Despite the darkness, Laila did not dare to close her eyes. Sleep would only make her vulnerable. One experience was enough, after all. Even though her body longed for rest, she remained motionless on the mattress, listening. She didn't allow herself to be drawn into the dreamland, for she feared the clacking and hoisting that was undoubtedly waiting for her.

One couldn't afford a misstep in dark times when the beast was waiting. Slowly, Laila shifts her body into a different position. It was warm. One leg peeked out from under the blanket. The mere rustling of the fabric seemed loud, echoing endlessly between the dark walls, or was it just her imagination?

Meanwhile, Kurumi sat on a roof and gazed at the awakening city. The first rays of sunlight illuminated Fuyuki. Icicles glistened on the trees while the frozen streets dazzled the few citizens.

She stood up and stretched. The fabric of her clothes was slightly damp from the molten ice. A red portal opened under her feet as she vanished. Kurumi entered a dark, silent room. Only hearing faint breathing and crackling paper under her feet, she closed the portal.

'Did I wake her up? No, probably not.'

"If you can't sleep anyway," Kurumi said quietly, "then you're welcome to clean my shadow."

With the disappearance of the words, the room brightened. Although, there were no light bulbs, torches, or other light source. It seemed a little perplexing, maybe even disturbing, but Laila shook off the strange feeling and got out of bed.

"Man!” Kurumi stammered. Only now did she recognize the masses at her feet. "Has your stuff been overgrown since yesterday? Why do you need so much useless paper?"

"... It's not useless," Laila replied quietly.

"It looks like a newspaper store has collapsed into my shadow..."

"I had three weeks, after all."

"Three weeks? How did you even draw so much in under a month?" Kurumi asked in astonishment.

Laila shrugged her shoulders, fished a bunch of paper, and stacked it on the bedside cabinet.

"Such a waste of time," Kurumi said, head shaking. "Just take the most important notes, and I'll throw the rest out."

Laila's hands froze as she looked at Kurumi in shock.

"But..."

"It's uncomfortable. Would you enjoy a sea of paper in your stomach that crackles incessantly? Besides, there are more important things to do than play maid."

Laila felt a pang in her stomach. Maybe she could quickly shove everything into a pile and stow it in her suitcase? Or would that take too long?

"Decide what to keep, but I'd like to use the cover of the morning to categorize the city. What places should we avoid, and where might other magi be hiding? Maybe it would be smarter to build our base away from the city and on the outskirts. Mhh... I'll be right back," Kurumi muttered, leaving the shadows.

Gritting her teeth, Laila crouched down and shuffled the piles of papers together. 'It's not waste!' she cursed. Why didn't she buy some folders? Then this problem wouldn't even exist!

"Ahh! Damn it!" Laila swore as the rune on her hand suddenly burned. The golden watch with blurred edges looked strange. Almost as if the background on her skin was rotating like a clock. Why did she still have the tattoo at all? Was it to show the other masters that she was still part of the ritual? Could they find her through it?

It tingled. Why? Laila felt over the mark with her fingers. Suddenly, her eyes widened. Without a doubt, the Grail had crystallized incredible amounts of mana on her skin. It was dormant, not pulsating, as if just waiting to be unleashed.

'I should ask Kurumi.' Laila, though, pressed the first load of paper into the case.

"Oh," she said as she saw a shimmering, blank copy lying before her eyes. "So here's my phoenix paper." The object sparkled a dull silver. The paper looked a little sickly, probably because it was about to run out of magical energy.

'Could I request information from the clock tower?' she asked herself briefly but immediately deleted the thought. Who in the administration department would even consider giving students information about a secret ritual?

But what if there was a possibility? There was probably no better time than now. The registration deadlines for student places were still in full swing, and the secretary's office must have been overwhelmed as usual with letters from all over the world.

And then all the professors were still submitting their material lists, so no one should be surprised about a couple of problems. No office could process such quantities. And it wouldn't even look strange when a professor requested documents about the ritual.

'... Wait, Mr. Jones should have a stamp, right?' The sudden thought made her feel sick. A bloody hand crept up into her memory, and she tried to swallow the uneasy feeling.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

'That could actually work.

Meanwhile, Laila kept turning the pages. The symbols were now swimming before her eyes. One rune had turned a strange color and flashed with faulty analyses that changed at irregular intervals. She would have to take a closer look later.

Maybe her runes would even become famous. Someday... Or maybe never.

Anyway, how did she even slip into the middle of a ritual that no one in the Clock Tower knew existed? Was it kept so secret that only selected magi were allowed to know about it? Was it a coincidence that Mr. Jones got the wrong data, or did something unforeseen happen?

What did Kayneth say again? Unfortunately, she couldn't remember the conversation. Only a floating mass swirled in her mind.

It didn't even take a day, and Laila had already seen enough. She didn't need to encounter this crawling white monstrosity again or something else. The hair on the back of her neck trembled at the mere thought. What if she was the only remaining student...

'Don't think about it,' Laila admonished herself again, wiping beads of sweat from her forehead. The throbbing inside her quickened, pulsing like a bursting vein. She had spent the whole morning with that awful feeling that the Bloody Eyes were watching her. It just wouldn't leave!

Pressing a hand to her chest, she followed the Kurumis mana connection. Warmth flooded over her, and she noticed the fading ebb inside her disappear. What was Kurumi doing at the moment?

"We should avoid the church for now," Kurumi said as if on command. The words were strange. Addressed to someone other than Laila. The paper rustled under the sudden wind. But when she turned around, Laila couldn't believe her eyes.

"Huh, but how... what?"

As if Kurumi were standing in front of a mirror, a perfect twin wearing the same red dress stood in the room, holding something no bigger than a newspaper.

"I found a house near the forest and sea, a little away from the city," Kurumi said.

"It's still too close to the harbor for me, and we also have to worry about the forest. Who knows what's hiding there... It should be enough for a start, though. Thank you," Kurumi replied, taking the newspaper Laila had now identified as a map.

"Laila, we'll make our way to the new apartment before sundown. I'm entrusting you with the security measures. Can you hide us from the outside world?"

"Are you serious?"

Kurumi paused and glanced at the pile of papers in the suitcase. "You must be overqualified. Who else could do your job?"

Laila nodded excitedly. She was allowed to create her first Bounded Field after studying Tohsaka's unique method.

"How long will it take you?"

"I guess two hours, maybe longer... It depends on the house size."

Kurumi grimaced as if she had bitten into a lemon.

"Maybe we should use a fake place first until it's safe?"

"Can't I just stay in your shadow?"

"Absolutely not," Kurumi replied, wiping her hands to the side as if she wanted to sweep the glasses off the table. "It's tiring and uncomfortable to have something other than me in here."

Her gaze remained suspiciously on Kurumi's identical copy during the changing words. Why couldn't she perceive any connection to this person? It seemed so realistic. Almost like an independent being, but was that even possible?

"Oh, right, now that she's here. May I introduce you to Kurumi, the other me."

"A twin sister? Laila asked."

"Well, under our current circumstances, she's more of a clone. But she was already productive and got us a house to rest," Kurumi continued, crossing her arms and tapping her finger impatiently against her upper arm.

"yeah, yeah," Laila mumbled. "I got it. I'll hurry."

"This is the first time my shadow has turned into a garbage dump."

"Hey! The wardrobe, bed, and desk belong to the hotel."

"Whatever. I see you're done?"

"More or less..." muttered Laila.

"Great! Let's go," Kurumi said, throwing Laila a thick jacket and jumping into the red light that engulfed her like a sponge.

"Ehm, Kurumi?" Laila asked, looking at the spot that had just been pulsing red.

"Yes, my dear?"

Contrary to her expectations, the familiar twin pigtails fell from the sky. Laila jumped back. There was Kurumi, curiously poking her head out of a red portal. Laila's muscles tensed. It felt like the red light wanted to crawl over her skin.

Everything was fine; she just needed to relax. Laila swallowed to clear the demons from her skull. She didn't like the idea but thought it was best to suggest it.

"Can we go back to the hotel?"

"Far too dangerous."

"But..."

"I said no."

A cold feeling traveled up her legs. Of course, Kurumi didn't want to take any unnecessary risks. She had expected as much. Laila wasn't comfortable with the idea of wandering back into the old, dilapidated building either, but "it's important," Laila stammered.

"You do realize what has taken root there, don't you? I'm just curious. Are you sure you can battle another master currently?"

Laila pondered. Could she defeat someone like Jones? He had a calm mind, noticed the window first, had significantly more experience, and probably more mana. Of course, he was a professor who specialized in research, but unlike him, she had never helped with apostle exterminations.

Laila shook her head.

"And yet you want to go? Why?"

"A stamp," she mumbled. It remained silent. Kurumi slipped out of the red light and landed on both feet like a cat. With the disappearance of the glow, Laila relaxed a little. Meanwhile, she noticed that Kurumi's face looked calm or rather curious.

"You'd risk a fight for that? I don't think I understand your reason."

"I was thinking of finding Mr. Jones' clock tower stamp to request documents in his name."

Laila blinked in disbelief. Was it her imagination? For a brief moment, a flash appeared in Kurumi's right eye.

"Now you're starting to think for yourself," Kurumi said, slapping Laila on the shoulder. The force pushed her forward, almost sending her to the ground. "And we can just use the stamp?"

"If there's enough mana from the owner, yes. I also have Phoenix paper... Well, maybe we should get something professional. The one I made is unlikely to travel that distance," Laila replied. After all, the silver paper had almost lost all its shine. Now, she did regret not stocking her supply before the journey.

"It will be more difficult to get hold of a sun cage. Hopefully, Jones' is still intact."

"A what?"

"You know, a birdcage. Although it's probably too small for a bird, I think a budgie could fly inside. Maybe."

"Don't you have more elegant ways of sending messages? Maybe cell phones?"

"Cell phones? What's that?" Laila saw the corners of Kurumi's mouth twitch for the first time as her face stopped moving.

Was it so unusual to have a cage? Admittedly, she wasn't wearing it on her belt. The thing weighed more than one would think, and if you weren't careful, your clothes could quickly catch fire. Entangled flames were indescribably hot when something was pushed through the connection to the distributor.

"You have to see the maw in the clock tower. Its flame continuously colors the room. The letters shoot through the area. It's a pure deep fryer; I wouldn't want to work there."

"You send mail by fire?" Kurumi asked again but only received a nod. Her eyes were still squinting in confusion as if she had spent too long in a stuffy room.

'I give up,' Kurumi thought, shaking her head. 'Magical worlds have different societies, rules, and customs, after all.'

"Whatever. We should hurry."