Chapter 23

~~~ Second Chapter ~~~

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"Over there, can you sense it?"

As Fuyuki Rin was about to enter the small path behind the gymnasium, she was suddenly stopped by Levi from behind.

She turned around, puzzled, and saw Levi pointing ahead. But looking in the direction of Levi's finger, she saw nothing but a pitch-black expanse, with no particular anomaly.

"That position... the archery club's practice ground? Is there a problem?"

Rin recalled that the place Levi was pointing to was where the school's archery club usually practiced. However, because the lights were off, only a few windows reflecting the moonlight could be seen.

"That feeling of disharmony caused by the curse marks. No, it's more like it. The intensity is incomparable; the sensation coming from there far exceeds the previous curse marks."

The two were about fifty meters away from the dojo, and with the building's walls blocking the way, it was already beyond Rin's range of perception. Given Levi's earlier ability to easily detect the curse marks, she did not doubt him and focused her attention on the dojo, deep in thought.

"If your feeling is correct, there might be the core of this barrier there. That was my mistake; the previous curse marks were too easy to find, and I almost forgot that destroying the core is more important."

"Core? Can destroying it directly remove the barrier?"

Living in peace for too long, Levi had become lazy, always looking for shortcuts.

"No, although it's called a core, the barrier is fundamentally guided by the Servant's magical energy. As long as the Servant doesn't actively give up or disappear, the barrier will still exist. The core is more like an adjustment device."

After hearing Rin's explanation, Levi felt there was no need to pay special attention to the core. He was about to start looking for other curse marks nearby when his right arm was tightly grabbed by the suddenly excited girl beside him.

"I haven't finished yet! Although it can't eliminate the barrier, this core is a necessary relay station for the Servant to draw magical energy. By judging the flow of magical energy there, we might be able to track down the Servant!"

Eager to implement her brilliant plan, Rin, disregarding her ladylike elegance, pulled on Levi's sleeve and ran back to the main entrance of the gymnasium. Fortunately, she still remembered that she was the student council president of this school and did not choose to break through the walls and glass to enter.

"Key!"

Before Levi could speak, Rin pulled a key out of his shirt pocket. Since it was his idea to lock the gymnasium, he should have at least gotten the key from the staff.

Fortunately, Levi hadn't forgotten the key at home, or he would have been scolded by his students again.

Rin inserted the key into the lock, turned it twice, and then pushed the door open. The creaking of the hinges sounded jarring in the quiet night.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a flashlight, which, for a magical girl, seemed quite out of place. However, Rin had her reasons: minimizing the use of magic could reduce the chances of being discovered.

But to Levi, her explanation was just an excuse to be lazy.

The footsteps of an ordinary human in the spacious and quiet gymnasium could even echo. Unless the Servant was deaf, they would have noticed if they were present.

Levi maliciously thought about which famous legendary figure had a hearing impairment, speculating on the identity of the unknown Servant.

The two entered the gymnasium, their footsteps echoing on the wooden floor as they followed the weak light of the flashlight toward the archery club's location.

They had destroyed quite a few curse marks on the way, and even if the Master who set up the barrier was foolish, they would have noticed the problem by now. So, although it looked like a casual stroll, Levi had already heightened his alertness.

Behind the sports equipment, in the corners where the moonlight couldn't reach, and in every hidden spot, enemies could be lurking. Levi's right hand rested lightly on his waist, where his weapon waited for his call.

Creak.

Using the key, they opened the door to the archery club's practice ground and approached the wall with the strongest magical reaction.

Rin seemed to gently touch it, and immediately, a massive curse mark covering the entire wall appeared.

"Indeed. Such a large setup, that rookie must have spent a lot of effort."

"Can you find the location of the other side?"

Levi gazed at the wall, admiring the intricate and detailed pattern as if it were a work of art.

Ignoring the drawbacks of the barrier, the complex and precise curse mark indeed had a mysterious beauty.

"No, I can't sense anything. It's either too weak or hasn't been activated. What about you?"

Hearing Rin's response, Levi placed his hand on the wall and closed his eyes.

After a while, he shook his head.

"I can only sense the magical energy flowing in from elsewhere. It's probably as you said, temporarily stopped. The current situation is like a storage device."

Rin looked at Levi with a bit of disappointment but then felt relieved. After all, today's plan was just to destroy the barrier, and finding the Master was not part of the original plan.

The Holy Grail War was short, and once the gymnasium's barrier was destroyed, the rookie would become more anxious. At that time, making a big commotion would make it easier to find them.

Rin chanted the spell again. Due to the complexity of the core, which far exceeded the previous curse marks, the destruction process took a bit longer but was still successful.

After destroying the core, the two resumed their search. They didn't stop until they had destroyed all the curse marks inside and outside the entire gymnasium, temporarily eliminating the danger to the students.

"Like this, that Master shouldn't dare to tamper with the school unless absolutely necessary."

Rin looked back at the gymnasium, which had returned to its original state, and said to Levi beside her.

"Of course, with you at the school, who would dare to act recklessly? Afraid of being punished by a violent magical girl?"

Levi immediately took two steps back, to avoid becoming the first victim of the violent magical girl. However, it seemed that the removal of the barrier had improved Rin's mood, and she just glared at him before heading toward the school gate.

"Let's go home, I'm so tired, haa~"

Rin raised her hands and stretched, a gesture that showcased her youthful and beautiful figure. Levi regretted not bringing his phone when he left, as taking a picture of this moment and selling it to the fans of this school idol could have earned him a small fortune.

"Rin, you go home first. I have a friend to meet, and I need to go to White Emperor."

The two were heading in the same general direction, and they should have walked together. But at the school gate, Levi suddenly said he needed to part ways.

"White Emperor? You didn't trick some rich girl, did you?"

White Emperor Academy was the top noble school in the Central District. This integrated elementary, middle, and high school was one of the most prestigious in the area, though it couldn't compare to Academy City or A Certain Scientific Railgun, it still occupied a large portion of the Central District.

Looking to the right front of the school gate, the tallest building visible was the landmark of White Emperor Academy—the clock tower. The top of this tower was also the office of the White Emperor Student Council. As the student council president of the second high school, Rin had visited once for an exchange.

"Hey, don't make me sound like a creepy middle-aged man. I just made an appointment with the White Emperor Student Council President to get this year's exchange materials."

"Why not get the materials directly from me, the student council president?"

Rin's suspicious gaze made Levi feel helpless.

"Please, this is formal school-to-school exchange, so of course, we contact the teachers first. I received a call from the White Emperor Board Chairman, Miss Tennozu, and since she wasn't on the school island, she arranged for their president to meet me."

"Is that so?"

Staring into Levi's eyes for a moment, finding nothing suspicious, Rin believed him.

"Is saying she's not on the school island just an excuse? You must have done something impolite to the chairman before."

"Uh..."

Due to a small misunderstanding in the past, Levi and the White Emperor Board Chairman were somewhat familiar. However, that misunderstanding was indeed not very 'polite'.

"Go if you must, I'm going home. Even if you asked me, I wouldn't want to affect my sleep over this."

Fortunately, Rin didn't continue to investigate. Seeing Levi's embarrassed look, she was already satisfied for the night. Waving goodbye, the girl turned and headed home.

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