There's a popular theory that light has no rest mass, because objects with mass can't reach the speed of light.
Truthfully, there's no way to bring light to a standstill either.
But this time, Natsume-san seemed to have grasped the weight of stationary light, or at least, that's how it appeared on the surface.
As vast amounts of light converged onto Natsume-san's palm—more accurately, onto the wooden bow in her hands—that heavy, substantial sensation grew increasingly profound.
This was an impossible scenario for the science side, yet it held true for magic, highlighting the vast chasm separating the two.
Seemingly accounting for Natsume-san's arm strength, the heavy feeling in her hands slowly reached its limit and then entered a state of readiness, poised for release.
This state wasn't governed by the user's will, but was a natural reaction of the vessel reaching its capacity.
Regardless of what effects this energy might cause, for now it was docile as a lamb, nestling affectionately in the hands of a certain bun-girl.
'This feels so familiar.'
The feeling grew stronger within Natsume-san's heart.
Though she'd always wanted to sever ties with her past self, their connection remained, linked by their souls like some inescapable fate.
Of course, Natsume-san didn't believe in fate, deeming it utterly unscientific.
Her pupils dilated slightly as her thoughts raced.
She could no longer afford to worry about what others thought, fully immersing herself in this energy.
The spiritual tool, the wooden bow she gripped, had completely transformed into a luminous object. As her vision was partially obscured by the released radiance, a strange feeling welled up inside her.
This strange, yet peaceful energy... it was hard to imagine it existed to harm others.
'Using something like this to help kill someone... is this the legendary "healing your opponent to death"?'
With just a slight pull of the bowstring, the energy within this wooden bow would surge out overwhelmingly, and the struck target would presumably keel over from... nutritional overload?
Speaking of pulling the bowstring, Natsume-san's gaze fell upon someone standing very close by.
Golden hair still radiant, skin delicate and smooth like polished white jade, features exquisite as a handcrafted doll.
'Now that I think about it, Kongou-senpai would probably love this type of doll.'
A refined figure rose slowly from the ground, her eyes holding a trace of indescribable expectation and longing as she looked at Natsume-san.
'Does this person... truly wish for death that much? So many people yearn for immortality.'
Her face remained calm, but Natsume Sonoko's mind buzzed with quiet disbelief.
As one of the masterminds behind it all, Ladylee's ultimate goal seemed both laughable and incomprehensible.
It appeared that simply by loosing the arrow from her bow, everything before her eyes would end.
All incidents would be resolved, and the promise from her past life would also be fulfilled.
But the earlier question remained: was this wooden bow truly meant for killing?
Though she knew nothing about magic, just by gripping the bow and feeling the gentle power in her palm, Natsume-san vaguely sensed something.
'Sure enough, my past self was also soft-hearted beneath a tough exterior.'
Outwardly a weapon for killing, but secretly, who knows what alterations had been made.
It was as if she had tuned into the same wavelength as her past self. Natsume Sonoko suddenly became lost in thought.
By now, the space elevator had returned to its original state, the light of the setting sun finally bathing the grounds of Academy City.
Crowds that had taken refuge in the underground streets and sturdy buildings slowly emerged to observe the situation outside.
The previous order seemed to have begun restoring itself the moment the cold light vanished.
Boys and girls wearing the armbands of Judgment were active again throughout Academy City, and if one listened closely, the sound of Arisa's song seemed to still linger in the air.
Yet the spiritual tool energy held by Natsume-san, the final lingering threat of the magic from the space elevator, hung over them like a time bomb.
However, it seemed completely isolated from the space elevator itself, not a single iota leaking into it.
"This spiritual tool is far more intricate than I imagined."
"The patterns on it don't just restrict the wielder; they also act like chains linking the internal magical energy."
"While the purpose isn't clear, it at least allows the true wielder to call upon all the energy in an instant, while also preventing null dissipation," Tsuchimikado Motoharu snapped back to reality, his voice low.
"As long as the wooden bow vessel isn't completely destroyed, this energy can be held perfectly intact by the wielder," Stiyl Magnus nodded, understanding the scene that had just unfolded.
That bow had reclaimed its lost power.
Though they couldn't fathom why the bow had chosen Natsume Sonoko as its wielder, events seemed to be progressing in a positive direction.
The magic side's discussion was clearly on a different wavelength from everyone else's. Accelerator frowned slightly, not comprehending.
To resolve this incident and restore Last Order to normal, Accelerator had reached the source of the light.
But it looked like the people before him had mostly handled the situation.
Everything that had happened today challenged his understanding.
The strange weapon in the hands of the girl he'd fought before was giving him not-insignificant pressure.
He tried again to analyze the light emitted by the wooden bow, but his reflection ability failed once more.
He couldn't reflect it, only refract it at best, and even that required immense calculations matching his processing power.
"Natsume-san, you must take the bow out of the space elevator before it's completely destroyed."
Elsewhere, Kanzaki Kaori's voice reached the ears of a certain bun-girl.
A hint of apology showed on her face. She needed to get Natsume-san away from this orbital station, which still fell under the space elevator's domain, before the bow completely shattered.
The simplest method was to sever the glass walls separating them from space and take the girl with her out into the void.
Though she was sorry to resort to such an action, Kanzaki Kaori would absolutely protect Natsume Sonoko with her life.
Kanzaki Kaori was a very gentle person, which made this choice all the more difficult.
Only a few seconds had passed since the light fully gathered in Natsume Sonoko's hands, yet it felt like an eternity.
"Kanzaki-san, don't worry. I think I know how to handle it."
Shaking her head, Natsume-san's face took on a serious expression.
The heavy sensation in her palm remained, but it had lost the tactile quality of touching a physical object.
The wooden bow could no longer withstand the immense power within and began to disintegrate, crumbling into invisible, minute particles.
As the magical energy completely shed the constraints of the bow and settled upon her hand, Natsume-san finally perceived the pre-determined target of this tool.
From the very beginning, aside from the wielder, it had only one intended target.
Invisible chains within this magical energy were linked to something inside the body of that exquisite doll-like girl.
Preventing any wielder from using it for any other purpose.
"She intends to draw that bow."
Stiyl immediately sensed a big problem, but was stopped by Tsuchimikado Motoharu beside him.
"It's too late. The bow has already disintegrated. We can only trust her now."
Tsuchimikado Motoharu, keenly noticing the change in the bow, shook his head.
Kanzaki Kaori also had to halt, having noticed the same thing.
Although the magicians had made some preparations during that brief time, it simply wasn't enough.
"Your name is Ladylee, correct?"
Natsume Sonoko looked down slightly at the girl before her, who was a full ten centimeters shorter.
Asking her to shoot a killing arrow was something utterly against Natsume-san's nature. But she seemed to have sensed something else within this energy.
Her past self seemed to have gone to great lengths to help this girl, creating this gentle weapon.
Natsume-san suddenly felt curious about her past self, wanting to see what her former self had actually planned to do.
Under Ladylee's expectant, longing gaze, Natsume Sonoko slowly drew back the invisible bowstring.
But contrary to Natsume-san's expectations, in the blink of an eye, her perspective underwent a cataclysmic shift.
It couldn't really be called a perspective anymore; it was more like a peculiar radar-map-like perception.
As she pulled the bowstring, whether it triggered a change within Natsume-san herself or was an ability inherent to the bow, everything around her seemed to expand limitlessly, plunging her into a wondrous microscopic world.
And the magical energy in Natsume-san's hands began to materialize, appearing as countless extremely fine, shimmering chains of light.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.