Walking through the sleek, futuristic corridors of Fraxinus, Shido and Reine finally arrived at in front of a high-tech door.
It slid open with a soft hiss, revealing a man with neatly combed blonde hair wearing a white suit, standing with his back to them.
Hearing their footsteps, he turned around, his eyes locking onto Shido.
Reine gestured toward Shido. "I've brought him."
The man gave a nod of acknowledgnt, a faint smile gracing his face.
"Good work."
"It's a pleasure to et you. I am Kannazuki Kyohei, the Vice Commander of Fraxinus."
His voice carried a calm authority, paired with an air of refinent. He bowed gracefully, the gesture was so elegant that it would have befitted a prince.
Shido nodded politely but didn't let his guard down.
As Kannazuki straightened his body, Shido activated his Scan ability. Rows of data appeared before him.
Na: Kannazuki Kyohei
Level: 10
Age: 28
Height: 181cm
Class: None
STR: E
VIT: E
AGI: D
INT: D
CHA: E
LUK: E
Threat Level: E
Affiliation: Ratatoskr
Shido's gaze lingered on Kannazuki's normal stats for a mont before switching his gaze back to the man.
'So this is the famous Kannazuki.'
'He looks like a gentleman, but beneath that elegant exterior, he's a total masochist. I better stay wary around him.'
Shido lips twitched as he made a silent note on his head to not get involve with this masochist.
As Shido erased Kannazuki from his head, his attention was drawn to the figure seated in the commander's chair at the center of the room.
For a mont Shido held his breath.
It was Kotori.
But this wasn't the Kotori who drop-kicked him awake earlier this morning.
Sitting confidently in the commander's seat, she radiated authority.
The pink lollipop still rested on her lips gave a faint touch of familiarity, yet her red and black commander uniform was worlds apart from her usual casual attire.
The cute ribbons that tied her twin tails were no longer white.
They were now a striking black, complenting her imposing aura.
'My innocent and cute sister was gone!'
In her place stood a charismatic and commanding leader, soone who radiated power and confidence.
"Kotori?" Shido called, his voice betraying his surprise.
She turned toward him, her crimson eyes locking onto his. Slowly, a confident but cheeky smile spread across her face.
"Thanks for coming."
Her voice carried none of the sweetness he'd heard before but had a firm sense of authority instead.
Then, with a gesture of her hand as if she ruled the very room, she added, "Welco to Ratatoskr."
anwhile, at the AST base in Tengu City, Origami descended slowly, her CR-Unit disengaging as she landed.
The exhaustion from the intense battle with the Princess weighed heavily on her, and her legs buckled as she nearly collapsed.
Before she could hit the ground, soone caught her in her arms.
"Good work, Origami." Kusabe said softly.
Origami murmured, "Captain Kusabe..." her voice faint but grateful.
Looking at Origami with a mix of concern and maternal protectiveness, Captain Kusabe gently reprimanded, "You're pushing yourself too hard."
Back aboard Fraxinus, Kotori was explaining the existence of Spirits to Shido. He listened quietly, his expression flat and unreadable.
Kotori paused midway of her sentence and chomped on her lollipop thoughtfully. Her crimson eyes flickered with a mix of curiosity and doubt as she studied him.
"You're not that surprised about the Spirits' existence, huh?" she asked, tilting her head slightly as if trying to decipher his reaction.
Shido shrugged casually. "I adapt quickly to any situation, I guess." he replied nonchalantly.
He then casted his gaze at Kotori.
"But if there's one thing that actually surprised then it's you. "
He closed his eyes briefly, a small grin forming as he imagined how cute Kotori looked in her imouto mode.
Kotori's eyebrows twitched as she observed him. "You say you're surprised," she remarked, her tone flat, "but I don't see a shred of surprise expression on your face."
Shido just shrugged again.
Nevertheless Kotori decided not to press the matter further, brushing off the details with a quick chomp on her lollipop.
Standing next to Kotori, Reine quietly watched the exchange between the bickering siblings. Her expression remained as usually tired and deadpan as ever, though there was an almost imperceptible hint of amusent in her gaze.
They completely ignored Kannazuki who was panting heavily on the side.
Kotori continued her explanation, bringing up a holographic screen in front of them.
The display showcased a Spirit surrounded by a nacing purple Reiryoku.
Shido stared at the figure on the screen with a thoughtful expression, his gaze was unreadable as if he was analyzing every detail.
Seeing this, Kotori frowned and crossed her arms. "Don't daydream all of a sudden, Shido!" she scolded, her commanding tone sharp.
Her sudden reprimand made Shido twitch his lips involuntarily.
'Shido?! Not Onii-chan?!' Hearing her scolding voice Shido couldn't help but twitch his lips.
He was grieving as his cute little sister had been replaced by a cheeky commanding officer.
He was at loss for a mont.
With a sigh, he relented and asked, "Alright then, what is this place, anyway?"
Kotori, however, rely waved her hand dismissively.
"I'll explain later." she replied, brushing the question aside.
"For now, just rember three things."
Kotori pointed her lollipop toward the hologram.
"One, that girl is a Spirit."
The screen displayed a figure surrounded by a purple Reiryoku.
"She's not sothing that belongs in this world. Just by existing here, she causes destruction whether she likes it or not."
As if to emphasize her point, the image zood in to reveal the Spirit's face in detail.
Shido studied the hologram for a mont before comnting, "So she's the cause of the Spatial Quakes, huh?"
Kotori smirked, clearly pleased. "Precisely. You're sharper than I rember."
The praise, tinged with her usual sarcasm, made Shido's lips twitch. He thought to himself, 'Well, of course. I watched this ani.'
Kotori resud her explanation. "Two, this is the AST, the ground force's Anti-Spirit Team."
Another image appeared, showcasing female wizard equipped by CR-Units.
"When a Spirit appears, these guys get deployed to deal with them. And by 'deal with them,' I an..." Kotori paused, her tone hardening, "...they kill them."
Even though Shido already knew this from the original story, the idea of the Spirits being hunted and killed still made him uncomfortable.
A frown was reflected on his face.
Kotori noticed this and frowned seeing his reaction beca heavy.
"And three..." she continued, "there is another way to handle Spirits. A way that doesn't involve AST."
She let her words linger, her crimson eyes boring into him. "That's where you co in."
Shido nodded without hesitation, though his mouth moved faster than his brain. "Alright, so I just need to seal their powers by kissing them, right?"
Kotori froze, her brow arching in surprise. "I didn't tell you that yet," she said sharply. "How do you know sealing their powers involves a kiss?"
Realizing his slip, Shido's mind scrambled for an explanation. After a beat, his gaze drifted toward Reine.
"Uh... Reine-san told on the way here."
Kotori turned a questioning gaze at Reine, who nodded with her usual tired expression.
"I gave Shin a brief summary of the situation." she admitted, though her deadpan stare shifted to Shido with a hint of irritation.
Catching the silent reprimand, Shido quickly raised his hands in a gesture of apology.
"Shin?"
Kotori raised her brows at the words of Reine.
"That's what I call him."
Kotori sighed, deciding to let the matter drop. "Fine. Never mind, then. We'll start your training tomorrow. I'll leave the details to the person in charge."
With that, Kotori turned back toward the holographic screens, signaling the end of their discussion.
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