Currently, in a building belonging to the Institute of Astro-Mysticism—an organization primarily dedicated to researching the inexplicable phenomena occurring within the Zebuldia Empire—a headquarters had been established to resolve the "Spiriting Away" incident.
The lineup assembled for this purpose was formidable, comprising members of state institutions such as the Knight Order responsible for maintaining public order, along with staff from the Institute of Astro-Mysticism. Among them were cooperators from private organizations wielding considerable influence within the Empire, including the Explorer's Guild, major trading houses, and media outlets. Excluding one particular loathsome individual, this was likely the best roster that could be assembled on short notice.
It demonstrated the scope of the incident's impact.
The Imperial Capital was currently in a state of great excitement due to the establishment of diplomatic relations with Yugdra. The sudden outbreak of the Spiriting Away incident under these circumstances demanded an urgent resolution.
People vanishing was a serious problem on its own, but among those who had recently come to the capital were no small number of foreign dignitaries and emissaries from Yugdra. While they had escort protection, if any of them were to encounter the Spiriting Away, it could spark a diplomatic crisis.
Franz Aargmann, captain of the Zeroth Knight Order—the Imperial Guard answering directly to the Emperor—quickly reviewed the reports that had been delivered and furrowed his brow.
"A dire situation indeed. Every lead turning up empty."
"It's as though we're chasing after mist."
At Franz's words, Sage Crasta, a professor at the Zebuldia Magical Academy who had been selected as a member of the countermeasure headquarters, let out a sigh.
Every other person gathered around the table wore an expression much the same as Franz's.
Since assembling personnel from various locations and establishing the countermeasure headquarters, Franz had been deploying every available resource in pursuit of a swift resolution to the incident.
He had employed every means at his disposal. He had the surge of Spiriting Away-related rumors individually verified and confirmed. He had deployed decoys. He had dispatched knights throughout the Imperial Capital to trace the victims' footprints. He had even sent knight orders into the Decadent District, which had until now been largely neglected. At times, they had even entered civilian-owned buildings to conduct investigations.
But in the end, there had been no results whatsoever. Not a single trace of the missing persons was found, and every team dispatched had returned safely.
And yet, the number of missing persons continued to climb. Franz and his people had not even been able to determine where the rumors had originated.
As Professor Sage had said, it truly felt like chasing after mist—utterly devoid of any tangible progress.
If this was the work of human hands, it would have to be the doing of a criminal organization with enormous influence. But it was clear that such a possibility was virtually zero.
No organization capable of such a thing currently existed in the Imperial Capital. Even if one somehow remained, remaining undetected while moving on such a large scale without leaving any trace was simply unrealistic.
As far as was currently known, the largest group of Spiriting Away victims consisted of students from the Zebuldia Magical Academy. Considering that alone, it was not unreasonable to suspect that a mage was behind this incident.
But Professor Sage shrugged and said: "I investigated the Academy, but there was no sign of any large-scale magical formation being used. In the first place, abducting this many people in such a short time would be impossible for an ordinary mage. If there's anyone who could do it—"
"Is there someone?"
Mages. Certainly, it was more likely than the theory that thieves were snatching people under cover of night. But in response to Franz's question, Sage answered with a sigh: "If there's anyone who could—then perhaps only Princess Selen. She can use teleportation magic alone, and as a high-ranking Spiritfolk, it wouldn't be surprising if she possessed her own unique techniques."
"That's... absurd."
The image of the beautiful Spiritfolk queen that surfaced in his mind made Franz spit the words out.
Selen Yugdra Frestel, Queen of Yugdra and Princess of the World Tree, was indeed unfamiliar with the common sense of the human world, and she was a fearsome mage capable of infiltrating the Imperial Capital through teleportation magic—but she had no motive, nor did she seem skilled enough to abduct people so cleanly.
"In the first place, Princess Selen arrived well after the Spiriting Away had already begun."
"My apologies. You're right. Then we have no choice but to consider this a supernatural phenomenon."
The existence of missing persons had only been discovered after Princess Selen's arrival in the capital, but investigation had revealed that the Spiriting Away had been occurring for quite some time. Until recently, no one had noticed it—though even now, reports of disappearances continued to trickle in from citizens, it would likely be some time before the full scope of this incident's victims could be determined.
A staff member of the Institute of Astro-Mysticism, meeting Franz's gaze, spoke: "No prophecies have come through, sir. The most recent ones were only just issued, and not all phenomena manifest as prophecies."
"There haven't been any notable changes in the surrounding Treasure Halls either. There has been a slight decrease in Levels, but that's likely an effect of the recent revival of the World Tree. It's its own troublesome issue, but—"
A staff member from the Relic Investigation Institute testified while wiping sweat from his brow. A decrease in Levels, unlike an increase, should be considered unrelated to the current incident.
Nikolaruf Smokey, headmaster of the Primus Magical Science Academy—which had the second-highest number of missing persons after the Zebuldia Magical Academy—stroked his beard and said: "I've been consulting various texts, but nothing similar has turned up. Abducting people is one thing, but making others forget they ever existed—causing cognitive interference this widespread and this cleanly, even my potions couldn't achieve that. I'd love to see someone who could."
"Magic can't do it either. There's no convenient spell that would erase only the existence of missing persons. Heh heh... unless it were the grimoire of the Thousand Transformations."
At Sage's chuckle, the female mage standing behind him with a grim expression—Lucia Roje—widened her eyes.
"I didn't make it! Why would I make something like that, a magic with no clear purpose!"
A Level 6 Hunter and mage bearing the epithet "Freedom of All Things," Lucia Roje was Sage Crasta's disciple and the person he had entrusted with investigating this incident. But above all else, the crucial fact was that Lucia was a member of Thousand Transformations—and its leader's sister.
This time, Franz intended to resolve this incident without using Thousand Transformations. Borrowing the power of someone close to Thousand Transformations was something he wished to avoid given the future implications... but the Zebuldia Magical Academy had produced numerous victims, and it was only natural that Sage, as one of its professors, would entrust the investigation to Lucia, a gifted mage and his own disciple.
As long as Thousand Transformations wasn't used, that was sufficient. At the very minimum, if that condition was met, the man's uniqueness would be diminished. Even if Lucia had received advice from Thousand Transformations, it could be covered up.
"Lucia will now present her report on this matter. Lucia."
"Yes. As suspected, it's the rumors. I believe the rumors are the key. Based on my investigation, everyone who tested a rumor disappeared, while those who didn't test it remained. The reason the rumors hadn't spread further until now is because those who hadn't tested them subsequently forgot that the rumors had ever existed at all. Just as we failed to notice the Spiriting Away, the memories were cleanly erased. Until recently, that is."
At the seamless report, Franz furrowed his brow.
Information from capable mages reached Franz as well. Lucia Roje was undoubtedly first-rate. She was more reliable than the "Abyssal Fire Annihilation" in that she didn't resort to incinerating everything as an option, and more dependable than the Spiritfolk mage in that she didn't pick fights with nobles and cause uproars.
But in investigations of this nature, her brother—Thousand Transformations—was undoubtedly superior.
Lucia's report was somewhat deflating. He knew that the severity of one's abilities didn't necessarily correlate with the sharpness of one's tongue, but if it had been her brother, he would have said something far more devastating—something that would have dealt real damage to Franz's stomach.
Lucia tapped the floor three times with her staff and continued: "Therefore, I placed markers on the students of the Zebuldia Magical Academy."
"Markers?"
At these unexpected words, Franz's eyes widened. From Lucia's staff, a beam of black light roughly the size of a ten-Gill coin shot forth.
With a serious expression, Lucia explained: "This is an original detection magic created by our leader because he kept disappearing during Treasure Hall explorations. It's a magical seal—a marker—that allows high-precision tracking of a marked target's location. Simply put... if they disappear, we'll know."
An original magic. A useful one, at that. Treasure Weapons capable of similar feats existed, but Treasure Weapons were finite, and if magic could serve as a substitute, there was no reason not to use it.
The captain of the Third Knight Order, responsible for maintaining public order within the capital, furrowed his brow at her words: "In other words... you used civilians as bait?"
"I didn't use them as bait. I only placed markers. To investigate what happened at the moment they disappeared."
True, while having citizens test rumors was one thing, merely placing markers likely skirted the edge of the law without technically crossing it.
But it was not a card the Knight Order could play.
These were extraordinary times. It wasn't a bad move. Franz revised his assessment of Lucia upward.
At least far better than her brother.
He silenced the Third Knight Captain with a look who seemed about to say something, and urged Lucia to continue.
"As a test, I placed markers on one hundred individuals and monitored them. Three of them subsequently lost their signal—all within the Zebuldia Magical Academy."
"Inside the Academy?"
An original magic created by a gifted mage—a method that the Knight Order could never employ due to their position.
Amid the murmuring in the room, Lucia's report continued in a matter-of-fact tone: "The disappearance was sudden. They weren't abducted or killed. But they became untraceable. The one who vanished was in an old classroom located in the Academy's D Research Tower—Classroom 66. This room, currently used as a storage closet, has... a certain rumor associated with it."
"The 'Ghost Classroom That Cannot Be Opened,' is it?"
Sage Crasta said with a grimace.
All the various rumors currently circulating in the area, regardless of veracity, had been collected.
The "Ghost Classroom That Cannot Be Opened" was one of several rumors currently spreading within the Zebuldia Magical Academy.
The story went that within the long history of the Zebuldia Magical Academy, there existed a secret classroom where the ghost of a student who, despite possessing remarkable talent, was never recognized by the professors and died of illness in despair, would quietly teach the essence of magic to the chosen.
Though the door was not locked, it mysteriously could not be opened, and only selected students could enter. Inside, the ghost of the deceased student would secretly teach forbidden techniques that they had devised in life but never recorded in any book.
Magic was something that non-mages simply could not understand. If one delved into history, there were dozens of mages who had created forbidden arts and become enemies of the world. In terms of simple plausibility as a rumor, this story did not sound entirely impossible.
But Sage shrugged and declared flatly: "It's an absurd rumor. As Lucia said, Classroom 66 is used as a storage closet. The door not opening is simply not possible. Normally it's locked for security purposes, but that's all."
"Is there... something dangerous stored in there?"
"Why would anyone store hazardous materials in a former classroom? Classroom 66 isn't a vault for precious catalysts or dangerous tools. It's just a storage closet for unused items being kept temporarily."
A perfectly reasonable explanation.
There was nothing in Professor Sage's expression to suggest he was lying. He continued in the same even tone: "Moreover, the Zebuldia Magical Academy has always been among the top institutions even within this capital. Both its faculty and students are elite. I had it checked just to be sure—there was no student who died of illness in despair after failing to gain recognition for their talent. In other words, the rumor is just a rumor. And moreover... I've been a professor for some time now, but I had never once heard such a rumor. Until recently, that is."
"Another one of those patterns. What on earth is happening?"
Franz clicked his tongue in frustration.
The rumors about the Spiriting Away were all like this—lacking any internal consistency.
The boutique said to vanish visiting customers turned out to be an ordinary shop upon investigation. The alleyway described as a labyrinth where monsters lurked was, upon even cursory inspection, merely a narrow lane with no possibility of getting lost. The reservoir rumored to be bottomless was only deep enough for an adult to touch the bottom. And the demon's great mirror said to swallow anyone who peered into it at exactly 4:44 was a recently manufactured industrial product.
Under normal circumstances, these were the kind of rumors that only a fool would believe and test, worthy of nothing more than a derisive snort before being ignored.
But the citizens of good faith had begun to fear these rumors in conjunction with the Spiriting Away that was actually occurring.
Because the topic of Yugdra still dominated, panic had not yet set in, but if the Spiriting Away continued, the capital would soon be engulfed in great chaos.
Lucia continued: "I borrowed keys and personnel to investigate the classroom, but the students who should have vanished were nowhere to be found. There wasn't even a trace of anyone having entered the room—it truly was a 'spiriting away.'"
"Keys? Was the door locked? The students disappeared inside that room?"
"That's correct. In other words, those three students entered the room without keys, by some unknown method."
Lucia spoke with a cold gaze. The room fell deathly silent.
He couldn't understand it. The only thing he could barely grasp was that something extraordinary was taking place.
A cold sensation ran down his spine.
Unlike the prophecy incident, which had involved a terrifying curse, this was a different type of threat—quiet, insidious— "Is it true that the Phantom of God isn't involved?"
"Yes, that appears to be the case. I don't know the basis for it, but... certainly, the Phantom of God wouldn't engage in such underhanded activity."
At Franz's pointed question, Sage gave a shrug.
He didn't know the basis. Considering the basis of that man's words was a waste of time. He was certain to say something that would only irritate Franz further.
What mattered was the fact itself. If the Phantom of God was not involved, then the situation should be manageable without power on the level of Thousand Transformations.
The time they could keep Thousand Transformations on standby was limited. If the incident expanded further, the citizens would demand to know why Thousand Transformations had not been called upon.
The risk was indeed high, but they had no choice but to actually experience the Spiriting Away firsthand.
Within the Zeroth Knight Order, Hugh Legrand remained missing. He had almost certainly encountered the Spiriting Away.
Hugh was still young but a promising knight with considerable combat ability. The fact that he hadn't returned meant they either needed to send someone more powerful or a sufficient number of people to compensate.
"We have no choice but to actually experience the Spiriting Away ourselves. We need someone with strong situational judgment who can fight and has extensive experience. Branch Chief Gaark."
"The Explorer's Guild had already attempted to identify and send in several capable Hunters. But every attempt came up empty."
At Sage's words, Gaark answered heavily.
The Explorer's Guild was also one of the organizations with many victims of the Spiriting Away.
The number of currently confirmed victims placed them third, after the Zebuldia Magical Academy and the Primus Magical Science Academy.
The fact that this was all despite housing numerous curious Hunters was likely because Hunters had a certain wariness toward such rumors.
"Lucia, did you try testing a rumor yourself?"
"Not... not yet. I've been too busy with the investigation."
Lucia's expression clouded for a moment, but she quickly raised her head and answered clearly: "But I don't think I would encounter it. You see, as you know, recent victims have been concentrated among low-Level Hunters and students with lower academic performance. Among high-Level Hunters, there must certainly be some who heard the rumors and tested them, yet not a single person capable of solving this kind of incident has disappeared."
"The conditions for encountering the Spiriting Away..."
Franz had also already tried and failed to send carefully selected knights on the investigation.
Whether it was a natural phenomenon or guided by someone's will, it was troublesome. And there was another question: "My missing knight, Hugh, was a capable individual who had absorbed a fair amount of Mana Material. If the Spiriting Away could affect someone like Hugh, there's no way all the investigation members I sent could have come up empty."
"Perhaps restrictions were imposed partway through? Indeed, looking at the data, in the past a wider range of people seem to have encountered the Spiriting Away."
Using a massive number of personnel, they had compiled a list of Spiriting Away victims.
Nikolaruf narrowed his eyes as he perused the painstakingly compiled list from the now overcrowded capital.
"Fascinating. What's happening here—it stimulates the intellectual curiosity. I'd very much like to encounter the incident personally and verify it myself."
The Primus Magical Science Academy headmaster's expression was genuinely delighted. Franz couldn't help but grimace with exasperation.
This headmaster of the Primus Magical Science Academy was without question an accomplished man, but even to Franz, who had known him for a long time, he could only conclude that the man's position bordered perilously close to that of a mad scientist. Even during the prophecy-related incidents, he had engaged in behavior that only served to exacerbate the chaos. Franz wished he would give some thought to his standing.
Come to think of it, Nikolaruf had also been the mentor of a member of the Mourning Specter... honestly.
"If possible, I'd like you to do just that, but..."
It was infuriating that despite so many people being gathered, they still couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Having Thousand Transformations suddenly appear and deliver results in some haphazard manner was its own enormous problem, but—whether that man participated in the operation or not, he had a way of making Franz burn with frustration.
At this rate, he wouldn't be able to give the Emperor a positive report for some time.
But while an immediate resolution might not be within reach, Franz was not thinking that this phenomenon was beyond his ability to handle. The Empire had flourished under the great Emperor and his subjects for long before Thousand Transformations was ever born.
Rather, this was normal. This was how things were supposed to be.
Besides... Hugh Legrand, who had gone missing, had not yet been confirmed dead.
The young man was still junior, but as a member of the glorious Imperial Guard Knight Order, the idea that he would simply be defeated without putting up a fight was inconceivable. If Hugh could escape the Spiriting Away, the case would be significantly closer to resolution.
"For now, we've confirmed that among the many rumors, the 'Ghost Classroom That Cannot Be Opened' is connected to the Spiriting Away. Let's conduct a thorough investigation of that classroom for any signs leading to the Spiriting Away. That would fall under the purview of the Institute of Astro-Mysticism or the Relic Investigation Institute."
If the cause of the Spiriting Away were thieves or Monsters, the Knight Order would handle its resolution, but this incident was clearly something else. The two organizations that had long researched mysteries and Treasure Halls within the Empire were ideally suited for this.
The Academy had likely already conducted its own investigation, but with experts involved, a fresh examination might reveal things they had missed.
Finally, after reconfirming that each organization would cooperate to resolve the situation, Franz was about to bring the countermeasure meeting to a close when a subordinate who had been waiting outside entered the room.
He had given orders that no one was to enter during the meeting except in cases of utmost importance.
Franz turned his gaze toward the subordinate, who reported in a low voice: "Captain Franz, we've received contact from the team monitoring Thousand Transformations."
"...What is it?"
There had been an internal conflict about assigning surveillance to Thousand Transformations in this state of manpower shortage.
This time, Franz was determined to resolve the situation without relying on Thousand Transformations' power. But that man's abilities were too great to completely ignore.
The surveillance was meant to keep the man from making a move, but also to glean any clues from his behavior that might lead to solving the incident.
This was conduct unbecoming of an Imperial noble.
Keeping the man at a distance while simultaneously counting on his power—it was utterly humiliating. He felt like he was groveling at Thousand Transformations' feet.
But it was unavoidable. Truly unavoidable. Using Thousand Transformations would only cause the Empire to be increasingly looked down upon, but failing to resolve the incident without using Thousand Transformations would be the real crisis.
And the act of not using Thousand Transformations while trying to scrape by on scraps—equivalent to slurping mud—was something no other noble could bring themselves to do.
Suppressing the nausea rising in his stomach, Franz urged the subordinate to continue.
The subordinate's report was troubling to assess.
"...A Hunter who is perfectly suited for resolving this incident, you say?"
"Yes. He apparently spoke with the individual and secured their cooperation... what would you like to do?"
Using other Hunters in place of Thousand Transformations—wasn't that putting the cart before the horse?
The Explorer's Guild was already fully cooperating with the incident's resolution. Among the cooperators was someone of the same rank as Thousand Transformations—Level 8, the "Abyssal Fire Annihilation." This incident was unlike events involving rampaging powerful Monsters; it was not the kind of thing that could be solved simply by having a high-Level Hunter.
Could there really be a Hunter perfectly suited for resolving this incident?
Saya Kuromizu of the Night Feast Temple. He had heard about the high-Level Hunter who had come to the capital under complicated circumstances— Among high-Level Hunters, there existed those with talents beyond common measure. He knew that, but... it was only the single fact that the man had recommended her that bothered him.
This wasn't going to be another complicated situation, was it?
...Good grief. He was becoming far too suspicious.
At the very least, any Hunter would be better than that man.
The preferential treatment of high-Level Hunters was national policy. Even if she was a Hunter from another country, it wouldn't hurt to meet her face to face.
Franz clasped both hands together, suppressed his various emotions, and said: "Very well. Right now, we need all the help we can get. Anyone but that man, that is. Bring her in."
§ —And for just one brief moment, Franz Aargmann regretted his decision to meet with her. He regretted it, and was struck dumb by the realization.
The atmosphere in the conference room where the countermeasure meeting had been held tensed in an instant. Branch Chief Gaark furrowed his brow. Professor Sage wore a grim expression. Nikolaruf, stroking his beard and maintaining a composed demeanor, was the only one whose eyes did not smile. The staff from the Institute of Astro-Mysticism and the Relic Investigation Institute, accustomed as they were to various mysteries on a daily basis, and even the cooperators from private organizations—all of them felt the shift in the atmosphere.
It was an atmosphere that even Franz, who had faced countless hardships as a member of the Knight Order, had never experienced before.
Franz did not know what to call this situation. But his instincts were sounding an alarm.
The primal instinct of humanity, as biological creatures.
The source of the pressure—there was only one possibility that came to mind. But he couldn't believe it.
She hadn't even appeared before his eyes yet—and this presence was more terrifying than anything Franz had ever encountered.
Strength and terror were different things. Franz had learned that truth from that man—but even so, he could not stop himself from trembling.
The door opened. Every gaze in the room silently focused on what lay beyond.
Standing there was—a black-haired woman.
Black hair, and gleaming crimson eyes. He had heard she was young, but it was beyond his expectations. No matter how generously he estimated, she looked no older than twenty.
But that was precisely what was terrifying. Franz had learned from Thousand Transformations—painfully so—that underestimating someone based on appearance led to suffering. But even without that experience, he would never have underestimated this woman. To Franz's eyes, she did not look remotely human.
Saya Kuromizu, the Hunter designated as a provisional Level 9 in place of Thousand Transformations, known as the Night Feast Temple.
A crackling sound. Fissures appeared at Saya's feet. They spread rapidly outward from where she stood.
A pressure that came with actual physical destruction. As everyone fell silent, Franz said in a strained voice: "Branch Chief Gaark, it seems... the Guild has brought quite the extraordinary Hunter into this country."
"...She wasn't like this when she first arrived in the capital... Night Feast Temple, what happened?"
At Gaark's words, Saya turned her gaze toward him. Eyes red as blood, radiating an almost sinister quality.
And yet, strangely, her gaze carried no hint of killing intent.
He couldn't identify the source of the pressure he felt.
Saya parted her lips. The voice that emerged was, in stark contrast to her terrifying appearance, weary: "...I had a few mock battles. That's all—I just used a little too much power. I'm just excited, so it's fine."
Her words and appearance were completely at odds. As Franz and Gaark stood speechless, Saya sighed and continued: "The Hunters in this city—Hunters he trained—are a bit too lively. I'm glad you called me here."
I-see... It seemed the Night Feast Temple was not the terrifying being her appearance suggested. At least, the "truly dangerous Hunter" that Franz knew would not be troubled by such things.
The question was what made this Hunter ideally suited for the current incident— At that point, Lucia, who had been sitting with arms and legs crossed, observing Saya with a furrowed brow, rose to her feet.
"It seems our leader has caused you trouble. Honestly, even while on suspension..."
"!!"
"In any case, I'll verify the other rumors. Given the number of victims, it's unlikely that there's only one rumor capable of triggering the Spiriting Away—could I borrow some people?"
"Mm... very well. Lucia Roje, how many do you need?"
As Klye Andrich's sister, she seemed almost unreasonably level-headed, but it was also true that continuing the investigation with a single mage was dangerous.
She had strong allies in the Mourning Specter, but if she was asking for personnel, it would be better to provide them for smoother operations.
Moreover, while Lucia's investigation methods raised some ethical concerns, she was currently closer to resolving the situation than anyone else. Providing personnel would also strengthen coordination.
Considering the possibility that combat could break out at any moment, should he assign Knight Order members? As Franz began to contemplate this, Saya raised her hand.
"I'll go."
"...What?"
Lucia's eyes went wide as she looked at Saya, who had made the unexpected offer.