Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Page 427

Although this was her first time here, it felt as if she had been here many times before. Every step she took was crystal clear, and even without her eyes, she could clearly sense the location of each of her companions.

At its core is a heartless mechanism; it represents Mami's obsessive pursuit of "justice" without any real sense of self.

More accurately, the entire self-awareness of brutal justice, that is, Mami herself, is currently in a semi-dormant state, making it difficult for her to perceive the outside world.

If she could see them, she would be quite amazed by the people in front of her.

The Baroque Core's standing form possesses greater firepower and agility than its castle form. Combined with the guilt imposed on everyone after the final trial, it should be impossible for anyone to survive in its presence.

But they did it.

On their return journey from the other side, they rehearsed from morning till night, stumbling and awkwardly dancing on the simple patterns Xiangzi had drawn with chalk, bumping into each other clumsily. If they had stood before the brutal justice of today in the same way they had on that first day, they would have suffered casualties just like the vast majority of people outside.

With conclusions drawn from countless failures, with Xiangzi and Mumu working late into the night to optimize their positioning, and with a tacit understanding that they could comprehend each other without eye contact, they accomplished what was theoretically impossible—simultaneously handling the final trial and the life counting method while launching a counterattack against the Baroque core.

Three minutes after the final hearing began, the Baroque Core, which had undergone a transformation, already showed varying degrees of damage.

It was completely outmaneuvered by several magical girls.

Several rapidly spinning white gears appeared on the outer perimeter of the arena, each equipped with sharp barbs, aiming at the magical girl inside.

Whoosh-!

The gears' coiled teeth sliced ​​through the air, flying toward their respective locked targets.

Although the speed of the gears is not unavoidable, if people on the field run around randomly, the trajectory of these rapidly spinning gears will cover the entire field, leaving little space for people to stand.

However, Xiangzi had anticipated this situation. Every time the gear appeared, everyone would consciously scatter and guide the direction of the gear's flight toward the outer edge of the circular area.

In this way, all the gears will pass by the edge of the circular field, leaving a considerable amount of space in the middle.

The gears flew by, and there were still more than ten seconds until the next life count was determined. This time, the circle refreshed above Anzu and Sayaka's heads, and the spheres floating inside the two circles were both six.

In other words, the two circles must overlap, and all six people must be inside the circles for the counting method to pass the headcount check.

Boom!

A rocket-like mechanical fist slammed into the ground, only to be blocked by a gunblade.

At that moment, several cannonballs were fired into the sky from behind the Baroque Core. A few seconds later, the cannonballs would fall and explode randomly at any location on the field.

"Go!" Xiangzi peeked out from the shadow of the fist and shouted to the side.

At this moment, Kyoko and Sayaka circled around to the sides of Baroque Core from two different directions. One in red and one in blue pushed off the ground, aiming their weapons at Baroque Core's knees.

锔——!

The mechanical castle's knees emitted a sickening sound.

Kyoko and Sayaka completed the exchange of sins in mid-air, and the green "γ" symbol in Kyoko's eyes, which had previously dimmed, lit up once again.

The two stopped abruptly by the resistance created by gripping each other's wrists, and the two counting rings above their heads completely overlapped.

Xiangzi pulled the trigger, and the flames from the gun deflected Baroque Core's fist, allowing them to enter the overlapping counting circles hand in hand from the east side of the arena.

At the same time, Flame and Madoka unleashed another round of firepower on the wings of the Baroque Core before entering the counting circle.

When everyone was in position, there was still a margin of three or four seconds before the judgment was made.

When the time was up, the counting rings disappeared, and nothing happened. However, the Baroque Core was damaged in many ways; the intricate patterns on its surface were broken, and the exposed gears were damaged to varying degrees.

The attacks that Anzu and Sayaka had just inflicted on its knees were the final straw that broke the camel's back; its joints could no longer support its heavy body.

At this moment, the shells that had been fired into the sky finally arrived, landing at the spot where they had been standing.

However, Xiangzi had already moved away by then.

Three groups of people, each carrying a sin of a different color, separated in different directions.

This is the last time the life counting system will be used.

Xiangzi thought to himself as he looked at the Baroque core.

Baroque Core used its broken hands to support its body as it stood up, and all the gears in its body emitted groans of varying sizes.

It clasped its hands together as if praying to heaven, then spread its tattered wings, and a ray of holy light descended from the sky, shining upon it.

All those struggling to survive outside the church saw the lightning and thunder gathering in the sky at that moment.

Yachiyo looked up at the lightning that was about to strike.

Once the Baroque Core has suffered enough damage, it will carry out its final command to settle accounts with all those who possess sin. Those who carry the sins previously assigned to them and whose sins have not changed will be able to pass through the final reckoning unaffected.

From the beginning, Xiangzi and his group, who were indoors, maintained a system where three different sins were passed back and forth between the three groups of people, ensuring that each person carried a sin of a certain color from beginning to end, so that they could perfectly pass this final test, whether the final trial was closed or not.

The fact that the six of them are alright doesn't mean that the people outside are alright. Just because they were able to perfectly handle the problems at the Baroque Core doesn't mean that the rest of the people can.

The companion who initially passed on "δ" to Yachiyo is long dead. Yachiyo is alive now, and the sin she carries is no longer the same as it was at the beginning.

The day the final trial concludes will be the day she dies.

Almost everyone who is still alive is like her.

The moment the final trial closes... they will all die.

"Is this where it ends...?" she murmured softly. "It looks like we won't see what the future holds."

Then, Yachiyo closed her eyes in despair, awaiting her final judgment.

[Final hearing adjourned]

carried out.

Boom——!

The Tale of Reincarnation: The Shore of Oblivion: Chapter 560 I'll Do It in My Place

Boom——!

A deafening sound rang out, but it wasn't a thunderous roar.

The source of the noise was Xiangzi.

In the final moments before the closing of the final trial, Xiangzi inserted a Seed of Lamentation with special effects into the magazine and pulled the trigger.

The lamentation seed from the Fast Car granted Xiangzi enough speed to break the sound barrier at the moment of firing, and formed a protective film around his body.

Xiangzi left behind a cloud of mist from the explosion, which crashed straight into a pile of parts at the heart of the Baroque architecture.

Only after she crashed into the core of the Baroque did the deafening sound finally ring out, like a thunderclap on a flat plain.

The already crumbling Baroque core was shattered by Xiangzi's impact, and the execution of the "final trial adjourned" was forcibly interrupted.

The lightning that had been looming in the sky, locking onto almost everyone, dissipated in the blink of an eye.

Yachiyo opened her eyes in confusion as she realized that the final judgment had not yet arrived.

There were many magical girls around her, all looking at the dissipating thunderclouds in confusion, realizing that they hadn't been broken down into the most basic atoms like their companions who had disappeared before.

Even the surging Faust formation, which had been flowing like a tide, stopped, as if someone had abruptly pressed the pause button, freezing it in place.

Everyone stood there dumbfounded. The remaining members of the Kamibara Magic Alliance and the remaining members of the Ode Faction stared blankly at the holy light that was once again shining down from the sky, completely forgetting that they were still in the midst of battle.

Yachiyo blinked, and the joy of surviving the ordeal finally arrived belatedly.

"Did he... survive?"

===============

Xiangzi rushed out from behind, grabbing something, and landed on the marble floor, smashing a long trench in the ground.

The Baroque core shattered after Xiangzi rushed out clutching that indistinct object, with white gears and bright yellow transmission ribbons scattered all over the ground.

The large circle of the life counting system and the Greek letter for sin slowly dissipated in mid-air.

Xiangzi held the gun blade and used it to block the figure he was stepping on.

"you lose."

Xiangzi looked at the figure at his feet.

The same yellow double diamond hairstyle, the same yellow eyes, the same elegant temperament.

Without a doubt, the person under Xiangzi's feet is Mami Tomoe.

Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to call her brutally righteous, because what Xiangzi was trampling underfoot was not even a human being.

Asami's current appearance is more like that of a doll or a puppet.

The ceramic casing with its delicate relief carvings had become dilapidated, exposing the rotating gears and the bright yellow ribbon that drove some of the gears, which made a buzzing sound.

Mami's body, like Faust's, is a mechanical puppet made of gears and ribbons. The yellow gem's pupils are unfocused, and it is even doubtful whether they have any visual function. Through the reflection, you can see the distorted reflection of Xiangzi.

"Is there anything else you want to say, Mami Tomoe?" Shoko stepped on her chest, his voice devoid of any emotion.

Mami made a very good impression on her when they first met, but after time was restarted, that good first impression was shattered as one thing after another happened.

She has no reason to have feelings for someone like that.

"..." Mami didn't speak; her ceramic-like face revealed no emotion.

Xiangzi stepped on her to prevent her from moving, and temporarily turned his head to focus his attention on the ongoing ceremony.

The Soul Gem, which was slowly merging into one, descended from the sky and landed in the very center of the circular arena, which was full of craters.

When the final trial adjourned, the gems had just been fused together, leaving only the last two.

After the gems were lowered, they discovered that each gem was actually set on a large, semi-transparent dial that was not very clear.

The world-destroying flower that devoured the other flowers pointed to a point like the hour hand on a clock face. The last world-destroying flower that had not yet been devoured was set at the twelve o'clock position, slowly moving towards the last gem.

The large dial floated within their reach.

They had only defeated Mami; the ritual was not yet over. They had to end the ritual themselves for the matter to be considered truly concluded.

Flame walked to the floating dial, reached out, and tried to grab the world-destroying flower on it.

However, just as her fingertips touched the Flower of Annihilation, her fingers passed right through it and touched nothing.

“There’s an anti-theft mechanism here. What you see is just its afterimage; you can’t touch it directly,” Mu said calmly, extending a thread from her fingertip. “I’ll do it.”

She can unlock the security mechanism, but it will take her a while.

Since Miaomeng pioneered the use of silk thread, she has been thinking about and practicing how to maximize its potential.

Only she can break this ritual now; no one else can.

"How long will it take?" Xiangzi turned around and asked.

"About three minutes," Mu said calmly.

"How long until the ceremony ends?" Xiangzi, holding the gun blade against the figure he was stepping on, continued to ask, "How much time do we have left?"

"Five minutes is plenty of time for us."

Xiangzi glanced at his watch and realized that there were only three minutes left before the massive explosion in the factory area.

"Let's hurry," Xiangzi said.

"Hmm," Mu responded, turning her head to focus on unlocking the anti-theft mechanism.

Xiangzi glanced at Mu, who was cracking the anti-theft mechanism, and the four little ones who were standing aside, unable to do anything but wait.

So she turned her gaze back to Mami Tomoe. There was still plenty of time, and Xiangzi had many questions she wanted to ask.

It must be said that Mami Tomoe's appearance has a very unique and captivating beauty. The texture of the ceramic is even more lustrous and smooth than skin, as if it has been carefully shaped, molded, fired, and glazed—it is a fine work of art.

The damage to her body may be a pity, but the exposed gears and ribbons from the broken parts seem to be telling others "she is alive".

This is a doll, but it is also a living doll.

The eyes, made of yellow sapphire, had no focus and no emotion, but the face was so lifelike that it transcended the uncanny valley; even the cracks on it only added to its broken beauty.

“You handled all the mechanisms perfectly. Your proficiency and teamwork are unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.” Mami Tomoe looked at Shoko with her sapphire-like eyes, and a familiar voice came from her closed lips. “You have exceeded my expectations.”

“In fact, this is the first time I’ve ever seen it.” Xiangzi slung the gun blade over her shoulder, pulled a pistol from a holster under her skirt, and pointed it at the Soul Gem in the center of Mami’s forehead. “I just practiced a lot beforehand.”

The simple circles drawn with chalk, practiced repeatedly from morning till night, gave them the ability to stand to the end in this battle.

Everything that happened until the Baroque Core was defeated was within Xiangzi's expectations.

The same applies to the future...

“Someone from the future gave you information, didn’t they?” Mami said. “You’ve already learned the Time Pincer Movement.”

She quickly figured out how Xiangzi had solved her mystery.