Chapter 4
Sunday, December 30th. 8:50 A.M.
Tatsuya made a call to the Main House, just before leaving the house.
He didn’t call because Miyuki asked him to. It was his own decision.
The one who picked up the phone was a surly looking housekeeper whom Tatsuya asked to be connected with Butler Obara while using an intimidating attitude. The housekeeper was intimidated by Tatsuya’s gaze despite being on the other end of the camera and ran away to get Obara.
“Tatsuya-dono, I’m troubled. Please refrain yourself from scaring the Maid.”
Obara was under Aoki, hence, he had not been given detailed information about Tatsuya, and showed a relatively decent attitude towards him. He had the lowest rank among all the eight butlers, and perhaps had kept it in his mind to behave politely to everyone, but it might also be due to his temperament in being a former modern traffic riot policemen who preferred not to act under high pressure but with respect to civilians, even after he retired from that profession.
At the moment, however, he was facing Tatsuya’s words and attitude consciously from the other end.
“It’s an urgent matter.”
Usually, Tatsuya preferred to behave quietly and avoid friction.
However, today, he had abandoned the safety headgear from the very start.
“Is everything alright.”
Obara’s face slightly frowned in discomfort. Although Tatsuya noticed this, the opponent had yet to be offended. If the opponent became emotionally disturbed, he would have abandon his reason.
“Please change the pick-up arrangement to 9:50 A.M. at Nagasaka, Shiroizawa.”
“Wait a minute. The driver has just been dispatched, you know.”
“They haven’t gotten out of the Manor yet, correct? The destination and timing have only slightly changed. I don’t see what’s so impossible about this.”
Obara lowered his eyebrows earnestly.
“It’s not a matter of impossibility, but it’s just too sudden compared to how I would prefer it.”
“I’m asking because it is necessary.”
“Tatsuya-dono, I don’t want to say this, but isn’t this somewhat rude?
Originally, Miyuki-sama had requested for this arrangement today”
“This change is entirely of Miyuki’s wish. Or would you not be convinced unless Miyuki appeared on the phone?”
Obara’s face slightly blushed, holding back his angry voice.
“I understand. Then, 9:50 A.M. at Nagasaka, Shiroizawa!”
Even so, he couldn’t help but slip out a slightly rough tone.
Even if Tatsuya had his reasons, to change arrangements over the phone at the last minute was. His resentment was already woven.
“From now onwards, please tell the driver directly to change the pick-up location.”
However, Obara responded in the spur of a moment. He gave off a suggestive indication to Tatsuya that he’d soon forget about his displeasure.
“Then, is this instruction connected to yesterday’s incident?”
Tatsuya also thought that this reaction was surprising, and he didn’t want to turn this call into a lengthy conversation.
“Even now, please keep it confidential.”
“Certainly.”
Tatsuya got off from the call approximately at the same time as Obara did.
Tatsuya suddenly changed the schedule of the pick-up after taking into account the possibility of information being leaked internally in the Yotsuba. He neither knew who leaked the information from inside nor confident enough to guess who the perpetrator was.
There were seven Branch Families of the Yotsuba when not including the Shiba, and to be precise, more than one of these following Branches, the Shiiba, Mashiba, Shibata, Shizuka, had tried to delay the next Family Head nomination in order to separate Tatsuya from Miyuki. They were trying to prevent Miyuki from attending the New Year’s Gathering for that very reason.
Tatsuya couldn’t comprehend their actions. Certainly, the New Year’s Gathering was an event that allowed the Branch Families to gather in one place, but attendance was never a must. In fact, Miyuki was absent every year. Their father, Tatsurou, was not even permitted entrance into the Main House.
Moreover, there wasn’t any rule stating that every Head of the Branch Families must attend the gathering in order to name the next Family Head. In the first place, the Yotsuba Family was not a family with a very long tradition. The family was only formed by Maya’s grandfather as the first Head, and Maya was only the Third Family Head.
Even Maya herself was appointed as Head of the Family by the previous Head when Yotsuba Eisaku, Maya’s Uncle, was on his last few breaths.
Up to that point, there hadn’t been a decision about whether ‘Miya or Maya would be the next Family Head’. Maya was selected to be the Family Head as per Eisaku’s will, thus, it was not a result of a family discussion.
In other words, even though they were trying to prevent Miyuki from coming to this year’s New Year’s Gathering, there was a high chance that they might not delay the appointment of the next Family Head.
Tatsuya had the impression that the Branch Families’ Heads had been deceived by this.
However, no matter how ludicrous it was, if he was ordered to attend the New Year’s Gathering, he couldn’t afford to not show any effort in making it there in time. No, it was precisely because it was ludicrous that Tatsuya became obstinate in thinking that he would not make it on time. He couldn’t help but to accept this feeling while receiving all this farce.
His plan of changing the meeting time and venue appeared to be initially successful. At the very least, unlike yesterday, he did not detect any car tailing them as soon as they left the station. However, Tatsuya never thought that it would all go well until the very end.
“So they found us?”
Tatsuya said so while glaring, and it was soon after they entered the country road without houses or factories in the vicinity.
“A stalker?”
Tatsuya vaguely nodded his head to answer Miyuki.
“Yes, but it’s not in the car. A Psion Information Body… Though it doesn’t seem to be a spirit. Rather, it’s a familiar.”
Tension ran through Miyuki’s face. Minami, who sat in the front, was also tightening her lips with a stiff look.
“A magician from the continent?”
Miyuki’s question was unexpected for Tatsuya.
“…No, this familiar is different from the Kasei-tai. There isn’t even any color or form, hence, it’s purely a Psion Information Body.”
Miyuki blushed at Tatsuya’s answer.
“I’m sorry, when you said familiar… I thought it was ‘Kasei-tai’.”
“You don’t need to apologize. After all, we’ve had many opportunities to be in contact with Kasei-tai type familiars within the year.
Tatsuya smiled to soothe Miyuki, but it was immediately replaced with a stiff expression.
“It took so much time to figure out our position here. The enemy couldn’t have prepared much, but be on your guard. It’s coming.”
“Yes, Onii-sama.”
“Understood, Tatsuya-sama.”
Miyuki, who was next to him, and Minami, who turned to look behind, nodded to Tatsuya.
The driver didn’t seem to be willing to converse with the three and devoted himself to drive the car. However, his shoulders were unnaturally stiff, his face fixed straight to the front, while only his eyes were running around frequently. Yet, he still did not show a frightened expression, but this much was to be expected from a driver of the Yotsuba Family.
As Tatsuya deduced, it didn’t take much time for the enemy to appear.
“Helicopter?”
The sign of the rotor sound was heard from the rear.
“Should we shoot it down?”
Miyuki, who had entered into a complete preparedness for a war, made a dangerous proposal.
“No, it’s bad to attack from here. It’s still well within the monitoring range of Psion Sensors.”
Tatsuya urged Miyuki down before she went any further. He then proceeded to talk to the driver.
“Please be wary of the front. There should be a large vehicle that will block the road soon.”
The helicopter was closing the distance between them bit by bit from the rear. They were able to catch up immediately, but chose not to do so, and Tatsuya thought that they were planning to pressure him.
It was like chasing a prey by its heel. If so, there should be an ambush further down the road.
It was a simple theory, that was why it was unlikely for that prediction to be out.
“Brake!”
Before the green light at the junction, Tatsuya raised his voice. The driver pushed the brake reflexively. He ignored the signal of a trailer which came from the side of the road, and stopped at the junction.
“Minami, put up a shield on my cue!”
“Affirmative!”
“Onii-sama, what about me?”
“Miyuki, you’re a backup in case of emergency”
At the same time, Tatsuya got out of the car quickly, and from the trailer, a whole gang of people armed with automatic rifles came down.
There were 32 people, an entire Platoon armed with normal automatic rifles (not the high-powered rifles specialized for use against magicians).
Tatsuya faced his assailants while confirming the enemy’s equipment and manpower.
(16 of them are magicians. They are not hiding in the distance. There are two in the helicopter. I guess both of them are here to supervise the situation.)
Their numbers were more than yesterday’s assailants, and there was a leader in this group.
(However, they’re still not enough.)
Half of the enemies were holding guns to hold their ground. Excessive firearms for each individual. The enemy seemed to know about Tatsuya to some extent.
(Otherwise, is there a limit on the movement of these troops?) An object barrier was formed in front of Tatsuya.
The automatic rifles were set to full auto.
The barrier that was stretched by Minami tackled all of the low-caliber high-speed bullets. It was an expected result, as Minami’s magic was targeted to defend against high-powered rifles.
Meanwhile, Tatsuya did not simply analyze the enemy’s forces.
The remaining half of the enemies advanced. Tatsuya targeted 16 people with partial Decomposition at the same time.
The magic defense of all 16 of them was already hooked. After some observation, it turned out to be magic from the Ancient Buddhist sect. A magic meant to hide one’s figure.
Tatsuya’s Decomposition had easily torn down that barrier.
It was not a result of the finesse of the triple Decomposition Magic,
‘Trident’. It was a feat of strength in terms of Magic Interference.
Activation Sequences of protective barriers were multiplied side by side, however, and their cooperation could be seen as sloppy.
Tatsuya fired his magic in rapid succession. All 16 were shot in both shoulders and thighs, completely losing their combat strength. They were in severe pain and were losing their consciousness one after the other.
“You monster!”
A familiar curse arrived at Tatsuya’s ear from the thwarted men.
Tatsuya did not even show a wry smile.
The troop had a normal combat proficiency. Tatsuya couldn’t think of any other conjecture besides Special Forces. However, they lacked strength to go against Tatsuya, let alone touching Miyuki. It was an impossible task.
(Their infantry has 16 remaining. First, I need to neutralize their arms.) Tatsuya started to run swiftly.
He had turned into a hunter.
Tatsuya took down the helicopter, the hidden magicians were knocked unconscious — he paid no heed to the after effect — and proceeded to catch the man who seemed to be the Commander of the group. Unlike yesterday, he seemed to disdain the idea of fleeing. Although Tatsuya would prefer it if he’d just run away, as Tatsuya had no use for him, and he was not in the condition to entertain police matters.
He knew from the beginning that an interrogation would be a waste of time. It was apparent to Tatsuya that the man was not informed of the details while providing the camouflage trailer for troop transport, and he confirmed this when he saw the normal automatic rifles instead of the high-powered rifles for fighting magicians.
At any rate, Tatsuya left the scene of the plight after he handled the attack in a short period of time. However, it didn’t mean that Tatsuya’s group left without any damage. Their car was destroyed.
“I’m terribly sorry…”
“Don’t worry too much, Minami, it isn’t your fault. I also didn’t expect this”
“That’s right. Minami-chan has properly fulfilled her role. As Onii-sama said, you don’t need to be bothered by this.”
Tatsuya and Miyuki slumped to comfort Minami, but it didn’t change their situation that they were stuck at a loss.
The car becoming unable to travel was not due to the flaws of Minami’s barrier magic. The enemy used a weapon that she did not think off.
“It was an EMP Bomb…”
EMP Bomb (Electromagnetic Bomb) was a weapon currently being developed which had only less than 10 meters of effectiveness at the moment. However, if strictly for short distance usage, it was compact and could be carried in an average sized vehicle. It might not have any effect on military equipment with electromagnetic protection treatment, but a shield was not sufficient in preventing the effects on electronic devices.
For instance, a CAD originally had sufficient electromagnetic protection as it was assumed to be used within military matters as well, but a commercially available portable information terminal could be damaged by an EMP Bomb.
“Miyuki, how is your terminal?”
“It’s alright.”
“Minami’s?”
“Mine, as well, it has no problems.”
Tatsuya’s information terminal looked like a commercial model externally, yet the content was customized by the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion. Miyuki’s was a gift from the Head of the Yotsuba.
Minami’s terminal was also given to her by the Yotsuba. They were made with modern technology and were able to withstand the
electromagnetic pulses from an EMP Bomb.
However, their self-propelled vehicle was not equipped with such technology.
“Even so… Why does the car which came to pick us up from the Main House not have measures against EM waves?”
The driver himself whimpered at Miyuki’s grumble.
The modern self-propelled vehicle was a lump of electronic devices. It would stop working in the presence of a powerful EM pulse.
Although the luxurious commercial vehicle had been installed with protective measures against EM waves, apparently, this car had a defective portion to its shield. Otherwise, the EMP Bomb had used a higher output than what could be handled by the vehicles at a commercially available level.
“I’m terribly sorry. As I thought, it was my fault.”
Even though he was not directly scolded, Minami felt sorry for the driver a little bit after Miyuki turned moody, hence, she apologized again.
It couldn’t be said that Minami was completely faultless.
The magic Minami used was ‘Mass Filter’. It was a magic that prevented the transmission of material above an allowable range within a constrained area. She set the magic to be ‘impermeable by anything more than three CO2 molecules’. This magic, unlike Vector Inversion and Kinetic Energy Neutralizer magic’s, was an excellent barrier which was effective in defend against Poisonous Gas that diffuses and penetrates without direction.
However, Mass Filter couldn’t defend against electromagnetic waves.
Neither could it defend against heat and explosions. She could instantly activate the ‘Vector Inverting Shield’ against an explosion, and Minami selfishly thought that she didn’t have to worry about heat with Miyuki around.
Nevertheless, she had completely overlooked EM waves. Minami was seriously thinking that it was her fault. For instance, if the enemy had used ‘lightning’ magic, her defense obviously could not stand against the attack. No matter how much Tatsuya and Miyuki comforted her, Minami failed to put her heart at ease.
That was her motivation in covering for the driver, and it was never purely sympathy.
“Miyuki, at any rate, let’s call for another car.”
Tatsuya changed the subject rather than offering Minami consoling words again, as he had guessed such sentiments.
“Alright.”
Miyuki had also noticed the reason for Minami’s self-blaming. She had no intention to blame both the driver and Minami. The monologue just now gave was unintentionally coming out of her mind. Miyuki would be very thankful if she was given a chance to retract her words.
However, it was not possible to call the Main House.
Then just right at this time, there was an incoming call to Miyuki’s terminal.
Tatsuya urged her to it pick-up with his eyes, and Miyuki answered the call.
“Good afternoon, Miyuki.”
“Yuuka-san?”
The one calling was Tsukuba Yuuka.
“Yes, it’s me. Miyuki-san, sorry if it’s too sudden.”
“What happened?”
“I wonder if you could move the trailer which is blocking the road now.”
It was an abrupt request, and since there was no assailant in the trailer, it wouldn’t move like usual so they just left it behind. Miyuki ended the call and ordered the driver to move the trailer from the intersection.
Miyuki truly had not thought that such a thing would happen, but Yuuka was unexpectedly at the other side of the moved trailer. The driver was back quickly, and the trailer was parked next to the unmoving car.
“Get in.”
It was a really sudden request without prior explanation that even Tatsuya was missing words to respond to her.
However, Yuuka raised her voice while throwing words in frustration.
“Quickly get in! I’m already at my limit in keeping the police away!”
“Miyuki, Minami, let’s get in.”
Urged by Tatsuya’s words, Miyuki and Minami went in, while at the same time loading their own luggage into Yuuka’s car.
“The driver?”
“Let him figure out something on his-”
It seemed like answering Tatsuya was a waste of time, so Yuuka omitted the last ‘own’ when Tatsuya slipped into the passenger seat and promptly started her car.
The first few minutes in the car was followed by a period of silence.
Yuuka was concentrating on driving.
Tatsuya could hear the voice communication unit in the front passenger seat occasionally. It appeared to be intercepted wirelessly.
As Miyuki looked out of the window, Minami saw the restlessness in Miyuki’s face.
Before long, tall buildings began to be seen. ‘Yuuka-san’, Miyuki spoke to Yuuka.
“What is it, Miyuki-san?”
“I think the Main House is in the opposite direction.”
Miyuki did not hide the distrust in her voice.
“We’re avoiding the police.”
Yuuka smiled wryly while answering so.
“Miyuki, Yuuka-san is speaking the truth.”
Tatsuya took away his attention from the communication unit, intending to calm Miyuki.
“The police stretched out a checkpoint in the direction of the Main House. They didn’t do so on this side for some reason.”
Tatsuya noticed that she was intercepting the police’s radio. It was not something that someone could normally do. And even though the external parts of his own terminal were commercially available, the contents were filled with Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion specs that Sanada collaborated with Fujibayashi on. Hence, he could easily find wireless encrypted communications which were used within the country, most of which should be readable.
“If Onii-sama says so… Yuuka-san. Sorry for doubting your good will.”
“It’s alright. I know you have your reasons to be suspicious of me.”
Perhaps, it was due to the fact that she appeared conveniently right after the assailants were taken care of. At least, Tatsuya thought that was enough.
“However, why do the police only wait on the road leading towards the Main House?”
However, this was the point that Miyuki doubted.
Yuuka was about to smile wryly once again, but suddenly turned to a serious expression while answering Miyuki and gazing at her eyes through the mirror.
“That’s because, Miyuki-san, they don’t want to let you arrive at the Main House.”
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