"What's the matter, Amagiri? You've been in a daze all morning."
It wasn't until Eishirou, walking by his side, shouted, that Ayato finally came to.
"––Oh, it's nothing. Don't worry about it."
He waved off the concern, putting on a smile for show.
"...Fine. Have it your way. You know you've been acting up ever since last night?"
"I'm just a little tired is all. Anyway, let's hurry up or we'll be late."
"No need to rush. We should be good on time."
Even if he said that, the hallways were already clear of students.
Indeed, they arrived at their destination without a moment to spare.
"I even tried to wake you up, but you went straight back to sleep! That's the only reason we had to rush."
"What's the big deal? We made it on time, didn't we?"
"That's not the problem–– Oh, good morning, Julis."
"..."
"Julis?"
"Eh? Oh, morning."
Flustered, she hid a letter she held in hand in a hurry, and avoided meeting his gaze.
"...?"
"Alright, alright, everyone please be seated! I'm going to take attendance now."
Though Ayato was concerned about Julis, with Kyouko's bloodlust permeating the classroom, he didn't dare follow up on that concern.
Julis didn't get any better as class started. She didn't pay any attention during class, seemingly distracted by something else.
"Everything alright, Julis?"
After school, Ayato found an opportune moment to approach Julis, but she wouldn't face him.
"––Sorry, I have something to do."
"Huh? H-hey wait a sec, Julis?"
With Julis deliberately ignoring his attempts to get her attention, he could only watch helplessly as she left the room.
"What just happened...?"
"Oh, how awful. She seems to have returned to her old self."
"Old self...?"
Eishirou leaned in conspiratorially and answered his question.
"Before you came, that's how the Princess always acted. She gave off this aura of 'don't concern yourself with me'. Here I was, thinking things had finally take a turn for the better, but it looks like we're back to square one."
"..."
While Ayato was still worried about Julis, he figured it best to report back to Claudia about yesterday's incident. He could also use the opportunity to ask her her thoughts on Julis.
✱
"My, what an unexpected guest. How can I help you?"
As he entered the student council room, Claudia greeted him with a smile.
"They came looking for us again yesterday."
"So I hear. It seems they employed Le Wolfe students this time around."
"Word travels fast."
That wasn't what needed to be discussed, though.
"...More importantly, I've got a number on our mysterious assailant."
His words took Claudia by surprise.
"Truly?"
"Yes, I'm pretty sure I'm right."
Leaning in, he whispered his conjecture into her ear. She paused for a moment, deep in thought.
"Now I get it... OK. I'll look into it. I hope everything goes smoothly..."
The worried expression on her face didn't disappear.
"Something wrong?"
"Did Julis figure it out as well?"
"It's not like I've confirmed it with her, but I don't think she'd have missed it."
"Where is she now?"
"She said she had something to do, she had to go first–– Shit!"
Ayato finally connected the dots.
Given Julis' personality, and the fact that she'd likely realized who the culprit was, there was no way she'd just let things end there.
"...It seems this time things have gotten a little troublesome."
"But what do we do now? Without evidence, the culprit can just lie about their role in things..."
"No, with things having reached this point, they can't pretend nothing's happened anymore. More than likely, they'll try to silence Julis personally––"
"Don't tell me–– That letter from this morning!"
"Letter?"
"When I came in this morning, Julis was reading a letter. She was quite intent on hiding it, so I was rather suspicious."
Claudia paled.
"We need to find Julis now."
"But where do we look?"
Even if Asterisk was an artificial-island, it wasn't small by any means. An uninformed search would be no more fruitful than searching for a needle in a haystack.
"Let's first check whether or not she headed back to her room. If the culprit was indeed the one to call her out, then they'll likely have chosen somewhere off the beaten path, where people aren't likely to walk by. That should help us narrow our search."
Claudia pulled up a map of Asterisk.
"––Ah, wait a moment."
Ayato's phone suddenly rang.
Thinking it was Julis, he frantically answered.
"...Ayato, save me."
Unfortunately, the voice came from none other than a frowning, frustrated Saya.
"Saya? What's wrong?"
"I'm lost."
This clearcut answer gave Ayato a headache.
"You're lost again? ... I'm sorry, but I have more important things to worry about right now; I need to find Julis––"
"...Riessfeld? I just saw her."
Ayato and Claudia traded glances.
"Really?"
Saya nodded in the affirmative.
"Saya! Tell me, where did you see her last? Or rather, where are you now?!"
"...If I knew where I was, I wouldn't need your help, now would I?"
––Right.
"Excuse me, Sasamiya-san. Would you mind moving the camera around a bit so I can see your surroundings?"
Saya was slightly confused by Claudia's request, but she nonetheless did as asked.
"That's just outside the redevelopment zone. Between here and there, there aren't too many options. That narrows things quite a bit."
That was Claudia for you, a simple glance was sufficient.
"Thanks, Saya! You really saved us!"
"...I still need to be saved."
"Oh, that's right. Hmm..."
Ayato was torn. On one hand, he felt he should go get Saya, on the other hand, if the attacker really had called out Julis, she was in grave danger. Even if he gave Saya directions, however, it was unlikely she'd be able to arrive safely.
"I'll go pick up Sasamiya-san. Ayato, you go to Julis."
"Sorry, and thanks."
"None needed."
Claudia smiled charmingly, and marked a potential spot on the map.
Although she still worked with remarkable efficiency, since she lacked her usual calm demeanor, the anxiety she felt was clear.
"...Why didn't Julis say anything?"
Julis' personality was such that she hated to rely on anyone else. Unfortunately, however, that same tendency had created this very problem...
"As expected, I guess she doesn't feel she can rely on me, huh?"
"Precisely the opposite."
Overhearing Ayato's mutter, Claudia, still focused on the map, laughed.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Didn't I say this before? That girl will go all out to protect the things she holds dear. It seems you now fall under that category."
"Protect... me...?"
At that moment, it finally all came together for Ayato.
He felt enlightened; it had finally all become clear.
"I see now..."
He thought of that summer night.
Of his sister's words: that she'd protect him.
Of his words: that he'd protect her.
Though he'd failed to keep that promise––
"...So it's really that simple."
He finally knew.
What his "mission" in life was.
"Got it!"
Claudia shouted in elation at that moment, and forwarded the map to his phone.
"Great!"
He'd best start with the closest location first.
"Oh, wait just a second. Before you go-"
As Ayato prepared to dash off like a bullet, Claudia called him back.
"––'That' is ready. Please take it with you."
✱
At the same time, Julis arrived at an abandoned building in the redevelopment zone.
The building, in the process of being torn down, was enshrouded in the murky darkness of dusk. Some of the walls and flooring had already been broken down, and the area looked quite open. However, the piles of scattered rubble and debris left much hidden from view.
But Julis, unhesitating, entered without pausing. The light of the setting sun, cast a strange shadow on the interior of the building. Julis wore a grim expression as she silently walked in.
––Just as Julis entered the deepest part of the building, a pile of rubble, piled nigh to the ceiling, suddenly fell without warning. The pile was large enough to easily flatten a young girl like nothing so much as a pancake, but Julis didn't even bother to look up as she spoke.
"Bloom proudly - Red CrownRed Parasol Flower of Isolation."
Appearing above Julis' head was a pentagonally-shaped flower which diverted everything which fell. Its appearance was that of an umbrella formed of flame.
"You didn't really think that would work, did you? You'd better show your face... Cyrus Norman."
The moonlight shone on the ceiling leading directly to the roof.
The deflected girders pierced into the floor. As dust scattered from the impact, a young man slowly revealed himself.
"How rude. Aren't I allowed to have my fun?"
The slim young man - Cyrus Norman - mockingly dipped his head in a bow.
"I have to say I'm surprised. I never would have expected that you'd uncover my identity."
"That's your own fault. You let it slip yesterday."
"Yesterday, you say? And pray tell, just when did I do that?"
Cyrus tilted his head, questioning.
Julis maintained her calm demeanor and answered.
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"Yesterday, when we ran into one another in the business district, Ayato was taking jabs at Lester. At that point, in order to defend him, you said something: 'Everyone knows you aren't the kind of person who'd ambush someone during a duel'."
"...And what of it?"
"How would you know that the attacker was someone who ambushed others? The first attack –– during the duel between Ayato and myself–– was never mentioned in the news."
"The second time was definitely in the news, though. I saw it myself."
"You're right, it was definitely mentioned in the news. However, the news only said that I repelled an attacker. Not only did it not mention that Sasamiya was present, it didn't even mention her name. That really was stupid; she was, after all, the one who fought off you guys."
"..."
Cyrus continued to stare at Julis with an unfathomable look in his eyes.
"You still don't understand? The news never mentioned a third party. How could you know that I'd been 'ambushed during a duel' unless you'd either personally seen that duel ongoing or heard from someone who had? Either way, you're guilty."
"Ugh...what a blunder. Let me guess, that guy provoking Lester... that was all on purpose, right?"
"That's quite probable. That much he's capable of."
Julis stuck her chest out proudly.
"Hmm...It looks like my decision to switch targets to him was correct after all. If I continued after you, he'd only get in the way."
"Wha––?! You...!"
"Hehehe. You see, I already knew. The reason you came here was to make sure I wouldn't get away with it."
Cyrus leisurely spread his hands like a magician as Julis gritted her teeth.
This morning, she'd found a letter stuffed into her desk. It read, "The next target will be the one closest to you. If you don't want to see that happen, come to this location."
"Hurry up and finish whatever it is you want to say."
"What's the rush? If you ask me, we should talk this over, like adults. That's why I called you out here, after all."
"Even now, you're just going to continue to spew this bullshit? Just cut the crap already."
"No, no, no. You don't understand. I'm very serious here. I have no great desire to engage in a direct confrontation with you either."
Cyrus gave a seemingly frantic explanation, though his tone was as unhurried as before.
Before making her way here, Julis had investigated a little. Cyrus wasn't listed in the Named Charts, and had never participated in a ranking match before. His strength was an unknown quantity.
Moreover, there had verifiably been at least three attackers. Even if one of the black-clothed assailants was Cyrus, that still left two more.
"––I understand. I'll at least hear you out."
Julis figured it best to let her opponent reveal as much of his hand as possible.
"That's better. To be honest, we're the same, you know? You and I. Our goal in coming here is money. For that reason, I've always thought we'd make quite the team."
Cyrus nodded his head, an egotistical smile on his face.
"I think you already know what it is I want–– forget about trying to register for the Phoenix. The other thing would be for you to forget about this entire incident."
"And what's in it for me?"
"Is the continued wellbeing of you and Amagiri Ayato-kun not enough?"
"You must be joking."
Julis bluntly refused.
"All I need to do is kick your ass right here, and call it good. Anyway, even if I did keep things secret for you, I'm pretty sure the student council has already puzzled out what's been going on."
"I'm not worried on that count. There is, after all, not a whit of evidence against me."
"You seem pretty sure of that."
"It's a fact."
Cyrus and Julis traded glares.
At that moment, a deep and furious roar came broke their silent standoff.
"What the hell is this, Cyrus?!"
"...Lester?"
Striding in with a heavy step was none other than Lester McPhail.
Julis prepared herself for an incoming attack, but none was forthcoming. Lester's rage was not directed at her, but at Cyrus.
"Geez, you've really made us wait, Lester-san."
"I came because I'd heard that Julis had finally accept my request for a duel, but... was what I just heard the truth? The one who ambushed Julis was you?"
It seemed he'd overheard their conversation.