Chapter 2: Fail
At the same time – within the capital of Elkia, inside the late
“…Kou…Steph-kou, I’m hungry, des.”
violently shook by someone.
suddenly stood up and frantically surveyed her surroundings.
“You fell face-first onto the table immediately after you
- So she apparently had eaten her meal and filled her stomach
“W-what time is it now…?”
Izuna – on her back, and asked sleepily.
Izuna placed a hand on her stomach, then looked up at Steph
“About six hours after you ate, des.”
The last time they ate was about two-o-clock at night – which
There were no windows in the library so the sun couldn’t get
with activity.
Izuna dragged one of Steph’s sleeves and requested for food,
“Ah…you’re right…so I’ll make breakfast then…huh?”
Izuna was sitting.
“…? Aren’t they books, des.”
“…Obviously because I read them, des.”
“I said that I would learn it, des. So I learnt it, des.”
Steph had passed her a book containing games comparing the
Werebeast language.
while she herself was sleeping, and even read such a large
- She was terrible at anything other than games, so conversely,
Upon realizing that she not only had learnt the language in
books than she did, Steph’s hairs couldn’t help but stiffen in
“…No wonder she’s always so close to Sora and Shiro.”
recalled it.
younger than Shiro.
tiny bit, so her skills were definitely the real thing.
“…Izuna, when was the last time you slept?”
Izuna started counting with her fingers, then suddenly appeared
Black heavy eyebags were gathering underneath her eyes,
- Upon closer thought, that was reasonable.
naturally.
language, and she had read this many books as well.
“Steph-kou, it’s fine, des. A piece of trash is a piece of trash
Steph smiled at Izuna’s overexerting manner.
assignment and Steph patted her own cheeks to wake herself
Anyway, she had to prepare a meal, and then – just as she was
“…? Izuna, in what order are you reading these books?”
some reason or other.
- Izuna said this incomprehensible statement with a matter-offact
Suddenly, Steph became interested in the titles of the books on
Because they were – books related to where Sora and Shiro
“-「The Flügel, the weapons of a dead Master」… why are
Steph recited the words written in the writing of her
Izuna sniffed it and replied:
about a month ago, des.”
- On the beach after their return from Oceande.
acquire three races.
heard him mention them. She flipped open the book.
the Eastern Federation –
other in the books in this room, written by her grandfather.
species created by the 【God of War Artosh】 -」
interests.」
from his observations of the Flügel.
should be… but…
die.」
「Living weapons of a deceased Master… They are just empty
She recalled that person with the smile that seemed to hide her
and her Masters, the person that could be gung-ho at times.
deduce as to why they’re still alive?」
The Jibril in her grandfather’s observations was completely
This apprehension caused Steph to stop unconsciously merely
…Sora and Shiro had proceeded to Avant Heim after reading
What were those two thinking –
des.”
What was important wasn’t the Flügel, but information
At this time, the grumbling noise started again.
Izuna spoke with a fire burning in her eyes.
shelf – possibly due to overwork, she felt dizzy.
The books began to fall off from the shelf she had placed them
The books they had read and the ones they haven’t would be
–
That was the limit of what she could detect, as it was a speed
Izuna sped from the door in an instant to the corner of the
“…? What is this, des?”
Ignoring Steph who was widening her eyes in surprise, Izuna
“This is the smell of fish, des…? No, des…ah!”
“This book smells of Seiren, des. I can’t eat this, des.”
Regarding the order of the books she read earlier, Izuna said
Why did she select the books Sora and Shiro had read – no, the
“W-why does my Grandpa’s books smell of Seiren?”
someone who touched a Seiren touched this book as well, des.”
“Is it Sora or Shiro… or us!?”
It wasn’t Steph’s smell, nor was it Sora and Shiro’s smell.
they shouldn’t have been here – so -!?
Steph asked while leaning forward, while Izuna began counting
“Not enough fingers, des.”
from more than ten years ago.
“Doesn’t Steph-kou know, des? There’s a smell left behind,
Who would know that sort of weird thing, although she yelled
The reason why Sora wanted Izuna to help, and the reason why
proved that ten years ago her grandfather came into contact
Now all that was left was –!
Izuna sniffed about then tilted her head and said:
probably do it, des.”
If so, their search range would be narrowed significantly!
should have used it earlier-aaaah but thank you-aaaaaahhhh
Steph hugged Izuna in a sudden burst of emotion and began
sudden.
Her hair stood up as if she was going to bite at any time, and
“Eh? U-um…s-sorry, did I do something wrong?”
Steph surveyed her surroundings in panic as she noticed that
What she saw was –
“- What is that, des?”
Steph ate one to prove to her that they were safe to eat – and
Izuna sniffed the biscuits she passed her.
- She took a biscuit in her mouth, and her mood instantly
Izuna shook her bushy tail like a hamster and began gnawing
“Ah, s-so I’ll go make food! Grilled fish, steamed fish,
“All, des.”
“All, des.”
and Steph –
do my best to prepare all the fish dishes I know how to!! In the
grandfather wrote around that period!?”
Izuna stood up after answering energetically.
library, behind her –
She heard an explosion.
- The reason why Steph knew it was the sound of Izuna
It was because her heart uttered a low roar, and began beating
almost ten books in her hands, and her shoulders rose and fell
blood-red from using「Blood Devastation」, reported her
“- Hah, hah – I found all of them, des -! Is the fish not
…If she tried really hard…she could probably do it.
- She had tried hard enough to challenge the laws of physics,
laws…
drooling and her eyes having the gaze of a predator looking at
“…C-could you please help me go out and get groceries?”
Part 2
Only the faint glows emitted from the cubes and the moonlight
Sora and others flew about shakily and clumsily in that scenery
“U-um…can we really win…?”
concentration!”
They looked as if they would fall and crash at a single mistake,
Plum who was connecting the two as their wings mumbled to
“T-the opponent are the Flügel! Even if you borrow my
impossible to contest against the Flügel in speed…”
his wings.
in a game of red light, green light – but it won’t guarantee you
“That’s true…but even if so…”
- The Flügel, even disregarding their ability to teleport, their
Although Plum had never seen any of them flying at full speed,
If they used their full strength – don’t even mention the speed
Even though red light, green light wasn’t a contest of speed, it
No matter what, with their crass flying skills –
“…Huh? S-strange?”
apprehension.
stabilized and she hadn’t noticed.
attacking Plum became stronger.
control one wing?”
The siblings had in an instant slowly changed the wings she
They looked at each other and smiled.
be guaranteed.”
they both said this while holding each other’s hands.
- We won’t lose to anyone.
Empty-shelled weapons – merely objects – merely puppets –
They were originally tools created by their master to
But it has been over six thousand years since they lost their
In order to search for that 「Answer」, they had roamed about
today.
suddenly – seemed to have changed visibly.
「Answer」.
Azrael used her hands to cup her cheeks and looked up at the
In concurrence with Sora’s conditions, on the balcony earlier –
were looking in the same direction as well.
figures.
if there’s anyone who can find the 「Answer」, I believe it
“…”
However that wasn’t the real question, and Azrael continued
“If Jii-chan’s 「Answer」 was implanted in your head
- They had discussed the matter in their native Flügel language
As though attempting to warn her again, Azrael smiled a smile
she said to Jibril:
means right?”
already know the answers! Senpai.”
the night sky suddenly tensed up, making the atmosphere much
- The 「Representative of the Winged」- the head of the
The only special right Azrael possessed for not being the full
It was something that was agreed over six thousand years ago
“-「The right to order all the Flügel to commit suicide」...is
Azrael’s gaze sharpened instantly at Jibril’s dismissive tone.
were still discovering our purpose to continue living after our
suicide, so if you think that we have no reason to continue to
At this point the emotion that swept through the crowd was not
They were a race created as weapons, so to them death would
Despite this, the reasons why the participants felt tense was
- For something to start, or possibly for something to end.
Everyone only felt anticipation at that sort of prediction.
While the only one present that didn’t seem to understand what
Jibril looked at her somewhat disappointedly upon realizing so.
“Azrael-senpai, you of all people should know, we – the
- Sora and the others didn’t know.
changed significantly.
the type to act immediately after something went amiss, she
Turning the unknown into known – that was the only thing that
She had to reverse the unknown, and there was no ulterior
had to exterminate.
against that 「Enemy」.
and Shiro.
years gathering was completely obliterated by the Masters who
behind this, the very significance of it – Senpai, you just don’t
“…”
before.
even to Artosh.
of eliminating the unknown. It’s a way of life, continuously
my own will – it’s completely unrelated to the pledges.”
Because to be honest, she had no idea what they meant.
cause a person to feel horrified?
Maybe because they were moved by Jibril’s words…
wait to get moving had a tint of excitement in their eyes – and
- Azrael couldn’t understand why that was, and she once again
At least that wasn’t the 「Answer」.
clumsily flying pair.
future of the Flügel, but –“
She glanced to the side, only to see Jibril with an expression of
begging fashion:
Part 4
my limit…too tiring, I wanna give up…”
tougher than you, you know!?”
beginning, while Sora provided her with words of
“I’m different from those Flügel monsters! Overcoming the
of you can imagine!! I even have to lend you my wings as well
“If you’re gonna talk about sweat, I’ve sweated a lot already,
“For you two, how could I possible give up! – Right, let’s
“You’ve completely ruined the atmosphere!!”
down his spine.
It was a disguise on her 「Physical appearance」, in order to
Shiro in the form of a scarf.
wills, and they served the same purposes as a pair of wings.
actually look like?”
hugging Sora-dono’s neck and licking it…and using my foot to
“Heh, isn’t this a perverted way to fly!”
“I was just saying, did you really have a need to go that
A streak of tears flashed past Avant Heim’s night sky.
“Let me make this clear, it’s the special right of the Elves to
into a flying scarf while allowing you both to fly at your own
Plum uttered this extreeeeeeeeeeeeeeemly long sentence.
energy gets cut, I’ll probably die within a few seconds.”
dangerous.”
heart’s content…slurp~ delicious, delicious.”
NOW!!”
stripping off the scarf altogether –
Five minutes had passed – Sora’s gaze sharpened upon hearing
Which meant at this time, the Flügel that had a late start would
“- Right, Plum, our lives are in your hands now, so don’t you
“No problem. Our fates are tied, so if I do run out of energy
“We don’t need to think about that!! Let’s go already!”
their wings mightily and simultaneously – dropping their
“Kyaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!”
to cry out.
them to accelerate endless, and the strong winds rushed to meet
As they were about to hit the ground – the back of Avant Heim,
(They’re attempting to shake off our pursuers with the
Plum didn’t say anything but merely thought to herself, after
A presence came up from behind, as the Flügel that had just
Sora and Shiro really had completely mastered control over
But – no matter how they were to commandeer the wings
laws of physics.
kilometres per hour, however the Flügel on the other hand were
window.
do we do now!?)
turned around to look calmly –
“…Letters, one, three…”
“…One bottom of the wing 「ナ (na) 」…three left side of
“- Shiro three, let’s move!”
couldn’t understand, as they had completed their discussion
Huh? As Plum let out this curious expression, Sora and Shiro
- In an instant.
“I’ll take that!”
nothing to them, as two Flügel were already approaching.
“”- Huh!?””
seem to comprehend how they managed to vanish from their
exclamation. At that time –
- Behind them.
respectively – the characters inscribed there were touched, and
The other two behind them were slightly late and ended up
surroundings frantically.
flying towards the connected cubes in a spiral pattern.
of Avant Heim – towards the connected cubes.
hands.
It happened in such a short instance that even Plum who was
happened.
eyes in surprise, and Sora said to her:
flying unit that is faster than you and is flying in a straight
- As Sora and Shiro noticed that they had company, they drew
order that among the four of them – the two inscribed with
slightly.
their wings, and merely – rolled over in a diagonal fashion.
Shiro decelerated as they spun spirals in the air. On the other
disappeared as they were too fast – simply speaking, they
They were still unused to their wings, and they would never be
hard they tried, so –
tracks, and for the Flügel who completely ignore aerodynamic
a fixed path…”
Both of them smiled mischievously, and on their hands were
(na) 」and「ア (a) 」 were swirling about there.
“…Don’t tell me – you memorized the positions of all the
Sora smiled bitterly and replied:
This sentence alone made even one such as Plum feel
“Anyway…Shiro, the words we really need…you should
“Of course.”
aren’t exactly dimwits, so our aerial strategy won’t work all the
“…Mm, understood…”
bound to happen, causing Plum to widen her eyes in shock.
against the Flügel, however they themselves acted as if they
Sora and Shiro flew about in the city of Avant Heim just like
Part 5
the Flügel had left.
unfolding in the air before them.
extremely quickly.
possessed them, and even where they were.
maneuver so flawlessly earlier – however, what shocked her
hands, as they were flying about as if it was their own
The city of Avant Heim with countless cubes stacked up in
moonlight in the surrounding darkness, however they could
like skilled weavers passing threads through needles.
pursuers were to go too fast they would lose them instead.
between the cubes –
were easily overcome by the flying two, so if their pursuers
would crash into the cubes, leaving them a clear escape route.
There was one part she couldn’t explain, and Jibril began
Jibril couldn’t deny the fact that the Flügel as a race – did have
But despite this, they could still 「Coordinate」. If they
「Weapons」.
「Surrounding」 strategy – and –
A Flügel female uttered a lamenting cry, as they were all
which had only one exit – however both of them flew out
Sora and Shiro avoided their grasp easily.
and they had gotten such a deep understanding of the entire
- Impossible. If it was one of the Masters – Shiro, there was a
However the city was built from various, countless complexly
impossible to truly master the alleyways and shortcuts of the
Just like that, even Jibril who was observing them for the
explanation more than anyone else.
(Huh? Y-you’re joking right?)
their fingers were moving about intricately.
could since earlier, and as for her theory behind how those two
alleyways – it could even be called fallacy – and this fact made
Which meant, possibly, probably, although somewhat
Shiro would fly along the streets according to her memory, and
After which she would calculate mentally to decipher the order
passageways created due to those height differences.
words, but instead through hand signals.
deceive their pursuers.
speechless?
comprehension.
information on a mere level of 「Move here」 or 「Go
From the touch of their hands, they could decipher each other’s
their wings in the air and moved seamlessly, without any form
part of their reflexes.
used to the procedure.
of that.
Holding each other’s hands – the two formed a pair of wings.
Plum more efficiently and overcome the forces of gravity.
movements and play along just before being thrown off.
and passed down their knowledge between them as well,
- They were endlessly improving at a stunning speed.
those two – were more than she imagined –
“Left four, four pull.”
ヌ (nu) ク(ku) missing one.”
“…Character five, complete…but dangerous.”
finally replied cheerfully in a normal fashion.
attack!!”
left hip left arm!”
“Yaaaahhhh!!”
meant Plum – had split into two, and they flew into a narrow
“-! We’ve finally got them cornered!”
Sora and Shiro accidentally – according to Plum’s point of
What awaited them was four Flügel on their left and right
attack.
earlier.
The Flügel which were a total amount of eight were closing in
“Let’s move, Shiro!!”
- Who exactly were the ones driven into a corner –
「Word Spirit」.
combined – and emitted light.
their palms facing opposite directions:
- In an instant.
“--…Huh?”
“Ah!”
into the cracks between the cubes.
Sora flew horizontally and laughed.
got all of them!”
The both of them confirmed the four glowing characters that
fashion.
“…Um, just now…what was that…”
take effect on anyone it comes into contact with – which is the
“…So…we opened a hole…in 「Reality」.”
They had opened holes on their left and right using themselves
the Flügel.
facing Sora and others with their backs – and to return the
“…Could it be, you’re only baiting the people that have
“Of course, but we haven’t got all the ones we want yet.”
after looking at his wrist that had various letters strung up
- Plum looked up along with him.
them at an astonishing speed.
“Return, from the top, pull twelve – everything’s going
“…Nii, can you make it?”
just about fit one person.
amount of Flügel that would be swarming them at once would
While Sora smiled cockily –
Sora’s body lost its balance as his neck was being licked by
They reached the open space – and in front of twelve oncoming
of gravity –
“….Waaaaahhh!?”
wing in an attempt to maintain their balance.
properly capture the figures of the oncoming Flügel.
- Sora immediately made a decision, as he had no time to get
Sora stretched his hand out to Shiro – he trusted that Shiro
Spirits」 to her.
after which she let them go and threw them into the sky –
- As she said this, the twelve approaching figures, just as they
–
“Ah!”
A huge, cannon-like explosion was heard, and the Flügel all
But the problem was -!
were supposed to spiral upwards rapidly.
four words in order to prevent their enemies from passing
And in the instant when that would occur, they would only act
was the plan –
- He made it, Shiro thought while appearing immensely
While he left the activation of the 「Word Spirits」 to Shiro,
original position.
while Shiro cooperated –!
stopped in their tracks, the two passed through the Flügel
“Dammit, Shiro – it’s up to you!”
Shiro didn’t manage to tell Sora which one of them had
Shiro stretched out her hand, and then –
her wing to gather up all the characters.
“Dream on!”
his wing and shifted their centre of gravity.
landed below the invisible wall – flapping their wings just as
narrow corridor…before they could say they were safe.
Sora’s shoulders convulsed violently as he breathed, and he
about to ask about his condition –
- The culprit that had brought this crisis upon them (Plum) did
Sora bit onto the scarf and yelled with his voice muffled.
“I-I-I-I-I’m sorry! It was because of that sudden spiral, my
that if I were to lose a source within a few seconds I would
together, see you all in hell!!”
like that.
spoke while looking the characters on her hand:
them…so now…”
「ラ（ra）ユ（yu）ス（su）マ（ma）ク（ku）ケ（ke）
thinking of the 「Word Spirits」 those characters could create.
flapped their wings mightily.
– climbing up into the skies.
“Hmm…are they changing their strategy again?”
reacted more vigilantly this time at Sora and Shiro’s
They didn’t travel in a straight line, and instead approached
- No one had probably thought of it.
In front of the Flügel that surrounded them, the two clasped
- As three characters disappeared, they touched them and
“- 「Accelerate[2]」-!!”
Not only the pursuers.
speechless.
wings, barely fifteen minutes had passed.
by Plum.
were already long gone.
could have predicted that?
Spirits」, it could actually happen.
upon their wings.
collect and form those 「Word Sprits」 before the game had
change their strategy according to Sora and Shiro’s actions –
they wouldn’t be able to survive for an hour. Thus they flew
and collecting – as Jibril saw this, her eyes narrowed as if she
- Because it meant that the two trusted in the Flügel.
“…Mm!”
their laughter – spread across Avant Heim.
This term sprung up from Jibril’s mind.
head.
She was sure that it was the true, original meaning of the
The males and females each had one eye and one wing and
organism.
Jibril watched them closely and seemingly proudly – but…
Azrael who was gazing from them afar, appearing rather bored
meaning of it.
“Senpai, do you know the reason why I’m against the
“…Because Jii-chan is close minded and doesn’t like other
“No, it’s because – I enjoy reading the same books over and
- It was the first time Azrael had heard of such a thing, and she
“…Why is that so-nyan? Wouldn’t it be fine if you just
“Yes, I knew you would say that, which is why I never said it
Jibril sighed, and she continued again in a fit of determination:
more knowledge, you’ll learn even more things even after
“…”
be annoying – don’t you get it?”
“- Once you memorize it, it’s over.”
advice – however…
Ignoring Jibril’s opinion for now, what she didn’t understand
“- What does have to do with what’s going on now-nyan?”
…Jibril looked into her eyes – extremely sadly.
one.
of gradually increasing disappointment and sadness at having
- She couldn’t understand her sister’s anticipation, which
“What is it-nyan…what did I do wrong-nyan…!”
Above Avant Heim, a single silver trail cut through the night
The sound barrier had been left behind long ago, and the flying
“Now as long as we don’t get too careless, we won’t get
Sora and Shiro held each other’s hands and sped through the
“…But, the collecting…of the 「Characters」…”
collect all the characters to finish this level perfectly, and…”
solemnly:
that person.”
Plum asked a question, however Sora ignored it and turned
Relying on speed to increase their distance between them was
get close, and that always came with the risk of being caught,
thought to himself in a cautious tone:
was a game on their home turf.
impossible to completely avoid it.
Sora mumbled to himself, very good - this is truly a game that
So let’s decrease the risk as much as we can – so we had better
That was sort of their insurance policy, which was increasing
unpredictable situation - and Sora who was facing behind –
“…Huh?”
“- Cheh~~!?”
about earlier, and to this Sora had reacted in advance.
while still going along the same direction, he shifted their
“U-um, what are you doing – kyaaaaaahhhhh!?”
previously, cutting off Plum’s words.
reaction speed and judgement time, however before that –
anything about that! We can attack!?”
yelled suddenly, and above his head – with a small poof…
situation.
Magic」 that stalks its target.”
“No, that thing does no damage at all, as it’s just a magic
have any potential for destruction as its aim is merely to
Masters’ world –“
chatter:
long-distance tools could be used! Don’t we have any? Plum!!”
only to the Elves, also if I continue to use another spell, I’m
neck so much that it’s starting to swell!”
sweat anyway, so why don’t you just lick my back!”
Her wails suddenly turned into groans of pleasure, and Sora
Being a match on the Flügel’s home turf, Sora was just
about that they occurred immediately!
- They never said to 「Ban magic」-
“…We should have expected it…!”
in their favour if they could win through the 「Word Spirits」
When they realized their mistake of not realizing that earlier,
extremely frustrated.
responsibility to discover since she was the one that would
Sora stroked Shiro’s head and said:
so there’s no use crying over spilt milk, what’s important now
“…Mm.”
knowledge about, it was reasonable to think that unpredictable
Despite this they could still win – because adapting to their
Kuuhaku「」- there was no time to regret!
“Let me think…it varies for the abilities of different people,
“- It’s hard to handle, but since there are only six shots our
“Ah, it’s not like that, Master.”
shadows land on the cubes – the Flügel.
was like daylight.
no limit to the amount of shots!“
things as 「Limitations」 for a moment there, I’m so
“…Nii, over here -!”
wing vigorously.
without reply, and they accelerated together.
approached – although if it was homing as Jibril had said –
Shiro flapped her wing once as hard as she could, and Sora
motions.
Shiro who had used the acceleration 「Word Spirit」 from
And as the light approached their backs - 「Chandelle」[3].
from flying straight, turning their speed to altitude, and
probably activate its proximity fuse as it reached a certain
them as their sharp ascent caused their speed to decrease which
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
original sharp ascent with a slight flip of her wing.
once again began their ascent, distancing themselves from the
- They dodged it. Just as they were catching their breath,
them all to her then swapped her direction.
however this time she darted diagonally downward, changing
behind them, she escaped them with the same momentum, and
“Yaaaaaaahhhhh!”
Plum who was still in wing form let out a cry, as