The moment these words were spoken...
As the scattered light particles dissipated, Eiji's figure vanished completely without a trace, as if he had never been there at all.
"Hey!"
Amane Shinomiya barely had time to call out before Eiji disappeared.
He could only stop in his tracks and click his tongue in annoyance.
Though their plan had succeeded, that final smirk Eiji gave before vanishing left him deeply unsettled—it felt like the boy still had something up his sleeve.
"Teleportation? Doesn't seem like it."
Kurogane Ouma relaxed his combat stance, pondering the situation.
"The only long-range spatial transfer ability I've heard of belongs to an aide of the League Chairman at headquarters, who can send targets anywhere globally. But he rarely leaves the central base."
"Doesn't seem like an imposter either—abilities, strength, and personality all match," Sara speculated. "Could it be a clone technique then?"
"He doesn't possess cloning abilities," Amane Shinomiya scoffed. "Probably borrowed someone else's power from Hagun. The disappearance just now was either due to time running out or the supporter's magic being exhausted... Whatever. First, I'll make a wish—I want to know Eiji's current location!"
Ding-a-ling—!
The instant he spoke, the phone in Amane's pocket rang.
"No matter how many times I see it, that ability is just cheating," Sara couldn't help muttering jealously.
"Hello? Reisen? It's you?" Amane answered the call from their mission commander, the puppeteer Reisen Hiraga.
"What? You got taken out? Right at Akatsuki Academy's doorstep?!"
"By Hagun's Eiji Nangou..."
Amane hung up, his face twisting into a pitch-black, disturbingly ecstatic grin.
"So that's it! Brilliant play!"
"Kehahaha! Magnificent! To think of such tactics even under my ability's suppression! Splendid! I can hardly restrain myself from crushing you now, ahahahaha...!"
"He prepared a clone before entering, had it fight us while the real one tailed Reisen into Akatsuki's headquarters..." Kurogane's usual icy demeanor momentarily thawed into something resembling admiration.
"Incredible..." Sara whispered in awe.
To mount such a counterattack under the Wish-Granter's suppression—truly praiseworthy!
"My wish only ensured our raid on Hagun's success, but never specified Akatsuki wouldn't be attacked! What an unexpected counter—he completely exploited the loophole in our thinking!" Amane finally stopped laughing, though his expression remained smugly unperturbed.
"But no matter. Akatsuki currently has the One-Armed Swordsman guarding it. There's no way he could defeat that man alone."
"Don't forget Arisuin Nagi," Kurogane Ouma interjected. "With Reisen eliminated, he's undoubtedly been rescued. Those two together would give even the Swordsman trouble."
"...Right. That guy's still around." Amane's grin faltered slightly as he muttered under his breath.
"But now, the ones remaining at Akatsuki Academy aren't just the One-Armed Swordsman—there's also 'her'."
Yet he remained unconcerned.
"True."
Kurogane Ouma nodded silently in agreement.
"Currently under the banner of 〈Rebellion〉, while she may not assist directly, her creed is to repay even the smallest kindness with her blade."
"Let's head back. Our business here is done."
"Agreed."
The group nodded in unison, gathering the unconscious Rinna Kazamatsuri and the others scattered around.
Meanwhile.
"●REC!"
Kagami Kusakabe hid inside the bus, her camera trained on the school grounds, capturing the entire battle.
"Eek!"
At one point, Kagami's heart nearly stopped.
Through her lens, she saw Kurogane Ouma's gaze turn toward her.
However, since they needed to publicize Akatsuki Academy's actions openly, and she wasn't a representative fighter, Ouma chose not to confront her.
After collecting their comrades, they left the academy grounds.
Only then did Kagami collapse weakly into her seat.
A single glare from someone like that was enough to make her feel like she'd nearly died—what a terrifying person.
"I'm sorry, Eiji! My mana reserves are too low to sustain a clone for long! And with you fighting so intensely, even using your ability..."
All of it drained her mana!
Her reserves were already meager, unable to withstand such strain, causing Eiji's clone to vanish mid-battle.
Kagami Kusakabe's Blazer ability was 〈Multiplication Manipulation〉.
A doubling in quantity.
She could turn one arrow into ten, one person into two—essentially granting the power of a doppelgänger.
Before the bus entered the campus, Eiji had felt uneasy, so he asked her to create a clone for him. The clone would fight while his real body stayed behind as insurance. Having prior experience controlling clones, he wielded it effortlessly.
That was why Stella had nearly slipped up earlier, asking, "Is this another clone?" Eiji had glared at her—if anyone caught on, it would've been disastrous. That princess really wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.
Kagami was more than willing to help, agreeing without hesitation.
Who knew it would actually come in handy!
"Ah, everyone!"
Kagami hastily tumbled out of the bus, sprinting toward the school grounds.
The representative fighters and student council members lay unconscious amid the ruins.
Fortunately, since they had fought using their Device's illusionary forms, their bodies bore no physical injuries. A quick trip to the regeneration pods would revive them.
"Akatsuki Academy... such formidable enemies! Eiji, please stay safe!"
***
Reisen Hiraga, carrying the unconscious Arisuin Nagi, effortlessly commandeered a private car, transporting them to a remote mountain twenty kilometers away.
He was completely at ease.
"With Ouma, Amane, and Sara around, there's no way we'd lose!"
Rinna Kazamatsuri and Tatara Yui aside, those three were exceptionally powerful—strong enough to qualify as top-tier executives within 〈Rebellion〉, even among the Twelve Apostles.
"Arisuin Nagi was a fool to betray Akatsuki Academy. He never understood that victory was never an option!"
Reisen Hiraga walked deep into the mountains.
"We've arrived—the headquarters of Akatsuki Academy!"
Gradually, a massive academy nestled within the mountains came into view before him.
And with that, his mission came to an end.
A silver flash of steel streaked from behind—
—slicing through his neck with speed far beyond his reflexes.
***
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