How long had the battle with the Shogun lasted?
At this point, Ei could no longer remember. Or perhaps she had already lost her sense of time. The only thing she still remembered clearly was every moment of her duel with the Shogun. The other had never once defeated her. This was also the first time the Shogun had truly wounded her in a meaningful sense. And yet, she still had not lost.
She had stood up again.
During that time, she caught a fleeting instant when the Shogun's consciousness resurfaced. She immediately seized the opportunity, pulling her into an embrace, pouring out her thoughts, soothing the pitiful child before her—her child.
Watching the Shogun cry in her arms, Ei's resolve only grew firmer.
She would bring her back.
Whether it was Inazuma or the Shogun, she would have them both.
Because she no longer wanted to lose anything.
"Mm... Ei, hurry and get away from me. I... can't hold on much longer..."
Curled up in her embrace, the Shogun began to tremble in pain again. Clutching her forehead, she spoke through gritted teeth, even pushing at Ei's body with her palm, trying to force her away—afraid that once she lost control again, she might hurt her.
"Shogun..."
Ei was reluctant to let go. The hand around her waist refused to loosen.
"Please... leave me... Mother."
"!"
At that plea, her heart felt as though it had been pierced by a silver needle. Biting her lip, enduring the pain swelling within her chest, she finally loosened her hold.
She picked up Musou Isshin from the ground and stepped back several paces, putting distance between them once more.
Thud~
Without Ei's support, the Shogun staggered. She clutched her aching forehead and drove Engulfing Lightning into the ground, leaning against it in a rather disheveled stance. The violet light in her eyes flickered erratically, as though she might revert to that violent, emotionless law-bound state at any moment.
She could not destroy her own system. Such forbidden authority was something her mother would never grant her.
So now, she could only confine herself within the Plane of Euthymia, lest she lose control and endanger the Inazuma and people Ei loved.
She knew the laws she followed were too extreme—too dangerous.
This was her instinctive attempt at remedy.
"Shogun..."
Ei felt her hand tremble as she gripped Musou Isshin. She pressed her lips together, suppressing the ache in her heart. Raising her blade once more, she looked at her own flesh and blood, wracked by agony, and felt her nose sting.
"Ei... it's all right... You don't need to worry about me. Don't feel guilty. Without you, I wouldn't even exist in this world. I do not resent you."
She bore more than even I do as a puppet... She suffers more than I ever have. How could I blame her? Never...
Because she was her puppet—Raiden Ei's puppet.
"..."
Ei closed her eyes and exhaled toward the sky, as though steadying her emotions.
"Let us treat this... as a spar between mother and daughter, shall we? Shogun."
She asked gently.
"Mm... just a spar."
A faint smile appeared on the Shogun's pale face.
Hummm~
In the next instant, a long-absent sound echoed through this space—the hum of a portal opening.
The two were intimately familiar with it. Their gazes turned toward it in unspoken accord. To them, who had long since lost track of time, this door had remained silent for what felt like ages.
And now, it opened once more.
Stepping out from the rift were the girls she had once forcibly separated from.
Yes—for her, it had already been hundreds of years.
Those memories were still etched deeply within her mind.
"Shogun-sama! Lady Ei!"
Ayaka cried out instinctively when she saw the two of them.
"It seems we've arrived safely... haa."
Kokomi let out a small sigh of relief. While passing through the tunnel, the two had clasped hands tightly the entire time, their hearts in their throats, terrified that a single misstep would separate them forever within that passage.
"Why are you...!"
But when Ei saw their faces clearly, she was genuinely startled.
Why had their appearances not changed at all? They had not aged in the slightest.
She was certain that within the Plane of Euthymia, more than several hundred years had passed. Even without a sense of time, she could judge that much accurately. Even if they did not age normally, there should have been at least some subtle change.
Forget it...
She had no energy to concern herself with that now.
"It seems you have... already told Miko?"
She asked.
"Yes... precisely because we informed the Guuji, we were able to return here."
Kokomi answered.
"Haa... that woman is always like this."
Already having anticipated it, Ei shook her head helplessly.
"...You... Ayaka... Kokomi... is it really you?"
Leaning on her weapon, the Shogun lifted her eyes toward them uncertainly.
"Mm... it's us, Shogun-sama. Have you regained yourself?"
Ayaka immediately asked, taking an unconscious step forward.
"Don't come any closer... it's dangerous."
The Shogun hurriedly warned her.
"!" ×2
The two stopped in their tracks.
"Haa... you shouldn't have... come back. I don't want to hurt you."
Her voice was weak.
"Shogun-sama..."
"You are... people I cherish. I... don't want... you to... because of me... mm—"
Her vision blurred again. The violet light in her eyes flickered violently. She clutched her head, forcing herself to remain conscious.
"...I'm sorry... Kokomi..."
"Why are you apologizing?"
Kokomi asked, her voice tight with restrained tears.
"I... earlier... wanted to hurt you... I'm sorry..."
"It's all right, Shogun-sama. I don't mind. As long as you can return to our side, everything will be fine."
Kokomi told her.
"That's right, Shogun-sama. Please don't be afraid. No matter what happens, we'll stay here with you. We won't let you be alone."
Ayaka added.
"We all love you, Shogun-sama... so please, stay strong. Don't let it control your mind. We believe you can do it."
At their words, Ei instinctively turned to look at the Shogun.
To her surprise—it truly had an effect.
"Don't let it... control... I can... This body... I don't want...!"
The Shogun slowly forced herself upright with her naginata. The light in her eyes flickered like faulty wiring—one eye dim, the other bright—as though two consciousnesses were battling within.
"You! Overestimate yourself!!"
An ethereal, icy voice emerged from her mouth.
"I do not! This is my body—do not seize it!!"
The next instant, her own voice responded.
"Tch... I intended to confine you, yet you prove so troublesome. Since you defy eternity, then do not blame this body for its ruthlessness. Let your consciousness vanish once more!"
Hummm~
A bone-deep, piercing agony spread through the Shogun's heart!
"Aaaahhhhh!!!!"
Unable to endure it, she dropped to her knees, clutching her head and screaming. Tears streamed from the corners of her eyes—mere physical reflex.
And at that moment, a faint violet radiance flowed out from her chest.
This wisp of crystalline light drifted silently into the air, moving with concealed intent, as though observing everyone present.
No one noticed it.
"Shogun!!"
Unable to endure it any longer, Ei charged forward.
She had not expected that the screaming Shogun would, in the very next instant, slash viciously toward her forehead, her face twisted with hatred!
"!"
Ei immediately raised her blade to block in front of her eyes.
"Obstruction!!"
Boom!!
A shockwave blasted her away, hurling her across the ground. The two girls behind her were also swept off their feet and flung into the distance.
"This body shall forge you into the cornerstone of eternity!"
Hummm~
In the next second, the Shogun—now fully overtaken by the law-bound consciousness—erupted with blinding lightning. Her kimono and skin peeled away, revealing her true puppet form—Magatsu Mitake Narukami no Mikoto.
She was no longer merely cold.
Now she was violent.
It was obvious that the Shogun's earlier resistance had destabilized the system. And along with that instability, her power had doubled. Even Ei was taken aback.
"Raiden Ei! This shall be our final battle! Life and death will be decided here and now!!"
The colossal Musou Isshin formed along the puppet's arm, resounding across the heavens. The surrounding space warped under the pressure of the gathering energy, distorting as it converged toward the blade.
"!"
Ei was just about to counterattack when, in the next instant, a faint violet light drifted down from the sky and hovered at her side.
She turned in confusion—only to find that the glow carried a presence she knew intimately.
Her pupils shrank.
[Ei... can you hear me?]
A long-familiar gentle voice sounded within her mind.
"That voice... you are... Makoto?!"
She spoke in disbelief.
[It's me.]
The voice belonging to Raiden Makoto replied.
"Why... why are you—"
[Shh... we can speak of that later. What matters now is saving the Shogun—our child.]
Makoto interrupted her.
"Haa... understood, Makoto... tell me... what must I do?"
Ei exhaled, forcing her emotions into calm.
She missed her dearly.
But Makoto was right.
Their child came first.
Once this was resolved, everything else could be discussed.
[Listen carefully. The 'law' can be shut down. No... more precisely, it can be erased.]
"How?"
[Musou Isshin... is the key.]
"Musou Isshin?"
[Yes.]
Hummm~
In the next instant, the violet radiance flowed into the blade in Ei's hand. The sword shimmered, its surface now laced with star-like patterns that gleamed brilliantly.
"This is...?"
[Insert Musou Isshin in this state into the Shogun's chest. Leave the rest to me.]
"Insert it into her chest...? Wouldn't that mean—"
[Do not worry. In this state, Musou Isshin has no physical substance. Upon contact, it will merge this light into her body. It will not harm her. The law has become unstable—this is our best opportunity.]
If not for those two children encouraging her, the Shogun would not have resisted the law's power so forcefully and thrown it into instability.
[However... in this state, Musou Isshin cannot clash with blades. It cannot be used in battle. You understand what that implies, don't you?]
"I understand..."
That meant she would have to approach unexpectedly—pierce her in a single decisive motion.
Which meant someone would need to distract her.
"!"
Her gaze instinctively shifted to Ayaka and Kokomi, who had already raised an ice shield before them.
"Lady Ei? Is there something we can help with?"
Kokomi met her eyes at that moment. Sharp as ever, she sensed the thought hidden within Ei's expression and asked proactively.
Crackle!
In the next instant, Ei flashed to their side.
She looked at them, wanting to ask for their help—but the words would not leave her mouth.
She knew the Shogun's current strength.
Sending these two children forward to face her directly—would that not be tantamount to suicide?
If they truly managed to save the Shogun afterward, the Shogun would surely blame her.
And she herself did not wish for them to sacrifice their lives.
What should she do?
"Lady Ei? If there's anything, please just tell us. It's all right... we want to help too."
Ayaka saw her hesitation clearly and spoke up, just as Kokomi had.
"I—"
Boom!
Before she could finish, the Shogun in the distance brought her charged blade crashing down!
"Careful!"
Crackle!
"Ah!" ×2
Ei reacted instantly, hooking one girl under each arm and flashing away!
Boom!
A horrifying blade-scar cratered the ground where the three of them had stood moments before.
Crackle!
Ei reappeared at a distance and set the two girls down from beneath her arms.
"Can you buy me some time? Draw her attention. I know it's dangerous, but—"
"We can." ×2
"...Eh?"
Ei froze.
"It's all right. We can do it. Leave it to us, Lady Ei."
The two exchanged a glance and nodded at her.
"I may not be a warrior by nature, but... for Shogun-sama, for you, and for Inazuma, I will give it my all."
Kokomi placed a hand over her chest and spoke firmly.
"So will I..."
Ayaka nodded as well.
"...Haa. Very well. Be extremely careful. If you cannot hold on, call for me immediately."
Ei exhaled and instructed them solemnly.
"Mm!" ×2
In that instant, Ayaka and Kokomi exchanged a determined look before turning toward the puppet in her true form.
It was the first time they had seen the Shogun's true body.
Magnificent. Noble.
Even as a puppet, she deserved such words.
"You would defy eternity? Mortals?"
The law-bound puppet glared at them coldly. That gaze alone felt sharp enough to pierce through them.
"!" ×2
Their bodies trembled instinctively.
Then they smiled.
"We do not defy eternity."
Ayaka spoke.
"We defy only the eternity that belongs to you."
"!"
The puppet frowned.
"Kamisato Art—Kamisato Ayaka... present. Please enlighten me."
Ayaka drew Snowswept Sakura from her waist and held it horizontally against her shoulder. Her eyes turned icy and resolute. The aura around her did not shatter under the pressure—rather, it rose.
"Hmph... ignorant."
The puppet sneered and raised her blade again.
("Miss Sangonomiya, support me.")
("Mm.")
After that silent exchange...
They faced the puppet together as she swung.
"!" ×2
In that instant, both dissolved into elemental particles, streaking across the ground like meteors—water and ice intertwining in a dance as they evaded the incoming slash.
Boom!
The ground behind them was once again torn apart.
Splash!
Ayaka rematerialized and closed the distance instantly. The moment she approached, she unleashed a swift iaido strike!
Crackle!
But the instant her blade connected, violet light flashed—and the puppet vanished.
"!"
Ayaka felt the sudden emptiness in her hands. Her pupils contracted.
Before she could react, Kokomi's voice rang out from behind.
"Miss Kamisato, dodge!"
Thud!
Floating in the air, Kokomi shoved her hard from behind, sending her tumbling safely away.
But as Kokomi turned back, she saw the blade already descending toward her.
She spread her arms, summoning a dense water barrier around her body.
Bang!
The blade struck the watery shield. The immense force drove Kokomi's floating body down to the ground. She nearly dropped to her knees.
She clenched her teeth, brows tightly furrowed, compressing the water shield further and further to resist the crushing force.
But before that overwhelming power—it was nothing more than surface resistance.
Crack!
The shield shattered instantly, dissolving into scattered droplets.
Her body was flung away by the force, crashing heavily onto the ground.
Bang!
A dull impact echoed as her light, delicate body bounced once before slamming down again.
"Ahh—!"
Her feathered garments were shredded by friction. She lay sprawled like a discarded doll, one sandal flung loose beside her.
"Miss Sangonomiya!"
Ayaka's heart clenched at the sight.
But she had no time to rush over.
The puppet's attention had already shifted to her.