Pendragon's Infinity Gauntlet

Page 191

His old, worn-out, faded monastic robe stood out starkly against the backdrop of the modern landscape. His hair and skin, like the robe, were damaged and dull. Judging from his features, he should have been a handsome man, but from head to toe, he seemed to have lost all color, like an old movie playing out.

His monastic robes predate the current uniforms of the Roman Catholic Church by a century, characterized by multiple color variations. Lidovia wore a white robe with a red cross, a symbol of St. George and also of Anglicanism. From his early years, he had caused considerable controversy by wearing robes with designs identical to Anglican symbols, yet Lidovia dared to continue choosing this attire. This was not only because it was a tradition passed down from his grandmother, but also largely due to his belief that "even sinners should reach out to those with exceptional talent."

The hotel he was staying at wasn't particularly famous in terms of world rankings. Historically, it could only be described as "relatively minor." While it couldn't compare to the large hotels in Italy whose buildings were entirely antique... its prosperity surpassed that of other hotels worldwide.

"This might be due to the influence of the Daihasei Festival, a world-class sporting event," Lidovia speculated wildly.

The normally secluded Academy City didn't need hotels except for VIPs like the Academy Society. Therefore, with such a large-scale event, all the visitors would be concentrated in the limited number of hotels. With all the rooms in Academy City fully booked, and so many tourists, even hotels outside the city must be doing brisk business.

The crowd around her moved quickly, but Lidovia walked slowly among them.

It gives one a sense of disharmony, as if time and space have been excluded.

"Next..."

Lidovia Lorenzetti left the lounge and walked out of the hotel through the glass revolving door.

The sun was shining directly down on that scorching hot day.

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Oriana is working very hard too. I should take action too."

As Lidovia thought this to herself, the broadcast of the Great Star Festival came from afar. Looking up at the sky, she could see a spaceship floating in the distance. A weather forecast was playing on a large screen on the ship's belly. The report said that the weather was fine with clear skies. Indeed, it was fine weather. Lidovia turned her gaze away from the direct sunlight.

The whole street was peaceful.

Lidovia Lorenzetti slipped through the gaps between people and disappeared into the crowd.

-

In a deserted corner of the park, there is a bench.

In front of the bench, Teacher Xiaomeng was very angry. He was passionately discussing smoking etiquette and the issue of underage smoking.

On the other side, ignoring these words, was the magician Tyr Magnus. Her face didn't show any frustration at being lectured; instead, she wore a rather tired and somewhat exasperated smile.

Teacher Xiaomeng tried to confiscate the cigarette box from Tyr, but Tyr tossed it around like a ball, and Teacher Xiaomeng's hands couldn't catch it at all. From this vantage point, her constant missed attempts looked just like a puppy chasing a plastic ball.

Just then, the cult leader, who was supposed to be with the Forbidden Book Index, appeared before Fang Cun and the others with another cute boy.

"..."

The man's reputation as a master of manipulation is well-deserved. Luckily, he resolved the Misaka Sisters' problem first, otherwise she would still have over ten thousand lesbian harem members, which is terrifying.

"Ah, Jing Shen!! What are you standing there daydreaming for? Come help your teacher! This child is a terrible heavy smoker! I'm telling you, hurry up and hand that cigarette box to your teacher!"

After Teacher Xiaomeng called out, the leader's expression became very willing, and he walked over as if he was in a pain.

So, her passing by was just an accident, and she was planning to sneak away? She was discovered and had no choice but to come over.

Jing Shen first glanced at Teacher Xiao Meng, then shifted her gaze to Tyr on the bench.

"...That's wonderful, there are still people in this world who are willing to get angry for you."

"I'd also like to agree with you on that point, purifying the spirit and exorcising demons. But I'm busy right now. This person is very noisy."

As Tyr spoke, while the cigarette box was tossed high into the air, she gestured with the motion of adjusting her collar to the phone charm in her breast pocket. A tasteless skull-shaped light stick was flashing on and off. A call was coming in. After showing it to Jing Shen, she caught the cigarette box again with a natural motion and continued playing fetch with Teacher Xiao Meng.

Chapter 341 Running Away Again

Chapter 341

This woman's contacts... are probably members of the Anglican Church. If it's information about the Apostolic Cross, then of course Teacher Xiaomeng can't hear it.

"Oh! It's over there!"

As Jing Shen thought this, something suddenly flew past her eyes as Teacher Xiao Meng spoke. She caught it in a panic and saw that it seemed to be a cigarette box from a brand she often saw in movies.

Ignoring Teacher Xiaomeng's words, Tyr extended his index and middle fingers, bringing the pads of his fingers close to his lips. Could it be a heart-shaped flying kiss?! The usually vigilant Jing Shen only realized a second later that it was a gesture indicating he was smoking.

Suddenly realizing what was happening, Jingshen extended the cigarette case to Himegami Akiha, who had come with her, and said:

"Himegami, do you have a lighter?"

Huh? Compared to Himekami, who was a beat slow to react, Komoe-sensei turned around at an extremely fast speed.

"Pure Goddess! What kind of useless spirit of challenge are you trying to display?! Himegami, you should have stopped her firmly!!"

Teacher Xiaomeng approached at lightning speed. Upon seeing this, Tyr took out his phone from his chest pocket, held it to his ear, and turned to leave.

"If only it were information from the Apostles' Cross. If not, there's no point in me being lectured by my teacher. I have absolutely no desire to smoke, how can this misunderstanding be cleared up!?"

Seeing Teacher Xiaomeng's eyes welling up with tears from sheer anger, Jing Shen began to feel anxious. Just then, her phone vibrated.

Who called? Jing Shen tilted her head slightly, intending to put her hand into her shorts pocket—

"Purify yourself! The teacher should turn off the phone while lecturing!!"

"Wow!!"

Caught in Komoe's clutches, Jing Shen couldn't help but lean back. Komoe caught the cigarette box that Jing Shen accidentally dropped in mid-air. Taking advantage of the moment, Jing Shen quickly pulled out her phone from her pocket. Looking at the screen, she saw it was a call from Tsuchimikado Haruka.

"That guy called to say there's some activity on Oriana's side?... Oh no, I can't stay here any longer, and I can't let Teacher Xiaomeng hear the conversation..."

In front of the teacher who was shouting "Jōjin!!", Jōjin suddenly hid behind Himegami Akiha. The black-haired boy who suddenly grabbed her shoulders from behind blushed slightly, but she didn't notice because she was hiding behind him.

Jing Shen pondered briefly on how to break through this situation.

"Tsk, Himekami, it's all up to you now! I've done as you wished and stopped Komoe-sensei from arguing with Tyr, so I'm counting on you from here on out!!"

After screaming in near despair, Jing Shen immediately fled the scene. As Teacher Xiao Meng chased after her—

"Wow, Himekami, what are you doing?! Why did you suddenly hug the teacher?!"

The other party seemed to really keep their promise, preventing Ms. Komoe from chasing after them. Jingshen vowed in her heart to treat Himegami Akiha to some okonomiyaki at a food stall later, and ran straight outside the park, the bald Misaka Sisters following her.

It must be something important, because Tsuchimikado's call lasted quite a while. Just before it was about to be transferred to voicemail, Jōgami pressed the call button.

"Oh, Pure One! Tyr seems to be on the phone right now, so the call isn't going through. Is she with you? If you know where she is, could you pass on a message for me?"

"What?" Jing Shen thought for a moment, "...Ah, it seems someone contacted her just now. Is what you're talking about related to Orian? Did that guy do something bad again?!"

"No, it's not that serious... Ah, it's better if the God of Purification knows. I'm investigating Academy City's security using a rather special method, the same method used by the guards and disciplinary committee members, meow. Since machines can't counter magic, I didn't have high hopes—but I found it."

Upon hearing this, Jing Shen's entire body bristled.

Tsuchimikado continued:

"About three minutes ago, in District 5, he was spotted exiting the 'West Mountain Station' subway station in the neighboring district, but has not been seen since. He may have used a spell to block visual information or hidden in a blind spot of the cameras. It is currently impossible to determine."

"Three minutes ago...that's a bit difficult."

The shortest distance from here to the Fifth School District is at least four kilometers.

Now that we're heading to the problematic subway, Oriana has probably already taken the opportunity to escape.

“There’s no need to catch up with Orianna completely. Once we get to the Western Mountain Station, we can just have Tyr use his exploration magic, meow. As long as we find the right spot, we can take her down in one fell swoop. That way, everything will be over.”

Exploring solutions?

I think it was called the "Four Formations of the Reason School".

Originally a technique of Tsuchimikado, now used by Tyr. It allows for a search within a radius of approximately three kilometers centered on the user. The condition for use is that the target must possess a magical item called "Spirit Armor." Our side possesses Orianna's word card.

"If the enemy advances three kilometers, they'll leave the exploration range. This means we'd have to advance four kilometers to begin our exploration. Is that enough time?!"

"That's why we need to hurry, Pure Spirit. Even if we have to use the automatic bus, we must get Tyr to the scene as quickly as possible!!"

The call was disconnected.

If the conditions for using the Apostles' Cross or its weaknesses cannot be found, this may well be the last chance. Rather, one must act with the mindset that if it is not found, all will be lost.

"You bastard! Tyr!!"

"Pure Goddess called out, bypassing the places where Himegami Akisa and Teacher Komoe might be, and returned to the park. Currently, the only person who can use the tracking magic "Reasoning Four Arrays" to track Oriana is Tyr; the one with him is just a powerful henchman."

Jing Shen quickly turned her head, looking around as she ran. Fortunately, Oriana probably hadn't realized they'd been discovered. If he tried to escape with all his might, he might not make it in time.

The other side walked, while we ran.

The only way to make up for the distance and time difference between the two sides is to use speed.

The two found Tyr in the park, and without saying a word, Jing Shen grabbed her and started running, resulting in a classic Japanese drama-style run.

Various competitions have already begun in arenas across the country. Reports of the competitions are coming from loudspeakers and large screens everywhere. Jing Shen's school is also about to hold the "All-School Girls' Horse Riding Battle Preliminary A Group", but unfortunately she simply can't find the time to participate.

"Purify the spirit and vanquish the demon! If you're heading to the automated bus stop, this back alley might be faster!"

"No, I checked the timetable, the subway is faster! Buses stop at too many stations and have to stop several times along the way. The subway may have a short wait at first, but once it starts running, it immediately catches up with the bus!!"

Chapter 342 The Smoking Maniac

Chapter 342

The two talked loudly as they turned into a side alley and ran down the underground staircase leading to the basement. As they traversed the narrow, concrete passageway of the station, Jingshen placed her phone on the automatic ticket gate that was blocking her way. In Academy City these days, phones with ID authentication and payment functions were not uncommon.

However, the automatic ticket gates only accept Academy City mobile phones. Tyr clicked her tongue and headed towards the ticket machine. The magician didn't force her way through the gates because she figured it was better not to create unnecessary trouble in this situation. Seemingly finding it troublesome to take out change, she inserted a thousand-yen note into the machine, grabbed the change and ticket, and immediately returned.

"..."

Actually, Fangcun doesn't even need to use his phone; he can just hack into the system and get a free ride on the subway. The same goes for Tyr.

However, the other party didn't ask her at all.

Moreover, if we're talking about speed, she could run much faster than the subway with two people in tow. However, the two of them might not be able to handle that speed; they might feel dizzy or vomit for a while, and the waiting time to recover would be more troublesome than taking the subway...

Tyr finally passed through the automatic ticket gate.

The subway train was about to depart when an electronic bell rang in her ears. The first to arrive at the platform, Jing Shen, ran into the train, while Tyr, arriving later, stretched out her arm just before the doors closed. The doors reopened due to the safety mechanism, and Tyr squeezed inside. A station staff member seemed to glare at her, but they had no time for such trivial matters.

The train slowly started moving.

Jing Shen leaned against the train door, panting heavily.

"...There are still two stops to go before reaching the Western Mountain Station that Tsuchimikado mentioned."

Jing Shen looked up at the electronic bulletin board on the door and said this.

Tyr, who had just put the change into his wallet, suddenly reached inside his clothes and pulled out a new cigarette case. The Cleansing God exclaimed in surprise:

"Hey buddy, how many packs of cigarettes are you hiding?"

"Don't worry about it."

Tyr ignored her and took a cigarette directly from the box.

"Oh no! You can't smoke on the train. If the train senses smoke, it will brake suddenly, and you'll be taken to the police station by the staff."

The Goddess of Purity hurriedly stopped her, and Tyr clicked her tongue in disgust. Normally she would ignore the Goddess of Purity's words, but she knew that the most important thing was to track down Oriana, so Tyr frowned and put the cigarette back in her pocket.

Next, she took out another box from her bosom, about the size of a cigarette case, made of ancient wood. Tyr took something out of it and began to chew it like a cigarette.

"Girl, you have so many boxes on you, what are you eating?"

Fang Cun curiously leaned over, and watching others chew made her want to eat too.

"This is a chewing cigarette."

"..."

"You really like cigarettes that much?"

Jing Shen couldn't help but interject.

"A world without nicotine and tar would be no different from hell. How could a devout and kind lamb like me fall into hell?"

"Before saying that, I hope you can reflect on your own life."

"This is boring. I thought it was chewing gum. Be careful, it might give you lung cancer."

As the three of them were exchanging their complaints, the subway arrived at the first stop. Some people got off. The new passengers were startled by Tyr's bizarre attire.

The doors closed, and the train started moving again.

One stop left.

-

"What's next..."

Oriana Townsend said in a lighthearted tone on the street in District 5.

He knew that all eyes were on him. There were many foreign tourists during the Daihasei Festival, and blond hair and blue eyes weren't unusual. What was striking was his tall, well-proportioned figure and the clothes he wore that emphasized his perfect proportions.