Bofuri (The Strongest Shield Of Tensura)

Towa slowly blinked as she regained consciousness. A soft yawn escaped her lips, an unusual sense of refreshment washing over her.

"Finally awake?" a voice murmured beside her.

She turned her head, and amethyst met onyx as her eyes locked onto Kaede’s.

Kaede smiled gently. "Hey."

For a moment, Towa was certain she had seen an angel.

A rush of warmth spread across her face, and she quickly pulled away, her cheeks tinged with red. "L-Lady Kaede… Please, I apologize for showing you such a shameful sight."

Kaede let out an exaggerated groan. "Oh. My. Gosh. Lighten up, Towa. I don’t mind. Honestly, after everything that’s happened, you’d think we’d be friends by now."

Towa froze, her breath hitching. "...Friends?" she whispered, though Kaede heard her clearly.

Luckily, both rulers were alone in the conference room.

"Of course!" Kaede grinned. "We’re friends now, like it or not. Besides, we rulers should stick together."

She laughed, the sound light and carefree, and for the first time in a long while, Towa felt something unfamiliar bloom in her chest. A strange feeling she couldn't understand.

Kaede sprang to her feet with ease, landing lightly. "Alright! We still have one more thing to take care of."

Towa blinked at her sudden enthusiasm. "...And what’s that?"

Kaede smirked, raising a finger. "The lake, dummy. I promised to help fix your water problem, didn’t I?"

Towa hesitated for a moment before nodding. "...Right." She still seemed a little out of it, her mind clearly elsewhere.

Kaede stepped closer, her expression softening. "Are you alright? You seem unsteady. We don’t have to go right now if you need more time. You can rest a little longer."

Towa quickly shook her head. "No, I’m... I’m fine. I want to see this through." She straightened her posture, her amethyst eyes brimming with renewed determination.

Kaede smiled at her resolve. But then, with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Whoa!" Towa gasped as she was suddenly lifted into the air.

Kaede effortlessly held her in a bridal carry, her grip firm yet gentle.

‘This reminds me of all those times I carried Sally using Machine God during our long-distance journeys in the game.’ Kaede mused, her lips curling into a fond smile.

With that thought, she activated a teleportation spell, and in an instant, they vanished.

They appeared on the shore of one of Raja’s great lakes. It stretched out endlessly before them, its vast expanse shimmering under the sunlight, giving the illusion that it went on forever.

Towa shifted in Kaede’s arms, her cheeks tinged with embarrassment. "Lady Kaede… This is inappropriate. Please put me down. I don’t think we should be doing something like... like..."

Her voice faltered as her gaze landed on the lake’s surface.

Kaede, sensing the shift in her demeanor, gently set her down. Towa barely noticed, her legs moving on their own as she stepped forward, drawn to the water.

The lake was pristine. Its crystal-clear surface sparkled under the sun’s rays, reflecting the sky in a dazzling display. It was beautiful, untouched, pure.

Towa’s breath hitched. "This… this is... How? The toxins... You were able to neutralise it," she whispered, reaching a hand toward the water as if afraid it would disappear.

Kaede frowned. "Yeah, about that." She stepped forward, arms crossed. "The poisons in the lake weren’t coming from the toxins in the mines. I was able to purify the entire lake using my Type: Hydra APU (Aquatic Purification Unit) drones. However, the moment I did, the toxins started reforming, even after I temporarily sealed off the mines."

Footsteps approaching from behind drew their attention. Turning, they saw their companions making their way toward them.

Hiiro's eyes widened the moment he spotted the queen awake. Without hesitation, he sprinted forward, while Mobuji and the shorter minister followed at a steadier pace.

Ari walked just behind the ministers, flanked by Delta, Kaori, Hachi, and Shifu.

"Queen Towa!" Hiiro called out, his voice filled with relief as he reached her. Grasping her shoulders gently, he studied her with concern. "You're awake! How are you feeling?"

As Towa answered Hiiro’s frantic questions, Kaede turned her attention to her companions. "So, I take it there weren’t any?"

They all nodded, and Ari was the one to speak. "The other seven lakes had no such construct, only this one."

Towa blinked in confusion at the statement, before turning to Kaede. "Lady Kaede, what constructs?"

Kaede exhaled. "Like I said, we managed to purify the toxins, yet they kept returning. That’s because the toxins weren’t natural, meaning they couldn’t have originated from the mines. Eventually, we found the real source."

Kaede took a step forward, her boots sinking slightly into the wet earth before she strode into the water.@@novelbin@@

As she moved deeper, Hiiro continued, addressing Towa. "Apparently, there's a magical circle embedded at the center of this lake. Whenever you cleansed the water, the circle simply replenished the toxins, pumping them right back in. The other lakes don’t have one, but since they’re all connected, the contamination spread throughout the nation."

Towa's breath hitched, her amethyst eyes widening in horror. "A magic circle?"

Unable to hear Towa's question, Kaede didn’t respond. She continued wading forward, the water lapping at her waist, then rising to her shoulders as she finally stopped.

Once Kaede reached the center of the lake, she spread her arms, and in that moment, the people of Raja witnessed a miracle.

<<Extra skill: Water Manipulation Acquired>>

The vast lake, so immense that it seemed to stretch into eternity, began to shift. Water trembled, rippling outward before rising, defying gravity itself. Then, like a divine force had intervened, the lake split in two.

With Kaede as the focal point, the water surged upward, towering over the entire Kingdom of Raja. Two colossal walls of water loomed high above, their surfaces shimmering under the sunlight, reflecting the city and sky in distorted waves. The sheer scale of the phenomenon left the people breathless.

At the heart of it all stood Kaede, arms outstretched, effortlessly holding back enough water to drown an entire kingdom. Then, as she turned, there wasn’t even a hint of strain on her face.

(Maple out here, parting the Red Lake. LOL <⁠(⁠￣⁠︶⁠￣⁠)⁠>)

In the years to come, the people of Raja would speak of this day, of the moment they looked up and saw the sky framed by a massive wall of water, suspended as if the world itself had stopped. Some would recount the breathtaking beauty of the spectacle, the way the sunlight refracted through the cascading liquid like a sea of sapphires. Others would speak of the profound terror that gripped their souls, a chilling reminder of their own mortality in the presence of such overwhelming power.

As Kaede gestured for them to follow, Queen Towa and the others cautiously made their way toward the now empty lakebed, their steps echoing in the silence as the swirling walls of water loomed above them.

Towa marveled at the sight before her. As she walked across the exposed lakebed, she couldn’t help but picture the countless fish and aquatic creatures that once called the lake home. She imagined them now, swimming within the towering walls of water, suspended in the air like a living tapestry. It would have been a breathtaking sight, truly something out of a dream.

Then she saw it.

At the very center of the lake, glowing with an eerie purple light, was a magic circle. It hovered ominously, spinning atop a circular platform, pulsating like a malignant wound festering in the heart of her kingdom.

"So this is what has been poisoning my people for generations?" Towa’s voice trembled with barely contained fury, her hands clenching into fists as rage built within her.

Kaede nodded. "I have a plan," she said, stepping forward. "But I wanted your agreement before I went through with it."

Towa turned to her. "What exactly are you planning to do?"

Kaede smirked. "I’m going to summon a demon."

Gasps filled the air, and the Queen’s ministers erupted into protest.

"That's madness!"

"After all the suffering they've caused?"

"The dark arts cannot be trusted!"

Towa took a shaky breath, glancing between Kaede and the ministers. "Lady Kaede... Are you certain this is wise? T-To summon a demon... I don’t know if I can..."

Kaede laughed lightly. "This circle was made by a demon. Obviously not Chikowan, as he is too weak for something of this scale. So it's probably his master, his Lady. Or maybe it's the 'he' he also mentioned. Either way information is needed. And what faster way than asking from the source? If you're scared, don’t worry, Towa. I’ll protect you."

Doki Doki.

Towa’s heart skipped a beat, something deep within her shaking at those words.

"She’ll always protect me…"

According to Artificia, summoning a demon required a physical body, a vessel for the entity to incarnate into the physical realm. Normally, this was achieved through human sacrifice. The stronger the sacrificed body, the more power the demon could bring with them. Alternatively, a vast number of weaker sacrifices could be used to summon a powerful demon.

Kaede, fortunately, had no intention of sacrificing humans.

"Alright, let’s see if our experiment works," she thought, internally bracing herself.

"Is it ready, Artificia?"

<Affirmative.>

"Good."

A burst of blue smoke erupted at Kaede’s feet, swirling into the air. When it finally cleared, a humanoid figure stood before the gathered crowd.

It was pure white, its smooth, mannequin-like form featureless yet strangely lifelike. Glowing lines of radiant energy traced intricate patterns across its body, pulsating softly.

This was a machine, a vessel made entirely of spirit metal.

A unique creation, spirit metal was first discovered when Artificia took control of an earth golem, birthing Eve. It was a material that could only be formed when ores infused with spiritrons were used as a catalyst, allowing Artificia’s processors to shape them into something beyond ordinary metal.

Spirit metal possessed a property unlike anything else, it granted spiritual lifeforms a permanent physical body. Just like Eve had done.

And now, Kaede intended to use it to summon a demon, without a single drop of blood being spilled.