Chapter 1216: Kojou Akaya: Who Kicked My Butt!
"I am the law of Itogami Island!"
These words sounded exactly like those of a tyrant!
The witches of the Library of Criminal Organizations exchanged glances, each seeing fear reflected in the other's eyes.
This Fourth True Ancestor might be far less "conventional" than the outside world believed!
"Tch, why has it turned out like this?"
Natsuki Minamiya's expression turned extremely dangerous.
It was incomprehensible.
Had her educational approach been flawed?
No, it had nothing to do with her.
Indeed, the Japanese government's methods had been too extreme. His personality had already been shaped during the period before she adopted him.
"Are you absolutely determined not to leave this place?"
Natsuki Minamiya tightened her small face, her expression stern.
"I'll leave once I've accomplished what I came here to do."
The armored figure's tone carried unwavering determination.
"Then it seems I'll have to force you out myself!"
Natsuki Minamiya's eyes hardened with resolve.
A guardian clad entirely in golden gear-shaped armor slowly materialized behind her, shifting from intangible to solid.
"Have you forgotten?"
Eiji sneered, completely unfazed.
"We've already fought before! That guardian of yours is no match for me!"
They had fought before?
Kojou Yuuma and the witch sisters exchanged glances.
Her puzzled expression seemed to be seeking confirmation, but the sisters' simultaneous head shakes made her sigh in disappointment.
Their understanding of the Fourth True Ancestor was far too limited!
"Don't get cocky, brat. Don't think that was my Ring of Reincarnation's full power."
Natsuki Minamiya revealed an arrogant smile.
"To avoid causing a disaster last time, I deliberately suppressed the Ring of Reincarnation's power. But this time I won't hold back! I'll show you what it means to have a guardian capable of rivaling a True Ancestor's Beast Vassal!"
This was inside the Prison Barrier.
Although the outer barrier had been broken, as long as she re-entered the dream state and covered everything with dream energy, the damaged areas could be restored without causing significant harm to Itogami Island.
Here, she could fight at full strength!
"But when I fought you last time, I wasn't the Fourth True Ancestor yet either."
Eiji also smiled.
Who did she think she was looking down on?
His words brimmed with absolute confidence that he was unmatched in the entire world.
"However, while I don't mind fighting you again, I really dislike being taken advantage of by others."
Suddenly changing the subject.
Eiji shifted his gaze away from Natsuki Minamiya.
Kojou Yuuma and the other two were startled, immediately bringing out their grimoires.
Was this finally the moment when the hidden dagger would be revealed?
Just as they thought this, Eiji instead turned his attention deeper into the sanctuary.
"..."
Natsuki Minamiya paused slightly, the battle-ready energy she had been gathering gradually receding.
Her understanding gaze followed his toward the depths of the barrier.
"Bzzz—!"
Abruptly.
A gray-black mist rippled outward, forming a perfect sphere that enveloped the entire stone island in the blink of an eye!
"What...!"
Natsuki Minamiya's expression changed dramatically, her face turning extremely unpleasant.
This damn brat!
He actually tricked her!
While distracting her, he had simultaneously launched an attack on the Prison Barrier!
"Is this... the power of dreams?"
Nangong Nayue discerned the ability of the gray-black mist in less than a second.
Fundamentally, her Prison Barrier was also a form of dreamscape, so abilities of similar nature couldn't escape her perception.
"What are you trying to do!"
She glared at the armored figure, her eyes radiating intense pressure.
Like a teacher scrutinizing a student or parents watching their child, it felt as if a single misstep would invite the crack of a whip.
"Just some convenient little tricks."
Eiji smiled.
Beneath his visor, a satisfied grin spread across his face.
"Well then, at this point, are you still hoping to play the bystander waiting to profit from others' conflict, Record-Signing Witch?"
Snap!
A crisp snap echoed.
Immediately after, it was as if a foreign object had abruptly manifested within space.
Suddenly, a figure tumbled out of the spatial void in disarray.
The manner of appearance was less like leaping out and more like being forcibly expelled by space itself.
"Mother!"
Yuuma Kyouko exclaimed in shock.
Appearing before them was a beauty bearing seventy to eighty percent resemblance to Yuuma Kyouko.
She was draped in the magnificent twelve-layered ceremonial robe reserved for noblewomen of the Heian era, the overlapping layers of garments exuding extravagant elegance. Her raven-black hair cascaded down to her ankles, and she appeared to be in her twenties. Compared to Yuuma Kyouko's vibrant youthful aura, this woman possessed a gorgeous beauty blending classical grace with bewitching allure.
"Quite the undignified appearance, Aya."
Nangong Nayue cast a leisurely gaze her way.
Her eyes even held a hint of schadenfreude.
"You intended to wait until the Fourth True Ancestor and I exhausted each other before swooping in to claim the spoils, didn't you? Pity—there are no fools present here!"
The Prison Barrier now stood wide open.
Other prisoners remained incapable of escaping, as only the gateway had been opened; the barrier itself still resided in a separate dimension, leaving them unable to even discern an exit path.
But Yuuma Aya was different.
She was a witch—moreover, a woman who once commanded the entire LCO and stood at the pinnacle of the witch community!
For her, as long as the Prison Barrier's gate was open, she could find a way out from within the barrier itself.
However, she had concealed this fact, lurking in the shadows.
Just as Nangong Nayue stated, she had noticed the confrontation between the armored figure and Nangong Nayue, secretly plotting to reap the rewards, only to be unceremoniously exposed and forcibly ejected from the depths of space.
Upon closer inspection, a faint footprint remained visible on her posterior.
This entrance lacked any semblance of dignity!
Moreover, she hadn't even glimpsed who delivered the kick!
Yuuma Aya remained silent.
Her face darkened, emanating a palpable low-pressure aura, her entire being radiating an icy aloofness that warned others to keep their distance.
"Mother, are you alright?"
Ignoring the battlefield surroundings, Yuuma Kyouko rushed toward Yuuma Aya with hopeful anticipation.
Though her birth was shrouded in mysteries, though she had never met her mother since coming into this world, though she had lived her entire life under the harsh tutelage of witches who arbitrarily placed expectations upon her to rescue Aya—
The innate yearning for a mother was an indelible part of human nature, impossible to erase.
Even with countless questions swirling in her heart, at this moment she still hoped to receive some solace from Aya.
"Silence. I am not your mother."
Kujou Aya stood up, discreetly brushing off the faint footprints on her buttocks.
"You are merely a replica I produced through parthenogenesis - my shadow created specifically to break the prison barrier's seal. What right do you have to call me mother?"
Parthenogenesis, in simpler terms, meant cloning.
The reason Kujou Yuuma was born with the appearance of a six-year-old child was because she had been created in exactly that form.
In other words, she was actually an artificial lifeform like Astarte, except the DNA used wasn't standard but rather Kujou Aya's own version.
"Mother...sama...?"
Kujou Yuuma halted her steps, the light in her eyes dimming.
The last remaining hope in her heart was instantly shattered.