"You're showing up at noon again today, Mr. Natsukawa."
The next day at noon, as the sun rose once more, in the dining car as usual, Marie greeted Naoki, who looked as drained as he had yesterday. She also glanced at Rei behind him, who, as expected, was radiating vitality just like the day before.
"You two are truly a master and maid with no sense of propriety or shame. While I shouldn't comment on other people's lives, your situation is honestly outrageous. At least tidy up your appearance before appearing in public."
"Thanks for the lecture, but please direct it at Rei. I'm the victim here."
Naoki's voice sounded weak.
Last night, he only managed to sleep at dawn. His mental exhaustion was still manageable, but his physical fatigue was unbearable. Rei in the first half of the night, Manaka in the second half. In the end, they even took turns appearing, as if competing for a seat. Since their bodies were puppets, they knew no fatigue, giving him no rest whatsoever.
However, thanks to that, the Mana accumulated in Rei's body had reached an extraordinary level. The barrier she would create later would surely be impervious to the Forest of Einnashe. With that, Naoki could leave with peace of mind.
Could a lowly Forest of Einnashe possibly break through a barrier created by a Princess of the Root?
Tapping the table to order lunch, Naoki ate while looking out the window. "The weather's really nice."
After a night of travel, the scenery outside, which yesterday was still rural, had now transformed into a lush, dense forest. Sunlight filtering through the gaps in branches and leaves looked like scattered stars.
That was the view from Naoki's window. On the other side, an endless range of mountains loomed. It seemed the train was traveling right at the foot of the mountains.
(Still nothing unusual within my sensory range. Has the Forest of Einnashe not appeared yet?)
While chewing on his chopsticks, Naoki focused his attention on searching for someone.
(Ciel is still in the sleeping car, probably in her room. What's in her hand… the Seventh Holy Scripture? She's been half-discarded, yet the Burial Agency still lets her carry that? Aren't they worried such a valuable Holy Scripture might be lost in a battle with the Forest of Einnashe?)
If Ciel succeeded, retrieving the Seventh Holy Scripture wouldn't be difficult. But if she failed, it could be lost forever… Could they have prepared a retrieval method in advance?
(Well, that's none of my business. After this, I just need to protect Ciel.)
Pulling back his attention, Naoki continued looking out the window. At that moment—
*BZZZZTTT!*
In Naoki's senses, a burning sensation like poisoning suddenly spread!
(This feeling… this situation?!)
Then, in the real world, the Mystic Eye Collection Train, which had been moving at a steady pace, suddenly slowed and stopped without warning!
The abrupt deceleration caused everything on the tables to slide off. Passengers seated hurriedly grabbed onto nearby objects to avoid being thrown.
"Ouch… ouch…"
Marie, at the table, rubbed her head where it had bumped.
"What happened? Why did the train suddenly…?"
"Truly an extraordinary situation, this sudden incident."
Naoki, sitting across from her, abruptly uttered that nonsensical phrase. Marie glanced at him and saw his eyes fixed straight out the window. Following his gaze, the scene that met her eyes left her stunned.
The bright, sunlit forest from moments ago had vanished. The midday sun above was also obscured. In its place was a pitch-black world, like the dark forest of a witch from mythology. Countless black trees grew tall, as if covering the sky. Their surfaces were covered with blood-red veins resembling blood vessels. Deep in the forest, whether it was an auditory hallucination or not, a faint rumbling sound could be heard.
At the same time, an announcement echoed through the train, with the conductor Rodin's slightly trembling voice.
[We have an announcement for all guests. Regrettably, this train has entered the territory of the Forest of Einnashe…]
The Forest of Einnashe?!
Hearing that name in the announcement, nearly every Magus's face in the train paled instantly!
"No way… How could the Mystic Eye Collection Train enter a place like this?!"
Marie covered her small mouth. Her eyes and expression unmistakably showed disbelief and fear she couldn't hide. And it wasn't just her—other Magi displayed similar reactions.
It was understandable. Unlike the other 27 Dead Apostle Ancestors, the Forest of Einnashe was one that appeared periodically. Every fifty years, it emerged, devouring all existences in its territory and turning them into nutrients for itself. Since its birth 800 years ago, both the Church and the Clock Tower had lost countless people to the Forest of Einnashe.
For a natural disaster like this, the Church and the Clock Tower had never stopped thinking about fighting and destroying it. Ciel had mentioned that every time the Forest of Einnashe appeared, the Church would form a hunting team. But whether it was the Church's knights or the Clock Tower's Magi, they all seemed utterly powerless against it.
The Church's knights struggled against an enemy with overwhelming numbers, while the Magi had no strength at all, as they couldn't use natural Mana within the Forest of Einnashe's territory.
As a result, over 800 years, not only had the Forest of Einnashe not been destroyed, but it had grown stronger over time. Because of this, Magi always approached it with fear, especially the Church.
After all, in its presence, Magi were as powerless as if they couldn't even bind a chicken. Without access to natural Mana, they couldn't use Magecraft. And Magecraft powered by the weak Mana of humans was utterly meaningless.
Panic began to spread among the Magi. Even in the dining car, Naoki could hear various noises from other carriages. There were also voices questioning the two people in charge of the Mystic Eye Collection Train.
(What a mess… But it's understandable. Even I didn't expect the Forest of Einnashe to appear like this.)
Naoki had initially thought the Forest of Einnashe might have already appeared, so he could sense it in advance and prepare. But that wasn't the case.
The Forest of Einnashe hadn't appeared earlier. It was only now beginning to manifest, and its emergence point was right at the train's location!
How to put it…
"This train is both incredibly lucky and unlucky…"