Episode 67. Old Friend

TAK TAK TAK TAK!

The sound of my footsteps echoes swiftly along the pavement in front of the school.

This is really strange; why would they kidnap people who have nothing to do with this? Are they using hostages to coerce Putri Tyas to surrender? Well, that doesn't make sense. Killing isn't an option, so even taking hostages wouldn't serve any purpose. Putri Tyas would rather leave them (hostages) behind than surrender.

...........

Around 5 minutes of running from the school, I finally arrive at their location.

In front of me now stands a luxurious building (an apartment) that could probably drain someone's wallet just with its monthly rent.

Why did they choose this place?

TAK TAK TAK!

My steps approach the building.

There's something wrong about this building. It doesn't seem like it was constructed by machinery or human hands. Instead...

"High-level earth magic..." I mutter while touching the building's wall.

I could deactivate this magic instantly, but if my students are indeed inside, I better not act rashly.

I reach into my pocket and swiftly activate my pageblug.

Who could be behind all of this?

"Oh... Oh... So the guest has arrived according to Mr. ********'s plan." A woman greets me from behind and someone's name suddenly fades as she says it.

My opponent now is also a CODE magic user. How many stolen CODE magics are there?

"Did you kidnap my students?" I ask futilely.

"Oh... Oh... You can't just demand answers like that..." She softly and weakly moves her hands as if dancing.

"If you want to know..." Now, a genuine smile appears on her face.

JDASSS!

The sound of our swords clashing fills the air.

This woman quickly wields her sword, although she seemed slow while dancing earlier.

Luckily, I managed to parry her surprise attack.

Our swords clash against each other. Our faces stare at each other, only inches apart.

From this close, her face shines brightly at me. "...Face me!" she continues speaking.

I yield in our sword clash and choose to step back a few meters from my initial position.

"Tch!" This nuisance is making it difficult for me.

Should I just finish her off?

"Damn it!" I curse at myself.

"Oh, really? Why?" Her eyebrows raise, but soon after, her mouth curls into a smirk. "Are you afraid... To fight me, the Champion?"

She strikes a strange pose forming the letter S, and her tone sounds mocking.

SLASH!

However, I'm not one to let opportunities go to waste.

Swiftly, I unleash a medium swing as she's striking her odd pose.

This woman, she's strong but also careless.

"You're quite rude, even when your opponent is a woman!" She says while holding back laughter as she struggles to hold her almost split stomach.

My gaze shifts to her torn abdomen.

"Even with a powerful slash like that, your stomach isn't even split in two?" (Me)

"Actually, who are you?" (Me)

I inquired about this mysterious woman who suddenly appeared before me and challenged me just like that.

From my observation, she's not a subordinate of those businessmen. Nor is she one of them.

She's like...

"Oh, you forgot about me? Well, I guess..." She turns her head down while closing her eyes. She looks sad and disappointed.

"In that case, you must be surprised to see me like this, right?" She raises her head, slowly opening her eyes.

Her tone shifts from formal to casual.

"...." Even with hints given, I still don't remember.

"..." She stares at me.

"..." This is wasting my time.

"..." She continues staring.

"..." What does she want?

"..." Her gaze now drops.

"Well, goodbye..." I turn around and walk towards the building's entrance.

"Hey! How can you just forget about me?!"

My steps halt between the outside and inside. My head turns towards her without moving any other part of my body.

"... Who?"

"Huh?"

I've been working with Nova for about 5 years. The names of my friends and people I know are now a bit blurry, some even completely forgotten.

"Why?"

"Why? I am the one who should asking that?"

"Hmm?" I tilt my head.

"How could you forget about your friend?!"

"..." Who?

"..." She looks at me, shoulders drooping, mouth hanging low, eyes tired.

"..." I'm wasting my time.

"..." Still looking at me.

"..." Frustrated, huh?

"Let me tell you one thing..." She shows her palm to me. "I'm... Your... Classmate... From... High... School..." She says slowly and clearly.

"Classmate?" I forgot about my high school friends.

"Don't tell me... You don't remember me?!" She shocked.

I dive into the depths of my memories, but it seems there's too much contamination in there. So, if I dive in, I'll only find unclear memories.

"I don't know..." I say.

"What's wrong with you? You're really changed..."

This conversation is going off track. I should leave her, my students are in danger.

"Later!" I quickly enter the magical building, ignoring her.

"Hey! Wait?!"

Her voice fades, but still leaves me wondering. "First Ryan, now that mysterious woman, am I forgetting too much?"

TAK TAK TAK TAK!

The sound of my footsteps is faint, even though I'm in a dark and uninhabited room.

Impressive, they (the magic user) can create a place like this in just one night.

........

I try to slow down my pace to search for my students.

As I search, they are all on the ground floor, and there are only 3 of them, all placed in the same location.

......

In a spacious room, there are 3 students bound by anti-magic shackles. These objects prevent magic users from casting spells.

A lamp above them is the only source of light.

One person stands boldly behind them.

He leans against the back of the chair where the hostage is seated, gripping it tightly with his hands.

"What do you want? Why did you kidnap us?" Sophia asks the man.

"It's nothing... You'll find out soon." The man straightens up after answering the question.

Footsteps can be heard clearly at the darkened door.

Someone is coming.

The man walks towards the three of them and stares at the door, raising both hands as if challenging.

"Come... I'm waiting for you... Rasyid Londerik," he says like a clarinet.

But suddenly, the sound of footsteps stops, as if disappearing out of nowhere.

The man squints his eyes and curls his lips, looking annoyed at the door.

"Hey! Are you scared?!"

But there's no response from the door.

"Your students are in danger, you know!"

Still no response.

......

On the other side, I stride towards the source of light in the room.

But...

"You... Cìkè Nǚwáng...? I'm disappointed..." A whisper sounds in my ear.

Instantly, I look towards another dark corridor where a black-smoky figure appears.

"But... still, you've caught my attention. Soon... We will meet..." The smoke begins to fade slowly. "...And it shall..." It's final words before completely vanishing.

Suddenly, someone grabs my shoulder.

I turn to the person touching me and lunge a ground knife towards them.

BAK!

But she quickly grabs my hand aiming for her neck.

She looks at me with a pleading expression, as if saying 'Is this person okay?'

"You haven't changed... Still paranoid."

"I'm sorry, I've forgotten a lot of things, even my high school days." My dark eyes automatically glance aside, unable to meet her gaze.

"Is that problem still-"

Hearing that, my dark eyes widen, and red veins appear in the whites of my eyes.

The woman's voice immediately cuts off, scared.

"Okay, I won't continue my sentence, so let's change the topic..."

I lower my head slightly towards her.

"What are you doing here?"

"My students... kidnapped... So, I have to save them." I speak softly.

"Why didn't you think this might be a trap?"

"I did, but it's not scared me."

"Huh (sighs), here's the deal... I'll help you. I will start the commotion... If it turns out to be a trap, you'll save me! Agreed?"

"Hmm (nods)."

For some reason, I feel like she's reliable. She's like the person I used to ask for help.

"In that case..." She looks at the lit room.

"Kōgeki!" She steps quickly, making the whole building tremble.

'I... should follow her,' I am sighing.