*
Another week came by, and he could walk again... No, it was more like he was forcibly kicked off his bed and forced to make do with some crutches. However, that assumed he had the arm strength to operate the crutches properly. Truth was that all his limbs were equally weak from malnutrient.
Yearning for the sun after such long periods of confinement, he decided that he should at least bask in something he couldn't experience since he started hiding. That was the only silver lining. He breathed in the fresh air that precipitated from nature's morning dew, it was more bland than he thought... But it was still more reinvigorating than any air he had breathed before The Great Disaster.
With the loss of machinery and mainly things that relied on combustion fuel, there was also less carbon dioxide released into the air every day. Now that technology was loss, people definitely had to rely on combustion type fuel like oil and petrol to survive, but there was significantly less of it which helped a lot. There were also other factors, but this change however slight was ever noticeable.
When people inhaled the unpolluted air, they... Are reminded of their lost. As if nature itself was mocking their foolishness and frailty. But nature is nature, the human's reminder of their own failure will only keep going until they restore themselves into the reigning species of the planet again. Now... There are other competing species.
***(Kaede)
"... What kind of joke is this... A mural in this day and age?" (Kaede)
"It's rudimentary writting using blood... Not a particular established language or hieroglyphics of any sort." (Barius)
As part of their earlier education, they were made to recognise the basics of ancient languages. Knowing and understanding languages unknown to others, when they unlock their second or third skill, there was possibility that their new skill would use the unknown language as a name. This made it harder for opponents to make a conjecture on their skill's effects. After all, skills were named by their mind's interpretation of their magic. Though they still commonly use known languages, in the end it was more of an optimistic uptaking than something that served any true purpose.
"... It's not that old, this was written in modern day." (Neli)
Speaking of which, Kaede didn't know much about Neli. She knew that Neli was Barius's subordinate, but nothing much other than that. The fact that she could read the age of blood, or at least make a confident guess... It intrigued her. But perhaps this was simply one of Neli's specialties, working under Barius who was in the magical military. It sounded amazing, but they were pretty much just border security. There were other things that the job entailed, that was where Neli came in. She must be an analyst of sorts to have that kind of knowledge.
They were examining the ruins that was next to the forging street. It was why the commercial streets around this area was so near to the Rising Knight Order's headquarters and in the vicinity of the ruins as well. They were built relatively recently, less than half a year ago. With the latest access to building materials and tools, they far outdo their nearby peers. In a way, these better polished infrastructure was a successor to the ruins.
"... I can't see it as anything else." (Neli)
"Yeah..." (Kaede)
Even Kaede with her severely limited life experience, was able to recognise the readings and their significance. She existed as a 'continuation' of Kaori, inheriting her literacy and linguistic skills as well as a bit of her common sense. Her heart quickened as her throat became parched.
"Of course, what else could it be, but a cry of help?" (Barius)
Her face contorted in pity, the ridge of her nose wrinkled, joining together with the creases in her forehead as her repulsion became frustration. On a jagged piece of broken wall was a smear of blood savagely spreaded across it's surface, traces of broken skin and scabs could be seen sticking to its sides. After checking out the forging street, the ruins from far behind had caught their interest.
"Should we continue?" (Neli)
"No... Jiyu likely has a far better idea, we could ask about the details from her instead..." (Barius)
"This kind of destruction... With the magical girls around to defend from monsters, what could have caused this damage? We dealt with the Demon King before he got near here, so it shouldn't be him." (Kaede)
Barius released a heavy sigh before facing Kaede in the eye. Her mind wavered for an instant, but looking at Kaede's face was enough to infuriate her. Considering the things that she had experienced... She should know best, what might have caused this disaster. Her lips pressed against one another, it convulsed as if it was trembling but it was the the result of the stress from crushing her lips together out of frustration. Naturally, this anger relief influenced the surrounding muscles and her teeth bit onto one another for an instant. She points straight at Kaede.
" You said it yourself. The magical girls are here... The Eye God's protection is still active, so there are no earthquakes or floods that could randomly manifest. In other words, the only cause that is left... Would be magical girls." (Barius)
It felt like her chest lifted itself for a moment before it constricted on itself, preventing air from travelling to her lungs. Her eyelids lifted gradually, as if realisation seeped in through the eye sockets and around the eyeballs to reach her brain. She looks back on her memories, attempting to grasp a number on how many she sliced apart with her own dainty arms. Swift, fickle movements, and supple, narrow muscles. Her figure was covered in it.
During the raid on The Progenitor... She was drenched in blood. She had disregarded them as non-living beings at the start, slaughtering in a manner worse than harvesting lifestock. Even if they were mass produced artifical magical girls... It was a fact that they had all once lived... And to crush them like ants... It churned her stomach to the core, her breathing became more haggard and irregular the more she thought about it.
'Was she not used to it? Surely as the one leading the raid on The Progenitor and being the sole survivor, she should be tougher than we think...' (Neli)
'... Kaori? I certainly feel bad, but I wouldn't react this severely...' (Barius)
'... Are they used to this? What the hell did they go through to dismiss it so easily? I... I can't lose this feeling... It makes me want to retch... But this vulnerability is part of what makes me, 'me'... Alright, let's go back to business. ' (Kaede)
"We should head off." (Kaede)
She turns around and begins heading off towards the office. The surrounding buildings were practically built around the office, on the premise that the magical girls stationed there will help anyone in need. There was both a certain amount of trust and fear that the residents have in the magical girls...
It was similar to the police force from before The Great Disaster, except for the fact that the law can't actually bind the magical girls. If they decided to violate human rights and commit what any modern person would consider a crime... There's nobody else who could stop them. Fear stems from this notion and intensifies.
The people depend on their kindness and morality to stave away the anxiety and fear that they feel towards magical girls. After all, these are beings more fearsome than any wild monster. Monsters hunt for survival, they can absorb ambient magical particles and live like plants, but eating humans and magical girls is far more efficient.
"Do you want some water?" (Neli)
Kaede had her back turned to them, but her stride never faltered.
"Nah, I'm alright. I'll swallow it down." (Kaede)
"Hmpf! If you can't handle this much, then you wouldn't have become my rival." (Barius)
She crosses her arms, her steps filled with her own resolve leave lasting impacts on the ground beneath her feet. Her gait carried all of her pride and then more. The wind brushes past, coursing through her light grey hair. The 3 braids underneath her long back lengthed hair flail in the wind like tassels. Her casual one long skirt bounced with her legs as she approached Kaede's back, making sure to keep above the ground to prevent getting dirty.
Neli much preferred jackets and cardigans, a cozy and fluffy grey fabric adorned with wooly patterns hung over her shoulders and reached her knees. She wore a simple sky blue blouse and white shorts below. She exhaled out some of her fatigue as her thoughts discover a glimpse of the troubles her superiors would bring. But she cannot deny it, this way of life, this way of actively seeking out justice... It was pathetically naive, but nothing else could excite her any longer.
She looks further on ahead, her enhanced eyesight catching a view of the office. It was as if the office was built in the centre of town as roads branched off in many directions with it in the middle, forming a round junction. However it wasn't anything like a modern road junction, it was simply a road path that could fit a single lane circling the parameter of the office.
In a few directions, there weren't even any roads or buildings, giving it an unfinished atmosphere that induced the need to build entire streets in completion is. They were basically empty lanes, and the ruins was in one of those lanes. An empty expanse that lead to a sea of broken and abandoned ruins. From where Neli was walking the sun seemed to be setting on the right, giving the building walls to her right a blanket of darkness and the ruins on the left a shower of gold.
She fought Kaori before, she knew Kaori's strength but not the Progenitor's. She couldn't even begin to imagine it. Someone who could force Kaori into this state... They would have to be a God magical girl... That's why the test that The Eye God imposed was a fight with her S grade generals. If one can't even push past the barrier of S grade, then they shouldn't even think about opposing an SS grade... The gap between S and SS itself was already like trying to crack the sky and earth at the same time, bringing the heavens to their feet.
She had reached her limit as an A grade a while ago... So she had stopped pursuing strength, knowing her stats would no longer grow. But that's not what Kaori did, Kaori who was barely a B grade kept pushing through... Eventually, even if she broke her body in the process... She had pushed through her limits.
Neli grips her fist tighter, her veins nearly buldge out of the back of her palm.
Eventually they manage to reach the office before the sun actually set. Being magical girls, they had no problems with stamina as well as a subconscious urge to move faster than normal humans. It was akin to a person brisk walking, except that their brisk walk was at least as fast as a car.
They enter the entrance and avoided the staff and residents walking around. This was the reception area, where a single staff was sat at a counter with their necessary equipment. Next to her was single door where staff could go through.
"Willen? She's away on a mission at the moment. Why do you ask?" (Jiyu)
"Ah! Nevermind about that, do you perhaps have an idea about the ruins?" (Kaede)
"Heeh~? You found the ruins...? Well, there's no point digging up old corpses, it's a closed case... Anyway, you guys should stop worrying about it. Only Willen knows the details anyway." (Jiyu)
"I see." (Kaede)
She didn't regard the empty response much, after all if it was solved, then all the better. Willen was the only one who knew about the matter anyway, so flipping her socks off here would be futile. Together, they moved to a secluded area where they could have a conversation in private. No longer plagued by her condition, Kaede built a barrier with ease that blocked out any sound, waves or magical particles.
If an eavesdropper's skill could recreate the past to extract information, there would be no way around that. So this was the best measure that they could use... Unless...
"Barius, could you induce a time stop while allowing us to converse?" (Kaede)
If time was flowing due to its fluidity, Barius's ability was to reduce that fluidity and make time so viscous that it stops flowing. Then she maintains that fluidity for herself and any potential allies.
" Alright. [Second step to completion]... Anyway, she was away on a mission huh~" (Barius)
"Are you able to track her down now?" (Neli)
"... If it's residual tailwind or used magical particles, sure. But if it takes place too far in the past, then my prediction won't work as the environment changed too much. Unlike Barius I don't have a grasp on the flow of time. My passive collects data with other natural data and takes note of everything, but my mind still has to analyse and interpret it.
If I don't understand how it works or how it feels, then I won't be able to interpret the data on time. My passive might not even be able to retrieve that kind of information. " (Kaede)
" Then we stake out? " (Neli)
" Sure. " (both)