"Let me face him."
Jugram Haschwalth did not move.
With Yhwach still in his prolonged slumber, Haschwalth was the one who effectively governed the Wandenreich. Although many Sternritter privately believed that his personality was far too restrained—possessing immense power yet choosing to endure humiliation in silence—no one openly defied him.
After all, it was His Majesty Yhwach himselfwho had appointed Jugram Haschwalth as his aide and the Grandmaster of the Sternritter.
Before entering his sleep, Yhwach had entrusted everything to him.
And that alone was enough.
At this moment, seeing Gosuke Shigurecharge straight toward Haschwalth with no hesitation, a Sternritter immediately stepped forward to intercept.
As he spoke, reishi gathered rapidly in his hand, forming a dense spirit spear.
"Impudent Shinigami!"
The spear thrust forward, aimed directly at Gosuke's chest.
"Too slow."
Gosuke's voice was calm.
A flash of steel passed through the air.
The reishi spear was severed cleanly, and in the same motion, Gosuke's Zanpakutō carved a deep wound across the attacker's torso.
Scarlet blood sprayed out.
The burly Quincy's pupils contracted violently.
He had not even lasted a single exchange.
"Driscoll, you useless brute—step aside."
A sharp, irritated female voice rang out.
A woman with grass-green hair parted to the side stepped forward. Her light green eyes gleamed coldly, lightning-shaped markings extending from her brows into her hair. She wore a sleeveless uniform, short pants, gloves, and the Sternritter military cap bearing the Wandenreich emblem.
Giselle Gewelle.
One of the Sternritter.
As Driscoll Berci staggered back, Giselle raised her hand.
A lightning-charged Heilig Pfeil formed instantly, crackling with violent reishi currents, and shot forward at terrifying speed.
Originally, she had not planned to intervene.
But after sensing Gosuke Shigure's Zanpakutō attribute—lightning—her interest was piqued.
She wanted to know which thunder was superior.
"Don't get cocky!"
Driscoll roared in fury.
Reishi surged again, condensing into another spear as he hurled it toward Gosuke.
⸻
Gosuke raised an eyebrow.
He hadn't expected to become the focus of such attention—especially not to the point where Sternritter were arguing over who would kill him.
But he had no intention of yielding.
His blade swung.
Lightning flared.
The Heilig Pfeil shattered first.
A heartbeat later, Driscoll's spear followed, crushed into fragments of dispersing reishi.
"Raijin."
Gosuke's voice dropped.
Thunder erupted from his Zanpakutō.
Like Yamamoto's Ryūjin Jakka spreading fire, Gosuke unleashed a wide-range lightning release, arcs of electricity surging outward and engulfing the battlefield in blinding light.
The number of Quincy present seemed large, but in truth, there were only dozens.
The Sternritter themselves numbered just over thirty.
However, compared to the five captainsstanding against them, the Quincy still held a numerical advantage.
In such a situation, area-wide suppressionwas the most effective tactic.
Gosuke's usual fighting style leaned toward close-quarters combat, occasionally supplemented by Kidō.
But Kidō required incantations and preparation.
Here, raw Zanpakutō power was faster.
"Do you really think we're helpless, Shinigami?!"
His aggressive assault enraged the Sternritter.
More Quincy moved in simultaneously.
An elderly Quincy stepped forward, his expression unreadable.
He raised a firearm formed entirely from reishi.
Bang.
A bullet was fired.
Gosuke felt danger—but not in time to fully react.
The reishi bullet struck his body directly.
Yet the Quincy had overlooked something.
The modified Shihakushō Gosuke wore—crafted with Shiba clan reinforcement techniques—reacted instantly.
The spiritual power woven into the garment formed a defensive barrier, dispersing the bullet's force.
Even so, the impact was heavy.
Gosuke was forced back a step.
He vanished with Shunpo, narrowly avoiding the follow-up shots.
"…That was close."
He exhaled slowly.
"These bullets… I can't even track them properly."
This was no ordinary Quincy technique.
He recognized the attacker immediately.
Robert Accutrone.
The Sternritter whose Schrift had once destroyed Kyōraku Shunsui's right eye and ear.
It wasn't only Kyōraku's laziness that had caused those injuries—the technique itself was abnormally difficult to perceive.
As Gosuke continued releasing controlled bursts of lightning, he observed the battlefield.
Kyōraku, Ukitake, Unohana, and Yamamoto were each engaged with multiple Sternritter, their clashes revealing a wide range of Quincy abilities.
Some relied on Schrift powers.
Others fought using only advanced reishi manipulation.
One conclusion became clear.
Not every Quincy possessed a Schrift.
And that distinction
Would decide who lived and who died.
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