Tokisaki Kurumi was the most unique among the ten Spirits.
While the other Spirits only needed to expend energy called [Spiritual Power] when using their Angels, Tokisaki Kurumi also had to expend something else—[Time].
Time—her very lifespan.
Every time she used Zafkiel, her life grew shorter. The amount of time consumed varied depending on the ability she activated.
Aleph (1st Bullet) required the least amount of time, while Yud (10th Bullet) demanded the most. Yud-Aleph (11th Bullet) and Yud-Bet (12th Bullet) didn't consume time, but the Spiritual Power they drained surpassed the combined cost of all the bullets from Aleph to Yod.
Aleph (1st Bullet) accelerated time. Used on herself, it allowed near-teleportation—incredibly handy, whether in daily life or combat.
Bet (2nd Bullet) slowed time. Hitting an enemy with it drastically reduced their movement, granting her the upper hand.
Gimmel (3rd Bullet) allowed time-leaping—jumping her physical state forward in time. Niche, but damn useful in specific situations, like some kind of miracle drug.
Dalet (4th Bullet) reversed time, rewinding her body's condition to a previous state. An absolute healing ability—scratches, fatal wounds, even regrowing lost limbs, nothing was beyond it.
Hei (5th Bullet) foresaw the future, giving her a glimpse of what was to come so she could prepare.
Vav (6th Bullet) transferred consciousness—sending her mind into a past version of herself. Like a souped-up version of Bites the Dust.
Zayin (7th Bullet) stopped time, freezing whatever it hit in a single moment. Basically Za Warudo but with extra steps.
Het (8th Bullet) created clones—summoning past versions of herself into the present.
Tet (9th Bullet) linked consciousness, connecting the minds of separate individuals across different timelines.
Yud (10th Bullet) read memories—literally just that.
Yud-Aleph (11th Bullet) sent her forward in time.
Yud-Bet (12th Bullet) sent her back.
If she wanted to summon clones to help with her mission, she had to use Het (8th Bullet).
Problem was, Het wasn't cheap. Use it too many times, and she'd burn through her lifespan and die.
Luckily, there was a way to solve the time issue.
Tokisaki Kurumi had another ability—City of Devouring Time.
A bounded field that replenished her time, City of Devouring Time forcibly drained the lifespan of any living thing that stepped inside. Victims would grow sluggish, unable to move, before collapsing into a deep slumber. Only Spirits could resist its effects.
In this world, the only ones likely to shake it off were ability users like Mori Ōgai.
Right now, her biggest problem was the time shortage.
Without enough time, she couldn't summon clones. Without clones, this investigation would be a pain in the ass.
'Hm… wait a second.'
Suddenly, Kurumi realized she'd been overcomplicating things. 'Why not just use City of Devouring Time to knock everyone out and investigate at my leisure?'
The real Kurumi would've thought of that immediately.
Though the girl was intimately familiar with Tokisaki Kurumi's powers, practical experience was another matter.
'I've got a long way to go before I can play Kurumi convincingly.'
With a sigh, she activated City of Devouring Time.
A crimson domain erupted from her, swallowing the entire factory in a nightmare-like barrier.
Almost instantly, people began collapsing.
"What's happening?!"
"I feel… dizzy…"
"An ability user attack?!"
Chaos erupted.
As the first person hit the ground unconscious, panic spread like wildfire.
The more experienced armed personnel, realizing they were under an ability user's influence, tightened their grips on their weapons, huddling together in tense groups.
But Timewasn't on their side.
In under a minute, everyone—civilian or armed—had succumbed to City of Devouring Time, collapsing like corpses.
Kurumi scanned the area.
No one had resisted.
'No ability users here. Good.'
Not that Kurumi was weak—among Spirits, she was mid-tier—but avoiding fights was always preferable.
'So this is what it feels like to steal time.'
Closing her eyes, she sensed over twenty strange streams of energy trickling into her shadow, nourishing her.
The hands of the golden clock in her left eye spun wildly—proof that time was flooding into her.
Among Spirits, Kurumi's Spiritual Power reserves were top-tier. Running out of Reiryoku was rare.
But to unleash her true strength, what she needed wasn't Reiryoku—it was time.
Theoretically, with enough time, she could defeat any Spirit.
But this world's Kurumi was still a blank slate—she'd never stolen time before. Many of Zafkiel's abilities were still locked.
Absorbing the time of over twenty people, her reserves skyrocketed. In mere minutes, they'd multiplied several times over.
Once she'd stockpiled enough, Kurumi opened her eyes.
"Het (8th Bullet)."
The phantom of Zafkiel materialized behind her. Black smoke coiled from the Roman numeral VIII, sucked into the barrel of her flintlock.
Loading the bullet, she pressed the gun to her temple—and fired.
Bang.
Another Kurumi emerged from her shadow.
"Hello, me," the clone greeted.
"Nice to meet you, me," Kurumi replied.
Staring at the perfect copy—same face, same voice, same memories—she felt an odd thrill.
"Honestly, I've wanted to do this since I became Kurumi," she mused. "Zafkiel's powers are so broken."
"No arguments here," the clone agreed. "Getting to play Kurumi on your first run? Jackpot. If we play our cards right, clearing the main quest should be a breeze."
"The main quest, huh… We've still got a long way to go for that."
Turning her gaze to the factory's equipment and unconscious workers, Kurumi smirked.
"For now, let's just finish this mission."
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