Modern short distance public transportation was developed along the lines of carpooling, with large scale public transportation being replaced by smaller systems that accommodated fewer individuals.
Thirty years ago, this plan started spreading among the large metropolises as well as 80% of the medium sized cities and suburbs. The remaining 20% utilized private cars and had no need for public transportation.
In terms of going to school or work, large buses and cable cars that could transport large amounts of people had gone out of style, so the scene where high school students took the bus to and from school has almost become non-existent.
While Tatsuya really only went to school accompanied by Miyuki, he still shared the walk from the bus stop to the school with his friends. Even though he arrived later than usual to school, the usual crowd was still on hand waiting for him.
The predominant itinerary involved a simple walk to school, but sometimes they would make a quick detour to a cafe or fast food restaurant. Along the approximately one kilometer path to school, there were countless stores that boasted dining, books, school supplies, clothes, and especially materials related to magic education. Students and teachers from First High were not the only ones to frequent this area, since many customers took the tram from far away to come and shop here.
Within one of the more orthodox cafes where they were frequent fliers, eight people were sitting together.
"Eh? Tatsuya's been selected as one of the representatives for the Thesis Competition?"
Today's detour was because Mikihiko asked why Tatsuya was summoned to the Magic Geometry lab. Seeing Mikihiko burning with questions while they were waiting for the waitress, Tatsuya couldn't help but notice a side to his friend as he briefly elaborated on the details.
Hence Mikihiko's reaction was embodied by the previous comment.
Since he had already told Miyuki and Honoka when he picked them up from the Student Council Room yesterday, there were five people including Mikihiko who sat there with stunned expressions.
"Wait, I thought we only send three representatives from the entire school to the Thesis Competition."
"Yep."
At Mizuki's wide-eyed question, Tatsuya calmly replied with a decisive answer. Their two expressions were like night and day.
"Just a 'yep'......
Tatsuya-kun is completely lackadaisical about this."
Mizuki was struck speechless while Erika stared blankly. On the other side, Leo supplied an amused smile.
"For Tatsuya, that would be only natural."
"There's never been a case where we sent a Year 1 student out for the Thesis Competition."
"Not like it's impossible either, eh? Even the faculty can't ignore the genius who invented a brand new magic among us."
Hearing Shizuku's counter argument, Leo smiled and added a rebuttal of his own.
"Let's stop it there with the genius talk."
Rather than being embarrassed by that title, Tatsuya felt an irritation like someone poking him with a needle.
"Tatsuya really dislikes people calling him a genius......"
"Because that term is too casual."
At Honoka's amazed comment that was neither mocking nor filled with ulterior meanings, Miyuki replied in place of Tatsuya.
Tatsuya could only chuckle wryly at his sister's reply, though he had to admit she was right on the money.
"No, that's still incredible!"
Likely noticing the mood taking a turn for the worse, Mikihiko quickly chimed in to restore the balance.
"The winning thesis from the competition will be published annually in 'Super Nature', while a considerable amount of attention is still directed towards Second Place and below."
"Super Nature" is a British research journal that is held to be the highest authority on modern magic. Unfortunately, the journal also contained themes on dictatorship that were inappropriate for high school students. Fortunately, everyone here who had read the journal, including Mikihiko, Tatsuya, and Miyuki, were all quite familiar with the name.
"Ah, but......
There isn't a whole lot of time left."
Mikihiko's euphoric mood swiftly turned to worry as he stated this.
Shouldn't Mikihiko also pay attention to these sudden mood swings? Tatsuya thought in surprise. Regardless, he kept these thoughts to himself as he nodded at Mikihiko's question.
"We have exactly 9 days until the school turns in our paper."
"That's it!? That's right around the corner!"
"There's no problem at all. At the end of the day, I'm only in a supporting role. The lead writer has been working on this since before summer vacation."
Seeing Honoka's electrified expression, Tatsuya reassured her with a smile as he waved his hand a little. At Tatsuya's answer, Honoka relaxed into a "You're right" expression and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Even so, the fact remains that this is a pressing deadline. Did something unexpected happen?"
"One of the supporting upperclassmen's physical condition suddenly worsened."
Miyuki wrinkled her brows as she queried Tatsuya, who maintained his earlier smile as he replied with a simple answer. Even though he didn't cut into the heart of the matter, there really was nothing to hide even if pressed.
Yet, Miyuki didn't seem wholly satisfied with Tatsuya's overly simplistic answer.
"That's quite unfortunate, but even so this is certainly a last minute change."
The reason apparently wasn't why this situation occurred, but a mood issue.
"Indeed, even if the entire thesis had to be done from scratch, Onii- sama would still be the best candidate."
Nonetheless, given that Tatsuya's situation had already turned into reality, Miyuki was only looking for a reason to convince herself, which was perfectly in tune with her character. In Tatsuya's eyes, even though Miyuki's comment was fairly accurate, she was still thinking too highly of herself with this unconditional acceptance.
"That's not entirely the case. We would have quite the conundrum on our hands if I was utterly unfamiliar with the field of Ichihara-senpai's topic, but fortunately that isn't the case."
Thus, Tatsuya adopted a "smile and deny" tactic, but Miyuki didn't seem very happy with her brother's stance. Just as she was thinking of an appropriate rejoinder, a new question sprouted out from beside her.
"Hey, so what is the topic?"
Curious, Leo leaned forward as he asked this question. Despite the fact that all the young ladies watched him coldly with eyes that clearly said "Would you understand even if he told you?", the man asking the question and the one answering him both ignored them.
"Technical Difficulties and Solutions to Sustained Gravity Control- Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor."
"......I can't even imagine that."
The questioner immediately retorted back, a prompt reflection of his current predicament.
"......That's quite the grandiose topic. Isn't that one of the 'Three Great
Puzzles in Weight Systematic Magic'?" Mikihiko groaned with a complex expression. To his side,
"Since Tatsuya was asked to join, I thought the thesis would be related to CAD processes."
Mizuki expressed her thoughts on the matter.
"Ah, I thought so too."
"Kei-senpai is also a member...... I think that this topic may be simply too difficult to have a chance at victory."
Shizuku and Erika shared Mizuki's opinion. Apparently, his friends were concerned on his behalf that this topic would prove too challenging for Tatsuya and high school students in general.
Which made perfect sense, since the Gravity Control-Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor was not labeled one of the Three Great Puzzles just for nothing. In this situation, Tatsuya could only smile and muddle through.
However, among all the smiling faces, only Miyuki wasn't really smiling.
Her smile didn't reach her eyes.
Only she, who understood the significance of Sustained Gravity Control-Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactors, could truly appreciate how serious her brother was.
◊ ◊ ◊
The siblings split from their friends at the station. They returned home to find a small limousine parked in their parking spot, which prompted the two of them to exchange a glance.
Tatsuya stepped forward and opened the door.
Seeing the rare designer label high heels in the threshold, Tatsuya gently cradled Miyuki's shoulders as she stood there in utter silence with a stiff expression on her face.
As he supported Miyuki and stepped through the door, a light tapping of slippers rapidly approaching could be heard.
"—Welcome back. The two of you are always on such good terms."
Hearing these mocking tones, Tatsuya swiftly narrowed his eyes as his hand that was holding his sister's shaking shoulders tightened their grip a fraction.
"It's been quite a while, Sayuri-san."
Tatsuya's chilly voice was a perfect match for his cool gaze.
This time, it was the petite woman who welcomed them who shook a little.
"Hm, hm. Well, that's because I always wanted to be close to the office."
"Is that so."
Tatsuya nodded curtly at their stepmother who hadn't stepped foot in this house for 9 months — in the siblings' eyes, she was "their father's second wife" — Shiba Sayuri.
Despite coming home, this household did not possess her room or bedding since after her marriage to their father, she had settled down with him in a suite in an upscale apartment complex five minutes from FLT headquarters and dwelt in married bliss together. Tatsuya only intended to slightly needle Sayuri for the fact that she had never lived here after marrying their father and her usage of this location as home.
Seeing their father's second wife's expression darken at the sarcasm, Miyuki actually composed herself. With her brother's arm still around her, she slightly shifted around, utterly ignoring any other gazes on her as she pressed closer to Tatsuya's slightly lowered face.
Normally, even with just the two of them, Miyuki would never commit such an embarrassing action that was wholly incompatible with her image. At this point, Miyuki had completely entered a state where bystanders held no meaning.
"I shall begin preparations for dinner immediately, Onii-sama. Anything in particular you would like?"
"Anything you make will be fine. There's no need to hurry, so you best get changed first."
Tatsuya didn't even bother to glance at Sayuri, instead devoting his entire attention to Miyuki. At her brother's response, Miyuki revealed an ecstatic smile.
"I understand, though I wonder if there's something you had in mind. So long as it's Onii-sama's wish, Miyuki is willing to do anything."
"Hey, don't get too worked up."
Tatsuya lightly poked her forehead before Miyuki shrugged her head down and lightly sprang up to the second floor.
"So, what may I do for you today?"
Once Miyuki's figure disappeared, Tatsuya reopened the conversation with Sayuri, who seemed stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Afterwards, he stepped quickly into the living room and took a seat on a nearby sofa, and once again called out to the hesitant Sayuri.
"Could we get a move on, since I would like to finish before my sister returns."
Sayuri creased her brows at these curt words, but she still took a seat opposite Tatsuya.
"Looks like you two still aren't very welcoming towards me."
As if realizing that further acting was pointless, Sayuri's attitude abruptly changed when she sat down.
Completely heedless of Tatsuya's gaze, she set one leg over another and leaned back on the sofa.
Her casual clothes devoid of any makeup was likely her researcher's calling showing through, so Tatsuya didn't have to worry about where to leave his eyes. Of course, even if Sayuri was wearing a tight miniskirt, Tatsuya likely wouldn't bat an eyelid.
"Miyuki may think that way. After all, it's only natural for her to be somewhat resentful if her father remarried less than half a year after her mother died. Even though she may act like an adult, she's really just a 15 year old young girl."
"......And you?"
"I am incapable of such an emotional reaction. That was the way I was forged."
"......Well, forget it, regardless of whether that's true or not, that's no longer in my hands. Even so, if we were to talk about that, I hope that you can seriously listen to him, since it was only half a year for you two, but a whole 16 years for me."
Despite her youthful appearance, she was actually the same age as their father. Tatsuya was contemplating these rude concepts like the public enemy of women.
She, Shiba Sayuri, was originally known as Furuha Sayuri and was Shiba Tatsurou's lover before his marriage with Yotsuba Miya. Rumor had it that the Yotsuba interposed to seize a prized genetic advantage and forcibly cut them apart. Tatsuya could read between the lines of her hatred even if she didn't verbalize them.
Still, that was an issue between her and their birth parents and was unrelated to the siblings. Since she had maintained an affair with their father while Miya was still alive, she would receive no pity from him.
"So, what's the occasion that brought you all the way out here?"
Sayuri originally intended to naturally drift into the main subject, so Tatsuya's direct inquiry caught her off guard and finally shook off the unnatural vibes around their conversation.
"......Then, let's cut right to the chase. The company labs require your assistance. If possible, we hope you will drop out from high school."
"Impossible. During Miyuki's enrollment at First High, I am unable to fulfill my mission as a guardian if I am not a student at First High."
A ridiculous demand warranted a flat refusal from Tatsuya.
"Even if you're not a student, other guardians could be made available."
"There is a shortage of Magicians in every field. Even the Yotsuba Family would be hard pressed to replace a guardian on such short notice."
"In other words, you are the finest candidate?"
"When only restricted to Miyuki's protection, that is indeed the case." This was a conversation that had occurred multiple times in the past. Whew, Sayuri heaved a great sigh that didn't seem theatrical.
"......I doubt any company has enough surplus to allow someone as talented as you, to simply play around."
"Play around? I do believe I have made powerful contributions to the company as well. A few days ago, the company received an order from the USNA Navy for a large quantity of Flying-Type devices, which boosted the quarterly profits by 20% compared to last quarter."
At Tatsuya's combative words, Sayuri couldn't help but reveal a regretful expression.
That was because she had no rebuttal for Tatsuya's words.
It was public knowledge that FLT originally wasn't a manufacturer for CAD products, but a provider for spare parts used for Magic Engineering. Their ascent to the pinnacle of CAD development and production around the globe was largely in thanks to the Silver Series and Tatsuya by extension. With the introduction of Flying-Type Devices, FLT had become the innovator that pioneered the next paradigm shift in the world of Specialized CADs. For Sayuri, who originally entered the company as a researcher and was elevated to management despite having no major accomplishments to her name, this was a towering feat that rendered jealousy meaningless.
Still, those were Sayuri's personal feelings on the matter. As she replied with an "Ah, is that so," she also brought up the reason why she couldn't leave just yet.
"......At the very least, can you help analyze this item for me?"
Sayuri pulled out a large jewel box from her bag and carefully opened the lid.
There was a half-translucent crimson crystal in the middle. "......A relic from the Magatama class."
From the perspective of Magic Researchers, "relics" were OOParts that contained a magical nature that had unidentifiable artificial components, yet formed naturally under highly challenging conditions. For example, "Antinite" that contained "Cast Jamming" could be classified as a type of relic.
Also, true relics — such as a Magatama — like this one usually never fell into the hands of a researcher.
"Where was this unearthed?"
"I do not know."
"I see, this came from the JSDF."
Given its status as the preeminent domestic manufacturer, FLT received many contracts from the military.
"In terms of analysis, don't tell me you're asking for something preposterous like duplicating this Magatama, are you?"
Seeing Sayuri's stiff expression, Tatsuya could only sigh.
"Who came up with such a reckless decision? Don't you have any idea how ridiculous it is to attempt to synthesize relics with modern science and technology?"
OOParts is short for "Out Of Place Artifacts". Essentially, these were "items that did not belong in this time" and were "objects that exceeded the level of science from when it was unearthed" and were simply unable to be developed with technology at the time.
However, precisely because this was something that surpassed modern science, the greatly exaggerated term "relic" was used.
"......The JSDF demanded that we accept the task. Refusal was not an option."
Not like management's decision was impossible to comprehend. Not just FLT, corporations in the magic industry by nature served in the public sector and could be broadly painted as a war industry.
Only individuals with practical magic skills would purchase products of magic engineering like CADs, but Magicians held a much smaller share of the market than other industries.
Given the scarcity of Magicians, this was only to be expected.
Currently, the number of people in magic related fields or students studying magic at the high school and collegiate level totaled roughly 30,000 people.
In other words, even if every single one of them purchased a new CAD every year, the total turnover rate would still be 30,000. In reality, the duration time tended to be on the longer side since it was common practice for a Magician to own five or six CADs. Regardless, it didn't change the fact that the market remained quite narrow.
Also, based on the national policy of promoting magic, magic support devices needed to be sold at a low price. In practice, CAD prices were limited to a level well within the purchasing power of a normal household so they could purchase one for their child that was entering high school as a celebratory present. This sort of independent industry was hard to develop scale and design.
Thus, the nation heavily subsidized the magic industry. For example, the nation subsidized 90% of CAD sales.
The products sold at the public level were 10% of the price used in exchanges between companies.
In addition, using research grants as an excuse, the nation paid large sums to private corporations each year for research.
Even the largest corporations in the field like Maximillian and Rozen were unable to deny their respective governments. That was the fate of magic industries.
"However, the JSDF should be aware of the meaning behind the relic label. So long as the item has been identified as a relic, they should know that artificial synthesis is no longer possible, so why make this ludicrous demand?"
There was a pregnant pause before Sayuri finally opened her mouth to respond.
"Recently, research has discovered that Magatama possesses the ability to store Magic Sequences."
Despite the hesitant answer, this was enough to bring a swift change to Tatsuya's expression.
"Has this been proven to be a fact?"
Suppressing the burning desire in his voice was the limit of Tatsuya's acting capabilities. Fortunately, Sayuri seemed to miss Tatsuya's profound interest in relics.
"It's still in the theoretical phase. Still, the military's movements have already produced fairly reliable observation data."
Tatsuya nodded gravely.
"If this is true, then there's no way the military would leave that alone, which is completely within reason."
Storage capacity for Magic Sequences was not restricted to only Tatsuya's goal. If Magic Sequence storage can be spread to the public level, autonomous and self-sustaining magic devices would no longer be a pipe dream. Even troops without Magicians could equip magic weapons. Since Magatamas had the power to store Magic Sequences, successful mass replication would provide a massive supply of magic weaponry.
"But given FLT's recent gains, there shouldn't be a need to take the road less traveled."
Given the project's importance, once accepting this task, a simple "cannot be done" would not suffice.
"The die has been cast."
"Even without any chance for success?"
Considering that the key to relic replication remained unknown, this was a colossal risk.
"We have a small chance. By using your magic, analysis is still possible."
Tatsuya couldn't help but laugh at Sayuri finally laying all her cards on the table. In the end, she wasn't here for his brain, but his unique ability.
Just as she always had.
"Even using my power does not guarantee successful replication.
......If you insist, then please send the specimen to the R&D Third
Division. I drop by there on a regular basis."
In reality, this didn't really affect Tatsuya either way. While it was true that Tatsuya required additional insight on how to preserve Magic Sequences, his goal was only limited to grasping the methodology behind this. Magatama replication was only secondary, so he didn't want to overly burden the researchers in the office. The bottom line was that scheduling was difficult to come by on their part, so it's not like they could do whatever they pleased.
"............"
However, this was not a proposal that Sayuri could stomach. Her position demanded that she take into account the departmental rivalries within FLT. The R&D Third Division simply couldn't win additional fame and recognition. Also, an infinitely more important and preposterous reason was that neither her nor her husband could afford to allow "Taurus Silver", Tatsuya himself, any more speaking power. Surely the other labs could surpass Tatsuya's achievements, right? Given Tatsuya's large following — to the point that a decisive majority of the Third Division sided with him, maybe their accomplishments would be put on his tab as well. (That was Sayuri's private suspicion.)
Unable to accept Tatsuya's proposal, Sayuri clenched her teeth. "Or, would you prefer to leave the specimen here?"
Tatsuya's words provided a glimmer of hope for the conflicted Sayuri and became the impetus she seized upon to escape this quandary.
"There's no need!"
Nonetheless, rather than choosing to compromise, she chose to break off entirely. For her, under no condition would she allow the relic replication to occur away from the office — away from her ability to claim all credit for the accomplishment. Leaving the specimen behind was a ridiculous notion that was synonymous to allowing Tatsuya to pluck this prize from her hands. In actuality, she was the one who originally made the outrageous request to challenge something that "had no successful precedent", but the present Sayuri had lost all objectivity.
Her ire fully roused, Sayuri rose from her seat.
"I understand now. Seeking your assistance was a mistake in the first place!"
Placing the jewel box back into her bag, Sayuri departed in a huff.
As Sayuri swiftly walked down the hall, Tatsuya was literally right on her heels. By the time she reached the threshold and was putting on her shoes, Tatsuya adopted a tone typically reserved for customer service.
"Since you are carrying valuables, would you like me to accompany you to the station?"
"No need, I'll drive."
"As you wish. Do be careful."
Tatsuya was not displeased by his stepmother's barb and courteously bowed.
"Miyuki."
Tatsuya called out to her from the threshold. Wearing a sleeveless mini-dress, Miyuki timidly descended from the stairs.
Her pearly arms revealed a light pink that ran to her shoulders, a product of her own embarrassment at her attire rather than caused by cosmetics.
"Onii-sama, well......
I sincerely apologize for my childish behavior."
Despite her personal avowal of her childish behavior, in reality this was more like some sort of display of close affection. Naturally, Miyuki was ignorant of this point as she stood there with her skin bared before Tatsuya's eyes. No matter what she said, she surely must have put considerable thought into this charming display.
Tatsuya gently stroked his sister's face though she didn't dare to match his gaze before his fingertips dipped south towards the chin. Suddenly, his index finger swiftly tilted her face upwards.
This simple action caused Miyuki's enchantingly white skin to flush completely red from her shoulders to her bosom. Her silky long hair gently swayed as her eyes were filled with a dazzling luminescence for an altogether irresistible package.
"Uh, this......"
Their posture seemed to lead up to a kiss, forcing Miyuki to bashfully avert her eyes.
Yet Tatsuya's fingers once more stretched towards her face. Mesmerized, Miyuki closed her eyes.
And then, "—Ah!?"
A muffled cry of pain rang out for a short duration. "W-What was that for?"
"Punishment."
Seeing his sister blush and fall back a step (a perfectly natural response to someone suddenly pinching her nose), Tatsuya smiled as he replied.
"Oh......
Onii-sama is a meanie."
Miyuki sulkily pouted and turned her face aside while maintaining her charming posture. At this, Tatsuya's expression softened as he continued to smile.
"I'm stepping out for a bit. Make sure to lock the doors until I return."
"Onii-sama?"
At her brother's mysterious instructions to watch the house, Miyuki's expression tightened as she inquired to the reason.
"I'm going to pursue a certain woman who lacks a sense of danger."
Tatsuya picked up the uniform coat he just took off as Miyuki frowned in displeasure.
"......Exactly how much trouble is that person planning on putting
Onii-sama through."
"Unfortunately, I can't just leave her to her own devices. Sayuri is holding a relic that may hold the key to Magic Sequence storage."
Tatsuya removed his tie and handed it to Miyuki as he elaborated on the real motive behind his "pursuit".
Miyuki seemed to comprehend this somewhat but still crinkled her brows afterwards.
"If that's the case then there's nothing for it. Please be careful, Onii- sama."
Miyuki recalled their conversation after school in the reference room. She would not use her dislike of her father's lover to bar her brother's decisions. She did not say "don't go", nor did she say "there's no need to go", but merely removed Tatsuya's heavy coat from the hanger in silence.
After throwing on the coat with Miyuki's assistance, Tatsuya removed a pair of gloves and a helmet from the storage compartment in the threshold and pulled on a pair of riding boots. Tatsuya nodded to Miyuki, who had put her hands side by side in front of herself and bowed deeply to send him off, and said, "I'm off."
◊ ◊ ◊
In the speeding vehicle that was automatically directing itself, Sayuri felt an exhaustive pressure pound down on her like twice the weight of gravity.
If she had to say something, it would be a regretful "I still did it......"
After reaching the managerial level, she thought that she had already become accustomed to wheeling and dealing. However, she still heaved a depressed sigh at her headstrong and impulsive behavior.
In principle, the young man was by all rights her son, but every time she was before him she found it hard to maintain her composure.
She was perfectly well aware of the reason behind this. Because he was the son of her rival.
Paired with an engineer's ability and achievements. Complete with unreadable eyes and unfathomable emotions.
Under his eyes, she wasn't seen as a human being, but simply a specimen under a microscope and relegated to the status of an item.
Just the way he viewed his own role as a tool, but Sayuri was unaware of that.
What she did know was that this contract demanded his cooperation, but her own impatience had made this significantly more difficult. Silently, she redirected her gaze out the window and heaved a heavy sigh.
As she raised her eyes, she noticed that traffic had strangely decreased.
She hadn't seen any cars coming from the opposite direction since a while back,
And even though this was a residential sector, the hour wasn't too late yet.
Her inner frustration was submerged by a trace of unease.
She called up the screen for traffic information. The display informed her that other cars had been rerouted along a different path to avoid a stalled vehicle on the road.
Which was a legitimate reason in its own right, letting Sayuri let out a breath of relief.
Chasing Sayuri's vehicle through traffic on a large electric motorcycle, Tatsuya also noticed the drop in traffic.
The message he received through the headset in his helmet was the same information Sayuri saw on her display.
Nevertheless, Tatsuya did not find any benign news within.
The information that cars were rerouted due to a stalled vehicle wasn't suspicious in its own right.
Tatsuya had seen first hand exactly how difficult it was to infiltrate the traffic control system when he saw Sanada and Fujibayashi hacking into the system on the scene.
Still, Tatsuya wasn't optimistic enough to believe every single car was diverted from the road that led from Tatsuya's house to the station. That sort of thing only happened when multiple cars were stalled on the road.
It wasn't particularly difficult to identify vehicle locations within the control system.
Especially since commuter vehicles available for public transportation continuously broadcast signals to prevent thieves from using them as escape tools.
Likewise, identifying the signal wasn't any sort of classified secret.
Since he left the house, Tatsuya was already homing in on Sayuri's vehicle.
Finally catching sight of his stepmother's car, he also discovered another manually operated vehicle independent of traffic control that was tailing her.
A shrill alarm sounded from the vehicle's display.
The display informed her that a manually operated vehicle was closing in.
Yet, Sayuri wasn't overly concerned.
Even in this age, there still existed people who took pleasure in driving themselves.
As an engineer, she was aware that drivers could modify their cars to be independent of the traffic control system's influence.
Thus, she paid little heed to the car closing in from behind.
As such, Sayuri leaned back into her seat and switched off the piercing alarm.
Seeing the black manually operated car pick up speed, Tatsuya stepped on the gas as well. In terms of acceleration, Tatsuya's motorcycle had the edge.
Still, based on proximity and respective speed, the black manually operated car would reach Sayuri's vehicle first.
In reaction to the manually operated car that suddenly closed in instead of passing by, Sayuri's car activated its collision avoidance system.
Near her car that came to an emergency stop, two men descended from the manually operated car.
This was an overly brazen action along the streets with wireless surveillance systems. However, given the situation, the suspects were probably illegal aliens, since normal citizens and immigrants would immediately be identified from their images.
Tatsuya raised the lights to the max and pointed them at the two men trying to break open the car door.
Descending from the motorcycle with the lights still on, Tatsuya rushed towards the men.
Tatsuya pulled out the CAD in his chest pocket with his right hand while the men covered their faces to avert the light. A second later, one man used a pistol while the other sent his fists flying towards Tatsuya.
Under the light from the motorcycle, the man's fist wore a bronze ring that glimmered lightly on one finger.
From the ring, a shrill psionic noise could be heard.
This was magic interference waves known as "Cast Jamming" coming from the "Antinite".
One of them focused on nullifying enemy magic while the other used the gun to finish off the enemy.
Of course, if their opponent was any run of the mill Magician.
The muzzle was aimed at Tatsuya. The target was the heart, at a range where evasion was altogether impossible, and a clear killing intent could be felt.
Yet the man failed to squeeze the trigger.
Before he could do so, Tatsuya already hit the trigger on his CAD. The pistol collapsed into pieces in the man's hands.
One of the men, or maybe even both of them, started yelling in excitement, but given the distance, he wasn't sure what they were saying. He could only hear the term "Cast Jamming", which likely signified their surprise that "Cast Jamming" had no effect, or maybe they were expressing their astonishment that the pistol was shattered despite the presence of magic interference waves.
Still, regardless of how it was, that was no longer Tatsuya's concern. Even if he was hindered in an unexpected way, his actions would not change. Tatsuya once more pulled the trigger.
The man who once held the gun let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground. He pressed his thigh and began rolling on the ground.
Next, the man with the ring pressed his shoulder. He couldn't contain his moans of pain and doubled over as he broke out into a cold sweat before losing consciousness. Since he was pierced by a force resembling tiny needles that annihilated skin, flesh, blood vessels, nerves, and bones, the sudden pain must have overcome his ability to stay conscious.
Decomposition Magic — Mist Dispersion could decompose any human body part.
So where on the human body would a piercing attack generate enough shock to surpass a man's consciousness?
Where must the attack land to cut off feeling from the four limbs?
Indifferent to whether it was his own flesh or that of others, Tatsuya was extremely knowledgeable on the matter.
He slipped around the two men on the ground and approached the black, manually operated vehicle.
Tatsuya kept his CAD aimed at the car, but didn't pull the trigger.
Hydrogen fueled cars contained the fuel in compressed states, so carelessly attacking would trigger a gigantic explosion. Of course, normally there are protocols to avoid ignition, but it was a fact that some chose to remove the safety features to create suicide attacks.
If Miyuki was present then there was no need to worry about an explosion, but unfortunately she was minding the house. The right side of the road was covered by a wide expanse of the river, but the left side was filled with residential buildings. Taking the nearby households into account, Tatsuya judged that he couldn't force the issue.
Strictly speaking, this decision was overly negligent.
Suddenly, killing intent mushroomed forth above him from the right. Tatsuya took evasive action on reflex.
There wasn't even a hint of hesitation in his motion.
Even so, he could not avoid the bullet that flew at supersonic speed. He felt a burning pain in his breast,
Where the bullet had pierced through his left breast.
The impact from the bullet caused his body to fly through the air. The enemy's sniping attack was incredibly accurate.
Even if he avoided a fatal attack, the blow still pierced his lung.
Given how late he heard the gunshot, the attack must have been made from an extreme distance. If Tatsuya hadn't taken evasive action, the bullet would have pierced his heart.
Conservatively speaking, this was an incredibly skilled sniper.
Tatsuya used the inertia from the falling motion to roll and take cover behind Sayuri's car.
The wound from the attack had already healed itself. Normally, even fatal injuries would disappear in a flash so long as his magic was active.
Still, that did not mean he could not feel pain.
The extreme pain from the impact of the bullet as well as the bullet leaving his body still threw Tatsuya into a cold sweat.
However, this was not the time to focus on something like that. Tatsuya needed to pinpoint his attacker's position.
Given the direction and angle of the attack as well as the placement of the surrounding buildings that could serve as obstacles, the sniper's location was probably one of the industrial buildings from across the river.
Roughly 1000 meters from his current position.
Taking into consideration that the bullet could easily penetrate the human body and open such a tiny hole, the weapon was probably using sabot rounds.
The car's exterior was made of synthetic wood, so this wasn't going to last very long as a cover.
The trickier part came from the fact that the sniper wasn't using magic.
No matter what sort of magic was used, there would be a trace of magic left behind that Tatsuya could use to swiftly ascertain his opponent's location.
However, if his opponent was strictly sticking to shooting, this distance made it much harder for him to rely on Elemental Sight.
The two men who had collapsed on the ground lightly floated in the air.
The car door on the black vehicle opened and rudely sucked their bodies inside.
It was a simple act to nullify the Move-Type Magic that was recovering the two men, but right now removing the sniper's threat was higher priority.
He re-examined the data from the bullet that went through his body. Tatsuya ran data analysis again and went over the bullet data again. Bodily fluids.
Physical resistance. Effects from the wind. Gravity.
Air compression at the time of the shot.
The variables from the bullet were compressed into a single message and returned to Tatsuya.
He identified the target's information at the time of attack.
Tatsuya turned back the clock and read the bullet's trajectory, the sniper's information and the very memory of the "world".
From present into the past. Then,
From past into present.
Using the sniper's firing point as the origin, he searched the myriad, transient data within the "world" of the information dimension for the desired target.
Within his mind, Tatsuya locked in on the sniper's Eidos — separating that particular one from the masses the same way he always did.
He also knew that his opponent was aiming here and preparing to fire again.
The second shot hadn't arrived because the sniper was reloading and changing the armor penetration rounds used earlier to rounds that could penetrate objects that the enemy was taking cover behind, hence the huge delay.
Tatsuya saw through this because he held every scrap of data about this sniper in the palm of his hand.
He had to say he was quite fortunate.
As he thought this, Tatsuya activated the magic to completely decompose the human body.
◊ ◊ ◊
Ten minutes after the black car fled, Tatsuya judged that there was no further danger and stood up from behind the car.
Peeking into the car's interior, he found Sayuri had already fainted. Since the car hadn't activated after all this time, which was perfectly predictable, there was no need for concern.
Her body was surrounded by air bags on all sides, which served as a buffer all around her. This was an excellent example of the safety features kicking in to prevent the driver's body from suffering physical injury, as this arrangement could protect them from any type of shock.
In that case, she likely fainted due to the mental shock from this event.
At any rate, she was someone connected to the Yotsuba Family, so she should be able to endure some degree of incidents. Yet her current predicament looked just like an average person, right? Tatsuya couldn't help but ruminate on this.
Once the reusable air bags were tucked away, the automatic vehicle restarted itself.
Covering the slowly moving vehicle from behind, Tatsuya followed on his motorcycle.
By the time they reached the station, Sayuri had already regained consciousness. Her face was a little pale, but she displayed no sign of panic. Of course, Tatsuya was riding a motorcycle behind her during the entire trip, so he had no idea what expression was on her face anyway. After seeing her to the station, Sayuri forced Tatsuya to accept the box that contained the Magatama. Tatsuya felt that Sayuri's stubborn and relentless appearance exemplified her personality perfectly.
After Sayuri left, Tatsuya headed directly for the phone after returning home. He didn't use a mobile phone at the station for fear of eavesdroppers.
"Don't worry about the cameras on route. We've already started taking steps."
"Thank you very much, Major."
The phone was a direct line to the HQ of the Independent Magic- Equipped Battalion.
As someone who was forced to conceal his identity as one of the primary combatants for the Yotsuba Family within the Ten Master Clans as well as his alias as a Special Lieutenant within the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion, the first order of business for Tatsuya was to ensure that his identity wasn't exposed by the cameras.
Tatsuya straightened and saluted Kazama's image on the display.
"Still, I must say that our opponents are behaving quite recklessly. Even though this isn't the heart of the city, they still fired within the city proper."
"While I cannot deny that I was overly careless, I must admit that our opponents are quite skilled."
"They did not use magic, correct?"
"Affirmative."
Using magic to guide the bullet trajectory undoubtedly would cause a side effect from phenomenon rewriting.
Likewise, using sensory enhancement magic would also reveal their location due to the psion waves.
So long as they used magic, there was no way to hide themselves from Tatsuya.
Kazama was well aware of Tatsuya's capabilities.
"Yes, during nocturnal conditions and only relying on a scope, they still successfully sniped from nearly a kilometer out."
Kazama was glancing downwards on the screen, likely looking at the map for the sniper's location. Tatsuya didn't completely understand all the nuances regarding sniping; Kazama was much more familiar with the details. Seems like Kazama had found some sort of clue that Tatsuya hadn't discovered, so even though he hadn't seen it, he could grasp the details just from Tatsuya's report.
"There are a limited number of organizations around the world that can dispatch snipers of this quality. We might actually narrow this down rather quickly."
"Then we're relying on you."
Offense was the greatest defense, referring to the concept that by rendering an opponent powerless, one would remove the threat of attack. Since they had already crossed blades once, so long as neither side presses forward, a peaceful solution was not impossible for Tatsuya.
"Hm? Give me a second. ......
There's a new report coming in. We've found the car."
Even though the black car had covered its license plate, this degree of subterfuge could not fool the cameras along the streets set for defensive purposes. So long as they knew when and where the vehicle passed by, unique features could always be identified.
"Since the investigation has already begun, how about letting it start from this end?"
"As you wish."
At Kazama's question of verification, Tatsuya immediately nodded in response.
Tatsuya didn't quibble over details like whether he had to personally capture his escaped opponents.
◊ ◊ ◊
Owing to the unexpected live action sequence, dinner was slightly later than usual. Still, Miyuki didn't seem irritated in the slightest as she pranced around in a pink apron with frills as she prepared dinner.
"That apron
......?"
"You noticed?"
Hearing the words that slipped from his mouth, Miyuki smiled and turned her head.
The apron Miyuki was wearing was simplistic but adult in its design.
While Tatsuya didn't know whether this was merely a young lady's interest, this was the first time he beheld such a fantastically adorable apron.
"This was what you just bought today?"
Before splitting at the station, Miyuki had been pulled into a store catering to young women by Mizuki and Erika.
Tatsuya lounged on the chair as he waited for them, only to have them appear much sooner than expected. When asked what they bought, Erika only said that it was a "secret", so he didn't receive a real answer.
"Mizuki said she needed a new apron so I bought one as well. This doesn't look strange on me, does it?"
Since this was considerably different than her usual fashion, Miyuki watched Tatsuya with worried eyes.
Though it was a simple matter to pass on a compliment, Tatsuya took this opportunity to seriously evaluate his sister's attire.
Given that the apron's length was the same as her skirt, it gave off the impression that she was wearing a single dress.
And a mini-skirt apron to boot.
The two straps looped over the shoulders and crossed over the back along with a wide strap tied around the waist with an adorable butterfly knot, complete with a pair of thighs charmingly exposed from the bottom.
Definitely not a getup that can be shown to anyone else, Tatsuya thought.
"It suits you perfectly. In fact, I plan on putting you in a glass display case for personal perusal."
He realized that his choice of words was slightly odd. "Onii-sama's ideas are just a smidgen strange."
Just listening to her words might sound like she was surprised, but her expression clearly signified that she was trying to hide her embarrassment.
Still, Tatsuya didn't point this out to Miyuki and merely smiled as he picked up the chopsticks.
After dinner, the two siblings moved from the dinner table to the living room. After setting down a cup of coffee on the table before the sofa Tatsuya was occupying, Miyuki left her cup on the table and sat beside her brother.
"Speaking of which, why did that person visit us today? Did she bring a specimen for Magic Sequence storage?"
After finding a spot to sit, Miyuki sat with her legs closed and placed her hands on top of one another over them as she asked Tatsuya with eyes brimming with curiosity.
"She wanted to find out if Magic Sequence storage was possible."
Since this was an expected question, Tatsuya already prepared an answer.
"Asking for help, just like before."
Not like he was relying on half truths to muddle through this. "Still, this job may be a little more interesting."
"Has the contract already been accepted?"
Miyuki's question was just going through the motions, she had already understood through her brother's earlier words that this task was unavoidable.
"Given that the specimen is sitting right here, seems likely." Tatsuya's gaze shifted to one corner of the table.
The jewel box that Sayuri brought sat there innocuously.
Sayuri forced Tatsuya to hold onto the box in fear of further enemy attack.
"So this is the specimen? Does it possess the power to store Magic Sequences?"
What is it? At the wordless inquiry, Tatsuya opened the box. "A relic of the Magatama-class."
Keeping an eye on Miyuki, Tatsuya unveiled the item's true identity. Her hands flew to her face as Miyuki stared wide-eyed at Tatsuya. "Why does that woman have something like this?"
"It was a request from the military. I believe they asked us to replicate this."
"That's ridiculous."
While Miyuki didn't have the same depth of understanding as Tatsuya regarding how outrageous the replication of relics was, she still understood that this was a preposterous request.
Magic Sequences influenced the Eidos of an object in order to temporarily rewrite the information surrounding the object based on the conditions described within the Magic Sequence — this was magic. For example, an orb that is outwardly red contains an Eidos that "primarily reflected red light" and is "circularly shaped". If a Magic Sequence containing the condition "primarily reflecting blue light" influenced the Eidos, then the orb would turn blue. Since the Magic Sequence overwrote the Eidos on the object, the conditions within the Magic Sequence would temporarily replace the characteristics of the object. This effect would persist until the conditions from the Magic Sequence fades away.
Though the Magic Sequence occupied a central role in the invocation of magic, using magic to preserve Magic Sequences remained impossible.
Still, if the item itself possessed the ability to replicate the effects from the altered phenomenon and the Magic Sequence could be replicated, then the effects from magic would persist ad infinitum. In other words, copying the altered phenomenon and the Magic Sequence would become possible.
Which would preserve the characteristics of the Magic Sequence as well as the characteristics of the magical effects.
Logically speaking, if Magic Sequences that changed the temperature could be preserved, then high temperatures measuring in the hundreds of degrees or cold temperatures that were dozens of degrees below zero could be achieved without any input. Likewise, replication of Speed Magic that was preserved could create actual perpetual motion machines.
"Just possessing the ability to store Magic Sequences alone is insufficient to replace Magicians, since the Magic Sequences stored within these devices can only be activated through magic. While I have little stake in replicating the Magatama itself, if this item is truly able to store Magic Sequences, then understanding that process becomes absolutely integral."
"If it's Onii-sama, then anything is possible."
At some point, Miyuki scooted over until she was directly next to Tatsuya and laid her head against Tatsuya's shoulder. She gently reassured Tatsuya, who sat there with a chilly expression on his face as he spoke.
Miyuki's policy demanded that she did everything within her power to cover all the household chores that pertained to Tatsuya without leaving them to machinery, but even she wasn't such a stickler that she washed the dishes herself.
She was still a student, with her own pile of mandatory assignments, so some level of compromise was unavoidable.
The plates and utensils from dinner were left to the HAR to dispose of as Miyuki began her homework.
Despite being known as a magic high school, all other subjects besides magic were not mandatory.
There were no regular tests, but daily homework was highly emphasized.
Today, her homework assignment was mathematics. Strictly speaking, this was not one of her strong suits.
Stuck on a question that bedeviled her from the beginning, Miyuki allowed her attention to drift from the screen before her.
This was the age where the man-machine interface could easily process these problems, so no one save for mathematical researchers would actually work out problems by themselves. Yet, mathematical logic powerfully aided the development and formation of new magic, hence her brother had stringent instructions regarding this subject, and so cutting corners was not an option.
Miyuki heaved a bored "Whew".
At times like these, she envied her omnipotent brother.
Maybe I should ask Onii-sama to teach me, she idly thought before frantically shaking her head furiously.
Right now, Tatsuya was probably deep into analyzing that relic.
Her very presence alone bound Tatsuya's freedom, so she definitely couldn't bother him anymore, Miyuki thought.
The sole reason Tatsuya entered First High was because Miyuki enrolled in First High, at least this was how Miyuki interpreted the situation.
A diploma from a magic high school was a prerequisite for attending the National Magic University, but there were always exceptions; especially, talented individuals who might have discovered a "Cardinal Code" would immediately qualify for the examination process even without a magic high school diploma. So long as Tatsuya wished to do so, he would immediately obtain that right and simply passing the examination would not trouble him in the slightest.
Miyuki knew that her brother's goal lay in the graduate level research programs within the magic universities, so the life of a high school student was actually a considerable detour for him.
The reason Tatsuya was forced to do so was because he was Miyuki's guardian.
The guardians of the Yotsuba Family bore the duty of preserving their primary's life even at the cost of their own. This title came from the combat slaves that once rescued a young woman from the Yotsuba Family from enemy attack and were responsible for preserving the
Yotsuba bloodline.
On the surface, this mission differed little from ordinary bodyguards, but temporarily hired bodyguards were fundamentally different from guardians. While the Yotsuba guardians were not selected from birth, once selected, their term was for life. Though they were the same as bodyguards in that they served for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, guardians did not possess the right to resign from their duties. Since guardians were only relieved when their primary was released from protection, to this day, without exception, Yotsuba guardians had done their duty until the day they died.
Tatsuya possessed a certain degree of freedom by virtue of the fact that he could still protect his primary even away from the house. Magic was not restricted by physical distance or obstacles. There was no telepathic connection between the two, but Tatsuya was able to unconsciously monitor Miyuki's surroundings through his "Idea Identification Vision". In other words, it may be more accurate to say that he had cast magic to keep an eye on her.
Nevertheless, even Tatsuya wasn't able to use magic while sleeping.
Even if distance was no hindrance, their everyday lives needed to synchronize to some degree.
During holidays and long vacations, Miyuki could still match Tatsuya's activities, but in school Tatsuya had to link with Miyuki, so they had to accommodate the high school schedule. Also, though magic wasn't affected by physical distance, a closer proximity made it far easier to react to possible danger.
However, in the end, all of these were only true under the condition that Miyuki does not dismiss Tatsuya from his duties as a guardian.
Once Miyuki would dismiss Tatsuya, surely another guardian, likely of the same age and gender, would be dispatched to her. Even if the number of Magicians was limited, Miyuki was still one of the more promising candidates for the next head of the Yotsuba Family.
Of course, Miyuki hoped to retain Tatsuya as her guardian for reasons that went beyond her own stubbornness.
Within the Yotsuba Family, a guardian's mission held the highest priority.
While serving as Miyuki's guardian, he wouldn't be assigned any meaningless tasks. Nor would he receive any dirty jobs.
Even their father and his new wife couldn't press the issue on the surface.
They could not insist that Tatsuya help them in their work.
Even with all these considerations in mind, she still wished for her brother to attend the same school she did — the bottom line was that she herself was unable to separate herself from that dependence on her brother, something that Miyuki was aware of.
Again, Miyuki heaved a deep sigh.
Her frazzled mind was incapable of deciphering the answer, just as she was unable to solve the homework question before her.
Actually, even if she didn't need him to guide her through every step, all she needed to do was ask her brother for help. By the time Miyuki thought of this, 30 minutes had already passed.
Modern short distance public transportation was developed along the lines of carpooling, with large scale public transportation being replaced by smaller systems that accommodated fewer individuals.
Thirty years ago, this plan started spreading among the large metropolises as well as 80% of the medium sized cities and suburbs. The remaining 20% utilized private cars and had no need for public transportation.
In terms of going to school or work, large buses and cable cars that could transport large amounts of people had gone out of style, so the scene where high school students took the bus to and from school has almost become non-existent.
While Tatsuya really only went to school accompanied by Miyuki, he still shared the walk from the bus stop to the school with his friends. Even though he arrived later than usual to school, the usual crowd was still on hand waiting for him.
The predominant itinerary involved a simple walk to school, but sometimes they would make a quick detour to a cafe or fast food restaurant. Along the approximately one kilometer path to school, there were countless stores that boasted dining, books, school supplies, clothes, and especially materials related to magic education. Students and teachers from First High were not the only ones to frequent this area, since many customers took the tram from far away to come and shop here.
Within one of the more orthodox cafes where they were frequent fliers, eight people were sitting together.
"Eh? Tatsuya's been selected as one of the representatives for the Thesis Competition?"
Today's detour was because Mikihiko asked why Tatsuya was summoned to the Magic Geometry lab. Seeing Mikihiko burning with questions while they were waiting for the waitress, Tatsuya couldn't help but notice a side to his friend as he briefly elaborated on the details.
Hence Mikihiko's reaction was embodied by the previous comment.
Since he had already told Miyuki and Honoka when he picked them up from the Student Council Room yesterday, there were five people including Mikihiko who sat there with stunned expressions.
"Wait, I thought we only send three representatives from the entire school to the Thesis Competition."
"Yep."
At Mizuki's wide-eyed question, Tatsuya calmly replied with a decisive answer. Their two expressions were like night and day.
"Just a 'yep'......
Tatsuya-kun is completely lackadaisical about this."
Mizuki was struck speechless while Erika stared blankly. On the other side, Leo supplied an amused smile.
"For Tatsuya, that would be only natural."
"There's never been a case where we sent a Year 1 student out for the Thesis Competition."
"Not like it's impossible either, eh? Even the faculty can't ignore the genius who invented a brand new magic among us."
Hearing Shizuku's counter argument, Leo smiled and added a rebuttal of his own.
"Let's stop it there with the genius talk."
Rather than being embarrassed by that title, Tatsuya felt an irritation like someone poking him with a needle.
"Tatsuya really dislikes people calling him a genius......"
"Because that term is too casual."
At Honoka's amazed comment that was neither mocking nor filled with ulterior meanings, Miyuki replied in place of Tatsuya.
Tatsuya could only chuckle wryly at his sister's reply, though he had to admit she was right on the money.
"No, that's still incredible!"
Likely noticing the mood taking a turn for the worse, Mikihiko quickly chimed in to restore the balance.
"The winning thesis from the competition will be published annually in 'Super Nature', while a considerable amount of attention is still directed towards Second Place and below."
"Super Nature" is a British research journal that is held to be the highest authority on modern magic. Unfortunately, the journal also contained themes on dictatorship that were inappropriate for high school students. Fortunately, everyone here who had read the journal, including Mikihiko, Tatsuya, and Miyuki, were all quite familiar with the name.
"Ah, but......
There isn't a whole lot of time left."
Mikihiko's euphoric mood swiftly turned to worry as he stated this.
Shouldn't Mikihiko also pay attention to these sudden mood swings? Tatsuya thought in surprise. Regardless, he kept these thoughts to himself as he nodded at Mikihiko's question.
"We have exactly 9 days until the school turns in our paper."
"That's it!? That's right around the corner!"
"There's no problem at all. At the end of the day, I'm only in a supporting role. The lead writer has been working on this since before summer vacation."
Seeing Honoka's electrified expression, Tatsuya reassured her with a smile as he waved his hand a little. At Tatsuya's answer, Honoka relaxed into a "You're right" expression and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Even so, the fact remains that this is a pressing deadline. Did something unexpected happen?"
"One of the supporting upperclassmen's physical condition suddenly worsened."
Miyuki wrinkled her brows as she queried Tatsuya, who maintained his earlier smile as he replied with a simple answer. Even though he didn't cut into the heart of the matter, there really was nothing to hide even if pressed.
Yet, Miyuki didn't seem wholly satisfied with Tatsuya's overly simplistic answer.
"That's quite unfortunate, but even so this is certainly a last minute change."
The reason apparently wasn't why this situation occurred, but a mood issue.
"Indeed, even if the entire thesis had to be done from scratch, Onii- sama would still be the best candidate."
Nonetheless, given that Tatsuya's situation had already turned into reality, Miyuki was only looking for a reason to convince herself, which was perfectly in tune with her character. In Tatsuya's eyes, even though Miyuki's comment was fairly accurate, she was still thinking too highly of herself with this unconditional acceptance.
"That's not entirely the case. We would have quite the conundrum on our hands if I was utterly unfamiliar with the field of Ichihara-senpai's topic, but fortunately that isn't the case."
Thus, Tatsuya adopted a "smile and deny" tactic, but Miyuki didn't seem very happy with her brother's stance. Just as she was thinking of an appropriate rejoinder, a new question sprouted out from beside her.
"Hey, so what is the topic?"
Curious, Leo leaned forward as he asked this question. Despite the fact that all the young ladies watched him coldly with eyes that clearly said "Would you understand even if he told you?", the man asking the question and the one answering him both ignored them.
"Technical Difficulties and Solutions to Sustained Gravity Control- Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor."
"......I can't even imagine that."
The questioner immediately retorted back, a prompt reflection of his current predicament.
"......That's quite the grandiose topic. Isn't that one of the 'Three Great
Puzzles in Weight Systematic Magic'?" Mikihiko groaned with a complex expression. To his side,
"Since Tatsuya was asked to join, I thought the thesis would be related to CAD processes."
Mizuki expressed her thoughts on the matter.
"Ah, I thought so too."
"Kei-senpai is also a member...... I think that this topic may be simply too difficult to have a chance at victory."
Shizuku and Erika shared Mizuki's opinion. Apparently, his friends were concerned on his behalf that this topic would prove too challenging for Tatsuya and high school students in general.
Which made perfect sense, since the Gravity Control-Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor was not labeled one of the Three Great Puzzles just for nothing. In this situation, Tatsuya could only smile and muddle through.
However, among all the smiling faces, only Miyuki wasn't really smiling.
Her smile didn't reach her eyes.
Only she, who understood the significance of Sustained Gravity Control-Type Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactors, could truly appreciate how serious her brother was.
◊ ◊ ◊
The siblings split from their friends at the station. They returned home to find a small limousine parked in their parking spot, which prompted the two of them to exchange a glance.
Tatsuya stepped forward and opened the door.
Seeing the rare designer label high heels in the threshold, Tatsuya gently cradled Miyuki's shoulders as she stood there in utter silence with a stiff expression on her face.
As he supported Miyuki and stepped through the door, a light tapping of slippers rapidly approaching could be heard.
"—Welcome back. The two of you are always on such good terms."
Hearing these mocking tones, Tatsuya swiftly narrowed his eyes as his hand that was holding his sister's shaking shoulders tightened their grip a fraction.
"It's been quite a while, Sayuri-san."
Tatsuya's chilly voice was a perfect match for his cool gaze.
This time, it was the petite woman who welcomed them who shook a little.
"Hm, hm. Well, that's because I always wanted to be close to the office."
"Is that so."
Tatsuya nodded curtly at their stepmother who hadn't stepped foot in this house for 9 months — in the siblings' eyes, she was "their father's second wife" — Shiba Sayuri.
Despite coming home, this household did not possess her room or bedding since after her marriage to their father, she had settled down with him in a suite in an upscale apartment complex five minutes from FLT headquarters and dwelt in married bliss together. Tatsuya only intended to slightly needle Sayuri for the fact that she had never lived here after marrying their father and her usage of this location as home.
Seeing their father's second wife's expression darken at the sarcasm, Miyuki actually composed herself. With her brother's arm still around her, she slightly shifted around, utterly ignoring any other gazes on her as she pressed closer to Tatsuya's slightly lowered face.
Normally, even with just the two of them, Miyuki would never commit such an embarrassing action that was wholly incompatible with her image. At this point, Miyuki had completely entered a state where bystanders held no meaning.
"I shall begin preparations for dinner immediately, Onii-sama. Anything in particular you would like?"
"Anything you make will be fine. There's no need to hurry, so you best get changed first."
Tatsuya didn't even bother to glance at Sayuri, instead devoting his entire attention to Miyuki. At her brother's response, Miyuki revealed an ecstatic smile.
"I understand, though I wonder if there's something you had in mind. So long as it's Onii-sama's wish, Miyuki is willing to do anything."
"Hey, don't get too worked up."
Tatsuya lightly poked her forehead before Miyuki shrugged her head down and lightly sprang up to the second floor.
"So, what may I do for you today?"
Once Miyuki's figure disappeared, Tatsuya reopened the conversation with Sayuri, who seemed stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Afterwards, he stepped quickly into the living room and took a seat on a nearby sofa, and once again called out to the hesitant Sayuri.
"Could we get a move on, since I would like to finish before my sister returns."
Sayuri creased her brows at these curt words, but she still took a seat opposite Tatsuya.
"Looks like you two still aren't very welcoming towards me."
As if realizing that further acting was pointless, Sayuri's attitude abruptly changed when she sat down.
Completely heedless of Tatsuya's gaze, she set one leg over another and leaned back on the sofa.
Her casual clothes devoid of any makeup was likely her researcher's calling showing through, so Tatsuya didn't have to worry about where to leave his eyes. Of course, even if Sayuri was wearing a tight miniskirt, Tatsuya likely wouldn't bat an eyelid.
"Miyuki may think that way. After all, it's only natural for her to be somewhat resentful if her father remarried less than half a year after her mother died. Even though she may act like an adult, she's really just a 15 year old young girl."
"......And you?"
"I am incapable of such an emotional reaction. That was the way I was forged."
"......Well, forget it, regardless of whether that's true or not, that's no longer in my hands. Even so, if we were to talk about that, I hope that you can seriously listen to him, since it was only half a year for you two, but a whole 16 years for me."
Despite her youthful appearance, she was actually the same age as their father. Tatsuya was contemplating these rude concepts like the public enemy of women.
She, Shiba Sayuri, was originally known as Furuha Sayuri and was Shiba Tatsurou's lover before his marriage with Yotsuba Miya. Rumor had it that the Yotsuba interposed to seize a prized genetic advantage and forcibly cut them apart. Tatsuya could read between the lines of her hatred even if she didn't verbalize them.
Still, that was an issue between her and their birth parents and was unrelated to the siblings. Since she had maintained an affair with their father while Miya was still alive, she would receive no pity from him.
"So, what's the occasion that brought you all the way out here?"
Sayuri originally intended to naturally drift into the main subject, so Tatsuya's direct inquiry caught her off guard and finally shook off the unnatural vibes around their conversation.
"......Then, let's cut right to the chase. The company labs require your assistance. If possible, we hope you will drop out from high school."
"Impossible. During Miyuki's enrollment at First High, I am unable to fulfill my mission as a guardian if I am not a student at First High."
A ridiculous demand warranted a flat refusal from Tatsuya.
"Even if you're not a student, other guardians could be made available."
"There is a shortage of Magicians in every field. Even the Yotsuba Family would be hard pressed to replace a guardian on such short notice."
"In other words, you are the finest candidate?"
"When only restricted to Miyuki's protection, that is indeed the case." This was a conversation that had occurred multiple times in the past. Whew, Sayuri heaved a great sigh that didn't seem theatrical.
"......I doubt any company has enough surplus to allow someone as talented as you, to simply play around."
"Play around? I do believe I have made powerful contributions to the company as well. A few days ago, the company received an order from the USNA Navy for a large quantity of Flying-Type devices, which boosted the quarterly profits by 20% compared to last quarter."
At Tatsuya's combative words, Sayuri couldn't help but reveal a regretful expression.
That was because she had no rebuttal for Tatsuya's words.
It was public knowledge that FLT originally wasn't a manufacturer for CAD products, but a provider for spare parts used for Magic Engineering. Their ascent to the pinnacle of CAD development and production around the globe was largely in thanks to the Silver Series and Tatsuya by extension. With the introduction of Flying-Type Devices, FLT had become the innovator that pioneered the next paradigm shift in the world of Specialized CADs. For Sayuri, who originally entered the company as a researcher and was elevated to management despite having no major accomplishments to her name, this was a towering feat that rendered jealousy meaningless.
Still, those were Sayuri's personal feelings on the matter. As she replied with an "Ah, is that so," she also brought up the reason why she couldn't leave just yet.
"......At the very least, can you help analyze this item for me?"
Sayuri pulled out a large jewel box from her bag and carefully opened the lid.
There was a half-translucent crimson crystal in the middle. "......A relic from the Magatama class."
From the perspective of Magic Researchers, "relics" were OOParts that contained a magical nature that had unidentifiable artificial components, yet formed naturally under highly challenging conditions. For example, "Antinite" that contained "Cast Jamming" could be classified as a type of relic.
Also, true relics — such as a Magatama — like this one usually never fell into the hands of a researcher.
"Where was this unearthed?"
"I do not know."
"I see, this came from the JSDF."
Given its status as the preeminent domestic manufacturer, FLT received many contracts from the military.
"In terms of analysis, don't tell me you're asking for something preposterous like duplicating this Magatama, are you?"
Seeing Sayuri's stiff expression, Tatsuya could only sigh.
"Who came up with such a reckless decision? Don't you have any idea how ridiculous it is to attempt to synthesize relics with modern science and technology?"
OOParts is short for "Out Of Place Artifacts". Essentially, these were "items that did not belong in this time" and were "objects that exceeded the level of science from when it was unearthed" and were simply unable to be developed with technology at the time.
However, precisely because this was something that surpassed modern science, the greatly exaggerated term "relic" was used.
"......The JSDF demanded that we accept the task. Refusal was not an option."
Not like management's decision was impossible to comprehend. Not just FLT, corporations in the magic industry by nature served in the public sector and could be broadly painted as a war industry.
Only individuals with practical magic skills would purchase products of magic engineering like CADs, but Magicians held a much smaller share of the market than other industries.
Given the scarcity of Magicians, this was only to be expected.
Currently, the number of people in magic related fields or students studying magic at the high school and collegiate level totaled roughly 30,000 people.
In other words, even if every single one of them purchased a new CAD every year, the total turnover rate would still be 30,000. In reality, the duration time tended to be on the longer side since it was common practice for a Magician to own five or six CADs. Regardless, it didn't change the fact that the market remained quite narrow.
Also, based on the national policy of promoting magic, magic support devices needed to be sold at a low price. In practice, CAD prices were limited to a level well within the purchasing power of a normal household so they could purchase one for their child that was entering high school as a celebratory present. This sort of independent industry was hard to develop scale and design.
Thus, the nation heavily subsidized the magic industry. For example, the nation subsidized 90% of CAD sales.
The products sold at the public level were 10% of the price used in exchanges between companies.
In addition, using research grants as an excuse, the nation paid large sums to private corporations each year for research.
Even the largest corporations in the field like Maximillian and Rozen were unable to deny their respective governments. That was the fate of magic industries.
"However, the JSDF should be aware of the meaning behind the relic label. So long as the item has been identified as a relic, they should know that artificial synthesis is no longer possible, so why make this ludicrous demand?"
There was a pregnant pause before Sayuri finally opened her mouth to respond.
"Recently, research has discovered that Magatama possesses the ability to store Magic Sequences."
Despite the hesitant answer, this was enough to bring a swift change to Tatsuya's expression.
"Has this been proven to be a fact?"
Suppressing the burning desire in his voice was the limit of Tatsuya's acting capabilities. Fortunately, Sayuri seemed to miss Tatsuya's profound interest in relics.
"It's still in the theoretical phase. Still, the military's movements have already produced fairly reliable observation data."
Tatsuya nodded gravely.
"If this is true, then there's no way the military would leave that alone, which is completely within reason."
Storage capacity for Magic Sequences was not restricted to only Tatsuya's goal. If Magic Sequence storage can be spread to the public level, autonomous and self-sustaining magic devices would no longer be a pipe dream. Even troops without Magicians could equip magic weapons. Since Magatamas had the power to store Magic Sequences, successful mass replication would provide a massive supply of magic weaponry.
"But given FLT's recent gains, there shouldn't be a need to take the road less traveled."
Given the project's importance, once accepting this task, a simple "cannot be done" would not suffice.
"The die has been cast."
"Even without any chance for success?"
Considering that the key to relic replication remained unknown, this was a colossal risk.
"We have a small chance. By using your magic, analysis is still possible."
Tatsuya couldn't help but laugh at Sayuri finally laying all her cards on the table. In the end, she wasn't here for his brain, but his unique ability.
Just as she always had.
"Even using my power does not guarantee successful replication.
......If you insist, then please send the specimen to the R&D Third
Division. I drop by there on a regular basis."
In reality, this didn't really affect Tatsuya either way. While it was true that Tatsuya required additional insight on how to preserve Magic Sequences, his goal was only limited to grasping the methodology behind this. Magatama replication was only secondary, so he didn't want to overly burden the researchers in the office. The bottom line was that scheduling was difficult to come by on their part, so it's not like they could do whatever they pleased.
"............"
However, this was not a proposal that Sayuri could stomach. Her position demanded that she take into account the departmental rivalries within FLT. The R&D Third Division simply couldn't win additional fame and recognition. Also, an infinitely more important and preposterous reason was that neither her nor her husband could afford to allow "Taurus Silver", Tatsuya himself, any more speaking power. Surely the other labs could surpass Tatsuya's achievements, right? Given Tatsuya's large following — to the point that a decisive majority of the Third Division sided with him, maybe their accomplishments would be put on his tab as well. (That was Sayuri's private suspicion.)
Unable to accept Tatsuya's proposal, Sayuri clenched her teeth. "Or, would you prefer to leave the specimen here?"
Tatsuya's words provided a glimmer of hope for the conflicted Sayuri and became the impetus she seized upon to escape this quandary.
"There's no need!"
Nonetheless, rather than choosing to compromise, she chose to break off entirely. For her, under no condition would she allow the relic replication to occur away from the office — away from her ability to claim all credit for the accomplishment. Leaving the specimen behind was a ridiculous notion that was synonymous to allowing Tatsuya to pluck this prize from her hands. In actuality, she was the one who originally made the outrageous request to challenge something that "had no successful precedent", but the present Sayuri had lost all objectivity.
Her ire fully roused, Sayuri rose from her seat.
"I understand now. Seeking your assistance was a mistake in the first place!"
Placing the jewel box back into her bag, Sayuri departed in a huff.
As Sayuri swiftly walked down the hall, Tatsuya was literally right on her heels. By the time she reached the threshold and was putting on her shoes, Tatsuya adopted a tone typically reserved for customer service.
"Since you are carrying valuables, would you like me to accompany you to the station?"
"No need, I'll drive."
"As you wish. Do be careful."
Tatsuya was not displeased by his stepmother's barb and courteously bowed.
"Miyuki."
Tatsuya called out to her from the threshold. Wearing a sleeveless mini-dress, Miyuki timidly descended from the stairs.
Her pearly arms revealed a light pink that ran to her shoulders, a product of her own embarrassment at her attire rather than caused by cosmetics.
"Onii-sama, well......
I sincerely apologize for my childish behavior."
Despite her personal avowal of her childish behavior, in reality this was more like some sort of display of close affection. Naturally, Miyuki was ignorant of this point as she stood there with her skin bared before Tatsuya's eyes. No matter what she said, she surely must have put considerable thought into this charming display.
Tatsuya gently stroked his sister's face though she didn't dare to match his gaze before his fingertips dipped south towards the chin. Suddenly, his index finger swiftly tilted her face upwards.
This simple action caused Miyuki's enchantingly white skin to flush completely red from her shoulders to her bosom. Her silky long hair gently swayed as her eyes were filled with a dazzling luminescence for an altogether irresistible package.
"Uh, this......"
Their posture seemed to lead up to a kiss, forcing Miyuki to bashfully avert her eyes.
Yet Tatsuya's fingers once more stretched towards her face. Mesmerized, Miyuki closed her eyes.
And then, "—Ah!?"
A muffled cry of pain rang out for a short duration. "W-What was that for?"
"Punishment."
Seeing his sister blush and fall back a step (a perfectly natural response to someone suddenly pinching her nose), Tatsuya smiled as he replied.
"Oh......
Onii-sama is a meanie."
Miyuki sulkily pouted and turned her face aside while maintaining her charming posture. At this, Tatsuya's expression softened as he continued to smile.
"I'm stepping out for a bit. Make sure to lock the doors until I return."
"Onii-sama?"
At her brother's mysterious instructions to watch the house, Miyuki's expression tightened as she inquired to the reason.
"I'm going to pursue a certain woman who lacks a sense of danger."
Tatsuya picked up the uniform coat he just took off as Miyuki frowned in displeasure.
"......Exactly how much trouble is that person planning on putting
Onii-sama through."
"Unfortunately, I can't just leave her to her own devices. Sayuri is holding a relic that may hold the key to Magic Sequence storage."
Tatsuya removed his tie and handed it to Miyuki as he elaborated on the real motive behind his "pursuit".
Miyuki seemed to comprehend this somewhat but still crinkled her brows afterwards.
"If that's the case then there's nothing for it. Please be careful, Onii- sama."
Miyuki recalled their conversation after school in the reference room. She would not use her dislike of her father's lover to bar her brother's decisions. She did not say "don't go", nor did she say "there's no need to go", but merely removed Tatsuya's heavy coat from the hanger in silence.
After throwing on the coat with Miyuki's assistance, Tatsuya removed a pair of gloves and a helmet from the storage compartment in the threshold and pulled on a pair of riding boots. Tatsuya nodded to Miyuki, who had put her hands side by side in front of herself and bowed deeply to send him off, and said, "I'm off."
◊ ◊ ◊
In the speeding vehicle that was automatically directing itself, Sayuri felt an exhaustive pressure pound down on her like twice the weight of gravity.
If she had to say something, it would be a regretful "I still did it......"
After reaching the managerial level, she thought that she had already become accustomed to wheeling and dealing. However, she still heaved a depressed sigh at her headstrong and impulsive behavior.
In principle, the young man was by all rights her son, but every time she was before him she found it hard to maintain her composure.
She was perfectly well aware of the reason behind this. Because he was the son of her rival.
Paired with an engineer's ability and achievements. Complete with unreadable eyes and unfathomable emotions.
Under his eyes, she wasn't seen as a human being, but simply a specimen under a microscope and relegated to the status of an item.
Just the way he viewed his own role as a tool, but Sayuri was unaware of that.
What she did know was that this contract demanded his cooperation, but her own impatience had made this significantly more difficult. Silently, she redirected her gaze out the window and heaved a heavy sigh.
As she raised her eyes, she noticed that traffic had strangely decreased.
She hadn't seen any cars coming from the opposite direction since a while back,
And even though this was a residential sector, the hour wasn't too late yet.
Her inner frustration was submerged by a trace of unease.
She called up the screen for traffic information. The display informed her that other cars had been rerouted along a different path to avoid a stalled vehicle on the road.
Which was a legitimate reason in its own right, letting Sayuri let out a breath of relief.
Chasing Sayuri's vehicle through traffic on a large electric motorcycle, Tatsuya also noticed the drop in traffic.
The message he received through the headset in his helmet was the same information Sayuri saw on her display.
Nevertheless, Tatsuya did not find any benign news within.
The information that cars were rerouted due to a stalled vehicle wasn't suspicious in its own right.
Tatsuya had seen first hand exactly how difficult it was to infiltrate the traffic control system when he saw Sanada and Fujibayashi hacking into the system on the scene.
Still, Tatsuya wasn't optimistic enough to believe every single car was diverted from the road that led from Tatsuya's house to the station. That sort of thing only happened when multiple cars were stalled on the road.
It wasn't particularly difficult to identify vehicle locations within the control system.
Especially since commuter vehicles available for public transportation continuously broadcast signals to prevent thieves from using them as escape tools.
Likewise, identifying the signal wasn't any sort of classified secret.
Since he left the house, Tatsuya was already homing in on Sayuri's vehicle.
Finally catching sight of his stepmother's car, he also discovered another manually operated vehicle independent of traffic control that was tailing her.
A shrill alarm sounded from the vehicle's display.
The display informed her that a manually operated vehicle was closing in.
Yet, Sayuri wasn't overly concerned.
Even in this age, there still existed people who took pleasure in driving themselves.
As an engineer, she was aware that drivers could modify their cars to be independent of the traffic control system's influence.
Thus, she paid little heed to the car closing in from behind.
As such, Sayuri leaned back into her seat and switched off the piercing alarm.
Seeing the black manually operated car pick up speed, Tatsuya stepped on the gas as well. In terms of acceleration, Tatsuya's motorcycle had the edge.
Still, based on proximity and respective speed, the black manually operated car would reach Sayuri's vehicle first.
In reaction to the manually operated car that suddenly closed in instead of passing by, Sayuri's car activated its collision avoidance system.
Near her car that came to an emergency stop, two men descended from the manually operated car.
This was an overly brazen action along the streets with wireless surveillance systems. However, given the situation, the suspects were probably illegal aliens, since normal citizens and immigrants would immediately be identified from their images.
Tatsuya raised the lights to the max and pointed them at the two men trying to break open the car door.
Descending from the motorcycle with the lights still on, Tatsuya rushed towards the men.
Tatsuya pulled out the CAD in his chest pocket with his right hand while the men covered their faces to avert the light. A second later, one man used a pistol while the other sent his fists flying towards Tatsuya.
Under the light from the motorcycle, the man's fist wore a bronze ring that glimmered lightly on one finger.
From the ring, a shrill psionic noise could be heard.
This was magic interference waves known as "Cast Jamming" coming from the "Antinite".
One of them focused on nullifying enemy magic while the other used the gun to finish off the enemy.
Of course, if their opponent was any run of the mill Magician.
The muzzle was aimed at Tatsuya. The target was the heart, at a range where evasion was altogether impossible, and a clear killing intent could be felt.
Yet the man failed to squeeze the trigger.
Before he could do so, Tatsuya already hit the trigger on his CAD. The pistol collapsed into pieces in the man's hands.
One of the men, or maybe even both of them, started yelling in excitement, but given the distance, he wasn't sure what they were saying. He could only hear the term "Cast Jamming", which likely signified their surprise that "Cast Jamming" had no effect, or maybe they were expressing their astonishment that the pistol was shattered despite the presence of magic interference waves.
Still, regardless of how it was, that was no longer Tatsuya's concern. Even if he was hindered in an unexpected way, his actions would not change. Tatsuya once more pulled the trigger.
The man who once held the gun let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground. He pressed his thigh and began rolling on the ground.
Next, the man with the ring pressed his shoulder. He couldn't contain his moans of pain and doubled over as he broke out into a cold sweat before losing consciousness. Since he was pierced by a force resembling tiny needles that annihilated skin, flesh, blood vessels, nerves, and bones, the sudden pain must have overcome his ability to stay conscious.
Decomposition Magic — Mist Dispersion could decompose any human body part.
So where on the human body would a piercing attack generate enough shock to surpass a man's consciousness?
Where must the attack land to cut off feeling from the four limbs?
Indifferent to whether it was his own flesh or that of others, Tatsuya was extremely knowledgeable on the matter.
He slipped around the two men on the ground and approached the black, manually operated vehicle.
Tatsuya kept his CAD aimed at the car, but didn't pull the trigger.
Hydrogen fueled cars contained the fuel in compressed states, so carelessly attacking would trigger a gigantic explosion. Of course, normally there are protocols to avoid ignition, but it was a fact that some chose to remove the safety features to create suicide attacks.
If Miyuki was present then there was no need to worry about an explosion, but unfortunately she was minding the house. The right side of the road was covered by a wide expanse of the river, but the left side was filled with residential buildings. Taking the nearby households into account, Tatsuya judged that he couldn't force the issue.
Strictly speaking, this decision was overly negligent.
Suddenly, killing intent mushroomed forth above him from the right. Tatsuya took evasive action on reflex.
There wasn't even a hint of hesitation in his motion.
Even so, he could not avoid the bullet that flew at supersonic speed. He felt a burning pain in his breast,
Where the bullet had pierced through his left breast.
The impact from the bullet caused his body to fly through the air. The enemy's sniping attack was incredibly accurate.
Even if he avoided a fatal attack, the blow still pierced his lung.
Given how late he heard the gunshot, the attack must have been made from an extreme distance. If Tatsuya hadn't taken evasive action, the bullet would have pierced his heart.
Conservatively speaking, this was an incredibly skilled sniper.
Tatsuya used the inertia from the falling motion to roll and take cover behind Sayuri's car.
The wound from the attack had already healed itself. Normally, even fatal injuries would disappear in a flash so long as his magic was active.
Still, that did not mean he could not feel pain.
The extreme pain from the impact of the bullet as well as the bullet leaving his body still threw Tatsuya into a cold sweat.
However, this was not the time to focus on something like that. Tatsuya needed to pinpoint his attacker's position.
Given the direction and angle of the attack as well as the placement of the surrounding buildings that could serve as obstacles, the sniper's location was probably one of the industrial buildings from across the river.
Roughly 1000 meters from his current position.
Taking into consideration that the bullet could easily penetrate the human body and open such a tiny hole, the weapon was probably using sabot rounds.
The car's exterior was made of synthetic wood, so this wasn't going to last very long as a cover.
The trickier part came from the fact that the sniper wasn't using magic.
No matter what sort of magic was used, there would be a trace of magic left behind that Tatsuya could use to swiftly ascertain his opponent's location.
However, if his opponent was strictly sticking to shooting, this distance made it much harder for him to rely on Elemental Sight.
The two men who had collapsed on the ground lightly floated in the air.
The car door on the black vehicle opened and rudely sucked their bodies inside.
It was a simple act to nullify the Move-Type Magic that was recovering the two men, but right now removing the sniper's threat was higher priority.
He re-examined the data from the bullet that went through his body. Tatsuya ran data analysis again and went over the bullet data again. Bodily fluids.
Physical resistance. Effects from the wind. Gravity.
Air compression at the time of the shot.
The variables from the bullet were compressed into a single message and returned to Tatsuya.
He identified the target's information at the time of attack.
Tatsuya turned back the clock and read the bullet's trajectory, the sniper's information and the very memory of the "world".
From present into the past. Then,
From past into present.
Using the sniper's firing point as the origin, he searched the myriad, transient data within the "world" of the information dimension for the desired target.
Within his mind, Tatsuya locked in on the sniper's Eidos — separating that particular one from the masses the same way he always did.
He also knew that his opponent was aiming here and preparing to fire again.
The second shot hadn't arrived because the sniper was reloading and changing the armor penetration rounds used earlier to rounds that could penetrate objects that the enemy was taking cover behind, hence the huge delay.
Tatsuya saw through this because he held every scrap of data about this sniper in the palm of his hand.
He had to say he was quite fortunate.
As he thought this, Tatsuya activated the magic to completely decompose the human body.
◊ ◊ ◊
Ten minutes after the black car fled, Tatsuya judged that there was no further danger and stood up from behind the car.
Peeking into the car's interior, he found Sayuri had already fainted. Since the car hadn't activated after all this time, which was perfectly predictable, there was no need for concern.
Her body was surrounded by air bags on all sides, which served as a buffer all around her. This was an excellent example of the safety features kicking in to prevent the driver's body from suffering physical injury, as this arrangement could protect them from any type of shock.
In that case, she likely fainted due to the mental shock from this event.
At any rate, she was someone connected to the Yotsuba Family, so she should be able to endure some degree of incidents. Yet her current predicament looked just like an average person, right? Tatsuya couldn't help but ruminate on this.
Once the reusable air bags were tucked away, the automatic vehicle restarted itself.
Covering the slowly moving vehicle from behind, Tatsuya followed on his motorcycle.
By the time they reached the station, Sayuri had already regained consciousness. Her face was a little pale, but she displayed no sign of panic. Of course, Tatsuya was riding a motorcycle behind her during the entire trip, so he had no idea what expression was on her face anyway. After seeing her to the station, Sayuri forced Tatsuya to accept the box that contained the Magatama. Tatsuya felt that Sayuri's stubborn and relentless appearance exemplified her personality perfectly.
After Sayuri left, Tatsuya headed directly for the phone after returning home. He didn't use a mobile phone at the station for fear of eavesdroppers.
"Don't worry about the cameras on route. We've already started taking steps."
"Thank you very much, Major."
The phone was a direct line to the HQ of the Independent Magic- Equipped Battalion.
As someone who was forced to conceal his identity as one of the primary combatants for the Yotsuba Family within the Ten Master Clans as well as his alias as a Special Lieutenant within the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion, the first order of business for Tatsuya was to ensure that his identity wasn't exposed by the cameras.
Tatsuya straightened and saluted Kazama's image on the display.
"Still, I must say that our opponents are behaving quite recklessly. Even though this isn't the heart of the city, they still fired within the city proper."
"While I cannot deny that I was overly careless, I must admit that our opponents are quite skilled."
"They did not use magic, correct?"
"Affirmative."
Using magic to guide the bullet trajectory undoubtedly would cause a side effect from phenomenon rewriting.
Likewise, using sensory enhancement magic would also reveal their location due to the psion waves.
So long as they used magic, there was no way to hide themselves from Tatsuya.
Kazama was well aware of Tatsuya's capabilities.
"Yes, during nocturnal conditions and only relying on a scope, they still successfully sniped from nearly a kilometer out."
Kazama was glancing downwards on the screen, likely looking at the map for the sniper's location. Tatsuya didn't completely understand all the nuances regarding sniping; Kazama was much more familiar with the details. Seems like Kazama had found some sort of clue that Tatsuya hadn't discovered, so even though he hadn't seen it, he could grasp the details just from Tatsuya's report.
"There are a limited number of organizations around the world that can dispatch snipers of this quality. We might actually narrow this down rather quickly."
"Then we're relying on you."
Offense was the greatest defense, referring to the concept that by rendering an opponent powerless, one would remove the threat of attack. Since they had already crossed blades once, so long as neither side presses forward, a peaceful solution was not impossible for Tatsuya.
"Hm? Give me a second. ......
There's a new report coming in. We've found the car."
Even though the black car had covered its license plate, this degree of subterfuge could not fool the cameras along the streets set for defensive purposes. So long as they knew when and where the vehicle passed by, unique features could always be identified.
"Since the investigation has already begun, how about letting it start from this end?"
"As you wish."
At Kazama's question of verification, Tatsuya immediately nodded in response.
Tatsuya didn't quibble over details like whether he had to personally capture his escaped opponents.
◊ ◊ ◊
Owing to the unexpected live action sequence, dinner was slightly later than usual. Still, Miyuki didn't seem irritated in the slightest as she pranced around in a pink apron with frills as she prepared dinner.
"That apron
......?"
"You noticed?"
Hearing the words that slipped from his mouth, Miyuki smiled and turned her head.
The apron Miyuki was wearing was simplistic but adult in its design.
While Tatsuya didn't know whether this was merely a young lady's interest, this was the first time he beheld such a fantastically adorable apron.
"This was what you just bought today?"
Before splitting at the station, Miyuki had been pulled into a store catering to young women by Mizuki and Erika.
Tatsuya lounged on the chair as he waited for them, only to have them appear much sooner than expected. When asked what they bought, Erika only said that it was a "secret", so he didn't receive a real answer.
"Mizuki said she needed a new apron so I bought one as well. This doesn't look strange on me, does it?"
Since this was considerably different than her usual fashion, Miyuki watched Tatsuya with worried eyes.
Though it was a simple matter to pass on a compliment, Tatsuya took this opportunity to seriously evaluate his sister's attire.
Given that the apron's length was the same as her skirt, it gave off the impression that she was wearing a single dress.
And a mini-skirt apron to boot.
The two straps looped over the shoulders and crossed over the back along with a wide strap tied around the waist with an adorable butterfly knot, complete with a pair of thighs charmingly exposed from the bottom.
Definitely not a getup that can be shown to anyone else, Tatsuya thought.
"It suits you perfectly. In fact, I plan on putting you in a glass display case for personal perusal."
He realized that his choice of words was slightly odd. "Onii-sama's ideas are just a smidgen strange."
Just listening to her words might sound like she was surprised, but her expression clearly signified that she was trying to hide her embarrassment.
Still, Tatsuya didn't point this out to Miyuki and merely smiled as he picked up the chopsticks.
After dinner, the two siblings moved from the dinner table to the living room. After setting down a cup of coffee on the table before the sofa Tatsuya was occupying, Miyuki left her cup on the table and sat beside her brother.
"Speaking of which, why did that person visit us today? Did she bring a specimen for Magic Sequence storage?"
After finding a spot to sit, Miyuki sat with her legs closed and placed her hands on top of one another over them as she asked Tatsuya with eyes brimming with curiosity.
"She wanted to find out if Magic Sequence storage was possible."
Since this was an expected question, Tatsuya already prepared an answer.
"Asking for help, just like before."
Not like he was relying on half truths to muddle through this. "Still, this job may be a little more interesting."
"Has the contract already been accepted?"
Miyuki's question was just going through the motions, she had already understood through her brother's earlier words that this task was unavoidable.
"Given that the specimen is sitting right here, seems likely." Tatsuya's gaze shifted to one corner of the table.
The jewel box that Sayuri brought sat there innocuously.
Sayuri forced Tatsuya to hold onto the box in fear of further enemy attack.
"So this is the specimen? Does it possess the power to store Magic Sequences?"
What is it? At the wordless inquiry, Tatsuya opened the box. "A relic of the Magatama-class."
Keeping an eye on Miyuki, Tatsuya unveiled the item's true identity. Her hands flew to her face as Miyuki stared wide-eyed at Tatsuya. "Why does that woman have something like this?"
"It was a request from the military. I believe they asked us to replicate this."
"That's ridiculous."
While Miyuki didn't have the same depth of understanding as Tatsuya regarding how outrageous the replication of relics was, she still understood that this was a preposterous request.
Magic Sequences influenced the Eidos of an object in order to temporarily rewrite the information surrounding the object based on the conditions described within the Magic Sequence — this was magic. For example, an orb that is outwardly red contains an Eidos that "primarily reflected red light" and is "circularly shaped". If a Magic Sequence containing the condition "primarily reflecting blue light" influenced the Eidos, then the orb would turn blue. Since the Magic Sequence overwrote the Eidos on the object, the conditions within the Magic Sequence would temporarily replace the characteristics of the object. This effect would persist until the conditions from the Magic Sequence fades away.
Though the Magic Sequence occupied a central role in the invocation of magic, using magic to preserve Magic Sequences remained impossible.
Still, if the item itself possessed the ability to replicate the effects from the altered phenomenon and the Magic Sequence could be replicated, then the effects from magic would persist ad infinitum. In other words, copying the altered phenomenon and the Magic Sequence would become possible.
Which would preserve the characteristics of the Magic Sequence as well as the characteristics of the magical effects.
Logically speaking, if Magic Sequences that changed the temperature could be preserved, then high temperatures measuring in the hundreds of degrees or cold temperatures that were dozens of degrees below zero could be achieved without any input. Likewise, replication of Speed Magic that was preserved could create actual perpetual motion machines.
"Just possessing the ability to store Magic Sequences alone is insufficient to replace Magicians, since the Magic Sequences stored within these devices can only be activated through magic. While I have little stake in replicating the Magatama itself, if this item is truly able to store Magic Sequences, then understanding that process becomes absolutely integral."
"If it's Onii-sama, then anything is possible."
At some point, Miyuki scooted over until she was directly next to Tatsuya and laid her head against Tatsuya's shoulder. She gently reassured Tatsuya, who sat there with a chilly expression on his face as he spoke.
Miyuki's policy demanded that she did everything within her power to cover all the household chores that pertained to Tatsuya without leaving them to machinery, but even she wasn't such a stickler that she washed the dishes herself.
She was still a student, with her own pile of mandatory assignments, so some level of compromise was unavoidable.
The plates and utensils from dinner were left to the HAR to dispose of as Miyuki began her homework.
Despite being known as a magic high school, all other subjects besides magic were not mandatory.
There were no regular tests, but daily homework was highly emphasized.
Today, her homework assignment was mathematics. Strictly speaking, this was not one of her strong suits.
Stuck on a question that bedeviled her from the beginning, Miyuki allowed her attention to drift from the screen before her.
This was the age where the man-machine interface could easily process these problems, so no one save for mathematical researchers would actually work out problems by themselves. Yet, mathematical logic powerfully aided the development and formation of new magic, hence her brother had stringent instructions regarding this subject, and so cutting corners was not an option.
Miyuki heaved a bored "Whew".
At times like these, she envied her omnipotent brother.
Maybe I should ask Onii-sama to teach me, she idly thought before frantically shaking her head furiously.
Right now, Tatsuya was probably deep into analyzing that relic.
Her very presence alone bound Tatsuya's freedom, so she definitely couldn't bother him anymore, Miyuki thought.
The sole reason Tatsuya entered First High was because Miyuki enrolled in First High, at least this was how Miyuki interpreted the situation.
A diploma from a magic high school was a prerequisite for attending the National Magic University, but there were always exceptions; especially, talented individuals who might have discovered a "Cardinal Code" would immediately qualify for the examination process even without a magic high school diploma. So long as Tatsuya wished to do so, he would immediately obtain that right and simply passing the examination would not trouble him in the slightest.
Miyuki knew that her brother's goal lay in the graduate level research programs within the magic universities, so the life of a high school student was actually a considerable detour for him.
The reason Tatsuya was forced to do so was because he was Miyuki's guardian.
The guardians of the Yotsuba Family bore the duty of preserving their primary's life even at the cost of their own. This title came from the combat slaves that once rescued a young woman from the Yotsuba Family from enemy attack and were responsible for preserving the
Yotsuba bloodline.
On the surface, this mission differed little from ordinary bodyguards, but temporarily hired bodyguards were fundamentally different from guardians. While the Yotsuba guardians were not selected from birth, once selected, their term was for life. Though they were the same as bodyguards in that they served for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, guardians did not possess the right to resign from their duties. Since guardians were only relieved when their primary was released from protection, to this day, without exception, Yotsuba guardians had done their duty until the day they died.
Tatsuya possessed a certain degree of freedom by virtue of the fact that he could still protect his primary even away from the house. Magic was not restricted by physical distance or obstacles. There was no telepathic connection between the two, but Tatsuya was able to unconsciously monitor Miyuki's surroundings through his "Idea Identification Vision". In other words, it may be more accurate to say that he had cast magic to keep an eye on her.
Nevertheless, even Tatsuya wasn't able to use magic while sleeping.
Even if distance was no hindrance, their everyday lives needed to synchronize to some degree.
During holidays and long vacations, Miyuki could still match Tatsuya's activities, but in school Tatsuya had to link with Miyuki, so they had to accommodate the high school schedule. Also, though magic wasn't affected by physical distance, a closer proximity made it far easier to react to possible danger.
However, in the end, all of these were only true under the condition that Miyuki does not dismiss Tatsuya from his duties as a guardian.
Once Miyuki would dismiss Tatsuya, surely another guardian, likely of the same age and gender, would be dispatched to her. Even if the number of Magicians was limited, Miyuki was still one of the more promising candidates for the next head of the Yotsuba Family.
Of course, Miyuki hoped to retain Tatsuya as her guardian for reasons that went beyond her own stubbornness.
Within the Yotsuba Family, a guardian's mission held the highest priority.
While serving as Miyuki's guardian, he wouldn't be assigned any meaningless tasks. Nor would he receive any dirty jobs.
Even their father and his new wife couldn't press the issue on the surface.
They could not insist that Tatsuya help them in their work.
Even with all these considerations in mind, she still wished for her brother to attend the same school she did — the bottom line was that she herself was unable to separate herself from that dependence on her brother, something that Miyuki was aware of.
Again, Miyuki heaved a deep sigh.
Her frazzled mind was incapable of deciphering the answer, just as she was unable to solve the homework question before her.
Actually, even if she didn't need him to guide her through every step, all she needed to do was ask her brother for help. By the time Miyuki thought of this, 30 minutes had already passed.
