Chapter 36: Return to Three Portlands

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Three Portland · Teleportation Plaza

The weather in Three Portland was always rainy.

Fine droplets fell from the barrier overhead, each one refracting the strange sights that filled every corner of the city as it descended.

A restaurant near the teleportation gate.

“Camille, why do you always come all the way from Deer House to eat at this restaurant? The set meals here aren’t even any good!”

The three-eyed girl, Ushas, chewed her unappetizing sandwich as though it were wax. The restaurant’s owner was a green-skinned orc with two tusks. It was difficult to imagine an orc wearing an apron and making sandwiches.

And yet, the food really was atrocious.

“Hmm…”

Camille picked at her food, taking a bite now and then. Her eyes kept drifting toward the teleportation gate ahead, and she seemed absent-minded.

“Speaking of which, we’ve already had three days of classes. Who knows where Hugh has run off to during all this time? And we still haven’t sorted out the club business…”

Ushas continued grumbling at Camille.

“Hey, where are you going?”

Just as Ushas was complaining, Camille suddenly lit up. She opened her umbrella and headed toward the teleportation gate.

At the teleportation gate.

Xiu appeared on the magic circle with a suitcase in hand, in an excellent mood. He looked up at the unending rain cascading from the barrier and intended to stride straight back to Anderson Dormitory.

The moment he stepped into the curtain of rain, an umbrella opened above him.

“Welcome back, Hugh.”

A familiar voice reached Xiu’s ears. He instinctively turned to look at the girl holding the umbrella.

“…Camille?”

The girl before him possessed a face of breathtaking beauty. Her hair was tied into a braid that rested over her right shoulder, and the radiant smile on her face made passersby turn their heads to look.

Camille had changed far too much. If not for her unmistakably distinctive curves, Xiu would have found it difficult to connect this bright, dazzling girl with the plain and unsophisticated Camille he had known before.

And, for some reason, her hairstyle looked rather dangerous to him.

“How do I look? Pretty, right?” Camille asked with a smug smile, lifting her chin as she watched Xiu stare blankly at her.

“You’re very beautiful indeed. Even a torch could not match the brightness you possess now.”

Xiu felt no embarrassment. He simply smiled and looked straight into Camille’s enchanting eyes as he praised her.

“…Hugh, if you ever become a rake, it will be nothing short of a disaster.”

Meeting the boy’s direct golden gaze, Camille once again lost her composure. Her face grew scorching hot.

“???”

Xiu looked at Camille, who had turned into a steam engine. There were times when he truly could not understand her behavior or words. Why did perfectly normal people suddenly start acting like steam engines?

“Ah, what are you two talking about?”

Ushas approached with her umbrella. Standing two meters tall behind them, she blocked a considerable amount of rain.

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“N-nothing,” Camille replied.

“Camille, are you stammering?”

“No!”

“Let’s go back to Deer House. This place is so boring.”

“Mm. I’ll walk Hugh back under my umbrella.”

“Give him the umbrella. I…”

Ushas stopped halfway through her sentence when she noticed Camille glaring at her with puffed cheeks. She instinctively swallowed the rest of her words. Her intuition told her that it would be wiser to keep her distance from Camille for the moment.

“Ahaha, I just remembered that I still have some cake left in my room. I’m leaving first.”

The three-eyed girl, Ushas, ran off into the distance.

“Honestly…”

Camille watched her flee like a child and could only stare in exasperation.

“Then let’s go too.”

Camille turned to Xiu with a smile.

“Mm.”

And so, the two of them walked slowly beneath the rain toward Deer House. The water reflected their smiling faces as they moved through the endless crowds, their laughter ringing out every so often.

The girl kept smiling as she talked about one thing or another, while the boy listened quietly. His golden eyes seemed forever gentle.

In this way, chatting and laughing together, they once again arrived at the Douglas fir marking the boundary between Anderson Dormitory and Blackwood Dormitory.

“…We’re here.”

Camille spoke as though she had only just come to herself.

“Mm. Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Xiu smiled.

“…Mm! See you tomorrow.”

Camille was stunned for a moment. Then an extraordinarily radiant smile blossomed across her face.

⋯⋯⋯⋯

Anderson Dormitory · Room 404

Xiu put away his suitcase, then went into the washroom and took a quick hot shower. After changing into comfortable clothes, he came back out and summoned the red tome once more, reviewing the three thaumaturgies he had obtained from the Book of Evangelism.

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【Sine-Wave Interference】

++ ARad Field: Sharp ◇ — {Interference Seal}
++ Loudness: 6 dB
++ Frequency: 400–450 Hz

Effect: Releases a sine wave that disrupts the laser phase of [Laser]-type weapons and thaumaturgies, scattering the beam into ordinary light.

(Note One: An essential technique for cutting down members of the [Gear Orthodox Church].)

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(Note Two: Novices are forbidden from firing sine waves recklessly inside the monastery. Violators will be fined ten standard thaumaturgical stones.)

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【Laser-Phase Positioning】

++ ARad Field: Dull △ — {Concealment Seal}
++ Loudness: 2 dB
++ Frequency: 10–110 Hz

Effect: Laser-phase distance measurement is suitable for medium- and long-range surveying. Common measuring ranges include fifty, one hundred and fifty, three hundred, and five hundred meters, with relatively high precision—generally accurate to the millimeter.

(Note: You do not even know where the person you intend to cut down is. How are you supposed to survive outside?)

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【Octant Light Wheel】

++ ARad Field: Sharp ◇ — {Agitation Seal}
++ Loudness: 10 dB
++ Frequency: 500–1,000 Hz

Effect: The Octant Light Wheel consumes little energy and can be fired continuously. It is commonly used to inflict devastating cuts on opponents. It can be thrown or launched, but may also be held in the hand for close combat. It is highly practical, and its power can be adjusted freely.

(Note: Throwing it has no soul. A true warrior always holds the light wheel in hand when cutting down heretics!)

——————

Whoever edited the Book of Evangelism must have been a deeply experienced inquisitor. They certainly understood every possible element involved in cutting people down.

Xiu silently grumbled to himself.

Two of the thaumaturgies Xiu possessed were the ones he intended to turn into [Entries]. Once converted into entries, the thaumaturgies would no longer need to rely on a lineage tome for their release.

The task of a Stage One Measure was to convert favored thaumaturgies into [Entries]. For ordinary lineages, [Entry] conversion required all kinds of practice and ritual. Aberrant lineages, however, were granted their [Entries] directly—just like the Flesh of Desire lineage Xiu possessed. Its [Entries] were provided from the very beginning, without the need for cumbersome rituals or training.

Only thaumaturgies transformed into [Entries] could become a thaumaturge’s true personal power. Different [Entries] could then be combined to form the authority essential to a Stage Two Manifestor: a [Module].

In short, the tasks of the first two stages of a thaumaturge were:

Stage One: Convert thaumaturgies into entries.

Stage Two: Convert entries into modules.

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