Take care of yourself. And don't worry about us; we'll meet you at the institute.
He uses his right eye, and a large magic spell forms, from which a bike comes out
. he says to Irina, I'll be leaving then and Irina smiles at him
I didn't expect Ryuji to have a bike with him; only high-ranking nobles have those kinds of vehicles. A sound comes from behind and brings her out of her thoughts. She turns to see Lilith standing there, looking at her, breathing heavily.
"When did you come?" Irina asks her even though she sensed someone coming long before. Lilith is wearing a white shirt, a short black cloak with a green tie, and a black skirt.
You are ready to go. Yes, I came here to see Ryuji off. Irina says, We are ready, so let's go. He. She murmurs, "He didn't even wait for me. But Irina heard it due to her sharp senses, and she asked Lilith.
Did you want to talk to him about something? No, what would I need to talk to him about? Irina teases her, saying, Oh? But your face is saying yes. Lilith's face blushed and turned all red; she tried her best to hide her embarrassment and asked,
Is she ready? who. She speaks awkwardly. You two have that fox girl. Oh, her. Lilith says, Do not take offence. I didn't mean to call her that, but I didn't know her name. So, can you tell me? I don't know either; this statement surprises Lilith. so much that she mumbles in response, you guys are travelling together, but you don't even know her name. listen, don't behave like that; it's her mistake; she doesn't remember her name.
So you should give her one; it'll be easier to communicate with her. Yeah, we thought the same, too. Ryuji told me to think of one until he arrived. Okay, then I'll help you find one, and we should call her. Yuki and Ryuji—we call him Ryu in front of others. we should leave too, or we will be late for your entry time
Why does Ryuji have to change his name outside? she thinks about it, but doesn't ask. Irina meanwhile Irina wakes Yuki up. Hey, get up, we're heading out. where to the Institute of Aethelgard.
she opens her blurry, bright eyes, looks around, and asks. Where's that guy? He left for something. What do you mean by 'he left'? She speaks. Then who is going to take us there? I'm capable of protecting all of us. Lilith gasps in shock. are you really that strong? Irina replies with pride. you can say Ryuji and I are almost equal in strength and magic
Yuki cuts her off with a retort. I have never seen you fight. Irina replies Do you believe i won't show you how strong I am? Yuki stands up, everyone goes silent, and the tension increases between them. Lilith tries to smooth things over. Yuki fell to her knees and started begging. Please teach me to fight. I want to be strong, not to be looked down upon by others. Irina speaks in a gentle and reassuring tone. First, you should change how you behave; no one is looking down on you.
Yuki asks. What should I do? Can you help me become stronger? you can think of me as a friend and don't take his words to heart. He's not a bad person. He just doesn't trust strangers. Lilith asks her he doesn't trust me either. That's something only he knows. After hearing what Irina said, Lilith stands up with determination
If you guys are done, we should leave. we are getting late.
It will take me about 3 days if I go to the labyrinth and return to the city to leave for Aethelgard the same day
After traveling far away from the city, he puts his bike back in his space after looking around to check that there's no one around. He warps a gate to the labyrinth. I can't control this right eye properly, but I should be somewhere near the labyrinth. He steps into the black warped hole. After passing the gate, wind hits him, and he notices he is in the sky, not on land, falling. he panics and his body tenses, he tries his best to stay calm. I need to do something, or at the least, I would break bones if I touch the ground falling from such a height. I need to release fire at the right moment, or it might not be able to cancel the impact.
I'm not using this messed-up power even if it looks cool, I need to learn this thing, and I can make a perfect entry from nowhere. let's go in, then I at least survived. I'll ask Elara for some tips on using my right eye
Meanwhile, a group of bandits blocks the road in front of Lilith's carriage and attacks Lilith's carriage. Irina activates a defensive attack spell around the carriage, and everyone of them gets struck with lightning as they get near it.
hey boss it's only two girls and a beast girl. hey, stop talking and get to work. These girls are going to fetch a good price from slave traders.
the better their condition, the better the price they will go for. are these your decisions to make? All the other bandits tremble in fear when the rough sound of a man comes from the carriage standing on the left of the road
Hey now, aren't you guys a bit too early to decide what to do with us before you even touch us or are you just too afraid to come near? Lilith says to Irina, We should leave, this is the thing I was afraid of.
Irina responds in a chilling demeanor, and a chill goes down the spines of both Lilith and Yuki
Irina says to Yuki You look how to fight, ok
Lilith says We don't have to confront them, do we
Of course we do. Do they think they can go without getting hurt after blocking our path?
the old man with a mustache and beard gets off the carriage and says if you give us your belongings, we will let all of you go. we magicians don't have to fight for some money, do we? The other bandits start talking to themselves, they have a magician
Irina jumps out of the carriage, and the surroundings start getting hotter. she lifts her hand high in the sky in front of the bandits and releases a cluster of flames, which burns every single one of them.
the old man uses a talisman to create a shield to protect himself.
"Huh," you want to get straight to business.
Old man says Listen, if you leave half of your money, I won't hurt you kids. irina replies, and if we don't, then I will have to fight you. you know what?
I am considered a good magician and a skilled swordsman. you should keep in mind I have fought more battles than you, kid. I am more experienced than you are.
some nobles would rather die than give some money to us, and in the end, we get everything
Old man, your luck is bad; you met me today. aren't you a bit overconfident, kid? Even if I can't kill you, I can still injure you to the point that it won't be that easy for you all to go to the magic institute. Lilith asks him How do you know we are going to the Magic Institute. did someone send you to stop us? Don't think much about it, kid. ever year, many carriages go through here to the institute. Irina cuts them both. Are you getting aside, or do I make you
Are you sure about that? You are overestimating yourself and underestimating me, kid.
we will know about that.
AT THE MAIN GATE OF THE LUMAR CITY
Amanazawa: ok, so everyone is here. are we the 23 students that got selected in the Aethelgard Institute of Magic?
Shizu: Wait a bit. Seiko also got accepted. So he is coming too
Shiragaki: Who is that guy? he looks familiar.
shizu replies to her, he is Seiko. everyone starts mumbling in surprise; he can't be Seiko.
shizu asks Seiko with a cheerful smile and greets him happily. Your hard work paid off
Shinbae says to Seiko You have changed a lot in just one year. Seiko responds in a harsh and irritated tone. I haven't changed; this is just how I look after some training
Rather than you living like nothing happened at all
Amanazawa: Hey, you two, no need to fight. Over the past, we can't change it now
Shiragaki: What happened? Why train so much?
train for what? to go back to the labyrinth to find Ryuji. .it's my responsibility to save Ryuji, cause if it wasn't for me, Ryuji wouldn't have been left behind that day.
Shiragaki: I am coming with you, too. it's my responsibility too, as his friend.
Shiragaki, you don't have to worry about finding Ryuji; I will find him. It doesn't matter what it takes for me to find him
Amanazawa: I understand your emotions; you two were closest to him, so there's no need for you two to get sad. Because I am coming with you two. even if we were not that close, I won't leave a classmate like that. I have been training hard for the same thing
Shinbae: What do you mean by going back? There's no way anyone is surviving that labyrinth alone; he is dead. Stop making delusions
Every single person standing on the main gate entrance of Lumar City glares at him with scornful gazes
Amanazawa says in anger to Shinbae If you can't respect someone's action of self-sacrifice for our sake, then you better shut your mouth.
other students from the same class as Ryuji come to greet every selected person.
A student among them says, if you guys get selected for the competition between Aethelgard and Verdentia, we will be waiting for you for a proper battle.
two girls from the group come to Shiragaki and hug her. They say to keep herself safe and take care of herself until they meet again
Shizu, you won't have a guard with you coming. no, my father was angry for leaving Ryuji behind, so I am on my own.
but why didn't he come to even meet you when you were leaving for a long time? no, he is not in good shape from the time when we left Ryuji
oh yeah, your dad was close to him.
he has changed a lot in just one year.
. Who is this girl with you, Shigaraki? She is my guard and friend; her name is Cassia
Shizu says to everyone we are getting late; we should start organizing ourselves.
meanwhile, Irina raises her hand high in the sky in front of the old man, and he creates a defensive shield around him in response. Irina says to him You really don't have experience, you know. Believe me. you can't even protect yourself with the most basic attack in magic.
he replies Stop talking and just attack already. Irina says sometimes looks are often deceiving, and an ice spike pierces him from below to his head and tears him in half.
Yuki starts laughing. I knew you would win. irina looks at her and smiles, You're ready to spend some good time with me. Wait, why are you smiling like that? it's giving me chills. What are you talking about? I'm just happy to spend time with my friend, but that smile looks like a devil's grin
Lilith says How can you say something like that to someone who just saved your life
Lilith, you are going to take her side, too
Lilith and Irina smile, looking at her. She stops crying and says we should leave or we will be late
hey, get in the carriage; we are already getting late. if we go straight to the Institute by sleeping one by one, two people stay awake to see that we are going safely, and one person should sleep in turns.