Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume12 Chapter9 (section)

===Part 3===

"...No way... How could this happen..."

Looking up at the militarized spirits circling midair, Fianna exclaimed in despair.

Before her eyes were the ruins with the broken gate. The remains of the shrine that was blown away were scattered randomly all around.

Having lost her place in the palace, she had found somewhere she belonged for the first time.

But now, she could do nothing but watch as this precious place was being trampled.

The Academy had entered a state of emergency and was evacuating students and visitors.

Combat teachers, the Sylphid Knights and some of the students were heading to engage the enemies in battle but could not handle the militarized spirits.

(...One could hardly blame them.)

This was not a blade dance to make offerings to spirits.

Those in the Academy with real combat experience were extremely rare.

"It's my fault... It's my fault for the ritual's failure&mdash;"

Lips trembling nonstop, Fianna knelt down on the spot.

At this moment, one of the militarized spirits landed in front of Fianna.

"...!"

The black, winged dragon opened its jaws, preparing to swallow Fianna.

Apart from demon spirits afflicted with strange mental structures, spirits had no concept of eating humans. However, a portion of evil spirits would devour princess maidens' physical bodies to absorb divine power.

Fianna, with her divine power far surpassing average princess maidens, was top-quality prey.

"No... Don't come here...!"

Collapsed and sitting on the ground, Fianna kept backing away.

The winged dragon's great jaws opened, revealing a row of small but sharp teeth.

"...Kamito-kun!"

Fianna could not help but cry out his name&mdash;Just at that moment.

Whoosh&mdash;the sound of wind being sliced was heard.

"...Eh?"

In the next instant, the winged dragon's head was covered by crimson flames.

The militarized spirit made a frightening howl and jumped up.

"Fianna, are you okay!?"

Hurrying over was Claire, wielding the intensely burning Flametongue.

Her crimson hair fluttered in the wind. Her maid uniform was already full of holes.

"What on earth happened? Where did the militarized spirits come from?"

"No idea. But&mdash;"

Still sitting on the ground, Fianna shook her head.

"I believe that the magic circle controlling the Gate was rewritten."

"...Who did it&mdash;"

"..."

For an instant, the image of a certain person, wanted by the Empire, flashed across Fianna's mind, but...

"This is not Rubia-sama's style."

"Nee-sama won't do this kind of thing, okay!?"

"I know."

She absolutely would not permit a terrorist attack that caught ordinary people in it.

(...But I can't figure out the purpose.)

Some kind of organization, objecting to the Empire's rule, targeted the Great Festival of the Spirits as an attempt to undermine the Empire's authority&mdash;This was plausible, but the plan would be far too crude if that were the purpose.

Perhaps this would plunge the Academy in turmoil for the short term, but the Empire's knights stationed at the Academy town would quickly arrive and suppress the attack.

(If only as a show of force, they used seven militarized spirits as disposable pawns?)

...Considering the large number of militarized spirits being consumed, this plan would be far too absurd.

(There's most likely another goal&mdash;)

"Fianna, it's coming!"

Claire screamed acutely at this time.

After the fire went out, the militarized spirit slowly crawled back up and roared threateningly.

"As expected of a militarized spirit, that's quite sturdy of it!"

Claire began to chant spirit magic. A triple release of extra large Fireballs in succession.

&mdash;Direct hits on target. The flaming explosive shockwaves swept over the entire area.

"Wait, Claire, are you trying to blow up the entire school yard!?"

"I'm not done yet. This kind of half-baked attack won't destroy a militarized spirit&mdash;"

As though to prove Claire's point&mdash;

Amidst dancing flames, a pitch-black winged dragon flew out.

Ascending up into the sky all at once, it glided down, accompanied by furious howls.

"&mdash;I knew you'd do that!"

Claire swung Flametongue.

The crimson slashing whip traced out a complicated trajectory, wrapping around the dragon's wing.

The militarized spirit lost its balance in the air. However&mdash;

Urgh... Gah... Ohhhhhhhh&mdash;!

The militarized spirit gnawed and shredded its own single wing.

"What&mdash;"

Miasma of darkness flowed out from the wound, instantly growing a new jet-black wing.

"I can't believe it has regeneration powers!?"

Recovering its ability to fly, the militarized spirit tore through the air and rushed over again.

"T-Take this, I'll strike you down!"

In response, Claire frantically invoked fireball magic repeatedly, but her offensive power was clearly weaker when used without chanting. The flames were easily deflected by the miasma enveloping the winged dragon's body.

"...!"

The winged dragon's sharp claws swung down. In that instant...

"Freezing fangs of ice, go forth and pierce&mdash;Freezing Arrow!"

The militarized spirit's giant body was pierced by countless arrows of ice.

Struck by the sudden attack, the winged dragon fell to the ground, turned into a giant block of ice.

A great dust cloud was produced, accompanied by intense earthquakes and rumbling.

"Hmph, right at a critical crisis&mdash;"

Wielding the magical bow of ice, Rinslet rushed over from a hill.

"Rinslet... Uh, thanks a lot."

"Oh my, that's quite honest of you."

"S-Shut up! ...Are the other princess maidens okay?"

"They've been evacuated by the Sylphid Knights already."

"Okay. Then before the Empire's proper knights arrive, let's stall for time. Fianna, can you stand?"

"...Yes, I'm okay."

Pressing on her painful legs, Fianna stood up.

She really was saved by Claire's forcefulness in attitude.

(...I just need to do what is within my ability right now.)

Fianna chanted the words of summoning, calling forth the knight spirit Georgios.

With Fianna in charge of support in the center, the trio swiftly formed a triangular defensive formation.

At this moment&mdash;

"Don't go to the frontlines. Stay back and focus on supporting us."

"&mdash;Eh?"

Looking back, they saw the teachers of combat courses standing behind them.

"We have no right to be teachers if we let students shield us."

One of them, Freya, chuckled lightly.

"Hmph, it's been a while since I got some exercise. This reminds me of my days in the knights!"

"We shall protect the students of the Academy."

Wielding their respective elemental waffen, they glared at the militarized spirit.

Combat teachers were either former soldiers or participants of the Blade Dance. Even with some diminishing of divine power, their skills still rivaled those of spirit knights in active service.

"But Sensei&mdash;"

"Don't worry. We just need to stall for time until the Imperial Knights arrive."

Freya gently put her hand on Claire's head.

&mdash;Suddenly.

"Giggle giggle... Gathered together, gathered together. Foolish insects."

"...!?"

A cute voice, one that did not belong to the tragic battlefield, caused everyone to look around.

It was not a real person's voice. This was a magical voice sounding directly in one's mind.

"...That is?"

Freya looked upwards and murmured.

Looking up, a girl could be seen riding on the back of a militarized spirit circling in the sky above.

Her golden hair was fluttering in the wind. Dressed in a military uniform of pure white, she was looking down at the ground.

On her left eye was an eye patch that did not match her look as a beautiful young girl.

"W-Who are you!?"

Claire yelled at the girl.

"Millennia Sanctus."

The girl smiled and reached for the eye patch over her left eye.

"Sent to this world&mdash;The ''Evangelist'' bringing prophesies of the end times."

The girl took off the eye patch, revealing the eye.

&mdash;Instantly, Fianna felt an intense chill down her spine.

(That's...!)

Even at this distance, it was clear from a single glance. Residing in that girl's eye was&mdash;

"...That child's eye, no way&mdash;"

Possessing outstanding potential like Fianna as a princess maiden, Claire also seemed to have noticed.

They noticed that what the entity residing in the girl's eye was.

"...Yes. It's the same as what we saw in the sanctuary of the Elemental Lords."

Fianna gasped and whispered.

Eating away at the Elemental Lords' minds, causing them to go insane, the Otherworldly Darkness.

Why was something like that inhabiting the girl's eye?

A scream suddenly came from behind.

Freya's and the other teacher's elemental waffen had released their waffen state at the same time and started attacking their own contractors.

"The spirits are going crazy!"

"I won't let them... Go forth and pierce, Ice Prison that freezes everything!"

Rinslet hastily released a hail of magical ice arrows.

Spirits that were struck were instantly locked away in prisons of magical ice.

"Heh, splendid. Seeing this eye without going berserk, your spirits."

Millennia Sanctus smiled tenderly.

"&mdash;As expected, you must have seen ''that'' inside the sanctuary of the Elemental Lords."