Tsugumi was suddenly called by her real name, and she stared blankly at Asakura.

She considered denying it, claiming he had mistaken her for someone else, but after already revealing too much, any clumsy attempts at deception would be futile.

Besides, there was no time to worry about such things right now.

—Being in the stronghold of the Dawning Star, there was no doubt this man was involved. She couldn’t be sure when he might turn against her.

Tsugumi cautiously surveyed the grand hall, noticing that only the ritual altar at the far end was intact. Most of the walls were charred black, giving the room an unbalanced appearance.

Oddly enough, only the wall directly behind Asakura had been roughly painted white, as if someone had splashed paint across it. She didn’t fully understand it, but it might hold some significance.

Tsugumi took a light breath and spoke quietly.

“The fact that you can be here so calmly… that means exactly what I think it does, doesn’t it, Mr. Asakura?”

“Well, who knows? I’m not very perceptive, you see. Unless you spell it out for me, I won’t understand.”

Asakura responded to Tsugumi’s question in the same carefree manner as he had back at the hospital. …As always, a troublesome person.

“Then let me be direct: were you affiliated with the Dawning Star? Judging by all this, I’d say you held a fairly high position.”

Even as she asked, it was certain the man standing before her was connected to the Dawning Star. His ability to remain so calm in this tainted place was the most telling proof.

With caution in her voice, Tsugumi pressed on, and Asakura casually responded.

“Indeed. I held a rather important position, but in the end, Sahon-kun and I couldn’t see eye to eye. I didn’t attend the God Summoning ritual.”

After answering, Asakura continued, as if lamenting his own absence.

“…Actually, I met you when you were very young, but judging by your reaction, it seems you don’t remember. —Ah, but seeing you up close, you really do resemble how you looked back then. It’s like I’m reliving those days.”

As Asakura murmured, he narrowed his eyes in nostalgia as he gazed at Tsugumi. No, more accurately, he was likely remembering Sahon through Tsugumi—through Hazakure Sakura.

…To be honest, there were countless things Tsugumi wanted to ask Asakura. About the Dawning Star. About the truth of the ritual. About what Sahon had been thinking. All things Tsugumi desperately wanted to know.

—But trying to extract all that information now would be a mistake.

There was no guarantee Asakura would tell the truth, and as long as she didn’t know his intentions, she couldn’t prioritize her own needs.

With that thought in mind, Tsugumi continued speaking.

“Unfortunately, I don’t remember much about the past. —To continue my questioning, do you have any knowledge of the recent string of assault cases? I thought this place might be where the culprit is hiding.”

At that, Asakura’s eyes widened in surprise, and he opened his mouth, displeased.

“Hmm, so the assault cases are more important to you than the cult’s affairs. I expected you to be full of questions by now… but it seems you’ve fully become the government’s lapdog. I’m sure Sahon-kun must be crying in his grave.”

Asakura’s tone was disappointed as he paused, then dramatically spread his arms wide and spoke.

“But to answer your question, it’s both Yes and No. —I was merely that child’s… collaborator, you see. I do regret that innocent women were harmed, but it was a small sacrifice for the greater good.”

“…What a joke.”

Although she responded angrily, Tsugumi was calmly observing Asakura. She wasn’t foolish enough to fall for such a light provocation.

Analyzing the information, it was undeniable that the person in front of her had been involved with the Dawning Star.

And as for the serial assault cases, Asakura had referred to the victims as women… Despite the fact that neither the details of the incidents nor the victims’ genders had been made public.

This meant he was either involved in the incidents or had access to government information.

…Well, as the deputy director of a government-designated hospital, it wouldn’t be strange for Asakura to know such things. But since he had deliberately shown his face to Tsugumi and confirmed his involvement, there was no way he was unrelated.

So—this must be the turning point. There was no need to engage with Asakura any further.

…Besides, she couldn’t even be certain that the person in front of her was truly the Asakura she knew. However, doubting that would lead to endless speculation, so she decided to leave the fact-checking to Tono.

—This should be the end of her conversation with Asakura, and she should retreat as soon as possible.

Having made that decision, Tsugumi, without taking her eyes off Asakura, subtly stepped back.

Considering her current role as a scout, she had already gathered sufficient information. She had no desire to risk her life just to hear more about the Dawning Star.

Since she had no idea what powers her opponent possessed, delving deeper would be reckless. What mattered now was the present, not the past.

Just as Tsugumi was about to activate her teleportation in silence—Asakura casually raised his right hand, and something was projected onto the white-painted wall behind him.

—A single silhouette appeared on the unnaturally white wall.

It was someone Tsugumi knew very well, bound hand and foot and lying on the ravaged concrete floor.

“Chidori…?!”

Tsugumi couldn’t hide her shock as she shouted Chidori’s name.

For a moment, she thought she might have been mistaken, but the clothes the woman in the projection was wearing were the same as what Chidori had been wearing that morning. More than anything, Tsugumi knew she couldn’t mistake Chidori’s face.

When Tsugumi glared at Asakura, he shrugged as if to say, “What a pity.”

“I’m afraid I can’t let you leave just yet. If you care about that girl, I suggest you don’t resist and stay quiet. I have no desire to hurt the granddaughter of an old friend, but depending on the situation, I might have no choice. —I trust you’ll make a wise decision.”

Asakura said this with a calm expression, and Tsugumi cursed him internally.

—He had seen through her attempt to escape. No, more accurately, he had anticipated that Tsugumi would try something like this.

However, even though the image showed Chidori herself, there was still the possibility that it was a fake. Since she hadn’t seen the real Chidori in person, she couldn’t be certain that the projection was genuine.

At that moment, three options floated through Tsugumi’s mind.

The first option was to stay where she was, as Asakura had suggested, and negotiate for Chidori’s safety.

The second option was to leave as originally planned and request help from the government.

The third option was to take the more aggressive approach—capture Asakura and use him as leverage to force Chidori’s release.

The first option was something she wanted to avoid at all costs.

Frankly speaking, even if Tsugumi surrendered, there was no guarantee that Chidori would remain unharmed. Moreover, since there was a chance that the image was a bluff, she couldn’t simply trust what Asakura said.

The second option was the most sensible in theory, but if Chidori were truly being held captive, there was no telling what Asakura and his allies might do to her. They could threaten Chidori again to lure Tsugumi back.

While it was unlikely they would take Chidori’s life, there was no way to predict how far they might go, so she couldn’t make a hasty decision.

The third option was the most reckless, but honestly, it seemed like the quickest solution.

There was a possibility that Asakura was just a pawn, but as long as Tsugumi remained here, there was still room for negotiation. Even if it failed, she could always fall back on the first option, so it wasn’t necessarily a bad move.

—It took Tsugumi about five seconds to arrive at these thoughts.

Under normal circumstances, that would be the time it took to take a single breath, but… that brief moment became her downfall.

Just as Tsugumi set her sights on teleporting behind Asakura for a surprise attack, a powerful blow struck the back of her head. Her vision swam as the world tilted.

Instinctively, Tsugumi touched her head, and her fingers came away slick with warm, red liquid.

Her vision wavered as she took another hit from behind, collapsing onto her knees. She heard the sound of something metal falling from her clothes, but she couldn’t afford to pay it any attention.

Realizing she had been ambushed, Tsugumi desperately tried to teleport, but some force was obstructing her, preventing her from using her power. Through her hazy mind, she noticed something dark, like a shadow, wrapping around her body.

—She was restrained. The moment Tsugumi realized this, she could no longer move a muscle.

“Honestly, this is why people with teleportation abilities are such a nuisance. Always trying to escape.”

A voice came from behind Tsugumi, who was now immobilized.

It was a woman’s voice. Tsugumi vaguely felt she had heard it somewhere before, but her mind was too foggy to function properly.

With her vision blurred by the blood trickling down her face, she glanced towards the woman. Upon seeing her face, something clicked in Tsugumi’s mind, resolving many of her unanswered questions.

—Azuma Suou… was standing there.

She was a powerful figure, chosen as one of the Ten Flowers, and one of the few survivors of the great fire that had ravaged this cursed land.

…Because she had been a victim herself, Tsugumi had deliberately pushed thoughts of her out of her mind. But among all the magical girls Tsugumi knew, Suou was the one most deeply connected to this place. It made sense that Suou could easily take advantage of Tsugumi’s distracted state after seeing the image of Chidori.

Though Tsugumi didn’t know why Suou was here, it was certainly not for anything good.

“You’re hardly one to talk, considering how much you’ve abused teleportation yourself. —So, are the preparations for the ritual complete?” Asakura asked casually.

Suou responded cheerfully, “Of course! I’ve spent years preparing for this, after all!”

With that, Suou circled around to face Tsugumi, who was bound. She roughly grabbed Tsugumi’s head, forcing her to look up.

“Still alive? Well, something like that wouldn’t kill you, right? You’re a magical girl, after all. A little injury like this shouldn’t be a problem.”

After saying this, Suou threw Tsugumi to the floor with a harsh thud.

The second impact nearly knocked her out, sending her rolling helplessly across the ground. As she collided with debris scattered on the floor, a wave of nausea surged through her, but she forcibly swallowed it down.

Just as Tsugumi’s consciousness began to fade into darkness, Suou’s whispering voice reached her ears.

“It’s really wonderful, isn’t it? —Finally, you can fulfill your role, dear sacrifice…”