The place where they got off the griffon seemed to be a factory.

It was a dark place.

The ceiling was extremely far-off at about 20 meters away.

Hariya opened the hole and Shirley made it bigger.

It had become extremely wide.Several thick pillars interrupted the field of vision andthe wallswerent visible.

There were several conveyor belts and robots making clothes automatically.

This is the second undergroundlevel.Thefood should be made below the tenth underground level. And right at the bottom, the 30th underground level is where the water purification facility is.

H~mm?

Why do you think that I explained this, Shirley?

Erm, so, so that I wont damage it?

Ah, of course, it would be a disaster if the food manufacturing facility and the water purification facility were destroyed.

That isnt wrong, but it isnt the correct answer either.

Alice declared.

What I wanted to say is that it doesnt matter if you destroy the facilities around here.

O~kay!

No, try not to destroy them!

Masakis Ring Gear received a message.

A window opened.

It was Midorikawa-sensei.

You guys! Are you alright!?

Yes.

That bastard escaped to a really bad place!! Its no joke if a powerful Globalizer starts to destroy the underground facilities!

We also talked about it. In particular, if we dont protect the food and water facilities

Apart from that, anything else could be destroyed is what the conversation was about.

It seems like that bastard Hariya is heading towards the Center Pillar.

Shirley started running.

Ive got it!

Hey, Shirley!?

If she was the type of person to stop when being called, it wouldnt have been difficult. She was running at a superhuman speed.

She runs fast.

Alice dropped one card to the ground while she muttered.

An ostrich taller than Masaki appeared.

No.

She dropped another one. He heard the sound of hooves and an armored army horse appeared running.

It stopped in front of Alice and then mysteriously lowered only its torso so that it was at the height of a bench.

When Alice sat on its back it returned to normal.

Shirley didnt manage to catch a glance of the figure behind the pillar.

Masaki-kun.

Im going as well of course!

Were partners. Therefore, we should allocate roles. You identified Hariya and contributed to obtaining the evidence. You should leave the rest to me.

Huh!? Shirley might be able to win by herself but if Alice goes as well I wont have any doubt about it

From the fight that he hadseen alittle while ago, Shirley was stronger than Hariya even with his increased power.

He had thought about a place where an attack could be made, but his opponent had escaped.

If Masaki also came along, Alices horse would be slower, and if he needed to be protected in the middle of a fight, he would probably be a burden.

The work that youve done so far isnt bad for a manservant.

I was your manservant?

Is there a person who can stand at the same level as a King?

Ha, haha

Itd be fine for her to be silent if she was worried about him but didnt want to say it.

She wasnt frank.

Alice brushed the war horses neck gently.

Go.

The war horse snorted then started to gallop.

He was left alone.

It didnt bother him since he was in a hurry, but he was hearing the repetitive sounds of the conveyor belts and robots moving. It was an unexpectedly noisy place.

There was nothing wrong with him returning to school now.

Rather, he might be praised.

However

Im not strong like Shirley and might be a hindrance for Alice but I can help when it comes to tidying things up.

Masaki decided to go after the girls so that he could help out in his own way.

Da, da, da.

Woo.

Do, do, do, do, do

Huh!? An ostrich!?

Come to think of it, Alice called it out a little while ago but didnt want to use it so left it alone.

Woo.

He got a strange impression when the ostrich cried out such a voice.

I was also left behind. Well, I hope we get along with each other.

He couldnt understand the birds expression but the ostrich followed Masaki.

The lone human and the lone bird went after the two girls.

After a short while, the Ring Gear rumbled to indicate the arrival of a message.

Midorikawa-sensei appeared in a window.

Kusunoki!

Ah, how is everything? Has it been settled already?

Where are you now!? If youre still in the underground facilities, leave now!

Eh? What about Alice and Shirley?

Reinforcements are on their way but, since Hariya was nice enough to destroy the Center Pillar elevator, its gonna take some time.

Midorikawa-senseis expression was unusually hard. And she ignored Masakis question on purpose.

He suddenly got a bad feeling.

What are they doing now!?

Theyre on the south side of the 15th underground level there are dangerous facilities there. There are securitydevices there, but I dont know if Hariya has broken through them! If worst comes to worse, everyone might have to leave Canaan!

Huh!? What on earth

Its the Generator Plant! Its completely isolated and is the latest style that can be left to robots to maintain. It cant be contaminated and there are no accidents, but acts of terrorism are a different story! Worst comes to worse, Canaan will be gone in a month!!

No way!?

Kusunoki, where are you heading, too!? No, it doesnt matter. Come back to school right now!

Un-understood.

Yeah.

Ill come back with Alice and Shirley!

Huh!?

Knowing those two, theyll be chasing after Hariya. Right!?

Even so, whats going to happen if you go!?

I dont know. But I cant leave them alone.

Dont be stupid! There are security devices! If they havent been stopped youre gonna end up dying before you even get there, you know!?

But still its because Im Alices partner and Shirleys childhood friend.

He closed the window with Midorikawa-sensei shouting.

He launched the Ring Gear navigation.

He didnt know where Alice and Shirley were but he searched for the underground 15th levelit was a pitch black area with Generator Plant displayed on it.

When he looked for directions it said No Entry. After he acknowledged the warning three times, the navigation started.

The destruction of the Center Pillar elevator was reflected on the data. An x mark was displayed and another route was suggested.

It was a route where he would have to walk one kilometer then go down two kilometers by the stairs.

He felt dizzy.

But he wouldnt stop. Hed absolutely never give up.

While he was running, Masaki contacted Shirley.

No answer.

Next, Alice.

A window popped up.

Alice had a tired-looking face.

What is it? Im really busy right now.

Alice! Are you alright!?

Masaki-kun is as rude as ever. Its impertinent of you to worry about the king!?

The window was shaken.

Alices had a look of shock on her face.

Lots of noise started rising.

The image disappeared.

But her voice could still be heard.

Gu.

Alice, are you in the Generator Plant!? Could it be that youre not fighting there!? You and Shirleys power could completely destroy the area.

Thats why what are you saying?

Run away!

If I leave that low-life villain at large I wouldnt be qualified to be the King.

Masaki squeezed his fist.

What a stubborn person!

However, Shirley would probably give the same answer, no matter how disadvantageous the situation was , she would keep on trying to do what she thought was right.

Masaki-kun, its fine go back to school.

I refuse.

Youre not listening to the Kings orders Ive made a terrible miscalculation. A person like you isnt appropriate for me.

Alice!?

Goodbye Ill declare Partner Cancellation.

It was a voice full of pain.

Masakis chest tightened.

Really, thats too bad Alice but the agreement of both parties is necessary to cancel the contract. I dont plan on quitting as your partner!

Its already too late.

Her voice vanished.

The noise disappeared along with it.

Masaki was still on the 2nd underground level.

They must have already been on the 15th underground level fighting against Hariya.

I need to be faster I hope those two are safe

The stairs were still far away.

The speed of Masakis running on the map showed that he still had one kilometer ahead of him to go, it was irritating because it felt like he was staying in one place.

The ostrich running behind him gave a large cry.

Wooooooo!!

Huh!?

The ostrich flapped its wings.

Woo, woo.

Wh-what are you going to give me a lift!?

Hey BOY!! Stop running sluggishly and get on my back!