No, honestly, this should never have happened.
The fact that they were asked to prove the ritual was flawed, or even earlier, should have given them pause. Their indifference stemmed from viewing it as someone else's private matter, ultimately leading to them suffering the consequences – a classic case of asking for trouble.
Ultimately, the initial purpose of coming here was simply to deal with the assignment given by the tutor from who-knows-where, so why would I think of caring about other people's private affairs?
Moreover, this could potentially involve the internal situation of [Wisdom of the Stars].
I didn't readily believe the identities and motives of these two people. Although I had explained some of the doubts beforehand, even more doubts arose. Not to mention that the blind saintess's goals and hopes were too distant and unrealistic, making her statements sound particularly hollow and suspicious at the time.
I deliberately kept my distance from them, only making necessary contact and conducting surveillance.
...In fact, the doubt was justified.
Although the blind saintess herself was unaware of it, her heart was undoubtedly troubled by the catastrophic scenes transmitted from the other side of darkness that she could always see. The repeated failures and disasters gradually piled up into an inescapable sense of confusion and unease, which slowly and gradually accumulated into an unpredictable tendency towards madness, and finally led to an extreme choice, which finally erupted completely and thoroughly today.
Like a thunderbolt striking from afar, you are only truly shocked by the intense flash and sound when it hits you right in front of you.
Fortunately, it was stopped in the end.
Although we didn't have a contingency plan in place at the beginning, the final result was good, so we stopped thinking about it.
Stanley seemed to be frightened as well. Even after regaining basic control of his body, his hands and feet were still trembling uncontrollably, and a flash of anger crossed his face.
Although I still really want to know how Till managed to put paralyzing toxins in everyone's food and even delay the triggering time, that's a story for another time. Let's wait until the people who have finally recovered from their shock finish their rants and return to their usual three-story house before we talk about it.
I shrugged slightly, shifting my attention away from the two people in the distance who were unilaterally complaining, and turned my gaze back to my feet.
The ritual array that had been lit up earlier returned to its dim state, and there were no longer any unusual colored lines. Even the magical fluctuations that had been lingering around the golden cup were gradually fading away, and there were no more water droplets seeping out from the cup's walls.
On the white paper, which had been scattered back into individual pieces and was gradually peeling and flying off at the edges, a shockingly large scratch cleanly and neatly split most of the paper into two sides, and even the soil underneath had been turned up, revealing a deep groove.
This must be the mark left when Miyuki slammed the tip of her longsword into the ground to slow her slide.
Although the scratch did not originate from where it was inserted into the ground, it still had an effect, leaving a faint white mark on the surface of the white paper.
"This is pretty impressive..."
I stroked my chin, making a simple analysis in my mind.
After I destroyed most of the ritual array, the strength of the resulting dividing barrier was weakened, and its condition became unbearable under the continuous impact, eventually cracking. The subsequent intruders, while removing the chosen sacrificial victim, swiftly targeted the weakened gap in the array, destroying it directly from the inside, thus preventing any potential for repair.
As a result, even the magic entwined on the golden cup was affected.
It really is a situation where you can't afford to make a single mistake in order to get through it safely.
I checked the numerous blank sheets of paper that had formed the ritual array one last time. Although it felt a bit of a shame to destroy them, I was fortunate that I had already memorized them beforehand. Even if I didn't need to draw them next time, but instead chose to manipulate magic to create the spell, I was confident that I could complete the construction of the spell. Moreover, doing it this way would make it easier to control the start and stop of the ritual, and I wouldn't have to worry about the same situation happening again.
Of course, more importantly, I checked and found no traces of blood on any of the blank sheets of paper.
I'm somewhat relieved.
I have a vague feeling that I've gotten through this safely.
Everyone's actions were timely, the ceremony was not successfully launched, and therefore no major crisis occurred.
Just in case anything unexpected happens, I need to retrieve the golden cup that I staked on the formation. Otherwise, I always feel uneasy, and I'm also worried that this thing might accidentally fall into the hands of some ill-intentioned people, such as people in the church.
I don't want to risk stopping another ritual.
This time it was mostly luck, but if such an accident happens again, we don't know if Lady Luck will be on our side.
...Not to mention that the central square, which is the main body of the ritual array, is much larger than what is in front of us, and the barrier may be even more solid and difficult to break.
However, I quickly understood the two questions I had been pondering.
Why do I feel a chill run down my spine, and... which side will luck be on?
—That's a regrettable answer.
The moment I stepped on the edge, bent down, and my fingers touched the surface of the golden cup, I involuntarily knelt down on the ground.
This was a completely unexpected and sudden situation.
It was as if I were a bucket with the bottom plug removed, and the little magic power remaining in my body was rapidly draining away, to the point that my mind went blank for a moment.
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