Mizuhi had come to the hospital managed by Mikage Academy.

The purpose was singular: to check on the safety of her childhood friend and Fectom Academy’s student council president, Miroku.

‘Her hospitalization sure is taking a while. The other male student has already returned to the academy.’

Mizuhi pondered over Sorciera’s words from the previous night.

(Sorciera mentioned possible mana contamination the first time I came to visit. But thinking back now, that doesn’t make sense.)

In the past, Mizuhi had fought alongside Sorciera. Back then, only a light physical examination had been performed—no hospitalization whatsoever.

More importantly, Kei, who had been at the same location, had already returned to the academy.

(He was giddy about his reduced debt… Damn it, I’m supposed to protect everyone in the teacher’s place.)

She shook her head, as if to dispel the creeping weakness threatening her resolve.

Before long, Mizuhi’s name was called at the reception desk.

The room where Miroku had been admitted seemed to have extensive facilities, requiring numerous procedures even for a simple visit.

“Sorry for the wait. So, uh…”

The receptionist looked apologetically at Mizuhi and continued.

“Well… Aosei Miroku was discharged three days ago.”

“…What?”

Mizuhi raised her voice, unable to comprehend the words.

Miroku had not returned to Fectom Academy.

If that was the case, where had she gone?

“That can’t be right. Check again! Aosei Miroku from Fectom Academy!”

“Like I said, she was discharged. A student from your school came to pick her up.”

“What are you talking about!? Neither I, Toa, nor Kei went to pick her up…”

She had no idea what was going on.

The situation was baffling.

(Could the hospital be lying to prevent visits? What happened to Miroku?)

Just as she considered forcing her way to the floor where Miroku was likely located, a voice called out from behind her.

“—Oh, are you a student from Fectom Academy?”

The unfamiliar voice made her turn.

There stood a girl with an unassuming appearance. Her uniform clearly identified her as a student of Mikage Academy.

“…Yes, I am. What do you want?”

“Well, nothing much. I just thought I’d offer help since things seemed a bit noisy.”

With a friendly smile, the girl approached Mizuhi. Her demeanor exuded a peculiar, disarming air.

“Since this is Mikage Academy’s hospital, I might be able to help as one of its students.”

“I’m here to visit my childhood friend, but I was told she’s already been discharged.”

“Oh?”

The girl’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Are you talking about Aosei Miroku?”

“…Yes, that’s right!”

“Got it, got it… Alright.”

Nodding emphatically, the girl suddenly took Mizuhi by the hand and started walking away from the reception desk.

“H-Hey!”

“Talking at the reception desk will only cause trouble. Come on, let’s talk over here. Oh, by the way, I didn’t introduce myself.”

The girl turned back and said with a smile:

“I’m Agiri Rinka! Just your average student from Mikage Academy.”

■

Guided to the hospital’s courtyard, Mizuhi sat down on a nearby bench.

(Such an extravagant place… Typical Mikage Academy.)

The pleasant breeze and vibrant flowers gradually calmed her thoughts.

“So, what’s the matter? You mentioned Aosei Miroku went missing.”

“She was apparently discharged three days ago. But she hasn’t returned to Fectom Academy.”

“Hmm, maybe she had some errands to run or went dungeon diving?”

Mizuhi shook her head at Rinka’s suggestion.

“That’s impossible. Miroku is the student council president and an incredibly responsible person. She wouldn’t prioritize dungeons over the work that piled up during her absence.”

Having been by Miroku’s side for years, Mizuhi understood her well.

Miroku disappearing without a word was undoubtedly abnormal.

“Hmm, I see.”

Rinka conjured a virtual keyboard from her dive gear and began typing something.

Before Mizuhi could ask what she was doing, Rinka spoke.

“I actually talked with Aosei Miroku while she was hospitalized.”

“Really!?”

“Yeah. It was just during some minor errands. She seemed fine, so I doubt her hospitalization was prolonged for any serious reason.”

Rinka’s words only solidified Mizuhi’s suspicions. Something must have happened to Miroku.

“Do you have any leads? Anything that changed regarding Aosei Miroku recently?”

At that, Mizuhi recalled her conversation with Sorciera the previous night.

‘Looks like the academy’s debt has been reduced. That student council president of yours sure is competent.’

The sudden decrease in Fectom Academy’s debt.

Sorciera had hinted at its implications.

“Our academy’s debt was reduced. Miroku apparently negotiated something.”

“Debt? Sounds like you’re at a pretty tough academy.”

“Yeah. Survival takes all our energy… But suddenly, the debt was cut by more than half a while back.”

The method was unknown.

But the joy of having less debt overshadowed any suspicions.

That’s why Mizuhi had dismissed her doubts.

“If anything happened to Miroku, that’s the only thing that comes to mind.”

“I see… By the way, there’s a case the Mikage Academy student council is dealing with right now…”

Still typing on her virtual keyboard, Rinka continued.

“Recently, there’s been a surge in kidnappings. It seems a few of our students have also fallen victim.”

“Kidnappings?”

“Yeah. By the way, the person you owe that debt to… it wouldn’t happen to be Kiso Academy, would it?”

Mizuhi was stunned by the almost clairvoyant statement.

The debt of Fectom Academy had always been the result of covert dealings.

If this debt became public knowledge, Kiso Academy would be forced to sever its support for Fectom Academy.

That would inflict the greatest damage on Fectom itself.

Therefore, the debt had been deliberately obscured and concealed.

And yet, the girl before her had pinpointed it so effortlessly.

“How do you know that?”

“Take a look at this.”

Rinka opened a window on her Dive Gear and directed it toward Mizuhi.

“I hacked into this hospital’s surveillance camera server and got this footage. Here you can see Miroku Sousei and Kiso Academy’s S-rank Rokuhara.”

The window displayed footage from three days ago.

In the hospital room visible from the corridor, there was a girl with familiar-colored hair and a man with red hair wearing Kiso Academy’s uniform.

There seemed to be others present, but their faces were obscured by the man.

“The kidnappings target students with a certain level of magical power. Judging by Miroku Sousei’s data, her magical power is quite high.”

“So… Kiso Academy kidnapped Miroku?”

“More like… sold her off.”

Rinka closed the window.

Despite the horrifying truth she had revealed, Rinka appeared oddly nonchalant.

“Miroku… She went alone…”

Mizuhi tried to stand but was pulled back by Rinka.

Rinka looked her in the eyes.

“Ask Kei where he is right now.”

“Why?”

“Because I was in the same class as him back at Mikage Academy. I know his general patterns. We were good friends, you see.”

“I see.”

Rinka had approached Mizuhi after spotting the Fectom Academy uniform, likely because of this connection.

Knowing that a close friend had transferred to her academy made her instinctively reach out.

“My guess is, he’s about to make a move.”

“No way…”

Mizuhi activated her Dive Gear to contact someone.

Her call was to Kei Narou.

At this time, Kei was supposed to be handling dungeon rescues in Mizuhi’s stead.

The call took a moment to connect. Without waiting for a greeting, Mizuhi pressed him.

“Kei, where are you right now?”

A brief silence.

“Uh… well…”

Kei’s hesitation was unusual.

From his reaction, Mizuhi was certain.

“I see. You’re already at Kiso Academy, aren’t you?”

“…Yes.”

Kei’s reply was barely audible.

When he had learned of this, or why he decided to go alone, Mizuhi didn’t know.

But one thing was clear: now wasn’t the time to blame him.

With that in mind, her next words were decisive.

“I’m coming too.”

“What?”

“Of course, I’ll bring Toa along. This is a Fectom Academy issue.”

Kei must have been planning to rescue Miroku alone.

After a brief silence, he sighed deeply.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m also at fault for not noticing sooner. Send me the coordinates of your location. I’ll head there immediately.”

“…Understood.”

Mizuhi checked the coordinates Kei sent and was shocked internally.

It was Kiso Academy’s central district.

Had she been just a few minutes later, Kei might have attempted the rescue alone.

“I’ll see you soon.”

“…Alright.”

The call ended, Kei’s voice heavy with unease.

Mizuhi looked up at the sky after the call, forcing herself to stay calm.

“…Agiri Rinka, thank you. Thanks to you, we might have avoided the worst-case scenario.”

“Glad to hear it,” Rinka said with a warm smile.

Then, Rinka turned to Mizuhi and spoke.

“Let us help too.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course. Kei is a friend, and kidnappings are also a Mikage Academy issue. If we can gather evidence, it’ll give us grounds to challenge Kiso Academy. Just keep the latter part a secret, okay?”

Rinka grinned mischievously.

“Thank you.”

Mizuhi nodded firmly, expressing her gratitude before leaving the area.

As Mizuhi disappeared, Rinka waved after her. Then, Rinka made a call.

“Hey, Touraku, sorry to interrupt your date, but…”