Director Edward

Chapter 221: Episode 5 · Paradox Spiral! (19)

Aozaki Touko's counterattack was swift and completely unexpected—most of the audience hadn't even registered what had happened before Araya Souren collapsed to the ground.

However, what shocked everyone even more was that just as Aozaki Touko confidently took two steps forward, a hand suddenly appeared from behind her and pierced straight through her heart!

"Just now... was that a doll?"

In response to Aozaki Touko's question, Araya Souren replied coldly:

"Of course. My doll-crafting skills may not be as refined as yours, but I possess the techniques of those who came before me."

As he spoke, Araya Souren crushed Aozaki Touko's heart in his hand.

He then shifted his gaze to the box on the ground and said in an icy tone:

"A projected creature, is it? With this, all forms of attack are rendered ineffective. Even if the ether body reflected through the air is destroyed, as long as the mechanical core remains operational, it can regenerate endlessly..."

On the other side, Touko, lying on the ground, couldn't help but speak up:

"Araya, let me ask you an old question. As a magus/mages, what do you wish for?"

"I wish for nothing."

With that, Araya Souren decisively killed Aozaki Touko before him.

...

Witnessing Aozaki Touko's defeat, the audience was completely stunned. No one had anticipated that the outcome would turn out this way.

For a moment, the scene fell into silence. Everyone watching the film froze in place, unable to process what they had just seen.

"Aozaki Touko… actually died just like that?"

"I can't accept this!"

"Honestly, this is just too absurd. Araya Souren is practically invincible. Who could possibly stand against him?"

"Now that even Aozaki Touko has fallen to him, is there anyone left who can challenge him?"

"Is there no hope left?"

"..."

Voices of discussion and disbelief echoed through various TV bars. The audience was collectively dumbfounded, completely unprepared for this dramatic turn of events.

...

Meanwhile, at the Imperial Mage Academy, the magi's reactions weren't much different. However, they quickly suppressed their shock and began analyzing the situation.

"Araya Souren can't be truly immortal, can he? What kind of methods is he using?"

"That last one seemed to be a doll he created himself, but the techniques he used while fighting Aozaki Touko felt far from ordinary magecraft."

"Aozaki Touko did mention it, didn't she? Araya Souren turned the entire Ogawa apartment complex into a parallel dimension and fused his body with the building. It's likely that, within the confines of Ogawa, he has near-omnipotent powers."

"Near-omnipotent? That's just ridiculous…"

"If that's the case, the only option would be to draw Araya Souren out of Ogawa. But is that even possible?"

"With Aozaki Touko dead, relying on ordinary people like Kokutou Mikiya and Tomoe is completely out of the question, isn't it?"

"…"

Clearly, with both Aozaki Touko and Ryougi Shiki defeated, even the magi couldn't figure out a way to overcome Araya Souren.

All they could do now was stare at the screen, waiting for The Garden of Sinners to reveal how the story would ultimately unfold.

...

After Aozaki Touko was killed by Araya Souren, the film's perspective shifted back to Kokutou Mikiya and Tomoe.

Having left Ryougi Shiki's apartment, the two headed to a peculiar location.

According to Kokutou, this was the original home of the Tomoe family, where they had lived before moving away.

The moment they arrived, Tomoe seemed to experience a sudden hallucination. He saw fragments of his forgotten past reemerge vividly before her eyes.

He saw her father, desperately working himself to the bone, only to lose everything due to a single mistake.

He saw her mother, who tirelessly toiled day and night, unable to bring herself to place any burden on Tomoe.

And finally, he saw his younger self—shutting himself away from the world, refusing to communicate with either of them, solely focused on his own pain.

Reliving these memories, Tomoe wrestled with his emotions but ultimately found closure. He realized what he needed to do.

The two then resolved to carry out a plan to rescue Ryougi Shiki.

Kokutou Mikiya would act as the decoy, while Tomoe would take the ancient sword Kuzuryu Kanesada, which Shiki had left at her home, to confront their enemy.

Although the plan was rudimentary, and the executors were two ordinary people with no knowledge of magecraft, something about their determination gave the audience a surprising sense of reassurance.

The film's scene gradually transitioned, showing Kokutou Mikiya arriving at the Ogawa apartment complex.

He initially intended to head straight for the elevator, but to his surprise, the elevator doors opened on their own.

"Oh, you're here? Perfect timing—I was just about to come find you."

The magus Alba emerged, holding a strange container. Inside it was none other than Aozaki Touko's severed head.

"Uh..."

Faced with the horrifying scene before him, Kokutou Mikiya couldn't help but feel a wave of nausea rise within him, stumbling backward in terror.

Alba, however, paid him no mind.

Without hesitation, he plunged his fingers into Aozaki Touko's lifeless eyes, gruesomely extracting the eyeballs.

Witnessing such a grotesque act, Kokutou was overwhelmed—he could no longer even comprehend what fear meant.

Driven purely by instinct, he turned and fled, his thoughts drowned out by Alba's maniacal laughter.

Meanwhile, Alba casually crushed Aozaki Touko's head in his hand, still laughing hysterically. With a relaxed gait, he began to pursue Mikiya. His leisurely demeanor was utterly incongruous with the image of a bloodthirsty murderer.

...

The relentless twists in the story completely overwhelmed the audience's senses.

No one had expected the plot to take such a drastic 180-degree turn, veering sharply into the realm of horror.

Yet, amid the terror, a primal sense of anticipation began to build in most viewers.

Faced with such a bleak and desperate situation, everyone was eager to see how the story would resolve itself and escape this nightmare.

At the same time, the scene shifted once again.

This time, the focus moved from Kokutou Mikiya to Tomoe.

The boy had found his way into a strange area through a hidden passage.

Surrounding him were countless containers, each holding a still-living brain.

After his initial shock, Tomoe suddenly became remarkably calm and began searching through the rows of grotesque containers.

After a while, he found it—the thing that had always been there, always connected to him.

His own brain.

"Ha... hahaha...!"

Tomoe couldn't help but burst into laughter, his voice tinged with madness.

In the midst of his hysteria, he steeled his resolve. Gripping the long sword in his hand, he began ascending the building, heading for the upper floors.

At that moment, with the audience's anticipation at its peak, Paradox Spiral finally entered its climactic final act—the ultimate showdown.

No one dared blink, their eyes glued to the screen, determined not to miss a single frame of what promised to be the most thrilling and intense confrontation yet.

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