Labyrinth of the Blue Witch (16 page)

But breaching the prison barrier surely meant simultaneously letting loose other legendary criminals as well. It was virtually certain the Demon Sanctuary would become a battleground.

It was an ideal circumstance for Vattler, who craved fighting powerful opponents. Yuuma was simply asking Vattler to let it happen. Vattler also took a liking to the sheer insolence of her conduct.

Yuuma raised her pleasantly smiling face and took Grimoire No. 539, which had fallen to her feet, into her hands.

“With the vast magical power of the Fourth Primogenitor and my specialized skills as a witch, even the impregnable prison barrier shall fall. I trust that Your Excellency shall not be bored even if this proves not to be the case.”

The grimoire, having returned to the hands of its proper master, emitted a glow as the magical power of the Fourth Primogenitor poured into it.

Vattler smiled as he looked on, ferociously baring his fangs.

Around that time, Kojou and the others were at a café in a shopping district on the west side.

The time was just after midday. The district, full of a festive atmosphere, was brimming with stalls and food carts, with the streets jammed with costume-wearing tourists.

Up on a stage, a Mr. Pretty Girl contest with cross-dressing teenage boys was apparently being held, broadcast live on the side of a building that served as a giant LED screen.
Man, if I entered right now I’d win by a mile
, thought Kojou ruefully.

“This pumpkin pudding is quite tasty,” Yukina remarked.

“I had some of that earlier. The pumpkin pie here is pretty good, too,” Kanon replied. Yukina and Kanon, sitting at the same table, were divvying up the sweets served in a heap atop a large plate. If four people ordered, you had ninety minutes to have all the cake you could eat. Seeing both cosplay-wearing girls eat their sugary food with uncharacteristic vigor tempted him to smile.

“Would you like some more, Fourth Primogenitor?” Astarte asked Kojou.

“Yeah…thanks.”

Kojou made a melancholic sigh as Astarte went to get black tea from the drinks bar.

“I suggest we add more sweets. Three more orders are necessary before the cake buffet price ceases to exceed the cost of ordering separately at this store’s normal prices.”

“R-right. In that case, let’s get some chiffon cake and some scones… Hey!”

Kojou’s voice turned hoarse as he pounded the table out of the blue. Yukina and the others stopped eating in surprise and lifted their faces. Only Astarte continued drinking her black tea at her own pace, her expression unchanged.

“Why are we chilling out having a cake buffet in a place like this?! We still don’t have a clue what Yuuma stole my body for!”

“T-true. But the other stores were all full…,” Kanon pointed out.

“Supplemental. According to an investigation by the Saikai Academy newspaper club, thirty-seven out of forty-two respondents reported they were satisfied with this store’s cake buffet, a highly positive ranking.”

“Hey, I never said I was complaining about the taste of the food here…!”

Kojou, still inside Yuuma’s body, clutched his head and groaned. Yukina slid a new offering of cake before him.

“For the moment, please eat this and calm down.”

“Dahh!”

The desperate Kojou grabbed the cake and wolfed it down in one gulp.

Even that very moment, Yuuma was using Kojou’s body to prepare for some kind of conspiracy. The increase in the frequency of spatial anomalies in the Itogami Island region was proof enough. They still had no idea where Nagisa was, nor did they have any word from Natsuki. It wasn’t the sort of situation that fostered calmness.

Despite that, Yukina spoke in a composed tone of voice.

“Even if we went searching for Yuuma, we don’t have any leads. Besides, if the spatial distortions grow even larger, hasty movements are far too dangerous.”

“Ugh,” went Kojou, at a loss for words. Yukina’s logic was compelling.

Setting aside Astarte the homunculus, Yukina, a Sword Shaman, and Kanon, carrying the blood of the Aldegian royal family, were both powerful spirit mediums. Both were beings who attracted the spatial distortions. With the inside of Itogami City turned into a labyrinth, recklessly moving around was dangerous.

Indeed, Kanon had already caught Kojou in a spatial distortion leading to the bath at the Himeragi residence. There was no guarantee it wouldn’t happen again. Of course, it was also possible Kojou’s own magical power had been at fault there, but that wasn’t the point.

“Besides…I already have a way to break Yuuma’s spell, actually.”

“Huh?”

Yukina’s sudden confession left Kojou at a bit of a loss.
If you had a convenient way like that, why’d you keep quiet ’bout it till now
, he pondered…and then he saw it.

Yukina’s gaze had shifted onto the silver spear standing beside her.

“Snowdrift Wolf, huh…?”

“Yes,” Yukina said with a small nod.

Her spear could negate magical energy, indiscriminately annihilating any spell or ritual. No matter how powerful Yuuma’s spatial control, so long as it was maintained via a spell, Yukina could no doubt wreck it with one blow. As a result, Kojou’s and Yuuma’s minds would return to their own physical bodies. Apparently, Yukina had realized that and had opted for chilling out with all-you-can-eat cake instead.

“However, a forced end to such a high-intensity spatial control ritual would result in a proportionate backlash to the caster. Irrevocable nervous system damage could well be inflicted.”

Kojou looked back at Yukina with a shudder as her frightening words sunk in.

“Huh?”

One stab to Yuuma’s body from Snowdrift Wolf would stop Yuuma here and now. But that apparently meant frying Yuuma’s entire nervous system in the process.

Even if Yuuma was a witch, her body was still that of an ordinary girl. She didn’t have a vampire’s regenerative abilities like Kojou did. If she took that much damage, it was pretty much certain she’d die in the process. Even if she did survive, she probably wouldn’t wake up again, ever.

“W-well, of course we can’t do that!”

Yukina watched the indignant Kojou as she spoke.

“Yes. It is a method I wish to avoid if at all possible. If I cannot employ Snowdrift Wolf no matter what, the only option is to target your body with her still inside, senpai. After all, even if you die for a little while you will revive, so that would minimize the backlash to Yuuma’s body.”

“Hey, wait. Isn’t that predicated on my going through pain enough to kill a guy when I get back to my own body?!”

Kojou complained while putting his chin in his palms. He didn’t even want to imagine the pain of having his entire nervous system ripped apart, but it couldn’t be helped if they had no other options.

They were waiting for Yuuma to use Kojou’s body to create an incident.

When they noticed the incident, they’d rush to the scene. Then Yukina would stab Kojou’s body.

It was slipshod and unreliable as plans went, but it was equally true that they didn’t have any better ideas. Apparently, eating cake, waiting, and hoping was the best they could do at the moment.

Yukina haltingly murmured, seemingly in an effort to comfort the sullen Kojou.

“Um, this is just my feeling, but I don’t think Yuuma will use your body in a destructive manner. After all, Yuuma trusts you, as shown by her leaving her body in your hands.”

Kojou made a small, pained smile at Yukina’s clumsy attempt to console him.

“…Suppose so.”
Her intuition probably ain’t wrong
, he thought.

Kojou didn’t know
why
Yuuma had stolen his body. Even so, surely Yuuma had no intention of hurting him. It was a baseless assumption, but even now, Kojou trusted Yuuma at least that much. She was, after all, his friend.

Kanon, silently listening to the conversation at that point, watched the side of Kojou’s face as she spoke.

“I don’t really know the circumstances, but I’d like you to return to your normal self…”

As if somewhat bashful, she lowered her eyes and added in a small voice…

“Yuuma is very good-looking, but to me, you are…you.”

“Kanase…”

A warm and mushy feeling rose in Kojou bit by bit, making him almost shed tears. Even if this body was his good friend’s, being separate from his own definitely made him nervous. But Kojou had people who were waiting for him to get back to his own body. That alone came as a great relief.

The little homunculus girl spoke, her face hidden under the pumpkin mask.

“I concur.”

“Astarte…?”

“Although it is objectively irrational, after undertaking a comparative analysis I have determined I subjectively desire that the Fourth Primogenitor return to his original body.”

“Th-that so…”

That
seemed
to mean that even though Yuuma’s physical attributes were higher, Astarte
personally
wanted Kojou to go back to his old self. Kojou didn’t feel all that complimented, but by Astarte’s standards, this was her expressing goodwill with all the strength she could muster.

His mood having somehow improved, Kojou looked beside him toward Yukina. He was a little anxious over what she might think about that part.

Sensing Kojou’s expectant gaze, Yukina became a bit flustered.

“Huh? Wh-what?! I am merely a watcher… I will fulfill my duty no matter what you look like, senpai…”

Kojou made a strained smile at Yukina’s honor student reply.

“…Figured.” He decided he ought to be quite grateful her behavior toward him hadn’t changed along with his appearance.

Kanon suddenly looked at Kojou with a sharp gaze.

“Akatsuki…setting that aside…”

It was a rare stern look for her.

“You should not rest on your elbows during mealtime.”

Kojou, still slovenly resting his chin on top of his palms, straightened his back in response to Kanon’s scolding.

“Huh? Ah, er, right.”

“And you should not spread your legs when you sit.”

Thrown off by Kanon’s unexpectedly strict guidance, Kojou did as he was told and corrected his posture.

“Th-that so. Sorry.”

Kanon had been raised at an abbey when she was younger. No doubt that accounted for her strict upbringing.

Until now he’d never given the matter much thought, but Kanon and Yukina both had proper posture.
Girls have it tough, being judged by appearance so much
, thought Kojou as if it didn’t concern him.

It was the next moment that he learned that his thoughts were still quite naive.

Astarte spoke up, producing a mirror and brush from under her coat as if by magic.

“Supplemental. I advise that hair maintenance and grooming is necessary.”

“Uhh?” At the same time, Yukina raised an “Ah!” and reached toward the side of Kojou’s face.

“You didn’t put sunblock on, did you? You mustn’t let such pretty skin go to waste!”

“Please use this. It’s my makeup pouch.”

“Eh, wait a… What are you guys doing…?!”

Astarte and Yukina firmly grabbed both Kojou’s arms and marched him off. They were heading for one of the shop’s washroom. Kojou fell into a panic when he realized the wallpaper was pink.

“Hold on! This is the ladies’ washroom?!”

“It cannot be helped. Do you intend to go into the men’s washroom looking like Yuuma?”

“Well, no, but… Ehh…?!”

The ladies’ washroom was packed full of female customers touching up their makeup after their meals. Seeing a row of pretty ladies busily putting on lipstick and mascara was, truth be told, not something he really wanted to see.

Furthermore, a bunch of them were trading info about the impressions they’d gotten from their dates like they were hammering out plans for a matchmaking party. The exceedingly frank ratings they dished out made even Kojou feel bad, and he had nothing to do with it. He felt like if he stayed in that place any longer, he’d never be able to recover.

“…Incidentally, what should I do if I have to go use the john in this body?”

Kojou muttered, suddenly concerned about the matter.
That’s actually a serious problem
, he thought. Of course, Kojou had no idea how girls went to the toilet. At that point, Yukina shot Kojou a sharp glare. “You must not.”

“Y-you can say that all you want, but it’s biological necessity; I don’t have any say in…”

“You absolutely must not!”

“Huh…?!” Kojou was a bit despondent at Yukina’s unexpectedly emphatic declaration. Apparently, he had to get his own body back before
this
body developed the urge to pee. Apparently, Kojou’s time was running out…one way or another.

Perhaps it really wasn’t time to casually sit back and wait for Yuuma to kick up trouble.
If she’s gonna pull something, how ’bout sooner rather than later
, Kojou selfishly thought. Then…

As if granting his wish, a low impact shook the Gigafloat’s surface with a large
thump
. Even inside of Yuuma’s body, Kojou recognized it as a powerful surge of demonic energy.

“What’s this feeling?!”

Yukina was the first to react.

“It’s coming from Keystone Gate!”

Pulling her silver spear along, she rushed out of the store; Kojou hurried after her.

Everyone in the streets looked up at the sky in surprise, eyes wide.

The building at the center of Itogami Island was shaped like an inverted pyramid. On the roof of the building, the tallest on the island, something was wriggling. It was dozens of meters long, with mottled, creepy-looking tentacles.

“Himeragi! That’s…?!”

“Devilkin! A ‘Guardian’ for a witch!”

“Something like a familiar, then…! But that magic energy’s…?!”

The overwhelming sense of pressure he felt from Keystone Gate was not being given off by the Guardian.

In that place was a being with incredible demonic energy, even greater than that of the giant familiar. In one sense, the ominous surge was one Kojou dearly missed…

“Yes, that surge is senpai’s… The Fourth Primogenitor’s demonic energy.”

“Yuuma, then!”

Having confirmed her whereabouts, Kojou started running.

Keystone Gate was the core of the Demon Sanctuary. It was also the very first place Yuuma had visited upon her arrival on the island. In hindsight, Kojou felt that Yuuma choosing it as the site for a magical ritual was quite natural.

But.

“…?!”

As if to keep Kojou from reaching his destination, people he’d never seen before blocked his path.

They were men wrapped in black robes as if they were Grim Reapers. He estimated they numbered around ten, minimum. Their faces bore no hostility; nor did they carry anything one could fairly call weapons. However, Kojou certainly felt that they were trying to keep him from approaching Keystone Gate.

“Senpai, please stand back!”

Yukina readied her spear and moved out in front. No doubt she thought that now, with people in disguise all over the city, even using Snowdrift Wolf where people could see wouldn’t stand out much.

“What’s with these guys…?!”

“I do not know. But I believe their likely purpose is to delay us.”

“Pals of Yuuma, then… Been watching us the whole time, huh?”

Kojou ground his teeth at his own obtuseness. If he’d thought about it clearly, he would’ve anticipated Yuuma would have had Kojou’s movements monitored. Of course, she’d be on guard for Kojou trying to take his body back, interfering with her own plan in the process.

“Astarte, take care of Kanase!”

“Accept.”

Kojou instructed the homunculus girl to protect Kanon as she stood there, defenseless. Astarte nodded and summoned her own Beast Vassal. Wings emerged from her back and transformed into a pair of giant arms.

For whatever reason, the people watching all around them raised an “Ohh!” of admiration. People broke into applause one after another.

“Looks like they think it’s an attraction for the festival!”

“Th-that is ideal to prevent a disturbance… But the crowd…!”

Yukina and Kojou looked at each other’s face, both at a loss.

At some point, the tourists on the street had opened up a roughly ten-meter radius gap; the black-robed group now surrounded Kojou and the others. Apparently they’d mistaken this for some kind of Hollow Eve Festival street performance. Well, with an openly villainous-looking group set to battle a group of beautiful costumed girls, they couldn’t exactly be faulted for thinking that.

But thanks to that, Kojou and the others no longer had anywhere to run.

If it was one-on-one combat, there was no doubt Yukina would clean up, but this time there were simply too many foes. Surrounded by this many people, Astarte couldn’t unleash the full might of her overpowered Beast Vassal, either. Having to cover Kanon and the current Kojou, neither capable of fighting, was simply too great a burden on the other girls. Furthermore, Yuuma would be completing her magical ritual during the time Kojou and the others were delayed.

Realizing they were completely hemmed in, Kojou clenched his teeth in anguish. The next moment…

“Wha…?!”

A “hoaaaaa,” like the shriek of a monstrous bird, echoed in parallel with a dull impact sound, blowing one of the black-robed men flying back with great force.

When Kojou and the others looked back in shock, they saw a young girl with her red hair in a double bun, long braid style, wearing a China dress. The girl unleashed another waist-level kick, causing another black-robed man to go down in agony. Saikai Academy’s middle school physical education teacher, Misaki Sasasaki, asked in a casual tone…