"Who are you, and why are you pointing a gun at us?" With a gun aimed at her, Miku could only speak coldly. Normally she wouldn't care about an ordinary gun, but this weapon filled her with an eerie sense of dread. So, all she could do was stand frozen, watching as Tohka was taken away by Ellen. The murderous pressure radiating from the person behind her made it clear that this was someone utterly ruthless.
Just now, when they'd seen Tohka's weapon destroyed and Ellen's strike hitting her abdomen, the three of them couldn't sit still anymore. Plans were one thing—witnessing it in reality was another. In that instant, they all ignored whatever strategy Tohka had laid out and prepared to rush over. But the moment they gathered their spirit power to move, three guns leveled at each of their heads, freezing them in place. Miku could feel it, the Yamai sisters could feel it, and remembering Tohka's earlier warnings, none of them dared take another step forward.
"Oh my—just as I expected, little Tohka gathered quite the luxurious lineup." Hearing Miku's question, Kurumi didn't answer right away. Instead, she looked them over with amused curiosity. Including herself and Tohka, there were four Spirits here. That was over half of all known Spirits. She felt quite confident about Tohka's plan.
"Little Tohka? What exactly is your relationship with Tohka?" The moment Miku heard Kurumi's affectionate way of addressing Tohka, she immediately bristled. She couldn't even be bothered that a gun was still aimed at her skull. She snapped her head around and glared at Kurumi. Her eyes flashed as something clicked in her memory. "Wait—I recognize you. You're that woman in the photos, sitting in that luxury car… Hold on—a luxury car… don't tell me the one driving was Tohka? It must have been! Who else would dare, and who else would have the reflexes to drive like that?"
She remembered the report she'd seen before. Even after countless rounds of editing and blurring, there were two photos where the faces were still recognizable. Seeing Kurumi now, she instantly connected the dots. She hadn't thought about who was driving at the time, but the moment she gave it serious consideration, it all made sense. Even if Tohka had disguised her figure by binding her chest, anyone familiar would still recognize her. So, Miku's expression turned sour. But she didn't say anything more, because Kurumi spoke up again. After all, Kurumi wasn't here to quarrel over Tohka; she was here to keep the others from wrecking the plan.
"All right. Since Tohka has already been captured, our priority is to head straight to DEM's headquarters. Leave the small fry outside to me. By the way, I should introduce myself. I'm Kurumi Tokisaki. When Tohka was making this plan, she invited me to help. She originally meant to bring me to meet you all, but I refused at the time." Watching Ellen disappear with Tohka in tow, Kurumi retrieved her clones and gave a simple self-introduction. She was here to help Tohka extract the intel, not to get into petty fights over jealousy.
"I understand. Let's go. Good—those people outside are yours, then." Hearing Kurumi's calm explanation, Miku didn't press further. Their top priority now was rescuing Tohka—or more precisely, capturing the man she'd spoken of, to learn where the imprisoned Spirit was being kept.
So, they quickly moved out, flying low across the ground toward the building. But seeing DEM's forces swarming overhead, they didn't attempt to fly straight up. Instead, they swept low to reach the base of the building first. Then, they all looked up at the girls in Realizer Units patrolling the sky.
"Oh my, leave this part to me. Oh—and Yamai sisters, stay behind for a moment. Someone's coming whom you'll be handling. She's already been heavily injured by Tohka. You just need to pin her down." Kurumi stopped in midair and turned to address them.
"You sure know a lot about us. I don't remember ever telling you their names," Miku said, frowning automatically. Clearly, Kurumi knew a great deal about them while they knew almost nothing about her. That imbalance grated on her nerves—Miku had always been a bit of a control freak.
"Fufu… If Tohka entrusted me with part of this plan, do you really think I wouldn't have looked into a few details?" Kurumi simply smiled and left it at that. This was hardly the time for lengthy explanations. Besides, any clarifications could be left for Tohka herself. So instead, Kurumi slowly lifted her delicate arm. "Come forth—today let's put on quite the show. Oh, and for your information, Tohka is on the top floor of the building."
A deep black rift opened beneath her feet, and in the next instant, countless Kurumis came pouring out. Miku and the Yamai sisters could only gape in astonishment as the swarm of Kurumis shot into the air.
At the same moment, the DEM troops flying overhead spotted the disturbance below. A moment later, violent explosions rocked the night sky.
"You two go as well. Since that woman said it, Tohka's in her hands." Glancing up at the swirling battle, Miku spoke to the Yamai sisters, who were looking her way for instructions. The woman who had personally beaten Tohka had left too deep an impression. Even though she'd been gravely wounded, Miku couldn't let her rejoin the fight without interference.
"Understood. Leave her to us." The Yamai sisters didn't hesitate. They rocketed into the air, trailing howling gales behind them as they plunged into the fray.
"Ahahaha—Mana, I knew you'd be here!" Elsewhere, Mana was already facing off against her old nemesis, the Wizard Jessica. Before, as part of the same force, they hadn't been free to duel. But now that they were on opposite sides, the tension was electric—one wrong move, and it would erupt into battle.
"It's lively outside… It looks like those girls are struggling to hold them back." Inside the building, Westcott had also noticed the escalating chaos. He frowned slightly—this was not how he'd envisioned the plan unfolding.
"I understand. I'll head out now." Just then, Ellen, her injuries only hastily bandaged, stood up without hesitation. A moment later, she shot out through the wall.
"The Princess, hmm?" Watching Ellen leave, Westcott didn't try to stop her. Instead, he turned his gaze calmly toward the unconscious girl across from him.