Chapter Text
The mission is simple.
Enter the maze through Trinity, don't get lost in it, enter the campus, find the girls' residence.
And figure out how to sneak the package in there without anyone noticing.
It shouldn't be that difficult; he has the route mapped out both physically and digitally, and he surely did not forget his pathfinding lessons.
Worst-case scenario, he can always double back and escape the maze thanks to Arona recording his every step and turn.
Besides, he has all he needs and none of what he doesn't besides the tablet.
A rucksack full of goodies, some weather layers, navigation items stored in a micro chest rig, and a belt set with only his usual carry pistol.
Oh, and an infrared headlamp for illumination; Plana will grant her master night vision with Shittim Chest's black magic fuckery.
No rifles today; if he gets to the point where he needs it, things have gone beyond fucked up.
His masterful plan is that if he gets shot at, he'll just wave and scream. Water is wet or something. He snorts.
Regardless, under the cover of darkness and his trained stealth techniques, the whole op can be done within a day.
Infil, navigate, plant package, exfil. Clean and quick. No support needed.
Ichika will be mad if he says hey I really want to enter this very restricted area during one of the busiest times of the year pretty please-
Nope. Not a chance. She'll tie him to a pillar if need be.
In the back of his car, Sensei shakes off the image of a smiling girl that isn't smiling at all as he zips up the main pouch of his rucksack.
A card, a pen, and a random snack packed in a small paper envelope aren't all that heavy and take little to no space.
Not when there are hundreds of them and a folded-up (and very festively decorated) cardboard box to boot.
In fact, even when compressed, they take up the entirety of the main compartment, which is around 40 liters.
Thankfully, they don't weigh as much as he'd think. It's still manageable to sneak around in.
Hopefully.
Sensei exhales as he throws the rucksack over his head and onto his shoulders.
The muted noise of the friction from his softshell jacket pipes into his ears as he buckles up.
Most of its weight is close to his body and low to his waist. Good. He expects nothing less.
The adult shuts the tail gate of his trusty Defender, locks it with the fob before throwing it into his pocket, and glances behind him.
A small field of unlit darkness quietly surrounds him, while the closest light source is down the street.
Ambient light is extremely low; the moon decides not to be in his favor tonight, hidden behind the clouds.
Chances are it's the same in the maze. Good thing he brought that head lamp; night vision doesn't really work when there is zero ambient light.
Regardless, this is the far corner of the vast Trinity campus, and the closest he can be to one of the entrances of the maze.
If his memory serves, the last JTF mob-chan guarding the entrance has clocked off at this time of day.
2:30 A.M. to be exact. Not even a certain Head Prefect of the rival academy works this late.
Sensei does one final rundown on himself. Check, check, check, check...
He takes initial steps to test the added weight; again, manageable, legs and waist will get used to it as he goes.
Can really use that sleigh and reindeers though, he thinks. And some red on my gear that isn't blood...
Nevertheless, he has gone too far into this to give up simply because he has to lug a pack around.
Auburn exhales again; this time, it's out of determination, of anticipation.
Long night and longer roads ahead.
Navigation is fairly simple as a whole.
A compass, a pace counter - usually in the form of ranger beads -, and maybe a note to keep track of the progress.
In his two previous careers, he has learned, applied, and eventually mastered this ability.
To the point that he has decent confidence to walk his way out of any god-forsaken places, even in Kivotos.
"......" Doesn't mean it gets any easier.
Perhaps it does, but it's definitely not pleasant when the world around him is borderline claustrophobic and has a uniform texture.
Plus the fact that he has to keep his audio signature low while carrying a weight on his back?
Not fun. Sensei pushes another bead on down the string as he has just made another ten paces.
For the past... who knows how long, all he can see is just alleys, forks, and corners of stone bricks.
Monotone in both scene and color, it's a testament to his skill and perhaps willpower.
And to think those students used to travel through here in groups while the whole maze shifts...
All the more reasons. He lets out an arduous sigh.
Even this faint noise seems to travel far while being uncomfortably loud. Honestly? It freaks him out a little.
Just a little. A dead place tends to be like that, he argues to himself.
After turning a few corners, picking the right path of a fork, and a semi-long march down an alley, the maze answers him with a draft.
A faint draft, barely noticeable, gently ushers him towards the exit from behind him.
In winter, outside air is usually colder and denser compared to that of a cave system, or a maze, for that matter.
"About damn time." He can't help but thinking out loud.
And immediately, he readies himself again, tightening the screws that gradually loosened during the walk.
Keep the steps light, posture low, evade any illumination sources, and never look at people for too long.
Continuing his journey with experienced and honed movements, Sensei keeps his head on a swivel.
Gaps between seemingly endless bricks and bricks of stone begin to be filled by dark green moss.
Shifting moisture and temperature in the air can be felt every time he inhales, outside, they indicate.
He even finds some spent casings on the ground: 9mm, 5.56, and 40mm grenades; rusty, used, and abandoned.
And eventually, there he is.
Broken buildings, tattered slate roads, lamp bases with the rest of their components missing, and not a single sign of human activity.
Arius. More specifically, the outskirts of it.
Sensei does the usual procedure whenever he enters a new environment: stop, look, listen, and smell.
Still, this desolated corner of a half-desolated academy greets him with silence.
Good. He thinks, reaching for the laminated paper map and notebook tucked in his chest rig.
Step one is done. Now for step two: locate the dorms of Arius students and get there.
The map has been marked with multiple points of interest as well as phase lines beforehand.
Mission parameters, the dorms, potential areas of run-ins, and where he is after exiting the maze.
But not the route he should be taking; that has been transcribed into texts in his notebook, written in his native language.
No numbers, no symbols. Just plain texts and nothing else.
This is originally to prevent the hostile forces from obtaining any mission-critical information if he's captured.
But now, it's simply something that has become a force of habit for him.
Surely, Arius students won't tie him to a chair, beat him to a pulp, and interrogate him for what his mission is here, right?
Running one more cross-reference between the map and the notes, Sensei says to himself.
The watch on his wrist says it's 03:24; healthy girlies should be deep into their slumber by now.
Still, he maintains his situational awareness at a high level.
Some people suffer from nightmares and have trouble falling asleep again, so they'd wander around on campus.
At first, Captain Mine suggested therapy; he suggested melatonin gummies on top of that.
It's still very much a work in progress because Arius students still have... opinions toward Remedial Knights.
Gummies are taken immediately, though. To the point that he has to make an extra announcement telling them that they are not snacks!
Regardless, the number of these cases has been decreasing, but not to zero.
"Oh."
Leaving himself with his own thoughts seems to have cut the journey short.
A complex of prefabricated buildings, big and small, stands on a wide open area that's clearly just excavated of rubble.
Painstakingly out of place. But to be fair, Arius is the only place where civilization and modernization feel like so.
There goes step two. Auburn checks another box off the list.
Security of the complex is rather low; no cameras, no floodlights and barbed wire on the fences. Actually, just... no fences, even.
Not that anyone would be stupid enough to invade this building or even this academy anyway.
Sensei goes straight for the side door and checks on the handle: locked. At least they have that.
He switches the notes with a set of lockpicks that consists of shims, hooks, and rakes of various sizes.
Taking a knee and inspecting the only defence between him and his last objective, he gets to work.
The lock looks like a simple and perhaps a bit antiquated disc lock, with a matching keyhole that takes a serrated key.
Looks like it serves more of a symbolic purpose than a practical one. A symbol of discipline and routine.
Which means, this is about as easy a lock to pick as it can get.
Auburn decides to skip the shims and hooks for now and pulls out the wave rake instead, a simple and efficient tool against simple locks.
He inserts the rake, and-
"Hey."
A voice, steely and icicling, calls to him from behind.
Followed by a muted click. So close that he can even hear how plasticky it sounds. Polymer lower and safety lever.
"Hands." A demand with absolutely zero room for debate.
"You've got some fucking nerve. Scum."
Her voice, now biting and venomous, shakes to the violence that its owner is desperately holding in.
Hasn't shot me yet. Auburn, remaining absolutely unfazed, lifts his eyebrow amusedly.
What a restraint. Maybe she doesn't want to wake the others.
If that's the case, then he's surprised that she didn't go straight for the buttstock strike instead.
Or maybe it's his gigantic rucksack blocking the back of his head.
Anyway, leaving the rake in the lock, he slowly shifts his hand away and toward both sides of his shoulders.
"Stay on your knees, and get away from the door. Slowly."
Good call. Telling your soon-to-be captive to stand up may cause them to bolt instantly.
That, or going for a Hail Mary of a brawl since she's just within his reach.
Gotta be close so she doesn't have to yell or, again, she'll awake the others.
Impressive. Sensei purses his lips; had it been him, he'd splatter the invader's head all over the door by now.
Before he can have any silent praises, a slow string of footsteps echoes around him and gradually toward his front.
Kakehashi Subaru, in her full combat attire, paired with a daggering glare, finally enters his view.
With her assault rifle pointed right between his eyes. Oh here we go. He almost lets out a chuckle.
"Is it too late if I say I'm sorry?" Slowly and clearly, Sensei offers his greeting with a small wave.
It's a good thing he didn't wear a mask because he can see his face right away.
Or maybe not. Because she can see his face right away.
"......" Subaru.exe ceases to function for a few seconds.
"!..." And the next thing she does is slam her mouth shut with her hand in case her yelp comes out.
She angles her chin up and visibly gulps with her amethyst eyes closed.
Oh the déjà-vu. Auburn just watches with a shit-eating grin.
"Get up! Get up!" Subaru hisses like a mom seeing her kid trying to taste test the floor.
She drops her rifle and lets it dangle on her torso, marches into his bubble, and pulls him by his forearm.
"Does that mean that we-"
"-Just shuddup and follow me! And stay quiet!"
"Owie!? Heyeyeyeyey I'vegotaheavyloadhere-"
"I don't care!"
Subaru is having none of it, practically dragging the Sensei-shaped invader along with her.
And ignoring all the protests (or attempts to make any) from him.
This is alright. Sensei says to himself while fallen captive (?) to the current leader of Arius.
If anything, it may be easier this way, considering what he meant to do.
At least this way, he won't have to stealth his way from door to door.