Chapter 266
Chapter 266. Latent Heat (3)
For an instant, he felt his back stiffen without meaning to. A dry swallow slid down his throat.
The hand Alicia had unconsciously placed over his on the ground was pressing down harder now, and he was newly aware that she was leaning her upper body toward him.
Enoch gazed quietly at the girl before him.
He had been suspected of being a Black Mage before. But this was the first time anyone had so blatantly asked whether he was truly a Mage at all. Especially not this close to his face.
Had Alicia really caught on?
If so, how should he answer?
Countless thoughts tangled in an instant. No matter how he responded, the risks he would have to bear constricted his mind. But after looking at the girl before him for a moment, Enoch let out a small sigh.
Because the light in Alicia's eyes was not suspicion — it was shining with pure, clear curiosity.
"Before I answer, let me ask you first. What do you mean by asking if I'm really a Mage?"
"Oh, well, you see? Throughout this operation, I never once saw you use magic directly!"
Alicia rested a finger on her chin, gazed slightly upward as if thinking, and continued.
"On top of that, at first I thought you mainly used body-strengthening magic. But during the decisive battle with the last Master Class, you were incomparably faster and stronger than any body-strengthening magic I learned at the Royal School!"
Having said that much, Alicia turned to look at him and tilted her head.
"Hmm, so that's why I don't think you're a Mage!"
"......What kind of logic is that? It's a mess."
Even as he said that, a chill crept down his spine and he quietly averted his gaze.
The logic Alicia had just offered was clumsy, true, but put another way, her arriving at such a question about him was almost entirely in the realm of intuition.
If he showed even the slightest opening, she might realize in an instant that he wasn't a non-mage — suppressing that alarming premonition, he responded as casually as possible.
"Are you saying I'm using some power other than magic?"
At that, Alicia widened her eyes slightly, then scratched the back of her head and grinned as if the idea was absurd now that she thought about it.
"Well, a combat-magic Main House as prestigious as the Elsydes must have secret techniques passed down exclusively within the family! I guess I was just thinking too much based on what I'd learned!"
Mm-hmm, Alicia nodded to herself.
Watching her eyes sparkle with anticipation as she talked about the Main House, Enoch nearly let out a small sigh.
Between this and the way April had her own fantasies about the Elsydes before, the Main House clearly carried enough mystique in its very existence to dispel any question.
"Yeah, let's go with that for now."
"I knew it — the Main House really is incredible. I'd love to spend some time there instead of the Royal Guard School!"
"Was life at the school not very satisfying?"
"Hmm, the facilities were nice, but since it's a school for training officers, there was tons of regulation. The meal plans, the training, the chain of command, and on top of all that, they strictly separated male and female cadets!"
"They separate by gender for education? I didn't know that."
"Hmm, probably because there are a lot of teenagers like me, and they want to cut costs on training programs and unnecessary facilities. But maybe because of those habits, I still find it a little hard to interact with men."
"I see......"
He decided to silently ignore the fact that Alicia's hand was still unconsciously clasped firmly over his on the ground.
Focusing on the back of his hand, he noticed the faint trembling of her fingers had stopped — she had calmed down completely and returned to her usual self.
It seemed she was more comfortable with this version of Alicia, the one he was used to.
Thinking that inwardly, he idly scanned the room — and something out of place among the supply crates caught his eye.
"......A game board?"
Scattered across the warehouse floor were several overlapping poker cards, as if someone had been playing blackjack.
On top of that, a chessboard was laid out on a nearby supply crate. He brushed the chess pieces with his fingers.
"Looks like some freelancers or support staff were secretly killing time here during their downtime. Playing chess in a place this remote?"
"Aah. No! I don't know how to play chess!"
Alicia jolted in surprise, waving both hands frantically as if the very idea were absurd. Then she smiled sheepishly, averting her gaze.
"I, I can't do difficult games like that. Ahaha."
"You can't play at all?"
"Nope! That's probably why people who are good at chess always look kind of cool to me."
"Then why this place? If you were hiding because you felt bad like you said, there must have been plenty of other spots."
Alicia laughed softly and scratched the back of her head.
"I, I was just looking for somewhere to be alone, and ended up in this out-of-the-way spot where someone had been hiding out to rest."
"Sounds like you've done something wrong. Is there a reason you're trying to stay out of sight?"
Alicia hesitated for a moment, then continued.
"It's just...... I figured the news about the battle must have reached the Dragoons by now. Aslin, who knows my location, will probably come to take me back soon."
"......So you were hiding to avoid being found for as long as possible?"
Glancing to the side, Alicia quietly averted her gaze and nodded.
"That's right. The promise I made before — about persuading the Dragoons. I'm not quite...... mentally ready yet. And I don't know how to convince them of the situation here in time."
An involuntary groan escaped him. That could indeed be a problem.
"Realistically, even if you try to persuade a Dragoon force that's been immovable until now, there's no way to know if they'll actually join the fight."
"One thing I'm curious about, though. If I really can persuade the Dragoons, where would you deploy such a force?"
"To minimize casualties on our side."
"That's...... what exactly do you mean?"
Seeing Alicia tilt her head in confusion, he realized he had been too abstract. He needed to elaborate.
"Our operation, Piercing Thrust, causes more allied casualties the longer it drags on. If this black side represents us, it's like this."
Enoch reached for the chessboard beside him and picked up the black King, advancing it forward.
The white side had all its pieces arrayed in a grand formation, and the black King was charging directly toward the white King sheltered at the very back.
In a real chess game, it would be tantamount to suicide, but for now, it was effectively the only move available to their side.
Lost in thought, he idly flicked white Pawns over with his finger, toppling them as he murmured.
"Fundamentally, it's a tactic where everyone charges at the enemy commander while accepting being isolated in enemy territory. We need overwhelming firepower to open a path quickly. That's why we need the Dragoons."
He glanced at Alicia.
"Your Dragoons are often compared to the Elsyde's Nemesis in terms of total combat power."
"Ahaha. Even if you say that, I honestly don't think we could match Nemesis's reputation."
Alicia smiled sheepishly and swept the hair that had fallen over her shoulder aside.
Of course, as she said, the comparison itself might just elevate Nemesis's standing given their vastly smaller numbers. But regardless, it also meant the Dragoons' total combat capability was that impressive.
If such a force joined their side, it would undoubtedly be an enormous boon.
Just then, something soft touched his fingertips where his hand hung beside the chessboard. Looking down, he spotted a familiar tactical duffel bag tucked in the corner of the room.
A waterproof, jet-black bag. The one that had held supplies Shepherd had provided during the Indiviltal mission.
Alicia, sitting beside him, also noticed what his hand had touched and widened her eyes slightly.
"Oh, isn't that......?"
"The supply bag we brought on the Indiviltal operation. It was here all along."
"Ah! After you came back from that mission and went for treatment, I think the other freelancers took custody of it. Maybe they stored it here temporarily?"
"Probably. Doesn't matter anyway. There shouldn't be anything important insi—"
Enoch suddenly recalled something and stopped mid-sentence.
No, there was. Something important.
While it was on his mind, he pulled the zipper open and reached inside. Sure enough, his hand found something wrapped in plastic.
He pulled it out — inside the clear plastic was a file covered in a jumble of labels.
The unidentified documents he had retrieved from the shocking outdoor laboratory they had discovered during the previous operation.
Apparently no one had opened it; the plastic sealing the file still crinkled under his fingertips, its texture unchanged.
Alicia, who had been looking at the bag alongside him, also exclaimed as if just remembering.
"Ah! Come to think of it, you brought this file back then, Direct Lineage? I'd completely forgotten."
"Same here."
With so many recent events piling on top of one another, even Enoch — the one who had retrieved it — had nearly forgotten.
He was about to slip the file back into the duffel bag when Alicia tilted her head beside him.
"You're not going to open it now?"
"Well, I am curious what's inside."
"Hm? But then?"
Enoch glanced out the window of the container warehouse. Seeing the steel wall towering around the 19th Outsourcing District, he shook his head.
"With battle preparations underway, the volume seems a bit much to go through right now."
Alicia nodded in understanding, but after staring at the file, she turned her gaze toward him.
"Then, could I take a look at it first?"
"Go ahead."
When he handed over the envelope, Alicia said a brief "Thank you" and carefully tore open the plastic wrapping.
She opened the envelope, pulled out the few thin pages inside, and began skimming through them — and in that instant, her body convulsed with a sharp twitch.
"Wait, a second. This is."
The documents in her grip crumpled, and the color drained from her trembling fingers as they turned white.
Sensing something was deeply wrong, Enoch glanced at Alicia's face — and in that moment, a jolt of alarm shot down his spine and his mouth fell open.
"Wait, Alicia......?"
"Direct Lineage. I'm sorry. I need to, step out."
Despite his attempt to stop her, Alicia strode toward the exit with the documents in hand. Enoch took a step toward her retreating back and asked.
"Have you already read all of that?"
"No."
The girl in the Dragoon uniform glanced back over her shoulder with an expression hardened to a frightening degree — nothing like her usual self.
"But I don't need to read the whole thing. I'm sorry, Direct Lineage, but you'd be better off not seeing this."
"What?"
This was no time to hesitate.
Enoch stumbled over the corner of a crate in his haste, nearly falling, but staggered out of the warehouse and looked around.
Alicia, who had simply been walking straight ahead, had approached another Interim's camp in front of a neighboring tent.
Without so much as a word of apology, she flung the documents into the campfire.
The freelancers of the neighboring tent, seated around the fire, jolted in surprise at the sudden intruder. But Alicia confirmed the documents had caught fire, then walked away in silence.
After confirming Alicia wasn't coming back, Enoch pushed past the people sitting around the campfire and peered into the flames.
The documents were there.
Without hesitation, Enoch plunged his hand into the fire and grabbed the paper.
The searing heat felt as if it would burn the skin off his hand, but right now, the lingering effects of Amelia's healing magic should still be active.
Trusting in that, he drove his hand into the deepest part of the blazing fire, and by the time he reached his limit and pulled his arm free, a half-burned scrap of paper lay in his hand, faintly wreathed in white smoke and green light.
"H-hey, Leader? What are you two doing?" — ignoring the bewildered freelancers from the neighboring tent, Enoch mentally apologized to Alicia and unfolded the charred, folded scrap.
The next moment, Enoch's eyes flew wide.
He groaned involuntarily and staggered back several steps.
What is this? Why...... is this name......
Enoch traced Alicia's distant retreating figure with his eyes, then looked once more at the paper scrap, its edges charred black.
What remained appeared to be the final portion of the document.
「......As stated above, the large-scale Magical Beast assault occurring in the 19th Outsourcing District was designed as a project conducted under controlled conditions.」
「......In accordance with the prophecies of the Book of Gnosis, suitability testing for the 'Ascension' of non-mages is also planned.」
「......New recruits of the Victoria regular army have been selected as opponents for testing the Magical Beastification experimental subjects.」
「......Based on the aforementioned data, a full-scale war zone has been established in the 19th Outsourcing District to approximate real combat conditions.」
「......'Robert Shepherd,' commanding the regular army, is cooperating with the project. The project will proceed.」
Robert Shepherd — Alicia's superior officer and a Victoria Domain commander. The official commanding officer of the Victoria army who had been opposing Enoch throughout this operation.
Needless to say, Enoch himself had crossed paths with the man multiple times during this campaign.
......Why is Commander Shepherd's name here?
The answer formed almost simultaneously with the question, and Enoch's eyes widened before he could stop himself.
No, it wasn't easy to say for certain.
With only this much fragmentary content, it was difficult to hastily infer the full scope of the burned documents. But......
Enoch's shoulders trembled involuntarily.
Alicia's face as she had brushed past him moments ago resurfaced in his mind.
Alicia had been staring straight ahead with vivid, resolute eyes.
An expression more unwavering than any he had ever seen.