Chapter 6. Friendship and Relationships (8)

After the lecture, we all went into the storage facility.

There wasn’t much difference from what I saw last time. If anything, there were a few changes, but that’s probably because some materials were used up and new ones were brought in.

The items in the deepest part are, of course, very precious and cannot be used easily, so experiments are conducted with items of slightly lower grade.

And, in fact, the tour is more helpful in this regard. What would hunters do by looking at items that are stored simply because they don’t even have an idea how to use them?

And, in the meantime, we said we wanted to go to the restroom and were walking down the corridor.

Naturally, we planned to pass the restroom without stopping.

“Oops.”

While walking, we encountered security guards patrolling the corridor. Since it was the security for an important facility, they weren’t alone, and they were in pairs of two, holding guns in their hands.

Ria made a small sound at the sight, but I confidently bowed my head lightly towards them.

They already knew that hunters were in this building, and that I am the ‘Saint Candidate.’ Moreover, Ria, who is next to me, is already quite well-known as the daughter of a hero.

What trouble could these two cause in here?

It was fortunate that we encountered them shortly before passing the restroom. It must have looked like we were genuinely going to the restroom.

The two guards bowed their heads lightly towards us and passed by.

Just in case, we both went into the restroom.

“…Ria.”

“I know.”

At my words, Ria nodded.

This too, had been prearranged.

Outside the restroom, there are CCTVs that monitor the corridor in real-time. If we entered the restroom and quickly darted out in another direction, the guards would have no choice but to move, regardless of our status.

In that case, there wouldn’t be many options for us.

The government, as expected, ignored my prophecy, and according to Ria’s assessment, this building, being simply designed, actually has stronger security personnel deployment-

I took out a small holy relic I had brought beforehand.

It was a small piece of chocolate.

“…And you’re saying she’s not a Saint?”

“…Can’t you just eat it without saying that?”

Naturally, it was chocolate consecrated by me. In other words, it was a consumable holy relic.

Ria shook her head as if it were absurd, then suddenly bit my finger.

“!?”

Ignoring me, who was too surprised to even scream, Ria pulled her mouth away from my finger.

Even after she pulled away, a soft, slightly moist sensation remained on my fingertip. Damn it, it was chocolate that I poured holy power into, so even a sweet scent lingered on my fingertips.

“Kyaa!?”

However, before I could shake off that thought, something suddenly came up from under my knees.

“W-wait a minute, Ria!? This pose right now-“

“Huh? Why?”

Ria, who had lifted me up in a princess carry with an incredibly confident expression, tilted her head as if she genuinely didn’t understand.

“Ah, no, aren’t there other ways to carry someone on your back? Why specifically in this pose?”

There are things that are emphasized from time to time, but Ria has a good figure. I also have a good figure, but Ria’s development was even better.

Naturally, in this pose, well.

It touches a bit.

Of course, Ria looked completely unconcerned, which made me feel a little annoyed.

“You said we have to run fast? This way is much more comfortable. Hmm, it’s good for swinging if something pops out, right?”

“Who are you planning to use as a blunt weapon…?”

At my words, Ria chuckled and headed straight for the restroom door.

“If two women scream like that inside the restroom, won’t the atmosphere become strange? People will surely think our relationship is strange.”

“What are you-“

“So, let’s just get it done quickly before that happens.”

Ria said.

“If there’s a thief secretly in the research institute, people’s attention will be drawn there, won’t it?”

Am I the only one who’s conscious of this?

No, the more I think about it, the more unfair it feels-

However, my thoughts didn’t last long. Ria tightly hugged me and powerfully kicked off from the ground.

I realized for the first time how terrifying it was to fly at such a speed, even if there wasn’t much furniture around in the building.

When I came to my senses, I was unconsciously clinging tightly to Ria’s neck.

Naturally, as my body and Ria’s body touched more, I became more conscious of the areas I was already conscious of. Even if I wore a bra, with a certain absolute size, it seems impossible to not feel the shape and texture at all.

When I opened my eyes, which had been tightly shut, Ria was looking at me with a beaming smile. Her face was incredibly close.

Well, even so.

Ria’s face was also a little red, probably because she had run this far.

Still, when Ria put me down, she didn’t just throw me. Even though she had suddenly lifted me up, she put me down gently, so I had no intention of complaining.

“So.”

However, the somewhat playful atmosphere vanished the moment Ria put me down.

“Do you understand the situation?”

……Am I the only one who’s conscious of this?

I turned my head and looked around.

We were standing right in front of the deepest storage facility door in the research institute.

There was a huge, thick door that looked like something out of an SF movie or drama, and next to it was a keypad to open that door.

No people were visible. There was no guard standing in front of the door. After all, it was almost impossible not to encounter people on the way here.

Perhaps the research institute was already trying to find us immediately by watching the CCTV.

And even in this situation, Ria had a serious expression. Even though it was a situation where it wouldn’t be strange if I was mistaken or lying.

In fact, even I don’t have complete certainty.

The story had changed, and on that day, the massive mass of magic had even looked at me. It’s not impossible that they changed their plans because they were aware of my existence.

It was a situation where I could now think that it was my mistake.

However, Ria was looking at me with a serious expression.

And, somehow, seeing that expression, I felt like I could gain a little confidence in my actions.

Light fell on my face. Not the overly bright light that teases a little, as usual, but a soft light, as if caressing me.

Seeing that light, Ria’s eyes widened slightly.

……So that’s how it is.

Normally, I would have repelled that light, but, well, fine.

Because I have something to do right now.

At least from this moment on, the government will never be able to doubt my ‘prophecy.’

No, they say it’s a theocratic nation, but I don’t understand what they’re doing by opposing it now.

I could hear the sound of footsteps from far down the corridor, indicating that people were heading this way.

“The way to confirm is simple, right?”

Yes.

I don’t know exactly who these guys who worship ‘God’s power’ are, but at least I know what kind of power they use.

I closed my eyes and knelt on the floor.

And I clasped my hands together.

If there is an invisible or hidden enemy, and if that enemy uses magic as a weapon.

Naturally, there is only one way, isn’t there?

You just have to purify the entire place.

……I know.

It’s a bit crude.

It doesn’t need to be too strong. I just need to fill this place with light.

I don’t want to collapse this time either. I didn’t want to be a burden to Ria by using up all my strength and collapsing here.

Haven’t I already been a burden enough?

The more I am in danger, the harder it will be for Ria to keep her promise to protect me, and that will soon put Ria in danger.

I will surely fall into danger someday.

Otherwise, there would be no reason to send me here, knowing the hint.

So, this time, I prepared thoroughly. From the beginning, so as not to become a burden by collapsing midway.

I felt someone screaming.

It probably wasn’t just because they saw my light. They must have seen a surprising sight.

I slowly opened my eyes.

“…Right, this was the way, wasn’t it? Even though I looked diligently down the corridor as you said, I couldn’t find a way.”

Ria was saying that while looking up at the ceiling.

I followed Ria and looked up at the ceiling too.

There, a person in black clothes was hanging from the ceiling.

I could see their eyes through the mask. Eyes looking at me with immense surprise.

And there weren’t just one such person, but five of them.

Aha.

So that’s how it is.

Invisibility. Indeed, even in this world, it’s not a common magic.

The timing was excellent. If it had been a little later, the men would have entered that storage facility.

As if they just realized their bodies were exposed, those unidentified individuals jumped down from the ceiling.

One of them drew a sword from his waist and tried to slash at me-

“Where do you think you’re going.”

Thwack!

Before the sword could even come near my body, a fist embedded itself in the man’s face. Ria leaped powerfully and landed a perfect uppercut to the man’s face.

The man spun around several times in the air and then crashed headfirst onto the floor with a “Quack!” sound.

Well, he doesn’t seem to be dead. He might be seriously injured since he can’t get up, but it’s okay. We can just treat him again and interrogate him.

As I got up from my seat, Ria rushed towards me and hugged my waist with one hand.

Then, she drew the short sword she wore at her waist and elegantly swung the blade.

That spinning motion was just like dancing, and honestly, it was a bit cool.

And,

Ah, the scent of chocolate lightly brushed my nose.

With a heel kick to the solar plexus of the man whose body was twisting as he deflected the sword, Ria looked at the remaining three.

One of the three ran towards the keypad. The other two stood facing Ria- drawing guns from their waists.

……Perhaps, this part will be slightly different from the original work. In the original work, they wouldn’t have been able to bring weapons in, right? Because they had to pass security.

Since Ria always has to carry a sword, the security gate beeped briefly as she passed through the security door. If they planned to bring them in during that time, they could have easily brought weapons.

And I reached out towards those two.

Holy power itself is harmless to humans. Although it can completely nullify magic.

However, even so, it can excellently obscure vision.

Bang, bang. Two gunshots rang out, but the bullets neatly missed Ria.

Ria let go of my waist and charged at the men, delivering a high kick to one man’s head and then driving the hilt of her sword into another man’s head, knocking both of them to the ground.

“H-hiik…!”

The man at the keypad, shouting like that, furiously hammered at the keypad with a stone.

Boom!

Well, it might be because I controlled my strength. Since they planned to infiltrate this far, the intruders probably didn’t bring ordinary magic stones. If the magic of the magic stone was stronger than the holy power I poured out, it’s understandable that magic remained.

By their standards, they would have brought something very important and useful, but the method of use is a bit tricky. Magic stones are naturally like that. They are bad for the body, and dangerous if used incorrectly.

Moreover, if you blow it up so crudely like that, you can’t use it next time, can you? Well, I suppose they’ll think they can use something better next time-

“Kuaaak!”

If used without proper incantations and protective magic, this is what happens. A part of the man’s hand was seen burning from the magic.

That would be difficult to heal. Even if it were restored with holy power, it would just crumble into white dust.

Beep.

Simultaneously with the magic stone exploding, the keypad opened. At least they were able to prepare ‘that magic’ in advance.

The door slowly opened, and the one remaining intruder turned his head towards the door-

“It’s probably useless.”

I said to the man.

I planned from the beginning, assuming I might fail completely. In fact, whether I failed or not, that magic stone was dangerous to exist in the first place.

Even through the mask, you can see a person’s expression. Especially the slightly exposed eyes.

Those eyes, which were wide in a smile, then widened in shock.

The words ‘bright light’ were reflected on that face.

Magic generally repels holy power. More precisely, when the two touch completely, they lose their power.

People often misunderstand.

That holy power is a type of ‘light.’

That is a misconception.

Holy power is not a force that acts as ‘light’ in the first place. It’s something completely different, outside the laws of physics. Yet, it is a tangible existence that affects the physical world.

The ‘light’ we see is not a wavelength, but a kind of psychological phenomenon. The brain expresses it that way because it doesn’t know how to express holy power.

Even renowned scientists often misunderstand it- thinking that holy relics can be blocked by ‘a coating that blocks specific wavelengths.’

Or perhaps ‘thick steel doors’ could be included in that.

In the first place, the light that shines on my head shines on me regardless of whether I am indoors or outdoors. Physical barriers are meaningless.

“…What is that?”

Seeing the man collapse weakly on the floor, Ria looked at me in disbelief.

“The holy relic I gave you was filled to its limit with holy power. If you pour additional holy power into it, the holy power inside won’t be able to hold on any longer and will leak out.”

And that ‘holy power’ instantly nullified the magic of the magic stone that was with it. Because I prepared it with all my might to that extent.

“I’m worried the research institute will blame me for the magic stone disappearing because of my holy relic.”

I said, shrugging my shoulders.

“If I can provide a proper reason, that’s enough. And, research on magic stones is possible even without magic.”

At least no one will be able to threaten the world with it.

It might be possible to infuse new magic, but that probably won’t be easy.

Security guards quickly ran over and surrounded us.

Well, even so, their attention was more focused on the fallen intruders. It was certain that Ria and I had protected the facility.

“…You’re quite shrewd, aren’t you?”

“Why, do you dislike me a little?”

“No, rather, I feel a bit relieved.”

Relieved, my foot.

At Ria’s words, I couldn’t help but laugh wryly.

*

After that, I was asked various questions.

To the question of how I knew, I replied that I had predicted the incident and reported it to the government.

Couldn’t employees infiltrate when they came to work instead of students? To that question, I pointed out that the employee shift changes were very thorough.

Most importantly, it would take considerable time to break the password on that keypad. If you don’t want to lose your hand, and if you don’t want to lose a valuable magic stone, you naturally have to do that.

To secure that ‘time,’ they chose the moment when other hunters were entering. When outsiders enter the research institute, the surveillance standards naturally shift towards the outsiders.

“If I have to explain, it’s like there was a loophole in the surveillance.”

If there had been even one person near the keypad, they wouldn’t have attempted it so easily.

Although there was magic so precise that it wouldn’t even be detected by heat sensors, it’s unlikely that they wouldn’t have seen a person fall, given that CCTV was installed.

Well, I understand.

Surrounded by such precise equipment and facilities, they probably never imagined that such nearly perfect magic would exist.

However, that doesn’t excuse what happened.

Just as the government officials’ faces turned pale at those words-

The interrogation room door burst open, and the knights rushed in.

“Sister Anna, we’ve come to escort you.”

Those people, wearing full plate armor, said so.

I stood up from my seat with a wry smile.

“Ria, let’s go back.”

At my words, Ria also stood up.

Ria had a smile as if she were looking at someone very accomplished, which made me a little bewildered.