"That's a shame," said Akira, splayed out over the sofa chair in the corner of their hotel room.

  "It is." Erina stared out into the night, watching the cars drive by on the other side of the glass. If she didn't focus hard enough, she'd end up staring at her own forlorn reflection. "We came all this way, but she can't help us either." She ruminated for a while longer until a thought occurred to her. "Before, you mentioned Darius and Julian also knew her."

  "Don't even bother." Akira rolled a cigarette over in her hands, shooting glances at the small no-smoking sign on the wall. "Those two have been out looking to get rid of her for ages, from what I've heard. Tore through my Shinjuku a second time scouring for her."

  "I see…"

  "I know what you're thinking. And I gotta ask ya: do you really want to go find Goukei to try asking him?"

  Erina thought and thought and thought, but even she eventually had to face the truth. "Then we really have no options…"

  A small hand clapped her on the back and jolted her out of her moping.

  "Hey, now." Akira offered her best grin. "These things happen. Can't be helped. We're out of leads for now, but who knows? Maybe one day you'll find another trail to her. Can't expect everything to happen all at once the second you start looking. Could be ten, twenty, fifty years, but one day you'll get where you're headed."

  But I don't want to wait fifty years. Still, even if Erina said that, it wouldn't change anything right this moment. She slowly nodded.

  "And it's too early to call it a wasted trip," said Akira. "We booked a couple days out. Y'know the Reverse isn't isolated to Japan, right? We could go exploring around these parts, see what the flip side looks like in a part of the world shaped by another culture."

  Akira watched as Erina perked up. That got her interest.

  "Yeah," said Akira, grinning. "So let's—"

  Ring! Ring! Ring!

  Akira snatched the phone off the table. "Yeah?"

  Even in a language she didn't know, Erina could feel at least three profanities bitten back under that snippy tone.

  "That's me. A message from who?"

  A sudden shuffling of cloth. Erina turned, but Akira was already facing into the wall with her back to her.

  She couldn't see the color that had just drained from her patriarch's face.

  "…What did you just say?"

  . The sun had only come out recently, casting the sky in a striking pink hue. The sky took on a fantastical gradient, transitioning from shades of pink and orange towards deep navy blue on the other horizon as night retreated. Light, wispy clouds streaked the skies, stretching overhead in long strips and catching the sunlight on their undersides.

  Aileen stood waiting for them in the yard. A polished wooden cane rested in her hands, planted before her. The cool morning wind tugged at the wide brim of her pointed pale blue hat and the large white ribbon tied around its base. Aged and thin as she was with her hair and clothes blowing in the wind, Aileen herself looked immovable.

  Getting out of the car, Erina rubbed one eye and held back a yawn. She'd fallen asleep again on the taxi ride here.

  "A girl needs her beauty sleep," drawled Akira. She tossed a handful of bills into the seat behind her as she got out of the car. "This really couldn't wait a second, huh?"

  "I imagined you wouldn't want to wait," said Aileen evenly. "Like I said, it's about Lazarus. You wanted her location?"

  That woke Erina up fast. She shook the drowsiness out of her head and hurried ahead of Akira, saying, "Really? Thank you, Aileen-san!"

  "Not so fast." Aileen raised her hand, and Erina stopped. There was a playful twinkle in her eye. "I can hardly give it out for free, can I?"

  "What do you need me to do?" asked Erina.

  "I'd like to see for myself what kind of girl you are." Aileen smiled and added, "I'm always fascinated what the kids are getting up to these days."

  Akira put her hand on her hip, scowling. "You didn't have a clue yesterday and now you do. Am I supposed to believe the former High Magus up and forgot where our missing lady went until the moment she didn't?"

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  Aileen merely kept her smile on. Carrying her cane in one hand, she turned. A stream of water rushed forth from the fountains on either side, pouring towards each other and then joining. The symmetrical streams blended together as they rose, crackled, and then glaciated in the blink of an eye. Flowing water turned to solid ice all at once, casting itself in the form of a tall ornate arch like wrought iron gates. A thin film of water flowed down from the arch—a shimmering veil that blurred and obscured their view of the manor behind it.

  "Come with me," said Aileen. "If you would be so kind."

  She stepped through the veil ahead of them and vanished.

  Erina didn't feel tired anymore. All of a sudden, she had way more pressing matters than missing a few hours of sleep. She looked to Akira, who only shrugged back as if to say, What else is there to do?

  …Erina could always leave. That was what else they could do. But Akira already pulled some strings to get her flown in to Scotland, never mind the expenses. If Aileen said she knew nothing and left it at that, Erina would feel very differently about it.

  But she did know something, and it didn't sound like Erina was going to get it without a fight.

  "Erina?" said Akira. "'Sup?"

  That pulled her out of it. "It's nothing," she said. "I'm ready to go."

  Erina stepped into the film of water, followed shortly by Akira. The distinct shimmer sky of the Reverse greeted them on the other side as they emerged without a drop of water on them.

  Erina spotted Aileen walking around the side of the manor. They followed her to the backyard—a sprawling garden with white stone paths and fountains to match the front. Twin statues of lions stood watch from opposite ends of the garden.

  "The rules are simple." Aileen stopped in the middle of the yard. "All you have to do is strike me once."

  "Once?" said Erina. "That's it?"

  "That's it. One touch of your finger to my coat, the slightest graze of a bullet through my hair—one strike is all."

  Her tone was warm and calm. It almost terrified Erina even more than if Aileen had told her to fight, plain and simple.

  Akira exhaled, suppressing her scoff as much as possible. Aileen was flexing on her. Should've expected that a woman who spent her whole life mastering her art wanted to show off. Akira muttered, "Guess nice and humble ain't always a package deal, huh?"

  A droplet landed on Erina's head. Another. She looked up. A light rain had begun to fall from the streaked clouds overhead. The morning sun continued to shine on, unobstructed by the clouds even as the drizzle dampened the stone path at their feet.

  "Sunshower," she murmured.

  And then she jumped. All at once, a huge wall of water fell to the ground around them. The clouds opened up and dumped an entire several inches of rain at once. Rather than splash, the water coalesced on the garden and rushed over its features. The bushes went undisturbed as streams swept inches above them, gathering under Aileen in a whirlpool as the other two stepped back. Frothing currents raged at her feet and then stretched upwards, forming a powerful geyser slowly lifting her straight up into the air.

  The currents burst, and then froze. Everything leapt to its final destination and turned solid. Massive gilded pillars supporting an expansive floor that hung over top of the huge yard. Thick towering walls reaching dozens of feet above them. It crackled and grinded as its surface shifted—ironing out the details, smoothing the walls and roughening the floor. Small holes lined the walls, pouring rainwater from the shallow trenches cut into the interior floor. A glittering stairway led into the arena grounds. It was a grand coliseum cast from magnificent crystalline ice.

  "I only have one spell to my name: manipulation of water." Aileen stood at the top of the steps, the arena having built itself around her. She adjusted her hat with a smile. "But I should warn you not to take your elders for granted. I am rather good, after all."

  Erina felt a hand on her back nudge her forward. "Me?"

  "It's your fight." Akira lightly pushed her a step ahead while stepping back herself. "I've got no part in this. Not unless someone makes me."

  At the sharp look from the young girl, Aileen spoke up. "It's only sparring, of course. You'd be familiar, no? In the world of mages, one's power doesn't just mean their raw strength. It proves their skill, their experience, their ingenuity. Demonstrating one's power is proof of one's place in the world. What better way to decide anything?"

  "And there you have it." Akira turned back to Erina. "You want it, go get it yourself."

  Erina stammered, "B-But…"

  "Hate to break it to you, but I got no stakes here." Akira smirked and put her hands up behind her head. "What? You think the former High Magus of the Association hands out free info like candy to whatever kid comes knocking? This ain't my fight to win."

  "But Akira, I… can't…" She trailed off. That was earning her a look of disapproval from her patriarch.

  "Can't win?" Akira shrugged. "Time to go home, I guess."

  "I don't want to do that."

  "Then make up your mind."

  Erina's heart was starting to hurt again. She swallowed down her hesitation and turned back to Aileen.

  Vivian, the Crystalline. Erina had an idea of what it meant. Indeed, the coliseum was beautiful. It wasn't mere ice. It caught the sun's rays and refracted them, tiny rainbows and myriad colors sparkling within its structure. It was easy to overlook in awe of the total control Aileen demonstrated and the elegant detailing of the walls, but the material itself better resembled diamond than ice.

  "…You're a real handful, you know that?" said Akira. "Here, you don't gotta break your brain overthinkin' it. Just look at it this way." She got out a cigarette and lit it up. It flopped in her mouth as she said, "You want your answers? Get out there and win. Simple as that. Anything in the way? Just a problem you gotta solve—same as any trouble that comes the way of a smart little girl like you."

  Erina lightly patted her cheeks a few times to psych herself up. She could do this. She'd stood on the same footing as Goukei… even if it was only for a few minutes… if she was being generous… and she had Akira always helping at the same time… and he utterly demolished her the moment she was on her own again…

  On second thought, it was better not to think about it. Erina stuffed the logical part of her brain away before it finished processing what kind of situation she was in. She wanted that information. She wanted to learn more about what came before—and what it meant for her own place in the world.

  Erina put on her brave face and looked to the old lady atop the stairs.

  "Have you prepared yourself?" asked Aileen.

  "I have," said Erina.