Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei

Volume 9 - Ch 3

This chapter is updated by Novels.pl

Those that prowl in the dark of night are not restricted to those from sinister backgrounds.

That citizens could move about freely without the threat of hoodlums

--and completely free at that, is thanks to the tireless efforts on part of the "apostles of order". Tonight, a young man who was (supposedly) one of these pillars of order was grousing to his male companion.

"Seriously, one trouble after another......"

"............"

"Hasn't our crappy luck from last year already come to a close?"

"............"

"Something must have happened. This way, it's really easy to tell if they're illegal aliens or foreign invaders."

"......Investigating them is our job. We're employed because of this rash of incidents, so quit your yapping!"

At the same time as he used his clear and capable voice to advise his superior, who was still softly muttering "Things like this shouldn't be happening at all......", he also sucked in a breath.

"Yes, this is Inagaki."

Hearing a short burst from his ear set, Inagaki immediately replied back in a terse tone.

"......Acknowledged. We'll be at the scene shortly."

After turning off the transmission device, Inagaki swept a severe gaze over his superior, who wore a languid look on his face as he surveyed his surroundings.

"Inspector, 5 bodies. Cause of death is the same as the ones from before. Just as before, there are no external injuries."

Hearing Sergeant Inagaki's report, Inspector Chiba Toshikazu sighed as his eyes drifted to the skies.

"And all their blood must also be gone. ......Seriously, 5 weird corpses every month. There should be a limit to trying to draw media attention."

Without alluding to the victims or murderer, Inspector Chiba Toshikazu was only sighing to elucidate how troublesome this all was. Still, amid the inconvenienced expression on his face, his pupils flashed with the razor sharp gaze of a hunter.

Angelina Shields was currently putting on a performance worthy of being called an exhilarating entrance.

On the first day of her transfer, her appearance alone was such that no one on campus was unaware of her.

Before this, the throne of the most beautiful girl in school belonged solely to Miyuki. This was the combined consensus of the upperclassmen and female student body as well.

However, with the addition of Lina, the title of "Queen" had morphed into "Twin Beauties". Add in the fact that the two of them often moved together, this only served to deepen the impression that "her beauty rivaled that of Miyuki".

The blonde hair that shone luminously beneath the sun and the azure pupils that put even sapphires to shame.

The dark tresses deeper than the night itself and the brilliant eyes that surpassed the luminescence of black pearls.

Miyuki and Lina, equal in beauty, yet diametrically opposed in appearance. Light fairly shone from the school campus that housed the both of them.

Just having that level of beauty was enough to send tongues wagging --.

"Miyuki, I'm starting."

"Feel free to begin whenever, I will leave the countdown to you, Lina."

The two of them stood facing each other across a distance of 30 meters.

Between them, a small metal ball with a diameter of 30 cm was placed on a thin rod.

Although there were many similar instruments in the Practical Skills Room, all of their peers abandoned what they were doing and concentrated all their attention on Miyuki and Lina.

No, not just their peers. In the observation stands on the second floor, there were quite a few Year 3 students who possessed the freedom to select their course schedule.

Mayumi and Mari were included among them.

"......Magic Power that can rival Miyuki, do you think that's possible?"

"On some level, she's the American representative to Japan, so this isn't impossible. Nonetheless, it's still hard to believe that someone in the same age bracket as Miyuki can stand up to her Magic Power."

"I agree. Well, seeing is believing. I'll only believe it when I see it with my own eyes."

"We are here precisely to verify the truth of the matter."

The goal of the practical exercise was for both sides to activate their CADs simultaneously, with the winner seizing control of the metal ball in the middle. Not only was this practical exercise easy to manipulate, there was a high competitive feel to it as well.

Precisely because of its simplicity, this was a simple way to determine the difference in power between the two sides.

Since starting this exercise last month, Miyuki had already reached a level that her peers could not hope to reach. The difference between her and the rest of her peers was so great that the instructors had deemed that continued practice against other students had already become meaningless.

It was an open secret that not even the newly returned Student Council members (and Public Moral Committee members) who came to challenge Miyuki upon catching wind of this were her match.

Yet, this Miyuki was about to pit her might against a transfer student.

Given that the upperclassmen completely lost face despite wholeheartedly accepting the outcome (of course, Miyuki wasn't the type to aggrandize her accomplishment and was rather embarrassed over the whole ordeal), Mayumi and Mari had to attend this exercise.

"Three, two, one......"

The moment Lina called out "one", both of them put their hands on the dash board.

"Go!"

The last signal erupted from both of them.

Miyuki tapped the board with her fingertips, while Lina pressed her whole hand onto the board.

Stillness and action, their true colors were reflected in their opening motions. However, this only reflected the physical side of things.

Dazzling arrays of psions were combining and exploding on the Eidos of the metal ball that served as the target. Since this was a light that could not be seen by the naked eye, closing one's eyes served no purpose.

Some of the observers who had not mastered the suppression magic interference techniques pressed their temples and couldn't stop shaking their heads.

The light faded after a brief moment as the metal ball slowly rolled towards Lina's direction.

"Ah, I lost again."

"Fufu, I'm ahead by two rounds now, Lina."

Lina loudly proclaimed her unwillingness to accept defeat while Miyuki smiled slightly while secretly heaving a sigh of relief.

Based on their reactions, it was blatantly obvious that the victor of this contest (not that this was a real contest) was Miyuki. Despite saying "ahead by two rounds", this phrase that was normally reserved for the victor didn't leave an indelible impression of an overwhelming victory, more like --

"......They're truly neck to neck."

"In terms of Activation Speed, the transfer student is actually faster, isn't she?"

"Hm, but Miyuki wins in interference strength, so she seized control before her opponent's magic was finished. Initiative vs. power......

Rather than calling this a pure contest of strength, this is more like a tactical victory."

In Mayumi and Mari's eyes, in terms of single systematic processes, the two of them possessed equal Magic Power.

--Afterwards, the same exercise was repeated four times, with both sides splitting the result 2-2, so the day ended with Miyuki still ahead by two rounds.

Noon in the neighboring cafeteria.

Since Lina was sitting with them today, this couldn't be described as their usual arrangement. Since transferring a week ago, she had been tugged this way and that and sat with a different group each time for lunch.

By maximizing her networking possibilities, she could be said to be a model transfer student. In terms of eating with Tatsuya's group, this was actually the first time since the first day of her transfer.

"You're quite popular, Lina."

"Thank you. I'm glad that everyone is so nice."

At Erika's undisguised praise, Lina opted against replying with meaningless, embarrassed humility and came back with an uncaring attitude.

There was no way to tell if this attitude was her personality talking or simply her cultural background, but Tatsuya and company (Erika excluded) found this to be a refreshing change of pace.

"Still, Lina was surprisingly capable. Though I knew that anyone selected to study abroad definitely has the skills to back it up, I seriously can't believe you can match Miyuki to that degree."

"No, I think I should be the one who is surprised."

At Mikihiko's praise, Lina widened her eyes in disbelief.

--Speaking of which, at least when compared to Miyuki, Mikihiko found Lina easier to talk to. When speaking to Miyuki, Mikihiko still spoke formally while he could speak more casually with Lina.

"I used to be undefeated in high level competitions like this, but I can never seem to beat Miyuki, and when against Honoka, I may win in overall skill but I still lose in complexity of design. As expected of the Japan, one of the strongest magical countries."

"Lina, practical exercises are just that and not a competition. I believe there's no point in dwelling on victory or defeat."

"Magic competitions are very important. While these are only practical exercises, I believe specifically choosing highly competitive subjects where victory matters is the only way to improve."

Faced with Miyuki's humble deflection, Lina charged forward with her counter argument, completely unafraid of any potential clash.

This was just the way she was, which was a refreshing change of pace in its own right.

"The will to compete is very important during contests, but surely there's no need to carry that beyond the event itself, right? Practical exercises are ultimately only practice and are fundamentally different than practical skills examinations that determine personal skill."

"......True. Maybe Tatsuya is right. I might have been a little too excited."

"Excitement isn't a bad thing. Miyuki has also become more motivated with a new opponent taking the field, so on that point, I should thank you, Lina."

Lina was frankly nodding her head in assent to Tatsuya's words in the beginning, but now she turned an incredulous expression towards him.

"It appeared! Tatsuya-kun's sis-con commentary!"

To one side, Erika gave off an "Ah ha" comment while pretending to sigh.

"Ah......

Oh, so that's how it is......

Tatsuya and Miyuki are on very good terms."

Swallowing a more impolite outburst, Tatsuya seemed to feel that the gaze Lina sent his way was rapidly dropping in temperature.

"Speaking of which, Lina, although this isn't really major......"

Detecting the atmosphere heading in a wonky direction, Tatsuya changed the subject.

"What is it?"

She sent a chilling gaze his way, but it was bereft of any condescension, so this was probably an act to parallel Erika's practical joke.

While this was the result he was hoping for based on his observations, there was no guarantee he was correct. Still, this was Tatsuya, and Tatsuya was not so tender that he would shut his mouth and retreat from just this.

"If I recall correctly, isn't "Angie" the usual nickname for "Angelina"?"

This was not supposed to be a groundbreaking question.

At least, that was the case for Erika, Mizuki, and Honoka, who were sitting at the table with them.

Yet, for one brief moment, Lina's expression definitely faltered.

"No, you remembered correctly, but the nickname "Angie" isn't as rare as you think. For comparison, I had a classmate in elementary school called "Angela" who was referred to as "Angie"."

"So that's why Lina prefers to known as "Lina" and not "Angie", eh." Tatsuya nodded his head in comprehension.

He never gave a hint that he discovered how badly Lina faltered just then.

First High did not have any student dorms.

Since there were only nine magic high schools in the entire country, it was inevitable that students from abroad would be present.

Thus, while student dorms didn't seem to be entirely out of the question, in this day and age, besides a few specialized boarding schools that viewed student dorms as an integral part of the curriculum, facilities such as student dorms were no longer in service.

In the modern age, HAR (Home Automation Robot) has already entered the mass market, purchase of daily items can be done online and delivered directly to the door, so students can freely live on their own without discomfort, making student dorms a redundant facility. Owing to the above reasons, most of the students who were unable to return to their family homes largely chose to rent housing close to the school. As a transfer student, there was nothing odd in Lina renting an apartment. Her house was only two bus stops from school, which was considered close proximity thanks to modern public transit. The reason that she did not rent a personal studio or a one room apartment and instead chose a small, family-sized apartment was because Lina wasn't living on her own.

"Welcome back, Lina."

"Silvie, back already?"

The moment Lina opened the door to the apartment, Warrant Officer Silvia, who was serving as her support on this mission, immediately greeted her as if she had been waiting for her arrival for quite some time.

"It's quite late now, isn't it?"

Lina smiled wryly upon hearing this after taking a roundabout way home and walked towards the dining room in her uniform. There was,

"Mina, you're here."

A young woman wearing a tense expression greeted Lina. She was standing in front of the table and had probably just conversed with Silvia.

"Yes, sorry for bothering you, Major."

The woman called Mina replied back in a stiff tone. With a perplexed smile on her face, Lina took a seat by the table.

"Please sit, Mina. Silvie, could I trouble you for some tea?"

Normally, Silvia would completely ignore the chain of command and fire back with "Given that you're a girl, you should fix your own tea". However, she wasn't someone who couldn't read the atmosphere.

"Is milk tea OK? Mina, would you like a cup?"

"Ah, OK, sorry for the trouble."

Silvia's question seemed to terrify Mina, but at least she loosened up a few degrees as she replied back.

The woman's full name was Michaela Hongo, or Mina for short. She shared Lina's Japanese-American heritage, but unlike Lina, Mina could fully blend in based on her appearance. Perhaps her skin tone was a little darker? This degree was not enough to raise eyebrows in Japan.

She was one of the spies who had entered Japan ahead of Lina's group. That being said, this wasn't her original occupation either. Her true identity was a magic researcher attached to the Department of Defense who specialized in Release-Systematic Magic. She was a talented woman who participated in last November's black hole experiment in Dallas. She volunteered for this mission in search of an alternate breakthrough for "annihilation reaction energy conversion" after the debacle at the Dallas Research Center.

Like many magic researchers, she was also a Magician. Unlike the fake students who came this month under the guise of mutual research, she had infiltrated the magic universities under the identity of a salesperson and engineer from the Japanese branch of Maximilian Industries, "Mia Hongo". Speaking of which, her current housing was directly next door to Lina's rented apartment. Despite not being combat or intelligence personnel, she still served as support and was concealed enough to serve as an active asset for this infiltration mission.

"Do you have any clues?"

Lina's initial question was posed for Silvia, who had just sat down after setting down the cups.

"I've gone over the publicized information, but so far I haven't found any new data."

"I see, looks like there's no way to get results quickly from that direction."

This time she turned towards Michaela. "How about your side, Mina?"

"Nothing here either......

Sorry."

Michaela had somewhat relaxed a little before curling up again out of anxiety.

It wasn't Lina's intent to make everyone so high strung like she was a strict person. However, ever since the end of last year, Michaela had always been extremely nervous around Lina since day one. Rather than saying (because) there was a divide between researchers and combat personnel, the more likely cause (reason) was because Lina stood at the pinnacle of USNA Magicians as "Sirius" despite her youth. Simply telling her to relax wasn't going to achieve anything. Even though it had already been two weeks since that day and they were now able to have some degree of interaction, this was only restricted to everyday conversation. In the short term, Lina herself knew that it was impossible to achieve the same degree of an easy working relationship she had with Silvia.

"How's your side Lina, did you get closer to the target?"

Hearing Silvia's question, Lina's expression seemed to be enveloped in fog.

"I feel that I haven't gotten closer at all."

Lina sighed and wore a bitter smile on her face.

"I haven't gotten a single piece of critical information and it seems like they've already seen through my disguise."

"......What are you talking about?"

"Tatsuya asked me "isn't Angie usually short for Angelina" and almost scared me half to death."

"Couldn't that be a coincidence?"

"I have no idea. I'm such a failure. So I guess I'm really not cut out for this (type of work), eh?"

Lina kept sighing deeply. Silvia filled her cup of milk tea again. Noticing that Silvia and Michaela were sending worried looks her way, Lina managed to find her second wind.

"Don't worry about it, my opponent is only a high school student after all. He shouldn't able to discern my identity as Sirius. Even if he suspects something, there's no way he'll stumble onto something concrete."

It didn't take a genius to tell that these brave words were only empty talk. In the beginning, Lina had already been tasked with identifying their target under any circumstances, so saying "not getting identified" was just empty talk. Silvia was well aware of this, but decided to abstain after considering that this would damage morale too badly. In addition, nor could she say that their opponent was no ordinary high school student.

After handing a robe to his sister, who just rose from the bed of the psion wave examination device in nothing but her underclothes, Tatsuya watched the examination results while his customary, machine-like poker face contained slight traces of concern that could not escape Miyuki's eyes.

"......Are you troubled by something? Onii-sama, please feel free to tell me anything. No matter what Onii-sama needs to say, I am always willing to listen."

Rather than calling this an overreaction, this was more like overly motivated.

As this thought ran across Tatsuya's mind, he was mystified as to how to respond and what expression to greet this with, and in the end only adopted a dry chuckle.

"No, rather than saying what troubles me, I think this time it's my own problem. Since the upper ceiling of the scale of magic design exceeded original expectations, the processing power of the CAD can no longer keep up with your Magic Power. I was planning on setting a larger magic calculation area inside...... You're over thinking this."

"I apologize."

"What are you apologizing for? I should be the one praising you."

Gently caressing his sister's hair as she kept her head bowed, Tatsuya smiled warmly at Miyuki when she raised her head.

Miyuki followed her brother's lead, more like mirrored her brother's smile. Everything was fine up until this point --

(......This is not the time to start blushing.)

Cognizant of the inherent danger -- largely presented by the cleavage peeking through the gaps in the robe -- Tatsuya quickly picked up the conversation.

"Looks like Lina transferring into the same class became an excellent stimulus."

Upon hearing Lina's name, the brilliant blush across Miyuki's face immediately faded.

"Indeed...... This may sound a little arrogant, but I've yet to meet an opponent of her caliber before."

This was not because the mood had been ruined. Miyuki wasn't the sort of woman who would be upset that another woman's name came from Tatsuya's lips. Her expression contained a visible degree of transparency for another reason altogether. A quiet, burning fighting spirit lurked in Miyuki's eyes.

"Oh yes, Onii-sama, your question earlier this morning was indeed?"

"You noticed?"

Tatsuya chuckled lightly as he said this. "As I suspected, Lina is "Sirius"."

Tatsuya declared this as his smile was replaced by a sharp expression. "As surmised, there's no way to hide these things from Miyuki."

Seeing Tatsuya laugh once more and raise his arms to stretch, Miyuki couldn't keep a straight face any longer and smiled mischievously while raising a finger towards Tatsuya.

"Of course, because Miyuki watches Onii-sama more closely than anyone else."

Tatsuya intentionally laughed aloud. There was no way to tell whether he felt that Miyuki was joking or he was simply trying to regard it as a joke.

Seeing her brother laugh, the only thing on Miyuki's mind was how badly she really wanted to know what Tatsuya was truly thinking about.

Rather because the basement (more like underground facility) air conditioning was still running, it was more like a flimsy robe covering her undergarments was the true reason why neither one of them could relax.

Miyuki needed to return to her room and change, so the two of them returned to the house.

What covered Miyuki's slim and exquisite legs were not a pair of black leggings or tights, but black stockings. The clothing around her upper body was rather loose and there was a hint of Miyuki's pale flesh between the mini-skirt and stockings.

This was all well and good while standing, but the moment Miyuki sat down, he immediately noticed that, wasn't this a terrible situation? -- And exactly why was this terrible, Tatsuya calculated.

Unaware of her brother's feelings -- not that he had any way of telling -- Miyuki placed the coffee mug in front of her brother.

Except today, she sat across from Tatsuya rather than on the sofa next to him.

She did not adopt a lotus-like posture and place her legs atop one another.

Rather, she placed her knees together and kept them slanted diagonally.

This was a very amorous posture which hinted at the secret charms beneath her skirt.

Uncertain of Miyuki's intention (the superficial intent was obvious, but the true meaning remained elusive), Tatsuya elected against focusing on that.

After making that decision, Tatsuya's gaze ceased wavering.

Across the table, he could detect a trace of displeasure from Miyuki, but he chose not to call her on it and began to speak while watching Miyuki.

"Continuing our earlier conversation, I believe there is a high possibility that Lina is "Angie Sirius"."

Last month, Tatsuya had received a warning from his aunt Yotsuba Maya that the USNA's Army Magician unit Stars had begun investigating the Magician responsible for the Strategic-Class Magic "Material Burst". At the time, Maya had made it very clear that Tatsuya and Miyuki were likely to be included among the possible suspects.

Tatsuya believed that Lina coming to First High was likely one aspect of the ongoing intelligence war.

"Currently, the problem is that we have uncovered Sirius's identity despite our opponent's efforts to conceal her identity. In addition, we can also see that they are trying to unravel our true identities."

It was only natural that Tatsuya was confused, given the inexplicably weak personal and mental defenses around Lina, at least by USNA standards. The reason behind this remained beyond Tatsuya's grasp at the moment.

"Furthermore --"

Maybe he would burst into laughter upon learning the truth, but right now Tatsuya wore a serious expression as he continued his analysis.

"Why would USNA send Sirius, who is practically their trump card, over here?"

Miyuki had long since switched gears and was following Tatsuya's example by adopting a serious tone of her own.

"Just so. Based on the observations in the past week, I feel that Lina's strengths do not lie in intelligence work. I fear that her real mission may lie elsewhere and her disguise is meant for that."

""Sirius" simply covers too many angles......"

"Assuming Lina is Sirius...... Her infiltration mission may just be a cover. Her real target may lie somewhere else."

"To force the USNA to invest Sirius into an international mission......

What could it be?"

They might be dwelling on this too much, but fortunately the two of them were still in the dark.

"I have no idea......

However, I think right now we don't have to focus on that."

From an omniscient perspective, Tatsuya's speculation had already drifted off subject as his tone suddenly lost its earlier intensity.

"We are very fortunate that America has provided you with an excellent opponent, Miyuki."

Nonetheless, his earnest tone did not disappear. "Indeed, Onii-sama."

At her brother's sincere tone and gaze, Miyuki changed her tone.

"Compete against Lina with all your might. We were just talking about it this morning, but we should care about victory or defeat. That will push you to a higher plane than ever before."

"Yes."

"Mutual competition as the fuel for growth applies towards Lina as well, but right now you don't have to worry about that. This is a rare opportunity."

Hearing Tatsuya's powerful words, Miyuki revealed a serene smile without a trace of unease.

"That's true. Also, Miyuki has Onii-sama with her. So long as Onii- sama is by my side, I will fear no foe, even if they be Sirius herself."

Tatsuya's words spoke of a rival and not an opponent.

There was a slight feeling from Miyuki's words that she was a little off topic.

However, in the face of Miyuki's limitless faith, Tatsuya nodded his head without any hesitation.

There were quite a few alterations in Tatsuya's extracurricular activities. On paper there were only two, staying in the library or patrolling the grounds as a member of the Public Moral Committee, but the latter presented many interruptions.

Enough to give one pause and consider if someone was conspiring something.

Today, this feeling was particularly prominent.

While Public Moral Committee members were bestowed with the right to carry CADs on campus, however Tatsuya typically didn't use one while executing his duties to the committee.

Originally, CADs were tools that shortened the time needed to activate the Four Systematic Magics. It was only of limited use to other magic, such as Outer-Systematic Magic, Non-Systematic Magic, Ancient Magic, and especially if Non-Systematic Magic was only releasing psions to the point that the lack of a CAD would not seem unnatural at all.

After accidentally revealing his ability to use Gram Demolition during the Nine Schools Competition, Tatsuya restricted himself to Non- Systematic Magic outside of class since the start of the second semester. This was more than enough to handle any trouble, so there was no need to carry a CAD.

The reason he carried the committee's CAD while on patrol was because of its demonstrative power. Although they did not possess great power as a deterrent, Tatsuya customarily returned to HQ before his patrol and put on CADs on his two wrists.

As was usual, Tatsuya headed for the committee HQ after class today and saw Lina's figure. Even from afar, that blaze of golden hair was unmistakable.

Suppressing the urge to flee based on premonitions of trouble, Tatsuya worked hard to keep his voice level.

"Good morning."

He had long become accustomed to the committee members' greetings that paid no heed to the time of day. He walked past the crowd -- which was actually no more than 5 people, and deftly finished the preparations on his hands.

"Ah, Shiba-kun, perfect."

Unfortunately, Tatsuya was nabbed by Kanon.

His ability to hide his disappointment was the product of his daily training(?).

"What is it?"

Tatsuya's voice did not betray any subjective or objective warmth. It was both a strong and weak point for Kanon that she paid no attention to details such as this.

"This is Shields-san. I believe you already know her?"

It wasn't much of a question. Of course, Tatsuya's only option was to nod.

"Shields-san wishes to observe the Public Moral Committee's daily activities. I believe she wanted to see how Japanese magic high schools govern themselves. Shiba-kun is on duty today, so would you be able to bring her along?"

How troublesome, Tatsuya thought. He was unclear on Lina's intentions, but he felt this definitely raised the probability of troublesome events happening. This was a guarantee, since he was sure they would run into male students (all the upperclassmen) enamored of Lina watching him with sharp gazes. Even if he was spared the jealous glares within the committee, he didn't dare to imagine how incredibly irritating it would be to walk around campus with Lina in tow. Alas, both Lina's request and Tatsuya's appointment were perfectly logical turns of events.

"Understood."

Tatsuya had no options but to offer an immediate and unconditional surrender.

Lina had recently transferred here so there wasn't much of a surprise, but this was the first time they were walking together alone. Strictly speaking, with all the students milling about the two of them weren't walking alone on campus, but the uncomfortable atmosphere wasn't likely to change depending on whether other people were present or not.

First of all, in Tatsuya's defense, the uncomfortable atmosphere wasn't because he had an amazing beauty like Lina walking next to him, but because Lina never let up on that inquisitive feeling of hers. Every once in a while, she would secretly sneak a "Hm~~" peek at Tatsuya, and, despite her efforts at trying to conceal these looks, Tatsuya felt that they were only digging her deeper.

Even so, Tatsuya couldn't just directly come back with "You're a spy, aren't you". The pressure just kept building like a volcano ready to burst.

"Did Lina's old school not have this system?"

Tatsuya felt that he couldn't stand this silent drama any longer (technically, they were only a dozen yards from HQ). What sort of heavy silence is this, Tatsuya thought as he indulged in his rarely seen sense of public service and provided the initial question. -- Now that he thought about it, that was a terribly malicious question.

"Eh? Uh......"

Malicious, because he could see Lina's anxiety.

Rumor had it that everyone bestowed with the title of "Sirius" was a front line fighter through and through. Surely it wasn't possible that Lina never went through infiltration training, Tatsuya thought, unable to decide if he wanted to laugh or cry.

"......It can't be helped if a Year 1 student doesn't know anything about it."

Feeling somewhat guilty for Lina's distressed state, Tatsuya tried to give her a way out. There was no need to shred her disguise, since putting all the cards on the table would only make things more troublesome.

"Eh...... Ah, just so. That's the reason why I wanted to understand the secret to why a Year 1 student could join in this activity on this campus."

She wasn't really adept at handling curve balls, but she had a good head on her shoulders, Tatsuya thought. She was nimble enough to grab the lifeline that other people threw to her, which might actually put her on a better footing than his own sister.

As he suspected, he was being stabbed left and right by all sorts of gazes. However, probably wary of leaving a negative impression in front of the transfer student, no one actually made a move against him.

As such, Tatsuya led Lina through the primary practical exercise rooms and research labs. This patrol accompanied with explanations gave the impression that he was giving a campus tour.

Lina halted her footsteps at one end of the building that ran alongside the research labs near the staircase that led to the neighboring building.

"Are you tired? Do you want to head back?"

Of course, he knew that this wasn't the real reason she stopped. He was only using this to open the conversation.

"No, I'm fine."

Her tone gave the impression that she wasn't sure where to begin. "What is it?"

At Tatsuya's urging, Lina finally broke free of her hesitation. "Tatsuya is a substitute -- a Course 2 student, correct?"

"That's true, is there a problem?"

It had been a long time since someone came straight out with that question. Is it this again? Rather than having that feeling, he was rather refreshed by this and replied with a question of his own.

"When I asked Miyuki as to why you wore a different uniform than everyone else in Class A, she told me in a rather annoyed voice."

Lina burst into laughter when she recalled that incident. That certainly sounded like Miyuki's button being pressed, Tatsuya chuckled wryly.

"But, when I asked Kanon earlier, she said that Tatsuya stands in the top tier among Magicians in First High."

When Tatsuya heard Kanon's name pronounced as "cannon", he unilaterally interpreted it as canon rather than cannon -- calling Kanon a cannon was a little too insulting.

With so many unnecessary things running through his head, comprehending what Lina was trying to say took more time than usual.

"Tatsuya, why are you pretending to be a poor student? And since you are pretending to be a poor student, why did you so easily reveal your true strength? Tatsuya's behavior is highly irregular so I don't understand why you went about it the way you did."

After listening to Lina's question to the end, he finally understood what Lina really wanted to say.

"I have no idea what you asked Chiyoda-senpai, but it's not like I was pretending to do nothing. I truly am a poor student."

Fortunately, Lina gave a detailed explanation in order to convey her question and didn't just leave Tatsuya hanging, or he really might have embarrassed himself. He really needed to curtail those unnecessary thoughts, Tatsuya thought.

"The practical skills examination is dependent on speed, scale, and interference strength and is based on international standards. However, victory or defeat in live combat does not depend strictly on those three variables. Originally, physical prowess plays a huge role in live combat. While my practical skills examination labeled me a poor student, I can hold my own in a fight. Simple as that."

That was the indisputable truth. Tatsuya believed this was enough to answer the question, or on some level, deflect the question.

"......I do agree that practical skill scores and combat capability are two different things."

However, Lina's words were not expected and seemed to hint at something more.

"I too was someone who wasn't amazing at school but was a Magician who was useful on the battlefield."

A suspicious aura seemed to slowly emanate from Lina's body. "Isn't that wonderful?"

The warmth in Tatsuya's eyes vanished.

"I can tell, you're good."

Before that cold, or rather, steely gaze, Lina let out a dazzling smile.

This was not a blossoming flower, but the beauty of a razor sharp blade honed to its finest.

Lina's hand suddenly moved!

Tatsuya swiftly intercepted the striking palm.

The edged right hand that Lina used the smallest possible movement to stab forward with was caught at the wrist by Tatsuya.

The thrusting palm aimed for Tatsuya's chin was intercepted before it could even reach the throat.

Lina shifted the captured right hand into a pistol shape and stabbed forward with her index finger.

A terrifying claw came whistling towards Tatsuya's face. In a flash, Tatsuya flung Lina's right hand to one side.

Lina frowned as the psion light gathered at the tip of her index finger was dispersed before the blow landed.

"How dangerous."

"I believed that you would dodge it."

"Care to explain this for me?"

"Before that, can you let go of my hand? That stings, and this position is a little embarrassing for me."

In order to fling her hand to one side, the distance between Tatsuya and Lina's bodies had closed quite a bit. From the side, it looked like Tatsuya was attacking Lina -- and forcing a kiss.

Tatsuya immediately let go of Lina's hand. However, his eyes gave no hint of shame or remorse.

"Seriously, that hurt. You even left......

Huh? No trace? Precision strength control?"

Lina wore a perplexed expression as she used her left hand to pull back her right sleeve.

"After striking at the pressure point on another person's face, letting you experience a little pain is the least you deserve."

"That was only a simple psion block that contains no threat whatsoever. The most it could do was give the impression of being struck by a gun."

"I do believe that more than justifies your violent treatment."

Even after seeing such a warm smile, Tatsuya's expression didn't relax in the slightest.

Lina could only sigh and raise both arms.

"I get it, I get it. Please forgive my rudeness, Tatsuya-sama."

Lina reset her attitude and formally bowed to Tatsuya before raising her head.

The once severe expression on Tatsuya's face suddenly curved at the corners of his mouth for some bizarre reason.

"......Is there anything else?"

"No, that is sufficient. I think we can talk normally in the future. Though this refinement doesn't seem like Lina at all."

It appeared that the change in corners of Tatsuya's mouth was because he felt that it didn't suit her.

"In what way am I not refined!"

"Your character."

He wasn't sure whether she would get the meaning of a vague term like "character", but given Lina's fluent Japanese there should be no problem, hence Tatsuya skipped the explanation time.

Then, whether this was a blessing or a curse, she successfully interpreted his words.

"There's no such thing! At the very least, I've been invited to tea with the President!"

Propelled onward, Lina was trying to prove her elegance. "Oh......"

Hearing this, Tatsuya chuckled lightly.

Amid this laughter, there were hints of chilling frost.

On reflex, Lina covered her mouth.

In Tatsuya's expression, she could see Mephistopheles grinning at her.

"The President, eh......"

There were many in positions of power that could give even Magicians, capable of murder without any weapon, pause. Even in a country like Japan that had very low walls, there were a few special people in power that even Magicians had to take periodical antidotes to defuse the poison in their bodies before meeting them.

In the USNA, the only Magician who could meet the President face to face was probably......

"I've been had, right......?"

Unwilling to accept the outcome, Lina glared at Tatsuya, but this debacle was entirely on Lina herself.

"My infamy precedes me. It was pure coincidence that the conversation went the direction it did. In regards to that question, I believe Lina imploded on your own, correct? After all, Lina was the one who instigated this."

And that is what it's like to suffer in silence. The only thing Lina could do was continue to stare at Tatsuya in frustration.

"So, should you explain why you went about doing this?"

"......I just wanted to know how capable Tatsuya is."

"How capable I am? For what?"

Lina's eyes drifted away from Tatsuya as he stood there frowning in suspicion.

"Nothing really......

It was out of pure curiosity."

"Curiosity......

You did all of this just for that."

Easily seeing through this blatant lie, Tatsuya continued to murmur. Lina sulkily gave a small "Hmph".

"......

Strictly speaking, that is true. Actually....."

Muttering softly, Lina dragged her gaze back to Tatsuya. "I wanted to know if you wanted to come to the USNA."

"Me, to America?"

"In my opinion, you have such a high level of skill yet are relegated to such a lowly position, wouldn't you want to be on a stage that gives you the recognition you deserve. While a Magician's grade is assessed in America much like the international standard, there are still places that aren't like that. America is a free and diverse country. There's no way that you would be relegated to a substitute simply because you're lacking in one area. I believe that Tatsuya will be recognized as befitting your true potential."

"An interesting declaration."

Faced with an unexpected invitation, Tatsuya's attitude softened somewhat.

"In that case......"

Seeing this, Lina immediately charged into the breech. "If that was the unadulterated truth."

However, Tatsuya's satire immediately took the wind from her sails.

"Lina, where exactly is this unorthodox place that prizes merit above all else? Say, Arlington?"

Arlington used to be a naval academy, but was now one of the primary providers for Magicians and magic researchers in the USNA military.

"......Yes. But, there are other places."

"Lina, assessment based on merit is designed to select the right way to use tools."

Despite the fact that Tatsuya's tone remained mocking, it lacked the chilling cold that deafened the soul.

"In regards to selecting Magicians best suited for the military, Arlington and the JSDF are two sides of the same coin. On some level, there will be a few differences."

In the end, Tatsuya seemed to be providing guidance for a friend. "Oh well, forget it."

"Eh......?"

Suddenly, Tatsuya murmured something as if nothing mattered.

Lina was unable to follow this abrupt change in gears and could only reply with a befuddled voice and expression.

"Lina was just trying to test my skills, is that right?"

"Uh...... Yes."

"Then let's leave it there. Please refrain from doing such things in the future."

Isn't it about time for you to go? Urging her to do so, Tatsuya's expression was now no different than usual.

Lina could no longer tell the difference from the usual Tatsuya. "Don't you have anything you want to ask me?"

It was understandable that Tatsuya wanted to pretend that scene never happened. This was also in Lina's best interests. However, she had no idea why Tatsuya would do this, or his intentions.

It was incredibly fortunate that Tatsuya wasn't asking any questions and Lina knew she could be trampling on his kind gesture, but she couldn't resist her own question.

"Ask what?"

"What do you mean? Like......

My real identity or something, don't you want to know?"

"Don't worry about it. There are some stones in the world better left untouched."

Lina wasn't certain if he was being truthful or evasive.

The human being known as Shiba Tatsuya was too incomprehensible for Lina.

"......You, are incredibly irritating."

Tatsuya only shrugged his shoulders and turned around at Lina's blunt accusation.

At the same time that she was following his back, Lina was clairvoyant that the word "irritating" didn't refer to its superficial meaning.