Chapter 102: Transformation

Nuremberg, Germany —

"Guess Leo Garcia didn’t hand over the weapons, huh?"

"Whatever. If the bill passes, we’ll have no choice but to hand them over."

Two men walked down a long hallway.

"So, weapon production going smoothly?"

"Yes, sir. But there’s a limit to how much of the main materials we can mass-produce. That’s all we can do."

"Hurry it up. We’ve already announced it worldwide—orders are pouring in from every country."

Hans Berent stood at a DWMA facility, a major defense contractor in Germany. Originally a manufacturer of military components for the German army, the company now diversified into medical supplies and financial services.

Hans and a researcher approached a room—pure white, empty except for a single boy sitting on a bed, reading a book.

"That’s the boy with the “Sage” ability?"

"Yes. Quite rare. Only a handful have ever been discovered worldwide."

"Are there others? Could information leak from them?"

"Not likely. His职业 rank—what they call it—is “B.” That’s quite high compared to others. No need to worry..."

"I see. Still, better safe than sorry. Don’t slack on monitoring the other “Sages.”"

The two moved into an adjacent room—small, industrial, filled with men working in a factory-like setting.

"These are the “Blacksmiths,” the ones with that ability. Not rare, but we’ve gathered only the high-rank ones."

"Can we get more of them?"

"We’ve got plenty of lower-rank ones, but high-rank? That’s another story..."

"Can’t produce without them? It’s just mass production, isn’t it?"

"Unfortunately, gunpowder can't be manufactured without materials called 'mana.' I've tried several times—still, the power of supernaturals is essential."

"Damn it... but destroying monsters still requires monsters, doesn't it?"

Hans turned on his heel and started walking.

"Whatever. If all those monsters just died out, that’d be fine."

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Berlin, Germany—

"What?!"

Salman froze, shock and fury flashing across his face. The German government had forcibly entered Salman’s research facility and seized all weapons designed for supernaturals.

"What is this?! You, Hans!"

Salman immediately dialed Hans. The man answered calmly, as if expecting the call.

"Knew you’d call, Salman. How are you doing?"

"You—what are you playing at?! Do you have any idea how much I’ve donated to your party?! I gave you favors so you’d help me out! You’re repaying kindness with betrayal?!"

"Don’t misunderstand. Normally, hoarding that many weapons without permission would’ve been a crime. I made sure things went smoothly—saved you trouble."

"How dare you—"

Hans was openly prejudiced against supernaturals, yet he exploited them just like Salman. But now, having gained power, he’d betrayed Salman.

After hanging up, Salman felt his insides boiling.

"How much money, how much effort went into getting those weapons and armor... You remember this, Hans. I’ll make you pay for this hatred."

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

"How are the children doing?"

Teacher Philip came by, worried.

"Kinda down, huh? Can't even summon the will to do anything... I don’t even know how to cheer them up."

The suspension of the Sanctuary Knights had hit the kids harder than anyone expected. They’d looked up to them, so it makes sense.

"Looked up to...?"

Yeah. Got a good idea. Gonna act on it. After saying goodbye to Teacher Philip, I opened a rift into the sub-space to teleport.

England, Leeds Special Protection School

"Hey, everyone, pay attention!"

A bunch of elementary-aged kids were running around the wide schoolyard. The woman with them looked genuinely thrilled.

"Freyja."

"Wha—? Gojo?"

Freyja jumped, startled by my sudden appearance.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

France, Saint Victoire Convent—

We were all seven of us in the classroom, all down in the dumps. Couldn’t just stay in the dorms all day, so we came out, but honestly, we had zero motivation.

Teacher Gojo had left earlier in the morning—class was self-study now.

Then—

"Hey! You lot, come outside!"

Recognized Gojo’s voice right away. He was shouting from the convent courtyard, so I cracked open the window—outside stood Gojo and another woman.

At first, I couldn’t place her. Then it hit me.

Not just me—everyone else’s eyes snapped open. We all scrambled toward the courtyard in a panic.

"Freyja’s a friend. I begged her to come."

Gojo casually introduced Freyja Cruz in front of us, out of breath. No way. She’s a global superstar! Why’s he acting like she’s just some random lady?

“Hearing everyone’s been down, I thought maybe I could help out too. I’m Freyja Cruz.”

Freyja spoke! She came all this way for us—everyone’s practically buzzing with energy now.

“Not at all down! We’re all fine!”

Arthur and Victor nodded violently in agreement, even Emily looked like she was listening intently.

Freyja had been at the convent for about an hour—she said she couldn’t stay long, since she still had school duties in England. But to us? That was more than enough, more than joyful.

I fired off every question I could think of.

Why’d you leave the Sanctuary Knights?

Anything tough happen?

What’s Leo like? And Carlo?

Who was the strongest “Leader” you’ve ever fought?

And so on. Later I realized I’d forgotten to ask where she met Gojo-sensei—though it didn’t matter right then. What I really wanted to know was what the Sanctuary Knights would do next. When we asked with worried looks, Freyja smiled.

“Leo Garcia? The Leo I know? He’s not the kind to quit over something like this. I think he’ll keep fighting until the world’s truly peaceful.”

Hearing that—something flickered in my chest. Like a spark lighting up a dark room.

“Even if no one else knows about them, someone’s still fighting alone out there. Right?”

She said it, then looked at Gojo-sensei. I didn’t get it all, but if Leo and the Sanctuary Knights were still pushing forward, maybe… maybe we could do something too.

After Freyja left, we were all utterly drained—but we steeled ourselves and asked Gojo Teacher.

"Teacher! Let’s go to China. I want to get stronger!"

The other students felt the same. Even though the Sanctuary Knights can’t act right now, they’ll definitely be needed if the world’s ever in danger again.

We have to be ready… to help… when that time comes.

"Is that so… I see. But it’s not just China. If you get strong enough, I’ll take you to America, to England too! You better prepare yourself!"

"“Yes, sir!”"

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Brussels, European Parliament—

That day, a long-debated bill banning combat by supernatural private organizations was finally passed. Now, EU member states must obey European Parliament laws (EU law) over their own domestic laws.

The Sanctuary Knights, active across the EU zone, were effectively tied up.

"Hans Teacher. We’ve analyzed the weapons and gear seized from Salman’s lab. Confirmed: they’re useless for anyone without supernatural abilities. What should we do?"

Hans’s policy aide reported the findings from the research facility.

"Is that so…?"

"Should we arrange storage somewhere?"

"No… If those things fall into a supernatural’s hands, it’ll be trouble. Send the usable materials to the military. Destroy anything that can’t be processed."

"Destroy them? Some of these are quite valuable."

"Not all supernatural abilities have been accounted for. If one of them steals a weapon and stages a terrorist attack… too risky. Better eliminate the danger before it starts."

"I understand. I’ll handle it accordingly."

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Paris city center — Luxembourg Gardens

A park, a popular tourist spot and a place for locals to unwind. Amid the flow of people passing through, one ant wandered across the ground.

Its antennae twitched, searching for food.

From behind the ant, a slender, writhing creature emerged from underground. The long, sinuous being wrapped around the ant’s body and dragged it straight back into the earth.

No one noticed. A tiny change had already taken place.