Magician in Type-Moon

Page 501

"Is this the rule here at the Clock Tower?" Matou Ike muttered to himself, a hint of dissatisfaction flashing in his eyes.

He nodded, then walked towards the front door of the house without stopping.

After stopping, he knocked on the door twice, making a crisp sound.

"Good afternoon." His tone was indifferent, his words concise. There was no response from inside the room; it was silent, as if no one was there at all.

Matou Ike frowned slightly and stood quietly waiting. After a brief pause of a few seconds, he quietly mobilized the magic power within his body, and the loading of the Mystic Eyes was completed.

He took in all the commotion in the room, and soon, a few light footsteps broke the silence.

The gap between the door and the wall gradually widened, revealing a narrow crack, which was then slowly pushed open—

"Hi~ How are you?" A familiar greeting came from inside the door, the tone relaxed and slightly playful.

Matou Ike gasped, instinctively raising her eyebrows: "What are you doing in a place like this! No, are you a temporary doll?"

The woman standing behind the door had a slight smile on her face.

She wore glasses, had delicate features, and skin as white as crystal. She appeared to be between twenty-seven and twenty-eight years old, but a subtle ambiguity made it difficult to ascertain her exact age.

Her hair was a deep red, like the afterglow of the sunset, dim yet full of vitality, as if it possessed some kind of unspoken charm.

She greeted Matou Ike with a smile, her eyes revealing a familiar calm and ease, as if this were just part of her daily routine.

"Looks like you're still the same as ever." Her voice was gentle, with a hint of a laugh. "Well, I personally don't dislike this kind of attitude."

Matou Ike frowned, slightly displeased, but still refrained from making any impulsive remarks.

Her smile was relaxed and confident, as if she had anticipated his reaction.

The woman was none other than Aozaki Touko.

Matouchi was somewhat unhappy.

Meanwhile, the Grand Doll Maker smiled from behind the door.

However, despite his dissatisfaction, he accepted her invitation and slowly stepped into the house.

The layout of the room was exactly as he had imagined. On the shelves along the wall, all kinds of medicines were neatly arranged, and various insects, herbs and exotic plants were soaking in bottles and jars.

The insects were strange and pale, as if they were no longer alive, but fixed in these bottles and jars by some invisible force, turned into static specimens.

"What are you doing here?" Matou Ike asked briefly.

According to the information provided by El-Melloi II, he should have gone directly to find clues about Hatres, and Aozaki Touko should obviously not be here at this moment.

Her affairs with El-Melloi II should not have intersected.

Moreover, this place doesn't seem like something she should be involved in.

Orange didn't answer immediately, but just smiled slightly, seemingly unsurprised by Matou Ike's question.

She waved her hand gently, her tone mild but with a hint of amusement:

"It's been a long time, I just came to greet you."

Matou Ike raised an eyebrow slightly, but did not continue to ask questions. Instead, she took the coffee cup that Matou Ike handed her and took a small sip.

The coffee has a rich and balanced flavor.

Orange gazed happily at Matou Ike, who was sitting in a chair.

She leaned back comfortably in the wooden chair, sipping her coffee.

He looked exactly like the director of a detective agency or somewhere.

Perhaps Garan no To could indeed be considered an unconventional detective agency.

As Orange raised his coffee cup and sipped his coffee with a deeper smile, Matou Ike twitched the corners of his mouth.

"Have you tamed other people's workshops...?"

Orange chuckled softly and slowly shook her head:

"I haven't done anything so lawless, I just haven't taken any hostile actions. You'll see what actions would violate the workshop's taboos, won't you?"

Yvette, who was sitting next to Matou Ike, was taken aback by these words.

She was momentarily unable to comprehend just how incredible the woman's behavior was.

Aozaki Touko not only trespassed into someone else's workshop without permission, but also casually brewed the homeowner's stored coffee, without showing any signs of hostility whatsoever.

But judging from Matou Ike and her attitude towards all of this, she doesn't seem to take it seriously at all.

Neither of them showed any unease, as if such behavior was perfectly natural.

Yvette frowned slightly, looking at the unconventional understanding between the two, and suddenly felt as if she were somewhat out of touch.

She tried to understand, but this way of acting, which could not be measured by rules, made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Just then, Aozaki Touko suddenly took off her glasses, and her eyes immediately became sharp and calm.

She lowered her voice and said softly, "...Alright, let's get down to business."

That composed attitude seemed to have switched on a switch; the gentleness and jokes from before vanished instantly, replaced by a profound, mask-like calmness, as if masked for social interaction.

Her personality wasn't a simple change, but rather like the alternation of two masks.

The shift from human warmth to cold rationality depends entirely on the role she needs to play now. The orange before her is still Aozaki Touko, only presented in a different way.

She continued, "There were some errors in the information we provided earlier."

She then gestured for Yvette to retrieve the documents she had previously given them.

When Yvette handed her the document, Orange glanced at the names, her fingertips lightly gliding over a page, and then said:

"Going to find those two people won't do any good."

"What does that mean?" Matou Ike raised an eyebrow and asked.

"Because they, like the homeowners here, have disappeared without a trace. I was originally investigating another case involving a missing magician, and then I came across Hartles's news. Well, anyway, it's a series of disappearances."

Matou Ike nodded slightly, indicating her understanding, and gestured for her to continue.

Orange paused slightly, then continued:

"Based on the testimonies of those around him and the situation at the workshop, Gesells began disappearing about three days ago. Adding to the two who have already disappeared, that makes three now."

She paused, a fleeting thought crossing her eyes.

“However, we haven’t investigated Hartres’ other two disciples yet. But combined with other intelligence, I’m somewhat convinced that they have something in common.”

Her tone became slightly more forceful, "In fact, the remaining two are celebrities... famous as maze survivors."

Chapter 560 The Maze (4k)

"What are your thoughts on the labyrinth?" Aozaki Touko suddenly asked, her tone relaxed.

"A labyrinth?" Matou Ike was a little stunned, and the story from Greek mythology quickly came to mind.

Legend has it that a king's queen offended the gods and fell in love with a bull, giving birth to a monster with the head of a bull and the body of a human.

To imprison the monster, the king ordered the great scientist Daedalus to design a labyrinth from which no one could escape, ensuring that no one could get out.

"...Like the labyrinth of the Minotaur, perhaps?" Yvette, sensing the direction of the conversation, quickly replied, her tone carrying a hint of inquiry.

"That place has a complex and intertwined path, designed to make people completely lose their way."

Matou Ike nodded and then said, "Yes, in mythology, the most representative labyrinth is the labyrinth where the Minotaur was imprisoned."

Besides it, there are also the colossal labyrinth built by the Egyptian Pharaoh Amanram III and the circular labyrinth of Epidaurus in Greece, which are of this type.

Orange smiled slightly after hearing this, took over the conversation, and spoke calmly yet with profound knowledge:

"However, mazes and labyrinths are actually different things. Mazes, as you just said, have intricate routes and many dead ends, designed to make explorers lose their way."

However, a traditional maze only has one path.

“…Huh?” Yvette was clearly shocked by this viewpoint, her tone tinged with doubt.

Ignoring Yvette's surprise, Orange continued to explain:

"This difference is very obvious in ancient maze maps."

Until around the fifteenth century, the mazes depicted by painters, although the paths were winding and meandering like the folds of the cerebral cortex, were in fact all designs of a single route.

In other words, their purpose is not to lead explorers astray, but to guide them through a long and winding path, gradually stripping them of external distractions and eliminating their ordinary senses.

“Remove the usual feeling…” Matou Ike repeated softly, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes.

“That’s right.” Orange nodded, her gaze serious.

"The maze's single route is intentionally designed so that, with no forks in the road, the explorer's attention will always be focused on the deepest part."

As the exploration progresses, external perception gradually disappears, and inner anxiety and distress will quietly emerge.

Ultimately, they will discover that the monster they face at the deepest part of the labyrinth—the Minotaur—is actually the embodiment of their own inner self, a symbol of death.

Matouchi was startled, suddenly thinking of the barrier set up by Ayakashi Sōren.

This design is strikingly similar to what Orange described.

"That Great Temple of Araya Sōren was indeed designed according to this concept," he said in a low voice, seemingly pondering some deeper connection.

Orange seemed to have read Matouike's thoughts and said calmly:

"Yes, Araya Sōren's temple was designed based on this idea. That barrier is not a simple spatial blockade, but a labyrinth of the mind."

It strips away your external senses, forcing you to delve deep within and confront your deepest fears.

She paused slightly, then continued:

"Then, once the explorer reaches the deepest part of the labyrinth, he must turn back. After all, there is only one path through the labyrinth."

Turning around is not just a simple change of direction; it means re-examining the past. Every step is accompanied by a profound reflection on what has been experienced.

In other words, when you reach the deepest part of the maze, you should have already experienced a kind of spiritual 'death,' and then emerge from this deadly predicament, gradually being reborn.

"In other words, the labyrinth is not just a place to get lost, but a ritual of death and rebirth."

Orange's words gradually became calm and powerful.

"Through this process, explorers are not merely lost in the labyrinth; they are ultimately finding themselves through the cycle of death and life."

She paused and continued: