Toaru Majutsu no Index

Volume 18, Epilogue: The Nation and a Powerful Enemy Even Further Behind It All. Next_Step.

The coup d’etat was over.

At the same time, people lost the power they had gained from the queen’s Union Jack magic thus returning them to merely being “normal people”. The people had either been calmed down by the loss of power or they now had time to think as the battle was over because the students and businessmen started to look at the terrible scene before them with questioning gazes.

“...I certainly seem to have gone a little overboard here,” said Queen Elizard with a smile that held a bit of self derision in it.

She picked up Curtana Second that she had thrown away herself. The legendary sword had been chipped in the fight with Carissa. She was thinking of having that boy utterly destroy it when she noticed a figure approaching.

It was Knight Leader.

“It pains me that I helped bring all this about...but what will we do now?”

“Quit worrying about something that’s over, you fool. I thought this country’s chivalry told you to act tough in front of a lady even if it killed you,” Elizard said in response to the man who had helped start the coup d’etat that had shaken the country. “And what happened today is no real problem. Each person who took part will explain the mystical phenomena in their own way, but they won’t reach the truth behind the spell. All this resulted in was a good story for them to tell their grandchildren in the future.”

“But you cannot deny the possibility of someone realizing that it was magic.”

“We will deal with that if it happens,” was Elizard’s immediate response.

It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about it. It was the opposite. If she hadn’t thought about it, she wouldn’t have been able to put together such a major spell.

“If it comes to that, we can just admit it. We can tell them that magic exists and that it is protecting them behind the scenes every day. You could say it would be the rebirth of the magical country of England.”

“But...”

“History is constantly changing. There is no rule that says magic must always be hidden from the people’s eyes. And we would not be the first to have done so. In some African tribes, a type of sorcerer makes the decisions for the tribe. In other words, they leave the governmental control to those who can use magic. It is not an impossible form of government. It is nothing more than a revolution that could happen at any time if history takes a certain turn.”

Coming from Elizard who had thrust a revolution before Carissa who had almost completely gained control of the United Kingdom, those words held a lot of weight.

Elizard herself continued speaking in an exceedingly cheerful mood.

“...Now then. We need to go collect Carissa from wherever she was knocked away to. Hm? Where did that boy I need to give a commendation to go?”

Third Princess Villian restlessly looked around in an area a bit away from the groups of Anglicans and knights who had put an end to the coup d’etat. She was looking for someone, but she didn’t seem to be having much luck. She finally stopped moving as if she had given up and muttered something with a cloudy expression.

“...So William really did just leave without saying anything.”

“...”

Knight Leader standing next to her wasn’t quite sure how to respond, but he finally nodded.

“It seems the Russian Orthodox Church made some major move. It will likely have a major effect on the war between magic and science. Based on some information from a comrade of his who also left God’s Right Seat, William said he must take action to stop this conflict from a different direction than through the Anglican Church.”

“A comrade...” said Villian in a quiet voice. “Including you, everyone has gained so many things in the past 10 years. It feels like I alone have been sitting still doing nothing.”

It seemed Villian had been more hurt than a normal person would have over William’s lack of a farewell to her.

Seeing her face, some bitterness entered Knight Leader’s expression.

“(...That bastard. He always uses his casual position as a mercenary to leave all the truly difficult jobs to me.)”

“?”

His words to himself must have leaked out of his mouth because Villian was looking up at him quizzically.

Knight Leader hurriedly put his usual respectful expression back on his face and opened his mouth to speak.

“I have a message from a certain mercenary. He said it is something that must be told to you, Lady Villian, and to no one else.”

“What is it...?”

“He said: ‘One day, when this war is over and the world is at peace, I will return to England. I hope that, when I do, I will be able to hang my escutcheon in the corridor of Buckingham Palace where it was supposed to have been hung. I hope that I have the strength to protect my sword and the coat of arms on it and that you have the strength to overcome all the difficulties and obstacles you will face repairing Buckingham Palace’. ...I suppose asking you to become a princess who is worthy of making such a vow to is that mercenary’s version of a proposal.”

“...”

Third Princess Villian’s eyes opened wide in shock, but Knight Leader had actually added in some words that William Orwell had not originally said.

(...Well, that man uses too few words. If I passed it on verbatim, it would be a little too blunt.)

Only that man who had directly received the message knew how much was the original and how much had been embellishment. Knight Leader merely stuck his tongue out slightly so Villian couldn’t see and thought.

(You know my personality well and yet you still gave me a message like that. You knew how I would pass it on, didn’t you, William?)

Kanzaki and the other Amakusa members had been treating the wounded and transporting the seriously injured, but they were finished and were now gathering in a single area.

The one who started speaking first was Tatemiya Saiji.

“...So once again Kamijou Touma got the best part. I can only see this as another major debt you owe to him, Priestess. And the other ones are still sitting there gathering interest at near usury levels.”

“Wait! Why are you saying the exact kinds of things Tsuchimikado does!? I’m clean on this one! I mean, we all joined forces and did everything we could, so the achievement should be divided equally among us all. There are no debts here, right?”

“So are you going with the Fallen Angel Ero Maid? Hm? Oh, you haven’t used the Fallen Angel Maid yet. Which one do you think she should go with?”

“Don’t just decide on something like this! I am never wearing that thing again!! N-Nomozaki, Isahaya!! I can’t believe you’re joining in on this at your age!! Please stop yelling for a repeat performance!!”

As Kanzaki repeated herself to them, the Amakusa men were united. They were insisting that she put the Fallen Angel Ero Maid on right then because they had yet to see it.

Meanwhile, at a slight distance from that uproar...

“(...H-he fought for everyone this time, so I can interpret that as being indebted to him, right? Then I...um...have the right to do that, too...Ahh...☆)”

“Wait. Is this pure-looking girl’s lust coming to the surface now?” quietly muttered Tsushima, another female Amakusa, as she pointed at Itsuwa who was paying her no heed.

And then...

“A-a-ahhhh~~. I finally made it to Buckingham Palace...”

Hearing some odd Japanese, Kanzaki turned around to find Archbishop Laura Stuart sitting limply on top of an approaching horse for some reason.

“D-dammit, Elizard... As soon as you got that flag from the British Museum, you left the horse with me and ran off... Uuh, I just can’t match my rhythm with the horse’s movements. M-my back...”

As Laura sat limply atop the horse, the horse looked rather displeased in its own way. The horse neighed as if announcing its dislike of Laura.

“Nhh...And I ended up being of no help because of it. Why did I even bother coming at all?”

“...You say that...but I’m sure you were involved behind the scenes. The fact that a national-level spell like Union Jack has never been used before leads me to believe that it can’t just be activated whenever the Royal Family wants. I’m willing to bet you either gave some form of permission or forcibly unlocked it.”

Upon having that pointed out by her subordinate, Laura merely gave a meaningful smile instead of either affirming or denying it.

Despite Kanzaki’s suspicions, Laura Stuart asked for some unexpected help from her.

“A-ahh, I don’t have enough strength left to even stop the horse. K-Kanzaki...stop this horse and get me down.”

“Eh? I-I can’t do that. I’m not very good with horses.”

“But look how you’re dressed! You look like someone out of a Western!”

“No, this is just because I have gathered all the necessary items needed to construct my spells. I don’t actually know anything about hor-......gwaaahhhhh!? It’s...It’s eating my ponytail!!”

Kanzaki looked in shock at her black hair that was now covered in horse saliva, but it seemed the military horse had taken a liking to her. While it stopped in front of her and tried to play with her, Laura slowly got down onto solid ground.

“O-okay. Now where is the boy who Kanzaki needs to service while wearing an exceedingly erotic outfit? I heard he was here in England, so I’d like to see him at least once.”

“Kh. You certainly know how to hit someone where it hurts despite being so late! And given all the magical incidents you’ve gotten that boy wrapped up in, aren’t you the one who should be wearing the Fallen Angel Ero Maid!?”

Second Princess Carissa lay collapsed on a London road.

There was still a bit of time until dawn. The coup d’etat was over, but the roads were still empty due to its effects.

She wondered where she was.

She thought she was 2 or 3 kilometers from the Buckingham Palace grounds. At any rate, she had been knocked so far away that she was having trouble figuring out exactly where she was.

“...”

Carissa looked at her right hand from her position on the ground.

Even then, the hand was still stubbornly holding onto Curtana Original’s hilt. However, the blade had been broken off about halfway up and its magical power had been lost. The power of the leader of the angels must have returned to Curtana Second. She doubted her mother would keep the power, though.

For a while, Carissa remained silent.

She thought about her intentions behind fighting against ninety million people. Protecting the people? People that strong wouldn’t lose their dignity just because the other countries were a little harsh. In the end, Carissa herself had been the one most afraid of that situation.

And then...

“Ha ha. Now this is something. I thought seeing you fallen to the ground covered in blood and dirt like this would be a rare sight, but I never thought it would be this pleasurable a sight,” said a male voice.

Carissa dragged her aching body into a standing position to see a man with primarily red clothes standing there. His figure did not look very built, but she could feel an unnaturally odd pressure coming from him.

“Who are you...?”

Carissa gathered strength in her right hand, remembered that Curtana Original had been broken, clicked her tongue, and threw the hilt away.

“Who exactly are you...?”

“I am Fiamma of the Right. If that isn’t enough of a hint for you, then you really need to rebuild your intelligence agency from the ground up.”

“!!”

Fiamma of the Right.

He was the final member of God’s Right Seat, the group that controlled the Roman Catholic Church from the shadows, and he was the member that wielded the greatest power. According to the reports she had read, he had half-destroyed St. Peter’s Basilica with a single strike and it still wasn’t clear whether the Pope, who the attack had been aimed at, would recover or not.

After recalling all that information, Carissa suddenly looked up having remembered something.

“The angel you are aligned with is Michael... Curtana uses power from the same angel, so are you after this sword!?”

“Hm? Oh, I see, I see. I suppose I could have done it that way.”

Fiamma seemed to be joking around while Carissa carefully watched him.

She tried to provoke him to watch his reaction.

“But Curtana Original here has already lost its functionality. If you were planning to use the chaos caused by the coup d’etat to steal it, you’re out of luck.”

“Ah, that really is a shame. That really may have been easier,” muttered Fiamma as if he really wasn’t thinking about it too seriously.

It looked as if he truly did feel the way he said he did.

“No, I guess not. That wouldn’t work. It has the right type of power, but its capacity probably wouldn’t last. As soon as my power was passed into it, it would probably just be blown to pieces.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, just boring gossip. By the way, you were half right. I used this chaos to come here to steal something that the Anglican Church has stored in the darkest depths, but that something is not Curtana.”

Fiamma gave some clearly facetious applause.

“Ahh, I suppose you really only got it a quarter right. Anyway, this is why I used the Roman Catholic Church to have the French government cause this unrest within the United Kingdom.”

“What...?”

“Really, I could have gone the route of pushing France and England to a serious war and then retrieving it from London once the city was burnt to the ground, but you were really much better in that regard. Thanks to your ridiculous game, I managed to achieve my goal without this capital turning into a storm of murder, looting, and rape.”

Carissa became enraged.

Without Curtana, the second princess did not have very much in the way of direct attack spells. Someone on an average level like her could not stand up to someone on Fiamma’s level.

As Carissa rushed towards him, Fiamma did not even move a finger.

A tremendous shock knocked Carissa over 100 meters away.

“C’mon, stop that. I’ve already accomplished what I came here to do. I have no real reason to take on a dreamer of a princess. That old queen may be different story, but I can just leave a small fry like you alive.”

Something large grew out of Fiamma’s right shoulder. It looked like a wing or maybe an arm, but it was a mysterious object that did not look like it belonged in this world.

“Tch. So it does break down in the air. I really did get my hands on something difficult to use.”

Fiamma approached with footsteps that sounded purposefully loud.

“What is this object that makes even Curtana pale in comparison? What did you sneak in and steal after going out of your way to start a war for!?”

Carissa coughed up blood as she yelled in rage, but Fiamma’s attitude did not change.

“You don’t know?” A smile seemed to split Fiamma’s face open as he spread his arms wide as if he were bragging. “It’s just a little piece of treasure. One that you of the Royal Family have been secretly using.”

Hearing that, Carissa’s body stiffened in shock.

She knew what Fiamma meant.

“You don’t mean...It actually exists...!?”

“So you really didn’t know. It was left right in the middle of Buckingham Palace, so I was pretty surprised, too. It must be a truly secret item. I guess that’s why the magicians who were instructed to run off with all the important items at the start of the coup d’etat didn’t take it with them.”

As Fiamma spoke in a singsong-like way, the third arm growing from his right shoulder slowly moved.

If it displayed its true ability, Carissa very well might be blown to smithereens.

“So, what are you going to do? Are you going to give up and live on or keep trying and die?”

“Shut it...”

Carissa slowly stood up as she wiped blood from her mouth.

She was standing at an angle because she was having trouble maintaining her balance, but her gaze alone remained strong.

“...I have a feeling I understand...why the Pope opposed you in the end...”

“Oh, do you? Then you can go join him in death.”

Something like powerful wind pressure attacked Carissa.

Carissa kept her eyes open and worked to drag her tattered body forward.

And then...

With a tremendous noise, a boy’s fist suddenly shot in from the side blocking Fiamma’s attack.

The power was so great, that the boy was blown back upon receiving it, but Carissa supported him from behind. Their shoes scraped along the ground a bit, but they just barely managed to hold their ground.

“What the hell are you doing...?” Kamijou said in a low voice as he swung his right arm around to see how it was doing.

Something seemed to be wrong with the bones and joints because an odd cracking noise reached Carissa’s ears.

Kamijou ignored that and glared at Fiamma, but he merely laughed.

This laugh came from the very depths of his gut.

“Kah ha ha!! What is with today? Are the stars aligned in my favor or something!? I thought you would be one of the last pieces of the puzzle, so I never thought I’d get two major pieces here!”

“...Who the hell are you?”

Fiamma was too busy laughing to answer Kamijou’s question.

Carissa answered instead while she looked as if she were about to collapse.

“He is Fiamma...Fiamma of the Right. Essentially, he is the leader of God’s Right Seat.”

That unexpected answer truly shocked Kamijou.

Finally, Fiamma looked back in Kamijou’s direction while still laughing.

“Oh, c’mon. At least let me make my own introduction.”

“Fiamma...”

He was the last member of God’s Right Seat, the group that controlled the Roman Catholic Church. He was the ultimate source of all the wars. If he were defeated, the large conflict might end.

Kamijou’s fist naturally tightened more than ever before and the third arm stretching from Fiamma’s right shoulder moved as if in response. He spoke while almost licking his lips.

“So you want to do this? Fine. I might be a little awkward though because I was only just getting warmed up.”

“Shut up!!” Kamijou yelled in anger and ran forward.

In that very instant, an explosive light was emitted from Fiamma’s third arm.

Sound disappeared.

Only the intense impact hitting his outstretched right hand got through to Kamijou.

When the light disappeared, Kamijou and Fiamma were still glaring at each other.

That single attack had held enough destructive force to wipe a large cathedral off the map.

“I see. As expected of the rare right hand that I’m after. Seeing it up close has me surprised yet again at how singular it is.”

His own attack had been negated, but Fiamma looked satisfied.

The third arm writhed like an independent creature, wriggled like a snake in great pain, and it started dissolving into the air.

“Time’s up, hm?” muttered Fiamma.

He looked at Kamijou who was focusing on the third arm.

“Don’t be so shocked. The right hand you use is quite similar to this. In fact, they’re similar in that they are both incomplete as well.”

Fiamma’s third arm then started struggling even more clearly.

For the first time, Fiamma frowned slightly.

“But I suppose it’s best not to lust after things. I’ll leave things here for today. I could easily kill you here, but I can’t be so sure that the spiritual item I stole wouldn’t be destroyed in the process. ...I’ll have it sooner or later anyway.”

“The spiritual item you stole...?”

“It’s pretty cool. Wanna see it?”

All of a sudden Kamijou noticed something in Fiamma’s hand. It was a metal lock. It looked like a dial padlock, but it had a lot of numbers. No, it had letters of the alphabet carved into it instead of numbers. The small rings shouldn’t have had room to fit all 26 letters on them, but they were unnaturally all there as if by means of some kind of trick art. It was less like each letter was carved on individually and more like only the needed letters were displayed on a ring-shaped LCD display.

(What is that..?)

Kamijou frowned suspiciously.

“No!! Don’t use that!!” yelled Carissa urgently.

However, Fiamma did not listen. He rolled the spiritual item around in his right palm using only his thumb to spin the dials on the cylinder-shaped lock.

Immediately afterwards, a tremendous noise rang out.

Something white broke through the asphalt and shot up from below.

It may have been something that had been travelling through the subway or the sewer. The asphalt was blown away within a radius of 10 meters from the center of the blast. Kamijou had been standing at the very edge of that range, so he was knocked back and Carissa almost fell down into the underground area.

The destructive power had been tremendous.

However, that was not what surprised Kamijou.

(Wha-..!?)

It was the identity of the thing that had suddenly attacked.

It was a human.

It was a girl with silver hair and green eyes.

It was a nun wearing a white habit with gold embroidery like a teacup.

Yes.

“...Index...!?”

Kamijou yelled out her name without thinking.

Why had she appeared in response to Fiamma’s signal? And how had she created that destruction that was clearly impossible with normal human strength? She shouldn’t be able to use magic, so how had she done something that clearly needed magical assistance?

Two things answered his numerous questions.

The first was what Fiamma said next.

“I suppose you could call it the external controller for John’s Pen, the safety device installed on Index Librorum Prohibitorum. It is a treasured item held only by the heads of the Royal Family and the Anglican Church. Of course, there’s the contamination from the original grimoires, so it’s really only a last resort. ...Didn’t you find it odd? No matter how much she wanted it herself, did you really think they would leave the Index Librorum Prohibitorum that held the 103,000 grimoires in the middle of that city of science with no insurance whatsoever? And it was the Archbishop that created this cruel system.”

The second was what Index said herself.

“Yes, I am the grimoire library...belonging to Necessarius, the 0th Parish...of the Anglican Church. My formal...name is Index Librorum Prohibitorum, but...as a nickname it is abbreviated to...kssssshhhhhhhh.”

Index had been muttering expressionlessly, but she had suddenly started to shake unnaturally before she collapsed to the ground.

“Index!!”

“Oh, was John’s Pen damaged at some point? Well, it’s unfortunate that the body can’t be completely controlled, but it’ll still work out like this. ...If I modify the spiritual item a bit to increase its ‘output’, I can most likely manage to freely access the knowledge of the 103,000 grimoires.”

Fiamma had the expression of someone holding a toy that turned out not to be as fun as he had expected.

“What did you do...? What the hell did you do to Index!?” Kamijou yelled much louder than he had before, but Fiamma merely spread his arms and shrugged.

“I don’t know. It’s their fault for not maintaining her properly.”

“You motherfucker!!”

Clenching his fist, Kamijou started to run forward truly intending to punch Fiamma this time.

However, Fiamma of the Right moved before he could.

He gave an order to his third arm and an enormous flash of light shot towards Kamijou.

“Well, I have to head to Russia in order to collect the ‘materials’ I need to call down an angel, so I’ll leave control of that right arm to you until then.”

“...!?”

Kamijou had instinctively pushed back against the strike with his right hand, but Fiamma was gone by the time his sight returned. All that was left was the bloody Carissa, the unconscious Index, and the wreckage created by the asphalt Index had destroyed.

A number of footsteps resounded throughout the building.

Sasha Kreutzev, a member of the Russian Orthodox Church’s Annihilatus, looked up. She put the thick book she had been reading on the table, took a gulp of her tea that had brandy in it, and slowly stood up from her chair.

She looked over to the window where her superior, Vasilisa, was checking on the conditions outside.

“This is bad. This is why I advised them that an alliance with the Roman Catholic Church would be a bad idea. It looks like God’s Right Seat’s influence has reached the Russian Orthodox Church. An order to capture you has been given, Sasha-chan, and even our fellow Russian Orthodox members have been dispatched.”

“My first question: Is Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy trying to profit from the actions of others again?”

“Do you have an idea what that bastard might be after?”

“...”

Sasha remained silent for a bit.

Thinking from a magic and a Christian standpoint, it probably had to do with the great amount of Telesma that had apparently been put inside her body at some point. Sasha didn’t remember it herself, but from the analysis of the remaining traces, it seemed an entire angel’s worth had been stored within her body temporarily.

Then Vasilisa briefly put on a serious expression.

“Hmm. Perhaps you are simply so cute that he is trying to steal you away from me. ...If so, I might just have to take off that old man’s head.”

“My response ignoring your ridiculous opinion: This must be the result of the Roman Catholic Church wanting me for some reason and the Russian Orthodox Church having become their puppet. My second question: What do you intend to do now?” Sasha asked bluntly. “A supplementary explanation: Even if Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy’s plans lie elsewhere, you still have a duty to obey this order if it is an official order from the church. If you help me anymore, you too will be punished.”

“Mweeeen,” said Vasilisa making some odd noise.

She pulled some old papers from her bag. They seemed to be various kinds of contracts for her job. Even if she was rotten, she was at a higher position, so she had a lot of annoying paperwork to deal with.

“Toryahh!”

Vasilisa suddenly started to rip the contracts to pieces.

“Wait, what are-...? My third question: What are you doing!?”

“Umm, I’m betraying the Russian Orthodox Church, rebelling against the country, and violating all my contracts related to that.”

While Sasha’s mouth opened and closed silently in shock, Vasilisa winked at her creepily.

“Yay!! I’ve made an enemy of quite a bit of the world!! Now I don’t have to listen to the church’s orders, so I can allllllways be on your side, Sasha-chan!”

“A-are you drunk? My fourth question: Are you in your right mind!?”

“I don’t matter. You just need to flee. C’mon, I’ve put a change of clothes, some money, and everything else you need to escape in this bag, so take it and escape through the window.”

As Vasilisa moved the conversation along on her own, she opened the window, pulled out a different bag from before, and threw it towards Sasha who was standing flustered by the window. The impact of the bag sent Sasha out the window and out the building.

Deep new snow awaited her below, so she likely wouldn’t be injured by the fall.

Vasilisa gave a small sigh just before the door was kicked down destroying the lock. Looking over, she saw a bewitchingly beautiful woman who was also a member of Annihilatus walking in.

“Oh, I had heard that Sasha Kreutzev had come here...”

Her name was Skogsfru.

Her name came from a Russian fairy. The fairy was a type that lived in the woods and would fall in love with humans, but their sex was so violent that the human partner would often be killed.

The woman’s body was tightly encased by her binding outfit, but the outfit was made of lace and leather to maximize her sex appeal rather than being an effective means of binding someone. She was an expert in all kinds of sexual magic.

“Oh, now that is the alluring type of outfit I like...but did that bastard Nikolai send you here to harass me for protecting Sasha-chan’s chastity?”

“Hm, and I really wanted to ‘play’ with that Sasha Kreutzev... I’m not really in the mood for an old hag, but they’ll be pissed if I do not do what I need to do. The higher ups seem to want to get on the good side of the Roman Catholic Church. Sorry, but could you just give up?”

“Now this could be a problem,” Vasilisa muttered slowly.

She then put her index finger to her lips and asked a question.

“Why do you think I was chosen to be Annihilatus’s mediator?”

“Ahn?”

“It was because I am the strongest in the organisation.”

With a roar, something invisible started swirling around.

Skogsfru frowned at the something that Vasilisa stood in the center of.

“Old cannibal woman of the one-legged house, please lend your power to this faithful daughter of little fortune,” Vasilisa sang in the voice of a little girl that did not match her age.

Vasilisa’s name came from the heroine in one of Russia’s model fairy tales. The heroine was oppressed by her stepmother and sister. A cannibal witch that lived in the forest grew fond of her faithfulness to her dead mother and gave her magical items that helped her gain happiness instead of killing her.

“Old cannibal woman of the one-legged house.”

Gently, Vasilisa removed her index finger from her lips and loosely bent the five fingers above her palm like she was grabbing a large brandy glass.

She was carrying out the method to gain happiness the witch had given the fairy tale heroine.

“Please give me the skull lamp. Give me the skull lamp that emits flames to burn my faithless stepmother to death.”

With an explosion, the two magicians’ battle began.

After falling from the window onto the fresh snow, Sasha Kreutzev reluctantly ran across the extremely cold land in order to keep Vasilisa’s determination from being all for naught.

The temperature was about -5 degrees.

Even that was actually still warm. The temperature in that area went down to -20 degrees and could even stop a tank in its tracks.

As she used magic to give herself a bit of insulation and to maintain some heat, Sasha headed across the land as the wind blew snow up from the ground. When a strong gust of wind came, the blast of snow would completely obscure her vision.

Even so, any pursuers would still be able to accurately track her.

Something sparkled in the distance. As soon as she noticed that, a mass of snow right next to her was blown away creating a crater. Sasha frantically laid down on the ground. A second and then a third long distance projectile attack hit creating more explosions.

Sasha was now unable to move and she could tell a different group was approaching. Sleipnir was an 8-legged metal horse that was meant to be used in the intense cold. The ones riding those mobile spiritual items were likely a pursuit party made up of Annihilatus members.

(At this rate...!!)

Sasha gritted her teeth, but then someone suddenly grabbed her arm. The person forcibly pulled her up to a standing position.

“This way. Really now, this has become a real pain.”

It was a strange woman dressed all in yellow. She was wearing thick makeup and had piercings.

The woman’s outfit was definitely strange.

“M-my first question: Where did you-...?”

“Over there. The snow hides the entrance to the cave.” The woman wearing yellow continued to pull on Sasha’s arm. “I was right to change the route to Russia instead of England. Given the situation, I knew that bastard Fiamma would be after you.”

“U-um...My second question: Where are you-...?”

“Where, where, where. What are you, a novice sightseer who can do nothing but just follow the guide around? Where were you even planning to run away to if I wasn’t here?”

“Uuh...” was all Sasha could say as an expression appeared on her face that would probably have made Vasilisa faint had she seen it.

She had been so focused on simply running away that she hadn’t come up with a real plan. But that wasn’t too surprising since she had suddenly become a wanted person throughout the huge country of Russia.

However, the woman in yellow just put on a look of exasperation.

“Well, whatever. At any rate, the Roman Catholic – Russian Orthodox Alliance has brought the influence of God’s Right Seat here to Russia. You won’t be able to rest until you have left the country.”

“...”

“I suppose the closest border is into the Elizalina Alliance of Independent Nations. I have no real duty to help you out this much, but I don’t like the people who are after you. If it’ll give them a nice surprise, I’m willing to do things I’m not used to.”

“My third question: You said the Elizalina Alliance of Independent Nations, but...?”

“Again: I’m not a guide. But it’s a collection of smaller nations that declared their independence because they did not agree with what Russia has been doing in recent years. There, what the Russian Orthodox Church or the Roman Catholic Church wants does not matter.”

“No, not that... To repeat my third question: It seems we are a very important target for the Roman-Russian alliance, so wouldn’t heading to another country create a reason for them to bring war...no, a military invasion there?”

“It’s already too late. The attacks by the Russian military on the countries that declared their independence have already begun.” The words of the woman in yellow clothes made Sasha gulp. “The Russians believe that they will win this war by getting close to the Roman Catholic Church. They have been a bit overzealous and have begun invading those nations already believing themselves to be the new rulers of the world. If nothing is done, they will be indiscriminately bombing the Elizalina Alliance from the air before long.”

“That can’t be...but...my first response: That is no reason to bring in a spark that will light the fires of tragedy with 100% certainty.”

“It’s quite the opposite, you idiot,” the woman in yellow said completely rejecting Sasha’s opinion. “If important targets like us are there, Russia will be unable to slaughter people indiscriminately with bombings and bombardments. They can’t risk killing the people they need to recover. Also, the Anglican Church and Academy City who want to stop God’s Right Seat – it’s really just Fiamma of the Right, I guess – will naturally look towards the Elizalina Alliance. This is a good chance to intervene in international society and there is a chance that it will also prevent Russia from attacking.”

“My fourth question: Then-...?”

“Well, from now on you will be hiding out at an inn, so it is polite to at least pay the rent.”

Sasha obediently nodded in response to this unexpected ally she had made.

The woman in yellow then looked at Sasha’s clothes with an exasperated look.

“And what’s with your clothes? If you’re going to be in hiding, shouldn’t you wear something that doesn’t stand out quite so much?”

“My second response: I do not think someone wearing only yellow has any right to say anything about my clothes, but my superior prepared everything I will need.”

As Sasha spoke, she pulled the change of clothes out of the bag Vasilisa had given her.

It was Magical Powered Kanamin’s dress.

“Wait, why are you putting it back? ...Hah? You say you’re going to go punch your damn superior? Wait, stop! Please, stop, stop, stop, stop!!”

Kamijou Touma stood staring blankly into the distance.

A number of people had gathered around the area of road where Index lay. Even the professional magicians of the Anglican Church looked bewildered.

No matter how long they waited, Index didn’t seem to be waking up.

Kanzaki Kaori looked up from her crouching position next to the unconscious girl and spoke.

“Her breathing and pulse are normal. Her life is not in danger.”

Even after hearing that, Kamijou’s heart did not feel relief.

He still didn’t understand what exactly had happened.

“...What’s going on?” came a quiet voice.

It hadn’t been Kamijou’s voice. The voice had come from Stiyl Magnus who was approaching the area along with Laura Stuart. When he finally regrouped with everyone else, the first thing he saw was Index collapsed on the ground.

“What the hell is going on!? How long...how long are you going to continue tricking others and hurting her!?” yelled Stiyl as he cast off the relationship of superior and subordinate and grabbed Laura’s collar. However, there was no major change to Laura’s expression.

“Stop it. The many safety devices installed on Index Librorum Prohibitorum are necessary measures to guarantee her basic human rights,” said Elizard from the side.

Stiyl remained silent as the queen continued.

“If there was no device allowing her to be controlled from London remotely, the danger of someone abducting her would simply be too great. We would probably have to keep her permanently confined in a room in the Tower of London with her arms and legs severed so she could not escape.”

“Are you...serious?”

“Those 103,000 grimoires are not something that can be dealt with using only our personal feelings. If we do not have complete control over her, we would have no way to counter an argument saying she needed to be killed because she was too dangerous. ...It was necessary to prepare numerous safety devices to prevent such extreme arguments.”

“God damn it!!” Stiyl cursed as he violently thrust Laura away from him.

(What is this?)

Just a bit ago, everyone had been joined together. It was all set to end with a nice happy ending. But just because that Fiamma of the Right had appeared, it had all fallen apart. In an instant, their unity had been shattered and they were left arguing.

The final member of God’s Right seat.

Fiamma of the Right.

“One of the important elements making up John’s Pen, the collar, was destroyed by Imagine Breaker, so it is impossible to make any predictions using the original plan,” Elizard said to Kamijou. “This kind of malfunction occurred because we had not tested the use of the long distance control spiritual item since the collar had been destroyed. If Fiamma attempts to access her knowledge while she is like this, it may do even more harm to her body.”

As she spoke, she knelt down next to Index and picked her up in her arms.

“You know what needs to be done, right?” Elizard said as if making a challenge. “We will look after her here. We are the ones that created her framework in the first place, so we will carry out specialized healing and will attempt to cut off any interference from Fiamma. However, that will not be enough. Unless he is defeated and the long distance controller is destroyed, her safety cannot be guaranteed.”

“...”

For the safety of the United Kingdom, the queen could not leave.

That was completely correct and Kamijou had no argument against that.

And he had never intended to force anyone to help him.

“Stiyl,” Kamijou called out to the red-haired magician. “I’m gonna go punch Fiamma. While I’m gone, you take care of Index.”

“...Are you serious? Are you telling me to sit back and not go after the person who did this to her!?” Stiyl yelled while looking like he was about to punch Kamijou, but Kamijou himself grabbed Stiyl’s collar and dragged him close.

Kamijou then whispered into Stiyl’s ear.

“(...Can you guarantee that the people who put together so many different schemes regarding her won’t do anything more to her!?)”

“...!?”

“(...I don’t know any of the details about the workings of magic, so I might miss some kind of trick even if I watched over her 24/7. And it’s all over if they refuse to let me in some magical facility because of my right hand. That’s why I’m asking you!! You’re a magician I know who won’t just go along with what the church wants and will protect Index if it comes down to it!!)”

Having said what he had to say, Kamijou pushed Stiyl away.

He didn’t like thinking about it that way, but he had to. Fiamma had once more brought out the gaps between the different groups and individuals that had been joined together not long before.

Feeling bitter, Kamijou turned towards Queen Elizard and spoke.

“...He might have just said it to purposefully disturb us, but if what Fiamma said is true, his next target is probably Sasha Kreutzev. Members of God’s Right Seat can use angel spells, so Sasha is probably too good a target to pass up. ...After all, a real archangel once resided in her body.”

“I wish to hide the fact that we have lost control of Index Librorum Prohibitorum as much as possible. However, it also means that we will not have a just cause to rescue her. In other words...”

“...I don’t need any help,” muttered Kamijou.

It wasn’t that he had no feelings. The anger that had been simmering in his chest was finally erupting from his body.

“I’ll get help on my own. I’m headed to Russia to go punch out that bastard Fiamma.”

There were two things that Kamijou Touma had not said.

The first was that he had lost his memories regarding the incident with Index.

The second was about the third arm that had come from Fiamma of the Right’s right shoulder.

That collection of mystical power had appeared as if it were breaking out from Fiamma’s true right arm and he had said that the right hands they used were similar.

There were tons of things he needed to ask him.

And after he had, Kamijou swore that he would unhesitatingly punch him.

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