So, um...
With all that in mind,
we of the Student Council are always working to improve the lives of all of our students.
And we would like to ask all of you to help us reach that end.
We will not ask for nominations of candidates.
As I just explained, this election will follow the same pattern as...
Here it comes!
We are Shadow Garden, and we are taking over this academy.
They went there.
They seriously went there!
This is what every young boy in the world dreams of.
The glorious event that graces the first page of our adolescent fantasies.
Don't stand, stay in your seats.
The glorious event that graces the first page of our adolescent fantasies. Hands where I can see them.
The dream of having your school attacked by terrorists! Hands where I can see them.
The dream of having your school attacked by terrorists! You don't seem to understand what kind of a place you've invaded.
They really, truly went there! Take over an academy of Dark Knights?
They really, truly went there! This is hardly the act of a sane person.
Infinite possibilities now lie before me!
Drop your weapons.
Infinite possibilities now lie before me! I refuse.
What do I do?
Then you'll make the perfect example.
What's my move?
Miss President?
My magic!
Magic obstruction!
A one-sided assault from the terrorist.
If they're following the stock formula this beautifully, then...
They can't kill her!
We've come too far for this! Stop!
I can't let it happen! Stop!
The first person in a class to be killed by a terrorist...
...is a role that always belongs to a background character!
It's perfect...
Kono subete ima kakete
Tada risou ni todoku made kono te nobashite
Me no mae ni nobiru sentakushi
Zen to aku to no haguruma wa yuku
Tada hitotsu no ketsumatsu e
Nanimo kamo guuzen no Choice
Soshite mata tsugi e no aizu
Kanousei no genkai made
Sono yukusaki o mitsumete
Only one, hoka ni mo iranai
To the one, dake misuetetai
Yuzure wa shinai shinnen to
Ketsui kono mune ni himete
Highest, highest, I'm going on
Shinjitsu yori shinsou no kage o yuke
Highest, highest, I'll carry on
Ze ga hi demo saa, nozomu nara kokou ni tsuranuke
#8 Dark Knight Academy Under Attack
Cid Kagenou...
You idiot!
Why did you get in the way?
I'm dead...
Of course, I understand now.
My sweet Cid, you...
You cared for me.
You loved me enough to give your life for me.
We're going to the auditorium.
If you don't want to end up like him, you'll come along without a fight.
Thank you...
Cid Kagenou.
It worked:
Background Character Secret Technique -
Ten-Minute Death: Heartbreak.
I used magic to control the flow of my blood
so I could maintain regular bloodflow to my brain even when my heartbeat stopped.
One wrong step and it's hello afterlife.
It's a high-risk move, but...
As a background character,
there are times when I've gotta do what I've gotta do, even if it could kill me.
Of course my magic is still being obstructed, but...
Oh well.
Looks like it's fine as long as I refine it into narrow threads.
They set up this whole magic-blocking scenario.
It would be rude of me to completely ignore it.
Okay...
let's go.
Of course...
It's laid out in this sequence, so...
We are Shadow Garden.
Wait, maybe it was "Shadow Guardian"?
Well, whatever.
I'm Rex,
te great Game of Betrayal, Rex.
And my job is to retrieve the pendant artifact.
When I'm done, my boss says I can wreak as much havoc as I want.
I can read you like a book, that really helps.
Thanks a bunch, little lady!
No you don't!
Not bad for a guy who can't use his magic.
Magic isn't everything.
When your opponent is weaker, it's easy enough to parry his attacks.
"When your opponent is weaker"?
You think you're better than me, punk?
Yes, yes, I do.
Then I guess I'll ask you your name.
I am Glen, the Lion's Mane, Vice Commander of the Crimson Order.
Marco!
Sir!
Miss Sherry!
Now's your chance! Run!
Vice Commander!
They've corralled all the hostages in the auditorium.
The standard formula, good.
Security is totally wiped out,
and the knight order has come running to provide support.
But with magic being blocked, they're hesitating to charge inside.
That's pretty cliched, too. Not bad at all.
We also have some of the terrorists running around the school
to make sure there aren't any more hidden students.
Such a beautiful sight to behold.
Then there's me.
The Eminence in Shadow, looking very meaningfully down on the proceedings from the roof.
Magnificent.
That's one more thing to cross off my bucket list.
However...
They're not just sticking to the cookie-cutter script.
They've added a fair amount of originality to it, which is good.
But they have no sense of aesthetics!
Wearing all black in the middle of the day?!
Have you no regard for the proper time, place, and occasion?!
Now you just look like a bunch of losers who don't know how to dress themselves!
If you're going to wear the long black coat, you do it at night!
Everybody knows that!
If it's gonna be like this, I'm just gonna play it slow until nightfall.
I'll buy myself some time by playing a little game of snipe the badguys,
and save my grand entrance until after dark.
A pink-haired idiot running around practically begging to be captured.
Wait a minute, that's Sherry!
You're cute, Sherry.
I know you think you're being sneaky, but everyone can see you.
Mission complete.
My background character senses are telling me that the main story is progressing.
When the scenario gets closer to its climax,
the Eminence in Shadow will make his dashing appearance.
I love it.
Now I leap dramatically from the top of a building.
That's one more item...
to cross off my bucket list!
Oh, good, just my imagination.
He said...
Not bad for a guy who can't use his magic.
They must be using that artifact.
That's why they want to get this one.
If I can get to Father's room, there should be documents with more details.
Oh, good, just my imagination.
Are you all right?
Cid...
Here you go.
Thank you very much.
Oh, no, Cid, you're hurt!
Oh, it's nothing; I'm fine.
I just miraculously survived a near-fatal encounter, that's all.
But more importantly, I have some things to tell you.
Like, "Let's not talk out loud to ourselves."
And "Let's stop trying to figure things out and walk at the same time."
And maybe, "Pay attention to where you're walking."
But most of all....
Let's take off those noisy, flip-flopping slippers.
I guess the Assistant Principal isn't here.
Right, I hope he managed to get out safely.
I think this is where he kept it.
I took out five more guys on the way here.
She really is the main character of this story arc.
But you can't get the good ending on this story path with just her.
There's supposed to be a sidekick in these situations, but I don't see any signs of one.
This scenario is terribly flawed.
I found it!
What is this?
An artifact called the Eye of Avarice.
This is what's blocking our magic.
The Eye of Avarice can absorb magical energy
from any Dark Knight or magical item within its range of efficacy, and store it temporarily.
As a result, it becomes difficult to shape any magical energy while in its vicinity.
But the guys in black were using magic without any trouble.
You can program it to remember magical frequencies that you don't want it to absorb.
It has to have a feature like that,
or it would swallow up the magic of anyone who tried to use it.
I see, that's very interesting.
So does it absorb any magic that hasn't been recorded in its memory?
I don't really know.
I don't think it can absorb magical traces that are too small to detect,
and of course, powerful spells that exceed the artifact's capacity would be too much for it.
But there isn't a human alive who can use that kind of magic.
Right.
If that was all there was to it,
it would just be an artifact that's not very easy to work with.
But once the Eye of Avarice has absorbed all the magical energy it can,
apparently it releases it all at once.
All at once?
Yes, all of it, in one big blast.
Cid, you told me that all the students are being kept in the auditorium, right?
If they want to absorb magic efficiently,
they would put the Eye of Avarice in a place where there would be a large quantity of magic,
in the auditorium, where they have most of the Academy's Dark Knights captive.
If the stored magic exceeds the Eye of Avarice's capacity and it releases it all at once...
It would blow the school sky high.
Yes.
Because of that high risk, Father chose not to publish his findings in academia,
and he gave the Eye of Avarice to the government for safekeeping.
Then either there's another one just like it, or the first one's been stolen.
So? Is there a way to fight it?
Yes, with this.
Oh, the flying saucer from before.
This artifact is the control unit for the Eye of Avarice.
I've been deciphering it, and I finally figured it out.
Originally, the Eye of Avarice was meant to be used with this one,
as an artifact for long-term magical storage.
Long-term storage?
So you're saying you can stop it from releasing the energy?
Yes, exactly!
Isn't it incredible?
It can effortlessly store and manipulate magical energy.
If we can recreate the technology,
it could be the breakthrough that would replace steam-powered-
So what are you going to do now?
When I've finished decoding this artifact, I'll head to the auditorium through the basement.
The basement?
All the academy's facilities are connected via a series of hidden tunnels
to use as an escape route in the event of an emergency.
Hidden tunnels?
I like it.
If I can activate the artifact and get it close to the Eye of Avarice,
that should stop the Eye from functioning.
That's a much more decent plan than I expected.
The last part's a little weak,
but it should give me a chance to wreak some havoc as Shadow, so whatevs.
But...
I left all the tools I'll need to fine-tune the artifact back in my study.
I can go get them.
I can't ask you to do that! You're hurt!
I have to go to the bathroom anyway. It's on my way.
Okay?
Cid...
Our academy takeover is almost complete.
The knights are buzzing around outside, but they're nothing to worry about.
I don't care about any of that.
Why haven't you retrieved the artifact?
Right, the artifact.
I'm pretty sure that girl has it.
I have a general idea where to find it, so...
Do you have any idea how much your antics have interfered with our plans?
H-hey, don't get mad.
One more slip up, and I will kill you.
Okay, okay, I get it!
I'll go get it right now.
Oh, that reminds me.
Somebody's taken out not only our Thirds, but two of our Seconds.
There's a real master fighter hiding somewhere in this school.
You think it might be you-know-who?
Shadow Garden...
So you've finally shown yourselves.
You better watch your step.
You would tell me to watch my step?
Finally, all my ambitions will be realized.
I will be reinstated in the Knights of Rounds.
What happened?
Were we attacked?
Son of a...
Too fast for me to see?
Are you using an artifact to boost your speed?
In that case, face my net!
Do you know what I did?
That's right, I cast a net!
I don't care how fast you are,
the second you get caught in my net, it will let me know!
How many more times can you use that artifact before it wears you out?
Two? Three?
Your uniform was drenched in blood.
You're really pushing it to-
Son of a...
You hit me from inside my net?
No way! That's impossible!
You little punk, what the hell kind of artifact are you using?
Wh-what the...
What is happening?
What the hell is happening?!
Hey...
You are awesome.
Even a prestigious knight was no match...
It ends all too quickly when their magic is sealed away.
Marco Granger...
So, you're in the Crimson Order now.
What are you doing, Nu?
Lord Shadow!
This man was my betrothed.
What are you gonna do to him?
I personally have no reason to do anything to him.
Then I think it's okay to do nothing.
I apologize for the delay, but I have a report.
'Kay.
Shadow Garden has infiltrated the academy and is now awaiting orders.
They're ready to act as soon as you give the word.
'Kay.
But launching an attack when magic has been restricted comes with serious risks.
Only the Seven Shadows can fight at their standard levels,
but the only one of them currently in the capital is Lady Gamma.
And, well...
This sort of mission isn't exactly her forte.
Right, she has zero combat sense.
Um, yes.
I myself cannot draw on even half of my usual powers.
Oh, darn.
Currently, Lady Gamma has taken general command.
She predicts that the restrictions on magical powers will be lifted before too long.
There have been no movements from the Cult.
Now that they've sealed their opponents' magic,
they're making the most of their advantage to build their defenses.
As for the Knights, the only ones who will be any use in battle
will be Princess Iris and the reinforcements' leading officers.
They seem to be having a difference of opinion over who will take command,
perhaps due to objections from the palace.
I see.
Our forces have been instructed to wait until we see enemy movement,
unless you direct us otherwise, Lord Shadow.
Oh, wait a minute!
Do you know where I can find the mythril tweezers?
Oh, they're over here, my lord.
I'm also gonna need the powdered bone of earth dragon, ashen magicite, and...
Thanks, you've been a big help.
You're welcome.
Might I ask what you need all of this for?
We're fine-tuning an artifact.
An artifact?
You know how to do that?
Yeah, our magic is being blocked by an artifact called the Eye of Avarice.
And we're in the final stages of fine-tuning the artifact that can neutralize it.
A difficult task requiring the greatest level of knowledge in the kingdom...
And you make it sound so easy.
I guess so.
I think we'll have it finished by the time the sun goes down.
Then we will make preparations to launch our attack at that time.
I'm looking forward to it.
Yes, lord.
You've been spared another day.
Father, please...
Akenai yoru nante nai tte iu keredo
Akenakute ii to, sou omotteta
Kakushitai kizuato datte
Wasuretai kioku mo minna
Taiyou wa zenbu terashidasu kara
Ryuusei o sagashi
Samayottetanda yo
Anata to deau toki made
Sora ni matataku ano hoshi ga
Tsunaida kibou no michi no saki e yukou
Mou mayowazu ni susumeru
Kurai yoru o koeru inori o oikaketeku
Tatoe mada todokanaku tatte
Tsutaetai kara
Arigatou