The Call Ends

Larkspur's hands clenched slightly, but her face remained expressionless. "What is Black Ash Dawn?"

"This is the second thing I wanted to tell you. The two groups that attacked your Fangting City this time: one is 'Claw Mark,' a group of rebellious magical girls; the other is this organization called Black Ash Dawn."

The blonde girl on the other side of the mirror spoke calmly, "Based on investigations over the past two years, we can basically confirm one thing: an organization called Black Ash Dawn was involved in the attack on Cardcaptor Sakura."

Who are they?

"A group of people who believe they can overthrow the Magic Kingdom."

Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye's words were devoid of any emotional bias, but Larkspur could sense a hint of contempt. "Composed of a group of restless Material Realm Mage and radical enemies from the Interrealm."

Upon hearing this, the Larkspur fell into a brief silence.

Two years had not cooled the fire of hatred in her heart. Hearing the name of her enemy and the news of Tea Rose's death only added fuel to the fire.

She wasn't actually familiar with Tea Rose, since she had retired too early, so early that she had never fought alongside Tea Rose. She had no idea what kind of magical girl Tea Rose was, what kind of combat she was good at, or what her fighting style was.

They only knew each other because of Anya, and were only related by senior and junior titles; in reality, the other was just Anya's teammate.

However, the other party ultimately embarked on this dangerous path to investigate Anya's death, and now they have truly paid for it with their own lives, which makes her somewhat uneasy.

She suddenly remembered the beast she had killed a few days ago, an Aberrant Beast said to have originated from the Black Ash Dawn and transformed from a human.

Simply tearing the Aberrant Beast in half seemed too lenient.

The Larkspur thought silently.

However, since they were still in a formal conversation, she had to suppress her emotions and calmly continue asking, "... What about the others from Fangting City?"

She had long been accustomed to suppressing her anger and remaining silent. She would never reveal her anger towards her enemies to anyone, simply because this was not the place for it to erupt.

"The others are still in office."

Seemingly oblivious to the Larkspur's emotional turmoil, Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye flipped through the notebook in her hand and closed it. "Regarding Tea Rose's sacrifice, our colleagues in the Investigation Institute are also saddened by her passing. However, matters concerning sacrifice compensation are handled by the Magic Affairs Institute, and the Magic Affairs Institute's efficiency... unfortunately, as you know, can only be described as 'regrettable'."

The Larkspur nodded expressionlessly.

As the only institution that has not yet been assigned Gem Scepter, the Magic Affairs Institute, nominally directly under the Queen, is actually the most free-spirited and undisciplined. Most of the magical girls working there are either natives of the Kingdom or seasoned veterans who have been away from the front lines for many years after joining the Kingdom. These people are notoriously lazy in their work and have always been the object of the secret disdain of the magical girls from the other four academies.

Putting aside the matter of the Magic Affairs Institute, whether Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye was truly grieving for Tea Rose's "sacrifice" as she claimed remains a big question mark.

Because everyone who knows Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye shares a common understanding: no one knows what her true thoughts are.

As Gem Scepter that has reigned for over a century, the Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye has been firmly in her grasp, and since taking the throne, she has never explicitly expressed her opinion on anything.

This is one of the reasons why Larkspur don't like to deal with them.

"And besides the affairs of your juniors, there's also your companion, Miss Margaret, a recent addition to the karuta (Flower Card, who is highly regarded in the academy as the new Inspector."

Seeing that Larkspur remained silent, the blonde girl opposite the mirror suddenly spoke up again, adding, "While she was on a solo investigation mission in another city, she somehow learned about what had just happened in Fangting City, so she applied to be transferred to Fangting City..."

The Larkspur shook its head, its face ashen.

"That's good. It seems my decision was correct."

The Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye narrowed its eyes and stopped speaking, "It seems you really don't want to see her."

"If possible, I don't want to see any 'old friends' at this stage, Dean."

Forced to respond, Larkspur said somewhat helplessly, "Margaret is the same."

"Then let's go along with your opinion."

Nodding somewhat noncommittally, the Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye seemed to have finished speaking, placing the notebook aside. "So, now that I see you appear before me again as a magical girl, does that mean you've already decided what to do next?"

"... I know, I'm ready."

"However, I'll have to stay in this city for a while longer. The magical girl lineage in Larkspur Fangting City has died out, and before that day truly arrives, I need to train new recruits first."

"I think Miss Margaret can help you with training new talent," the Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye said meaningfully.

"Let's forget about it. If she finds out I'm making a comeback, I'll probably cause a lot of trouble." Larkspur shook her head firmly.

"You should know that the Investigation Institute always has the best information network. If she's willing to investigate, she'll always find out about Fangting City."

The other person's words kept Larkspur silent, because she knew they were all true.

"Alright, let me confirm one last time. You still intend to stay in Fangting City and have no intention of going to the Kingdom. You also don't want more people to know about your comeback, right?" Seeing that Larkspur still didn't answer, Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye didn't repeat the matter and gently moved on from the topic.

"Yes."

"That concludes the discussion; the purpose of this conversation has been achieved."

The blonde girl narrowed her eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips, "You can end the call now, Larkspur."

"I salute you, Dean."

The Larkspur nodded, then reached out and touched the gem at the top of the Magic Mirror. After a surge of magic, the image on the mirror gradually began to blur.

"But there's one last thing I need to remind you of."

Before the Magic Mirror call ended, the blonde girl suddenly added, "Regarding your current Seeder in Fangting City, that Fairy named Moko, she might be hiding some secrets."

"While it's not necessarily a bad thing, you can look into it and learn more if you're interested."

As soon as he finished speaking, the image on the Magic Mirror disappeared completely, and it returned to being an ordinary mirror.

The final message plunged Larkspur into deep thought once more, leaving him speechless as he gazed at the Magic Mirror for a long time.

That's how the call with Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye ended.