Vol 11 Chapter 6 (1/2)

Chapter 6 - An Alliance Once More

Part 1

Kusanagi G.o.dou fled from Salvatore Doni using divine speed.

The seventh incarnation, the [Raptor]. Using this incarnation not only

increased his speed, but also lightened his body and vastly increased

agility and jumping ability. Even though it could not fly like a bird, it was still

able to perform leaps that rivaled or even surpa.s.sed cats and monkeys.

G.o.dou ran up a building's wall and moved between rooftops.

Sometimes he stepped on car roofs and trains on the road instead of

buildings and ordinary houses, racing across Milan's main roads like a

flash of light.

In any case, he had to run as far as he could. If possible, leaving the city of

Milan would be best.

Although his pierced abdomen was feeling intense pain, G.o.dou did not

even consider going to a hospital. Shaking off Doni's pursuit was of utmost

priority. Hence, G.o.dou simply ran with reckless abandon.

...Thanks to the lightness of his body, the burden of running was greatly

decreased.

There was no sense of exhaustion. No matter how hard he dashed, his

breathing did not interrupt, nor was there any effect on his stamina.

Hence, he was able to ignore the pain on his flank in this manner. Just as

he left the boundaries of Milan city, he ran into trouble as he entered an

area with many trees and green fields.

Suddenly, his heart was struck with intense pain.

”T-This is?”

G.o.dou was filled with doubt but he did not halt his footsteps. Nevertheless,

the sense of pain was intensifying.

It felt like his heart was being stabbed by a murder weapon like an icepick.

Rather than repeatedly stabbing, it felt like someone was digging

relentlessly. Gradually, his legs and then his whole body became

increasingly difficult to move.

”By the way, didn't this chest pain happen that time in Sicily as well? Could

it be the side effect of using this kind of speed!?”

On further thought, this level of speed was truly ridiculous.

In fact, it was only reasonable to expect repercussions sooner or later

given prolonged use of such speed. It was now imperative to find a place

to rest. Finding a park before him, G.o.dou entered with unsteady footsteps.

The park was filled with flouris.h.i.+ng trees, like a little forest.

Halting his steps in a thicket, G.o.dou took a break -- he finally reached his

limit.

”Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

The pain in his heart reached a maximum. G.o.dou became completely

immobilized.

He could not even lift a single finger, as if tied down and restrained

completely. G.o.dou collapsed, leaning his back against a tree trunk.

There was nothing he could do except wait for time to pa.s.s while he

endured the excruciating pain in his heart.

Furthermore, the pain and bleeding continued from the flank of his

abdomen. Only at this time did he realize another terrifying aspect of

Doni's. To be frank, he was expecting the abdominal wound to heal simply

through a Campione's natural recovery. But such wishful thinking was too

naive. The wound on his flank was not healing at all.

This must be part of the ”magic sword'”s formidable power. Unlike ordinary

swords, it was a completely magical slicing attack-

Blood flowed nonstop while G.o.dou continued to be tormented by the pain

in both his heart and his abdomen.

G.o.dou's exhaustion became extremely severe and his consciousness

gradually became fuzzy. Soon after, his heart pain vanished and the

restraints were released. But still, his body could not move. Due to the

ma.s.sive blood loss, he was completely drained in strength.

A figure was gradually drawing near. On the verge of death, G.o.dou

summoned his remaining strength to call out:

”Yo.”

With no more strength, all he could manage was a simple greeting. To his

great surprise, the one who approached was Erica.

”Serves you right, G.o.dou. This is your punishment for destroying Milan's

scenery.”

”This I am powerless to deny.”

Faced with Erica's angry accusation, G.o.dou helplessly acknowledged his

wrongdoing.

”H-How did you find me?”

”Didn't Bianchi mention before? Magic can be used to search for and track

down the presence of Campiones, you included. To think something like

that existed. Just for fun, I took a strand of G.o.dou's hair when we were at

the Zamparini mansion.”

It was a spell which allowed one to track down the approximate location of

the target given any portion of the body.

Erica explained thus. She was meticulously prepared as always.

”Clearly we were trying to resolve this incident in a peaceful manner... But

you came along. Are you sure you didn't usurp the authority of a G.o.d of

pestilence and destruction?”

”I warned you explicitly not to come to Europe, right? But you ran all the

way to Milan to cause trouble. In the end, you even got injured by Sir

Salvatore's sword.”

”I had no choice, I needed to talk to you.”

Due to the blood loss making his head dizzy, G.o.dou could not speak

fluently.

”You also want to complain about the a.s.sa.s.sin incident?”

”That's included, but it's not the only thing. I was also concerned whether it

caused great trouble for you. I thought that guy Doni was going to give you

a hard time.”

”Of course I feel troubled. In fact, your coming here makes me even more

troubled.”

”I'm very sorry, but I didn't want this.”

”What?”

”When a conflict arises clearly because of me, and yet I stay out of it

despite being involved. Neither do I want our relations.h.i.+p to end like this.”

”What? We are separated by the vast distance separating j.a.pan and Italy,

you know? Besides, even if our relations.h.i.+p did end, it shouldn't affect

G.o.dou's life that much, right?”

”Wrong. I said it before, all it takes for us to meet is half a day's journey.

Also, if I clearly know you're in trouble, I can't accept feigning ignorance to

continue living a carefree life in j.a.pan.”

A busybody who won't mind my own business, or a stronger sense of

heroism and chivalry than average? Overwhelming curiosity or

recklessness? Or perhaps, I am just a natural born trouble maker?

Even G.o.dou had no idea himself. Perhaps he was all of those.

”Then let's change the subject. Are you going to take me to the idiot?”

Erica did not answer immediately, for she had turned her face away.

Without looking straight at G.o.dou's face, she spoke:

”Actually I had been thinking ever since I bid you farewell on the phone.

Precisely because Kusanagi G.o.dou is a great fool who came expressly to

Italy despite the situation, I should not care about him this time. It has

nothing to do with a knight's merciful heart of compa.s.sion.”

”Well, can't blame you...”

”But for some reason, I can't do it. To think there existed a man who

completely disregarded his own safety and rushed straight into the country

of the most dangerous enemy, and even ran into a crisis. Not to mention,

with absolutely no hope of victory or survival. I can't abandon such a man

to his fate.”

Erica slowly turned to G.o.dou and said:

”I have already bid my uncle and the a.s.sociation farewell before I came

here. I am no longer a knight. I am nothing but an ordinary girl -- 1 would

never say this even if it meant tearing my mouth open, but I am just a girl

who knows how to use magic and a sword. So that's the situation, you

don't mind, right?”

”No longer a knight, what's going on?”

”Nothing much. Because I am joining you -- the faction of the youngest

Campione, that is what I must do. So G.o.dou, you have to take

responsibility properly.”

”Responsibility!?”

”D-Don't get any strange ideas. All I meant was that you must take

responsibility by dueling Sir Salvatore and resolving the matter properly!”

Is that so? No, it must be so. How could I make that kind of

misunderstanding...

G.o.dou felt embarra.s.sed by his stupidity as he frantically promised:

”l-l know that of course. Even the matter of Doni is fine. I will see this

through to the end. I'm gonna teach that willful idiot a lesson.”

”Oh my, you've said something reliable for once. But your pacifist banner is

weeping.”

Was she finally back in form? Erica jested lightly as if her mood had

improved.

Although G.o.dou was happy to notice that, he still forced himself to pretend

to be displeased.

”What can I say. Because my opponent is an unbelievably great idiot. If the

enemy was simply an idiot, there might be room for negotiations. But for a

great idiot, nothing of that sort existed from the very beginning. So I might

as well steel my determination and go all out in a fight.”

Hearing G.o.dou's a.s.sertion, Erica shrugged her shoulders as if amazed.

”Just so you know, a real pacifist doesn't make that kind of exception ...

But let's overlook that or else it'd be kind of foolish. So G.o.dou, let us form

an alliance once more. Is that fine?”

”That's actually what I was going to request.”

G.o.dou forced his exhausted body and extended his right hand weakly

towards Erica.

”Can you help me for a while? I did come up with a plan when I came to

Italy alone, but to be honest, I'm at my limits.”

”You're hopeless. Even though it's a sinking s.h.i.+p, I suppose getting on

board in the first place counts as some kind of destiny. I will try to use my

own methods to keep the ride going.”

Erica also extended that gorgeous right hand of hers and held G.o.dou's

hand in turn.

They had already embraced, had intimate skin to skin contact, and even

kissed, but holding hands was their first time. G.o.dou smiled wryly at this

unusual sequence of progression and said:

”By the way, you probably know this already... I can't hold on much longer.

I'm entrusting things after that to you. You handle it so well every time...”

”Yes. I don't know if you can call yourself fortunate or not, but there's no

mirror here.”

Watching G.o.dou with an amazed expression, Erica sighed.

”If you had a mirror, you could look at that dying face of yours. Completely

pallid beyond belief, with these incredibly deep black circles beneath your

eyes... You look exactly like you're about to bleed to death.”

I see, as expected. G.o.dou felt his consciousness slipping.

Like the last two times, he mentally called on the image of the golden

sheep and used the [Ram] incarnation. Entirely defenseless while he slept,

all he could do was believe in his ”partner”...

”Enough! You're always giving me trouble, you know!”

Erica grumbled as she looked down at the sleeping G.o.dou. Nevertheless,

she realized she was smiling for some reason.

Most likely, it was due to her realizing his vulnerable state stood as

evidence of his trust in Erica Blandelli.

”Well, whatever. In any case, it is imperative to secure a safe sanctuary.”

Murmuring to herself, she thought of an idea. Their current location was a

little commune outside of Milan called Monza.

Taking the train from Milan would take roughly twenty minutes. As the

location of the closest F1 racing circuit within the greater metropolitan area,

it was extremely well known to motorsport fans. Come to think of it, this

area was--

Settling on a solution, Erica took out her cellphone.

Part 2

Impatiently, she could not wait for a night on the weekend to arrive any

faster.

”Without any prior engagements for tonight, I should be able to focus

completely on my project.”

Liliana Kranjcar murmured quietly to herself.

Her current location was her own room at the Kranjcar residence in Milan.

”Tonight my thoughts seem imbued with particular clarity... I should be able

to produce great work on such an occasion.”

Liliana sat before an old-fas.h.i.+oned desk, her fountain pen scratching

noisily as she wrote.

Letting her inner imagination soar unrestrained, she wrote essays, weaving

them into masterpieces. Sometimes she wrote novels while on other

occasions she wrote prose poetry. This was her secret hobby.

”Oooh -- Did I mess up? It came out a little different from what I imagined.”

This was a romance novel in progress. The steady love between an

unsophisticated heroine with a heart of gold and the perfect gentleman, a

heartwarming story ~ That was clearly the setting.

But gradually as she continued to write, the young man's nature began to

s.h.i.+ft subtly.

The young man who was supposed to be extremely gentle in the

beginning, shockingly showed an unexpected savage side.

'I picked this specifically for you... Now that you have nothing else to wear,

why don't you give up your futile resistance and put it on?'

T-This shameless attire, l-l can't!'

To think that she wrote this kind of scene without realizing it.

The plot frequently placed the heroine in threatening situations at the

mercy of the s.a.d.i.s.tic young man. Nevertheless, she secretly felt

excitement in her heart, realizing she derived pleasure from being

dominated in such a manner-

Unwittingly projecting her own feelings onto the heroine, Liliana halted her

pen, lost in thought.

”Oh well, masterpieces tend to take on a life of their own... This is not bad

actually.”

She continued to write. Could it be possible? Did she also harbor the same

desire to be toyed with by the opposite s.e.x? Secretly, her heart raced...

At this very moment, her cellphone at the edge of the desk started ringing.

Glancing at the call display, Liliana sighed and picked up the call.

”I am very busy right now. If you have something to say, please make it

brief, Erica.”

'Greetings to you, Lily. Given our relations.h.i.+p, such cold words surely

wound me in the heart.'

This was the voice of her rival dating back to childhood, Erica Blandelli.

”Do not act so familiar. We are simply acquaintances of the same age and

belonging to different a.s.sociations in Milan -- more appropriately, we

should be called rivals and enemies.”

'Showing such obstinacy towards your childhood friend is really your

shortcoming, Lily. I feel like the bonds cultivated between the two of us

amount to much more than that.'

”We are not childhood friends, it is simply ill fate! Stop fabricating

friends.h.i.+p between us on your own accord!”

Having expressed her objections, Liliana asked acutely:

”By the way, you have been quite busy lately, is that not so? I heard that in

order to seal a [Heretic G.o.d], you were sent over to Sardinia.”

Erica Blandelli, went south on an expedition--

This news had reached Liliana's ears. However, the details were lacking.

The detailed happenings regarding the G.o.ds who appeared on the islands

of Sardinia and Sicily were strangely unpublicized. It was as if someone

had intentionally blocked the flow of information.

'You should be aware that a little while back, Sir Salvatore refused to leave

Milan and even issued vile orders to the [Copper Black Cross]. Also there

is today's incident of Sir Salvatore slicing Castello Sforzesco to pieces...

Ah yes, and finally the suspicious matter of the seventh Campione's birth.'

Campiones appeared where G.o.ds manifested. This was common sense in

the European world of magic.

Hence the rise of such rumors was not unreasonable.

”If we are really friends as you say, then I hope you can provide me with

information regarding that man.”

'Lily, friends.h.i.+p and work are separate matters. Mixing the two together is

really unlike you.'

Just as expected, Erica was playing dumb.

'Well, putting our relations.h.i.+p aside, let me tell you this. The news that is

about to be publicized, will surely shock all of Europe. Anyway, I simply

called today to chat about casual matters.'

Really? Liliana felt suspicious.

She did not believe that the devilish woman would call for something of

that sort. Perhaps this was simply the first step in her trap -- just as Liliana

warned herself, Erica spoke up.

'Recently, I started liking this female author's romance novels.'

”Lies. How could you suddenly awaken that kind of interest?”

She knew Erica's tastes very well. Even though she liked to pose with

elegance, any work of entertainment would fail to hold her interest unless it

contained all three elements of action, explosion and murder.

'Oh my, I am in the flower of maidenhood after all. It's not so unusual to

enjoy that genre. But the stories I'm talking about, that particular novelist's

style, feels a little predictable recently.'

”Predictable?”

'Yes. Every single time, the heroine feels deeply conflicted about the man

in the lead role, but the story always ends in her complete submission.'

Liliana was greatly shocked.

This was exactly the same scene she had just written. Come to think of it,

all her recent works followed the same model. Could Erica have read them

all!?

Her hand shook intensely as she gripped the phone.

Calm yourself. The finished works are all kept in this bedroom. Even

someone like Erica could not possibly have laid eyes on them -- thought

Liliana to herself. Probably. Liliana began to cough.

”C-Cla.s.sic developments always follow the same plot. Nitpicking on

something that trivial would be a bit childish, no?”

'That's true too. To me at least, it does seem a little childish. However, it'd

be nice if the author herself could realize she's been rehas.h.i.+ng the same

plot. But based on the content, it feels like she is writing out her own

hidden desires. Without realizing it, she released her thoughts on paper.'

”Ack.”

Feeling like she was being talked about, Liliana was utterly terrified.

”B-By the way, is that all you wanted to talk about?”

'No, there's one more thing. I'm currently around Monza. The Kranjcar

family's atelier should be in the area, right? I'd like to borrow the place for

one night. Just use a mailing spell to send the key over.'

The atelier mentioned by Erica was a specialized workshop for restoring

antiques.

When one made a living through magic, one would inevitably collect all

sorts of antiques and artwork unearthed from archaeological sites. In order

to perform private restoration without relying on university organizations,

the Kranjcar family sponsored their own workshop.

”For reasons of your convenience or whatever, I --”

'Will not refuse, right? Given my relations.h.i.+p with Lily.'

Liliana sighed lightly.

Impossible to deny, this was her meddlesome childhood friend, Erica

Blandelli. Highly skilled, talented, unscrupulous, and broadminded like a

salon hostess.

Searching through her memories, Liliana recalled owing four or five favors

to her.

”Well, I do not mind, okay. But for what reason? Facilities of this level

should be available on your side, right?”

In terms of prestige and wealth, the Blandelli family ranked several grades

higher than the Kranjcar family.

Realizing Erica's object was not the equipment at the workshop, Liliana felt

suspicious.

'Sorry, I can't disclose anything regarding that. Besides, I'm sure news

about it will spread like wildfire within the next couple of days, so spare me

for now. Well then, Lily, take care. I will be quite occupied for the time

being, but I believe things will settle down gradually.'

Thus the conversation ended. Seriously, what was that woman thinking?

Liliana angrily put down the cellphone.

Night had fallen completely by the time Kusanagi G.o.dou awakened.

Naturally, Erica was by his pillow, watching him as one would gaze upon

some kind of lab animal.

”By the way, the current time is late at night after 11 pm. Every time you

use it, the revival time seems to be shrinking.”

”A power up, but incredibly annoying anyway... So, where is this place?”

”An atelier borrowed from a friend. Even though we've been friends for so

long, on the surface we appear to be hostile rivals with a complicated

relations.h.i.+p, so we need not worry about pursuers finding us here. In fact,

the time spent waiting for G.o.dou to revive was very peaceful.”

The place was rather messy and felt like some kind of workshop.

On various racks were numerous tools, chemicals, shattered earthenware

and statues, lying around without any sort of central organization. Rather

than a bed, G.o.dou was lying on a long workbench. The rug beneath him

must have been a thoughtful gesture from Erica.

”So, now that G.o.dou has revived, let's discuss our direction from now on?”

Just as Erica said, the abdominal injury had already healed completely.

His blood soaked clothes had also been taken off. G.o.dou was now

dressed in khaki work clothes. Probably something from the workshop.

Looks like Erica was the one who helped him change.

G.o.dou was gratified by her unexpected thoughtfulness, but he expressed

his objections.

”Let's eat first. I'm famished.”

”A statement characteristic of simple animals on the verge of death. Well,

since I haven't eaten either, I shall second the motion, however --”

”However?”

”This area has no shops that stay open this late.”

G.o.dou went ”Hmm” softly. Come to think of it, this was Italy. Even though

there should exist restaurants that remain open for business during

midnight hours, there seemed to be none in the area as suspected from

Erica's words. Supermarkets and grocery stores would all be closed by

now.

”I haven't seen twenty-four-hour convenience stores or the like in this

country...”

”That's right. But they exist in Hong Kong. I thought it was a joke when I

first heard about stores that stayed open for business twenty-four hours a

day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year nonstop.”

”Well, it can't be helped. We'll just have to borrow without asking.”

Discovering there was a s.p.a.ce resembling a kitchen, G.o.dou muttered.

...Twenty minutes later, the two of them had discovered instant noodles, a

kettle and a pot so they started boiling water using the gas stove.

Available in both cup and packet variants, they decided to take both.

”I knew that a workshop like this would stock some kind of food. But finding

j.a.panese manufactured food sure is surprising.”

The noodles G.o.dou discovered were all imported products from j.a.pan.

Although the language on the packaging was Italian, the designs were

identical to products in j.a.pan so he recognized them instantly.

”As expected, demand for this kind of food exists everywhere.”

Even though Italy was a great nation renowned for slow food, its

supermarkets did carry frozen and instant foods. Even multinational fast

food chains flourished in business.

G.o.dou muttered as he was struck deeply by this revelation. Erica watched

him from the side in amus.e.m.e.nt and said:

”Hmm, so it's ready to eat once you pour in the boiling water? I've heard

rumors about this before, but I'm only seeing it for the first time.”

”You've never eaten fast food? You're really a sheltered high cla.s.s lady.”

Once again, G.o.dou experienced the difference in upbringing between

himself and Erica.

As a side note, the tasks of pouring hot water into the cup noodles and

boiling the packet noodles in the pot were all performed by G.o.dou. They

also found biscuits and candy in the cupboard.

Despite the haphazard menu, at least the meal was prepared within

expectations.

”...This is unexpectedly tasty. That's not very fun.”

”If you believe having these products taste bad would be interesting, then

they won't be popular all over the world.”

The cup noodles were flavored with consomme.

The packet noodles were packaged with soy sauce flavored powdered

soup, the same as in j.a.pan. While preaching to Erica the deliciousness of

various instant and junk foods, G.o.dou ate everything.

Also, while they were eating, the two of them discussed their plans for the

future.

That said, the exchange did not amount to much.

”So G.o.dou, regarding your counterattack against Sir Salvatore. Do you

intend to return to Milan next?”

”Not yet. It'd be a little reckless. Continuing to fight that idiot on the

battlefield he prepared would not be a wise choice.”

”What do you mean?”

”I've been too pa.s.sive. I think it's better if we start taking action from our

side. We have to take back initiative in offense, right? Well, maybe it's a

matter of feeling, but let's regroup here and do things my way.”

During the daytime battle, G.o.dou had been pressed so far as to be unable

to strike back.

That kind of image must be vindicated. In order to take up the next

challenge with renewed spirits, G.o.dou intended to start the battle only

when he firmly held initiative.

”In that case, I have a suggestion. I'll explain it after the meal.”

”Great, I'll be relying on you.”

Thus ended the discussion. However, it was sufficient. At some point in

time, the two of them had developed the kind of relations.h.i.+p where they

understood each other without much being said.

Part 3

After finis.h.i.+ng this late meal, the two of them spent the night at the atelier.

Since there was a bathroom as well as blankets prepared for naps, there

were no inconveniences as temporary shelter. Sleeping under the same

roof was no longer an issue that G.o.dou and Erica harbored much

objection to.

The next day, G.o.dou and Erica waited until the time for shops to open

before venturing out for new clothes.

The bloodstained clothing had already been taken care of, but G.o.dou did

not really want to be wandering the streets in work clothes.

They visited the men's corner in a three-story department store. Without

much deliberation, G.o.dou bought a white s.h.i.+rt and well-fitted pants.

Originally, that would have accomplished his objective.

However, for some unfathomable reason, Erica was also picking clothes in

the women's corner.

”It feels uncomfortable to be wearing the same clothes I wore yesterday.

Since we're already here, I might as well have a look. But so far none of

the styles are to my liking.”

That was Erica's response when G.o.dou wanted to leave.

Girls took forever to shop. That fact had been drilled into G.o.dou's head

through his countless experiences, forced to accompany Asuka or his little

sister in their shopping. It could very well take an hour or more... G.o.dou

had this ominous feeling.

But Erica finished her purchases in ten minutes or so. However.

”Can you wrap this all up for me? Oh, this one I'm going to change into

right now, but please send the rest to this address here.”

Most casually, she selected five or six days' worth of clothing before

ending her shopping with those instructions for the salesperson.

”Hey you, didn't you leave your uncle?”

G.o.dou asked Erica as she returned from the fitting room. She had

changed out of her red long-sleeved t-s.h.i.+rt and was now dressed in an

elegant black jacket and matching lower garments of the same color.

”In other words, you're running away from home, right? Where are you

planning to send these clothes?”

”No problem. The delivery address is a place registered under my own

name. It's part of the estate I inherited from my deceased parents.”

”Eh, really!?”

”Yes. Even though I lived at the Blandelli main residence in Milan because

I'm still a minor, I do have a number of houses in my possession. As long

as I don't spend too extravagantly, it's enough to live comfortably.”

Come to think of it, her clothing bill just now had been settled through the

transparent accounting practice of the bank debit card.

Or should he say, as expected of Erica? G.o.dou was deeply impressed.

Despite being a sheltered high cla.s.s lady who did not even know how to

prepare food, she possessed ample sense of economy. Even if there was

no need for her to deal with the problems of balancing a home budget, she

was probably not negligent in the management and application of wealth.

”I mentioned yesterday a stage for your decisive duel with Sir Salvatore.

That place is located near a villa in my possession. The clothes were also

sent there, so don't worry.”

Finished outfitting themselves, the two head to the station. Even though

they were wanted figures, they did not try to hide themselves or display

any furtiveness. Instead, they openly walked along the main streets.

”We only hid last night to prevent G.o.dou from being attacked by Sir

Salvatore while you were unconscious. Now that you've recovered, G.o.dou,

there's no need to do things in a sneaky manner.”

”Really? Wouldn't it be bad if another attack happened on the streets?”

This conversation took place earlier in the morning.

”Don't worry, you won't be attacked. Even if anyone from the [Copper

Black Cross] discovered us, they won't make a move so readily now.”

Why? G.o.dou's question made Erica burst into laughter.

”Sir Salvatore's orders are to track you down, not to capture you. Hence,

the foolish act of a deliberate attack is not a command that would be

issued, whether by my uncle or Clarens -- my former colleague. It would be

dangerous and meaningless to them.”

”I see. So all they're going to do is report our movements back to that idiot

Doni.”

”So let's send a 'Duel Invitation' to Sir Salvatore, exactly the way he likes it.

Tell him to meet you at a certain place in a few days time. If we do that, I

believe our chances of being attacked along the way will be essentially

zero.”

Since discovery only meant being monitored, the two of them openly

walked to the station and took the train.

Before they went to catch the ride, they had already sent letters to Doni's

hotel and the [Copper Black Cross] headquarters.

Erica had used a [Mailing] spell. It seemed to be a kind of magic that could

deliver a sealed letter to a specified location as long as the exact

destination was known.

The letters contained a message along the lines of 'Wait for me on the

sh.o.r.e of Lake Garda tomorrow after dusk' and signed with the name of

Kusanagi G.o.dou.

The train ride took about an hour and a half.

Lake Garda was located right on the border between the region of

Lombardy, where Milan was located, and the region of Veneto, which

contained ancient cities such as Venice and Verona.

Italy's largest lake, Lake Garda, was elongated in shape, extending 50km

in the north-south direction.

G.o.dou and Erica arrived at a town on the southern sh.o.r.e of Lake Garda.

They decided to have lunch before taking a taxi to their destination.

”Somehow it really feels like I'm at the seaside...”

Sitting on the backseat of a taxi as it raced along the lakesh.o.r.e, G.o.dou

muttered to himself.

Lake Garda's surface area seemed to be roughly half that of Lake Biwa in

j.a.pan. Along the lakesh.o.r.e were scattered towns and villages that

welcomed travelers as vacation spots. These towns all had a kind of

seaside feeling to them.

The lakefront had a port where many yachts and ferries were moored at

the pier. Although it did not really count as a beach, there was a lakeside

cove covered with gravel.

”You can go swim, go yachting, and even windsurf, so it's not much

different from a sea.”

G.o.dou nodded at Erica's comment. The lakewater here was amazingly

clear and pristine. For sure, he could enjoy a good swim here.

A little while later, the scenery outside the taxi changed. The cla.s.sic