PHASE 73 - TO KILL THE UNKILLABLE

My name is Alaric Eisenhower. When I was a child, I met a girl named Tiara Hikari. I made friends with her and spent happy times together. But all those things never happened. Not in this timeline. All those sweet moments of our childhood are gone, erased from existence, as if all those things came from a beautiful nightmare.

“I-Impossible…”

Tears rushed down to my cheeks as I wake up from a long dream. No… It’s not a dream. I have a feeling that all the scenes conveyed to me are real memories from the Brightmore Witch.

Tiara… suffered for an eternity… all this time?

“And it is your fault, Alaric Eisenhower.”

In front of me is a shrine maiden with short silver hair. The personification of the Brightmore Witch’s sins from the very first up to the latest generations. She’s not just a Cursed Guardian. Her very existence is now composed of the deadly sins of an Eidolon.

She is… Shirayuki.

Shirayuki continued to hurt my heart with her accusing words. “If only you didn’t change fate back then, she wouldn’t remember her suffering through seven million timelines. She’s supposed to die for your sake, but you just keep mangling destiny. And now, she’s paying dearly...”

“...W-What have I…”

My lips are shaking and my mind is completely blank.

Suddenly, nine snow-white tails started sprouting from the shrine maiden’s back and gently caressed my face.

“…Her only salvation in this eternal suffering is… Death.”

…

Am I really supposed to accept the back then? Is Tiara’s death the only way to relieve her from her eternal punishment as the Witch of Time?

I failed to utter any more words. I don’t even know what’s right or wrong this time...

“Of course he can save Tiara.” A familiar voice said.

Just a few meters beside me, a dark portal opened. A man with a black outfit with red scarf made his entrance. Although his white hair and crimson eyes are a bit more malicious, his teenager-like face is never to be mistaken.

“...I-It can’t be!” Shirayuki withdrew her tails and jumped back, away from me. “T-The Outsider!?”

The Outsider made a safe smile, and then materialized his transparent kite-like shield on his left. His chest glowed and drew a short sword from his heart.

Seeing the uninvited Outsider suit up for battle, Shirayuki made a loud echoing laugh in this dimension of nothingness. “HAHAHAHA!!! You never fail to impress me, Yohan Hikari Romanov!”

“It’s been a while since I last heard that name.” The Outsider shook his head. “Don’t just reveal my old name like that, you uncouth vixen. I am the Outsider now…”

...Hikari? Is this man somehow related to Tiara? But before I could indulge myself to a deep thought, The Outsider walked to me and tapped my shoulder.

“You shouldn’t regret your choice.” He said with a convincing smile.

I looked at the Outsider as I wiped watery eyes.

“B-But because of me… Tiara is-”

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“Every choice is the right choice. You just have to live through that route and convince everyone that you didn’t regret your option. It goes the same for Tiara. She chose to reject your deaths and tried to save you seven million times. That is the proof that she did not regret any of her decisions.”

“Tiara…”

I looked at the far end of the white dimension and saw my eternal friend chained in a cross. She’s awake, but her soulless eyes make it clear to me that she’s not conscious.

It’s true that she stuck herself in an infinite time loop just to be with me. She did all those just to spend more time together, and ultimately… she wishes me to have a long happy life. Even though she has suffered a lot, she’s willing to give all her happiness. She was always there, always trying hard to give me a smile on every timeline.

Everything is clear to me now. I have to save her from her curse! It’s my turn to protect that adorable smile!

“So you have recovered your will to fight, eh?” Shirayuki made a devilish smirk. “But how can you possibly defeat me in this dimension? I am omnipotent! Physical attacks and spells won’t affect me, and you can never use your Guardian Ability! I am technically invincible!”

The Outsider ignored the evil shrine maiden’s babble as he proceeded to talk to me about our game plan.

“You remember the spell when you tried to kill Diadem back then? That’s a Void Spell that can be used to injure that devil.”

“Yes, I remembered.” I nodded. “But won’t you help me this time?”

“I will, but as the noisy fox said, I won’t be able to use my in this dimension. I can still back you up with support spells, though.”

“You’re powerful as an enemy, but you suck to be an ally…” I coldly said. I was so disappointed.

“Watch out!”

Suddenly, Shirayuki flew several meters above us.  Her silver tails suddenly became unbelievably gigantic and bloated, and she used those to sweep our position!

With his incredible reflexes, the Outsider went the front lines and protected both of us with his diamond shield, which spread itself to form a half-dome!

When the nine-tailed shrine maiden stopped smashing her tails, the Outsider took the opportunity to cast a spell!

“!!!” The Outsider blew a surge of unending white smoke from his mouth! As soon as the smoke touches the gigantic tails, it immediately turned to frozen solid!

“Haaaa!” I shouted! This is my opportunity to attack! I used the frozen tails as a staircase as I rush forward and upward, readying my katana to cast a point-blank spell!

“!!!” As I made a direct stab to the shrine maiden’s chest, a crimson-colored tornado drill emerged from my sword!

A deafening roar from the tornado, combined with a loud dark-crimson pillar of energy was formed as she caught a direct hit!

But…

“It’s not enough!” Shirayuki growled as her right hand morphed into a dark claw made of pure energy! “!!!”

As soon as the dragon claw reached my chest, I was immediately pushed downward and crashed to the ground! The force of my impact was so powerful that it made a shockwave! I feel like three of my ribs has just been broken, and I can’t feel my back!

The enemy did not wait for the smoke to clear! She already cast another powerful spell to finish me off! “!!!” As soon as she shouted the spell, the evil shrine maiden’s whole body was engulfed in crimson flames, ready to dive!

In the nick of time, the Outsider went in front of me again and cast another spell!

“!!!”

The Outsider blew out massive black smoke that rushed to the enemy! As soon as these dark clouds touched Shirayuki, the dark fog started to burn the enemy’s skin!

“Ooooah!” Because of the powerful wind pressure of the dark smoke, Shirayuki has been launched away into the air. But she landed safely on the ground as if she sustained no damage at all.

The enemy’s skin was completely burnt. It even charred the shrine maiden’s clothes, and the right half of her body, including her face, is now revealing her muscle fibers.

“So this is the power of Void Spells…” Shirayuki licked her burnt right arm and then smiled as if she’s enjoying her own roasted meat. “The power to reverse reality and cause and effect. The power to kill a thing that cannot be killed.”

“People die if they are killed.” The Outsider made a smirk.

The Outsider helped me stand up and used on my back. In an instant, my broken ribs are now reattached, and I feel a lot better now.

But that didn’t change the fact that our enemy is invincible. In just a matter of seconds, the shrine maiden regenerated with her full health. Even her torn clothes are back to being clean and tidy.

“Playtime is over.” Shirayuki smirked. “I’m going to delete you two from existence!”

Dark energy particles gathered around the evil shrine maiden and then a black pillar of light engulfed her whole body.

When the light faded, she finally revealed her true form.

She was the Celestial Time Fox.

It was a silver fox that is twenty meters tall even if it’s just standing on all fours. Its nails are long and wide enough to be as big as a broadsword, and the same is true with its fangs. It has the eyes of a Cursed Guardian, and there is a mark of a devil in its forehead. 666.

Its nine tails wave smoothly like tall trees being moved by gusts of wind.

The demon fox howled, shattering and forming cracks around the white skies of this dimension.