Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 31 - Future Arc - Chapter 8

Chapter 8 
August 4 th  2097 AD. 
This day, the world was reminded of magic’s power once again. 
The power, with which one magician can overwhelm even a large country. 
 
August 4 th 8 AM. 
The amphibious assault ship ‘Guam’ crossed a line 24 nautical miles from the coast of Miyakijima. ‘Guam’ then continued sailing to the west. One of two accompanying destroyers ? ‘Hull’ ? reduced its speed, while the second one ? ‘Ross’ ? sped up and changed direction to the southwest. 
The Japanese Self-Defense Forces, who identified these two destroyers as the amphibious assault ship’s escort, were confused by that change. Someone even wondered if it was  just their misunderstanding that the USNA’s ships intended  to attack Miyakijima. 
 
While the Self-Defense Forces were in a state of confusion, the owner’s of Miyakijima (the Yotsuba family) weren’t confused. 
8:20 AM. On Miyakijima’s west coast, at the former ‘monitoring facility’ that had prevented felony magicians from escaping and has now been converted into a command room for the private security on the island, an officer at this command post responsible for monitoring the sea reported in a tense voice : 
“‘Guam’ will enter into our  territorial waters soon. At their current speed it’ll take them about 5 minutes.” 
“The intercepting squad is ready for battle.” ? Reported through radio by Tsutsumi Kanata, guardian of Shibata Katsushige, who was tasked with command of the defense by Maya. 
“Kanata, calm down a little. The sortie begins only after the opponent makes their first move .” 
Katsushige felt Kanata’s impatience in his voice from the speakers and reminded the latter to not make a false start. 
“I know, Master. I haven’t forgotten that we need a justification for our self-defense against an attack.” 
Kanata’s tone used for the pronunciation of «master» sounded in no way serious, like summoning some keeper of a coffee-shop, but there was no doubt about his loyalty to Katsushige. So instead of repeating the warning, Katsushige turned his eyes toward the main screen, which extended over the entire wall in front of him. 
There was no window in this command room. The main screen, which usually showed the outside view, was now displaying a variety of information about the island’s surroundings. Katsushige now stared at the displayed USNA warships data with concentration from above his multi-function Commander’s Seat. 
“‘Guam’ has slowed down.” 
After reading this on the main screen at the same time as the operator’s report, Katsushige manipulated the intercom built into the Commander’s Seat. 
“Tatsuya-kun, the enemy ships have made their move. Could you come to the command room with Miyuki-san?” ? Katsushige said over the intercom. 
 
Parting with Tatsuya after breakfast, Miyuki led Minami, Erika, Leo, and Mikihiko to a shelter located on the underground floor of the residential building. 
Even though it was called an «underground shelter», it was as spacious and well-maintained as the above-ground floors. The room was equipped with 4 large-scale displays showing the entire territory of the island. With the presence of all kinds of amenities for a comfortable stay, this shelter was even better than any of the guest rooms above. 
As for now, nothing unusual has been seen on the island. 
The only difference from usual was that civilians (who weren’t combat personnel of the Yotsuba family) were evacuated from the plant construction site located on the east coast. 
But today was Sunday, when the plant construction and test operations were stopped anyway. 
However, there were dispatched reinforcement combatants in place of the evacuated scientists and engineers. Actually, there were more people than usual. 
The USNA warships weren’t in sight yet. The cameras available from the shelter only showed the coast with some limited range. Specifically, its [cameras’] perspective was limited by the skyline 8 kilometers off the shore and 5 meters above sea level. Meaning, the territorial waters’ borderline, located 12 nautical miles (?22 kilometers) off shore, wasn’t in the field of view of the cameras. 
Although the image from the cameras cannot be called ‘peaceful’, it hasn’t escalated the feeling of tension yet. That was probably why Erika got bored, took her eyes off from the display, and turned to Miyuki. 
“How close are the enemy ships?” 
“Minami-chan, do you know?” 
Miyuki redirected Erika’s inquiry to Minami. 
“…Three kilometers from our  territorial waters.” 
Minami wasn’t sitting on a chair, but standing before a console for centralized control of all equipment in this room. Using a keyboard on the information terminal, she received a response from the Military Affairs Information System located in the command room. It wasn’t possible to make that kind of search  from rooms for civilian accommodation in this  shelter. It was only possible because this place  was intended as a VIP room used by the next head of the family. 
“Three kilometers from our territorial waters means to the coast. It’s about… umm…” 
“It’s about twenty-five kilometers, Saijou-senpai.” ? Minami politely answered after Leo invited himself into the conversation. 
“Twenty-five kilometers. It’s still outside the launchers range.” 
By ‘launchers’ Leo meant ‘Fleming Launchers’ that had been used as a warships’ main weapon for ground bombardment during the previous war. ‘Fleming Launchers’ are able to launch large bombs using an electromagnetic launching mechanism, which commonly have a range of 20 kilometers. 
“But it’s in range to use missiles, if they have them.” 
This time, Mikihiko responded to Leo’s line. 
“If they aren’t shooting yet, it means they’re planning on landing. Sakurai-san, what type of ship is approaching ? destroyer or landing?” 
Minami glanced at Miyuki. 
Receiving a confirmative nod from Miyuki, Minami answered Mikihiko’s question with: “It’s an amphibious assault ship”. 
“I see, it’s indeed a landing operation. Instead of indiscriminate bombing , they’re specifically targeting Tatsuya.” 
Hearing Mikihiko’s guess, Erika snorted as if to mock them. 
“Anyway, they’ll switch to indiscriminate bombardment soon. As if they would succeed with assassinating Tatsuya.” 
No one objected to her. Leo and Mikihiko made a nod with convinced faces. While Miyuki showed only an inhumanely beautiful smile . 
The conversation ended here. As if waiting for a lull in the conversation, the door of the room opened suddenly. 
“Tatsuya-sama.” 
Miyuki, who had stood up even before the three-fold sliding door had fully opened, welcomed Tatsuya with a polite bow. Minami, who was slightly late, also hurried to give him a bow . 
No one there was surprised at Miyuki’s quick reaction. Even if it seemed so mysterious or irrational coming from another persons’ perspective, for Tatsuya and Miyuki’s friends , it wasn’t so surprising anymore . 
Erika, Leo, and Mikihiko were already accustomed to this incomprehensible ability to detect each other. Even through the door, that was made of gamma-ray shielding alloy covered by synthetic polymers that had a neutron shielding . 
“Miyuki, Katsushige-san is calling. Come with me.” 
Tatsuya didn’t even look at his friends and addressed only  Miyuki, but none of them complained. This was because there was an atmosphere around Tatsuya, as if forcing it to be taken for granted. 
Tatsuya was wearing an ultramarine blue colored  flight armor suit, which at first glance could easily be mistaken for black. This was another version of the ‘Freed Suit’ developed by the Yotsuba family. This suit, along with a helmet, covered the entire body in armor, and now only the face shield of his helmet was raised. 
The ‘Freed Suit’, used by Tatsuya before, could be called the ‘Civilian Version’ with a design that looked like an ‘unusual riding suit’ which one could wear even downtown and not seem suspicious. 
In contrast [with the ‘Civilian Version’], now he was obviously wearing a combat suit emphasizing the armor on vital points, and there was also a handle of the melee knife exposed on one side. As opposed to the ‘Civilian Version’, it should be called the ‘Soldier Version’. This suit breaks many regulations allowed for civilians, and if the authorities caught one wearing this, they’re going to be treated as criminals. But whether the authorities would be able to arrest him or not is  another question. 
As this appearance clearly indicated that the battle was approaching, Erika and the others naturally thought that Tatsuya came to get Miyuki for something related to intercepting the enemy. 
“Erika, Leo, and Mikihiko.” 
However, Tatsuya didn’t forget or ignore those three. 
“You guys stay here. If there’s something you want, Minami will take care of it for you. Don’t rush out into battle with the enemy.” 
After Tatsuya made his statement loud and clear, Erika and Leo just shrugged their shoulders. Their reaction was equal to the confession «don’t expect us to be obedient». 
“Mikihiko. Keep an eye on them for me.” 
“Ah, yeah. I understand.” 
After putting pressure on Mikihiko , Tatsuya left the room with Miyuki. 
Mikihiko was the one forced to take responsibility in this situation solely because of the character traits of the 3 of them. 
 
When Tatsuya entered the command room, Katsushige was changing out of his summer blazer and into a combat jacket (which had bulletproof, blade-proof, resistant to chemical weapons, and explosion-proof functions). 
Katsushige’s trousers were made from the same material. It was similar to a flight armor suit, but in contrast to Tatsuya’s one-piece jumpsuit-type, it consisted of two parts. Both of its parts were pressed down by the jacket’s elastic belt, providing some airtightness, though not with the efficiency of the ‘Freed Suit’ or military Mobile Suit. 
Nevertheless, it had the functionality needed for high-speed movements during short distances. It was sufficient for Katsushige who, unlike Tatsuya, was able to protect himself with magic alone. 
“Sorry I made you wait.” 
After locking up the belt and zipping the jacket’s collar, Katsushige turned around and replied: 
“No, I’m sorry for suddenly calling you while [dressed] like this.” 
With this, the greeting was over. 
“Actually, the amphibious assault ship ‘Guam’ stopped just before it entered territorial waters.” 
They refrained from such unproductive things like ‘competing for an apology’ and immediately proceeded to the main topic. 
“I’d like to hear your opinion about the enemy’s intention.” 
“Please tell me about the destroyers’ status.” 
Tatsuya asked back instead of answering Katsushige’s question. 
“The destroyer ‘Hull’ stopped about thirty kilometers east off the island, while ‘Ross’ is heading west at around fifty knots alongside the island’s southern border.” 
“‘Guam’ seems to be waiting for ‘Ross’ to get into position.” 
Upon hearing Katsushige’s answer, Tatsuya immediately expressed what he thought Katsushige would say next . 
“Are they going to do a pinch attack with the two destroyers from east and west? But ‘Ross’ and ‘Hull’ are just naval melee escort ships mainly equipped with anti-aircraft and anti-submarine weaponry. They may have some missiles loaded which can be used for bombardment, but considering its capacity, there won’t be many. Unless they are going to use nuclear missiles… Are they planning to launch a nuclear attack?” 
“They very likely won’t use nuclear missiles. I don’t think that the USNA government would turn a blind eye to it.” 
Tatsuya’s answer had another meaning. 
Katsushige didn’t miss it. 
“…Are you saying that the enemy is prepared to use large-scale magic that is comparable to a nuclear attack?” 
“It’s just a guess.” 
“Even if it’s so, it doesn’t mean that we can sink them with a preemptive strike.” 
“Miyuki and I will be preparing for long-range magic attacks from the destroyers.” 
Tatsuya glanced over his shoulder towards Miyuki. 
Miyuki nodded confidently. 
“Okay. I’ll leave that to Tatsuya-kun and Miyuki-san. Meanwhile, I will repel  the landing forces at the coast, as planned. ” 
After telling this to Tatsuya, Katsushige turned to Miyuki: 
“Miyuki-san, please sit here.” 
Saying that, Katsushige encouraged Miyuki to take the Commander’s Seat. 
“Isn’t that seat entrusted to Katsushige-san from Oba-sama?” 
“I got permission from the family’s head yesterday.” 
“But…” 
“Miyuki, just accept it thankfully. This Commander’s Seat has the functionality you need.” 
Tatsuya added some advice to Miyuki who was hesitating. No, it was more like instructions rather than advice. 
“If Onii-sama, that is, Tatsuya-sama, says so…” 
Because of his unexpected advice, Miyuki inadvertently called Tatsuya «Onii-sama», but fortunately, neither Katsushige nor anyone else in the command room found this to be strange. 
Right before she was going to take the Commander’s Seat, Miyuki made eye contact with Katsushige once more. 
“What about Katsushige-san?” 
“I’ll take command from a mobile command base on the northeast coast.” 
The mobile command base that he referred to was an armored van with a built-in Tactical Data-Link System connected to the computer in the  command room. 
“With a flight device it won’t take much time to get there. Besides, it’s certainly more convenient to be near the site. ” 
“I understand, please be careful.” 
“Thank you.” 
Katsushige left the command room with his helmet under his arm. 
Miyuki sat down on the Commander’s Seat and looked up at Tatsuya standing by her side. 
“Tatsuya-sama, please tell me about the functions of this seat.” 
“Strictly speaking, this desk has a special function , not the seat.” 
“Desk?” 
Miyuki made a dubious look. 
That was only to be expected. There was nothing in front of the Commander’s Seat that’s installed on a circular platform and elevated one foot higher from the surrounding floor. Miyuki’s sitting figure was now in sight of the surrounding staff from head to toe. 
“It’s faster to show you rather than explain it to you.” ? Said Tatsuya and moved behind her diagonally to the right. 
Miyuki followed Tatsuya with her eyes, while still having  a dubious expression. 
Tatsuya stretched his right hand over Miyuki’s shoulder toward the inner side of the right armrest. 
Miyuki froze because it felt like an attempt to hug her from behind. 
Tatsuya’s right hand pushed an inconspicuous button that was placed on the armrest’s inner side. 
Then he removed his hand and straightened up. 
Immediately after that, the wall that surrounded the back of the seat in a circular arc began to move from the left side of Miyuki to the front. After passing half of the circle and stopping before the Commander’s Seat, the wall started moving toward the seat. 
Approaching a distance of 10 centimeters in front of Miyuki’s hands , the arc wall transformed into a desk, surrounding the seat in an arc from the armrests’ base on either side. 
“This is…?” 
Surprised with this exaggerated gimmick, Miyuki rounded her eyes. 
“I honestly think they’ve been playing around too much…” 
Seeing Tatsuya smile wryly, she realized that it probably wasn’t his design. 
“The engineer responsible for reconstructing this room was probably a special effects maniac or something like that.” 
Miyuki seemed relieved to know that Tatsuya also felt that this gimmick was strange. 
“…So, what useful functions does it have?” 
“Here.” 
Tatsuya, who ‘escaped’ outside the moving desk, reached out and touched a button that appeared on the table from Miyuki’s right side. 
The outer side of the table opened, and a mechanical ‘arm’ resembling a microphone stand extended out in front of Miyuki. 
“Tatsuya-sama, what is this?” 
“Miyuki, do you have the CAD that I gave you last night?” 
“Of course.” 
Miyuki took out a CAD in the form of a compact handgun from her purse placed on her lap. 
“Insert the CAD here.” 
The tip of the ‘arm’ that Tatsuya pointed to was shaped like a small pistol rack . When a gun-shaped device is inserted there, its ‘barrel’ is automatically clamped on both sides, thereby fixing it in place. The handle remains outside, so the CAD can be controlled even when it’s installed on the rack o f  the ‘arm’. 
“This arm has the function of expanding the CAD aiming assistance. If you aim the ‘muzzle’ (when the CAD is set on the arm) to any image on the main screen, the Tactical Computer in this command room will transmit data on the target’s position in a format suitable for the Activation Sequence to the CAD. Needles to say, your CAD is already compatible with this system, so it can receive and utilize the Tactical Data. While sitting here, you can freely aim at any object within a fifty kilometer radius, as if you’re seeing it with the naked eye.” 
“Just like Tatsuya-sama does with ‘Elemental Sight’?” 
Miyuki already realized that this system was designed specifically for her. Tatsuya who has ‘Elemental Sight’ doesn’t need such a system. Actually, Tatsuya doesn’t even need ‘Third Eye’ as an extended CAD with additional aim-assistance. With only a broadcast or satellite image, it’s enough for Tatsuya to aim at the target. One could tell that this system acted as a [technological] replacement to the process of acquiring positional information, like ‘Elemental Sight’ does. 
If you are asking if other magicians with this system could imitate Tatsuya ? it would be impossible. Ordinary magicians couldn’t apply magic to any distant object or area, located 10 kilometers away, even having location data in the form of an Activation Sequence. That would require magic power comparable to the ‘Thirteen Apostles’ such as Bezobrazov of the New Soviet Union , or like the amount of magic power  that Miyuki possesses. 
“With increased performance of the Enemy Search System connected to the Tactical Computer, it’s possible to even reach the other side of the earth. As for the current system, a fifty kilometer radius is the limit.” 
But who installed this system here? Miyuki didn’t think it was created based on Tatsuya’s idea  because he’d be against making magicians part of the weapon system .  At the very least, Tatsuya would never consider using Miyuki as a part of a weapon. 
Then it was probably Maya who ordered the installation of this equipment, and to use Miyuki for military purposes… 
Miyuki stopped thinking further. Who conceived all this? What are their motives? For now, it doesn’t matter. The main thing is that this system will be helpful in the upcoming battle. 
Thanks to this system, Miyuki will be able to help Tatsuya. 
“…I understand. I will master this system so that I can be useful to Tatsuya-sama.” 
Miyuki, for the time being, decided to think about it from this perspective. 
 
8:50 AM.  Finally, the amphibious assault ship ‘Guam’ has started military actions. Small high-speed boats descended from the hull to the sea surface through the stern slipways  one by one. And those were n’t landing crafts for unloading military equipment, but assault boats [20]  intent on delivering combatants carrying weapons. 
There were six such boats in total. In addition to the crew, each boat carried 50 fighters, totaling 300 people ? about two companies. This was rather small if we take into account that the ‘Guam’ was capable of delivering more than 1,000 soldiers. But given that the operation was unofficial, anyone who knew the current circumstances would applaud the fact that «they were able to gather so many people». 
The assault boats weren’t departing sequentially, but launched simultaneously after all 6 of them were on the sea’s surface. Nevertheless, they didn’t arrange into a formation. Those boats spread out and started advancing separately toward the east coast of Miyakijima. They seemingly didn’t arrange into a formation, so as to not concentrate their attack on a narrow space, while their simultaneous start was to avoid the boats being destroyed one by one. 
Even so, that was just six small boats. In theory, two companies should have enough troops to take an 8 square kilometer island. However, if they are distributed between 6 boats with a capacity of 50 people, the defending side should be able to sink them if it has 20-30 magicians capable of using long-range attack magic. Moreover, these magicians don’t necessarily have to be users of powerful magic, such as Tatsuya or Miyuki. 
Even without resorting to magic, if the coastal defense  was equipped with modern anti-naval weaponry, those boats  wouldn’t even have time to get to the shore. 
Even the captain of the landing ship ‘Guam’, who belonged to the USNA Armed Forces, had to understand that to some degree. As if to confirm this, simultaneously with the launching assault boats, unmanned attack fighters flew off the deck of the ‘Guam’. 
They were about 5 meters long ? slightly larger than a small truck. For weaponry, they had only machine-guns (12.7 mm caliber ) with the size of a high-caliber sniper rifle. It would be better to call them Gun Pod Drones instead of unmanned fighters. 
They had single-type jet engine and canard type clipped delta wings with winglets, while their fuselage shape were similar to HiMAT [21]  ? the unmanned experimental aircrafts from the second half of the last century. 
These drones rely on a tactical philosophy of «using quantity and mobility» for eliminating light-armored aerial forces, infantry, and unarmored vehicles. Thanks to their small size, they can be loaded in large quantities on board landing ships, which have smaller hangars than aircraft carriers. For each boat, six drones were dispatched for air support. Plus eight drones were left circling above the ‘Guam’ as its guard. 
Shibata Katsushige, who took position in a hollow on the other side of a hill along the coastal road, and kept track of the enemy’s movements in real time through an information link between the command vehicle and the command room. 
The enemy’s assault boats penetrated deep into territorial waters, and were visible from the coastline even with the naked eye. 
“Don’t attack yet.” 
However, Katsushige has not yet given permission for interception. At this point, the only concrete measures taken against the invasion were the landing-obstruction fences installed last night along all of the possible landing sites. In less then one evening, they were able to construct a sturdy fence on par with the one installed along the national border against illegal immigration. This was only possible  thanks to the convenient technology called magic, which in principle allowed them  to make more preparations, but no aggressive measures, such as the installation of naval mines, were taken. So far, the Yotsuba family has avoided actions violating Japanese domestic laws. 
There were blocks of wave-breakers piled up on the north and east coasts of the island. Military boats, used for amphibious landing, could overcome such obstacles, but the price for breaking through them would be very high. The first assault boats that reached the island were heading toward areas without wave-breakers, which could be called the logical choice. 
Since their choice was logical, it was also natural to be vigilant of their opponent being prepared [with a welcoming party]. 
Actually, there was only sturdy fencing installed along the waterfront. There were no aggressive actions taken, like: hidden mines or turrets, or applying lethal-level, high-voltage current to the fencing. 
However, the overly cautious enemy fired at the fencing with a grenade launcher even before approaching the shore. And it wasn’t a single shot, but a simultaneous salvo of ten grenade launchers. 
The fence had been severely damaged. 
The attack was so redundant that even the warehouse building near the coast was damaged. 
The incident was a clear action of sabotage to private property. 
“?Start the counterattack.” 
After confirming the damage, Katsushige gave his subordinates permission to open the battle in a calm and collected voice. 
 
There weren’t only Parasites among  the soldiers sent from the ‘Guam’ landing ship. 
Edward Clark promised in a secret talk with the Secretary of Defense that he «will not use humans with USNA nationality for the next assassination operation». At that time, Clark had intended to procure troops for the assassination from the Parasites, but at the stage of actually recruiting soldiers, the total number of Parasites turned out to be far less than he expected. 
Therefore, Clark procured about 200 soldiers of foreign nationality who hoped for naturalization [in the USNA] by using the acquisition of citizenship after a successful operation as bait. Among them were even magicians, although they were low-level. 
Around 90 people were the Stardust members, who themselves wished to become Parasites for the sake of prolonging their lives. 
There were also nine members of the Stars, including the surviving Parasites of the Stellar-class: Captain Rigel of the Sixth Unit, Second-Lieutenant Bellatrix, and Second-Lieutenant Alnilam. 
The commander of the assault boat landing party that was first to arrive on Miyakijima was Sergeant Alejandro Mimas, a Satellite-class member of the Stars born in the former Mexican territory. He was dispatched to Japan in the winter of 2096 and was seriously injured in a fight with Tatsuya. Sergeant Mimas turned into a Parasite because he wanted retaliation against Tatsuya. 
This assassination operation was long-awaited for Mimas. He was one of the most active participants who signed up for this mission. Mimas’ boat was the first to reach the shore because under his pressure, the crew drove the boat extravagantly, without being distracted by caution. 
It was Mimas who ordered the use of grenades against the fencing that prevented landing. He had a short temper even when he was human, but when he became a Parasite, that inclination intensified immensely . 
Speaking of the effects of P arasitism : when he was a human, Mimas was a magician who mastered the heating of objects by Systematic Oscillation-type magic. Like pyrokinesis, this magic could freely heat objects in the user’s field of vision. However, it wasn’t the only magic that he could use. He also mastered the Stars’ secret magic — ‘Molecular Divider’. 
However, assimilation with the Parasites altered his abilities. As observed among  many of the Parasites, their magic skills become highly specialized in a small number of magics. In Mimas’ case, his skills were more inclined towards the magic called ‘Bio Ignition’ [22]  a Heating-type magic. 
As the name suggests, ‘Bio Ignition’ literally causes ignition of the bodies of living beings, but for some reason, has no effect on the corpses of organisms or materials derived from organisms. For example, a live tree can be burned, but coal cannot be ignited. This is another unsolved mystery of the technology called ‘Magic’. 
In return, Mimas gained incomparable power in battle against humans. Besides, he was able to activate that magic with very little Interference Strength . The reason for this was probably due to the aforementioned limitations  of this magic. With ‘Bio Ignition’, he was able to kill a superior magician, which his magic normally couldn’t penetrate because of insufficient Interference Strength. 
In this situation, his ‘Bio Ignition’ wouldn’t have any effect on the artificial fencing. Although, in the landing party he commanded there were magicians with the ability to attack remote targets. However, Mimas couldn’t destroy the obstacle with his magic, so he made a hasty decision and gave the order to destroy it with conventional weapons. 
“Begin landing!” 
Mimas ordered as soon as the assault boat docked on shore. At the moment, he was so eager for revenge that he only looked forward. He didn’t even order the search for enemies, which he should’ve done before landing. 
One by one, the soldiers began to go ashore. More precisely, it would be more correct to say «they began to descend», since the deck was above ground level. But in fact, most of the soldiers simply jumped from the edge of the deck to the paved surface. It seemed like Mimas’ attitude was contagious, because they didn’t show vigilance in relation to their surroundings. 
Suddenly, such a heedless landing party was hit by a storm of arrows. 
They didn’t rain down from above. 
Short arrows about 50 centimeters long were striking like horizontal rain from one side. 
There were about 30 arrows in each wave flying from the shadows of the warehouse in short intervals. The magician members in the landing party quickly responded and raised anti-object shields, but around 1/3 of the members were injured by the arrows. 
No one was fatally wounded, but more than 10% of the platoon were incapacitated ? those six people were either pierced in their legs or abdomen. 
“Fire at that corner with grenades! Those of you who can use healing magic ? take care of the injured. Bring the severely injured, who are unable to continue fighting, back to the assault boat!” 
Following Mimas’ command, the landing members started to move at once. Eighteen non-magicians loaded their assault rifles with grenades, stepped forward, and took a firing position on one knee. Behind them, two magicians rushed to give healing treatment to the ten people who were slightly injured, while three other magicians started transporting the six seriously injured people to the boat using magic. Incidentally, these five magicians [who were helping the injured]  weren’t Parasites. 
Two non-commissioned officers stood beside the shooters who had taken a firing position on one knee. One of them swung down their hand with the command: “Shoot!” The next moment, nine simultaneous grenades were fired. 
The nine soldiers after shooting stepped back with the signaling officer , after that another non-commissioned officer raised one hand. Peering into the dust raised in the impact area, the officer suddenly shouted: “Sergeant!” 
“No sign of the enemy shooters.” 
Mimas put binoculars to his eyes. There were no signs of humans on the other side of the wall destroyed by grenades. There were also no corpses on the ground. 
“Stop firing.” 
As soon as Mimas gave the order, another swarm of arrows came at them, flying in an arc around the place where the wall used to be. 
Mimas understood the trick that prevented them from finding the enemy shooters ? bending trajectories using magic. They changed the trajectory of the arrows with magic, manipulating them to fly around the warehouse in an arc. 
“Shields!” 
Mimas’ reaction was immediate, but it couldn’t be said that he made it on time. In this volley, more than twenty people were injured, including the soldiers who adopted a posture for grenade attacks along with their Squad Leader. Eleven out of the twenty injured were forced to withdraw from the battlefield . 
Including the first seriously injured, there were 17  withdrawals, which already exceeded 1/3 of this landing party. With these casualty rates, it would be normal to consider a full-retreat. 
Perhaps even the ‘Guam’ couldn’t overlook their catastrophic situation. The drones, escorting the assault boat before landing, flew above Mimas  — presumably in order to eliminate an ambush  from the sky. 
However, of the six drones that invaded the airspace above the ground, three were already shot down one by one. 
There were no missiles to intercept the drones in sight. 
There were no gunfire sounds either. 
“Phonon Maser…?” ? Muttered Mimas with suspicion in his voice. Phonon Maser itself isn’t such a rare magic. A high Interference Strength is required for its activation. However, the Phenomenon Rewriting during the process wa s relatively simple. We could say that in this case, only the frequency of sound waves was pushed to the limit. 
However, when it comes to a real battle, it is this «pushed to the limit» part that becomes a bottleneck. 
In order to shoot down a highly maneuverable drone, it’s necessary to generate a sufficient amount of heat during a moment of irradiation. It’s completely different from an attack on a stationary target. In order to obtain that much power requires a [waves’] frequency that, without exaggeration, can be called ‘hyper-oscillation’. The required Interference Strength is proportionate to that [frequency]. 
(There was no information that Shiba Tatsuya could use Phonon Maser.) 
(Shiba Miyuki should specialize in wide-area cooling magic.) 
(In addition to those two, here is a combat magician capable of using such high-powered magic…) 
(After all, the Yotsuba are… way too dangerous!) 
Apart from the desire for revenge against Tatsuya, a sense of worry arose in Mimas’ mind. 
The three remaining drones gained altitude. Possibly the operator controlling the drones decided that if they continued to try to eliminate the ambush (which they still couldn’t find), all the drones would simply be shot down. 
In the meantime, volleys of arrows continued. 
(Only I / we will go further.) 
Alejandro Mimas called to the Parasite of the same platoon via the Mind Link. 
(I agree with Alejandro’s / our decision.) 
(I agree.) 
(I agree.) 
(I agree.) 
(I / we are moving further.) 
(Let’s go.) 
(Let’s go.) 
(Let’s go.) 
Eight Parasites telepathically responded to Mimas’ suggestion. 
“Sergeant!?” ? H is assistant, a Staff Sergeant who wasn’t infected with a Parasite, called out to Mimas, who suddenly began to move forward . 
“Sergeant Colombo, I’m transferring command to you. Return with the remaining soldiers.” 
Mimas replied to the Staff-Sergeant without stopping and plunged into a storm of arrows with eight Parasites from Stardust. 
 
A food warehouse located about 50 meters away from the coastline.  Having knocked down three drones from its roof, Tsutsumi Kanata felt signs of different magic approaching from the side of the embankment. 
“This is… Are these signs of Parasites?” 
Kanata had a habit of thinking aloud in order to digest information obtained during combat faster. Even now he involuntarily spoke to himself. 
“If they’re able to block those arrows, whose penetrating ability has been increased with inertia control magic,  with anti-object shields … They are on the same level with the fighters of the Shibata family in terms of raw magic power.” 
Among the entire Yotsuba clan, the Shibata family was a side branch with the strongest disposition for maintaining their private army. They specialized not in assassinations and sabotage, but in frontal assaults and base defense. 
When compared only by physical combat power (in the sense of not using Mental Interference Magic), the combat magicians of the Shibata family were considered the strongest among all of the branch families. Perhaps they even surpassed the Main family’s mercenary forces. 
And those Parasites have power comparable to the magicians composing the core of the fighting forces of the Shibata family At least, that was Kanata’s assessment after clashing with their magic. 
“Perhaps it would be better to lend them a hand.” 
The defense squad and Parasites haven’t faced each other yet, however, if the enemy decides on a close range attack, then the defenders wouldn’t be able to avoid a hard fight. 
Kanata and the Parasites couldn’t see each other directly, being in the blind spots of each other. However, Kanata was the second generation of the ‘Bard series’ ? enhanced magicians with a high aptitude for Oscillation-Type Magic interfering with sound. Emitting inaudible ultrasound, he could easily calculate the position, shape, and movement of a distant object from its reflection. 
He was also capable  of precision firing with magic  based on that information. 
Kanata shot the non-lethal magic ‘Echo Cannon’, aiming at the Parasites in the rear instead of the front. 
There were three reasons for choosing non-lethal magic instead of the highly lethal Phonon Maser: 
First, he couldn’t ignore the possibility that Phonon Maser (as Pinpoint Sniping) would be detected during the magic activation and the enemy would evade it. ‘Echo Cannon’ was also a targeted attack, but still had some Area of Effect. 
The second was to measure the Parasites’ physical stamina. ‘Echo Cannon’ was magic that temporarily disrupts the functions of a human body. If the Parasites’ bodies aren’t different from humans’ by their structure and physical strength, then the ‘Echo Cannon’ would demonstrate all its usual effects. The answer to the question «will the usual anti-personnel attack on the Parasite work, or not?» would be useful information for subsequent battles with the Parasites. 
And thirdly, it would slow the progress of the Parasites. If they are killed, they will simply abandon the corpses of their comrades and move on. With a decrease in their number, their speed of advancement may, on the contrary, increase. At the same time, when using a paralyzing attack, there was a chance that they would all stop in order to protect their wounded ally. 
In order to confirm the effects of ‘Echo Cannon’, Kanata activated the next magic ? ‘Active Sonar’. 
 
Suddenly, Mimas sensed signs of magic somewhere above, though not right overhead, but somewhere closer toward the end of their double column formation. 
Although they were all Parasites, the individual characteristics of each of them depended on the level of the person with whom assimilation occurred. The Stars members even of Satellite-class clearly had higher levels of innate abilities than those of the Stardust. 
Stardust’s fighting power had been forcibly increased by biochemical enhancement, and such ‘boosts’ weren’t reflected in the Parasites’ abilities. For this reason, only Alejandro Mimas caught the signs of magic activation. 
Since the Parasites share consciousness, that information was instantly transmitted to the other eight members. However, the information about the activation point was shown relative to Mimas’ body. 
They shared one consciousness, but had individual bodies. 
If they try to avoid that magic from the initial information about its detected activation signs, the result would be confusion and disorder. 
A roaring explosive sound hit two rear soldiers from above. 
One of them was brushed by a small cluster of sound waves, while the other was hit directly with ‘Echo Cannon’. 
That sound not only caused hearing impairment, but also partially blocked the connection between the mind and the physical body. 
This affected all the Parasites with shared consciousness. 
In particular, the largest impact was exerted on the eight Parasites walking nearby, including Mimas. 
The Parasite who had been hit directly had only a part of their body temporarily immobilized. 
However, the other seven experienced the unpleasant illusion of a ‘lack’ of a physical body. 
After acquiring a physical body by assimilation with a human, the spiritual life form ‘Parasite’ stabilizes its existence in this world. And while drifting in this world in ‘spiritual form’, its state is unstable. 
The cases when the Parasites become trapped or locked into a mechanical body, like Pixie or the Parasite Dolls, indicates that even such a state is more stable than the stand-alone spiritual body. 
For spiritual bodies, ‘instability’ means ‘insecurity’. The physical body brings stability to the Parasites, while partial body loss brings about some sort of ‘anxiety’ associated with ‘instability’ ? the loss of a vessel. 
For Kanata, the results exceeded all expectations: ‘Echo Cannon’ caused a surge of anger and hatred inside the Parasites. 
(I / individual named Alejandro Mimas will eliminate this enemy.) 
Mimas, who detected the source of magic, announced to the others his decision to reach and kill Kanata. 
(I / we will help with the movement.) 
Other Parasites offered Mimas the help with movement, as his ability to move with the help of magic greatly deteriorated when specializing in ‘Bio Ignition’. 
(Then start the transfer.) 
(Transferring.) 
After the exchange of thoughts was finished, Mimas’ body disappeared from the road. 
 
“What!?” 
(They’ve noticed me!?) 
Kanata shouted aloud and in his thoughts when he sensed that those strong signs of a presence started approaching in a straight line toward where he was, the food warehouse. 
The distance between them was about 250 meters. It would be an exaggeration to say that for magicians, such a distance was like nothing, but it still wasn’t such a great distance to make it difficult to perceive each other. But for Kanata, it was in the nature of things during a sudden attack to carefully suppress the signs of magic, leaking of psychic energy in the form of surplus psions, allowing someone to detect the place of magic activation ? that is, the place where he himself was. 
Nevertheless, that Parasite was definitely heading for Kanata. Which meant that the magic perception ability of that Parasite exceeded Kanata’s concealment technique. 
Although Kanata had no intention of underestimating his opponent, he was forced to admit that he was naive. 
At the same time, he firmly resolved to fight back instead of running away. Who knows what damage to allies this enemy will bring if left alone. Of all the magicians in charge of this sector, Kanata had the highest fighting strength. «If not me, then who?» ? such a sense of duty made him stay here. 
It took less than five seconds for Kanata to choose his counter-attack. At that moment when he decided, there were signs that the enemy was already in close proximity . 
(?Now!) 
The Parasite showed up on the roof where Kanata was located. 
At the same moment, Kanata released Phonon Maser. 
Mimas reached the enemy who made the surprise attack in two jumps. 
The next moment, he felt the activation of attack magic and raised his arms in front of his vital points. 
Intense heat occurred on his left arm that covered his heart. 
Mimas isolated the sensation of his left arm. 
By the time he realized that it was a Phonon Maser attack aimed at the heart, his left arm was already burned to the elbow. 
His arm wasn’t pierced thanks to the effect of ‘Vacuum shield’ (the most popular defensive magic that protects against air attacks, such as magic bullets from compressed air), which was deployed with his magic power as a regular member of the Stars  (although his other skills had been reduced due to his specialization in other abilities). It was also thanks to the heat resistance of a forearm protector developed specifically for the USNA Special Operations Forces . 
Still, it was a serious injury that caused third-degree burns to the elbow. Normally, it would be so painful that no one could move. 
However, the Parasites have an ability to block physical senses for preventing any extra damage to their True Body ? the  spiritual one. Though one could become incapacitated if they blocked their physical senses at the wrong time,  this allows one to keep fighting with continuous pain. 
To prevent the enemy’s second shot, Mimas first activated ‘Bio Ignition’ aimed at Kanata’s right arm, which was aiming back at him with a gun-shaped CAD. 
“Guaaaaa!” 
Kanata screamed in pain . Sticking his right arm out in front of him, he fell to his knees. 
Kanata had not lost his vigilance. He perceived that the Parasite, who used their own left arm to shield against Phonon Maser, was also trying to counterattack with magic. 
The Parasite was simply faster. Kanata was already at the stage of reading the Activation Sequence to shoot a second Phonon Maser. Regardless of that, the Parasite was the first one to finish his magic. 
The heat wasn’t even felt by Kanata. The pain was so strong that all the senses except ‘pain’  was squeezed out of his mind. 
His arm was engulfed in fire for just one moment. 
In that short period of time, his arm was charred to the middle of his shoulder. 
He no longer felt anything in his right arm. At the moment, severe pain was transmitting from the base of his shoulder. 
The CAD gripped in his right hand fell onto the warehouse’s flat roof with a noise, along with the carbonized fingers from his right hand. 
After a moment, the lower part from the elbow fell off . With the fall of his arm, charred remnants of skin and muscular tissues scattered revealing white bones. 
“?Shit!” 
Perhaps witnessing the loss of his right arm raised his fighting spirit, which surpassed the pain. 
With  a meaningless scream that served both as  self-inspiration and a curse on the enemy, Kanata rose to his feet, despite the fact that his knees were trembling. 
His eyes were filled with fighting spirit and murderous intent ? and with a clear intention to use magic. 
However, in his current condition when even using a CAD was hampered by pain, he couldn’t take the initiative  against the enemy — Parasite. 
The Parasite, Mimas, activated his magic faster than Kanata could complete his Magic Sequence. 
Even with the burned right arm, the Yotsuba’s combat magician didn’t lose his fighting spirit. 
On the contrary, even without one arm, he was about to release magic to counter-attack. 
Upon s eeing such a figure, even Mimas, who had become a Parasite, couldn’t help but admire him. 
That’s precisely why he couldn’t turn a blind eye here. Leaving this tough enemy will only bring damage to his allies. 
Mimas constructed the Magic Sequence of ‘Bio Ignition’ with the maximum amount of power that he was currently able to use. 
Such power wasn’t required at all to kill his seriously-injured enemy ? Kanata. To grant an instant death without suffering ? this was a peculiar show of respect paid by Mimas toward the enemy. 
Magicians who are turned into Parasites don’t need a CAD, while their magic activation speed also improves. 
Although Mimas’ current ‘Bio Ignition’ was excessively powerful, it was completed prior to the magic Kanata had tried to construct. 
Mimas activated ‘Bio Ignition’. 
Kanata’s whole body burned in an instant… more precisely, it was supposed to burn. 
“What?” 
But nothing happened. There was certainly a n indication that the magic had activated, but it was canceled just before the phenomenon of the human body’s ignition became a reality. 
The magic was erased. 
By someone. 
Mimas hurriedly turned around. 
Not because he felt someone’s presence. It was completely an intuitive move. 
Behind him was a figure in a combat suit that was protecting vital points with armor. 
The face was hidden under the helmet. From the silhouette, it was obviously a man. 
His empty right hand was stretched out toward Mimas. 
(This guy…!) 
Mimas didn’t know who it was, but intuitively understood that it was « this guy » who had erased his magic. 
Mimas aimed ‘Bio Ignition’ at the man in the helmet. 
During that moment, he completely forgot about Kanata. 
Blood suddenly sprouted out from the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth of Mimas, who showed his back to Kanata . 
After which his body collapsed forward. 
There was a hole burned in the back of his head. 
As if relieved with the enemy’s death, Kanata also fell down unconscious. 
Mimas was defeated by Phonon Maser from Kanata, who had gathered the last bit of his strength to release it. 
Kanata  didn’t stop constructing the Magic Sequence for Phonon Maser even when Mimas’ ‘Bio Ignition’ had been finished (but the phenomenon of ignition  had not yet manifested). 
Phonon Maser, fired along Kanata’s line of sight, successfully pierced the back of Mimas’ head and burned his brain. While the blood sprouting from the Parasite’s facial openings was pushed out of the skull as a result of the boiling cerebrospinal fluid. 
Destroying the brain means the death of the Parasite’s physical body. 
However, that alone won’t destroy the Parasite’s True Body. It will just escape from the corpse. 
Returning to the state of a spiritual body, the Parasite will try to possess a living human host to replace the dead physical body. And right below the Parasite, which was ‘Mimas’ a few seconds ago, was a human body lying unconscious. 
Following the instinct of stabilizing its existence, the Parasite tried to take refuge in Kanata’s body. However, when the Parasite tried to move in, it suddenly lost its ‘foundation’ in the form of a Psion Information Body, which in this world, was supporting the Pushion Information Body, which was the core of its True Body. 
The ‘foundation’ of its existence ? the Psion Information Body ? was decomposed into small pieces. 
The support which allows the spiritual life-form to be in this world had  been destroyed. As a result, the spiritual life-form disappeared from this world, as if being drawn into an invisible vortex. 
The Parasite, which had been dwelling in the Stars’ Satellite-class magician Sergeant Alejandro Mimas, vanished from our universe. 
(Elimination of the Parasite is confirmed.) 
After killing the Parasite with ‘Astral Dispersion’, Tatsuya pulled out his gun-shaped CAD from his waist with his left hand ? his favorite Silver Horn Custom ‘Trident’, and pointed it toward Kanata, who was still lying unconscious. 
‘Regrowth’ activated. 
Hidden beneath the helmet, Tatsuya frowned slightly . It wasn’t possible to ignore the hundredfold concentrated pain that he experienced from using ‘Regrowth’ on  Kanata’s burned right arm. 
However, Tatsuya showed only that reaction to such pain. 
After restoring Kanata’s burned arm, Tatsuya operated the panel on the side of the helmet to establish a connection with the Mobile Base. 
“Katsushige-san.” 
“Tatsuya-kun, what is it?” 
“Tsutsumi Kanata is lying on the roof of the food warehouse. Arrange a rescue team for him.” 
The communicator clearly conveyed that Katsushige, on the other end of the communication line, was catching his breath . 
“…What’s the state of his injury?” 
“He’s not injured, just unconscious.” 
“I see. I’m really grateful.” 
Even without further explanation, Katsushige understood that Tatsuya had healed Kanata, who was so badly wounded that he had even lost consciousness,  with magic. 
“I will continue to wipe out Parasites.” 
“Copy that.” 
Tatsuya’s role at this point was to prevent the Parasites’ True Bodies from escaping. As could be seen in Mimas’ example, simply killing the human host doesn’t actually mean that the Parasite will be defeated. It will simply leave the corpse and move on to the next host. 
However, the assimilation requires «a person with a strong and pure desire», so not every person who becomes a host turns into a Parasite. That is, even if the assimilation fails, the Parasite’s True Body will simply change the host and thereby will not disappear from this world. 
In that respect, Tatsuya with ‘Mist Dispersion’ and ‘Astral Dispersion’ was capable of destroying both the Physical & True Bodies of the Parasites. 
Tatsuya took off from the food warehouse roof in search of his next prey. 
 
Seven Parasites attacked a defense squad who were armed with crossbows. 
The defense squad combatants threw away their crossbows and started counterattacking by directly firing arrows using magic, but they were at a disadvantage. One by one, they were falling under the onslaught of the Parasites. 
“Oh, not again!” ? Shouted Erika, who was watching the scene on the shelter’s large display. 
“Ngh… There’s still no reinforcements!?” ? Leo, who was next to her, leaked this with a reluctant voice while grinding his teeth. 
“Their level is entirely different from the Parasites that we fought before…” 
In contrast with these two, Mikihiko still kept calm, nevertheless he couldn’t conceal his surprise. 
“I can’t stand it anymore! Minami, open the door!” 
Erika stood up and shouted toward Minami. 
Minami showed no agitation at her loud voice. 
“Where are you going?” 
“Helping out of course!” ? Answered Erika. 
“Where are you going?” 
But Minami once again asked the exact same question. 
“Wha…” 
“At the moment, there are ongoing battles in nine different places on the island. Of these, in three spots our people are at a disadvantage. However, reinforcements have already been sent to each of these places. The combat situation should turn around soon.” 
While Erika was at a loss for words, Minami readily explained the current situation. 
“Then what’s with the battle we’re seeing? Will you just abandon them?” 
Erika, whose eagerness dampened, retorted with a displeased tone. 
“No, almost there.” 
As expected, Minami’s stance was unwavering. 
Her eyes weren’t directed at Erika but toward a side console. The data displayed there was what gave Minami such confidence. 
“What’s almost there!?” 
“He has arrived.” 
Minami shifted her gaze from the small console monitor to the large wall-mounted display. 
Erika’s stare followed in the same direction. 
And at that moment. 
A human figure in a dark-colored combat suit descended into the frame. 
“Tatsuya-kun!?” 
It was the combat suit worn by Tatsuya earlier. Even though his face was now hidden under a helmet, Erika and the rest recognized him right away. 
Tatsuya waved his empty right hand toward the Parasites. 
With that alone, more than half of the Parasites (4 out of the 7) disappeared. 
The three friends looking at the display widened their eyes. 
“What the hell was that…” 
Stunned, Leo murmured. 
“There’s a fully thought-operated CAD built-in the combat suit of Tatsuya-sama.” 
Minami immediately added an explanation. 
But that didn’t answer his question. 
No, Leo’s words weren’t even a question in the first place. 
“Is that magic? Was that Tatsuya’s magic…?” 
Mikihiko’s murmur wasn’t a question either, but Minami dutifully answered: 
“I’m sorry. I’m not authorized to answer that.” 
Neither Mikihiko nor Erika complained about Minami’s reply. 
All three of them have been on the battlefield with Tatsuya several times. However, this is the first time they’ve seen the details of Tatsuya fighting ? of him erasing people with ‘Mist Dispersion’ . 
Tatsuya waved his hand again on the screen. 
With that alone, all the Parasites that were overwhelming the defense squad of more than thirty combatants disappeared. 
Immediately after that, the footage switched to another place. 
No one complained about it. 
“That was… that kind of thing was magic, right…?” 
Only Erika’s terrified murmur had silently passed by everyone’s ears, and then disappeared. 
 
Tatsuya looked at the True Bodies of the seven Parasites. 

As expected, he failed to ‘see’ the structure of the Pushion Information Bodies. 
However, Tatsuya was already used to recognizing (‘seeing’ + analyzing) the Psion Information Bodies holding Parasites in this world, so he could feel their existence at the level of «there is something there». 
He loaded and launched the Activation Sequence for ‘Astral Dispersion’ from the CAD integrated into his suit. 
Now he was able to construct this magic as easily and naturally as ‘Mist Dispersion’. 
Tatsuya raised his right hand above his head. He didn’t use the gun-shaped CAD because the Parasites don’t exist in the material dimension and aren’t directly related to physical existence. Tatsuya knew from personal experience that in such cases, the aiming assistance function in specialized CAD’s is instead a hindrance. 
( The magic for decomposing the structure, supporting Psion Information Bodies, ‘Astral Dispersion’… activate . ) 
Aiming his mental sight towards all seven spiritual life forms, he waved his hand down in a horizontal position. 
‘Astral Dispersion’ activated. 
The True Bodies of the Parasites were drawn into an invisible vortex. Apparently, this vortex was a kind of dimensional passage leading to the world in which the Parasites originally existed. After the destruction of the Psion Information Bodies, serving as the anchor that holds the Parasites in our world, the True Bodies of the Parasites were literally ‘dragged’ into the world they should be in. 
Seven Parasites disappeared. 
They ceased to exist in both the Material and Information Dimensions that make up our universe. 
The Parasites were destroyed by Tatsuya’s magic. 
The video footage that was shown in the shelter switched to another place to prevent Erika and the others from seeing ‘Astral Dispersion’. 
In particular, this magic shouldn’t be shown to Mikihiko. This was the general opinion of both Maya and the technical experts of the Yotsuba Main House. 
‘Astral Dispersion’ is a magic that interferes with the mind, albeit indirectly. The Yotsuba Main House still hadn’t finished its analysis on it. They thought that if magicians of ancient magic came to know about that spell , they could develop variations of it that could pose a threat to the Yotsuba family. 
To preserve this secret, not only was Minami given the corresponding order, but the Video-Streaming System was also programmed to automatically switch the footage after the destruction of the Parasites’ physical bodies. 
 
Perhaps the strongest enemies from the USNA military storming Miyakijima were in an assault boat led by Captain Orlando Rigel, captain of the Stars Sixth Unit. 
During the platoons formation for this surprise attack, the USNA military didn’t evenly divide the available military forces. Rigel’s men from the Stars’ Sixth Unit (Lieutenant Ian Bellatrix and Lieutenant Samuel Alnilam) were also present in his current platoon. All of  them originally specialized in fighting together as one battle group ? this was probably taken into consideration, but they also decided to gather together the only Stellar -class members of Stars  who joined this mission . The result was an overwhelming superiority in fighting strength compared to the other attacking platoons . 
Despite that, the landing party commanded by Captain Rigel failed to advance further along the coastal road. 
Because the path of Rigel, Bellatrix, and Alnilam got blocked by Shibata Katsushige. 
 
“…So strong.” 
Mikihiko expressed his admiration while watching the footage on the display that had been switched to another place. 
“He’s definitely not your average fighter…” ? Muttered Leo after him. 
Erika just stared at the display silently. 
At the moment, the display was showing a battle involving a defense squad commanded by Katsushige, who had left the mobile base. 
“…Sakurai. Who is this man? Does the Yotsuba family have such strong people?” 
“Shibata Katsushige-sama is the next head of one of the Yotsuba’s branch families. It’s said that his power is in the top ten among the whole clan.” 
“Woah! Someone from the Yotsuba top ten. That makes sense. I can feel a little relieved.” 
Leo responded to Minami’s answer with a relieved voice. 
“You say it so casually. ‹His power is in the top ten› means there are nine more people in the Yotsuba family that have at least the same power level as that man. I don’t feel relieved at all.” 
But the relaxed atmosphere disappeared in an instant with Erika’s words, which broke her silence . The reason why Leo didn’t argue was probably because he agreed with Erika’s comment. 
“…But I still don’t get it. With such strength, they could’ve repelled the enemy before they even approached the shore. But they didn’t ? why?” 
Or maybe his thoughts focused on another point. 
“Perhaps, it was done on purpose.” 
This time it wasn’t Minami who responded to Leo’s question, but Erika. 
“I also think so.” 
Mikihiko supported Erika’s speculation. 
“Why?” 
“To establish an alibi.” 
“What?” — Leo responded doubtfully to Erika’s reply . 
“After all, we were specially left as witnesses to attest that they counterattacked in self-defense only after the unlawful invasion.” — Mikihiko turned around and explained to Leo. Mikihiko’s expression was so serious like he was boxed into a corner. 
“But hadn’t we ourselves volunteered to be witnesses? Although this is really annoying, it’s not like we can complain.” 
Erika replied with a dry laugh. She didn’t avert her eyes from the footage for even a moment. Leo and Mikihiko from this moment on also didn’t turn away. 
 
Rigel failed to suppress his impatience because the [enemy’s] fierce resistance exceeded all expectations. 
As a Parasite, his agitation was transmitted to Bellatrix, Alnilam, and the other Parasites. 
It’s unacceptable for a commander to show such feelings to his subordinates. Even knowing that, he felt more and more impatient. 
Instead of the closest landing site on the assault boats’ course, which was the west coast of Miyakijima, he chose the road along the north coast. The target of their current mission wasn’t the plant construction area on the island’s east side, but the assassination of the magician, who was supposedly on the west side of the island. 
If they landed at the harbor on the east coast, they would have to pass between many buildings (constructed as well as under construction). There would also be many obstacles that could hide an interception unit. 
However, landing on the west coast wasn’t a good idea either. The buildings on the west coast were previously known to be used as a prison for magicians, so it had been fortified and completed with guns as measures against escapes. 
On the other hand, the north coast was only a roadway connecting the old prison facility on the west with the Stellar Furnace plant on the east, which provided good vantage points. If one lands there, they wouldn’t need to worry about ambushes or facing the artillery bombardment from the naval defense system. It was also highly possible that the target himself would come to intercept them. 
Taking that into consideration, Rigel had chosen a point on the west of the north coast as the landing site. It was hard to pass through the wave-breakers, but they weren’t confronted with barrage fire or any magic [attacks], so their boat safely reached the shore. 
Prior to disembarking, everything went too smoothly. At this point, they should have suspected that it was «somehow too easy». 
The moment when the whole landing party (except the boat’s operating crew) went down the embankment and stood on the road, shock waves mixed with gravel struck them. 
What was released towards them was the most popular attack magic ? compressed air bullets. But there were small pieces of solidified lava mixed into the mass of compressed air. When the compressed air bullets  collided with the ground, the compression was canceled [the air expanded at an explosive rate].  There appeared to be blasts of gravel being blown away by the shock waves. 
On the battlefield, they often used similar techniques to increase their magic attack power .  Most often, nails or small pieces of scrap metal are added to the air mass. This island for the most part was made of solidified lava; therefore, it was possible to prepare any amount of gravel. And the use of already solidified, rather than molten, lava could even be called a humane act. 
However, with this attack, about half of the landing party lost their combat effectiveness. The ones who remained were the magicians who sensed the signs of magic in time and raised their shields, as well as the Parasites who were capable of ignoring injuries from blows with gravel. Although, the non-magician soldiers were completely incapacitated. There were few killed, but all the wounded, who received multiple hits with pieces of solidified lava throughout the body, lay there and moaned while bleeding. 
Rigel, however, didn’t care about the killed soldiers . As mentioned earlier, this place was an excellent vantage point. During the landing, there were no visible enemy figures because they were hiding in a hole dug out beyond the hill. But now, after the enemy got out of the trench to attack, they could already be seen. 
Rigel ordered the platoon to counterattack, and he himself also released magic at the enemy. 
However, his magic was stopped by a tall young magician who stood in the vanguard of the intercepting squad. 
Rigel’s height was about 175 cm, while one of his subordinates, Lieutenant Alnilam, was 183 cm, his other subordinate, Second Lieutenant Bellatrix, was 184 cm . 
But the young man who stopped his magic was even taller. Perhaps his height was close to 190 cm. He was noticeably taller than the rest of the enemies. Besides, the enemies stood on a hillside that towered above their current position. For Rigel, it undoubtedly looked like some ‘insurmountable obstacle’. 
“What damn magic power!” 
Bellatrix’s cursing reached Rigel’s ears. Rigel was now experiencing exactly the same feelings. 
Now, Alnilam also joined their attacks, and already 3 of them were firing at the enemy with magic. However, the protection of the young magician wasn’t letting up. On the contrary, despite being three against one, Rigel, Bellatrix, and Alnilam were constantly forced to interrupt their attacks and switch to defending themselves from the magic of the young magician who regularly found the right time to shoot something at them during pauses. 
(I / we will use ‘Thunder’. Together.) 
(Roger.) 
(Roger.) 
Synchronizing their actions through the Parasites’ shared consciousness, Rigel, Bellatrix, and Alnilam shoot at the young magician ? Katsushige ? with a Systematic Release-type magic called ‘Thunder’. 
Unlike Mimas (a Satellite-class member of the Stars), these three weren’t significantly affected by the negative effects of being infected by one of the Parasites  (must be because they were members of a higher,  Stellar-class) and weren’t as severely limited in the types of magic, which they were able to use. 
Well, they were affected negatively, but only a little. Perhaps that disadvantage had almost no effect [on them] because all three were originally able to use many types of magic. 
Anyway, those three chose the same magic and were able to not only avoid any reduction of power because of the interference of Magic Sequences, but were also able to amplify its power. 
Unfortunately, the combined effect wasn’t multiplicative  in power, but simply added together. Even so, the lightning strike, with power almost 3 times higher than a single attack, came at Katsushige from above. 
Katsushige diverted the lightning strike. 
Without moving a single step or shifting his torso aside, he altered the distribution of the air’s electrical resistance, causing the electron beam to divert and flow into the ground some distance away from him. 
Then, at the moment when the lightning disappeared, Katsushige’s counterattack reached Rigel’s team. 
All three of them suddenly felt the sense of pressure on their entire body. After each of them reflexively deployed a pressure-resistant shield, they realized why they had felt pressure ? the atmospheric pressure surrounding them was increasing. 
Immediately after they deployed the shields, as if reacting to this, the atmospheric pressure sharply rose even higher. 
(Deploying ‘Cooling Zone’.) 
(Deploying ‘Cooling Zone’.) 
(Deploying ‘Cooling Zone’.) 
Thanks to the cognitive synchronization , the trio released identical magic on Rigel’s command. 
They formed the field around themselves in order to lower the air temperature, which had risen with  the pressure [23] . 
At that moment, heat was more dangerous than pressure. The threefold increase in atmospheric pressure is within the limits of adaptation of the human body and can still be tolerated. However, the temperature had risen to over 600 °C due to the atmospheric pressure increase (since the world adapts to the situation),  which was something that the Parasites’ physical body couldn’t endure. 
Katsushige’s specialty was ‘Density Manipulation’ magic. The full name of the magic is ‘Pressure / Density Manipulation’. This magic can separately manipulate pressure and density by proportionally altering those parameters in a natural environment. This magic can be applied in 3 different ways: by controlling the density without changing the pressure, controlling the pressure without altering the density, and controlling the density and pressure at the same time. 
At the moment, the atmospheric pressure was increased [by Katsuhige]  without  changing its density. 
Compared to Tatsuya’s ‘Decomposition’ and Miyuki’s wide-area cooling  magic, it looked very simple at first glance. However, only a threefold increase in pressure demonstrates such a killing power. No wonder Katsushige was considered as «the strongest representative from the Yotsuba’s branch families when compared by combat strength of simple magic». 
To avoid the extreme heat, the three Parasites concentrated most of their magic power into the ‘Cooling Zone’. As a result they were able to maintain the temperature of their surrounding air at about 30 °C, which corresponded to the normal ambient temperature at that place. 
But it goes without saying that Katsushige’s attack didn’t end there. 
The pressure on them suddenly disappeared. 
Which meant that the increased pressure wasn’t simply canceled. The atmospheric temperature and pressure returned to normal due to the effect caused by the termination of magic, but right afterwards, [around the Parasites] a decompression  was  created  by  an instant decrease in density. 
The density reduction resulted in the subsequent air expansion, causing the explosion with Rigel’s team in the epicenter, which also scattered the members of the landing party closest to them. In a small radius around the epicenter, atmospheric pressure and temperature sharply decreased. 
The pressure became a third of what it normally was and the temperature dropped below minus 50 °C. The three Parasites, who had been maintaining the ‘Cooling Zone’, failed to cope with such a temperature change. 
Their physical bodies, covered with small water drops, got frozen. 
But Rigel was still alive. 
Next, there was a group of boulders, about 50 centimeters in diameter, that rained down on Rigel’s landing party ? Katsushige’s subordinates carried out the barrage, taking advantage of the enemy’s disorder. 
One of the boulders flew right at Rigel, but he managed to repel it a meter before collision, while being frozen. It also allowed him to protect Bellatrix, who was standing next to him. 
And that’s not all. Rigel managed to defrost his frozen body. He was probably able to because the freezing stopped on the surface of the body [without penetrating too deeply]. He was able to start moving quite quickly, and hastened to ascertain the status of his subordinates. 
Following Rigel, Bellatrix was also able to get rid of the freezing on his own. 
“Ian!” 
Seeing this, Rigel called out Bellatrix’s first name with his voice, instead of using the Mind Link. 
“Thank you, Captain.” 
Bellatrix replied with words of gratitude. Even being frozen, he perceived that he was protected from the stone projectiles thanks to Rigel. 
Rigel nodded to Bellatrix and turned in the opposite direction. 
“Sam!” — Shouted the former in a heartbreaking voice. 
Because the head of Sam ? Samuel Alnilam ? was crushed by a boulder. 
He was unfortunate to get hit directly with the stone projectile. There was no need to ascertain his status. It was an instant death. 
Only after seeing the scene with his own eyes, Rigel finally noticed that Alnilam was out of the shared consciousness. The Parasite’s True Body, that which lost the assimilated host, also loses its ability of human thinking. The Parasites that had assimilated with humans could sense only some instinctual signals of Pushion Waves emanating from its [Parasite’s True Body] presence. 
“Ian, let’s go!” 
“Yes sir!” 
Perhaps they communicated with their voice because they didn’t want to feel the loss of Alnilam’s consciousness. 
Rigel and Bellatrix started running simultaneously. 
The fighting style, in which the so-called ‘Orion Team’ from the Sixth Unit specialized in, was essentially close quarter combat utilizing high mobility via self-acceleration magic. Up until now, they had to go with medium-range attacks because they couldn’t ignore coordination with the rest of the landing party. 
But with the loss of Alnilam, Rigel and Bellatrix abandoned any consideration for the other members. Thirsty for revenge, they targeted Katsushige alone. Although it wasn’t Katsushige who released the magic that directly killed Alnilam, it was he who created the situation that led to that outcome . 
Rigel and Bellatrix reached Katsushige in no time. Katsushige’s subordinates weren’t standing idly by watching this, but no one could keep up with Rigel and Bellatrix. 
However, about 5 meters from their target, the two Parasites suddenly lost their balance. 
They did not fall, but their steps slowed sharply, as if they got bogged down in something. 
There were deep footprints appearing on the surface of which they were running on. Upon closer examination, it was possible to see that the semi-circular surface of volcanic rock, in the center of which stood Katsushige, had turned into soft sand. 
This was also the result of ‘Density Manipulation’. 
Having lowered the surface density of the basaltic volcanic rock in the area around him, he achieved the instantaneous ‘weathering’ in the sand. 
Immobilized, Rigel and Bellatrix were bombarded with a variety of attack magic from the Shibata family’s elite - magicians directly under the command of Katsushige. 
Even for the Stellar-class members of the Stars, it wasn’t possible to defend against all those attacks. 
Bellatrix was the first to collapse to the ground which had become a sandy plain; next was Rigel who fell to his knees due to the accumulated damage. 
The decisive blow was dealt by Katsushige’s magic. 
The Parasites’ bodies got sucked into the sand, the density of which had been even further reduced, after which the density was restored to its original value, and they were crushed by basalt rocks. 
 
“So brutal… It’s like ‘ Antlion Prison ’ [24]  magic.” 
Leo muttered in a shocked voice and with a stunned face, while watching through the display how Katsushige killed the Parasites. 
However, his ‘shocked voice’ in this case could be called a manifestation of outstanding fortitude. 
Mikihiko, who was watching the same scene, looked like he was going to throw up, and even Erika had a deathly pale face. 
The footage on the display switched to another place on the battlefield. 
Covering his mouth with both hands, Mikihiko somehow managed to avoid his gag reflexes, after which he casually turned to Minami [as if he suddenly remembered something]. 
“Speaking of which, what happens with the True Bodies of the Parasites- If the True Body isn’t sealed after it leaves the destroyed physical body, it can’t be said that the Parasite is really defeated.” 
“Tatsuya-sama is personally getting rid of the True Bodies of the Parasites.” 
Minami answered Mikihiko’s question without hiding the truth. 
“Oh, right, using ‘Seal Ball’. Indeed, he does have that magic, so everything will be fine.” 
“Seal Ball?” 
“What’s Seal Ball?” 
Leo and Erika raised these questions with doubt in their voice. 
While Mikihiko answered them, Minami remained silent. 
She gave an honest answer about who is dealing with the Parasites, but made no explanation about how Tatsuya does it ? following the order from the Main House. 
 
9:30 AM. 
The fierce battle on Miyakijima was still going on when the situation offshore changed. 
Giant clouds of hydrogen plasma formed in the sky over the destroyer ‘Hull’, anchored 30 kilometers east of the island, and over the destroyer ‘Ross’, stopped at a point 30 kilometers west of the island. 
Needless to say, this wasn’t a natural phenomenon. Those were artificial phenomena created by two magicians. The plasma cloud in the east was created by a magician named Miguel Diaz. And in the west, Antonio Diaz. These two magicians were identical twins. 
The magic formed by the brothers, who looked like two peas in a pod, hadn’t been completed yet. First, the plasma clouds grew to 50 meters in diameter, after which they decreased… or rather compressed to about 5 meters in diameter within seconds. 
The plasma clouds compressed into a perfect spherical shape and simultaneously began to move at exactly the same speed. 
The plasma cloud in the sky above the destroyer ‘Hull’ flew to the west and the plasma cloud above the destroyer ‘Ross’ flew to the east. 
The two plasma clouds started moving on a collision course at speeds more than 10 times faster than the speed of sound. 
Tatsuya noticed the activation of magic in the east and west of the island at the moment when he had some breathing space between the ‘cleanup’ of the True Bodies of the Parasites. 
(They are trying to force the [two clouds of ] high-density hydrogen plasma to collide in the sky above Miyakijima?) 
(Approximately 6 seconds until collision.) 
(Nuclear fusion doesn’t occur in a collision at such a speed. But if they continue to apply pressure from the east and west, then that’s an entirely different story.) 
(This is… ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’!?) 
Those thoughts took him about 1 second. There were 5 seconds left before the collision. 
There was no time for an accurate assessment of the explosive power, but given the precedent in Brazil, it could reach several kilotons of TNT, or maybe even a few tens of kilotons. 
Tatsuya didn’t hesitate to use ‘Gram Dispersion’ to nullify it. 
(The components of this Magic are: plasma generation, preventing its diffusion, and moving it.) 
(Two completely identical sequences of magic are used, only their directions of movement are different.) 
- The first step was  the analysis of the Magic Sequence that needed to be neutralized. 
(Based on the nature of this magic, it can be prevented from activating if one of the two Magic Sequences are erased.) 
(But in this situation, it’s better to erase both sequences.) 
- The second step was to aim at the magical sequence that needed to be neutralized. 
- And the final step. 
(‘Gram Dispersion’, activation.) 
A moment later, ‘glowing objects’ flying at supersonic speeds in the sky in the east and west of Miyakijima disappeared. 
… As a small departure from the topic: it was worth noting that there was some commotion due to the «unexpected appearance of UFOs» at a meteorological observatory that was monitoring the vicinity of the Izu Islands via satellite. 
Whereas the turmoil on the USNA destroyer ‘Hull’ wasn’t so carefree as the commotion at the meteorological observatory. 
“‘ Synchronized Linear Fusion’ has been nullified!” 
“ Nullified? Maybe it was just an unsuccessful attempt?” 
“ No! It was definitely nullified by someone else’s interference!” 
Miguel Diaz argued in an elevated tone with the magic technician, who was assisting him with the operation of  his CAD. 
At that moment, Miguel received a transmission from the destroyer ‘Ross’. 
“ Miguel, it’s me.” 
“ Antonio?” 
The person who sent the transmission was Antonio Diaz - Miguel’s younger twin brother and his partner for casting ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’. 
“ Miguel, w hat’s that  supposed to mean? I didn’t know that our magic could be nullified.” 
“ Neither did I. Antonio, let’s do it again!” 
“ Without even knowing the cause of the nullification?” 
“ Precisely because we don’t know. This time, have the technicians carefully monitor the whole process.” 
“ You mean that even if they neutralize us again, we can at least identify and study the cause of it, right?” 
“ If we find out how the neutralization is carried out, we can prepare countermeasures.” 
Speaking of countermeasures, Miguel Diaz didn’t mean ensuring success for the current operation. It was for their next battlefield. 
If there’s a method to nullify ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’ and they don’t find any means of neutralizing that ‘nullification method’, then the meaning of their existence will be called into question. 
“ Right.” 
Antonio thought the same thing and immediately agreed with Miguel’s proposal. 
“ For the sake of our future, we…” 
However, his next words were cut short unnaturally 
“ Antonio?” 
There was an unintelligible noise heard from the speaker, which meant that the transmission wasn’t interrupted. 
“ What happened, Antonio!?” 
“ Major Diaz…” 
The voice which responded to Miguel’s shout wasn’t his younger brother Antonio. 
Miguel, who was overwhelmed by an ominous feeling, held his breath and waited for the next line. 
“ How to say it… Mr. Antonio suddenly disappeared.” 
“… What do you mean?” 
“ Mr. Antonio Diaz vanished in an instant, leaving a small shock wave!” 
Miguel couldn’t understand what he was being told right now. 
“… Do you mean that my brother was killed with a bomb?” 
“ No, I don’t think that’s the case. There were no body parts nor a drop of blood left. At first it seemed like the silhouette of his body blurred and then disappeared, scattering in the wind! As if he himself turned into the wind!” 
“……” 
“ Major Diaz. What is happening? Was that your magic? Have you invented the magic of teleportation!?” 
“… No, nothing like that. I also have no idea what it was…” 
Everyone involved in this process, on both destroyers, were perplexed. 
Although the phrase from the technician from the destroyer ‘Ross’ «disappeared, scattering in the wind» accurately described what happened, nobody on either ship believed that something like that had really happened. 
(Erasing of the target confirmed.) 
After eliminating Antonio Diaz with ‘Mist Dispersion’, Tatsuya returned the Silver Horn from his right hand to the holster on his hip. 
(So, ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’ was a magic activated by two people at once.) 
There was a fierce battle still going at the island, it was not a situation for a leisurely analysis of magic. 
Even knowing that, Tatsuya simply couldn’t help but think about this newly-discovered secret of the Strategic-Class Magic ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’. 
(Plasma clouds are launching towards each other using absolutely identical magic for a head-on collision.) 
(If there happens to be a small mistake in the course or timing, this magic will fail.) 
(Maybe even the Interference Strength of the two magics should be at the same level.) 
(In fact, the Interference Strength levels of the magic of Miguel & Antonio Diaz that I observed were exactly the same.) 
(Are there any magicians I know who can meet these conditions…? Hmm…) 
(…Perhaps the double team of Kasumi and Izumi would be able to take advantage of this.) 
“ Tatsuya-sama.” 
At the very moment when he came to a certain conclusion, Miyuki contacted him. 
“ What is it, Miyuki?” 
It was the right time to get out of his thoughts. Responding to Miyuki, Tatsuya made a note in his mind to think about a magic technique based on ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’, after which he refocused his mind on the ongoing battle. 
“ I felt strong magic power on the two destroyers that stopped east and west of the island. That was probably an attack against us, and Tatsuya-sama prevented it, am I right?” 
“ You are absolutely right. The ‘Synchronized Linear Fusion’ released from both destroyers was nullified by ‘Gram Dispersion’.” 
“‘ Synchronized Linear Fusion’! That means Miguel Diaz from Brazil joined this battle, doesn’t it!?” 
“ Yes, but don’t worry. Diaz as a Strategic-Class Magician has already been neutralized.” 
“ Thank you. As expected from Tatsuya-sama. Amazing skills, as usual… By the way, what about immobilizing those two destroyers ahead of the amphibious assault ship? Just in case.” 
“ I think it’s a good decision. Do so.” 
“ Then, I will take care of it immediately.” 
“ Yes, please do.” 
“ Happy to help.” 
After those polite words, communication with the command room was cut off. 
Ten seconds later, Tatsuya sensed the activation of a powerful magic from the command room located on the west coast of the island. 
 
Miyuki had already deployed the aiming assistance arm out of the commander’s desk. 
The compact specialized CAD was installed on the arm. 
The main screen of the command room displayed a view of the USNA destroyer ‘Hull’ captured from above. It was an image from a place 30 kilometers east of the island, but the resolution was perfect. 
Until a while ago, the question of «where was this taken from?» was stuck in the corner of Miyuki’s consciousness, but now she didn’t have any unnecessary thoughts . After the words «please do» were transmitted from Tatsuya, her consciousness completely focused on the magic that she was about to activate. 
You could even say that Miyuki was in a kind of trance. The extreme mental focus made her already surreal beauty look even more inhuman and transcendental. 
There was no wind in the command room. For air-conditioning , the room was equipped with  a method of cooling the walls and ceiling from the outer side. Nevertheless, while Miyuki was sitting  on the Commander’s seat without leaning on its backrest, the tips of her long hair slightly swayed, as if in the wind. 
The CAD was aimed at the destroyer displayed on the screen. While maintaining a perfect posture with her back extended in a straight line, Miyuki grasped the CAD handle with a laid-back motion of her hand and silently pulled the trigger. 
All the machine processes were performed automatically. Nobody voiced a report about the completion of a particular process. The coordinates data, converted into activation-sequence format by the tactical computer in the command room, was sent from the tactical computer to the CAD and combined with the  Activation Sequence from the CAD, after which it was absorbed by Miyuki [the combined code was read into her Magic Calculation Area]. 
This CAD only allowed the selection of one type of magic. 
The aiming processes were handled by the machine. 
In order to reduce the burden on the caster, this magic didn’t include the process of specifying its range . The Area of Effect of this magic  was a circular region centered at the targeted  area with a radius depending on the amount of applied Interference Strength. 
Miyuki was only required to choose how much power to release with this magic. 
Since it was her first time to actually use it, she decided to use 80% of her power for casting this magic. With the exception of the magic ‘Cocytus’, which freezes the soul, she rarely resorted to unlocking as much as 80% of her maximum Interference Strength. 
The Magic Sequence construction was completed and the first of these sequences of magic ‘hit’ the target. That was definitely the response Miyuki felt. 
The magic effect didn’t show up immediately. The modified phenomenon distorted reality approximately 0.8 seconds after the magic was activated. This was rather slow, given that the average standard of magic activation speed was 0.5 seconds. 
However, none of the people watching the main screen in the command room could afford the extra thought. All of them simply held their breath at the scene unfolding on the screen. 
An icy surface. 
An endless ice field that filled the entire screen. 
Appearing in the mid-summer sea, it wasn’t even a frozen island, but a land [25]  of ice. 
The land of ice, which imprisoned the ‘Hull’ destroyer in its center, had grown in an instant to a radius of 10 kilometers. The area turned out to be visibly larger than even Miyakijima. 
‘Glacial Age’, was  the new magic created by Tatsuya exclusively for Miyuki. 
As the name implies, it plunged the world not just into an Arctic winter, but into an ice age. Its power was too much for just one destroyer, either way you look at it. 
This magic was more suitable for imprisoning a large fleet. 
[It was] Magic capable of rendering a big armada immobile with one hit . 
Magic capable of destroying naval forces the size of an entire fleet with one application is called ‘Strategic-Class Magic’. But if in this definition, the word ‘destroying’ is replaced by the word ‘neutralizing’, would such magic be considered Strategic-Class, or not…? 
Having recovered from the shock caused by the scene that filled the main screen, the command room staff turned their awestruck gazes to Miyuki sitting in the innermost part of this room. 
Miyuki, the only person here who kept a calm state of mind, misunderstood all those gazes as awaiting further orders. 
“Please display on the main screen the destroyer, which is 30 kilometers to the west.” 
“Y-yes.” 
Following Miyuki’s order, the staff member in charge of the Enemy Search System turned in a hurry to the console and made some manipulations on it. 
The island of ice, which imprisoned the ‘Ross’ destroyer, had a radius of 5 kilometers, while the amphibious assault ship ‘Guam’ got captured into an ice field with a radius of 1 kilometer. Seemingly, at the third attempt Miyuki was finally able to adjust the power  to some degree. 
In less than a minute, the USNA naval forces involved in this surprise attack were completely suppressed. 
 
(This was predictable to some extent, but… this is definitely at the Strategic-Class level. Moreover, the scale is even larger compared to the original version…) 
Looking at the ‘Glacial Age’ cast by Miyuki, Tatsuya mentally ‘grabbed his head’. 
The original, which Tatsuya recalled for comparison, was Bezobrazov’s ‘Tuman Bomba’. 
To be more precise, it was a monologue comparing the scale of ‘Chain Casting’ utilized in ‘Tuman Bomba’ with the scale of ‘Chain Casting’ proliferating [26] the magical sequences of Miyuki’s ‘Glacial Age’. 
( In my version, the magic power doesn’t dissipate pointlessly, but in the end, it’s Bezobrazov who created the Chain Deployment System for Magic Sequences . So that man should have definitely noticed that ‘Glacial Age’ uses his ‘Chain Casting’.) 
And without doubt he will realize that Miyuki’s ‘Glacial Age’ is superior to his ‘Tuman Bomba’ in terms of the proliferation scale of Magic Sequences. 
(Since he is a man with such an inflated pride… I just hope this doesn’t cause him to enter into yet another annoying rivalry.) 
Despite such thoughts, somewhere in the depths of Tatsuya’s consciousness was the belief that Bezobrazov would certainly intervene in this battle. 
 
(Again! Stolen again!) 
Just as Tatsuya thought, Bezobrazov sensed the invocation of ‘Glacial Age’. However, the reason for his anger was a little different from what Tatsuya thought. Bezobrazov was angered because the new spell  used a part of ‘Tuman Bomba’ ? the magic created by himself. 
For Bezobrazov, the Chain Deployment System for Magic Sequences, which Tatsuya (privately) called ‘Chain Casting’, was exclusively part of his ‘Tuman Bomba’, and not an independent technique. For him, Ichijou Masaki’s ‘Ocean Blast’ and Miyuki’s ‘Glacial Age’ were nothing more than plagiarism of the processes that form his ‘Tuman Bomba’. 
Magic created for military application is never open to the public, so there are no intellectual property rights like a patent right. Even if the process of the magic or some part of it was misappropriated, it wouldn’t be possible to claim infringement of rights. 
But emotions are another matter entirely. 
When you have no legally protected rights, you’re not pleased when someone makes use of your original [technique]  without permission. Especially when the person who used something of yours without permission is your hated enemy. 
Bezobrazov had already planned since the start - July 30 th - to intervene in Edward Clark’s sneak attack on Miyakijima. Well, a more appropriate expression would be «take advantage of» rather than «intervene in». 
Merely shooting at Tatsuya with magic won’t work against him, no matter how unexpectedly it is done . Even though it kind  of offended him to admit, but one can’t turn away from the facts. His pride wouldn’t allow him to be defeated again. Bezobrazov was full of determination to kill Shiba Tatsuya ? this time for sure. 
Bezobrazov speculated that his sudden attacks didn’t work because Tatsuya had memorized the waves emanating from his magic. It wasn’t Shiba Tatsuya who defended against the first strike he launched at Izu. However, starting from the second strike, he suffered a painful counterattack even before the completion of ‘Tuman Bomba’. Bezobrazov believed that when  magic was activated, magicians emit something like individual waveforms that are unique to them , and Shiba Tatsuya is able to distinguish between them. 
In that case, will it be possible to terminate Shiba Tatsuya if someone creates a situation where he won’t be able to detect a surprise attack? Since there will be a shootout with powerful magic on the battlefield, where it will be necessary to urgently respond to something else . 
That was the conclusion made by Bezobrazov. Following this  line of thinking, he was watching like a hawk for the right opportunity. 
And just at that time, large-scale magic was activated using the ‘Tuman Bomba’ technique. Bezobrazov, although feeling furious anger, mentally shouted «this is a chance!» 
Bezobrazov requested the General Staff to execute the previously prepared plan. 
Following the order received from the East Siberian Army Headquarters, a hyper-sonic missile was launched from the Birobidzhan missile base, located 150 kilometers west of Khabarovsk. The target was Miyakijima. With its speed exceeding Mach 20, there were less than 5 minutes before impact. 
The Japanese Self-Defense Forces detected the launch of the missile, but as soon as the expected landing point was determined, they canceled the interception. Even with modern technologies, the chance of succeeding in shooting down a hyper-sonic missile is about 50%. When it was identified that the missile wouldn’t fall on Honshu [the Main Island], the Self-Defense Forces calculated that it would be more profitable not to shoot it down, but to let it fall in territorial waters and then use it in diplomatic negotiations. 
Three minutes after the Birobidzhan missile base launched a hyper-sonic missile, the ‘Kutuzov’, which was lurking underwater 40 kilometers south of Miyakijima, surfaced to a depth of 50 meters and launched several Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs) one after another. 
The ‘Kutuzov’ was the most-advanced missile submarine of the New Soviet Union. It could launch missiles from a deeper depth as well, but in this case, it was decided to launch from a shallow depth and at close range, prioritizing reliability over stealth. 
Six missiles were launched in total. They ultimately accelerated to Mach 2 and there was about a minute and half left before impact with the west coast of Miyakijima. 
 
Tatsuya constantly allocated half of the capacity of ‘Elemental Sight’ to monitor any threats approaching Miyuki . He always watched for the appearance of physical phenomena and signs of magic capable of harming Miyuki. Since he cannot foresee the future, remotely activated magic that can instantly overcome long distances and suddenly appear right next to the target can only be detected shortly before its activation. However, if it’s an object or phenomenon moving in physical space, Tatsuya is able to detect it with a high degree of reliability almost in the moment that it begins to move towards Miyuki. 
Even now, Tatsuya recognized the hyper-sonic missiles at the Birobidzhan base and the SLBMs from the ‘Kutuzov’ at the moment they were launched. He didn’t destroy the missiles targeting Miyakijima immediately after they launched because he had the feeling that he should wait until the very last moment. 
It was merely an intuition, with no concrete basis. Although it was a gamble, he had a certain confidence that he could manage to take care of everything in time  ? even if it would be at the last moment. 
Besides, there wasn’t much time left to say that « he should wait ». 
Missiles approached the airspace of the island. 
(I think that’s the limit.) 
Without taking his Silver Horn out of the holster, Tatsuya used the thought-operated CAD built-in his combat suit to activate ‘Decomposition’. 
Since he was empty-handed, there was no need for visual aiming. So he aimed using only his magical perception. 
First, the six SLBMs were decomposed down to the level of their  chemical elements. 
Then, he immediately aimed his magic at the hyper-sonic missile. It was difficult to track such a missile with the conventional Weapons Interception Systems, but for Tatsuya, it was no different from stationary targets because he aimed at its information. 
Like the previous SLBMs, this missile wasn’t nuclear. 
There were no chemical or biological agents, and there weren’t any ‘non-nuclear’ harmful chemical elements in them either. 
All missiles that targeted Miyakijima were decomposed into tiny pieces on the level close to the Buddhist concept of ‘minutest particles’. 
 
With the assistance of the stationary large CAD located in Khabarovsk, which was designed to activate ‘Tuman Bomba’, Bezobrazov sensed Tatsuya’s magic being released in the sky above Miyakijima. 
That magic had an extremely strong Interference Strength that broke down the SLBMs to the level close to molecules without leaving any fragments. 
(Good, everything is going according to my calculations!) 
When someone has just used magic that distorts reality so much, even if it was their own magic, it will be difficult for some time for them to recognize other magic. 
This was a common consideration among present-day magic researchers, including Bezobrazov. 
(The effect of the large-scale magic that froze the USNA warships should still remain.) 
(This is my chance!) 
Those thoughts raced through Bezobrazov’s mind immediately after the destruction of the missiles fired from the submarine ‘Kutuzov’ and a moment before the destruction of the missile fired from the Birobidzhan base. 
Preparations for the activation of ‘Tuman Bomba’ were already completed. 
(Die!) 
Bezobrazov casted ‘Tuman Bomba’ at the same moment that Tatsuya’s magic finished destroying the hyper-sonic missile. 
 
At the same time as he was  casting  ‘Decomposition’ aimed at the hyper-sonic missile, Tatsuya sensed signs of magic that hadn’t been activated yet and pulled his Silver Horn out of its holster with his right hand. 
In one motion, he raised his right hand directly above his head, pointing the large gun-shaped CAD into the sky, and pulled the trigger. 
‘Tuman Bomba’ is an aggregation of a myriad of Magic Sequences. Moreover, each of those Magic Sequences is slightly different, so they can’t be grouped together and decomposed at once. Even if Tatsuya erases part of them with ‘Gram Dispersion’, the remaining countless Magic Sequences will still be activated independently of it. Simply put, it would be like lowering the power from 100% to 99%. 
However, in the Chain Deployment System for Magic Sequences, which Tatsuya named ‘Chain Casting’, the entire process starts with a single Magic Sequence. Before the chain starts deploying, ‘Tuman Bomba’ can be completely neutralized by destroying the first Magic Sequence, which can be called the ‘master copy’. Tatsuya already obtained the structure of the Magic Sequence to be decomposed in the previous confrontation with Bezobrazov. So if he knew the coordinates where the first Magic Sequence would appear, before the magic is ‘unleashed’, he could nullify it. 
For example, like now. 
- ‘Tuman Bomba’, activation. 
- ‘Gram Dispersion’, activation. 
 
Copying the Magic Sequence and arranging the position of this copy in adjacent coordinates [27] . 
Before that process was completed, Tatsuya’s magic for Information Bodies Decomposition decomposed the Magic Sequence  of the ‘master copy’ [or the first Magic Sequence at the beginning of unfolding chain] for the entire process of arranging . 
With this, Bezobrazov’s ‘Tuman Bomba’ was completely blocked by Tatsuya. 
 
(Still not activated…?) 
(Or was ‘Tuman Bomba’ just canceled ?) 
Bezobrazov was severely shaken because there was no longer any response from the ‘Tuman Bomba’, which had definitely been activated. 
(Impossible! How can this be!?) 
(Did he separately destroy several thousands of Magic Sequences?) 
(It’s impossible. No human has the processing power to do that!) 
(What kind of trick did he use?) 
(Did he create a virus for destroying the Magic Sequences with high speed?) 
One might say that this magic was the meaning of Bezobrazov’s existence, and after its misfire, his consciousness was completely absorbed in this issue. 
His emotions were saying «I can’t believe it» and «I don’t want to believe it», while his pride as a scientist retorted «You can’t just escape from reality». 
Bezobrazov found himself trapped in that dilemma . 
The only thing that Bezobrazov could do to come to terms with his emotions and pride was to convince himself by giving a scientific explanation for the failure to activate ‘Tuman Bomba’. 
Therefore, he didn’t notice. 
That he had already been caught in the sight of someone else’s magic. 
The muzzle was already pointed at his heart, and right at that moment ? the trigger was already being pulled. 
 
In late June, when Bezobrazov attempted an attack on First High School, during school hours, Tatsuya was able to acquire ‘personal information’ about this Soviet magician. 
When Tatsuya was six years old, he became the subject of an experiment in an attempt to create an artificial magician by his biological mother .  As a side effect of the Mental Design Interference carried out during that experiment, Tatsuya completely stopped forgetting anything. In fact, this can’t really be called something good, but since then, Tatsuya has been able to freely extract accurate data from his memory ? regardless of its complexity or quantity. 
From Bezobrazov’s ‘personal information’ , Tatsuya located him in a laboratory  at the Khabarovsk’s Institute of Science. He wouldn’t have been able to find Bezobrazov so easily  if he hadn’t remembered everything about  the attack two months ago . Of course, he could have located  Bezobrazov by using the remains of ‘Tuman Bomba’ still floating in the Information Dimension to search , but he wouldn’t have found the location in such a short time. 
While searching, he probably could even have been struck by a second or third wave of missiles . Since there was a high probability that while he was engaged in the search, he wouldn’t have the mental resources left to detect the missiles and deal with them. 
Bezobrazov was sitting inside a box shaped CAD that looked like a railway container, which was located inside a building resembling a small astronomical observatory. 
This CAD had simpler construction than what Tatsuya ‘saw’ last time, but they had similar basic functions. 
Last time, Tatsuya limited himself to only inflicting damage on Bezobrazov’s mind by destroying his CAD while he was connected to it. This was done to keep the world’s military balance intact. 
But now, he wasn’t going to be so condescending anymore. 
Although doing that could lead to a harsher future, but for his own sake, and for the sake of Miyuki, he had to sever all the threads of fate leading to Bezobrazov. 
Now that  Tatsuya was so determined & resolute. 
(Obtaining information on the state of the magical defense of the laboratory.) 
(Obtaining information about Bezobrazov’s magical defense… his  personal Zone Interference is absent.) 
He returned the CAD to the holster and turned his right arm north-northwest ? in the direction of Bezobrazov. He did so because, based on the results of the observation,  the thought-operated CAD which was built into his combat suit was more suitable than the Silver Horn for his next attack . 
Tatsuya tightly clenched his extended right hand into a fist. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for Zone Interference decomposition… completed.) 
He extended the index finger from his right hand that was clenched into a fist — as if counting «One». 
Over the distance of approximately 1,700 kilometers, the magic which decomposes Information Bodies was activated. 
The Zone Interference field surrounding Bezobrazov’s laboratory disappeared. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for Data Fortification decomposition… completed.) 
In addition to the index finger, he now extended his middle finger. 
The magic of Data Fortification neutralization was activated. All structural materials of the laboratory’s roof and walls became open to magical attacks. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for the building’s Information Structure decomposition… completed.) 
He stretched out his third finger ? the ring finger. 
The decomposition magic of matter was activated and the laboratory in the form of an observatory, located 1,700 kilometers from here, disappeared without a trace ? turning into a cloud of dust. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for the CAD’s Information Structure decomposition… completed.) 
The fourth finger was stretched out ? the pinky finger. 
The decomposition magic of matter was activated. The large CAD in which Bezobrazov was located turned into dust, without a trace, just like the laboratory. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for personal Data Fortification decomposition.) 
With this, Tatsuya extended his thumb. Now all five fingers on his right hand were extended. 
After the magic of Information Bodies decomposition was activated, the Data Fortification that protected Bezobrazov’s whole body was removed. 
(Construction of the Magic Sequence for decomposition of the human body’s Information Structure… completed.) 
Tatsuya clenched his right hand into a fist again , as if squeezing something invisible. 
‘Mist Dispersion’ hit Bezobrazov’s unprotected body. 
 
The magic defense of Bezobrazov’s personal laboratory suddenly disappeared. 
All of the structural materials of the laboratory’s roof and walls, furniture and equipment, the entire interior  ? everything crumbled, turning into sand. 
The large CAD where he was located (including the case, console, and electronic equipment) lost its shape and crumbled in the same way. 
Only at that moment Bezobrazov finally realized the situation. However, immediately after the realization, he was forcefully cut off from the connection with the functioning CAD, which caused a severe blow to his mind. 
Perhaps, he could be considered lucky because he avoided the sense of agony and despair after his consciousness became blurry. 
Bezobrazov’s contour became blurry along with his clothes. The shape of his body got distorted, its colors faded and scattered. The next moment he disappeared from this world in a flash of a barely noticeable passing flame. 
 
Even after Bezobrazov was erased from this world , the battle still wasn’t over. There were still Parasites on the island that should be ‘cleaned up’, but for Tatsuya, the missile base and submarine of the New Soviet Union, which launched missiles at the island, had higher priority. Without Tatsuya, it would be extremely difficult to counter them all. 
«Abandoning the counterattack» wasn’t an option. Giving up and accepting the situation  would only invite further attacks. The only one who protects your dignity is yourself. That’s the same whether for individuals or nations. 
Tatsuya once again took out his Silver Horn. Unless it was an opponent with extremely strong magic power such as Bezobrazov,  long-distance magic sniping is easier to do by aiming and forming images with a gun-shaped CAD . 
Tatsuya turned back to the south. Based on the trajectory of the SLBMs, it was clear that the submarine was hiding underwater south of the island. No more than five minutes had passed since it launched the missiles. It shouldn’t have moved far. 
(…Boat’s name ‘Kutuzov’. Located forty kilometers south of Miyakijima, at a depth of fifty meters. Currently not moving.) 
The submarine ‘Kutuzov’ didn’t move from the missiles’ launch point. Probably as Tatsuya worried, they’d planned to launch a second wave of missiles, or maybe they were ordered to observe the battle’s outcome… In any case, it was convenient for Tatsuya that the submarine stayed in the contiguous zone [28] . 
(Receiving information about the submarine’s structure.) 
Tatsuya analyzed the structure of the submarine, paying particular attention to the design of the propulsion system. 
‘Kutuzov’ was propelled by non-electromagnetic type pump-jets . Modern military vessels use mostly electromagnetic propulsion engines, perhaps the non-electromagnetic type were used here as a countermeasure against magnetic detection systems. 
Regardless of the reason, a propulsion system with lots of moving mechanical parts was much better for Tatsuya. 
Allowing him to choose a specific method of destruction. 
(Decomposition level, dismantling into ‘interchangeable parts’.) 
Among all the variations of decomposition magic, dismantling something into parts that were made interchangeable from the very beginning was the easiest and least burdensome. 
Tatsuya pulled the trigger on his Silver Horn. 
This inflicted massive damage to the ‘Kutuzov’ propulsion systems. Although it didn’t cause fatal damage to the hull of the submarine, underwater repair was impossible. 
Unless something was done, they would be stuck underwater. The ‘Kutuzov’ didn’t have a nuclear reactor onboard, so it didn’t have any equipment for producing oxygen from sea water. Sooner or later, oxygen reserves will run out and the crew will die. 
The ‘Kutuzov’ had no other choice but to surface. 
Next, Tatsuya destroyed all the missile launchers in the submarine, just in case. But the word «destroyed» didn’t mean that he blew them up or took them apart. He just cut the wires to the hatches opening & closing mechanism. 
Thus, there was no longer any need to worry about attacks with SLBMs. 
Without waiting for the ‘Kutuzov’ to surface, Tatsuya turned toward the opposite direction. 
He aimed his Silver Horn at the Birobidzhan missile base over 1,700 kilometers north-northwest from here, and 150 kilometers west of Khabarovsk. 
(Reverse tracing of the missile’s information.) 
Using ‘Elemental Sight’, he traced back in time the information about the recently decomposed hyper-sonic missile. 
In an instant he traced the missile’s trajectory, which had traveled for 5 minutes at a maximum speed of mach 20, and reached the underground missile silo where the missile was launched from. 
From there, he expanded his ‘field of vision’ horizontally. 
The image that appeared in Tatsuya’s mind looked like aerial footage, allowing him to see through the ground (like an X-ray). 
(Visually confirmed 6 unmanned missile silos underground.) 
There were six underground missile silos at Birobidzhan missile base, which was surprisingly few. Perhaps there were many such bases scattered throughout the vast territory of the country , ready to attack an enemy. It seemed that instead of preventing the neutralization of missiles prior to launch by using mobile launchers, the idea of geographical distribution of stationary launchers was put into practice. It was a luxury that only a large country with excessive territories can afford. 
Even if he destroyed this base, there was a possibility that the next attack would come from another base. However, he would think about  that if it really happens . The current situation was where he should pull the trigger to send a warning to the enemy. 
(Targeting - 6 underground missile silos.) 
There was also a missile control facility underground, but this time he didn’t target any manned facilities. 
This was done to avoid escalating the situation. Tatsuya judged that this will be enough to achieve his objective. 
(‘Mist Dispersion’, activate.) 
Tatsuya released magic that decomposes matter down to the level of chemical elements. 
Six underground silos simultaneously exploded near Birobidzhan, located 1,700 kilometers away, and the reason was obviously not the missiles’ self-destruction. 
None of the people present at the site understood that these explosions were caused by an increase in pressure resulting from the instant evaporation of all solids: heavy metals, synthetic polymers, chemical elements in compound semiconductors, multilayered plywood partitions, artificial stone, and so on. 
The rising pillars of dust looked just like a volcanic eruption without the fire.