When they arrived at the teleport, Lycoris was thoroughly exhausted from playing two hundred questions with Athena. But she had to snap back into Princess Mode, as the moment the door clicked back open she was greeted by another crowd of people all taking pictures and recording her.

  If it’s going to be like this everywhere I go, I think I’d almost rather stay holed up in the palace… I bet Mama knows some sort of invisibility spell. Doubt she’d teach it to me, though.

  She hadn’t taught Lycoris much in the way of magic, after her little “episode” with studying Blood Storage. Or rather, she had only continued to drill her on the basics.

  Pushing her internal grousing aside, Lycoris straightened her back out as she gracefully accepted Athena’s hand and stepped out of the vehicle, offering a polite wave to the crowd before entering the building.

  Thankfully, the interior had been cleared out and public access was barred, so there wasn’t anything to worry about in the way of sudden surprises.

  Aside from a pleasant one, waiting for them in the reception area.

  Leaning against a wall, checking her phone, was Seraphine. She’d put on a beige pair of pants and wore a button-up white blouse beneath a matching beige blazer, with an inconspicuous newsboy cap and pair of sunglasses adorning her face.

  She gave off a completely different impression than the tipsy party-girl that Lycoris was familiar with. She seemed… Sharp. Or at the very least, sober.

  As soon as she caught sight of Lycoris and Athena entering the lobby, she immediately put her phone away and walked over, taking a knee before Lycoris once she was exactly seven paces away.

  “Your Highness! How pleasant to meet you once more, my apologies for getting here ahead of you, but I thought it’d be best to avoid drawing attention to myself. And… well, Her Majesty’s guard decided to hire me to coordinate security while I was here.”

  Lycoris glanced around at the empty lobby. “Are you feeling alright, Sera? There’s nobody else here. You don’t need to maintain appearances in front of just Athena and myself.”

  “Ahaha, I’m flattered by your words, Princess, but Her Majesty’s ears are sharp indeed. I would never dare to demonstrate such flippancy toward you.”

  Seraphine raised her head to cast a rather pointed glance toward the maid right behind Lycoris, hauling their suitcases behind her.

  …I wonder if Mama told her off after that phone call. Maybe I should apologize.

  “R-Right. My apologies for putting you in such a precarious position, Seraphine. Have all the preparations been made already? I would like to arrive at Condore at once.”

  “Of course, right this way, Your Highness.”

  She stood back up and bowed once more, before walking ahead of Lycoris as her guide. The clack of their heels across ceramic tile was the only sound echoing throughout the too-warm building complex.

  The place was filled with wide open foyers, screens indicating destinations and fare costs, and dozens of poles and ropes cordoning off reception counters that were unmanned. They passed through windowed halls guarded only by several strange steel machines, all of which were powered off and unmanned.

  The silence must have been getting to her, as Seraphine couldn’t help but chime in while Lycoris was staring at the mysterious equipment.

  “I will say, it’s quite an experience getting to ignore all the usual red tape before teleportation. If it didn’t involve such extraordinary circumstances, I could get used to this sort of luxury.”

  “Red tape?” Lycoris glanced around at the corridor, but didn’t see any sort of tape.

  “There’s typically long lines and lots of security at teleports. Otherwise it would be trivial to smuggle goods or people around.”

  “I see… I suppose there would be no need for that when the security is keeping everything but us out in the first place. I wonder what it looks like normally.”

  “When we get to Condore, you could always look up a video.”

  “How many jumps is it going to be, anyway? Kranes County is pretty far northwest of the capital, I recall that much from Mother’s map.”

  Athena increased her pace to walk alongside Lycoris. “We’ll have to go through five discrete teleportation arrays before we arrive in Condore, Your Highness.”

  “F…Five?”

  Lycoris’ gut twisted just from the thought of it. The only time she’d ever been forced to go through repeated teleportations was when Mizar’s party was fleeing from the Piscin into the tunnels.

  Tatyana had sent them all through back to back short-warps that were not only unpleasantly disorienting, but also nearly killed them all at least twice. Without a locked destination, it was possible they could end up inside of a physical object when re-materializing, which would naturally be instantly fatal. Apparently it was much more likely the further one warped, which had been why she claimed it was necessary to do so many in sequence, instead of just a singular greater one.

  “Maybe it won’t be so bad without all the adrenaline rushing through me while running for my life…”

  “I already called ahead and ensured the sites we’re jumping to are cordoned off to avoid any unnecessary surprises,” Seraphine explained.

  “I don’t suppose I’ll be able to simply walk around town once we get to Condore either, will I?” Lycoris sighed.

  Athena chuckled softly and shook her head, “Of course not, Princess. Setting aside how much commotion it would cause, if you wish to go anywhere, we’ll have to establish a security detail first. Isn’t that right, Miss Ethlow?”

  “I would have to coordinate with the city watch in advance, yes.”

  “Mmgh, I suppose it’s inevitable when I’m the Exaltare’s daughter, but I feel like I can’t even breathe! …Well, you know what I mean. Even though I was admittedly stressed out and overwhelmed at the time, it was nice to be able to wander through the crowd.”

  Lycoris rather conveniently was setting aside the fact that she had been terrified out of her mind at being surrounded on all sides by vampires, at the time. She appreciated the irony with the situation reversed; she was no longer afraid of the people around her, but forced to be discreetly separated from them for her own safety.

  They passed through a mythril archway, the runes lining it pulsing lightly as they did. The ionized air beyond tickled Lycoris’ nose slightly, the space around her somehow feeling less dense and suddenly much colder, even through her layers of clothing.

  “Think of how Emma and I felt after finding out the truth, though!”

  “Indeed, it is a miracle of Her Highness’s making that your head remains attached to your shoulders.”

  “Athena! Play nice. You’re both my friends. If you act so wary of each other none of us will have the energy to get anything done.”

  “My apologies, Y-Your Highness! I will strive to contain my impulsive tongue toward Miss Ethlow in the future!”

  Lycoris stared daggers into her maid. “You make it sound like belittling people is a trained reflex.”

  “Well, Lady Athena is high nobility, isn’t she?”

  “Please,” Athena chuckled demurely, “I hardly qualify. My family cast me aside to a branch household the moment they realized how thin my blood was.”

  “Oh… I’m sorry.”

  “Hmhm, it doesn’t bother me. After all, it’s thanks to that I was able to meet Her Highness!”

  At least the pair seemed to follow her instructions and “played nice” as soon as she spoke up. Hopefully things would remain cordial without her having to babysit them.

  While they were both far older than her—presumably, she hadn’t considered asking them their ages—the situation was quite reminiscent of when she traveled with Mizar and the others. Though, back then she had much more obviously been the quiet mother hen looking over the kids any time an argument broke out, being the oldest among their number… At least, she always assumed she was.

  Unpleasant as Tatyana was to recall, she certainly had a "youthful" figure, at the very least.

  If Emma were here, we’d even have the exact same headcount too…

  “…It’s my fault.”

  “No no, it’s a good thing that we met! Your Highness has been nothing but wonderful to me, treating me far better than I deserve as a mere servant to the Aphtangloa.”

  “Not you! Er, sorry. I mean… Because of my ignorance and carelessness, I’ve put Emma in a horrible situation.”

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  “Even if you think that’s true Lyco, you immediately began putting your energy toward amending it. I’m sure she doesn’t blame you at all either. To say nothing of the fact that nobody would hold any expectation that the Heir-Significate should care one whit about a single random person. It does sound like your hands are kinda tied up by your mom though, huh?” Seraphine smiled wryly.

  “Do not call Her Highness—”

  “Athena, what did I just say? You know, I can permit you to call me Lyco too, if you like~”

  “Wh… Buh… I… I could… n-n-n-n-never! Her Majesty would…”

  Athena froze in place as Lycoris easily stunlocked her with a casual bit of teasing, allowing the girl to skip ahead in the narrow, dark stone hall, grasping Seraphine by the hand and smiling up at her.

  “That’s more like it! High morale starts from a place of close camaraderie! I’ll be counting on the two of you to act as my eyes and hands, so you’d better learn to get along and treat each other—and me—like equals!”

  “Ah…”

  Seraphine turned her head away, her cheeks darkening as she cleared her throat. It was the exact same gesture that the guards in the palace all did whenever Lycoris tried to get them to open up to her.

  Lycoris pouted.

  “Hey! You were doing fine a moment ago! What’s the matter?”

  “I can’t help it, you’re just… Too adorable, Lyco. Especially all dressed up like that. Her Majesty really is lucky to have such a cute daughter. Your charms are too powerful to leave unchecked like that.”

  “Bhurgh… D-Don’t tell me that’s why all the palace staff were averting their gazes from me…”

  “If you don’t learn to control that awesome power of yours, you’ll give someone a heart attack one day. Especially as your feminine charms grow from cute little bud into gorgeous blossom~!”

  “That’s the sort of thing I’d expect to hear from Mama… Am I really that dangerous? …Vampire stuff aside.”

  “Ahaha, I’m not sure what you mean by that, but I’m sure you’re breaking all kinds of safety laws already.”

  Seraphine scratched the back of her head, as the two of them entered a large waiting room filled with seats and more monitors, along with some kiosks lining one of the walls. Unlike the rest of the teleport, there were actually people here.

  Four people, to be precise.

  Two of them were wearing formal suits and had sunglasses on, and both immediately approached as she and Seraphine crossed the threshold into the holding area.

  The other two were a man and woman in custodial-esque clothing, though rather than a maid uniform, the woman was wearing a tightly fitting skirt and stockings beneath her blouse and jacket. They waited back by another strange machine, each bowing politely as they briefly made eye-contact with Lycoris and bowed deeply.

  “Everything is ready on our end, Miss Ethlow.”

  “Right, it’s just the three of us and the luggage.”

  “Understood. This way, Your Highness.”

  The long-eared men bowed curtly before Lycoris, before turning around and walking back toward the entryway on the far end of the room.

  By the time they made it to the pair of custodians standing by the large adamantine doors, Athena had caught up with them.

  “Before entering the circle, please ensure that you turn off and remove any magical devices or pieces of clothing. If you need to change garments, there is a changing station in the restroom and freshly laundered frocks.”

  The female attendant spoke blandly, not even making eye contact with them as she looked down over her clipboard.

  Any time Lycoris could get away with not being given deferential treatment, she’d take it at this point.

  “Umm, I think it’s just my scarf and phone, right Athena? Oh wait, what about our luggage?”

  “Our belongings will be stored in a travel-safe container, Your Highness. Also, you will need to put on a special bangle. Considering the distance we’re traveling, it’s necessary for your safety.”

  “M-My safety…?”

  Lycoris looked nervously between the staffers and Athena as the man in formal butler attire withdrew a small box from beneath a podium beside them. He opened it facing her, revealing rows of small silver bracelets with what looked like jet black nails with flattened tips lining them. They looked vaguely like some sort of torture device…

  “Please take one and put it on your wrist, Your Highness. There will be some amount of discomfort, but bear in mind this is for the safety of everyone involved.”

  “What am I missing here, Athena?”

  She complied at the same time as she posed the question to her maid. The bolts suddenly snapped down against her skin, sending a jolt of pain through her body as she nearly fell to her knees. The room briefly felt like it was spinning, but as her vertigo passed, she felt… remarkably frail. Like her clothes had suddenly grown heavier on her body, or like she’d become clumsier.

  Athena caught her before she actually tumbled forward, slowly helping her stand back upright as she deftly removed the scarf at the same time.

  “Wha… What’s going on?”

  “These are devices meant to restrict the flow of mana. Think of it like a cork stopping you up, to make sure that you don’t… explode upon teleporting.”

  “E-EXPLODE!?”

  “Metaphorically! …Though, it could potentially be literal too, depending on how big of a teleportation mishap it is… B-B-But that’s incredibly rare to begin with! And this is a measure to further minimize those odds.”

  Lycoris stared aghast, timidly holding the bangle with her other hand as she looked down at the nails firmly pressing against her skin.

  “Huh, so that’s why they always have high nobility come up to the front before everyone else. Today I learned…” Seraphine quietly remarked.

  “Y-You’re certainly taking this awfully casually, Sera.”

  “Well, even I know to turn off and stow magic items before teleporting. Wouldn’t want to accidentally end up as a pile of jelly inside of a wall or something!”

  “Maybe we can just… walk there…”

  “Your Highness, you will be fine. Her Majesty wouldn’t have given the go-ahead on this if there was even an infinitesimal chance of exploding.”

  “Hhhhhh… why do I feel like you’re teasing me?”

  The three of them bantered rather frivolously while Lycoris adjusted to having her mana sealed away. The custodians and bodyguards purposefully kept their expressions blank as they went over the equipment performing final adjustments.

  Eventually, the man who offered Lycoris the hellish bracelet cleared his throat after tapping something into the keyboard. The large doors slowly slid open, as a sudden gust of air rushed out of the chamber beyond.

  “The preparations are finished, you may enter at your leisure.”

  “Thank you, we’ll be on our way.”

  Athena gently grasped Lycoris’ non-shackled wrist, guiding her through the doorway and into the large stonework chamber on the other side. All six sides of the chamber were made from smoothed cobblestone, fitted tightly enough together that there were no cracks or visible gaps. Painted over the floor, walls and ceiling were large bright violet rings of magic glyphs forming circles and geometric shapes, with several of the symbols peeling off and floating through the air lazily like motes of dust.

  As they stepped into the large ring on the floor, the entire array pulsed bright white before returning to its usual color, the shapes on the floor beneath them shifting as smaller concentric rings gathered around each of them, moving around as they did.

  The room looked big enough to comfortably hold seven or eight people standing at arm’s length.

  Following behind the two of them, Seraphine wheeled in something that looked like a large black safe. The lid had been slid off, exposing their suitcases and devices inside.

  She looked around, raising her brow in bemusement as the large heavy doors sealed shut behind her.

  “Oh wow, I’ve never seen one of these this small…”

  “S-Small? This is the largest magical array I’ve ever seen. Though, I suppose the Kingdom at least had an alarm system in the capital that was capable of detecting—”

  “Your Highness,”

  “Sorry. What I mean to say is, this is quite impressive, by my strangely warped standards.”

  Rather than question her meaning, Seraphine tapped the side of the black box. “Last chance to store anything before it ends up getting blasted to who-knows-where!”

  Athena—much to Lycoris’ surprise—suddenly hiked up her skirt and pulled a concealed knife from her thigh. With a light toss, she flicked it effortlessly onto the suitcases, without even seeming to acknowledge what she just did, the fact she had a knife on her, or even what sort of magic property it might’ve had.

  Rather than question it, Seraphine nodded and smiled, slowly covering the lid over their belongings.

  While Lycoris was in the middle of deciding if she should bring it up or not, Sera raised her hand to give a signal. The runes all around them pulsed, before “falling” to the walls they originally peeled off from.

  Gradually, the air stiffened, as though it was becoming thicker and solidifying.

  “W-Wait a sec, I’m not ready!”

  Unfortunately, Lycoris’ words fell on deaf ears as she realized the air had already grown too dense to convey her feelings.

  Awkwardly holding her arms halfway up to reach out to her friends, the girl felt a sudden weightless sensation, before everything abruptly flipped upside down and simultaneously coalesced into a single mote.