Reincarnated as Itsuka Shido: Collecting Spirits as Lovers

"Die!"

Just as Shido was wondering how much collateral damage he had caused Kusakabe, a furious shout entered his ears.

Jessica was wielding her photon sword and charging recklessly at him. 

Shido observed her movements and couldn't help but shake his head. Her rage had clouded her judgment, wrecking her form.

He knew he had to end this quickly, especially in case he encountered her again.

Just thinking about that Yandere Spirit sent a shiver down his spine. Shido didn't want to cross paths with her at the moment as he was not strong enough to deal with her right now.

He shook his head to erase those thoughts from his head and focus on this battle. 

*Clang!*

Her attack was blocked effortlessly.

Shido had raised his own sword with just one hand, stopping her full-powered swing without even budging.

Jessica's eyes widened in disbelief. "W-What?!"

Shido glanced at her with an indifferent expression.

"You know." he said casually, pushing her blade back with minimal effort. "If you're going to scream 'Die!' at someone, you should at least make sure your attack lands."

Jessica gritted her teeth and launched another flurry of strikes, each one aimed at his vital point like throat, heart, legs, arms yet none of them connected. Shido dodged and parried each strike with ease.

It was like he wasn't even taking her seriously.

"You're too slow." Shido remarked, sidestepping another wild slash.

Jessica's frustration exploded. "SHUT UP!" She boosted forward, intending to overpower him with sheer strength.

But in that instant, Shido suddenly vanished from her sight.

'Where did he?!'

Before she could react, a voice whispered right behind her.

"Your back is wide open."

Jessica's body froze.

A split second later.

BAM!

Shido delivered a powerful kick to her back, sending her crashing down to the ground like a meteor.

"Guhah!"

Shido was about to follow up with a sword slash, but the other Wizards didn't give him the chance and open fire with their guns and lasers.

Some engaged him in close-quarters combat using their photon swords slashing toward him. Yet, Shido was like an slippery eel and effortlessly evading the projectiles while casually deflecting their blades.

"I'm going to kill you!!!" Jessica who was pushed back to the ground and roared furiously as she charged at him once again.

Shido could not help but reveal a frown on his face. He thought that Jessica was starting to get annoying. He knew that whatever he did, Jessica would keep recklessly charging at him, unwilling to stop until he was dead.

He also had enough of playing with them, so Shido wanted to finish this charade as soon as possible.

Standing in the dark sky that was threatening to rain, Shido's purple eyes gleamed as he stared at the Wizards who were flying toward him while their swords, guns, and lasers aimed in his direction.

Shido fly higher while evading the projectiles that were coming on his way. He decided to fly higher as he knew that his next attack would be far more devastating than the last.

While Jessica and the others remained unaware of his intentions, Origami and Kusakabe observed the battle carefully. Nevertheless, Kusakabe let out a sigh of relief upon realizing that the fight had moved high above the city, sparing it from further destruction.

Just as she started to relax, Origami suddenly took off, flying after Shido and Jessica without hesitation.

"Origami!"

Seeing this, Kusakabe wanted to stop Origami, however, it was too late as she had already flown far away.

"Geez, how can this girl be so reckless!?" Kusakabe scolded Origami in frustration. Yet, despite her scolding, she let out a deep sigh and took off after Origami, flying into the sky as well.

Seeing their Captain also go to the battle, the Wizards at AST also joined the fun.

One by one, they ascended into the sky, leaving behind only Yoshino and Yoshinon, who remained inside the barrier Shido had erected.

Even though Yoshino was worried and also wanted to follow them, she was a good girl so she decided to stay inside the barrier and wait for Shido.

...

10,000 meters above Tengu City.

Upon reaching a high altitude, Shido abruptly halted, turning to face Jessica and her team.

"Hehehe, have you finally decided to surrender after running so far?"

Jessica wore a twisted smile while laughing arrogantly. She thought that Shido was running out of energy so he decided to escape. However, she had no idea that he had simply lured them away from the city, so he could go all out.

Despite Jessica's provocation, Shido just remained calm and looked at the Wizards of DEM that were blocking his path.

A slight smile could be seen appearing on his face as he responded to her words.

"You're wrong... It's just that I thought this distance would be enough to settle things."

Jessica scoffed, assuming Shido was bluffing, just trying to intimidate them. Yet, despite being skeptical, an unsettling sense of danger crept up her spine.

She was about to retort when Shido's next action made her freeze.

He stomped his foot in midair, and despite the lack of any platform beneath him, the very atmosphere trembled as if the sky itself was cracking. Suddenly, a throne materialized beside him.

Jessica, her subordinates, and even Origami and Kusakabe's group, who had just arrived 500 meters away from them watched Shido's every action.

A deep sense of dread gnawed at Jessica as she watched the sky becoming darker. She couldn't shake the restless feeling creeping over her, but one thing was certain, whatever Shido was planning, it wasn't good for them.

"Attack! Attack him!"

She commanded her subordinates to attack Shido with another barrage of bullets, missiles, and lasers, determined to stop whatever Shido was planning.

However, with a mere wave of his hand, Shido deployed a thick barrier around himself, effortlessly intercepting every projectile.

Ignoring their futile assault, he shifted his focus to the next step of his teachnique.

He raised his hands and slashed Sandalphon toward the throne, slicing it cleanly in half.

At first, no one understood why he would do such a thing. However, their eyes widened in shock as the split throne shattered into fragments, only to be absorbed into his sword.

A blinding light burst from the fusion, forcing all the Wizards including Origami to cover their eyes. Yet, Shido didn't look away. Instead, he excitedly watched the process of the fusion.

It was his first time using this technique, causing him to be even more thrilled. However, Shido could also feel the immense strain it placed on his body. Even so, a surge of energy rushed through his veins, fuelling his excitement.

Suddenly, the blinding light vanished. Jessica, Origami, Kusakabe, and the other Wizards stood frozen, their eyes widening in disbelief at the sight before them.

Their jaws dropped in shock. The white sword Shido had been wielding suddenly transformed into an enormous, single-edged blade, crackling with ominous black lightning. Its sheer size and the raw energy surging from it made it all the more intimidating, as if the very air around it trembled in fear.

Despite its massive size, Shido swung the sword effortlessly, as if it were an extension of his own body.

"Amazing… I can feel the overwhelming destructive power awaiting to be unleashed." he murmured, eyes gleaming with excitement. However, his expression quickly shifted to a wry smile. "But damn… the Reiryoku consumption is insane."

After assessing the massive sword in his hands, Shido shifted his gaze toward Jessica and her team. They were watching him with wary eyes, sweat trickling down their faces as dread settled over them.

Looking at their nervous expressions, Shido remained unfazed. Without a hint of hesitation, he raised the gigantic sword while its blade surging with destructive energy.

"I hope you can survive this." Shido said, his cold purple eyes gazing down at them.

Jessica gritted her teeth in frustration. His detached tone and indifferent stare only made her anger flare, but she couldn't afford to waste energy on rage. Right now, their only priority was figuring out how to survive that evil looking sword because every instinct in her body screamed for her to escape.

"Please don't die."

"Halvanhelev..." Shido silently said, his voice devoid of emotion as he swung the dreadful sword down toward Jessica and her team.

Shido's voice was not loud yet, every single person in the battle field could clearly hear his deep voice.

A reddish-black beam, condensed from pure chaos, erupted from Halvanhelev, surging toward Jessica and her team like an unstoppable force of destruction.

"Shit!"

"Quick! Release your Territories to the maximum!!!" Jessica roared with all her might attempting to block the incoming attack since retreat was no longer an option.

In an instant, they expanded their Territories to their absolute limits, forming a massive 30-layer barrier. Yet, even as they pushed themselves to the brink, Jessica's instincts screamed that it still wouldn't be enough.

As the terrifying darkness closed in, she felt death was creeping closer.