“You put her up to this?”
“Of course not. I merely thought it through. You should do the same. Why is our culprit putting gates around? There are bureau detectives everywhere. Anyone would need an escape route. He can flee through these gates and use them like this—to hunt us.”
Miseria tapped a finger to her throat. Rogue stared at that a second, then burst into action.
An escape route. Fair enough. Zack Knoll was the Lifetaker’s accomplice; it made sense he’d be placing them around. But the source Rogue had given Catherine had led her into danger. As he reached for the door, he heard a voice behind him.
“Going to rescue her?”
“Obviously!”
With that, he slammed through the door. Her footsteps followed. He ran faster, as if trying to shake her off, but her voice stayed right behind.
“I don’t know what’s so obvious about it. Let’s take our time—let the Lifetaker finish her off for us.”
“Why are you like this?!” he yelled and nearly crashed into a staff member. He dodged at the last second, his feet slipped, and he almost took a tumble. Staggering, he got a hand on the wall and found the witch peering up at him.
“Did that clear your head?”
“……I’m going to rescue her.”
“I’ll say it again. I wouldn’t recommend it. Catherine’s a witch. She’s a beast wearing the skin of an adorable girl. She does not deserve your compassion.”
“You’re a witch yourself.”
“That I am. Don’t forget that, Rogue.”
“You won’t let me.”
She giggled. Her lips curled.
“Right you are, Rogue, and that was a snappy comeback, so let me share something with you. You know she’s a witch but not the extent of it. She’s responsible for more deaths than any other witch at the Sixth Precinct.”
“You’re not much better.”
“I am far better. Entirely different.” The witch was clearly offended. “……Shall I elaborate?”
“……If you want,” he spat, straightening up. He headed for the door at a brisk walk.
“Magic simply adores her. All she has to do is wish for something, and the spell comes to her from beyond. She learns new spells like you learn words or ideas. Can you believe it? She alone has crafted over ten thousand spells.” Keeping pace with him, the witch cackled. Having the time of her life. “And she used that power to save people. Everyone went to her for help. They believed if anything went wrong, she’d take care of it.”
“……”
“But she betrayed their faith in her.”
“How?” he asked, despite his vow not to speak.
“A volcano near town grew active. If it erupted, the damage would be untold. They called for her. With her power, she could easily stop a volcano. She really could. Except…” The witch put a finger to her lips, like she was sharing a secret. “She failed. She couldn’t do a thing. Supposedly, she couldn’t predict how the crater would react. But she didn’t even cast a spell. Perhaps the pressure got to her. It was her hometown, after all.”
“And?”
“The residents knew her, so none of them evacuated. Confident she’d handle everything. They saw the lava flowing down hill and thought it was part of the show. They all died.”
They reached the office door. He ran his ID card over the scanner, the doors opened, and the grimy night awaited them. There was a gust of wind, and he squinted into it.
“What do you make of that?” the witch said, leaning in. “Does that witch deserve rescue?”
Blue eyes studied him. A smile was on her lips, but that look was searching deep inside Rogue.
“……How would I know?” he said, dragging his gaze away.
A car pulled into the driveway and stopped. A small figure emerged. Iudic? They wore a gray coat, with a hat pulled low over their face. Peering over the lot wall, Catherine asked her fairy for help.
Fairy, will you knock off that hat for me?
Naturally, fairies did not actually exist.
This was simply what Catherine had called it long, long ago, before magic research had progressed at all. The only reason she was still calling it that was because she thought it was very saintlike.
At her murmur, magic moved the way she wanted. To her eyes, it appeared to be light. It formed an orb, bumped Iudic’s hat, and knocked it to the ground. To anyone else, it would have looked like the wind had blown it off.
Making magic do what she wanted was nothing to Catherine; she’d never needed to use complex incantations or sigils. All she had to do was say what she wanted.
Iudic bent down to pick up their hat.
I can almost see them…
Catherine let out a squeak.
Iudic’s face was covered with a cloth. There were holes in it where their eyes were. Golden eyes. Which snapped toward Catherine.
______They’re onto me.
And in that instant, all the orbs of light around her moved to surround the house.
Why?!
She hadn’t given any orders. On closer inspection, there were sigils carved in the road around the house. The same color as the ground itself, so she really had to squint.
“Ow!”
She felt a sharp pain in her back.
Catherine swung around and found a transparent wall rising up to surround the house. Everything beyond it was wavering, like something seen through a liquid. She gingerly poked the wall, and a jolt of pain hit her, like she burned herself. She yanked her hand away.
Uh-oh.
“Enclose. A spell that traps people inside.”
Their voice was muffled, and their gender was unclear. She found Iudic standing there, looking right at her.
“A-are you going to kill me?”
“I don’t want to kill anyone like you, but that is the outcome here.”
“Y-you’re under arrest! Come quietly!”
They clearly thought they’d won, which meant she had a shot. Catherine could do anything with magic—even alter an opponent’s spell.
Fairy, stop this spell!
Nothing happened.
The transparent wall remained in place.
“Wh-what?”
Iudic shrugged.
“All mana in the vicinity is locked in the wall. I’m not sure what you were up to, but you can’t use any magic.” Catherine glared at the figure, but she could not wipe the smirk off their face. “I’m not going anywhere near you. Don’t want to accidentally leave evidence.”
With that, they pulled a lighter from their breast pocket. They tossed it onto the grass in front of them. The ground must have already been coated in oil; the flames spread quickly.
“Don’t worry, a witch can survive this. If you’re a real witch.”
Iudic headed off around the side of the house, their diminutive frame vanishing around the corner.
“Ack! Come back here!”
She gave chase but lost sight of them.
What the—? I thought magic didn’t work here!
She looked around but saw only the walls of the house. Nowhere to hide.
“Oh, no…”
She could hear the crackle of burning grass.
The whole yard was turning red.
She could run into the house, but that would only buy her time. Maybe if she filled the tub—but she soon abandoned that line of thought.
This is my penance. For all those lost lives.
The people from her hometown were dead because of her.
Only Catherine could have saved them, but she hadn’t.
If she closed her eyes, she could still see their final moments like it was just the previous day. The town swallowed up by molten rock. Like a sandcastle washed away by the waves.
Her heart ached. They must have been in such pain. Such fear. And yet Catherine had…
“……I should perish here.”
The fires were almost upon her.
She made to wipe her tears, and something hurtled out of the fire. It grabbed her in its arms, pulling her away from the flames.
“Wh-why……?” Catherine stammered. “Why would you save me, Detective? I’m a witch……!”
“……Good question. What the hell am I doing here?”
Rogue sighed. He was soaking wet, water dripping from his hair and clothes.
“I borrowed the neighbor’s hose,” he said, putting his jacket over Catherine. “This should ward off the fire. Let’s get outta here.”
“W-we can’t! The crook said there’s no escaping this wall! And we can’t use magic inside the barrier!”
“……Well, shit.”
Rogue yanked open the door to the house and stepped in, but he came right back out.
“Nope, the water’s shut off. Dammit! This was the plan all along.”