Chapter 79: Another Call

When Agneya returned, the welcome was lukewarm. Several Guardian staff bowed and greeted us, while a few civilians came with their children, waving at us. There were no boisterous cheers like when Agneya had destroyed Anathema’s gate.

After docking, we were taken to Guardian Command and then separated. I called Sebastian for a ride home.

“Will you take the train? I can give you a ride home,” I asked Shining, offering her a ride home. To my surprise, she accepted. I thought she would prefer to waste time with her guardian friends, like Dark Flame or Sapphire.

“Well, if you’re offering.” Shining waved to her friends and came to me.

As we were about to leave Guardian Command, Freya called out to us.

“Ah, Black Lily! Good work today. By the way, could I have a bit of your time later? Um… do you go to school?”

I was about to nod but shook my head instead.

“I prefer not to say.”

“Ah, my apologies. But if you can, could you meet me at Eden's School in District Four?”

“Hm? Alright.” I nodded.

“Let’s go!” Shining skipped ahead and grabbed my hand.

Seeing how chummy Shining was with me made Freya’s eyes widen her eyes in surprise.

“Shining, you’re not supposed to stalk a Guardian. That’s a breach of their privacy.”

“That’s fine! We know each other’s real names. We’re going home together! There are no secrets between us.” Shining grinned.

Was she proud to know a Black Guardian? She practically advertised it to everyone she met. Also, Shining, we are not going home together—I was just giving you a ride. Did she want to have a sleepover or something?

“I see... Hmm… It’s common for a Pink Girl’s identity to be known, but a Black Guardian? That’s a first for me.” Freya studied me curiously. “If I may be rude, would you extend such a privilege to me as well? I could swear upon my Soul Gem to keep your identity a secret. We could accomplish so much together. Despite being an E-rank, your contributions ranked in the top twenty. I’m glad to meet a friendly Dark Guardian.”

“I have to refuse. I prefer for my identity to remain a secret.” I bowed politely.

Shining rolled her eyes when she saw me bow.

“You are too polite. That was a private message from Shining,” Felicia whispered to me through telepathy.

I inwardly apologized. My old habits got the better of me.

“Well, if you’re available, please meet me, okay? This way, we can prove that all of our actions were worth it. You’re vexed too that they dismissed us just like this, right?” Freya asked. However, her demeanor seemed like she no longer cared for Anathema's essence.

“Alright.” I nodded.

To be honest, I didn’t care that much. I hadn’t taken the enchanting class, but since Freya seemed invested, I feigned interest.

“Great!” Freya beamed before taking off.

I also took off in the opposite direction, turning off my astral form as I reached the parking lot where Sebastian was waiting. Shining did the same, reverting back to Alice.

“Greetings, Miss Yuri. Your ride is ready for you.” Sebastian bowed.

I nodded but didn’t get in immediately since Alice was coming with me.

“Let’s go!” Alice skipped toward us, cheerful as ever.

As we rode the Seinjet, my mind drifted to what Freya wanted. I was almost certain that Freya was Francesca, the school president.

“Yuri.” Felicia hopped onto my lap.

I turned to her at once.

“It’s not exactly urgent, but how about we take the advancement rank exam next week? Your current power is a bit too high for an E-rank.”

“Really? But my level hasn’t even crossed 50 yet,” I muttered.

Rank D was usually assigned to Magical Guardians who had reached level 50 and above. When I checked my status, my level was only 35.

After looking at my status, i opened my augments and grimoire.

[The Ambivalence of Virtue and Sin]

Level: MAX

Virtue: Diligence

Put mana eyes, ears, and markings in places you have touched. When put it in your own mana construct, you will have access to their sense of touch. Mana cost: 30 when placed, 5 Mana per minute when in use and 1 per minute when not in use. Maximum of twenty eyes, and 10km radius before disconnection and dispersed. Keyword: Wiretap, Dismiss

Sin: Vainglory

Designate your mana construct as second live. When your main body suffer a one shot kill or when you say the keyword, the augment will teleported your main body into the your mana construct and possibly saved your life. However, you have to sacrifice half of your shield strength or suffer a penalty to mana regeneration. No mana cost. Keyword: Horcrux

Virtue: Charity

Your normal clone could access Gate points and your skills. Your signature are extended until thirty minutes. Mana eyes will be able to see outside visible light spectrum. With additional 3 mana you could use echolocation, X-ray vision, and infrared vision with your mana eyes. Keyword: Sonar

]

[The Ambivalent grimoire]

[Shadow Spell: Summon a shadow clone of yourself with 50% of your STR, Agi, Dex, And Vit. Mana cost: 50/cast. Duration: 5 Minutes + Spirit statsx3second. Automatic Augment applied]

[Mimic spell: Change yourself or your magical construct to have a certain shape. Changing non magical construct may not change mass and can only have up to 50% volume difference. Mana cost:40]

[Extend spell: Extend all of your mana construct lifetime by expending 50 mana/ten minutes.]

“Well, levels are not absolute indicators,” Felicia said. “Actual battle prowess is. Moreover, while your levels are low, thanks to your slayer class, you get a boost when facing stronger opponents. You would do well to level up and fight harder monsters.”

“Hm… I wonder if I should level up a bit more.” I frowned. I didn’t like it when people overestimated my power. This didn’t seem like a good idea. However, Alice beside me was oblivious to my worries.

“Just take the exam! That’s why it exists! If you fail, that means you’re not ready yet. If you pass, then you’re worthy! Not taking it and hiding your power is bad for humanity. We need to vanquish more Anathema!” Shining exclaimed.

“Well… if you say so…”

“Moreover, you get points for rank advancement!” Shining added.

“Huh?”

“Rank F and E don’t, but from there, you get a thousand points for advancing to rank D, ten thousand for C, twenty thousand for B, and fifty thousand for A,” Felicia explained. "however, you get 100 points per month for rank D, 200 for rank C, 500 for rank D, and a thousand points per month for rank A"

Speaking of points, I checked mine. My total stood at 8,900. The masterwork vault cost 10,000. It still seemed far away, but Felicia once told me that if I unlocked it, my weapon would last me even into B rank.

I should also consider more protective armor. C-rank Guardians shouldn’t rely solely on their astral barrier. Then, there is magic.

“I wonder if I should go for the masterclass weapon…” I muttered out loud.

Alice’s ears perked up.

“Eh? You already have the points for it?” she asked.

“No, but I’m close…”

“Wow… but shouldn’t you consider buying it at C rank? I think it’s too soon for D rank. Well, I’m collecting points for it too. In fact, I already have the required points, but I’m hesitating on which path to choose. Ten thousand points is a big commitment, even for Pink Guardians. But better weapons are definitely a must, so I promised myself I’d buy one when I hit level 60. I’m level 55 now. What weapon are you considering, Yuri?”

“I’m thinking about upgrading my glaive vault. It can make my scythe chase enemies on its own. My naginata could also have a gun barrel on it.”

“Eh?! Why can’t I have that? I’ve looked through the vaults day and night!”

“Masterwork vaults take into consideration all the vaults a Guardian has. Even if both of you have a masterwork gun vault, it will offer different combinations since you’ve opened different vaults. Moreover, we only offer weapons that we believe best suit your battle style,” Wan-chan explained, spawning in front of Shining.

“For example, you have both a bow and a gun vault. If you upgrade your gun vault, we can add an enchantment so your bullets curve like arrows. If you upgrade your bow, we can unlock a sniping feature, attaching scopes so it has the same range as your sniper rifles.”

“Ugh…” Shining pouted.

“Besides, do you seriously want a huge Grim Reaper scythe as your melee weapon? I recommend a spear and shield as your first melee weapon. Your melee skill was ranked D+ in Guardian Academy…”

“On second thought, never mind. I don’t want that thing. But Lily would look good with it, wouldn’t she?” Shining gave me a contemplating look.

We ended up talking about stats, skills, and vaults all the way to Shining’s house. After dropping her off, Sebastian drove me back to my condominium, where Kageyama greeted me. I thought he was about to ask for something, but he merely welcomed me home before heading to his bedroom, saying he was glad I was back and safe.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot this house was his,” I muttered inside my bedroom.

For some reason, knowing there were others in this once-empty house filled me with relief instead of annoyance. The butlers and maids were off after 7 PM, so the house was usually empty when I slept. It was similar to my old home—Father was never back until very late at night. The only difference was that the old house had live-in staff.

Felicia woke me in the morning. After taking care of myself, Sebastian drove the Seinjet to school. It was an odd feeling—it felt like it had been forever since I returned to my normal life.

After landing at school, I walked in as usual.

“Greetings, Yuri-sama! Where were you last week?” Nana immediately greeted me.

"I had work," I lied again. Felicia had briefed me on what to say to keep my identity hidden. I was Yuri Shirayuki, a popular actress, so it was natural for me to skip lessons due to my acting career.

"I see. Urgh… Yuri-sama skips most of school, yet her grades are still better than mine. She must be a goddess!" Nana exclaimed.

I’m sorry, Nana. I’m just a cheater. I used Felicia to complete my assignments and give me private lessons every night or whenever I had free time. Apart from being worshiped by my classmates, school life was boring.

"A message for Yuri from Francesca. She asked Yuri to come," Felicia reported.

"Hm? Yuri? Not Black Lily?" I tilted my head. I thought she was inviting Black Lily, not me.

"Yes. The message went to Yuri's phone. Wait a minute. Another message just came in. This one is from Francesca to Lily. She’s inviting both Lily and Yuri."

Panic rushed through me.

"Huh? Should I cancel her invitation? What does she want to talk about with me? Has my identity been found out?" My mind raced back to yesterday. Had Freya sent a spy on Yuri or Shining and followed us all the way back?

"I doubt your identity has been leaked. Astral barrier enchantment should protect your identity unless you give an obvious hint like Freya. You have never declared yourselves to be a magical girl after all. There is no need to panic. Just attend the meeting as both Yuri and Lily. You have clones, right?" Felicia tilted her head.

I immediately calmed down at her suggestion. Yeah, she was right. I could just send a clone. Then another thought hit me.

"Can my clones go as Yuri while I pose as Lily?"

"Yes. You can even go as Yuri while your clone poses as Lily. It’s entirely up to you," Felicia nodded. "Your grimoire and skills don’t change when you astral shift. Only your stats do."

"I see." Now that I had more options, I was even more confused. Should I go as Lily or Yuri? My clones had my memories, so they could pose as either of me. However, what concerned me was their behavior.

"Pick me!" A whisper echoed inside my head. I turned around, but everyone was paying attention to the class.

"Should I silence the clones for you?" Felicia offered.

“No, I’ll pick one of them to come with me in the restroom,” I replied telepathically.

During recess, I went to the bathroom and locked myself inside a stall. Closing my eyes, I let the darkness envelop me, entering the shadowy realm where countless versions of myself gathered, eagerly vying for the chance to step outside.

“Pick me! I want to become Lily!”

“No! Pick me, I want to become Yuri!”

“Felicia?” I summoned my familiar, and she appeared beside me in a purple flash.

“Yes?”

“Does it matter which Yuri I pick? Will any of them have memory gaps?”

“No. Technically, they all share your memories, so you can choose any of them,” Felicia assured me.

“Then why are you all so eager?” I eyed the crowd of clones with suspicion.

“We want to experience the outside world too! Watching your memories is like watching a recorded TV show—it’s not fun,” one of the clones answered.

I glanced around the dark, empty space and realized I had been a terrible master. They only existed when summoned, yet they yearned for freedom. I immediately felt guilty.

“Alright. I’ll pick one of you to pose as Lily tomorrow. After the meeting, you can go wherever you want,” I nodded.

“Yay!” The clones cheered in unison.

A sudden bell snapped me out of the shadow realm, pulling me back to reality. I hurried back to my classroom, sliding into my seat just in time for the next lesson.

As I stared at my notes, my thoughts drifted back to Francesca. What did she want with both Lily and Yuri? Why had she invited them to the same place?