5 Chapter : 5

Sunday July 7th. For students attending one of the 9 National High Schools of Magic, this was the weekend after the first semester's exams in addition to Tanabata.

Usually the student council was busy around this time as they selected players and actively prepared for the upcoming Nine Schools Tournament, but the tournament had been canceled this year, so the Student Council was able to rest today. This was the first day in a while that Miyuki had not had a timetable.

"Onii-sama, would you take me with you today?"

In a shy voice, Miyuki asked Tatsuya if she could accompany him during breakfast.

"To Miyaki Island?"

"Yes. I assumed you were going to visit Lina today?"

Tatsuya had not truly visited Lina since 3 days ago. He had gone to Miyaki Island the day before, but didn't stay long enough for it to be called a visit. He did not doubt Lina, but both Tatsuya and Miyuki felt it was safest to not leave a Strategic Class magician unattended.

"I planned to go there immediately after visiting Minami." Tatsuya answered, immediately continuing to say, "Sorry. I should have planned that you would go too. I blithely forgot that today is Sunday."

Miyuki giggled slightly from Tatsuya's comment that imitated that of a recluse who had forgotten about a national holiday.

"Then…"

"Yes. After visiting the hospital, we will go to Miyaki Island together," Tatsuya responded.

"In that case…"

Miyuki folded her arms in front of her chest and looked Tatsuya in the eyes. She was much better than Mari at using female "tactics" to bargain selfishly.

"Can we go by car?"

"Of course. Wait a little, and enjoy your first trip on the surface of the sea."

Hearing Tatsuya's answer, Miyuki smiled happily, her eyes glowing.

◊ ◊ ◊

July 7, 2097, 8:00. A helicopter of the USNA army flew to the base of Zama.

It flew in from the Independence Aircraft Carrier - currently stationed at Yokosuka base's port. Information about this flight had been sent from the Aircraft Carrier yesterday, and the flight's purpose was the transport of passengers from the damaged transport aircraft. The commander of the Zama base was informed about the transfer of half of the crew to Independence. Base Zama had no reason to refuse except that the notification of the flight came too late, barely before the event. All procedures had been followed, however, so on request from the aircraft, the dispatched issued a landing permit.

"Minoru, I leave the commander to you."

Inside the transport plane, Regulus bowed to Minoru He had been ordered to move to Independence aircraft carrier to join the attack on Miyaki Island tomorrow. The container with the frozen body of Arcturus, however, needed to stay on the transport plane so as not to arouse suspicion.

"I will do everything in my power," Minoru said.

Minoru was going to stay on the transport plane to try to remove the seal on Arcturus.

He planned to kidnap Minami during the attack on Miyaki Island, so he was going to act separately from Regulus and the others anyway.

"Bye, Minoru. Even though our time together was short, it was fun."

Raymond said goodbye to Minoru in a way that made it unclear whether he was serious or joking. Raymond was not a part of Stars and could do what he wanted, but he had no reason to stay with Minoru so he decided to stay with Regulus as he didn't know how else he would safely withdraw from Japan.

"Yes, but here we say goodbye. Contact me if you require assistance," Minoru responded.

"You too, Minoru. I am not in a position to continue contact with you in the future, but I will do everything I can. After all, we are both parasites."

"Yes. Agreed."

Raymond's words seem to hide some other meaning, but Regulus plainly without any other intent as he extended his right hand to Minoru. Minoru responded by sticking his own hand out to accept that handshake.

With an expression seeming to say "nothing can be done about this", he also shook Raymond's outstretched hand.

"I wish the success of your mission."

With these words, Regulus and Raymond had to leave.

After watching Regulus and Raymond take off in the helicopter from the cockpit of the transport plane, Minoru headed back to the cargo hold. There was surprisingly little cargo considering it was a transport plane, but the main "cargo" the plane transported was people, as was fairly common for military transport aircraft.

There was practically no other cargo in the hold other than the container holding Arcturus, so it immediately caught the eye when walking into the room.

"Seems to be a mixture of Yin-Yang techniques based on Shugendo and Western ancient magic - Enoch's black magic," Minoru muttered to himself.

Touching the seal that had put Arcturus to sleep, Minoru knitted his brows.

"If it was based on Taoism, there would be no problem. ."

Minoru had inherited a lot of knowledge about Taoist magic from Zhou Gongjin, but Zhou Gongjin only had slight knowledge on Western magic – mainly about the spells he needed to use. Zhou Gongjin was not a magician but a practitioner, so his knowledge of spells was based around his specialization.

"First you need to confirm his state of consciousness," Minoru thought to himself.

His consciousness may still be functioning – just blocked out from the outside world, not allowing him to react to anything.

Minoru started by releasing psionic waves into Arcturus's body. These waves were used in external systematic magic meant for interacting with the mind. When psions are organized into an information body, they can influence the mind in addition to the physical body.

Psions meant for interacting with the mind are organized in a completely different manner than psions with meant for interacting with the physical body. In order to interact with the mind, psions must be organized into far more complex structures in order to be recognized as an information body. This is partly what determines someone's fitness for mental-interference magic – their ability to organize psions into more complex structures.

When Minoru was still human, he was not particularly good at making complex information bodies, but now that he was a parasite, he could clearly recognize pushionic information bodies. However, Minoru still could not detect the mind of the sealed Arcturus despite his increased abilities. He had no idea where he was hidden.

Minoru knew Arcturus's physical body had to be connected to his mind through the psionic information body sealing it, so Minoru sent a neutral psionic body – one that does not affect emotions or impulses – into Arcturus' body.

"It's weak, but..."

Minoru was sure that he had felt a response from the psionic information body connected to Arcturus' body, but as was clear from its name, mental interference magic, the magic can influence the mind but not the information body corresponding to the physical body. The change in Arcturus' psionic information body had not taken place anywhere except for the mind.

"Still, this approach was useful."

The fact that there was a response meant that Arcturus could be unsealed. By following the information body's reaction, the place where the mind was hidden could be found, and from there a method could be found to awaken it.

Minoru continued his magic trying to free Arcturus carefully – he was very careful to not be discovered by the base sensors.

◊ ◊ ◊

Local time: 09:00, July 7

A high school student and a junior high school student were visiting the Komatsu base of the self-defense forces. The names of the two were Ichijou Masaki and Ichijou Akane - siblings from the Ichijou family of the Ten Master Clans.

Their father and head of the Ichijou family, Ichijou Goki, did not accompany them, but Masaki behaved with dignity – he did not show any concern at the lack of a guardian. He was still a high school student, but he could be considered a veteran in combat experience. He was not nervous at all while passing through the gates of the base. However, the same could not be said for his younger sister - Akane showed a few weak signs of anxiety.

Shortly after they showed their identification cards causing the dispatcher to call a car, the car arrived at the gate to pick them up. Their visit today was at the request of the army, so naturally the army was prepared for them.

"What do you think about her? Can we talk?"

Akane whispered to Masaki, unable to tolerate the silence. Though she usually teased Masaki while talking to him, she did not dislike him and she did not ignore him. She did not have any "special" feelings beyond being family, but her brother was the next head and hope of the Ichijou family.

"Lieutenant Liu is fluent in Japanese."

The soldier driving the car answered Akane's question. He wanted to lighten the atmosphere to make Akane relax, and the soldier was young enough that he could behave somewhat naturally with a junior high school student.

"Having everyday conversations with her will not be a problem. If she did not possess Strategic Class magic, she would be a somewhat normal Junior High school student."

"Therefore, we must be vigilant, so as to be careless not to say too much," Masaki said after the soldier. "But we should be careful, as excessive caution could have the opposite effect we want."

Despite the soldier's intent, the conversation had only increased the siblings'

vigilance, and they drove up to the building Liu was in in that state. The soldier led the two inside, and they were surprised at how much a "hotel" vibe was given off by the military residential building.

Masaki and Akane met Liu Li Lei in the first floor lobby. At first glance, she seemed to be alone, but of course this was a faked atmosphere: with his perception, Masaki found more than 10 magicians.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Liu Li Lei."

After the driver brought Akane and Masaki to the location with Liu and Lin, Liu introduced herself. As the driver had said, her Japanese was completely natural.

"Nice to meet you too. My name is Ichijou Masaki."

Masaki responded to Liu Li Lei in the same polite manner.

"Uwaa, what a cutie…" Akane let herself slip.

"Hey!"

Masaki hastily reproached her in a whisper.

". .My name is Ichijou Akane, and I am the younger sister of Masaki. Nice to meet you."

Akane pulled herself together and hurried to introduce herself. She bowed sharply, and her cheeks were flushed.

Akane's embarrassed introduction caused Liu to relax her overstrained face as a hint of a smile showed on her face.

◊ ◊ ◊

Today, Kichijouji Shinkuro woke up at 9:20. He had slept for exactly 3 hours and 30 minutes. This was not nearly enough, but as soon as he got up he swallowed a caffeine pill, washed his face, and put the TV on an interactive channel that broadcasts military information requested by the user. Upon learning that the fleet of the New Soviet Union had not yet advanced, Kichijouji sighed with relief.

"So I still have some time."

He said this out loud to cheer himself up, then immediately grasped a CAD the size of a large suitcase, loaded with the activation sequence with the new Strategic Class magic, by its handle. He had finished creating the magic this morning.

The CAD was integrated into a medium-sized computer which shifted the target area of the activation sequence based on data from radar, optical sensors, and aerial photography, as well as the information for many thousand sequences of magic.

All of this needed to be planned in 0.01 second intervals to cover the target area, so most of the suitcase's volume was occupied by the computer and its power source.

Fortunately for Kichijouji, this system of CAD-computer integration had already been developed in other labs for uses unrelated to this new magic. This

allowed Kichijouji to focus entirely on developing the activation sequence of the CAD.

As of now, the software part of the CAD, the activation sequence was ready and the hardware was assembled, but the development was not complete without testing.

Magic is done by the magician – even if one creates a flawless activation sequence, it can't be considered magic until a magician uses it.

"Masaki will be able to use this." He steeled himself from his doubts.

Kichijouji was confident that Masaki could use this new Strategic Class magic. At least, he wanted to believe in him – he wished he had blind confidence. But in the far corner of his consciousness, he still had the fear, "what if...". This fear turned into anxiety and prompted Kichijouji to take action quickly.

"In any case, we will test it soon, before the attack of the New Soviet Union."

Kichijouji had deep psychological trauma regarding the attack of the New Soviet Union.

Sado Island, his home until his first year of high school, had been attacked by a small, disguised fleet sent from the New Soviet Union. His parents had been killed by this attack, and though the New Soviet Union had denied involvement in the invasion five years ago, Kichijouji believed it was them. In his heart, he was convinced that it was the New Soviet Union that destroyed his home and killed his parents. The attack had scarred him, and now the wound seemed to be re-opening: once again, the New Soviet Union was posed to attack.

"This time… I will not let you."

Kichijouji knew that he did not have the power to repel the New Soviet Union alone, but his heart warmed by the thought that his best friend would beat them using the magic he created. The warmth from that thought might be able to heal his injury.

He wanted to know as soon as possible whether his friend would be able to use the magic.

Kichijouji hurried to Ichijou's house without even bothering to find out Masaki's plans.

When he saw himself in the mirror installed at the entrance to the hotel, he finally noticed he was still wearing his pajamas. Embarrassed, he hurried back to his room.

◊ ◊ ◊

Tatsuya and Miyuki arrived at Miyaki Island at about 10:00. Miyuki was exhilarated during the journey across the sea at a speed of 300 km / h (reaching a maximum speed of 400 km / h). Despite its speed being extremely high for a car, the aircar was designed for flying – a maximum speed of 400 km / h is quite low when compared to commercial aircrafts.

When "driving on water," the aircar actually flies slightly above the surface of the water and does not actually touch the water. This partly contributed to the excitement of riding in the car when compared to a plane ride, as the speed feels much higher when closer to the ground – with a lower field of view, objects move out of vision much quicker, giving the illusion of speed. Miyuki was not the type to seek speed, but she was still able to feel excited as the surface sea seemed to fly past them on both sides.

Shortly after arriving on the Island, Tatsuya and Miyuki found Lina.

"Lina, how are you?"

"Miyuki... You look like you've had quite the time."

...Even Lina noticed the difference in Miyuki.

"Really? I did not notice at all."

Miyuki was still in an excited state, so she responded differently than she usually would.

"So, what about you, Lina? Are there any inconvenience?"

"... Thank you, I'm fine."

Realizing how different Miyuki's atmosphere was from usual, Lina refrained from asking further questions.

"I don't feel any discomfort thanks to you and your family. And the guys from the management staff are also very kind."

"I see. That's good," Miyuki responded.

"What are we talking about? Let's go sit down," Lina said.

Lina's impression of this building was that it "looks like a comdominum." The building had a small separate side living room where Lina led Tatsuya and Miyuki from the entrance, inviting them to sit on the sofa.

"Would you like some iced coffee?" asked Lina, heading to the adjoining kitchen.

"Yes, thank you."

"Then me too."

Tatsuya and Miyuki answered without hesitation.

Soon, Lina returned with three glasses on a tray.

Tatsuya had his coffee black, with no milk or syrup, and Miyuki added some milk, but no syrup. Lina initially started to reach toward the syrup, but stopped herself, not wanting to be seen as a child. She eventually took the milk and added it in large quantities to her coffee.

Once the three finished drinking, all three returned their glasses to the table.

"Let's get straight to the point. I have bad news."

Tatsuya's words were obviously not about the impression of the drink, so Lina was able to look Tatsuya in the eye and ask him to continue with her stare.

"No later than tomorrow, the Far Eastern fleet of the New Soviet Union will go south on the Sea of Japan. This time, our country is fully ready for interception: our fleet is ready to be sent at any time."

"Is Japan going to directly clash with the New Soviet Union?" Lina asked doubtfully.

"It's unlikely to reach total war, but a clash cannot be avoided."

"The requirement of the New Soviet Union was the extradition of Liu Li Lei, right?"

Japan had not declared their giving of asylum to Liu, but the New Soviet Union had declared to the world that it "demands the extradition of war criminal Liu Lily from Japan."

"Yes, but we understand that this runaway fourteen-year-old girl will be executed, so we cannot just give her away," Tatsuya answered.

"Yes, they said on TV that the NSU is trying to create a pretext for war by putting together impracticable conditions."

The TV Station Lina was talking about showed more than Japanese channels, and her residential building (built for administrative staff) was connected to various cable networks. The news channel she heard that from was an American cable network.

"I doubt the New Soviet Union will seriously try to assimilate Japanese territory. They have another, hidden purpose, but I can not say exactly what it is," Tatsuya said.

"Isn't it is the factory being built here? Tatsuya seems to be a real nuisance to their country."

Miyuki slightly rounded her eyes, surprised at the unexpectedly harsh words of Lina.

"...What?"

Lina unintentionally frowned at Miyuki's reaction.

"No, I just think so too," Miyuki explained as she regained her calm face.

Lina stared at Miyuki, looking for the catch.

"That is one possible option."

After Tatsuya's statement, Lina returned her attention to him.

"If that's the case, we need to consider the safety of Lina," Tatsuya stated.

"I can fight too," Lina said, protesting slightly.

"I have no doubt about you, but if their goal different, then Lina will have problems that cannot be ignored."

Tatsuya deliberately hinted in his words that their problems would be limited by Lina.

"I do?"

Lina's question was obvious.

"Even if we repel the Far Eastern fleet this time, their will still be tension between Japan and the New Soviet Union. Japan will not be able to involve itself in the problems in the USNA."

Never battle on two fronts. This is an absolute principle in more than war, and Tatsuya felt that those who choose a battle strategy on two fronts are infinite optimists who do not distinguish speculation from desires.

"As long as there is tension between Japan and the New Soviet Union, Japanese authorities will try to prevent our attack on the Midway prison. It will be difficult to prepare ships, even if they are private. It will be the same with aviation," Tatsuya explained.

"…I understand."

Lina did not blame Tatsuya. She understood that it would be unfair to blame and shift her anger to him.

"I am trying to come up with a plan to save Major Canopus, but I need some more time for this."

"…I did not say that it needed to be done right away. I understand that preparation for something like this takes time. But please remember I'm relying on you, Tatsuya,"

Lina said.

"It's good that you understand that."

Tatsuya comforted Lina, who was hanging her head in despondency. On the surface, they seemed to be speaking to each other with dry and cold phrases, but on a deeper level, their words held sympathy and respect… at least, that was how Miyuki saw their interaction.

This was also how Miyuki saw Tatsuya and Lina sitting across from each other on opposite sides of the table.

A weak fire of jealousy caught in her chest.

◊ ◊ ◊

The meeting between the Great Asian Alliance refugees and Ichijou family siblings was supposed to have a peaceful atmosphere, but this proved to be an overly-optimistic situation, and them meeting developed by exchanging requirements with strained faces on both sides. Though initially the conversation seemed to be heading in a more familiar direction with Akane's comment, that feeling quickly wore off and the strain of the situation became dominant once more.

"I'm telling you: considering that Lieutenant Liu is only 14 years old, she should be placed in the civilian sector, and not a military facility! We have no intention of brainwashing or something like that!" Masaki exclaimed.

"It is precisely because she is only 14 years old that her compatriots must stay with her! If you are trying to take her to a civilian object, we can only think that you want to separate us!" Lin responded.

"Our home is not a 'civilian object'! The Ichijou family takes its safety seriously!"

Masaki responded. "Sorry for being rude, but mansions of the Ten Master Clans are not just civilian buildings: they are fortresses of civilian combat magicians. And as for your comment saying we were aligned with the military - it was really rude! The Ten Master Clans would never do what you're thinking! We are an organization providing

mutual aid for magicians, therefore we want to protect Lieutenant Liu! Our goal is not just to separate you!" Masaki angrily added.

"Your assistance is not necessary! We have enough protection from the Japanese army!"

This dispute broke out between Masaki and Commander Lin. Masaki had already caught Commander Lin's intentions, but he still did not retreat from his position.

"Sorry for being rude, but Lieutenant Liu is still a child. A child must see the world outside the army!"

Masaki's words were based on a weak sense of justice - it could even be called idealism – and not on personal experience. Masaki had not experienced anything like what he was fighting against. He interpreted the independence provided to the Ten Master Clans as an opportunity to use magic for their own benefit, and not as a weapon for the army.

In battle, Masaki felt that they decided everything themselves. Soldiers made their own decisions. He did not deny that magicians often became weapons, but he felt they must make this choice themselves - his youth forced him to cling to such ideals.

"Commander Lin, I wouldn't mind if the Ichijou family took care of me."

The subject of the argument, Liu Li Lei, intervened in the Masaki and Lin's dispute.

"Special Lieutenant Liu, what do you mean!?"

Commander Lin was both surprised and nervous at Liu's words supporting Masaki.

Her surprise even caused her to unwittingly switch languages: Liu had spoken in Japanese, but Commander Lin had objected in Chinese.

"We may be in a position where we need protection, but as a School Officer, you do not need to make such concessions!"

Commander Lin hurriedly tried to convince Liu to change her mind, and her words were translated by the interpreter present at the meeting.

"Nii-san, we don't need to rush this decision, do we? I don't mind staying here for one night."

Akane was tired of the strained atmosphere, so she suggested Masaki postpone the decision.

Apparently, the soldiers of the base present at the meeting also agreed that it was necessary to cool down, so everyone supported Akane's proposal.

◊ ◊ ◊

Liu and Lin returned to their assigned rooms, and the soldiers and base officers returned to their duties, leaving Akane and Masaki alone.

"Nii-san, you are too hasty."

"You think so?"

"Yes. What are you going to do now that you've pissed them off?"

"…I do not think they got angry."

"It's naive to think that they would openly show their anger, considering their position, but they got angry for sure."

Now, with only the two of them in the lobby where the meeting took place, the Akane and Masaki discussed the conversation.

"But Lieutenant Liu seemed to agree, didn't she?" Masaki argued.

"It's not like that! When someone becomes a hostage, they feel compelled to agree just to settle the situation. Surely you understand this, Nii-san!"

"...Sorry."

"In fact, Nii-san, you don't understand how to deal with girls. To say such a horrible thing as 'Lei-chan is only 14 years old' is unacceptably rude," Akane said without a hint of irony.

"Come on, now. 'Lei-chan' – just to be sure, you're referring to Lieutenant Liu, right?"

"Mm? Well, yes. She is Li Lie-chan, so Lei-chan. She's such a cutie, it is a pity to call her something like 'Lieutenant Liu'."

"…?! It doesn't matter if it's a pity! She is one of the "Thirteen Apostles" and belongs to the Great Asian Alliance! Is it really alright to call her by an affectionate Japanese honorific?!" Masaki exclaimed.

"Mm, you think so?"

At that moment, with the conversation going towards a rather strange direction, one of the base's soldier approached them, apologizing.

"Ichijou-san..."

The soldier paused for a moment, realizing his statement was unspecific.

"Ichijou Masaki-san, a visitor has come to see you."

"In here?" Masaki exclaimed.

Masaki did not ask "to me?" but rather "here?" because he had not expected any visitors while at the military base. If the visitor was looking for him during his trip, it had to be quite an important matter.

"Excuse me. Could you take me to him?"

As soon as Masaki noticed that his question was meaningless, he got up and asked the soldier to show the way.

"Follow me."

The soldier turned to the right and went, followed by Masaki who was followed by Akane.

". . You don't have to go," Masaki told Akane.

"You want to leave me alone?"

Masaki did not answer Akane's question, but he also did not question her further.

Masaki thought that the visitor had come to the residential building, but the soldiers who had informed them about the visitor took them to a car and drove them to a building that looked like a laboratory. Upon arriving, the soldiers explained to them that this was a workshop in which war magicians serviced their equipment – primarily their CADs. They were led inside the building and escorted to a room on the second floor.

"Masaki!"

Masaki didn't even have time to step into the room before he heard his name called by a familiar voice.

"George? What are you doing here?"

He instantly recognized the voice of his best friend, Kichijouji Shinkuro.

"And why did he call me here on Komatsu base?" Masaki thought.

"Hi, Shinkuro-kun. Is your business so urgent that you even visited Nii-san here?"

Akane asked.

Akane didn't wait for Kichijouji to answer Masaki's question, instead asking her own in a dissatisfied tone. She felt unhappy because Kichijouji had not even notice her, looking only at her brother.

"Ah .. Akane-chan is also here."

Kichijouji's response was completely inadequate considering Akane's psychological state.

"Sorry. No time to explain the details, every second counts."

After Kichijouji asserted this earnestly, Akane stopped sulking. She understood clearly that Kichijouji was not the type of person who dropped in simply to visit very often, and he had to have come with an important purpose. For Masaki, this was even more obvious – the last time he had seen Kichijouji in this state, it was the day before he had published the Cardinal System Weight Magic Code.

The discovery of the Cardinal code – considered a breakthrough in magical science for even 10 – 20 years later. It was an extremely important discovery, partially proving the "Cardinal code" hypothesis.

Kichijouji's face was the same as that time.

"George, what's your business with me? What do I need to do?"

Unable to suppress his excitement, Kichijouji grabbed Masaki's shoulders to answer his question.

Masaki leaned back from Kichijouji's approaching face.

"Shinkuro-kun, pull yourself together!"

Akane's cry was not entirely inappropriate – it was not just her imagination that Kichijouji seemed to be approaching Masaki to kiss him – but Akane's voice did not reach Kichijouji. He had to have physically heard, but he was too excited for his mind to react.

"I need you to test new Strategic Class magic! Masaki, it's magic for you!"

As soon as Masaki processed what Kichijouji said, he, like Kichijouji, grabbed Kichijouji's shoulders.

"New Strategic Class Magic!? George, you. . created Strategic class magic!?"

"Ah, no, not from scratch…"

At Masaki's question, Kichijouji's excitement disappeared. He had not forgotten that he received the basic blueprint from Tatsuya, but his mind had been fully occupied with the desire to test the magic as quickly as possible to make sure Masaki could use it.

"So, you didn't create it for me, George?" Masaki asked the stumbled Kichijouji with doubt in his voice.

"No, I finished it alone!"

When Masaki said the phrase "for me," it pierced Kichijouji's heart and he unwittingly asserted his achievement. Still, it wasn't a lie, and Kichijouji should have said it from the beginning, but he had been focused on his rivalry with Tatsuya.

"I see."

Masaki, not knowing the details, assumed Kichijouji had created it himself, but had used the results of the work of many other laboratory staff.

"It is necessary to immediately test? I assume you came here for this," Masaki asked.

Their situations had shifted, and now Masaki was leaning towards Kichijouji.

"Yeah, you're right."

Kichijouji answered truthfully.

There was once a "subcritical experiment" to test the process of causing an explosion of nuclear fission by stopping it immediately before the critical point to collect data for the simulation. The experiment Masaki and Kichijouji were about to perform to test the Strategic Class magic was by nature similar to this "subcritical experiment".

As the name "Strategic Class Magic" suggests, it is comparable in power to strategic class weapons, so it is difficult to test near civilian areas. Therefore, testing the new magic was done by canceling the magic sequences just prior to activation. Even though the result is canceled, it can be determined with a certainty of 80-90% whether the magic will function according to expectations. This method does not just prevent civilian casualties, but also prevents the information of the test from being leaked to other countries through military spy satellites.

Though a probability of error of 10-20% may seem large, the success rate of large-scale magic is usually low until the caster gets used to the magic. It entirely possible for magic successful during testing to fail to activate during critical moments of

battles. Because of this, unlike conventional magic tests, there was no need to cling to the ideal of "100% completion rate of all processes".

To conduct the experiment, Masaki, Kichijouji and Akane moved from Komatsu airbase to Kanazawa naval base. It was relatively new, built on the site of a coastal golf course destroyed during the last war.

The base was small, but it was built for the use of magical tactics and the former First Laboratory took part in its design, so it was a suitable place for testing magic intended for sea battles.

"Masaki. I think you understand this, but you cannot mess up your control of the interference strength of this phenomenon," Kichijouji warned.

"Of course I understand."

Magic projects an activation sequence onto the Eidos of its target and activates by infusing the caster's psions to give the sequence its interference strength. Usually, the projection of an activation sequence and the infusion of magic power into the phenomenon were performed simultaneously, but in the pre-activation experiment, the interference strength of the phenomenon is kept at a level just enough to confirm the activation of the magic.

Since the infusion of psions could not be controlled by hardware, it relied on the individual's skill at performing magic. Because of this, experiments testing powerful magic are always accompanied by a risk.

". .Akane. Maybe you'd better hide behind cover."

Both Masaki and Kichijouji had not wanted to bring Akane here with them and had initially tried to send her home.

"Why?"

"Eh?! What do you mean, 'why'?! It's dangerous!" Masaki exclaimed.

"You won't mess up," Akane replied, showing no intent to back off.

"I won't, but…"

"Then there is no danger."

Masaki could not refute Akane's logic and was forced to allow her to go with them.

Though he had still tried to stop her caustic phrases on Komatsu base like "nii-san, you are such an awkward child," he could no longer hold her back.

"…Just don't bother George."

After saying this, Masaki forgot his worries about Akane to focus all his attention on the experiment. Realizing that Masaki had shifted to a serious mood, Akane did not respond sarcastically as she usually might, but stood silently next to Kichijouji.

Masaki took the sighting device which took his perspective outside the window and led him toward the sea. The length of the device was about 50 centimeters, and it resembled a short machine gun. It had uniform thickness and the handle was precisely in the middle, making the device well balanced and easy to hold with one hand.

However, Masaki was holding it with two hands. He was grasping the device a little closer to the barrel with his left hand, as if he was using a real weapon. One part of the handle was not actually attached to the aiming device, and rather ran through body and rear part of the entire device – the parts performing the device's main function.

The handle contained the induction stone, which converted electronic data from the computer into psionic signals, so it was easier to connect it to the computer more directly.

The special glasses Masaki was wearing projected a visual of the target area –

they were a tool for visualizing the area to aim at. He was aiming at a rectangular plane on the surface of the sea, and the length and width of the target area could be configured with four buttons on the sides of the device. The top but on stretched the width, both left and right, while the bottom did the inverse. Similarly, the front button increased the length, and the back button reduced the length. Changing the area also changed the field of view presented by the special glasses.

The glasses currently projected an image of the sea 20 kilometers from the coastline, superimposed over the Masaki's actual field of view. Using the buttons on the side of the aiming device, Masaki set a target area 1 kilometer wide and 500 meters long in the middle of the image.

"I am starting the test."

After this statement, Masaki, Kichijouji, Akane, and all the base engineers who were helping with the experiment held their breath.

Masaki removed his left hand from the buttons controlling the target area and brought it back under the barrel of the aiming device.

Gripping the handle with his right index finger, he pulled the trigger of the aiming device.

The computer converted the target effect on the target area into a format allowing the creation of activation sequences. The computer added coordinate data and timings to copy the magic sequences to each of the activation sequences stored, before sending all this data to the handle of the aiming device. The induction stone embedded in the handle converted all this electronic data into a psionic information body, and the resulting activation sequence was output as a psionic signal that merged with Masaki's right hand.

The activation sequence had successfully been read.

The activation sequence was sent to the magic calculation zone existing in Masaki's subconscious.

The activation sequence had successfully been built.

From this point, Masaki was usually able to build the magic sequence in no less than .5 seconds, but this time it took Masaki a full second after reading the activation sequence to even begin outputting the magic sequence. Despite the increase in time, however, Masaki was able to use the magic, and the magic sequence was projected into the center of the target area.

...After that, the magic was interrupted.

But a moment before that, an essentially infinite number of magic sequences had filled the 1000-by-500-meter area of the sea surface.

"The test is successful!"

This statement from the smiling Kichijouji was drowned out by the joyful shouts of the base engineers.

◊ ◊ ◊

Local time: July 7, 6:00 p.m.

Before sunset, Independence aircraft carrier emerged from the port of Yokosuka. It had arrived here 2 weeks ago and belonged to the USNA naval fleet.

According to the official schedule, Independence practiced the takeoff and landing of its fighter planes at night in the southeast of Boso Peninsula before returning to the base in Hawaii.

Independence was a rather old and slow ship. After it left the port and went onto the open ocean, a high-speed catamaran boat with a breakwater hull approached it.

A small helicopter took off from Independence to board the speed boat – named Midway. Once the helicopter had landed stably, four soldiers and one civilian left the helicopter and boarded Midway. The people leaving were: three women officers; Captain Charlotte Vega, First Lieutenant Zoe Spick, and Second Lieutenant Leila Deneb; First Lieutenant Jacob Regulus; and Raymond Clark.

When the five of them stepped onto the deck, a junior officer on board the speedboat greeted them.

"Star dust, Soldier C13, Sergeant Charles Cooper at your service!"

Even the still-spinning rotor of the helicopter did not drown out his voice.

"The commander of the fourth squad of Stars, Captain Vega."

Vega answered the sergeant. Among the four soldiers in the company, Vega had the highest rank, so it was decided without words that she would be in command.

"Twenty members of Stardust including myself are now under your command, Captain."

"Including the Sergeant, I accept command of the twenty members of Stardust," Vega answered.

"Ay!"

All the members of Stardust answered her words. The mental wave from twenty people (except the Sergeant, who answered aloud), merged into one thought and flowed into Vega's mind like a powerful stream. The wave reached the other four Parasites who had come off the helicopter, including Raymond. Every member of the Stardust detachment present on the transport ship was a Parasite.

The five arrivals led by Vega were first taken to a small briefing room inside the ship rather than the bridge. Vega had expected this, thinking there would be a discussion for the plan before they took control of the ship.

"We need to determine the arrangement for tomorrow."

Vega skipped the intro and immediately brought up the main business.

"Right. The operation is tomorrow, so we have to hurry."

Spica, accustomed to Vega's behavior, added her remark to smooth Vega's impression of excessive impatience.

"Commander, do you have any ideas?"

Deneb opened a map of Miyaki Island obtained by aerial photography on the table-shaped monitor and asked Vega about her plan. The fourth unit often left most of the decisions to Vega.

Vega pointed to the northeast coast of the island and answered her subordinate:

"Yes. Second lieutenant Deneb and I will take 10 Star Dust soldiers each and suppress any resistance. First Lieutenant Regulus will cover from the rear. Finally, First Lieutenant Spica and Raymond will stay on the ship to provide a path of retreat."

"I do not mind, captain, but what about the destruction of the plant?"

Raymond was the first to agree, but his tone lacked sincerity.

Vega slightly frowned at the tone of Raymond's question. On the surface, Raymond was simply reminding the Vega of the main purpose of the plan, but the implications that held made the comment seem condescending.

From Raymond's perspective, he and Vega just didn't get along - he felt that Vega was displeased with him because she had treated him like leftovers in her plan.

Still, the Parasites had a united consciousness, so Vega's decision was also Raymond's. Thus, Raymond's discontent was the conflict of his feelings and his reason, so he didn't complain about it openly. Vega also shared Raymond's feeling that "this is not very interesting," and they couldn't pretend they didn't notice it. This was not a conflict for another person for them, but a dispute with oneself.

"I will call you when we complete the neutralization of the enemy, so prepare a bomb on the ship."

"Okay. Understood, captain."

The feeling of discomfort in relation to each other was equivalent to aversion to oneself, so they were able to quickly move on.

"First Lieutenant Regulus, will that suit you?"

"Yes captain."

"Then it's settled. Everyone is free."

Vega finished the tactics meeting before the dislike of her began to intensify.