A young girl dressed on a casual clothes, stepped forward while a casual gaze was locked into the two Spirit. He had a medium length blue hair, tied into a ponytail that swayed with the evening breeze. She looked at them with a smile and casually strolled toward them until she reach 5 meters in front of them.
Meanwhile, Shido felt his eye twitch at Kurumi's words.
"Oi! Don't tell her my name!"
He turned toward Kurumi with a glare, but the mischievous Spirit merely chuckled in response and stuck out her pink little tongue acting cute.
Of course, she had done it on purpose.
Her golden clock-like eye shimmered playfully as she tilted her head, as if feigning innocence.
"My, my, Shido-san, why do you look so troubled?" she purred, placing a hand over her mouth to hide a giggle.
Shido let out a deep sigh, already knowing there was no winning against Kurumi's teasing. But he decided to forgive her since she was cute.
"Shido?" Mana raised a brow at the name, then shifted her gaze toward the so-called 'Shadow', the male Spirit Kurumi had just addressed.
"I didn't expect Spirits to start using human names now," she mused, folding her arms. "I see, you're adapting yourselves quite well." She nodded, as if convinced that Spirits were beginning to integrate into human society.
But then, her expression darkened.
"But you dared to use my brother's name..." Her voice grew sharp, laced with coldness. "That's unforgivable. I have to get rid of both of you."
As she spoke, her body was suddenly enveloped in a radiant green light, forming a territory field around her. In the blink of an eye, her casual outfit morphed into the sleek form of her CR-Unit, her combat gear shimmering under the dim alley lights.
While Mana's CR-Unit shared similarities with the standard AST models, there were distinct differences. Her customized unit was primarily blue and white, in contrast to the AST's standard black model.
Moreover, Mana's CR-Unit boasted more advanced weaponry and additional equipment, a testament to its high-level customization. This wasn't surprising, after all, Mana was one of the most powerful Wizards of DEM. Her gear was designed for maximum combat efficiency, allowing her to take on even Spirits with overwhelming firepower.
Kurumi's expression remained unfazed, as if she was completely used to such situations. Instead of reacting with concern, she stepped closer to Shido and wrapped her arms around his, pressing her body against him showing how intimate they are.
"Shido-san, I'm afraid~ You will protect me, right?" Although she said she was afraid, Shido couldn't see a trace of fear on her face instead it only had a mischievous grin causing him to be speechless.
He considered pulling away, but, ahem* with how soft and warm her body felt pressed against him, he decided against it. It wasn't exactly unpleasant.
Still, when he shifted his gaze at her face again, he could see that she was having fun even though there's a grim ripper in front of them. Her smile also didn't look fake like what she had earlier when she was about to kill those three hooligans.
Shido couldn't help but sigh inwardly, wondering how nice it would be if Kurumi wasn't so crazy.
That thought lingered in his mind for a moment before he dismissed it. If he truly wanted to change her, the only way was to conquer her heart. But right now, there was something, or rather, someone, standing in the way of that.
His biological sister.
Before he could think about Kurumi any further, he needed to deal with Mana first.
Shido's gaze softened slightly as he looked at his sister. Despite her aggressive stance, he couldn't help but worry about her. He knew that the experiments done to her body had left irreversible consequences. Her condition was deteriorating, and if things continued as they were...
She might not even live past 30.
However, Shido wouldn't let Mana die.
She was his sister now, and he would do whatever it took to save her. He was confident that Ratatoskr could find a cure, but even if they couldn't, he had the system. He could simply buy a medicine or potion that could restore her body.
But that was a problem for later.
Right now, he needed to focus on what was in front of him.
Shido sighed and chose to ignore Kurumi, who was still clinging happily to his arm. She clearly had no intention of fighting, so there was no need to worry about her for now.
Instead, he turned his full attention to Mana, who was ready to charge.
Activating his Scan ability, he quickly analyzed her stats.
Name: Takamiya Mana
Level: 48
Age: 40+
Height: 147 cm
Measurements (B/W/H): 74/56/80
Class: Wizard
STR: B++
VIT: D
AGI: B+
INT: A
CHA: C++
LUK: C
Threat Level: B++
Affiliation: DEM Industries
When he saw her stats, Shido could only smile bitterly since it was much higher compared to his normal stats. He could only barely contend with her stats when he was in his Spirit Form, but just like he said before, everything is not all about stats.
Yes, that's right.
But, except for his collection of weird skills, Mana had more experience into various fight.
However, Shido had less to worry considering the game changing effect of his skills that can turn almost any situation around.
Shido's gaze shifted into her age and he wasn't surprised that much since he knew that Mana had been put into stasis and experimented on, causing her to remain physically younger, much like Yoshino.
However, as his eyes drifted a little lower, he noticed something else, her measurements.
For a moment, Shido blinked.
'Huh… she's really growing into a fine woman.'
Don't misunderstood him, Shido was just happy that his little sister was developing well, he didn't have any indecent thoughts towards his sister like Haruka did to Sora.
That's right! His intention is nothing but pure.
Anyway, enough of that.
Compared to Origami, Mana's figure was actually more developed, which made him feel a little bad for Origami.
Still, Shido wasn't the type to pretend he didn't see something.
Ignoring it entirely would just make him a hypocrite.
So, after a quick mental shrug, he pushed those thoughts aside and focused back on the battle ahead.