Chapter 1016: -1004- What kind of existence?
"Click..."
With a slight creak of the door, Rozen opened the door to the guest room and stepped inside.
As soon as he entered, all eyes in the room focused on Rozen.
"Nichiyo..."
Kojou sat on the edge of the bed, looking somewhat listless.
It wasn't because of the previous attack but because of Nagisa.
Upon closer inspection, Nagisa was lying in bed, breathing unevenly, her complexion unnaturally pale, as if enduring a terrible nightmare, which was truly distressing to witness.
Seeing Nagisa like this, Rozen sighed.
Ever since Rozen brought her back, Nagisa had been like this, neither waking up nor regaining her strength, resembling her condition when she first arrived on Itogami Island several years ago, severely weakened and in poor health.
It was understandable.
"The magic energy inside No. 12 has been completely absorbed by the spirit inside Nagisa's body. Now that the spirit within Nagisa has reactivated, it's placing an even greater burden on her body than when she first arrived on Itogami Island," Rozen said helplessly.
That was the root cause.
Under the control of the spirit within her, Nagisa attacked Kojou and Veldiana, broke the seal of No. 12, and consequently froze the entire North District of Itogami Island with No. 12, the beast vassal of the Fourth Primogenitor. That was the sequence of events.
But why did the spirit inside Nagisa do all this?
"For self-preservation," Rozen said.
"After nearly three years of soul suppression and exorcism, the spirit inside Nagisa was almost exorcised by me, weakened to the point of near annihilation. If this continued, she would eventually be destroyed by me."
To prevent such a fate, when the beast vessels were summoned and subsequently stirred to wakefulness, the spirit inside Nagisa, in desperation, seized the Holy Spear, found No. 12, broke its seal, and absorbed its magical power to restore herself, which put even more strain on Nagisa's body.
"Unfortunately, the spirit's relationship with No. 12 seems to be quite special, allowing it to directly absorb magic from her and sense her location. In a desperate situation, it manipulated Nagisa, armed with the Holy Spear, to break the seal," Rozen addressed Kojou.
"Now that No. 12 has been unsealed, and its magical power absorbed by the spirit within Nagisa, the spirit's power has partially recovered, once again burdening Nagisa's body."
That was the reason Nagisa was in this state, and why No. 12 suddenly collapsed and remained unconscious until now.
Rozen discovered all this after encountering Nagisa and No. 12 at MAR's research facility and fully understood why the spirit attacked Kojou and Veldiana, brought the Holy Spear, and broke Number Twelve's seal.
However...
"What exactly is the origin of this spirit?" Kojou asked, suppressing his anger.
"She's been haunting Nagisa relentlessly. Does she want to kill Nagisa like this...!?" Kojou felt both angry and powerless.
Since the spirit's power had recovered, Nagisa would inevitably face the same fate as before, eventually being destroyed by the spirit inside her. How could Kojou not feel powerless?
To this, Rozen had only one thing to say.
"Don't worry," Rozen said calmly. "When it truly comes down to it, I'll resort to extreme measures."
Originally, Rozen spent nearly three years helping Nagisa with soul suppression and exorcism, intending to rid her of the danger within her body without causing her harm.
However, if Nagisa truly faced a life-threatening situation, Rozen wouldn't hesitate. Even if he had to use the Taizan Fukun Ritual, he would extract that spirit and throw it into the abyss.
Therefore, Rozen wasn't worried about Nagisa's safety but was contemplating one thing.
That is, what Kojou just mentioned.
"What exactly is the origin of this spirit?" Rozen's eyes glittered.
Previously, Rozen had always thought that the spirit inside Nagisa was No. 12.
Because the spirit emerged from No. 12's ice prison, Rozen naturally assumed it was the essence of No. 12, trying to escape its confinement and seizing Nagisa's body to break free.
But now it seemed impossible for the spirit to be No. 12.
After all, No. 12 had appeared in front of Rozen. If her spirit had truly entered Nagisa's body, how could it appear and summon beast vassals?
Moreover, if the spirit inside Nagisa truly was No. 12, then after the Fairy's Coffin's seal was broken, the spirit would have no reason to remain inside Nagisa's body, but rather would leave Nagisa and return to No. 12, completing her resurrection without being restrained by anyone.
However, the spirit only absorbed the magic of No. 12 and didn't leave Nagisa's body at all.
What did this indicate?
It indicated that the spirit was not No. 12 but a mysterious entity sealed together with No. 12 for some reason.
What kind of existence was it?
Rozen had some guesses, of course.
But there was no need to reveal them now.
Otherwise, Kojou would surely be confused.
Just then...
"I mean, seriously, you guys are having your little discussion over there, but why are you ignore me?" Finally, the fourth person in the room couldn't hold back any longer.
In the corner of the room, Veldiana remained bound by silver chains, looking extremely resentful as she spoke up.
"And, how long are you going to keep me chained up like this?" Veldiana protested.
Unfortunately...
"Don't think you can escape responsibility," Rozen said coldly.
"I won't say you brought Nosferata here, as the Blazing Banquet was destined to take place on Itogami Island, and those guys would have come even without your involvement. But it's an undeniable fact that you targeted Nagisa and No. 12. The Holy Spear was also brought by you. Even if you're not the mastermind, there's still a causal relationship, and I have no reason to let you off the hook."
In fact, Rozen was considering handing Veldiana over to Natsuki to deal with her.
However, if Veldiana were to be handed over, Rozen's involvement in the matter would be revealed, so reluctantly, he chose to leave her here and ignore her.
"Besides, if I were to let you go, wouldn't you come back for No. 12?" Rozen spoke calmly. "To prevent you, a useless noblewoman, from causing more trouble, don't you think my actions are justified?"
Upon hearing this, Veldiana protested again. "Who are you calling a useless noblewoman? I am a daughter of the Caruana family!"
Veldiana's protest was futile.
"But you're right. I won't give up on No. 12," Veldiana declared, gazing at Rozen with an unusual determination. "No. 12 was discovered by the Caruana family. We have the right to protect her and become a candidate of the banquet."
It seemed that Veldiana had not given up on becoming a candidate.
"In that case, I cannot let you go," Rozen stated unequivocally. "You will stay here."
As soon as those words were spoken...
"That won't do, Your highness."
A voice suddenly interjected. "I must take her with me."
////Some of you might notice that the other characters are calling Rozen "your highness". In Chinese it's "殿下" or "Heika" in Japanese. Probably because many characters noticed the divine aura that appeared alongside Rozen, and think he's some kind of child of god or divine child, so it kinda evaluated his status? And thus calling him "your highness", I guess?////
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone