COI C233

Sanquin had found him or it. The thought of the summoner being a person is obsolete in her mind, treating this it as a monster. A it is the worse it made this world. And now Miyusuki is showing that example when his UI tries to get back what IT belongs. No, she is her disciple. That young boy is not belonged to IT. She made a foolish judgement when she chooses two of her guild members, Haw and Myrrkei, to guard her realm. Supposedly it meant for the young boy’s refining his weakness. That weakness belonging to that IT. She is glad to finally show its hide, but not fine that it holds hers.

“I will not accept you taking who is willing to follow me, summoner”

Spoken to the young boy she held, yet, he didn’t understand as she speaks a different language. All while Daygen stood there fades away as the oath was over. Daygen says to her through his magic.

“Take care of Myrrkei and the others. I am sure that your gate had already attracted the people you have betrayed, Heavenly Demon”

Sanquin and Miyusuki warped back to the realm. Where the man joins with them as she resumes the training.

Miyusuki shakes his head by the sudden departure with the guild master “Is that all? What did the guild master want from me? He told me I was incompatible . . . and”

The man stops him “First things first, because of your delay of your training with us. It is likely he wanted you to speed up first. All of these preparations are now in desperate circumstances”

“Hold on, after all that is happening. Why is it now of all place?”

“That is true, and you understand why”

The man suddenly grabs his gauntlet. Miyusuki felt the pressure by his hand through the metallic plates. This is the strength he felt with his UI is at lost.

The man said to him again “We, I mean, our guild is trying to keep you safe. Tabitha was a bit random for her ‘actions.’ They start to realize after deconstructing her gifts, and now, you are next to deconstruct. Thanks to her, we can hide her from who is trying to stop her. But you, you are Sanquin’s disciple. Hiding you is a disgrace of her many legendary titles. Pride is amazing that you received such wonderful gifts. Gifts that will hurt the people around you if you’re not careful”

Miyusuki lost control of his gauntlet. The man bends the gauntlet trying to compressed his own hand. Miyusuki tries to stop it but his symptoms remained, and he faintly moves with less resistance.

The sounds of bone breaking, Miyusuki starts seeing the man’s blood dripping

“Stop!”

His mind engulfed by the realm’s power showing him the pain that this man is doing. The man bends also his senses of pain through Miyusuki. He is pain spread technique to redirect his pain to him unimaginable. Miyusuki felt it so hard that he no longer has the strength to endure it.

He begs “Please, mister. Stop it! The pain Aah!”

The man shakes his head “Hurting me? I forced you to do it. All those pains I send you, it is an example you must face and survive”

Miyusuki is dazed from both the symptoms and this pain given from the man. His mind flashes back the time when all the things he had experience for the past months. The school’s first field trip, the simulation room, the water world realm, the ruins, the rescue of Silfa and Joanne, the Stranding Island’s duels showcase, the third moon cycle, the brigands, the collection of strange lights, the escape from the brigands to the train, the special training with his guild members, and so on . . .

These are his memories, the dangers, and how he was able to survive it all. Then he hits him, a flash of light on his eyes when Tabitha was here. Her purpose to be back in this city. What did she do in this city and in Enders Bridge? Furthermore, what about himself? What about his own goal to hold these so many gifts? There must be goals to why he has them all. Sanquin whispers to him as he slowly let go the gauntlet. The man stops crushing his hand as he bends his bones back to health.

Miyusuki never had thought of it. “Mister, did Tabitha came back to the city to finish her business?”

“I don’t know, it’s her quest. You. is it time to do the same, aren’t you?”

The gauntlet engulfed by the black mist and returns to Miyusuki’s hand. A little use of his technique drove him off from his strength. He barely holds it in but didn’t give in to his fatigue from both symptoms and the pain.

Miyusuki says to him “I guess I’ll be punished for this”

The man nods, bends the ground, dug through it, and never to be seen again. He left a message for his start for his adventure

“Bring Archivist with you. If you chose mercy over heavenly”

Sanquin smirks at how the man says his advice before he left. “Letting your son teaches the fatigue techniques, how thoughtful of you Viste. It was luck, because of how the UI drugged them into having more energy than they naturally would”

She appears right behind Miyusuki, quickly grabs his unprotected UI and taken something from his inventory. Miyusuki felt it and reacts as soon as his inventory is being breached. With little left of his energy, he is able to turn around and slaps away her hand.

“!!! Ma’am! Sorry! I felt danger touching my things”

He quivers and blushes right in front of her. Sanquin devilishly grins and said to him

“This means it is actually you are controlling your magic. Amazing, you are finally free from the gift”

“What do you mean?”

“Look at it, is there any difference you didn’t notice?”

Miyusuki takes a look at his UI. After such a long time didn’t use any of the features, he can’t seem to see the differentiate between the old and the new. A scratch on his forehead as he tries to figure it out. His puppyish expression made her look ashamed. It means he is no longer has the notification and the guidelines. Those are one of many examples Sanquin remembers to the other citizens.

Sanquin continues “Of course you received such many drawbacks when you lost your -what’s it called again-”

“Uh? Stats”

“This is going to be confusing if we are going talk about your terms. How about we can talk in my ways of speaking? Do you agree?”

“I guess, the UI references mostly from games”

The demonic chuckles whisper to his ears “We’re both going to lose each other if you keep using the word ‘games’. Let’s speak my way, and you will have to listen like a normal Horsin, for now”

Miyusuki watches the heavenly demon is getting excited. Most demons, in his point of view, look perverted when it comes to excitement, but for her, he sees evil on her as she is scheming.

The training begins. Miyusuki remains weak and remains determine. He feels arrogant from the groans of his pain diverted from the man. It is unbearable for him. His body twitches from the pain yet it has surge through his head. His first training is the basic of all martial arts, meditation. He sits down on the ground, but the ground shifts and turns into a chair.

“I don’t think so. It is unnecessary to do actual training. Let me show you how this world works”

Sanquin crosses her hands and blows a black mist out from her mouth. The mist turns into a serpent in dark mist form. It continues to change any forms of animal but remained in the dark mist. Soon later it disappears.

This presentation made Miyusuki confused.

He asks “What?”

A word coming from his mouth then the dark mist serpent reappears again. Shocked, he quickly shuts his mouth. His eyes are in awe to see such creature returns with its presence have grown more intimidating. The dark mist serpent changes into a bird, a flying peacock, and then it swiftly flies around him.

She explains to him “Remember the property of neutral mana, from what we breath and exhales to all everywhere around it. This is still neutral mana. We tend to use it externally instead of internally. Even though there are others channeling outside of their bodies, but we made it consecutive with our physical attributes”

Sanquin changes her clores into a well-worn out armor, her old warrior’s armor. Consists of trophies made from the war eras, with the equipment on her and somehow harmonized its design from many years of difference in culture and warfare. Her chose of color is red. It matches her red eyes gleaming and intimidates Miyusuki at the same time. She gives an example

“Remember this ability? What you people said about fast equipping, right?”

Miyusuki sits there letting the immersion around him starting to kick in. Sanquin is explaining to him about their UI and hers are alike. His head starts thinking as if, even if, he could revive the stats he lost.

By observation alone, Sanquin sees him reacting and already setting his body what it truly is. After so many cycles of adapting this world, there is no way for the citizen to revert back to their normal body. Miyusuki starts to realize and puts his experience back into his body. The delusion of being weak is starting to wane. The young student was exercising for a while and even endure much being a recruit. There, his symptoms start disappearing, his body is slowly exposing the presence of Sanquin’s realm. Accepting it like it is part in nature, then he starts to stand up and feels the ki in his body.

His mind clears, his body resists, and his ki links together. Finally, his body becomes one again. This sensation returns and with his mouth trembles to speak, he raises his head to look at her eyes. The gleaming red eyes with her beautiful face clear from the blur, he never once had. Detail to details, from her armors up to her beautiful face. He blows the black mist from his breath. He drops his gauntlet and plays with the black mist. Without his mind controlling it, he let his own will do what he wanted it to do. Ignoring what he wants it to be and let it what it should do.

Sanquin proudly smiles with an evil look “That’s where you’re hiding, you little doll you”

Fae-chan comes out from the mist. It’s usual toy like expression is lost and shows only what the Enders to look, as guardians. The dolls in Enders Bridge are the guardians for the young girls. This doll is meant for that. Miyusuki didn’t know how they work. Coming from his breath, it means it hides inside of him. The doll didn’t do anything to help because it kept inside of him until it was summoned. Now Fae-chan is only standing there, nothing else to do.

Miyusuki tries to grab it, but it phases through him

“What?! Sanquin, did you see it?”

Sanquin chuckles “That’s not important, your black mist had finally done what it supposed to do. Exhausting the bad energy out of you”

“Does it mean my doll this something bad?”

“Not exactly, these are dolls supposed to protect the Enders’ daughters. Both harm and sickness”

“Sickness . . . Yeah!!! that’s right, the UI!”

The realm starts to shake as the beam of light passes over them from the side. Miyusuki got startled while Sanquin throws at the laser and stopping it to shoot further. The laser pierces through and the realms starts to collapse.

Stolen novel; please report.

“My, we’re under attack, this means those two can’t guard for long”

“Those two? Haw! We should help him”

Miyusuki rushes back with Fae-chan coming with him. His body returns back to normal and starts to move faster. With every step he feels the weight on his equipment, his new body becomes agile and starts to think faster than he normally would. Destroying the stats from his UI has deliberately restore his natural health condition. Not letting his intelligence or wisdom stat because he wants to have constitution more made it impossible for him to think outside. There he looks at Fae-chan running behind him.

He said to the doll “Fae-chan, can you push me to the gate while I’m skating on my shield?”

Fae-chan looks confused as it sees him brings out his runic shield and takes it as a ride. The doll dugs down and bring the ground up to the air. The flat ground turned into a slope as he slides down. He turns around and sees his doll popping from the ground and diving down like a shooting star to boost his momentum downward.

“This is not what I have in mind”

The idea that he would use his shield like a skateboard and use his other shield while bursting through the door as he rams through. Instead, the doll did this.

As the momentum reaching them closer to the door, he raises his gauntlet as he smashes through. The door didn’t budge and won’t open. He turns around to see Sanquin is holding her realm. He tries to reach her, but it was too far. Soon the door starts to become transparent and sees through what happened outside. His friends are fighting each other. There he sees something wrong. His friends and their UIs are out of control. Powers linking both them and it, as if they are possessed by it.

“Sanquin! They are fighting, my friends and our guild are fighting. What’s going out there?”

“I thought those two would protect us from the monsters. But why are your people there?”

“I DON’T KNOW! Come on, open the door”

With his strength the door moves in a slow pace, his hands are shaking from the desperation to get this door open. Fae-chan comes to his aid and summons its spirits to open the door. A giant spirit comes out from the ground reaching to the door. Together, they slowly opening it until they saw Myrrkei and Haw lying next to the door.

Myrrkei and Haw knocks back to the door both Joanne and Usweet-. Miyusuki was shut back in. They are really fighting and right in front of him. How did his friends know about this place? Yet, they didn’t know they are fighting Haw and Myrrkei. It is obvious they are being controlled. Those two didn’t even fight back to hurt his friends, but his friends did. His hands still at the door keep pushing forward. His mentor is maintaining the realm to keep it from collapsing. He tries again, until there was a strong light coming this way.

His eyes blinded by it until there is a shadow blocking it. Haw blocks it for him. Haw falls down with his head exposed and burnt. Miyusuki didn’t look at Haw goes down but Arsenal is looking as the door. The UI is taking aim at the door, a precise shot meant directly at him. Freedom has a price, and he took it without realizing the complete truth about this world. He thought he will have different powers. Although not stronger like his city, but strong enough to survive like the Enders.

“Is this the price I have to do to survive?”

He whispers at himself filled with doubts that he thought having alternatives since his city has not mastered yet with their own powers.

“Yes, but not alone. The truth of your people not going to leave this world is a preparation you must do”

A voice, other than Sanquin or the man, says to him. It is close and the voice continues

“A free man is able to act freely without limitations except your being. It doesn’t mean yours are weak. It means that thing that wants to control you don’t want to lose theirs”

Fae-chan leans closer to his head, patting his head. It is hard to believe that doll is lecturing him.

The door starts to open again, Miyusuki has to learn the hard way. The first of his challenge he needs to do is to back to his city and see what it really is after completing what he lacks. Sanquin holds the realm and watches him go. Her laughter starts to whisper and echoes to the same rhythm from another laughter from the other side. Close to the door as it opens, another Sanquin helps her disciple opens the door. They look at each other from the distance. Sanquin in armor and Sanquin, the original. The Sanquin in armor fades in red mist, laughing in a demonic tone. While the original Sanquin walks out of the realm and sees how Miyusuki is now.

“It is not enough” The real one remains discontent.

Silfa manages to gather all three in her forcefield. Both her and Healer are in deep thought to see what’s going on. Healer is holding the red crystal tightly as if he is being protected from what while she has her UI blocked by her pet spirit. Joanne, Usweet-, and Arsenal are mindlessly aggressive and couldn’t maintain their posture as a team. Arsenal was the strangest by her behavior. She couldn’t shoot at them in between her friends, she didn’t have the capability to use it except her ammunitions. Her laser weapons are too fast for her to change its effects unlike the bullets has detection between friend or foe.

Healer tries to reach them out with the red crystal

“I wouldn’t try if I were you”

Myrrkei forces himself up from the ground. Taking one of his potions and drinks it then pukes it out from the pain from his throat. It was enough to keep him awake a little bit more. Silfa reaches out to him

“I’m so sorry, we didn’t -”

He stops her “It’s too late, remember what my runes message you. Here! Take these potions if you know how to. Ugh! Clouded by dazing. I leave it to you”

As he fell Healer tries to catch him, but he was caught by Miyusuki himself. His eyes strained from the sight what’s going on, both worried and angry, and he takes a deep breath. He releases the black mist and spread around them. The UI reacts then starts to crack. The controlled teammates fell asleep as their body torn from the sheer powers given from the UI. Silfa places them down near the gate where the only place where there is no dust nor crystals would harm them.

“Oh my god! You’re fine”

Silfa looks at Miyusuki, he feels confused and at the same time relief they are fine. A confused reunion distracted by the UI’s tricks.

“Say, Shield Student. Are you alright?”

“I was, but why are you guys here?”

“It’s a long story, especially about beating your guild members”

They look at the two battered and Fae-chan is tending Haw’s wounds. Fae-chan shows them Haw’s chest, wounded, moves as he is still breathing miraculously. They were worried, but there is nothing left they could do as their spells can’t use mobility in this area.

All of them wanted to leave as soon as possible, but they seemed not to. Haw is dying from what they saw, how come they couldn’t do it? Their heads are losing it as they must react in that situation. Healer says to them

“We have a problem. We don’t know whether is Haw is going to live or not”

“Yeah, but why I didn’t have the urge to save him. After all I have done to save others. Why Haw won’t letting me save him? My younger sister knows me. Why am I like this?”

They heard a noise from the distance, the traps are left are getting used up. They look at the gate as the enemies are coming

“Hey, they told us to guard this gate. Is there something important inside?”

“It is supposed to be my training. I didn’t know they have to guard it”

“Well, try to go back in then”

“It is impossible, I understand what they are talking about. They are guarding you, Shield Student. That realm wants you removed unnecessary powers you couldn’t use”

They turn and look at Fae-chan talking to them. The doll speaks calmly as it tries to wrap the damaged head with special bandage. The spirit around it appears again, speaking

“We better leave. We discovered too much. Enemies all around fester at the discovery”

Fae-chan goes to the statues, and linked its mana through it. The statue broke and reveals the colored stones, same ones that Silfa and Haw had. It picks it up one by one. It supposed to be heavy and shouldn’t be carried with people who mostly used magic. The doll picks it up fine. It turns to them and said

“What are you waiting for? We need to leave. Back to the city”

A random rat men body flew here and covered in crystal spikes. The rat men are coming and they have to carry five people out of here.

Miyusuki tries to call out to Sanquin “We are in trouble. Do you think we are able to fend them off?”

Sanquin responds “There are people from the city is going to your location. You have enough to hold to go there”

“What about you? Will you help us?”

“I’ll attract the monsters here. But it means you need to breach through as I gathered them”

They are in a tight spot, and then he sees Silfa is collecting them with her forcefield. Healer pulls Miyusuki up from the ground.

“There’s nothing else we could do now. I hope your short training pays off”

Silfa looks worried to see Haw like that, but never to feel any remorse to look at his head burnt made her feel noxious. She checks her UI again and still the pet spirit won’t let her see the UI and it itself won’t leave in her inventory. Now with five down to carry, they have to leave as fast as they could. They proceed to move straight to the city. Healer holds his Enders runes replicas, one of them starts phased through the outlines. The runes rewrittetn into a teleportation rune. He hesitated for a bit, and he was pushed by Miyusuki

“Come on healer, there is no back now”

Along with his doll, Healer will never believe that they would get away from this. After what they saw in their UI, will they ever going to believe them?

They warp into the runes quickly leaving this place. Sanquin claps at the young boy. Healer was he called and she understands why he and Silfa were able to resist IT. Then she looks their entire team. Her face never was showing any frowned mischief, and most of the time she always prepared. The rat men arrived and drawn into the gate. They scurry around it with their mana gaping open to feast it. Once it touches the archway, they immediately fell into dust. The blast shoots away from the city. It is definitely from the summoner’s desperate attempt to hide it. That’s how she fears, not to Miyusuki but the people he is close to.

Silfa’s team arrived at the outskirt, out of the city. Escaped from the rat men and Healer escapes them from it. In this distance, there should be people coming right about now. Healer tries to check his runes and found out they are trapped

“No way, how did they know we are coming here?”

Somebody entered their field of view. The obvious look of their logos on their clothes. The dark green dot gang arrived. Not from the citizens in the city, they wore artifacts. Both Silfa and Healer can’t use their UIs to find about them.

A number of seven of them together, suited in armor and strange weapons designed by mystical powers, and one of them covered his face.

He calmly walks in “I was expecting an ill-gotten being awakened you people, but I guess you must be resisting it”

Silfa pulls everyone at her back “Who are you? You’re not from the city” The covered man’s warriors take arms, but he pulls them down with his double images, every one of them.

“There’s no need to fight in your disadvantages, however”

He hands shifted the force of his magic into his hands. Every grip on his hand is holding are pebbles then throws at the doll. The doll throws one of the stones.

“But we want those stones. We will let you go if you give it to us”

The six of the warriors surround them. Slides on the dusts as their feet are above its soft pile. Silfa’s team stuck their legs in dusts and with their UIs trying to control them. Fae-chan is resisting, but the three don’t have any choice.

“Miyusuki, I have no more escapes. We have three of our friends gone mad and two of your guild members are too injured to fight. We can’t win this”

Healer explains to him as they are fighting, they don’t know whether they are brigands or not. Silfa thought they could handle this if they are actual gang members. By how they are suited and standing above the dust, they surely can’t win.

“Fae-chan, do it” Miyusuki reluctantly says it.

The stones throwed into the air as the covered man catches it. His gang begins to leave, and the hidden barrier starts to disappear.

“I see the citizens are able to learn when not to fight. You people have done well, but you have other challenges after we leave”

Silfa should’ve known “But we follow your request”

“Indeed. But what you have right now is solving one of your problems”

“Wait? There’s more?”

“Even how witty we are. Your enemies will definitely find you”

The barrier disappears as they all spread away from them. All sides, leaving them separately.

The city outskirt unveils what they have seen before coming here. It wasn’t the rat men, but panels and screens pop out of nowhere. Miyusuki sees right in front of him and soon feels his UI is starting to back up into him. He feels the pain trying to squeal inside of him, trying to put him back like the others.

“AAH!”

After that shocked, it went silent. He opens his eyes and see five of them is surrounding him. The UIs are possessing his friends. Joanne, Arsenal, and Usweet- are free from the forcefield. They attack him as he tries to block it with his shield.

Arsenal fires first as the two flank him. Joanne at his left and Usweet- at his right, the two coordinate in perfect sequence. Fae-chan blocks Joanne attack and Miyusuki uses his gauntlet to slap Usweet- back. Shadow appears above him and it was Silfa diving down with her eyes blurred by static. In disbelief as the incident happened all over again. The strange thing happened to them as they fought Haw and Myrrkei. Freedom, this is what he heard from the man. This is must be the punishment. The UI is his enemy. But his city will become his enemy too.

Alone as he watches her strike down. Suddenly someone pulled him away from danger.

“HEALER! I couldn’t believe you resisted”

“Stop talking and act like an Ender. There so many things we don’t know”

Healer casts his runes to block Arsenal attack. Joanne and Usweet- swings back around to charge at them. Fae-chan casts his sprits from the dust pulling out with entangled vines on their feet. They quickly use their mobility evade the vines. The roots ‘able hold them tight whereas the dust gripped to the both of them. Fae-chan raises the dust covering them to distract them further.

Silfa pushes forward at Miyusuki. He raised his shield and she quickly uses her forcefield at his back. She knocks him back and bounces off from her forcefield directing back at her. Miyusuki sees her side stepping to hit him at the side. He swings his shield at her, then something blocks his shield from turning to her direction. A small forcefield stops his block. He uses his gauntlet to block her swings. The gauntlet unleashes powerful volts while it consumed her mana. The amount of mana on her is unbelievably high.

Another forcefield raises on his feet as his loses his balance. Silfa keeps going with no ends and aims at his head. Miyusuki sees the opportunity as he blows his mouth with black mist. The black mist shrouded on her as the negative effects exploded around her. Her mana starts to slow down and the large mana pool eroded from the black mist. Sifla coughs off from the black mist as she shouts out to Miyusuki

“Save yourself, I have been possessed”

To her words, she turns back quickly and attacks him.

Miyusuki sees the pattern on her body after using his black mist. A cog icon set hidden close to her head. The gripes of his hand to touch this strange cog. He smashes what it seems strange then exploded with shadow mist. The explosion blinded Arsenal. Healer takes this opportunity to use the red gem and stops her. Arsenal’s UI disrupted for a bit as the two holds it together. The tears coming from her eyes.

“Ootadakimasu! Help me!”

“It’s fine, I’m here”

Arsenal breaks free from the control with the red crystal.

They look at Miyusuki’s fight with Silfa. He was able to beat her, but Silfa is in a lot of pain. Breaking the UI causes her stats to breakdown. Leaving only her natural body exposed into the wilderness. Her spirits tried to comfort her. Effortlessly, she feels the opposite, the cold touch of the dead hurt her than feel of relief. The fight is over and two somehow able to stop it. From what they have done to endure this nightmare, the drawbacks are too much for them.

Miyusuki sees the reality. The UI is their enemies. But this is too much to get rid of it alone. He was able to go through it because of his training. Even with the symptoms on him, it is unbearable to anyone who will going to escape the UI’s control. A path he will take and alone to do it. He stares at the city expecting to be more like this one. There he sees two more people coming this way. In power armor, he begs

“No, please not them. Not . . .”

In power armor, a man grapple onto Miyusuki and said

“I am not letting a demon take you away!”