"The mastermind behind this recent series of incidents is my sister..."
"She's back to take the inheritance of magic from me..."
Aoko Aozaki cupped her chin, muttering as her mind raced.
Now she understood why she had been completely unresponsive to the dolls' sudden attack at the amusement park—
Because they were her sister's creations!
Arisu Kyōnoji also wore a solemn expression as she reconsidered their past battles based on Shirou's information.
Until now, she had believed that the enemy invading Misaki was some unknown foreign magus—
The automata her opponent sent out were exceptionally capable, leading Arisu to subconsciously assume they were creations from before the seventeenth century.
For the enemy to casually use such priceless, rare dolls as expendable tools for probing and reconnaissance, they had to be a nouveau riche magus with enormous funds and collections, but no territory—
Yet when she recalled the doll they had encountered that night—it was simply too new. Not only was it not from before the seventeenth century, it might even have been made within the past few years!
And—
"Aoko."
"Yeah, exactly. That last doll tonight..."
They had found the reason the girl had been so frightened that she could not move.
"...It was probably made in my image."
Aoko bit her thumb, her expression mixing fury and fear.
"The reason she can use antiques so recklessly is because she never cherished them in the first place!
"Tch... Of course. If it was her, Grandfather's barrier wouldn't react to her either!
"She would naturally know my weaknesses, too. Even if she removed the supports, she could do it with ease—"
Just minutes ago, the two of them had been arguing fiercely enough to nearly come to blows. But once the name "Touko Aozaki" was mentioned, they returned to working together.