SCIAW: Chapter 124/125

Chapter 124: Magic Nullification
"No."

Ren shook his head slightly.

"But I do know that dozens of corpses were carried down from the back mountains."

"Corpses aren't anything unusual, though."

Miwako didn't think dead bodies were anything special.

"Officer Sato, you're talking about ordinary drug dealer corpses that were shot."

"But I'm talking about corpses that were strapped to experiment tables."

"!? "

Miwako froze for a moment, then understood.

Those corpses were likely the key thing Inspector Megure had been hiding from her.

Corpses fixed to experiment tables.

She began considering the implications.

Drug dealers weren't researchers. Their goal must have been to develop drugs that were more addictive but harder to detect.

So… they used living people for experiments?

Miwako's breathing quickened.

But she quickly regained control of her emotions.

Now she understood why Inspector Megure didn't want her to know.

Some things just weren't meant for her to see.

Especially sins that teetered on the very edge of humanity's moral limits.

Taking a deep breath, Miwako decided not to get involved.

She knew that specialized tasks should be left to the professionals.

She wasn't a narcotics officer, nor could she transfer to the narcotics unit to investigate.

So, she could only suppress those thoughts.

"I understand."

Miwako paused, then added more seriously:

"Don't tell anyone else about what happened earlier."

"No one likes listening to horror stories."

Ren had no intention of telling anyone about it.

"That's good, then."

Miwako let out a sigh of relief.

She stopped thinking about the corpses. That was Inspector Megure's problem now.

Once the news about the drug dealers broke and the case became public, she would gradually learn more about the corpses anyway.

"Alright, you should get some rest."

"Our ship leaves at 1 p.m. If you don't rest now, you won't have any energy this afternoon."

Miwako checked the time, it was 8:32 a.m.

She had only slept for three hours, and suddenly, her eyelids felt unbearably heavy.

"Haa~~~"

"Sorry, I can't stay awake anymore."

Drowsiness hit her like a wave.

Her body felt unbelievably light, her mood was calm, and her eyelids were so heavy that she could barely keep them open.

Miwako collapsed onto the bedding, her heavy eyelids making it nearly impossible to open her eyes.

After muttering an apology, she immediately fell into deep sleep.

Ren glanced at the completely asleep Miwako and nodded slightly.

"The Soul Assurer's abilities are really useful."

There was no need to worry about Officer Sato.

He was certain she would sleep soundly until noon.

As for the other action units stationed here, they were in terrible shape.

Staying up all night had severely impacted their condition, and even those who had taken shifts to rest were not in good shape.

After making sure the only person likely to cause problems was dealt with, Ren returned to the main hall.

A group of girls were sitting in the main hall, dark circles under their eyes, and every now and then, a stomach growled.

"Growl~~~"

As Ren approached, he heard a particularly loud stomach growl.

With a flushed face, Ran lowered her head, clutching her empty stomach in embarrassment.

The other girls looked over, but no one laughed.

Because they were all in the same situation.

They had already thrown up everything they needed to yesterday. On top of that, they hadn't eaten dinner, so it was inevitable.

"Just hang in there a little longer. Miss Maria is already preparing some temporary vegetarian dumplings in the kitchen."

"No meat, they're made with pure vegetables."

The girls in the room collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as it wasn't meat, they were fine.

None of them wanted to touch anything meat-related for a while.

After all, the images Ren had recorded yesterday were horrifyingly clear, capturing the final moments of each corpse in vivid detail.

Because of the varying dosages of drugs and the differing times of death, the level of decomposition varied between corpses.

The impact of those images lingered.

At least for now, those who had seen them couldn't stomach the thought of eating meat.

"While we wait, let's talk."

"I recorded some notes about what happened yesterday in my diary and did a quick draw this morning."

"The results were beyond what I expected."

What was originally supposed to be a Sequence 8 potion had turned into something beyond Sequence.

Even now, Ren still found it hard to believe.

"Ran, Sanzenin, Shinomiya, you can all try drawing a card."

"Maybe it'll be a surprise."

The three looked at each other, and Ran was the first to raise her hand.

"Then, I'll go first."

Nagi and Kaguya both nodded slightly.

Ran summoned her diary and started the lottery process.

The large spinning wheel turned.

The pointer stopped in a different section than last time.

[Negima! Magister Negi Magi]

[Obtained Special Ability: Magic Nullification]

"Eh?"

Since the indicator had stopped at a different section than before, Ran was stunned.

"Ren, what's Magic Nullification?"

"???"

"Magic Nullification?"

Ren was momentarily taken aback, then immediately realized.

"Magic Nullification!?"

"That's Kagurazaka Asuna's ability, the power to reduce all magic to zero."

"I didn't expect you to get her special ability."

"No wonder, the first title you received enhanced your physical functions."

It seemed, just like in his own case, that Ran's previous title had actually been a clue.

Everything had been arranged from the start.

"Ran, this is an ability that nullifies supernatural forces like magic and mana."

"But I think it's more than just that."

As he spoke, a deck of tarot cards appeared in Ren's hand.

"Ran, don't move."

"Okay."

Ren flicked a tarot card toward Ran.

"Buzz buzz!"

As the card approached, an invisible force field suddenly resisted the attack.

But it wasn't a complete nullification, it only slowed down the flying tarot card.

There were even electric-like sparks in the air.

"Chi!"

Although the power surrounding Ran resisted the attack for a moment, in the end, the tarot card still pierced through.

It lodged itself straight into the wall behind her.

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Chapter 125: One-Star Dragon Ball
"The ability to nullify magic can indeed affect forces beyond just magic and magical power."

"However, there is an upper limit to how much it can nullify forces other than magic and magical power."

"Or rather, the ability to nullify magic is greatly diminished when facing higher-level forces."

Based on the situation just now, Ren could roughly determine the upper limit of Magic Nullification.

Demigod.

It could completely nullify abilities below the demigod level.

But against forces above the demigod level, its effectiveness would be greatly reduced. Even the power of a demigod couldn't be completely negated.

It's almost exactly as I speculated.

Right now, the highest level of power that the diary grants its holders seems to be demigod.

It's still uncertain whether there are powers beyond the demigod level. Perhaps they would only find out when they truly reach that limit.

Ren opened his hand, and the Tarot cards embedded in the wall flew back into his palm.

"Shinomiya's Ice-Ice Fruit can only match Ran's current abilities when fully developed."

"Sanzenin and Miss Maria's elemental powers are almost completely ineffective against Ran."

"Even Saginomiya's spiritual power is the same."

"If Ran can further develop her Magic Nullification, or even control it at will, then even Shinomiya's fully utilized abilities could be nullified."

Magic Nullification was just that powerful.

This ability was practically a nightmare for magicians.

Once fully unleashed, the entire magic world would crumble into nothing under the influence of an anti-magic field.

It's the perfect ability for Ran.

Because she had no supernatural powers, only raw, physical strength.

Enhancing her physical abilities to the extreme, then pairing it with Magic Nullification, was a devastating combination against anyone who relied on anything beyond their physical body.

"...This is beyond imagination…"

Kaguya could already tell how Ran's ability countered hers.

Not only Kaguya, but even Nagi understood just how terrifying Magic Nullification was.

"It's more than just beyond imagination."

Nagi added.

"If even our powers can be nullified, what about the power of evil spirits?"

"That won't work."

Ren immediately gave a clear and precise answer.

"Evil spirits are born from emotions and obsessions."

"Magic Nullification can't affect emotions or obsessions. So, Ran's ability won't directly dispel evil spirits."

"However, since evil spirits' attacks contain negative energy, those attacks will be ineffective against Ran."

"Of course, I'm only talking about ordinary evil spirits."

The two nodded slightly, his explanation made perfect sense.

At the same time, they also understood how to counter Magic Nullification.

"In simple terms, it nullifies energy-based attacks."

"However, the effects caused by energy itself cannot be nullified."

"Conceptual things, like emotions and obsessions, won't be affected either."

"I don't think natural disasters like avalanches or tsunamis would be nullified either."

Nagi briefly summarized her deductions.

Ren nodded slightly.

"That's right."

"This is why I say this ability is perfect for Ran."

"Most energy-based attacks will be ineffective against her, and on top of that, her own attacks can nullify the abilities of others."

"Once Ran gets close, you better hope she hasn't reached the speed of a bullet yet."

"Otherwise… you're just getting beaten up."

Magic Nullification was the ultimate close-combat ability.

Once a Magic Nullification user engaged in melee combat, unless their opponent's power far exceeded theirs, the only choices left were to run or get beaten up.

"Yeah, Ran's ability this time is pretty clear-cut."

"As for developing it further, Ran, you should try experimenting in the future."

Ran nodded slightly.

She didn't fully understand how to control this power yet, but figuring that out would have to wait.

"Alright, Shinomiya and Sanzenin—who's next?"

"I'll go."

Nagi stepped forward without hesitation.

Taking a deep breath, she took out her diary.

Her hand hovered over the roulette wheel, her heart racing.

She had no idea if this draw would give her what she truly wanted.

The pointer spun and slowly stopped.

[Dragon Ball]

[Obtained: One-Star Dragon Ball (One-Time Use)]

Suddenly, a yellow-orange sphere fell into Nagi's hand.

Inside the translucent sphere, a red pentagram was clearly visible.

"!"

Seeing the Dragon Ball, even Ren was momentarily stunned.

Dragon Balls were far more reliable than Fate's wishing machines (Holy Grail), and much less risky.

"Mr. Amamiya, do you know what this ball Nagi got is?"

Maria was the first to notice Ren's subtle reaction.

"Yeah, I do."

"This time, Sanzenin obtained exactly what she wanted most…"

"Resurrection."

"!?"

Nagi's breathing hitched for a moment.

Ren's words sent a shockwave through everyone present.

The diary had already given them mysterious powers and revealed the supernatural world to them…

But resurrection was something on an entirely different level.

"One is not enough, you need to collect seven Dragon Balls to summon the dragon and make your wish."

Even though gathering all seven was a restriction, it still meant hope for Nagi.

Seven Dragon Balls.

Once she collected them all, she could summon the dragon and make a wish.

This was so much better than having no hope at all.

"…It's great…"

Nagi's shoulders trembled slightly, and she clutched the Dragon Ball tightly.

As long as she could gather all seven, her mother could come back.

She could finally see hope.

Now, she just had to move forward and make it happen.

"Sanzenin, your Vision can store objects."

"You shouldn't keep the Dragon Ball out in the open."

Ren's reminder snapped Nagi out of her daze.

She quickly retrieved her Vision, examined it briefly, then with a single thought, stored the Dragon Ball inside.