*
It is past noon, lunch break had come and the students naturally flooded the hallways. Reaching Thursday, things seemed to be peaceful. There weren't anymore attacks on households and life went on as per normal. In fact there was even an event at school today, there was a career fair in one of the wide assembly halls, packed with booths of recruiters hawking their companies and students milling about to pass the time.
"Did you have anything you wanted to do in the future, senpai?" (Aura)
"I hadn't thought of it... I suppose I don't know..." (Sariel)
"As a second year student, don't you have that? The-the thing, the career list where you need to hand in your plans for the future on a piece of paper." (Aura)
"It's barely the end of January, also don't those things only appear in shows?" (Sariel)
"Huh?! I was looking forward to it!" (Aura)
It's rare to actually commit to a single job, especially in this day and age when there's no need for wealth. The concept of hoarding gold was mostly gone, the culture of moderation has largely taken root among the entirety of civilisation. The act of decadence was stigmatised and people learned to manage their spending the moment they entered school after birth. Everyone had a house, a welfare stock asset to spend on food and other hobbies.
Prices were also generally low, controlled by the ministry of commerce and enforced by the various organs of the state. Each governmental ministry is titled a 'power' of the world government, and there were numerous powers running society. Those who still desire to accumulate wealth do so for the sake of possessing wealth rather than spending it, they commonly become business owners and gravitate towards the ministry of commerce.
For them, the basic welfare is void and they pushed into the forces of the free market. They also typically live in the commercial zones rather than residential zones, away from the eyes of children. The universal welfare asset is also reduced once a person becomes an adult, to encourage their assimilation into the workforce in order to maintain their own spending habits. There are also those who buildup their welfare stocks from childhood by avoiding spending, and using it as the startup for their own businesses.
All of this to say, Sariel had witnessed many different kinds of lives in this fair. The way they faced the future teeming with uncertainty all shone distinctly. She wondered if there was a path suited for herself. What should she do after school? What will let her help the most people? Or maybe she wanted to do something other than helping people? Living under life or death situations with Lastia and Arin, she didn't even realise she had stopped thinking about the future long ago.
Why was it so? She heard her own voice. She had grown comfortable with listening to herself, the exotic mental training magic Alice placed on her had shown some result. She didn't want to hesitate when it was the most important time to make decisions. However she also saw now that certain decisions require time, time she felt that she didn't have. Was this why she instinctively stopped pondering about her own future?
"That's it for today, you guys go on ahead." (Sariel)
"Alright... See you later." (Aura)
"Bye bye~" (Pepper)
She was joined by her juniors, Aura and Pepper. After awhile of walking and seeing the various booths, she abruptly headed to leave. Aura believed something might be up, keeping her busy. Something related to the business of the 'other side'. So she didn't keep Sariel for long. Sariel leisurely reached the entrance the massive assembly hall.
"I know you're here. Come out, Eterna." (Sariel)
"What gave me away? I believed that I hid so well." (Eterna)
Other than looking the exact same the last time Sariel saw her? She was the one to bring Lastia and kill her last time after all. No magic presence, no overtly detectable traces of her presence. How did she know?
" It's not hard. I could smell the nasty scent of divinity from the next zone over." (Sariel)
As someone who defies the law of space herself, Sariel had an innate grasp on her surroundings at all times, after all she needed to understand the conditions of two target coordinates before swapping them. She could feel it with her skin if a being that ignores rules walks amongst the people.
"Interesting... So many things come with the territory of becoming a sentinel. Oblivion Magia, using magic without transforming. And now, even using a passive skill granted by the sacred combat dresses without actually wearing the dress." (Eterna)
She looked no younger than 20, her looks would ordinarily stand out but not in a sea of people, it was barely at the edge of what people considered 'above average'. In other words she looked as stunning as the next magical girl, they all turned out beautiful even before transforming, perhaps a side effect of the magic gene. The individual wouldn't stand out but they wouldn't be ignored either, just good enough to pass down the genes.
Then, maybe...? No, this was obviously a disguise. Her actual appearance dissolved in time. Living for this long, even she won't remember her original looks, will she?
"Well, let's not spare the pleasantries. {Prosperity} - equity invasion." (Eterna)
"... {Swap}!" (Sariel)
Eterna had one thing wrong. Sariel did learn to use her passive skills without her combat dress, but that didn't mean she hadn't transformed. Ever since she received a report go the government making moves on the homes of magical girls from Alice, she hasn't undone her transformation once. She simply changed into different clothes. This was her chance to kill Eterna. She understood that fighting a god would never be a fair fight. Stats, magical skill, talent, wits, intuition, she could never match up in any aspect.
Whatever magic Eterna casted, it hit one of Alice's mirrors. Sariel was the voodoo doll, and the mirror was the victim of the witchcraft. The doll itself might get damaged, but it's not alive, it never gets hurt. One of Alice's abilities, transferring damage. This was her only chance.
"Coordinates seized, Oblivion Magia activated." (Sariel)
Not deployed, but activated. This place had become her territory long ago, much like a witch's hut or wizard's workshop. They're just fairytale concepts, there isn't a categorically wizard life form nor was there confirmation of witches in this era. Magic had degenerated due to peace, so to break past that barrier one had to live as if they were at war. Sariel was at war with the world, with the natural laws, with Eterna. Because she wanted to bring the dead back, or wherever Lastia and Arin went.
"I see... By following the laws I laid down, I would succumb to your conceptual attack. A stat exchange would definitely end in this vessel's defeat.
However, I am the law." (Eterna)