Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:GT Volume15 Chapter3 (section)

===Part 14===

Silence fell.

Even the scent of scorched air seemed to be considerately keeping its distance from people’s senses.

The electric current of more than a hundred million volts had been magically controlled, ensuring a hit.

But Kamijou Touma still wasn’t dead.

Because someone else had made themselves into a human shield.



“…''Hama''…''zura''…?”



Narthex Coded Cathedral spoke his name in surprise.

That boy hadn’t wanted to call Coronzon a great demon. He had felt the same way she did.

So why had he saved Coronzon’s killer?

Was that the thing he ''most'' wanted to risk his life for!?

“You could have done anything you wanted, so why would you waste it on something so stup- gah…ah…!?”

The girl’s head wobbled.

Something was wrong with the right half of her vision. She didn’t have time to check a mirror, but the capillaries in the white of the eye may have burst, turning the eye bloodshot.



“You aren’t Index.”



And.

Since Hamazura Shiage had shielded him, Kamijou remained standing.

And he could…clench his right fist.

“Kh.”

“So you don’t have an extreme resistance to a grimoire’s toxin. You said that knowledge was as toxic as an original grimoire, right? If you could’ve just used that as much as you wanted, you would’ve just started with that. The only reason you didn’t is because that trump card damages you too, doesn’t it? “

Narthex had the Black_Oneday hacking tool.

She could have used that to damage Academy City and then spread that damage across the world, but she hadn’t.

She launched her cyber attacks with the same decryption skill she would use for a grimoire’s symbolism or a magic circle’s layout.

But that had been a burden on her.

She hadn’t wanted to use it more than necessary.

Because she could tell it was threatening her life.

Otherwise, she would likely have already triggered a major war like Coronzon had attempted with Adikalika.

(It’s just like with Index… When Coronzon gives someone a power, it isn’t going to make them happy. It will destroy their life and transform them into a living secret weapon.)

That great demon could only tear people’s bonds apart. She couldn’t actually save people no matter how hard she tried.

This had so bothered her that she had tried to destroy the world over it, so it did seem a lot like her.

“So you should stop here. The ordinary fear of death is catching up to you, isn’t it? But you see your ability to do these unusual things as your bond with Coronzon, so you don’t want to stop. But it’s not like your memories of her will vanish if you do things normally.”

“Shut up,” snapped Narthex Coded Cathedral. “I loved my mother. I truly respected her… I know so much about her you never knew. She tore people’s bonds apart and obstructed their evolution? That was all she could do? That isn’t true and I’ll prove it… That’s enough of a reason to risk my life.”

She looked around 13 – although her actual age was unknown – but her face was a portrait of fury, hatred, humiliation, scorn, and frustration. Every negative emotion aside from sorrow was contained there.

“You killed my mother.”

Kamijou had no memory before a certain day during summer break.

He knew he had saved Index during that time, but he felt like he hadn’t actually experienced it himself.

Even so, he could tell.

This girl…was an Index who hadn’t met Kamijou Touma.

So she had relied on someone else. Such as viewing her own creator as a parent.

For one, it was the person who had shattered her cage of misfortune. For the other, it was the person who had created her cage of misfortune.

It had all branched out from there.

“But that wasn’t enough, so now you’re going to rob her of the possibility of being reborn and getting a second chance at life? Kamijou Touma. You don’t have the right!! No one does!!!”

Maybe not.

But…

“I might be plagued by ''misfortune'',” said Kamijou.

He didn’t avert his gaze even as he was called a murderer.

Because…

“But I’m still not as ''miserable'' as you. Because I had the freedom to overcome my misfortune.”

“Kh.”

“Narthex, your circumstances weren’t your fault. You were made to be that way for someone else’s purposes and benefit. That much is obvious. …And that Great Demon Coronzon did that to you is all the more reason something had to be done about her.”

“My life is none of your business! Don’t barge in and act like you know if I’m happy or not. All that mattered to me was that my mother wasn’t alone!! But you and your smug self-righteousness took everything from her! Including her life!!!”

The girl screamed at him.

With tears in her eyes.

“For so long she called herself the Anglican archbishop! She said her name was Lola Stuart! She couldn’t tell anyone who she really was. Not even her real name!! Because she would be killed if the truth got out! You would know all about that since you’re the one that actually did it. And all because you’d decided getting the whole damn world to gang up on her and attack her was the ‘right thing to do’! …I was the only one she had. I was the only one who knew her name was Coronzon and accepted her for who she was. Only I could save her!!”

That had to be Narthex Coded Cathedral’s true feelings

She had to be coming up with these words on her own.

Looking at this alone, her story sounded like a moving one.

Kamijou Touma’s heart should have ached as the one who fought Coronzon as a great demon and let her die.

''But he couldn’t let himself forget.

Narthex had been ''created'' by Coronzon. And unlike Index, she hadn’t broken free of Coronzon’s control…so she had never been saved. Just like Index had several layers of security built into her without her consent.

In that case.

Narthex referred to Coronzon as her “mother”.

That was a title of love and respect. Those feelings were likely real. If she had started saying that without being ordered to by her puppeteer, the great demon hadn’t corrected her. And even if it was a mistake or bug her creator hadn’t intended, Kamijou still felt some sympathy for the lonely demon who had wanted to hear that word.

…But he would never be moved by Narthex’s devotion.

Coronzon must never have imagined she would die.

Of course she hadn’t when she had fought to the very end under the wholehearted belief that she would win.

The unintended cage she left behind with her death had to be broken here.

This was a misfortune that not even Coronzon had wanted.

“…I’ll kill you.”

The girl must have realized her words weren’t reaching him.

With a low growl of a voice, Narthex stuck her small hand in the rear of the plush bear. Did it contain a keyboard or a touchscreen? Either way, she must have decided the track ball on its face wasn’t enough.

“You are the one person in this world I swear I will kill! I will smash you into tiny little pieces! …I don’t need your brain to get knowledge of your return from hell when Anna Kingsford’s preserved corpse exists. The border between life and death can be crossed! And I don’t need you to create a vessel for summoning my mother back to this world!!”

But the Six Wings around her did not respond.

“Someone already hacked them and expelled all their fuel?”

Come to think of it, someone had gone missing partway through this battle.

Narthex’s eyes darted around the area.

“Dion Fortune? What has she been doing on this base!?”

But she couldn’t afford to split her focus at the moment.

Insulting someone who wasn’t even present would change nothing. And Kamijou was currently stepping toward her.

“Ohhh!!”

“Hm? No…”

A loud “slap!” rang out.

Kamijou had knocked the plush bear to the floor with his palm. Now she couldn’t use her hacking tool to send commands to the science side weapons.

“Tch!!”

Narthex held out the red apple of knowledge in her other hand. That thing had knocked out Birdway and Lessar, but a moment later it shattered with a solid sound of impact.

Courtesy of Imagine Breaker.

Now the girl couldn’t use science or magic.

And Kamijou Touma had already clenched his right fist.

Tightly.

“If you are convinced Great Demon Coronzon’s death was a mistake. If the remnants of Coronzon still lingering inside you are mechanically making you say that!!”

“Kh.”

(Hey, Coronzon.)

It was like he wanted to show that girl how the great demon had met her end since she hadn’t been there to see it herself.

He threw his words and his fist at her.

(This rampage isn’t the downfall you wanted to see, is it!? So it’s time you gave that girl’s life back!!!)

“Then!! I’ll destroy that illusion!!!”