Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Magian Company - Volume 1 - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: FEHR and FAIR 

Although the result was a little pathetic in the end, Ryousuke's own efforts helped to dispel the suspicion that had been cast on him. On the next day, the seventh, Tatsuya informed him that he would be officially employed by Magian Company. ──Amusingly, Ryousuke was not aware of a probation period. 

He spent the two days, 7th and 8th, to buy everything he would need for his everyday life, and on the 8th, he moved to the company housing in Izu. Still, on those two days, he was on paid holiday at Tatsuya's discretion. Also, Mayumi will be moving out tomorrow, on Sunday the 9th. 

Aside from Mayumi's thing, ── that is, she, who was left on the second floor of the lab, was very much at odds with Ryousuke, that there was no way he could get her mood to improve── Ryousuke finally felt like his life back home had finally settled down. 

As he had remembered that the next day was Sunday, Ryousuke stayed up late, and made a call through the satellite phone an hour after the date had changed, that is, at one o'clock in the morning of May 9. 

The local time was 9 a.m. on May 8. The person on the other end of the line was Rena Fehr from the FEHR headquarters in Vancouver. 

"Hello, Milady, it' s Ryousuke. Good morning." 

[Hello, Ryousuke. Your voice sounds brighter than the other day. Did everything go well?] 

"Thank you very much! Thanks to your help, I'm free of the false charges." 

Ryousuke answers Rena's question in a voice that would be better described as more upbeat than bright. 

[I didn't do anything] 

"No, Milady's advice was tremendously helpful. The culprit was 'Janus', as you said, and 'Arabian Nights''s flaw, the short duration, was also a big hit. Thanks to you, I was able to win." 

[Ryousuke would have won without my advice. But I'm glad it helped] 

"Of course, certainly! This victory of mine, I owe it all to Milady's assistance." 

Rena's cough was picked up by Ryousuke's, from the speaker of the satellite phone he held next to his ear. 

"Milady, did you catch a cold?" 

Ryousuke asks in a tone that clearly expresses his concern. 

She was actually clearing her throat, but it must have seemed like a sign of a cold to Ryousuke. 

[No, I'm fine. I just had a little cough] 

Sure enough, Rena denies it plainly. 

But if this made sense, Ryousuke would have realized from the beginning that it wasn't a cough from a cold. 

"But……" 

[I?am?o?k] 

"Hah……" 

At the voice that carried a weird strength to it, Ryousuke couldn't say anything more about his anxiety. 

"Ryousuke, what's going on with Magian Company?" 

"Ah, yes." 

As Rena changed her voice, Ryousuke changed his mindset as well. 

"I've been successfully employed by them." 

Rena congratulated Ryousuke for getting a fixed position, regardless of the assignment. 

"Thank you very much. I will continue my investigation into Shiba Tatsuya's true intentions." 

The only thing on Ryousuke's mind was the mission given to him by Rena. 

"Hah……." 

Rena couldn't help but let out a sigh. 

Immediately after that, she thought, "Damn it". 

"Milady! What's the matter with you…..?" 

"There's nothing wrong with my body and I'm not tired. It's nothing." 

Rena didn't let Ryousuke finish. 

Once he heard Rena say there was nothing wrong with her body with her own mouth, Ryousuke couldn't discuss anything else about her health. It wasn't just with Ryousuke, it was the same with all the members of the FEHR. 

The reason being, Rena's body is clearly "abnormal". 

"I will report back to you as soon as I learn something new." 

She couldn't see him, since they were on a voice call, but Ryousuke straightened up his posture as he said it. 

[Don't overdo it, please] 

"I'll be mindful of that. Well, Milady, have a good day." 

[Good night, Ryousuke] 

Rena noticed that it was the middle of the night in Japan. 

He was honored to receive a bedtime set phrase from his "Milady". 

Ryousuke immediately decided to go to sleep. 

May 9th, Sunday. Just after 8am. 

Tatsuya was having breakfast a little later than usual, along with Miyuki and Lina. 

"Tatsuya. I have a question." 

Lina asked Tatsuya in a sharp tone unbecoming of a breakfast table. 

Miyuki frowned lightly, but Tatsuya didn't sound particularly bothered by it, "What?" He asked back. 

"Why did you keep Tookami in the Company?" 

Lina's question was why he hired Ryousuke as a full-time employee. It seems that she decided to call him "Tookami" instead of "Ryousuke". As a member of a potential terrorist organization, she can't bring herself to call Ryousuke by his first name. 

"Well, he did as he promised, he personally caught the real culprits himself, even if it was only one of the two." 

"So we're going to keep our side of the deal too? You don't have the obligation to do so." 

"Lina, aren't you misunderstanding? I didn't promise Tookami that 'I won't fire you if you catch the real culprits' or anything like that." 

"Then why?" 

Lina's cheeks are about to puff up in displeasure. 

Tatsuya couldn't help but want to see her do such an childish behaviour, but refrained from acting so out of character, like deliberately teasing her. 

"It's because his talents seem useful." 

"……Well, he is certainly fit to be a soldier, but I don't think he's good enough to balance the risk of carrying a spy." 

Lina acknowledged Ryousuke's competence, but wasn't convinced by Tatsuya's answer. 

"I'm not counting on him as a combatant, you know." 

But Tatsuya's intentions were different from what Lina thought she understood. 

"Then what is it?" 

"It's because he's connected to FEHR." 

"……What do you mean?" 

"Tatsuya-sama. Perhaps, are you considering establishing a cooperative relationship with FEHR……?" 

Miyuki, who was frowning at Lina's snapping at Tatsuya, shelved her displeasure and inquired at Tatsuya. 

"It would be a waste to discard the possibility of that. We're already a minority in human society. Unless they're a clear criminal organization, if we can join forces with them, that would be great." 

"……That's right." 

"…………" 

Miyuki nodded in response to Tatsuya's words, and Lina did not object here either. 

1:00 PM. 

Tatsuya came alone to the Yotsuba main house. 

The purpose of his visit was, naturally, to meet with Maya. He was here to report on the Stellar Reactor Plant and the invasion and attempted theft on FLT. 

"……The organization to which the intruders, Bahadur Mufid and Bahman Mufid, codename 'Janus', belonged is FAIR." 

After a round of greetings, Tatsuya gave the names of Bahadur, Bahman, and the organization that had been identified as a result of the interrogation of the crew of the getaway freighter. 

"FAIR……. As I recall, it was a militant group based in San Francisco, right?" 

FAIR, 'Fighters Against Inferior Race'. It's headquarters is in San Francisco. While FEHR is an organization dedicated to the protection of human rights of magicians, FAIR is dedicated to the active struggle against the anti-magic movement. 

So far there is no evidence that FAIR has engaged in any sort of organized crime, but the public order authorities believe it is only a matter of time. ──This is the only information currently available about it in Japan. 

There are also rumors that magicians are becoming more and more dangerous in California because of FAIR. 

"Yes. And it was FAIR's leader, Rocky Dean, who ordered the theft of the manufacturing method for the Artificial Relics." 

"The leader himself ordered the theft? That's more like a crime syndicate than an extremist group, isn't it?" 

With an amused expression on her face - but with a cold, roused gleam in her eyes - Maya ridiculed FAIR. 

"I think FAIR's true colors are that of a criminal association." 

Instead of back-channeling to Maya, Tatsuya took a step forward in his speculation with a very serious countenance. 

"Also, it seems that FAIR has a lot of BS magicians like Janus." 

"Of BS magicians?" 

Maya, who until now was in an atmosphere of "I don't care" more than half of the time, suddenly displayed a strong interest in the matter. 

"The people we captured this time only referred to themselves as BS magicians when asked, but they may also have more specialized personnel in their hands, such as sorcerers [23] , for example. In fact, the unusual power of Bahadur Mufid and Bahman Mufid, that we captured this time, are quite different in nature than our magic. Janus may be a superpower user who should be more of a sorcerer than just a BS magician." 

A sorcerer modifies phenomena in the same sense as a magician, but their system of abilities cannot be rationally explained. Their inability to explain their superpower was due to a major flaw in modern magical theory. 

"The abilities of BS magicians and sorcerers are said to be inferior to those of magicians regarding raw fighting power. I think that's true as well as does the general consensus, but we can't deny the possibility that there are people with abilities beyond our imagination." 

"……Right." 

"Aunt, I think we need to do some further investigation on FAIR." 

"──I understand. If you are so wary of them, then I suppose I should investigate. Tatsuya-san, please come up with a tangible method of investigation. Let's discuss it again afterwards." 

"Understood." 

As a matter of fact, Tatsuya already had a plan in mind at this point. 

However, Tatsuya decided not to bring it to the table and withdrew quietly from Maya's presence for the day. 

After leaving the Yotsuba Main House, Tatsuya returned to his home in Chofu and, regardless of the fact that it was Sunday, flew to Miyakijima. 

Tatsuya's destination was not the Stellar Reactor Plant in the northeast but his private laboratory in the northwest. 

However, the purpose was not related to the research to refine the Artificial Relics 'Magistore', which was his recent focus. 

It is 7:50 pm. It is almost time for the residential space station where Minoru and Minami live ──the Orbital Satellite Habitation Facility 'Takachiko'── to make its closest approach over Miyakijima. He confirmed Takachiko's current position on the monitor in the lab and pointed the infrared laser communication antenna at it. The infrared laser communications are highly directional, and therefore have a low risk of interception. Also, the amount of data that can be transmitted is large, allowing the application of complex encryption algorithms. 

[Tatsuya-sama, how may I help you?] 

The one who answered the call was Minami. After bowing politely and waiting for Minami to raise her head in the monitor, Tatsuya told her, "I have a request to make for Minoru". 

"Please wait a moment." 

Just as Minami's line, Tatsuya didn't have to wait too long. 

"Tatsuya-san, I'm sorry for making you wait." 

Minoru soon appeared on the monitor. 

[I understand you have a favor to ask of me. Please, feel free to ask] 

"If that's what you're saying, that would be very helpful. Actually, there's something I'd like you to investigate in America." 

[In America? Yeah, it's fine. It's possible to infiltrate with the current orbit] 

"No, I'm not in that much of a hurry, we can wait until the Activation Sequence for Takachiko's movement is complete." 

Tatsuya immediately stopped Minoru, who was about to drop as soon as he reached the area over the American continent. 

[It's not exactly an emergency, is it? Then why me?] 

"It's a bit of a tricky party to deal with. I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving it to you unless it was fitting to your skills." 

[I'm happy to hear you saying so] 

Tatsuya's line was not meant to be flattering, he was serious. 

Knowing this, Minoru looked even happier. 

[Who is this tricky party?] 

"Have you ever heard of a magic supremacist organization called FAIR?" 

Minoru's smiling expression suddenly tightens. 

[……I know, we were hiding with FAIR just before I challenged Tatsuya-san in our last fight] 

Tatsuya couldn't hide his surprise at this confession. 

"Is FAIR an organization related to Gu Jie?" 

Gu Jie, a mysterious old man of stateless overseas Chinese, who used Zhou Gongjin, whose ghost was later absorbed by Minoru, to carry out various subversive operations against Japan, ──Japanese magicians. He was originally a magician who belonged to the Great Asian Union and the defeated 'Dahan', which competed with the Great Asian Union for control of the Eastern Asian Continent. 

The Yotsuba family was deeply involved in the destruction of Dahan. As a consequence of such, Gu Jie had targeted the Yotsuba family for some time, but in the end, Gu Jie was hunted down by Tatsuya and his accomplices Ichijou Masaki and Juumonji Katsuto, who were working with him at the time, and disappeared into the sea. ──Although, the person who killed Gu Jie firsthand was Canopus, a member of the Stars who was sent by the USNA to destroy any evidence that could be used against them. 

The reason why Tatsuya connected Minoru's confession to Gu Jie was because Minoru had inherited the knowledge of Zhou Gongjin. At the time, Tatsuya suspected that Minoru, who had never left Japan before, would turn to an organization with a connection to Zhou Gongjin, in other words, an organization that Gu Jie was involved with. 

[FAIR was originally an organization that Gu Jie orchestrated. However, Gu Jie apparently lost control of FAIR and quickly let it go] 

"I didn't know it came about that way. Then I shouldn't be asking you to do it, should I?" 

Thinking that he might have a sense of obligation to the organization that sheltered him once, Tatsuya suggested withdrawing the request, but, 

[No, please let me do it] 

Minoru shook his head resolutely and refused to back down. 

[Even though it was a one-time thing, asking extremists for help is one thing from my past that I need to redeem] 

Minoru's voice was filled with determination. 

If that is the case, then Tatsuya has no reason to hesitate. 

"All right, FAIR's headquarters are in San Francisco." 

[So, they've moved from Los Angeles. All right, I'll take care of it] 

Tatsuya and Minoru noded to each other and then their transmission was terminated. 

Immediately afterwards, Tatsuya started to work on the creation of the Activation Sequence for the movement of the Takachiko Orbital Satellite. 

On a day in mid-May in San Francisco, a tall man and woman were facing each other at FAIR headquarters. 

The man was a slim, handsome man of Italian descent, standing at 190cm tall. The woman was around 170cm, a beautiful and sensual woman of North African descent. Both were around the age of 30. 

The woman gives a deep, old-fashioned bow, and the man motions for her to raise her head in a magnanimous tone. 

"So, tell me, did Janus fail?" 

"Yes, your Excellency, it would appear that the Janus duo have been captured in Japan." 

The one addressed as your Excellency was the head of FAIR, Rocky Dean. 

His right arm, Laura Simon, answered Dean's question with her eyes cast down. 

There were only two people in this dimly lit room, Dean and Laura. Almost everything FAIR does is determined by these two alone. 

"Those two shouldn't be so easy to catch, though……. Do you have any idea who caught them?" 

"If you don't mind me guessing," 

"Sure, that's fine with me." 

Laura raises her eyes from their lowered position and meets with Dean's gaze. 

"Perhaps, they fell into Yotsuba's hands." 

Perhaps, she said, but Laura's tone was full of conviction. 

"…… Untouchables, huh? Then it can't be helped." 

"Your Excellency" 

"What is it?" 

Dean urges Laura, who clearly cut off her words mid-sentence, to continue. 

"It's clear that the Stellar Reactor Plant is under Yotsuba's control. It was easy to predict that Yotsuba would intervene if we mess with it." 

"So?" 

"Did your Excellency use Janus as a sacrificial pawn?" 

"That's a misunderstanding." 

Dean exaggeratedly waved his hands in front of his face. 

"I'll admit that I overestimated the Janus duo and relatively underestimated the Yotsuba, though. But I would never abandon my associates." 

"--I'm terribly sorry." 

'Shameless', Laura thought, but did not end up saying it. Even though it was just the two of them, no, because it was just the two of them, it was extraordinarily necessary to distinguish between what was acceptable to say and what should not be said. 

Her boss, by no means, was a merciful leader. 

"But, I suppose so. Let's not mess with Stellar Reactor any more, shall we? We can't afford to add more casualties of negligence." 

That said, Dean hugged Laura's waist. 

"Ah……." 

Dean's lips touched Laura's ear and a sweet voice escaped Laura's mouth. 

"And it also doesn't have to be Artificial Relics, we can just get the original……." 

Laura couldn't respond to the murmurings as her consciousness was lost to Dean's hands crawling over her body. 

Dean gave a belligerent smile as he squeezed a lewd gasp from Laura's mouth. 

To Be Continued