Story:

Seira did not give them time to settle.

“We have iron aircraft that cross the sky at the speed of sound. Guided weapons that travel beyond their operators’ sight and strike buildings far away. Explosives that can bring those buildings down.”

Kicho’s gaze moved involuntarily toward the roof. No wings. No summoned beast. No hovering spell whose working she might interrupt.

A machine.

“How far away?” she asked.

“Far enough that you may never see the person who ordered the attack.”

Ai had gone quiet. Mai was staring at Seira’s hands, as if expecting her to reveal some hidden trick that would make the account less alarming.

“We have fought things larger than buildings,” Violet said.

“Yes,” Seira replied. “Things you could identify as enemies. Things standing in front of you.” That answer held Violet still.

“A powerful magic user may win a fight,” Seira continued. “That does not mean she understands the battlefield. What will you shield? From which direction? For how long? And what happens to the people beside you while you are proving how powerful you are?”

Her voice sharpened. "Against modern technology, magical power without understanding can amount to very little.”

For once, none of her guests immediately answered.

Seira sat back. She plainly enjoyed that.

Then she delivered the detail she had been saving.

“And the boy you intend to investigate—Bill Ebonhart?”

Violet looked up. “What about him?”

“His father is a notorius global arms smuggler. The largest, according to the information available to us.”

Kicho’s expression emptied. “The weapons you just described…”

“His family’s business.”

Seira let that remain between them.

“Your target is not merely a boy with an unpleasant connection to another world. He belongs to a family with warehouses full of weapons, private security, and the means to move both across borders.”

Seira rose.

“Learn the way first. Learn to defend yourselves here. Then I can place you where you are needed.”

“With Shiro,” Ai said.

“With Momoka,” Seira corrected.