Episode 127: Omen
When a once pure and innocent boy had transformed into a lily monster.
At Factom General Academy, Teruue Mizuki, the girl who was farthest from being a pervert, was alone attempting to conquer a dungeon.
Holding her Dive Gear with one hand, which had activated the program “Let’s Be Pals! Dungeon Buddy,” she wandered around.
The Special Zone still resembled a desolate plain, and the school buildings surrounding her, acting as observation posts, shimmered like a mirage in early summer.
“…Can the sun be burned away?”
Mizuki glared at the sun reigning in the center of the blue sky.
The heat was becoming increasingly intense.
Factom General Academy had never possessed the luxury of air conditioners until now, but this year, an excellent mechanic planned to install them in every room.
When Mizuki heard this, she was so moved that she almost burst into tears of joy.
“I hope the air conditioner will be completed today… I remember they mentioned something about reviewing all inventions together.”
Mizuki’s understanding was slightly off.
Currently, what was happening at Factom General Academy was an attempt to recreate the tools from Nameless found within Miuye’s mind.
And preceding the Hinotuchi Cultural Festival, there was a f*tish Expo taking place.
“Eating ice cream in an air-conditioned room. Hmm, is such supreme bliss really allowed to exist!?”
Lost in thoughts of a non-existent future, Mizuki started considering buying enough ice cream for everyone when her Dive Gear suddenly rang out with an emergency alert.
“An urgent rescue request?”
Stopping her steps at the priority rescue request sent to people nearby, Mizuki noted the location wasn’t too far.
It was as if someone had been eagerly awaiting her arrival.
(Is this fate?)
With a faint smile, Mizuki wrapped flames around her legs.
Leaving behind an immense explosion and shockwave, she disappeared from the spot.
■
At the top floor of Ariannrod.
In the room observing the shine of the Dungeon Core, the Director gazed upward alone.
Beautiful Dungeon Cores, glittering like stars.
Each one brought about by destruction.
The Director stared intently, trying to engrave their brilliance into his mind.
Suddenly, a girl appeared beside him.
Soundlessly, shadowlessly, or perhaps without any prior indication of her presence—she might have been there from the start.
The girl, with her silver hair cut short, handed over a smartphone to the Director.
Though cracked at the edges and with some paint peeling off its case, the phone had a cute strap dangling from it.
“There’s a call for you, Master.”
“Ah, thank you, Solfi.”
Solfi bowed her head and stepped back a pace.
Placing the received phone to his ear, the Director opened his mouth with a calm expression.
“Hello, it’s been a while since we last spoke, Radd… ‘I’M SOOOO SORRY!!! DIRECTOR!!’ …Yes, it’s good to hear you’re doing well.”
The loud apology made it feel like several eardrums were shattered.
The Director flinched for a moment but then smiled again, finding the energy refreshing.
“It’s unlike you to start with an apology. Usually, you’d inquire about your juniors first, wouldn’t you?”
“Yes! But right now, it’s a super emergency situation—’Gardener, step back! You can’t fight yourself!'”
Amidst the girl’s voice from the other side came numerous sounds of explosions and shattering noises.
Occasionally, there was a wet sound of something bursting, strangely vivid.
“So, where did we leave off?!”
“I haven’t heard anything yet.”
“Oh, got it! Let me sum it up—yesterday, the professor stole several angels! Because of that, a large number of angels have descended upon the academy, and the report has only come now.”
Just those words were enough for the Director to grasp the situation.
“…I see.”
“We tried stopping him, both me and Gardener, but the professor was impossible, yeah. I killed two hundred myself, but it didn’t make any difference.”
“No, it’s fine. We’ll handle it here. On the contrary, it’s surprising that you managed to k*ll two hundred of that professor.”
“Hmm? Well, if I’m not going to get scolded, that’s great!”
The girl said this cheerfully.
Simultaneously, a sound of something collapsing could be heard from the other side.
But the Director continued the conversation without concern.
“How are things on the disaster front? I thought you contacted me regarding that.”
“No, that side is fine. I’ll reach there without issues. At this speed, it should be… the day after tomorrow?”
“The day after tomorrow…?”
“Huh? Is there a problem? If so, I can quickly take care of it here. Just leave the corpses behind?”
“No, there’s no issue. In fact, if you k*ll them there, it might disrupt the rule of destruction. Please follow the plan. By the way, keep in mind that there will be a territorial war between Kisou Academy and Mikage Academy that day.”
“Huh? They’re fighting?! I wanted to see that!”
The upcoming territorial war.
Apparently, it would be a major turning point in history that would be talked about for years to come.
(This isn’t a coincidence. The professor will likely do something on that day.)
“…Hey, you’re thinking again, aren’t you? Seriously, you shouldn’t do that.”
“Hehe, yes. I was just looking forward to the territorial war.”
“You’re so laid-back… Oh, another angel just arrived. Director, I’ll hang up now. There’s another group of angels storming the academy, so I’ll take care of them quickly. Hey, Gardener, wake up… No, even if you turn into a girl, it’s still not allowed. Actually, seeing you change genders so frequently is scary, so stop it—I said…”
With a lively voice, the call ended.
Looking at the screen indicating the end of the call, the Director turned to Solfi with a warm gaze.
“Should we record the territorial war and send it to her?”
“I’ll arrange it.”
“Thank you. Then, please do.”
Returning the smartphone to Solfi, the Director resumed gazing at the brilliance of the Dungeon Core.
Suddenly, he let out a small sigh.
“I should’ve told her the junior will participate.”
■
The urgent rescue request sent to Teruue Mizuki.
The corresponding area inside the dungeon was surprisingly simple.
“What is this?”
A room surrounded by gray walls.
In the center lay a student who seemed to have made the rescue request.
On the ground, a pool of bl**d formed around the prone girl.
“Are you alright!?”
Mizuki rushed over and immediately enveloped the girl in flames.
At the same moment…
“!??”
The flame-engulfed girl exploded.
White feathers scattered around, accompanied by laughter echoing from somewhere unseen.
Mizuki realized she had been lured in.
“This must be the troublesome fan Kei mentioned.”
There was no one around to contradict her assumption.
Fortunately, Kei had instructed, “If a troublesome fan goes too far, it’s okay to beat them up.”
Mizuki promptly drew her twin pistols and stood still.
After a few seconds of waiting, a corner of the room began to distort, and something flew out.
“Too slow.”
Instantly shooting it down, Mizuki incinerated it.
As if triggered by that, various creatures started flying out from all over the room.
While calmly burning them, Mizuki observed carefully.
(Birds…?)
Indeed, they were birds.
However, something felt off—was it because every individual had some form of defect?
Some birds had twisted legs, others had split beaks, and there were even ones with torn-off wings.
They weren’t merely injured; rather, they seemed deliberately designed to appear distorted. These strange birds kept approaching Mizuki.
Yet, none of them managed to touch her.
“Cunning little things.”
Mizuki muttered, then pulled the trigger towards the floor.
The flames spread across the floor, up the walls, and onto the ceiling, starting to burn the entire dungeon itself.
“Boring. Next time, bring something more entertaining.”
By the time Mizuki declared this, the place had reverted to just a Special Zone.
The magical power constructing the dungeon had dissipated, restoring the surroundings to their original state.
“…Hmm, the person responsible isn’t here.”
Mizuki tilted her head, having expected that burning the dungeon would reveal the perpetrator.
Then she noticed something else.
“Where’s the Dungeon Core? I made sure to leave it intact.”
A Dungeon Core was indispensable for constructing a dungeon.
Typically, it was contained within the dungeon master’s body, though sometimes it existed separately. Regardless, it always left behind some physical trace in the end.
But not this time.
Mizuki had been lured into a trap, encountered eerie-looking monsters, and now the Dungeon Core had vanished.
Clearly, something was amiss.
Staring at the spot where the dungeon gate had previously been, Mizuki pondered deeply.
However, there was insufficient information to deduce anything meaningful.
Just as she was stuck, a notification sound reached her ears.
“Hm?”
Activating her Dive Gear, she saw it was a message from Toa.
Out of curiosity, Mizuki opened the message.
A group photo unfolded before her eyes.
Apparently, it had been taken moments ago.
However, there were two unfamiliar faces.
“Is this the heir of the Jinomiya family that Miroku mentioned?”
Mizuki immediately recognized the boy.
She vaguely remembered Miroku saying that a company representative would visit today.
Looking the boy over appraisingly, Mizuki nodded approvingly.
“For his age, he has quite remarkable eyes.”
Despite his innocence, there was a sense of determination in his gaze that Mizuki appreciated.
She considered offering him training if he desired it, then shifted her attention elsewhere.
There, she spotted a completely unfamiliar beautiful girl.
Dressed in a pure white dress, the girl with black hair.
She wasn’t a meticulously tended flower but rather a humble and pure bloom by the roadside.
In the photograph, she smiled gently from the center, appearing somewhat shy.
“Who is she…?”
Mizuki was perplexed.
She pondered, contemplated, and eventually…
“I guess I’ll buy more ice cream.”
Arriving at the conclusion to increase the amount of ice cream she would purchase, Mizuki dismissed the earlier bizarre occurrences from her mind.
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