Chapter 83

Having heard that there might be someone watching her, Erica ascended to the rooftop.

Upon stepping onto the roof, the girl briefly glanced around before quietly exhaling. The rooftop offered nothing but a view of the night sky and buildings sprawled below, without any sign of anyone who could potentially be a watcher.

Truthfully, Erica hadn’t really expected to find a genuine surveillant here.

She hadn’t doubted Kana, but they had been delayed in their conversation, so she presumed that if there were actual watchers, they would have fled by now. To begin with, since the building was where others could also find lodging, it wasn’t necessary for watchers to specifically use the rooftop.

Therefore, her reason for coming here wasn’t primarily to find a surveillant, but rather for some other purpose.

With a serious expression, Erica observed the visible accommodations below, while Kana, who had arrived later, glanced around in a quick scan, and then stared intently at a particular spot, as if noticing something.

Amid the peculiar gaze, the air rippled and started to give off something. Then, with a thunderous sound, massive figures plummeted down.

Even to ordinary humans, the sight of figures covered entirely in black appeared clearly non-human. These creatures, towering over 3 meters, with their eyes turning pitch black, were more akin to monsters than humans.

It was the same adversaries Erica had faced when she first learned the offensive application of her powers – and now the dolls had reappeared, even in Busan.

“Nobody around, but suddenly there’s someone supposedly watching me, and now dolls too. Are you in league with the terrorist organization?”

Before Kana could even pretend to be startled by the dolls’ appearance, the white-haired girl, without turning around, seemed to already know about the arrival of the dolls simply from the sound of something falling.

It was unexpected. Although Erica had anticipated the terrorists’ actions, she hadn’t expected this.

One possible bad ending was gradually becoming more probable right before her eyes. Given that this sudden sound might be associated with the protagonist who could bring the bad ending, it seemed like a natural inference.

Erica’s speculation did not end there.

Since the day dolls she hadn’t encountered again had reappeared, it was likely the members of the organization that had terrorized the streets were setting up a plot connected to an upcoming event during the school trip.

However, unless there was a proper reason, Erica reasoned that even if the terrorist organization attempted to raid the school, it was yet uncertain.

All of these thoughts coalesced in Erica’s mind into one conclusion – the raid by the terrorist organization would not aim to k*ll students, but rather to transform them into dolls.

The dolls that Erica had personally faced twice before had not used others as hosts nor sacrificed their lives. They were mass-produced dolls.

It wasn’t normal knowledge that a doll maker could turn living people into dolls, but Erica understood it. Her eyes could see a list of bad endings, including one involving becoming a marionette—alive and turned into a doll by the doll maker.

However, Erica saw Kana, her neck squeezed by the giant arm of a doll as she struggled.

“Hmm…? Did I misjudge something?”

Were they real surveillants, and did Kana just happen to step into a trap set by the doll maker?

If so, and Kana was captured here to provide information, perhaps Erica needed to rescue her from the doll’s grasp.

Confusion, and embarrassment from her incorrect supposition, overwhelmed her.

Her emotions slowed her down in raising her arms awkwardly to prepare herself for battle.

[— — — — !]

The moment she hesitated was a large advantage to the mass-produced combat dolls. They roared in a way Erica couldn’t understand and began swinging their fists wildly from all directions.

Rather than trying to dodge, Erica initially contemplated taking the hits. Realizing she could faint or d*e from a single strike, she hastily retreated.

“Now it’s over.”

However, Erica leaned against the railing and smirked as she stopped. Since one opportunity for them to attack had passed, the activation condition of her protection ability had been met. From Erica’s hands, with a crackling sound, silver lightning surged forth. Having triggered her protective abilities by taking the blow, she released them in an offensive manner. The force that had previously surged through her body dissipated into bolts of lightning.

Without satisfying the activation condition beforehand, if Erica had used her abilities, she would have fainted and lived ability-less for nearly a week. But now, as the condition was met, the penalties wouldn’t be as severe.

The sight of the girl surrounded by lightning that rivaled a natural disaster was threatening, but she didn’t immediately unleash it. The fine-tuned control of her cutting-through ability was something the girl had yet to master.

With Kana being held hostage, it was a situation where buying time was beneficial, so there was a reason Erica had forcibly materialized the lightning.

It wasn’t based on the belief that she had the talent to control these alien abilities, but rather:

“Anyway, as long as the essence remains within your body, you would have somewhat followed my opinion if I asked. I’ll accept the deal. In exchange for this deal, could you use my body temporarily to resolve this situation?”

Because her original body owner had asked for a deal, and it had been implied that in any situation, thinking was part of the real method of using protection.

Using such power wasn’t necessary yet. She hadn’t encountered an opponent strong enough to require it.

So, asking for immediate control over her superpowers at this moment would be acceptable. Thinking her body might move as it had last time with someone else controlling it, Erica waited.

…But, akin to a text response that never came, her body didn’t move under the guidance of “Erica” this time.

During this time, even as Erica stood still, the dolls didn’t move either. The mindless dolls, ordered to fell the woman, didn’t act because of one reason.

The “doll maker” moving them knew that if she retreated even a little, the first doll would break apart, and during that time, Erica would free Kana and handle the rest of the dolls.

As the silver lightning climbed into the sky, even the starless night sky lost its light.

Standing still for too long would cause her superpower to fade. And now, with a weakened ability, perhaps she could control it.

When Erica, slightly delayed but ready to take action, lunged forward, a voice resonated in her mind.

“Have you finally chosen to listen to me? What a bothersome barrier.”

A voice, devoid of emotion, yet familiar in its strangeness, one capable of resounding in the brain rather than through the ears. Knowing there was only one person able to do this, the white-haired girl paused her movements.

“I shouldn’t have been able to move your body anymore. All I can offer is knowledge. However, this one time, it seems like I might allow it.”

Something cold surged into Erica’s hand, lost to the sensation due to the lightning, and then it was swung toward where Kana and the dolls were.

As Erica’s mouth opened, shocked at the extreme intention of the act—apparently planning to k*ll the hostage along with the rest—an unexpectedly calm voice broke through.

“The foundation of superpower is naming everything. The reason for naming is that to handle unfamiliar powers as naturally as your body, it’s easier if they have names like hands or legs.”

By now, the lightning in Erica’s hands had disappeared, and all the dolls had turned to ash. All that remained were Kana, clutching her own neck and coughing, and Erica, utterly bewildered.

“The basic characteristic of lightning is to electrify the enemy. And advancing from that, the technique I just named ‘Gan-Rai’ to only electrify those deemed enemies.”

Gan-Rai 感雷.

There was little difference in the meaning when compared with the kanji for ‘electrocution.’ But Erica seemed to grasp something at once. Slightly altering the name to create one that didn’t exist in this world allowed the ability to transcend the boundaries of imagination.

Through this realization of naming an ability, Erica came to understand that the key to her power, as explained previously to “Erica,” was to avoid being confined by pre-existing labels, thus giving her the means to master her imagination.

“With this deal, I’ll ensure you’ll never regret. At least concerning the power this ability brings, from now on, you won’t lose to anyone.”

A soul abandoned by the world, having even lost the role of the main heroine, declared to the girl who was also a youth occupying her body,

Although opposing ‘sister’ according to her intent might be infinitely harder than fighting countless soulless dolls,

Faith is always key in wielding abilities,

Trust in never losing to anyone in strength,

And knowing that as the original owner of these abilities, that faith and trust will always be rewarded.