Rin slammed her right fist into her left palm, "That's right! That old man wanted to die!" Understanding this, Rin suddenly felt enlightened. The subordinate who had just guessed the answer felt as if he had won 5 million US dollars with a randomly picked lottery ticket.
He actually guessed correctly! So what next...? Just then, Orie Shiroi pushed the door open and entered. Rin turned to look at her, and Orie Shiroi reported, "Big Sister, the information you requested is here."
The moment Rin turned her head, the subordinate felt a despair as if the 5 million he had almost gotten had grown wings and flown away... "Oh, that quick. Let me see it." Rin raised an eyebrow and walked towards Orie Shiroi, casually tossing the lollipop stick, which now only had a plastic stick left, behind her.
Watching the candy stick fly towards him, the black-market subordinate who had just answered correctly had a fleeting vision, as if the gates of heaven were opening for him, and beautiful angels were beckoning... Just as the flying candy stick was within reach, a dark figure suddenly flew out from the side and tackled him... "Damn it, I only guessed one of Big Sister's questions correctly! And I can get the candy stick Big Sister just finished eating!"
"Absolutely intolerable! Kill him!"
"How dare you touch Big Sister's jade saliva?!"
"Normies go to hell! Explode!"
"..."
Rin couldn't be bothered with the chaotic scene behind her; such a reaction was proof of her hypnotic brainwashing, and she was quite satisfied with it.
It could also be useful when she went to raid the Tohno family's old home.
Rin indifferently flipped through the intelligence records Orie Shiroi had brought. Orie Shiroi stood silently to the side like a professional secretary. Towards this seemingly young and cute Little Girl, Orie Shiroi now felt a genuine, tiger-like awe, not daring to provoke her in the slightest.
From Rin's arrival at that underground nightclub until now, only a mere four months had passed, yet she had unified more than half of Misaki City's underground forces. What was even more terrifying was that she herself had rarely made an appearance or taken action; instead, her subordinates, whom she had subjugated with violence, seemed to have all become her fanatical followers. As long as she ordered them to attack a certain place, her subordinates would fight to the death to take it down.
Moreover, even the original subordinates of newly subdued factions were converted at an unbelievable speed. The black underground forces, which could originally never be united, were somehow molded into an iron plate by this seemingly less than fourteen-year-old Little Girl.
Don't look at the group of people brawling behind her right now as if they're clowns; in fact, the circle of people standing here were originally the leaders of various large and small gangs in Misaki City. Now, in her hands, they've all become a bunch of masochistic clowns... Rin quickly finished reading the intelligence file, sat back on the sofa in the center of the room, propped her head on the armrest, and rubbed her temples as if in pain, her gaze drifting over the information on the paper as she fell into contemplation.
So, Aozaki Touko has arrived.
This intelligence was part of Rin's arrangement to search Misaki City for the whereabouts of a short-haired, orange-red-haired girl wearing glasses, which was Aozaki Touko. The intelligence indicated that Aozaki Touko had entered Misaki City half a month ago and was currently staying in the old school building of Misaki High, accompanied by a blonde Little Boy.
The intelligence stopped at the old school building. It seemed Aozaki Touko had set up a barrier to keep out unwanted individuals; any forced advance would inevitably lead to casualties. As a most orthodox Magus, Aozaki Touko would not care about the lives of ordinary people.
Rin rubbed her temples. Although she didn't actually have a headache, she just wanted to make this gesture. She felt that doing so might broaden her thoughts.
Touko wouldn't make a move anytime soon. According to the timeline, she should only confront Aoko two years later. Perhaps she just came back to deal with something and would then leave again. That blonde Little Boy was clearly the Golden Wolf.
She obtained the Golden Wolf so early. What should she do next?
Rin genuinely felt a headache this time. She shook the paper in her hand, yet couldn't come up with a single idea. Even if she had guessed the Old Magician Aozaki's previous generation's plan, one had to admit that a plan that even cost him his life was simply impossible to start with.
Should she run to Aozaki Touko and tell her: 'This is all a trap set by your grandfather; from the beginning, that old man never intended to give you the Magic Crest, you've just been played by him for 18 years.' Would she then give up on the Fifth Magic's Magic Crest and reconcile with Aoko? In her dreams.
Moreover, Rin, lacking any evidence, had no convincing reason. After all, who would believe the claim that the current situation was all a dead man's scheme?
Lost in thought, Rin inadvertently drifted off, unconsciously muttering, "Perhaps, that Old Magician Aozaki isn't actually dead... Hmm!"
Upon reaching this thought, Rin shivered. This hypothesis might not be impossible. After all, in this Nasuverse, physical death does not necessarily mean the end of life. The Old Magician Aozaki could very well be living in this world in another form.
Thinking this way, it made sense. If he had simply passed away and kicked the bucket like that, he would have been too confident. What if the Magic Crest of the Fifth Magic was seized by an outside Magus? Perhaps the two sisters would end up in a stalemate, both dying, or someone else would profit from their conflict?
These possibilities, representing over 50% of unexpected events, who could guarantee they wouldn't happen? Did that dead old man really trust Aoko, who had only been exposed to Magecraft for less than a year, and Alice, who lived with her, that much?
"Thinking about it, that old ghost is most likely still alive, or rather, not completely dead, existing in another life form. For example: a Dead Apostle? No, only Crimson Moon, that True Ancestor of True Ancestors, could turn a Magus into a Dead Apostle. Otherwise, if any Dead Apostle could do it, then not so many of the Five Great Magics would have been lost. Ah, never mind, tomorrow I'll go open the Old Magician Aozaki's coffin and see clearly; whether he's there or not will be obvious at a glance!"
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