Airport Control Centre.
A flurry of confused staff bustled about.
"All flights arriving 10 minutes early? What's going on?"
"What? The airport clocks are 10 minutes behind international time?"
"How could you make such an absurd mistake!"
"Adjust the time immediately! Don't disrupt normal flight operations!"
"Yes, sir!"
Amidst the staff's chaotic scrambling...
In a forest on Hong Kong's Lantau Peak.
Emilia, her face smeared with soot, leaned against a tree, breathing heavily.
Beside her, the cat-shaped spirit Puck watched with concern:
"Emilia, you're being reckless."
"Satella's power isn't something you should wield."
"Moreover, the more you use it, the more Satella's maddened personality will erode yours. Overdo it, and you'll truly become the Witch of Envy."
"This is something nobody wants—not even Satella herself."
Lurking within Emilia was the true, dangerously dual-personality witch Satella.
The benevolent witch Satella and the maddened Witch of Envy kept each other in check, with Emilia's personality serving as mediator.
Though this triangular balance was stable, whenever Emilia employed Demigod-level abilities, the equilibrium would shatter, drawing her closer to the mad Witch.
Prolonged usage could allow the Witch of Envy to resurrect directly through Emilia's body—an outcome neither the benevolent Satella nor Emilia desired.
Regaining her breath, Emilia looked apologetically at the floating spirit:
"I'm sorry, Puck."
Having opened the briefcase and realised Kurumi's deception, Emilia's spirits had sunk so low that Puck couldn't bring himself to scold her further.
Yet despite her apology, Puck recognised the stubborn glint in Emilia's eyes—knowing she'd make the same choice again if needed.
Against an opponent like Kurumi Tokisaki—a Top Tier Class Demigod who could effortlessly overpower ordinary Demigods—only fully unleashing the Witch of Envy's power could have matched her.
In that desperate situation, unleashing the witch's power had been their only chance at survival.
Sighing, Puck watched as Emilia performed a technique to summon a pre-stored medicinal bottle. As she took the medicine, he asked:
"How much remains of Lady Tokoyogi's personality-erosion suppressants?"
Emilia checked the medication, counting the capsules before explaining:
"The medicine left by Teacher should last about 8 more doses."
"Eight doses?" Puck's feline face immediately showed concern.
Previously, Emilia's personality had been stabilised with Aya Tokoyogi's assistance.
Moreover, Puck never anticipated that Aya Tokoyogi, a Demigod, would fail in her mission. Nor did he expect that Emilia, having a Top Tier Class by harnessing the Witch of Envy's power, would need to unleash her witch abilities. Thus, they hadn't stockpiled much medicine.
Of course, this was partly because Puck hadn't permitted excessive research into Emilia's witch powers, fearing Aya Tokoyogi might overstep boundaries.
But now it seemed this had been a grave miscalculation.
He should have requested that Witch of the Notaria to prepare more doses.
Noticing Puck's distress, Emilia smiled reassuringly:
"Don't worry, Puck. I won't use the Witch of Envy's power again."
"That's not entirely your decision," Puck retorted irritably. "Without the Witch of the Notaria's protection, those Truth Astronomy fanatics won't likely leave a Top Tier combatant like you alone."
"If battles become frequent, you might be forced to use your witch powers again, like this time."
"Did you ever imagine a simple mission to hijack an SDS transport plane and seize Spirit Liquid would involve Demigod escorts?"
Emilia scratched her cheek awkwardly at this.
She truly hadn't anticipated such complications when seizing the Spirit Liquid.
'Are SDS Demigods that idle? Escorting Spirit Liquid... It's valuable, but surely not that important?'
Seeing Emilia's confusion, Puck sighed like a weary father.
His daughter was perfect in every way, except for being too kind-hearted - even taking her superficial master-disciple relationship with the Witch of the Notaria seriously enough to attempt rescues.
Aya Tokoyogi had only treated Emilia out of curiosity about the Witch of Envy's power, yet Emilia genuinely regarded her as a teacher, even agreeing to the Desire Faction's plans against the SDS.
'If the SDS could capture Aya Tokoyogi, what makes you think a mere Top Tier Hero Rank stands a chance?'
And sure enough, their first operation had failed spectacularly.
Leaving poor Puck utterly helpless - utterly exasperating.
Still, the paternal spirit compelled him to advise:
"Emilia, though I know I can't stop you, if this Desire Faction operation fails... please abandon any rescue plans for the Witch of the Notaria."
"I understand, Puck." Emilia lowered her eyes, her voice tinged with melancholy.
While she wanted to repay her teacher's kindness, Emilia recognised her limitations against an organisation with three Demigods.
A single Kurumi Tokisaki clone had forced her to unleash witch powers, destabilising her personality - let alone facing others.
"If they fail... I'll give up."
Puck nodded, seemingly satisfied with her decision.
Just then, a beeping sound alerted Puck.
Followed by a female voice he particularly disliked:
"Moshi moshi~~"
"Can you hear me? Puck~ It's Echidna here~"
"You..." Puck stared at the technique displayed before him, his face darkening. "When did you plant a tracking spell on me?"
"That's not important."
Echidna, the Witch of Greed, chuckled from the other end of the communication spell.
"I just wanted to remind you that I've already seized the stock of Spirit Liquid from the Huang family's main vault. Aren't you thrilled, Puck~"
"..."
Puck fell silent instantly.
Echidna, the Witch of Greed, was a fellow Great Sin Witch like Emilia. Though this woman was nominally only a Hero Rank who had advanced from a High Tier Class, she gave him an inexplicably troublesome feeling. Moreover, she seemed to harbour a subtle hostility towards Emilia, which made Puck highly wary of her.
"So you took action the moment you saw our mission fail while spying on us?"
"Bingo~" Echidna's voice brimmed with amusement. "After all, I'd be quite troubled if you didn't participate in the next mission."
Puck glared warily at the spell before him and couldn't help asking:
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
"What am I trying to do? Heh, you should ask what I want to know."
Echidna chuckled but offered no explanation, instead saying directly:
"The extraction team is already on their way to you. Your next destination is Tokyo~"
"Prepare yourself, my dear son."
"You—!!" Puck gritted his teeth in frustration, but with the communication cut off, there was nothing he could do.
After fuming for a long while, he glanced at Emilia's timid expression and grew even angrier. He didn't need to ask to know this girl wanted to go to Tokyo—but precisely because he knew, it infuriated him.
Raising a rebellious child was truly exhausting.
With a sigh, Puck finally said:
"Get ready, Emilia. We're going to Tokyo."
"I'll pack right away!!"
Watching Emilia's poorly concealed delight, Puck shook his head helplessly:
"This child..."
He could only hope that whatever the Desire Faction needed the Spirit Liquid for would succeed in stalling the SDS's Demigod.
Holding onto that slim hope, Puck accompanied Emilia and the extraction team as they boarded a car bound for the airport.