Reincarnated as Itsuka Shido: Collecting Spirits as Lovers

With his Swordsmanship reaching advance level, even if Shido didn't have a Sword Technique, his strength was still considerably strong.

He raised his arms and pointed the massive sword in the direction of Jessica and her team. "You should prepare yourselves since I'm going to wipe that arrogant smirk on your faces."

Despite his soft spot for girls, Shido had no intention of showing mercy to these Wizards who sought to hunt Spirits.

"Oh? You really think you can take all of us on by yourself?" Jessica's laughter faded as Shido's words sank in. Her eyes turned sharp, locking onto him with a cold, piercing gaze.

"I might not be strong enough to defeat Ellen Mira Mathers, the strongest Wizard, but my strength alone is more than enough to make all of you flee miserably." His casual tone, dismissing them as if they were nothing, nearly made Jessica rush at him on the spot.

Nevertheless, she quickly calmed herself, she couldn't afford to let his taunts get under her skin.

Still, a vein throbbed on her forehead as she couldn't help but be pissed off when she was being compared to other Wizards. Ellen was one thing but Jessica felt that she would completely lose all her reasons if Shido used Mana to compare her. Fortunately, he did not do so.

However, Jessica raised an eyebrow when Shido mentioned Ellen. Most Spirits were clueless about Wizards, especially the strong ones. Nevertheless, there were still cunning types like Nightmare, who possessed extensive knowledge about DEM, Wizards, and even other Spirits, so Jessica just brushed it off and dismissed any concern.

Even though this unknown male Spirit in front of her was both mysterious and even irritating, she didn't see him as a real threat.

"Such big words for a small Spirit like you," Jessica sneered. "Even if you are handsome, I'll make sure to beat you until your face is black and blue."

As Jessica said that, she silently commanded her subordinates to surround Shido while preparing to launch another barrage of missiles, but this time, there were also lasers included.

Shido didn't interrupt their plan, instead, he calmly observed their movements, noting how Jessica's team positioned themselves around him. Then, as his gaze shifted beyond their encirclement, Shido spotted Origami and the Wizards from AST watching from the sidelines.

Since Jessica had arrogantly told them not to interfere, the AST Wizards had no intention of stepping in even if she and her team ended up getting completely beaten by the Spirit. 

Shido's smile was subtle and only Origami could see it. The moment her eyes met his, a faint blush crept onto her usually expressionless face, however, it was so faint that most would have missed it. However, with Shido's sharp gaze, nothing escaped his notice.

"What's wrong Origami?"

"Nothing."

Kusakabe still felt something was off, but seeing Origami's usual deadpan expression, she decided to drop it. With a small sigh, she turned her attention back to the battlefield, pushing aside her suspicions for now.

...

"You're so confident of your abilities, right? Then how about having a taste of this?!" 

With a twisted smile, Jessica unleashed a relentless barrage of lasers and missiles at Shido. Her team of Wizards followed suit, amplifying the assault with continuous fire.

The spot where Shido had been standing was instantly consumed by a storm of explosions causing the force to shake the battlefield.

"Shido-san!" Yoshino's small body was trembling as she was worried about Shido's safety. Even though she believed in him, the sight of Shido standing still amidst Jessica's relentless assault made her chest tighten with fear.

"Yoshino, Shido-kun wouldn't be taken down by an attack like this~ You know that, right? Besides, he's not the type to just stand there and do nothing~ So, have a little more faith in him~"

Noticing Yoshino's wavering emotions, Yoshinon quickly comforted her. Having complete trust in her, Yoshino finally nodded though the worry in her eyes didn't fully fade.

Just as Yoshinon had said, Shido didn't simply stand there. In an instant, he activated Flash Step, vanishing from his position just as the barrage of lasers and missiles rained down.

His speed was so fast that to everyone else eyes, it appeared as if he had been caught in the blast. However, the only thing left amid the attack was his afterimage which was swiftly obliterated by the explosions.

The only one who managed to see through what truly happened was Origami who was squinting her eyes sharply to not miss any detail.

However, while she knew Shido had escaped, Origami couldn't determine where he had gone.

While everyone was firing wildly at Shido's position, they suddenly felt a surge of Reiryoku gathering above them.

Jessica lifted her head to see what was going on above, however, what she saw was a wave of purple sword slash, coming straight in their direction at an incredible speed. 

"Dodge!" Jessica shouted with all her might to warn the others while deploying her Territory. However, despite their rigorous training, some still couldn't react in time and were struck by the powerful attack.

Jessica and the other Wizards were sent flying by the attack, cracks forming across their Territory.

However, even though Jessica and the other Wizards managed to lessen the force of the attack, the ground was still left even more devastated after the Purple Sword Slash struck.

"Is this all you can do?" 

A voice Jessica knew all too well suddenly rang out just as she deactivated her crumbling Territory.

She couldn't help but grit her teeth in frustration upon hearing Shido's nonchalant voice and carefree attitude.

"Damn you!" she growled, lifting her head to glare hatefully at the figure hovering in the sky, looking down on them.

Now, their position had reversed.

"Captain, Tsubaki and the others are severely injured," one of her subordinates reported as they ran toward her. Thankfully, no one had died.

"Useless! Leave them for now, we still have to kill that arrogant Spirit!" Jessica snapped as her frustration boiled over. At that moment, their original mission to capture Shido had shifted, now, they were out for his life.

The Wizard who had approached her couldn't help but sigh internally. She knew that once Jessica set her mind on something, nothing else mattered to her. With no other choice, they could only obey her orders.

Shido who was standing in the sky watched all of this without changing his expression. He had to admit that this world was really cruel. Despite her subordinates being wounded, Jessica still insisted on taking him down, even when their chances were nonexistent.

He could only let out a heavy sigh. Jessica might have been a beautiful, cold Onee-san type with a sexy body, unfortunately, her mind was too messed up.

Nevertheless, when Shido looked at the destruction that was caused by his attack, he realized it was much bigger than what Jessica and her crew had caused. He couldn't help but smile awkwardly.

Just then, he felt an intense gaze piercing through him.

He already knew exactly whose gaze it was, but Shido still turned his head toward the source. Just as expected, it was Captain Kusakabe, angrily shouting something while her subordinates struggled to hold her back from doing something reckless.

They were afraid she would charge straight at Shido, especially now that they realized he was much stronger than they thought.