Transmigrating further than several meters from the original spot took extensive time of concentration for proper preparation. The reason for this was that he needed to calculate the precise speed and trajectory of each and every particle he was going to transform into, taking multiple factors that affected the travel into account. If he were to transmigrate into a wall, the results would not be pretty.
But now he was safely outside, at any rate.
Now, where to begin? Tracking down a magician that did not wish to be discovered was a hard task. Most likely they would wipe away any traces of magical residue they would leave behind.
Perhaps he could observe the entire city through the use of security cameras, but first he needed to find the adequately private area to do so. The dorm he just transmigrated from was a poor choice as attempting to infiltrate security systems within a place where Anti Skill had their eyes on was a bad idea. And, most likely, Ureapaddy would have prior intel of surrounding security cameras from her cabal and would take actions necessary to hide within the blind spots.
However, that conclusion opened up new options. Since there were fewer places without cameras compared to areas with actual surveillance, all he needed to do was to check out the blind areas in order to track her down. Still that method was being based off of a hypothetical assumption, but at least he was looking. And that was his job.
Based on the spots of the city he saw through the cameras during his stay at the hospital, he compared them to the actual map of the city, and extrapolated the blind areas through contrast. Going into a sprint he hurried toward the nearest back alley. While running Haru contemplated further into the whereabouts of the magician he was after.
Most likely she would avoid the District 23 and 10 as they were associated with her previous plans. However, what if she relied on that logic to actually stay within one of those two districts? Based on the previous conclusion no one would think of actually looking into those two places. But than again what if she was somewhere completely different?
All this speculative hypothesizing was doing a number to his head. Might as well focus on the task in front of him.
So far the analysis of the blind spots revealed nothing that matched the characteristics given to him. And upon further reflection he realized the possibility of her disguising her looks... by using the ideology of all Hindu deities being an aspect of Brahman, and the ideology of some deities having different forms, one could possibly disguise their physical aspects.
Wonderful. Where was he supposed to look? He could have possibly passed her by at some point and he wouldn't have noticed!
Most other blind spots he checked throughout the city was desolate (which was a given, as no cameras were installed there precisely because of the fact that few people lingered around there in the first place), and had no remarkable qualities about them... except for the one he just came across.
It was a car scrapyard, surrounded by thick, metal walls. Normally he would have passed right by this place, being in too much of a hurry to give any particular attention to the background. But a part of the wall stood out like a sore thumb.
One of the sections of the metal barrier itself was torn from the inside out, leaving a large, gaping hole. The inside was also quite chaotic; a gigantic crater covered the area. Rubble composed of old car parts were littered all around the place as if a tornado had dropped by. Something big had happened here.
"Too bad I can't directly observe what happened—oh wait, I can." Haru gave a grin as he prepared for transmigration. "Checking every two hours beforehand should be enough. I should find a hiding spot first, or I would be detected."
Closing his eyes, he concentrated deeply.
Finally, after four consecutive transmigrations did he finally find the scrapyard occupied by a group of people. And they seemed to be the magic cabal he was looking for. Wiping off the perspiration on his face, Haru focused on the trail of conversation originating from within the meeting. Hopefully, he wouldn't be found in the midst of their conversation. If any of them decided to suddenly check upon the possible hiding spots behind the derelict vehicles, he was in deep trouble.
About twenty people were gathered into the scrapyard. They all seemed to be arguing about their next course of action. From his concealed position Haru caught scraps of hurried conversation; apparently they wished to turn the entire city alight with flames, but were unable to easily do so for some reason. The all too familiar feeling of unsure and unease before an execution of a large plan was evident within their conversation. Was this the catalyst that led to the destruction of this place?
And then, a woman in midst of their group sighed. All other members of the cabal seemed to turn their attention toward her. And, she matched the description Touma gave him.
Ureapaddy Exica.
According to Touma she possessed the power of Brahma, the pagan ruler of the universe. With one whispered word from her lips bluish-white arrows appeared from thin air, and it was fired directly at the group of people surrounding her.
Metal was comparable to butter in the face of such destruction. The sound of multiple bodies being slammed together was heard. Screams of agony echoed throughout the scrapyard. It seemed that her actions were too quick for them to react against. The ground itself was bombarded by the point blank annihilation. Tires and pieces of car scraps were forcefully pulled around, further damaging the victims.
The very vehicle Haru was hidden behind was ripped into pieces. Out of instinct he transmigrated outside the scrapyard, hoping that its thick metal walls would protect him from resulting damage. Now, he had no way of knowing what was going on within the inside.
Even with all that destruction, she still wasn't done.
"Trishula." a faint whisper was heard in the middle of all the hectic commotion.
That was the name of the infamous trident of Hindu mythology. The emblem of the god Shiva, its three prongs symbolizing each aspect of the famous god: creation, preservation, and destruction. He could only leave it to his imagination the destructive effects the weapon itself caused.
The walls surrounding the scrapyard shook from the wreaked havoc. One body suddenly launched into the air and slammed toward the ground outside of the scrapyard. The man screamed at impact, but miraculously he rose up from the ground and began to haphazardly limp toward safety.
And then the walls themselves exploded from within.
Now, Haru knew that was going to occur sooner or later, as he actually observed the resulting hole. He made sure beforehand that he was as far away from the blast radius as he possibly was able to while also attempting to glean some information by listening.
Sadly, he was too naive. He wasn't far away enough.
Shards of steel streaked by over his body in dangerous trajectories. If he was even slightly located to the left, it would have possibly ripped his arm off. Or his head.
"Fuck..." Haru muttered.
Out from the hot, glowing hole stalked Ureapaddy dragging several unfortunate members of the cabal with her hands, leisurely chasing after her next victim like a cat. Fortunately, he was within shadows, keeping himself inconspicuous.
After staying still and quiet for a few minutes after she walked out, Haru carefully stepped into the opening created by her attack. Unique smell formed from the odors of smoke, fire, cauterized wounds, and blood reached his nostrils. The temperature within the scrapyard felt ten degrees higher compared to the outside. Smoked bodies of the fallen members of the cabal remained within the area. Checking their pulses would have been useless; their life was completely and utterly squeezed from their bodies.
Merciless.
Meticulous.
Absolutely lacking in elegance or beauty.
And none of the powers he saw during all this was related to Brahma in any way. They were all still Shiva Astras. He did not even have the chance to observe the Brahma Astra.
"Quite a tough enemy we have here..." Haru muttered in a quiet voice.
"Yes, it does seem so, does it not?" a new voice, originating from behind him, replied.