed her eyes, and silently activated the Principle Rewriting Magecraft she learned from Ciel.

A massive magic circle expanded outward from Aoko's position, spinning as arcs of blue-white magical electricity crackled around her hands.

At the same time, Touko and Arcueid, who were still battling the core of Einnashe, suddenly felt a weight lift from their bodies. The oppressive force that had been bearing down on them vanished.

"Has Aoko succeeded?" Touko glanced toward the distant castle. Her chubby cat spun its shadowy circular saw-like form, letting out eerie "ka-ka-ka!" laughter as it shredded Einnashe's countless tentacles.

"Huh? I suddenly feel a lot lighter," Arcueid flexed her arms and jumped a couple of times, realizing her full range of motion had returned. "Alright, let's finish this!"

The True Ancestor Princess leaped gracefully into the air, slashing her claws at the red core of Einnashe. The enormous tree split apart, and the crimson fruit fell to the ground.

The entire forest let out a mournful wail as Einnashe's tentacles trembled, withering and shrinking away.

Arcueid dusted off her clothes, walked forward, and picked up the crimson fruit from the ground.

She stared at the fruit for a moment, feeling a strange desire welling up inside her. Though it resembled her dormant bloodlust, she was certain it wasn't the same craving. It wasn't hunger either—it was something else entirely.

Arcueid's golden, slit-pupil eyes began to shine.