Maidens of Cygnus - Volume 5 - Chapter 7.4

On the night of that day, contrarily to the day before, Alisa was sitting at the dining table in Marika’s apartment.

Marika treating her as gratitude for last night — that is not what is happening. Alisa was the one cooking. Marika was groaning while tackling her summer vacation homework.

The impression that she’s spoiling her cannot be denied, but because of practice for the national tournament and the poor progress on summer vacation homework, Alisa decided to do Marika’s housework for her for the rest of the month.

With an exhausted expression and looking at her best friend who was still moving her chopsticks with an earthy appetite, Alisa began talking, “Mina”, with a serious expression.

“Hmm?... What?”

Marika swallowed what was in her mouth and asked back.

Alisa had a serious expression and appeared to have difficulty saying something.

“W-What’s wrong?”

Feeling the signs that this wasn’t something trivial, Marika put her hand that was hovering in the air on the table — though she didn’t let go of the chopsticks — and urged Alisa to continue, looking anxious.

“...Have you finished your homework?”

Marika’s expression relaxed and her posture, hardened with tension, lost its strength and crumbled. She seemed to be just barely enduring to not fall on the table. Speaking of which, Marika was still holding the chopsticks on one hand, and her arms were trembling on the table.

“I wanted to avoid that topic at least while eating...”

Marika gave a reply that seemed bitter, to which Alisa said “Sorry...”.

◇ ◇ ◇

Once she more of less finished with the housework, Alisa returned to the Juumonji Family residence. Marika seemed to want her to stay, but she had promised her stepmother Keiko that she would return home tonight. Not only that, Alisa also wanted to think a little.

When she finished taking a bath, Alisa didn’t put on casual loungewear, she dressed properly and headed to the main building. Her destination for this visit is Katsuto’s study. She had confirmed before taking the bath that he had returned home.

She knocked and got an answer in the form of “Go ahead”. Alisa opened the door after giving her name. Katsuto rotated his office chair and, still sitting, turned to the entrance of the room.

“May I come in?”

“It’s fine.”

The screen of the terminal on the desk was still lit up, but Alisa acted upon Katsuto’s answer and entered the room. In accordance with Katsuto’s instructions for her to “Take a seat”, Alisa sat on the edge of the one-seat sofa.

“I’m sorry for coming while you’re working.”

“No, I am in no rush, it’s fine.”

Katsuto, with that response and expression, urged Alisa to state her business.

“...Umm, do you know of Chiba Family’s ‘Shadow Slash’?”

Alisa got over a beat of hesitation and threw the question at Katsuto.

“I know it exists. I don’t know the details of the theory. Why are you asking about the Chiba Family’s secret techniques?”

“Umm, that’s...”

When Katsuto asked for the intent behind the question, Alisa hesitated. It’s not as if she wanted to keep it a secret, she just didn’t know how she should explain it.

This afternoon, like the day before yesterday, Alisa was recording Marika’s practice at the second small gymnasium. Maybe pushed by what she heard from Mei at lunchtime, Marika spent a lot of time practicing the fortification magic in the afternoon.

However, she occasionally interrupted practicing magic and exercised with shadow boxing.

At a glance, it was a change of pace to get rid of the stress imposed by the unfamiliar magic.

But Alisa understood that Marika’s consciousness was facing a different target.

Marika’s consciousness is not facing the national tournament that is just around the corner.

It’s not facing her rival Ichijou Akane either.

It is likely that what Marika is looking at is the alumna she met at the training camp.

Chiba Erika.

It is just a suspicion, but Marika was looking at her back as a ‘strong person I should strive to be like’.

Just as looking directly at the sun makes one dazzled, the brightness of a ‘star’ that is excessively strong will seduce people’s hearts. Just like Mei ardently admires Shiba Tatsuya, Marika has become completely fascinated by Chiba Erika.

Therefore, that alumna’s technique won’t leave her mind. Even if she intends to temporarily draw a line, her heart desires it every time it crosses her mind. Without realizing, her body imitates her memory of the technique.

The shadow boxing Marika did for a change of pace in the breaks of her fortification magic practice was the same form as when she was hitting the dummy to understand what Erika called a ‘Shadow Technique’.

“Umm... Mina...”

“Mina is your friend from the Tookami, correct? Has she gotten possessed by Chiba’s technique?”

“You could tell?”

She was surprised by Katsuto’s insight, and at the same time she thought ‘possessed is a good description’.

“Chiba Erika’s technique fascinates people. It is fascination like that of a Japanese sword made by the hands of a traditional craftsman. For someone like the Tookami in particular, who are people that emphasize their values as warriors instead of magicians, it pulls them in like a narcotic.”

“...You know it well.”

“We only passed each other on the battlefield, so I have only a little experience of seeing it in person.”

Katsuto closed his eyes and fell silent, perhaps recalling that rare experience.

“Battlefield... I heard that Chiba-senpai and Saijou-senpai stood in the battlefield together during the Yokohama Incident.”

Alisa was unable to let the word ‘battlefield’ that Katsuto spoke go.

“It wasn’t just the Yokohama Incident. Chiba, along with Shiba, stood in battlefields many times.”

(Again...)

That word flash by in Alisa’s mind.

“—With Shiba Tatsuya-senpai?"

“That’s... right. But I recall he was more often with his sister.”

The mentioned sister must be the next Head of the Yotsuba Family, who he is engaged with nowadays. Alisa wasn’t too hung up on that detail.

“I’ve never experienced Chiba’s ‘Shadow Slash’. But I’ve seen its effects.”

Those words by Katsuto had a weight that made her feel she shouldn’t take them lightly. That weight made Alisa hesitate in urging him to continue.

But there was no need to press him for details.

Katsuto didn’t stop talking.

“Alisa, do you remember Tooyama Tsukasa-san? I believe I introduced you two once.”

“...Yes.”

The Tooyama Family is originated from the same Former Tenth Research Institute as the Juumonji Family and is one of the 18 Assistant Houses — as magician relatives that ought to be called substitutes for the Ten Master Clans, along with the Juumonji Family, they are the only two examples of success from the Former Tenth Research Institute.

And ‘Tooyama Tsukasa’, as the Tooyama Family’s eldest daughter, is essentially the Family’s number one.

“Chiba’s ‘Shadow Slash’ neutralized Tsukasa-san while she had a magic barrier spread out.”

“...She neutralized someone from the Tooyama Family while the barrier was maintained?”

“Right. At that time Tsukasa-san didn’t have any external wounds at all. In spite of that, Tsukasa-san was in a state where she couldn’t move a single finger.”

It’s the same, Alisa thought. Although there is a difference in the degree, it was the same damage as when Marika was cut down with ‘Reactive Armor’ activated.

“The doctor who examined Tsukasa-san diagnosed that the flow of Psions that forms the body’s Information Body was considerably inactivated, as if it had been severed somewhere. That’s what caused the temporary weakness in the body.”

“The flow of Psions, severed...”

“Cutting the Psion Information Body with a Non-Systematic blade formed by Psions. I think that must be the true form of ‘Shadow Slash’.”

While hearing Katsuto’s story, one idea came to Alisa’s mind.

“...Then, similarly, if can you throw a lump of Psions and deliver a strong hit to the body’s Information Body...”

Alisa unconsciously put that idea into words.

“The power will probably be lower, but I believe it can give the same effect.”

Katsuto confirmed the idea, with a serious expression.