Chapter 26

“Ah ha ha,” Abel echoed my laughter. “S-sorry, that was a weird thing to say.”

Abel’s unsettling demeanor completely vanished. Now he attempted to smooth the incident over.

I’ll never get bored at this academy, huh? I wonder what classes he’s taking, anyway… Is he going for Magic Pharmaceuticals like me? Well, not that it matters. I’m here for the same thing he is, ultimately: To do what I have to do.

***

The royal capital, dead of night.

The back alley smelled of blood. Two figures moved like shadows along the dark street, then emerged in a flash, leaping up to the roof of a nearby building. As the moonlight shone upon them, it was easy to see how vanishingly little skin their clothes exposed to the midnight air.

“Another miss.”

“I’m tired of this. We should get more direct.”

“Direct? Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

One of the voices was male, the other more androgynous.

“Man, that’s messed up. We’ve just gotta keep at it, take our time. Y’know, I’m actually starting to like living here.”

“Have you forgotten our mission?”

“Nah, I didn’t forget.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be the one to do it.”

“But I’m supposed to…”

“They’re elemental magic users. Their area-of-effect annihilation abilities are a threat, but they aren’t invincible. The people of this country trust too much in magic. This’ll be easy.”

“Ah, fine. You never listen to me once you’ve made up your mind. Just promise me one thing: Promise you won’t panic. Go slow, and be precise.”

“Got it.”

With those two words, the figures disappeared into the midnight black.