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Chapter 8: [Infiltration into the USNA (2)] 

May 25, a Tuesday night. 

Tatsuya came with Miyuki and Lina to the base of the virtual satellite elevator in the southwestern part of Miyakijima. They came from the Yotsuba family's private facility in the northwest of the island by means of a private autonomous van. This kind of van could automatically load and unload the luggage in the cargo hold with the flick of a switch. 

They unloaded the cargo in the center of the magic circle of the virtual satellite elevator, and then moved the wagon outside of the magic circle for Mock-Teleportation, which was actually the main body of the elevator. After dropping off Lina at one side, Tatsuya moved to the other side of the magic circle, where he and Miyuki got out of the vehicle. 

"Hyougo-san, can you patch me through to Takachiho?" 

Tatsuya called out over the radio to Hyougo, who was stationed at the laser communications facility. 

[Yes, sir. It's connected.] 

"Minami, can you hear me?" 

Using the radio that was relayed by the laser communications facility, Tatsuya spoke to Minami inside Takachiho. 

[Yes, Tatsuya-sama. Our preparations are in order.] 

There was no time lag and the sound quality was clear. Despite the 13,000 km distance between them, the quality of communication was excellent. 

"Then, we're going to send it now." 

[Yes, go ahead.] 

While keeping the communication line open, 

"Miyuki." 

Tatsuya addressed her in a low voice. 

"Yes." 

Miyuki nodded firmly to Tatsuya. 

Tatsuya nodded back to Miyuki and raised his right hand high, looking towards Lina who was about 200 meters away. 

Lina raised one hand in response. 

As Tatsuya swung his right hand down, both Miyuki and Lina activated the magic circle of the virtual satellite elevator. 

The magic circle was engraved 30 centimeters underground with a sequence for Mock-Teleportation. The package placed on top of it was a "coffin", which contained both the body for the Parasite Doll and the doll, the vessel, that contained a sealed Parasite. 

The magic of Ultra Long Distance Mock-Teleportation activated. 

In an instant, the coffin that contained the materials for the Parasite Doll were transported to satellite orbit at an altitude of about 6,400 kilometers from the surface of the Earth. 

The destination point of the Mock-Teleportation was at the outer reaches of Takachiho's outer shell in the void of space. 

There was no such thing as real instantaneous travel in modern magic. The method of transporting objects through walls had not yet been achieved. 

Nevertheless, with Minoru's magical power, there would be no problem in retrieving the package. The virtual satellite elevator not only moved the package from the ground to satellite orbit, but also synchronized the speed of the arriving package with Takachiho's. So, to Minoru, bringing the object floating a few dozen meters away to the airlock using movement-type magic wasn't much different from picking up a package from the delivery box. 

In spite of this, Minoru was now floating in the darkness of space. The reason was simple: he enjoyed it. Swimming around outside Takachiho without something like a spacesuit was his favorite pastime these days. 36 

At first, that reckless hobby of Minoru's had gotten on Minami's nerves. Back in the day, she would have been so worried that her heart would have stopped. Maybe it was different because they had become Parasites. Now, she even sends Minoru "outside" with a nonchalant sigh, saying, "He is helpless, isn't he……?" 

However, he wasn't so defenseless even without his spacesuit. Even considering that, even though he was a Parasite, his flesh and blood couldn't withstand long periods of exposure to direct cosmic rays, plus he would need air eventually. He had used magic to create an object and radiation resistant shield that also kept air inside. 

Minoru swam outside and arrived next to the "coffin", standing by it and shoving it with his hand towards Takachiho. 

Takachiho was a refit of a salvaged New Soviet Union missile submarine. The VLS 37 had been replaced with a large airlock that also allowed it to bring in cargo. 

Minoru manually opened that airlock. Normally, the airlock was kept securely locked so that it couldn't be opened from the outside, but when he went outside, he left the key in the lock. 

He accompanied the coffin into the airlock and closed the outer door. After making sure that it was completely locked, he opened the inner door to find Minami waiting just beyond it. 

"Welcome back." 

Minami welcomed Minoru back with a casual bow. While her words were polite in nature, there was no overt formality in her demeanor. 

"I'm back." 

"Is the package in the workroom?" 

"I'll carry it." 

Minoru nodded in response to Minami and lifted the coffin into the air. Takachiho's pressurized sections were kept at Earth-like gravity by means of gravity control magic powered by the Artificial Relic. Although it was possible to temporarily release the magic, it was much more convenient to just cast a movement-type magic on the coffin. 

Aside from Takachiho's equipment, the home electric appliances used in the living room and bedroom were ordinary household items. Even if they didn't necessarily break down, some minor malfunctions should be expected as usual. 

They were in the emptiness of space at an altitude of about 6,400 kilometers above the surface of the Earth. It was just unreasonable to simply call service and have a technician come there to help as people from the surface usually do. So, to some extent, they had to take care of such problems themselves. 

They had a workroom set up for that very purpose. Using a database that was regularly updated, an AI manipulated the actuators to perform automatic maintenance on their household appliances. In addition to the maintenance of consumer goods, the AI and manipulators were also capable of performing more sophisticated maintenance and modifications on electronic and electrical equipment. 

After placing the coffin next to the workbench, Minoru first took out the doll with the sealed Parasite main body and placed it on a small desk beside the workbench. Next, he used magic to lift the gynoid that would serve as the host body and placed it on the workbench. The gynoid weighed only a little more than a person of the same height — more specifically, being 170 centimeters in height and 70 kilograms in weight — so it wouldn't be hard to lift it manually. But, he felt somewhat unwilling to carry something that had the shape of a woman in his arms in front of Minami's eyes. 

Having already skimmed through the gynoid's user manual, Minoru removed the connector covers that were disguised as belt buckles and connected the power cable that doubled as a data line. 

The monitor displayed the status of the unit. 

The battery was fully charged. 

The electronic brain was in suspension mode. 

The pre-installed combat gear was non-existent. 

The items he can't see in the monitor he checks with his own "eyes". 

There were no residual thoughts. 

Almost completely neutral, with very few residual Psions or Pushions. 

It could be said that this was the best condition to have for a Parasite transplant. Probably the work of Tatsuya. He probably knew of that fact, and delivered it in such a condition. 

"Minami, you can go and rest if you want." 

"No, even if I can't help, I would like to at least be present." 

"Really? Ok then, feel free to stay." 

There wasn't any sort of argument, and Minoru simply let Minami be there. 

The process was as simple as it sounded. The Parasite sealed in the doll was released, and the emancipated Parasite's main body was then brought under control. The Parasite was then guided into the gynoid's electronic brain and bound with non-systematic magic. 

Minoru accomplished this process without effort and within the blink of an eye. 

Therefore, instead of letting out a heavy "phew……" he muttered a simple "Right". 

"Minami-san, can you lend me a hand?" 

Despite her expression of surprise at being asked, when she was supposedly just an observer, Minami said, "Yes" without further ado. 

"Then, what do you want me to do?" 

Next, she asked for specific instructions. 

"In order to awaken the Parasite Doll, I have to fill this [vessel] with Psions at the end. I would like you to help me with that." 

"So, I just have to pour Psions in the dormant Parasite Doll?" 

"Together with me, ok?" 

As he said that, Minoru held out his left hand to Minami. 

Minami, even if a bit embarrassed, placed her right hand on top of Minoru's left hand. 

How yearned and how cherished. 

The urge to desire and the wish to be desired. 

Through their linked hands, the swelling feelings they held for each other, unfurled. 

With their hands clasped together, they each held their free hand over the Parasite Doll. 

Through his left hand, Minoru's psions flowed to Minami. 

Through her right hand, Minami's psions flowed to Minoru. 

From Minoru's right hand, and 

From Minami's left hand. 

Their psions, mixed and melted together, poured into the Parasite Doll. 

Their thoughts, merged with the psion flow, awakened the Parasite Doll. 

After raising its body up on the workbench, the Parasite Doll stood up, lowering its feet to the floor in a brisk motion. Immediately afterwards, it dropped to one knee and hung its head towards Minoru and Minami. Perhaps it was because this gynoid was designed with combat in mind, it's outward appearance, though feminine, was slim and more on the neutral side 38 . So this kind of behavior suited it well. 

[Master, please tell us your name.] 

It's telepathic voice reached Minami and Minoru. It was a slightly different approach than the usual Parasite consciousness-sharing, where egos were not yet integrated. Parasite-style telepathy, if you will. 

[I am Kudou Minoru.] 

[I'm Sakurai Minami] 

Minoru and Minami also used thought waves to answer. Both of them were Parasites. Usually, they tended to use more of their normal voices to communicate with each other, but conversing through thoughts was more in line with the Parasite way of being. They were no strangers to telepathic communication. 

[So, Minoru-sama and Minami-sama, if I'm not mistaken. Now, please tell us, whose orders take precedence?] 

[Precedence?] 

Minoru asked back quizzically. 


[To whom, Minoru-sama or Minami-sama, orders should we give priority, we wish you to establish the order of priority.] 

[There is no such thing.] 

[No, Minoru-sama's orders should take priority.] 

Minami quickly corrected Minoru's reply. 

"Minami-san." 

"Minoru-sama, it will be better this way, right?" 

Minoru was about to argue, but Minami reminded him and he held his tongue. 

[Very well, as you wish. Minoru-sama's orders will take the highest priority.] 

Seemingly judging that the matter was settled. The gynoid reverently told them, still down on one knee. There were no objections to that. 

[Then, Minoru-sama. Could you please bestow us with a name?] 

[What is the common name given to this model?] 

With a renewed expression, Minoru asks the gynoid. 

[It's Mr. Co (Maruko)]. 

The model number of this Gynoid was a Multirole Combat Gynoid T-2100. 

Mr. Co (Maruko) was probably an abbreviation taken from that model number. Still…… 

"…..I don't think 'Maruko' fits well with a female-type model." 

Minoru muttered in his normal voice, pondering for a moment. 

In the meantime, the gynoid was still on one knee with its head hanging down, waiting patiently. Since it was a machine, it probably wasn’t difficult for it to maintain a stationary posture, but with its human-like appearance it seemed as if it was embodying a sense of loyalty. 

"……Okay, let's go with 'Maggie'." 

The reason why Minoru used his own voice wasn't out of a conscious intent. Nevertheless, the gynoid had the feature of voice recognition, so there was no inconvenience caused by it. 

[Name bestowed to this individual is: "Maggie". I am at your service, sir, please state your orders.] 

[You will be in charge of the management of this facility.] 

[Permission to communicate with the Control Unit?] 

[Permission granted. Follow me as we communicate. I'll tell you the rest in the living room.] 

[As you wish, sir.] 

Maggie finally stood up. Towering ten centimeters over Minami, its height was still a few centimeters shorter than Minoru. From her silhouette alone, she looked more like a slender man than a woman. Its standing figure combined with the design of the facial features also made her look even more gender neutral than feminine. 

Minoru and Minami moved to the living room and settled down on the sofa. Admittedly, they were both feeling a little tired from working on the Parasite Doll's awakening. 

[Maggie, do you understand the structure of Takachiho, this place we are in?] 

[I have a grasp of it.] 

The Parasite Doll didn't mean any pretensions. Maggie's information processing ability seemed to be at a high level, as befitting of her state-of-the-art physical body. 

[You will be in charge of two jobs. One, you'll be the hands and feet of the control unit, troubleshooting problems big and small. You don't need to engage in any home automation tasks.] 

[As you wish, sir.] 

If that was the only duty, there would be no need to make a Parasite Doll to take care of it. The maintenance robots that were originally packed in Takachiho would be sufficient. 

[The other is to support us when we are on the surface, including the operation of the Virtual Satellite Elevator.] 

It was necessary to be able to use magic in order to operate the virtual satellite elevator. That was why Minoru asked for someone to take care of Takachiho other than the control unit. So, Tatsuya gave him all the materials needed for a Parasite Doll. 

[Understood.] 

As it said so, Maggie leaned her upper body forward exactly thirty degrees. 

 

Tomorrow would be a Wednesday, meaning that Magic University would have classes as usual. It would be rather difficult to get to the first period lecture if departing from here in Miyakijima, so they would normally have to return to Tokyo by the middle of the night. Yet, not only Tatsuya, but also Miyuki and Lina opted not to return home. 

Not because they were in any mood to skip classes, but so that they could assist in any follow-up problems that might arise on Takachiho, where Minoru was conducting some experiments with the Parasite Doll. Unfortunately, Tatsuya was unable to reach the 6,400 km altitude of outer space by himself. 

As a result of his research on the Event Interference Force itself, Tatsuya had succeeded to some extent in addressing the shortcomings in performance of his virtual magic calculation area. But even so, it wasn't yet at the level of single-handedly operating a virtual satellite elevator. 

Aside from Miyuki and Lina, Miyakijima had another magician on standby to operate the virtual satellite elevator. However, even if they were members of the Yotsuba family, Tatsuya didn't want anyone else to be involved in the experiment. Miyuki and Lina agreed to stay in Miyakijima for the night to accommodate Tatsuya’s request. 

Departing from the southwest area where the virtual satellite elevator was located, they returned to their secondary residence in the northwest area, and had a brief dinner. 

And, luckily, they didn't receive any news of complications after that. When Lina retired to her room, after taking a bath, Tatsuya and Miyuki were now left alone on the sofa, relaxing comfortably side-by-side. 

Rather than alcohol, they had some herbal tea on the low table to help them have a restful sleep. Neither of them had the habit of drinking alcohol. It wasn't like Tatsuya couldn't drink, he just didn't have the desire to do so. That probably had less to do with his restricted emotions, but more a matter of taste. Alternatively, perhaps it was a way to cater to Miyuki's tastes, since she wasn't particularly good with alcohol. 

"……Minoru-kun is going to descend to America tomorrow morning, right?" 

Miyuki sat on his left side, avoiding the hand Tatsuya used to hold his cup. With her right hand on the seat of the sofa and her left hand on her right thigh, Miyuki had her upper body twisted and looked up at Tatsuya as she spoke to him. 

"If nothing happens until then, that's the plan." 

"So, then, if nothing happens, he and Minami will be in San Francisco the day after tomorrow……." 

"That's what's on the schedule." 

"Minoru-kun really cares about Minami-chan, doesn't he? I envy her……." 

Both Miyuki's eyes and face were downcast. 

Suddenly, Tatsuya extended his left arm and wrapped it around Miyuki's shoulders. 

Now in his arms, Miyuki looked up, so taken aback that she couldn't even speak. 

"Miyuki, why don't we go on a trip, just the two of us? Say, sometime next month." 

"……Aren't you busy?" 

"If it's for a couple of days I can manage it. Although it would mean skipping classes at the university." 

Miyuki's face glowed with joy. 

"I don't mind! I would love to!" 

She leaned closer to Tatsuya, presumably as an involuntary motion. 

"Ok, then. Well, where do you want to go?" 

Without as much as changing his position, Tatsuya asked Miyuki in a whisper, while leaning close to her with a smile on his face. 

"Anywhere Tatsuya-sama is willing to take me." 

"Then, how about somewhere a little cooler?" 

"Yes!" 

Miyuki's eyes shone brightly as she nodded. Tatsuya loosened his hold on Miyuki's shoulders, sure that the melancholy had disappeared from her beautiful face. 

But Miyuki didn't move an inch away from Tatsuya. 

With a bashful smile, she closed the distance even further between them. 

Tatsuya looked down at Miyuki with a warm gaze. It was the sort of gentle, sweet gaze that no one would expect from Tatsuya when he wasn't alone with Miyuki. That kind of gaze from Tatsuya was probably something that only Miyuki was aware of. 

Miyuki, who had been looking up at Tatsuya, raised her chin, turning her face upward. 

Miyuki's eyes looking upwards, and Tatsuya's eyes looking downwards, met. 

Miyuki's eyes, stained with intoxication, closed. 

Tatsuya slowly moved, decreasing the distance between his face and Miyuki's. And, before long, the distance between their lips was zero. 

 

On the morning of the next day, Minoru descended into San Francisco. It was May 25th, 5:00 p.m. local time. 

The arrival spot was at the shore of Lake San Andreas, which Minoru had confirmed from satellite orbit to be deserted. Minoru chose the north shore of the long, narrow lake, which was located inland from the San Francisco Peninsula, west of the international airport. 

Minoru was the only one who descended. There were still some parameters that needed to be tested before he could bring Minami with him. 

[Maggie, can you hear me?] 

Minoru called out to Takachiho via telepathy, rather than through the communicator. 

[Yes, Minoru-sama. I can hear you clearly.] 

The first stage cleared, Minoru thought to himself. He knew that on Earth, Parasites could freely communicate with each other regardless of the distance that they were within the same country. Still, he had never tried to use long-distance telepathy with Parasite Dolls, he had a feeling that it would be the same as the usual communication between Parasites. 

Nevertheless, telepathy between the surface and outer space was completely uncharted territory, and while communication was essential to ensure adequate backup from Takachiho, radio transmissions had to be avoided at all costs due to the risk of interception. While it may be true that convergent laser communication was doable with portable communication devices, if not impossible sometimes, it would still be difficult. So telepathy was the best way to go. 

Fortunately, the concept of boundaries with regards to the Earth's surface and outer space didn't seem to apply when it came to telepathy. Thought exchange went without a hitch. In a sense, since it was dependent on countries, it should be the same thing as the high seas, but it seemed to be treated differently between the Earth's surface and in outer space. He didn't know why, but it must have been like that. Minoru thought about that, and felt satisfied with it. 39 

[Ok then, lift me up.] 

Minoru ordered as he put up his anti-material and radiation resistant magic shield, making sure to keep the air around him inside. In the next moment, his figure disappeared from the shore of the San Andreas Lake. 

From Minoru's subjective point of view, the entire scenery instantly changed. 

Right before his eyes, blue stars floated in the jet-black darkness. At his feet, a huge man-made structure blended into the darkness. 

From the surface of the Earth to the Orbital Residence, Takachiho. 

(It worked…….) 

Minoru breathed a sigh of relief. It was neither him nor Minami who had activated the magic circle of Mock-Teleportation that had been carved on Takachiho's inner shell, but Maggie, the Parasite Doll. Although physical distance wasn't a substantial obstacle to magic, activating a magic circle that was inside an orbiting satellite from the surface was no easy task, even with Minoru's magic power. Whether or not Maggie could activate the virtual satellite elevator would be the deciding factor as to whether or not Minoru and Minami would be able to go down to the ground together. 

Now that he was near Takachiho, due to the Parasite Doll's activation of the Ultra Long Distance Mock-Teleportation, Minoru used flight magic of the same system to adjust his own momentum and speed in small increments, then swam through space towards the airlock. 





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