TEASER CHAPTER 6 PART 21
"...
So, Ken Notis has the ability [Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask] and
has not reported it to the academy?"
"Yes,
and I believe he used that ability to frame Nozomu."
Irisdina
and the others, and school officials including Jihad, face each other in the
head instructor's office.
After
Jihad finished asking about the truth of the rumors that had spread in this
school two years ago and about the person who had brought down Nozomu Bountis,
he gritted his teeth as he squeezed his beard.
[Reflective
Water Surface of the Heart Mask] itself is a very rare ability. Because of its
rarity and ability, it was rarely shown, and Jihad and the others had
subconsciously excluded it from their thoughts.
Actually,
there is still no established means to directly detect the abilities possessed
by an individual.
For
example, Tima's [Four-Scale Concerto] can be inferred to some extent from her
own magical aptitude, but Irisdina's [Immediate Deployment] can only be
detected when it is used.
Until
ten years ago, each country conducted its own research on abilities, but there
was a limit to that. Not all people were capable of manifesting abilities, and
the scale of research in a single country was limited.
With
the completion of Arcazam ten years ago, it finally became possible for each
country to conduct joint research and share information, but this did not mean
that the number of people who could manifest abilities increased.
In
addition, it was difficult to unify the will of each country, and it could not
be said that sufficient results had been achieved.
"Ms.
Inda, have you received any reports that the current holder of that ability has
entered the academy or Gloaurum Institute?
"No,
that has not been confirmed yet."
"If
so, have you noticed any suspicious magical activity at any of the facilities
around the school recently?"
"Please
wait a moment, I'll check it out."
As
he watched Inda leave the office, Jihad thought about what he had just heard
about the [Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask].
That
ability is particularly useful for espionage. It could help the user change
shape, invade, and take information with it.
It
was extremely difficult to identify someone who could use such an ability, and
if they didn't use it, they were no different from normal people.
"She
said she would check it out ... Do you have any records of such a thing?"
"Of
course. This city has a lot of people coming in and out, and some people think
of doing something bad. The school has strict security measures to catch and
repel intruders. The school has many facilities for this purpose, though we
have never publicly announced them."
Every
day, a large number of adventurers, merchants, travelers, and government
officials from various countries come and go in and out of Arcazam.
There
were so many of them that it was difficult to identify each and every one of
them as they entered and left the city.
And
since we can't directly detect the abilities themselves, we have no choice but
to take secondary measures to check the effect of activating abilities on the
surroundings.
This
was why the school had thoroughly fortified its defense against abilities
suitable for espionage, such as [Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask].
The
security level was so high that it was almost morbid, especially at night when
the students were away, the security system was like a fortress. Moreover, it
is absolutely impossible to know from the outside that such a security system
exists.
