by Dixon, TJ
“Emma seems to be missing.” Rin tell her. Professor Schwarz blinks and looks all down the table.
“Damn.” She curses. “When did you last see her?”
“When we left the library.” Rin answers.
“I should have checked everyone was here before we entered but we didn’t have time, and now it isn’t possible to leave until the allocated time has passed.” Professor Schwarz tells us. “I’m sure we’ll find her easily enough once we can leave, but for now there is nothing we can do. So you may as well focus on your meal.”
“I hope she is ok.” I say.
“She will be.” Rin says but I can tell she is worried.
The food is very good, but we can’t really concentrate on it. We are relieved when the meal is over and we can leave. True to her word Professor Schwarz finds Emma straight away. It turned out she did get lost and returned to the inn because we would return there eventually.
“See, it isn’t just me that gets lost.” I tell Rin. Rin nods but she seems distracted.
In the afternoon we visit the city guard headquarters. To our amusement one of the officers recognises and thanks us for our work capturing the criminal. It turns out she will be lashed ten times for trying to kill us ‘brave girls’ as the officer puts it. She was then going to be executed for stealing so many boys from their rightful owners. She volunteered to join the military and donated all her wealth to the war effort though, which just about saved her life. I am angry that she is going to be spared after trying to kill so many children, but at least those boys are now safe.
We listen to a lecture in a huge audience hall given by one of the senior officers at the headquarters. There must be at least twenty other schools present. They give a demonstration of dimensional tracking techniques used to capture criminals who ported away from crime scenes. We see the jail, which is rather disturbing because the part we see is filled with prisoners awaiting their executions. I almost bring myself to be relieved that girl isn’t going to be executed, but then I recall the terrified faces of those poor boys. No, I can’t bring myself to be happy she is being spared.
We finish the tour by watching the city guard combat practise. Combined teams of both mages and non-mages compete against each other. Then individuals spar. Obviously mages spar with mages and non-mages spar with each other.
It is getting dark when we leave the headquarters. We walk from the headquarters to a huge hall filled with people walking seemingly randomly. I am confused as to its function. I look at Rin questioningly but she has a huge smile on her face and doesn’t notice my confusion.
“Everyone meet back here in an hour.” Professor Schwarz calls out and almost everyone rushes off immediately. Rin pulls me along with her as she rushes towards a crystal window and black wooden door. Through the window wearing a rich variety of clothes are statues of women and men.
“This is Kappa Kups! Of course there is no way we could afford anything in here, but even just looking in the window is special.” Rin says with a weird look on her face.
“I don’t understand. What is this place?” I ask.
“Hey, don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Kappa Kups!” Rin exclaims.
“Sorry.” I tell her.
“Well, as you can see, Kappa Kups is a clothes store. A very expensive clothes store. The cheapest item costs at least a hundred gold even when it has a huge discount.” Rin says looking wishful.
“So, this is a shop, like in Utopia Camerona?” I ask.
“Well yes, obviously, though you can’t compare anything in this shopping district to the lousy shops in Utopia Camerona. Do you want to go in?”
“If it is that expensive why would we go in?” I ask confused.
“To look! How many people at school can say they have been in Kappa Kups?” Rin asks.
“Umm, I don’t know.” I say.
“Anyway, I’m going in, so you may as well come too.” Rin says and drags me through the door into an alien world. In the end we only visit the one shop. Rin looks a little guilty, but her guilt didn’t stop her from making me try on dozens of outfits that we couldn’t afford even if we both used all our money from every job we have ever done.
We port back to the inn and Rin tries to convince me to go with everyone into the hot spring but I refuse of course. So I am left alone in the room. After all the excitement of the day I actually appreciate the chance to be alone. It is lazy but I lie down even though it isn’t quite dinner time yet. My eyes are closed but I am still very much awake.
To eat breakfast, lunch and dinner is also an extravagance I am not used to. Back at the academy I generally have breakfast and lunch. Sometimes I even have supper but that is just a light snack. This trip is probably the first time I have eaten lunch and dinner in the same day. Back at the temple I of course ate a lot less than I do at the academy.
“Not joining the others in the hot spring, rude girl?” A now familiar voice says.
“Sor.” I say in surprise. Opening my eyes I look at her as I shake my head. “I don’t like the idea of the hot spring.”
“I would have thought it would be ideal for an earth mage.” Sor says raising an eyebrow questioningly.
“I don’t like the idea of being seen without my clothes on.” I admit to Sor.
“Perhaps I should call you shy girl from now on.” Sor says with small laugh.
“Please don’t, and please stop calling me rude girl.”
“So you can talk back. Took you long enough though.” Sor says and I blink at her words.
“So you’re going to stop calling me rude girl?” I ask.
“Nope, rude girl.” Sor says with a laugh. I sigh.
“So, why aren’t you in the hot spring?” I ask. I’m pretty sure that’s where the rest of the class is.
“It’s pretty pointless for me. I hate doing pointless things. At least Emi is able to use it though.” Sor says.
“Is it no good for a dimensional mage?” I ask.
“It’s good for almost all mages. If nothing else it will help replenish your natural mana. It’s no good for me though, because it drains mine at the same rate it replenishes mine.” Sor says.
“I don’t understand.”
“There’s no reason you would, and no reason for me to explain any further. You might want to keep an eye on Emma though. She ported away the moment Rin mentioned the enchantment on that place. Bye, rude girl.” Sor says and ports away before I can say anything.
I don’t understand why Sor told me this. Sor must be talking about lunchtime. The enchantment was only to do with stealing though, so why would Emma port away like that? Can I even trust Sor? Sure she helped me earlier, but I don’t know her anywhere near as well as I know Emma. There is no way the Emma I know would steal anything. Why would Sor lie though? I don’t know her well enough to be sure, but she doesn’t seem like a liar.
I lie here confused. After a while I decide there is no harm keeping an eye on Emma, but that doesn’t mean I believe she has done anything wrong. Time was passing quickly until Sor spoke to me but now every second feels like a minute and every minute like an hour. Eventually everyone returns and we have dinner.
After dinner we spend the time in our room just chatting. I feel a little uncomfortable around Emma and I think she notices. Of course she has no idea why, but it makes me wish that Sor had remained silent.
“What’s wrong, Yu Kii?” Emma eventually asks and everyone’s eyes are on me.
“Nothing.” I tell her.
“If you say so.” Emma says dubiously. “Well, I’m going outside for a breath of fresh air.”
“I’ll join you then.” I say.
“You’re already in your nightwear.” Emma reminds me and sounds even more suspicious now.
“Oh, I forgot. I’ll stay here then.” I say.
“See you.” Emma says and grabs a small bag out of her main bag. I stop myself from asking what is in it.
“I could actually use some fresh air too.” Rin says a
nd jumps up to follow Emma.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but I’d actually like some time to myself.” Emma tells Rin.
“Fine, then show me what you’ve got in the bag.” Rin says looking Emma in the eye.
“Why?” Emma asks.
“Why would you take a bag if all you plan to do is get some fresh air?” Rin asks.
“I was planning on having a drink too, so I needed my money.” Emma says and opens her bag to show Rin. “Satisfied?”
“Sure.” Rin says. Emma leaves and Rin looks me in the eye and asks. “So why are acting like that?”
“Like what?” I ask.
“You clearly suspect Emma of something. Even she can tell that. That’s probably why she left the room just now.”
“I’m not acting like that, am I?” I say turning to Hermes for help, but it is Asuna who speaks.
“Even an idiot could tell you are acting weird around her.” Asuna says.
“So just be honest with us.” Rin tells me firmly.
“Sor said Emma ported away when you mentioned about the enchantment earlier.” I tell Rin. It only takes Rin a moment to realise what I mean.
“At lunchtime?” Rin asks.
“I assume so.” I answer.
“I wish Peter were here. He could tell whether Emma was lying. I trust Emma more than Sor, but it is strange for Emma to get lost. She’s not like you.” Rin says and I blush.
“I’m sorry for getting lost earlier.” I tell Rin.
“Oh I’m not bothered about that.” Rin tells me with a shrug and a smile. “I am bothered by what Sor said. When did you two become friends, anyway?”
“I’m not sure we’re friends. She still calls me rude girl.”
“When did that start, anyway? I can’t imagine you being rude to anyone.” Hermes says.
“She started calling me rude girl after I bumped into her at breakfast today. It’s because I accidentally eavesdropped on her and Emi at the start of the trip.” I explain.
“What were they talking about?” Rin asks.
“I’m sorry, but I really would be being rude if I told you that. It was nothing important though.” I answer.
“Fine, fine…” Rin says with a sigh.
“I’m tired, so do you mind if I have an early night?” I ask.
“Sure, it was a rather busy day. Not as long as our normal day but it did feel tiring. Of course you wouldn’t be so tired if you had relaxed in the hot spring.” Rin tells me with a grin.
“Unless you can find me a private one I’m not going in.” I tell Rin.
“There are private ones but they are really expensive.” Rin says with a sigh. “Why can’t you just relax when it’s only girls?”
“It’s still embarrassing whether it’s girls or boys.” I tell her.
The others settle down for the night too and when Emma returns I manage to get some sleep. The morning seems to arrive too soon. I am still sleepy when we get up. Breakfast refreshes me though. I could get used to eating this much, but I shouldn’t.
We meet at the main entrance after breakfast. Professor Schwarz hands us each a small red stone. It is no bigger than a pebble but is perfectly round. I look at it with my earth sense and can feel a light enchantment but I have no idea what it is meant to do.
“Your task for today is to find the five ancient shrines in the city and touch this stone against them. It will react each time you do so. Once you have completed the task the rest of the day is yours. Have fun everyone.” Professor Schwarz says.
“What’s the point?” Sor asks sounding rather annoyed.
“It is to test your problem solving and elemental senses.” Professor Schwarz answers.
“But all you need to do is read a map and port to each location.” Sor complains.
“You can only port to locations you have already been to. Seeing it on a map wouldn’t be enough to port there.” Professor Schwarz reminds Sor. Sor nods but doesn’t look very happy.
“So does it matter whether we complete the task?” Sor asks.
“Yes, because I’m counting it as an official test. Each shrine is worth twenty percent.” Professor Schwarz tells us.
“Annoying.” Sor says. “Emi, we’re leaving.”
“Yes!” Emi says. Then Sor ports them both without even needing to touch Emi.
“Let’s do this together.” I suggest.
“Of course.” Rin says.
“Sure.” Hermes and Asuna say.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I want to test my skills, so I’m going to do it on my own.” Emma says.
“Oh, ok.” Rin says.
“Well, good luck.” I say trying to be polite. Why do I have to feel suspicious?
“See you all later.” Emma says and ports away.
“Damn, without Emma or Peter none of us have a good sense for the air element.” Rin says and sighs. “Oh well, we’d best get started. I guess we could take Sor’s advice and get a map. We can’t port to them, but it beats wandering randomly just hoping to find the shrines.”
“Where would we get a map?” I ask.
“I bet we could get one in any of the tourist shops or the information exchanges.” Rin suggests.
“So how do we find one of those?” I ask.
“We went past loads yesterday. The tourist shops are annoying and overpriced, but the information exchanges have a sign with a blue circle on a red background. You must have seen some yesterday.” Rin tells me.
“I do vaguely remember seeing some, but not where they were.” I say.
“There’s one just outside the inn.” Hermes tells us.
“I don’t remember seeing one so close.” Rin says looking at Hermes.
“It was just down the first alley to the left as you leave.” Hermes says.
“That’s unusual. They are normally in the main streets and busy city squares.” Rin says with a frown and a shrug.
“So do you want to avoid that one?” Hermes asks.
“No, it saves us walking all the way to the nearest one I can remember seeing.” Rin says. “Well, let’s go.”
So we leave the inn and get to the alley. I am about to walk down it when Rin grabs my arm. I turn and Rin is blushing madly.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“That’s not an information exchange. That’s a red circle and a blue background. That is something entirely different.” Rin says.
“What is it then?” I ask.
“Well, I’d rather not say.” Rin answers and her face is a deep scarlet. I look to Hermes but she shrugs. I then look to Asuna.
“It is a shop that rents out slaves. Male slaves…” Asuna says but even she is blushing. I don’t have to think too hard to understand what the slaves are most likely used for.
Chapter 6 (Multiple)
(Sor)
It took three minutes to find and visit all of the shrines. Three wasted minutes of my life that I will never get back. Oh well, I had expected to waste all day until I heard about the silly little task Professor Schwarz set.
“So what now?” Emi asks as if there was a need.
“Back to the library.” I say and port us back there. We have to queue again, which wastes even more of my life. I hate wasting my life waiting as much as I hate wasting it doing pointless things. At least once we are inside we can spend all day reading. I can that is. Emi will have to guard me whilst I read. That is her job though, so she has no right to complain.
I port us both straight to the ancient section. I quickly find where Death’s Shadow, the book that woman tried to steal should be. It would have been returned by now. There is a gap where it should be. It must have taken them longer than normal to return it. It isn’t like I was that interested in the book.
I look for another book that captures my interest. Ah, that one looks useful. I read it from cover to cover. It is only seven hundred pages but it takes over a minute to read because I take my time. It really was interesting. My next book takes only twenty seconds but that is
twenty seconds wasted that I will never get back. I look up and gasp. Emi is lying on the floor unconscious and a girl is standing in front of me with a huge grin on her face.
“Hello Sor.” She says with a snicker.
“Hello Claire.” I say reading her name tag.
“The ancient section is restricted. You shouldn’t be here.” She says.
“I don’t suppose you should be either.” I say with a frown. She is too young to be assigned here as a worker.
“But I work here.” She says sounding innocent.
“You’re lying.” I tell her.
“Oh, are you like Peter?” She asks. I frown. Is she a student from my class? I didn’t waste any of my life memorising every student in the class. A few were interesting. The rest are a waste of space, and more importantly time. “No, that’s impossible. I always wanted to duel you, so how about we fight here?”
“If you are from my class you should know it is pointless to duel me.” I tell her with a mocking laugh.
“Oh, I’m not from your class. I was in 3E. I’ll even give you first move. So, want to play?” She asks. There is no way anyone in such a low class would challenge me, but I sense danger. More danger than I would imagine possible from another student.
“You’ve been studying here?” I ask.
“I started in the Great Library, but they have a few books here that can’t be found there.” She says.
“Then I’ll have to decline.” I tell her. I then try to port away with Emi. Port blocks, even ones as powerful as in this library, make no difference to me. Port barriers are something else entirely. That’s why I had to queue to get in here. She obviously has a port barrier up, because my port is blocked.
“Oh don’t go running away already. So the great Sor is just a scared little mouse. To think I had to pretend to be weaker than idiots like you.” She says. Silently I curse Emi for getting beaten so easily. I can control dimensional magic with a precision most can only admire, but my attack is pathetic because my magic is so weak.
“What do you really want?” I ask her.
“To kill you.” She says and her grin is even wider than before.
“Sorry, but she is one of us now.” Emma says appearing out of nowhere. She didn’t port so she must have been hiding her presence.