Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 05 - Summer Holiday Chapter Page 6

  “……Why?”

  “This country has a saying: years of toil for a single moment.”

  “I have heard of it.”

  Lin’s tone sounded displeased.

  “I see, my apologies……”

  Morisaki awkwardly apologized, but that did not imply that he was backing down.

  “I chanced upon the scene where Lin-san was almost abducted. This must be a fate of some sorts.”

  In truth, Morisaki himself did not know why he was so stubborn on this matter. Lin had made her stance very clear. Even if she had not blatantly rejected him, she was hoping that Morisaki ceased to associate with her – that she didn’t want to put him at risk was obvious enough. In spite of this, Morisaki was not of a mind to beat a retreat here.

  In short, the term “abduction” was based solely from Morisaki’s point of view. There was a possibility that Lin was a young lady of wealth who had gone truant and that these men were dispatched by her parents to bring her home. Assuming this was actually an “abduction”, then this may be related to a major crime and the earlier group of people may belong to an opposing organization. Alternately, they may have been sent to recapture a former member who fled the organization. Regardless, anyone who dared to directly fire their weapon without warning in broad daylight could not possibly be an upstanding citizen. This was the conclusion that Morisaki arrived at – or perhaps unilaterally decided this was so.

  “……You should have realized just now that this will be very dangerous, correct? You don’t seem like a person who cannot differentiate between reality and games.”

  Lin’s somewhat befuddled eyes did little to dampen Morisaki’s ardor. The other side consisted of scoundrels who were preying on a fragile, defenseless woman. In that case, it was clear which side Morisaki should support – at least this was what his heart told him.

  “Lin-san is in far more danger than I am. I would not be lying or exaggerating to say that this country’s law enforcement is quite capable, but the crime rate is not zero. This is especially true for magical police officers handling magic crimes, where the reaction speed is practically lethargic.”

  “The same could be said for every country.”

  Lin wore an impish grin as she tried to deflect the statement, but Morisaki was not fooled.

  “That’s why I believe that Lin-san needs a retinue.”

  “……And you are volunteering?”

  With a completely serious expression on his face, Morisaki nodded in agreement to her leading question.

  “Don’t judge a book by its cover. I have two years of experience as an attache.”

  “……Aren’t you a high school student?”

  “I am a Year 1 student at the Magic University-affiliated high school. However, the family business manages a protection agency.”

  “Oh...... Your name is Morisaki, so you must be from the Morisaki Family then?”

  Lin only halfheartedly lent an ear to Morisaki up until this point before finally nodding in the affirmative. At the same time, this also implied that Lin belonged in a social stratum that was well versed with a retinue.

  “But I don’t have any money on me.”

  “I’m not here to talk about a job. I just don’t want to pretend not to see anything.”

  “How gentlemanly of you.”

  Lin laughed lightly, causing Morisaki to avert his eyes in embarrassment.

  “—I understand. Since you’re so worried, then I place myself in your care.”

  “—Please leave it to me.”

  Altering her earlier expression, Lin fixated her eyes on Morisaki, to which he responded with a nod as if bestowed a great honor.

  “Then there’s no time like the present, is it OK if I made a request right this moment?”

  “What is your request?”

  Bodyguards were not butlers, but in order to effectively fulfill their protective duties, establishing rapport with their principal was highly important. So long as the demand was not too ridiculous and did not affect the guard’s mission, then compliance with the principal was a must. This was one of the basic rules for bodyguards in both the east and the west – though “East Side” might be a little different. Morisaki had no idea what this request could entail so he was slightly nervous as he waited for her to continue. Lin smiled in a charming fashion before dropping this line:

  “Please call me Lin. The next time you call me “Lin-san” will be grounds for immediate dismissal.”

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  “……So Lin isn’t a Magician?”

  “Yes, though I don’t know how Shun came to that misunderstanding……”

  Lin smiled in confusion. In comparison to Morisaki who was struggling to lower his guard and still spoke in a stiff tone, Lin freely referred to Morisaki as “Shun” and embraced him as a friend.

  Was this the poise that came with maturity?

  Morisaki pondered this as he peeked at Lin’s face.

  He felt that Lin was a beautiful young woman.

  Normally, a person’s appearance would be beautified when observed from a distance, but in her case, seeing her from up close was just the same and may be even more bewitching. This might be due to her rich array of expressions that never appeared twice – that was the conclusion Morisaki drew from his limited life experiences.

  “Ah, maybe it’s because of this?”

  Lin said this as she pulled a necklace out from before her chest.

  With the top button left undone, soft cleavage danced in and out of sight. Morisaki’s heart raced at this scene just as blood suffused his face, but Lin appeared to be entirely unaware.

  “What is that?”

  “It’s a magic talisman.”

  “Ah?”

  “A magic talisman. Wearing this reduces attention from other people. This was made during the age when abductions ran rampant for a variety of reasons and was crafted as a protective charm to ward against being targeted by evildoers…… It’s a bona fide artifact.”

  Modern magic was created from the research and systemization of Ancient Magic. In that context, Morisaki was aware that among the objects referred to as magic talismans, there was many an “artifact” that could actually release a magical effect.

  On the other hand, it was also true that fakes which were nothing more than decorations had flooded the market in numbers that were dozens of times greater than the true artifacts. Given that Morisaki was a young Magician who focused solely on modern magic, it should be no surprise that he bore a suspicious impression of objects like “magic talismans”.

  Yet right now, Morisaki was not questioning Lin’s words.

  Her smile seemed to dispel the skeptical thoughts being raised in Morisaki’s mind.

  The question that floated into Morisaki’s brain was another one altogether.

  “You’re not a Magician but you carry a magic talisman?”

  When Morisaki asked this question with a perfectly straight face, Lin suddenly wore a flustered expression.

  “Oh…… Well, this was something a friend gave me to “ward away stalkers”.”

  “Stalkers...... So you ran into something like this in the past?”

  “Uh…… Well, kind of.”

  “Then were those guys earlier……? No, I said I wouldn’t pry. Sorry.”

  Seeing Morisaki abidingly refrain from questioning her any further, Lin secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

  “……Still, this doesn’t seem to work against those guys any longer.”

  Morisaki’s attention was already turning to the attackers from earlier.

  His diligent personality saved Lin just now.

  “……Nor is it effective against Shun. Are Magicians just special?”

  This question was angled in a different direction than the dialogue Morisaki was constructing.

  If asked in the days of old, he would probably have puffed his chest and answered with a nod in the affirmative.

  He believed he was special. His status as
a Magician was a source of great pride, just as he was confident that even among his peers he was a particularly talented Magician. Although the results of the Nine Schools Competition ran counter to his hopes, he was of the belief that had the other team not treacherously broken the rules, he should have been able to achieve results befitting his own confidence without relying on that strategist who only had wily tricks up his sleeve for assistance.

  However, for some reason, the current Morisaki was unable to affirm Lin’s words.

  “……I don’t think there’s a great difference, since magic is a human ability after all. Lin’s magic talisman is an object that allows people to use magic powers. In that context, there’s nothing different than a Magician’s arts.”

  “Hm…… That makes sense when you put it that way. Magicians are human beings just like us.”

  Lin was unaware that her words formed an opinion that separated “Magicians” and “non-Magicians” into two racial groups.

  Fortunately, Morisaki missed that nuance.

  Morisaki was adamant about avoiding areas with few people, so the two of them ultimately spent their time in the restaurant in front of the bus station until the person Lin was waiting for made contact. The one who initiated the conversation was always Lin with Morisaki largely only agreeing with her, but neither felt the time was ill spent.

  Just as Morisaki expected, they never caught sight of any suspicious individuals afterward. Yet, occasional opportunities allowed him to feel various auras watching them from a distance in all directions.

  At this point, Lin’s expression suddenly tightened in anxiety as she pulled out her information terminal before Morisaki’s questioning eyes. Apparently, her point of contact had sent her an e-mail.

  However, how should he explain why Lin tensed instead of relaxing when the person they were waiting for made contact? Morisaki was quite bewildered by this.

  Could it be that the person they were waiting for was one of Lin’s “enemies”? Morisaki hoped that Lin was at least able to explain that to him – or perhaps come clean.

  “Directly beneath the Rainbow Bridge.”

  Lin spoke with a tight expression on her face.

  “A boat will be dispatched to pick me up.”

  “……Let’s go.”

  Directly beneath the Rainbow Bridge that the other individual spoke of probably referred to the square next to the bridge’s foundations. On a normal weekday, that was a location inundated with visitors. Morisaki urged Lin to stand and reached out his hand towards the terminal set on the table’s surface.

  However, Lin beat him to the punch by a hair and placed her card on top of the terminal first.

  “Plainly a high school student yet you dare to pick up the tab for an older woman. Far. Too. Brazen.”

  Using her index finger, Lin punctuated each word with a poke on Morisaki’s forehead, eliciting a furious blush on his part.

  Lin’s originally tensed face was now exchanged with a composed smile.

  Taking the main road would be faster, but Morisaki purposefully chose the winding paths leading through the park. He believed that the magic used earlier to ward away pedestrians and vehicles would have a much harder time in the park where most people stood still compared to the constantly moving flow of people on the streets.

  He was not cognizant that this lengthened the time he spent with Lin.

  At the very least, his surface thoughts did not venture into this territory.

  Morisaki also requested that she place her necklace into her purse. Under the current conditions, spells that diverted other people’s attention would only achieve the opposite effect.

  Logically speaking, this was the right idea. However – this unfortunately brought them to unexpected trouble.

  Currently, a human wall was erected in front of Morsaki and Lin.

  The human wall was thick enough that it could even block the free kick from a professional soccer player.

  Alas, in terms of wardrobe, appearance, and all assorted factors, these individuals were a far cry from the refreshing air found on athletes. To put it bluntly, they looked more like hoodlums.

  Though there might be a few minute differences here and there, the majority of them wore similar garb. Most of their naked torsos were only covered by leather vests whereas metal rings covered above and below their wrists and elbows.

  Their vests reminded people of a lizard’s scales and their surface texture reflected the metallic scales that were popular three years ago among the “small crowds”. Compared to the usual bulletproof and anti-piercing fibers, this composite material boasted gigantic leaps in improvement in both protection and shock resistance. However, since the air permeability was terrible, forget wearing this outdoors in summer, even wearing this in a heated indoor environment during winter would cause someone to sweat like a horse, thereby deeming this product a failure. The overwhelming majority of the young men in front of them kept the front unzipped, though even the sleeveless vests looked to be quite warm indeed. Given that this completely defeats the purpose of blocking frontal stabs or shots, the only conclusion that could be drawn was that this was a fashion statement from the past that was stylish but impractical.

  The metal rings around their wrists utilized EMS – muscle amplifiers that stimulated the muscles through electric currents. Training devices that utilized EMS were an early form of technology that existed back in the 1960s, but in the modern age, other electric currents have been introduced to successfully raise the speed for muscle contraction. These rings were normally used for medicinal purposes during rehabilitation, but could also be used to easily improve punching power, making it a popular choice among disreputable street fighters.

  Several of the young men wore AR goggles over both eyes. The metallic straps attached to the goggles were covered with sensory devices which appeared to be equipped with light capture processes. These processes normally emitted a directional signal once objects approached within a predetermined distance but were not something that could be wielded at will by casual users. In short, this was also probably a fashion statement.

  This martial (?) style that emphasized physical appearance was the telltale feature of the delinquent gang who styled themselves “Fight Club”. Standing in front of the two people who came to a halt, the group of young men never stopped leering at them.

  Not a word was uttered.

  Morisaki slipped an arm around Lin’s shoulder and sought to retrace their footsteps.

  Several people let out wolf whistles.

  The human wall moved with an astonishing level of organization and surrounded the two of them in a veritable human fence.

  “—We are in a hurry, please let us pass.”

  “Ah hah, please don’t say that. How about playing with us?”

  “Yeah, yeah, compared to that little man, we know what the really fun things are.”

  Lin sought to peacefully defuse the situation, but the young men only tightened the noose while making disgusting sounds that were displeasing to the ear.

  “We’re really in a hurry—“

  “It’s no use, these guys never planned to listen our words in the first place.”

  Morisaki stopped Lin’s continued attempt at persuasion.

  “Ho ho, telling it like a big man.”

  “Though it’s true that we’re not here to talk.”

  Crude laughter drifted in from their surroundings.

  “Little man, let’s cut to the chase.”

  “Leave the job of guiding her to us, you’re free to go. Now scram!”

  A young man who must be the leader of this gang changed his tone from friendly to threatening from the rear of the crowd – which happened to be right in front of these two. He was a head taller than Morisaki and the T-shirt he wore was missing sleeves that appeared to be ripped off, revealing a pair of biceps with thick muscles rising and falling. His arm was covered from hand to shoulder with silver geometric shapes which served the same purpose as
the muscle amplifiers in boosting muscle contraction speed (though the results were questionable). A swarthy waist and sturdy thighs clearly denoted a physique that did not belong on someone with a passing fancy.

  In response to the look that did not stretch the term ugly, Morisaki wore a light smirk on his face.

  “What’s so funny……?”

  “Nothing, pardon my manners.”

  The young man’s low tone grew evening more threatening. However, Morisaki still wore a mocking expression as his choice of words grew scathing.

  “I could understand if this was Shibuya or Ikebukuro, but I never imaged I could run into endangered species like yourselves in Ariake.”

  “……What a fascinating guy.”

  “You should be satisfied with blowing one round of hot air, no? We’re actually pressed for time, so could you let us pass?”

  “……Looks like you need to learn a lesson in pain.”

  The young man shifted his weight to the tips of his toes. Seeing this, Morsaki slightly shifted his right shoulder backwards.

  The vest that opened forward moved slightly.

  “Takashi-ni, this guy is a Magician!”

  The movement must have revealed the handle of the CAD being held in the hidden holster. A young man to Morisaki’s right side shouted out a warning.

  The circle surrounding the two of them backed off a bit. With one notable exception, they had grown fearful.

  “There’s nothing to be afraid of!”

  The sole exception – the “Takashi” who served as the leader exhorted his comrades onward.

  “I know as well, Magician.”

  The corners of his mouth twisted as he looked down upon Morisaki in a theatrical manner. This didn’t seem like bravado, so perhaps he warranted a tiny hint of praise.

  “Your guys’ magic is on the same level as guns, right? You would be arrested and imprisoned if you use magic on an unarmed person, right?”

  Morisaki silently looked upon the young man.

  The young man continued onward with a gusto.

  “A Magician who cannot use magic is nothing more than a wooden doll. What did you think that sort of empty hot air was going to do? Ah ha ha ha!”