Gakusen Toshi Asterisk - Volume 13 - Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8 
COUNTER-PREPARATIONS 
When Ayato arrived at the room at the Hotel Elnath, Saya and Sylvia were already waiting for him. 
“Well, howdy there, Ayato. Welcome.” 
“Thanks for coming, Ayato.” 
Both Saya, lying flopped down and disheveled on the sofa as she munched a snack, and Sylvia, brewing a pot of tea, greeted him. 
They had all come for one of their regular meetings to discuss the Golden Bough Alliance—although, strictly speaking, the meeting wasn’t scheduled to begin for a short while yet. 
“You too. And congratulations on making it through the preliminaries as well,” Ayato replied warmly. 
Grinning, Saya and Sylvia exchanged gleeful glances. 
“It was nothing.” 
“The same goes for you, Ayato. Congratulations!” 
“Ha-ha, thanks.” 
As it happened, he, too, had safely made it through the third round of the preliminaries yesterday and, like the others, had qualified for the main tournament. 
They had already called to offer their congratulations after each match, but there was something different about conveying them face-to-face. 
“It was tougher than I expected, though, given that they were just the preliminaries. There’s something different about the entrants this time around compared to the Phoenix and the Gryps, like they’ve got a different mindset when it comes to combat.” 
“Right?” Sylvia answered. “I get the impression that there are a lot more high-end opponents this time around.” 
“Oh? I had an easy time of it, though.” Saya, on the other hand, flashed them both a triumphant grin. 
“Well… I suppose your matches were all over and done with relatively quickly,” Ayato remarked. 
There weren’t many people who were capable of withstanding a direct hit from one of her Luxes. 
“You were probably also lucky in your pairings, though, I think.” 
“How rude. It’s a simple fact. I cruised through to victory, while you almost lost your first match, and Sylvia was put in a difficult situation in her match against Priscilla.” 
“Well, I can’t deny that…” 
“Ha-ha, what can I say…?” 
Both Ayato and Sylvia could do little but exchange embarrassed grins. 
Certainly, their respective performances spoke for themselves. 
“Ah, speaking of which… Have you seen the bracket for the main tournament?” 
“Of course.” 
Today was the very middle of the Lindvolus, with no matches scheduled. It was also the day when the bracket for the main tournament was drawn, and the announcement had been made just a short time ago. 
“That’s…,” Sylvia began, when— 
“Phew… Thank you for coming, everyone. Are we all here?” As the door swung open, Claudia, wearing a large coat, entered the room. 
As Seidoukan Academy’s student council president, Claudia had been required to attend the drawing of the tournament bracket, so she must have hurried here right after it had finished. 
“C-congratulations, everyone!” Behind her stood Kirin, having accompanied her to the Sirius Dome. 
After sneaking into Seven the other day, she probably wanted to report what she had found directly to Claudia prior to the meeting. So far, Ayato had only heard the basic facts. 
“It’s good to see you both. But, er, what about Helga, Haruka, and Isabella? Aren’t we still waiting for them…?” Ayato asked, before he found himself widening his eyes in shock. 
After Kirin came another, completely unexpected individual. 
“Yo! Congrats!” 
“E-Eishirou…?” 
Saya and Sylvia looked back and forth with suspicion at both Claudia and the always-jovial Eishirou. 
“Yes, I understand your concerns,” Claudia continued. “If you’ll allow me to explain…” 
 
Late the previous night— 
Eishirou found himself shivering as he made his way through the dark courtyard at Seidoukan Academy, lit only by a few distant lampposts. 
While he had been trained to withstand cold temperatures, that didn’t mean he couldn’t feel the biting chill. The wintry air was enough to seep deep into one’s bones. He rubbed his hands together, wanting nothing more than to get this little errand over with, when he spotted a figure standing in front of the gazebo. 
“Yo,” he greeted. “Did I keep you waiting?” 
The figure—Seidoukan Academy’s student council president, Claudia Enfield—broke into a broad smile. “Not at all. You’re right on time, Yabuki.” 
“So what is it? It must be pretty important if you’re gonna call me out here at this hour right when you’re so busy.” 
If she had merely wanted to provide Eishirou with normal instructions as a member of Shadowstar, Seidoukan’s covert intelligence organization, then the regular private line would have sufficed. In other words, seeing as she desired to discuss it with him in person, what she wanted clearly wasn’t typical. 
“Indeed, it’s very important.” Still smiling, Claudia reached into her coat with both hands and pulled out the Pan-Dora, activating it. The twin blades let off an ominous glint, drawing a glowing arc through the air like falling meteors. 
“Wha—?! H-h-hold on a sec! What’re you doing, Prez?! Did I do something wrong?!” Flustered, he stepped backward, raising his hands into the air to show that he meant no harm. 
“As you said, I’m very busy. So let’s dispense with the pleasantries, shall we?” 
“…What is it?” Eishirou asked timidly, still shrinking backward. 
“I’m not going to beat around the bush. Yabuki, who did you tell about Kirin’s whereabouts? About her going to Seven?” 
“Huh…?” Eishirou found himself at a loss for words. “Um, er, what do you mean, exactly…?” 
“I thought I told you that we were dispensing with the pleasantries, Yabuki?” Claudia said, thrusting the tip of one of the Pan-Dora’s twin blades dangerously close to his nose. 
“Er, I mean…” 
He glanced left and right uncertainly, but Claudia wasn’t one to let down her guard. 
“I’ve always known that you’ve accepted private assignments on the side, Yabuki. But you’re not the kind of person to slip up and leave any evidence behind.” 
“No, no, you think too highly of me…” 
As it happened, despite being a member of Shadowstar, Eishirou had been secretly accepting work from his own private network of contacts. He liked to think of it as freelancing. Of course, no agent of any intelligence organization would ever be permitted to do such a thing, but he had never left anything behind that could have been traced back to him…or so he had thought. 
“I do respect your humility. Indeed, that’s precisely why I place so much stock in you.” 
“…Huh?” 
“When you agree to a job, it doesn’t matter to you whether it implicates your friends or even a lover. Am I right?” 
“…” 
Eishirou fell silent. What Claudia had said was correct, in a sense. 
What he wanted most in his work was the ability to enjoy himself. If a prospective job met that standard, then he would accept it, no matter what it might entail. 
He always wanted to live life as leisurely as possible. He treasured his friends—and lovers, too, if he had any—and, of course, felt a sense of obligation and duty toward them, but at the same time, they were also something of a burden. And if you’re weighed down, you can’t easily enjoy life. That was why, every now and then, he would put them aside so he could enjoy the present moment. 
“I wouldn’t exactly call you ruthless, but it is an excellent quality for an agent like yourself.” Still holding the Pan-Dora in front of his face, Claudia gradually drew closer, forcing him to step backward. “So I wouldn’t normally hold it against you. After all, I’ve also made use of your services on occasion. However…this time is different. I’m serious. This time, I’m talking to you not as Seidoukan Academy’s student council president, but as the individual Claudia Enfield.” 
“Ha-ha-ha…” He pulled a stiff smile, trying to convince her to ease up, but he knew that it wouldn’t save him this time. 
Because she was right. He had taken on an assignment to monitor their movements—hers and the others’, too. And as part of that, he had reported that Kirin was en route to Seven. 
“W-well, okay! Let’s say I did do it! Hypothetically. Let’s say I did take on the job… If I were to give up the client, you’d go easy on me, right…? I mean, come on, Prez, you know what it’s like. In this line of work, nobody follows the rules all the time, you know?” 
Of course, he knew that if he was to reveal the identity of one of his clients, he would probably never be able to find work again. 
“Hee-hee. Of course I understand,” Claudia replied with a light chuckle. “So how about this? You will give up your freelance work and take instructions only from me.” 
“Ah…” 
Eishirou knew that he was in no position to protest her proposal. 
What she wanted was to cut him off from all external clients and pull him into her own circle. 
I suppose she timed this on purpose…? 
He’d had a basic idea of what she was doing for a while now, having indirectly picked up dribs and drabs from his conversations with Ayato. He had understood, too, that she had known about his side business as well but had been willing to overlook it so she could rely on his services when she herself required them. 
Why then, having called him out like this, was she willing to overlook his actions? He had assumed she had still seen some utility value in keeping him around, but judging by the present situation, it appeared he had been mistaken. 
But no, she had waited until the situation had completely ripened so she could harvest him for herself—and by doing so, acquire vital information on her enemies, eliminate one of their pieces, and fortify her position. 
“…Well played, Prez,” Eishirou murmured, his expression softening. “But there’s something I don’t get. You said I’m not the kind of person to leave evidence behind. In that case…?” 
“Indeed. Regrettably, I had no direct evidence. You truly are outstanding, Yabuki. But unfortunately for you…I don’t need proof.” 
At that moment, a cold shiver shooting down his spine, Eishirou leaped backward. 
“…!” 
“Oh? Whatever is the matter?” Her broad smile remained unchanging, but it was clear that raw bloodlust was flowing through her body. As they came flying toward him, her twin blades glowed eerily in the dark night like stray wisps. 
“You’re serious, Prez…?” 
“I told you that right from the start, didn’t I?” 
“…I guess I’ve got no choice, then.” Eishirou grasped the knife-type Lux that he always kept available at his waist, readying himself—or at least pretending to. 
“Take that!” he cried out, slamming the smoke bomb that he had been hiding into the ground. 
These kinds of old-fashioned techniques never grew outdated. The smoke bomb was an old ninja tool mass-produced at his home village, the white smoke that erupted from it engulfing the whole area in less than a second and hiding his movements even from most digital sensors. 
There’s no way I’d be able to win against her… 
Claudia may have used up most of the Pan-Dora’s stock during the Gryps, but more than a year had passed since then. He might have had a chance if he could have taken her by surprise, but he knew there was no chance whatsoever that he would be able to triumph in a direct fight. 
The best thing for him to do now would be to make his escape and lie low for a while. He could think about his next moves later. 
But as he tried to flee, something appeared out of the corner of his eyes, tripping him up and sending him tumbling to the ground. 
“Eh…? Gah…?!” 
Lying facedown, he felt something sharp press against his back. 
In terrified shock, he waited for the smoke to clear, until finally he could make out Claudia standing over him with an elegant smile. 
“H-how…?” 
He had used the smoke bomb in an attempt to counter her precognition ability. Given that she could see into the future (but only in the literal sense), his only hope of escape, he had reasoned, would be to obstruct her vision. It should have been flawless. He himself knew the grounds of the academy like the back of his hand, enough so that he could get away without being able to see and had countless escape routes already planned out. 

Of course, if she could test future outcomes hundreds of times over, the likelihood of finding a winning course of action wasn’t zero, but that kind of blind trial and error should have exhausted her stock in no time at all. Even if she had begun using her ability before he had thrown the smoke bomb, she still shouldn’t have been able to use it to stop his escape. 
At least, that was what he had thought. 
“Heh… This is a bit rough, huh…?” 
For some reason he couldn’t fathom, Claudia’s face was twisted in pain. Perhaps she was fatigued or injured, but even so, she wasn’t the kind of person to normally let her emotions show so plainly. 
“…What exactly did you just do, Prez?” 
“I’m afraid that’s a secret,” she replied with a forced smile as she crossed her blades over either side of his neck. Was she planning to shear his head clean off? 
“Do you know the other reason why I think so highly of you, Yabuki?” 
“I—I haven’t got the faintest clue…” 
In his present situation, it would be unwise to crack a joke. 
“Because you’ll always put yourself first, no matter what… Just like I used to.” With this, her perennial smile completely vanished. “Normally, we would expect an agent of Shadowstar—no, any agent from any intelligence organization—to prioritize completing their mission and guarding their secrets to the last. That’s precisely why we entrust them with such vital work.” 
That went without saying. Le Wolfe’s Grimalkin was practically the very epitome of that selfless ethic. 
“But you don’t like such individuals, do you, Yabuki? I think it’s fair to say that you even despise them.” 
“…Well, I can’t argue with that.” 
Indeed, that was why he had left his home village in the first place. 
“If I was a third-rate villain in some movie, I wonder what I would say right now? ‘Spit it out! Tell me what I want to know, and I’ll let you live,’ maybe?” 
“…And I would say ‘Never,’ I suppose… Haah, I get it. You’ve got me beat. I’ll talk.” 
As Claudia had said, if Eishirou were a typical agent, he would never be willing to break his silence. 
But he wasn’t a typical agent—he was, when it came down to it, Eishirou Yabuki, and that meant something very different. 
“Very good,” Claudia replied, nodding with satisfaction. 
 
“And so Yabuki will be joining us starting now. Let’s not hold against him the fact that he was selling information on his friends.” 
“Thanks for that, really,” Eishirou said in his usual frivolous tone as he bowed his head. “I’m looking forward to working with you all!” 
“…” 
Ayato, who had been sitting for a while now in mute silence, watched as Saya creased her brow in a frown—and then, all of a sudden, pulled out a gargantuan gun-type Lux, aiming it directly at their classmate. 
“One shot won’t hurt, will it?” 
“H-hold on, hold on, Sasamiya! I— I’m sorry! I really am!” Having turned deathly pale, Eishirou raised his empty hands into the air in supplication. 
“I understand your feelings, Saya, but please, lower your weapon,” Claudia said, cutting through the hostile atmosphere. 
“But it’s his fault that Kirin was almost…,” Saya murmured darkly. 
“I— I’m okay, really,” Kirin interjected, flustered. “Anyway, Mr. Yabuki should have all kinds of useful information to offer us…” 
At this, Saya reluctantly deactivated her Lux. 
“Indeed, that’s what matters most right now. Won’t you tell us all again who you informed about Kirin’s going to Seven, Yabuki?” Claudia asked politely. 
“…It was the Tyrant.” 
“!” 
At the sound of that name, a tense current coursed through the room. 
The Tyrant—Le Wolfe Black Institute’s student council president, Dirk Eberwein. It was he who had directed Irene and Priscilla to enter the Phoenix and who—although Ayato and the others had no direct proof—had in all likelihood ordered Flora’s abduction. Ayato’s fate seemed to be closely linked to the man. 
“So you’re saying that Dirk is part of the Golden Bough Alliance?” Sylvia asked sharply. 
“It would seem that way.” Claudia nodded seriously. 
“Ah… That will be a nuisance.” Sylvia let out a weary sigh. 
With both Claudia and Sylvia being student council presidents at their respective schools, they both knew how problematic Dirk would be to deal with. 
“I guess it’s fair to say that it’s not Le Wolfe itself but Dirk Eberwein who’s involved in it, then?” Ayato asked. 
“That’s my mother’s assessment, too. And I concur. It would simply be too risky for a foundation to get involved with this kind of thing,” Claudia answered with a forced smile. 
Her mother, Isabella, along with Helga, the captain of the city guard, and Ayato’s sister, Haruka, were all absent from the meeting due to their busy schedules. 
“Hmm… In that case, can we rule out Gallardworth and Allekant having any involvement?” Sylvia asked. 
“Ah, you mean Agrestia and those autonomous puppets? I suspect that the schools aren’t directly involved there, either.” 
“What makes you so sure? Gardner was using the Holy Grail, no? Gallardworth doesn’t even allow private battles, and they sure wouldn’t let someone use one of their Orga Luxes in one,” Sylvia pointed out. 
At this, Claudia turned toward Eishirou. 
“Right, right,” he began. “Er, I looked into it. It sounds like our friend Percival Gardner went missing a few months ago. Taking the Holy Grail with her. Officially, they’re saying she’s taken a leave of absence, but Sinodomius has been busy frantically trying to track her down.” 
“That being the case, I think we can safely rule out any direct involvement on the part of Gallardworth. I’m going to have Eishirou look into Agrestia a bit more himself. If push comes to shove, we can use it as leverage against the academy.” 
“…All right. That sounds reasonable,” Sylvia replied. 
Saya raised her hand. “What about Allekant, then? Kirin said that those puppets were almost identical to Ardy. In that case…” She fell silent there, her expression grave. 
“Indeed. Putting the school itself aside, we can’t rule out the possibility that their Pygmalion faction is cooperating with the Golden Bough Alliance. That said, Pygmalion’s leader, Ernesta Kühne, seems to be fixated on creating puppets with humanlike emotions, thoughts, and the ability to grow. But from what Kirin reported, those puppets were more akin to mass-produced weapons, no?” 
“Hmm…” 
“And hasn’t she introduced a new autonomous puppet for the Lindvolus? What was its name again…? Lenaty?” 
“Yep. That was pretty sneaky. You can’t afford to let yourself be fooled by its looks.” 
Listening to Saya, Ayato imagined that puppet, almost indistinguishable from a flesh-and-blood young girl. She had cruised through the preliminaries with her overwhelming attack power and mobility, but he suspected she hadn’t yet revealed her full battle potential. 
“Hmm… Ernesta does seem like quite the pragmatist. She might have simply offered some of her technology to them? Although, I suppose that if that was the case, we can’t really say she’s not involved, then, can we?” 
“Th-the Golden Bough Alliance has an Orga Lux that can brainwash people, though, right? They might be manipulating them, then…” 
Ayato nodded. Sylvia’s and Kirin’s explanations made sense. 
“Right. In that case, the Varda-Vaos may be controlling Agrestia or Dirk…,” Ayato murmured. 
“Ah, I don’t know about Agrestia, but something tells me that’s not the case for the Tyrant.” 
“Yep, I doubt it.” 
Claudia and Sylvia were quick to challenge his suggestion. 
“There’s no manipulating that one.” 
“Not at all.” 
The two nodded to each other as if sharing an inside secret. 
“Anyway, let’s have Yabuki look into the situation at Allekant as well.” 
“Good grief, cut me some slack,” Eishirou replied with an exaggerated shrug. 
“But…it sounds like we’ve just stumbled on too many clues all at once. It doesn’t make sense,” Saya said suspiciously as she sat deep in thought, her arms crossed. 
“That’s… I think so, too.” Kirin looked to be equally doubtful. “Could they be trying to lure us into a trap?” 
“We have to consider that possibility as well. However, we should probably expect them to leave behind more clues as their plans move further along. They’ve been lying in wait for the most part, until now. And as powerful as the Varda-Vaos is, she—I’ll call it she for convenience’s sake—seems to have been making frequent journeys in and out of Asterisk. I haven’t been able to work out what she’s doing outside the city just yet, but the group’s ability to conceal itself drops markedly while she’s away. The fact that they’re coming out into the open now in spite of that suggests that their plans are coming to a head.” 
“You say they don’t mind revealing their plans a little… But what exactly is this Golden Bough Alliance trying to do?” 
But of course, none of them could answer Ayato’s question. 
While they were coming close to pulling back the curtain on the organization, they still had no real idea what their ultimate endgame was. If they knew that, they might have been able to find a better way to deal with them. 
“Putting all that aside, the main tournament starts tomorrow. Everyone taking part should focus on that first,” Claudia said with a decisive clap, changing the subject. 
“R-right,” Kirin added, clapping her own hands together lightly. “Especially now that you’ve all made it through the preliminaries. I’m just glad to see that Saya and Sylvia have been allocated to a different block than Ayato.” 
“It’s a relief. If everything goes well, I’ll be able to fight Rimcy in the quarterfinals. I won’t get in Ayato’s way.” 
“And all I want is to fight Orphelia in the quarterfinals, so it’s fine with me, too.” 
Ayato needed to secure for himself the ultimate victory, but all Saya and Sylvia wanted was to defeat certain opponents. In that regard, the bracket had worked out in their favor. 
However— 
“B-but if Ayato’s going to take the crown, then…,” Kirin began. 
“Indeed… He may end up fighting Julis in the semifinals,” Claudia finished for her. 
Both Ayato and Julis had been allocated to the same block, so assuming they both made it through all their matches, they would end up facing each other in the semifinals. There was no escaping that fact, given how the lottery had been drawn. On top of that, Julis’s goal in the tournament was to defeat Orphelia, but in order to do that, she would need to go through Ayato first. 
He didn’t want to fight her, if he could help it. 
He couldn’t say that he fully understood her situation, but he could see that she was willing to bet everything on this opportunity. 
And yet, as Haruka’s life depended on his own victory, he couldn’t relent, either. 
“Well, let’s just focus on what we know is ahead of us, Ayato,” Sylvia said, patting him on the back. “Both of our matches are tomorrow, after all.” 
“…Right,” he replied, flashing her a grateful smile. 
“I’m up against…someone from Le Wolfe,” Sylvia began. “From what I’ve seen, they aren’t quite at Priscilla’s level. I won’t let my guard down, though.” 
“And I’m… What a bother. Why do I have to get this kind of opponent right from the get-go?” In contrast to Sylvia, Saya’s expression was clouded. “Allekant’s Ningirsu. He’ll be a tough one.” 
“Ah… He’s strong; there’s no arguing that. He just keeps jumping up in the rankings lately.” Sylvia nodded, patting Saya on the shoulder. 
“In other words…” 
“…He must be training at the Liangshan.” 
“Eep…” Saya’s expression turned dangerously pale. 
“Do your best, both of you,” Claudia said with a warm chuckle. “And, Ayato, you’ll be facing…” She paused there, glancing toward the bracket on her mobile device. 
“Minato Wakamiya, it looks like,” Kirin finished for her. 
Ayato was very familiar with the name. Indeed, it was almost as if they had some kind of fated connection. He also knew she had been training at the Liangshan, too. 
Sylvia’s expression suddenly turned serious. “Watch your back, Ayato. As Queenvale’s student council president, maybe I shouldn’t be saying this, but I’ll be behind you all the way. Just remember…Minato’s gotten strong. Really strong.” 
“…Yeah, I know,” he answered, clenching his fists.