Shinji Matou at Your Service-Chapter 1045: Why Are You Here?

A rainbow light.

It was formed by the interweaving of the three primary colors—red, yellow, and blue—rotating in a swirl of colors. Primitive yet simple, it carried an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Behind the familiar rainbow light came an even more familiar voice.

"Rider, Velvet? Are you two okay?"

Down on the battlefield, Waver could only cover his face, while Gray, whose face was hidden by her cloak, made a strange grimace.

Shinji, who was hovering in midair, trembled, his face changing drastically. In that instant, all thoughts of pursuing the enemy, all thoughts of "leave a snake alive, suffer later," vanished from his mind. He couldn't even take the time to think about the familiar rainbow light.

At this moment, only one thought filled his mind:

Why is she here?!

Because the voice was too familiar, there was no way he could be mistaken. Just as he would never mistake Justeaze's voice or Sakura's.

With a quick turn of his winged sandals, Shinji changed direction. Instead of chasing the darkness deeper than the night, he now flew toward the rainbow light, which was more vibrant than any post-storm rainbow.

Head-on, he flew towards it.

The moment he appeared in front of the rainbow light, Shinji confirmed that his judgment was not wrong—it was indeed her.

And clearly, the person wrapped in the rainbow light had noticed him too, letting out a startled cry before making a sharp turn and flying awkwardly in the opposite direction.

There was no way Shinji would let her go. He might let Roa escape, but not her.

He immediately changed course. The winged sandals, crafted by the messenger god Hermes, were top-tier flying Noble Phantasms. Although their rating wasn't high, and they couldn't match Pegasus in absolute speed, their short-range movement and maneuverability were far superior. This kind of close-range aerial chase and blockade was their specialty.

No matter how the rainbow light twisted and turned, trying to evade, Shinji, with his winged sandals, blocked every move, almost catching up close enough to touch her face.

Having no other choice, the person inside the rainbow light stopped dodging, slowly descended and revealed the true figure hidden behind the tri-colored veil.

Her long, flaxen hair was tied into a ponytail, hanging down her back. Her delicate face was in no way inferior to any woman present, and her innate nobility was unmatched.

She was the pinnacle of modern magus, the Queen of the Clock Tower, the Lord of the Law Faculty, and Shinji's nominal superior—Lorelei Barthomeloi!

A person who absolutely shouldn't, and couldn't, be here—at least, that's what Shinji thought. So, his first words after coming to a stop weren't a greeting or some lighthearted quip between old acquaintances, but a cold demand:

"Why are you here?"

This was only the second time since they had met that Shinji had spoken to Lorelei in this tone. The first time was back in 1998 when they first encountered each other as enemies, and Shinji hadn't known Lorelei's identity.

Perhaps feeling guilty, or maybe just unused to Shinji's rare harsh tone, Lorelei didn't respond. She simply stood there, staring blankly at the young man in front of her, who was slightly younger than herself.

Her reaction made Shinji feel even more agitated, and his voice grew heavier:

"Answer me. Why are you here?"

"Why can't I be here?"

Perhaps her pride was stung by Shinji's attitude, and Lorelei raised her eyebrow stubbornly, pushing back with full queenly presence.

"You—"

Shinji was furious, raising his voice even more, "—Do you even understand your position?"

"What position?"

Lorelei, now a bit heated herself, raised her voice as well.

"You're the current Barthomeloi, the assistant to the Director of the Clock Tower, the person with the greatest authority in the entire Clock Tower. Do you understand that—"

Before Shinji could finish, Lorelei crossed her arms and interrupted him.

"Oh? So you do remember I'm a Barthomeloi. I thought you'd forgotten."

Shinji suddenly realized he had gone too far. His anger slowly subsided.

"I'm sorry. Your sudden appearance caught me off guard, and I lost control of my emotions. But please, understand your position and importance. As the Lord of the Department, you don't just represent yourself anymore; you represent the thousands of magus who follow you and the Barthomeloi family. To put it bluntly, anyone here can afford to make a mistake—except you! Whatever your plans are, put them aside and return to London. Waver and I will handle things for you."

"Shinji..."

Lorelei, like Shinji, wasn't someone who responded well to harsh tones. Now realizing he was concerned for her, her tone softened.

"No. It's too late."

"Too late? How is it too late? If you want to go back, I'll arrange it right now. I can even get you a private jet by tomorrow morning."

"That's not what I mean. See for yourself."

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As she spoke, Lorelei pulled up her sleeve, revealing three red marks resembling the Barthomeloi family crest. Shinji's pupils shrank in shock.

"Command Seals. You—"

"Don't misunderstand. Neither I nor Velvet took a spot from the Clock Tower. That spot went to Bazett, as you know."

"Then how...?"

Shinji knew this was true, which only made him more confused.

"After that incident with Heartless, you left too quickly, so you didn't know. After you left, Velvet, myself, and possibly others developed the precursor to Command Seals—Stigmata. We were worried something might happen to you, so we decided to come and check. You can ask Velvet if you don't believe me."

"That's how it was."

After Roa's group retreated, Iskandar didn't give chase but went to the injured Faker's side. Waver chose to keep an eye on Lorelei and Shinji, just in case something went wrong between them.

"Then why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

Lorelei had anticipated this question.

"Before you ask that, think about your attitude regarding this whole situation. You've been secretive, not telling me, Velvet, or El-Melloi anything important. You didn't even intend to ally with Velvet, even though you wanted him to participate. You've treated us like this, so it's only natural we'd treat you the same way, right?"

"..."

Shinji had no response.

Because this involved the Third Magic and the magus' ultimate pursuit of the Root, he had to keep it a secret, especially from the Mage's Association. That's why he hadn't shared anything, fearing it might complicate things.

From Shinji's perspective, these considerations weren't wrong. But to Lorelei and Waver, it felt like an act of distrust.

Trust works both ways. If it was unrelated, that would be one thing. But when connected to the events at hand, carrying this attitude—even in an old friendship—couldn't help but leave them feeling a bit uncomfortable. A little payback wasn't out of the question.