Sorry for the delay, I was quite busy so I couldn't really write, also, this chapter is twice as long so it took longer to write than normal. After all, I writes in my free time

Now, without further delay, enjoy!

P/S: with the appearance of: The Autonomous Bartender , this novel will be demote into a secondary project, since the World of Astella is quite complex. I'll focus on TAB for the time being

----------------------------------------

Mirai was on her way to the shrine

"--The has invaded the city, all citizens are advised to evacute to the nearest shelter or hide in your basements immediately! Please do not leave until further noticed! I repeat--"

"get the fuck out of my way!!"

"did anybody see my child?! Please help me find him!"

"stop pushing!! The shelter has enough space for everybody"

Alarms can be heard throughout the city, people were frantically trying to reach the shelters as the Emergency Rescue staffs tried to guide them to safety

When Mirai arrived at the shrine area, it was burning in a sea of red, yellow and orange. The cries of the people echoed into the night. Tendrils of smoke reaching high upon the sky, as if trying to escape the blazing inferno below.

"please remain calm everybody, no need to panic. Proceed to the West gate and take the shortest route to the shelter"

Amidst the flame, Mirai could see her mother's figure trying to evacuate the visitors

"Mom! Are you okay?"

"Mirai? Why are you here? You went after Souta right? Ah, it doesn't matter right now, help me evacuate the visitors!"

Mirai's mother - Asahina Sanae is the current head of the shrine. When the explosion happened, a festival was going on at the shrine so there were many visitors at the shrine ground currently

BOOOOOM!!!! *rumble* *rumble* *rumble*

Suddenly, a part of the shrine collapsed, raising a cloud of dust and embers

Through the curtain of flame and smoke came the glow of two yellow eyes, like a lamplight casting an eerie glow down the street, eight feet off the ground, covered in an ashen colored hair, the huge monstrosity slowly climbed through the pile of rubbles

"mom, you take the guests and run as far as possible from here, I'll hold that thing back!"

Mirai is the only one here who could fight, she needed to buy some time for her mother to run away

"it's okay Mirai... you don't have to do this, you're still young, your future awaits, just prioritize your life first"

"what are you saying mother? How can I leave innocent people to their fate and run here? Especially when you're one of those people..."

"can you really defe... No, nevermind.... Don't push yourself okay Mirai? If things gets tough then just abandon us and run"

"Don't worry about me mother, I can handle it! Definitely!"

Realizing how powerless she is, Sanae could only swallow her tears and pray for her daughter's safety

"geez, you're too much of a worrywart mother. Beside, Sou-chan will come and save me if bad things happens"

With her mother out of danger, a small smile broke out on Mirai's face as she prepares for battle

"hey monster-san, you'd better be ready for a heavy punishment for interrupting my confession with Sou-chan!!"

Even though the creature doesn't understand the language, it knew that it's being mocked, raising a loud roar, it sprinted toward Mirai

Each step it took made the earth trembles, the massive monster charged at Mirai with its head lowered, trying to skewer her with its sharp horn.

"it's fast!"

The monster was fast in contrast to its huge frame, having underestimated the monster's strength, Mirai was taken by surprise, but she somehow managed to dodge the attack at the last moment by jumping back.

The , having missed its mark began to circle back. Mirai tried to dodge a swing from its massive claws, but she wasn't fast enough this time, it only grazed her side but the wind pressure behind it alone was enough to send her tumbled on the ground

"I've fought Youkai before, but this thing is much faster and stronger than all of them, what a monster"

Struggling to stand up, Mirai could feel the cold sweat on her back and the fear slowly creeping up her spine, but she can't lose here, not when the silhouettes of the group that was trying to escape is still visible, she needed to buy more time for them

"TORRRYAAA!"

Shouting out loud to suppress her fear, Mirai swung the beam saber at the monster's leg, but the attack was ineffective because of the barrier is still active, the feedback made her hand numb instead

"ouch~ what's with this thing? It's so hard~"

But Mirai didn't stop attacking, and after a few attacks, the barrier was broken, accompanied with a spray of blood, the saber cut through one of its hind leg.

While letting out a pained roar, the beast jumped back a long way, and from its back, numerous tentacles sprouted up. Agitated by the injury to its leg, the furiously charged at Mirai again even faster than before

Mirai tried to dodge it by jumping back, but from the 's back, the cylindrical shapes of tentacles leaped out, and they entangled Mirai with a perfect timing when she was still in the air and couldn't dodge

"no way!! My clothes are meltingggggg...!!!!!~"

The tentacles were covered in slime, wherever it touches immediately started to melt where the slimy mucus made contact with her clothes

"stop it you perverted beast!!!!!!~"

*Nyuu~Nyuu~* Countless tentacles with black luster that just by looking at it would make you wrap in disgust were twining around Mirai's limbs and wriggling around with a disgusting sound, they eventually found their way inside her half-melted clothes

"My body...is not your play thing!!!!!!!"

The beam sword, as if giving its consent, extended into a 3m long sword. With a round cut, Mirai severed all the tentacles in one go, rotating her body while still falling, Mirai severed another leg. Kicking at the huge body of the beast, Mirai jumped a long way to distance herself from it

The monster let out a crazed howl, it was emitting a murderous aura, as if saying killing Mirai wouldn't be enough to soothe its rage. Stomping the ground, the monster opened its mouth widely, a ball of light was slowly forming again, it was preparing to release another beam

"mother and the others are in the way... I can't dodge!"

Mirai did not know what the monster was trying to do, but she can tell it was a ranged attack. She leapt away from her position to avoid the attack, but while jumping, she saw the silhouettes of the party who were trying to flee in the direct path of the attack

A mysterious sound was reverberating in the air as the monster was charging up for the attack. Pressing the ground with her leg, Mirai held up the beam sword and stood between the monster and the group, preparing to intercept whatever comes this way to protect the innocent people, and above all, to protect her mother.

A few seconds later, a straight, bright, laser-like beam was fired from the , the attack with a tremendous output that even made the air scream was making its way to where Mirai was.

Any attack would just be annihilated

Any attempt to block would be futile

Anything she does would be useless

Mirai's hand trembled

Mirai knew she couldn't get out of this unscathed.

She knew if she were to take that attack it would instantly vaporize her without even leaving a speck of dust behind

Even so Mirai stood firm

It was not that she wanted to protect someone because she can defeat the monster

She had to stop the monster because she has someone she wanted to protect

But no matter how much she struggle she wouldn't be able to stop this kind of attack

"ah.... am I... going to die here?"

A sense of regret started welling up inside Mirai

But, at the same time a sense of fulfilment surged up

"at least I confessed how I felt to Sou-chan. Thank you for returning my feelings, I'm... happy... And sorry Sou-chan, I won't be able to repay your kindness..."

A torrent of regret, her words of gratitude and apologies would never be able to reach him now.

The brilliant white light was shot out, the blinding light thick enough to swallow her entire being annihilated the surrounding darkness was heading toward her

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"huh? I'm... still alive?"

Mirai waited, waited, and waited... But the attack never came

In the instant when she was to be vaporized entirely in the beam along with all her regrets

A deafening sound that rocks the heaven echoed into the night sky as the beam collided with an invisible wall

The heat released from the attack melted the ground around her, the stone-paved shrine ground was shining red hot. The trees were uprooted, the soil and rocks were blown away by the impact

But on the other side of the invisible wall, Mirai was unharmed. Furthermore, she can't even feel any difference in temprature

"M...ai... irai... Mirai... Are you okay?"

"eh? Sou-chan? Where are you?..."

Inside the safezone created by the barrier, Mirai heard the voice of her beloved childhood friend

"what happened? The barrier spell on your keychain was activated. The barrier is strong but it can only be maintained for a limited time. Just throw your keychain on the ground and recite , I will be there immediately"

"huh? Keychain? You mean this?

Mirai pulled out a bear keychain from her pocket, it was vibrating and shining brilliantly with a bright light that illuminated the surrounding

On  her 10th birthday, Souta gave Mirai a keychain with a cute bear design, it looks just like a normal keychain you can get at any gift shop

"ehhhh, how do I use this? Like this?.... RELEASE!"

Mirai threw the keychain under her feet and recited the key word. It suddenly stopped shining and vibrating

"eh?"

"Did I break it? Wawawa... What do I do now? Sou-chan is gonna be mad at me!"

After a few seconds later, the keychain started shining again, this time it was shining in a light blue color. A blue disk with a hollow center and glowing outer rim with the height big enough for a person to pass through appeared, it was Souta's teleportation magic that he used earlier. And from the black hole, Souta's figure emerged

"Hanya!?"

"seriously! Don't just yell at my face the moment you see me..... Are you okay?"

Mirai let out a surprised voice, since she threw the keychain at her feet, the gate was right next to her, the distance between her face and his's was just a few centimeters apart, she can even feel his warm breath

"I...I'm fine, just a few bruises. You came just in time"

Replying happily, Mirai tried to hide her embarrassment

"I can see that you're okay already, I was talking about something else"

"what are you?.... IYAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Souta was pointing downward, following his finger, *poof* Mirai instantly turned into a red tomato. Crouching down to hide her body, her eyes were spinning as steam puffs rose from her head, even her ears and neck were bright red

"Thank you for the feast!"

Bowing his head and clapped his hand twice, Souta made it look like he was praying at a shrine. On a further note, he IS at a shrine currently

"geez~, what are you even doing at a time like this?"

"don't mind it, I was just thanking somebody for the wonderful sight"

Earlier, when Mirai was sprayed with the clothes dissolving fluid, her clothes were mostly melted, and she was in a half-naked state. The tattered clothes that hid her body half-heartedly made her look excessively erotic

There were a few cut at the front of her chest, making the smooth curves of her breasts visible. Her slender body coupled with a pair of abundant hills would make one’s heart throb at a glance

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"here, take this. You'll catch a cold with those rags"

Souta gave Mirai the shirt he was wearing, his gentle warmth wrapped around Mirai like a gentle breeze on a warm day

"these aren't rags, they are my Combat Shrine Maiden outfit"

Japan has always had spellcasters or spiritualists who passed down their skills, and Mirai was one of their descendant

Combat Shrine Maiden is a type of spiritualist that protect a specific area, their tasks comprised of exorcism, spiritual cleasing and most importantly, destroying Youkai that emerges within their region

"anyway, you can rest assure, I'll handle that thing"

"okay, be careful Sou-chan, it can shoot beam from its mouth"

Worried about him, Mirai tried to warn him about the 's ability

"got it. Oh, one more thing, do you remember what I said before about me being not a human? Well, after this, decide for yourself if you still want to follow me or not"

----------------------------------------

"Come here you disgusting insect, you're going to die for what you just did"

Souta turned to the abominable monster, declaring its ineluctable fate for hurting his important friend

GRUUUOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!~

The loudly roared before charging at Souta at a breakneck speed

If someone were to be hit with that, it's over for them. Not mentioning being skewered, a human body would no doubt be mercilessly torn into thousands of pieces

"WATCH OUT! SOU-CHAN!!!"

"don't worry, just stay there and watch"

An explosive sound like the ground is breaking apart rang out from under his feet as he left a crater on the ground. Souta had jumped up to its upper body and hit the  so hard that its huge body flew backward for dozens of meters

"No way!~"

Her voices was filled with shock, a monster with the height of over 10 meters must have been incredibly heavy, and yet he punched it hard enough to knock it back that far. That power has far transcended the limits of human capabilities

Struggling to stand up, realizing Souta is not its [prey] but an [enemy], the monster opened its huge mouth, trying to swallow him whole. A shockwave burst forth as Souta blew the monster away with just a swipe of his hand

"we're not done yet!"

Kicking the ground again, Souta jumped in an arc. Rotating his body while in mid air into the upside down position. Stomping the air, Souta launched himself toward the ground like a meteor and landed a straight punch on the 's back.

The punch was already insanely strong to begin with was accelerated further by gravity and his jumping power. A huge crater was formed under the monster as it was pulverized instantly without even giving it the chance to let out a death throes.

"So? Do you understand that I'm a monster now?"

"You are so strong Sou-chan~!!!!!!"

Mirai who was astonished by Souta's overwhelming power was flailing her hands around with an excited mood

"eh?"

In front of the excited Mirai, Souta was stupefied and didn't know what to say

"what was that? You punched it like BANG! BOOM! And flew like WHOOSH~! It was incredible!!!!"

The bloody mass of flesh nearby that was still twitching has nothing resemble to what it once was did not even faze her, not even a tiny bit

"ahhh... Who am I kidding?~ She's an idiot"

"that's rude! I am not an idiot! You're the Idiot here!! Stupid Sou-chan!!"

Since Mirai was an air-headed girl, of course she doesn't mind that Souta is a human or not. Souta just gave up on the idea of showing his monstrous strength to scare her away

"pffft.... puhahahahaha! Yeah I'm an idiot, I was stupid to even try to scare you off"

The girl's face, beautiful enough to make anyone's heart throb was dyed with discontent, but her cute way of expressing it only served to make Souta laugh like mad

"but still... thank you Sou-chan, you really came to save me...~ *hic* thank you *hic* and I'm glad you're okay..."

The danger is now gone, she doesn't have to fight for her life or her mother's life anymore

It wasn't tears of sadness but happiness. Even though she's happy, her tear wouldn't stop flowing.

"come here... It's all okay now... don't cry"

Souta pulled Mirai into his embrace, trying to comfort her

*rrrrrrrrrrrrrrr*

Suddenly, from somewhere close by, the sound of engines running came

A few minutes later, numerous light came from the sky, and the silhouettes of humans wearing mechanical suit can be seen. Also, many small hovercraft-like vehicle were moving below. The group of soldiers stopped near where Souta and Mirai were

"Which of you was the one who killed this ?"

A silver haired girl who was wearing a full body suit stepped forward. She had smooth, flowing silver hair with a hint of purple that reached her waist. Her hair swayed in the wind as she walked, leaving a bright silver trail behind her. She had gentle blue eyes, pale white skin that shone like wax, she looks like an exquisite doll

"That would be me, and you are?"

Souta stepped forward to answer the question, as well as to shield Mirai from any probable danger

"Captain Iris Amaryllis, we're the subjugation squad from . Identify yourself!"

"oh, you're from huh? I'm a Special Commissioned Officer. Lieutenant Ichinose Souta, I don't belong to any organization. But I do have a contract with Arlington"

Special Commissioned Officer (SCO) are a term for people who don't have the obligation to accept a mission from the higher ups but holds the same authority as the rank suggested

"Arlington...the academy's principal!? You have a contract with the Dusk Witch?"

The Dusk Witch - Sophie Arlington, is a highly respected individual and also a central figure in the who proposed the idea of combining both Espers and Witches power together to protect humanity

"yeah, here's the proof. Anyway, is there any left?"

"no, the one you killed was the last one"

While examinging the relevant paperwork, Iris said

"Sou-chan, who are they?"

Mirai who was staying silent until now timidly asked

"don't worry, they're from academy, the place I was about to go earlier. But I must ask, do you really want to follow me there?"

If Mirai want to follow Souta, she have to transfer from her old school and part from her friends. Especially her best friend, Yuuko

"... yes! I want to be with you wherever you go, about Yuuko-chan, I'll explain it to her later, I'm sure she'll understand"

"then you should go get your mother's permission. I'll arrange the transfer procedure"

"Actually, I already got it. But I want to tell her what happened just now! Tell Saya-chan to get better soon for me okay?!"

Mirai ran off in a flash, leaving a trail of dust behind

Souta didn't know, but Mirai already consulted her mother about that matter after she received Amaterasu's divination, but that is a story for another time

"sheesh...What a happy-go-lucky girl.... Anyway, Captain Iris! Take me to , I have fulfilled my part of the contract, now it is Sophie's turn"

"Roger that Lieutenant! You can use one of our Scorpion."

Iris pointed toward one of the vehicle they brought along

"All team! Return to the Academy!"

******

Back at a certain operating room

"What's the battle result? Hurry up and report!"

Sophie Arlington was yelling at the operators again

"ye...yes.. right away ma...I'm sorry.... I mean Sophie-sama"

Sophie heard a certain forbidden word, but because of the situation, she decided to let it go...for now

"four Ground type have been neutralized, two of them exhibited an unprecedented ability. The beams of unknown nature they released earlier had a power level of over 30 Gigawatts, that's four times more powerful than our most advanced particle cannon!"

"30 Gigawatts? That much is enough to power the whole damn city for a month! Furthermore, how did they even get past the wall without being noticed in the first place?!"

The wall that surrounds the city is always monitored by numerous cameras, motion sensors and heat sensors. And there are espers with detecting related ability constantly patrolling, as well as many spells put up by witches to detect any approaching

Moreover, outside the wall, the city is protected by the autonomous defense system that is nigh impregnable by human hands

But even so, the fact is the have broken in, and there was nothing about the previously demonstrated ability in any past records, there is something about this that makes Sophie feel uneased

"Agrh! This is giving me a headache! Issue an order to investigate this incident immediately and report back to me later! I'm going for a nap!"

Flailing her short arms around and pouting, Sophie showed the rare behaviour that matches her appearance

After Sophie have left, the operating room turned quiet, only the sounds of keyboard clicking rapidly remains

----------------------------------------

At a certain place located in a quiet residential neighborhood

A Caucasian teenager was striding on the empty road, heading for a certain mansion

Inside a garden with a multitude of trees, the mansion itself is obscured from the outside view. Covered in vines and mosses, it looks like the mansion hasn't been used in years

There is a wide atrium hall after passing through the front door and there was a huge staircase leading to the 2nd floor inside. The youth walked cautiously up the stairs, and eventually stopped in front of a big door.

Pushing open the heavy door, the youth entered the murky room

"oh, you’re here, youngster"

"I've arrived and ready for your instructions"

A tall and lean old man, probably about 50 years old, were playing with an ashtray talked to him, the old man's appearance was very intellectual, with a wide forehead and deep-set eyes, sitting with an upright posture, he was emanating a heavy and overpowered presence.

"how did our little experiment go?"

"yes, the portable teleportation equipment was a success. Although we couldn't test the maximum capacity, we were able to confirm that there is no problem with the transference of the [goods] to anywhere you wanted"

The youth presented a strange looking device to the old man

"Wohoho. That’s good enough! Now we can proceeds to the next phase of the plan"

The lean old man let out a crazed laugh while playing with the ashtray

"now all we need is to secure a [bait] for our Queen's descent. Can I leave this matter to you, -kun?"

"your wish is my command, this humble servant shall complete your order without fail!"

"good! Then I'm counting on you"

As the old man’s chess piece, the devil’s servant took off

In order to sprout the seed the devil planted

"those filthy ingrates, I'll show them how we cleanse this god forsaken world!"

The old man that was left alone in the room, mumbled to himself

Dark happiness was filling his heart as he stared at the equipment which was close to completion

The dearest wish he wanted was about to be achieved, he can feel the savage delight, joy and rapture were swirling inside of him

"Ha...haha……..fuhahahaha!! Ha----haha!! Ha---hahahaha!!”

The emotions mixed together soon turned into madness and poured out like raging currents in the form of a hysterical laugh

The devil laughed alone in the darkness...