Hitting a few rocks at the end of the river, into the pond Yuki had passed by a couple of hours ago, were Lily and Andrew climbing out of two logs, which were hollow inside leaving enough space for a small person, which they barely fit in. The back was shut like a barrel, making the lid removable when pushed against from the inside.
"Phew… I can't believe that worked."
"Really? Well, I for one did not have a single doubt in Yamato's plan."
"It wasn't the plan that had me worried but your stupid letter bomb you idiot! Did you hear how angry she was?? She might actually strangle you this time."
"Pft, you worry too much, Lily."
"You worry too little, Andrew."
"Alright misses fun police, when did Yamato say he'd catch up again?"
"He said it might take a couple of hours, so we should just wait here and use as many anti tracking spells as possible."
"Boooring…"
"If she finds us here I'm not the one with a problem, y'know. In fact, I might help her. You've been quite rebellious lately, so if she is already-"
"-Alright, I get it! No need to threaten my life… Most heartless sister award earned in a single day, congrats…"
"What was that?"
"Nothing!"
"See? Isn't it better this way?"
"…"
"Good boy."
"Don't push it!"
Meanwhile Yuki was trying her best to find their location, but it was no use. They were already too far away again, and with the combination of their spells making it even harder, they were basically untraceable from which Yuki tried to track them. And because of Yamato's circumstances with mana, she still could not track him. That had not changed from the day they discovered he had any at all. She was working on it though in case of emergencies. Why else would she want the ability to know about his location at all times from anywhere?
As she tried for a while longer, she got lost in thoughts.
"Well… At least I know he was here. Thus, fate did lead me back to him through that leaf. True soulmates~ But how do I actually get to him? And what do I do once I find him? I really hope Andrew is the target… He's gonna be a victim either way. Lily would suck I guess, but better than having to steal the card from Master… Ah, what do I do?! Maybe I can seduce him with a passionate kiss and then just steal it! No… There's no way I could focus on anything else while we were making out… But whatever, back to finding him. So, if I were a super awesome, handsome and perfect person, how would I have evade my awesome future wife? Well, he now probably knows about our position, which he will take into consideration. This whole move was to gain time, which he achieved, of course. That time can now be used to get away from us even further? But it's not enough time for that… Because he knows we'd catch up and win the following direct confrontation. He'd also now have less time to prepare for our arrival, like he did this time. So really, there is no point in going forward… Which only leaves back the way we came? Oh, did he want us to walk the opposite direction while he waits behind us until the time runs out? Ooh, you sly fox, Master! I love you!"
"Everyone, let's go back and-…"
Before she could finish giving her instructions, she got hit by a heavy artillery spell, strong enough to level a small building, which did not affect her much but was quite annoying regardless.
Upon closer inspection, her attackers seemed to be… The entirety of class 2?
"What the fuck are you doing?! Same group, hello??"
However she received no response, only a defensive formation nigh impenetrable by ordinary offensive tactics.
"Is this your, doing, Master? The timing is so perfect for you… But how could you have managed such a betrayal? But I can't be sure. Urgh… Their defense was amongst the strongest during the final competitive exam last year as well… Quite impressive for some kids, actually. This is going to be annoying… Why are they slowing us down, those fucking idiots… But whatever. 27 against 15 is still not a problem for us. Even if they manage to slow us down for half an hour or so. Though I would like to ask Maruyama what this is about… But I'm not sure if I have time! Hm? Isn't that the new girl down there… What is she doing?"
Through the smoke of the initial attack on the ground, which happened simultaneously to the one on Yuki, the new class 3 student who was not introduced by name seemed to manage rushing through the defense of class 2 and that unnoticed by anyone but Yuki, who only saw it since she was still in the sky.
Despite wanting to follow her, Yuki could not risk leaving Arina alone since she was the target. And if class 2 already attacked them, who knows what their goal was?
Yamato emerged out of the river, next to the pond where Lily and Andrew were hiding. Unlike the twins, who were of course kept dry by the logs, he was completely soaked which was to be expected after swimming multiple kilometers, downstream at least. The drying spell Yuki taught him came to good use now, even though it was only good for clothes. However he could use his jacket as a towel for his hair and then use the spell on the jacket again, so it was not really a problem at all.
"Uhm, welcome back?"
"Thanks. Was it boring to wait?"
"Kinda. But class 2 rushed past us, which was kind of interesting. Do you know what's up with that?"
"Let's just say fear is a great motivator for people you don't necessarily need as long term allies."
"I don't get it."
"That's alright, Lily. I will explain it to you some other time. For now we should get-…"
"Is something wrong?"
Yamato saw movement in the corner of his eye, on the opposite side of the pond behind a couple of trees. However it could have just as well have been imagination or a reflection of a drop of water remaining in his hair. But then, before he could warn the twins, three darts were flying towards them, all shot nearly simultaneously with incredible speed and accuracy. Yamato managed to turn around just in time and catch it in the air before his chest, the needle at the tip slightly brushing his jacket which he has just put back on, the spot where it beushed against now changing from purple to grey. He took off the jacket and threw it on the ground together with the dart, while noticing that both Andrew and Lily had been hit and layed on the ground without making a sound. While facing the direction where the darts came from, he moved down to Lily and checked her pulse, which was very weak. It was the same with Andrew.
"I'm guessing those were darts with some form of instant sedative? If so you should know that these two are much younger than I am, and your dosis could kill them if you did not adjust them to children, assuming yours was for adults."
Even though he received no response, he was sure his attacker heard him.
"I'm going to turn my back to you now, make sure you didn't just give them an overdose. If you do not have medical experience and sedate me too, they will most likely die."
He turned around like he announced and crouched down next to Andrew, pretending to do something. In reality, he could not do anything about this. Whatever was in those darts he had no idea how to treat it. However they did not seem to be in immediate danger. He only needed time to listen to his surroundings and locate his attacker before they got suspicious, which they probably were already. But the fact that they did not shoot again meant they either were out of darts, took really long to recharge or did not want the children to die. He only had one shot at this, since he did not know who his attacker was, or if it even was another student. It obviously was not Yuki, since this was not something she would do. Or at least not how she would do it.
"I'm not sure if I can help them. Do you have an antidote?"
"Why should I believe you? You could be lying about their age."
With that he could already locate her position pretty accurately, however since he got a response now he could talk a bit too.
"A girl… Around my age, but I haven't heard that voice before… Well, it's not like I know every student personally and heard their voices. I think it's safe to assume she is a student. Everything else would have been weird anyway…"
"Have you looked at them? They are obviously children."
"Maybe they are just small… This school doesn't even let children this young enter."
"…Wait, you're the new girl, right?"
"How would you know?"
"Because these two were officially introduced to all students as prodigies. However one student would not know about that, since they weren't a student then. That being you, who only enrolled into the second year directly."
"…"
"Nailed it, huh… Do you have an antidote or not?"
"No. But it won't be necessary…"
She suddenly appeared behind him, a speed rivaling Arina's current top speed, probably surpassing it. She held a knife to his throat, and it did not seem like she was scared of using it.
"Don't move. If you really worry about these children than do as I say."
"Okay…"
"How did she get those weapons in here anyway? Doesn't she know it is prohibited to use weapons that are not summoned by yourself? However, she acts like a professional… So I can't waste time worrying about that. I should be able to overpower her from this position and get some distance… But that speed. If she gets behind me again it's over… Eh, I don't think I will die. After all, Yuki would go crazy if I'd die here. And I can't let that happen, can I?"