Chapter 112

As he ate breakfast while watching the morning news, Tatsuya noticed that he was unconsciously nodding along and hurriedly stopped his head motions. Fortunately, Miyuki's eyes were drawn to the television, so she remained oblivious to Tatsuya's odd movements.

"Mechanical failure? But I didn't see any forecast regarding hurricanes or thick fog."

Miyuki's skepticism arose from the news that a small American naval vessel drifted within Japanese territorial waters.

"It's hard to imagine that machines will have such a large breakdown, so it probably has something to do with the motor. In this age of automated machinery, the chance that this is caused by human failure while moving in the wrong direction is slim."

Seeing the pose his sister struck as she simply (?) accepted his word as truth while nodding along, he couldn't help but feel that his soul was being corrupted.

–Of course, Tatsuya was self-aware enough to know that was nothing more than a misconception.

On the other hand...

(Even if this is Oba-sama's direct order, the execution speed is simply too quick.)

Based on the time that the drifting vessel had been taken under "protection" and cross referenced against the time Tatsuya contacted Hayama, forget half a day, the entire episode from attack to clean-up was completed in barely half that time.

In other words, they were currently embroiled in secret warfare while their fighting strength was highly restricted, but their opponent was a nation's professional army. This was no militia found in small developing countries, but most likely the elite of the elite from a major superpower.

No matter how capable the Yotsuba agents were, this was an unbelievable operation tempo.

In short,

(By the time I made contact, they had already distributed their assets.)

In regards to exactly what their plans were, that he was not privy to. Maybe this was a natural coincidence, or perhaps they had planned on not interfering in the first place.

Nor was it impossible that they simply wanted to see Tatsuya bow down to them and request for aid.

(Regardless of what it is, it's not like I feel like I owe them anything.)

No matter what the background was, Tatsuya was satisfied so long as the end result was moving in the positive direction.

Miyuki intentionally portrayed her agreement to the motor malfunction explanation while she sneaked a peek at her brother's visage.

Her brother didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary from her.

While these small motions that misled her brother strained her, she also wanted to keep a few things from her brother on occasion.

Miyuki deposited the utensils and dinnerware in the kitchen and left the cleanup to the HAR (Home Automation Robot) before heading upstairs to her room to change.

Standing in front of the mirror, Miyuki gave a small sigh.

Miyuki didn't even need to watch the news to know something was afoot.

As usual, after Tatsuya left for his morning training after breakfast. Miyuki received a phone call from Maya.

The contents informed her that "the USNA troops threatening Tatsuya's surroundings have been dealt with".

Still, Miyuki remained unaware of which specific members in the Yotsuba Family conducted the operation. Thus, the only person whom Miyuki conveyed her thanks to was Maya. Despite knowing that these were methods to keep tabs on her, Miyuki's gratitude was heartfelt.

In addition, Miyuki requested that Maya, who typically did not look upon her brother and herself with favor, to keep all of this from Tatsuya.

(How wily I am... If Onii-sama knew the truth about this, then he must think I'm a terrible girl...)

On one hand, Miyuki wished to prevent Tatsuya thinking of her as a dolt of a child.

Concurrently, on the other hand, she tried her utmost to ensure Tatsuya didn't view her as a smart child.

From the bottom of her heart, Miyuki didn't want to be weigh down her brother.

Yet at the same time, the one thing she absolutely abhorred was for her brother to believe "my little sister doesn't need me anymore".

Once she became the head of the Yotsuba Family and was fully independent... Once he came to that conclusion, her brother may depart from her side.

Even if he wasn't leaving, he would probably still keep his distance. That, was the nightmare that ever tormented Miyuki.

Miyuki and Tatsuya were siblings by blood.

As she grew older, leaving her brother was a matter of course, just as he would naturally grow apart from his sister.

Miyuki also understood that one day she must marry.

She would be forced to accept someone other than her brother as her husband.

Though this was against Miyuki's wishes, society and this country called Japan would never allow her not to do this, so long as she was a talented Magician with hereditary genes boasting powerful magical qualities.

This was not something far off in the distant future, but something looming rather closely.

In the modern age, Magicians were required to marry early. This was especially the case for female Magicians, so that they could marry quickly and bear children. The reason behind this was that the sooner a Magician was born generation-wise, the greater the tendency for him or her to wield innately powerful magic. Scientists referred to this as "magic seeping into hereditary genes". The differences between the greatest Magicians of each generation weren't obvious, but the average power level was on the rise. Their parents' generation surpassed their grandparents' generation, just as they too surpassed their parents. While this would level off sooner or later, everyone was still bound by the overwhelming urge to bring forth the next generation as quickly as possible.

It wasn't strange for female students who applied for magical universities to suddenly drop out to raise children.

Mutations with unstable life expectancies were not under this restriction, but even now, well into the second or third generations, there was still a duty in the eyes of the public to bear children at a young age. Their mother marrying late and their aunt who maintained her steadfast resolve to remain single were both exceptions, though accepted only because of inescapable physical reasons.

Miyuki was the picture of perfect health, so none of those reasons applied.

Not to mention that she was seen as the next head of the Yotsuba Family, a bearer of exceptional genes.

In reality, she wouldn't do anything of that nature with any boy save her brother. These were Miyuki's true feelings. No, the real truth of the matter was that she detested all the other boys except for Tatsuya.

It wasn't a biological issue, so something like dancing was still acceptable. However, in Miyuki's heart, the only who was allowed to touch her was Tatsuya. The only who could do as he wished with her was Tatsuya alone.

The reflection in the mirror was that of herself clad in her underwear. As she looked upon herself, Miyuki couldn't help but think. These fingers and this hair, lips, bosom, the secret places that no one was allowed to see, all were available for Tatsuya to touch if he willed it so. If it was Tatsuya, she was willing to do anything.

--No matter if it was her body or heart, everything that she was belonged to Onii-sama—

This was Miyuki's truth, a wish that came from the bottom of her heart akin to prayer.

Yet, Miyuki also knew that these feelings would never come to pass. That was what she thought.

(Even if I'm just a lamentable little sister... No, it would be even better if I seem like an unreliable, lamentable little sister. If this will allow me to stay by Onii-sama's side forever...)

As she thought this, she also worked hard to ensure she was not resented by Tatsuya

All of this summed up the conundrum Miyuki was faced with.

◊ ◊ ◊

After stepping into the classroom for Year 1 Class E, Tatsuya noticed the atypical atmosphere and swept his gaze back and forth.

He immediately found the reason.

The arrangement of the 25 seats in the class were normally musically arranged with boys and girls mixed together.

Tatsuya sat behind Leo, Mizuki sat to his left – and the source of the turmoil came from one row across from the seat next to the window.

Fuming, Erika sat there looking out the window. Displeasure seemed to ooze out of her very being as she sat in that posture.

(Well... I guess that can't be helped.)

Tatsuya had a clear grasp on the source of the displeasure. Based on that adoring look from last summer, it was very hard her to accept what happened last night.

"Tatsuya... Erika-chan, what's going on?"

A voice called out to Tatsuya after he swept a quick glance over Erika before sitting down.

While watching Tatsuya's face, Mizuki kept half her mind on Erika.

Even if it wasn't 80% or 90% of her attention on Erika, the only thing she could acutely pick up was that Tatsuya knew something.

Based on the looks from Mikihiko and Leo that looked like Mizuki's own, they also noticed.

However, there were things in this world that Tatsuya was unable to answer even if asked.

At the very least, he couldn't say "Last night, Erika's second brother was defeated by Lina".

"What is going on here?"

In the end, Tatsuya had no choice but to play dumb.

One of his friends' positive points was that they wouldn't fuss for too long. Their reasons differed in that this was Mizuki's nature, while Mikihiko and Leo had personal experiences with "things that they didn't want other people to know".

Still, it was inevitable for them to be subtly influenced by this unnatural atmosphere.

The uncomfortable mood continued on, to the point of the rare occasion where the five classmates separated during lunch – the word classmate was used intentionally because Miyuki and Honoka were usually included in the mix.

Any change in the situation came about after school.

Just as he told his sister last night, Tatsuya swiftly negotiated (in secret) with the holder and privately borrowed Pixie.

This was not for amusement purposes, but for an interrogation, except that the storage room belonging to the Robotics Club wasn't suited for that venture.

That being said, her garb was simply too eye-catching for waltzing around campus. He also wished to avoid any rumors or suspicions (of his interests), and with his objectives in mind, being conspicuous was simply no good.

Thus, Tatsuya first ordered Pixie to change into a girl's uniform. The uniform was actually a costume for humanoid models that Mayumi borrowed from the Arts Club. There was some concern that the differences in the human skeletal structure and the machine's design may interfere with changing clothes, but the 3H's body proved to be more flexible than imagined, so both acts of removing clothes and changing were possible. Though the lines in the lower half of the body were somewhat unnatural, but Tatsuya had already planned ahead by preparing a uniform that was one size larger so this detail wasn't as obvious. Anyone who passed by along the halls would only assume that she was a female student. –Just in case, it should be stated that Tatsuya had no peculiar feelings while watching a humanoid robot changing clothes.

After all this, Tatsuya brought Pixie to an empty room in the labs and began his interrogation.

Setting aside the awkwardness of hearing a voice reverberate through his head and feeling the mysteriously burning hot gaze that had nothing to do with optics coming from its optics, Tatsuya began his questioning.

The questions he asked pertained to the "vampire incident". In particular, the victims clearly bore no sign of injury, yet an unbelievably massive amount of blood was missing from their bodies. Questions regarding this mechanic and the motive behind it. These were the topics that drew Tatsuya's attention ever since he heard about this incident.

"Were Parasites responsible for removing the blood from the victims?"

((YES.))

"Why did you need blood from living humans?"

((Blood loss was not our intent. That is the side effect of failed reproduction.))

"Please give a more detailed explanation."

((Our reproduction process begins by separating a part of ourselves and transplanting that portion into the body of a potential host. The separated portion will absorb the psions and pushions in the blood to grow, thus replacing the lost blood within the flesh of the vessel.))

"Hold on... Replacing blood with yourself? As information bodies, you shouldn't have energy. Where does the energy from the replaced blood go?"

((It is consumed by the body during the assimilation process. If assimilation fails, then it would be transformed into gas and expelled out of the body along with the separated portion.))

"I see, so that's how it works... Continue."

((If entry into the flesh is successful, then we are able to tap into the astral form of the information body.))

"Mutual use of body the information body and the material form, much like the theory behind magic."

((The astral form is the route that leads to the spirit. Once a connection has been made between the astral form and the vessel's spirit, then reproduction via assimilation has succeeded. Unfortunately, there are currently no examples of such success.))

"Reason being?"

((Unknown. I would like to know as well. For reason, only that feeling remains in my heart.))

"...How many of your companions are in this country?"

((At the time I took refuge in this vessel there were six.)) "Can Parasites communicate amongst one another?" ((YES.))

"What is your communication range?"

((Anywhere within this country's borders would be possible.)) "Where are the other Parasites currently located?"

((Locations unknown. Since residing in this body, the link to my companions has been severed.))

Pixie never hesitated when answering Tatsuya's queries.

There was no way to differentiate expressions on that face, but her cognitive pattern appeared to be in high spirits. This, at least, didn't seem like a misconception on his part. Exactly how accurately emotions could be conveyed across telepathy and to what degree those feelings could be disguised were both uncertain, but the feeling being sent across seemed like genuine happiness that she was able to assist Tatsuya.

Despite the callousness of this statement, it was undeniably chilling to be perceived in a positive light by a monster. Still, all of this could be relaxed when one recalled that the host was an "object" and not a human being. He made a clear distinction between the two, so this was nothing more than both sides using one another, thus he proceeded without a guilty conscience.

As the two of them sat alone (to be precise, more like one person and one machine) in the classroom, Erika entered the classroom during the lull in the interrogation.

"Tatsuya-kun, may I come in for a second?"

There was no way of telling if she calculated that this was perfect time to make an entrance after eavesdropping or this was pure coincidence.

Given that this was Erika, nothing would be awry even if she overheard anything. Then again, since the question and answer session was done via telepathy, no one could overhear them no matter how hard they tried.

He had no complaints about the sudden request for entry.

Since this wasn't his room and he wasn't changing, there was no need to require people "to knock". However—

"I don't mind if you want to ask me something, but please rein in that killing intent of yours a little. I'm not entirely blind, you know."

--He honestly wished she would calm down a little. "Ah, sorry."

Erika herself seemed to be oblivious to that matter. She blushed in embarrassment after Tatsuya pointed it out.

"No, so long as you understand."

She truly appeared to be unaware, seeing as how the porcupine-like aura that clung to Erika's body gradually faded into thin air.

In other words, she had added those emotions into the mix. He couldn't help but feel that she shared a few points of similarity with his sister, so he had to earnestly suppress the wry grin threatening to leak from his lips.

"Pixie, lock the door." "Understood."

Switching with Pixie, Erika stood before Tatsuya.

Despite his encouragement for her to take a seat, she declined to do so. Erika maintained her standing position as she looked down at Tatsuya as he sat in his seat.

Since he understood the feelings running through her, Tatsuya didn't press the issue.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" "You already know."

"Just the anticipated conversation?"

"Exactly... Last night, a brother of mine engaged in a disgraceful performance."

Erika's response was within expected parameters, but Tatsuya had more than one answer prepared ahead of time.

"That's it?"

"At any rate, this comes first."

I see, so some things come first. Just as Tatsuya was about to say this, Erika continued on.

"Who was the other guy?"

There was no small talk involved as she asked her question directly. Speaking of which, seeing as how she didn't even wait for an explanation of the opponent involved, she must be very agitated.

"USNA Military, Stars High Commander, Angie Sirius." In response, Tatsuya's answer was also decisive and direct.

Maybe it was because she didn't expect him to answer immediately, a cloud of confusion gathered around Erika.

"So, what are you going to do after hearing that?"

Taking advantage of Erika's momentary bemusement, this time it was Tatsuya to raise a question.

"That sort of thing... Do you even need to ask?"

She appeared to be a little shocked at the direct question out of the blue, but she immediately fired back with a fierce look on her face.

"I can surmise what course of action you have in mind, but... I recommend you give up, Erika."

"Are you saying that it's impossible for me?"

This was not the unconsciously expressed fury from before.

Tatsuya didn't even bat an eyelid as he absorbed this intentional display of wrath.

"It is impossible. Not because of talent, but from a results perspective."

"...What do you mean?"

The first half of that that phrase was still buoyed by fury, but the latter half was switched for astonishment.

"You saw the news this morning, correct? It doesn't matter if it was the images or the words."

"I did. Which one are you talking about?"

"The news about the small USNA vessel left adrift." "That one... You can't mean?"

"How astute of you."

Upon seeing the change in Erika's facial expression, Tatsuya's words were not simple courtesy, but honest praise.

"Though this remains a mere possibility... But "Sirius" will likely not appear again. Even if both sides remain in a standoff, there is no benefit to be gained here for either side."

Erika didn't have an answer or rejection for Tatsuya's suggestion. "Tatsuya-kun..."

In comparison, she was staring in all seriousness at Tatsuya as if she beheld a completely unidentifiable stranger.

"Who….. What are you...?"

No, not "as if". She actually saw him as an enigma.

"That sort of thing, at least for my family... That is beyond the

Chiba Family." "Is that so?"

Tatsuya wasn't playing dumb here, but he had no other options at this point.

"Not just our family. This is definitely impossible for families like Isori, Chiyoda, and Tomitsuka. I don't know exactly how this happened, but the only ones capable of getting that kind of result would be the Ten Master Clans. And even then, only..."

"I believe that's far enough, correct?"

"A lineage of incredible power. A family whose power base surrounds the capital, or a family who has free reign to act regardless of territory or jurisdiction."

She couldn't stop speaking. "Erika, enough."

"Removing the Ichijou Family station in the north... Then there is only Saegusa, Juumonji, or... Yotsuba. Tatsuya-kun, you can't possibly be..."

"Silence!"

"Ah!"

Erika shut her mouth not because of coarseness of Tatsuya's voice or the volume, but the intent mixed within.

"Any further would only result in things getting awkward for everyone."

Tatsuya calmly made that declaration.

Erika was not lacking in experience when it came to walking though the valley of death.

She was not falling quiet because she was overawed by his manner. Rather, her extensive experience told her to do so.

Especially because she was about to recklessly cross over the line. "...I'm sorry."

"As long as you understand."

The phrase was similar to the ones before. As usual, his tone was light. However, cold sweat dripped down Erika's back.

"Erika, even if you wanted to find out who Sirius is, there is nothing for it now. Thus, let's just end things here."

"...You're right."

She understood that half the reason why Tatsuya changed the subject was for herself, so Erika acknowledged Tatsuya's proposal.

"Then, let's hear what else you wanted to know. I assuming it has something to do with the Parasite's remnants."

"Spot on, though this doesn't really merit praise. You wouldn't be Tatsuya if you couldn't discern things to this level."

Finally, she had regained her usual self at least for appearance's sake, which must mean she was aware of it now.

"Were those words of yours actually praise?"

"At the very least, I'm not demeaning you, right?"

During this acting sequence, Erika was gradually resuming her typical state. This high degree of resiliency was quite admirable.

"It's not like I planned on leaving things alone. You can count on me to let you know if I hear anything."

As he said this, Tatsuya directed a look at Pixie that was full of undercurrents.

Erika also sneaked a peek at Pixie before the corners of her mouth twitched upwards in a satisfied manner.

"Definitely, OK? In response, I will also be open about this and not hold anything back."

It was precisely Erika's personality to add a corollary to this part of their agreement now.

"Ah, agreed."

This was appropriate distance when it came down to his relationship with her.

"Then, Tatsuya-kun, sorry for bothering you."

"Ah, and please convey my regards to your older brother."

The hand Erika extended towards the door shook for a bit, but Erika quickly left the room as if nothing had happened. Tatsuya had no further remarks for that.

◊ ◊ ◊

After leaving the classroom where she had the secret conversation (?) with Tatsuya, Erika quickly walked down the hall. After returning the sparsely populated experimental building to the main floor, Erika leaned back against the wall of the corridor.

And heaved a giant sigh of relief.

As if finally realizing how deep of a hole she was in, cold sweat ran down her temple.

Thinking back on what happened, she couldn't help but think she was behaving strangely today.

Normally, she would never do something so silly like stepping on a tiger's tail.

--Scratch that, rather than calling that a tiger's tail, more like the untouchable scales of a dragon.

--Thanks to that, she knew clearly.

--She even knew the things that she didn't need to know. (...How terrible.)

Erika's lips curled into a self-depreciative smile.

Once she drew back the curtain and witnessed what was going on, a lot of things suddenly made sense.

Originally, Erika didn't agree with "that person" who even called on her second brother's assistance to find out about Tatsuya. She thought that, as one of Tatsuya's companions, she should obstruct such a thing.

She had planned on safeguarding Tatsuya's secret.

Now, for some reason, she wasn't just "wanting to protect" but being "forced to protect".

This was not to say that if Erika leaked the secret that Tatsuya would come down on her with a vengeance.

(I get the feeling that even if I let it slip, Tatsuya would just laugh and forgive me.)

Still, everything had a "what if", which prompted some serious consideration on Erika's part.

There was no way she was going to put that to the test.

Just Tatsuya's ability alone would be incredibly difficult, and on top of that – though that only remained a possibility.

(Ah~~~~ ...I'm so confused. Seriously, I should've "let sleeping dogs lie".)

Why the heck did she say that, Erika wordlessly complained to herself.

Now that she thought about it, there was a sense that she was being led around.

(That's ridiculous... That's pushing it too far no matter how evil

Tatsuya-kun's personality is.)

Erika resolutely smiled to blow away all those hanging concerns.

She was furiously backpedaling away from the notion that he was capable of doing exactly that.

◊ ◊ ◊

(...Did that backfire on me?)

Tatsuya thought to himself as he kept staring at the door after Erika left.

He had considered the possibility that Chiba Naotsugu's intervention yesterday was the result of the Chiba Family joining the Saegusa Family, or more appropriately, the recon vanguard dispatched by JSDF intelligence bureau after being goaded on by the Saegusa Family, but this appeared to have nothing do with Erika.

Still, this may be as simple as Erika being not informed. (Forget it. They would catch on sooner or later.)

In the end, Erika had already witnessed all sorts of things. Not only had she seen his powers, but also Miyuki's "Cocytus". Based on her outstanding instincts, all of this was simply a matter of time regardless.

(Based on the end result, we still pulled her in anyways.)

This development was not something that Tatsuya planned for in his scenario, but it was fine in his book so long as the result was alright, he thought.

Typically, it was impossible to keep a secret without a few conspirators.

There were situations where the person in question simply could not cover everything by themselves. Strictly speaking, that was because those who sought these secrets acted behind the backs of the person in question. At that time, the ideal scenario was for the seeker to run into a third party that happened to be the conspirator.

Tatsuya unilaterally drew the curtain on this incredibly selfish monologue.

"Pixie."

((Yes, Master.))

Tatsuya more or less understood that when conversing with Pixie using telepathy, they were communicating with concepts rather than words. The image being sent over was then translated into words by the receiving side.

Even while wearing a servant's garb, being called "Master" by someone wearing the same school uniform still threw him out of sorts. Still, this was how the other entity felt and once this became a habit during their telepathic communication, there was nothing he could do about it.

Nonetheless, Tatsuya was glad that at least the term hadn't translated into something like "My Lord" or "Milord". After all, this was his personal preference when it came down to language.

Since she (?) used a mobile form of telepathy, Tatsuya believed that she was unaware of this. She was probably doing this after reading the behavioral patterns based on the names recorded in the electronic brain, Tatsuya thought as he moved before her.

"Before taking hold of this body, you guys appeared to function like a group towards a common objective. Within your group, was there an entity that served as a leader?"

((There is no one among us who functions in the capacity of a leader.)) "Then how do you maintain group cohesion?"

((Strictly speaking, all of us are not independent bodies. We are both individuals and the whole body. While we possess the ability to think critically, we also share our consciousness.))

"In other words, one mind exists in a state with multiple cognitive processes?"

((Not cognitive processes. I think it would be more appropriate to describe this as an incompletely independent cognitive process in the subconscious being gathered by a higher level of cognition.))

"I understand. However, in that case, if the subconscious has differing agendas, wouldn't the higher level lose cohesion?"

((Under the condition that the life form is set as the host, then it is impossible to completely avoid being influenced by the host's most fundamental desires. Our actions are determined when survival instincts and reproductive impulses reach an accord within the consciousness.))

"Life extension and producing more companions. Quite simply really for life forms seeking survival."

((Indeed. We will abide by the life form's greatest desire then proceed along with survival and reproducing as our goals.))

"Since there is a unified consensus within the group, does the group provide assistance for objectives that lie outside of survival and replication?"

((Despite achieving general consensus, we still possess individual sense of self that reciprocates the host's personal desires on our own. However, that is under the condition that the overall objective holds the priority, so I think it's just as Master believes.))

"I see..."

Tatsuya fell into a reverie after speaking.

One reason that she failed to interrupt him any further could be that she wasn't human in the first place, or the fact that her host was pure machinery.

"Then, the current you is something that exists outside of the general consensus, an almost heretical existence. If a dissent appeared in your group, wouldn't you be eliminated?"

((We do not have the desire to root out dissenters. However, once they determine that I may pose an obstacle to their objective, they may elect to launch a pre-emptive attack.))

"I see... I have one other question. Right now, you said that you are cut off from contact with the rest of your comrades, but can you detect their presence?"

((That is possible if the target shows high activity. On the other hand, my current state is one such that they can also detect my presence if we're in the same area.))

"Is that so?"

Tatsuya fell into a thoughtful posture before immediately giving new orders.

"Pixie, return to the trailer, change into your original uniform and enter sleep mode. I will find you later."

((Understood. Executing standby orders.))

Pixie primly, or rather stiffly, bowed before moving towards the garage.

Tatsuya mentally selected the equipment he needed, first returned home, then went to the Student Council to pick up Miyuki.

In the year 2095, the world had grown smaller. However, the gap between Magicians and mundane humans was the exact opposite.

Magicians had received official recognition after early deployment and action in the scattered national territorial disputes and were heavily restricted from leaving the country except on government business. For Magicians, the world had shrank to within the country's interior.

On the other hand, mundane humans could take full advantage of the advancements in transportation technology. Land, sea, and air travel had all become streamlined and more efficient, so people could freely travel internationally. Now, getting to the other side of the world was a simple matter of one quick flight in a matter of hours, removing the need to switch flights. Compared to one hundred years ago, the world had indeed become smaller.

After experiencing conflicts across the world, every country paid careful scrutiny to potential illegal immigrants who loitered within the country's borders for too long. In comparison, the current trend was that short stays from foreign travelers were on the rise. This was made blatantly obvious by the sight of foreigners walking along the streets of Tokyo.

On the eastern bank of the "river", no Japanese person would find it odd for young men of Spanish or mestizo ancestry walking with young women of equally mixed ethnicities at dusk. None of the citizens would have found it strange for the three of them to walk into the large, somewhat out of fashion hospital.

There were beds laid out in the hospital's basement.

Usually, this would be considered on par for the course, but these beds usually wouldn't appear in a hospital.

The bedspring wrapped within the black leather was practically useless, so rather than calling this a bed, this was more like a long, rectangular box.

The various beds weren't arranged in one row or split into two rows of four or five, but a haphazard arrangement of all 9 beds. Atop each bed lay a young male, each with a face from East Asian descent. All nine of them had pale faces as they slept on beds with no pillows without a single chest rising or descending. They appeared to be corpses, or in a near death-like state. The basement only contained the 9 silent young men as well as the three men and women of mixed descent who just entered.

A white male stood in the gap formed by the beds set up with the head facing inwards. Standing in the darkness, he almost seemed like a necromancer.

The mestizo male checked his watch and raised an arm as if waiting for something. After approximately ten minutes, the man looked towards the young woman standing on the other side of the ring of beds. This appeared to be some sort of signal as the woman nodded and raised both hands before her face.

The man repeated the same motion. Between the man and woman who were facing one another, the white male clapped his hands while his footsteps emitted noise.

The clapping continued. The steps continued as well.

The young man and the woman joined the white male in clapping while the sound of their pacing around the ring continued. As the young man and woman switched positions, the white male gave a louder clap.

Before the sound faded, the silent bodies rose from bed. One body, then another.

Eight of those previously in a near death-like state had revived from their black beds.

In the darkness of the basement, there was the sound of an insect's wings flapping, except this existed in the mental landscape instead of the material world or the Idea.

If translated into a human language— (I/We have finally reawakened.) (My/Our numbers have decreased again.) (Another person/one was lost?)

(Are there enough vessels?)

(Negative. The facilitator has procured them for us just as you see.) (The Chinese spiritualists are quite capable.)

(Ho, at least they surpass me/our levels.)

(The desire for life on the cusp of death. The consciousness has been suspended.)

(But I/we have also learned from this. Now we know how to move from host to host.)

(Even if the vessel is destroyed next time, activities can still resume after a short delay.)

(It should be easy to replace the missing person/one.) (Let's go reclaim my/our missing companion.) (Let's find my/our companion.)

--This was the contents of that conversation. This was the conversation held between the three bodies who had come from overseas and the eight monsters who had reawakened from their slumber.

◊ ◊ ◊

After returning home, Tatsuya headed for the phone instead of changing first. Rather than using the telephone with the large screen in the living room, he used the secured line in his own room. Any power usually reserved for external purposes was instead diverted to encryption on the phone that Tatsuya used to call Hayama, the butler for the Yotsuba Family. Right now, he was barely in time for the appointment he arranged ahead of time by mail.

"You're just on time, Tatsuya-dono." "Hayama-san, much thanks for last evening."

Both sides skipped the small talk. Tatsuya was matching Hayama's tempo. Rather than saying the old butler was in a hurry because of his schedule, Tatsuya got the impression that the old man had something he wanted to say.

"As I said last night, there's no need to thank me. After all, protecting Miyuki-sama is the second highest priority for us in the Yotsuba Family."

"Hayama-san, saying you say that so lightly puts me in a small quandary."

"There are no issues so long as the time frame and opponents are made clear. More importantly, I am different from that person in that I'm not brave enough to tangle with Tatsuya-dono."

He appeared to have enough time to engage in some small talk.

That being said, Tatsuya didn't have much time on his end. Though he had specifically requested a secure line, he still wanted to convey critical information as quickly as possible. –In addition, Tatsuya wasn't sure what he was going to do if Hayama brought up the conversation he had several months ago with Aoki.

"So, what did you need to talk to me about? You could not send this via mail nor was there time to meet in person, so I conclude that this information must be vital."

"Oh yes, that's right."

Hayama's voice sounded like he just remembered this. However, anyone could have noticed that this was nothing but theatrics based on the voice intonation alone even if they didn't Hayama's personality.

"Tatsuya-dono, in regards the to the monster incident, the 3rd Division will be mobilized. I just wanted to convey this to you."

"Third Division... JSDF Intelligence Counterintelligence

Department 3rd Division? I believe that interesting unit is affiliated with the Saegusa camp, correct?"

After Tatsuya said this, a chuckling sound could be heard over the receiver.

"I don't think they would want someone like you from the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion calling them interesting, but it is indeed that 3rd Division."

"My interests do not lie in the direction of eradicating the source. In other words, the Saegusa Family is using the 3rd Division to investigate the Parasite... No, capture them instead?"

"Though I wanted to say that you are as sharp as always, but we are still unclear on their objective. Unfortunately, it is most likely aligned with what Tatsuya-dono just said."

How troublesome, Tatsuya thought from the bottom of his heart. This was originally a complicated incident with multiple factions already invested, now a new player had joined the fray. Furthermore, the Saegusa camp had a decidedly different perspective than Mayumi.

"Thank you very much for this valuable information."

Still, he was not allowed to just reset the board and try again. No matter how difficult it was, reality differed from games, and do overs were not an option.

"I felt that this was necessary after taking Miyuki-sama's safety into consideration. Please do not forget this, Tatsuya-dono."

"I will keep that in mind."

Indeed, they could not destroy the world that Miyuki lived in. Though there was no need for Hayama's extra reminder, Tatsuya accepted the comment without resistance.

◊ ◊ ◊

Seven o'clock in the evening.

All the students had long returned home, and the only lonely souls still occupying the school were a few of the faculty members. The school gates had been locked and, until the next day, access was strictly denied to all but a small group of exceptions. Teaching supplies, products for the campus store, and foodstuffs for the cafeteria were all largely brought through the back door to the underground passage before sundown.

The only ones allowed access were a handful of faculty members, security guards from a contracted security company, engineers working on maintenance that could only be done at night, individuals with special dispensation from the school, and select members from the Student Council.

This power that seemed a mite overkill even for student government was adopted last year while Mayumi was Student Council President. This was a huge help in that there was no longer a need to submit a request with valid reasons to the faculty. This was also especially useful for situations where the reasons could not be stated aloud.

Tatsuya had already made arrangements on the way home before he arrived there, and was now carrying the package that arrived at home on his back before heading for school. From the security guard at the door, he received 3 ID cards issued to visitors that only allowed night time access after a confirmation number from the Student Council was inputted. This was designed so that anyone not carrying a valid ID at night would trigger the security alarm as a suspicious individual.

As to why there were 3 cards, well, one of them was obviously for himself.

The second one was for Miyuki.

Miyuki received the ID card with a satisfied smile.

At first, Tatsuya never planned on bringing Miyuki along. The original plan called for Miyuki to watch the house.

Unfortunately, Miyuki added on a condition when issuing the night time access number.

She said she wanted to come along.

The power to issue access confirmation lay within the hands of Azusa, the Student Council President. However, just as the rumors went, the real power in the Student Council was the Vice President and not the President. Approximately three hours ago, this was on full display in front of Tatsuya.

After failing to convince his stubborn little sister otherwise, Tatsuya was forced to acquiesce.

Miyuki, along with one other.

The third card was handed to Honoka, who met him at the station. This may not need to be said, but just as with Miyuki, no, even before Miyuki, Tatsuya never planned on bringing Honoka along. The reason everything turned out like this was because Honoka was also present when the question about the access confirmation came up in the Student Council Room. Indeed, he could only blame himself for being careless. On top of that, even if he could refuse her, he couldn't tell her the real reason with Azusa and Isori eavesdropping on them. He still might have been able to deny Honoka's request, but he could not go through with this after Miyuki threw in her support. Additionally, unlike Miyuki, Honoka received the ID card from Tatsuya with a petrified expression on her face.

The reason he requested the access card was to "investigate the odd behaviors in the 3H-P94 model". Nevertheless, the real reason Tatsuya wanted to bring Pixie outside was to bait the Parasites.

He knew something after questioning Pixie multiple times, and that was "the Parasites won't leave Pixie alone". Although this knowledge was nothing more than speculation, Tatsuya had confidence in that line of thinking. If the general consensus lost contact with a component, they should attempt to recover that piece. Tatsuya judged that in order to accomplish this, they had to make contact somehow.

He had no way of locating the Parasites, though he didn't need to do that actively. –Until yesterday, that is. Since Pixie had been possessed by the Parasite, he could not wash himself of the whole deal. There was a much bigger problem with handing over Pixie in that state, and when compared to all that, he wanted to wipe out the Parasites even more. He had originally planned on fighting the Parasites again, which was precisely the reason why he asked to train with Yakumo. Pixie was nothing more than the impetus that changed a reactive stance to a more proactive one.

Tatsuya wasn't planning on taking out all the Parasites tonight. Still, he believed that if they could lure out one or two, then that would lead to clues regarding the rest of them.

After taking into account the danger involved with this course of action, Tatsuya probably should have decisively forbidden Miyuki and Honoka from accompanying him. In all likelihood, Tatsuya was probably numb to the "danger" of too many things.

While strategizing tonight's activities, he never planned on proceeding alone. Based on his experiences to this point and contemplating the necessity of this move, he petitioned Erika and Mikihiko for support. It was only thanks to their help that he was able to allow Miyuki, who was in the know, and Honoka, who was somewhat of a participant, to come along.

First High's school rules required students to wear their uniforms before or after class, but this restriction was lifted when visiting the campus at night. On the surface, this was because the ID card had a built in transmitter so there was no need to wear a uniform, but in reality, the underlying intent was to prevent students from wandering around on the streets after hours in their uniform.

This was a matter of risk avoidance – better to have less incidents than more incidents – for the school. Understanding this, Tatsuya complied with that wish and wore the same combat-use jacket he usually wore.

Matching her brother, Miyuki wore a half coat, sweat pants, and a pair of high boots for mobility.

Yet, Honoka still wore her uniform underneath her jacket. This caused one to ponder if she was fully aware of what they were about to do tonight, but Tatsuya wouldn't be Tatsuya if he did something so blatant like expressing that thought aloud.

"Honoka, did you not go home today?"

Miyuki was the one who gently asked the question on her brother's mind.

"Eh? No, I did go home."

Honoka lived alone in a rented room that was much closer to school than the siblings' residence. It was fairly implausible for her to not have enough time to change.

"Is... wearing a uniform, going to be a problem...?"

"Well, it's not going to be a problem... But it might be a little inconvenient."

Though scolding words were to be avoided, they were planning on running into trouble tonight. Furthermore, Honoka seemed to have missed that memo.

If he knew this was going to happen, he should have explained more carefully, Tatsuya thought with a hint of regret.

"Onii-sama, would it be better for Honoka to first stop by her apartment?"

Miyuki wanted to dispel the glum atmosphere.

"We can wait for her downstairs while Honoka changes."

Miyuki probably wasn't doing this to "help her rival". Most likely, she was presenting a solution to Tatsuya's puzzlement.

"That's true. It's too late for us to visit... If Honoka is OK with it, let's go."

"Of course not! I, uh, would never mind if you came to visit. If you have time, please drop by."

However, while completely unrelated to Miyuki's thoughts, this was something that Honoka dearly wished for.

And so, while this drama was playing out, the three of them arrived at the garage for the Robotics Club. The door was locked of course, but things like locks were designed to be easily disabled from within.

Tatsuya pulled out his portable terminal and engaged short range communications before sending out a recognition signal that he prepared ahead of time. The response was practically immediate.

((Did you call for me, Master?))

A simple door's thickness, even a heavily reinforced armored door that was completely out of place on this flimsy looking exterior, was not going to affect telepathy.

"Open the door for me." ((Understood.))

Immediately after the response, the door to the garage opened.

Not far inside, the silhouette of a doll wearing a maid uniform dropped into a deep curtsey. Even with a monster dwelling inside, the basic behavioral modules were still active.

Once Pixie raised her head, Tatsuya removed the first thing from the bag.

"Pixie, put this on."

Even if it was late at night, no, on some level precisely because it was late at night, there was no way they could bring her around like this (in her maid getup). Whatever the case, any reason for wearing a maid uniform was no good. For this operation, Tatsuya first had to prepare a set of clothing for Pixie.

It appeared that orders of this extent did not require a verbal response. All of a sudden, Pixie began removing her dress.

Tatsuya treated this entire process as if it was all a matter of course. This is already the second time he has seen "her" changing clothes after school, and since he had no interest in treating humans and dolls in the same light, to him Pixie changing clothes was the same thing as lifting the hood on an automatic car.

"Onii-sama? Why are you just watching!?"

However, it appeared that it was a little difficult for Miyuki to come around to his line of thinking.

Likewise, Honoka seemed to share that sentiment based on her disapproving gaze.

"What are you talking about, Miyuki? Pixie is a robot." "A robot that happens to be a girl!"

"No, humanoid actually, and not precise enough to emulate the human body..."

Just as Tatsuay said, the 3H was designed to be a humanoid robot "indistinguishable from human beings after putting on clothes", but the portions and lines hidden beneath the clothes could not possibly compare with a human female. The "parts" on a doll used for deviant purposes would be a little more pronounced.

The torso gave the impression of "a woman wearing a skin-colored leotard", but that only extended to the waist. The portion from the waist to the leg showed lines that clearly belonged on a robot, and even wearing tights over that could not hide the fact she wasn't human. That was the reason why the disguise involved a long dress.

Still, for the two young ladies, subjectivity trumped objectivity.

Miyuki forcibly turned Tatsuya around while Honoka stood protectively between Pixie and the other two.

Though he felt that this was a little ridiculous, it wasn't like he wanted to peep. Until the moment the two of them gave the OK, Tatsuya obediently kept his back to them.

"Tatsuya, it's OK now."

Despite Honoka's words, Tatsuya checked Miyuki's expression just in case before turning around.

The clothes that Tatsuya brought included a standard windbreaker jacket with high elasticity as well as knee length skirt that covered the lines.

A scarf was wrapped twice around her neck.

A hat to cover the facial features was not provided on purpose.

The legs were wrapped in a thick pair of leggings and boots, which served to hide the fine details while improving the purchase on the feet. –These were all suggestions he took from the female officer responsible for clothing in the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion.

Honoka produced a brush out of nowhere and started organizing Pixie's hair. Pixie didn't seem to care in the slightest as she stood there without moving. This was declaring that, no matter how she looked on the outside, she was just a doll and not a human. Tatsuya did not have such high demands from Pixie.

As long as she could move about on the streets without suspicion, that was more than sufficient.

On that point, Pixie's current appearance was passable. "Pixie, follow me."

As if declaring the onset of hostilities, Tatsuya made this declaration He gave a lofty order as if commanding a slave.

Completely apathetic.

◊ ◊ ◊

Erika stood in front of her brother's room in a daze.

For her, this was unexpected beyond the unexpected. She couldn't believe she was still so weak in some areas.

Although she wasn't nervous when coming to her mother's house, she still tried her utmost to avoid her father and older sister. There was no conflict with those two, but she also wanted to dodge her oldest brother. Thankfully, her eldest brother shouldn't have returned at this hour yet.

At any rate, quickly handling the issue and then retreating far away from here to her own room was the best bet, so stalling in the hallways was the worst possible choice.

"Second brother, it's me, Erika."

She encouraged herself to strike up a conversation. "Come in."

There was a tiny delay before a response was heard. The sound was neither displeased nor welcoming.

Instead, the unpleasant aura must already have been retracted. Striking down the urge to do an "about face", Erika opened the door. "What is it, coming here at this hour?"

Naotsugu sat in a chair at the writing table. He turned in his chair and faced his upper body towards Erika. However, Erika noticed that the bed behind the writing table showed signs of someone just in bed recently.

Although this was the opposite situation from last night, Erika didn't open her mouth to scold him.

"There's just a few things I wanted to talk to you about." Erika's tone was slightly hesitant.

Her change was brought about by the forced smile that floated across Naotsugu's face.

"Go ahead."

Naotsugu's response was a little half-hearted, almost as if it was like "I'll listen just because it's you". Yet, this didn't lesson Erika's load in the slightest, since something else seemed to be on his mind.

"Onii-san, have you heard of a unit called the 101st Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion?"

"Why do you know that name, Erika?"

Erika was a little hurt by Naotsugu's nonchalant attitude and rallied to utter those words, words that immediately captured all of Naotsugu's attention.

"Actually..."

Once she got here, Erika was again filled with doubt, but there was no other way to go about it.

"The person Onii-san was protecting is actually my classmate, Shiba Tatsuya-kun. He happens to be one of the soldiers for the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion."

"What did you just say...?"

Erika was trembling with hesitation, if not outright fear, as she said this, to which Naotsugu was unable to hide his shock.

"I'm terribly sorry. Originally, I should have passed this along several days ago when you asked, but because of someone called Major Kazama, I was unable to do so because of a gag order related to classified national security reasons."

"Major Kazama...? –As in "Daitengu" Kazama Harunobu!?"

"Daitengu?"

This time it was Erika's turn to tilt her head in surprise at her brother's words.

For the appropriate Magician, and also to overawe their opponents by bolstering their name, sometimes an exaggerated alias was called for, but "Daitengu" was too unique even for that. It was so overblown that it seemed impossible.

"Does Onii-san know about Major Kazama?"

"Yeah... In forests or mountainous terrain, he is globally acknowledged to be one of the finest Ancient Magic users. Likewise in the realm of paratroopers, he is still renowned as one of the great commanders in the country."

Naotsugu's expression and voice were interlaced with excitement and awe.

"Do you know the about the Vietnamese Conflict? In that war, the South Vietnamese Army that was trying to wage guerilla warfare against the Great Asian Alliance that was encroaching into the Indian Peninsula and the Korean army dispatched by the Great Asian Alliance were so fearful of him that they treated him like Death or the devil himself."

Upon hearing her brother's words, Erika knew that he had forgotten everything in front of him and merely sighed as if to say "What am I going to do with you..."

Many were those who martyred themselves on the path to glory by going that extra mile. Maybe one day, this sort of thinking will drive this country to destruction. Even though this wasn't something that a young woman like her should consider, Erika couldn't help but ponder this in her head.

"Rumor has it that the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion is under Major Kazama's direct command... In that light, all of these rumors that smack of urban legends make sense. Furthermore, if Shiba Tatsuya-kun is a member of that outfit, then that power unbefitting his age could also be explained."

Just as Erika seemed to be lost in her own world, Naotsugu also appeared to be talking to himself.

Thanks to this, Erika's attention was drawn back to her original goal.

"Onii-san, I made contact with Major Kazama during the Yokohama Incident. If not for that emergency, I may not have been able to stumble across Shiba-kun's secret. Even then, I felt that this was a huge secret."

"Hm~... The Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion carries all the characteristics of black ops. Having a high school student joined them as an irregular must contain a very special reason."

"I broke regulations by informing Onii-san about Shiba-kun's situation, so please keep that in mind."

"In other words, Erika is telling me to stop poking into his affairs, correct?"

"Indeed. The fallout from poking that hornet's nest should be something that not only Onii-san, but the Chiba Family as a whole would want to avoid. Likewise, that nest may contain a giant swarm of poisonous hornets."

"Hm... That's true, you have a point there, Erika. However, although he's a student, I belong to the army. I cannot disobey a direct order."

"Then, can you pretend to obey orders? If you pretend to be his guard, then under situations where he gets attacked, then you can appear and seize control of the situation."

"I see... I understand. Then let's proceed along these lines."

...Fortunately, she was able to convince her brother without dropping the name "Yotsuba". Concealing her uneasy expression, Erika bowed and left Naotsugu's room without catching his eye.

After returning to her own room, Erika read the message that was flashing on the information terminal atop her desk before murmuring "Aoyama Cemetery, eh?" She didn't sit in the chair directly and immediately peeled off her clothes and threw them aside. This was not something a young lady should be doing, but she was also taking this opportunity to get rid of the depression she felt while trying to convince Naotsugu.

After putting on the composite rubber under armor with bulletproof, anti-piercing and other qualities, she put on a leather biker jacket and shorts. She wore protectors that did not disrupt her mobility over her knees and pulled a pair of clothes over her hands that had thin, composite fibers over the palm and finger areas. After verifying the contents in her jacket pocket, Erika picked up her weapons and headed for the threshold. The shorts and long rubber boots appearance highly suited her fiery appearance, but her destination wasn't the night life.

Not far from her, "Erika's personal guard" awaited her. In this recent "vampire incident", they were the core elements of the Chiba Family's personnel and served as Erika's hands and feet in this operation.

"Come."

Erika coldly uttered those words.

Yet no trace of displeasure was shown by the men as they followed in her footsteps.

◊ ◊ ◊

Honoka's place was a single person apartment for rent. The total area was supposed to be 1 LDK, but with a small dining area in the kitchen, the total area was less than 1 LDK.

Even with the living room and bedroom separated from one another, this was something that was absolutely required for young girls. Even if the boy was Tatsuya, she wasn't willing for someone to open the door and immediately get a glimpse of her bedroom.

In the living room, Tatsuya was enjoying tea with Miyuki. Pixie had been halted from executing her routine behavioral pattern when Honoka frantically prepared tea in time.

The coarse tea that was brought out was likely Honoka's personal favorite.

Honoka herself was changing in her room. The soundproofing was excellent, but for some reason, there appeared to be some sort of nervous aura emanating from Honoka's side. Of course, the siblings knew that feigning obliviousness here was what propriety demanded.

When they finally caught sight of Honoka, the siblings just finished the tea.

"Sorry for the wait!"

Full of vigor, Honoka appeared dressed in the pretty much the same fashion as Miyuki.

Her upper body was covered by a large half coat. Beneath the jacket, a sweater with a high collar could be seen. However, the bottom half was not covered by sweats but a combination of mini-dress and thick- soled shoes. Her skirt had a circular hem and her shoes were the type that revealed her ankles due to the heels.

The skirt's length was perfectly covered by the large half coat, which gave the impression that she wasn't wearing anything under the coat.

This was a getup that was sure to draw attention – rather, this was a getup that was supposed to catch the eyes of boys.

Still, it wasn't without any practicality. Honoka's leggings retained heat very well and the fabric was woven with fibers that improved durability. Tatsuya knew that the same type of fibers were used for jackets deployed in combat operations. After examining her from head to toe, he nodded lightly. "Well then, let's be off."

There was no way to tell how Honoka interpreted Tatsuya's nodding motion, but her smile was fit to melt as she tagged behind him.

In her hair, she wore the pair of crystals Tatsuya brought her. Both Tatsuya and Miyuki as well as Honoka herself missed the brief instance where Pixie was drawn to that flash of light.

"Onii-sama, where are we off to now?"

After getting their tickets and boarding the escalator to the station, Miyuki posed this question to Tatsuya after seeing that no one was about. Miyuki would follow him regardless of where their destination was, but that did not mean she cared not where they were going.

"Aoyama Cemetery."

Honoka was the same in terms of interest, but her face paled at Tatsuya's response. Taking the hour into consideration, favor and trust were two different things, but there was nothing to be done. Only a decidedly small minority among young ladies would be able to emulate Miyuki's ability to not bat an eyelid.

"A test of courage in the wrong season... could not possibly be the reason. Is it something like ghosts or demons will appear there?" "How astute of you."

Though carefully controlled, Tatsuya seemed to be slightly pleased after confirming his sister's speculation.

"Naturally. That's because it's something Onii-sama is thinking about."

In excellent spirits, Miyuki replied back with a smile. This pricked something in the depths of Honoka's heart. "Um, Tatsuya, isn't the place closed at this time...?"

Two days ago, she may have endured the pain and wilted.

However, on that evening two days ago, her close friend's powerful encouragement reverberated in Honoka's consciousness, no, her heart.

Standing on the higher step of the escalator, Honoka interjected herself into the conversation.

Miyuki wore an "Ara?" expression, but Tatsuya seemed unruffled.

"We should be able to enter, though it's not like we would be hampered even if we could not enter. So long as we get close, they should come out and meet us. That's the reason we brought Pixie along."

The results of Pixie's interrogation told Tatsuya that the other Parasites were unlikely to accept her current existence.

For life forms that synchronized with other creatures, a Pixie who had lost the drive for reproduction was something to be eliminated.

Since their numbers were so few, they should attempt to retrieve her from that mechanical prison. Once the two fundamental impulses like self-defense and species preservation kicked in, then their plan of action should be quite similar to humans.

"Even if we're about to get caught, I'm sure Honoka would do something, right?"

Her "Optical Camouflage" ability was not mere rumors but something that Tatsuya had personally witnessed. Tatsuya also knew that this was a powerful, high level technique that was far beyond the USNA military's support personnel to imitate with their "Dark Curtain". Honoka was a Magician who could entirely shroud her presence.

That being said, this was just a turn of the phrase for Tatsuya. In reality, Tatsuya never considered the possibility that they would be forced to obscure themselves.

However.

Tatsuya also didn't fully comprehend something else.

Honoka was going to take that joke of his completely seriously. "Leave it to me."

Thanks to the titanic misunderstanding Tatsuya created, Honoka was now completely fired up and bursting with confidence as she replied back in a warm tone while patting her chest.

◊ ◊ ◊

Located underground beneath a medium-sized building within a corner of Ichigaya, the JSDF Intelligence 3rd Division set up their headquarters.

If the main office located in the Department of Defense was a façade for the central headquarters for the JSDF's intelligence work, then this "basement" was undeniably one of the central headquarters hiding behind that mask. Since this was central headquarters, referring to it was "one of the" seemed a little odd, but this was the product of risk management to prevent a crisis like "being paralyzed with the fall of headquarters" from occurring.

Of course, this caused several serious side effects that came with the territory with being an irregular organization and left great flaws.

It was only natural for an intelligence organization to have a side where "the right hand has no idea what the left hand is doing", but this was incredibly blatant here. Lacking initiative was still excusable, but with each department having their own patron, it was also true that each followed their own special interests to the point of disunity.

The JSDF intelligence divisions contained major unity issues.

"The observation target is moving towards the center of the city. Target is accompanied by the sister and two others."

The sponsor of this basement came from one of the primary financial groups in the field of electronics manufacturing and at the same time was the second largest military supplier in the country. Furthermore, this group was deeply entwined with the Saegusa Family, to the point that the statement could be made that the real patrons of the 3rd Division was actually the Saegusa Family. Currently, they were following the will of the head of the Saegusa Family and not in concert with the Saegusa and Juumonji Alliance spearheaded by Mayumi and company.

"Comparing images on file... One of them is a Year 1 student at the

National Magic University Affiliated First High, Mitsui Honoka."

"Classmate, eh. What an odd interest, bringing the sister along on a date."

The tone that belonged to the man who appeared to be in charge sounded mocking, but from a different perspective, it may have also sounded a little biased.

"The other person is….. No, not a human. Looks to be a Humanoid

Home Helper from the P94 series."

"A HAR model? Where do they plan on going with that in tow? Have we gotten into the vehicle's guidance system?"

"Sir, the protection is very stout... My terrible apologies!"

In response to his subordinate's practically tearful reply, the one in command did not issue any more reprimands. He understood very well that if the public transportation system could be so easily hacked, then terrorism would run rampant in the streets.

"Chief, the vehicle that the target is on board has changed direction." "Akasaka... No, Aoyama?"

The chief murmured as he watched the monitor display the estimated destination for the aforementioned vehicle before issuing new orders.

"Dispatch agents disguised as police to the Aoyama Tunnel. Fake an arrest on charges of the target using magic and capture them."

Amid the replies of the order being acknowledged and being transferred to various receivers, the chief continued to observe the monitor.

◊ ◊ ◊

Colonel Virginia was stretched out in exhaustion in the rented apartment (more like condominium) fully equipped with furniture that the embassy rented for extended stays.

Though it was only a temporary command center, they had still been breached. In addition, despite the battle had not concluded on a kidnapping, they still put on a shameful display of being left adrift until another nation's vessel rescued them. This was a huge blow against her record and future career.

Surprisingly, the officers from the homeland stationed at the embassy failed to blame her. This disgrace extended far beyond her alone and included the special forces dispatched as guards for the temporary command center and the navy belonging to the seized vessel (for that matter, the USNA navy's pride suffered an even more grievous blow than she did), so she knew that it was impossible for them to blame her.

However, even beyond that, she still had the energy for further rumination.

Yet, she was unable to deny that they had suffered a huge defeat.

It was only after she raised her head at the unexpected ringing of the speaker phone that she noticed it was late into the night.

She even heard the female officer on guard duty answer the phone.

Virginia's ears detected a sharp intake of breath from the female officer.

"Excuse me."

The footsteps that approached the room she occupied as well as the voice that requested permission to enter had both been knocked askew out of shock.

"Come in."

Virginia adjusted her posture and mentally reminded herself to speak clearly. She could not allow her subordinates to witness her weakened state – her brand of leadership involved not investing additional interpretations and emotions.

The door to the room was carefully opened. A tall young woman in full uniform saluted before her eyes. Her guard was selected for martial prowess over appearance or official record and possessed superlative ability and courage. Indeed, Virginia rated her highly enough that she believed that last night's outcome may have been different had she been present at her side.

Nonetheless – she currently stood there stiffly and pale-faced. Feeling that something was awry, Virginia rose from the sofa. "What is it?"

"Someone has requested to meet you face to face, Colonel."

"What...?"

Virginia residing at this location was highly classified. If someone from the military (from the USNA military) came to see her, her guard wouldn't be so flustered. Likewise for anyone from the embassy. In other words, the visitor had broken through the USNA military's information lockdown and was an outsider who knew that she was here and requested an audience.

Unwilling to even issue orders to her sergeant, Virginia manipulated the remote herself to put on the display from the main living room.

The image that was reflected contained a poor young girl wearing elegant lace with a curious expression on her face.

This utterly astounding sight caused Virginia to freeze for a solid 5 seconds.

"...Who the heck is that?"

Virginia finally rebooted her consciousness and detected the two sturdy men standing behind the young girl. One of them carefully carried what must be the young girl's coat, so they must serving her, or even guardians.

The person that these people who were plainly no ordinary plebeians were guarding was most likely that young girl of tender age.

Despite knowing that she should be on guard, Virginia could feel her sense of reality being eroded.

"Her name is Ayako Kuroba."

The sergeant spoke. Even Virginia could not fault her gulping motion after hearing the next few words.

"She claims to be an emissary from the Yotsuba Family."

"How wonderful it is to meet you, Ms. Virginia. My name is Ayako Kuroba. Pardon my intrusion, but today I come on behalf of the Yotsuba Family."

The young girl greeted Virginia in fluent English.

However, she discarded any military references to superior officers. Given her perfect grasp of the English language, it was impossible to believe that she was unfamiliar with those terms. In short, this was intentional.

Broadcasting her own name and surname was likely also intentional.

"I am Colonel Virginia Balance, USNA Military Joint Chiefs of Staff. Excuse my rudeness, but I wanted to ask something prior to our conversation."

"Ara, what is it? I will answer if I am able."

She was likely younger than Major Sirius, but this young girl far outstripped her at the negotiation table.

Though still immature, she was still superior to the USNA Military High Commander with all of her experiences.

This was no simple girl before her eyes. Virginia carefully engraved that in her heart.

"You said Yotsuba Family... Are you referring to that "Yotsuba"?"

She spoke in an abstract function just in case that there was an error.

However, in regards to this vague line of questioning, the young girl laughed merrily.

"Indeed, that Yotsuba. Today, I come on behalf of Yotsuba Maya, head of the Yotsuba among the Ten Master Clans with a request."

Even though she was mentally prepared that this wasn't a mistake, simply accepting such a boldly stated truth was no easy task.

The Yotsuba of Japan.

For those who walked with magic, this was the untouchable land. Especially for people who wielded magic for military purposes.

They were not like Major Sirius in that one person bore the absolute destructive might to challenge an army.

The existence of the Yotsuba Family lay in the entirely opposite direction.

Right now (at least for now), they were subservient to the Japanese government, but if they suddenly morphed into terrorists, they were held as individuals who could pull the trigger on World War IV.

On the magic side, for such a zealous organization, they were not raised up as something worthy of respect, but of complete and utter fear.

"Request, is it?"

"Indeed. I sincerely hope that you will hear me out." "What is it?"

It was only now that Virginia noticed that they had not served tea. However, this was far too late to offer refreshments.

Virginia concentrated all of her focus on what the young girl was about to say.

"Then please excuse me. We would like to use Ms. Virginia's hand to halt the interference on our country's Magicians."

"..."

There was no need to say this, but interference referred to clandestine operation she was in command of. The investigation and protection (in short, abduction) of Japan's undisclosed Strategic-class Magician as well as his or her nullification (assassination). Of course, she had anticipated that this girl's "request" – the Yotsuba's demand. In essence, this was the most likely outcome.

Yet, to hear someone utter a phrase far coarser than "please stop" in their request temporarily robbed her of the ability to respond.

"Ms. Virginia, you appear to be someone who understands what sort of system my country's "Ten Master Clans" is."

To put it plainly, if you don't know then I will tell you. Irked by that tone, Virginia nodded her head at the same time. There was no point in playing dumb.

"Our head, Yotsuba Maya, dislikes your meddling. Your country and mine are allies, and neither wishes to sow the seeds of war."

"...Is that a threat? You will open fire if we do not stop?"

Ayako neglected to reply to Virginia's query and once again laughed merrily.

"Ms. Virginia, was last night restful?" "So you were the ones who did that!?"

By the time she caught herself, Virginia had already risen from the sofa and leaned forward.

If the table was any smaller, she may have already seized the young girl's collar.

"What are you referring to? I only asked because I thought that your complexion was a little unhealthy, that's all."

Though her words were out of concern, no trace of that emotion could be detected on her features.

The young girl continued to smile. She made no attempt to hide the face that signified she had complete confidence that she knew everything.

"Ms. Virginia, please calm down. If possible, we would like to form a friendly relationship with you, Ms. Virginia."

"You dare to say a friendly relationship...?"

Maybe it was only because the young girl voiced it aloud, but Virginia realized that capturing her now at this point in time would pose no benefit whatsoever. This only served to infuriate Virginia further as she sat back down.

"Ms. Virginia is well aware of the Yotsuba's power. Likewise, we too understand Ms. Virginia's power very well."

Her emotions were about as dark as possible, but logic commanded Virginia to listen to the young girl's words.

The young girl who claimed to speak on behalf of the head of the Yotsuba was not talking about the USNA military's strength or the might of Stars, but saying she knew about Virginia's power.

That meant...

"Our head said that if Ms. Virginia can arrange for this incident to end here, we will never forget this personal favor that you have bestowed on us. Also, our head said that should there be an opportunity in the future, we would like to lend Ms. Virginia a hand as well."

This was certainly a tempting offer.

If she was on personal terms with the "Yotsuba", then she had more than enough to reclaim her lost position in the military and then some.

She had personally tested their prowess the night before. As usual, the young girl maintained her smile.

After weighing both sides on a scale, logic won. –The side of logic named ambition.

Colonel Virginia, faced with a devil's contract in the form of a beautiful young girl, decided to sign.