Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume7 Chapter8 (section)

===Part 3===

In the night forest where the spirits were restless--

Kamito was shouldering the unconscious Claire on his back. Beside him, Fenrir was carrying the likewise unconscious Rinslet.

A transient encounter had concluded with the scarlet-masked elementalist -- the other Strongest Blade Dancer, Ren Ashbell.

Despite the briefness of their crossing of blades, Kamito learned with deep realization.

(Now that was truly a monster...)

Despite her appearance of a girl's, she was without any doubt a monster surpassing Nepenthes Lore.

Whether in the level of swordsmanship or in the strength of divine power, the difference was overwhelming.

(Furthermore, that girl defeated these two without even summoning her contracted spirit.)

Cold sweat flowed down his neck.

(Even if I recovered my power from three years ago, I--)

The spirit seal on his left hand stung with pain.

Moments later, when Kamito arrived back at Team Scarlet's stronghold--

"Kamito, what happened to them!?"

Ellis cried out in surprise when she came out to greet them.

"...Yeah. Sorry, could you help me a bit."

Explaining to Ellis what had happened, Kamito enlisted her help to lay the two girls onto the beds in the tent.

"What about the other two?"

"Princess Linfa is currently seeking Sjora Kahn's location. Shao Fu is accompanying her."

"So it does take quite a long time, right?"

Kamito wished to rescue Fianna as quickly as possible without a second to lose.

"I will go check on their progress. Kamito, you should stay by the sides of Claire and Rinslet here."

Saying that, Ellis left the tent.

"..."

Left behind, Kamito activated healing spirit crystals and had the girls clasp them in their hands.

As if trying to comfort her, Scarlet was licking Claire's severely burned hands.

(...What on earth happened? Even as a user of fire, she looked like she got burned by her own flames or something.)

The only conceivable possibility was spirit magic running out of control--

However, Kamito did not believe Claire could make such an elementary mistake.

Soon after, Claire was the first to wake up.

"Ooh, Kami... to...?"

Frowning tensely from the pain, she slowly raised her upper body.

"Is your condition okay?"

"Yeah, looks like she held back and showed mercy. To her, the battle just now was just child's play."

Claire bit her lip with chagrin.

"Have we gained any clues to Fianna's location?"

"Yeah. It was Team Inferno's Sjora Kahn who kidnapped Fianna. Sjora most likely decided on her own to perpetrate this act. Those members of Team Inferno don't seem very united."

"However, why would she take Fianna away?"

"...Indeed, the magic stone is not the goal."

Kamito rested his chin on his hand as he pondered--

"Come to think of it, Sjora's familiar said something incomprehensible. About Fianna being suited to be the Darkness Queen or whatever, somehow it feels like..."

"...Darkness Queen?"

Claire's eye brows jumped.

"You're heard of it?"

"I seem to recall seeing it before. A forbidden book from my family's sealed library. Because the Elstein family gave rise to many Queens throughout the generations, we have collected a large number of forbidden books related to legends regarding queens. That one, I think it said..."

Claire pressed an index finger against her temple--

"The Elemental Lords ruling over Astral Zero actually total six in number. If that's the case, there should exist a corresponding Queen to serve that sixth Elemental Lord. Of course, this is deemed heresy by the Divine Ritual Institute."

"The sixth Elemental Lord..."

Kamito felt a stirring in his heart.

A certain name surfaced in his mind, one fraught with a complicated past

The being whose existence was wiped out in the distant past, the Darkness Elemental Lord -- Ren Ashdoll.

An existence whose veracity was still in doubt, why would its name now be--

"...Ooh, Kami... to-san..."

"Rinslet?"

"...Ah, Kamito-san, where are you touching, so perverted!"

"Wha!?"

...Was she talking in her dreams? She must be having some sort of outrageous dream.

"Y-You, y-you're doing what in her dreams...?"

Claire glared with a frightening gaze.

"W-Wait a minute, how could you hold me responsible for this!?"

"Uwah, h-how could this happen, what are you doing with Claire, ah..."

"H-Hold it right there, what are you dreaming about!? Hurry and get up!"

"Claire... And also, Kamito?"

Blushing intensely, Claire shook Rinslet by the shoulders, causing her to open her eyes forcefully.

"Seriously..."

Kamito breathed a sigh of relief.

Ellis entered the tent at this time.

"Princess Linfa has completed the preparations for clairvoyance. Let us gather at the spring."

--When everyone had gathered by the spring, Linfa was already performing the last ritual dance, dressed in her glittering rainbow-colored elemental waffe, Seraphim Feathers.

The great imperial princess who always acted so childishly appeared especially sacred at this moment.

Bowing towards the spring, she then quietly turned towards Kamito's group.

"--Hereafter, clairvoyance shall be performed on the witch's lair. Watch carefully."

Everyone nodded silently.

Softly uttering a spirit language prayer, Linfa activated the magic for far sight.

This was high level magic for displaying a target's location by interfering with Astral Zero's space.

...Very soon, the water surface began to move even in the absence of wind.

The vague image of some unknown place appeared on the surface of the spring water that reflected moonlight.

Kamito and the group focused their gaze sharply on the water surface.

Dense flourishing forest. Desolate, decrepit and collapsed stone columns. Rock faces covered with spreading moss. All around were the remnant of flaking sculptures.

--This was apparently the site of an ancient shrine's remains.

"The image belongs within the grounds of the Blade Dance, right?"

"Hmm, in principle, yes."

"Hey, this place, could it be there?"

Claire spoke up.

"There?"

"See, the historical site the Rupture Division used as their stronghold--"

"Oh right!"

It was the place where Kamito and Claire had taken shelter from the rain last time when they went over to negotiate an alliance with the Rupture Division.

The place should have been damaged by Nepenthes Lore already. Had a new barrier been erected there to reuse the location?

"Oh dear, the other party seems to have noticed!"

Linfa suddenly spoke up.

Instantly, the water surface began to shake violently, disrupting the image and causing it to disappear.

"...What happened?"

"Hmm, looks like the witch discovered it."

"Knowing the place is good enough, let's go!"

"Yeah!"

Hearing Kamito's rally for action, everyone nodded vigorously.