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Chrono Phantasma
While Tao and Ragna were traveling to Ikaruga, Ragna brought an unknowing Taokaka to the church where he had grown up. Upon arrival, Ragna asked Tao to give him some alone time at the site and Tao agreed, although a bit reluctantly as she thought something "fishy" was going on. After her departure, Ragna turned and headed to the location of the grave of his dead foster mother. There Ragna talked to the grave as though he were talking to his caretaker in person - telling her that he met his siblings and how Jin has grown a little, yet was basically the same, and how he wouldn't be able to keep a promise he made to her about Saya. Ragna was then confronted by Rachel and Ragna asked Rachel how he would go about acquiring Kushinada's Lynchpin. Rachel revealed that while the original technique to activate the Lynchpin had been lost, there may be a secondary activation method. She explained that Kushinada's Lynchpin's was capable of halting the flow of seithr if it came into contact with a cauldron. Rachel said that with the lynchpin, it would be possible to defeat both Saya and Terumi in one shot. She also told Ragna that the only person capable of obtaining it was Noel Vermillion, as Tenjo Amanohokosaka, the previous owner of the Lynchpin, sealed it in a room that can only be accessed by the Successor of the Azure. Ragna said that he would use the Lynchpin against Saya and Rachel questioned whether or not he was capable of killing his own sister. Ragna brushed her question aside and said he would kill her, but Rachel laughed at his claim, saying that there is no possible way to "kill" Saya. Elaborating, Rachel said that Saya was the host of Izanami and that there was no way to kill the goddess of death. Going even further, Rachel added that it would be nearly impossible to even defeat Saya, claiming that the Imperator was more powerful than the Black Beast.
The Imperator Librarius, Izanami, and Nine the Phantom appeared before the duo and Rachel was subdued by a powerful Gravity Seed before she could do anything. Izanami then turned to Ragna to make an outlandish request, that Ragna swear fealty and eternal loyalty to only her. A confused Ragna angrily declined the offer, but Izanami said that in return for him being at her side, Izanami would allow Ragna to kill Terumi. Ragna still refused and attacked Izanami, but she easily injured him with a single attack. Izanami said she was disappointed because having him around would have put her vassal at ease, but left when she realized that Ragna would not accept any offer. After a little while, Ragna and Rachel were able to stand again. Tao arrived shortly after their recovery. Rachel gave Ragna a grim warning: If the Azure Grimoire continued to corrode at this rate, it would "remember" his wounds, transcending even Phenomenon Intervention. Basically, if he continued to use the Azure, any injury he sustained would not heal, even if the event that caused his injury had been voided. She instructed Tao to take Ragna away so he could heal and Tao followed her instructions. [12]
Later when Ragna and Tao arrived in Ikaruga, Ragna treated Tao to some food where they ran into Bullet. Bullet recognized Ragna as the Grim Reaper, but decided against a public confrontation, at least until Tao called Bullet "naughty" for her clothing and Ragna insulted her wardrobe by calling her shorts "butt floss." Bullet then said that she would take down Ragna when next they met. Ragna then told Tao that he was looking for Noel so Tao said that she would find her and ran out of the restaurant before Ragna could tell her how foolish it was to look for one person in such a huge, densely populated as the four Hierarchical Cities that make up Ikaruga. Ragna left the restaurant and ran into Iron Tager and Ragna inquired about the whereabouts of Noel from him. However, Tager refused to answer and the two engaged in a short battle where Ragna emerged victorious. Kokonoe then called Ragna and Ragna also asked her where Noel was. Kokonoe said that not even she knew her location. Ragna left Tager behind and soon encountered Amane Nishiki. Amane challenged him to a battle and an angered Ragna complied. Afterward, Amane said that Ragna "dances wonderfully" and that he was always welcome in his troupe.
Ragna soon caught sight of Tsubaki Yayoi, who then confronted the rebel. Tsubaki said that she had orders to arrest Ragna so she confronted him in another fight. Ragna easily beat Tsubaki, claiming that he had "a lot of experience" fighting weapons like the Sealed Weapon Izayoi. Tsubaki blamed Ragna for Makoto Nanaya, Jin, and Noel deserting the NOL. Ragna sensed the Mind Eater spell and decided that it would be best to destroy the Izayoi, while not harming Tsubaki, there and now. Before he could deliver the final blow, Hakumen arrived and stopped Ragna, purposefully allowing Tsubaki to escape. Ragna angrily snapped at his rival, telling him that the spell that had been cast on Tsubaki wasn't something she could break on her own, but Hakumen told Ragna that the only one that could break the spell was Tsubaki herself. Hakumen questioned Ragna's attempt to acquire Kushinada's Lynchpin and said that he would stop him, no matter what his goal was. The two battled each other yet again and for the first time, Ragna was able to duel Hakumen to a standstill without using the Azure Grimoire.
Hazama appeared before the two and threw his usual insults at the pair. Hazama then requested that Phantom remove the two of them from his sight; Hakumen was teleported to an unknown location and Ragna was teleported to a separate location that Ragna didn't recognize. Confused, he looked around as Hazama's voice appeared in his head and told him that Ragna was to help him in his "preparations." Calling her "The Sword of Izanami," Hazama instructed Nu to attack Ragna, and the two engaged in combat. After a while of fighting her, Ragna decided to activate his Azure Grimoire, but before he could, Izanami used the Takamagahara system to initiate a Phenomena Intervention. However, before it could take full effect, Nu managed to injure Ragna greatly. Time rewound and set the clock all the way back to when Ragna and Tao were at the restaurant. [13]
Rachel's warning rang true, as Ragna's wounds from the fight with Nu just before suddenly opened up. Ragna fell to the ground and passed out just as Tao began to panic over his sudden injury. Bullet rushed to the commotion and much to his surprise, Ragna found that he could vaguely recall who she was, despite never actually meeting her in that timeline. A confused Ragna ran from the restaurant and remembered that he was fighting Nu and remembered Rachel's warning about the Azure Grimoire remembering wounds across timelines. Ragna fell onto the street and passed out yet again. Ragna recalled his time talking to his foster mother and remembered the warmth of her hands. Upon awakening, Ragna found that he was being helped by Celica A. Mercury, who was using sorcery to heal him. He asked her for her identity, but she said that didn't matter right then. Celica even called Ragna by his name. Ragna then stood up and found out that he lost the use of both his right arm and right eye. He asked Celica again for her name and how she was using sorcery, but was interrupted by Taokaka. Feeling better, Ragna left the two girls and headed out in search of Noel Vermillion once again.
After he searched for a while, Ragna regained the use of his arm and eye. Ragna became enraged when he didn't make any progress in finding either Noel or the Lynchpin and started to pick a fight with a local man. Rachel teleported him away from his would-be victim and began to scold him as if he were a child. Ragna genuinely insulted her and Rachel turned her back and began to leave. He tried to stop her, but Rachel left without saying another word, which only served to frustrate him even further. He soon ran into Noel and he told her that he needed her for something. Now too worked up, Ragna accidentally hurt Noel and an angry Kagura Mutsuki intervened to help Ragna calm down. The two battled, ending with Kagura's easy victory where he actually called Ragna "disappointing." Ragna attempted to activate the Azure Grimoire, but he lost control of his arm and eye yet again when Celica stepped onto the scene. Kagura knocked Ragna out and brought him to the NOL branch at the top of the Hierarchical City. [14]
Ragna awoke within a jail cell and saw none other than Kokonoe, Kagura, Celica, and Noel staring at him from outside the cell. Kagura asked Ragna why he shouldn't execute him then and Celica readily jumped to his aide, vouching for his character. After a little banter, Kagura told Ragna that there was a favor he needed him to do, but Ragna declined the offer. However, Kagura offered Kushinada's Lynchpin as an incentive for Ragna's cooperation. Ragna reluctantly agreed to help Kagura, but he wasn't let out of his cell. Kagura left Celica in charge of guarding Ragna and took the others with him to his office. [15]
Kokonoe returned to the cell, telling Ragna to get out and follow her. After some discourse, Kokonoe threatened Ragna by stating she had attached a bomb to his left arm that was set to explode and kill him should he venture too far from Celica. Reluctantly, Ragna followed Kokonoe to Kagura's office for a mission briefing. Kokonoe and Kagura explained that they need Ragna as bait for Azrael to subdue him for a certain time. Hibiki Kohaku told Ragna that news of his arrest had spread throughout Ikaruga and that a tournament had been organized at the Colosseum with his bounty as the prize. The tournament was set to have Ragna battle against the participants, giving Azrael an even bigger incentive to join. Kagura further bribed Ragna with the promise of the Kushinada's Lynchpin. When Ragna asked if he actually had the Lynchpin, Kagura said that they already had the key to activating it: Celica. Kokonoe confirmed this. Ragna then agreed to the mission, but asked what the big plan was. Kagura answered that he wanted to take over the Novus Orbis Librarium and take down the Imperator.
Kagura invited Jin in to devise a plan to release Tsubaki from the Imperator's control. After the discussion, Jin quickly turned his attention to Ragna, and Kagura told everyone else to leave the room. After Ragna and Jin exchanged threats and began to fight, Kagura forced the both of them outside as well. Jin told Ragna that he'd be waiting outside for him just as Noel entered the room. On his way out, Ragna found Celica, and she asked if he wanted to go to the cafeteria with her. Despite fearing that Celica would get lost, Ragna declined her offer and told her not to go anywhere to avoid setting the bomb off. Ragna proceeded to go outside himself and meet Jin, starting their battle quickly. Since Ragna was not able to use his right arm and eye, Jin defeated him with ease. While Jin was preoccupied with his disappointment at the results, Celica interrupted the fight and threw Jin off balance with a powerful kick. She scolded the two of them for fighting and treated their wounds. However, Ragna and Jin agreed that they would always fight, so Celica compromised by telling them to fight only around her so she could heal them. [16] Ragna was part of the many people who ate the large meal that Hibiki had prepared, althougn Celica insisted on feeding it to him herself.[17]
When Noel was gaining control of her abilities as Mu-12, a dimensional barrier prevented Ragna, Celica, Kagura, Kokonoe, and Makoto from entering her subconscious state. However, after Arakune began absorbing her, Noel was unable to escape, so she subconsciously called out to Ragna, calling him "Brother." Ragna sensed this and was able to pass through the barrier, attempting to attack Arakune, but Kagura managed to drive Arakune off first. Kokonoe claimed the breach was caused by her own frailty and past relationship with Arakune. She warned them that this frailty might cause the death of an ally in the future. Jin showed up to investigate the disturbance, but left shortly after. Celica said that Jin wasn't being honest, but Ragna lamented that he'd always been like that. [18]
The next day, Ragna presented himself at the tournament. Tsubaki arrived to briefly congratulate Kagura on capturing Ragna. Kagura stated that it wasn't an easy task, having lost fifteen of his men in the process. Tsubaki took a moment to tell Ragna that she would interrogate him before his execution, so he should not expect an easy death. Ragna retaliated by stating she's just the Imperator's dog, and he wanted nothing to do with her. Kagura punched him twice, and threatened him with his life before continuing his conversation with Tsubaki. He explained to her that Ragna had a Binding Array with a code that changed every ten seconds. Furthermore, if he traveled for a hundred meters away from the arena, his entire body would be petrified. After this, Tsubaki left.
The tournament began, and to Ragna's surprise, he didn't have to fight all the participants, but only the ones that make it through the qualifiers. Rachel arrived to watch the participants battle alongside Ragna, Kagura, and Celica. Bullet entered the stage, but just as she was about to face her opponent, Bob, Azrael arrived instead, boasting that he had rendered Bob, as well as many other competitors, unable to fight. Then, Azrael fought Bullet and defeated her quickly. He was about to take her life when Ragna jumped in from the sidelines and took Bullet's place to fight Azrael. After Azrael defeated Ragna, Ragna refused to fight him using the Azure Grimoire, enraging Azrael. Celica called out to Ragna, causing Azrael to see that Celica was someone that drove Ragna to fight, leading him to attempt to take her life while making Ragna's motivation to fight stronger. Rachel interfered to protect Celica by throwing Gii in the way of Azrael's attack. Angered, Ragna decided to use the Azure Grimoire, but he began to see visions of himself fighting Azrael in another timeline, and questioned his decision. He accepted the power as his own, and declared he wanted to use it to protect what was important to him, rather than using it for destruction. Just as he was about to engage with Azrael again, Kagura stepped in, to Ragna's discomfort. While Kagura fought Azrael, Ragna went to make sure that Bullet and Celica were doing alright. Kagura, with the help of Kokonoe, was able to defeat Azrael, locking him in a dimensional prison. [19]
Ragna and Celica went to an infirmary room, scolding each other for their rash decisions as Celica healed Ragna's wounds. Just as Ragna thanked Celica for her treatment, Rachel entered the room and congratulated the two for their effort. Ragna asked to speak with her, to Rachel's displeasure. Ragna told her that he wouldn't use the Azure Grimoire any longer, since he doesn't want to hurt or destroy anymore. Rachel questioned Ragna's new behavior, telling him he was running away from the Azure Grimoire's true purpose, and that he could not simplify it so easily. Regna responded by saying that it was only a counterfeit created by Terumi. To Ragna's confusion, Rachel said that Terumi's was also an imitation. Rachel then told Ragna that if he was seeking answers, then he must go to the ruins of Ibukido the day after along with Celica and Noel. After the end of the conversation, Ragna left the room.[20]
Later, alone, Ragna regained control of his right arm and eye. Just as he contemplated Rachel's words, Hazama appeared on the scene. Hazama, becoming Terumi, mocked Ragna as they engaged in battle and defeated Ragna with ease. As Terumi teased and beat Ragna senseless, Kokonoe, Celica, and Tager arrived to Ragna's rescue. Kokonoe stated that Celica was the weakness to the Azure Grimoire. Due to Celica's presence, Terumi's vessel, Hazama, began to weaken and crumble, as he was an Azure Grimoire himself, and Ragna found his right arm and eye paralyzed again. The now weakened Terumi panicked as Phantom arrived and used teleportation magic to escort him away, while Kokonoe sent Celica to bed.
Ragna, however, pestered Kagura and Kokonoe about their motives and methods for defeating the Imperator. Kokonoe explained to Ragna that she was keeping Celica around mainly because she was the key to activating Kushinada's Lynchpin. Doing so would stop all seithr activity, thus making it easier to defeat the Imperator. Furthermore, as Celica's existence was "invisible" to the Master Unit and Takamagahara, they had no data on Celica in this timeline, and therefore she and all those who "interacted" with her could not be affected by Phenomenon Interventions, hence why Ragna hadn't been affected by any Phenomenon Interventions lately, as he had always been close to Celica. Understanding the explanation, Ragna left the room.
Ragna walked through the hallway, exhausted, and encountered Noel. He congratulated her on winning Tsubaki over. When Noel asked Ragna about the tower in the ruins of Ibukido, Ragna recalled Rachel's words and asked if Noel would come with him to those ruins along with Celica and Rachel. Ragna said he should have discussed it with her earlier, but Noel didn't mind and said she would willingly follow him anywhere. The two's conversation lead to comfort and laughter until Ragna noticed an eavesdropping Jin. Jin disrupted the conversation, threatening Noel for speaking to Ragna. This quickly agitated Ragna and he began to argue with Jin, but just as they were about to fight, Noel broke them apart. She worried about the two as Jin walked away, but Ragna reassured her by stating that they're always like this, and parted with her to sleep.
The next day, Ragna arrived at the ruins of Ibukido with Noel and Celica, where Rachel scolded Ragna for being late. After a short discourse, Rachel told Ragna that she would send him to a dangerous place familiar to Celica. Rachel told Noel to remember Ragna's shape and his existence itself, as they would have to bring Ragna back when the time came. Rachel said that using the Cauldron, Ragna would cross the Boundary and time itself, and be sent into the past. Using the Tsukuyomi Unit, Rachel provides Ragna with a protection spell to ensure that he will make it through the boundary safely, as Ragna then leaps into the cauldron, and gets sent back into the past.[21]
When Ragna awoke, he had been sent back in time to 2106, although his trip through the Boundary had stripped him of most of his memories. He was found in a forest by Celica, and she helped carry him to a nearby shack.[22] There the young mage used her healing sorcery on him to save the man from his wounds. She formally introduced herself as Celica A. Mercury, and explained that she had used healing sorcery on him - to her shock, he was not surprised, having remembered it in his education under Jubei. He explained his amnesia to her, and the two decided to go towards the nearest port town; for Celica, this was to find her father, Shuichiro Ayatsuki, and for Ragna, it was to find some clues to his memories. On their way out of the winding path, the duo were attacked by dogs mutated by seithr; Ragna dispatched of them and watched as Celica healed them after the fight, remarking that she was too nice. He later grew frustrated with Celica's lack of direction, and attempted to snatch a map from her before a beastkin attacked him.
The beastkin was under the impression that Ragna was attempting to assault Celica. Upon his first impression, Ragna through the beastkin was Jubei, but he introduced himself as Mitsuyoshi and had no idea who Jubei was. Ragna was still not aware of the date, and found it ridiculous that anyone, especially a cat-type beastkin, would not know who Jubei was. The two traded blows until Celica stopped the fight. The men sheathed their blades and Mitsuyoshi decided to listen to their story as Celica healed their wounds. The three of them decided that travelling together to Japan would be the best decision as Mitsuyoshi told them of his mission - to capture Celica's father. Ragna also learned that he was currently in the period of the Dark War, and that the Six Heroes had yet to be formed.[23]
The trio made it to the port town later in the evening, procuring beds and dinner. Ragna stared out of the window towards the sea from his room, spotting Celica in the distance. Deciding it was dangerous for her to be out so late with her sense of direction, he ran after her, finding her staring at the stars and sea. Celica talked about her sister, boasting about her being a member of the Ten Sages, and her father, boasting about him being a famous scientist. She healed a headache he was having and the two decided to return to the inn for the night. As they made their way back, Ragna caught sight of someone familiar to him - Rachel. Leaving Celica behind, he chased after the vampire, but couldn't find her. It was at that moment that he knew it was really Rachel, as she was the only teleportation user he knew. He returned back the inn later that evening.
The following day, Ragna, Celica, and Mitsuyoshi managed to get to Japan. There, the wry beastkin secured them transportation from the United Nations, and the group entered the back of a pickup truck. Their journey took them across the desolate wasteland that was once Japan, and both Celica and Mitsuyoshi explained nuclear weapons to Ragna as they were largely forgotten in his time. The three of them put on masks to help protect against the damaged atmosphere and eventually arrived at the Seioudai Sampling Laboratory where Shuichiro had once worked. They entered, searching for the scientist but were unsuccessful. Entering a courtyard in the middle of the area, they were attacked by a Remnant of the Black Beast. Mitsuyoshi's reckless nature against the creature caused him to sustain a serious injury, and he nearly died as Ragna was also beaten. Rachel appeared once more and offered the chance to save him as the creature disappeared. It was only as Ragna begged that the three of them were teleported into the Alucard Castle.[24]
As they came into the Castle, Rachel ordered them to wait in the parlor as a servant carried Mitsuyoshi into the inner sanctum for treatment. Ragna had noticed that Rachel was significantly younger than he remembered. The doors opened revealing Rachel, a much younger Valkenhayn, and an elderly vampire. The vampire introduced himself as Clavis Alucard, the father of Rachel and Valkenhayn's master. Ragna and Celica listened intently to the vampire's explanation of who he was and why he had sent Mitsuyoshi after Shuichiro. Ragna himself was particularly shocked by Valkenhayn's appearance and the fact that Clavis was not only bound to a wheelchair, but grew tired, behaviour he had never witnessed from Rachel. His sharp tongue earned the lycanthrope's scorn, but Clavis' calm demeanor kept the talk peaceful. As the meeting ended, Ragna went into the castle's rose garden to think, and was offered a place to stay for the night.
In the garden, Ragna saw Rachel and went up to speak to her. She was not impressed with his behavior towards her as it was the first time for her that she had met him. Ragna demanded answers from her about the world, but Rachel was only left confused and struck him with a bolt of lightning. The conflict was ended by Ragna when Clavis interrupted and asked for time with the man. Clavis inquired about the Grim Reaper's memories and asked him what year it was. Ragna learned that the current date was 2106AD, not 2200AD. He told Clavis about Rachel in the future and confessed his memories had yet to return. Their conversation continued as Ragna marvelled at Clavis' attitude and fondness of humanity until the old vampire grew tired and retired to his quarters. Ragna walked to a hallway in the large Castle, finding Celica. Despite the difficult conversation she had earlier with Clavis over Shuichiro, she demonstrated her resolve to still find her father. Together, they went to Kantō, Japan in the following morning, with Clavis giving them a map to the First District where Shuichiro was last seen; Mitsuyoshi did not accompany them, being forced to stay behind and heal his wounds. As they made their way across a broken mountain trail, Ragna again became frustrated with Celica's direction, but before he could snatch the map, a bolt of lightning was forced his way.[25]
Ragna was pinned to the ground with a woman standing on his head. Getting out from her heel, he attempted to fight against the stranger's sorcery, Ragna was forced to bat away the numerous spells launched at him. His legs were soon frozen and she again put him under her heel. Celica wailed at the witch, calling her sister and begging her to stop. Eventually the barrage of assaulting spells ended, and Ragna was helped to his feet by the witch's companion. The companion introduced herself as Trinity Glassfille and the witch as Nine. The two watched the sisters argue over Ragna, quickly hearing the argument change to why Celica had left the Magister's City of Ishana to pursue their father. Eventually, Celica's will overcame Nine's, and the four of them agreed to travel to the First District together. Ragna found a kindred spirit in Trinity as they both watched the sisters head in the wrong direction.
When they arrived at the District, Ragna traced the area and listened to Nine talk about fusing science and magic. To Ragna, it is impossible to differentiate the two, and earned some rare praise from the witch for his open mind. They came to an elevator that Celica knew how to activate. As they descended, the wires snapped. Ragna quickly helped throw Celica up to safety alongside Nine and Trinity but fell into the abyss. As he awoke, he saw a cauldron close by but froze in place. He saw someone he had not hoped to see, someone who looked no different in the past than in the future - Hakumen. He recognized that the Hakumen in the Dark War was far superior to the one he knew in the future. He hid until the knight left, and was quickly found by the women who helped him to his feet. They continued to search in the building, discovering a hidden door that Ragna knocked down.[26]
The group continued into the laboratory, seeing a giant lynchpin hanging in the back of the lab. He watched Nine and Trinity scan the research papers and as the former stomped them into the ground. Together they learned that the device, called the Kushinada's Lynchpin, had the ability to halt the activity of the Black Beast. It was at that moment that a man, Shuichiro himself, walked towards the group and revealed his creation to them. No one took their eyes off him, although his attitude towards Celica prompted Nine to violently attack her father, sending him hurtling towards a nearby wall. Mere moments later, Shuichiro died, and Ragna held Celica as she cried into his arms.
Ragna continued to hold Celica as Nine attacked the Lynchpin. Mitsuyoshi appeared and deflected the blow, having listened to Shuichiro's ranting. The only way for the Lynchpin to activate was with the soul of someone like Celica activating it. The fight between Nine and Mitsuyoshi was fierce and harsh; Celica broke free from Ragna and stopped the two of them, running between the battle. Knowing her attempt was futile, Ragna threw Aramasa between the combatants, stopping their fight and quickly silencing the battle. As they settled, Ragna heard a voice and left the group to talk out their differences.[27]
As he walked out of the lab and near the cauldron, Ragna caught the familiar smell of roses. Rachel was there, and addressed him with condescending tone he was so used to. The Boundary had given this young Rachel the memories of her older self, and she gave advice to Ragna over what he could do to in the situation. She explained that Kushinada's Lynchpin has never been used, even in their time, and that he knew the way to stop the Black Beast. She then disappeared as quickly as she had appeared. Ragna walked back into the lab, telling Celica that she did not need to sacrifice herself and that he knew a way to stop the Beast. The group stayed late in the lab, knowing that they had no light until morning. Ragna declined Trinity's offer of tea and walked out to the cauldron again. Nine followed him and thanked him for changing Celica's mind. Ragna gave her three hints on the future now that his memories were flooding back to him: first was that the Beast would be halted for a year; second that she needed to gather humanity and their strengths; third - beware the man called Yuuki Terumi.
Their conversation was cut off by the arrival of something that they had not expected - the Black Beast itself. Everyone rallied together, and Ragna ordered that Nine teleport everyone, bar him, out of the facility. Celica grabbed his arm begging him to not leave, but he insisted. It was only Mitsuyoshi who stayed alongside the Grim Reaper as Nine began initiating the spell. Ragna gave Celica his jacket, saying that he will come back for it and her. Just as Nine's spell nearly activated, Celica quickly kissed Ragna on the cheek, healing a small scratch he had picked up earlier. He watched as she furiously waved goodbye. Now side-by-side with Mitsuyoshi, Ragna told him his full name, and the two battled against the Beast with all their might - Mitsuyoshi sustained serious wounds, but Ragna was swallowed whole, his sword left behind.[28]
Inside the Black Beast, Ragna fought against a version of Nu-13. This Nu was from a Possibility where she merged with Ragna to become the Black Beast and now functioned as its heart. Time was distorted inside the Beast, and then, at one instance, Ragna saw Celica. He reached out his hand to her and asked her “when” she is, but she did not understand. The usually murky black scenes transformed into a similar area to the forest where they met. Nightmarish wolves then appeared rapidly and struck at them both. Ragna fought back until Nirvana appeared, cutting through the darkness and clearing a path for Celica's escape. Ragna told Celica that this was his fight, and promised that they would meet again. As Celica left, Ragna turned his attention to Nu. [29]
Almost immediately after Celica had left, she reappeared, calling out Ragna's name. He was confused, not knowing why she was still in the Beast. Celica explained that it had been months since they last saw each other, but it was again the way that time flowed within the Black Beast that it made it seem like she had returned. She explained to Ragna that Hakumen had created a plan: both Ragna and Celica would have to fight against the heart of the Beast while on the outside it would be teleported above a cave filled with crystals of Order. Those crystals neutralize seithr, meaning that the Beast would be severely weakened and allow for the body to be killed at the same time as the heart. Ragna didn't like the idea of taking orders from Hakumen, but accepted it anyway while calling Celica an idiot for agreeing to something so reckless. Next to Celica was Nirvana, something that made Ragna uneasy even though he knew that this version of Nirvana was not one he had crossed blades with before.
Ragna went on guard almost immediately afterwards, as Nu descended behind Celica. She told him to murder Celica or she would. Ragna and Nu fought until, finally, Ragna was victorious. Nu crumbled into dust and the heart of the Black Beast was finally dead. Ragna had to return to his own time, and Celica had to escape the Black Beast. Rachel appeared and explained that the Beast was like a cauldron, and so she could teleport Ragna back to his own time. She did so, and as Ragna was leaving, he waved goodbye to Celica, telling her to tell Nine that he said ‘hi'. [30]
When Ragna returned to the ruins of Ibukido in 2200AD, his memories were twisted, but Noel calmed him down. He knew now why Kokonoe duplicated Celica in this time and made his way to Yabiko to give her a piece of his mind. Before he left, he thanked Rachel for what she had done, but did not realize that she had lost most of her power to do the act. When he arrived in the branch, he revealed to Kagura, Noel, and Hibiki that to activate the Lynchpin, Celica had to die first. This lead to conflict in the room, but Ragna made it clear to Kokonoe that he would not sacrifice Celica no matter what, and that Nine's choice in the Dark War to not sacrifice her was the correct one. When Kokonoe revealed that Celica only had roughly 6 months to live anyway, he held her by the collar and told her firmly that Celica was still not going to be sacrificed.
Rachel appeared and reminded the group that there was another way to activate the Lynchpin and they deduced that it was through the Phoenix: Rettenjo. Ragna then left with Celica and Noel with Hibiki guiding them to the 8th Hierarchical City of Wadatsumi. There, Noel managed to open the gate with Observation, revealing Bang was guarding it. Ragna's resolve was tested by the ninja, and they battled, only stopping when Bang realized that Ragna had come to understand power. They were soon interrupted by the arrival of Nu, Relius, Ignis Clover, and Litchi.[31]
Ragna attempted to fight, but the group was constantly overwhelmed. The Ex Machina: Minerva arrived, sent by Kokonoe, and it help alleviate the burden that the group was facing. It was still not enough, worsened by the arrival of Carl. Thankfully, Tsubaki and Makoto arrived to make their burden easier, giving Ragna, Celica, and Noel enough time to get out of the Castle and on to higher ground. Both Ragna and Noel were reunited with Jin, and the three siblings watched as Take-Mikazuchi crashed into the planet. They ran to Celica and listened to Kokonoe transmit them information about having to disarm Celica's limiter if they could not activate the Lynchpin in 10 minutes. Hakumen approached them and followed Ragna's orders to destroy the base of the Monolith, Ragna was then connected to Bang and told him about the time limit.
Ragna, Noel, and Jin then approached Take-Mikazuchi, determined to fight it in order to stop it from destroying everything.[32] He watched as Bang nailed the Lynchpin into the Monolith and thus the cauldron below, halting the flow of seithr across the world. Because of the Noise Canceller installed by Kokonoe, Ragna could still use the Azure Grimoire and he battled against the weakened Take-Mikazuchi. He opened a weakening in the Nox and jumped in with Minerva and Celica.
Inside Take-Mikazuchi, they found Nu and the flow of time was distorted. She told him about the creation of Black Beasts and how Noel and Hazama before promising to kill him. They battled and Ragna won, knocking her out and taking her out of Take-Mikazuchi with Minerva's assistance. As he exited, he saw Izanami and attacked her, but was repelled. Nu woke and stabbed him, but the worst had yet to come – Izanami sent the Azure Grimoire spiralling out of control, and Ragna was sent berserk, mortally wounding Jin and damaging Noel.[33] When he awoke, he was in the Embryo with no recollection of his identity.[34]
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