Chapter Thirty-Two: Scapegoat
It was noon, and the sun cast its light over the entire campus.
The brilliant rays filtered through the treetops, casting dappled shadows on the ground, while a gentle breeze brought a hint of heat.
After calming her emotions slightly on the rooftop, Alice was already drenched in sweat, unable to help but sigh that summer was almost here.
Returning to the corridor, she unconsciously glanced out the window and caught sight of the courtyard.
A figure flashed through, causing Alice’s expression to change dramatically.
—Ayami Chika?
Alice had excellent eyesight, and being often active on the frontline, her dynamic vision was extraordinary, so she was confident she wasn’t mistaken.
If Ayami Chika was in the courtyard, then who was talking with Maki in the Super Research department?
A chill ran down her spine, quickly spreading throughout her body, dispelling the heat she had just felt.
Alice immediately took out her phone, but the other end indicated it was unavailable.
This only intensified the ominous feeling in her heart.
Alice’s mind raced.
Based on the map in the mission documents she had previously seen, she quickly sketched a shortcut to the Super Research department in her mind.
At the same time, she didn’t care about drawing attention as she sprinted down the corridor at a speed slightly faster than average that wouldn’t arouse suspicion.
Reaching the Super Research department in a very short time, Alice happened to see Maki coming out just around the corner.
Maki, in his early thirties, had a friendly, honest appearance, a tall and sturdy build, and wore a brand-new suit, resembling an elite office worker.
Seeing his straightened suit, Alice breathed a slight sigh of relief.
This meant there hadn’t been any fighting.
“?” Maki showed a puzzled expression as soon as he spotted Alice.
However, seeing her serious demeanor, he didn’t immediately speak up.
Instead, he approached Alice casually.
“(What’s wrong?)” he asked in a lowered voice.
“(Who was inside?)”
“(Inside?)”
Maki turned his head, following Alice’s gaze, and finally understood she was referring to the Super Research department.
“There’s no one inside…”
“Eh?”
“Captain, what happened?”
“But you were just on the phone—”
“Ah, I was with Ayami Chika in the Super Research department earlier.”
“After conducting an investigation according to internal procedures, I let her leave. I was just taking the opportunity to write up the investigation report inside.”
“Is that all?”
Alice’s face was filled with suspicion.
“Then why couldn’t you get through to your phone?”
“My phone?”
Hearing this, Maki took out his phone from his pocket and tried to turn on the screen without success.
“Sorry, I didn’t notice the battery. It seems I accidentally let it die just now.”
“So, Ayami Chika left long ago? Were you the only one in the Super Research department just now?”
“Yes, is that strange?”
“No, it’s good that you’re fine….”
Alice’s intuition told her something was subtly wrong, but there was nothing more she could focus on for now.
“So what about the investigation results concerning the target, Ayami Chika?”
…..
…..
Time rewinds slightly.
Maki followed the head of the Super Research department, “Ayami Chika,” into the department room.
The simple and outdated room made him frown.
He adjusted his cuff discreetly to avoid getting any dust from the room on his new suit.
“What a troublesome idealistic little captain~”
Maki thought to himself.
He had been sent to participate in this task, actually at the request of the sub-department head to keep a close watch on Alice.
Someone like her—a young and naive reckless girl—had little understanding of the ways of the world and was hard to control.
However, she seemed to support sincere and hardworking companions.
So Maki’s role was to present a serious and sincere side in front of her to gain her sympathy and trust, and then through a good cop-bad cop routine with the sub-department head.
Finally, he would hand over a report stating “everything is normal” to the sub-department head.
Maki was skilled in this approach.
This so-called task of theirs was merely a formality.
—“Kawano City is absolutely safe.”
Nagi read this thought from the expression on the other person’s face.
Maki Ichirou.
Unfamiliar.
Who?
Nagi looked at the man in front of her, around thirty years old, dressed in a suit.
His identity was that of a teacher who had just transferred to Hoshikage High School.
Since the Super Research department had finally adjusted to be a club, a new advisor had to be arranged.
So he was appointed.
Nagi searched her memory about the original “Star Guidance” series and found there was no such character.
From the magical reaction, he didn’t even have a trace of magic.
An external staff member from Special Circumstances SEMA? Why send an ordinary person like this to investigate extraordinary incidents?
However, this was also what Nagi liked to see.
A seemingly unmotivated office worker who planned to take it easy on the job.
Maki sat up straight on the edge of the chair, trying to minimize his contact area with the seat.
He then began to ask a few questions about the Super Research department with great seriousness.
During this, he kept glancing at his watch.
Nagi quickly noticed that his watch was equipped with a magical detection device from Special Circumstances SEMA.
This detector had a highly sensitive pointer for magical reactions.
When it sensed a magical fluctuation, the pointer would shake, turning the digital scale red without sound, issuing a warning.
This magical detector had a significant flaw.
It could only detect “fluctuations.”
Like right now.
Nagi’s immense magical aura had already permeated the entire Super Research department, and the pointer was firmly held by this magic, unable to move an inch.
Meanwhile, Maki, without a sense of crisis, took out a small stack of papers from his briefcase.
This was a questionnaire specifically prepared by Special Circumstances SEMA for “ordinary citizens caught up in extraordinary events.”
In the face of extraordinary events involving many ordinary citizens, they would first filter out a subset of individuals that needed to be closely monitored with this questionnaire.
But hadn’t they already found a key target? Why was there still a filter?
Nagi saw the words “going through the motions” written all over him.
It reminded her of her days as an office worker.
So Nagi kindly and cooperatively filled out “perfect answers” for his questionnaire, clearing Ayami Chika of suspicion.
Just as Maki revealed a satisfied smile while retracting the questionnaire.
Nagi noticed a flash of white passing outside the window.
……
……
After saying goodbye to Maki and leaving the Super Research department, Nagi’s starry eyes sparkled, suddenly brushing past Alice, who was sprinting down the corridor.
The latter seemed to entirely ignore Nagi and vanished around the corner.
“Garuda, what happened?”
On the rooftop, Nagi’s starry eyes shattered.
Her clear gaze became murky and dull.
She had previously instructed Garuda.
During the day, its task was to monitor the fantasy monsters in the neighboring Kawanishi City and keep an eye on their every move.
And since it appeared here now, it meant—
“It has started to take action, recently infiltrated Kawano City.”
“Really knows how to pick a time…”
Nagi sighed.
But then she thought of Alice Astrea’s stubborn character in the original “Star Guidance 2.”
“However, it’s fine. This investigation by Special Circumstances SEMA will surely require a scapegoat.”
