Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 04 - Nine Schools Competition (II) Page 6

  Faced with his sister's tears, Tatsuya explained in a slightly cool voice.

  It was not only because he had to be uncompromising in the face of her tears, but because he had to convince himself.

  "......"

  For a while, her head bowed, Miyuki said nothing.

  Tatsuya felt relief at not hearing her sob anymore.

  "To be sure, just entering the Nine Schools Competition carried some risk of my identity coming under scrutiny. However, leaving my name in the Magic Encyclopedia is far different from being in a high school competition. The 'Guardian' of the Yotsuba exists as a shadow. Do you think for such an outcast to be in the limelight would be acceptable to our Aunt?"

  Miyuki kept silent. She didn't even mouth any words of comfort.

  That was her answer to his question.

  "For now, I still don't have enough power. In a head on situation, there is a possibility I could defeat the 'Queen of Night' Yotsuba Maya. My 'Decomposition' has good compatibility as a counter to her 'Night' after all.

  But the me as of now, even if I could beat our Aunt, I can't do anything about the Yotsuba. Force of arms alone, the threat of violence alone is not enough. If I displace our Aunt, another worse manipulator would simply show up in her place. At this moment, I can only follow."

  Those words weren't so much to convince his sister, as for himself.

  As he tried to satisfy himself that way,

  Miyuki, moving from the front,

  embraced him.

  Her face shining with tears buried itself into his chest.

  Such an appearance might be better described as 'clinging', yet that was somehow inappropriate.

  "......I'm on your side."

  "Miyuki......"

  "I will always no matter what, come what may, be on your side.

  That time will definitely come. Without a doubt, it will come.

  Until then, and forever after, I will always be on Onii-sama's side."

  "......"

  The hands of the clock accused them of far exceeding the realms of 'just a little'.

  But let's go along with her 'just a little more'...... Tatsuya thought as he gently wrapped his arms around Miyuki's back.

  Chapter 9

  It was the fifth day of the Nine Schools Competition and the second morning of the Newcomers Division.

  Tatsuya arrived in front of the arena that was busy preparing for the Newcomers Division’s Icicle Destruction.

  Several large cranes were unloading 1 meter x 1 meter x 2 meter icicles from large battlefield vehicles specially modified for this purpose. Seeing this would naturally cause people to believe that the days where super robot anime became reality were not too far off.

  "......If we could completely ignore energy efficiency, that is."

  "Onii-sama? What are you talking about?"

  As if to reject this outrageous line of thinking, Tatsuya involuntarily started muttering to himself.

  "No, it's nothing."

  She did not pursue this vague answer.

  "Let's go quickly."

  "Yes."

  Originally, this was only a stopping point along their route to the competition location.

  Tatsuya urged Miyuki onward towards the resting area located on the top floor of the Arrow Tower.

  ◇◇◇

  There was still 30 minutes until the start of the first round in the morning.

  When Tatsuya entered the arena, there was still plenty of spare time.

  "Good morning!"

  ......Still, the players for the first round were already there.

  "Good morning...... Sorry for making you wait so long."

  "Oh please, I was the one who came too early."

  The player for the first round of Icicle Destruction, Akechi Eimi, smiled as she shook her head and swept a lock of her ruby red hair back from her face.

  "Good morning, Eimi. How early did you get up?"

  "Good morning, Miyuki. For some reason, I woke up before the alarm went off. It's like I haven't recovered from yesterday's excitement."

  Her other name was Emilia Goldie. Her full name was Akechi Emilia Goldie Eimi. Eimi was a quarter British stock. Her nickname "Emmy", rather than originating from her Japanese name "Eimi", probably came from her British name "Emilia".

  A Magician's ability was heavily influenced by genetics.

  Due to the connection between magic and national power, each country jealously guarded its magic bloodlines and either officially or unofficially forbade international marriages between Magicians. (This country that superficially allowed freedom of marriage belonged in the "unofficial" category.)

  Yet, in the generation of Tatsuya's grandparents, allied countries actively encouraged international marriages between Magicians. The goal was to "cross" "excellent stock" to "develop" superior Magicians.

  The ensuing result was that over half of the current students at magic high schools boasted bloodlines from Western Europe or India.

  Leo was one of them, and the female student known as Akechi Eimi was another.

  As could be inferred from her words, she also appeared in yesterday's Speed Shooting competition. This was the second day in a row she was working alongside Tatsuya. Besides Miyuki and the two others, Eimi was the first one on the Women's Team to jell with Tatsuya. For Tatsuya, she was also the most relaxed young lady on the team.

  After the two of them exchanged greetings, they delved into girl talk as Tatsuya smoothly removed the CAD from the case he was carrying, performed a cursory examination, and handed it to Eimi.

  This was a clumsy looking, shotgun-shaped Specialized CAD that measured 50 cm in length and completely dwarfed a young lady's hand.

  The weapon looked quite heavy, but because recoil wasn't an issue, the weight was significantly lower than a normal firearm thanks to its lightweight materials. Yet Eimi's movements were like something straight out of a Western as she swung the gun around and took aim out the window.

  "......Eimi, you're not British, but American, aren't you?"

  "How many times do I have to say this, no. Now even Miyuki is saying this too? My grandmother's family was knighted by the Tudors themselves."

  Contrary to the content of her words, her tone remained unperturbed.

  She maintained her current posture and started to supply the CAD with psions. Somewhere along the way, the safety was removed. Just like Morisaki's Quick Draw, this was an entirely different type of pristine CAD drawing.

  "How is it?"

  "Hm...... Now I know how Shizuku feels."

  Everyone in the 1st Year Women's Team knew about the fact that the Ojou-sama from the wealthy Kitayama Family wanted to "reserve" Tatsuya.

  "Are there any problems?"

  "Yep, it's perfect!"

  Eimi relaxed her posture and smiled in delight.

  Apart from her ruby hair and moss green pupils, her outward appearance was thoroughly Japanese. Even among her peers, she was the one who had the most childish impression. Rather than calling her earlier smile "delightful", a more innocent "teehee" was probably closer to the mark.

  "I have no idea what you're talking about......"

  Eimi tilted her head at Tatsuya's muttering, but her smile didn't fade in the slightest. One of the chief reasons was likely because she had no idea what he was talking about.

  "At least let me run a few calibrations. Can you put on the ear set?"

  "Eh? Why?"

  "Eimi...... In truth, you didn't get up early, but didn't sleep at all, right?"

  At being asked this sudden question, Eimi's smile grew a tad forced.

  "......How could you tell?"

  Seeing Eimi's widened eyes, Tatsuya silently nodded and, in response, took the CAD from her hands and restarted the calibration process.

  "......You're sharper than my parents."

  Eimi obediently put on the headphones used for measurement while nagging with an "I can't believe you" and placing her hands on the measuring pads.

&n
bsp; Seeing the numbers scrolling down the screen, Tatsuya's expression darkened.

  With Tatsuya's minute facial changes, Eimi's body also started to curl up. This scene didn't escape Miyuki's eyes.

  "Well, Onii-sama?"

  There was no reprimand hidden in her words, but when Tatsuya heard her words, he raised his head in realization and smiled as he rubbed the space between his brows with two fingers.

  "Unless Eimi also forgoes Sound Sleep?"

  "Also? You mean Shiba-kun does that too?"

  Eimi's reaction prompted Tatsuya's expression to soften somewhat as he nodded.

  "Wow, I discovered a comrade. How should I put this, doesn't that give you an uncomfortable feeling? Especially those weird sound waves."

  "There's no actual health risk...... But I do agree that it is quite uncomfortable. I do make an exception for sleepless nights though. Especially if I have a competition the next day."

  "OK~."

  Eimi's response was perfect for a child that had just been scolded by a parent. Tatsuya could only smile wryly at this.

  "Then, I'll raise the feedback loop a little higher...... This might be a little irritating, so bear with it for a little bit. Certainly you wouldn't want to be accused of 'losing the contest owing to lack of sleep', right?"

  "I'll bear with it, please! If that really happened, they'll never let me live this down."

  There was nothing worthy of note in her tone. Eimi blushed as she pressed her hands against several interesting points on her pants. Tatsuya paused and was frozen for a solid second.

  "I really didn't want to bring this up, but, Miyuki...... What do you people do in your rooms?"

  "N, nothing, Onii-sama, Miyuki hasn't done anything shameful!"

  "Oh, really~? Miyuki's room is a complete safe house."

  "Eimi! Do not speak of such strange nonsense in front of Onii-sama!"

  An awkward silence covered the resting area. To break this stalemate, an abrupt change in the conversation was inevitable. He wasn't entirely sure who this excuse was directed to, Tatsuya thought to himself.

  "......Fortunately, the first round is in the early morning so you can take a nap before the second round begins. Sorry, Miyuki, but could I trouble you to prepare the 'Sleeping Dock' for immediate use?"

  "I understand. I will be right back."

  After Miyuki departed to setup the sensory inhibitory dock (soundproof, shockproof, light-shielded, sealed single bed), Tatsuya started CAD calibration.

  ◇◇◇

  Although the first round got a little tense at one point, victory was finally achieved with three icicles still left in allied territory.

  Speaking of which, the ending result was that Eimi was currently deep in dream land without any opportunity to complain that "It's too dark~" or "It's too cramped~".

  This was the fifth event, which was the second event for the female students from First High. They were currently in the resting area before the match began.

  (I seem to recall saying something very similar recently.)

  Tatsuya thought of this, but was still forced to say it aloud.

  "Shizuku...... Are you really wearing that uniform during the competition?"

  "Yeah?"

  When Shizuku replied with an "Is something wrong?" expression on her face, Tatsuya really wanted to cover his head and was completely at a loss.

  Icicle Destruction involved the players standing on four meter tall platforms and defending the 12 icicles in their own territory that measured 12 square meters while simultaneously knocking down or destroying all their opponent's 12 icicles.

  The players were strictly using long range magic, so there was no need to move their physical bodies.

  In other words, the player's wardrobe played no role in this event. (Besides the uniforms that hinder the grip on their CADs.)

  The only criterion for wardrobe was that it "must be decent".

  And the ensuing result was that — while unintentional — at some point Women's Icicle Destruction became a fashion show.

  In addition, when Kanon appeared for the Official Division on the second and third days, she was wearing a fairly normal sports uniform. She wore tights, a mini jacket, an adequate shirt, as well as long socks and tennis shoes.

  On the other hand, Eimi was dressed like a jockey, complete with a white collared shirt, red riding jacket on the upper body, tight women's pants and black riding boots below, along with a black duck-billed hat.

  Still, those still fell within normal boundaries and didn't qualify as anything particularly gaudy.

  Then, there was Shizuku......

  "Uh, Shizuku......"

  "Yes?"

  "Wouldn't the tamoto...... Get in the way?"

  Yes.

  No need to flog the dead horse, but that was a "tamoto" from a kimono.

  "There's no problem. The sleeves are short enough, and I also have the obi."

  Speaking of which, Shizuku deftly tied the obi in front of Tatsuya.

  Such a fluid motion clearly showed that she had plentiful experience in a kimono.

  Yet—

  (If you needed to use the obi to keep the tamoto in check, wouldn't you be better off forgoing the kimono in the first place?)

  Tatsuya thought of this, but managed to hold his retort in.

  There wasn't much time before the next round, so Tatsuya quickly gave up on persuading her otherwise — after all, this was the "official garb" for boosting one's spirits. In that case, he'll just have to turn a blind eye.

  Shizuku chose — correction, the CAD that Tatsuya chose for her was a Generalized CAD.

  This implied that the event demanded a careful energy allocation that possessed a balanced strategy.

  It wasn't like Tatsuya could keep pulling rabbits out of a hat. To be precise, Tatsuya himself had no interest in creating devious tactics.

  For him, it was all about providing the players with the most appropriate tools and the strategy that could bring about their maximum potential, and nothing more. In light of this, if direct assault was the most effective strategy, he would ruthlessly adopt that as his course of action.

  Just like this match.

  The moment Shizuku appeared on the platform, the audience raised a clamor likely due to her outfit.

  However, the person in question was steady even if a light breeze had grazed her face as she lifted her left arm before her chest, the tamoto held firmly in place by the obi.

  Shizuku's CAD was just like the one she normally used, with the command console facing the inside of her arm.

  In the recent age, most female Magicians used CADs with command consoles facing towards the outside. Despite the height of fashion, Shizuku still preferred to use the feminine inward facing console, which befitted her status as an Ojou-sama. Still, given her usual taciturn and emotionless nature as well as the occasional merciless snarking, this honestly gave people an incompatible feeling.

  If voiced aloud in front of aforementioned young lady, this would undoubtedly end with a beating. Tatsuya adjusted the focal point on the monitoring device and set these thoughts aside.

  In the following time period,

  Shizuku's mission was to focus entirely on this match.

  Tatsuya's mission was to gather his attention entirely on her.

  ◇◇◇

  "Miyuki...... Aren't you going where Tatsuya-kun is?"

  Honoka piped up from beside her. At this time, Miyuki was sitting in a different section of the stands reserved for players and auxiliaries that was not part of the normal audience stands and was patiently waiting for the match to begin.

  Just as she did during Eimi's match in the first round, the moment Tatsuya entered the monitoring room, Miyuki split apart from him.

  It was perfectly natural for players from the same school to cheer on their teammates from the monitoring room, but—

  "Icicle Destruction is a solo performance. Sooner or later, Shizuku and I will meet on the field, so wouldn't it be unfair for
me to sneak a peek at her trump card?"

  In terms of trump cards, there were certainly opportunities during practice to see them. Even First High wasn't extravagant enough to prepare several large scale practice facilities for the Nine Schools Competition.

  So, what Miyuki was actually referring to was something else.

  They were fated to be opponents. Miyuki didn't want to see Tatsuya, who was serving as their mutual technician, worry needlessly about such trivialities. This was probably Miyuki's real concern.

  At the same time, she didn't want Shizuku to be distracted by her presence.

  Honoka and Shizuku were close friends and rivals since elementary school. Until middle school, Honoka saw Shizuku as her strongest opponent and conversely, Shizuku also saw Honoka as her most formidable opponent.

  In their cohort and circle of friends, no one could match them in terms of magical talent.

  Upon entering high school and receiving official magic training, both Honoka and Shizuku yearned to meet someone other than each other who could push them to their limits. Yet, somewhere in the depths of their hearts, a stubborn belief that could not be eradicated told them that they would never meet someone who mirrored their talents.

  In the same school, in the same tutoring class, there were no children from the Ten Master Clans, but several children from the "Numbers System". Still, none of them was worthy of being a new rival.

  However, upon entering the high school entrance examination, their "conceit" was thoroughly annihilated.

  By this divinely crafted young lady sitting next to her.

  Based on their grades on the standardized magic tests, Honoka was fourth place behind Miyuki, Shizuku, and Morisaki. In Honoka's opinion, even if Shizuku didn't count, she didn't feel that she was any weaker than Morisaki.