Valerie nodded at Miko's words, she knew her friend acts rather strange sometimes, this must be related to her eyes. But then, the dhampir was forced to hastily conjured a soul sword and immediately parry the tendril homing at her with an incredible speed. It sent spark flying when the tendril hit the blade.
Clank!
The tendril pierced the ground next to her as her sword shines in luminous hue. She had learned this from Kousuke during the practice, barely managed to copy his technique with her Sacred Gear to a certain extent. He had praised her, saying she was a rare genius that pick up things rather quickly than the norm. But she was far from satisfied, had he been here, he could've done more than just defend against the tendril.
"What! Where did that sword came from?!" Hana said in surprise. In her eyes, the sword just materialized out of thin air and then, something invisible smashed into it. Though to Miko's keen eyes, she noticed a rather visible crack on the sharp edge. But that's given, it was after all a hastily made weapon. This too was due to her lack of experience, something Kousuke commented will get better in time.
"Can you run?" Valerie asked. She could stall until Kousuke comes, but the other two might get targeted instead. They are just normal people after all. At the very least in Miko's case, she seems to be the most unfortunate since her eyes allowed her to see things normally invisible, yet she couldn't do anything to them. If she had ran into stray devils early in her life, it's all over even if she pretended not to notice them at all. In a way, she was lucky to survive up until now.
Or perhaps Miko had a dormant Sacred Gear within her, and only recently awakened, albeit half-baked. That's as far as she could tell. After all, Valerie doesn't know much about Sacred Gear, so she wasn't able to properly diagnose it like Kousuke. Although Miko was scared shitless, she could still muster some strength to her legs so she nodded. Although she was the most confused amongst them, Hana instinctively understand that they were in some kind of danger and nodded right after. 'Maybe the invisible thing that Seele parried was a bullet?' She couldn't help but conjured something that somehow made sense in her mind.
"Then run!" Valerie shouted before charging toward the creature, taking its attention toward her while her friends ran towards the torii gate. The dhampir then threw her sword at the creature, which THEY immediately smashed it with the tendril and shattering it to pieces. But that was exactly her goal, within the few seconds THEY were distracted, Valerie quickly conjured another sword and this time fully focus her mind on it. By the time it fully manifested before her, the tendril was only a few inches away from her face.
Clank!
But it was stopped by an invisible barrier that covered her whole. Valerie was covered in cold sweat from top to bottom. After all, if she were any second late, that tendril would've made a hole in her face. The barrier was none other than the new sword's ability. She thought very carefully after parrying the tendril—what are the best ways to stall for time while also protecting her friends? This was her answers.
The sword had no sharp edge, in fact, only the appearance looks like a sword. It was similar to a blunt sword people used for training. Valerie could easily picture it in her mind since it was the only thing that had accompanied her throughout her practice. It is important to note that she could easily conjure anything she had used from her day-to-day life. Thus, taking more time for things that she barely have knowledge of, for example, a throwing shuriken.
Even so, the force transferred through the barrier and into her arms holding the sword. The violent tremor almost wrenched the handle from her grip, yet she held on as if letting go meant certain death. Seeing Miko and Hana managed to put some distance in the corner of her view, Valerie let out a sigh. Now she only needs to focus on stalling as best as she could, it would be great if the two ran into Kousuke on the way. As she was thinking about that, another tendril shoot from behind and she lowered her head impulsively, barely missing her by hairbreath but some of her hair wasn't so lucky.
Swish!
With her impromptu short hairstyle, Valerie looks even younger thanks to the disguise. But that won't stop the creature from assaulting her. In fact, its attack grew more ferocious with each passing seconds. She didn't even have time to think of countering, the most she could do was defending herself by taking advantages of her short height and slippering through its opening. However, no matter how quick she was on her feet, her stamina couldn't keep up with her movement as her breath became heavy.
Her body feels heavy, every little motion gets harder and harder as time goes on. Even now, she wasn't completely unscatched either. As the toil started getting to her, it was becoming difficult for her to dodge the tendrils, some managed to landed scratches here and there, yet none are fatal. Valerie gritted her teeth as the tendrils speed towards her, she didn't hesitate and used the third grail to restored her stamina and jumped backward. That was the last usage of her Sacred Gear, the first two for making weapons and now she wouldn't be able to use it unless the clock hit midnight.
That's right, despite being Longinus tier, Sephiroth Graal also had its limit. Maybe that was the reason why Valerie remained sane, despite all the previous predecessors lost their minds upon awakening it. Her Sacred Gear were shaped like a grail, and it divided to three smaller ones that she can hold in her hand. That being said, the grail could still accomplish so many things which negates the restrictions imposed on it. If anything, it gives her the chance to properly utilize it.
[IRKSOME.]
[SO IRKSOME.]
Before her eyes, Valerie watched as the creature keeps uttering the same words until something suddenly shoot up from within its splitting mouth. She thought it was another tendrils, or a tongue. However, reality is even more scary than her imagination as her eyes widened in horror.
The thing stood in a warped, half-upright posture, its long limbs bent at unnatural angles as if it were imitating a human shape without understanding it. Matted, ink-black hair cascaded over its body, concealing most of its form, yet not enough to hide the grotesque details beneath. Where eyes should have been, small bells dangled from hollow sockets, swaying gently with each movement and chiming softly, cheerful sounds that clashed horribly with its appearance.
Its mouth was a nightmare echo of something once familiar. The jaws split wide, peeled open far beyond human limits, exposing layers of teeth and darkness within, as though its face had been unwrapped rather than opened. Strips of flesh and fur clung to its frame, blending together until it was impossible to tell where skin ended and something else began.
One elongated arm cradled its distended stomach, bloated and sagging as if stuffed full. Through the thin flesh, shapes pressed and shifted, dozens of bells packed inside, their muffled ringing audible with every breath it took. Paper charms clung to its body, plastered haphazardly across its limbs and torso, fluttering faintly as if reacting to an unseen wind.
Upon witnessing such a creepy sight, Valerie was starting to lose hope. Perhaps, this creature isn't just malignant spirit, but an actual God as THEY said before. But if it was truly a God, then there's no chance she could survive this ordeal. Can Kousuke even beat something like this?