"Yes, Kana. These are materials on barrier magic."
"Thanks, Lavinia. And, um... I'm sorry. About everything."
"I'm not bothered by it at all. If anything, I wish you'd rely on me more. ...I just wish I could help you more."
Several days had passed since my encounter with Lord Ajuka Beelzebub, one of the Four Great Demon Lords. The season had entered December, and the world was buzzing with excitement over Christmas and the year-end festivities. Here at the Gray Magicians' headquarters, where magicians of various races gathered, some were bustling about depending on their backgrounds.
Since it happened to be a holiday, and because what I'd requested from the Association had been completed, I found myself visiting this place after quite some time. I hadn't been able to come here much since preparations for the counteroffensive began, so it had been a while since I'd seen Lavinia face-to-face like this. We'd exchanged messages through communication devices many times, but being able to talk directly somehow put my mind at ease. It was probably thanks to her enveloping atmosphere.
"You've been plenty helpful already. I'm the one who should be apologizing, honestly, for making you assist with personal matters."
"This involves President Mephisto. I can't say I'm uninvolved, can I?"
"But you're busy with your own work, Lavinia, and since we need to keep the Gray Magicians' involvement secret, we have to sneak around. I really do think I'm burdening you."
"Mmm... Kana, you're stubborn."
I could only respond with a dry smile to Lavinia's pointed gaze. Still, I truly wanted to avoid involving her in this matter if possible. While Cleria and the others were my friends, to Lavinia they were complete strangers. The feud with the Old Satan Faction had nothing to do with her. Just having her analyze magic and act as a confidant was more than enough support for me.
This time too, she'd compiled rough documentation about the barrier covering Kuoh Town, which I'd investigated while concealing my presence. I lacked the knowledge about magic circles and magic theory to interfere with them using my Sacred Gear alone. While I could forcibly and haphazardly erase components through brute strength, that wouldn't allow for conceptual interference. Like with the magic circle in Lord Ajuka's hideout, without having Lavinia provide me with the equation's answer beforehand, I was helpless.
The technique Lord Ajuka taught me about the new possibilities of my Sacred Gear—yeah, the technique he taught me. Although I ended up self-destructing unexpectedly and giving him a headache, apparently I could interfere with magic circles using my aura and magical power as a medium, doing something pseudo-Kankara Formula-like. But as he'd said, this required building up skills both as a magician and as a Sacred Gear user. Rewriting someone's magic meant knowing the answer to their magic. At the very least, it didn't seem usable in combat where situations changed rapidly.
I knew this already, but my lack of ability really was holding me back. Even when I could see things I might be able to do or wanted to do, my own strength and awareness weren't enough to reach them. Since stepping properly into the supernatural world, thanks to Azazel-sensei and everyone else, I'd gained many more capabilities... Still, Lord Mephisto told me not to rush, and I understood it couldn't be helped. I shouldn't—mustn't—wish for the rapid growth seen in the original story. Getting stronger is difficult, isn't it?
"Speaking of which, I heard from President Mephisto that you have someone cooperating with you in Kuoh Town."
"Huh? Oh, you mean Mil-tan. I've been having Mil-tan observe the church. Lately it's mostly progress reports on Shidou-san's stomach condition, though."
"Your work colleague, right? What kind of person are they?"
"What kind of... er, well... A manly daughter who dreams of being a magical girl?"
"Wow, then we might get along!"
The encounter between Magical Girl (True) and Magical Girl (Broken). Please, anything but that. The mental image is horrifying. Also, Lavinia, please question the term "manly daughter." I wish you'd pick up on my hesitation. Though knowing her, she'd probably accept Mil-tan one way or another... Lavinia naturally interacts with anyone who isn't an enemy. As expected, airheads are powerful.
Now then, while conversing with Lavinia, I mulled over the events so far. I should probably tell her at least a general outline of what's to come. I'd realized my own thinking had limitations, and I wanted any clue that might provide a breakthrough. I think I'd told her up to visiting the Demon Lord's hideout. However, I couldn't tell her about the King Pieces. Just knowing about them could make her a target.
The only people I'd told about the King Pieces were the three directly involved—Cleria, Yaegaki-san, and Luciana-san. Plus Lord Mephisto and Tannin-san. Lord Mephisto had stopped me from telling Azazel-sensei. Even knowing he was a friend who would never misuse the information, he was still the leader of another organization. Involving him deeply in demonic affairs would be bad for both sides, he said. The focus this time was saving Cleria and the others. Not solving demonic problems.
Sensei seemed to understand that, as he didn't press for details. In this matter, Azazel-sensei was acting purely as insurance. It wasn't related to the Fallen Angel organization—this was personal goodwill. When I couldn't explain things in detail because of that, he'd said exasperatedly, "Don't worry about the extra stuff, just focus on what you need to do." He'd laughed heartily at me pseudo-replicating Lord Ajuka's technique, but sensei's straightforward personality really shines at times like these.
"For now, I need to deliver the materials and letter I received from Lord Ajuka to Diehauser-san. The fact that I don't know what's written in the letter is a bit troubling, though."
"The materials contain the reason why that Cleria-san is being targeted, right?"
"Yeah, I glanced at the materials and that seems to be it."
The materials contained the production process for Evil Pieces. Including not just King Pieces but other pieces as well was probably one of Lord Ajuka's precautions. Also, they read like research documentation and seemed somehow critical of Evil Pieces. While I'd show Diehauser-san the materials, there was a possibility the Old Satan Faction might see them as evidence. Perhaps it was designed so they wouldn't realize a Demon Lord had prepared them.
According to Lord Mephisto, aside from the current government and Old Satan Faction-related individuals, only those affiliated with the Old Demon Lord Faction would likely know about King Pieces. Even Bael Faction demons wouldn't want to stick their noses into Old Demon Lord Faction-related matters and stir up trouble. Those who wanted to remain in their safe zone and avoid change wouldn't want to dig too deeply into the origins of these materials that were critical of the current government. I'd worried Diehauser-san might be seen as anti-government, but Lord Mephisto said that could be handled somewhat forcefully. After all, they were the ones investigating the Emperor's situation. They knew best that he had no contact with the Old Demon Lord Faction.
The flow would be: on the surface, these materials were prepared by someone Old Demon Lord Faction-ish to incite Diehauser-san and use as ammunition against the current government. Given the Emperor's personality, it was obvious he'd focus on the content rather than investigating the materials' source. Someone seemingly from the Old Demon Lord Faction coincidentally learned about this purge and plotted to throw the current government into chaos by leaking the piece information to Diehauser-san. The materials Diehauser-san obtained were merely a means to manipulate him. By framing it this way, while he might get angry about being manipulated, the circumstances of how he obtained these materials could be left vague. After all, he was just being used.
I thought Lord Ajuka would handle the fine-tuning of those details. He was the one who gave me these materials and said he'd ensure the blame didn't fall on the Emperor. We'd be pinning false charges on the Old Demon Lord Faction folks, but they were apparently actually doing various things in the shadows to disrupt the current government anyway. In the original story they seemed to be holed up in the underworld, but the conflict really was significant. They'd eventually create a terrorist organization on a scale that would make enemies of the entire world, so it must be quite serious.
"Oh, that's right. Why not use this incident as an opportunity to probe the Old Satan Faction's side? They wouldn't be happy if information leaked like this either, so they'd probably grant permission to investigate their internal affairs to some extent."
"I don't know much about demonic government, so I can't be of much help... But please don't overdo it, Kana."
"I won't, I won't. I'm human, and I understand that humans shouldn't get too deeply involved in demonic problems."
However, the Old Demon Lord Faction really was a death flag collection for me. They probably thought nothing of humans—rather, they considered them inferior creatures. Above all, my Sacred Gear had abilities and coloring exactly like Lord Sirzechs, who was the very target of their revenge. They were terrifying people who might execute me on the spot for "somehow getting irritated just looking at that." So I'd very much prefer they stay holed up in the underworld until the original story starts in ten years.
While I couldn't possibly solve demonic problems, I did have feelings of wanting the Old Demon Lord Faction—a random-encounter death flag for us—kept in check. It was entirely for my own convenience, but it wouldn't be bad for the demon side either, right? I didn't know if things would go as in the original, but they were people who might run a terrorist organization. Well, once this matter ends safely, I could casually ask Lord Ajuka. The situation between the current government and Old Demon Lord Faction was a fact known to those in the know.
Though in that person's case, he'd probably find things he wasn't interested in bothersome, so I wasn't expecting much. I only understood this conflict through knowledge from the original story anyway, so keeping thoughts this light was fine. Honestly, it was just a random idea.
"What will you do now, Kana?"
"For now, I need to make contact with Diehauser-san first. If that doesn't succeed, everything up until now will be wasted. I'm also curious about the contents of the Demon Lord's letter."
"You'll be going to the underworld with Tannin-san soon, right?"
"Yeah, I'll probably be tagging along with Tannin-san while concealing my presence. Apparently if I blend into a powerful Dragon King's aura, I can fool even upper-class demons and above. I've told Lord Mephisto and the Kuoh Town group about the concerns Lord Ajuka mentioned. I hope they can find another method while I'm talking with the Emperor..."
I'd pray that those people who were definitely smarter than me would find cards we could play to prevent the Old Satan Faction from interfering further in this matter. I intended to think and consult with him while talking to the Emperor, but I apparently had a habit of overthinking things. That hadn't led to good outcomes very often.
Rather, methods I'd thought of lightly seemed to work better—no, no, that wasn't true. Definitely not. Remember that incident where the Transcendent One wiped my runny nose. For my own mental health, I should stop thinking about this now. It made me sad.
"So I'll probably be going to the underworld for a while. I'll have to take sick leave from school and use suggestion on my family. Though given it's an emergency situation..."
"Oh, if that's the case, I'll handle it. I know where your house is."
"Huh? I can't make you come all the way to Japan just for something like that, Lavinia..."
"It's only natural for a partner to reduce their partner's burden. Besides, Kana, you're my precious friend. If you're working hard to help your friends, then I want to help your friends too. Please let me cooperate as a magician where I can."
Our feet naturally stopped as we walked through the Association together. I couldn't immediately respond with words of denial to Lavinia's straightforward, determined statement. I understood her feelings, I really did. If I were in the opposite position from her, I would've wanted to help with even the smallest things. However, there was no need for her to be involved in this matter, and it was also true that the magicians' organization shouldn't move openly.
Should I reject her goodwill of wanting to cooperate with even the smallest things? If I considered the trouble and worry it would cause her, I should firmly refuse here. But there was also a contradictory feeling inside me—that I didn't want to dismiss her feelings.
"Honestly, with how things have turned out, I think I've already caused you enough trouble. As your partner, I don't want to be a burden to you..."
"I've finished everything I need to do this year. President Mephisto said before that if you agreed, Kana, I could take winter break and visit a friend's house."
"Isn't that groundwork laid a bit too quickly?"
She'd easily resolved my concerns. When had she gotten that permission from Lord Mephisto? She'd seemed busy lately, so I'd been thinking that magicians must have it rough at year-end too. But could the reason she was so busy actually have been to make time for this?
Looking at those blue eyes staring steadily at me, I realized what was in Lavinia's heart. Ah, she won't back down. While usually airheaded and gentle, once Lavinia decided to do something, there was no sense she'd waver at all. Even with this matter, she'd completely blocked my escape routes. She herself had eliminated the reasons I'd been using to keep her at the Association.
The moment I finally understood that fact, she stepped closer, smiling gently and warmly. It was a pure, beautiful smile with no sense of intimidation. Captivating enough to make me stare. But... there was something I couldn't resist.
"Kana, I want to help you. I want to be your strength in even the smallest way. So please, let me get involved in your problems too."
A straightforward, core-filled gentle wish. Combined with her smile, I could feel my face reddening. The terrifying thing was she did all this unintentionally, completely naturally. I couldn't possibly stand against Lavinia.
"P-please do..."
"Yes!"
What I returned to her was a fully wimpy acceptance. It was impossible—there was no way I had the guts to refuse Lavinia's words in that state. If I refused, she'd definitely look incredibly sad. Rather than see that face, I'd bow my head and accept her request.
Completely won over by Lavinia's happy demeanor, the tension left my shoulders.
***
"Phew. Since I asked early, it was finished pretty quickly."
After that, while walking through the Gray Magicians with Lavinia discussing schedules in Japan and transfer methods, I successfully received the items that had been completed earlier than the planned date. Though suddenly requesting two things must have been hectic, apparently they'd prioritized it since it was through Lavinia's introduction.
The beautiful witch who made them said with a grin, "You're a boy, so do your best," but what was she imagining? I was just giving Christmas presents to friends. We were elementary schoolers. Though the other present was definitely for someone in a relationship.
What I'd requested were the magic tools I'd discussed when I went shopping with Yaegaki-san before. Since Yaegaki-san had also decided to buy a magic tool with me, she'd chosen a simple but cute necklace for Cleria-san.
The magic tools were fairly expensive, but compared to the cost of Yaegaki-san's present, mine had been considerably discounted. I'd have to properly thank the witch who made them again later. For now, I planned to give Yaegaki-san the present for Cleria-san when I visited Kuoh Town again.
The present I'd requested might be too expensive for an elementary schooler to give, but I really wanted to give Lavinia something useful. I was truly grateful to her, and I'd been born with a Longinus in this world full of death flags. It might only be a small help, but I'd be happy if it could protect my friend. Once I saved up more money, maybe I'd request some for my family too.
"Here, Lavinia. I might not be able to give it to you on Christmas Day itself because of this matter, so it's a bit early, but consider it a Christmas present."
"Huh? For me?"
"Yeah, there's no atmosphere, but... it's my way of expressing my daily gratitude."
I tied a simple ribbon on the paper bag I'd just received to make it look presentable and handed it to Lavinia. This was my first time giving a present to a girl like this, so I was a bit nervous. I knew from her personality that she'd accept it, but that was still different from this. As I scratched my cheek in embarrassment, Lavinia showed me a smile as brilliant as blooming flowers. Just seeing that smile was enough satisfaction for me.
"Thank you so much! May I open it here?"
"Of course. I tried to choose an accessory that wouldn't get in your way..."
"Oh, it's a bracelet. It's lovely."
After carefully taking the present from the paper bag, I nodded when her gaze asked if she could put it on. Lavinia slowly slipped the bracelet onto her wrist and held her right arm up. The ceiling lights reflected off it, making the decorations seem to sparkle.
Lavinia narrowed her eyes happily and hugged her arm tightly, bracelet and all. I'd chosen blue and light blue as the base colors she liked, with gentle pink accents to make it girly. From her reaction, I gained a bit of confidence that it wasn't bad.
"This has an enchantment on it, doesn't it? Are you sure this is okay?"
"Yeah, I'd be happy if you'd accept it. It has a protective effect—there's a water magic circle engraved on the bracelet that activates when harm is about to come to you."
"Not active but passive type. It defends against or mitigates attacks from opponents. But if used too much, the bracelet's durability itself might not withstand the magical power..."
Probably because Lavinia was a wielder of an ice Sacred Gear, water magic seemed to have good compatibility. The enchantment I'd chosen was defensive type and couldn't be used many times. It was meant to activate only in truly critical emergencies. Given her abilities, I thought she could defend or counterattack herself, but I'd prepared it for just-in-case situations. Yaegaki-san's present for Cleria-san had the same effect, actually.
I couldn't afford anything that could be used repeatedly or had high power. So while it had an enchantment, this was really just a good luck charm. It was something I could buy with my allowance, but I thought having it was better than nothing.
"Hmm, this means I can't let myself get hit by enemy attacks anymore. I don't want to break Kana's present."
"No, while that mindset is appreciated, please prioritize yourself. Objects can be repaired if broken, but people can't."
"I understand that, but... No, those aren't the right words now. Kana, thank you so much for this wonderful present."
"Yeah, you're welcome."
She'd looked a bit troubled, but quickly switched gears and thanked me again. Having Lavinia uninjured was most important, and if the present broke protecting her, I'd consider it fulfilling its purpose. However, that aspect seemed to bother her. That might have been a bit of a misstep. True, feeling guilty about something received from someone breaking would be natural. I'd thought it was a pretty good present, but perhaps I should reflect a bit. As Lavinia said, it wouldn't be a problem if she didn't encounter danger.
If I could make magic tools myself, I could casually give her replacements. But I naturally lacked that skill, so this was wishful thinking. If it broke, I'd have to send it for repairs, but would the cost be high? Disposable-type magic tools could be bought at reasonable prices, but had the downside of frequent replacement. Magic tools that could be used continuously multiple times were horrifyingly expensive. They'd literally consume my allowance dozens of times over.
I really understood why many magicians struggled with lack of funds. Research expenses, self-defense measures—money disappeared ridiculously easily. ...Wait, disappeared?
"Hey, Lavinia. This is just a thought, but... if I stuck my partner into a broken magic tool and erased the 'damage to the magic tool,' couldn't I reuse disposable magic tools over and over? If I can heal bodily damage, magic circles and object damage should work too."
"...You'd probably still need to replenish the magical power needed for the magic tool, but... Um, Kana..."
"Hmm?"
"This is just something I thought, but there are many famous weapons and tools broken in battles throughout this world. If stabbing them with your Sacred Gear could make them reusable over and over..."
"Er, if they could be reused over and over..."
Ah, yeah. Got it. I understood what Lavinia was trying to say very well. Sorry for my partner being so thoughtless. We both plastered indescribable smiles on our faces and concluded that we should pretend that previous conversation hadn't happened for now.
We agreed to report this idea to Lord Mephisto and Azazel-sensei later and ask them what to do with it. While it ended up being a complete handoff, we thought that was probably the best method.
After that, when we went to the director's office to greet them and report recent developments, I conveyed the idea from our earlier conversation. At the now-familiar parental reaction of "Kana..." I once again bowed my head apologetically.
***
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