Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 10 - Visitor Chapter (II) Page 4

  "The other side of the dimensional barrier contains a dimension filled with magical energy and, in order to prevent this energy from leaking to the physical dimension, gravity supports the dimensional barrier and prevents any leakage. However, magic can penetrate this barrier in order to make up for the deficiency in energy by drawing from magic energy. –My belief is that this is the system that solves the major paradox to modern magic. On the other hand, based on the miniature artificial black hole developed through calculations in string theory, gravity acting on the dimensional barrier would be wasted by the creation of the black hole. In that case, the dimensional barrier fluctuates the instant the black hole materializes."

  "The dimensional barrier fluctuates…… What happens then?"

  "Magical energy that is beyond the control of Magic Sequences may seep through……?"

  Divided by the image, Miyuki and Shizuku shared a glance. The high definition camera and monitor displayed the terror that reflected in their eyes.

  "Energy spontaneously structures itself and forms an information body. If not, the universe would have already turned into homogenous nothingness.

  Magical energy from an alternate dimension should follow a similar pattern. The moment the dimensional barrier weakens, the possibility that magical energy from an alternate dimension invading this world in the form of information bodies is not zero. At least, that is my perspective."

  On the other side of the monitor, Shizuku’s body was shaking slightly.

  On this side, Miyuki latched onto Tatsuya’s arm as if she never wanted to let go.

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  Mikihiko finally showed up in class after the second period was over.

  "Is it done?"

  He wasn’t late.

  Today, he was also being cared for in the infirmary.

  "Tatsuya…… I hate you."

  Initially, the tone was out of concern, but what came afterwards was a heavy tone of complaint.

  "Hey, that’s not very friendly."

  While the words were probably in jest, the emotions laden within were definitely true.

  After overhearing those words, Mizuki shrank back in fright.

  "If all I’m going to do is complain, you might as well let me vent it all out. After that, do you know how painful my memory of that ulcer was……?"

  "Saegusa-senpai just sat there smiling without a single word, Erika shut her mouth with a totally displeased look on her face…… I was the only one who had to keep talking.

  That empty feeling was like sitting on pins and needles."

  "Didn’t Juumonji-senpai say anything?"

  "Do you think that kind of person would do something so trivial like interfering?"

  In that case, that’s true.

  Mayumi, Erika, and Katsuto all acted in concert with their "personality".

  "Well…… There’s no real reason, but I understand that must have been a tough time for you."

  Mikihiko seemed to be a little healed by Mizuki’s undisguised words of comfort.

  Next to Mizuki, Erika remained sprawled over her desk.

  Erika finally revived around lunch time. Maybe because she was finally revitalized, she grabbed onto Mizuki and started complaining.

  "Did you hear? Up until now, there was only one of them fleeing, but now suddenly there are three of them. Don’t you think that’s devious?"

  Probably taking into account how terrible it would be if someone accidentally overheard them in the cafeteria, Erika skipped lunch and dragged Mizuki into an empty classroom – the lab that Mikihiko frequented.

  "Um, is that so?"

  Mizuki nodded to follow along, but in reality, she wasn’t entirely sure what Erika was referring to.

  She hazarded a guess that this was about the "vampire" incident, but she wasn’t aware of the specifics. "Do we count vampires by ones or twos?" was the thought running through Mizuki’s head.

  "……Before that, you better hurry to the cafeteria. Lunch break is almost over, right?"

  "I’m not really hungry."

  That’s because you’ve been asleep the whole time! Mizuki really wanted to point that out, but felt that doing so would throw Erika into an irretrievable sulk, so she opted against it.

  (Ha…… I give up.)

  She wasn’t fasting – not that she pursued that habit(?) – Mizuki absconded from lunch. There was no physical education or technical skills class later today, so skipping out on one meal wasn’t going to be that detrimental, she told herself. Compared to that, there was something she was more worried about.

  "Hey, Erika-chan. Why did you get into a fight with Tatsuya?"

  In that instant, Erika’s shoulders started shaking.

  "W-what are you talking about, Mizuki. We totally aren’t. Definitely not."

  She emphatically shook her head and waved both hands.

  As a result of letting her hair grow out since spring, her long ponytail – Erika’s favorite hairstyle – also danced back and forth with her head.

  "There’s no need to panic…… It’s not like I thought Erika-chan did something to Tatsuya.

  Even if you cause a fuss, wouldn’t Tatsuya just smile and accept it?

  So if Erika-chan was the reason, there is no way there could be conflict between the two of you."

  "Um, well, I’m really not sure if that was a compliment or an insult……"

  Just like her words, Erika wore an "undecided" expression as she lodged a protest. Probably.

  "I am doing neither. I am merely stating the situation as it is."

  On the other hand, Mizuki decisively pressed on.

  "Even if you put it like that, I still feel I can’t accept that!"

  "Yes, yes. At any rate, I don’t think Erika-chan is the reason."

  The indignant riposte that was lacking in fervor was easily ignored.

  "Mizuki, you’ve gotten stronger……"

  "If you don’t want to talk about it, do you think I will stop asking?"

  Erika’s attempt to use a comedic line to muddle the issue was met with a fastball right back at her.

  Powerlessly, Erika slumped down.

  "We’re really not fighting…… It’s just that I’m feeling awkward from my side.

  I don’t plan on dragging this into tomorrow, so can you go easy on me today?"

  Her head tilted, Erika weakly peeked out between the gaps between her hair and arms.

  Hm~, Mizuki also tilted her head slightly and tapped her index finger on her chin.

  Her hair had a slight tendency to curl inwards and the shoulder-length tresses matched her head’s swaying motion.

  Swiftly after she did so, her head straightened.

  "Since you are able to say that you’ll be back to normal by tomorrow, I guess that’s OK."

  Her mood appeared to be headed in the direction that Erika was hoping for.

  "Yeah, seriously…… Ah~, how annoying."

  Originally, even Erika didn’t believe that nonsense about returning to normal by tomorrow.

  After coming to some sort of realization, Erika rose with a lethargic expression.

  "In the end, we were probably only flirting with Tatsuya. We plainly never requested Tatsuya-kun to 'lend us a hand' and worked under the assumption that even if we didn’t say anything, he would still chip in to help. So I was furious~ when I saw that he was also helping that woman and keeping a foot in either camp…… Damn it, I’m getting embarrassed again."

  In between the gaps of the arms covering her face, a hint of a blush could be seen. Her embarrassment was not just restricted to her words.

  Seeing this oddly adorable appearance, Mizuki sighed deeply.

  "……What, that sigh of yours was like saying 'you amaze me from the bottom of my heart'."

  "While I’m not sure if it’s from the bottom of my heart, the first part is true."

  Mizuki rolled her eyes in response to the sharp glance Erika sent her way from beneath her fingers.

  The edge gradual
ly disappeared from Erika’s eyes.

  Mizuki shifted herself so she was right in front of Erika (she just changed the orientation of her seat) before reaching out and plucked away the arms covering Erika’s face.

  "So in the end, you’re just stubbornly stuck in a pit of self-loathing…… I think this sort of thing qualifies as a 'soliloquy'."

  "Ouch! Mizuki mercilessly stabbed my chest with her words~."

  "I’m being very serious."

  "……I’m sorry."

  Though there was no emotion behind those words, Erika’s body seemed to shrink even more.

  "To put it bluntly, Erika-chan, you can’t rely on Tatsuya-kun to take the first step to approach."

  "……Just like I thought?"

  "I’m not certain if you’re really in pursuit or not, but if all you do is hide, then he’s really going to put you aside, right?

  In the first place, Miyuki-san occupies everything in Tatsuya’s head. Even if you don’t make any overt gestures, if you don’t at least make an effort to remain in his field of vision, then will he even remember you?"

  "……That, is a definite possibility."

  "I think I can safely say that the idea of Tatsuya actively paying that kind of attention to Erika is definitely false. I’m certain that you’re actually missing out if you start off with that assumption."

  "Yeah…… You have a point.

  That guy has nerves of steel and calling him slow on the uptake would be too kind to him. With him as an opponent, being embarrassed won’t get me anywhere."

  Erika tightly clenched her fingers.

  Seeing this, Mizuki revealed a warm, nurturing smile.

  This was the scene that greeted Mikihiko when he walked in.

  "Ah, so it’s true that you guys didn’t get anything."

  As soon as he entered, Mikihiko uttered these words.

  Before the two of them could ask "what are you talking about?", Mikihiko pulled out two sandwiches from the plastic bag in his hand.

  "Here, Erika, this one has tuna, potato and carrots. Shibata-san wants the egg sandwich, correct?"

  "Eh, how?"

  "T-thank you."

  "You’re welcome."

  That was in response to Mizuki’s reply.

  "No reason in particular.

  If you don’t eat anything, you’ll still be hungry even if you did nothing but sleep, no?"

  Afterwards, that reply was for Erika’s question.

  "Ho~…… Miki, you’re becoming more observant."

  "I would like to say you’re welcome, but these are from Tatsuya.

  Since you appear to be avoiding him, he had me bring them to you."

  Hearing Mikihiko’s words, Erika and Mizuki exchanged a glance.

  "So he didn’t forget……"

  "Looks like you’ve not been put aside……"

  Suddenly, Erika sprang up in a determined manner.

  "W-what is it?"

  Erika adopted a victorious posture before the wide-eyed Mizuki.

  "If you have your own thoughts on the matter then so do I, Tatsuya-kun!

  I will not resign myself to being treated like empty space!"

  "You clearly fled when he was paying attention to you."

  "Miki, did you say something?"

  "Nope. I just said that you better eat quickly."

  Mikihiko pulled out his own sandwich and replied back without sparing her another glance.

  As expected of childhood friends. Even though he occasionally stepped on a landmine, he was still adept at handling Erika.

  At any rate, Erika calmed down and took a seat. Immediately afterward, the three of them started eating their sandwiches.

  "Ouch……!"

  All of a sudden, Mizuki’s face tightened as she quickly shut her eyes. Erika deftly caught the egg sandwich that fell from her fingers. However, since that was more reflex, both she and Mikihiko kept their eyes on Mizuki, who was in the throes of pain. Mizuki removed her glasses and pressed her hands to her eyes.

  Broken groans slipped from her mouth.

  "……What is…… This…… This sort of aura, I’ve never seen……"

  Noticing that something was amiss, Mikihiko hurriedly pulled out a talisman and cast a barrier that blocked out spirits. Although it was against school rules to bring CADs onto campus, no one present gave a damn about that right now.

  "This, 'demonic' presence……"

  They weren’t psions, but pushion waves. This was why Erika couldn’t possibly know and Mikihiko was only aware after focusing himself.

  Pure "demonic" waves permeated the barrier and came through.

  Given its ability to penetrate the lens, it was not surprising that power of this strength was able to affect Mizuki’s eyes.

  "Shibata-san, put on your glasses."

  However, with a barrier in place, the protective lens should be able to fend off the waves.

  As Mikihiko suspected, Mizuki was able to adopt a relaxed posture after putting her glasses back on.

  With that, they finally had a spare moment to contemplate what happened –

  —Pale faced, Erika and Mikihiko exchanged a look.

  "Don’t tell me, the vampire is here at school?"

  "How brave! Miki, where is it?"

  Springing to her feet in a lively manner, Erika paid no heed to the clatter of her chair falling to the ground. She advanced on Mikihiko with a vibrant expression.

  "Erika, relax."

  Mikihiko also rose and used a calm tone to deliver a solemn response.

  "First of all, we need our equipment. I don’t feel secure with just talismans."

  "……That’s true. Mizuki, wait here in the classroom."

  "I’m going too."

  Erika made the obvious request, but Mizuki shook her head.

  "Mizuki?"

  "I have a feeling that I’ll be better off if I go. As for a reason…… I’m not really sure."

  Her tone remained gentle, but contained a mettle that could not be dissuaded.

  "……Understood. However, please don’t leave my side."

  "Miki?"

  Erika’s eyes widened at Mikihiko’s unexpected words.

  Still, his words were the product of careful thought instead of being purely circumstantial.

  "One person alone would be easy prey, whereas a group can handle attacks more easily.

  In addition, Shibata-san’s eyes should prove a major asset."

  "Ha…… Miki, then you shall bear the responsibility of protecting Mizuki."

  Any more words on this subject would just be a waste of time, so Erika started walking towards the office where CADs were held. Mikihiko was one step behind her. Both he and Mizuki knew that this wasn’t the time and place for any teenage romantic scenes. Nonetheless, in order to make sure Mizuki wasn’t left behind, there was nothing he could do except make sure he held her hand in his – that was how Mikihiko persuaded himself.

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  Lieutenant Silvia, call sign "Mercury One", served as Major Angelina Sirius’s support during her mission to Japan. That being said, taking care of Lina was not listed among Silvia’s duties.

  The members of Stars were categorized into 1st Class Planets, 2nd Class Planets, Constellations, Comets, and Satellites. Among them, 1st and 2nd Class Planets as well as Constellations were treated as frontline fighting troops, whereas Comets and Satellites typically filled the role of auxiliaries or undercover agents. Of course, that was just how the roles were divvied up on paper since Lina was given an undercover mission despite her status as a 1st Class Planet.

  As a "1st Class" member of Comet "Mercury", Silvia’s duties typically resided in supporting from the rear, such as utilizing magic to gather and analyze data. For this mission, her data analysis abilities were highly prized among her compatriots and, unlike the embassy, she was specifically preparing to secretly analyze the psion wave signature.

  Her current task revolved around identifying the masked individual who gave
Lina the slip after their fight. In order to verify whether another shared a similar psion wave signature with their target, she was singlehandedly pouring over all relevant information regarding people affiliated with the USNA military and government.

  As a core component of CADs, the sensory stone possessed the function to translate psion signals into electric signals. Furthermore, regardless of whether it was a Magician, trace psions would still be released even if they weren’t doing anything. After the sensory stone had finished translating the psion signal into an electric one, the pattern could be recorded electronically and broadcasted on a projector. However, when compared with the flat image on the projector, there might still be a few minute differences when trying to convert the image back into a psion wave signature within a short period of time. This was why a Magician trained in psion wave signature identification was deployed to this task instead of delegating it to someone who was not a Magician.

  In the end, it was practically impossible to gather data for all the USNA military and government officials, but pretty much every Magician was included within. Also, individuals who were not Magicians but still under the Stars’ umbrella were also included. Silently praying that she wouldn’t find a match within this group, Silvia continued her examination.

  First, she verified that no one within Stars had this psion wave signature. Anyone from other frontline forces not affiliated with Stars that bore similarities all had alibis. Shortly after noon, Silvia discovered something worthy of note around lunch time.

  (Huh? This can’t be……)

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  As Lina dined with her classmates from Class A – and not with Miyuki’s group, she was struggling with what she should do afterwards. Lunch break only lasted one hour, and there were only 30 minutes left. They will probably be finished with their meal in five minutes. Normally, they would find another place for tea or pop into the Student Council as a part-time member, but today–

  (……Maybe I should go see Mia.)

  She was Lina’s neighbor and, on some level, a comrade as well. Today, Michaela Honda, or "Mia" for short, was visiting First High under the guise of a salesperson from Maximilian Devices. Preoccupied as she was with pursuing the deserters, Lina hadn’t seen Mia in the past couple of days. Although she didn’t have any reason in particular, this was still an excellent opportunity to catch up.