A Trap Within a Trap

"You look well too, Touko."

The two kept a safe distance as they exchanged greetings. There was no such thing as old friends reuniting; neither of them held any goodwill toward the other now. There would only be a winner and a loser.

"Alice, there are so many things I want to tell you. For instance, that Michael fellow—do you really understand him? If you can spare me five minutes, how about I give you a brief explanation?"

"I refuse. If I really listened to you for five minutes, you'd probably have sold off all my organs before you were done."

Alice Kuonji took out Cat Bell from beneath her cloak. Its silent chime rang within both their hearts, and the night was shrouded in a deeper blackness. At the same time, something about the "situation" changed. Her fairy tale magecraft was about to begin.

If Aozaki Aoko's magecraft made her a combat master adept at both close and long range, Alice Kuonji's magecraft was more like a magician's misdirection. It slipped into the gaps of the observer's consciousness and launched a fierce, flawless attack.

Cat Bell slipped from her hand. Yet instead of sinking into the ground, it shattered without a trace. Powerful fluctuations of magical energy emerged beneath her feet, and for an instant, she felt as though a roaring sea lay below her.

"Runic—"

Alice Kuonji was startled. The pendant had not gone deep underground, but had turned into fragments. The sudden development caught her off guard, but she quickly calmed down. Since her old friend had chosen this place, she must have done her homework.

With that thought, her heart sank.

"That's right. Though the job itself was pretty simple, it took me a whole day. I wrote three hundred thousand Runic characters for 'sun' across this vast canvas. We're standing atop that sun right now."

Upon hearing Tōko Aozaki's words, Alice Kuonji instinctively took a step back and cautiously surveyed her surroundings.

In that instant, Runic script spread throughout Shamaki Park. Within the realm of Mystery, this place had become "daytime," and so Night's Feast, which could only be activated at night, was naturally destroyed by this "sun."

"How did you conceal it? With such an enormous amount of Runic script, how could you set up such a massive spell without leaving the slightest trace?"

"Oh, that? It was actually quite simple. The Runic script I used was indeterminate. Normally, it looks no different from anything else, but once it comes into contact with powerful magical energy, it returns to its original form. Just like now."

Tōko Aozaki casually spoke of something other magi could never accomplish in their entire lives, while even taking the interest to explain it to Alice Kuonji in detail. "And I have this snow to thank as well. It disrupted your vision. Everything worked out perfectly."

Though she made it sound so easy, Alice Kuonji could not imagine doing any of it. Whether in technique, talent, or experience, Tōko Aozaki far surpassed her. She had seized every advantage of timing, terrain, and circumstance. This woman was like a nightmare made flesh.

"To use something like this against a little girl like me, Touko, you really don't act like an adult at all."

Alice Kuonji spoke with a sigh, but she did not admit defeat. Her voice was utterly devoid of emotion, yet every word brimmed with boundless killing intent.

"I've never regarded you as a little girl. Though, come to think of it, I have envied your body."

At Touko's seemingly casual remark, the atmosphere abruptly changed. Alice Kuonji's gloomy left eye radiated ominous crimson magical energy. Undisguised killing intent filled the space, far colder than the winter night wind.

Countless crimson bars erupted from the ground, mercilessly piercing through Tōko Aozaki's body and binding her within them like the sturdiest prison.

"Mystic Eyes..."

Her body could not move, like an insect trapped in amber. But her internal organs could still function. Alice Kuonji's Mystic Eyes only restricted movement.

"But unfortunately, without Night's Feast empowering them, your Mystic Eyes have weakened far too much."

The corners of Tōko Aozaki's lips curled upward. The crimson bars binding her grew increasingly blurry before finally vanishing without a trace. Though she had been unable to move even a finger, she overcame Alice's Mystic Eyes in an instant.

Seeing Tōko Aozaki break free, Alice Kuonji instinctively shifted her gaze. Tōko Aozaki also possessed Mystic Eyes, capable of binding others just like hers. If she fell victim to them, she would not be able to escape so easily.

But her Mystic Eyes were of a higher rank than Tōko Aozaki's. If they fought head-on with Mystic Eyes alone, there was no way she could lose.

"Ah—!"

The instant their Mystic Eyes met, Alice Kuonji let out a pained groan.

Alice, who held the advantage in both magical energy and the quality of her Mystic Eyes, had lost. The moment she met Tōko Aozaki's gaze, all those stale notions of bloodline and magical power were utterly shattered. Nothing remained in her mind but Touko's opened eyes, and the bottomless, profound darkness within their crystalline lenses.

In an instant, it was as if thousands upon thousands of Tōko Aozakis had activated their Mystic Eyes. The magical pressure grew heavier and heavier, nearly suffocating her.

"You must like this gift, right? It's a Mystery unique to me: mass-produced Mystic Eyes. Any one of them may be weaker than yours, Alice, but if the firepower isn't enough, then you simply increase the number. In the Mage's world, where strength reigns supreme, that's quite the formidable weapon."

Looking at Alice Kuonji, trapped in restraint, Tōko Aozaki's smile became even more alluring, though a cold chill flickered in her eyes.

"Anyway, Alice, you're finished. Any last words?"

Alice Kuonji remained silent. Bound by the Mystic Eyes, her vision had already blurred. Aside from the moon on the horizon, all she could see was the bluish trail Tōko Aozaki's cigarette traced through the air.

"Very well. It seems your life holds not the slightest regret. How enviable."

Tōko Aozaki stopped moving her wrist. The spell inscribed in the air unfolded, and the flowing air became blades, mercilessly sweeping over Alice Kuonji's entire body, intending to cut both her clothes and body into pieces.

The Wind Blades loomed larger and larger in Alice's eyes. A bloody gash silently opened across her delicate skin. Facing the death about to descend upon her, a stunning smile appeared on her calm face.

"You're the one who's finished, Touko."

The instant the Wind Blades cut her into fragments, Alice Kuonji's body collapsed into countless drifting blue feathers. At the same time, an enormous Cat Bell was hurled toward Tōko Aozaki's feet.

Thick mist rose up, and the earth beneath them heaved in waves. Tower-like fingers thrust out of the ground one after another. Amid the mist's howling, a colossal stone statue threw off its blanket of dirt and snow and let out an enraged roar that echoed through the night sky.