Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 11 - Visitor Chapter (III) Read online

  —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.

  (In the end, we pulled her in anyway.)

  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 simple 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, returned home first, 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 shrunk 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 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 my/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 on time for the appointment he arranged ahead of time by mail.

  "You’re just on time, Tatsuya-dono."

  "Hayama-san, many 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, hearing 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 know Hayama’s personality.

  "Tatsuya-dono, in regards 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 from 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.