"You girls really know how to play."
After a long pause, Alistair could only squeeze out those few words. Those so-called noble ladies were indeed decadent, but to call it excessive—perhaps it wasn't too far gone. Although those boys were broken, the compensation they received was sufficient.
One could only say that was the price. An easy, high-paying job is never handed to a commoner student with no connections. A pie falling from the sky isn't that easy to swallow; if it goes down too easily, something is bound to go wrong.
"Don't include me in that. It's only a small group that likes to play that way. Most of the girls are quite virtuous. Don't go painting everyone with the same brush," Nina Tsubakihara said, rolling her eyes and huffing at Alistair's remark.
"I know. Just a casual observation," Alistair nodded.
"Good. These are basically the unwritten rules of our academy. Also, let me state this one more time: once the school announces the timing for the 'Twilight Hour (Meikoku no Toki)', you must leave the campus on time. If you remain at school during the 'Twilight Hour,' what awaits you might be 'erasure.'"
Nina Tsubakihara's face hardened into a mask of absolute seriousness. Clearly, this wasn't a joke; it was a reality.
"Mhm."
Alistair nodded obediently, though only he knew what he actually intended to do.
In fact, Alistair didn't think it was worth such a fuss. Based on Nina's description, it was highly likely that the 'Twilight Hour' was a period of 'Mystery' frenzy. However, this 'Mystery' wasn't the pure, directly usable kind, but something relatively primitive.
And what is primitive 'Mystery'? Think about how Alistair used to obtain energy. Exactly—'Lust'! While primitive 'Mystery' isn't necessarily 'Lust,' given the context of this world's setting, Alistair was certain: the flood of 'Mystery' that erupted during the 'Twilight Hour' was a massive burst of 'Desire'!
The female students somehow being able to withstand the infusion of 'Mystery' was abnormal. The rumors Nina mentioned about male students being 'erased' were the typical consequence of an ordinary person encountering a forced infusion of 'Mystery.'
'Mystery' cannot be directly absorbed into the body, not even through forced infusion.
It's a bit like trace elements in the human body. In this era, the amount of 'Mystery' in a normal human is negligible. Awakening and using superpowers is just a meager application of 'Mystery'—an extremely one-dimensional one, which is why most people only have a single power.
Furthermore, there are no longer humans on the surface who can autonomously increase or manipulate 'Mystery.' Attempting to force a large amount of 'Mystery' into the body is essentially suicide.
Without proper countermeasures, if too much 'Mystery' enters an ordinary person, it might not show effects for a few dozen minutes; one would just need to vent or radiate the excess. But if one tries to force that 'Mystery' to stay inside, it will only cause the physical body to collapse.
Because 'Mystery' itself is a highly idealistic special energy, it isn't something ordinary people can handle. If a massive clump of 'Mystery' enters a commoner's body and they have no way to 'digest' it, then—sorry—you will be 'digested' instead, slowly disintegrating and transforming into part of the 'Mystery' itself. The person Nina heard about likely had their disintegration discovered right as it happened.
True, high-level Extraordinary Beings can fully understand and utilize their own 'Mystery.' At that stage, abilities are no longer strictly categorized. By simply evolving and applying 'Mystery,' one naturally gains the corresponding power.
One could say the deeper the understanding of 'Mystery,' the more powerful and diverse the abilities.
However, there is a consensus among Extraordinary Beings: no one can fully comprehend 'Mystery' because it is too vast. Therefore, when 'Mystery' manifests through superpowers, people generally only use one or two specific abilities (not spells), such as the development and understanding of fire-based powers.
Alistair previously leaned toward comprehensive development. Although it was a pity he couldn't reach full potential, the time and preparation required were too much for him to waste. There was one more thing Alistair couldn't understand: according to Nina, the 'Desire' rampant during the 'Twilight Hour' would fill their bodies. That primitive 'Mystery' would plunge a person into the abyss of mating instincts, drowning them in 'Desire' until their body was tainted and collapsed.
Does that school have something that requires a massive amount of 'Mystery'? And why only use female bodies while males are unusable? If this were a major plotline, the sequel should be a festive gangbang session. Yet, without boys, they couldn't exactly pull off a futanari scenario, right?
No, wait. The school probably isn't trying to harm these girls, but protect them. That 'Twilight Hour' might be caused by some kind of spell—a man-made phenomenon. The 'Mystery' triggered by it might remain in their bodies. During the 'Twilight Hour,' the energy would resonate. If a girl weren't at the school then, she might very well become a feral beast of instinct out in the world. That wouldn't just be a blow to the school, but a massive loss of face for the girls' families.
Ultimately, after deliberation, the current situation might be the best compromise. It loses neither the school's prestige nor the families' honor.
"Well, I've said my piece. I'm heading out. When you come to our school, I'll give you a proper tour."
Nina Tsubakihara waved and bid Alistair farewell.
"Yeah, I'll definitely look you up."
While responding, Alistair used his special vision to observe Nina. As expected, her body was filled with a thick, black gas—'Desire'. The difference was that this 'Desire' wasn't generated by her; it was clinging to the inside of her body...
Furthermore, Alistair realized this knowledge and these deductions regarding 'Mystery' weren't things he should naturally know. But he just knew. He figured Shima might have explained it before, leaving him with an impression.