Pendragon's Infinity Gauntlet

Page 195

"If only such a thing existed, meow..."

Of course, no reinforcements came. Within Academy City, only Tsuchimikado, Jōjin, and Tyr were chasing after Oriana and Lidovia; the bald woman who insisted on joining in the fun was not on her radar.

Tsuchimikado looked at the origami amulet he had crumpled.

Amulets and spirit items with names like "Fu Wen Yu Zhang" simply don't exist anywhere in the world, let alone in Onmyodo. Tsuchimikado judged that Oriana was probably unfamiliar with Eastern magic, so she just made a simple origami. Of course, it had no magical meaning, and there was no wooden piece with Kanzaki's name written on it.

("Fu Wen" and "Yu Zhang" originally meant "love letter"... Actually, they're also like tools of curses. Deep love is like a curse, isn't it?)

Tyr had previously said something discouraging, "I have no concept of Japanese style, so I can't do it by myself," but unexpectedly, it came in handy.

In other words, Tsuchimikado gambled on the possibility that "Oriana might not understand the composition of the Yin-Yang Dao incantation," and she simply showed him an origami paper with Chinese characters casually written on it.

but……

(If they believe me, they'll at least make them act cautiously, but they probably won't postpone the plan, meow. If only I could get revenge...)

Tsuchimikado lay on the ground, looking at the shattered underground passage and muttering to himself:

"The magic circle is destroyed, the vocabulary cards are gone, and even my phone is broken. Where do I start to restore it now, meow... To be honest, I can't activate the 'Four Arrays of Reason' anymore."

She tried to get up, but her whole body was filled with intense pain.

She was in so much pain she wanted to roll over, but found she didn't even have that much strength.

My body felt cold and heavy.

Even when inhaling, it is impossible to inhale oxygen smoothly.

"first……"

Tsuchimikado recalled the abilities that existed within him as a member of Academy City.

Lv.0: Incapable of physical regeneration.

That's the part of the blood vessel that's ruptured; it will develop a thin membrane that allows it to heal itself.

"...With this body so badly broken, we really have to think of a way to fix it...?"

-

Haruka Tsuchimikado finally called. At first, Tyr looked at the phone screen suspiciously because the number was different. It seemed she was calling from a new phone.

After listening to Tsuchimikado's phone call, she realized she had indeed been attacked by Oriana. As a result, her phone and the reverse detection spell "Reasoning Four Formations" were destroyed. Her current physical condition prevents her from using magic twice in a row, and most importantly, the Oriana word card required for "Reasoning Four Formations" has been destroyed.

"..."

Although Tsuchimikado said "I'm fine," if she really was fine, the magic circle wouldn't have been destroyed so thoroughly, and just by hearing Tsuchimikado's weak voice, one could feel her pain.

Tyr, waving the cigarette from his lips, said:

"So, what should we do next? If we can't use the 'Four Formations of Reason' to explore, we'll basically have no clue what to do."

"This meow... But, I only know one thing... Oriana will probably be very careful now, trying to dispel any doubts in his heart. It's very likely that 'anyway' will keep its distance from us. The bluffing tactic... seems to be working a bit, meow. In that case, he probably won't walk. I think he'll probably take a fixed-route automated bus, subway, tram, monorail loop line, or something like that... a means of transportation that can take him all the way to his destination in one go..."

Her breathing was shallow, and her voice was somewhat intermittent.

"Tsuchimikado is currently in this underground passage..."

Jingshen opened the guidebook for the Daihasei Festival.

That's a map of the Fifth School District. The closest underground passage to Tsuchimikado is the subway. You have to take the route from the Fifth School District to the neighboring Seventh School District.

"...Since there are no other clues, we have no choice but to investigate this. If we could know exactly which train Orianna took, we could explore in a better way..."

Chapter 349 Unexpected Event

Chapter 349

"That's the trouble we're in. Anyway, let's go, Tyr."

"Meow... I'll sneak back into the guard area and take another look... If they're too anxious to check the surveillance footage... that would be great, meow."

After the three finished speaking, the call ended. Fang Cun couldn't get a word in edgewise, so he asked Tyr for a few coins and went to the vending machine to buy a can of tomato juice.

Following the finest clues, the pursuit begins anew.

-

Oriana Townsend is on a subway train.

(If you get off this train...)

This route runs from the subway near the entrance to School District 5 to School District 7. The distance isn't long. However, to save time, it's necessary to transfer to an automated bus afterwards.

(Should we flee to a distant place? Or continue to observe the situation? Or set a trap to determine the reaction?)

Oriana had several plans in mind. Although it was troublesome, if Kanzaki Mizuki really joined the war, he might encounter a strong counterattack if he was not careful.

(Until a solution emerges, I really hope there will be a place and time where I can think things through properly.)

Looking out the window at the unchanged underground landscape, Oriana clicked her tongue slightly. Then, they finally arrived at the train's final stop, the entrance to the Seventh School District.

As the automatic doors opened, he rushed off the platform. He climbed the stairs leading to the ground, slid his ticket into the automatic ticket gate, and ran out of the station in one breath.

The next destination is the automated bus stop, which is a bit far from here.

Academy City was still filled with the atmosphere of the sports meet, and there were many people around. Families with balloons and elderly couples coming to see their grandchildren all wore harmless expressions. But Oriana's mind was not at ease; she couldn't be sure she was safe just by looking at them.

To confirm whether there is an assassin, a specific order must be followed.

(Well, there's no need to worry too much about guys who get fooled by that. But this is really troublesome; I really want it to end soon.)

Oriana looked around and walked into a side path that was a bit far from the main road. Because it was a combination of tall buildings and narrow roads, although the weather outside was very sunny, the sunlight couldn't get in at all, and the air even felt a bit cold.

Oriana's current plan is to first enter the deserted road to find out how the assassin is pursuing him.

Of course, if the assassin immediately followed Oriana into the alley, it would be tantamount to immediately announcing their presence. Therefore, the assassin also needed to prepare. For example, they might contact multiple companions to ambush at the alley's exit, or release talismans with surveillance effects. Oriana wanted to look for any subtle "signals of movement" from the assassins to confirm whether anyone was following them.

(Well, basically it's all about mutual deception, but if my methods are exposed, I'll have to come up with new ones, which is just too much trouble, isn't it?)

Like Orianna, the assassins might also be planning to send a false "signal." Their aim is to catch Orianna when he's off guard and becomes careless. As a deliveryman in the magical world, Orianna is constantly engaged in pursuit and being pursued—a familiar and natural response.

No matter how small the action, as long as there is any reaction, someone will be tracking it.

Oriana let out a sigh of relief...

(Preparing for the "Apostle's Cross" will take some time. What should I do? Hmm, it's more interesting to consider the spell to use against Kanzaki. Next, in this situation, what does "winning" against that saint mean? Does it mean definitely escaping, definitely hiding... or directly and definitely burying the opponent?)

While pondering, Oriana overlooked something.

On this path, there are even smaller forks.

At the same time, someone suddenly emerged from that side road.

"Himegami, if we don't take a shortcut, we'll miss the next match—ah!!"

"!"

The two sides collided head-on.

The petite boy, who looked like an elementary school student, bumped into Oriana's stomach and then jumped backward, bumping the back of his head into the black-haired boy in a sports uniform who was with him.

Oriana was about to tear off the word card, but she held back. The boy who bumped into Oriana's waist was about 135 centimeters tall and was wearing a cheerleader uniform.

The black-haired boy, jolted from bumping into the boy in the cheerleader uniform, dropped the plastic cup of juice he was holding. With a small "whoa!" it fell onto his clothes with a thud, soaking his chest and splashing directly onto the small boy's head.

"Teacher Xiaomeng, you really know how to cause trouble."

"I'm so sorry! But I'm soaking wet too! Oh, sir, are you alright?"

The boy in the soaking wet cheerleading uniform looked up at Oriana and asked with some concern.

(The mage's pursuers... that can't be it, right?)

Oriana made a simple prediction based on the boys' clothes and movements.

Oriana gave his usual smile.

"Oh, I'm fine. I was more worried about you. Walking right on the main road like this must have been a bit thrilling."

"Ah! Himekami is completely soaked and transparent."

"Teacher Xiaomeng is the same. Around her chest..."

The boy in the cheerleading uniform hurriedly covered his flat chest with both hands. Seeing his face turn completely red, the black-haired boy looked at his chest again.

At this moment, Oriana discovered it.

The black-haired boy's chest.

The short-sleeved T-shirt, now completely transparent after being splashed with juice, revealed the boy's fair and delicate skin at a glance.

However, that's not what he cares about.

Inside the gym uniform, something else was visible. A thin chain, resembling a necklace, hung from the neck. The chain disappeared inside the uniform. At the bottom of the chain was a very large object made of silver…

—A Colt cross modified by the Anglican Church.

Oriana had no idea what the purpose of the cross was.

He didn't know what abilities the black-haired boy possessed.

Under these circumstances, he only knew one thing.

(A magician from Britain!?)

Within Academy City, there are probably also shops selling cross-shaped decorations. Some children even wear cross-shaped earrings and necklaces without understanding the meaning of the cross. So, the cross itself isn't unusual.

but……

The world-renowned Roman Catholic Church is unsurprising, but the Anglican cross, which doesn't even exist in Japan, is a different story. The fact that it was specifically imported from England is unusual, especially since it's impossible for an ordinary person to possess a spiritual garment with some kind of protective barrier function. Moreover, the name of that barrier is—

(The British count's... "Church of Action"!? He actually possesses the same kind of spirit armor used by the sanctuary of that Index book banning books, this monster—!!)

Chapter 350 Unexpected

Chapter 350

Oriana's hand moved immediately.

He brought the word cards, pierced by thin metal rings, to his mouth. Oriana bit down on one of the cards and then tore it off in one swift motion. The words "SoilSymbol" appeared in red writing on the surface of the card, and the magic generated by the unstable grimoire "Original Text" immediately activated.

"boom!!"

The dull sound suddenly exploded.

-

Fangcun and the other two walked out of the subway station onto the ground.

The bustling streets showed no signs of the summer heat fading. Jingshen wiped the sweat from his brow and quickly glanced at the guidebook for the Daihasei Festival.

"...The nearest transfer station from here is the automated bus stop, which is located 300 meters to the north."

"Three hundred meters...?"

Tyr took out a cigarette and said bitterly.

"The next bus won't be here for about ten minutes! If you go now, you should still make it in time!"

As Jing Shen and the others spoke, they plunged back into the crowd and began moving. The time difference between them and Oriana was about seven minutes, making the situation extremely urgent.

"If possible, we should at least capture Oriana. Right now, we have absolutely no leads on Lidovia Lorenzetti!"

Tyr pierced through the air, staring straight ahead.

Although the main road stretched to the left and right 300 meters ahead, the view was blocked by the mixed residential buildings.

Beside the zebra crossing, the pedestrian traffic light was flashing on and off. Jing Shen and Tyr crossed the road in one breath to the other side.

There were even more people on the trails here than before.

The area, with its densely packed apartment buildings, resembles a giant wall. To reach the bus stop, one must take a long detour unless navigating the narrow paths between the buildings.

Jing Shen and the others searched for a small path to enter the area while running along the crowded trails.

"You said there are no clues, is it really nothing!? Just now in the park, weren't you talking on the phone with someone!"

The Pure One and Tyr passed by the old woman walking in the middle of the path, one on each side.

"Ah. That's a call from London! I asked someone to look up some information at the British Library..."

Looking around, there was no sign of the path. The actual distance was likely much longer than the straight-line distance. I wish Orianna were in the same predicament.