The abandoned factory came into view only after night had fully fallen.
It was an old stone building. The outer walls were crumbling. But there was light inside. People. I could sense magical energy, too. Multiple sources.
I expanded my perception.
Five. But—something felt off.
The quality of the presences wasn’t uniform. Four of the five had a similar quality of magical energy. The tense energy of trained humans. But one was different. It was calm. The presence of someone waiting.
Four had the presence of frontline fighters. One had the presence of someone giving orders.
The mastermind is here, I thought.
“There are five or more,” I said. “I’ll go in first.”
“Alone?” Edvard said.
“My perception makes it easier to move. I want you two to wait in the rear, ready to carry Lian. If additional enemies come from outside, deal with them.”
Cyril nodded. “Understood. But if things get dangerous, call out.”
“If I have time to call out.”
“…That would be a problem. Miss Lian would be angry with me.”
“It’s a joke. If it gets dangerous, I’ll call out properly.”
It wasn’t a joke, but I said it anyway.
I avoided the main door. There was a collapsed wall on the east side of the building. I entered from there.
It was dark.
It was a hallway without a single exterior light. The aged stone interior walls were crumbling in places. Rubble was scattered at my feet. I’d make noise if I wasn’t careful walking.
But it didn’t matter to me.
Dark attributes move more easily in dark places.
I expanded my perception. Five presences. Lian’s presence was further in, near the basement. It was weak. But it hadn’t vanished. It was definitely there.
She’s still there. She’s still alive.
Confirming only that, I moved.
I stopped my feet just before a corner in the hallway. Holding my breath, I peered ahead.
There was one person.
Before using magic, I approached from behind, suppressing my presence. I struck the side of their head with the grip of my gun. They fell without a sound.
There were two at the next corner. They were talking.
“Black Mist Haze.”
I deployed a black mist. I limited its range. Just enough to envelop the two. The two, whose vision was completely stolen, stopped moving for a moment. In that opening, I traced their outlines with my perception and fired twice.
I held back the power. Knocking them out was enough.
I dispelled the mist. The two were prone on the ground.
I descended the stairs to the basement.
There was a door at the end of the hallway. One person was stationed in front of it.
We faced each other head-on.
The enemy moved first. They were an ice attribute. Off-season icicles closed in on me. I deployed a defensive spell. They collided with the icicles and canceled each other out. The shattered fragments scattered into mist.
A second volley came.
While deploying and maintaining an interference field, I ran. I closed the distance. Nullifying a third volley with the interference field, I closed in to within gun range.
One shot. It hit the abdomen. The enemy fell silent.
I stood before the door.
A magic circle was inscribed on it. It was a sealing formula. A light-attribute-based structure—I could break it with interference.
I deployed an interference field. I infiltrated the interior of the formula. I broke the starting point.
The lock disengaged.
I opened the door.
Lian was there.
She was sitting in the corner of the room. Manacles that sealed magical power were on her wrists. She looked up.
“Big Sister.”
Her voice wouldn’t come out.
I took a step inside. Lian tried to stand, but her footing was unsteady. I rushed over. I supported her. My hand touched her shoulder. It was warm.
“Are you hurt?”
“No. But the manacles—”
I looked at the manacles. They were a structure I could break with interference. I held my hand over them. I released them.
Lian let out a deep breath.
“Were you scared?”
“I was scared,” Lian said. “But I thought you would come.”
“Of course.”
“I knew Big Sister would come. Absolutely.”
Something stirred deep in my chest. It stirred, but I didn’t have the luxury to deal with that emotion now.
“Can you stand?”
“Yes.”
“Edvard and the others are outside. Hurry—”
I sensed a presence behind me.
I turned around.
There were still presences outside the door. Not just one. Multiple. More than the five I initially counted. There had been people held in reserve further back.
“Come on,” I said to Lian.
I took Lian’s hand. I ran.
I went back down the hallway. I went up the stairs.
My path was blocked partway. Two people. They were people I hadn’t knocked out earlier.
I deployed an interference field. The opponents were trying to deploy a formula. I interfered with the starting point. The formula crumbled before taking shape.
I drew my gun. Two shots. I shot through their legs. The two collapsed.
Pulling Lian’s hand, I ran. I went outside through the collapsed wall.
Edvard and Cyril came running.
“Are you unharmed?”
“I’m fine. Lian too.”
Edvard looked at Lian. He made a relieved face. Cyril said, “Thank goodness.”
“But there are still more inside.”
“The mastermind?” Edvard said.
“I think so.”
“Basis?”
“When I entered, among the five presences, there was one with a completely different quality.”
“…Can you read that much with perception?” Edvard narrowed his eyes slightly.
“Dark attributes read the quality of presences. With practice, you can understand to a certain extent.”
“I see,” Edvard said. “The teachers are on their way. They’ll arrive soon. Shall we wait?”
“We won’t wait. I want to confirm the mastermind. Please take care of Lian.”
I let go of Lian’s hand.
I conveyed it with my eyes to Edvard. Edvard nodded.
“Be careful.”
I returned to the building.
That presence was still in the inner room.
It was calm. It showed no sign of fleeing.
It was waiting.
It knew I was coming and was waiting.
As I ran, I confirmed the quality of that presence once more.