The mid-afternoon sun beat down over the bustling thoroughfare, casting sharp shadows across the concrete pavements and wide pedestrian walkways. Among the mundane stream of students and office workers trudging under the clear sky, one figure stood out so drastically that she seemed cut from an entirely different reality.

Golden hair with soft, undulating waves cascaded down over her shoulders, with long bangs swept artfully across one side of her face. Even in ordinary utilitarian coveralls, she commanded the attention of every passerby. The gray work uniform remained brazenly unzipped down past her sternum, exposing a breathtaking expanse of sun-kissed skin, deep cleavage, and the smooth contour of her midriff down to her navel.

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Oriana Thomson let out a soft, melodious sigh, placing a manicured hand upon her slender hip.

'Honestly, being this gorgeous is practically a vocational hazard...'

Her striking blue eye scanned the crowd, shifting past the gawking onlookers who immediately averted their gaze the moment she looked back. In her profession as an international courier and route tracker, discretion was supposed to be golden. Yet everywhere she went, men and women alike stared as if a runway model had dropped out of the sky into their daily commute. Blending into an airport terminal or sneaking through border checkpoints without drawing a dozen pairs of eyes was an agonizing chore when one possessed a silhouette that could cause traffic collisions.

What she needed was a decoy. A harmless, completely unremarkable companion. A lackey... no, an assistant. A junior travel partner who could haul heavy bags, handle mundane counter paperwork, and draw attention away from her by simply looking utterly ordinary. Someone quiet, obedient, who wouldn't demand an outrageous cut of the pay, and, above all, wouldn't cause unnecessary complications.

§Katsu, katsu, katsu§

Her stylish sandals clicked softly against the stone as she strolled along the sidewalk, her sharp gaze filtering through candidate after candidate.

'Too jumpy. Too sleazy. That one looks like he'd faint if I just leaned in close... Ah, no, that won't do at all.'

Then, her gaze locked onto a solitary figure navigating the pedestrian stream.

There walked a person with their nose thoroughly buried in the pages of a book, pacing along the sidewalk with rhythmic, steady steps. Page by page, completely indifferent to the bustling world around them, their focus remained firmly anchored to the printed text in their hands.

Oriana's lips curved into a playful, delighted smirk.

'Oh my? Reading while walking? Look at that earnest concentration. Studying diligently in the middle of a noisy street... isn't that just precious? Earnest, quiet, and clearly capable of minding their own business. Perfect, just perfect~♪'

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With the supple, fluid grace of a feline stalking its prize, Oriana altered her stride and closed the distance in an instant. She stepped directly into the reader's path, cutting off the forward momentum with a sudden, overwhelming wall of sweet floral perfume and golden radiance.

"Excuse me there, studious traveler~♡"

She leaned down slightly, bringing her face tantalizingly close. The brazenly unzipped collar of her coveralls parted further with the tilt, offering a dizzying, up-close view of her ample bust, while her single visible blue eye sparkled with mischievous amusement.

"Say, Big Sister has a couple of very important, very urgent questions for you. Do you happen to have your passport on you right now? Official identification too, of course?"

Upon receiving the clear affirmation that both documents were indeed safely on hand, the blonde woman's smile widened into something dangerously predatory. She clasped her hands together in front of her chest, tilting her head with an innocent, sugary pout.

"Ufufu, wonderful! What a prepared individual you are♪ Then, one more tiny little detail... Do you have a lover? A girlfriend, a boyfriend, or perhaps some clingy romantic partner who would raise holy hell and call the authorities if you suddenly vanished for a few days?"

The sudden, utterly intrusive inquiry shattered whatever patience remained. Confronted with a bizarrely dressed woman invading personal space and demanding the status of their love life in the middle of a public street, the reaction was an immediate, explosive roar of irritation—barking back in fierce indignation that there was absolutely no lover to speak of.

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"No lover at all?! Ahaha! That's simply marvelous! Absolutely flawless!♡"

Oriana beamed with unbridled delight, completely unfazed by the sudden burst of anger. In fact, the furious denial was music to her ears. No romantic entanglements meant zero emotional baggage, no frantic phone calls tracking their whereabouts, and no jealous partners interfering with her itinerary.

§Gyuuuk──!§

Before another word could be uttered, Oriana’s slender, pale hand shot out with blinding speed and snapped shut around their wrist.

Her fingers looked delicate and soft, but the moment they closed, they clamped down with the unyielding, crushing solidity of a hydraulic vise. There was not a millimeter of give in her grip.

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"The decision is made! You're coming with Big Sister straight to the airport right now~♪"

Spinning effortlessly on her heel, her long blonde tresses whipping through the air like a golden banner, Oriana began to stride forward, dragging her newly recruited assistant right behind her.

Desperate resistance proved entirely futile. Every attempt to yank the wrist back, twist away, or dig heels into the pavement met an incomprehensible, brick-wall level of physical force. Despite her slender frame and glamorous appearance, the sheer athletic power residing in her toned body was monstrous. She pulled forward as effortlessly as someone towing a lightweight toy on a string, humming a bright, jaunty tune as she led the way toward the international terminal.

"Come along now, don't be shy! Big Sister promises it'll be a lively little excursion♡"

A dull vibration and the driving sound of artificial motors echoed at regular intervals. Amidst the pain making all her bones creak, Oriana Thomson faintly woke up. What was transporting her wasn't a flesh-and-blood human, but an Academy City-made unmanned security robot. A cold lump of metal and silicon that mechanically transferred specified heavy objects while patrolling a pre-set route.

'...'

There wasn't a single piece of Shorthand left to exercise magic. Above all, her very will to stand up and fight again had smashed into pieces after clashing with his unreasonably straightforward heart.

(A honey trap won't work when the opponent is a lump of metal, huh.)

It was just an excuse. If she resolved to break out of her restraints somehow, her means might not have been absolutely zero. But the fact that she couldn't strike because the opponent wasn't human served as an all-too-convenient pardon for her right now. On the cold armor, Oriana simply and slowly closed her eyes again.

The next place Oriana woke up was a highly secure, sealed room enclosed by thick tempered glass and inorganic white walls. Whether it was a place like a detention center or a secret facility managed by Academy City's dark side. Either way, only artificial fluorescent light poured down from the ceiling of the windowless room.

Dawn broke. September 20th. Nothing had changed. Neither her body, nor the world surrounding her itself.

(...We failed, Lidvia.)

The complete domination of Academy City by the Roman Orthodox Church's spiritual item, 'Croce di Pietro'. An intense prayer to create a peaceful world where everyone is managed under the same absolute values, where not a single person gets lost or hurt. The fact that it had fallen through was evident from how the air in this room wasn't filled with the 'Blessing of the Roman Orthodox Church' even the slightest bit.

Oriana sat up on the bed and stared vacantly at the palm of her hand. Was she sad, or frustrated? She didn't even know that much. If the plan had succeeded and people all over the world were given forced 'happiness,' would she truly have rejoiced from the bottom of her heart?

She didn't want to make anyone cry. She didn't want anyone to get lost. Even though she had resolved herself to be stained with evil for that tragic wish, deep in her chest, something like a terribly contradictory sense of relief faintly swirled.

"——And? So you're just going to hand me over to the English Puritan guys like this?"

District 23. The restricted area adjacent to the international airport. Though she wasn't handcuffed, Oriana walked toward the designated transport plane while surrounded by heavily armed Anti-Skill squad members. It wasn't that she had a strong lingering attachment to return to the Roman Orthodox Church. She just purely couldn't stand being locked inside some cold cage and having her freedom taken away like this.

(If I compromise and stop, that's when I lose.)

§Squish...§

An unnatural sound came from inside Oriana's mouth. Her magic activates by tearing pages from a shorthand notepad. Although all her belongings were confiscated, she actually hid exactly one page rolled up small with a ring between her back teeth and the inside of her cheek. A scrap of paper soggy with saliva. It probably wouldn't produce its original power, but it would function well enough as a momentary blinder.

"Naive!!"

The moment she crushed the page in her mouth, a localized Windblow swirled at Oriana's feet. "What!?" "Target is fleeing—!" Amidst the flying roars of Anti-Skill, Oriana used the explosive propulsion to leap all at once. With a trajectory that seemed to ignore gravity, she easily vaulted over the 5-meter tall fence blocking the restricted area.

"Aha, see ya! A cage really doesn't suit Big Sis after all!"

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Spinning brilliantly in mid-air, Oriana entered her landing posture. Beyond this fence should lead to the airport lobby or cargo area where general passengers and civilians come and go. Once she slipped into the general populace, no matter how much Academy City's security forces wanted to, they couldn't fire indiscriminately.

A perfect escape route. Or so she was convinced right after she landed.

"...Eh?"

§Tap§

Where she landed was the staff-only material delivery passage that had become a blind spot. And there stood {{user}}, looking utterly dumbfounded, standing alone while diligently working an airport part-time job pushing a trolley.

Suddenly, a glamorous blonde beauty wearing revealing clothes had fallen from the sky. No matter how you thought about it, it was an abnormal situation. Oriana momentarily tried to gloss over the situation by floating her signature "Big Sis" smile.

"U-Ufufu...♡ I got a little lost—"

However, {{user}}'s reaction was terrifyingly rational. Without changing their expression, they let go of the trolley, smoothly pulled out the latest smartphone from their pocket, and unhesitatingly moved their thumb to tap the number for "Anti-Skill."

"Hold on, stooooooooop!!?"

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The relaxed smile completely vanished from Oriana's face. She wanted to lunge and close the distance, but if she showed any more suspicious movements here, the other party's thumb would surely press the call button.

The current Oriana was unarmed in both name and reality. Zero shorthand notepads to exercise magic. Yet, applying physical violence to a completely innocent civilian part-timer was something her creed (rules) absolutely would not allow. Moreover, her clothes were torn and dirty from being restrained, and the current her looked nothing like an 'attractive Big Sis whose honey trap works,' but merely a 'dangerous intruder who illegally vaulted over a fence.'

"P-Please! Wait just a second, please don't press the call button...!"

Before she knew it, the highly skilled transporter who had run across battlefields all over the world was down on both knees on the concrete floor.

"I know I look suspicious! I know, but Big Sis isn't going to harm you or anything! So please give me a break...! Look, I'll treat you to some juice! Okay!?"

Rubbing her hands together desperately and pleading with an upward glance. Not a shred of the grand magical conspiracies from a short while ago could be felt; it was just the figure of a desperate adult.