"To us, Magi themselves aren't worth mentioning at all."
Fang Zheng met the girl's gaze without the slightest change in expression.
"The beliefs Magi cling to should have been swept into history's trash heap long ago. All they're doing now is desperately dragging this world backward. Not forward, but backward. Yet history will not flow in reverse, and time will not turn back. Even if you became a Magician, you still couldn't return this world to the Age of Gods. The only way forward for humanity is forward. Obsessing over the past leads only to a dead end."
"Is that so... How interesting."
Hearing Fang Zheng's words, the little girl nodded.
"I'd heard that the Thousand Tree Clan was an anomaly among Magi. Only today do I understand why they say that... What is your name?"
"I'm the Magical Girl of Justice, Red Ponytail... You can call me Little Red."
"I'm Olga Marie."
The silver-haired girl puffed out her chest and raised her head.
"Olga Marie Animusphere."
"She is the daughter of the Lord of Celestial Arts."
At the same time, Lord El-Melloi II gave Fang Zheng an introduction from the side, while Olga Marie glanced at him.
"You still remember my face, you ornament from the Department of Modern Magecraft. I know perfectly well that you were the replacement for the previous Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, a sacrificial offering forcibly shoved into the El-Melloi faction."
Though the silver-haired girl had bluntly lashed out at him, Lord El-Melloi II showed no reaction whatsoever.
"It is rare to hear someone speak so bluntly at the Clock Tower. Much like how the young Animusphere family left the mountains."
"What does it matter? You also think there's no need to waste time on this sort of small talk, don't you? Then I'll ask directly.