Zoku Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei

Magian Company Vol.05

By: Satou Tsutomu

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents 17

Credits 18

List of Illustrations 19

Keywords 21

Colored Illustrations 22

Chapter 1 24

Chapter 2 54

Chapter 3 67

Chapter 4 81

Chapter 5 99

Chapter 6 147

Chapter 7 191

Afterword 206
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Credits

Original Work
Author: Satou Tsutomu

Illustrations: Kana Ishida

English Translation Team

Translation: Aehein

Edit: Lord_Odin

Format: Blakegriffin89; theVoidzero

Proofreading: Khuma2; Blakegriffin89

Special Thanks: HiroYoshida

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List of Illustrations

● Front Cover ● Glossary #6

● Cover Page ● Glossary #7

● Title Page ● Glossary #8

● Character Introduction #1 ● The International Situation

● Character Introduction #2 ● Keywords

● Character Introduction #3 ● Colored Illustration #1

● Character Introduction #4 ● Colored Illustration #2

● Character Introduction #5 ● "Road to Shambhala" Map #1

● Glossary #1 ● B&W Illustration #1

● Glossary #2 ● B&W Illustration #2

● Glossary #3 ● B&W Illustration #3

● Glossary #4 ● B&W Illustration #4

● Glossary #5 ● B&W Illustration #5

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● B&W Illustration #6

● Back Cover Chibi Characters

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Colored Illustrations
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Chapter 1
[Whereabouts of the Ruins]

July 19th, 2100, in San Francisco.

The local police conducted a raid on the headquarters of radical magic supremacist
organization FAIR.

The raid resulted in the arrest of countless members that refused to cooperate, as well
as the seizing of several items of supposed illicit origin unlawfully obtained. Although
the leader, Rocky Dean, and the sub-leader, Laura Simon, managed to escape, enough
evidence was assembled to indicate the organization's engagement with organized
crime. As such, the San Francisco judicial authorities have since issued arrest warrants
for both Dean and Laura.

With the police's attention now turned to catching the two suspects, the apprehended
items, once their origin was established, were taken and stored as evidence to be used
in their prosecution.

When the DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency) stepped in on July 20th and asked to borrow
the "white stone tablet," neither the police, the prosecutors, nor the court had any
reason to refuse their request.

DIA, an intelligence agency affiliated with USNA's Department of Defense, tasked

specifically with handling affairs pertaining to military intelligence. With that in mind, it
would be fair to ask why such an organization would take interest in an unearthed
object of unknown archaeological value. They had information suggesting that said
artifacts were likely to be magical artifacts.

The current existing modern magic has its roots of development as a military tool. And
as far as contemporary society is concerned, magic is still deeply associated with its
military usefulness. View that was only reinforced with recent international disputes
spanning from 2095 to 2097, and magic became increasingly more indispensable as a
military resource.

Added the emergence of the Artificial Relic, a replica of a magical relic, as the core of a
promising new energy source, the Stellar Reactor (a stationary type Gravity Control
 25
Magic Sequence Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor), the value of magic and associated
relics has increased even further. Magic had its value amplified further beyond a direct
equivalent to conventional military power, and is now being regarded as a possibly
significant component in the underlying social infrastructure that supports it.

With this in mind, it would come as no surprise any respectable military intelligence
service would take notice of said artifacts, particularly when its product of an illegal
digging, by a terrorist group with magician supremacist ideals no less. It was only
natural the DIA would want to examine these "White Tablets" in detail once they came
into custody of the city police as evidence.

Their aim was to determine the validity or otherwise of magical effects in the unearthed
artifacts. And while the DIA has access to substantial magical expertise from its staff, to
ensure a thorough analysis, they enlisted the help of the USNA's premier magician corps,
the one reporting directly to the USNA Joint Chiefs of Staff, the STARS.

16 stone tablets in total, 15 of which were seized by the San Francisco Police
Department along with one previously submitted by FEHR as evidence, were
temporarily loaned to Stars.

◇◇◇

The afternoon of July 21st, on Miyakishima. Tatsuya was meeting with Minoru as he had
done the night before. The venue this time was the apartment Tatsuya used as his home
on Miyakishima.

The topic of conversation remained the same as the night before. It pertains to the
White Tablet that was unearthed at Mt. Shasta in northern California, USNA, which is
assumed to conceal a map that shows the whereabouts to where the mythical city of
"Shambhala" resides.

If one were to interpret it from a modern perspective, where magic has evolved into a
field of science, then it's fairly plausible to believe that Shambhala may very well have
been a city where an advanced magical civilization flourished. However, it's hard to
imagine a thriving city that has remained as nothing but a legend to this day, especially
as the world has become so crowded. Even if Shambhala did in fact exist, it's most likely
that only ruins remain.

The legend is just mere fiction. This is what most people believe it to be. As someone
involved with magic, and as a researcher of magic, the ruins of an unknown magical
civilization is something that cannot be ignored. Now that clues to the ruins have been
found, it's a straightforward decision that what follows is a search for them. And for that
 26
purpose; to discuss the investigation of the ruins of Shambhala, Tatsuya invited Minoru
to his home.

There they sat across from each other at the dining table instead of the sofa set in the
living room. They were both served a drink in glass teacups by Minami, dressed in her
usual style, the same old black one-piece dress with a white apron combination. She
accompanied Minoru in his descent from satellite orbit about an hour ago.

In mind of the season, her one-piece dress was of a short-sleeved variant, along with a
slightly shorter skirt. The cups were filled with Iced coffee. It's cold-brewed coffee that
Minami had magically manipulated the osmotic pressure of in order to shorten the
brewing time, and used to also cool it down.

"…So you think that the ruins of 'Shambhala' are in Uzbekistan, Tatsuya-san?"

Minoru asked, and Tatsuya replied with a "That's right" and a nod.

"The 'Sita River' is neither the 'Tarim River' nor the 'Syr Darya1,' but the 'Amu Darya',
then?"

Minoru reiterated the question.

According to the Tibetan Buddhist scripture "Kalachakra Tantra," the utopic mythical
city of "Shambhala" resides "on the northern bank" of the Sita River, which springs from
Lake Mansarovar at the foot of Mount Kailash. The question was, which of the rivers
actually corresponds with the 'Sita River?'

The following three rivers are the most likely candidates. First is the "Tarim River," which
flows through the Uighur region. Another is the "Syr Darya," which flows through
Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. And the other is the "Amu Darya,"
which flows through the borders of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (the
Indo-Persian Federation2 is, as the name implies, a federal state, with the former states
being constituent states of said federation). Among them, the "river that flows north" of
Uzbekistan would be the "Amu Darya."

Tatsuya shook his head from side to side and replied with, "I'm still not sure about that."

"However, if you were to extend the direction from which the 'Small Tablet Compass'
moved in both California and Tokyo, the two directions end up intersecting near
Uzbekistan. The Small Stone Tablet only moved a couple of centimeters, so I can't tell
much more precisely than that, assuming that this is actually a 'compass' at all."

1
The word (darya) means "lake" or "sea" in Persian and "river" in Central-Asian Persian.
2
(IPU): Indo-Persian Union = インド・ペルシア連邦:.
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He added, pointing to a small octagonal stone slab on the table. Although it is called a
"stone tablet," its thickness isn't even a quarter of its total width. Tatsuya and the others
took to describing it as a "Small Tablet Compass" or simply a "compass," although it
would be more appropriate to call it a "flat, smooth stone" rather than a "tablet."

This "Small Tablet Compass," which Tatsuya unearthed in the same cave on Mt. Shasta,
where the other stone tablets had been excavated, moves ever so slightly in a particular
direction when placed on the palm and infused with a special type of Psion. Unlike a
regular compass, it seems to point toward a specific point, rather than a specific
direction.

Considering the fact that they excavated it from the same location as the White Tablets,
it would be fair to assume that it is indeed a map to Shambhala, thus Tatsuya and the
others believe that this "specific point" would be the location of Shambhala.

"I see. Indeed, if we insist on just what's written in legends, it may prevent us from
seeing the correct answer. The legends have many unclear elements themselves, so
sticking with the clues we have in hand should be better for now."

Minoru agreed with a broad nod to Tatsuya's answer to his question.

Minoru was earnestly impressed, but Tatsuya seemed to take it as a mere

back-channeling.

"No, we simply do not have enough information to work with."

Tatsuya added without pretension.

Minoru smiled slightly at Tatsuya's typical lack of affability.

Seeing Tatsuya bring his teacup to his mouth, Minoru also reached for his.

"Excuse me, Tatsuya-sama."

On the occasion that both Tatsuya and Minoru's mouths were occupied at the same
time, Minami, who had been sitting quietly beside Minoru until then, spoke up.

"If we were to use the 'compass' to observe from several more points, wouldn't it be
possible to narrow down the probable candidates?"

"─In fact, it would."

After returning his cup slowly to the table, Tatsuya readily agreed with Minami's input.

Minami blushed. Tatsuya's nonchalant tone sounded to her as if to say she was "stating
the obvious." ─Which was, of course, overthinking on her part.

"In that case, shall I drop in and observe from a couple of locations in Central Asia?"
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Minoru didn't see that as Tatsuya mocking Minami, but his quick proposal was clearly a
follow-up to support Minami's idea.

"All right. I'll leave it to you, then."

Tatsuya answered with the same casual tone of voice as he had before. He followed by
pushing the "Small Tablet Compass" toward Minoru's side of the table

The surface of the small stone tablet was as smooth as glass. The translucent black
resembled obsidian with a polished or (glassy) glazed finish. With its small size and
octagonal shape, the stone tablet slid smoothly across the tablecloth from Tatsuya's
hand until it came to rest in Minoru's.

"I'll take care of it."

Now in his hands, Minoru picked up the "compass" and put it in his shirt pocket. The
parasitized Minoru experimented before and can also use this magical relic. Minoru
didn’t falter, despite the fact that Tatsuya had entrusted him with such a precious relic
without a second thought. The level of mutual trust between the both of them is
unquestionable.

Noticing that the teacups were empty, Minami hurriedly stood up.

◇◇◇

At a research institute affiliated with the Stars headquarters, there was a battery of
experiments being conducted on the White Tablets on loan from the San Francisco
Police Department.

At the center of it is a young 22-year-old woman. Her name is Evelyn Taylor. A prodigy
who graduated from a prestigious engineering college at the age of 17, then
commissioned as a technical officer by the federal army.

She is a unique case in that she applied for admission to the United States Air Force
Academy after a gap year following her graduation from college, only to be scouted as a
technical officer during the screening process. Further to her qualifications, she was
found to have a high aptitude as a combat magician based on an examination that was
held immediately after her commissioning, resulting in her being assigned as a staff
member to a research institute affiliated with Stars. There she would concurrently
receive the unique distinction of undergoing training to be a member of the Stars unit.

Once Canopus took over as Commander-in-Chief of Stars, he saw an example in Tatsuya

and sought to have a combat magician with expertise in magical engineering under his
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command in Stars. It was his conviction that not only should staff in the rear be highly
educated in magic and technology, but so should those on the front lines.

Evelyn was just what Canopus was looking for. She caught his eye and he immediately
had her educated as a star-class member candidate in the Stars, without even having to
go through the "Starlight" Stars cadet stage. That was two years ago.

And now she is an assistant to the head researcher of Stars, Abigail Stuart, as well as the
most promising candidate to be "Vega," a First-Magnitude Star-Class member of Stars.

Initially Stuart wanted to be the one to get her hands on the "White Tablets" in order to
analyze them. However, her hands have been full with analyzing [Babel], a magic from a
prehistoric civilization, which had afflicted so many people on the West Coast and nearly
caused social unrest. The next logical choice was Evelyn, her assistant who possesses
not only advanced magical engineering knowledge but also high-level magical skills.

The analysis team led by Evelyn was able to immediately determine that a map-like
pattern would surface when "achromatic Psions" are poured into a "White Tablet."

"Evelyn, we finished deciphering the text."

"Thank you," Evelyn replied amiably to the report from a researcher of the analysis team.

She is the team leader, while also being the youngest on the team. She knows that,
despite the organization's commitment to meritocracy, she still is in a position that
makes others envious. As such, she knows it is in her best interest not to ruffle
everyone’s feathers. A bit of self-deprecation is nothing to her compared to any decline
in the team's performance that could come from emotional friction.

There is the underlying perception that Canopus and Stuart are partial toward her that
has allowed for her to keep her assertiveness in check without worrying that her
subordinates would try to take the credit for her work.

This strategy has proved effective so far.

"The writing on the stone tablet reads in an archaic Indian script."

This male researcher's specialty is not magical engineering. If anything he possesses

little to no magic aptitude. He is an AI specialist. He isn't an engineer who creates AI's,
but is an expert in using them.

Since magic is not his specialty, he held little interest in the magical gimmicks of the
"White Tablets." He concentrated on analyzing the information he had at hand without
expecting any additional leads to appear through magical means.

"If this 'map' is anything to go by, it seems to point to the location of Shambhala."
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"Shambhala? The Tibetan Buddhist paradise that Germany's dictator from the last
century was so obsessed with?"

"I've heard that not only was Germany's dictator obsessed, but so was the dictator of the
old Soviet Union."

"That aside, it is about that Shambhala, correct?"

The researcher nodded in response to Evelyn's question.

"The map marks an area between Samarkand and Bukhara in central Uzbekistan in the
Indo-Persian Federation. Unfortunately, we could not determine the location any
further."

He managed to narrow down the location without the help of the "Compass" by means
of a state-of-the-art supercomputer.

◇◇◇

The satellite orbital residence facility, "Takachiho," orbits at an altitude of about 6,400
kilometers. It was originally a large-sized NSU3 submarine that was sunk then converted
into a habitation satellite.

"Minoru-sama, thank you for your hard work."

At the airlock, Minami acknowledged Minoru for his efforts upon returning from the
ground.

"Yeah, thanks."

"May I ask how it went?"

Minami inquired, to which Minoru replied, "I think I have a general idea."

They then made their way to the information center, which had been converted from
the submarine's command information center.

While standing, he operated a console and brought up a map of Central Asia on the
display.

Minoru traced two straight lines on the screen with a stylus device. One line started
from the southeastern shore of the Caspian Sea in Turkmenistan, while the other started
from the northern shore of the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan. These are two locations which
Minoru descended to investigate the location where the "Small Tablet Compass" would
point to.

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New Soviet Union
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"The location the compass is pointing to is probably here."

Minoru zoomed in on the location where the two-line extensions intersected.

"Bukhara in Uzbekistan. It matches with the theories of scholars in the Kalachakra

Tantra about the location of Shambhala."

The Kalachakra Tantra is a Tibetan Buddhist scripture and one of the leading
contemporary sources on the Shambhala legend. It is, in a sense, the original source of
the Shambhala legend.

"Should we contact Tatsuya-sama right away, then?"

The investigation using the "Compass" was requested by Tatsuya. It was a reasonable
assumption that Minami would ask, "Are you going to report to Tatsuya?"

"No. Not yet, but there is one more place I would like to check before that."

But Minoru's answer was "No."

"Actually, I've found that the closer you are to the destination, the more sensitive the
'Small Tablet Compass' becomes. When I used it at these two points, the response was
much clearer than when I used it at Miyakishima."

"The movement wasn't considerable then?"

"Yeah. I thought that even if it weren't to point to the original destination, that the
'Compass' would respond more accurately when used in areas where relics from
Shambhala may reside."

Minoru's remark was met with surprise by Minami, who asked,

"Then you have an idea where the ruins may be?"

"Legends say that there is an underground passage leading to Shambhala in the Potala
Palace in Lhasa. I think it is worth checking out."

"Lhasa, in Tibet!? But, Minoru-sama, wouldn't that be dangerous?"

Minami maintained her polite speech, but concern was strongly present in her tone.

She had good reason to be concerned. Tibet is formally an independent state, but it has
become a vassal state in effect of the GAU4. And the current Tibetan government
followed their will in not allowing Japanese nationals to enter the country.

Minoru is not a Japanese citizen anymore. "Kudou Minoru" died in the summer of three
years ago. However, he uses a forged Japanese passport when on the ground. If he were
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The Great Asian Union/The Great Union of Asian
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to have it on him, the local officials would without a doubt try to arrest him for illegally
entering the country. The same would be true even if he weren't to carry his passport.

The Tibetan judicial authorities are the least of Minoru's problems, however. The
problem is that the GAU has stationed soldiers in Tibet, acting as if they own it.

With Tibet sharing a border with the IPU, the IPU would like Tibet to disassociate from
the GAU, whereas the GAU seeks to obstruct any influence of the IPU on Tibet. As a
result, the region has become the stage for a secret dispute between the intelligence
agencies of the two countries.

It's likely that those among the most elite of the GAU's intelligence and espionage units
have been sent into Tibet. Even for Minoru, they wouldn't be easy opponents to deal
with. In light of this, he isn't optimistic about being able to infiltrate Tibet.

"I'm not taking this lightly. It isn't like I'm going there to pick a fight, nor am I going to
meddle with any critical facilities. Even if I get nothing done, I plan to be back in four
hours."

Four hours is the time the Takachiho takes to complete a revolution around the Earth.
However, since the Earth rotates on its own axis, it takes approximately 4.8 hours for it
to make a revolution. Therefore, the optimal time for a round trip to the ground and
back is one hour; two, ignoring added degrees of difficulty. This means that Minoru
intends to spend at least two hours in Tibet, instead of descending and returning
immediately, so if something were to go wrong he then could not return to the
Takachiho.

Minami stared at Minoru with an expression of concern.

"Don't worry. I'll be careful."

But seeing the firm resolve behind Minoru's soft smile, Minami couldn't say a word to
stop him.

◇◇◇

Built in the 17th century, when Europe was being ravaged by the Thirty Years' War, to
cover a single hill, the Potala Palace is one of the largest stand-alone buildings in the
world in terms of area. At the sight of its grandiose appearance, Minoru let out a sigh of
admiration.

He is currently in the guise of an ordinary tourist. In appearance, he should come off as

an ordinary young man who cares about his looks. His clothes match the current trends
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in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Thanks to his Information BodyDespite the eye-grabbing
sight of the Potala Palace up close, Minoru had not forgotten the purpose of his visit.

(No response from the "Compass"…)

While keeping a sharp eye out, he discreetly put the "Compass" back in his pocket after
using it. Next he shifted his gaze to the base of the Potala Palace. To be more precise, he
turned his "eyes" to the inside of the "Marpori Hill" where the palace stands.

(Is it in a basement or is it in the ground? There is definitely something there, but…)

There was no response from the "Small Tablet Compass," but Minoru could sense the
existence of objects of magical power hidden "beneath," in the palace, possibly an
extensive collection of sacred relics.

(…That would be impossible. Let's just not.)

It's undeniable that he had his finger on the trigger. But the risks were too great.

Even if, for argument's sake, there is a hidden underground vault in the palace where
sacred relics are stored, it would still be extremely difficult to gain access to it without
causing a scene. Even with Minoru's capabilities into consideration. If there are any
relics buried underground rather than stored in an underground vault, then the
situation could be even worse.

In any of those scenarios, it would also be necessary to account for a full-fledged

response per part of the GAU. Minoru wasn’t so obsessed with the sacred relics that he
would go to such lengths.

(─What is it? Magic?)

Suddenly, Minoru sensed he was about to be subject to magical interference.

(Is this… [Marionette]?)

A magic was activated seeking to seize control of his body from the outside, interacting
with the fake Information Body, which is worn over his physical body with [Parade] and
deployed to form an Information Body that covers his original body.

The knowledge that Minoru inherited along with the residual thoughts of Zhou Gongjin
informed him that this was a technique for manipulating other people's bodies based on
the "Taoist style" of Ancient Magic of the East-Asian continent.

(Where did it come from? How did they find out about me?)

Impatience threatened to take over Minoru's thoughts.

(I have to hide my presence before anything else.)

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Getting a hold of himself, Minoru chose to escape.

Minoru turned his back on the palace and headed off to a shopping area oriented
toward tourists at a brisk pace. So far, there is only one set of eyes on him. It is likely
that neither the authorities nor soldiers have received word about Minoru. He is being
pursued by a single high-level magician.

Suppressing the urge to make a run for it, Minoru headed for where the crowds were.
He kept [Parade] to the bare minimum to maintain his disguise and refrained from
casting [Kimon Tonkou]. He believed that the reason for being spotted was because
someone noticed him using magic.

There was no possibility that his appearance was the cause. If it was the case, that there
was a problem with his [Parade] disguise, he would have been questioned by the Tibetan
government police, who are under the sway of the GAU, or by soldiers of the GAU, who
are roaming about as if they own the place.

Regarding the use of [Parade], he took great care to make sure that his use of magic
would pass unnoticed by others. In fact, the only person who had ever detected his use
of [Parade] in either Japan or the USNA ─ taking out certain users, owners of rare
superpowers, that can visually distinguish Pushion patterns ─ was Tatsuya.

Could the person currently pursuing Minoru have a perceptive ability comparable to
Tatsuya's, or could they be…

(…Did they notice the use of the "Compass"?)

Minoru believed that this was the most likely case. They still do not know how the
"Compass" operates in principle. All they found out is how to use it. Besides pouring
Psions into it in order to activate it, there is an undeniable possibility that it might emit
some kind of special signal that Tatsuya and Minoru are unaware of.

Shortly after Minoru sank into the crowd of tourists, the set of eyes on him increased to
two. At about the same time, he sensed a sign of magic being activated. And soon after
that, the sound of a flute note reached Minoru's ears.

Vertigo assaulted him. Holding on to his feet, he held the reins on [Parade] upon its state
becoming fluctuating . Minoru wasn’t the sole victim of the dizziness. Many of the
tourists he was using to blend in, as well as the working shopkeepers doing business
with them, all went down on a crouch. Several fainted and collapsed on the street.

(A sonic weapon? No…)

 35
Minoru thought about it for a moment before dismissing the possibility of it being
caused by a technological weapon. The "sound" he heard was no physical phenomenon.
Oscillating Psions. It's a magical "sound."

(A magic that interferes with an unspecified number of people by making them "hear"
Psion waves?)

In magic, a particular target is determined, and the magic interferes with the
corresponding phenomena. That's the norm in modern magical theory. This doesn't
mean that there’s no magic that interferes with an unspecified number of targets. Which
is the case for [Parade] as well as [Kimon Tonkou]. Minoru, who has mastered both of
these, wasn’t bound by the accepted notion that "magic requires a specific target."

Incidentally, there’s a shared characteristic between [Parade] and [Kimon Tonkou], in

that both are intrinsically ancient magic. [Parade] is a derivative of the [Road Mirage
Matoi], from the ninjutsu style of ancient magic that incorporates contemporary
concepts, while [Kimon Tonkou] is itself but a refined version of the original of the Taoist
style.

(Come to think of it, the [Marionette] used earlier is also a magic rooted in Taoism.)

(Is my enemy a Daoshi?)

A master of the East-Asian continent's Taoist system of ancient magic is called a "Daoshi".
Because of their long history, there are many of those Daoshi in the GAU military.

(My enemies are GAU magicians after all.)

(And I can see from the attack just now that they have no qualms about involving
civilians.)

It wasn’t Minoru's intention to drag civilians into this situation.

Besides, currently, Minoru is the only one who remains standing in this tourist shopping
area. There was no curtain of people to hide behind.

Facial expressions fade from the mirage covering himself. The resources that previously
kept the illusion's eyes, nose, and mouth in correspondence to his real face were being
reclaimed into standby in preparation for the ensuing magic battle.

Notes of a flute whistle behind Minoru's back. This time a real sound. The air oscillates
instead of the psion waves.

Minoru's head swerves to look back. There he finds a small figure blowing a flute.

(A kid…?)
 36
He was around as tall as a Japanese elementary school boy. His limbs and head,
however, were closer to those of an adult. Apart from his size, most of his features
seemed to be of a man in his thirties. His clothing, similarly reflected the choices of an
adult male reduced to fit his body size.

Yet, that's no reason to let one's guard down. It was undoubtedly the sound of this man's
flute ─ the perceived sound given by the psion waves ─ that is responsible for the fact
that nearly a hundred people, regardless of their level of magic resistance, have been
rendered powerless all at once.

The psion music is still playing under the physical tone at this very moment, stirring
Minoru. This "tone" is probably a magic that interferes with brain functions. The reason
for the dizziness that makes it hard to stay standing and the difficulty in maintaining
magic ─ more precisely, difficulty in renewing the effects of a magic in operation ─ is
probably because of the interference with mental faculties.

The tricky part of this magic, which could beed "Magic Flute," is that it is expressed in
the form of music. Instead of targeting a specific target, the magic continuously affects
anyone indiscriminately within the area where the emitted psion waves can be heard.
As long as you are within the range, you can't avoid it, even with [Parade].

(Should I take some distance with [Mock-Teleportation]?)

The magic inhibiting effect of "Magic Flute" is about the equivalent of cast jamming. It's
not so strong that it prevents magic being activated, but there is also no reason to stay
under the influence of the enemy's magic. There was no longer the option to blend in
with the crowd, nor was there any point in concealing his magic skills any longer. He
has nothing holding him back from using his magic.

Minoru activated [Mock-Teleportation] right away. Except, not to return to Takachiho.

His situation wasn’t so dire to the point he would need to jump to satellite orbit without
allowing himself enough time to focus on the task. And he couldn’t accept even the
slightest risk that Takachiho's existence might be discovered.

Minoru's figure vanished, emerging the next instant on a rooftop at the very end of the
shopping street. He confirmed the range of the magic flute’s effect before jumping.

He turned around ready to counterattack.

Unfortunately, Minoru had to scramble and switch the offensive magic he was activating
to a defensive one.

Invisible blades flew towards Minoru. A slash of vacuum called "Kamaitachi," instead of
the popular compressed thin blades of air used in modern magic. Nevertheless, human
skin is not so weak as to sever upon exposure with a difference of about one
 37
atmosphere of air pressure at sea level ─ assuming that sea level is one atmosphere and
the vacuum is zero. The threat comes not from the natural phenomenon of the vacuum
itself, but in the definition of "cutting and tearing" embedded in it.

(This is not so much a slash as it is a curse… Is this also a Taoist technique?)

In Zhou Gongjin's knowledge, there was a magic named [Qióngqí] (窮奇). In this ancient
magic, a curse is released through the medium of the wind, imprinting on the enemy
the perception that he is "injured" or "ill". It's part of the suggestion, a kind of mental
interference magic, that the enemy damages itself by the subjective impression. It
gained its name "Qióngqí" from the similarity the beast with the same name has with the
Japanese "kamaitachi", which is said to have been re-imported from Japan in the 19th
century.

Regardless of its precise identity, it is not something that can be ignored. Minoru
searched for the enemy's location, repelling the vacuum slashes and the built-in curses
one after another. From the feel of the magic, it wasn’t from the little man with the flute.
It was from another pursuer.

(Where is he…?)

(─Uh!?)

His enemy was right under him. Just below, by the building at whose roof Minoru was
standing, stood his enemy, looking up at him. Minoru hastily jumped backwards.

He appeared to be in his forties, slightly taller than Minoru, but more than twice as
broad and bulky. Although it could be said his overweight physique was fit for his middle
age, he had enough muscles to account for the extra fat in his body.

The man climbed up to the roof before Minoru could gauge his distance and
immediately lunged at him. An iron fan was in his hands as his weapon of choice. Rather
than an iron weapon in the shape of a fan, it was actually a fan with its frame and center
pivot bone made of iron.

Minoru deployed an anti-material shield. Which, surely enough, intercepted the blow of
the iron fan.

"─Gah!"

In spite of this, severe pain struck Minoru. Although he had never experienced it before,
Minoru thought, "This must be how it feels to be hit by a baseball bat." Such violent pain
bypassed his magic shield, directly striking Minoru.

Now his enemy was moving to strike him in the side with his iron fan. Minoru attempted
to blow the enemy away in an effort to gain distance.
 38
The magic used was simple acceleration-type magic that uses the Parasite's event
interference power. It's actually more akin to psychokinesis than to magic.

Considering the enemy's physique, it should have been able to blow him away by at least
two meters.

(─My magic was nullified!?)

But in reality, all it did was to disrupt the iron fan's blow. For under a second, the enemy
merely stiffened his body to withstand the gust of wind, then immediately resumed his
strike motion.

(Gram Demolition? No, not that. I didn't catch any psion flow like that.)

(What's up with this guy!?)

Minoru used a movement and inertia control magic on his own body this time, leaping
to the rooftop across the street. Right after landing, Minoru sent a ball lightning with
emission-type magic toward the enemy.

The ball lightning shot out at a speed of about 300 kilometers per hour and successfully
hit its target. The man attempted to swat away the ball lightning with his iron fan, in
what was probably a reflexive defensive action. And it was through the metal frame of
the fan that the enemy ancient-style magician ─ the Daoshi apparently received the
electric shock. He crouched down atop the roof holding his hand.

He didn't have the chance to pin him down with another magic, however. As Minoru
unleashed the ball lightning, the enemy also cast "Qióngqí" himself.

Cursed winds swept over Minoru, forcing him to prioritize his magical defenses against
them. At which point his ears caught the sound of the "Magic Flute" once again. The
other Daoshi must have caught up with him. The wind-user Daoshi alone was
challenging enough, Minoru stood little chance if he had to face the flute-playing Daoshi
at the same time.

(Maybe now is time for the "the smartest thing in a tight situation is retreat​" strategy.)

To begin with, he didn't come to Tibet to fight. Besides, he already got what he came for.
Minoru shot up to 1,000 meters in the sky using Mock-Teleportation, and then searched
for a suitable landing spot. Then, with a series of additional Mock-Teleportation runs, he
jumped out of Lhasa.
 39
His final stop was a vacant lot by the roadside on the southern bank of the Lhasa River,
which flows east-west to the south of the palace. He moved about five kilometers away
from his former location.

He moved only five kilometers away out of concern that he might stand out too much if
he went to a place with too few people. Takachiho was already nearing the horizon from
his ground level perspective. Minoru decided that it would be better to wait for
Takachiho's next approach before returning to space.

(What was the deal with those guys, anyway…?)

He was fully aware of the high probability that he would come in contact with
magicians of the GAU, especially those of a high-ranking ace class, if he sneaked into
Tibet. He believed himself to be mentally prepared for such an occasion. But the talent
of the magicians he came across were beyond his expectations. Even more unexpected
was the approach of their abilities.

Neither the "wind-user" nor the "flute player," as he called them, had much magic raw
power themselves. The "wind-user"'s "Qióngqí" was limited to single targets, and since it
probably uses air currents as its medium, its range was short and its speed was slow.

And there was the "flute player's" "Magic Flute," which was remarkable in terms of the
number of targets it could affect. However, it left more people kneeling than it actually
did rendered unconscious.

Compared to Lu Ganghu, who was associated with Zhou Gongjin, it is fair to say that he
is a lower rank in terms of battlefield performance. That said, Minoru never directly
witnessed the power of Lu Ganghu himself, so this is only a guess based on hearsay.

However, as anti-personnel combatants, their magic was a threat. The magic of those
two bypassed Minoru's defenses and inflicted damage on him despite the fact that
Minoru had been prepared for an attack.

Minoru has a high resistance to both physical and mental attacks. And it was no
boasting of his. His battle record proved it; Minoru had never struggled thus far, not
since he faced Fumiya Kuroba of the Yotsuba Family, his grandfather (the late Kudou
Retsu), and Tatsuya.

(I wasn't trying to underestimate them, but…)

Slightly shaking his head, Minoru shelved his regrets for the moment and regained his
composure. He extended the radius of his passive magic perception powers to a radius
of kilometers and probed his surroundings. Moments later he noticed an information
body within this new radius.
 40
(I guess they wouldn't let me get away with this easily…)

Minoru muttered in his mind. The information body was a familiar from the enemy
Daoshi. It was equivalent to what is referred to in Japan as Shikigami.

It wasn’t a single information body ─ familiar. He detected only two of them at first, but
now the number has increased to six.

The familiars approached at a considerable speed in a radial fan-like formation. They

couldn't trace Minoru's [Mock-Teleportation], instead they must have had a general idea
and released many familiars to search in that general direction. This was an orthodox
approach to scouting by systematically using "numbers".

Regardless of the fast approaching rate of the familiars, it was nothing that
[Mock-Teleportation] couldn't outrun. But Minoru did not choose the escape option this
time.

Minoru has confidence in his ability to use "Mock-Teleportation" in a normal capacity

and leave no traces at all. In fact, when he responded to Tatsuya's call to a hotel in
Berkeley, California, the other day, the USNA's authorities failed to detect any signs of his
coming and going ─ from Takachiho to the ground, vice-versa. Not even that States
were able to detect Minoru's Mock-Teleportation.

Yet, his current pursuer, whose identity is still completely unknown to him, managed to.
They might be able to trace Minoru's return to Takachiho in some unknown way since
[Mock-Teleportation] is, after all, not truly a magic of instantaneous travel.

Even at the time of closest approach, when Takachiho is near its zenith, it takes about 10
seconds to make a single trip. Once it gets near the horizon, from the ground
perspective, the time required is nearly twice as long.

Vast may be the knowledge he absorbed along with the spirit of Zhou Gongjin, but even
that spirit wasn't thoroughly versed in all of the Shénxiān and Taoist arts. Therefore,
even if the magic itself may be unperceivable, there is an undeniable possibility that
remnant traces of the movement process could be picked up.

Takachiho's security is paramount, even if it comes down to a worst-case scenario in

which he is temporarily entrapped. Minoru would only return to space after he was sure
that he cleared his pursuers.

Now, to shake them off or to intercept them.

Minoru chose to shake them off. He affixed the charms he had prepared in advance to
both legs and took off running. Those are the Taoist techniques [Shinkonhou]
appropriated from the knowledge in Zhou Gongjin's spirit. Since his opponents are also
 41
Daoshi, who use the same system of ancient magic, they will most likely notice Minoru's
flight attempt, but the odds of being caught in a pincer movement or ambush are
nevertheless lower than if he stood still in the same place.

He headed off the riverside road and into an undeveloped hilly area. Although he moved
at speeds ranging from 40 to 50 kilometers per hour, the familiars flew much faster.
Minoru attempted a course that avoided direct line of sight for the familiars, but they
were still less than a minute behind him. But that ultimately only lasted less than a
minute before they caught sight of him again.

While running, Minoru tried to destroy the familiars that were getting too close.

As it turned out, with the simple non-systematic-type magic, a psion bullet, he was able
to easily destroy the pursuing familiar. No particular special technique necessary. There
wasn't even a trap built in that inflicts a curse upon destruction.

Minoru felt dejected.

That changed really fast in the next moment, as the enemy Daoshi with the iron fan
suddenly appeared where the familiar disappeared.

Seemingly appearing where the familiar once vanished, through something similar to
[Mock-Teleportation]. Perhaps it was a built-in process in the familiar that emits a signal
with its coordinates at the time of disappearance.

He couldn't deny that he had been caught by surprise.

And yet, both Minoru and the Iron Fan Daoshi launched their attacks at the same time.

Minoru, ball lightning.

The Daoshi, a cursed wind blade.

This time, the Daoshi didn't block the ball lightning with the iron fan in his right hand.
Instead, he spread out a second, folding fan on his left hand, which then became his
shield. It was large like the ones often used on stage or drama plays, with a usual
bamboo frame and surface made of paper.

Certainly, a fan made of paper and bamboo doesn't conduct electricity. But Minoru did
not remember launching an attack that could be blocked by a mere piece of paper.

(As I thought. These guys…!)

 42
They are specialized in anti-personnel techniques, Minoru concluded. To add to the
unspoken portion of his thoughts, Minoru surmised that the "Iron Fan" and the "Magic
Flute" Daoshi were both specialists in interpersonal magic combat of the GAU's forces.

The large fan in his left hand was most likely a magical tool that was given the
properties of a shield against magical attacks. The surface of the fan is covered with
minutely inscriptions. Which means that the fan is probably a talisman in its own right.

(So, they have taken thorough precautions while still chasing me.)

Minoru mused as he repelled the enemy's [Qióngqí] cursed wind with his [Hex Reversal]
barrier.

Then, he gave a faint, ruthless smile.

The enemy Daoshi couldn't hide his confusion. Maybe it was the curse process in the
wind blade that was rebound. Or perhaps it was surprising to see Minoru's use of the
Taoist barrier.

He wasn't the only one who made preparations against the opponent's attacks; just as
Daoshi had arranged a shield against the four systems and eight types of modern magic
mid-pursuit, so had Minoru against Taoist based attacks.

Unfortunately, the psychological impact was less than Minoru had hoped for. Soon the
"Iron Fan Daoshi" got his nerves under control and charged at Minoru.

His speed in his approach and the sharpness of his steps rivaled Tatsuya's as far as
Minoru's experience. If it weren't for his previous fights with Tatsuya, Minoru would
certainly not have been able to handle himself as well as he did. Managing to deflect
each blow from the iron fan as well as the accompanying shockwaves. Minoru realized
that he had been lucky for the poor foothold on the roof earlier.

His opponent was clearly superior in hand-to-hand combat. Any magic directly cast
would be nullified by an unidentified counter-magic, and any magic attack using
physical phenomena would be blocked by the fan acting as a shield.

His only saving grace is that "Magic Flute Daoshi" didn't rush in with him. It was only a
matter of time until it happened, however. Minoru's defeat would be inevitable if he
continued to engage in an honest to a fault head-to-head battle.

Perhaps, if Minoru had been still a human, the match would have already been long
over. He sat through and took the Daoshi attack head-on. Thanks to his Parasite's
super-recovery capabilities, Minoru came out still standing.

But that would not hold forever. He felt that the ensuing shockwave, whose nature was
as unclear as the counter-magic, was gradually dampening the parasite's regenerative
 43
power. Perhaps the enemy wasn’t so much a specialist in anti-personnel magic combat
as an expert in exterminating inhuman demons such as parasites.

At any rate, it would only get worse if it continued like this. Minoru thought as much.
There was never the need to defeat his pursuers to begin with.

Escaping was the goal, not victory. His objective was simply to shake them off
completely. In light of this, the current situation was undesirable.

Continued hand-to-hand combat with the "Iron Fan Daoshi" and sooner or later, the
"Magic Flute Daoshi" would eventually show up as well. That would pose some serious
challenge to his escape.

Drastic measures were necessary to break out from this situation. Unless he was willing
to be a little risky, he would not be able to overcome this. So Minoru took the plunge.

He erected a shield at an angle that would catch the next attack of the iron fan.

Ignoring the incoming shockwave and the damage it would cause, he kept the magic
shield in place and backtracked step by step.

Magic that directly affected his enemy was still out of play. Magic shields, however, that
blocked the physical attacks of the enemy, fulfilled their purpose without a hitch.

Although the enemy Daoshi was able to nullify the magic acting on him, he could only
do so to magics acting directly on him. Consequently, Daoshi couldn't get past the
shield, and the distance between him and Minoru widened.

Minoru didn't believe that he could keep his enemy pinned as is. All he needed was this
ten paces in between them.

The accumulated damage from the shockwaves had entered the danger zone. There
wasn’t much room to spare. Aware of this, Minoru promptly activated the magic he had
readied during his backward retreat.

The target wasn’t "Iron Fan Daoshi". It was the ground under his feet.

The ground exploded. The thick layer of earth, from one to two meters below the
surface, suffered a rapid upward acceleration that blew away the stratum and the sand
above it with an explosive force.

The enemy's Daoshi was sent flying along in the air by this magic that disregarded any
efficiency. The ground he was standing on was blown away. Even if the magic was
nullified, there was no way he could prevent himself from being covered by the blown
earth and sand. His enemy was launched nearly two meters into the air, dropping in
along with the sand and dirt he was sent flying up with, burying him halfway through.
 44
The concussive force of the explosion wasn’t enough to incapacitate a first-rate soldier,
however.

The "Iron Fan Daoshi" would be soon springing up from under the earth and sand and
would resume his attack.

Minoru didn't take it as an opportunity for a follow-up attack.

He activated another series of short-range [Mock-Teleportation] to make his escape.

His sequential [Mock-Teleportation] moves brought him around the hills, back into the
city center of Lhasa.

It was 50-50 that he would be able to elude the enemy. For the time being, at least there
was no sign of either the "Magic Flute" or the "Iron Fan" Daoshi, nor any other enemy
magicians in the urban area he had blended in with.

Minoru made his way to the train station across the street on foot, using a combination
of [Parade] and [Kimon Tonkou] to board a stationary train bound for Ching Haii. He
didn't have a boarding ticket, but neither did he need one. He could have easily swiped a
ticket along with the ID, but he again saw no need to go through the trouble. He wanted
to shake off the pursuit in any case, he simply hopped off the train before the ticket
check.

Unfortunately, things didn't go so smoothly.

He heard a commotion from the car ahead. Judging from the snippets he could pick up,
it sounded like a soldier from the GAU military boarded for a checkpoint inspection.

Now that's cheap, Minoru grumbled in his mind. If those Daoshi are really magicians
from the military, it was natural, or rather inevitable, that they would be checking any
train or self-propelled vehicle leaving Lhasa. As much as he hated to admit it, he
underestimated the GAU.

Regret stalls thinking. Delaying the next action.

By the time he had moved to exit the train, he recognized the approaching steps as the
presence of a magician.

It was someone other than the two Daoshi who attacked him beforehand.

Maybe that's why he noticed them so late.

 45
Was it because he unconsciously limited his enemies down to just those two, that was
why he did not notice until they were so close? Pushing these self-reproaching thoughts
to the back of his mind, Minoru searched for a way out of the train.

The aisles were full of people. If he had to wade through them, he would not make it to
the exit beyond them in time. His only alternative was to jump out of the window. It
didn't take him long to reach that conclusion.

Ignoring the shouts of protest, Minoru shrugged off the hands that grabbed at him and
moved towards the window.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of another passenger heading for the
adjacent car. Probably to inform the soldiers at the checkpoint. He could no longer take
the luxury of time.

Minoru reached for the window frame. Fortunately, it wasn’t a fixed shutter. He flung it
all the way open at once.

Just as he did so, footsteps thumped above his head. It was the sound of someone
jumping onto the roof of the train.

The next moment, the whistle of a flute resounded through the car.

Followed by the music, magic assailed indiscriminately.

As passengers crouched, some fell to their knees, and others fell down to the ground,
Minoru climbed a foot on the window frame and jumped out of the vehicle.

A large contingent of soldiers gathered here and there on the platform ahead of the
train's departure. One of them fired without warning at Minoru as he jumped out of the
window.

The side of the train was made swiss cheese with bullet holes.

With a shield raised with the pointing of the gun, Minoru came out unscathed.
Unfortunately, however, the stray bullets left a trail of victims.

He raised from his crouching landing position. Turning his head, he spotted one of the
Daoshi, the one who looked like a small boy, playing his flute on the roof.

The music should have been audible to the soldiers who fired earlier, but they showed
no sign of being affected by the magic. The range of the magic interaction apparently
doesn't coincide with the range in which the music can be heard.

The flute notes ceased momentarily, then restarted with a different tone. Must have
been a change of music.
 46
Simultaneously, the magical effects cast along the sound was also changed. Minoru
immediately knew what it entailed.

It went from inhibiting mental faculties to inhibiting the construction of magic

formulas.

Specifically, it seems to be very effective in clouding magic targeting.

Minoru felt it wasn’t strong enough to completely suppress his magic. But he hesitated
in casting long-range "Mock-Teleportation".

By restricting the amount of information he can get about the destination, this magic
effectively obfuscates the target. It is the informational distance, what and how much
you can determine about a target, rather than the physical distance, which governs the
effectiveness of magic. In that sense, if a target is at a visual distance, but with
restrictions on the information that can be gathered, it might as well be beyond the
horizon.

It is almost as if the magic was chosen to block Minoru's means of escape. No, they must
have chosen their repertoire based on their evaluation of Minoru's means of escape so
as to block them.

Fortunately for Minoru, hidden by his trousers, he still has his [Shinkonhou] talismans
affixed to his shins.

Minoru began to run alongside the train as soldiers were gathering on the adjacent
platform. Invoking [Kimon Tonkou] in parallel with [Shinkonhou], Minoru attempted to
avoid the soldiers' gunfire.

The magic from the flute focused on interfering with modern magic, but it had little
effect on ancient-style. He activated [Kimon Tonkou] after confirming this with
[Shinkonhou].

Soon after, Minoru deactivated [Kimon Tonkou].

Being a magic that disrupts the sense of orientation of those who look at you, this magic
works by principle of interfering with the mind of those who are trying to determine
your position.

As a result, anyone trying to pinpoint the caster's exact position will invariably be
diverted to the wrong direction.

So what happens when "Kimon Tonkou" acts on a person who is about to target its
caster?

Answer: An unavoidable misfire occurs.

 47
The person pulling the trigger may think they got their sights on the correct direction,
but they are way off. In a crowded place like this train station, the misfires would cause
many casualties. Right here and now, there are already numerous civilians bleeding
from gunshot wounds.

Minoru doesn't consider himself at fault that civilians were wounded and lives were lost.
Misfires are the responsibility of the person who pulled the trigger in the first place. He
became adept of this rationalist mentality after leaving his humanity behind.

But even if he doesn't feel remorse, he would not be fond of the resulting scene. He
harbored no animosity or resentment towards the GAU. Much less of the Tibetan people.
If it depended on him, he would be happy not to cause more unnecessary casualties.

Having released the misdirecting magic, Minoru must have realized as he was running
away in parallel with the train. The magician inside attacked him from behind with
magic. Nine small, thin, handleless knives flew all at the same time at him. But neither
reached Minoru. The magic of "Magic Flute Daoshi" must have confused their aim. So it
seems that the magician on the train was modern based.

A spark of inspiration crossed Minoru's mind.

If the targeting of modern magic is distorted, then how about an attack with ancient
magic? Would that Daoshi also be expecting an attack with ancient-style magic?

Although Minoru did not intend to use it, he pulled out a talisman from his waist pouch,
which he had brought just in case. It was created with the accumulated knowledge of
ancient magic from the Former Ninth Institute, a talisman of Japanese Onmyoujutsu ─ a
shikifuda. A topic he took upon himself to delve into at the beginning of the year, using
his newfound abundance of free time in his life in space.

Minoru slowed his tempo and tossed the shikifuda behind him.

"Kyou Kyou nyo Ritsuryou."

At the same time that he chanted the activation keywords, the shikifuda instantly burst
into flames, and the flames took on the form of a hawk.

(Nice, just as I thought.)

Just as Minoru deduced, the song caused no interference with ancient-style magic. Not
only the sequences that affect oneself, but also remote ones are not obstructed.

A dark scarlet flame embodies the form of a hawk and soars into the sky, striking "Magic
Flute Daoshi".

The flute releases a long, high-pitched note.

 48
The sound is succeeded by pressure.

The impact of the psionic wave brought on by the sound crushed the flaming hawk.

The Shikigami scattered as ashes. The "Magic Flute Daoshi" instantly neutralized
Minoru's Ancient Magic attack.

Minoru's attack was by no means a half-hearted effort. Although the activation

procedure was simplified, he took his time with the sequence and applied a
considerable amount of mystical power to create it. That Daoshi matched or even
surpassed Minoru's ability as an ancient-styled magician.

However, Minoru outwitted the "Magic Flute Daoshi" in the scope of the game.

He had to interrupt his playing in order to destroy the shikigami hawk.

The intermission was for a single note. When the flame hawk dispersed into ashes, the
flute resumed playing.

That brief interval was still all that Minoru needed.

In an instant, [Mock-Teleportation] was activated.

Right before the resumption of the performance, his figure had already vanished from
the scene.

◇◇◇

The "Magic Flute Daoshi" stood there for a moment, staring at the area where Minoru
had just been.

Seeing that he couldn't sense any trace of him, he gave up the pursuit.

The Daoshi jumps off the roof of the train. In front of his small frame, the magician who
had attacked Minoru with the small knives kneeled down. That magician bore the
insignia of a second lieutenant in the GAU forces.

"Han-Daijin, my deepest apologies."

"It's not your fault that he escaped, Ensign. He also got me."

The Daoshi called "Han-Daijin" had a low, deep voice that didn't quite fit his small
stature.

"Should we proceed with the pursuit?"

"Hmm… Close all the roads for the time being, and have the drones patrol the area
thoroughly."
 49
The Daoshi Han thought for a moment and then gave sensible instructions.

It was also an admission that he was unable to track down Minoru's escape through
magic.

The Ensign looked up from his kneeling position at the Daoshi Han with surprise in his
eyes.

"Is there a problem?"

"No, sir! …I was just wondering who the hell was that magician just now?"

When asked by the Daoshi Han for the meaning of his gaze, the Ensign hurriedly fumbled
up a question.

"I don't know myself either. He used Taoism besides modern magic, but I don't think he
is a Daoshi."

"Could he have been a 'Saptarishi'?"

"I don't think that’s the case, but I suppose we can't rule out that possibility."

"Saptarishi ", the codename for the special operative unit made up of Indo-Persian
Federation most elite magicians. They have been in ongoing covert warfare against the
GAU magician units in Tibet, Uyghur, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and other
countries.

"Will we be contacting Zhongli-Daijin…?"

The Ensign fearfully asked.

"Zhongli-Daijin" is the name of the Daoshi who used the iron fan, who worked alongside
them in their pursuit of Minoru, and who is a competitor to the Daoshi Han in the
organization they share.

In response to the Ensign's question, Daoshi Han broadly nodded his head, "Yes, I
suppose I have to."

◇◇◇

Finally, after a three-hour escapade, Minoru finally was free from pursuit and back at
Takachiho, one look was enough to tell how exhausted he was.

"Minoru-sama, are you all right!?"

Minoru stopped the rushing Minami with a limp hand wave and proceeded to the living
module, where he sank deeply into the sofa.
 50
"Do you want me to ease the gravity?"

Minami suggested in concern. The gravity in this residence was managed by Artificial
Relic [Magistore]. The magic was renewed every six hours by Minoru or Minami, but it
was within the specifications of the Artificial Relic system to stop the Magistore
mid-operation and redeploy it with a new magic in storage as needed.

"No, it's fine. I'd much prefer something to chew on, if that's okay."

At present, Minoru was suffering from a lack of energy rather than running out of
stamina, and energy is derived from vital activity. To solve his problem of low vitality, he
needed to stimulate his vital activities, and to stimulate his vital activities, he needed to
replenish his physical body's energy.

"As you wish," Minami replied anxiously as she headed for the kitchen.

Using the plentiful ingredients provided from the ground, Minami prepared a nourishing
egg congee, which immediately improved Minoru's complexion.

Even so, Minoru's condition did not return to normal immediately, and it took more
than an hour after the meal for him to recover in earnest.

"Minoru-sama… May I ask about what just happened?"

Minami's voice was equal parts worried and angry as she asked.

"I didn't mean to let my guard down, but I underestimated the GAU."

Minoru honestly admitted his fault, knowing that he had made her worried, even after
he told her he wouldn't take it easy.

"There were some tough Daoshi in Tibet that exceeded my expectations."

Starting with that, he proceeded to describe the long time it took him to shake off the
pursuit of the unknown ancient-style magicians that used skills unknown to even Zhou
Gongjin's knowledge.

"…Were they such powerful enemies…?"

"They were. I spent those three hours trying to avoid a fight, but I don't think it would
have been much easier even if I went in with the intention to kill from the get-go.
Neither had much in terms of destructive power, but they were both very skilled in
interpersonal combat."

"So they were ancient magicians who specialize in interpersonal combat?"

 51
"That's what it seems. Especially with their counter-magic skills, they might even be part
of some sort of counter mageist specialized unit."

"…Shouldn't we inform Tatsuya-sama about this…? Would you like me to report it to

him?"

Minami offered mainly because the Tibetan incursion was carried out without Tatsuya's
consultation, and though Minoru is not Tatsuya's subordinate, it is thanks to him that
Minoru is able to enjoy his current life. She feared that Minoru might feel uncomfortable
confessing his arbitrary actions.

"─No, I'll tell him myself. I'll be an adult and accept any flak I get."

Minoru answered with a wry smile. He seemed to come into the picture of her
assumptions.

◇◇◇

Minoru did not delay in acting on his words.

And Tatsuya had no blame for Minoru at all.

[─Those people are probably part of the 'Bāxiān'.]

After listening to the report, Tatsuya named Minoru's opponents.

"Bāxiān, is it… You don't mean those mythical Xians from the East-Asian continent, do
you?"

[The name comes from those Bāxiān, but their real existence is, naturally, different].

The Tatusya in the laser comm monitor chuckled and shook his head.

There are eight names handed down in Taoism for leading Xian in the tradition. They
are Li Tieguai, Zhongli Quan, Lü Dongbin, Lan Caihe, Han Xiangzi, He Xiangu, Zhang
Guolao and Cao Guojiu.

[The GAU has a special operations unit with codenames after the legendary Bāxiān. I was
told they are composed of ancient-style magicians specialized in the Taoist system.]

"I've never heard of such a unit existing…"

[I'm not sure of the particulars either. I don't even think the NDF is privy to the details.]

"Is it a secret unit?"

[It has definitely been kept secret, but so far it's activities seem to have been limited to
the domestic and Central Asian areas. That's why it is probably not widely known in
 52
Japan or the USNA. Military officials of the IPU, however, would know far more about
them.]

"So their area of activity is different."

Their conversation concluded at that point.

Neither Tatsuya nor Minoru have any precognitive abilities. Neither of them had the
faintest idea that [Bāxiān] would again be a part of a coming event involving them in the
very near future.
53
 54

Chapter 2
[Secret Maneuvers]

On July 25th, Tatsuya and Miyuki paid a visit to the Yotsuba main house.

Given their prior appointment, they were immediately escorted to Maya's presence on
arrival.

When asked on what business brought him here, Tatsuya elaborated to Maya on his
hypothesis derived from the [White Tablet] and the [Small Tablet Compass], asking for
permission to visit the IPU.

"So, you want to travel to search for Shambhala? Seriously?"

Maya showed a rare look of astonishment after hearing Tatsuya's proposal.

"I personally don't believe in the existence of Shambhala. But I do believe that it is not all
that unlikely that I may find the ruins of the civilization that was used as the basis for the
legend."

"…Are you expecting to find any kind of Relics?"

"We may be able to find something even more valuable. Maybe an unused [Guru's
Tablet], for example."

"A tablet presumed to be from a prehistoric civilization that records magic, you say…"

The prospect of unearthing a previously unheard-of magic was clearly an exciting

thought for Maya.

The established objective of the former Fourth Research Institute was the research of
Mental Interference Magic, as well as the enhancement of the Magic Calculation Area
itself. The Yotsuba Family inherited their research, but apart from the ostensible duty of
contributing to the nation, the family's underlying mission was the advancement and
enhancement of magic itself.

As the head of said Yotsuba Family, it was impossible to ignore the potential offered by
the discovery of magic from prehistoric civilizations, which had clear advantages over
modern magic.

"What pretext do you intend to use for your departure?"

 55
When he dispatched Mayumi to the USNA, Tatsuya used some rather rough methods to
wrest some freedom for magicians to be able to travel abroad. That's said, there must be
a clear purpose for going out of the country. No claims of tourism by him would stick, of
course, nor would the truthful declaration that he was going out to search for magical
artifacts.

"I plan to take on the opportunity of the partnership between the Magian Society and
FEHR."

"Specifically?"

"I will change the venue for the signing ceremony of the partnership from being in the
high seas to Sri Lanka, and I would be traveling out to attend the ceremony."

"I thought it would be all done with electronic signatures."

In this day and age, contracts frequently don't involve the paper version, just a digital,
electronic one, and, as Maya pointed out, the partnership between the Society and FEHR
would follow the pattern.

"We changed it to a written document at the request of FEHR's legal counsel."

"Was it really an initiative from the other side?"

Maya asked Tatsuya in a teasing tone with a grin plastered on her face.

"Yes. Just a coincidence that just turned out to be quite convenient."

"Coincidence, I see…"

Maya's smile deepened at Tatsuya's dismissive reply.

"Well, fine then. Sri Lanka is ostensibly neutral, so there will be less waves than going
directly to the IPU."

There were many parties included in Maya's analogy. Some are the Japanese
government and the National Defense Forces, but others include foreign governments,
militaries, intelligence agencies, as well as powerful people in the shadows, dubbed
"Power Brokers" or "Éminence grise​".

"So, are you taking Miyuki-san along again this time?"

Maya asked, glancing at Miyuki on his side, who abstained from any comment to this
moment.

Miyuki maintained her downcast demeanor, not making eye contact with Maya.

"Yes, that is my intention. Beside me is the safest place in the world, after all."
 56
He said with a straight face, to which Maya could only give a wry smile, "Oh my, oh my…"

"Besides, I'll also be bringing Lina with us this time."

Tatsuya sincerely believed that the safest place in the world for Miyuki is right next to
him. But he also recognized that he couldn’t do everything himself.

There are places in society where only women are allowed in. To fill the gap, he needed
someone of her same sex who is at least as capable as Miyuki herself.

Someone like Lina, for example.

"Is that so? Then I have no qualms."

"I'm grateful."

"I'll be waiting for good news."

Maya's last line was delivered with the expression of a child eager for a souvenir.

◇◇◇

On July 26th, the day following the visit to the Yotsuba main house.

Tatsuya showed up for work at the Machida office of the Magian Company.

Miyuki had exams stretching through the end of the month at Magic University. Tatsuya
had been exempted from that burden upon his enrolment on the proviso of making
contributions to the university's research. And if Miyuki was so inclined, she too could
enjoy the same privilege, but she decided against it out of consideration of her image in
the public eye. Thus, she diligently took on her exams today as well.

After finishing the clerical work around noon, Tatsuya made an international call to the
Republic of India in the IPU. His contact was the representative of the Magian Society,
Chandrasekhar.

[I understand. I don't have any problems with that.]

Chandrasekhar agreed to Tatsuya's request to change the location of the partnership

signing ceremony with FEHR to the Society's headquarters in Sri Lanka.

"Thank you very much. All it remains is to get FEHR's approval. I will contact you as soon
as I have a firm schedule."

[I'm free until around the end of next month, anytime until then works for me. On that
note, Mister]

Her agreement didn't come free of doubt, however.

 57
[What is your real purpose in coming here?]

She figured out soon enough that the signing ceremony was only a camouflage.

Chandrasekhar is not just some scholar, she is also an IPU stalwart with a prominent
voice in national security. It was inconceivable that she wouldn't have known that much
right from the start.

"I would very much like to visit your country."

[The Federation, not Sri Lanka?"]

Chandrasekhar expressed a touch of surprise on her face.

Any surprise contained in her voice was marginal.

"I would gladly discuss the details in person."

[…All right]

Chandrasekhar spent a few moments with Tatsuya's self-indulgent argument, before

giving her answer.

[Then we can have you over at my house following the signing ceremony.]

"…Are you certain?"

The pause that Tatsuya's answer required was relatively longer.

[Yes, by all means. If you don't mind, I'd also like to discuss your Stellar Reactor and the
Artificial Relic.]

"All right. Then let's go with that."

Understanding Chandrasekhar's plan to invite him under the pretense of an exchange of

their scientific ideas, Tatsuya agreed to oblige.

◇◇◇

It was the next morning when Tatsuya chose to call Lena.

As if eager for the day, Lena consented on the change in the signing ceremony. When
asked how many days she needed to prepare for her departure, she seemed inclined to
go straight away.

Tatsuya then suspected that Lena also had an ulterior motive to go to Sri Lanka, or the
IPU in general.
 58
Perhaps it could be for the same reason as Tatsuya's party. The "White Tablet", i.e. the
"map stone tablet" is still in USNA, although he believes that FEHR doesn't have what it
takes to solve the puzzle of the map, but someone at FEHR must be interested in looking
for Shambhala.

At least that was what Tatsuya thought. But he didn't care to speculate any further, and
proceeded to discuss the schedule of the signing ceremony with Lena. They settled on
August 2nd, right on the edge of the summer vacation, when Miyuki would have more
free time.

◇◇◇

A few hours earlier, two hours before Tatsuya's call at 4:00 P.M. local time, Lena received
a request from a USNA federal officer to meet with her.

It was a completely unexpected sudden visit. Lena would normally have declined such a
request, but not when it was a federal officer, especially one of the Stars. She welcomed
her surprise visitor into her office.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Fehr, I'm Second Lieutenant Evelyn Taylor of the
Special Operations Magician Unit Stars."

The officer who came uninvited was alone. A slightly taller-than-average young looking
woman.

"A pleasure to meet you, Second Lieutenant, I am Lena Fehr, FEHR's representative."

Lena stood up to greet her, and was overwhelmed by her size; Lena stood little over 160
centimeters tall, her guest was about five centimeters taller than that. Her visitor was
only about five centimeters taller than that, therefore the height wasn't the reason.

Second Lieutenant Evelyn was particularly endowed. When Lena approached her for a
handshake, she had the illusion of being oppressed by the large breasts protruding in
front of her. As a matter of fact, Lena may harbor an inferiority complex about her
girlishly slender, unreliable figure, which may account for why she was so keenly
conscious of Evelyn's figure.

"Please have a seat. How can I help you today?"

Hiding her private feeling of defeat with a smile, Lena promptly asked about her
business.

"I have an explanation and a request regarding the stone tablet you submitted as
evidence."
 59
"An explanation and a… request?"

"Yes."

Evelyn said with a nod and told her of the high probability that the "White Tablet" was a
map to Shambhala.

"Shambhala…? With all due respect, isn't that just a legend?"

"You can't believe it?"

At Lena's common sense reaction, Evelyn smiled.

"…If I'm to be honest."

Lena nodded hesitantly.

"As a matter of fact, so do I."

Evelyn's words, delivered without dropping her smile, took Lena by surprise.

Evelyn's didn't stop there.

"But please give it some thought. A hundred years ago, magic was just another fairy
tale."

"…You think Shambhala also may turn out to exist?"

"I do not actually expect said city of Shambhala to exist to this day."

"It existed at some point, you're suggesting?"

"Yes, that's right."

Evelyn nodded with apparent satisfaction.

"We believe that the [White Tablet] points to the ruins of Shambhala."

"Like a treasure map, you mean."

Evelyn laughed out loud with the skeptical remark that escaped from Lena.

"A treasure map! I couldn't have put it better myself."

Evelyn's expression suddenly shifted. Her mouth remained upturned at the corners, but
the rest of her face took on a serious aspect.

"We are willing to provide aid to your organization."

"Aid, you say?"

 60
Doubt manifested in Lena's expression rather than delight.

"Financial aid is included, but there are also many other ways."

"…Are you suggesting bringing FEHR under the umbrella of Stars?"

"Aid, that's all. No strings attached."

Lena's penetrating gaze fixed on Evelyn. Unconsciously, her amber eyes took on a light
golden hue.

"…May I ask what terms are involved?"

Lena was by no means shouting. Nevertheless, her voice reverberated through the
room, filling the "space".

She did not use magic. The color shift in her eyes indicated the activity of her "power,"
but the voice that soaked into the heart, the ensuing solemn atmosphere that resembled
the preaching of a virtuous eminent clergyman in a cathedral, was but one aspect of the
Charisma that Lena possessed.

Evelyn expressed admiration. But that was all. She was amazed, but not much beyond
that.

"Yes, of course. If I may borrow your words, I'd like you to go 'on a treasure hunt'."

"…You mean, going to search for the ruins of Shambhala?"

"Exactly!"

Evelyn nodded with a smile that said, "Good guess".

"If our decipherment is correct, the ruins of Shambhala are located in Uzbekistan in the
IPU."

"In the IPU, you say…"

Lena's concern was less about the difficulties in leaving the country. USNA is relatively
tolerant when it comes to magicians departing abroad. Although high-level magicians,
such as those listed as possible candidates for the Stars, are subject to strict restrictions,
low-level ones only have to pass a rigorous screening process, but are not barred from
leaving.

"Would the IPU even allow the excavation of archaeological sites?"

"If we honestly declared your purpose, I doubt that they would give us a visa."

"…You're asking us to illegally enter?"

 61
"Something along those lines."

Evelyn's matter-of-fact answer left Lena with a particularly uncomfortable feeling.

"And you'll be coming as well, Second Lieutenant?"

At face value, it was an understandable question; a commissioner would likely want to

be present for the excavation.

But then, there would be no need to ask Lena in the first place. Then it struck Lena;
while USNA military personnel were not welcomed to roam freely in the IPU, the same
was not true for a private organization, such as FEHR.

"Here comes my second request. I'd like to ask to join FEHR."

"Are you implying that you will use the FEHR as a cover?"

"Yes."

Evelyn confirmed without a single word of apology.

"Oh, of course. This is not a coercion. This is but a request from the federal army."

Again, not a shred of guilt behind, and in, Evelyn's smile. And like that, she waited for
Lena's answer with a look that could even be described as innocent.

Ultimately, Lena chose to accept both of Evelyn's "requests".

◇◇◇

For the third consecutive day on July 28th, Tatsuya arrived for work at the Machida
office.

His schedule for the beginning of the week would have him in Miyakishima today to
wrap up Stellar Generator work. But, as it turned out, after his call with Lena from FEHR
yesterday evening, he received a subsequent call from Sanada of the Independent
Magic-Equipped Regiment, with a "I need to meet with you" request.

He meets Sanada relatively often. Though Tatsuya may no longer be an Special Duty
Officer, he maintains his ties with the NDF (in this case, a "Special Duty Officer" is not a
person who did not undergo officer academy and received officer treatment as a special
exception, but instead, an individual that is granted formal combatant and officer status,
while retaining his civilian, non-volunteer status).

From CADs to a range of other magic related technology, even today, the military was
still the largest source of demand for that market. Although sales related to Stellar
 62
Reactor accounted for a significant percentage of FLT's sales, and even at a declining
rate, the military continued to be a major source of revenue for the company.

Even after dropping the Taurus Silver name, Tatsuya retained his position as a
researcher at FLT. In that capacity, he regularly met with Sanada, a technical officer, at
least once a month to discuss orders for his products.

"How can I help you today?"

Hence they skipped much of the greeting and Tatsuya immediately inquired about
Sanada's business.

"I came on behalf of my C.O. with a request from Director-General Akiyama."

"From the Director-General? Please, go ahead?"

Chief of the Staff Headquarters, Director-General Akiyama, is one among the top brass of
the National Defense Force who holds the most favorable stance toward Mageist, be it
uniforms and the suits. He lent a helping hand, albeit half-intimidated, to ease the
restrictions on Mageist travel from Japan following Tatsuya's bold move last month with
his demonstration involving bombing of a comet.

Tatsyuya felt like he owed Akiyama a bit for that incident.

"Shiba-san"

Sanada was currently in front of Tatsuya as a business partner rather than a colleague.
He naturally changed his address form accordingly.

"It came to our attention that you will be visiting Sri Lanka next week."

"Do you know about it already?"

It wasn’t that much of a surprise to Tatsuya. Unlike his last visit out of the country, his
travel to Sri Lanka was not a secret. The application for the needed visa was also duly
filed yesterday with the newly established Sri Lankan Embassy. As of April of this year, Sri
Lanka seceded from the IPU and became independent.

His surprise was, as he put it, "you already know about it?".

"Will you be attending the Magian Society's ceremony?"

"Yes. The Society has decided to officially partner with an American organization called
FEHR, and I will be attending its signing ceremony."

He didn't shy away. He not only confirmed but also added the details of the ceremony to
his answer.
 63
"If your schedule allows, would you mind making a visit to the IPU?"

"To the IPU?"

He limited himself to a raised eyebrow. Had it been Miyuki or Lina, they would probably
not have been able to hide their reaction. Suffice it to say, unlike his visit to Sri Lanka,
the trip to IPU is a secret.

"You wouldn't need an additional visa to enter the IPU from Sri Lanka, and it wouldn't be
unreasonable to expect a personal invitation from Dr. Chandrasekhar if it was for
Shiba-san."

"This is to say that I must ask Dr. Chandrasekhar to invite me into the country?"

"Oh, no. There is no compulsion. It's just a request. If possible, to pass on a message to
General Lars Singh over at the IPU."

Lars Singh is the general in charge of what constitutes the Army of the former India
inside the IPU army. Although his rank may be that of a lieutenant general, he wields a
reputation among military insiders of having more substantive power than the general
with the supreme command of the Indo-Persian Union Army.

"Do you want me to pass a letter of intent to him? Wouldn't it be better to ask the doctor
in Sri Lanka?"

Other rumors suggest that Lars Singh and Chandrasekhar have a specially close
relationship.

"No, verbally, please."

Sanada says, shaking his head.

Tatsuya's eyebrows rose again, this time in surprise. Sanada was asking Tatsuya to
deliver a message that "couldn't be sent in any data or written form".

"Is it really acceptable for me to be privy to such a highly confidential message?"

"As long as there is nothing left behind, it's fine. The message itself doesn't hold much
significance."

"…So, if I understand correctly, the question is to pass the message to general Sigh and
no one else."

"That is correct."

Tatsuya mulled it over for about ten seconds, staring at Sanada's face, who didn't seem
to be taking it seriously as much as he should have.
 64
"Alright, I'll pass it on, if I get the chance."

"Understandable. I appreciate it."

With that, Sanada got up from his chair, walked around the desk between them, and
brought his mouth up to Tatsuya's ear.

◇◇◇

After successfully evading the police raid, the FAIR figurehead Dean and sub-leader
Laura relocated from their headquarters in San Francisco, which was now relegated by
the law enforcement authorities, to a safe house in Richmond.

One week has passed. Dean had yet to come from his impasse.

The raid of the headquarters was conducted by the San Francisco Metropolitan Police
Department, but both Dean and Laura were now wanted nationwide by the federal
authorities. That made for an exceptionally tight investigation.

Laura picked up from an information broker that Dean and his group were listed as
wanted terrorists for their test run of [Babel] in Oakland. While the police weren’t made
aware of [Babel], by word of the federal military, they were informed of an attempted
terrorist attack in which Dean was the prime instigator.

The severity of the hunt for a terrorist is incomparable to that for an ordinary criminal.
More so when it is the head figure — he could be shot dead even at the slightest gesture
of fleeing. That was the reason for Dean's reluctance to venture out of the house.

Eight days into that situation, Dean received a visit from a lone man.

Although Rocky Dean's appearance was very much like that of the average Caucasian of
Italian descent, he was of ethnic Chinese descent. It was thanks to his network of
contacts among overseas Chinese, both public and underground, that he was able to
stay hidden in America.

The man who visited the Richmond's hideout came through a referral from the same
network.

The man introduced himself as "Lü Dongbin".

"If I'm not mistaken…"

Present at the side, Laura interjected in a reserved but clear tone of voice.

"Isn't 'Lü Dongbin' the name of a Bāxiān?"

Lü Dongbin (呂洞賓) is one of the exemplary Xians of the East-Asian continent.

 65
The 30-year-old or so looking man gave a faint smile at Laura's remark.

"I am in fact one of the 'Bāxiān'. The modern 'Bāxiāns', however."

"And what's the difference?"

Dean asked in a gruff voice. He knew at least the names of the legendary Xians, but
'modern Bāxiān' didn't ring any bells.

"Is an organization named as such within our military, sir."

Lü Dongbin answered casually. But Dean a major piece of information wasn’t lost on
Dean.

"'Our military'? Are you a magician of the GAU military?"

Lü Dongbin did not answer either yes or no, just kept smiling.

"We are willing and ready to provide you with assistance."

Instead of answering the question, Lü Dongbin made his offer.

"You mean financial assistance?"

"If funding is what you need, we are willing to be as generous as you need us to be. But
is funding alone sufficient?"

"What about sending troops, then?"

Dean asked back incredulously.

"Let me first offer what my person can do."

"You…?"

The suspicious look on Dean's face wasn’t one of mistrust of Lü Dongbin or doubt of his
ability — Lü Dongbin made no effort to conceal his power from the moment he entered
the room. Any magician could tell at a glance that this man had substantial power.

Dean's question was "Why such a powerful man?".

"Wait a minute. Why are you helping us in the first place?"

Laura was of the same mind, but she explicitly asked.

"Because Mr. Dean is a fellow compatriot."

Lü Dongbin's following answer was as unabated as if the conversation had been thought
out in advance.
 66
"Let us see… Shall I prove our commitment? How does retrieving the stone tablet stolen
by the police sound?"

He proceeded to make the suggestion.

Laura glanced at Dean, inquiring about his decision.

"─Let's have a look at your performance, shall we?"

Dean's demeanor and language shifted as he agreed to the proposition.

◇◇◇

The "White Tablet" was returned to the San Francisco Police Department's safekeeping
after the deciphering was concluded.

At the end of July, the sixteen stone tablets were stolen. The police would only come to
realize this fact three days later, during the evidence inspection day.

Though surveillance cameras were installed throughout the station, none of them
captured any images of the culprit.
 67

Chapter 3
[Travelling]

On the morning of August 2nd, Tatsuya arrived at Hambantota International Airport in

southern Sri Lanka. His flight was by no means an ordinary airliner or a military aircraft,
but his own private jet.

More precisely, a magic-aided hydrogen-fueled hypersonic aircraft with a top speed of

Mach 7. Despite its civilian status, it was equipped with an air-to-air laser weapon and a
radar capable of being used as a high-energy radio weapon. Not to mention, its pilot
was a former fighter pilot of the NDF Air Force.

Although its airframe performance would be put to shame by any fighter, with the help
of the inertia control provided by the Artificial Relic Magistore onboard, the flight was
far more pleasant. Passengers would presumably feel even less strain compared to a
subsonic airliner. By taking advantage of this performance, the flight from Japan to Sri
Lanka took a mere two hours.

Accompanying him were Miyuki, Lina, and Hanabishi Hyougo; Fumiya and Ayako both
expressed an interest in coming along, but important obligations of the Kuroba family
forced them to reluctantly decline.

There was some debate as to whether or not to take Hyougo with them. In terms of
individual fighting capacity, Hyougo could be a liability in an emergency. That said,
Hyougo had established a network of contacts during his training with a private military
company.

Since the destination this time was Central Asia, Tatsuya and Lina's USNA connections
may not be of much use. And there was also the question of how far they could rely on
Chandrasekhar.

In the event of an emergency, Takachiho remained a viable escape route. But that was
intended to be a last resort.

There may come a time when they might find themselves in trouble outside of direct
combat and Hyougo's mercenary network might come in handy. With this in mind,
Tatsuya ultimately chose Hyougo to be part of his retinue.
 68
A staff member of the Magian Society picked them up at the airport. Introducing himself,
he stated that he was one of Chandrasekhar's disciples and had joined the Society out of
a lack of researcher positions available at his university.

The SUV in his command drove the four of them to Galle, a city near the southern tip of
Sri Lanka, where the headquarters of the Magian Society is situated.

Once it delivered its passengers, the private jet flew back to Japan. In response to this,
the staff member expressed surprise out of worry for how they would make their way
back to Japan. When explained that the plane was a supersonic aircraft that could make
the trip in only two hours each way, he seemed both satisfied and surprised.

The signing ceremony was scheduled to take place the day after their arrival. Tatsuya's
retinue was escorted to a hotel in Galle. The hotel's exterior reminded them of a classic
palace. The rooms were furnished with the modern amenities, in contrast to the retro
design motif of the interior and the furnishings.

Of the three adjoining rooms arranged, two were single and one double. The double
room was meant for Tatsuya and Miyuki, as they were already treated as a married
couple.

Whereas there was embarrassment on Miyuki's part, Tatsuya had already agreed to the
room assignment arranged by Chandrasekhar beforehand.

On their way back to their room after dinner, Tatsuya's group spotted Lena midst her
check-in process.

Accompanying her were a man and a woman. A black male in his thirties and a
Caucasian female in her early twenties. Although actual ages do not always correspond
to appearances, Lena says as one who remains looking around 16 or 17 years old. It is
quite possible, if not as extreme as hers, that her attendants are older than they appear.

Tatsuya would know for a fact if he used [Elemental Sight]. But he did not see the need to
go that far. Other things were more of his concern than age.

(That's some fairly high-level Mageist… She could easily be a member of the Stars like
that)

He only saw her at the check-in table from a distance, but he didn't need to "see" her
with his [Elemental Sight] to know that she was a powerful Mageist.

Lina was of the same opinion.

 69
"…She's probably military, too. Maybe she's a new member of Stars."

Lina commented on Lena's companion while sipping a cocktail from room service in
Tatsuya's room. Her "too" was in line with her previous guess that the black male was
also of ex-military or mercenary origin.

"Does she share any sort of common traits with the Stars?"

"I only caught a glimpse of her. I can't tell you that much."

Tatsuya's question was met with a defensive retort from Lina against any blame on her
part.

"I just felt that she had the same vibe as some of my teammates back then."

So, she concluded.

◇◇◇

The signing ceremony between the Magian Society and FEHR proceeded without
incident.

At the dinner table following the event, one of Lena's delegates, who introduced herself
as "Evelyn Taylor," asked whether she could make a visit to Samarkand, a key region on
the route of the Silk Road.

"Are you interested in the history of the Silk Road?" asked Chandrasekhar, in perhaps
back-channeling, to which Evelyn proceeded to draw on her vast knowledge of the Silk
Road.

Perhaps overwhelmed by the vigor in display, Chandrasekhar felt pressured into

promising Evelyn, "I can arrange a sightseeing tour for you."

◇◇◇

Chandrasekhar was also accommodated at the same hotel on the day of the signing
ceremony.

The next day, Tatsuya and company along with Lena's group were invited to
Chandrasekhar's estate in Hyderabad.

The next day, Tatsuya and company along with Lena's group were invited to
Chandrasekhar's mansion in Hyderabad. It was a vast estate, larger than the Yotsuba's
main house, befitting of the term "mansion."

"Pleased to meet you, I am Arya Krishna Shastri."

 70
Arya, an undisclosed Strategic-Class Magician, awaited them at the mansion. Tatsuya
had already made her acquaintance at the Magian Society's inauguration ceremony held
on the Indian Ocean. At the time, Arya attended as Chandrasekhar's escort.

This greeting was addressed to Miyuki and Lena. In doing so, Arya was notably
conscious of Lena, with a greater amount of her attention focused on her, even from the
sideline.

Arya's higher interest in Lena, over someone like Miyuki, was due to one of the
stipulations in the partnership agreement between the Society and FEHR, namely
personnel exchange. Arya was told that she would be sent to Vancouver, where FEHR's
headquarters were located. Though, that wouldn't happen on this occasion.

Following their meeting with Arya, they all enjoyed a late lunch at leisure. After the
meal, they were escorted to the salon, where tea was served. Except for Tatsuya, who
was taken individually by Chandrasekhar to her study.

Although described as a study, the room itself was a spacious room with a full-size
reception set. Calling it a private parlor would be more appropriate.

"Now, if I may ask you a question."

Asked Chandrasekhar to Tatsuya, after they had settled themselves across from said set
and the servant exited the room after serving the tea, in a tone that seemed to be a
direct resumption of their previous conversation.

Tatsuya did not inquire on the subject.

It was his promise to explain in person his purpose for his visit to the IPU.

"We have unearthed some artifacts at USNA that we believe may be a map to
Shambhala."

"Shambhala? That Shambhala?"

Chandrasekhar's tone of voice in echoing back the question sounded, to say the least, as
if she was half doubting Tatsuya's sanity.

"Yes. That said, I'm not personally a particularly believer of legends of underground
kingdoms."

The legend of Shambhala is often mixed with the fictional tale of the "Underground
Kingdom of Agartha".

"I'm of the opinion that the map indicates the location of the ruins of Shambhala."
 71
"And you think it is in this country?"

At the mention of ruins, Chandrasekhar brought a serious face to the conversation.

"It is our belief that the ruins lie near Bukhara, Uzbekistan."

"…Are you sure you want to confide that much to me? Doesn't Mister want the
inheritance of Shambala to himself?"

"I don’t intend on stealing from your country's archaeological sites. At the same time,
I'm reluctant to publicize the existence of Shambhala's ruins."

"Why so?"

"Because of the possibility that there are extremely dangerous artifacts buried in the
ruins of Shambhala."

"Extremely dangerous… I believe any magical artifact can be dangerous depending on

how it is handled."

"In my opinion, these are far more dangerous than artifacts that have been excavated in
the past."

"Far more, you say?"

"In our estimation, the risks are comparable to or even greater than of Strategic-Class
Magic."

"That much…?"

Chandrasekhar directed him with a "I find that hard to believe" look. But she soon
composed herself and fixed Tatsuya back with a serious look.

"…In fact, if even half of what the legend says about Shambhala is true, then it is possible
that it may contain a magical artifact capable of bringing about a power comparable to
Strategic-Class Magic. So, Mister, how do you propose to address such a dangerous
legacy?"

"If a pacific application is possible, I'll make the attempt. If not, I'll study it and develop
countermeasures."

No hesitation, that was his answer.

"Has not the idea of leaving it buried been on your mind?"

"If we leave it hidden, it will eventually be discovered by someone else. Now that we
have a clue, I can't turn a blind eye to it."

"I see… I understand your point."

 72
Tatsuya's statement wasn’t entirely untrue, but it wasn’t entirely sincere either. It was
more of an after-the-fact reasoning.

But it was compelling enough to convince Chandrasekhar.

"I’ll see to it that the Mister is free to explore the ruins on my end. I apologize, but I must
ask you to stay here until I settle these arrangements."

"I understand. If it turns out to be impossible, I will respectfully return to my country."

Tatsuya's tone and expression were as auspicious as his words.

"I won't make you wait for long."

Chandrasekhar, however, assured him an early return, radiating a strong sense of

caution.

It was clear that she did not take Tatsuya's statement about returning home at face
value.

◇◇◇

Upon conclusion of his conversation with Chandrasekhar, Tatsuya was taken to the
guest room. In terms of guest rooms alone, the mansion had as many as a small hotel.

Different from the situation in the Sri Lankan hotel, the assigned rooms were for one
person each. Nevertheless, the room Tatsuya was shown had two separate sections
inside, one with a living room, and the other with the bedroom plus a shower booth.
The living room area measured about 13 square meters, and the bedroom about half
that size.

Just after Tatsuya settled down in the guest room, there was a knock at the door. Hardly
a matter of a sixth-sense or a careful ear for footsteps, but rather the notification from
the servant who had shown him to the room.

Entering were Miyuki and Hyougo.

"Lina said that she wanted to explore around by herself a little bit."

Answered Miyuki before Tatsuya could pose the question.

"I see. I was hoping to fill everyone in together if possible."

"I will make sure to pass the word to Rina-Ojou-sama."

 73
Hyougo promptly reacted to Tatsuya's musing, as if it was directed to himself. Notably in
his words, since Lina's naturalization as "Toudou Rina", Hyougo has taken the liberty of
addressing her as "Rina-ojou-sama".

Tatsuya accepted Hyougo's offer with a "please" and turned his attention back to Miyuki.

"I've secured Doctor's cooperation…"

He then immediately explained the results of the meeting.

"So, will we be able to search for the ruins of Shambhala without divulging our purpose
to the IPU government?"

"She indicated that she could think of a way to do so."

"I was expecting she would be willing to help us, since she has assumed the role of
Society representative, but it is still a bit surprising. To think that Doctor has such
influence within the IPU to allow foreigners to operate freely around."

"Yes, it appears so, since Doctor has a particularly close, special relationship with
General Lars Singh, who effectively heads the IPU's federal military."

Said Hyougo, as he set the glass down in front of Miyuki, as he had assigned himself the
role of preparing the drinks. The beverage in question was a mild alcoholic cocktail.
Mixed in the provided kitchenette in the room.

"Special…"

Miyuki quietly murmured, appearing slightly embarrassed.

Setting the same drink down in front of Tatsuya, Hyougo turns to Miyuki with a smile.

"General Singh and Dr. Chandrasekhar are related. Although a rather distant kinship
from our sense of the word. The doctor receives close patronage from the general,
almost as if they were direct relatives. If I'm permitted to make a rather gross
simplification, I would say their relationship is akin to an uncle and niece."

"Oh, in that sense, I see…"

Miyuki's expression relaxed in relief. Blush lingered on her cheeks, however.

It wasn’t difficult to speculate on her misunderstanding, but neither Tatsuya nor Hyougo
had the poor character to mention it.

"You seem to know quite a bit about it, Hyougo-san."

"I learned it from a mercenary from this country during my employment with 'Unseen
Arms' in the UK."
 74
Unseen Arms is a private military company (PMSC) with a large contingent of magician
combatants. Right up until his service as Tatsuya's butler, Hyougo had been a member of
this PMSC as a way of acquiring military skills and networking with military personnel.

"An ex-colleague of mine from that time is currently stationed in Kazakhstan. They have
a debt to me, and I believe they could be of service to you, Tatsuya-sama."

"That's good. If we run into unforeseen circumstances, then we may count on their
help."

Tatsuya did not reject Hyougo's appeal outright. A large part of that may have been pure
lip service, but Hyougo bowed contentedly to Tatsuya nevertheless.

◇◇◇

Moments after Miyuki and Hyougo went to meet Tatsuya, a figure approached his room.

The figure in question was probably simply walking down the corridor.

However, the guest rooms assigned to Tatsuya's and Lena's parties were in separate
buildings. It was a bit of a stretch to pretend nonchalance.

"Miss Taylor?"

Evelyn, the suspicious figure, was called out from behind.

"──!"

Evelyn turned around in a panic.

There she finds a beautiful blonde woman, hair gleaming brightly even under the dim
lightening.

The name of the woman who approached her was Lina.

"May I help you? Do you have any business with us here?"

"Eh, no no… You see… Miss Shields, right?"

Evelyn was shaken, perhaps understandably so.

She tried to keep herself from trembling in panic, but hardly managed to.

"Yes. Shall I do another self-introduction?"

"N-no, there's…"

"Pleasure, Angelina Shields."

 75
Evelyn was about to say, "no need," but Lina interrupted, introducing herself anyway.

"Since I'm probably younger, please feel free to call me Lina."

"─Eh, ah, right, Lina."

Evelyn's expression stiffened on hearing the nickname "Lina".

"Oh, so you knew? Or should I say, I finally realized it?"

Lina, who was so far under the guise of a refined lady, scowled.

"Miss Taylor. You're with Stars, right?"

76
 77
Lina adderted Evelyn's identity in a decisive tone of voice.

"So, you're really 'Angie Sirius'…"

There were only a handful of Stars members who knew the Lina behind the disguise of
[Angie Sirius], namely the stellar class members at HQ and a select few like [Sylvia
Mercury], who knowing her identity was a part of the mission.

"So you knew it."

Lina smiled triumphantly.

Evelyn's mutterings confirmed Lina's assumptions.

"How… did you know? Could it be, from the Commander-in-Chief…?"

It's no secret among the Stars that Canopus, the Commander-in-Chief, had a tight
friendship with the former Sirius. Evelyn learned from stories of the senior officers of the
squadron. Evelyn's suspicion was, in light of this information, that Canopus had leaked
information about her to Lina.

"I didn't hear a thing about you from Ben."

But Lina dismissed the allegation straight up.

It didn't sound like a lie.

"I just got a feeling that you were a member of the Stars squad, that's all."

"A feeling… I don't think I get it."

"Me neither. Maybe it's because of the training and we all develop some sort of trait,
who knows."

"……"

She didn't want to agree. And yet, she felt as if she could understand.

Faced with such a conflict, Evelyn was unsure how to respond in return.

"So, what is your aim here? Did you come to spy on Tatsuya? Though I can't imagine Ben
would give such an order."

Seeing her counterpart's muteness, Lina pressed for an answer.

"That's wrong. I never received such an order."

Feeling backed into a corner, Evelyn can't help but answer truthfully.

"Then why are you here?"

 78
"─Ngh"

"If you're not here to spy, you came to find out if I'll interfere with your mission?"

Posed with the correct answer, Evelyn struggled for words.

"…I'm not sure if I am the best person to tell you this… but I don't think you're cut out for
undercover missions."

"I'm just not used to it!"

Having involuntarily raised her voice, Evelyn hurried to cover her mouth with her
hands.

"─I have a proposal for you. Why don't we talk in my room? You wouldn't want Tatsuya
and the others to hear, would you?"

Lina offered, while staring at Evelyn with a look of sympathy. Despite also thinking
"Maybe it's too late for that."

"…Alright."

Grudgingly, both in tone and countenance, Evelyn accepted Lina's suggestion.

◇◇◇

After dinner, Lina and her entourage soon retreated to their rooms leaving the salon to
the discretion of Tatsuya and company.

"Did you find out anything, Lina?"

"Nope. The most I got was that she is Evelyn Taylor, an Stars trainee who has yet to
receive her official codename. When I got to the reason why she came to the IPU she
clammed up. She wouldn't even tell me if Samarkand was really her destination."

Lina shrugged her shoulders and struck a pose of "I'm out of ideas".

"It's at least true that she's planning to go to Samarkand?"

"Who knows, I didn't get any confirmation for that."

Though both arms were brought down, Lina's expression remained in the "I'm out of
ideas" stance.

"If my impression counts, I think that, for now, her plans are to go to Samarkand."

"Samarkand, at this time…"

Miyuki's eyes widened in astonishment at Tatsuya's muttering.

 79
"Tatsuya-sama, don't tell me she's too?"

"Hey, Miyuki, that'd be…"

Lina also widened her eyes a beat behind Miyuki.

"The map stone tablet is still in the USNA. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to think that
someone else would be able to decipher it."

Tatsuya answered both of their questions together.

"But, Tatsuya-sama, they don't have the 'Compass'."

"They may have other data that we don't have, instead."

Tatsuya tempered Miyuki's guarded optimism.

"In the pictures Minoru took at FAIR's headquarters, there were fifteen pieces. There was
another 'stone tablet map' that FEHR took from FAIR."

"Tatsuya, what are we going to do!?"

While Miyuki brooded gloomily, Lina impatiently asked Tatsuya about the next course of
action.

"We'll proceed as planned for the time being. This Evelyn Taylor said she's going to
Samarkand first, right? It's quite far from our destination and we still haven't confirmed
that her mission is also the unearthing of Shambhala."

"Tatsuya-sama, wouldn't it be appropriate to tell the doctor about this?"

Miyuki's line came purely out of concern over Chandrasekhar possibly being deceived
by Evelyn.

"Indeed, that's one way to handle it…"

Tatsuya's expression, however, was far from good-natured as Miyuki as he considered

her suggestion.
80
 81

Chapter 4
[Bargaining]

Tatsuya's company stay in Hyderabad was immediately made known to the intelligence
agencies of the IPU government.

Not surprisingly, both Tatsuya's and Lena's entourages followed the official procedure to
enter the country. Furthermore, they were staying at Chandrasekhar's residence, a VIP
of the IPU government. It would in fact be weird if said intelligence agencies did not fix
their eyes on them from day one.

It was the next morning, Tatsuya noticed the presence of "eyes" peering at them from
outside the house as soon as he got up.

"Are those outside the mansion your guards, Doctor?"

Tatsuya asked Chandrasekhar at the breakfast table.

"Outside the mansion?"

Chandrasekhar's response did not seem to be feigned. Apparently, she was too unaware,
and the surveillance was being conducted without her permission.

"Yes. It appears that they are using perception-type magic to watch what is going on
inside the house from outside."

At his remark, Miyuki and Lina acted naturally, as Tatsuya's awareness of the
surveillance was a given to them.

Hyougo, at the foot of the table, made the slightest gesture of a smile in admiration.

Lena expressed her genuine surprise. So did her black male attendant, Louis Roux.

And Evelyn was, for some reason, frustrated.

"─I have not heard a word of this."

Chandrasekhar's displeasure was exposed in her voice.

"I beg your pardon. I will have this stopped immediately."

 82
There was no guarantee that anger wasn’t an act, but it was sufficient for Tatsuya if it
also meant a loosening of the watchful eye.

◇◇◇

Today, Chandrasekhar led them on a tour of the University of Hyderabad. Of the IPU's
magical research centers, six are located each in the former India and Iran ─ again, the
IPU is a federal institution ─ and this university is one of them.

The arrangements for their ruins exploration were still underway. Since they wouldn’t
be moving anywhere from here until they were ready, they visited the magic research
center at the University of Hyderabad to maintain their ostensible purposes of entering
the IPU. The visit was a waste of time according to the main purpose of the trip, but "I'm
not going" wasn't an acceptable option. Besides, Tatsuya had his own interests as a
magic researcher.

Along with Tatsuya, Miyuki, Lena, and Louis Roux joined the tour, while Lina abstained
in order to keep Evelyn in check at the house.

As for Hyougo, he stated that he would check the situation in the Uzbekistan area
through his personal contacts. He apparently went off on his own, but since he has been
trained by the Yotsuba Family, not to mention his experience with the PMSC, Tatsuya
didn't see an issue with letting him operate alone.

Tatsuya received a very enthusiastic welcome at the university, to say the least. The
reasons, though, differed greatly between the faculty and the students.

Most of the questions from the faculty members were focused on the topic of Artificial
Relic. Most involved the replication process of the Relic, with a few here and there about
the Stellar Reactor system.

The students seemed to have a strong impression of Tatsuya's successive victories over
global powers other than IPU. He had not just one or two asking how to acquire a magic
like Material Burst. Others asked if Stellar Generator, the company that administers the
Stellar Reactors, employs foreigners, or if it will ever establish a foreign branch.

Tatsuya's visit to the University of Hyderabad was generally received positively, no doubt
in part due to being at the invitation of Chandrasekhar.

In terms of incidents─ there was one surprise. It happened as Tatsuya was about to
leave the university.

"─The General wants to see me?"

 83
Lieutenant General Lars Singh requested a meeting with Tatsuya.

He wondered if Chandrasekhar had engineered this occasion; she herself claimed "I
wasn't aware." No matter the frankness or lack thereof, the most prominent figure in the
federal army deliberately came to the site to meet him. It wasn’t an option Tatsuya could
refuse, so he apologized to Chandrasekhar and Lena for the delay caused, and then he,
along with Miyuki, went to meet Lars Singh face-to-face.

The meeting took place at the university in a reception room as opulent as a palace
salon. After Tatsuya and Miyuki, respectively, introduced themselves, Tatsuya inquired of
Singh about the purpose of the meeting.

"I came to see you. That's all."

"─I am honored."

Unable to read Shin's intent, Tatsuya tried to play it safe.

Unfortunately, he could not fully mask his confusion.

"Surprising? I don't find it to be unexpected, myself."

"Pardon me. To tell you the truth, it did not come to my mind that His Excellency, the
Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Indo-Persian Union Forces and Commander-in-Chief
of the Indian Republican Armed Forces, would expressly take the time to visit a private
civilian of no consequence like myself."

Lars Singh laughed out loud with amusement. With exception of his fully grayed
eyebrows ─ given there was no hair, gray or not, in his bald head ─ he looked otherwise
at least ten years younger than his actual age of mid-sixties.

"…Excuse me for my indiscretion. But, Mister, of no consequence? Do you yourself

believe in earnest that such words describe your worth?"

"……"

"I don't think you do. You surely must know your value. There is no soul in this world
nowadays who can afford to ignore your value as a military and national security asset. I
would not be surprised if it was the president sitting in this room with you in my stead."

"I'm flattered."

Tatsuya bowed lightly in his seated position. Miyuki, beside him, followed suit without a
word.

Whereas Tatsuya wore a neutral expression, Miyuki privately sported a satisfied smile,
proud to hear the words of Lars Singh.
 84
"Well, now that we satisfied my selfish aim for this meeting. I'd like to offer anything Mr.
Shiba may be interested in. Don't worry, we can talk about more than just financial
topics."

"I don't have a particular request. In fact, if I may take the opportunity, I'd like to pass
along a message to you, sir.

"Let's hear it."

"This is a verbal message from the Chief of Staff of the National Defense Force of Japan,
Akiyama. In his message, 'I would like to directly consult about the future.'"

Singh's eyes, which had been once humorous, now suddenly took on a sharp gleam.

"Mr. Shiba, Have you received such a request directly from Mr. Akiyama?"

"No, sir. I received this request via a trusted friend in the National Defense Force."

"…I see. In that case, I'd like you to tell that friend of yours that 'I'd be happy to."

"I sure will."

After that, they spent 15 minutes with Miyuki chatting, and that was the end of Tatsuya's
meeting with Lars Singh.

◇◇◇

By the time they returned to Chandrasekhar's mansion from the university, Hyougo had
not yet left the house.

With some time left for dinner, Miyuki brewed a pot of chai tea for the both of them in
the kitchenette of Tatsuya's guest room.

"Tatsuya-sama. Are you sure you should not have asked the general for his assistance?"

"I don't intend to. If we asked His Excellency Singh for his cooperation, we would have to
share the information about the artifacts in case we successfully find any."

Tatsuya frowned as he answered.

"I'd like to minimize as much as I can the possibility of the magical artifacts falling into
military use. I only asked Dr. Chandrasekhar for her assistance because I had no other
choice. I'd prefer to avoid it, really."

"I see, so that's the case. So does Tatsuya-sama believe that there is such a dangerous
object hidden?"

"And I hope I'm wrong…"

 85
Miyuki couldn't find any comforting words to say to Tatsuya as he muttered to himself
under furrowed brows.

◇◇◇

The situation, however, took an unexpected turn for Tatsuya.

Friday, August 6th, on the morning after the day of Tatsuya and other's visit to the
University of Hyderabad.

"Tensions are rising on the border between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. I'd like to ask
you all to wait a little longer before going to Uzbekistan."

Chandrasekhar suddenly announced at the breakfast table with all, Tatsuya's group and
Lena's group, present. Her expression didn't suggest that it be a joke.

"Is the Samarkand visit also being postponed?"

Evelyn reacted first.

"The tension is primarily originating in the northeast of Samarkand, near the eastern
shore of Lake Idar. While it's nearly two hundred kilometers away from your destination,
I'm afraid we cannot dismiss the implications."

"I see…"

Evelyn backed down quietly, but it was apparent that, in her downcast face, she was on
the verge of gritting her teeth.

"I recall that your country and Kazakhstan have friendly relations."

Tatsuya was the next in line to question.

"In part, yes, we did. We at least had not been hostile to each other. We are as much
surprised by the suddenness of the situation as you are."

Tatsuya wasn’t the only one to arch an eyebrow at Chandrasekhar's answer.

"There were no previous indications?"

Tatsuya queried further.

"Yes. We're still in the process of ascertaining the situation and the surrounding
circumstances."

Chandrasekhar answered his question with her own bewildered expression.

◇◇◇
 86
Despite being out of its hottest season, Hyderabad is nevertheless hot and humid. It has
been raining since this morning.

Chandrasekhar was at the university on work, so no further discussion about the future.
After breakfast, both Tatsuya's group and Lena's group withdrew to their respective
rooms.

That said, each person didn't necessarily choose to spend their time by themselves.

"It's nice to relax once in a while, isn't it?"

Miyuki says with a smile as she lays a cup of coffee in front of Tatsuya. The cup was filled
with magically cooled iced coffee. She had first attempted to use Indian coffee, but was
unable to brew it properly, so she switched to regular coffee.

"Tatsuya, Miyuki, I got it."

87
 88
Said Lina from the other side of the door, and, without waiting for a prompt, she walked
right in. In one hand she carried a large metal dish filled to the brim with teacakes.

"…That's quite a lot you got here."

Miyuki's comment wasn't much in exasperation, just surprise.

"Don't blame me. I just asked for some tea cakes. And they gave me this bowl full of
them."

Lina was quick to plead her innocence.

"I wonder if it's part of the culture here to indulge guests…"

Miyuki muttered in pure perplexity.

At this point, there wasn't any hint of disapproval in Miyuki's tone.

"…At any rate, it seems like we will have a lot of calories to burn."

Until Tatsuya made his comment, at which point Miyuki turned a sharp look at Lina.

On the large platter were small, firm pieces of sūji halwa (a dish made of semolina flour
mixed with vegetables, fruits, and sesame seeds and boiled in oil and sugar), gulab
Jamun (darkened deep-fried doughnuts in syrup), coconut Barfi (a milk pastry filled with
coconut and/or nuts), sundesh (milk fat blended with sugar and cardamom in a circle
shape) chikki (nuts, dried fruits, sesame seeds, and other ingredients hardened in
caramelized sugar), and a number of other Indian confectioneries. The most remarkable
feature is their sweetness. Not just "a bit sweet," but "sweet" with all due emphasis on
the word.

"It-It's fine. There's no need to eat all of it."

The meaning of Miyuki's gaze was impossible to misinterpret, so Lina, nearly breaking
out in a cold sweat, pleaded in her own defense.

As Miyuki and Lina were sipping their coffee and keeping each other from having a feast
with the generous serving of calorie in between them, Hyougo made his arrival. Upon
hearing the news from Chandrasekhar, he went over, even under this occasion, to ask
his mercenary associate about the situation.

"Tatsuya-sama. It's indeed true that the Kazakhstan army has been mobilized."

After the prefatory note, Hyougo presented the entirety of his findings to Tatsuya.

"Did you find out the reasons?

 89
"It appears to be a state of alert in response to Kazakhstan's border guards taking fire
from Uzbekistan's side."

Hyougo's connotative phrasing invited a frown from Tatsuya.

"Have you been able to ascertain from whom these shots came?"

Lina opened her mouth in exclamation with Tatsuya's question.

"No, not yet. I can't even say for sure if it was someone from Uzbekistan."

"This is one of those false flag operations to provoke a conflict between the IPU and
Kazakhstan, right?!"

Lina jumped to her feet and exclaimed.

"The culprits must be agents of the GAU!"

She confidently asserts.

Tatsuya and Hyougo both chuckled a little.

"Lina, didn't he just say that they haven't identified the culprit yet?"

"Indeed, sir, so I said. However, Kazakhstan's military seems to have the same suspicions
as Rina-ojou-sama."

While acknowledging Tatsuya's words, Hyougo backed up Lina as well.

"In that case, does it mean that Kazakhstan has no intention of carrying on with the
army mobilization?"

Miyuki, who had been listening in with a pensive expression, asks Hyougo for
confirmation.

"Most likely, it may be as you say, Miyuki-sama. My former comrade in Kazakhstan had
the same conclusion."

Miyuki put her hand on her chest and breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing the troubled
expression on Tatsuya's face, however, rejuvenated her anxiety.

"Tatsuya-sama… do you think a conflict is going to happen?"

"Hm? No, no, if that's what Kazakhstan believes happened, then it's unlikely that a
conflict between the two countries will break out."

Miyuki asks gingerly, and Tatsuya, who had been basking in his own thoughts, returns to
the conversation.
 90
"I was wondering about why the GAU would stage a false flag incident at this point in
time."

"What are you concerned about?"

"It's not much of a concern… But I wonder if the commotion Minoru stirred up in Tibet
may have been the catalyst."

He had already shared with Miyuki and the others the information about the events in
Lhasa, Tibet, where Minoru was pursued by Daoshi, whom they believe to be a 'Bāxiān'.

"So if Minoru hadn't acted on his own and went there to search for the ruins, this
wouldn't have happened?"

Lina complains.

"No. That's not quite right, Lina."

Tatsuya shook his head with an uncharitable smile.

"If anything, now it's easier to look for the ruins."

"What do you mean…?"

Now not only Lina, but also Miyuki, and even Hyougo, for that matter, looked at him as if
they didn't follow what he was saying.

"Minoru confirmed that there are magical artifacts buried in Lhasa, in Tibet, so let's
point the IPU to there instead of the Shambhala ruins in Uzbekistan."

Lina and Miyuki tilted their heads, still puzzled.

Only Hyougo had an understanding smile.

◇◇◇

"Doctor, this is what we found out from our independent investigation…"

Tatsuya chose the diner table to bring up the matter.

A surprise for both Miyuki and Lina, expressed by the same simultaneously.

They weren't the only present at the dinner table, Lena's group was also in attendance.

"We have evidence of a large quantity of Relics and an even greater amount of artifacts
buried in Lhasa."

"Lhasa, in Tibet? I certainly have heard rumors to that effect…"

 91
Chandrasekhar casts a probing look at Tatsuya.

Evelyn stared at Tatsuya with an avid gaze.

"It seems that this proved to be more than just a rumor. If Tibet were an independent
country in the strictest sense of the word, it would have been possible to unearth a Relic
with your country's assistance. It's truly unfortunate."

Tatsuya retained a dead serious expression. In this case, it only served to add to the
suspicion.

"…Mister, is your wish for our country to obtain the Relics on Lhasa?"

"I wouldn't be able to do research if the Relics are in the GAU's hands."

"…Indeed, they wouldn't."

Chandrasekhar pauses in her meal and ponders.

Tatsuya stopped speaking and resumed his meal.

Miyuki, Lina, and Hyougo followed suit.

Lena was at a loss for an acceptable reaction to the strange atmosphere at the table,
meanwhile, Evelyn's eyes were blatantly gleaming.

◇◇◇

After the meal, Chandrasekhar called Lars Singh, who was stationed in Karshi, a city in
the southern part of Uzbekistan.

His arrival in Uzbekistan was precisely in response to the tensions on the border. Yet
Uzbekistan's military is not under the control of the faction of the former India. The
current situation saw that generals from the former Iranian faction were dispatched to
bases near the border, while Singh remained on standby at a distance from the border.

After a brief exchange of greetings, Chandrasekhar relayed to Lars Singh what Tatsuya
had told her.

[─How credible is this information?]

"Highly, I believe."

Chandrasekhar answered Singh's question without delay.

[So his main reason was to study an unearthed Relic?]

"I'm sure that's not the only reason. Mr. Shiba is hardly that simple-minded of a person."
 92
[I'm certain he's not.]

Singh nods on the videophone screen.

[So he's setting Tibet as a stage for an engagement between us and the GAU.]

This time Chandrasekhar agreed with Singh's words.

[─Interesting, is it not?]

But his next words took Chandrasekhar by surprise.

"Interesting, sir?"

[Yes. Very interesting. I'll play along.]

"You'll intervene in Tibet?"

[We've been putting up with a lot of crap from those bastards of the GAU with this whole
Uzbekistan mess.]

General Singh's sentence reflected that it was his belief that opening fire on
Kazakhstan's border guards was an act staged by the GAU.

[─I was thinking to myself on how to pay them back.]

Hearing this, Chandrasekhar chuckles. "He's already over his sixties and is no less
bloodthirsty," she thought, but didn't say it. She knew well not to say such things to the
old general, she would be only inviting his ire into herself.

[Besides, Tibet's effective neutrality is in our national interest. This information about
the large deposits of Relics is just the excuse we need to kick the opportunists into
taking action.]

"I see… I'm an academic, I can't comment on military decisions."

[I know. I won't place any more burdens on you, Asha.]

Said Lars Singh with the assurance of an elder, referring to Chandrasekhar by her name.
Chandrasekhar, on her part, refers to him as "Your Excellency".

"What if…"

Then a thought occurred to Chandrasekhar

"Excuse me, sir, how long will you be in Karshi?"

[I'm expecting to be here for a while.]

"Then, why not have Mr. Shiba come over there and you can hear from him in person?"
 93
[Hm, yes… If Mr. Shiba is available, would you do that?]

"Understood. I'll confirm his availability and contact you again."

After hanging up the phone, thoughts raced through Chandrasekhar's mind about the
arrangements she had promised Tatsuya to make for the expedition to the ruins.

◇◇◇

A great number of American multinationals established themselves in Hyderabad before

the Global Cooling earlier in this century. Some were never expropriated, and are still in
operation as USNA-owned entities. Although they were considered as USNA's agencies
foreign bases of operations, and monitored as such, their presence was not restricted,
presumably from employment reasons.

After dinner, Evelyn snuck out of the mansion and broke into one of these companies.
They are, as already mentioned, under USNA surveillance. But Evelyn is a magician
committed to a first-class position at Stars. Evading the scrutiny wasn’t that difficult for
her.

That office building is watched closely by the IPU authorities, considered by them to be
a USNA operation base. With that in mind, Evelyn took the risk and came here.

Her business was to access a secure line to her home country.

Evelyn asked the resident agent to patch her through to Stars HQ.

[What is the matter, Ensign Taylor? Is this an emergency?]

She couldn't see Canopus' face in this voice-only transmission, so she had to judge his
humor only by his tone of voice.

And from what she heard, it was one of "blame". She had an idea as to why. She wasn’t
supposed to use this base for her current mission. This was reserved to be used only in
case of emergency. ─As a matter of fact, what Evelyn thought was a cross-examination
was but a misinterpretation, Canopus was merely concerned.

"I apologize for the disturbance, Colonel. I have determined that it's urgent that I bring
this information to your attention."

[You may speak.]

Evelyn, sensing the immediacy of the response, reported what Tatsuya said about the
Relics in Lhasa.
 94
[─Copy that. I will consult with the General Staff on this matter. You are to concentrate
on your present task.]

"Colonel, sir. The IPU is in a state of tension with Kazakhstan, making it difficult to get
into Uzbekistan. I would suggest changing targets to the Relics in Tibet."

Evelyn appealed, indirectly asserting her desire to infiltrate Tibet herself.

[I am aware of the movement in Kazakhstan. However, I'm sure you are well aware that
further action in Tibet would be far more difficult.]

Canopus's answer was curt.

[Don't worry, Kazakhstan will not take further military action. Just hold steady for now.]

"─Understood, sir."

Evelyn was curious as to why Kazakhstan would not move, and what assurances he had
they wouldn't. But in her assessment of the conversation, such questions would likely be
considered out of line.

As such, Evelyn held back her questions.

◇◇◇

After dinner, Miyuki was held by Lina into a conversation. Even Lina has her times when
she wants to indulge herself in some casual chatting, without worrying about intruding
between Tatsuya and Miyuki time together. Because Miyuki empathizes with this, she
plays along with Lina without protest.

With this backdrop, Tatsuya was relaxing unusually on his own. He is seldom able to
prepare his own food and drinks, not because he couldn't, but because he is usually
surrounded by people who want to take care of every one of his needs. On this occasion,
he enjoyed the rich aroma of the coffee he brewed himself.

While sipping his coffee as he read a book, Tatsuya suddenly felt as if someone was
calling out to him.

He didn't think it was his imagination. He was sure he felt a familiar feeling before. Like
someone was trying to tap into his consciousness with some kind of mind-interference
magic. It wasn't anything aggressive. There was no malice intended toward him.

Rather than accepting the magic to act on him, Tatsuya blocked its influence and
probed for its caster. He found out soon enough who it was. They also didn't attempt to
hide.
 95
Tatsuya closed his book, sipped the last of his coffee, and headed for the salon.

There he found a 30-year-old woman with the appearance of a mid-teenager waiting for
him.

It was Lena.

She stood up as soon as she saw Tatsuya and bowed, "I'm sorry to be taking your time,"
she said.

"Don't be. Please have a seat. So, how can I help you?"

Tatsuya asks as he sits down across from her.

"I would like to have a word with you about a matter, mister…"

Lena's expression and tone of voice suggested that the topic was hard for her to say.

"Is there a problem?"

"No, please don't mind it. I'd like to consult… Rather, I'd like to confess something to
you…"

"Is there something you've been keeping from us? Or does it concern me directly?"

"I am not entirely sure if it may be of your concern, mister."

"If it won't bring us any harm, then there is no need to share with us."

Tatsuya offered her a way out, yet Lena shook her head with a tormented expression.

"─No, I think it's best not to keep it a secret after all."

In a firm voice, Lena voluntarily cuts off her retreat.

"I see. Then feel free to tell me."

"My associate, Ms. Taylor, is an officer of the federal military."

"Not a former? One still in service?"

Tatsuya assumed a solemn expression and returned the question, hiding his awareness
of the matter.

"Yes. And her wish to go to Samarkand is not for the purpose of sightseeing, but for the
sake of her assignment."

"An assignment for the USNA military? If that's the case, I'd better not know any more."

"No, please listen."

 96
Feeling the blame weight on her with Tatsuya's blunt response, Lena took on an anxious
tone.

"Ms. Taylor's mission is related to the stone tablet that was unearthed on Mt. Shasta."

"The Black Tablet?"

Tatsuya keeps up with the feigned ignorance and serious facade.

"No, the white one. The sixteen stone tablets unearthed after that one were maps."

"That point to burial sites with other stone tablets or even Relics?"

"It may sound rather unbelievable, but according to what the military deciphered, it was
a marker for the location of Shambhala."

"Oh… So Shambhala is in Samarkand?"

His awe wasn't part of the act. Although it was among his expectations, he still thought
that USNA's competence in locating the location with only the use of a stone tablet was
indeed remarkable.

"From what I've heard, it's in the area between Samarkand and Bukhara."

"So that's why Ms. Taylor is so fixated on going to Samarkand?"

As he asked, Tatsuya mused, "It seems that the USNA precision is still limited without
something like the [Compass]…"

"The matter of the signing ceremony was quite convenient for Ms. Taylor's mission."

Lena carries on, completely oblivious to what is going on in Tatsuya's head.

"I'm very sorry, to have consequently taken advantage of you, mister."

"No, don't worry about it."

Tatsuya interrupted Lena's incoming bow with a gesture.

"I have also had business bringing me to this country. We both had our interests."

"What could you possibly…?"

Lena, upper body suspended in her attempted bow, asked reservedly as she brought her
back upright.

"Merely the opportunity to meet with His Excellency the General, that's all. I'm afraid I
can't comment any further."

"…Is that so?"

 97
Lena seemed satisfied with that explanation for the most part.

There was no indication that he noticed anything of Tatsuya group's true purpose here.

◇◇◇

After the next day's breakfast, Tatsuya was invited to Chandrasekhar's study. As the
invitation stated he wasn’t needed to be alone, Miyuki and Lina accompanied him.

There, Chandrasekhar proposed that they fly to the Karshi-Khanabad air base in
Uzbekistan on the pretext of briefing Lars Singh about the Relics in Tibet, and from
there, secretly, enter Bukhara overland.

"I'll provide a car for you. There will be no travel restrictions in the west, you can leave
in the middle of the night and you should reach Bukhara without anyone noticing."

"─Thank you very much."

After brief consideration, Tatsuya decides to accept her proposal.

98
 99

Chapter 5
[Infiltration]

"I have verified the situation. As long as you don't get too close to the Kazakhstan
border, there should be no problems."

August 7th. Chandrasekhar informed so at the breakfast table. That information was
apparently directed solely at Evelyn.

"So I'm free to head for Samarkand?"

Just as pretty much everyone present expected, Evelyn was the first to jump at the
opportunity .

"Yes. But, please let me hire a guide to accompany you."

"Will this accompaniment be someone from your military…?"

Lena asked.

"I'll ask Arya. She has military training, although she's not an officer herself."

"Isn't Ms. Shastri your personal bodyguard, Doctor?"

Evelyn asked, unable to mask her wariness. Watching from the other end of the table,
Tatsuya was mildly taken aback at how she appeared to be even more inexperienced
than Lina when she showed up at First High.

"Arya is just my student. I do have proper escorts."

"You do?!"

Evelyn looks around in a hurry. Probably trying to find said "proper escorts".

"Do not worry. I have asked them to stay by the entrance."

Evelyn stopped her scurrying around looking understandably embarrassed.

Hearing a muffled noise, she turned to see Lina holding her hand over her mouth. Most
likely trying to keep a boisterous laugh from escaping.

Evelyn shot Lina a pointed glare.

Lina played it cool.

 100
Tatsuya didn't hear how Lina's interrogation with Evelyn proceeded, but in his eyes, it
was clear that there was an emotional conflict between the two. Now, it was a question
whether it was a lack of compatibility or simply disliking people similar to oneself?

He was a bit worried that a new personal grudge might be brewing at this point.

"How does the earliest flight tomorrow sound to you?"

Chandrasekhar asked Lena.

"That will be perfect!"

But, as expected, it was Evelyn who responded at the moment's notice, without taking
her eyes off of Lina, even now.

She hurried almost as if her life depended on it.

◇◇◇

After breakfast, Arya immediately paid a visit to Lena's room.

"I'll be a pleasure to accompany you, please call me Arya."

"The pleasure is all mine, Arya."

Lena stands with 2 years of seniority over the 28-year-old Arya. Her age showed in her
receptive smile and in the manner she offered a handshake, without any signs of
nervousness despite the clear gap in their apparent ages.

Arya was unconsciously struck by the saintly smile flashed by Lena.

"──?"

Lena tilts her head.

With a gasp, Arya recomposed herself and hastily took Lena's right hand.

"…How do you prefer to be called, Ms. Fehr, or…?"

Then she asked.

"Me? Lena is─"

She was about to complete with "fine", stopping at the sound of a knock on the door.

"Milady, may I come in?"

The voice of Louis Roux came from the other side.

"I'm sorry, could you please come back in a moment?"

 101
Lena broke the handshake and answered Louis behind the door.

Even with a raised voice, she kept her delivery pleasant. It was not perfectly clear, but it
was soft, like a woodwind instrument.

"Forgive me, now where. ─Excuse me?"

Once she returned her attention to Arya, the same looked as if she had been convinced
of something.

"I see, how about 'Milady5', then? Would that be fine if I called you that as well?"

Lena wondered as Arya nodded her head in satisfaction and gave her response.

"Please call me Lena!"

Lena appealed as she shook her head side to side in haste, not unlike a young girl.

5
This is "Ojou-sama" (お嬢様) in the original text, with "Milady" (ミレデイ) as furigana
102
 103
◇◇◇

On the following day, Lena and her entourage plus Arya departed for Samarkand in the
morning. Evelyn was in such high spirits that one could seriously believe her excuse of
being there for pleasure.

They left the house early in the morning headed for the Hyderabad International
Airport. After seeing them off, Tatsuya's group began their own flurry of packing. Their
luggage consisted of not only what they had brought originally, but also some additional
goods bought in Hyderabad by Hyougo to avoid notice from Lena's group.

Along with the arrangements of the tickets to Samarkand for Lena, or rather for Evelyn,
Chandrasekhar simultaneously worked on Tatsuya's trip to Bukhara.

It would take the same air route to Uzbekistan as Lena's party, with the difference that
Tatsuya would not be flying from Hyderabad International Airport, which is reserved for
commercial flights, but from military-exclusive Begumpet Airport, which is reserved for
military planes. Rather than a move to avoid crossing paths with Lena and Evelyn, it was
the fact they are heading to an air force base.

"I'm very sorry, I wish I could accompany you…"

"No, that's fine. I'm very grateful for your hospitality and your help to this point."

Tatsuya thanked Chandrasekhar who saw them off at the gate and departed from her
mansion.

The transport plane with Tatsuya and company onboard arrived at the Karshi-Khanabad
Air Force Base that evening. Despite its designation, the place is reserved for use by
high-ranking officers. Compared to the previous flight to USNA last month, the ride was
much more comfortable.

Upon arrival, Tatsuya and his group were taken to a hotel a short distance from the
base. The excuse given was the fear of them becoming collateral damage in the event of
a military attack in the area surrounding the base, but it was transparent that they did
so out of a desire not to accommodate outsiders on the base.

Not to say that anyone in Tatsuya's group took offense to this.

If anything, they considered it a matter of course.

For the most part, it would be incongruous to have a foreigner staying within or in the
immediate vicinity of the base. Being introduced as a VIP by Chandrasekhar didn't
change the fact that Tatsuya was a foreign combat magician. Caution was justified.
 104
It wasn't as if Tatsuya and the others had been treated with disdain by the military. In
fact, less than an hour after checking in, they received an invitation to dinner.

The location is a restaurant near the base. The host was General Lars Singh.

Tatsuya and Hyougo opted for the standard dark suit and tie, whereas Miyuki and Lina
donned their shalwar kameez​(a loose-fitting shirt and wide pants), gifted by
Chandrasekhar for the occasion. For the sake of clarity, they did not wear a dupatta
(shawl).

Lars Singh, for his part, came in his dress uniform of the IPU federal army. His entourage
was equally clad in military uniform; ready for dispatch at a moment's notice. The
absence of alcoholic beverages on the table was probably a measure to ensure
readiness. The religious precepts in Uzbekistan concerning alcohol consumption are
traditionally not that strict.

The subject of Tibet wasn’t raised at the dinner table. The conversation centered on
recent internal events within the IPU and complaints about warlords of the former
Iranian military. A number of questions were also directed at Tatsuya concerning the
battle that took place in Miyakishima three years ago.

While he didn't consider that Miyakishima battle to be an appropriate apéritif, Tatsuya

was gracious enough to share his side of the story with the table.

Of course, the list of magics he used was omitted in his description. He instead focused
on his use of the flying combat suit. He illustrated with his own experience how useful
the flying combat suit can prove to be in an urban environment, sparking much interest
among General Singh and his subordinates.

His second encounter with Lars Singh ended on a positive note, after which they agreed
on an appointment for a follow-up meeting tomorrow.

◇◇◇

Immediately after checking into the hotel in Samarkand, Evelyn went her separate ways
from Lena.

She didn't receive any criticism for self-indulgences or heartlessness. After all, from the
beginning, her association with Lena was intended to be a cover for her entry into the
IPU. Her duty was to find and extract the Shambhala artifacts and bring them back to
her home country.
 105
There was no room for sympathy. Evelyn herself has been under a lot of stress over the
past three days, from Lina revealing her true identity to the"scoop" from Tatsuya that
was triumphantly reported to her superiors, only to be dismissed out of hand.

For Evelyn, who had been walking along the prodigy path all her life and had never
known any setbacks, it wasn’t surprising that this situation has left her psychologically
disturbed. ─For Evelyn, and for herself, that is.

Perhaps, or rather definitely, Evelyn was in a hurry. She did not return to the hotel after
sunset. As a result, Lena was unable to discuss with Evelyn about the course of action for
the future.

For her part, Lena would prefer not to be away from the Vancouver headquarters for too
long with the FAIR leader still missing. However, they couldn't return by their desire
alone.

(If only Second Lieutenant Taylor would give us permission to go home…)

(It would be best for both of us, she would also be free to move around…)

"Lena, you seem to be troubled by something, are you worried about Ms. Taylor?"

Those thoughts might have surfaced on her face as irritation, causing Arya to call out to
her in concern.

Lena knew the worry she was causing. But she couldn't simply reveal the truth.
Although Chandrasekhar assured that "military training" was all the involvement Arya
had, chances were good that she was a military officer of the IPU. There was no way she
could confess to helping a USNA magician officer gain unauthorized entry into the
country.

"Well, yes, in a way…"

Lena tries to cover up with a fake smile.

She wasn’t sure how Arya took that, but her expression took on an increasingly worried
look.

"…Lena, I don't believe we should be worried about Ms. Taylor. I personally… I'm not sure
if she has an official military background or not, but she is a combat magician with
formal military training, right?"

From Arya's perspective, even if you took her age and inexperience out of the equation,
there are still too many flaws in Evelyn's game. That's why, although unsure of whether
she has "official military background or not," it was still obvious to her that Evelyn was a
talented combat magician.
 106
"I choose not to pry into the profession or background of the magicians who ask to join
us. …But of course, I do not welcome active criminals."

Arya's suggestion of "she might be a combat magician" had the effect of a question, to
which Lena responded deliberately and slowly, with a clear pronunciation accompanied
by an archaic smile.

To tell the truth, there was great consternation behind that smile. As a result, the final
product barely had any depth to it. Thus, her "false smile" came out as an "archaic smile".

Furthermore, her overly conscious efforts to keep her tone of voice from being affected
by her turmoil produced a more flat delivery than necessary.

Furthermore, her overly conscious efforts to keep her tone of voice from being affected
by her turmoil produced a more calm and measured delivery than necessary.

─The scene reflected in Arya's eyes was that of an embodiment of the "Safeguarding of
the Magician's Human Rights" ideology.

To put it bluntly, a gross misinterpretation.

However, Arya did not have the insight or the incentive to rectify it herself at this time.

◇◇◇

In the eastern Mexican state of USNA in the pre-great war area of Central America
(spanning from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to the Yucatán Peninsula), it was almost
lunch time. And so lunch was being served to both crew and passengers aboard the
small cargo ship departing from Richmond, California.

Said "passenger", in spite of being a cargo ship, means that she is a stowaway. Laura
Simon, sub-leader of FAIR, came aboard under the auspices of "Lü Dongbin", a member
of "Bāxiān" special magician operations unit of the GAU military, to travel this far south
along the western coast of the continent.

The leader, Rocky Dean, remains in hiding in Richmond. Required funds for the hiding
have been provided by the GAU through Lü Dongbin. As the saying goes, "money is the
key that opens all doors", and with sufficient capital, one can get by with almost
anything. This is especially true in societies where the rights of citizens are so heavily
protected.

Laura's choice of transport has to do with the warrant on her head, which makes it
difficult for her to take an airplane. Even with the help of Bāxiān, it would have been
difficult to get a wanted person out of the country without causing a commotion.
 107
The course would take Laura through the Tehuantepec Canal ─ the so-called "Second
Panama Canal" that was dug not in Nicaragua but in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec ─ into
the Gulf of Mexico, and then to the Caribbean Sea.

Her destination is the Maiquetía Airport on the Caribbean coast of the former Venezuela,
officially known as Simón Bolívar International Airport prior to WWIII.

The local government that administers the area and waters north of Caracas, the capital
of the former Venezuela, is under the sway of the GAU. Their "sway" doesn't go so far as
to include the dispatch of military forces or the deployment of missiles in the region. An
act that USNA would be sure not to take kindly.

The region itself remains outside the reach of USNA officials. From Maiquetía Airport, it
is possible for Laura to board an airplane.

First, she would be landing in Singapore. From there, she would use a forged passport to
enter Japan. That was the plan of Lü Dongbin as he accompanied Laura on her trip.

◇◇◇

On the morning of August 9th, Tatsuya was once again invited by General Lars Singh for a
visit to the Karshi-Khanabad Air Force Base. He was accompanied by Hyougo alone, with
Miyuki and Lina staying behind at the hotel.

"─A collaborator of mine paid a sightseeing visit to Lhasa and noticed a number of
objects emitting waves akin to Relics beneath the hill on which the Potala Palace
stands."

Here is how Tatsuya described the discovery of the deposits in Lhasa.

"A japanese in Lhasa?"

General Singh makes no attempt to hide his surprise. Not due to an inability to play the
game of masks, probably just a negotiating maneuver. At least that's how Tatsuya
interpreted it.

"He is not Japanese."

"So the Yotsuba reach extends to more than just Japan… Was tourism really their only
interest?"

"I admit that the intention was to gather information, but not regarding Relics."

"So it was by chance that he found it?"

"That is correct, sir."

 108
Singh didn't push the issue any further since he couldn't find any falsehood in Tatsuya's
words.

Strictly speaking, Tatsuya did not lie; Minoru was presumed dead and had lost his
Japanese citizenship, and his purpose in descending to Tibet was to find the ruins of the
Shambhala. There might be Relics in said Shambhala, but he wasn't looking for Relics in
Tibet.

Details were left unspoken, as Tatsuya didn't find them necessary to make his point. This
is how you play your hands in the bargaining game.

"How credible is this theory of numerous Relics buried under the Potala Palace?"

"I cannot tell if they are buried or in storage, but I don't doubt their existence."

"So your collaborator of yours who infiltrated in Lhasa is that good."

"Their overall magical skills are certainly greater than mine."

This was also Tatsuya's honest opinion. His only argument for his victory over Minoru
was that he was more adept and experienced in combat beyond magic.

"Hm… If you say so much, you have a strong point in these Relics being there. ─And you
are willing to let us have a monopoly on it?"

Lars Singh's question made Tatsuya smile, as it sounded that his proposal baffled him as
"unthinkable".

"There is virtually no hope of me obtaining it, and I would much prefer in your hands
than it to fall into the hands of the GAU."

"In that, I must agree."

The veteran general, who physically looked no worse for wear, broke into a broad smile.

But that smile faded shortly after, replaced by a penetrating gaze at Tatsuya.

"One last thing, I'd like you to answer me frankly."

"What is it, sir?"

Of course, that charm did nothing to disarm Tatsuya in any way.

He looked straight back into Lars Singh's eyes.

"Is it your plan to have us bash our heads against the GAU over Tibet?"

Tatsuya's expression took on a puzzled tone, but without the smile.

 109
"I am aware that your country and the GAU have been fighting over Tibet for a long time
now… but it's not like you were retreating from Tibet at this point, is that correct?

".…Yes, that's true. Forgive me, that was an inadequate question."

General Singh let out a wry smile at Tatsuya's rebuttal.

◇◇◇

Since the hotel where Tatsuya and entourage were lodging was frequented by many
wealthy foreigners, the military seemed to be very considerate about protecting the
privacy of its guests.

The IPU claims to be the liberal movement as opposed to the GAU. A move most likely to
avoid accusations of a "surveillance society" from foreign countries.

Thanks to this, Tatsuya's group was able to slip out of the hotel as planned.

Early in the morning of the next day, after the smooth conclusion of the meeting with
General Lars Singh, Tatsuya, accompanied by Miyuki, Lina and Hyougo left the city of
Karshi in a self-driving car that Chandrasekhar had arranged for them at the hotel.
Driving on without stopping, they arrived at Kagan, shortly prior to Bukhara, before
daybreak.

"What now, Tatsuya? Should we get a hotel for now?"

Lina asked Tatsuya as the car with Hyougo behind the wheel pulled up on the outskirts
of Kagan.

The self-drive car Chandrasekhar had arranged was a wagon-type camper, but it was
too small to accommodate four, two women and two men. It would be fine if it were just
Tatsuya and Miyuki, but not with Lina and Hyougo also riding along. The hotel was the
most sensible option.

"First, we need to get what we need."

"What we need?"

"Tatsuya-sama, even if you say so, how would we…"

Lina and Miyuki asked respectively.

Tatsuya took out a device about the size of a small comms unit from his luggage and got
out of the car.
 110
Everyone followed.

Tatsuya had the car parked next to a flat, open space. It looked like a suitable camping
spot.

But camping was naturally not on Tatsuya's mind.

He made a quick horizontal swing of his right arm, the one not holding the machine. A
split moment before that, there was an output of an activation sequence around his
right wrist. Fleeting as it was, neither Miyuki nor Lina missed it.

So when they witnessed the change that occurred the next moment, they were not
surprised, as they knew that "Tatsuya must have used magic."

As soon as Tatsuya waved his arm, the land in front of him was leveled into a circle
about 20 meters in diameter.

Next, Tatsuya operated the small device in his left hand.

They knew the device was a CAD, as it received psions and outputs an Activation
Sequence. It would be too small to be a communication device, but as a CAD device, it is
quite large. Surely that accounts for a significant increase in computing power required
for the output of the activation sequence, which suggests that Tatsuya must be
attempting to perform a rather sophisticated magic.

The magic was immediately activated in front of the fascinated eyes of Miyuki and Lina.

A line of light ran across the flat, leveled soil.

Not natural light. Streaks of Psion light .

Countless streaks of psion light intersected, painting intricate geometric patterns on the
ground.

"…Is this a magic circle?"

Miyuki asked, and Tatsuya nodded, "That's right."

"I don't get the purpose, though… Guidance? No, that's not right…"

Lina mumbles, unclear as to whether this is a question or a soliloquy.

"Good guess."

Even if it was a soliloquy, Tatsuya responded regardless.

"This magic circle aids in magic targeting. A magician activates a magic aiming at this
magic circle and will perceive the 'distance' as close, even if it's a completely unfamiliar
place."
 111
A magic's success rate, and the event interference power required, is not dictated by the
physical distance, but it is by the informational, or perceptual distance. The rates of a
successful activation increase if the caster is familiar with the target area or object, even
if it's far enough to be out of sight. The inverse is true if the details of the target area or
object are not well understood, even if said target is at arm's length.

By having the magic circle he drew as a target, Tatsuya meant that magic could be used
on unknown spots and buildings just as well as on places familiar to the caster.

"Tatsuya-sama. Could this be for─"

Before Miyuki could conclude her deduction, the answer fell in front of them.

A figure stood on the magic circle drawn by Tatsuya. Neither Miyuki nor Lina were
surprised by its instantaneous emergence.

A figure stood on the magic circle drawn by Tatsuya. Neither Miyuki nor Lina were
surprised by its instantaneous emergence. It was clear to both that it was the result of
[Mock-Teleportation]." Nor was there the question of "where did they come from." The
answer was clear when they saw her face.

"Good morning, sir, madam."

A girl, in a short-sleeved one-piece dress adorned with an apron, politely bows to

Tatsuya directly in front of her.

"It was you who came, Minami. Thanks for your time."

The one that aimed at the magic circle and came down from the satellite orbit was
Minami.

"Since this is an important delivery, I have asked Minoru-sama to assist me from

Takachiho."

"Assist with what?"

Lina directed her question to Miyuki at her side instead of to Minami.

"I think Minoru-kun operated the [Virtual Satellite Elevator] with Takachiho and brought
Minami-chan down here."

The [Virtual Satellite Elevator] is a specially tailored instance of [Mock-Teleportation] in

the format of an engraved magic circle designed for travel between the Takachiho in
satellite orbit and the ground.

"Minoru-kun is probably taking care of her way back as well."

Miyuki's answer elicits a small tilt of Lina's head.

 112
"I thought Minami could use the [Virtual Satellite Elevator] by herself."

"Wouldn't it be safer to focus on shielding yourself while having someone else send
you?"

This time, Miyuki received a nod of agreement.

During the process of [Mock-Teleportation], the moving person or object is encased in a

cocoon of air. This means that built-in to the [Mock-Teleportation] sequence is a
function to protect the target object from the vacuum with a shield. Assuming no
obstacles, that is.

Moving while shielding with anti-object barriers means a simultaneous activation of

[Mock-Teleportation] and [Anti-object Barrier], which is far more demanding than the
moving process alone.

Minami post-parasitization parameters considered, it would not be too much of a heavy

burden, but it's at that point that Minoru's consideration for her comes into play. Or
perhaps pampering would be a better word.

Tatsuya and Minami stood by Miyuki and Lina's question-and-answer session. Neither
added anything, partly because Miyuki's answer was correct, but mainly because they
were handling the package delivery, the main task at hand.

Minami carried a large suitcase, which was passed to Tatsuya, who took it from her
hand and handed it to Hyougo without checking its contents. The latter carried it into
the camper.

"Package received, please pass my thanks to Minoru as well."

"If there is any problem, I will bring a replacement immediately."

"I'm sure it will be fine, but thank you."

"Okay. Then, Tatsuya-sama, Miyuki-sama and Lina-sama, if you will excuse me."

Minami bowed respectfully.

"Minami, thanks again."

"Until later, Minami-chan. Let's have a nice cup of tea next time."

When Minami raised her face, Lina showed her appreciation, and Miyuki bade her
farewell.

Minami bowed once more and stood back at the center of the still operational magic
circle.
 113
The elegantly controlled magic sequence took hold of Minami, and her body soared into
the sky, and the space beyond, faster than the eyes could follow.

◇◇◇

"So, what did you ask for, Tatsuya?"

With Minami now back in space, and seeing Tatsuya erase the magic circle, Lina frees
the curiosity she had been bottling up till now. Miyuki had the same question in her
mind, she wasn't about to blame Lina for her haste.

"You'll know once you've seen it."

With that, Tatsuya walked to the camper.

Lina quietly followed suit.

And so did Miyuki.

Back in the car, Miyuki and Lina are sitting side by side on the long seat, across the table
from Tatsuya.

At Tatsuya's command, Hyougo pulls out a cloth folded into a square and a large face
shield looking object from the suitcase on the floor and places them on the table.

"What's this?"

"It's a skintight spacesuit."

As the name suggests, a skintight garment is a type of clothing that adheres closely to
the body. A typical example is a skintight dress that accentuates curves of the body.

The advantage to the regular spacesuit is that it also prevents any gas exchange with the
environment, such as air escaping into the vacuum of space, while not interfering with
the body's movement.

"Space suit? This? Where's the helmet?"

"You don't need a hard helmet to shield from cosmic rays, ultraviolet rays, and other
harmful elements. As long as it is airtight, a hood or mask will suffice."

"Is this what is for…?"

Lina didn't look entirely convinced, but there were no further questions from her.
 114
"Tatsuya-sama, did you arrange spacesuits because you are planning to use Takachiho
for this mission?"

Lina closes her mouth, and Miyuki opens her.

"That's the plan, even though you two will be in spacesuits, the magic shield should be
enough protection. But I asked for it just in case."

"I can only see three here…"

"I'm sorry, But I'll have to ask Hyougo-san to stay on the ground."

"Worry not, I have some work to do on the ground myself."

Said Hyougo with an added smile.

"Besides, if it's just me, I have friends here and in neighboring countries who can shelter
me."

"Is that really so…?"

Miyuki could not help but be impressed by the extent of Hyougo's connections.

◇◇◇

Evelyn managed successfully to get into Samarkand, finding ruins she had no clue where
they were by herself was another thing. Neither Canopus, who sent her here, or Evelyn
herself believed from the start that such a thing was conceivable.

Once she reached Samarkand, the first thing she had to do was to make contact with a
USNA informant who was working in Uzbekistan. There is a USNA legation in the former
capital of Tashkent, which is linked to Samarkand by a high-speed rail line. Therefore, it
wasn’t difficult for the USNA to get an informant to Samarkand.

In fact, Canopus, the commander-in-chief of the Stars, has no serious intention of

looking for the ruins of Shambhala. In his pragmatic view, even in the scenario of
finding Relic or superior artifacts, it was simply not worth risking friction between the
friendly relationship with the IPU and the USNA by trying to bring them back to the
USNA.

Moreover, Evelyn did not have any special abilities suited to searching for
archaeological sites. She wasn't even particularly well suited for ordinary search
missions, for that matter.
 115
Besides her exceptional magical ability of being able to interfere in a very small area,
Evelyn is not very good at extending her magical perception over a wide area. In
essence, she is totally unsuitable for searching ruins.

Though she would take issue if she knew for a fact, the search for Shambhala was more
of an "incidental" affair. This mission has as its main objective to allow Evelyn to gain
some experience. She was to make the most appropriate decisions and take action
without the assistance of a superior or a senior. It was, so to speak, a hands-on exercise.

Under this consideration, the informant Evelyn made contact with wasn’t exactly the
finest one could hope to find.

Not in terms of competence, just in terms of the capacity to respond to unforeseen

contingencies.

This may have been partly to blame for the situation Evelyn finds herself in on her third
day in Samarkand.

From the moment they arrived in the city, Evelyn had acted separately from Lena. She
spent the morning wandering around the city's historical sites, guided by the
information agent posing as a tourist guide.

Many of Samarkand's historic landmarks have a post-Islamic influence. Evelyn felt that it
was unlikely that the structures on the surface would contain any clues to Shambhala.
Nevertheless, religious constructions are often built on top of ones related to pagan
religions ─ or simply, preceding religions ─ in a way to discredit the previous religion in
favor of the new one. Even if there were no remaining clues on the surface, she thought
that by standing in the place, she might be able to learn something.

She was aware that this was grasping at straws, but she couldn't extract anything more
than "the area between Samarkand and Bukhara" from the analysis of the "White Tablet"
alone. And she had no other ideas on where to look for it.

It was while she was waiting for her meal at a restaurant that she noticed something
unusual.

"…Doesn't it feel like we're being watched?"

Evelyn asked in a whisper to the information officer seated across from her.

"It seems like we're being monitored."

"I'm not sure if Americans stand out that much here for that…"
 116
Evelyn has chocolate brown hair and dark blue eyes. Not a very unusual pairing in
Central Asia. And since she wears clothing that hides her body shape and a stole over
her head to protect her from dust, it's hard to imagine her figure was what stood out
about her. Being a middle-aged man of Iranian descent, the information officer playing
guide was indistinguishable from a local. Their likelihood of attracting attention
because of their appearance was low from the onset.

"Who are they?"

"They don't seem to be IPU authorities."

Asked by Evelyn for his opinion, the officer replied with a cautious tone.

Truth be told, the information officer had no idea himself who was watching them. The
remark about not being an IPU agent was sheer speculation. Yet this man was
entrenched in the mistaken notion that a support staff member should not alarm the
combatants with the vagueness of the reports. Nay, he was implementing a perversion
of the words from the manual.

"A foreign agent, then? Is it the NSU? Or maybe the GAU? Oh no way, Japan?"

"Please calm down, Second Lieutenant. We don't want to make a scene here."

Evelyn shut her mouth after being chided in a low voice.

"Anyway, for now, let's get over our meal like there is nothing wrong and get out of this
place."

Evelyn nodded her head in agreement with the man's words.

After finishing lunch at a slower pace than usual to work on the illusion that she wasn’t
panicking, Evelyn left the restaurant. She followed the guidance of the information
officer to a minor historical landmark that wasn’t so popular, i.e. with not many people
around.

"Are they tagging along?"

Evelyn asks the informant if they are still on their tail.

"There are more of them now."

His answer was blunt.

"We will intercept them. What about the location?"

 117
With that, Evelyn pulls a tablet-shaped CAD from her shoulder pouch, turns it on, and
tucks it into a hidden pocket she's created in the left side of her poncho-like,
loose-fitting shirt. While doing so, she switched the pouch that was previously hanging
on one side back to a diagonal sling.

The CAD she took out of the pouch is fully thought-operated. She could use it with no
problem even if it was tucked away in her pocket.

"Mind you, there may be some I missed."

"The ones you know are good enough."

At the informant's weak reply, in what reeks like an attempt to evade responsibility,
Evelyn suppresses her irritation and exempts them from the blame.

"Behind the second building on the right rear, behind the third monument on the left
rear…"

Like that, the informant relied on the position of a total of four pursuers.

Evelyn fired her magic at all four of them at once.

◇◇◇

"Sir, may I have a word?"

On the commander's desk, in the commander's office of the Karshi-Khanabad air base he
was assigned command, General Lars Singh received the message in a whisper from one
of his staff members.

"─What magician combatants do we have available and ready to move immediately?"

Asked the general in a strong tone his adjutant after hearing the staff officer.

"[Alioth] and [Phecda] of the Saptarishi6 are on standby at the base."

[Saptarishi], the name of the special operations magician unit in the IPU federal army, a
name that is also a reference to the seven rishis (seven sages) in Hindu mythology,
similar to the [Bāxiān] of the GAU.

With the difference that, whereas [Bāxiān] uses the name of the individuals of the
legendary Xians as their codenames, the [Saptarishi] takes on the western designations
of the bodies composing the Big Dipper as its codenames.

For one thing, in the legend, "Saptarishi" was originally identified with the stars of the
Big Dipper, which is also known as the "Plough or the Saptarishi". But a more important
6
Saptarishi - Wikipedia
 118
reason is the fact that the IPU consists of India and Iran simultaneously as a federal
state.

The seven members that make up the Saptarishi are magicians from the Indian region.
And, as their prime objective is to be ready for what comes from the East ─ that is, the
GAU. Inevitably, their area of operation will almost always be in India and its vicinity. As
such, the naming of the unit is based on Hindu mythology, not without some strong
opposition from the faction of the former Iranian government.

"Send the two of them immediately to Samarkand. Some idiot from who knows where is
carrying out a magical battle in the middle of the city. Suppress it before any civilian is
harmed."

"Understood, sir!"

As [Saptarishi]'s primary area of operations is in India, it is effectively under the

command of the same Lars Singh who is in control of the former Indian Army. It's still
under the direct control of the Commander-in-Chief of the federal army, to official
capacity, however. A request for mobilization has to be made at least as a formality.

It was to make one,if not just for the sake of appearances, that the adjutant left the
commander's office at a brisk pace.

◇◇◇

Evelyn fired a volley of high-pressure bullets at the pitch-black four-legged beast, which
looked like a three-dimensional shadow dog. It was her original's [Pressure Bullet]
magic, a high pressure version of the "Cardinal Code" discovered by Kichijouji Shinkurou
of Japan.

It is basically the same magic as Kichijouji Shinkurou [Invisible Bullet], except that the
[Pressure Bullet] is made for rapid-fire in its design. It is not a full-automatic continuous
fire, but it's able to fire in semi-automatic fashion. It takes on a type of
delayed-activation system, in which several "bullets" are held on standby, ready to be
fired upon any target at any given time.

Hit by the pressure bullets, the shadow beast faded and disappeared. She is immediately
exposed to the next attack, however. This time a shadow of a crow.

"How long do we have to run?"

Whined Evelyn, shooting down the shadow crow as they ran. She had been on the run
for more than thirty minutes already. If she was in a movie or show, she would have a
vehicle conveniently set up, but they had to run the opposite direction, losing their own
 119
vehicle as a result of the enemy's attack. It was becoming impossible to ignore the
physical exhaustion.

"Attacks with chemical simulacrum. This can only be the GAU's operatives."

Entrusting to Evelyn the task of intercepting the attacks, the intelligence officer
explained with a knowing look.

"I can tell that! Can you forget that and please tell me where the real one is?"

"I'm sorry, I can't. The enemy is moving too fast for me to be able to track it."

"Useless machine! Are they on bikes or something?! I hope they crash and die!"

Evelyn swore at the portable Psion detector and cursed at her enemies who, unlike her,
were having an easy time with their vehicles.

She had been limiting herself to using only less powerful magic ever since she had
commenced her escape. She had to be careful not to cause damage to civilians or
buildings owing to the nature of this mission.

Although Evelyn cannot use Strategic-Class Magic, she has a good repertoire of magic of
the tactical level. Among them was an augmented version of Active Air Mine, able to
destroy solid matter in a one-kilometer radius. Her version was even more powerful and
far-reaching than the Active Air Mine used three years earlier in the shore region of the
Gulf of Guinea in Africa.

If she used it, she could probably catch all the magicians in hiding. On the downside, the
city and its inhabitants will be caught up in the process.

The reality of having no choice but to run away, despite having a surefire solution, made
Evelyn even more frustrated.

◇◇◇

Arya was with Lena at the hotel when they heard the news of an altercation between
magicians taking place in Samarkand. Being an enlisted magician in the reserves of the
federal army, Arya received a message warning her to "stay out of it".

Firstly, it should be stressed her status as a reserve, and not an active member of the
military, but there is also great merit in the fact of the large magnitude and power of the
magics that she is able to use. Even without a formal recognition as a Strategic-Class
Magician, the rumors that Arya might be able to use [Agni Downburst], are known by
most officers who are in a position to manage the combat magicians.

"Lena, may I have a moment?"

 120
In the lounge where they were enjoying tea at leisure, Arya brought her face close to
Lena's and whispered.

"Arya, is there something wrong?"

"I have something I'd like to discuss with you in private. Could we go back to the room?"

"Sure."

It was no bother for Lena. Their small order of teacakes was already disposed of. She
rose from her chair and they left the teapot about one-third full behind.

"A battle between magicians in the middle of the city, you say?"

Lena listened to Arya's words with an expression as if it wasn't registering properly. She
wasn't a radical optimist, who thinks it's impossible for this type of fight to break out in
an urban area. To the contrary, her concern was to the commotion it may cause with
the outbreak of an urban conflict.

"Just what you heard, an urban conflict, although the damage has been limited. This
tells me that both sides may be limiting themselves to magic with narrowed-down
effects."

"So they are trying to fight in a way to avoid harming civilians? Still…"

Lena's eyebrows knit, heavy with concern.

"…Yeah. We don't know for how long it will stay that way."

Perhaps caught in the same train of thought, melancholy crossed Arya's features as well.
But she quickly regained her composure and proceeded with her words. Here was the
point she was trying to make.

"─Actually, one of the parties in this skirmish is probably Ms. Taylor.

"Eh. Really!?"

Whether by surprise or anxiety, Lena's frowning eyebrows shot up and her eyes
widened as she looked back at Arya.

"It's a possibility."

"A very high one, though, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Hearing Arya's answer, Lena stood up briskly from the bed she was sitting on.
 121
"Lena?"

Arya also got up from her chair.

"I have to go find Ms. Taylor!"

"Huh? No, I'm sure we can't leave things as they are, but…"

"Urban combat is absurd. I have to stop her at once! Arya, can I ask for your help?"

Arya felt a newfound eagerness to help as Lena asked quite calmly for her assistance.

"Yes, I will help you."

Arya was taken by Lena's girlish appearance, and the virtuous innocent belief in the
goodness of others associated with that outlook.

Arya was touched by Lena's maidenly nature at this moment.

◇◇◇

In the morning, after taking lodging in Bukhara, Tatsuya's group started their activities
after noon.

The three of them, Hyougo aside, donned with the recognition-inhibiting magic
[Aidoneus] stored in an Artificial Relic, started out by looking around the city center.

Since going by foot would be inefficient, they bought bicycles at the first bazaar they
found. It used to be said that bicycles in Uzbekistan did not have brakes, true or not,
they do nowadays. In anticipation of riding a bike or motorcycle, both Miyuki and Lina
chose wide pants for the day.

After riding around for about an hour, they took a break at a café called " Chai Hana".
During this time, they noticed the monitoring had suddenly dropped.

They all were aware of the fact that they had been watched from the moment they left
the hotel. It wasn't due to people knowing who they were. Were that the case, the
surveillance would have been much stricter.

[Aidoneus] is a magic that prevents recognition without disguising the person's face or
figure. The magic only works on the face and figure, with no effect on clothing. And
Tatsuya's party did not bother to dress like locals, on the assumption that they would be
less exposed if they were dressed as tourists.

The ongoing tensions on the border with Kazakhstan likely made the locals more wary
of foreigners.
 122
"…Something happened?"

Noting the sudden absence of surveillance, Miyuki was understandably concerned.

"There must be some sort of trouble going on somewhere else."

Tatsuya answers Miyuki's question in a placating tone.

"You mean in another city?"

Next question came from Lina.

"There is no sign of a commotion nearby, at least."

Although not categorically, Tatsuya indirectly confirms Lina's words.

"I'll look into it. Please give me a moment."

Hyougo said as he stood up with a satellite communication handset in his hand.

Five minutes later, Hyougo was back at the table.

"It's precisely as Tatsuya-sama suspected."

Retaking his seat, Hyougo promptly began his report.

"There is a small battle between Mageists in Samarkand that has been ongoing for about
an hour now. I believe they are moving personnel to contain it."

"Have they discovered foreign agents?"

"No, Miyuki-sama, it is not a battle between mageists from the IPU and foreigners, both
sides in this one are foreigners."

Hyougo shook his head at Miyuki's question.

"A collision between agents…? How did it even end up with a small-scale battle?"

Lina wondered to herself.

"I have yet to receive confirmation, but it appears that it sums up to Evelyn Taylor being
chased by operatives of the GAU."

"What is that woman doing…"

An exasperated murmur escapes Lina with the additional information.

"We can at least be thankful for the relaxing of the surveillance, that's good for us."
 123
"That's right. Makes it easier on our investigation."

Tatsuya coldly pointed out the pros for them, gaining a nod of agreement from Miyuki.

◇◇◇

Lena left the hotel accompanied by Arya and Louis Roux. There was a car rental about
five minutes away, where Arya rented a small car.

Arya took the wheel of the car. Samarkand is reasonably urbanized, but it has yet to
implement an automatic driving control system, so they needed a driver. And while Arya
was not familiar with Uzbekistan, she was used to the IPU's traffic rules and regulations.

Louis was in the front passenger seat. Lena had wanted that seat, but had to relent on
objections from both Arya and Louis.

In the back seat, Lena is sitting with her eyelids half-closed and her hands interlocked in
front of her waist in what could be described as a "prayer" posture.

"…Head towards about 60 degrees to the right. From there, hold on for about a mile.

Lena informs while keeping her eyes half-closed.

Following her directions, Arya stepped on the gas pedal.

With each of the three next directions from Lena, Arya respectively shifted her route.
About five minutes and a half after the third course change, the small car with these
three people on board plunged right into the middle of the magical battle.

A pack of black dog-like figures approached from the left side of the car.

Seeing their close approach, Louis, in the passenger seat, exclaimed in his mind, "I'll not
make it in time!"

But the pack of black beasts vanished into dust by shots fired from the right side of the
car.

"There's Ms. Taylor!"

Lena shouted, pointing to the corner of the building where the magic bullets came from.

Seeing it in her rearview mirror, Arya swerved sharply to the right.

At the same time, she enveloped the self-propelled vehicle in zone interference.
 124
The strategic-class magician's event interference forces the shadow swarm of horseflies
back into nothingness.

The self-propelled vehicle comes to a grinding halt.

Beside it is the building Evelyn was hiding behind.

She was alone. No sign of the intelligence officer who accompanied her. Did they get
separated in the process of escaping, or did they deliberately choose to split up? Or
perhaps was she ─ left behind?

"Ms. Taylor, please get in!"

Lena shouts out as she opens the door.

A hesitant expression takes over Evelyn's face.

The enemy magician commanding the simulacrum familiars did not miss the
opportunity.

A small hawk, made of paper instead of shadow, attacks Evelyn.

Lena was the first to notice it.

She uses magic to diffuse the focus in the consciousness on the part of the magic that
moves the bird-of-prey.

Mental interference magic [Diffuser].

It targets an individual. This magic relaxes mental tension through the mediation of the
subject the target is concentrating on.

Lena's magic is by nature benevolent to people.

Kindness, however, can sometimes be a great hindrance in some occasions.

[Diffuser] exerted on the focus of their consciousness that was the familiar, drained its
caster of their tension, causing the magic to collapse.

As Gentle as is strong.

Strong not to harm, but strong to avoid harm.

Arya was moved as she witnessed this magic.

By the time Alioth and Phecda of Saptarishi arrived in Samarkand from the
Karshi-Khanabad air base, the skirmish between magicians was already resolved.
 125
Both parties to the conflict were already gone, and their identities remained unknown.

Fearing further escalation in a subsequent urban conflict, Alioth and Phecda were forced
to temporarily remain in Samarkand.

◇◇◇

Their first day in Bukhara consisted of just a single round of the city center.

Despite the lack of progress, Tatsuya did not feel particularly discouraged or impatient.

For how remote and secluded the city is, Bukhara has been inhabited by many ancient
populations. If it were so easy, traces of Shambhala would have been discovered ages
ago.

And since their survey started only in the afternoon, their first goal was to get a rough
grasp of the geography of the area. The full-scale investigation will start tomorrow.

At the hotel, they took two twin rooms; Tatsuya and Hyougo with one and Miyuki and
Lina with the other. There were no particular complaints from Miyuki about this
arrangement.

Returning to their room soon after dinner at the hotel restaurant, they received a call
on their satellite phone. A signal relay has been left by the window in case of an urgent
call from Japan.

The caller was Fujibayashi.

[Laura Simon of FAIR smuggled into Japan today.]

This was the subject of the sudden report.

"They found her pretty quick for someone who isn't on the international wanted list."

FAIR's Rocky Dean and Laura Simons nationwide wanted by the USNA. But their names
have yet to make it into the international list. They may have committed illegal
immigration because they have not gone through the proper exit procedures, but it still
wasn't at the stage where it would be relevant for the Japanese judicial authorities to
make any effort to find them.

[I added the Laura Simons data to the facial recognition system just in case, and it ended
up with a hit. The image is unclear, so I can't say for certain, but I can place the match
rate at over eighty percent.]

"We can assume she at least took some minimal measures, so 80% is pretty certain."
 126
Unclear images may not necessarily mean out of focus. That would be unthinkable with
today's imaging technology. And if yet it is, it either means that she is using an
electronic device that interferes with the capture, or she is using some kind of make-up
with a paint that confuses the image sensor, or she may have other means of disrupting
the facial recognition process.

"So, where was she found?"

[At Kansai International Airport, the Makinohara Service Area in the Tokyo-Nagoya
Expressway, and then at the Atsugi Interchange Exit.

"So Atsugi, not Machida…"

If she went to Machida, she could be aiming at the FLT lab where the Artificial Relic is
produced. But in Atsugi, there is the undeniable possibility that the target is the
Makouin in Izu.

[She may have taken into account the possibility of being spotted and is trying to
obscure objective.]

Tatsuya concurred with Fujibayashi's reasoning, "I agree."

[I am of the opinion that the target is, regardless, the FLT Third Development Division's
lab. I would like to suggest concentrating our security on that side]

"I agree that's the appropriate response… In that case, please tell Hiroto-san to join
Takara-san's personal security."

[Understood.]

Fujibayashi Hiroto, Tatsuya's own subordinate, and half-brother of Fujibayashi Kyoko's

late father, Fujibayashi Nagamasa. Making him Kyouko's uncle, even if he is only two
years older than Kyouko.

Three years ago, during Tatsuya and Minoru's rivalry over Minami, Nagamasa
committed a betrayal of trust against Tatsuya during his pursuit of Minoru. In
atonement for his treachery, Hiroto's individual was surrendered to Tatsuya.

The Makouin is scheduled to open next month with Takara, the brother of the head of
the Yatsushiro Family of the Ten Master Clans, as the institute's dean. If something were
to happen to Takara, the brunt of the responsibility would not be confined to Tatsuya
alone, it could lead to friction between the Yotsuba and Yatsushiro families. In the event
of Makouin becoming a target, measures to ensure Takara's safety are imperative.

"As for the 3rd Development Section, let's have Saegusa-san and Tookami-san join the
security detail. Instruct both of them to please station in the Machida office."
 127
The Magian Company's headquarters is in Machida, right beside the FLT Development
Section 3 building. If they are at the headquarters, they will be able to respond quickly
in the event of an attack to the lab.

Tatsuya would preferably leave the task to Fumiya and Ayako. Unfortunately, the Kuroba
Family had their hands full with other important matters at the moment, matters that
have been occupying them both since the beginning of the summer vacation.

[Understood. I'll ask them to help with the piled up work at the headquarters.]

The Magian Company headquarters, established in April, has a permanent office staff. As
a result of Tatsuya and Miyuki's constant absence, however, the progress of the work
has been slow. Despite Fujibayashi's repeated attempts to remind Tatsuya of this issue,
he had made no effort to take the matter at heart, preferring to continue with his own
research.

"…Please do so."

One wonders if at that moment any feelings of remorse over his negligence passed
through Tatsuya's mind.

Or perhaps it was relief he felt from having his pendings forced upon him.

Surely, even the man himself couldn't tell.

◇◇◇

Mayumi and Ryousuke are both employees working for Magian Company. Both with
similar circumstances involving earnestly requesting to be hired. Although not quite in
line with the "Salaryman's woes", they were both on assignment in Izu today, only to be
suddenly asked to be in Machida the next day, leaving them with no choice but to
comply.

They had been given a good reason to do so. It was highly likely that the same Criminal
Mageist syndicate that attempted to steal Artificial Relic in April would be having
another attempt.

"…Tookami-san, are you familiar with Laura Simons from FAIR?"

Asked Mayumi while making a list of office automation equipment that needed to be
replenished to Ryousuke, who was on the other side of the low partition.

"I know her. Not to say we are particularly in the friendliest of terms, though."

Answered Ryousuke as he operated the office layout software. Mayumi didn't come to
learn about his recent venture to Mt. Shasta to save his fellow FEHR member.
 128
"I heard she's one of the leaders of FAIR. What kind of mageist is she?"

"She's not just one of them, she's the sub-leader. I hear she's also the lover of the leader,
Rocky Dean."

Ryousuke began by correcting part of Mayumi's understanding.

"Lover…"

There was no blush from Mayumi, instead a light frown.

Not responding to that in particular, Ryousuke continues his answer.

"Laura Simons is a type of ancient-style magician, the ones we call witches"

Just as "magician" has been given "mageist" as an alternative, there are also new names
for the terms "ancient-style magician" and "modern magician". But, since it's
English-based and a bit lengthy and unwieldy, it's rarely used in Japanese conversation.

"Speaking of witches… Don't they specialize in interfering with 'human' related

phenomena?"

Mayumi pulls out her knowledge of "witches" that she learned in college. Her major at
the University of Magical Sciences was in the typology and characteristics of magicians.

"I don't know the details of her skills, I just know she's one tough person to go up
against."

There was real substance behind his voice as he replied with a stern expression.

"If you don't mind me asking… Have you fought her before?"

With that, Mayumi couldn't help but ask.

"Ah, no, no… There's no way. This is just something that is well known in the Vancouver
magician community…"

Ryousuke's excuse was far from smooth.

Mayumi gives him a skeptical look.

"…So there is such a community of magicians over there, too?"

She eventually let it go and muttered to herself in self-admonishment.

◇◇◇

The FLT lab was attacked that night.

 129
It came as a surprise to them that she took action the day after she was spotted; not
only for Mayumi and Ryousuke, but Fujibayashi and even Tatsuya, who was still in
Uzbekistan, were expecting her to take a few days to prepare.

Not to say they were caught off guard. This is the first day of vigilance. Even with the
"Today, already?" feeling, there was no slackening of guard from weariness or
complacency. Mayumi was at a nearby hotel arranged by Fujibayashi at the time, but
Ryousuke was waiting in the office nap room at the company.

So as soon as the lab's alarm reached his terminal in the middle of the night, Ryousuke
jumped out of bed.

He pulled on the work pants he had hung next to his bed, wrapped the CAD around his
wrists, threw on a tactical vest over his long-sleeved shirt, and slipped on a pair of
boots. All ready in less than three minutes, Ryousuke rushed out of the nap room.

It was raining outside. Not particularly heavy, but one you would typically take an
umbrella for.

But Ryousuke was already running out into the gloomy rain, not caring about getting
wet.

According to the real-time feed coming to his terminal, the burglar was stuck on the
ground floor by the security shutters. They had not yet downed the security room. In
fact, there was no sign of an actual assault.

(Is this a cover…? Or…)

If the burglar had a plan, Ryousuke surely wasn't catching on to it. After a brief
hesitation, he decided to follow the manual.

The decision of the security reinforcement was made suddenly last night, and yet
Fujibayashi had a thorough manual with a course of action as of this morning.

(There is no call for assistance from the first floor control room. So, I have to─)

Ryousuke headed for the emergency exit on the side of the building. That doorway is
usually closed.

Behind that door was a fire escape led up directly to the second floor. It's on this second
floor that the Artificial Relic manufacturing facility is located.

In order to enter the manufacturing room, a key that is kept in the control room on the
second floor is required. This is one of the measures taken to enhance security after
FAIR's Criminal Mageist duo "Janus" gained access to the facility in early May.
 130
According to Fujibayashi's manual, he was to go upstairs via the fire escape without
unlocking the security shutters and follow the procedures to secure the control room.

Reaching into the hidden pocket of his tactical vest with his right hand, there was a card
key for the emergency exit. But when his fingers touched it, he did not grab it,
preferring instead to move his right hand to another inside pocket.

From there he drew an extendable baton at the same time he turned his body around
with great energy.

By turning around, he was no longer the subject of a surprise attack, but the attacker as
he charged head-on at the security guard swinging his extendable baton.

Batons collide, both bending greatly out of shape.

Ryousuke happily threw away his.

While the security guard raises his bent baton.

His eyes meet the guard's. Ryousuke could tell, in that instant, that he is being
controlled.

He grabs the man's wrist with his left hand and twists his arm. The guard does not fall;
he pitches forward but holds himself up.

Ryousuke reaches under the man's chin with his right hand, inside the neck guard, and
squeezes an artery with his finger.

The guard's body loses strength. He experienced the so-called "fainting" from a carotid
sinus syncope.

The man falls to the wet ground. Ryousuke did not have the leisure to lay him down
gently to avoid any injury. He was currently surrounded by the guards who were
supposed to be his colleagues.

Four security guards surrounded Ryousuke. There were six guards stationed on the first
floor.

One of them must be still holed up in the control room, and the five here were on patrol
when they were turned into puppets.

"Laura Simons, you damned witch! Stop hiding and show yourself!"

Ryousuke yelled in frustration. Laura was the one controlling the guards, Ryousuke was
sure of it.

[You know, Tookami, I learned that your shields are quite troublesome.]
 131
Laura replied. But her voice came as if it had fallen from the sky or sprung up from the
earth. It was unclear which direction it was coming from.

And not just the voice.

She's close, he could feel it. But he had absolutely no idea exactly where she was lurking.

[Aren't your shielded fists stronger than steel? Why don't you use those fists on your
friends here who are only being controlled?]

A mocking taunt. The words make Ryousuke hesitate to use [Reactive Armor].

[Tokami, let's make a deal. Open that door there and I'll let these men go.]

"Do you think I'll buy into that obvious lie!"

[Nonsense. Witches don't lie. Unlike you, modern magicians, we value our words]

Ryousuke isn't familiar with the intricacies of ancient magic. In fact, magic as a whole.

He could only vaguely understand the meaning of her "valuing words" line. Therefore, it
was not much help for him to judge her words to be any truthful.

"…Just the door?"

This question was a clear show of his uncertainty.

[I'm not suggesting that you have to move aside for us to pass as well.]

Laura assures him with clear-cut punctuation. Whether she meant it or lied, there are
no doubts about her line.

Ryousuke's heart was inclined towards accepting Laura's proposal.

But then.

"Sorry for the wait!"

Along with the call, white chunks mingled with the falling rain in its path from the sky. It
was too dark for Ryousuke to make out what they were.

Four objects the size of golf balls. Four chunks of dry ice.

The masses' trajectories aligned precisely with the faces of each of the manipulated
security guards. Then, just short of collision, they were gone.

Like puppets with severed strings, the guards surrounding Ryousuke now lay down on
the ground.

"Saegusa-san, what was that…?"

 132
Ryousuke asks the owner of the voice, a raincoat-clad Mayumi. He couldn't make out
how the guards collapsed.

Surely it wasn't the impact with that white mass ─ chunk of dry ice. Ryousuke knows
how a person falls over from a blow. They did not fall because of that. Besides, the
objects never touched the guards in the first place. It became smoke once it got close to
their faces and disappeared.

"I'll tell you later."

Answered Mayumi, holding back explanations, as she rushed to stand beside him in
front of the emergence exit. She knew from experience not to reveal your hand in front
of the enemy.

Needless to say, the dry ice that fell from the sky was the result of Mayumi's magic.

Her signature magic [Dry Meteor].

It gathers the small amount of carbon dioxide that exists in the atmosphere into dry ice,
and sublimates it in front of the target's face. The intake of a sudden, high concentration
of carbon dioxide can easily lead to CO2 poisoning.

Although the unconsciousness as a direct result of Dry Meteor is more heavily attributed
to the hypoxia (oxygen deprivation) than to the carbon dioxide poisoning, both effects
can be lethal in their own right.

Of course, Mayumi makes the necessary adjustments in her magic so that this does not
happen. So she did with this instance of [Dry Meteor] fired at the guards, decreasing its
potency so that it would be guaranteed non-lethal.

"More importantly, could you tell me the situation?"

She inquired, and Ryousuke was also quick not to let his curiosity blind him of the
situation.

"As you can see, all but one of the guards in charge of the first floor have been taken by
the enemy, but the control room is secure. There is no sign of intrusion on the second
floor. And they ambushed me here."

"So they are trying to get in through the emergency exit. Could the building's plants
have leaked?"

Information about the lab's emergency exit was not disclosed to public sources. Mayumi
suspected that the reason the burglars were lying in ambush here was that information
might have been leaked in some way.

"She probably got it from one of the security guards who they took control of."
 133
Ryousuke's theory disagreed with Mayumi's.

"The person who was controlling the guard was Laura Simons. I'm sorry, but I can't tell
where she's hiding."

He couldn't elaborate further on that, and proceeded with unconcealed frustration in

his voice.

[But I can see you two, you know. Let's be done with this, get out of the way.'"

Laura follows up on the conversation. Trying to solve her problems not only with her
words, but also with a magic that disposes people of their will ─ not consciousness.

"Hmm… Some sort of gas attack then."

Unfortunately for Laura, her attempt with the magically conveyed "disarming scent" was
blocked by the magic shield Mayumi had deployed.

Learning from the hard experience of the attack by the New Humanity Front, Mayumi
came with a previously deployed magic shield that selectively blocks gasses not
contained in normal breathing air.

A gust of wind sweeps in. Mayumi's downdraft magic, casted in parallel with her magic
shield, blows away the "scent" sent by Laura along with the raindrops.

"─Found you!"

Shortly after Mayumi's mutter, the rainwater pooling on the road surface coalesces into
icicles floating in the air. It is much easier to make ice bullets in an environment with
water in abundance than it is to scrape up carbon dioxide into dry ice. Besides, carbon
dioxide is soluble in water. Technically, the amount of carbon dioxide that reacts with
the raindrops is negligible, but the notion that "carbon dioxide dissolves in water"
nevertheless reduces the effectiveness of the magic.

The reduced effect of the earlier [Dry Meteor] on the guards was convenient for its
intended purpose. The target changed, and the situation changed, now ice will replace
dry ice as a purely offensive tool.

Hailstone barrage magic [Hail Storm].

Ice crystals, each roughly one centimeter in diameter, fly up in a cluster.

At a roadside zelkova tree reaching over 20 meters high.

The hailstorm permeated its treetops.

Like rain falling on water, the hail left ripples where it struck.
 134
The haze that had assimilated with the black clouds in the night sky cleared.

Two figures appeared, floating beyond the treetops.

A man and a woman

"Laura Simons!"

Ryousuke exclaims at the sight of the woman.

"So that's FAIR's sub-leader…"

Ryousuke's exclamation tells Mayumi who the woman is.

(But who is that man…?)

A middle-aged man floats in the air, holding her beside him with an arm around Laura's
waist. A first guess would put him as a member of FAIR under Laura's command. But to
Mayumi's eyes, that didn't look to be the case.

(What is this… Is this like the presence of a powerful person as they say…?)

Laura certainly had an aura of eeriness about her as well. But to Mayumi's intuition, the
man was much more threatening.

"…I will deal with the guy. Saegusa you take Laura Simons."

Ryousuke glares at the man, who releases his arms from around Laura's waist, she too
untangles her hands from around the man's neck and moves away from him.

"Oh, young lady, I wonder if you, not Tokami, will be able to accommodate me."

Said Laura, casting a clear derisive undertone at Mayumi.

"Oh my, I'm afraid I have no duty to welcome an uninvited guest. If I would, I'd rather
have you leave."

Mayumi was not so bellicose to bite in every opportunity of a dispute. Perhaps it was the
condescension in Laura's attitude that did it for her, Mayumi was more than happy to
oblige, and she responded in matching contempt for her counterpart.

"…Let's hear your name, my lass. Feel honored that I may remember if I am so inclined."

"I'm hardly the age of being called a lass. I wonder if I could say the same about you, you
do certainly look good for a woman of your age.

"Drop dead─"
 135
A high-pitched, shrill "sound" that could neither be described as a song nor a prayer
wrenched out of Laura's throat.

"Witches" interfere with "human" phenomena. This includes skills to alter one's own
body. The "sound" that Laura has just emitted was a contracted chanting skill that she
and other witches have developed in recent years to compensate for the shortcomings
of spell chanting, namely the time required to bring about an effect.

Via modification of their own throats, they can vocalize multiple "sounds" at the same
time. The compounded, superimposed phonemes form signs of magical value, fulfilling
much of the same function as an activation sequence issued by a CAD.

Reconstructing the essence of the sound she emitted into words, it says, "Descend from
Heavenly Scorpion, O Messenger of Pluto. O exalted One, with whom wrath,
lamentation, and resentment are written in fresh blood. Grant those who have wronged
and shamed thy servant retribution by Thy Authority."

The name of the magic is [Azrael], the angel of death. It brings about the paralysis of the
heart of a single person within range of the "sound." A hex that interferes with "human"
phenomena to induce a heart attack.

Its name and incantation would probably be frowned upon by the followers of what
Europeans call "paganism". It evidences the true wickedness "witches" possess in how
willing they are to commit such sacrilege to others.

"Too bad. Too late."

But even with all her ingenuity, it still cannot keep up with the speed of modern magic.

Mayumi simultaneously activated [Zone Interference] and [Data Fortification] at the

same time as she whispered. Simultaneous activation of different types of magic is still a
major focus at the still operational Third Research Institute. Same institute the Saegusa
Family came from. Bearing the name "三枝" with the same "Saegusa" reading originally,
they were transferred on to the Seventh Research Institute as a Number. The ease of the
Saegusa's ability to quickly and smoothly invoke the two contrasting magics was due to
the magical skills the family acquired from their time at the Third Institute.

Even if it's magic from a "witch," the principle of action remains the same. It doesn't
matter if it's a person or an employed information body who constructs the magic
sequence, magic is still a "temporary overwriting of the Eidos." Be it witches' or any
other, if the interference strength of [Zone Interference] and/or [Data Fortification] is
superior, then the magic will fail.

So was with Laura's [Azrael], which failed to surmount Mayumi's magic defense.
 136
Mayumi launches another [Hail Storm] at Laura.

Laura managed a large leap back of more than 10 meters to avoid it.

But she could go no further. Behind her was the trunk of the zelkova tree.

If she had fired ice pellets at that moment, Mayumi's victory would have been assured.
She is known for her mastery of long-range precision magic marksmanship. She would
never miss a shot at this distance.

She opted, however, for dry ice bullets instead. Even if the hail missed vital points, it
would still result in a bloodshed. She attempted to incapacitate Laura without spilling
blood with [Dry Meteor].

Modern magic excels in speed of activation. But the time it took to switch magics; the
time it took to decide which magic, a window of opportunity Laura took to fight back.
The product of this equation was enough for Laura to activate the slower ancient-style
magic.

Laura's body shook, dimmed, and assimilated into the bark of the zelkova tree. That is,
but an effect brought about by magic to look as if so.

A fact that Mayumi was quick to catch on to, resulting in no surprise. But she could not
avoid feeling upset. Her own naivete allowed her victory to tumble out of her grasp, and
the regret of this caused a stir in Mayumi's heart.

She hurriedly looked for Laura. Mayumi also had a remote perception ability of her own,
called [Multiscope]. Ability that allows its user to observe a given scene in real time from
multiple viewpoints, unimpeded by physical obstacles. With this agility, she attempted
to locate Laura.

[Multiscope], however, is limited to seeing what would be visible in the presence of

light, regardless of distance or obstructions. You could not use it to see what cannot be
seen even with the presence of light.

Less so with the magic that Laura is using, based on the same principle as Kimon
Tonkou, in which, to any gaze directed at you is imprinted with the suggestion that "you
cannot see" her. The stronger the intent is to see, the deeper one falls into the trap.
Making this magic a terrible match for [Multiscope].

Mayumi felt the walls of Data Fortification she had applied to herself being pecked at. It
was the effect of an attempted magical attack.

She doesn't feel like her walls are being breached just yet. But being pinned in the
defensive is a recipe for failure. Mayumi was aware of this principle.
 137
But she couldn't attack unless she could perceive her opponents. Indiscriminate wide
area bombardment magic is not her forte. All she could do for the time being was to
defend herself and wait for the right opportunity.

Mayumi retreated until the back of her raincoat was against the wall of the lab,
diverting the concentration of her [Zone Interference] in front of her, and adding three
additional layers of [Data Fortification].

The enemy Ryousuke's faced looked younger than his first impressions. From afar, he
seemed to be somewhere in his late thirties to early forties, but now, face-to-face, he
appears to be only around thirty years old.

His physique reflected more of the younger alternative. Differences in physical fitness
will result in different ways of fighting. Although the differences between that of a man
in his thirties and one older than that are not so great of a miscalculation, Ryousuke
chose to recompose himself.

The man brings out a knife from inside a gray summer jacket he is wearing.

"Lü Dongbin."

Was the words the man muttered as he switched the knife into an overhand grip.
Ryousuke didn't catch what it meant at first.

"Your name."

This next question, in English, helped him understand that it was the man's name. He
didn't immediately connect it with an introduction due to his unfamiliarity with Chinese
people's names.

He never knew any Chinese when he was in Hokkaido or in Vancouver. The people in
Vancouver of Han Chinese and Chinese descent usually use naturalized names.

So naturally, Ryousuke had no idea that "Lü Dongbin" was a reading of "呂洞賓", the
name of a legendary Xian.

"Tookami Ryousuke."

Ryousuke's concession to the request was inconsequential in his opinion. It was just his
name. Unbeknownst to him, Ryousuke did not know that one's name was enough of a
means of attack for some ancient -style magicians.

Lü Dongbin was not very good at hexes using names. Deadly curses is actually more of a
specialty of the IPU's "Saptarishi," whom "Bāxiān" is up against. But, knowing a person's
name is a key that helps to locate him or her more easily. By giving his codename and
 138
asking Ryousuke's his name, Lü Dongbin was following his practice when it comes to
melee combat.

Seeing the knife ready with Lü Dongbin, Ryousuke adopts a stance with his fist raised in
front of the right side of his body. Unfortunately, the extendable baton he ruined earlier
was the only weapon he had prepared.

Instead, he activates [Reactive Armor] at this stage, knowing from the sensation in his
skin that Lü Dongbin is not someone he can let his guard down even for a moment.

Ryousuke and Lü Dongbin glared at each other. Beside them, Laura and Mayumi were
facing each other at a short distance.

The exchange of verbal barbs turned into an exchange of magical attacks as Laura's
hexes bounced off Mayumi and Mayumi's ice bullets pounded the pavement.

That was the cue. Lü Dongbin closed the gap, knife drawn. The speed was alarming, but
still not so fast to lose sight.

The knife was held in the right hand, Ryousuke tried to swing it outward with his left
hand.

But Lü Dongbin retracted his hand just prior and Ryousuke sliced through the air.

Lü Dongbin angled the withdrawn knife and thrust it out.

A stab to the stomach.

Ryousuke struck the inner side of Lü Dongbin's right forearm with his right palm,
deflecting the thrust. He then stepped forward and thrust his right elbow into his
opponent's chest.

But there was no feedback. Lü Dongbin drew back his left leg and threw his body out,
killing the impact of the elbow strike. Next he aimed his right hand with the knife at
Ryousuke's neck.

Ryousuke relaxed his right knee, rotating downwards to his left and catching Lü
Dongbin's right hand with his left. He couldn't control the force while he was under
[Reactive Armor], but he didn't care about it in this situation.

He reached out to grasp the arm with the intention of crushing it, but he only caught
the sleeve of the jacket. Holding onto it anyway, Ryousuke hurled Lü Dongbin over his
body with his momentum.

The sleeve ripped open, and Lü Dongbin was sent flying into the air. Regardless of him
being thrown or throwing himself, he landed on the wet surface in a motion
reminiscent of a cat.
 139
Ryousuke raised up smoothly back on his feet as well without a moment's delay.

Ryousuke and Lü Dongbin once again glared at each other.

Laura's attacks hit Mayumi one after another. Meanwhile, Mayumi is unable to figure out
Laura's position.

(If this continues…)

Mayumi was mentally cornered.

Not that there was nothing she could do. Even if she couldn't figure out where Laura
was hiding, she could still find a way to attack her.

Just because wide area offensive magic is not Mayumi's forte, does not mean that she
cannot use it.

(…Damn! Again…)

Laura's attacks are gradually increasing in strength. The intervals between attacks are
growing, but this also indicates that the opponent is confident enough to take the time
to prepare for the attack.

Mayumi does not have any techniques to shield specifically against mental interference
magic or hexes. She could only use heavy-handed tactics such as [Zone Interference]
and [Data Fortification] to get the job done. It is, so to speak, a feat of strength. Since
they are not very efficient in comparison, the wear and tear is very acute.

The power of the enemy's magic is increasing, and she is getting exhausted. It's clear
how it will end if things continue as they are now. And Mayumi couldn't just take that
kind of outcome in stride.

"Tookami-san, are you using that shield of yours?

Mayumi shouted without turning to look at Ryousuke.

"Yes!"

Was the only answer she got. Apparently Ryousuke is in no better position than she is.

I'm sorry, you're struggling there too, Mayumi thought. But she had already made up her
mind.

"I'll say it up front. I'm sorry!"

So Mayumi loudly apologized for what she was about to do.

 140

Mayumi out of nowhere asked if he had his [Reactive Armor] shield on, but Ryousuke
didn't even have the leisure to turn and look at her. He was too busy trying to fend off Lü
Dongbin's four blades. He could not take his eyes off for even a second.

Lü Dongbin throws a dagger. Ryousuke swings his neck to avoid the blade flying toward
his face.

But he did not stop there. He back steps to dodge the knife swinging horizontally and
jumps sideways with the foot he landed on.

The dagger he had just avoided went backwards and passed right where his neck was.

With that one’s miss, another blade attempts at Ryousuke's chest. He swatted it away
with his left hand, covered in individual armor magic. Just as the blade is about to hit
the ground, it leaps back up, aiming for Ryousuke's throat.

Lü Dongbin's magic was controlling knives and daggers remotely. He did not just send
the blades flying, but coordinated them in tandem with his technique with the knives in
his hands.

Ryousuke noticed that the knives were controlled remotely via a virtual string, and that
Lü Dongbin's technique was a magical equivalent of rope-dart wielding. This weaponry
technique from the East Asia continent involves the use of a rope attached to the base of
a throwable blade, or "dart". In this case a magical thread was playing the role of the
rope.

Since the string doesn't physically exist, the trajectory of the blade cannot be disrupted
by twisting or cutting the rope, as is the case with a normal rope dart. The fact the tip of
the blade can be turned in any direction is also inherent to this version with magic.

Although it may be less flexible than the flying knives freely with Psychokinesis, it is
definitely more troublesome when used in conjunction with a proper knife-wielding
technique.

So far none of the blades had the power to pierce [Reactive Armor].

But there is no guarantee that nothing will happen even if it hits. He can't also ignore
the possibility it was a feint to make him let his guard down.

It was at that point, he couldn't turn around at that time, even if someone called out to
him. "Yes" was all he could manage.

And it seems to have sufficed for Mayumi, too.

 141
Just after his reply, an apology followed by a powerful magical sign blanketed the sky
above. Ryousuke was involuntarily thrown off guard, but fortunately, so was Lü
Dongbin. The momentum of his magically manipulated blades weakened as well.

And then, from the sky rained a barrage of hailstones.

Mayumi only received one short word, but it was clear, and left no room for
misunderstanding.

First, she used a Movement Magic to pull the five fallen guards into a two-meter radius
circle around her. Then she built up a new [Hail Storm] magic sequence.

The target is a circle with a radius of 20 meters, excluding the area two meters from
herself. A donut-shaped area with a hole in it, or rather a bagel-shaped area. That's the
two-dimensional sighting with a viewpoint overhead.

With her habitual practice of three-dimensional aiming from a multi-viewpoint remote

sight, Mayumi is not very good at wide-area attacks with two-dimensional aiming. But
again, just because she "doesn't feel comfortable" or "isn't good at it" doesn't mean she
"can't do it".

Raindrops falling, moisture fills the air, and water soaks the pavement.

From all which ice bullets form and shoot down from the sky.

Not only did the hailstones pound the pavement, they punched shallow holes all over
the place. The resulting collateral damage is another reason why Mayumi hesitates to
use wide-area indiscriminate magic.

Ryousuke's whole body also got caught in the hailstorm. Yet, he does not seem to be in
any particular pain. The ice bullets drilling into the road's pavement are probably no
match for his Reactive Armor.

His opponent, Lü Dongbin, sheltered under the zelkova tree. But the hail also covered
the shade of the zelkova tree.

They didn't come from just the sky above, but also from the water pooling on the
ground. So too from the dew dripping from the leaves of the trees. No shelter from the
rain will help against [Hail Storm].

From a distance, Lü Dongbin appears unharmed. The holes in his clothes suggest that he
may have used some kind of magic to harden his skin.

And then there was a scream from behind the zelkova where Lü Dongbin was sheltering.
 142
Mayumi pointed her [Multiscope] at the back side of the tree.

There she found Laura crouched down, covering her head with both arms. Blood was
pouring from both, which told Mayumi that her attack had dealt an effective blow.

Confirming was all she could do, as pain seared through Mayumi's arms. Letting out an
anguished moan before letting her body slump forward. Staggering in pain, she barely
managed to hold on before falling to her knees.

With her vision, blurred by tears, she could find no wounds. There was only the pain of
being punctured.

（What…? Is…?)

She could guess it was some kind of counterattack by Laura. But couldn't muster what
exactly.

This is a witch's auto-retaliatory magic [Erinyes]. It works much like an older form of
"Hex Reversal," in which a magic sequence is projected outwards, reflecting back pain
inflicted on the user.

By default, this magic would inflict pain ─ phantom pain that would actually manifest
wounds of the same degree ─ equivalent to those experienced by the user's own body.
Fortunately for Mayumi, in this case, given the wide-area and indiscriminate nature of
Hail Storm, Laura was not directly targeted by the magic. As a result, the pain was only
partially transmitted to Mayumi.

It was still enough pain to prevent Mayumi from pushing her offensive.

A staggering Laura stumbled away.

There wasn't energy left in Mayumi to try to track her whereabouts with the
[Multiscope].

The hail descended like bullets in what was less a hailstorm and more a barrage of ice
bullets.

It lasted for no more than ten seconds.

To Ryousuke it felt like he was being sprayed with gunfire for over a hundred times
longer than that.

The road left scattered with broken branches and strewn with countless small holes
along the road surface. No doubt this area will need a total repaving job.
 143
No doubt the aftermath of the vertical barrage of ice. The barks of the roadside trees had
been scrapped, but not a single one had fallen.

Ryousuke himself was not damaged at all. His [Reactive Armor] completely covered him
from the barrage of ice. He reflexively stopped at the time, but he would be able to move
without hindrance even under that hailstorm if he had the mind to do so.

Frustration overcame Ryousuke at the late realization.

He was completely distracted from his enemy in the hailstorm. The enemy's blade could
be reaching him right at this very moment ─ the realization of such danger shot
through Ryousuke's mind.

He frantically searched for Lü Dongbin. Fortunately, less than half of the streetlights had
been broken by the hailstorm. The light was sparse, but there was still some dim
visibility.

Lü Dongbin was in a defensive posture with his back against a roadside tree, his face
shielded by his arms and his body curled up. It was too dark to make out the details, but
he could see him, that was his chance.

His body was already moving as soon as he felt that. With a single breath, Ryousuke
closed the seven or eight meters distance from the tree to which Lü Dongbin had his
back on.

He must have sensed it, because Lü Dongbin dropped his defensive posture and raised
his head. He then threw his knife, as well as his dagger at Ryousuke.

Ryousuke didn't dodge.

Ryousuke's magic shield bounced back the two blades thrown at close range.

Perhaps Lü Dongbin was expecting that Ryousuke would continue the usual evasive
maneuvers. When Ryousuke pressed forward, his reaction was delayed for a moment.

Lü Dongbin still managed to thrust the knife in his right hand at Ryousuke's right arm as
he lunged forward.

Ryousuke interrupted his thrust and opened his right fist to knock Lü Dongbin's right
hand away.

Lü Dongbin responded immediately with a knife attack with his left hand.

Ryousuke backslap Lü Dongbin's left arm with his right hand while planting his
outstretched right foot even harder on the ground.

He then jabbed his left fist out.

 144
He aimed at the "Dan-chou7" pressure point in the center of the chest.

His enemy didn't let him get to the vital point so easily.

As a result of Lü Dongbin's evasive action of twisting his upper body, Ryousuke's first
landed slightly to the left of the sternum, in the opponent's right chest.

The feeling of broken ribs coursed through his left fist.

At the strong feeling of discomfort, Ryousuke's movements stopped.

He usually does not feel anything tactile while wearing [Reactive Armor]. He could feel
resistance and pressure through the magic armor, but not sense breaking his
opponent's bones.

(Did the [Reactive Armor] deactivate…!?)

Of course, he didn't deactivate it by himself.

Even though he is in the middle of a battle, his individual armor magic has been
canceled.

It did not break.

Ryousuke's Reactive Armor was canceled from the outside, against his will!

Lü Dongbin's left arm, knife in hand, moved.

Reacting to this, Ryousuke tried to lower his right arm to block it.

But he was too late.

The knife pierced Ryousuke's right side.

It moved to push in deeper, but his right arm got in the way, preventing it.

Lü Dongbin let his left hand go off the knife and staggered out of the position between
Ryousuke and the street tree.

Lü Dongbin escapes with his hand clutched to his right chest.

The speed of his escape was by no means fast. His steps were erratic.

But Ryousuke could only hold his right side with his hand, unable to move from his
position.

7
Illustrative
145
 146

Chapter 6
[Interruption]

Evening of August 11th, local time, Uzbekistan. Tatsuya receives a call from Fujibayashi on
the satellite phone. Without so much as a word of greeting, Fujibayashi's first words
were the news of the attack on the FLT Labs.

"Are there any casualties? Wounded?"

[Fortunately, no fatalities. But Tookami-san sustained a serious puncture wound in his

side.

"Tookami-san, you say? Was his magical armor broken?"

Tatsuya couldn't hold back his surprise as he asked back.

Despite much of Ryousuke's efforts to keep it a secret, Tatsuya had [Elemental Sight]. He
knew of Ryousuke's [Reactive Armor] ability and that it originated from the former Tenth
Research Institute.

That individual armor magic is not something so easily broken. Noted for its defensive
power against all forms of physical attacks, it should also have neigh-impermeable
resistance against magic attacks that are mediated by physical phenomena.

Sure it may have some structural vulnerability in the magic. Tatsuya knows Ryousuke is
an Extra. And for the number to be stripped of his family, there had to be some inherent
flaw in the Reactive Armor that Tatsuya is unaware of.

That, or perhaps the enemy may have employed a special technique to break through
the magic shield. That seemed the most likely of the two.

[The details are unknown. He is still undergoing treatment so we haven't been able to
hear any details from him yet.]

"I see. Is there anyone else injured? How is Saegusa-san?"

As their de facto employer, it was the next natural question to ask about the person
Ryousuke was paired with, Mayumi. His concern about her well-being was more than
just out of a sense of responsibility as her employer.
 147
An injury to Mayumi meant a disservice to the Saegusa Family by the Yotsuba Family.
Tatsuya questioned himself if it was poor judgment on his part to assign Mayumi in
guard duties.

[Mayumi-san is unharmed.]

Therefore, hearing this answer, Tatsuya felt relieved as any other person would.

[However, besides Tookami-san, there were also five security guards who were in
serious condition.]

"By serious, you mean life-threatening?"

In inquiring, there wasn't much of a hint of concern in his tone.

The same could be said for the calmness of Fujibayashi's voice over the phone.

[All five appear to have lost the ability to communicate. Not only are they unable to
speak, but they are also unable to read and write. There are no signs of physical trauma
or brain hemorrhage from the exams, so I assume it must be the result of magic.]

Fujibayashi's first sentence was enough for Tatsuya to understand what had happened to
the guards.

"That seems to be the symptom caused by the magic of a prehistoric civilization,

[Babel]."

[…Are you familiar with it?]

"It is a magic that was used by members of FAIR on the American West Coast, where I
recently went. It is contagious, so please have them magically quarantined."

[─Understood. I will arrange it immediately.]

Fujibayashi couldn't hide, nay, she didn't even attempt to hide an accusatory nuance to
infuse in her voice. Most likely out of discontent that information was withheld from
her.

"Please contact Yuuka-san and inform her that there has been a [Babel] victim. She
knows the treatment procedure."

[So am I to contact Tsukuba-san directly? Noted."

Tatsuya submitted a detailed report about [Babel] to the main house. But Maya was not
the only person to receive his report. He submitted a detailed report to the head family.
He also brought the information and method on how to counteract the effects of Babel
directly to Yuuka, who specializes in mental interference magic. She should be able to
prevent the spread of further damage.
 148
He should have warned Fujibayashi, and maybe Mayumi, about [Babel]. ─He thought as
he hung up the call. Although he did not go out and say it, Tatsuya at least
acknowledged his mistake to himself and regretted it.

The possibility that Laura Simons had obtained Babel using the " Guru's Tablet" was
predictable enough. His preoccupation with the search for Shambhala must have
blinded him from considering the risks that came with the news of her arrival in Japan.

Fortunately, it seems that Babel didn't result in any extensive damage. He can take that
as some small respite. That said, he couldn't ignore the fact that Laura Simons was using
[Babel] and that the other burglar managed to bypass [Reactive Armor].

If necessary, he would be obliged to return to Japan.

He frowned at the prospect of the disruption of his plans.

◇◇◇

Tatsuya wasn't the only one furrowing his brows at ruined expectations. Having coursed
through a report from an intelligence officer in Uzbekistan, Canopus sighs and leans
back, staring up at the ceiling.

"Lack of training… Lack of experience… No, you don't have any to begin with. Are you
really fundamentally unfit for this?"

The soliloquy, a complaint, escaped him.

Once again, he looked down at the report. It detailed Evelyn's deployment to the IPU.

Written there were the details of the commotion she had caused in Samarkand.

(What were you thinking when you decided to launch a preemptive strike…)

This time he didn't voice his mind, but instead kept his grumblings to himself. No matter
how many times he found himself being followed, he would never have voluntarily
started a battle when it was unrelated to the mission in a foreign country he was
undercover in. It was common sense.

(And what was his officer doing, too? Why didn't he stop her…?)

The stance from the report was if it wasn't his problem. It is written as if he was an
examiner or a critic. While objectivity is an essential quality for an intelligence officer,
lack of responsibility seems to better describe this case.

(And I heard he was a veteran in his field…)

 149
More of a veteran in avoiding responsibility, it seems. He was a poor choice to work
with someone new to foreign missions like Evelyn. In fact, selection of personnel
appears to be the issue with this operation, the choice of Evelyn for it was also
inappropriate.

There was a failure in the vetting of the mission itself. It was impossible not to admit
that he had misjudged the situation in the region himself. ─Canopus reflected as he
considered the situation.

He came to the decision to abort and re-evaluate the operation, and to recall Evelyn.

◇◇◇

The day after the attack, Fujibayashi visited Ryousuke in the hospital with Mayumi in
tow.

"I heard the surgery was a success. That's some relief."

Fujibayashi speaks to Ryousuke, who is awake. His gaze was steady, the anesthesia
seemed to have worn off.

"I'm sorry. I suffered an embarrassing defeat…"

Ryousuke's face contorted in frustration. There also seemed to be some residual pain.

"I wouldn't say so. You repelled the thieves and nothing was stolen."

Mayumi offers some consoling words to Ryousuke.

"…And the guards, how are they?"

"The injuries are nothing serious. Magical effects have also been addressed."

Fujibayashi gives an honest answer to Ryousuke's question.

Mayumi kept the guards outside the range of the [Hail Storm], and Yuuka had already
restored their language faculties impaired by [Babel] by removing the magic sequence
lodged in their left temporal lobe.

"You were the only requiring hospitalization, Tookami-san."

"I see…"

A shadow fell over Ryousuke's face again.

Mayumi opens her mouth to offer some words of encouragement.

But Fujibayashi's line came first.

 150
"Didn't the enemy magician retreat because you did enough damage to him?"

"…I did feel that I broke his ribs."

"Then it was a draw."

"You think so?"

"I do."

Her tone was objective, as if she's simply noting the facts. This brief exchange with
Fujibayashi, helped Ryousuke conclude that, in a sense, it would be presumptuous of
him to feel like a loser when he has not lost. He realized that behind that vanity lurked
the notion that if he didn't win, he would be pathetic.

He doesn't need to be the absolute strongest. It's not possible to always win all the time.
He realized that this was an obvious fact.

Though it was no consolation, it served to lighten Ryousuke's depressed mood.

"But still, for someone to be able to pierce Tookami-san's magic shield with a knife, he's
definitely no ordinary person. Do you have any clue as to who he might be?"

"…To be honest, I'm not too familiar with the names in the magic community… But, come
to think of it, he called himself 'Lü Dongbin'."

"Lü Dongbin… as in 'Ryou Doubin'?"

Due to her background as a descendant of a lineage of prominent ancient-style

magicians, as well as her service in a special unit based around modern magic,
Fujibayashi has extensive knowledge about both modern and ancient-style magicians.
She immediately connected the phonetics of "Lü Dongbin" with that of "呂洞賓" ─ "Ryou
Doubin" as is pronounced in Japan ─ the legendary Xian of the East-Asian continent.

"How did it feel when you noticed your shield was broken?"

Fujibayashi asks another question.

Ryousuke wrinkled his brow in thought. It had been only half a day past the surgery on
his flank. There were some signs of exhaustion in his expression. Both the battle and the
surgery had probably sapped much of his strength.

But she kept her eyes on him, waiting for an answer, ignoring Mayumi's pleading look in
her eyes to call it off.

Mayumi was there to visit him, but Fujibayashi was there to question him. She wanted to
learn as much as she could about what cards the enemy had in their hands. With
 151
Ryousuke as one of her only sources of information, she had to speak to him if she
wanted to find out more about them, however injured he might be.

"…I don't think it was the knife that pierced my armor."

Fujibayashi called it a shield, Ryousuke, armor. Both refer to the same magic shield as a
general term. And "Armor" is Ryousuke's short for [Reactive Armor].

"Right after I punched him in the chest, my armor was gone."

"A compulsive magic deactivation on contact? Neutralization, perhaps."

"Neutralization?"

Ryousuke repeats quizzically.

From her expression, Fujibayashi seems to have an idea of what happened.

But all she said was, "No, it's nothing",

Fujibayashi apologized for tiring him out and left the hospital room.

Mayumi and Ryousuke were left alone in the private hospital room. Left with them was
an awkward atmosphere.

Unfortunately, if you will, without any romantic undertone.

"Er, um… And you, Saegusa-san, did you get hurt?"

Feeling the weight of the silence become unbearable, Ryousuke anxiously attempts a
conversation.

"Yes, I'm fine. Mostly thanks to you…"

And from the slight look of relief on Mayumi, she couldn't bear it either.

"Wow, so you really managed to take on Laura Simons unscathed."

"I wouldn't say that much, it was just because you were taking care of the most
troublesome opponent, Tookami-san."

Gradually getting back into the swing of things, Mayumi brings a smile befitting a
daughter of the Saegusa Family.

The greatest woman in Ryousuke's eyes is Lena. But his feelings for her go beyond love,
into worship. He sanctifies her so profoundly, in such a high regard that he does not
even recognize her as a fellow person of flesh and blood, let alone as an object of love.
 152
Mayumi's elegant forged smile has a certain calculated charm ─ an alluring effect that
Lena's gracious, yet simple, genuine smile does not have.

Is not Mayumi's design to seduce Ryousuke. Her "forged smile" was perfected to the
extent she could create one without consciously trying to do so.

With Ryousuke at an abrupt loss of words, Mayumi tilts her head to the side without
dropping her smile. Even that seemingly innocuous gesture was similarly crafted over
the years to evoke the goodwill of the other. While head tilting training was certainly
not among Mayumi's etiquette curriculum, it was but a minor detail she developed over
the course of her lessons in dance and etiquette.

"Are you perhaps not feeling well?"

Saying this, Mayumi bends over to meet Ryousuke's eyes. Most likely, simply to assure he
was not masking his pain.

But having someone who, due to the height difference, you are used to looking down on
on a daily basis looking down on you can feel uncomfortable. Unbearable even if said
person was a very attractive member of the opposite sex.

He did the only logical thing (?) and looked away.

Simply tuning his head around would make it too clear he was trying to hide his
embarrassment. He was also concerned it would seem rude to Mayumi. Therefore, he
chose to keep his head in place and avert his eyes downwards.

His plan led him straight to the sight of her bosom, of quite generous proportions for
such a petite figure.

Despite the midsummer weather, her short-sleeve blouse left no inch of bare skin
visible.

But even without clear exposure, or degree of transparency, nevertheless its summer
clothing with its customary thin fabric. From such a close distance, liking or not, there it
was the very shape of her breasts under her underwear.

Ryosuke hushed to close his shutters.

Mayumi finally realized from his reaction the effect her position was having on him.

She brought her back upright in a similar hurry, raising her arms in an attempt to cover
her breasts, her cheeks stained with embarrassment.

Each movement in its own way was mesmerizing, much to Ryousuke's consternation.
 153
Sentiment Mayumi shared. Finally, not being able to stand it any longer, she uttered the
pleasantries almost as a gesture of resignation, and quickly left the hospital room.

◇◇◇

Bukhara, Uzbekistan. August 12th, 9:00 A.M. local time. Same day, 1:00 P.M. Japan time.

Tatsuya received the report from Fujibayashi via satellite phone.

"…I see. So he made the shield disappear on contact."

The contents of the report discuss the results of the investigation conducted with
Ryousuke at the hospital.

[I suspect it was neutralized by emitting Psion waves of the inverse phase.]

Tatsuya nodded with a "I concur" with Fujibayashi's speculation.

"About the name the enemy gave, are you positive that it is 'Lü Dongbin'?"

Then he double-checked the identity of the enemy.

[Yes. Likely one of the 'Bāxiān']

[Bāxiān], the special operations unit of the GAU military, composed of the elite of the
elite of the ancient-style magician combatants. The existence of this team was deemed
of high concern by the Independent Magic-Equipped Regiment since its battalion
existence. Although Tatsuya was not clear on the details in his service with the
Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion, he was briefed on the general outlines.
Presumably, even as of now, Fujibayashi may be a better informed person about "Bāxiān"
than he is.

"So what are your thoughts on the GAU possibly having an interest in FAIR?"

[Considering the fact that FAIR was founded under the devices of Gu Jie behind the
scenes, I wouldn't assume a pre-existing connection. I suspect they made contact via a
network of local ethnic Chinese and offered help with the escape from the police.]

"Perhaps that's how it went down. But that aside, FAIR seems to be the least of the issues
in this case."

[I am inclined to agree with you.]

This time, it was Fujibayashi to back-channel Tatsuya's point.

 154
[It is difficult to understand why the Bāxiān, which is contained to the western region of
the GAU, would join forces with the FAIR from America and attempt to commit robberies
in Japan.]

"This is still just speculation, but perhaps they are interested in the magic of prehistoric
civilizations that FAIR unearthed."

Tatsuya offers a hypothesis to the question posed by Fujibayashi.

[Could their goal be the prehistoric civilization's magic [Babel]?]

"If so, then the use of [Babel] in this latest attack may have been prompted by Lü
Dongbin."

[Are you suggesting that Lü Dongbin's participation in the FLT attack was to observe the
effects of [Babel]?]

"It would explain why he withdrew so readily if you think so."

Tatsuya expressed withdrawing after having suffered broken ribs as "readily".

Fujibayashi felt a brief moment of discomfort, but then reconsidered, "Surely a broken
rib or two was not reason enough when it came to the elite of the operative unit".

Having finished his call with Fujibayashi, Tatsuya kept the satellite phone in hands and
dialed another number.

Three rings, then four, and still no answer. Seven went by, and he still couldn't get
through.

It was past one o'clock in the afternoon in Japan. Maybe he was busy at work.

Tatsuya thought, "I'll call back later," at which point he received an answer.

[Sorry, I made you wait! It's me, Fumiya]

His voice over the phone sounded rushed. So he's really busy, Tatsuya thought.

"You sound busy. I'm sorry to bother you. I'll call you back when it's convenient for you."

[No, I'm fine now. What can I do for you?]

The urgency in Fumiya's voice grew a degree stronger. Tatsuya wondered if he was
pushing himself in doing so, but decided not to be deterred, as he had business that
made him make the call.

"I assume you know about the recent attack on FLT."

 155
[Ah, yes. I was surprised. If we were guarding the place, we wouldn't have let the bandits
get away…]

"I need your help to clean up that mess. I'm sorry you may be in the middle of another
case, but I have to ask."

[There is an agent from the GAU military involved, isn't there? If so, this has a higher
priority. So, should we catch the culprit?]

Fumiya sounded enthusiastic. So eager to almost seem like he was looking forward to
the task.

Fumiya sounded enthusiastic. So eager to almost the level of impulsiveness.

"No need, I'll catch them myself. I have something I'd like to verify."

[Understood, I'll start the search right away.]

Before Tatsuya could even verbalize, Fumiya grasped what Tatsuya's next words were.

[The targets are Lü Dongbin and Laura Simons, correct?]

"No, just Lü Dongbin is fine; Laura Simons is fine as an afterthought."

But alas, there seems to be the limit to their synchronicity.

[Do you believe that Laura Simons and Lü Dongbin are acting separately?]

"I'd bet 50% she is. But Laura Simons can't afford to leave the ancient master of the art
alone even if we don't make a move."

Says Tatsuya in ridicule.

'Yes, that's right. Witches are a 'noxious invasive species' to any kind of traditionalists."

Fumiya responded in a deadly serious tone.

Both then broke into a laugh in unison across the satellite phone line.

◇◇◇

Tatsuya was using the satellite phone from the balcony of his hotel room. When he
returned to his room after the two calls, he found not only Hyougo but also Miyuki and
Lina there.

"Tatsuya-sama, was it Fujibayashi-san?"

"That's right," Tatsuya answered Miyuki.

 156
"She was reporting to me what she learned from Tookami about yesterday's attack."

He then added.

"So the culprits were FAIR people after all?"

Lina takes her turn to ask impatiently.

"There were two individuals. One was Laura Simons of FAIR, and the other one called
himself Lü Dongbin."

"Lü Dongbin? Is he Chinese?"

"He is presumably a magician operative of the GAU military."

"FAIR is working with the GAU military?!"

Miyuki expresses her surprise.

"Presumably."

"How on earth!?"

Lina seems outraged by the prospect.

The reason for her indignation was made clear in her next line.

"How did they allow an operative to infiltrate the West Coast?!"

It is unlikely that FAIR was the one to reach out to the GAU military for help, so it is
reasonable to assume that it was an agent or an operative of the GAU military that
reached for Rocky Dean or Laura Simons, since both are on the run. This would mean
that an agent of the GAU military had infiltrated the West Coast of the USNA.

"They must have used local Chinese connections. USNA is not a particularly strict or
isolationist nation. You have to account for the fact that infiltrations will happen,
eventually."

"You're right, but still…"

Appeased by Tatsuya, Lina settles down for the time being.

"In regards to this Lü Dongbin, he possesses a magic skill that cannot be dismissed."

"Is it a special magic?"

Miyuki asked in a calm tone, already having regained her composure.

"It nullified Tookami's individual armor magic."

 157
"…And what's bothering you about that?"

Lina wondered, not sure what Tatsuya's issue on the matter was.

"Tookami's individual armor magic was developed by the former Tenth Research
Institute. In terms of strength alone, it is comparable to [Phalanx]."

"…So?"

"The Juumonji family [Phalanx] is the strongest defensive magic in the Ten Master Clans.
The fact that Tookami's individual armor magic, which is comparable to that, was
nullified means, in other words, that there is no magic from Ten Master Clans that can
prevent an attack by this Lü Dongbin. Was that what you were thinking, Tatsuya-sama?"

Miyuki guessed his answer to Lina's question before Tatsuya had the chance to respond.

"I get it."

Lina was satisfied with Miyuki's guess.

"I'd say that's not all."

But Tatsuya had another point left unsaid.

"It is also important to know how Tookami's individual armor magic was nullified. We
need to be able to respond in case we find ourselves against an enemy with the same
nullification technique."

"…Are you planning to fight them yourself?"

Miyuki couldn't hide the worry in her voice as she asked.

"I intend to."

Tatsuya's expression, on the other hand, showed no hesitation. Naturally ─ though not
quite, in his case ─ there was no sign of uneasiness.

"Isn't it dangerous to fight an enemy that has means to nullify magic that we do not
understand?"

"It's not like we have no idea how it works. I have some rough idea of what to expect
myself."

"Really?"

"I presume it counteracts by applying the principles of Hex Reversal techniques."

"Hex Reversal…?"
 158
"Counteracts, you say…?"

Both Lina and Miyuki tilted her heads in confusion.

However, Tatsuya left them in the dark as to the details.

◇◇◇

Lena felt nervous as she faced Evelyn, who had a stiff expression on her face.

They were in her hotel room in Samarkand. Evelyn came to her room and said, "We need
to talk," so Lena invited her in.

She offered her a chair, but Evelyn refused to sit down, leaving Lena with no choice but
to keep standing as well.

It's just her and Evelyn in the room.

Lena was starting to feel suffocated with the atmosphere.

"Just now, I received an order to report back home."

When Evelyn finally opened her mouth, the message was unexpected.

It didn't come as a surprise after careful consideration. After the commotion she caused
in the city the day before yesterday."

Even if it happened in the outskirts of town, where there are few pedestrians around, it
would still not be enough to justify the possible diplomatic issues that might arise from
a magic shootout in the middle of a city in a foreign country. Although "possible" may be
too optimistic, the incident has probably arisen as a diplomatic concern already.

"Ms. Fehr, what will you do?"

Lena blinked repeatedly wordlessly. The question came as too much of a surprise for her
to answer on the spur of the moment.

"…Of course I'll return as well. We have no reason to stay any longer in this country."

This answer, given after a brief delay, causes a slight shift in Evelyn's tense expression.
"Ah!", she exclaims, as if she has just remembered something that she had forgotten.

The whole situation must have completely slipped Evelyn's mind, where she used Lena
as a pretext to get into the IPU and have her dragged here to Samarkand. If she had that
fact in mind she would have rather asked "I'm going back home, will you stay here?"
instead of what she did.

"I see, then… If you excuse me. I will arrange with the consulate for the return ticket."
 159
Evelyn's demeanor flipped 180º into extremely cordiality.

Lena pitied her a little, for the severe punishment she may be subjected to.

◇◇◇

He was returning to his room after an early dinner on the following night of his request
when Tatsuya received a phone call regarding Lü Dongbin's whereabouts.

"You found him out already? It may as well be a cliché at this point, but I shouldn't
expect anything less from you.

Complaints from Ayako flow across the satellite connection.

"I'm sorry for not noticing. I'll be more careful, and I'll call you next time, Ayako."

[That's a promise, then.]

In true hot-cold fashion, her tone over the phone gave the impression that Ayako tried,
and failed, to hide her upbeat mood.

[Now, we found out that Lü Dongbin is hiding in…]

Switching to work mode, Ayako reports the results of their investigation.

"…Nishi-Kawaguchi. Surprising, isn't it?"

"…So, Nishi-Kawaguchi. Not surprising, I guess."

Nishi-Kawaguchi, in the southern region of the formerly Saitama Prefecture. On hearing

the name, Tatsuya muttered to himself.

The invasion of the GAU forces five years ago has heightened the wariness of Chinese
and ethnic Chinese in the Yokohama area. Chinatown is under intense scrutiny, and
many of the stores and restaurants have not recovered their customer base.

This trend persisted further across a wide swath, from Tsurumi to Yokosuka. In light of
such circumstances, it was reasonable to expect GAU operatives to choose inland areas
over those along the Tokyo Bay coast for their hideouts.

[And, unfortunately, Laura Simons…]

"You didn't find her?"

It was easy to guess the rest of her phrase from the clipped tone in which Ayako was
speaking.

[Yes, you guessed it; it appears that they have gone their separate ways.]
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The resigned note in Ayako's voice was less for the failure in locating Laura, and more
for being seen through by Tatsuya.

"As I told Fumiya, Lü Dongbin is the main concern right now. Keep an eye on him so we
don't lose sight of him."

[But of course, I assure you we'll be mindful of that.]

"I'll be back there tomorrow."

[We'll be gladly waiting for your arrival.]

Tatsuya returned to the room from the balcony and called for Hyougo.

Hyougo, who was already on his feet, answered, "You asked for me, sir?"

"I'll suspend the search for tomorrow and will head back to Japan."

"Understood, sir. What would you like to do with your baggage?"

"Just leave it at the hotel, please."

"It'll be taken care of, sir."

With a nod to the bowing Hyougo, Tatsuya picks up the retro-looking phone receiver
and dials an extension line to the adjacent room.

[Tatsuya-sama, is there something I can do for you?]

Miyuki picked up the line.

"We need to talk about tomorrow. I'm sorry I'll have to ask that you bring Lina with you."

With Miyuki's [As you wish], Tatsuya hung up the receiver.

Nearly five minutes later, Miyuki and Lina came to the room.

The reason why it took so long was immediately apparent. They evidently were fixing
their makeup.

Tatsuya was not about to blame the girls for just five minutes. He had them both sit
down at a table and asked Hyougo for drinks.

"We have info on Lü Dongbin's whereabouts. We'll suspend tomorrow's search."

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Neither seemed surprised, the search for the Shambhala had been scheduled to be
suspended.

"Are you going back to Japan?"

Miyuki was mostly asking for confirmation with that question.

"I'll be landing at Miyakishima via Takachiho."

As he answered, Hyougo set a cup of green tea in front of each of the three.

"Hyougo-san."

Tatsuya addressed him when the same was done distributing the tea.

"Yes, Tatsuya-sama?"

"Do you mind driving me to the vacant lot where we picked up the space suits the other
day?"

"Of course, as you wish."

As always, Hyougo bowed reverently.

"May I join you?"

"You know that we're coming with you, don't you?"

Those two, directing gazes with essentially the same message, asking to tag along; if it
weren't for their different features, they might as well be sisters. Although today Miyuki
is his fiancée and Lina is her best friend and escort, Tatsuya felt as if he now had two
younger sisters. Even if he didn't have the intention of doing so, he found himself
involuntarily nodding his head.

"I was planning to invite you two along from the beginning."

But in this case it was his intention. Serves him better to bring this topic up and done
right away.

◇◇◇

11 P.M. local time. Tatsuya gazed up at the starlit sky in a vacant lot on the outskirts of
Kagan, Uzbekistan. Behind him was a camper converted from a conventional station
wagon.

He was dressed in a skin-tight space suit. The suit that hugged his body closely gave less
of an impression of a boiler suit or even a dry suit and more of a racing suit, or perhaps
even the combat suit of the special squadron, with the fireproof hood over it.
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The sound of the camper's rear gate opening drew Tatsuya's attention.

Out came two figures wearing the same space suits as Tatsuya. It was clear from the
outlined graceful curves of their bodies accentuated by the suits that they were women.
Their faces are obscured by the opaque visor built into the hood. But who else could
these two be, from their silhouettes alone, radiating an aura of beauty, but Miyuki and
Lina.

"Looks like there were no problems with size."

Tatsuya speaks as they approach within conversational distance. Not that it makes any
difference, since the hoods are completely airtight, and they communicate through the
built-in communicator.

[Say, it doesn't look weird, does it?]

Miyuki's voice comes from close to his ear. It felt like she was whispering to him from a
huddling distance.

It didn't feel strange as it was Miyuki, but he thought it might be a bit strange with
someone else.

"Nothing wrong at all. All I can see is a fine astronaut."

The word has the historical connotation of the astronauts who trained in America, but
Tatsuya was referring to its general meaning.

[What about me?]

As he thought, hearing Lina's voice right next to his ear brought a weird feeling.

"Of course you as well, Lina. I don't see anything wrong with it."

Except for the voice part, he thought but left unspoken.

EVA suits are a type of a space suit for the purpose of Extravehicular Activity as its name
suggests. Given that manned exploration of other celestial bodies hasn't been conducted
for over a century at this point, it wouldn't be wrong to describe them as a tool for
spacewalking.

At this point, it goes unsaid why Miyuki and Lina are wearing these space suits.

"So this is how space feels…! It's almost like flight magic… No, not really. I don't know
how to describe it…"

Miyuki was so overcome that she lost her words.

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"Hahaha! I'm in space! I've always wanted to come. It's so awesome! Ahahahaha!"

As for Lina, she was in such an ecstatic state that it was almost hilarious.

Tatsuya watches those two with a smile.

Before their eyes is the Earth at night; behind is the large Orbital Residence. From above,
below, and at the left and right are the stars suspended in the vastness of the cosmos.
They were brought before Takachiho by the [Virtual Satellite Elevator].

"Are you enjoying space?"

They heard a voice from the communicator, making Miyuki and Lina look back behind
them while Tatsuya was already facing the direction of the voice beforehand. With the
lack of a foothold in space for them to turn their heels on, the flight magic device on
their space suits allowed them to move as they pleased.

"Minoru-kun!"

"Minoru! Where's your space suit?

Minoru was standing in space in his everyday clothes.

"It's too much trouble to put one every time."

They soon snapped out of their amazement.

It was understandable that Minoru would shrug his shoulders at the thought. The girls
could imagine themselves also becoming weary of wearing space suits like Minoru after
living here for such a long period.

They could simply make an anti-object plus anti-radiation shield with air inside to go
outside, like Minoru. And the girls, much like him, also had the magical talent to do so
effortlessly.

"…I'm sure the view here outside is spectacular, but shouldn't you be getting inside
soon?"

Tatsuya, Miyuki, Lina, were now sitting with Minoru around a table in Takachiho's
residential module.

"Please enjoy."

Minami placed a cup of coffee in front of each of the four of them. Miyuki and Lina's
cups were topped with frothy milk.
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"So you really can live here like it's down there…"

Lina muttered musingly with amazement as she picked up her cup.

The residence module on Takachiho is maintained at the same 1G as on Earth by the

gravity magic stored in the Magistore onboard. The atmospheric pressure is also
maintained at 1 atm. Inside, it is easy to forget that this is space.

Minami placed a cup of coffee in front of each of the four of them. Miyuki and Lina's
cups were topped with frothy milk.

"So you really can live here like it's down there…"

Lina muttered musingly with amazement as she picked up her cup.

The residence module on Takachiho is maintained at the same 1G gravity as on Earth by

the gravity magic stored in the Magistore onboard. The atmospheric pressure is also
maintained at 1 atm. Inside, it is easy to forget that this is space.

Miyuki had the same thought.

They both knew that Tatsuya designed this facility for that purpose. Experiencing it
firsthand, however, the environment has turned out to be more like the one on earth
than they had expected.

"I should apologize to you, Minoru, and to Minami, too, for bothering you at this hour."

The two of them lived according to Japanese standard time; and it was almost 4:00 A.M.
Even though he got their agreement in advance, it was still no doubt an inconvenient
hour for a visit.

"Please. We do not mind."

Minami responded before Minoru could, in her same reverent manner as always.

"In fact, we are rather glad you came. Especially Minami-san, I'd say she's been eagerly
anticipating for you all to come."

Minoru was quick to add.

"Minoru-sama!?"

To a voice of protest from a visibly blushing Minam. Clear that her reaction was based
more in embarrassment than any sign of anger.

Minoru stares fondly back at the reproachful glances from Minami. THe love-filled look
only made Minami's face blush a deeper shade of red.

Minami is the first to disengage and look away.

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To a voice of protest from a visibly blushing Minami. Clear that her reaction was based
more in embarrassment than any sign of anger.

Minoru's gaze became even fonder, leading him to smile softly unconsciously.

But this was about as far as he would be left with his composure.

"…I see you two seem to be doing well. I'm happy for you both."

Because Miyuki entered the conversation from the flank, now Minoru found himself in
the same red-faced predicament as Minami.

It was ten minutes later when the discussion resumed, or rather, finally got to the main
topic.

"We'll be getting off at Miyakishima on the next approach to Japan."

"Understood. I'll adjust our orbit accordingly."

Takachiho is capable of changing its orbit up to 30 degrees to either north or south

within the same altitude. The orbit changes do not use the conventional thruster
approach, it is instead used a magical approach based on the same principles as flight
magic. Given the restorative force involved in magical event modification, it will
automatically return to its original trajectory after a set amount of time.

"I'll go see the enemy magician, Lü Dongbin, alone. Miyuki and Lina will wait for me in
Miyakishima."

Hearing this, Minoru gives Miyuki and Lina a "Are you sure about that?" look

Miyuki made a tacit expression, as if to say "I don't agree, but I'm going to abide quietly",
whereas Lina gave a weak smile with a "there's no helping" expression.

"…How about this, Minoru and Minami, why don't you two also get down with us? Then
it would be nice for Miyuki and Lina as well."

Aware of the exchange of glances among the three, Tatsuya made an off-the-cuff
suggestion.

"Ah, yeah, that's right…"

Minoru's eyes darted about.

"…It's fine if I ask just Minami-san to keep them company, then?"

Minoru thought for a moment and made that offer.

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Tatsuya glances at Miyuki.

"Tatsuya-sama, I'm sure Minoru-kun would feel uncomfortable being the only man
around while you are away… Minami-chan, I wonder if you could spend some time with
us until Tatsuya-sama's work is done."

"I'd be happy to."

Minami didn't panic when the conversation suddenly turned to her.

"I don't see why Minoru shouldn't come too."

Lina tries to overturn the table, but Minoru just chuckles slightly and shakes his head
silently.

The table transitioned to a ladies’ tea party.

Tatsuya used the excuse of wanting to inspect the magic system and the Stellar Reactor
as an excuse to leave, and Minoru followed him.

Being only an inspection, it wasn't without substance.

"─Good, it seems like being in space doesn't make it degrade any faster."

"That's a relief to hear."

Tatsuya carefully went through each of the Artificial Relic Magistores used in Takachiho.

After inspecting all the artificial relics, Tatsuya proposed to Minoru to "take a break" at
the information center, which was remodeled from the submarine's launch center.

Minoru ordered his support parasite doll [Mr. Co] to bring them water without Minami
noticing.

Minoru accepted the two plastic cups brought by the neutral looking parasite doll and
offered one to Tatsuya.

"So this enemy now is one of those I fought in Tibet, right?"

"It's a speculation, but I'm confident it is."

Tatsuya answered with confidence while receiving the offered cup.

"By the way, I'd like to hear your opinion on this."

Then Tatsuya added, with an unusual look of "I've just come up with something" on his
face.
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"What is it?"

"Those Daoshi you fought in Tibet, the ones who we think are the Bāxiān, they also used
a technique to nullify magic, didn't they?"

"Yeah. You want to hear about what I know about that technique?"

"Yes. How do you think they neutralize it?"

"At the very least I don't think it was Gram Demolition or Gram Dispersion."

Minoru replied cautiously. This was because he, too, had not been able to come to a
conclusion yet after much consideration about the magic nullification technique.

"I see. I was thinking it could be neutralized by applying the principles of the 'Hex
Reversal' technique, but what do you think?"

"…May I ask how you came to that conclusion?"

Minoru asked back, and Tatsuya shared with him the information Fujibayashi had
gathered about Ryousuke's combat.

"…So, right after the attack reached the opponent, the magic was nullified, did I get that
right? Not at the same time?"

"The opponent probably didn't take the bare fist. He would have been able to evade or at
least use some technique to mitigate the damage. Besides, it's hard to imagine he didn't
do any sort of physical conditioning to resist blows. I'm convinced that a single bare fist
was not enough to break his ribs, but rather that the effect of the individual armor
magic was still in play at the moment of impact."

"I see… Are you trying to say that there was a slight time delay between the magic
disappearing, and the damage was done in the split second before the magic lost its
effects."

"I think the damage coincided with the fist strike, resulting in the broken bones."

"But didn't Tookami sense he broke a bone?"

Minoru follows Tatsuya's example and calls Ryousuke by his surname, "Tookami".

"In that case, any time lag would be just for a moment, right?"

"I'm wondering, in that split second he could have created and released a psionic wave
in the opposite phase."

"…Now that you mention it, something came to mind."

Minoru paused for a moment to think, then dug into his memory.
 168
"When I reflected an enemy's attack with [Hex Reversal], he wasn't able to nullify the
magic that was sent back to him."

"Is there any particular reason for that?"

"There is a technical limitation to ancient-style magic. It's impossible to reflect [Hex

Reversal] with another [Hex Reversal]. Because if you did, the power of the art would
increase endlessly."

"─'The World does not allow for infinity' huh?"

"Yes. That rule holds true for ancient magic as well."

Tatsuya and Minoru looked at each other and nodded.

"I think you are on the right track in assuming that their magic nullification technique is
a counteracting effect applying the [Hex Reversal] method."

Minoru verbalized the answer they both reached through eye contact.

◇◇◇

August 14th, 10:00 A.M.

"Tatsuya-san, Miyuki-san, Lina-san, welcome back. It's been a while, Minami-san."

Ayako received the four of them as they touched down at Miyakishima.

"You came to pick us up?"

"Yes. I'll be taking you to Lü Dongbin's hideout."

She said with a smile to Tatsuya.

Tatsuya, by contrast, looks at her apologetically.

"I'm really sorry, but I'd like to take a break before I go. We were up most of last night. I
know next to nothing about this opponent's hand. I need to be in the best shape."

"Y-you are quite right. I completely understand, I will wait patiently for you."

Ayako gained an uncomfortable look on her face as well.

◇◇◇

It was past 4 P.M. when Tatsuya boarded the small VTOL with Ayako.

Until that time, Ayako spent her leisure time having tea with Minami, rather than
waiting alone. Perhaps due to her parasitization, Minami didn't need as much sleep
 169
anymore. By her own account, her overall performance was more dependent on the
cumulative magic use than the amount of time spent on sleep.

"I'll be off, then."

"Please take care."

"Make sure to bring back some souvenirs."

Said the always worried about his wellbeing, Miyuki, and later Lina, with not an ounce
of seriousness. And there was Minami, who bowed without a word.

With those three seeing them off, Tatsuya and Ayako took off from Miyakishima.

◇◇◇

From Miyakishima, they first landed on the helipad atop the Yotsuba Family's Tokyo
headquarters building in Chofu, Tokyo.

From there, an employee of the Kuroba Family drove them to Nishi-Kawaguchi in a

self-propelled car, which Tatsuya was discouraged from driving himself because he was
supposed to be out of Japan at the moment. Same reason why they didn't use his Air-Car
as usual.

"Tatsuya, welcome back. Thanks for accompanying him, Nee-san."

They arrived just before 6 P.M. being welcomed by Fumiya.

From her welcoming Tatsuya's group from their descent from Takachiho, Ayako had
been wearing a summer sweater and a long, light skirt, what you would normally see on
a female university student. Fumiya, for some reason, was wearing an ao dai (or
something resembling one).
170
 171
"Thanks for your work too. By the way Fumiya, is that supposed to be a disguise?"

It should be noted that, though worn mostly by women, there are also men's ao dai. So
it would be a blunder to ask him if he was "dressing as a woman" just by looking at this
outfit. When he went and asked, "Is that a disguise?" outright, it was probably due to
how long they have known each other.

"Yes. It's very popular among the younger people living in the area."

"I see."

Fumiya omitted a detail in that is with the "young female population" specifically, but
Tatsuya didn't question him, either because he didn't notice or because he pretended
not to.

As it turned out, his "disguise" proved unquestionably effective. Several young women
dressed like Fumiya walked down the street. Some of them appeared to be Japanese, but
unlike Chinatown, which is a tourist area, there seemed to be a larger number of
immigrants, students, and migrant workers from continental China.

"I'll show you where it is. This way, please."

"Wait a minute. I'll disguise myself too."

Tatsuya activated the magistore hidden inside his summer jacket containing the magic
sequence of the recognition-inhibiting magic [Aidoneus].

"Whoa! …This was surprising. Is that [Aidoneus]?"

"Fumiya exclaims in surprise as it becomes harder to take in Tatsuya's impression"

"First time seeing it? I thought I asked Yuuka-san to prioritize supplying it to the Kuroba
family."

Tatsuya tilted his head in reaction.

"It still hasn't got to our end. It's still in testing at my father's place."

It was Ayako who answered.

"It's been over a month already… They're being awfully cautious."

Tatsuya let slip an exasperated voice.

Fumiya gave a bitter chuckle.

"…It can't be helped. Otou-san is still trying hard not to be dependent on you,
Tatsuya-san. It's a maybe, but I suspect that he is trying very hard to find a reason not to
use Tatsuya-san's invention."
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Having said that, Fumiya gripped Tatsuya's left hand with both of his.

This was the kind of innocent behavior one might expect from a high school girl or, for
that matter, a junior high school girl.

Tatsuya was quite literally taken aback by this.

"The feeling of touch is also normal. It doesn't feel like my perception is being twisted.
And yet my perception is waning."

Fumiya releases his hand, looking up at Tatsuya from the close proximity.

"I can tell I'm looking at Tatsuya-san because I know you're there now. If I didn't know
and we passed each other without knowing, I might not recognize you even if we
bumped into each other… In fact, I'm afraid that I would not be able to recognize you
anymore if we were to get separated for a moment."

Fumiya clasped his hands on his back and walked backwards, one, two, he stepped
lightly. ─He looks kind of feminine like now, doesn't he? Tatsuya thought.

"I was wondering, why don't we hold hands so I can show you the way?"

"Fumiya!"

Annoyed, Ayako chastised Fumiya.

Fumiya made an studied cowering gesture.

"I was just making sure Tatsuya-san wouldn't lose sight of me, but I guess there's no
need. Please follow me."

Fumiya walks off with a lively gait.

His figure was soon lost in the dimness of the twilight.

"For crying out loud…"

Ayako exclaimed in exasperation.

"What on earth is Fumiya so excited about…? Tatsuya-san, do you want me to show you
the way?"

Ayako asks Tatsuya with an expression of guilt on her face.

"No, thanks. Ayako, take charge of the overall encirclement in place of Fumiya."

With these words, Tatsuya went after Fumiya at a brisk pace.

His figure soon blended into the twilight as did Fumiya.

 173

They reached the destination about five minutes on foot after meeting at the
rendezvous point.

"An apartment complex…"

"There is no automatic lock, so the entry will be easy, but it may be unavoidable that
there will be some damage to the surrounding area."

As he said this, Fumiya looked at Tatsuya with a "what do you plan to do?".

"I don't want to delay too long. I'm going in as it is."

"That's very like you to make such a manly decision, Tatsuya-san. I respect it."

Tatsuya couldn't help but to stare blankly at Fumiya.

He doesn't have much beyond the general notions of "masculinity" and "femininity," but
he was suspecting that maybe Fumiya was getting more and more feminine as time
went on.

"Is there something wrong?"

Seeing Tatsuya's apprehension, Fumiya tilted his head innocently.

"─I'll leave any follow-up to you."

Tatsuya quickly glosses over the situation.

"Leave it to me."

Fortunately for Tatsuya, there were no signs of suspicion on Fumiya's part.

Tatsuya turned off [Aidoneus] and entered the apartment alone.

Fumiya watched the building from the outside with his subordinates. They were in place
in case Lü Dongbin was somehow able to escape from Tatsuya's grasp.

Lü Dongbin was hiding on the far end of the third floor of the four-story apartment
building. An emergency staircase is located next to the room. While the entrance to the
staircase is locked, a lattice door like this is hardly an obstacle for Tatsuya. Perhaps for
Lü Dongbin as well.

The first and second floors were inhabited as they should be.

But once on the third floor, there was no sign of anyone.

 174
He couldn't say that for certain, as he was taking into account the possibility of being
traced and wasn't using [Elemental Sight]. But there was for sure no ordinary resident
living there, at least.

Tatsuya grew more alert. It may be thanks to this that he was able to respond to what
happened next.

It was just when Tatsuya reached, with cautious steps along the outer corridor, near the
room where Lü Dongbin was hiding.

An explosion occurred in the apartment just ahead.

The iron door, blown out its hinges by the blast, flew at Tatsuya.

He jumped forward at once, instead of retreating. His judgment proved to be correct.

Because afterwards, a similar explosion occurred in the room two rooms away from
him, sending their steel doors flying open as well.

The whole building made of reinforced concrete shook; sounds of its structure creaking
could be heard all around.

Enter or exit the building? The decision took only an instant.

Tatsuya reaches for the door in front of him.

He turned the knob. It was unlocked.

(An ambush?)

With the certainty of a trap waiting for him, Tatsuya yanked open the door.

A knife came at him from inside the room.

Not a knife remotely controlled by magic. He would have detected the magic and
avoided it in advance.

It was a surprise strike by throwing it.

Tatsuya didn't attempt to evade. He left it to the magic shield he deployed around his
body prior to the earlier explosion to deal with. Being a shield maintained by the
artificial relic he carries for self-defense, it is stronger than what he could have built on
his own.

Tatsuya brings his right hand behind his back and pulls a handgun from a backside
holster.
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Not a handgun-shaped CAD, a 9mm automatic handgun. Attached under the barrel is not
a light or a laser pointer, but a specialized CAD with silencing magic.

In other words, this was an equivalent to a suppressor that uses magic for the job.

But Tatsuya pulled the trigger without bothering with the silencing magic.

After those two explosions there was no point in hiding the gunshot now. Better to just
avoid the slight time lag required for activating the magic altogether.

The man who threw the knife was unable to hide and the bullet digged into his chest

The man falls backwards. Another man came at him with a knife from behind.

Caught by surprise, Tatsuya's reaction was momentarily delayed. He didn't sense the
man's presence.

Tatsuya pulled the trigger.

To his surprise, the man managed to deflect the bullet with the short blade of the knife
in his right hand.

The knife breaks and the bullet ricochets, making a hole in the wall.

The man throws a thin dagger at Tatsuya with his left hand.

Following his intuition, Tatsuya dodges the dagger.

The blade passed inches to the side of his face, slicing tentatively through the shield.

There is no feeling that the magical shield was neutralized.

(Was it some sort of magic field anchored to the edge of the blade that disturbed the
shield?)

Tatsuya instantly analyzed the enemy's attack.

He couldn't tell the exact nature of the force field, but he could make out what had
happened.

The man slashed at Tatsuya with his newly drawn knife.

Tatsuya paired the left hand coming at him with his right with the gun.

Not missing a beat, there is a thrust with his right hand, which Tatsuya intercepts by
catching the wrist.

The man threw a knee kick, which was met in turn by Tatsuya's own knee.

And so Tatsuya and the man glared at each other from up close.
 176
The man promptly retreated a few steps, and in that instant Tatsuya figured out why he
hadn't noticed this man's presence at first.

The presence of the first man who he shot and the second man were identical.

(Presence projection ─ [Kodama], huh…)

In his high school days, Yakumo once showed Tatsuya a ninjutsu for distracting the
enemy by projecting one's presence onto a grove of trees or a rock. He was not taught
how to use it, but rather it was used largely to his detriment in one of their practice
sessions. This has probably the same underlying principle, whereby the first man was
the projection of the second man's presence.

Tatsuya's hand pulled the trigger with this thought in the back of his mind.

Each of the successive bullets were deflected by the man's dagger dancing in mid-air.

The dagger was controlled by an unsubstantial string.

It matched Ryosuke's description of the magic used by Lü Dongbin.

Another knife lunges at Tatsuya from behind.

This tentative trap as well.

Tatsuya half-heartedly evaded the knife.

He went a step further and grabbed the handle of the knife that was passing right past
him with his left hand.

At the same time, he decomposed the magic sequence of remote control.

Tatsuya made a mental note that Gram Dispersion works without any problem.

While addressing the enemy's attack, Tatsuya kept on pulling the trigger with his right
hand.

A bullet broke the blade of his knife.

With almost no delay, there was a new blade in sight to shield him.

This process repeated itself once more.

The slide of the handgun locked back. In other words, he emptied the magazine.

The man who appeared to be Lü Dongbin ─ no, this was unquestionably the real Lü
Dongbin ─ saw the opportunity, turned his back on Tatsuya, and lunged toward the
balcony.
 177
Tatsuya fired [Decomposition].

However, the moment after the [Decomposition] magic sequence landed on Lü

Dongbin's information body it was engulfed and dissolved by a psionic wave that
rebounded from the point of impact.

(Up to the reflection, everything seems to be as we guessed. But, to think it wasn't so

much neutralizing, but dissolving.)

As Tatsuya calmly analyzes the situation of his magic being nullified, on the other end of
the line, Lü Dongbin leaps out from the open balcony.

Knowing that the outside perimeter was surrounded by Kuroba combatants led by
Fumiya, Tatsuya was not preoccupied.

But, after those two loud explosions, the police were bound to arrive soon, and Tatsuya
was not supposed to be here. He couldn't afford much leisure time.

He approached the balcony while swapping magazines. Making sure Lü Dongbin wasn't
hiding as if he'd jumped out, he opened a line of comms with Fumiya.

"Where did he run off to?"

Tatsuya asked outright. Fumiya went to the balcony side of the apartment when they
parted. Unless he changed positions at some point, he should have seen Lü Dongbin
escape.

[He went up to the roof of the apartment and ran away to the other side. We are in
pursuit.]

"Send me the location."

[I'll take you to him.]

"Got it, lead the way."

Cutting off the transmission, Tatsuya holstered his pistol.

He then jumped down from the third floor balcony to the ground.

With Fumiya's guidance, Tatsuya caught up to Lü Dongbin on a deserted riverbed.

 178
He would like to say that they have "cornered him," but unless they had snipers in place,
the encirclement was not quite complete. With only a few Kuroba's magicians able to
ward off people from the area, Lü Dongbin still has some room to escape.

Both Tatsuya, the pursuer, and Lü Dongbin, the pursued, may have the same intention to
settle the matter as soon as possible. ─Perhaps that was the impression conveyed by the
situation.

"Are you Lü Dongbin?"

There might not seem to be any reason to ask at this point, but he has yet to confirm it
definitively. It was a reasonable opening statement.

"Yes, I am. And you are Shiba Tatsuya of the Yotsuba, are you not?"

Tatsuya felt a slight sense of strangeness at having "Yotsuba" added to his name.

But he wasn't wrong, so Tatsuya nodded with an affirmative "That's right."

If asked about the point of this conversation, Tatsuya would probably have answered
"None." Finishing his nod he immediately pulled out his gun.

"W-wait, wait! I-!"

Lü Dongbin attempted to say something.

Tatsuya paid no heed and pointed the muzzle at him.

About the same time, Lü Dongbin dropped down onto the overgrown weeds on the
riverbank.

Knives sprang from the hems of his loose-fitting trousers, one from each side.

Tatsuya pulled the trigger.

One intercepts the bullet in mid-air. It deflects the bullet, just as it had before he
escaped.

But the bullets from this new magazine were of an entirely different kind.

The bullets engraved with inertial enhancement magic smashed through the dagger in
mid-air and grazed Lü Dongbin's left shoulder, leaving a shallow wound.

The other knife, which was moving toward Tatsuya, hurried to get back to Lü Dongbin,
as if the thing itself had a will of its own.

Magic that remotely controls knives is not that unusual; a well-known example to
Tatsuya is Stars' [Dancing Blades].
 179
Compared to this one, it has a longer range and is probably more powerful, too.

That said, Lü Dongbin's magic seemed to have a greater degree of flexibility in control.

With these thoughts in mind, Tatsuya pulled the trigger again.

The knife back on Lü Dongbin's side deflected the bullet.

The inertia-enhancement magic on the bullet had been nullified.

Even another blade comes at Tatsuya, who wonders just how many knives he has hidden
there.

Tatsuya pointed the muzzle at the flying knife.

He pulls the trigger, destroying the knife.

The next knife came flying at him, to which he fired just the same.

Meanwhile, he casts [Gram Dispersion] on the knife acting as a shield. The remote
control magic was erased, and the knife fell into the weeds.

But the knife was soon back up from the weeds. The instantaneous speed with which
the magic was re-activated may suggest an unknown technique of stocking magic
sequences, or perhaps a tool with that purpose, or maybe even a system that brings the
same effects as a loop-casting.

No further action was taken. No further attacks on Tatsuya.

Tatsuya, too, did not pull the trigger.

"We have no intention of challenging the Yotsuba!"

Lü Dongbin, not wanting to miss the opportunity, shouted quickly.

"You say so after you attack FLT?"

Saying this, Tatsuya lowered his gun.

Lü Dongbin stood up with both hands raised. His left hand is slightly lower, probably due
to the pain from the wound the bullet left.

That was the only visible sign of wounds. No apparent effect of ribs Ryousuke had
broken on him.

"That was what FAIR wanted. I had no intention in that matter."

Lü Dongbin appeals in a strong tone.

"Do you really think you can make such a claim?"

 180
By contrast, Tatsuya's voice was indifferent.

"If I was serious, I would have taken an Artificial Relic!"

"Are you suggesting that you failed on purpose?"

"That's right, because I never intended to seriously antagonize the Yotsuba."

"Then what is the goal of the [Bāxiān] of the GAU in this matter?"

Tatsuya returned the handgun to its holster.

"If you are so familiar with the [Bāxiān] then I'm sure you can at least guess that we do
not work with only one objective in mind. Our work is hardly that straightforward."

Lü Dongbin lowered his raised hands. They drop down limp and weak.

"So?"

Tatsuya also relaxed both arms. He kept them slightly flexed, however.

"For example, one of them is to have you alone with me like this."

"I've got my people all around here."

"No problem… My purpose is not with the Yotsuba."

Lü Dongbin clasps his hands behind his back, as if in a show of non-resistance.

Then he purses his lips and exhales vigorously.

A reddish-black arrowhead-like object flies out of his mouth.

It flew at high speed, sinking into Tatsuya's chest.

"My purpose is you."

He jumped nearly ten meters and looked at Tatsuya with a confident expression.

The arrowhead Lü Dongbin spit out was his trump card as an assassin, [Piercing Blood
Nail]. He spits a blade molded and hardened from his own blood, accelerated to high
velocity in a straight line via movement magic.

In the realm of ancient-style magic, blood is by far the best medium.

With it as a material, the magic weapon smelted inside the body is itself a microcosm.
Knead within is the "will" to nullify magical defenses ─ a conditional activation magic
sequence, in modern magical terms.
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The blood arrowheads, imbued with the special magic-nullification effect inside and
outside with the sharpness and speed to pierce even bulletproof and stab-proof gear,
ignore enemy's magical defenses in their path and penetrate deep into their bodies,
inflicting fatal wounds. [Piercing Blood Nail] was a "magician-killing" magic designated
exclusively for use against combat magicians who defend themselves with magic.

Lü Dongbin was positive that his [Piercing Blood Nail] hit Tatsuya. He saw it hit him
squarely in the chest.

"─What!?"

His eyes grew wide. There was no trace of blood on Tatsuya's chest. No blood spilled, no
blood adhered to his chest.

Granted hit of the [Piercing Blood Nail] should have resulted in profuse bleeding from
the wound from where it pierced.

Were [Piercing Blood Nail] to fail, then the arrowhead would revert to regular blood,
soaking the clothing.

Even if it was, for argument's sake, blocked by a shield, the blood comprising the
arrowhead would be splattered on the surface of the shield. To simply leave no single
vestige of its existence, to disappear as if absorbed, was an impossible phenomenon for
Lü Dongbin.

Not for those who were familiar with Tatsuya's magic, however. It was trifling to explain
that he decomposed the blood arrowheads.

Lü Dongbin witnessed [Mist Dispersion] nullification before his escape from the
apartment. How, he wondered, was the same magic-nullifying technique able to
decompose the [Piercing Blood Nail] this time around?

This is no mystery. The answer is "order of events".

In the apartment, the magic sequence detailing decomposition of a body was nullified
by Lü Dongbin's magic, which was activated in response to it.

In this case, the nullification sequence embedded in the [Piercing Blood Nail] was
targeted and decomposed along with the blood arrowhead by the Decomposition
magic.

By its very nature, magic sequences are uncovered on the surface of the eidos they are
interfering with. Magic sequences are themselves defenseless in the informational
dimension. This was the same for both modern and ancient-style magic; neither
Tatsuya's nor Lü Dongbin's magic were exceptions.
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Lü Dongbin, however, unaware of comprehending what had been done, froze in place,
caught by a sense of surprise.

Tatsuya's right hand moved quickly. Out of the inside of his summer jacket, his hand
brought forth a pistol-shaped CAD.

At first glance, Lü Dongbin assumed it to be a large handgun with an attached bayonet.

But he soon was struck with a bad feeling.

Fastened to the barrel of the gun was not a "sword", but a "stake".

The metal stake was mounted, neither under nor over the barrel, but over the muzzle.

A grenade, Lü Dongbin thought back.

At last he regained his rational self and realized that this was not the time to be dwelling
on such things.

He turned his back on Tatsuya and tried to flee.

As he turned on his heels, Lü Dongbin deployed his magic nullification technique with
full force.

Tatsuya pulled the CAD trigger at Lü Dongbin back before he could take a step forward.

The Pistol-shaped specialized CAD, Silverhorn Custom [Trident].

The "stake" on its "muzzle" is a magic dedicated attachment.

His trump card against enemies who have the means to nullify magic.

[Baryon Lance]

Now, he is about to deliver the spearhead of this special technique.

【Decomposition ・ Material: Baryon】

─The "stake" attached to the end of the barrel is decomposed into molecules, molecules
are decomposed into atoms, and atoms into electrons and nuclei. From there, the
nucleus is then further decomposed into protons, neutrons, and baryons.
 183
【FAE Process Execution・Particle Convergence】

─By application of the FAE theory, where the constraints of the laws of physics are
relaxed, the aggregate of particles which should otherwise diffuse, is compacted into a
thin disk-shaped area. There, the leptons and electrons, not subject in the definition of
the decomposition, are captured by the protons, and the protons are converted into
neutrons.

【FAE Process Execution・Shooting】

─The thin disc of agglomerated neutrons is shot out perpendicularly to the standing
firing vector towards the target. By means of the FAE theory, the cluster of neutrons
reaches a speed of 10,000 kilometers per second, much beyond the boundaries of
normal magic.

【Material・Regrowth】

─The entire process is reversed. All traces of neutron activation are gone, all that is left
is the result of the neutron beam burning interaction with living tissue.

The neutron beam produced by [Baryon Lance], although under the influence of magic,
is a physical phenomenon, not magic itself. It cannot be neutralized by magic
nullification techniques.

A high-speed, high-density neutron beam pierced Lü Dongbin's heart from behind.

The cells are instantly carbonized, blood boils.

Needless to say, it's a fatal wound, no doubt.

With Lü Dongbin falling forward in the corner of his eye, Tatsuya returned his [Trident]
to his shoulder holster after the attachment "stake" had been restored with [Regrowth].

◇◇◇

He made his pursuit of Lü Dongbin on foot ─ at a very high-speed pace aided by magic
─ on the way back he took a different self-propelled car that he had called while
carrying Lü Dongbin's corpse.

"Tatsuya-san, what were you talking to that man about?"

 184
Fumiya asks beside Tatsuya in the back seat of the self-driving car as it drives off.

"He was undoubtedly a member of the [Bāxiān], the magician special operations forces
of the GAU."

"So the [Bāxiān], the 'Eight Immortals' are now the 'Seven Immortals'?"

On hearing this, Fumiya commented jokingly.

"I'm sure they'll find a replacement soon enough."

Tatsuya's sarcasm was not directed at Fumiya, of course, but at the GAU military.

Aware of this, Fumiya chuckled with the same amused expression on his face.

"By the way, what was the [Bāxiān] point in all this? He seemed to be saying something
before he jumped back."

The words that Lü Dongbin whispered out after firing the blood arrowhead didn't reach
Fumiya's ears.

"Seems like the GAU wanted me dead."

"…Excuse me, they what?"

Fumiya's eyes flashed upon hearing Tatsuya's explanation.

"He said his goal was not the Yotsuba, but me."

"Unforgivable…!"

The look of indignation in Fumiya has the impression of an angry cat with all its hairs
standing on end.

…Though there's no comparison to how intense he was in his high school days, Tatsuya
thought secretly.

He, naturally, never breathed a word about it.

"This is a testament of what Lü Dongbin gained with this. It is to show that, if the
[Bāxiān] so chooses to take up the challenge, they will only be making the same
mistake."

A death sentence, cold and harsh; were the message Tatsuya in fact delivered.

Fumiya stared at Tatsuya with wide eyes, his body quivering.

It was then gone the anger, out of his expression, only to give place to a smile, of which
wouldn't be strange to see in a maiden in love.
 185

Reconvening with them on the way, Ayako, on hearing of the GAU's purpose in
assassinating Tatsuya, she simply nodded, "I see," satisfied in her understanding. ─To the
inevitable wonder if the act of men and women have been switched in those two.

"You are? All I can say is that I'm satisfied with the results."

Ayako answered Fumiya's query with a "but of course" attitude.

"Forget Japan or the USNA, the biggest hindrance to the GAU, and the NSU as well, is
Tatsuya-san, is it not?"

Ayako followed up her words to Fumiya, seeming to be painting the details clearly.

"That said, both countries have now realized that it is too dangerous to fight Tatsuya-san
head-on. Say the GAU, they have already been struck by a [Material Burst] once.
Resorting to assassination is a natural step. After all, there is also our current
homework, remember?"

Ayako concluded with an accusatory tone.

"Of course I didn't. Our summer assignment is to take out the NSU's assassins sent after
Tatsuya-san."

Fumiya's tone is marked by strong resolve. Looking at him in this moment, Fumiya
looked, for all intents and purposes, like a gallant boy.

"You don't need to waste your summer vacation on something trivial like that. I'm not
particularly troubled by it, after all."

Tatsuya downplayed the situation with a bitter smile, fearing that Fumiya's determined
expression could signal a future crisis due to lack of control.

◇◇◇

It was 7:30 P.M. by the time Tatsuya returned to Miyakishima. By the end, it had taken
only 30 minutes from his arrival at Nishi-Kawaguchi to settle the score with Lü Dongbin.

"Tatsuya-sama, thanks for your hard work."

Said Miyuki as she received Tatsuya's return with a polite bow, followed wordlessly by
Minami.

"Tatsuya, how did things go with that [Bāxiān] guy?"

Lina asks cheerfully with a smile from the side.

 186
"Lina, do you mean you wished to fight him? Luckily for you, there are seven others left,
so I'm sure you'll get your chance."

Interjected Ayako with dismay, who for some reason had accompanied Tatsuya all the
way to Miyakishima.

"I'll pass. It's not like that. I'm not Sirius anymore, after all."

Lina countered in a light tone.

But this topic didn't die down there.

"Wait, Ayako-san… What did you mean by that?"

Miyuki couldn't make light of the matter.

Before Ayako had a chance to answer, Miyuki turned her body to face Tatsuya.

"Tatsuya-sama… Could it be that the [Bāxiān] is after your life?"

Were another man in his position, they surely would find themselves cornered, bound in
place by this gaze.

"It would seem so. At least that's what Lü Dongbin said."

Tatsuya, however, assented with much nonchalance.

"How are you so carefree…"

Miyuki was absolutely mortified at his lack of urgency.

"On the contrary, why be so nervous about it? I've got a good look at the Bāxiān's magic
nullification sequence. Once I figure it out, they won't be a threat to me. I won't let them
get to you either."

"Tatsuya-sama…"

Miyuki now had other reasons to be speechless after Tatsuya's strong declaration.

"…What about me?"

Lina asked gingerly to Tatsuya, trying not to get "kicked by the horse" in the process.

"I'm sure you can handle it on your own, Lina. I'll give you a tip, don't worry."

"Why am I getting treated so differently from Miyuki?"

"Sorry, but that's how it is, Miyuki here is my fiancée."

Tatsuya had no trace of feeling sorry for that.

 187
Miyuki as well, didn't blush even a little with this sort of thing.

"I get it, I get it, geez…"

As was standard in cases like this, Lina mutters a mutter of resignation.

188
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◇◇◇

Tatsuya and company ascended to Takachiho at 8:00 P.M.

During their stop at Takachiho, Tatsuya took the opportunity to share information about
"Bāxiān" with Minoru. But with the obvious addition of Miyuki, Lina, as well as Minami,
to the conversation. With this setup he described to them about the magic that Lü
Dongbin had used.

And then, at 7:00 P.M. on August 14th, Uzbekistan local time.

Tatsuya, Miyuki and Lina descended on the vacant lot on the outskirts of Kagan, where
they were to meet up with Hyougo.
 190

Chapter 7
[Resumption]

Returning to the hotel in Bukhara, Tatsuya resumed his search for Shambhala the next
day.

That day culminated with the finding that the Compass was pointing to the western
shore of Lake Tudakul, about 30 km east of Bukhara.

However, there weren't anything resembling anything like ruins, said place had nothing
but stretches of irrigated farmland.

"We can't find anything here… Maybe the legends were just legends, after all…"

Miyuki uttered feebly under the harsh rays of the sun.

Parasol in hand, scarf, long-sleeved shirt, and pants reaching down to her ankles; even
with all the measures against sunburn, Miyuki seemed to be still unable to cope with the
strong sunlight. And the wear appeared to be getting to her spirit as well.

"It's too early to make that conclusion."

Tatsuya responded to her with eyes fixed on the lake.

"Did you find out anything?"

Asked Lina, dressed in the same manner as Miyuki, but considerably more energetic.

"The Psion flow in this whole area is erratic. But I don't think the psions are being
directly affected, more that it is a consequence of tampering with the flow of pushions,
which can, in turn, affect the flow of the psions."

"Oh, is that so?"

Miyuki extended her right hand forward, out straight toward the lake. Her truest affinity
lay not in cooling magic, but in mental interference-type magic. Fact that may explain
her higher sensitivity to pushion flows, being able to "palpate" pushion structures
ordinary magicians are unable to even sense. Reaching out with her hand helps
reinforce this mental image of "touching".
 191
"…Yes, I can feel it. There’s a certain feeling that the pushions are being diverged in a
certain direction. But it's very faint, the current isn't very strong. There isn't enough
power to distort events."

"But there is something there, right?"

Lina couldn't help but to hype-up after Miyuki's remark.

"I can think of a place observed to have a similar phenomenon to this."

Tatsuya took up the question.

"Where is it?"

Lina asked, and Miyuki accompanied her with the same expectation, looking up at
Tatsuya.

And he didn't delay the answer.

"The excavation site of Relic at the foot of Mt. Norikura in Hida-Takayama."

◇◇◇

At the boarding gate of Samarkand airport, Lena, Arya and Lois waited in a group for
their flight. Evelyn stood off at a distance, brooding by herself.

Arya was to accompany Lena to America. The decision had been made some time ago,
but it was decided to push the plans forward a bit and send her to FEHR a little earlier.

The development of the Tibetan situation has been a major factor. India has always been
interested in Tibet's underground resources, well before it formed the IPU, even with
the current hold of the GAU over the region.

Now there was Tatsuya's information about the Relics and other magical assets added to
the equation.

Rumors about magical artifacts in the basement of the Potala Palace were always
prevalent. Same with the theory that there exists a hidden entrance to the Shambhala,
with many supporters ─ or rather believers ─ of its own.

Determined anew for the magical ruins with the added bonus of underground treasures,
the IPU reinforced their backing for Tibetan independence movements in an effort to
get access to these assets.

This shift in developments prompted Chandrasekhar to move up the agenda.

 192
Being an unrecognized Strategic-Class Magician, Arya would surely be formally
incorporated into the military should war break out with the GAU.

But as Chandrasekhar sees it, Arya has no suitability for military service. Even for a
civilian magician, her nature is overly naïve. Chances are high that she would suffer
emotional breakdowns if exposed to the battlefield.

To keep her from having to enter the battlefield, Chandrasekhar decided to get her out
of the country, and the partnership between the Magian Society and FEHR was just the
pretext she needed to create the opportunity to do so.

As such, Arya was to accompany Lena on her return to America.

Evelyn Taylor had been having a difficult period with her thoughts since the day before
yesterday.

She received the order from the Commander-in-Chief of STARS three days ago to abort
the mission and report home immediately.

She is aware it was a result of her own screw-ups. Rationally, is a relief to suspend the
operation from proceeding any further and to return home.

It was hard to process emotionally, however. This was her first major disappointment.
Being endowed with outstanding intellectual and magical prowess, as well as the
capacity to put these talents into practice, Evelyn had never failed to accomplish
anything she set her mind to. She never intended to call herself an infallible genius, but
perhaps such arrogance and hubris have grown unnoticed in the recesses of her mind.

Or it could have been simply the effect of her youth and inexperience. She is only 22
years old. She might be not able to handle her emotions by chance. Especially if it is the
first time she feels a sense of failure.

Evelyn stood up with the boarding announcement. This country had become a place of
difficult memories for her. But even with the prospect of being in her country again, she
couldn't disperse the cloud hanging over her heart.

◇◇◇

"Ms. Simons, may I come in?"

There wasn't a knock at the door, instead a voice called from outside, to which Laura
granted, saying, "Come in."

A click, the sound of a key turning in the lock.

 193
"Excuse me."

Opening the door with the key was the owner of the mansion himself, Izayoi Shirabe.

"How are you faring?"

"Terrible, thank you."

Laura replies, making sure to willfully convey her emotions as well as the meaning of
her words.

"Oops."

Shirabe's right index finger draws nine strokes in the air.

Laura's hexes fired at him vanish with the ancient magic [Hayakuji].

"Hmph."

Laura only gave a small snort at this outcome. She wasn't expecting a simple trick,
without any ritual or catalyst, to work from the very beginning.

"Quite a welcome. I hope to show you my hospitality to the best of my ability."

"You are. The tea and sweets are quite delectable."

Saying this, Laura left the cup of black tea back on the table and replaced it with a
brandy bonbon, pinching it and tossing it into her mouth.

"But it's hardly enough to compensate for the discomfort of the lack of freedom."

Laura didn't have a key to the room herself. She was under house arrest.

"You should have some understanding of your situation before thinking of

inconveniences. You entered the country illegally and caused a scene with magic."

"What's the point in locking me inside?"

"It's not safe to let you roam around at your discretion."

Laura raised her teacup to her lips with a "I'm sick of this". The same exchange has gone
over and over again in these past three days.

"I'd prefer if you could sit quietly here for a while until things cool down."

"And when do you think that, 'things will cool down'?"

Shirabe only gave a blank smile as usual to that question.

As usual, Shirabe only smiled vaguely at that question.

 194

Shirabe left the room.

Laura stood up, walked over to the door, and kicked it as hard as she dared with her
indoor shoes.

The door didn't budge even a little. The kick didn't even make a sound.

This door is reinforced by the Izayoi Family's magic. And for that Shirabe chose not to
knock on it, as a side-effect of the magic, even if he did, it wouldn't make a sound.

─On the day of the failed attempt at stealing Artificial Relic and her escape from the FLT,
Laura ventured to go her separate ways with Lü Dongbin. Intuition was the reason. She
had a clear vision in her mind that the "Grim Reaper" would catch up with her if she
accompanied Lü Dongbin.

Vision that came without the use of tools or salves. Laura doubted its trustworthiness.
But she chose to believe in her own "witch" powers.

Yet, as soon as they parted, she was at a loss. The entire strategy depended on Lü
Dongbin, from the entry to the escape.

She had decided on "north" as the course of her escape based on divination, a skill she is
very proud of. Her divination skills are well known. West of Machida is Yotsuba's main
house. East is Yotsuba's Tokyo headquarters in Chofu. South is Makouin and the Kuroba
base that protects it. She was driven away to the Sayama Hills by a hitchhiker who she
took mental control of.

To avoid being traced, she changed cars after a certain amount of driving, keeping a
distance that would not be unnatural. She would find a new driver at shopping centers
or restaurants. On the fourth switch, she was caught by the driver she chose, and failed
to mentally control Izayoi Shirabe.

Laura struggles to understand why she believed his words of "I'll hide you" at the time.
Her mind may have faltered after the unexpected hard struggle, and the unexpected
failure. Or perhaps she had lost her nerve.

She then was brought to this mansion and put under house arrest on the same day.

She was not treated badly. As the man, Shirabe, claimed, she was provided with good
food, drink, a bath, and a comfortable bed. Unfortunately, the bathroom gets locked
from the outside when she bathes, but if she pays no mind to the fact, she can enjoy a
pleasant bath time at leisure.
 195
Even when asking questions, she would be provided with the answers. For instance,
yesterday she was brought the news of Lü Dongbin's murder at the hands of the Yotsuba
Family. They also didn't lie as to the fact that, in addition to the Yotsuba Family, the
Saegusa Family was also looking for Laura.

Perhaps it would be wise to accept the advice and hide here for a while.

However, Laura could not bring herself to stay put.

Izayoi Shirabe could not be trusted.

This was another intuition, and another conviction.

─And that man, who she did not trust, was in control of her.

This thought irritated her to no end.

◇◇◇

August 15th, evening in the heart of Tokyo, Mayumi dressed up for a visit to a three-star
restaurant in a high-rise hotel. Not a self-proclaimed "three-star", one with much
endorsement of a capricious rating agency.

The garcon (waiter) led us to a table by the window.

Against the backdrop of the shimmering night skyline, the stalwart of a handsome man
stood up.

Of superb physique, and greater, overwhelming, demeanor. Despite being at the young
age of early twenties, he bears the dignity of a Great General, capable of commanding a
thousand riders and ten thousand horsemen.

This man, with an imposing aura that would keep a young woman from approaching
him, is but an old friend of Mayumi's. She stepped up to him casually, without a single
trace of fear.

"Juumonji-kun, it's been a while.

"Indeed, Saegusa, been a while."

196
 197
Mayumi waved in greeting, and, the head of the Ten Master Clans Juumonji Family,
Juumonji Katsuto, nodded his head, a friendly smile on his stern face.

Mayumi sat down on a chair drawn by Garçon, while Katsuto drew his own chair. After
ordering an apéritif, Mayumi turned away from Garçon, now walking away, and faced
Katsuto anew.

"Thanks for having me over tonight. But what's the occasion to suddenly invite me to
dinner?"

Mayumi inclined her head down, eyes upward to Katsuto, giving him a devilish smile.

"And to such a nice place at that. My sisters were having a fit when they heard about it.
Even that tanuki of a father was a little skittish, would you believe?"

Teasing tone and predatory eyes.Teasing tone and predatory eyes.

But Katsuto was unfazed.

"I believe that it has to be in a place if I am to invite a Saegusa."

Katsuto replies in all seriousness.

"R-Really?"

Mayumi was the one taken aback.

She bought herself a moment to recover by recurring to a slow sip of the apéritif that
had just arrived.

"So, may I ask what called for the invitation? Don't tell me that you're in line with what
my sisters and that tanuki of a father are expecting. are you?"

Katsuto's expression was one of puzzlement.

"I am not sure I know what they might be expecting, but…"

The puzzlement promptly vanished, however.

"In fact, I have a matter my sister has asked me for advice on, and, if you don't mind, I
wanted to have your opinion on the matter, Saegusa."

"Your Sister?"

Mayumi's "you caught me by surprise" was apparent on her face.

"Don't you mean my sister? Kasumi-san? Or is it perhaps…?"

 198
Mayumi recalled, knowing, as his friend, and the eldest daughter of the Saegusa Family
and also part of the Ten Master Clans, that Katsuto has a complicated family situation.

"It's Alisa."

"So, Alisa-san…"

This girl was at the center of the complicated family situation at the Juumonji
household: she is the illegitimate daughter of the former head of the family, a
half-Japanese-half-Russian girl who was brought to the family from Hokkaido four years
ago.

Needless to say, the girl, Arisa herself is not to blame for her own situation. Yet, from
what Mayumi has heard, she chose to keep a distance from the Jumonji Family out of
concern for what her presence might mean to the family.

When Mayumi heard about this, she formed an image of a gloomy girl, always fearful to
speak up and never able to say anything to her family. She would never expect such a
girl to go to Katsuto, who is by no means an approachable person, for advice. If she did,
then it must be a very serious problem.

Mayumi gasped at the thought. ─Though this was but a misguided assumption of hers.

"Saegusa, you are currently working for Shiba's Magian Company, correct?"

"Ye-Yes, that's right."

She choked briefly on her affirmative. The question seemed a bit unexpected as to the
topic. Mayumi couldn't connect how her employment might be remotely connected to a
grievance of Katsuto's half-sister.

It was hardly a surprise Katsuto knew where and to whom she was working.

The eldest daughter of the Saegusa Family, had become an employee of an organization
owned by the next head of the Yotsuba Family. This was an easy headline to spread like
fire throughout the entire Japanese Magic Society.

"Then you must know this man, Tookami Ryousuke, he works in the same company you
do. He was hospitalized the other day with serious injuries after a fight with a foreign
magician who tried to steal from FLT. ─Am I correct?"

"Yes, indeed. You seem to know a lot about it."

"My father happens to be a patient at the same hospital."

"Oh, I see."

Mayumi nodded in understanding.

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Ryousuke was admitted not at a hospital particularly belonging to the Yotsuba Family,
on the contrary, it was a hospital attached to the police department, which is famous for
receiving many magician patients. The police officers who had rushed to the scene had
arranged for Ryousuke, who had been the victim of an assault, to be taken there.

"And I say this not just as a magician with the same roots, but also because of our
connection to the Tookami Family. When my father heard the whispers that a patient
named Tookami, who had fought bravely against foreign magicians, was hospitalized, he
pressed the hospital to give him the details. I'm personally sorry for the annoyance
caused to the hospital, but I suppose my father couldn't help doing so."

One fact that Mayumi has yet to know is that Katsuto's half-sister Alisa was taken in by
Katsuto from the Tookami Family in Hokkaido four years ago.

"May I ask what particular relationship there is between the Juumonji Family and the
Tookami Family?"

So, unaware of the underlying details, Mayumi asked without thinking.

"A close friend of Arisa; her best friend, I believe, is Tookami Ryousuke's sister."

Not wanting to keep Mayumi too much in the dark, Katsuto stated the simple and
straightforward truth.

"Oh, I never would've imagined…"

The answer was satisfactory to Mayumi.

"From what I've heard from this sister of mine, this Tookami Ryousuke has been missing
for a long time."

"Eh?!"

The next sentence was of great shock, any curiosity about the relationship between the
Juumonji and Tookami families was swept away from Mayumi's mind.

"Missing? You mean, Tookami-san was avoiding contact with his family?"

Questioned a wide-eyed Mayumi, to which Katsuto nodded gravely.

"He returned to his home country, but that changed nothing, he never tried to contact
them. I can only assume there are special circumstances involved. Which brings me to
Alisa, she is not sure if she should tell his sister that she could find Tookami Ryousuke in
the hospital."

Hearing Katsuto's words, Mayumi felt in the same boat; she suspected that Ryoysuke
was holding something back after their trip to Canada.
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"I personally would prefer to confirm with Tookami Ryousuke himself whether he
wishes that his sister should be informed of his hospitalization, but I'd like to know what
you think about this, Saegusa."

This was the matter Katsuto invited her to consult on.

"─I'll ask Tookami-san myself."

And this was Mayumi's answer.

◇◇◇

As the day turned to midnight, Tatsuya returned to the shores of Lake Tudakul.

He was accompanied only by Hyougo, with Miyuki and Lina waiting at the hotel. It took
a lot of convincing to persuade them not to go with him, but that is a digression.

Tatsuya emerged from the box-type camper, clad in the same space suit from the visit to
Takachiho the other day. At first glance it was not unlike a dry suit used for diving. And
it's for that very purpose that Tatsuya is now wearing this suit.

[Tatsuya-sama, I'm sure there is nothing to fear, but I ask that you be careful.]

"Please be vigilant of the surroundings."

After a brief exchange over the comms, Tatsuya plunged down into the lake.

Tatsuya walked slowly through the pitch-dark lakebed. He didn't make use of any sort of
physical light source, and with purpose.

So that Tatsuya's "eyes" could see the psionic light undisturbed by physical light.

Normally, psionic light emitted by non-living things may dimmer but does not flicker.
But here, the psionic light flickered all around as if the lake was alive. Gently, as if taking
slow deep breaths.

The shades changed as he went on, from time to time, another phenomenon that is not
usually observed. The changes were so minute and so gradual that only someone with
"eyesight" as keen as and as "comprehensive" as Tatsuya's would have noticed them.

─Lakes are often mentioned in the legends of Shambhala.

─There is, for example, Lake Mansarovar, which reflects the shadow of Mount Kailash.

─The [Near Lake] in the east of Shambhala and the [White Lotus Pond] in the west.
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─The [Belovodye], handed down by a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church as
apparently synonymous with Shambhala.

After their daytime exploration, his words from the conversation with Miyuki and the
others back at the hotel came and went in his mind.

─Though it may be a stretch, the toponymy of these locations may all correspond to
"lakes" related to Shambhala's legacy.

─And, as the [Compass] points out, this place may be one of those lakes.

Tatsuya's eyes were drawn to a single stream of psions.

It did not have a particularly strong glow, but the current was strong.

This narrow stream leads not to the center of the lake, but to the shore.

Tatsuya brought his [Elemental Sight] to examine where the stream led to.

The underwater lakeshore had been edged out to form a small cliff. Not an uncommon
geographical formation. It would pass unnoticed if one were not aware of it.

Tatsuya walked toward that underwater cliff.

His [Elemental Sight] caught sight of an artificial object buried there that was sucking up
the psions.

With his right hand clad with [Decomposition], he retrieved the object.

Holding tightly onto it, Tatsuya floated to the surface.

"Is this the artifact that you discovered from Lake Tudakul…?"

Puzzlement escaped Miyuki's beautiful red lips as she was presented with the result of
Tatsuya's excavation at the hotel.

The unearthed object is a white stone disk about two times larger than the [Compass].
One face was carved with a "lotus flower with eight petals" ─ the symbol of an
eight-petaled lotus flower. Something you would expect to see in a cultural treasure.

Miyuki's source of puzzlement was the symbol carved on the other side.

Three adjacent circles, arranged equilaterally in a triangle, enclosed by a larger circle.

"…Isn't this the 'Banner of Peace'? That one, of the Roerich Pact."

Now Lina looked as bewildered as Miyuki.

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The Roerich Pact, an international treaty for the protection of cultural properties, which
was signed in 1935, in other words, in the middle of the 20th century. It was a good
question for the girls, why would a stone tablet engraved with that symbol have
anything to do with the remains of a prehistoric civilization?

"In the memorial of Nicholas Roerich, who led the Roerich Pact, they claim that the
symbol is derived from one that existed since antiquity."

"I know that story too. But isn't it just the three circles in the center? If I recall correctly,
it was Roerich's idea to add an outer circle around the three circles."

Lina retorts to Tatsuya's words.

"Couldn't it be that symbols became simplified as civilizations retreated? Nicholas

Roerich is well known not only as an artist but also as a researcher of Shambhala. It is
possible that the symbol he adopted is the original and that the simplified symbol
without the outer circle is a derivative."

"Well, Yes… It is conceivable."

Miyuki's back-channeling was non-committal in nature.

"Isn't that pushing too much?" Lina didn't say, but it was quite clear in her expression.

Tatsuya, however, was not discouraged. He had an argument ready for his theory.

"Then, look at this."

Tatsuya then laid the "Compass" on top of the concave carving (counter-relief).

Each of the octagonal vertices of the [Compass] dovetails perfectly with the tips of the
lotus petals.

Tatsuya poured psion from above the overlapping artifacts, keeping them on the table
instead of the palm of his hand.

The stone disk carrying the [Compass] moved slowly. It did not slide on the table, but
rather, rose a slight distance, levitating.

Just like a UFO.

Both Miyuki and Lina followed the movement with wide-open eyes.

The stone disk with "Compass" on it continued to fly to a certain direction; a different
direction from Lake Tudakul, until Tatsuya stopped it.

"Tatsuya-sama…"
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"Tatsuya, you need to slow down, you're too much…"

Both Miyuki and Lina protested to Tatsuya in bitter voices.

Tatsuya laughed and declared to the two beauties, "That's one step forward".

〈To be continued〉
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Afterword

With this I conclude this issue of "Magian Company 5". I took the liberty of covering
various elements to this volume, I hope everyone enjoyed it.

Recently, I have been experiencing a creative slump of sorts. I assume I may be lacking
in input. All I've been reading lately consists mostly of reference materials, the time I
spend watching anime is less than one-tenth of what it used to be, and I seldom watch
any movies.

I attempted to consume more movies and anime recently. I've also planned to read as
many novels and manga as possible, including light novels, of course. Although, I still
can't get into dramas.

On the topic of movies, I watched some that caught my attention on a certain

subscription service. But most times, I get bored after the first 20 minutes or so. They
just don't seem to click with me, do you know what I mean?

But I am still learning a lot. Like, how important is the introduction, and "the catch" so
to speak.

But I am still learning a lot. Like, how important is the introduction, and "the catch" so
to speak. I am sure the same thing applies to novels. Although there is not much of the
"browsing in the bookstore" anymore, I have been pondering on how the "trial reading"
of electronic book stores will have a similar great impact on the success or failure of a
book.

Yes, it may sound absurd that such a rudimentary idea would only come to me at such a
later stage, but it is true.

If I may share a personal recollection, when I was young, I used to make it a habit to
spend an hour or two at a bookstore when looking for a new paperback or book. I
would browse through an entire book and bring to the register the one I wanted to read
again. In hindsight, I was a quite inconvenient customer, who would dirty up the books.

Perhaps it is because I always focused on the mid to last stretch of a work that I have a
bad habit of dragging too much in the beginning. But now looking back at my tendency
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to grow bored with the introduction of a movie, I am painfully aware this is a vice I need
to fix…

To clarify, this is not the reason there are so many pages devoted to battle scenes in the
early part of this volume.

Now, this series is finally coming to its good part, if I may say so. However, there is no
last boss to be defeated in this work. The resolution of this series lies elsewhere than
victory or defeat.

I hope you will all be there to witness it.

(Satou Tsutomu)