Editing Hyouketsu Kyoukai no Eden:Volume 5 Final Chapter (section)

===Part 6===

The endlessly sounding warning.

The evacuation guidance broadcast played loudly however many times and the bright red lights on the ceiling were shining brilliantly. There was also a thunderous sound like the ground was rumbling.

“Oi, oi, what’s this?”

“……An intruder?”

Vaiel’s angry voice and Monica’s mutter.

“''Keep the pondering for later. Sheltis, your swords.''“

{{furigana|Machine crystal|Ilis}} lit up in dazzling crimson. The dual swords in his hands had vivid deep purple blades constructed upon their hilts.

“Monica, hurry!”

“Y-yeah. Okay ── I’m opening it.”

The unit leader had her {{furigana|crossed rods|Rosario}} in hand as she kicked open the door with vigor.

The bright red lighting fell upon those of the Governmental Sector running about trying to escape. That even included the parliamentary members that had been at the conference.

“Even the conference participants!? Then what about the conference……what about Ymy!?”

Monica raised her voice with a pale face.

“''Sheltis, hurry to the meeting room!''“

Got it ── with a nod, Sheltis turned towards the intersection. There were the sounds of the footsteps of a great many people.

“……This way. Hurry!”

Off-gold hair shone brightly.

With the girl in pure white vestments in the lead, the General Affairs Bureau Chief came next followed by his secretaries.

“Ymy!”

“Sheltis?……That’s great, there was a broadcast telling everybody to escape.”

Her shoulders moving with her breaths, the Priestess’ expression softened.

“General Affairs Bureau Chief, are any of you injured?”

“We have no impediments. But what’s the meaning of this uproar───”

“Sheltis!”

A shout cut off the General Affairs Bureau Chief’s words.

From the right-hand side of the intersection, the opposite of where Ymy’s group appeared, a small shadow was running towards them.

“Kagura!? I’m glad. I wondered what happened to you.”

“Mo……Monica……it’s……dangerous here. ……We need to……a wider place.”

With intermittent breaths and gasping, Kagura forced the words out.

“It’s him……Sheltis…………that monster───”

 

“'''Zazakazada…………da……zakarakara……zadadadazakakakazadazakazada…………rada……rakazazakakadada……za……zaza……karakara……zadadadada…………'''”

 

A noise-like aria that resembled the sound of a bug’s wings.

Sheltis understood everything the instant he heard that. Having understood everything ─── he understood just exactly how dangerous this situation was.

“Monica, I leave Ymy to you!”

He sprinted to the intersection without waiting for an answer.

He brandished his sword at the Golden spell caster that calmly appeared there. The spell caster shifted over the instant before the edge of his sword made contact.

“!?”

Spinning his body like a screw, he crossed his blades and the right arm that was shining gold came thrusting up. He took that with his left sword and ── he couldn’t mitigate it and was blasted up high into the air.

……This guy.

……It’s not the real Maha but just his automated puppet, huh!

Maha’s clone that was created in his image using gold. The last they’d met, it was the final spell that Maha had shown. Now it’s the opening move?

“''Sheltis, there’s another one to the rear!''“

“──Kuu!”

At {{furigana|machine crystal|Ilis}}’ warning, he thrust out his blade before spinning around.

He repelled the fist of the second clone that seemed to have calculated where he’d land and kicked off its shoulder to open up some distance.

……Not just one but two. No.

Countless footsteps approached from further down the passage. There’s no way all these footsteps could be……

“My Golden Hexehedral is invincible.”

Then.

At least ten spell casters, dressed in golden robes and shining gold themselves, appeared. ……So he prepared a large number of clones beforehand for this attack.

The Governmental Sector’s security was wiped out cleanly by this.

……This is a sudden predicament.

It would take all his strength just to fight the real Maha. With this number of clones, not to mention if they made something, it would be unmanageable.

“Be crushed.”

Under Maha’s orders, the clones pushed nearer.

“Monica, take everyone and head to the meeting room!”

“I-idiot! What kind of──”

Before her answer, he lunged at the clones that were closing in from both directions.

The clones that were giving off a golden shine. They swung their fists at a speed invisible to the eye and he read their paths from the shoulder alone and dodged. He didn’t retreat backwards or jump to the side and passed through the countless clones’ fists ─── drawing nearer to Maha’s real body.

“Define.”

A crack opened up at Maha’s feet. The material coating the floor fragmented and the earth underneath that jetted out. That formed into the image of wriggling snakes.

“Extracting poisonous materials within the ground and performing pseudo-creation. The color is ‘''white''‘, nature is ‘''cowardly''‘, form is ‘''snake''‘. Ten shall appear, fangs laden in deadly poison. Defined to seal the enemy before me with poison.”

White snakes with deadly poison appeared as Maha’s advance guard.

……But I already saw this in our last battle.

Those defined with the ‘''cowardly''‘ nature would only attack an unmoving opponent.

“'''──Forcefully dispelling the previous definition.'''”

The stiffened white snakes at Maha’s feet raised their heads at his voice.

“It’s a trap; Sheltis, dodge!”

Kagura shouted. At the same time, poisonous beasts filled his vision.

To dodge the enemies coming from above and below in every which direction, he jumped up to just beneath the ceiling. Kicking off the ceiling, he moved to a wall and then he kicked off that to land on the ground further to the rear.

At that instant.

His vision blurred momentarily from an intense impact and a violent pain ran through his left shoulder.

“……Kaa…………?”

His diaphragm convulsed from the shock transmitted through his left shoulder and his breathing stopped.

……Maha’s…………clone!

A single clone had circled around behind him when he landed. It had aimed for the point when he was completely defenseless. He clenched his molars at that failure as and Maha’s clones approached from all directions.

“Sheltis!”

The scream of his childhood friend echoed from behind.

……What to do.

With one arm numbed, the enemy’s fists were approaching from all directions. He couldn’t react to them all. With that in mind, he still poured power into the grip on his right sword──

 

Carve my name which is synonymous with great reverence and majesty

Otoga Wem millmo, HIr shoul da ora peg ilmeri giris ende zorm

 

All of Maha’s clones that were drawing near were blown away.

“……Eh.”

“''This is──''“

Underneath the red lighting, a single pearl-colored precious spear was shining.

It was a super speed slash tranquil enough to not even stir up a single grain of dust but fast enough to leave behind a whirlwind.

Resisting or reacting were not permitted. Maha’s clones which were disappearing into the walls were cut perfectly in two in succession and returned to gold dust.

Everyone who was watching couldn’t move and even Maha stopped for a moment.

In the middle of that──

“O─kay! Sorry to keep you waiting, Ymy-sama, it’s Ishtar〰!”

Placing the handle of her spear against her right shoulder, only the Cadres Guard was standing there smiling.

“Gosh, jeez. When I went to the meeting room, nobody was there. It’s troubling for me if you just evacuate on your own, Ymy-sama; you have to wait until I come to you, you know?”

“Ah……s-sorry.”

“It’s fine─, it looks like I made it in time so everything’s fine! Now then──”

Giggle.

With a challenging look on her face, Ishtar turned to Maha who was standing still after having his clones thoroughly crushed.

“Ishtar will face this guy. Monica-san, your unit should evacuate with Ymy-sama and the General Affairs Bureau Chief’s group to the meeting room.”

“Un……Understood!”

“Good answer. Now, let’s quickly──”

“W-wait, please!”

Kagura’s shout stopped the Cadres Guard who was about to move.

“This is a diversion! Using the opening caused by Maha rampaging here, another man named Igun-I is aiming for something in Building Four!”

“……Heeh.”

Hyuu, the Cadres Guard instead whistled happily.

“Hey, is that true?”

“……You’re slow.”

Beneath the shadow cast by his hood, Maha’s lips opened slightly.

“Igun-I has……already headed there. Everything in existence is under our control.”

The spell caster’s left hand was raised very high.

“Be purged by heavy pressure, tremble and sink, ground──”

“Who’s the slow one?”

Ishtar’s spear danced and Maha’s words as well as the ceiling were cut off. <ref>[T/N: 切り裂く can mean "cut apart" and "cut off". The ceiling is the former, but it's pretty much impossible to cut apart somebody's words.]</ref>

Crish ── the ceiling was cracked into what resembled a spiderweb. That became countless fragments of varying size and that great mass of rubble and dust swallowed Maha and his clones. This wasn’t an opponent that would be silenced with just that but it would probably take him some time to get out of it.

“Now then, isn’t it your turn?”

Ishtar’s gaze fell onto Sheltis who was still pressing on his left shoulder.

“You know what these guys are aiming for.”

“……The eye?”

Now that they knew about the third organization, using ‘''Mikuva’s Crimson Eye''‘ to investigate them was also possible. That meant that the people in question would absolutely want to get rid of that treasure, the ‘''Crimson Eye''‘.

“That’s right. Unfortunately, you’re the only one who knows where that’s located. So go. This guy’s Ishtar’s prey anyway. I’ll also protect the Priestess-sama for you.”

“……But”

Her opponent was Golden Maha. To fight this monster alone and guard a Priestess at the same time, he knew best just how harsh that was. Rather than the Governmental Sector’s treasure or anything else, right now he should completely assure Ymy’s safety──

 

“'''That’s why, boy, why don’t you try asking through force?'''”

 

…………

…………'''That line is'''……

“Don’t tell me you forgot?”

It was a quiet and heavy tone that seemed to pierce into his heart like a blade. Even so, her face was filled with a provocative smile like one shown to a long-time old friend.

“If you’re chasing after {{furigana|the Sennenshi|Leon}} who’s gone on ahead, boy, then you can’t remain here. '''The one who will remain here is me'''. I wonder if you remember me saying it that day?”

 

“''I told you, the goals that you and I pursue are different. They’re completely different.''“

“''I’ve achieved mine! It’s enough if I have the position of an Elite Guard.''“

 

──There’s no way I could forget.

──It was the last conversation she and I exchanged before I fell to the Garden of {{furigana|Corrupted Song|Eden}}, after all.

She continued to make her spear let out a shrill sound like a whistle.

“I’m saying to go. Or are you uneasy if it’s me?”

“…………”

“You’re the one who said you’d become a Sennenshi. If your resolve that day was not a lie, then go.”

Being hit with that stabbing smile, Sheltis slowly let out a breath.

……How stupid.

……Then I really was found out right when we met.

“That’s why I don’t like you; just when you’re playing innocent, you suddenly reveal your true colors.”

“Playing innocent is unthinkable. Right, Priestess-sama?”

Ishtar turned around with a coercive smile. But there wasn’t a single person who could reply to that.

Ymy, the General Affairs Bureau Chief and his fellow Cadet Guards couldn’t say anything about the Cadres Guard’s true nature.

Filled with fighting spirit and confidence, she stood in a way that only showed some kind of sublimity.

……Ymy.

Sheltis lightly nodded at his childhood friend who was peeking out from behind Monica.

“……I leave the Priestess in your care.”

“Leave her to me.”

The rocks that swallowed up Maha swelled.

“Go!”

“''I’ll guide you through the shortest route to Building Four, Area 31.''“

Being pushed on by Ishtar’s bellow, Sheltis stepped forward.