Right after I was done with my morning routine, I stood in front of Zayats with my hands on my hips.
"We are going to the third city."
Zayats looked at me and tilted her head. She couldn't react to anything because I told her all of a sudden.
"What's the third city, Master? Is there a city with a name third?"
Ah, so that was why she was surprised. There was no city called the third city. I guess even Zayats who didn't know the world knew the city name.
"My bad, I meant, let's go to the city that only welcomed the Magical Girl, the so-called Magical City!"
"Oh! So we are going to the Magical City!"
Zayats exclaimed as her eyes glistened in anticipation. She had a big smile on her face and her hands were clasped together in front of her chest.
"Yeah, normal people won't be able to find the city and the route to the city was confidential. Only the Magical Girl from the Good Side know the location of Magical City."
The Saint, leader of the Good Side herself was the one who put the barrier around Magical City. The city was a place to nurture the future members of the council as well as the base of the Council.
There were around 13 Magical Cities that were hidden from the world, and 10 of them were governed by the Good Side.
I knew all the locations of those cities, but entering them was another matter. Zayats had no pass to enter the Magical City, while my pass was originated from the one that I had in the game, so it wasn't registered in their database.
It was troublesome, but I had baited someone because I knew about this.
"The city is hidden within a barrier. That itself is not a problem because we can enter the city with a pass. However, both of us have no pass to enter the Magical City."
"So we will destroy the barrier, Master?" Asked Zayats as she put her index finger on her chin.
"No no no." I moved my index finger back and forth in front of Zayats as I closed my eyes.
I opened them again and put my index finger in front of my mouth.
"I won't destroy the barrier for now. Magical City is interesting, we will not destroy them."
Zayats looked confused and tilted her head.
"Then, how can we enter the Magical City?"
I grinned at Zayats. My teeth were visible and I moved my mouth.
"I had spread a bait, and she will bit it."
***
Inside a Magical Train that moved through the wilderness, Aria sat on a passenger seat inside a first-class room with Vega beside her.
The train had divided into 4 wagons, and the one they were in was a first-class wagon. There were 4 rooms in their wagons, and there were 4 seats with a table between them.
On the table in front of Aria and Vega, there were 2 cups of hot tea.
Aria was reading a book while leaning her back against the seat's backrest, while Vega was looking at the ceiling while daydreaming.
Not long after that, she snapped out of her daydream and looked at Aria.
"I wanted to ask something. I thought that I will be punished for a week, but why did you take me out earlier, Senior?"
Aria who was reading the book earlier let out a sigh at Aria's question. She slowly put a bookmark in the book and closed it.
Aria's gaze turned to Vega as she smiled gently.
"I talked about it to the higher-up. You have a kind heart, and you said that you still didn't know how things work in this world. That's why it's wrong to punish you for that long. You have a good intention, and I was wrong for yelling at you at that time."
Vega, a naïve girl as she was, trusted what Aria had said. She was kind, she wanted to help someone, that was why she saved Mally, her enemy.
Her 'Barrier of Light' could protect someone from Magic, but that was not it. The light was harmful to those with evil intentions, so the evil that was trapped inside the barrier will lose its power, leading them to lose their consciousness.
That was the reason why Mally fainted after she was saved by Vega. That also served to prove Vega's power as the prophecied savior.
Vega told Aria about her barrier power as she understood the core of her power from the knowledge bestowed by the Giant that gave her the wand of Magical Girl.
Aria had thought about it for a day before she appealed to the higher-up to release Vega from her house arrest.
"Is that so, Senior? Thank you very much!"
"You're welcome."
Both of them went silent for a while looking at each other.
Vega smiled brightly at her that it made her felt guilty for punishing her.
Then, Aria remembered something.
'Right, she was the prophecied girl. That girl never told me any lie, and it made me anxious about her last word.'
She remembered the message that Zmeya left her when she suddenly called her that night.
"Vega, do you remember Zmeya, the Magical Girl with green hair?"
Aria asked Vega with a serious tone.
'Zmeya was acting carefully around Vega, that's the only reason why I brought Vega with me this time. I don't know the city that she talked about, but I think it will be one of the Magical Cities.'
As the one who met Zmeya directly, Aria was confident that she could guess Zmeya's train of thought.
"Yes, I remember her. She's so cool with the snakes appearing around her!"
Aria nodded her head. She didn't want to admit it, but Zmeya looked cool when her core power appeared around her.
At the same time, Aria was scared of Zmeya after she realized her power.
"She contacted me. This is a secret that even the Council had yet to know. Listen carefully, because I won't repeat it."
Although the girl was naïve, Vega was not a fool. She understood what Aria wanted to say and nodded her head.
"Zmeya, she said that she will destroy a city. I narrowed her target into a few, and right now we are going to that city. I need your help to stop her, will you help me?"
Vega's eyes widened in surprise. She never thought that the girl who gave her advice was trying to destroy a city.
"Really?"
"Yes. If we are looking at her movement and her behavior, she's not the type to lie about something. But, I believe we can stop her."
"Then I will help! I won't let that girl destroy a city!"
"Good, I am counting on you."
"Leave it to me!" Exclaimed Vega as she smiled brightly and raised her right hand.
"By the way, what's that city name?"
Aria looked out at the window and said.
"Its name is…"
***
"So they will arrive at the Magical City called Krysa city before us and try to stop us. At least that's what I guessed, knowing how that girl will act."
I explained to Zayats how I baited Aria to go to the Magical City before us.
"I see! So they will open the gate from inside when she felt us. You are incredible, Master!"
"Fufufu, I know about it!"
I puffed out my chest with closed eyes as my hands were on my hips.
Then, I opened my eyes and pointed my index finger in the direction of Krysa City.
"Let's go, Zayats! It's time to visit our first Magical City!"
"Ouu!!" Zayats responded energetically with her right hand raised.
'All according to plan! After all, my target was not Krysa City, but another city.'
*****
5 advanced chapters on my Patréon.
Patréon: www.patréon.com/ShuviLily
Thank you!