「お嬢様！」

「コル、話は後じゃ！ランの救出と、証人としてそこに居る者共を捕えよ！儂はリュートの手当てをせねばならん！」

「かしこまりました！ピンク！」

「I,I'mam！」

「キュイ、あなたは小お嬢様を！」

「は、はい！」

　号を掛けたエルザは、メイド達が駆け出すのを待たずして、倒れたままのリュートに駆け寄り容体を確認する。幸いにも至近距離から撃たれた為に弾は貫通しており、僅かに急所も逸れているようだが、撃たれてから時間が経っている影響で失血に至っていないかが気掛かりだ。

「おい、まだ生きておるな？」

「…あ…ああ…凄く痛いし頭がくらくらするけれど…なんとか、ね…」

　弱々しい答えに頷くと、すぐさま治癒魔法を行使して傷を塞ぐ。乱れていた呼吸が穏やかになり、失血によるショック症状の兆候も見られない事に、ひとまず胸を撫で下ろす。

「立てるか？」

「…ごめん、体に力が…入らない…」

「そうか…致命傷ではなかったが、相当量出血しておるしな、普通はそうなるか。まあ良い、そのまま横になって救援が来るまで辛抱しておれ」

「キミには、随分と…迷惑を掛けてしまったね…おまけに、こうして助けてもらって…」

　硬い床板の上に寝かせたままでは辛かろうと、枕代わりにする為にリュートの白衣を剥ぎ取っていたエルザは、その呟きを受けて鼻を鳴らすと、リュートの額をひっぱたいた。ペシッと小さな快音。

「痛っ」

「全くじゃ、ランの体を取り戻す為に猟奇殺人の痕跡を追っていた筈が、とんだ因縁じゃぞ」

　言いながらエルザは額をひっぱたき続ける。ペッペペシペシ、スッペペシ。遂にリズムすら取り出したひっぱたき方に苦笑した後、リュートは目を閉じた。

「そうだね…僕は知らぬ間にキミを巻き込んでいた。爺さんがやっていた事を引き継いだつもりが…爺さんの意志を継いだつもりが…とんでもない失策を犯してしまった。僕は結局、奴等の影を踏めただけで、尻尾にすら手が届かなかったんだ…これじゃ、命を懸けて尻尾を掴んだ爺さんに…あの世で叱られてしまうな…」

「この期に及んで愚痴など聞きとうないわ阿呆が。おぬしはこの件の責任者であろう、責任者は責任を取る為に居る、その義務を果たすまで勝手にくたばるでない。それに此度の件は、おぬしにとって始まりに過ぎぬ。他人を巻き込もうが何だろうが、影を踏めたのなら、何が何でもその先を辿り、いつか連中の首根っこを押さえ付けて、胸を張って発明卿に報告してみせい。それにな…」

　言葉の途中で、話に割って入って良いのかどうかもじもじと迷っているキュイに気付いたエルザは、乱暴に丸めた白衣をリュートの頭の下に突っ込むと腰を上げ、こう締め括った。

「おぬしは影しか踏めていないと思っておるだろうが、もしかしたらその足は、尻尾どころか足のつま先を踏み付けておるやもしれんぞ？もっと己のやった事に自信を持て。これまでの、おぬしが残してきた数々の研究成果のように、な」

　離れていく足音を耳に深く息を吐いたリュートは、ポツリと、誰に聞かせるでもなく呟く。

「叱られていたんだか慰められていたんだか…全然掴み処が無い。不思議な気分だね、亡くなった母さんを思い出すよ」

　一筋、涙が零れ落ちたその顔に、安らぎとも決意ともつかぬ微笑みが浮かんでいた。

「はいは～い、抵抗する不届きな野郎はミキサーでチ○コ細切れの刑だかんね～。女は泡立て器ブチ込んで中でクリーム作っちゃうぞ～」

「ピンク、小お嬢様もキュイも居るんだから、グロイ事は言わないの。ただ、あまりにも私達をムカつかせるような事をするなら実行するから、素直に従った方が身の為よ」

　地味に痛恐ろしい妙な脅しを掛けながら、コルとピンクちゃんがスカートから引き出したロープで研究員達を捕縛していく。幸い、自分達を蚊帳の外に行われた規格外の大立ち回りによる現実感の喪失と、それを演じていた魔法使いという、相手にするには桁違いにも程がある存在がすぐそこに居るという状況において、研究員達は抵抗どころか悪足掻きをする意志すら失っており、どうやらミキサーも泡立て器も活躍する機会は無さそうである。

「ロリント、あんたはあたし達が目を離してる隙に逃げるんじゃないよ」

「…？そのロリントとはわたしの事か、桃色」

　突然、聞き慣れない名でピンクちゃんに呼びかけられ、ギガノフ（幼女）は目をぱちくりさせた。その言い草にカチンときたらしいピンクちゃんは、肩を怒らせて歩み寄ると、珍しく剣呑な目付きでギガノフ（幼女）に耳打ちする。

「だから色で呼ぶなっつーの、合ってるだけになんかムカつくのよ。…一応、あんたは死んだ事にするって、お姉サマが言ってたデショ。だったらあんたを知ってる連中がいる前で、名前を呼ぶ訳にゃいかないデショーが、おっさんなんて呼べる見た目じゃなくなってるし。今のは呼び名が無いと不便だからあたしが考えた仮名よ仮名、通称ギガントがロリ化してロリント、今のあんたにゃお似合いの名前だよザマーミロ。お姉サマの言う事でなけりゃ、とっくにあたしがくびり殺してる所なんだから、仮名でも名前付けてもらえただけ有難く思いな。そんでお姉サマに海より深く感謝しろ」

「ふむ…では、新たな名が決まるまで、わたしはロリントと呼称されるのだな、了解した。それから桃色、バレット・スコールだけでなく、仮ではあるが名を考えてくれたお前にも感謝する」

「だからあたしの名前はピンクちゃんだ、あるかどうかは知らないケド、その脳ミソにぎっちりガッツリ叩っ込んどけ！こんな外見なのに中身はホンット可愛くないなぁ、調子狂うわ…」

　縛り上げた研究員を何故か規則正しく並べていくリアル倉庫番に戻っていくピンクちゃんを見送り、ロリント（仮名）は倒れ伏したドレイクを見上げた。

　その目の前でやおら、ごぷり、と血の塊を吐き出したドレイクが小さく痙攣したかと思うと、見上げる程だった巨躯が小さくなっていき、その正体である醜悪なシェイプシフターの姿を晒す。

（…これが悪事を繰り返してきた者の末路か…憐れなものだな。あるいは魔法使いとはかくなるものかと、恐れを抱くべきなのか。それとも…自分勝手な欲求の為の戦いを、空しいものとして感じるべきか）

　もし戦いの中での死を果たせていたならば、自分はどんな屍を晒していたのだろう。今更になってそれを想像してみる。戦士として堂々とした死に様だったのだろうか、それとも彼等の悪事に加担した者として惨めな死に様になっていたのか。生きていく事を決意した今となっては、そのどちらであっても無駄死ににしかならなかった気がしてならない。

　ふと横を見れば、そこにエトランゼ・コピーの姿がある。汚れた欲望の為に自分を生み出した元凶が討たれた為か、吐き出していた瘴気は収まっていたが、倒れ伏すシェイプ・シフターに向けられている目には、暗い情念が宿っているように思えた。それは自我を持たぬ者には決してできない、複雑な感情を持ち合わせた目だ。

「…お前も、自我を持っていたのだな」

　感情を持たぬ出来損ないのコピーだと思っていた彼女が、自我を持っていた。既にランという前例がある以上、考えられなくはない話だ。”彼女達”を生み出した彼等は、コピーに独自の人格が生まれる事を認めようとしなかったが、自我も無く怨念に憑りつかれ、ただ希薄に存在するだけのゴーストに、あれほどの目はできまい。確固たる自我があってこそ、彼女は２０年もの間、霧散も自然消滅もせずにその存在を保ち続けていられたのだろう。ファーストロット以降、希薄にしか再現できなかったとされるコピー達が辿った結末を思えば、それはどれほど残酷で、過酷な運命だったのか、自分の想像など遥かに及ばないものであったろう事だけは理解できた。

　彼女は、どうだったのだろうか。自分と同じように妄執に憑りつかれ、苦しみから逃げる術として復讐を糧にしてきたのだろうか、それとも…長きに渡る苦しみに唯一人、逃げる事なく耐え続けてきたのだろうか。これまでの自分を思い返し、そんな疑問が頭をよぎる。

『あなた誰？』

「…」

　疑問が言葉となるより早く一瞥と同時に返ってきた当然の返答に、ロリントは二の句を告げる事もできず口を噤んだ。答えが返ってくる事は期待していなかったし、”彼女達”を苦しめていた所業に加担していた事を責められ、あるいはその恨みで呪い殺される覚悟もしていたが、最早自分が以前のギガノフではなくなったという事実を突き付けられただけだった。当のエトランゼ・コピーは、ロリントにまるで興味が無いらしく、既に視線をシェイプ・シフターに戻していたりする。

　おそらく、自分がギガノフであったのだと主張したところで、彼女は信じやしないだろう。

（バレット・スコールよ、お前の言っていた意味が今、少し理解できた…己の中だけで己の存在を証明するというのは、やはり間違いだったのだな。自分以外の誰にも己を証明できないというのが、こんなにも寂しいものだとは。なんだか泣きたくなってきたぞ…！）

　対戦車歩兵ギガノフであった頃の面影など見る影もないその小さな背中に、ほんのちょっぴり侘しさと哀愁が漂っていた。

　エルザが駆け付けると、挙動不審なレベルにまでそわそわし始めていたキュイが安堵の笑みを浮かべた。

「どうした、ランはまだ中か？よもや開けられんのではあるまいな」

「えうぅ…そ、それが…」

　気付いてもらえた事でほっとしたのも束の間、問いに対し言い淀むキュイの手に力任せに引き千切った鍵の残骸が握られているのを目聡く見付け、怪訝な表情になったエルザがガラスボックスに目を向ける。

　キュイに鍵を破壊された入口は既に半開きになっており、その中で荒く息を吐くランが、ガラス張りの壁に背を預けて蹲っていた。

「…相当体力を消耗しているようじゃな。ラン、儂がおぶってやる、早く帰って休もう。それともお姫さま抱っこが良いか？好きな方法を何でもリクエストするが良い。儂としてはだいしゅきホールドなんかがオススメじゃぞ」

　ガラスの扉を開け、いつもより少し軽め？の下ネタを振りながらボックスの中へ入ったエルザに対し、いつも通りの冷めたツッコミを返すでもなく、ランは蹲ったままで身動ぎするのみだった。

　エルザから、自分を遠ざけるように。

「ラン？…ああ、辛い記憶を掘り起こされた後にこういうジョークは流石に嫌か、すまん。何もしないと誓う、儂が嫌ならコルか、キュイでも良い。それなら安心できるじゃろう？帰ってゆっくり風呂にでも浸かってぐっすり寝れば疲れも取れて、目が覚めればいつも通りののほほんとした朝を迎えられるわい」

　そう言って差し出されたエルザの手に視線を向けたランはしかし、僅かに自分の手をピクリと反応させたが、すぐに視線を外してしまう。

「先程からずっとこの調子で…近寄ろうとすると、拒絶しているみたいに、逃げようとなさるんです」

　実際に拒絶されたのだろう、その大きな目を潤ませるキュイに、俯いているランは申し訳なさそうに小さく唇を噛んだ。

（成程な、今のランは…ふう、リュートといいランといい、どうも今日の儂はどこまでも真面目で通さんとならんらしい）

　心の中で苦笑すると、エルザは一歩を踏み出した。壁にべったりと張り付き、なおも後ずさろうとするランに構わず歩を進め、目を合わせようとしないランの前にしゃがみ込み、顔を覗き込でもう一度、手を差し出す。

「ラン」

「…だ…だめ…」

　震え、掠れた声。

「先程、威勢よく啖呵を切った元気はどうした。ほれ」

「私は…その手を取れない。取っちゃダメなの…」

「何故じゃ？」

「私は偽物なの！！私はエトランゼ・シュトゥーリアなんかじゃない、エトランゼのコピーだったのよ…！何も知らずに、ずっと騙してた…ずっと、自分がエトランゼだって、エトランゼだったんだって、そう思って…あなた達を…玉竜を、紫月を、他の友達も、みんな！みんなを騙してた！偽物の私が家族になんて…なれる訳ない…」

　膝に顔を埋め、震える両手を合わせるその姿は、罪を悔い、贖罪を求め、懺悔する罪人のようであった。

「知っておったよ、そんな事」

　思いも寄らぬ言葉に、弾かれたようにランが顔を上げる。そこには、道化を演じながらいつも暖かく自分を見守っていた、穏やかな笑顔があった。

「…自分でも知らなかったのに…いつから…？」

「始めから。雪恋の奴めも、出会ってすぐに察していたようじゃ。何せ儂らはネクロマンサーとその弟子じゃからな、おぬしが普通の幽霊とは違うという事くらい、なんとなくだが見抜いておったさ。もっとも、コピーされた存在だという真相と事情を知ったのは、ついさっき…ここへ辿り着くまでの道すがら、情報を得たに過ぎんのだがな」

　チラと、その情報源…リュートを見やる。呼吸は大分安定しているようで、言い付けた通り大人しくしているようだ。

「だったら…だったら解るでしょう！？私は本物じゃない、本物なんて、もう、この世には存在しない！私はただ、エトランゼから造られただけの、本当ならこの世に生まれてくる筈の無かった…」

「だからどうした！！」

　ランの感情の爆発を、エルザのただ一喝が鎮める。肩を掴み、自分を見据えるエルザの目に、ランは呆としたまま惹き込まれていた。

　この人の、自分の姿を優しく映し込む瞳を、こうも美しいと感じたのは、初めてだった。

「確かに、コピーとして造られたのがおぬしの始まりであり、記憶もまた与えられたものだったろう。だが、おぬしが存在し始めてから得た、己を己と認識する自我は、積み重ねてきた記憶や経験は、それはエトランゼの記憶のコピーなどではない、他ならぬおぬしが、おぬし自身として得たもの！生まれてくる筈の無かった？だが、おぬしはおぬしとして今ここに、確かに居るではないか！既に、こうしてここに居るおぬしは、エトランゼのコピーという存在を超えた、世界で唯一人の、ラン・シュトラヘルツそのものなのじゃ！」

「…世界で………唯、一人…」

「そうじゃ。おぬしがエトランゼの偽物であろうとも、これまで儂の…いや、儂らの、玉竜達の、おぬしの傍に居る者達の目は、エトランゼを見ていた訳ではない。皆、おぬし自身を、世界にたった一人しか居ないランという個人を見ていたのじゃぞ。儂らにとっておぬしは偽物などではない、本物のランであり、それ以外の何者でもないのじゃ。家族になれない理由などあろうものか」

「ぁ………あぁぁ………」

　自分をしっかりと捉えて離さない、自分を愛してくれている人の顔が、滲んでいく。

　溢れ出る感情が、暖かく、かけがえのない美しい宝石の姿を借りて、とめどなく頬を伝っていくのを感じる。

　エトランゼ・コピーという造られた存在ではなく…ラン・シュトラヘルツという一人の少女の、涙として。

「わ…私は…私は、ランでいて良いの…？エトランゼの偽物の私が…本物のランになって良いの…！？」

「良いも何も、本物のランはおぬし以外に有り得んよ。おぬしが望んでくれるのならば、儂らは全てを受け入れられる。だから願わくば、この手を取っておくれ。そして…帰ろう、愛しき我が妹よ」

　差し出された手に、自分の震える手を弱々しく重ねたのは、殆ど無意識だ。

　後はもう、思いのまま、大切な家族の胸に飛び込んでいた。

「お姉ちゃん…！お姉ちゃぁん…！！」

「初めて姉と呼んでくれたな。辛い思いをさせてすまなんだ、ラン…」

「あああぁ…！ぅああああぁぁぁ…！！」

　そっと抱き寄せられ、頭を撫でるその手は、とても心地良いものだった。

「美しイ姉妹愛だナァ！？」

　突如発せられた不快な声に、一同が身を強張らせる。

「良かったナ魔法使イ、妹を救エて！ダが幸せにナどナれんぞ、その妹ハこの先、自分を元にした兵器ガ多くの命を奪ウ現実に、永遠に苦しむ事にナる！！」

「こいつ、まだ生きて…！？」

　驚愕するロリントの前で、死んだと思っていたシェイプ・シフターがのたうち回り、嘲笑っているつもりか金切り声を上げていた。咄嗟に腰に手をやったロリントは、そこにはもう自分の本体は無く、その本体も既に自分では撃てなくなっている事を思い出し、舌打ちする。

　息を呑むランの、着物を掴む手が強張った事を感じたエルザは、怒りを露わにした目でシェイプ・シフターを睨んだ。

「それはどういう意味じゃ。おぬしの下らぬ計画は失敗した、ランも、ランと生まれを同じくする者達も、これ以上この儂が利用などさせんぞ！」

「バアァァァァァカ！そんな出来損なイ、これ以上利用する価値なんぞある訳無イだろォォォォォ！！必要なのハ、研究データだ！ククク、ここで実験を行ってイたからとイって、ここにしかデータガ無いとでも思ってイるのか！？データさえあれば、私の計画は終わらナイぃぃぃぃ！！」

「…そうか！そういえばここは、外から徹底的に遮断して隠されてるのに、ネット回線だけは外に繋がってる！こいつ、ネットを通じてデータのバックアップを他へ送っていたんだ！」

　ミフィの言葉に、ピンクちゃんがあっと声を上げる。

「そぉぉぉぉだとも！あノデータがあれば、別の怨霊を使って計画を続行でキる！素晴らしイ、素晴らしイぞ、私が生み出した兵器でバカな人間共が殺し合う、実に素晴らしイ！！それをこの目で見られナイのガ残念ナくらいだ！！！」

　シェイプ・シフターが勝ち誇ったように笑い続ける。

　…が、金切り声が木霊する中で一人、コルが首を傾げていた。

「でもそれって、もうとっくに押さえられている気がするのだけれど…」

『そのっ、通ぉぉぉぉぉぉぉぉぉり！！ですわ！』

　コルが疑問を口にした途端、施設内放送用のスピーカーが一斉に叫んだ。

『うふふ。ハッキングに気付いておきながら、こ～んな温いハッキングを仕掛けるような相手の特定に時間が掛かっていた時点で、おかしいとは思いませんでしたの？やはり悪党は物分かりに欠けるものですのねぇ』

「ナ、何…誰だ！？」

『あなた方の尻尾は、この”エレクトロニクス・クイーン”が掴みましたわ。そちらに残るデータは全て消去済み、システムも掌握させて頂きました。送り先もリアルタイムでデータが送られていたので容易に特定できまして、既にハッキングを済ませてあなた方が送ったものを含めてデータを全て消去、こちらもシステムを掌握させて頂いて、そこから先も追跡中です。今頃、目も耳も塞がれて大騒ぎしているでしょうね。スイーパーズにもデータの送信先の情報をリークしておきましたし、そろそろアジトが阿鼻叫喚と化している頃ですかしら。うふふふふっ』

「わはー。アイーナ様、お見事デスー」

　すっかり気の抜けた様子で拍手を送るピンクちゃんの言葉を聞き咎め、シェイプシフターの剥き出しの表情筋が強張る。

「アイーナ…？アイーナ・フィオ・フォックスライダー！？国際警察や犯罪組織ガ血眼で探してイる天才ハッカーノ正体ガ、ＦＲ財閥の娘だったとイうのか！め、女狐めェェェェェェェェェェェ！！！」

「おーほほほほほ！おバカさんですわ！おバカさんが居ますわ！エルザさん、そのおバカさんは、どんなおマヌケなお顔をしていらして！？おほほほほほほほ！」

（あー、このうつけが…地雷踏みよった…）

　愉快そうに笑う後ろから、必死に宥めすかそうとしているメイド達の声が薄っすらと聞こえてきて、アイーナが売り言葉に買い言葉で罵倒している姿が目に浮かんだエルザは、渇いた笑いを漏らした。アイーナは基本的に品行方正なのだが、家名をもじって「女狐」と罵られた時だけは、日頃の柔らかな物腰が嘘のように逆上してしまう。育ちが良い所為で大した悪口が出てこないとはいえ、こうなるとエルザも手を付けられない。何故ならその報復は彼女が最も得意とするフィールド、電子戦で行われるのだから。

「…お嬢、アイーナの命令で動いた別動隊が、施設内を巡回していた連中を制圧したってさ。それから、スイーパーズが追っていた不審船が謎の爆発を起こして、目下炎上中らしい…沈むのも時間の問題だそうだ。あと、各国で数ヶ所、同時に爆発事故が起きたとか何とか…」

「…そうじゃろうな」

　アイーナのサポートとしてスイーパーズ側の情報を傍受していたメイドから、潜入前にランが連れ去られた先の候補に挙げていた不審船の情報を無線連絡で受けたミフィに何とも言えない表情で伝えられ、エルザも同じ表情で頷くしかなかった。

　おそらくアイーナが、掴んだデータの送信先の掌握したシステムを利用して、意図的に動力源を誤作動させたのだろう。きっとデータを受け取っていた連中の他のアジトも同じ目に遭っているに違いない。

　世界的に蔓延る厄介な犯罪組織の拠点が、たかが一構成員が口にした悪口に対する仕返しで壊滅させられる様を思うと、憐れんで良いやら笑って良いやら。

「ナ、何ナんだ、これハ…私ガ時間を掛けて進めてキた計画ガ、こ、こんなボケた馬鹿共に…、ッ！？げぶっ」

　それは一同が思わず互いに苦笑で顔を見合わせていた、一瞬の隙を突いての事だ。アイーナの高笑いをＢＧＭに呆然と呻いていたシェイプ・シフターが息を呑んだかと思うと、直後に湿り気を帯びた柔らかいものが裂ける音が、やけにハッキリと一同の耳に届く。

　鋭利に尖った床板の破片が、エトランゼ・コピーの手で深々とシェイプ・シフターの喉に突き立てられていたのだ。

　誰もが言葉を失い、調子に乗って笑い続けていたアイーナすらも絶句するミフィに何事かを感じ、高笑いが止まってしまっている。エトランゼ・コピーの挙動を警戒して銃を構えるコルを手で制したエルザの胸の中で、ランが必死で目を逸らそうとする自分を律し、その光景を見届けていた。

　喉を貫く破片を掴もうというのか、緩慢な動作で指を失った手を伸ばすが果たされず、駄目押しとばかりにぐいと捻り込まれた破片に喉奥の肉を捩じ切られ、一際大きく体が跳ねる。

　断末魔の如く震えていたシェイプ・シフターの手が力無く床に落ちた。今度こそ終わったのだという安堵にメイド達が体の緊張を解き、場を支配する張り詰めた空気がにわかに和らぎかけた、その時。

　エトランゼ・コピーが、見えない圧力に弾き飛ばされた。

　キュイだけでなく、コルとピンクちゃんですら、目の前の不可解な現象を理解できない。彼女達にはエトランゼ・コピーが突然弾かれたとしか見えなかったのだ。

　メイド達の中で唯一「それ」を見たミフィとエルザが驚愕に満ちた視線を宙に向け、エルザの腕の中から飛び出したランとエトランゼ・コピーが怒りを宿す視線で「それ」を追って叫ぶ。

「『…まだ、終わってない！！』」

『ァァアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアア！！！！！！！』

　二人の叫びと同時、苦悶に満ちた悲鳴が、激しく空間を揺さぶった。

　悲鳴は実際の音量を超えた衝撃を以てビリビリと壁や床を振動させ、周辺の大型機材が砕け、機器のモニターが次々に破裂していく。常人であれば耳を塞ぐ程ではないこの悲鳴も、鋭い聴覚には相当な威力を持つ音波攻撃となっているのか、堪らず耳を押さえたコルは平衡感覚を失い、膝をついた。

「う…っ、な、何が起きているの！？」

「あいつだ…今、トドメを刺されたばかりのあいつが、化けて出やがった！怨霊になって体から抜け出て、あれに潜り込んだんだ！」

　声を張り上げて答えたのはミフィだ。精霊使いの卵ともいえるミフィには見えたのだ、事切れた瞬間体から抜け出た、シェイプ・シフターの穢れに染まった霊魂が。

　ミフィが指差した先には、激痛を訴えて藻掻き苦しむ、女性を象る巨大な黒い霊体…Ｅ．Ｓの姿があった。悲鳴の衝撃を間近で受けるシリンダーには幾重にもヒビが走り、怖気を催す霊気を漏れ出させている。

　やがて悲鳴は狂気の混じる嘲笑へと変わり、Ｅ．Ｓの黒い霊体が薄っすらと、成熟したランを思わせる姿を薄暗く浮かび上がらせていく。しかしその顔に浮かぶのは、酷く醜い歪んだ狂笑だ。

『キィィィヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒ！！！！私を殺してくれた事に礼を言おう！これで計画の続行ガ可能となった！データを失おうともこのＥ．Ｓさえ居れば、解析してデータを再構築する事ガできるのだからナァァ！！やハり最後に笑うのは私なのだああああああああ！！！ヒ、ヒヒヒヒヒー！イィィヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒヒィ！！！』

　ランの顔をしておぞましく笑い狂い、シリンダーからすり抜けて外に出るＥ．Ｓを、エルザが拳を握り締めて睨み付ける。

「彼奴めェ…二度ならず三度までもランを、ランの同胞達を愚弄し、弄びおって！！死してなお諦めの悪い奴じゃ！」

「く…この、ド外道が！！」

「泣いて謝ったって、もう遅いからね！」

　宙を漂うＥ．Ｓに向けて、悲鳴に揺らされた三半規管を圧して立ち上がったコルと怒りで瞳を魔性に変えたピンクちゃんの、ギガントの弾丸と十本のナイフが襲い掛かった。それはＥ．Ｓを素通りして空しく壁に大穴を開け、弾き返されただけに終わってしまう。

『霊体で構成されたＥ．Ｓを、物理的に傷付けられる訳ガ無イだろぉぉぉぉぉぉ、馬鹿共ガ！お前達には今の私を捕まえる事など不可能だ、そこで指を咥えて見てイるガ良イ！ヒィヒ、キヒヒヒヒヒィィィィィ！！』

「拙い！彼奴め、天井をすり抜けて地上へ出るつもりか！」

　耳障りな笑い声を上げ、天井に消えて行こうとするＥ．Ｓに焦ったエルザの声に反応したのは、キュイだ。あれを逃してはならないと思った途端、二転三転する状況に付いていけずぐるぐると回っていた思考が嘘のように弾けた。

　許せない。そう思った時には既に足が動いていた。

「ま、待って…待ちなさい！！！」

「キュイ！？何をするつもりじゃ！」

　気弱なキュイの口から発せられたとは思えない力強い怒声。目を剥く一同の前でキュイの身体が劇的に巨大化していく。

　メイド服が裂け、その身を窮屈そうに包んでいた下着も、特注で作られた靴も、身に付けていた衣服の一切が千切れ落ちる。惜しげもなく全てを晒した裸体を気にも留めず、キュクロプスたる真の姿に戻ろうとする体で、Ｅ．Ｓに掴み掛かっていった。

　その手がＥ．Ｓをすり抜ける。諦めずもう一度伸ばされた手が、

「…エンチャント・ウェポン！」

　すかさず発動させたエルザの魔法を受け、魔力を帯びた手は寸での所でＥ．Ｓの足を掴む事に成功する。

「素手にかけて霊体を殴れるのなら、触れる事もできる…流石でございますお嬢様！」

「キュイちゃん、何が何でも手ェ離しちゃ駄目よ！！」

「う、うう…！！」

　引き摺り下ろそうというのか、単眼巨人へと変貌を遂げたキュイは、約１２ｍの巨身には狭苦しい室内をひしゃげさせながら、渾身の力を篭めた。

『バ、バカナ…！ええイ、この程度ォォォォォォ！！』

　Ｅ．Ｓの全高はキュイの巨体に比べれば半分程しかない、それだけの体格差がありながら、Ｅ．Ｓは掴まれたまま強引に天井へとその身を沈めていく。キュイの手が徐々に持ち上げられていき、天板に触れた。

　だがキュイの握力とて並ではない。逃すまいとＥ．Ｓを掴む手に引かれ、軋みと共に頭と肩で天板に大穴を開けて軽い地震を引き起こしつつ持ち上げられていき、上の階層を突き破り始めたのだ。Ｅ．Ｓはなおもキュイを引き上げ続け、自らの体で空けた穴の中に引っ張り込まれたキュイのつま先が見る間に浮いていく。

「キュイさん！！」

（小お嬢様が心配して下さってる…けど、この手は離さない！絶対に離さないんだから！！）

　ランの声を耳にして、ただでさえ傷だらけだった体に新たな擦り傷切り傷を増やしながら、その手に一層力を篭めた。

"Mistress!"
"Col, we'll talk later! Rescue Ran, and round up everyone here as witnesses! I have to help Ryuuto!"
"Understood! Pink!"
"I,I'mam!"
"Cuey, you handle the little mistress!"
"Y, yes!"
Having given the orders, Elza didn't wait around for the maids to start bustling around, but instead rushed over to the fallen Ryuuto and checked his condition. Fortunately, since he was shot at point blank range, the bullet went straight through him and missed his vital organs, but due to the amount of time that had passed since he was shot, she was worried about his blood loss.
"Hey, are you still alive?"
"...A...Ah... It really hurts and my head is spinning, but... I guess so..."
Nodding at the weak response, she immediately start to use healing sorcery and close the wounds. His ragged breathing became more normal, and he didn't look like he went into shock due to blood loss, so she petted him once on the chest.
"Can you stand?"
"...Sorry, my body... won't move..."
"I see... It's not a fatal would, but you've lost a lot of blood, so I guess that's normal. That's fine, just keep lying down and wait until help comes!"
"I, really... caused you a lot of trouble... and then, you save me like this..."
Thinking it would be pretty hard to fall asleep on the hard floor, Elza took off his lab coat for Ryuuto to use as a pillow. Hearing his soft whisper, she hit Ryuuto's forehead. It made a small and clear pesh sound.
"Ow"
"Seriously, I was planning on chasing some bizarre murderers to get back Ran's body, and something crazy like his happens."
As she said this, Elza continued to hit his forehead. Peppepeshpesh, supepesh. Finally finding a rhythm to hitting, he gave a strained smile, and Ryuuto closed his eyes.
"Yes... I got you involved without even knowing it. I planned to continue what my grandfather did... To follow in his plans... But I made a terrible mistake. In the end, all I did was follow those guys, unable to do anything but grasp at their tails... And now, my grandfather, who grabbed the tail and cost him his life... would have yelled at me for my foolishness..."
"I don't want to listen to you complain about what happened here, idiot. You were in charge of this incident, and the one in charge has to be there to take responsibility, and can't just up and die to avoid it. Anyway, for you, this incident has only just begun. Aside from getting others involved in this, if you were just following them, as long as you kept at it, you'd eventually run into their backs, and proudly tell them about the Lord Inventor. And then..."
As she was speaking, Elza noticed Cuey, who was there fidgeting and wondering if she should interrupt her. Elza stuffed the rolled up lab coat under Ryuuto's head and lifted his body, and finished up.
"You think that all you did was follow, but it's possible that you might have been stepping on their toes? Have more self confidence. Like you have with all your other research results."
As he heard the footsteps grow distant, Ryuuto sighed and quietly murmured, so that no one else could hear.
"Was she berating me or praising me... I couldn't tell at all. What a strange feeling, it reminds me of my late mother."
With tears dripping down his face, he gave a smile of either peace or determination.

"Oka~y, anyone insolent enough to resist will get their d*ck chopped up in a blender~ Girls will have cream made inside them with an egg beater~"
"Pink, the little mistress and Cuey are here, so don't say such gorey things. Just that if they piss us off too much, we will take action, so for the sake of their bodies, they should be follow directions."
As they gave their quite scary and painful sounding threats, Col and Pink-chan tied up the researchers with rope pulled out from under their skirts. Fortunately, they were not drawn into the supernatural battle, but because of it, everything seemed unreal to them. And with a wizard being part of it, they knew that there was no way they could possibly come close to matching one, the researchers lost any will to put up even a fruitless struggle, so it didn't look like there was going to be any opportunity to use the blender or egg beater.
"Lolint, don't try to run away while we're not watching you."
"...? By Lolint, do you mean me, pink one?"
Suddenly being called by an unfamiliar name by Pink-chan, Giganov (little girl) blinked in surprise. Pink-chan, who seemed annoyed by that response, straightened her shoulders and walked towards her, and with an oddly dangerous look in her eyes, whispered to Giganov (little girl).
"I told you, don't call me by my color. It pisses me off, since it's right... Anyway, Onee-sama said we're acting like you're dead. So we can't use your name in front of people who know you. We can't call you something like old man, since you don't look like one. It's inconvenient to not have a name to call you by, so I thought up this alias. It's an alias, you were also named Gigant, and since you turned into a loli, it's Lolint. That name suits you perfectly, and you deserve it. If Onee-sama hadn't told me not to, I'd strangle you do death right now, so be thankful that all I'm doing is giving you an alias. And your thanks to Onee-sama should be deeper than the oceans."
"Hmph... Then, until I decide on a new name, I shall be called Lolint. Understood. And, pink one, it is not just to Bullet Squall that I am thankful, but to you as well for thinking up a name, even if it's just temporary."
"I told you, my name is Pink-chan, I don't know whether you know that or not, but I'm going to pound it into your brain! You might look like this, but inside you aren't cute at all. You've gotten me all out of sorts..."
The tied up researchers were, for some reason, arranged in an orderly fashion like a real life Sokoban. Lolint (alias) watched Pink-chan return to the researchers, and looked up at the fallen drake.
In front of him, she thought the bloody drake twitched slightly, as the previously giant body shrank and the evil shapeshifter reverted to its original form.
(...Is this the fate of those who continue their evil ways? ...How pitiful. Or maybe this is what happens with wizards, and I should be afraid? Or... I should feel empty, fighting for my own selfish desires?)
If she had died during combat, what kind of corpse would she leave? She tried thinking about that now. Would she have died proudly as a soldier, or died miserably, as someone complicit in the evil they perpetrated? Now that she resolved to live on, she felt that either way, it would have been a pointless death.
Glancing to the side, there was the Etranger copy. Maybe it was because she was stained with lust and born to exact revenge upon the main perpetrators, but while the miasma she had emitted had subsided, it felt like her eyes were filled with dark emotions as she gazed at the fallen shapeshifter. They were eyes of someone with complicated feelings, and were a definite sign that was self aware.
"...You are self aware as well."
She, who was thought to be a copy that had no emotions, was self aware. It was no more unbelievable than Ran, the precedent. They, who created "them", never thought to check the copy for an individual personality, and just saw her as nothing more than a non-self aware ghost with a weak existence, which contained the grudge. It was because she had a firm self awareness that she was able, for 20 years, to maintain her existence without fading or naturally disappearing. After the first lot, the copies could only be recreated with weak existences. Their end, while quite cruel, was a harsh fate, and he knew there was no way to really know their thoughts.
What was she? Just like her, she had deeply held beliefs that were wrong, and thought of her revenge to escape her suffering as a means to keep her going. But... that long pain was for only one person, and she continued to endure it without escaping. The question of whether she ever changed her mind, went through her head.
'Who are you?'
"..."
Before she could put her question into words, a glance and the natural response came, and Lolint shut her mouth and said nothing. She hadn't expected a response, and she felt guilty over the fact that her actions had helped to make "them" suffer, or perhaps she was prepared to be cursed and killed by that grudge, but the reality that she was no longer her previous self of Giganov was shoved into her face. This Etranger copy had absolutely no interest in Lolint, and her gaze returned to the shapeshifter.
More than likely, if she had said she was Giganov, she wouldn't have believed it.
(Bullet Squall, I think I'm now starting to understand what you said... The thought that the proof of my existence only lies inside of me was wrong. To have someone else not acknowledge me is so sad. It makes me want to cry...!)
The lack of any visible trace from her time as the anti-tank foot soldier Giganov in this tiny body was a little sad and disheartening.

As Elza came running, Cuey, who had been so nervous that she looked suspicious, smiled in relief.
"Why's Ran still inside? You should be able to open it."
"Ehh... Uhh..."
Her relief that she would understand only lasted a second, and in response to her question, she watched as Cuey used her strength to rip apart the lock, and with a worried look, Elza turned her attention to the glass box.
The opening where Cuey had destroyed the lock was already half open, and inside, gasping for breath, was Ran, crouching against the on of the glass sides.
"...It looks like that took a lot out of her. Ran, I'll carry you on my back, so let's hurry back home and rest. Or would you rather a princess carry? You can request whatever method you want. I'd recommend being carried with your legs wrapped around me."
Opening the glass door, with a slightly less? dirty joke, Elza entered the box. Ran did not respond with her usual cold tsukkomi, and just continued to crouch.
It was like she was keeping away from Elza.
"Ran? ...Ah, after having all those horrible memories dug up, you naturally wouldn't like that kind of shock. I'm sorry. I promise I won't do anything, and if you don't want me, then Col or Cuey can do it. You won't have to worry if it's them, right? And when we get home, you can take a nice long bath and sleep until all your tiredness goes away, and when you wake up everything will be back to normal."
Saying that, Elza held out her hand. Ran looked at the hand, and gave a slight response with her own hand, but then immediately looked away.
"She's been like this for a while... When someone comes close, she makes a sign of refusal and tries to escape."
She's probably rejecting reality. As Cuey's huge eye started to fill with tears, Ran looked down and bit her small lip in an apologetic way.
(I see, Ran right now is... Hah, both Ryuuto and Ran, today I have to be the serious one.)
With a wry smile in her heart, Elza took a test forward. Ran stayed pressed against the wall, trying to back away, as Elza unheedingly continued forward. Ran looked away as she crouched down in front of Ran, staring at her face, and once again, offered out her hand.
"Ran."
"...N...No..."
A quavering, dry voice.
"What happened to your energetic and fierce words from earlier. Come on."
"I... Won't take your hand. I can't take it..."
"Why?"
"Because I'm a fake!! I'm not Etranger Shutulia, I was Etranger's copy...! I didn't know anything, and deceived everyone... I deceived them into thinking I was Etranger... All of you... Tamaryuu, Shizuki, all my friends, everyone! I deceived everyone! A fake like me... shouldn't have a family..."
Burying her face in her knees, with her shaking hands put together, she looked like someone repenting her sin, looking for atonement, a sinner confessing.
"I knew about that."
At these unexpected words, Ran's head popped up. There was the gentle smile that was always messing around while kindly watching over her.
"...Even though I myself didn't know... How long...?"
"Since the beginning. And Seren too, she could tell right after meeting you. Since we're a necromancer and that necromancer's apprentice, it was clear that you weren't just a normal ghost. And as to knowing the truth that you were a copy, that was just earlier... While I was on my way here, I got that information."
With a glance, she looked at Ryuuto... the source of that information. His breathing had become a lot more stable, and he was resting as ordered.
"Then... Then you understand!? I'm not the real one, the real one doesn't exist anymore! I was just created from Etranger, and in truth, I wasn't born into this world..."
"And so what!?!"
Ran's explosion of feelings was suppressed by a single yell from Elza. Grabbing her shoulders, Ran felt like a fool as she was captivated by Elza's eyes staring at her.
It was the first time that she felt that this person's eyes, which gently reflected a vision of herself, seemed so beautiful.
"It's true that your beginning was being created as a copy, and your memories were given to you. But, the things you've gained since then, your self and self awareness, the memories and experiences you've accumulated, those were not a copy of Etranger's memories. They were gained by none other than you yourself! You don't think you were born? But you are here, now, right!? You've already gone beyond being a copy of Etranger, you are the one and only Ran Schtlehertz in the world!"
"...The one and only... in the world..."
"Yes. Though you are a fake Etranger, up to now, in my... no, in our eyes, in Tamaryuu's, in the eyes of everyone here, you aren't Etranger. We all see you as an individual, as Ran, the only one in the world. To us, you aren't a fake, you are the real Ran, and nothing else. Is that a reason why we can't be family?"
"A... Aaahh...."
The face of the person who held her tight, who loved her, became blurry.
She felt her overflowing emotions, warmly, taking the form of irreplacably beautiful jewels, stream down her cheeks.
They were the tears, not of the existence created as Etranger's copy, but of the girl Ran Schtlehertz.
"I... I... I can be Ran...? I, Etranger's fake, can be the real Ran...!?"
"You can, no one but you can be the real Ran. If you wish it, we will accept everything. So if you wish, take this hand. And then... let's go home, my beloved sister."
She was barely conscious of the fact that she placed her trembling hand lightly on the outstretched hand.
And then she unabashedly dove into the chest of her precious family.
"Onee-chan...! Onee-chaaan...!!"
"This is the first time you've called me that. I'm sorry for putting you through all this, Ran..."
"Aaaaah...! Uwaaaaaaaah....!!"
The hand softly hugging her and patting her head, was very comforting.

"Such beautIful lOve betweeN sIsters!?"
The unexpected and unpleasant voice caused her body to immediately tense up.
"HOw NIce, wIzard, yOu saved yOur sIster! But there wIll be NO happy eNd fOr yOu, yOur sIster wIll become the basIs of weapONs whIch wIll take cOuNtless lIves, aNd wIll suffer fOr eterNIty!!"
"You, you're still alive...!?"
In front of the shocked Lolint, the shapeshifter who was thought to be dead struggled, and let out a shrill voice that perhaps was meant to be mocking. Lolint immediately reached towards her waist, but her real body was no longer there, and she remembered that she couldn't fire her real body on her own, and clicked her tongue.
Ran, still out of breath, grasped Elza's kimono tighter. Elza glared at the shapeshifter, anger clearly visible in her eyes.
"What do you mean by that. Your stupid plan failed. I won't let you use Ran or those born alongside Ran anymore!"
"FOOOOOOOl! There's NO value IN usINg these faILures aNymOre!! What's ImpOrtaNt Is the research data! Hehehe, just because the experImeNts WweEre dONe here, did yOu thINK the data Is ONly here!? As LONg as I have the data, my plaN IsN't Over!!"
"...I see! That's right, this place was completely isolated and hidden from the outside, but it was connected to the outside by an internet connection! So you sent a backup of the data somewhere else though the internet!"
Hearing Mifi's words, Pink-chan gave an ah.
"That's rIght! If we have that data, we caN use a differeNt veNgeful spIrIt aNd coNtINue my plaN! WONderful, wONderful, wIth the weapON bOrN frOm thIs, thOse fOOlIsh humaNs wIll KIll each other, It wIll truLy be wONderful!! My ONly regret Is that I wON't be able tO see that wIth my OwN eyes!!!"
The shapeshifter continued to smile in victory.
...But, as the shrill voice echoed, one person, Col, tilted her head.
"However, I have a feeling that has already been suppressed..."
'Thaaaaaaat's!! Right!'
As Col voiced her doubts, a voice came out from the speakers used for announcements around the facility.
'Ufufu. You noticed the hacking, but didn't you think it was strange for it to be such a weak hacking was done, as if to waste your time at such a critical moment? Bad guys are so lacking in common sense.'
"W, what... WhO!?"
'I, the "electronics queen" had a grip on your tail. All the data you had there has been deleted, and I've taken control of your system. And since you were sending the data in real time, it was easy to find where it was being sent, and I've already hacked it and deleted everything you sent, including the data, and took control of that system too, and I'm currently tracing where it was sent from there. Now, they're in a panic as their eyes and ears have been cut off. I've also leaked the transmitted data to the Sweepers, so soon your bases will be turned into chaos. Ufufufu.'
"Wow. Aiina-sama, you're great."
Pink-chan was clapping disinterestedly. The shapeshifter, taking offense at her words, started tensing up his muscles.
"AIINa...? AIINa FIO FOxrIder!? The geNIus hacKer that both the pOlIce aNd the uNderwOrld arOuNd the wOrld have beeN huNtIng fOr Is really the daughter Of the FR busINess cONglOmerate!? Y, you fOx bItch!!!"
"Ohohohoho! A fool! There is a fool there! Elza-san, please tell me, what kind of stupid look does that fool have on his face!? Ohohohohoho!"
(Ah, that idiot... is stepping on a landmine...)
Behind the happy laughter, the voices of the maids desperately trying to convince her to stop could be faintly heard. Elza could image Aiina being provoked by his words and responding in kind, and Elza laughed dryly. Aiina was essentially a good person, but when she had her last name turned into an insult like "fox bitch", the blood rushes to her head, in contrast to her normally mild mannered personality. Due to her being raised well, she really didn't badmouth others, and when this happens, Elza didn't want to touch it. Because her revenge would take in her specialty field, an electronic war.
"...Mistress, by Aiina's orders, a separate force has neutralized the ones patrolling inside the facility. Afterwards, there was a mysterious explosion on the mystery ship that the Sweepers were chasing, and it is currently on fire... It's only a matter of time before it sinks. Also, it seems that, in numerous locations all around the world, there were explosions all at the same time..."
"...I see."
The maids acting as Aiina's support had tapped the Sweeper's information, and between the time that Ran was kidnapped and them entering the facility, Mifi had been receiving information over a wireless radio about the other possible location, the mystery ship. She said this with an unreadable look on her face, and Elza just nodded with a similar look.
Most likely, once Aiina got a hold of where the data was sent, she used the system to purposefully cause a problem in the power source. They were sure that the other locations that had received the data had the same things happen.
The locations of the global criminal organization were destroyed as revenge for just 1 of its members badmouthing her. When you think about it like that, should you feel sorry for them or laugh?
"W, what, the... I speNt all thIs tIme ON my plaN, aNd t, these stupId IdIOts...!? Gah"
Everyone looked around at each other with the same wry smile on their face, and he took advantage of that momentary lapse. With Aiina's shrill laugh becoming like background music, the shapeshifter groaned and drew in his breath, and immediately after, the sound of something wet and moist bursting filled everyone's ears.
A sharp, broken off piece of the floor was thrust deeply into the shapeshifter's throat, courtesy of the Etranger copy.
Everyone was a loss of words. Even Aiina, as she continued laughing, could tell something had happened, and stopped her shrill laugh. Wary of what the Etranger copy might do, Col readied her gun, but Elza stopped her. Ran, still clinging to Elza's chest, desperately tried to look away and gather herself, and caught sight of the scene.
Maybe he was trying to get a grip on the piece stabbed into his throat, but with his fingerless hand, his slow actions had no use, and all it did was drive the piece even further into it and his huge body flopped around. The shapeshifter shuttered in his death throes as his hand fell limply to the floor. A feeling of relief from knowing that it was finally over went through the maids as they relaxed, as the sudden atmosphere that had gripped them dissipated. And then.
The Etranger copy was sent flying by some invisible force.
Not only Cuey, but Col and Pink-chan couldn't understand the mysterious event right in front of them. They could only watch as the Etranger copy was suddenly sent flying.
Mifi was the only one out of the maids that could see "it". She and Elza looked upwards in surprise, as Ran, who had flown upward from Elza's chest, and the Etranger copy gazed angrily at "it" and shouted.
"'...It's not over yet!!'"
"AaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!!!!!!!"
At the same time as they shouted, a howl of anguish violently shook the place.

The wailing went beyond a merely loud sound and like a shockwave, shook the walls and floor, destroyed the nearby large scale machinery, and the monitors on the machines blew up one after another. A normal human couldn't block it out by just covering their ears, and it was like a relatively powerful sonic attack to someone with a good sense of hearing, and Col, who was holding her ears, lost her sense of balance and fell to her knees.
"U... w, what happened!?"
"It's him... Just now, right after he was finished off, he transformed! He turned into a vengeful spirit and left his body, and is hiding in there!"
It was Mifi who responded. Mifi, who had the raw talent of a spirit user, could see it, and the moment he died, the shapeshifter's blackened soul escaped from his body.
Mifi was pointing at the huge black spiritual body in the form of a woman, which was suffering and squirming in pain... The body of E.S. Multiple cracks had formed in the cylinder from the shockwave of the wail, and spiritual fear was leaking out of it.
Finally, the wailing turned into an insane mocking laugh, and E.S.'s black spiritual body turned lighter, and it looked like a slightly darker and older Ran. However, the face was horribly disfigured by the crazed laughter.
'Kiiiihihihihihihihi!!! I should thank you for kIllInG me! Now the plan can contInue! Even wIth the data lost, as lonG as I have E.S., we can analyze It and reconstruct the data!! Now I have the last laugh!!! Hi,hihihihi! Iiiihihihihihi!!!'
Making a face like Ran that's ugly with crazed laughter, E.S. slipped out of the cyclinder. Elza clenched her fists and glared at it.
"That guy... Not twice, but three times he's mocked Ran and ones just like Ran!! Just give up and die, you evil bastard!"
"Guh... This heretic!!"
"It's too late to cry and apologize!"
Looking at E.S. as she floated in the air, Col's inner ear had recovered and she stood up, along with Pink-chan, whose eyes had changed to show her demonic nature. A gigant bullet and 10 knives were coming to attack her. They passed through E.S. and created a big hole in the wall, or were repelled.
'E.S. Is a spIrItual body, so she can't be physically harmed, you fools! You can't capture me now, so you mIght as well sIt there lIke the IdIots you are! Hihihi, kihihihihihiiiii!!'
"Damn! He's planning on going through the roof and escaping above ground!"
With an ear piercing laugh, E.S. started to disappear into the ceiling. The one who responded to Elza's shout was Cuey. Just thinking that it can't be allowed to escape, the constantly changing situation had gotten her thoughts all humbled up. But now she exploded like there was no confusion.
I can't allow this. By the time she had thought it, her legs were already moving.
"S, stop... Stop!!!"
"Cuey!? What are you doing!"
What came out of the normally timid Cuey's mouth was an unimaginably powerful angry voice. Eyes blazing with anger, in front of everyone, Cuey's body became giant sized.
Her maid uniform tore, as did the underwear gripping her body, and the specially made shoes, as her clothing was shredded apart. Not worrying that her naked body was completely exposed, her body turned back into her true cyclops body, and tried to grab E.S.
Her hand passed through E.S. Undaunted, she reached out her hand again,
"...Enchant Weapon!"
Elza's instantly cast spell affected Cuey, and her magic infused hand successfully grabbed E.S.'s leg.
"If a bare fist with magic can hit a spiritual body, then it can also touch it... As expected of the mistress!"
"Cuey-chan, you have to hold on no matter what!!"
"U, uh...!!"
Cuey had turned into a single eyed giant, around 12m tall and seemingly squashed down by the small room, but she held on with all her strength.
'W, what...! Hey, that bIg!?!'
E.S.'s height off the ground was only about half of Cuey's giant height. And with the difference in their bodies, as E.S. tried to force her way towards the ceiling, she just sunk more into her body. Cuey's hand slowly kept going up, touching the ceiling.
But it couldn't match the strength of Cuey's grip. In trying to escape, the hand holding E.S. was pulled, and as they struggled, her head and shoulders created a hole in the ceiling and cause a slight earthquake, as they went upward, and they started to go into the upper floors. E.S. continued to drag Cuey upward, and as Cuey was pulled into the hole created by her own body, a gap could be seen between Cuey's tiptoes and the ground.
"Cuey-san!!"
(The little mistress is worried about me... But, I can't let go! I absolutely can't let go!!)
Hearing Ran's voice, covered with scratches and wounds with even more being made, she put even more strength into her hand.