Volume 10: The Child’s Cry, the World’s Tears
Chapter 53 – Imprisoned Alice
The next morning, preparations began immediately.
The first and foremost task was to investigate the barrier—specifically, the magic that had frozen Watanuki-san and the Demon King in suspended time.
At a glance, it was clear that this spell functioned along the same principles as my Shinko Teitai—a delay of causality. However, whether I could interfere with it was another matter entirely. Could I disable it, alter it, or even reinforce it? The investigation had to start with verifying those possibilities.
「We’re ready on our end, Sui-kun. Whenever you’re set.」
「Hmm. Leave it to me.」
「Bark!」
「Understood. Let’s go.」
And so, here we were.
In District Zero, a rather awkward scene was unfolding.
A rope was tied securely around my waist, the other end firmly held by mother. Karen and Chocola stood nearby, poised and radiating magic power.
Meanwhile, I inched cautiously toward the barrier, leaving my lifeline to mother.
Naturally, there was a good reason for this elaborate setup.
Analyzing magic requires close observation, but this particular causality-delay spell had been cast upon the very fabric of the space itself. From outside its effective range, it was utterly imperceptible—no magic circuits, no flow of magic power, nothing.
The only way to observe it was to get closer and make direct contact with the spell structure. However, carelessness could mean stepping into the barrier’s effective range, where I’d be caught, and my time would freeze as well.
Hence, the necessity of this cautious approach: to inch as close as possible, identify the flow of magic power composing the spell, and do so without having my own time stopped.
The solution we settled on was this rope.
The plan was simple: I’d inch forward with the rope around my waist, while my family stood by, ready to pull me back if anything went wrong. The rope had been imbued with an “indestructible” property to ensure it wouldn’t snap. Karen was prepared to activate Magic Cancel at any moment if necessary. Chocola stood ready to take down any mutant that might escape the barrier as a result.
In short, if I was on the verge of being drawn in, my family would pull me out.
「If I can just touch it, even with my fingertips, I should be able to figure something out…」
Slowly, cautiously, I took one step after another, muttering to myself as I extended my hand.
I approached from the direction where the number of mutants was the smallest, maintaining a distance of about twenty meters.
At eighteen meters, I still couldn’t sense any magic.
Seventeen meters—still nothing.
Sixteen, fifteen, fourteen, thirteen, twelve, eleven.
Finally, when I was about ten meters away from Watanuki-san and the Demon King, my outstretched fingers detected the spell structure.
「There it is!」
Immediately, I activated my spell analysis, reading the memory embedded within the detected magic. I attempted to comprehend its composition—not intellectually, but through raw intuition.
「S…」
—“S”?
The moment I heard a faint voice behind me, everything shifted.
「rrrknd, are you okay?! Sui-kun, Sui-kun!!」
「Wha—?！」
Suddenly, my entire perspective—vision, balance, and gravity—was thrown into chaos. A compressed sound roared in my ears, followed by a loud voice that made my eardrums thrum.
「What was that?! That scared me…!」
「Are you all right? You’re not hurt?」
「Huh…? W-What?」
Before I knew it, I was being hugged tightly from behind by mother.
「Thank goodness… I was so worried.」
「Hmm, that was close.」
「Bark! Bark, bark, bark!」
Mother slumped to the ground with a look of relief.
Karen, her face on the verge of tears, clutched my hand tightly.
Chocola barked repeatedly, then started licking my cheek fervently.
「Wait, what? What just happened…?」
「Sui-kun, you stopped moving. …For about three minutes.」
「What…?」
Emishi-san, who had been standing by, spoke in a slightly strained voice. His face looked noticeably pale.
Hearing that, my face drained of color.
「Three minutes? I was… frozen?」
「Yes. Even when Viole called out to you, there was no response. We panicked and began rescue efforts. However, no matter how hard we pulled on the rope, you wouldn’t budge. In the end, Karen used her magic to dispel the magic power around you.」
「You used Magic Cancel? What about the mutants?」
「Two escaped the barrier, but Cu Sith took care of them.」
「Unbelievable… it’s like time completely skipped for me.」
「Bark!」
「Good boy, good boy… and thank you both.」
I patted Chocola, who was wagging his tail and playfully nuzzling me, then turned to Karen and mother, both visibly shaken, to express my gratitude. Standing up, I moved my arms and focused on the flow of magic within my body, performing a quick self-check.
Everything seemed to be in working order.
「That gave me such a fright. Sui-kun wouldn’t respond at all, didn’t so much as twitch, and no matter how hard we pulled the rope, it wouldn’t budge.」
「It’s probably because even the force transmitted through the rope was delayed. Causal Delay is a type of magic that postpones the results of actions.」
「But my nullification worked… thank goodness it did.」
「Probably because you broke down the magic power itself. Though it seems the mutant got caught in it as well…」
「Bark!」
「Hmm, and Chocola took them out right away. Viole-sama sealed them in an ice prison, so there wasn’t any collateral damage from their explosions.」
「I see. Once again, thank you, everyone. And Emishi-san, I’m sorry for worrying you all.」
Standing behind us wasn’t just Emishi-san, but the entire Elder Council. Yuzuriha-san, Moata-san, and Miyako-san were there as well. Even Meishal-san, who had maintained a stoic demeanor yesterday, was wide-eyed in shock. It was amusing to see. They were likely blown away by my family’s skillful teamwork—the nullification of the spell and the swift handling of the mutant. Fufufu.
…Honestly, I couldn’t help but feel a little smug, especially toward Moata-san and Miyako-san. So, how do you like that? This is the power of the Hatano family.
「Though, technically, I didn’t actually see it…」
「What’s that?」
「Nothing. Anyway, I think the risk was worth it.」
Although three minutes had passed in real time, it felt like less than an instant to me.
Between the moment I touched the magic and the moment its effects began to flow into me—when the spell activated and began to trap me—there was approximately a two-second window, both in real and perceived time.
And in those two seconds, I managed to observe and record everything I needed.
I glanced around at everyone, then nodded decisively.
「I analyzed the spell. I have a general idea of what it is. I’ll need to examine the finer details, but I think… we can find a way to resolve this.」
「Wha… in just that brief moment?」
The members of the Elder Council gaped, their jaws practically hitting the floor.
「Thank goodness. If you’d said you needed to do it again, I might’ve broken down in tears from fear.」
「Hmm, I really didn’t want to weaken that barrier any further.」
「Bark!」
In contrast to the stunned elders, the Hatano family collectively let out a sigh of relief, their faces reflecting their heartfelt gratitude and reassurance.
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Start of Volume 10! 🎉
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