Arisu decided to replace Evolution with Shape Lightning, acquiring a new skill. We managed to secure eight Charged Magic Stones for our use. After a little more planning, we left the White Room.
✦ ✦ ✦
The Charged Magic Stones were all allocated to our group. Initially, I suggested, “Please, Yuuki-senpai, take half of them for yourself…”
“Thanks, but ultimately, the most challenging moments will fall to you and your team, good sir!” he said, shaking his head. “We want to increase your chances of victory, even slightly, with these eight little insurance policies.”
“Yeah, we really wouldn’t be much help in a truly tough fight,” Keiko-san added.
Seeing that neither Yuuki nor Keiko would accept any stones, we gratefully took all eight. Anyway, I had to admit, their reasoning was sound. Six of the Charged Magic Stones we infused with Accel and two with Deflection, then Arisu and Tamaki each took four to carry.
While we were busy with these preparations, a change came over the image in the water mirror. It appeared that the demonic beast army, presumably under Algrafth, had launched a bold offensive against Diasnexus’s undead forces. Although they’d managed to breach the undead’s defenses in several places, the beasts had suffered significant losses.
“It seems… the demon beast army’s heading for the high school building. Maybe Algrafth’s subordinates have realized something is there,” Rushia murmured.
“Something… Oh, right, there was that mysterious facility under the schoolyard. But we blew that up, didn’t we?”
That moment had allowed us to halt Azagralith’s pursuit. Without it, escaping from him would have been impossible. At that time, Azagralith was an untouchable adversary.
“If the demonic beast army is acting this aggressively, there must be something really important there… If it’s crucial for us as well, this might be our only chance to intervene,” Yuuki speculated.
“Something… like the world ending?” Arisu asked with concern.
“Exactly, Arisu. Thanks to Mia’s sacrifice, if the information from Algrafth is accurate, he’s different from the rest of the Demon Lord’s forces in that he believes the world’s destruction would be a problem,” Yuuki explained.
It was crucial to understand what they were fighting over. If Algrafth’s defeat could lead to catastrophic outcomes for the world, we might need to ally with them, even if only temporarily.
“Let’s dispatch a part of our forces near the demon beast army. Worst-case scenario, they might end up as sacrifices,” Leen proposed. Then she added, “If we’re lucky, Algrafth might reach out to us.”
“Wait, then we should go,” I insisted.
“That’s not possible,” the guardian of the World Tree decisively refused. Her dog ears twitched, betraying her unease, and her clear, ruby-like eyes fixed on me. “Kazu, you and your team are our trump card. You’re not suited for such a risky gamble.”
“I get that, but… it feels wrong to knowingly send others to their potential doom. We have a higher chance of surviving if we’re attacked,” I argued.
“Still, the answer is no,” she repeated, firmly shaking her head.
I glanced at Shiki, only to see her with crossed arms and a stern face, reinforcing the decision.
“Kazu-kun, let’s do what we can now,” she suggested.
“Like what?”
“If we’re going to intervene in that battle, we need to be ready. For starters, how about charms against the undead?”
That made sense. Perhaps we could utilize Kanon Miiko’s musical skills. I’d heard her research had advanced since then, including sewing talismans into jerseys to trigger conditional effects.
“How do those talismans trigger?” I asked.
“Here’s an example, if the jersey is slashed by an attack, the talisman tears and mitigates the effect, kind of like reactive armor,” she explained.
“That sounds like something Yuuki-senpai would come up with,” I noted.
Shiki looked surprised. “You figured that out quickly.”
“It’s getting easier to predict his way of thinking… It’s just so like him.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Shiki and I decided to visit Kanon. When we warped to her workshop, a cabin, we could hear voices singing inside.
“I’ve asked some other people to learn music skills, for some research,” Kanon told us. “They’re from the high school section.”
“I see. Well, not everyone is cut out for combat,” I remarked.
We entered the cabin to see two other girls, a freshman and a sophomore. Both of them, plus Kanon, had raised their music skills to Level 4. Their research showed that singing together could produce a synergistic effect, enhancing their abilities.
“We still haven’t managed to combine multiple effects… However, we’ve been able to enhance the talisman’s capabilities,” Kanon shared, offering a shy smile as she looked my way. Despite being the youngest among those with musical skills, she was the first to delve into their research, which had naturally made her their leader. I could already tell that the other two girls were the quiet type.
“Leen-san told me about the situation,” Kanon continued. “What kind of talismans should we prepare?” In the corner of the room, a hawk lifted one wing sharply. I recognized it as Leen’s familiar.
“Can you make something that’s effective against the undead?” I asked.
“Like skeletons…? I’ve heard about them, but I’ve never actually seen one… And you mean for protection, right? Let’s give it a shot.” Kanon placed a bundle of blue-dyed handkerchief-sized cloths on the table, and the three girls began to sing.
The song was “Kimigayo.” Though there was nothing special about their singing, listening to it somehow brought tears to my eyes. I remembered feeling the same way when she sang “Sakura Sakura” the day before. Something deep within me warmed and swelled with emotion. Glancing over, I noticed Shiki was crying too, and I instinctively clutched at my chest.
As the song ended, Shiki and I found ourselves applauding without thinking. Kanon laughed, slightly embarrassed.
“Go ahead and sew these into your shirts,” she instructed, handing us a pile of at least twenty blue cloths. “There’s a sewing machine back at the office, so you can head over there now.”
Before we left, Kanon cheered us on with a “Good luck!” and the two high school girls bowed their heads in respect. If they had any grievances against me, they weren’t showing it. Respect was something I’d grown accustomed to from younger kids, but getting it from peers, or especially from older students, still felt unfamiliar.
In the tree hollow where Sumire and the others were gathered, the sound of a sewing machine hummed steadily. The girl sitting at the machine was skillfully sewing the blue cloths into the inner lining of jerseys that hadn’t yet been touched by my magic.
After she completed her task, it was my turn to apply Hard Armor to them. The procedure could only be done in this order; the sewing needle wouldn’t penetrate the fabric once Hard Armor was applied. Then, although the jersey remained just as soft to the touch, and it folded and stretched just as easily, it could absorb any impact if punctured or struck. I didn’t know exactly how this magic worked, but I had seen it in action enough times to believe it. Thankfully, we had an ample supply of spare jerseys.
Curiously, there were several ninja outfits stored here as well. I found myself wondering who had left these behind.
“Ah, could you set aside one of those ninja outfits? I’ll sew it next,” Yuuki said.
“Sure,” I replied, intrigued by the thought of him joining our next mission. It would be incredibly helpful to have a ninja along.
When I wasn’t lending a hand with the sewing or doing other tasks, I found myself engrossed in a book Leen had entrusted to me, one about exclusive contracts. Each ritual for the contract took about an hour per entity. Though time was pressing, I aimed to complete at least one, ideally two contracts. With five ritual texts from Leen at my disposal, deciding which to prioritize was crucial.
“Frontline or support… Maybe a frontline replacement for Kanarg is the best choice,” I mused, picking up one of the ritual texts to study closely.
I waited until the next stack of jerseys was ready, then after giving them my Hard Armor enhancement, I descended from the tree to perform the exclusive contract ritual on the ground.