Chapter Seventy-two: Discussions
Morning.
Inside a cafe.
"Haaah."
Morgan slumped on the desk before him as light filtered in.
It was in front of a glass window that displayed the outside world.
A coffee cup was served in front of him, but he paid it no mind.
His head was propped towards the other side, looking out the window.
But at this moment, he was seriously reconsidering his life choices.
'..I just meant to tease her yesterday.'
Feigning he hadn't the slightest idea what «Ideal Mana» function was.
But well oh well did it backfire.
Morgan knew full well he couldn't simply rewrite the flaw in Kurumi's powers.
After all—
He wasn't naïve enough to believe that someone like «Deus» would leave a flaw by accident.
The more likely answer was simple.
«Deus» created that flaw deliberately.
Or rather, the flaw was meant to exist, and viewed that way, it made sense.
They were dealing with a god.
A complete spiritual being with an infinite lifespan.
Kurumi, no matter how abnormal she was, was not.
She might live long.
However, mentally, she was already far beyond her twenties.
The erosion of her lifespan would claim her long before anything else.
Time-based power, regardless of its form, was inherently broken.
As for what he did…
It was never meant to remove the cost, only to manage it.
By binding mana together with her Reiryoku.
The loss of energy, equivalent to lifespan consumption, would be minimized.
Its higher state would help regulate the flow of Reiryoku and lifespan simultaneously.
That was why he placed the fluid near her Sephirah Crystal.
Which would allow the dense mana to circulate, converting into Reiryoku.
And further refining into what he had dubbed:
«Super Reiryoku».
Or so he named it.
His naming sense aside, he could only hope it would be enough.
Since «Zafkiel» consumed both her Reiryoku and her lifeforce.
All he could do was hope the angel would greedily target the new energy inside her.
Or that the omnipotent energy itself would be sufficient to sate «Zafkiel»'s hunger,
…thereby reducing the drain on her lifeforce to a minimum.
"But still… sucking me dry is a bit much."
Morgan groaned, feeling his enhanced body turn pale and skinny.
For three hours straight.
It even got to the point where she started licking his fingers just to draw mana directly from his body.
Well, that at least proved it worked.
But the mana inside her wasn't infinite. She would definitely come back for more.
'Just wait.. I'll get my comeback.'
Just as that thought crossed his mind—
Ding~
The café door opened, and Morgan lifted his head from the table.
Two figures stepped inside.
Naturally, one of them was Kotori. But the one beside her was—Reine?
Morgan blinked.
Then, in the next moments however, his eyes narrowed slightly.
'…so this is our first meeting.'
She had transferred in as a teacher around the same week Raizen High was destroyed.
And since he wasn't present on the day she officially joined.
This truly was the first time.
Morgan casually raised a hand. Kotori noticed him immediately and headed over.
"So, you're him?"
Morgan tilted his head in acknowledgment but didn't answer verbally.
Instead, he gestured toward the empty seats across from him, silently inviting them to sit.
They did so without hesitation.
"Itsuka Kotori, right? So you're Shidou's younger sister."
"That's right. And the woman beside me is—"
As Morgan spoke and Kotori responded, she glanced at Reine, who gave a lethargic nod.
"Murasame Reine. I'm… her guardian."
Her wording made Morgan raise an eyebrow.
In that brief instant, he decided to test something out.
"Ah, that name does sound familiar. You must be the new teacher I heard about."
Morgan nodded with an expression that clearly said so it's you.
For a brief moment, Reine and Kotori stiffened, exchanging a glance.
Still, Reine nodded.
"Yes."
"So then, why come looking for me?" Morgan continued lightly. "And Shidou.. how's he doing?"
Like a genuinely worried friend, he leaned forward over the table, catching them off guard.
Then, as if realizing himself, he leaned back against the chair with a faint sigh.
"I haven't had much time since I got back from London, and even now…"
His voice trailed off.
Morgan looked so convincingly concerned that he nearly deceived them.
Reine, an expert analyst capable of reading brainwaves and emotions, focused intently.
And yet—
It was useless.
No, if there were a word worse than useless, that would describe her effort right now.
She got absolutely nothing.
In the first place, she couldn't even read his brainwaves at all.
That was how strange this inhumane monster was, even in front of her.
"He's doing fine, thank you."
Reine replied.
"He was accepted into Saito Senior High along with his friends."
So, that would naturally include Tonomachi, Ai and the others.
Morgan nodded, having already inferred as much already.
But he then raised his head sensing Kotori's somewhat intense gaze on him.
She seemed serious.
"What is it?"
"I believe we've played long enough already, World Strongest Wizard."
"Oh, granting me such a title is unworthy of me; after all, I'm no longer a mere wizard."
Mere ..
That single word made both of them freeze.
Kotori's chupa chups hung precariously at her lips, nearly falling.
But she quickly composed herself.
"Oh, so? Then who exactly are we addressing?"
Morgan paused for a moment.
He was unwilling to say this, but he had already braced himself for this.
In the first place,
This was that lazy idiot's fault for letting the so-called word esper into her head.
And then, as if it were nothing, she had happily given the six of them a name.
Council of Espers.
It sounded strange at first, but it had a catchy ring to it.
Not to mention, those six were genuinely the only ones who had crossed the border.
The border between a normal human capable of wielding superpowers.
And an actual superpowered human.
But now, there's no other choice.
"One of the only six Espers to exist, and the head of the Council of Espers."
At his words, golden writing wove itself into the air.
Naturally, the sight came as a surprise to them.
However, in the next moment, the glowing letters vanished.
For some reason, Reine looked even more confused than Kotori.
However, Morgan himself was more confused as he tilted his head to the side.
'...am I becoming like Ash?'
He genuinely wondered.
But if the girl were here.
She would refute that and say he was simply returning to how he truly was.
"Such dramatic flair, and judging by your composure, ..you know who we are, right?"
"You've really investigated me."
Morgan sighed.
"Yes, the ones whose mission is to save spirits rather than kill them are admirable."
"Then what is your objective?"
Kotori closed one eye slightly as she looked at him, folding her arms.
Somehow, Morgan didn't feel outright hostility from her.
Then again, she wasn't letting her guard down either.
How to put it..
She was keeping him at arm's length, judging whether he was dangerous or not.
Threat assessment, huh?
It was better to judge him directly than try to sneak around him.
'Certain people would go mad if they found out… and they're scary, you know.'
"I have no idea what you're—"
Kotori steadied her chupa chups with one hand, holding it as she stared at him.
"The attack first on
Morgan stared at her.
Then he let out a huff.
"So it's that. If I call it a whim, what of it?"
"Your attack on DEM at England is even more strange."
Reine cut in as Morgan directed his gaze at her. He could smell the trend here.
Slowly, he raised a finger up for emphasis.
"You want to know if I'm against Spirits or not, is that it?"
His eyes turned toward Reine, carrying a knowing look.
"Take a guess."
He then casually continued.
"But anyway, I have spoken to their Director to suspend all activities in Tengu. You're welcome."
Morgan then raised both his index and middle fingers for them to see.
"For two months."
Naturally, he skillfully deflected the conversation to another topic.
Of course, this also didn't escape the notice of both females.
Rather, they could infer from his words that he wasn't.
AST also had reported sightings of him and
Which would mean…
"Well, I guess we should thank you for that."
"Sarcasm?"
"That depends. Take it however you like."
Morgan shrugged.
But he had an inkling that this was what they truly came to discuss.
His eyes narrowed, this time focusing on Kotori herself.
After all, he had noticed it the moment she arrived.
Now, he couldn't ignore it anymore, she was practically on the verge of imploding.
"Then can you finally say it," he spoke calmly, "what you're actually here for?"
Meanwhile—
While that was happening.
Another scene was taking place in the first facility of Clocktower.
Inside a dimly lit room.
Yes, we're back at that.
Neon lighting washed over the semi-spacious chamber as six figures sat around a table.
A rectangular table.
The seat at the head remained empty, while the remaining five sat opposite one another.
Three occupied the right side, and two sat on the left.
Council of Espers.
"Well then, let us begin the meeting."
A refined, lady-like voice spoke first as blue light cast a soft shade across her features.
Number One of the Council of Espers.
Artemisia Bell Ashcroft.
"Where is brother, by the way."
This time, a much younger voice rang out.
Leaning back casually in her seat, she stared toward the left side of the table.
She was Number Three of the Council as well as the mastermind behind the name.
Ashley Sinclair.
"He's in the middle of an important meeting, and besides, we shouldn't disturb him over every small decision."
Another voice replied calmly.
The speaker sat on the left side of the table, closest to the empty head seat.
Like Number One, she was directly beneath Number Zero.
Ranked Second.
Cecile O'Brien.
"I doubt any decision we make here is necessarily small, but I'll leave it to your discretion."
The fourth to speak was another woman with a calm, mature voice, seated near the second speaker.
Her eyes remained closed as she said nothing further.
—Ranked Fourth: Maya.
"Enough. We're here for an important rally, not to argue among ourselves."
At last, the focus returned to Artemisia, and the room fell silent the moment she spoke.
Just as she did, a holographic globe appeared in the middle of the table.
"In England we learnt about the situation of this world. And what spacequakes mean."
As she spoke, the globe flattened, transforming into a map dotted with countless red points.
These marked the most recent spacequakes recorded this month.
Over seventy.
None of them reacted much to the number.
Regardless, the blonde-haired girl continued.
"With the new technology we're developing, each of us can respond to threats like these."
«Realizer Transfer System»
Function: Transporter.
Morgan had already used this feature to teleport his CR Unit, and Fraxinus employed it frequently as well.
First, a transfer point is established.
Then, once activated, it allows teleportation to that location.
Just as Artemisia said that, Maya cut in.
"It's limited and operational range is still a problem, but I have a way around that."
Resting her hand against her chin, the black-haired, red-eyed woman spoke up.
"Most of the fourth facility is empty, isn't it?"
"And we have a considerable number of underground floors and mechanical sectors."
She opened her eyes slightly.
"We can install a large reactor to power the transfer systems."
She finished by gesturing toward the others, inviting their opinions.
As the research head, such a proposal was entirely within reason.
Manpower wasn't an issue.
Using special adaptable and flexible materials,
…along with highly advanced industrial 3D engineering—
It was feasible.
Even the hardware for their virtual games was already being developed using this same process.
"But should something like that really be built here? This is a city, y'know."
Ashley voiced her concern, leaning back slightly.
"Don't worry, Ash. The reactor is a safe power system. I already got approval from Beta too."
Snap!
The black-haired, red-eyed woman snapped her fingers.
Just as she did, a massive diagram appeared around the mid-point of the table.
"A non-emission reactor."
A surprised sound escaped the ginger-haired girl as her eyes briefly opened.
"Yes. And because of the systems we're implementing, it's also non-combustible."
Around the table, everyone nodded.
Such a structure was entirely possible.
Not only would it be silent, it would also act as a central power source for all their facilities.
Meaning—
A localized Territory where energy constantly circulated within their control.
In addition, a Territory could be permanently and constantly sustained.
Granting them continuous protection at all times.
Of course, Maya also planned for multiple safety systems around the reactors.
In the first place, temperature around the reactor wouldn't be a problem.
Some territories can change temperatures.
But Maya had many workarounds and backups upon backups of plans.
Anyone could tell she was doing her best for Morgan.
"That's all well and good, but what about the transfer points?"
Cecile shook her head lightly.
"There's nothing we can do about that for now."
Hearing that, Ashley frowned for a moment, glancing at Artemisia and then at Cecile.
She clicked her tongue and looked away.
"Boring~"
Just then, an idea seemed to strike her.
"Alright then, how about I go investigate on my own for now? Beats doing nothing."
No one in the room responded immediately.
At first, both Artemisia and Cecile looked as though they wanted to say something.
But almost instantly, they decided against it.
"…Sure. Why not."
"Hah! It's only natural I go."
Ashley added, lifting her chin.
"After all, I'm physically the fastest among everyone here."
She raised her head proudly, only to be met with varying skeptical reactions.
Cecile cracked one eye open, but chose not to comment on Ashley's words.
Artemisia simply closed her eyes.
Leonora looked away.
Not because she was disinterested, but because she had no desire to be involved.