Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 30 - Chapter 5

Nalfa’s Crisis

Thursday, April 14th

After school that day, Kotori had invited Nalfa over to her house to play for a while. Kotori’s parents then invited her to stay for dinner, and Nalfa got her first glimpse into what Japanese family life was really like. It was a wonderful experience for a Forthorthian exchange student, and of course, she caught almost all of it on film. After some light editing, she’d be sure to upload it to the pangalactic network for the rest of Forthorthe to see.

“It’s just a shame that I have to leave so soon... It’s lonely at the dorm.”

After all the fun she’d had at the Matsudairas’, Nalfa was a little sorry she had to go back to the dormitory where she would be all alone. She glanced longingly back at their house even though it was already well out of view.

“That’s right. You’re still the only one living in the dorm, aren’t you, Nalfa-chan?” asked Kotori.

“Don’t worry. We’ll walk you all the way home,” said Kenji.

“...Maybe that’s why she’s worried.”

Kotori’s ice cold glare pierced right through Kenji, who was smiling at Nalfa. If looks could kill, he would have been in real trouble. And it was especially painful coming from his beloved little sister. That single glance was enough to render him completely speechless.

“I-I’m sorry...” he muttered pitifully.

“Say, Kotori, are you still not going to forgive your brother?”

Nalfa was starting to feel bad for Kenji, whose shoulders were slumped almost all the way to the ground. He’d been nice enough to offer to walk with them since he was worried about two girls being out at night all alone. Moreover, he’d admitted his faults and was doing his best to repent. He’d even promised to be more gentlemanly when it came to his relationships with women. As such, Nalfa felt like he’d done plenty to earn Kotori’s forgiveness already.

“Not yet. Kou-niisan hasn’t properly scolded him yet.”

Unfortunately for Kenji, he’d actually made another major blunder recently that earned Kotori’s ire. If not for that, she likely would have forgiven him already. Said blunder occurred shortly after Kotori’s talk with Koutarou, and just as she was starting to have a change of heart about her older brother.

“I still can’t believe he had the nerve to try and use Kou-niisan as a scapegoat! He even tried to say that Kou-niisan was worse when it came to women!”

Indeed, that was the little slip that had landed Kenji in hot water all over again. It was true that Koutarou was constantly surrounded by girls, but he wasn’t actually dating any of them. There was a line he still refused to cross. Kotori had confirmed that personally with both Koutarou and said girls. Moreover, Kotori knew that Koutarou had difficulty accepting others into his life. Kenji’s problem was fundamentally different, and he had no tragic past to justify it. So in short, Kenji bringing Koutarou into all this simply came off as a desperate attempt to throw his best friend under the bus and make himself look better. In Kotori’s eyes, anyway.

Well, compared to Layous-sama, any man would be... He kept his promise with his friends and the drama club, even turning down the legendary Princess Alaia in order to return home. I don’t think Kotori realizes how impossibly high she’s set her standards...

Nalfa could see both sides on the issue. Kotori hadn’t yet realized that she was expecting far too much from her brother, and men in general. There were probably only a handful of men in the entire universe that would meet her standards. And in that sense, it certainly wasn’t Kenji’s fault that he’d never stack up. Nalfa realized that, but wasn’t confident she’d be able to convince Kotori. Despite the fact that the pedestal she put people on was inordinately high, her heart was in the right place. And so Nalfa decided to leave her be. At least for a few more days until she calmed down about the whole thing.

“Koutarou-sama, huh...? Speaking of, Kotori, if you have any interesting stories about Koutarou-sama, would you mind sharing them with me?”

For the time being, Nalfa thought it might be best to try and change the subject. Rather than dwelling on the Kenji issue, surely she’d be happy to talk about Koutarou instead. That would get the heat off Kenji, and maybe even cheer her up.

“Stories about Kou-niisan? Hmm, let’s see...”

And indeed, the moment Nalfa started asking about Koutarou, Kotori’s face lit up. All her bitter thoughts about Kenji were quickly wiped away and replaced with nostalgic ones of Koutarou.

“Oh, I know! I’ll tell you about the time Kou-niisan and I went fishing!”

By the time she’d decided on a story to tell, the anger was completely gone from her face and she was back to her usual smile.

“...”

Seeing this, Kenji put his hands together and silently thanked Nalfa. She flashed a subtle smile and a wink in return.

Wow, she really saved my hide there... I’ll have to properly thank her later.

With that thought, Kenji let out a sigh of relief. Nalfa normally looked oh-so innocent, but she had a surprisingly mature side that shone through at times like this. And Kenji was extremely grateful for it.

“My brother was almost always with us, but there was one day I happened upon Kou-niisan by himself on his way out to go fishing.”

“So did you follow him?”

“Yes, even though I knew I would only get in the way of the fishing.”

“Were you a fussy girl when you were little?”

“I didn’t mean like that. I was always very close to Kou-niisan.”

“That would make it hard to hold a fishing rod, teehee...”

“Heehee, it sure did. And then...”

Kenji trailed behind the two girls as they continued to chat, exuding absolutely none of the usual cool prettyboy aura. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say he was a different man when Kotori was around.

Hmm? What’s that?

But Kenji suddenly noticed something that took his attention off of his precious little sister. Currently, he and the girls were on their way to Harukaze High via the promenade next to the river. The road was nice and flat and there were streetlights ever few meters, so it was perfectly illuminated even in the dead of night. Or at least, it should be. It looked like a couple of the lights were out up ahead around the bridge. Even in the darkness, Kenji could see several people gathered there. They were still some distance away, however, and it was something he ordinarily wouldn’t have noticed. But right now, Kenji was in older brother mode and keeping a special eye out on their surroundings.

“...Kotori, Nalfa-san, we’re changing routes.”

While the promenade was relatively safe considering how well lit it was, delinquents sometimes took advantage of that. Kenji figured that was probably what was going on up ahead, and so suggested a detour. Kotori and Nalfa were both good looking young girls, and Nalfa was a particularly outstanding figure as a Forthorthian transfer student. Kenji felt like it was his job to help keep them out of trouble, and took a better-safe-than-sorry approach to the matter. Taking the scenic route was vastly preferable to the risk of getting hassled.

Yeah, something just doesn’t feel right... We should get a move on.

Moreover, Kenji had a bad feeling. He didn’t know why, but his gut was sending him warning signals. If he had to articulate it, he would’ve said it felt like picking up the wrong crayon to color a picture in a coloring book with. Something just wasn’t right.

“Nii-san? What are you―”

Kotori’s anger flared upon being interrupted, but Nalfa stopped her when she saw the serious look on Kenji’s face.

“Wait, Kotori! What’s the matter, Kenji-san?”

“You see those people up there hiding out at the bridge? I don’t know who they are, but I think we should take a detour just in case.”

“I understand. Let’s go, Kotori.”

“Oh, um, okay...”

Thanks to Nalfa’s interceding, Kotori readily cooperated and went along with Kenji’s suggestion. When she stopped to think about it calmly, she realized he was right. So it was a good thing Nalfa was there; things might have gotten ugly otherwise.

“What’s with those guys? Are they following us?”

There, Kenji’s bad feeling got even worse. As soon as he and the girls turned to change routes, the group ahead in the shadows went on the move.

Do they have some business with us? Or are they just after Nalfa-san? But from this distance...

Kenji was confused. He was still far enough from the bridge that he couldn’t clearly distinguish the people up ahead, so they shouldn’t have been able to recognize Kotori or Nalfa either. And they were certainly still too far away to start heckling them or anything. If they were just waiting for an opportunity to cause some trouble, they would have just waited for the next target to walk along. Especially now that Kenji and the girls had changed course. But now that they were steadily approaching, Kenji couldn’t shake the thought that they were coming after him and the girls.

“Nii-san, what are we going to do now?” Kotori asked.

“Let’s switch routes again. That way we can really see if they’re following us or not.”

“I might be their target,” said Nalfa. “I can’t imagine any reason someone would be after the two of you...”

“Let’s hope that’s not the case. Honestly, I’d be perfectly happy if this ended with me getting punched in the face at this point,” replied Kenji.

Kenji had his fingers crossed that they were just dealing with the boyfriend of a girl whose heart he’d broken. That would be much better than the alternative, which was that they were after one of the girls—specifically Nalfa. The worst case scenario was that they’d been waiting there for Nalfa all along, which would mean they’d known she’d be coming this way. Investigating Nalfa’s schedule and approaching her at the worst possible timing was well out of the league of normal delinquents. No, if that’s what was going on, they were dealing with men that were far more dangerous.

Bang, bang, bang!

“What?! Were those gunshots?!”

As Kenji and the girls turned the next corner to take a different street, they heard what sounded like gunfire coming from the promenade. Of course, none of them had ever actually heard real gunfire before, so they had no way of knowing for sure what it was. Confused, they stopped and turned to look in the direction the noises had come from. There, they saw two unfamiliar men in black suits appear from around the corner they’d just turned.

“Who are you?!” Kenji demanded.

His immediate suspicion was that they were part of the gang that had been hanging out under the bridge, and he promptly stepped in front of Kotori and Nalfa to defend them.

“Calm down, Kenji-kun! We’re not your enemies; we’re with the government! For now, I need you to take the transfer student and run! Get as far away as you can! They’re not just after her, but all of you!”

There, Kenji realized he’d been mistaken. Both of these men were wounded; there was blood dripping onto the sidewalk from underneath their black suits. They also had guns drawn and were returning fire around the corner. It looked like they’d come to defend him and the girls, which gave Kenji a rough grasp of the situation.

My god, it really was gunfire! If the government’s shown up, those guys must be people who are trying to ruin things between Japan and Forthorthe!

Their primary target was undoubtedly Nalfa. But even if they couldn’t get her, they could still sour public opinion by killing her innocent friends. All they’d have to do was pin the blame on the Forthorthians somehow. It wouldn’t be as effective as killing a near celebrity like Nalfa, but it would incite public rage. But the short of it for now was that they were all in danger.

“Shit, we’ve gotta get out of here! Kotori, Nalfa-san!”

“Y-Yeah!”

“Understood!”

There, Kotori and Nalfa took off running and Kenji followed close behind. They didn’t know who the black suits were, nor did they fully trust them, but the gunfire and blood was more than enough to tell them whatever was going on... it was serious. There was no time to hesitate. Even if the gunfight had nothing to do with them, they needed to get to safety as soon as possible.

Kenji was a clever boy who’d been around the block a few times. He’d met all kinds of people and been in all kinds of situations, which had helped him develop a relatively keen sense for danger. That was what had told him to avoid the people hanging around by the bridge in the first place. He’d sensed something ominous from them before he could even fully see them. And thanks to that, he’d been able to pull his little sister and Kotori out of a dangerous situation.

“That young man’s pretty good...”

Ralgwin Vester Vandarion, the man in charge of the remnants of Vandarion’s faction, was only in his thirties, but he had the aura of a mighty warrior. He’d seen plenty of combat, and knew full well the dangers of underestimating an opponent. Even though Kenji was a civilian, he had no intentions of taking him lightly. In fact, he held Kenji in high regard for being able to escape with both girls.

“Heh, don’t you think this makes him a tougher opponent than the Japanese government’s escort?”

“This is no laughing matter, Ralgwin-sama.”

“I know. Send out another squad to keep the pressure on them. Additionally, put another two squads into position to keep them from fleeing the urban area.”

“That makes one full platoon... Is it really necessary to go that far against three civilians?”

In the Forthorthian military, a squad consisted of ten people. And since there was already a squad pursuing Kenji and the girls, adding three more to the operation would mean a total of forty men—one full platoon—were on the job. That was quite a considerable amount of manpower, which gave the adjutant pause. Since they were isolated on Earth, it was a big risk for Vandarion’s faction to send out so many soldiers at once.

“You’re the one who said this was no laughing matter. Besides, that young man is the Blue Knight’s friend. It’d be foolish for us to underestimate him, and we have to consider the Blue Knight himself might arrive as backup.”

“I see... So we need to settle things before that happens.”

Before Ralgwin decided to attack Nalfa, he had investigated the Blue Knight—Koutarou—and his personal relationships. With that information, he’d chosen to attack while Nalfa was on her way home from playing at the Matsudairas’. The Matsudaira residence was a good distance from both the well-guarded school and Koutarou’s apartment. Nalfa was at her most vulnerable when she was en route between them. But now that they’d made their move, it was only a matter of time before backup arrived. This would be their only chance to achieve the victory they needed to drive a wedge between Forthorthe and Japan.

“And frankly speaking, the Blue Knight is the man who killed my uncle. If possible, I’d like to rip him apart with my own hands.”

“But you will come out victorious because you’re able to hold that in, Ralgwin-sama.”

“What a pain. My uncle left me some rather tedious homework...”

Ralgwin’s military prowess didn’t compare to Vandarion’s, and his intelligence was no match for Granado’s. At best, he had three-quarters their talent, but he had been put in charge of the Earth operation because he possessed both talents. With limited men and supplies, a flexible commander like Ralgwin would be critical. And in that sense, he was in much the same boat Kenji was.

“But you should be reaching your limits now, young man. You did good to make it this far on your own.”

Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that Kenji was in the same position Ralgwin was. He was isolated far from home, and had an important mission to achieve with limited resources—protecting Nalfa and his sister. But unlike Ralgwin, Kenji had been thrust into this desperate situation without any warning or preparation. He’d certainly gotten the short end of the stick, and was in far more danger because of it. It wouldn’t take long for the forty soldiers to have him cornered.

Kenji and the girls managed to run for as long as they had because Kenji had intuited the danger and given them a head start, they knew the lay of the land better, and they’d had the sense to turn off their cellphones. If possible, Nalfa wanted to call the person in charge of the transfer students and Kenji wanted to call Theia. But Kenji also knew better. The precious seconds they’d waste on the phone could prove fatal. They badly wanted to call someone for help, but they also knew that they could easily be tracked by their phone signals. They’d be caught before they ever finished their call. So Kenji had refrained, and prudently chosen to kill the power to his phone. Instead, he was putting his money on getting to safety as quickly as possible.

“Damn it, this way won’t work either!”

“Kotori, come back!”

“Coming!”

Unfortunately, that was turning out to be a losing bet. Things had all gone according to plan at first. After leaving the riverside, they’d used backroads that only locals would know to try and navigate their way towards the city center. But partway there, the enemy began cutting them off. By the time Kenji realized that that was because of their sheer numbers rather than luck or geographical knowledge, it was already too late. They were cornered, and had no way to double back and escape. They could only go forward, and were gradually being driven back towards the river. There was no telling what would await them there, but all signs pointed to nothing good.

“Nii-san, over there!”

“Got it! Nalfa-san, we’re hiding!”

“Right!”

Just as the three of them thought they were at the end of the line, Kotori discovered a hole by the river. It led to what was once used as a discharge channel, but was now neglected after some maintenance on the embankment. It seemed the local children had turned it into a secret base of sorts, as it was lined with boxes and chairs. The hole that led inside had been camouflaged with shrubbery, making it hard to spot for anyone taller than a child. The petite Kotori had only stumbled upon it because she was running while crouched down. Surely the soldiers would never find it.

“You girls get as far back as you can!”

“Kotori, over here!”

“Coming!”

Kenji had the two girls hide in the back of the room while he observed what was going on outside through the hole, careful not to be spotted from above.

This is bad... We’re hidden, but we’ve got nowhere to go now...

Several of Vandarion’s men had already passed by. Of course, they were wearing Earth clothes and using Earth weapons, so it never dawned on Kenji that they were actually alien soldiers. But nevertheless, with them out and about just outside, there was no way Kenji and the girls could safely leave.

In movies, there’s always drones in the sky with heat detection and stuff too, so maybe it’s safer just to stay down here anyway. I guess the rest is up to luck...

Kenji carefully, silently stepped back from the hole. If they couldn’t leave, there was no real reason to keep a lookout.

“Nii-san, how does it look?”

“It’s not good. We’ll get busted the moment we try and leave, so we’ll just have to hide out here for a while instead.”

Kenji pulled over a nearby chair, sat down, and let out a heavy sigh. There was no longer anything he could do. He had no combat training, much less a weapon. He was also vastly outnumbered. Breaking through by force was a pipe dream, so all they could do now was pray the enemy didn’t find them.

“I’m sorry. This is all my fault...” Nalfa apologized.

“It’s not, Nalfa-chan! It’s their fault for attacking!” argued Kotori.

“Kotori’s right,” said Kenji. “Besides, I raised Kotori never to abandon her friends.”

“That’s the second generation Blue Knight for you... You’re so reliable,” remarked Nalfa.

“Heh, that’s just a role I play on stage. Really, I’m just a fake,” replied Kenji with a wry smile.

Koutarou had only played the part of the Blue Knight in their first year of high school. Kenji had taken over the role when the play got a second run the following year. He’d been shocked to learn it was actually based off of a true story from Forthorthe, but that was all the more reason not to blame Nalfa for this. No, the Blue Knight would never abandon his friends.

If you were in my shoes, you’d never abandon Nalfa-san, would you, Kou?

And that, even if secretly, was what Kenji was trying to live up to. It was difficult for him, but he used that as motivation to push himself forward and aim higher. He felt like he’d always be chasing after his best friend, but he wanted to be worthy of calling himself Koutarou’s best friend.

“No one starts as the real deal. Who you are isn’t as important as who you become, so you have to believe in yourself until you get there. Believe until the bitter end.”

“Nalfa-san...”

Seeing her smile, Kenji thought to himself...

She really isn’t who she seems to be. She’s definitely hiding something, something very strong, deep down inside...

Unfortunately, that thought was cut short.

“I found the brats! They’re over here!”

“Drag ’em outta there!”

“We’re not doing them in?”

“Of course we are, but we’re supposed to make a show out of it and record it.”

“Scary... That’s Ralgwin-sama for you...”

As misfortunate would have it, they were soon discovered by Vandarion’s faction. Truth be told, with the advanced equipment and technology the soldiers had on their side, it was a wonder Kenji and the girls had been able to elude them this long. But alas, their luck had run out and they were now trapped. With the soldiers blocking off the only exit, they literally had nowhere to run. This was the end of the line.

“Get out here right now!”

“If you do, we’ll hold off on killing you right away!”

Hearing the brash voices of the shouting soldiers above, Kotori and Nalfa were frozen with fear. Kotori in particular had never seen anything of such violence, and was already on the verge of tears.

“Kotori, Nalfa-san... Get back.”

Kenji got up from his chair and motioned for the two girls to get behind him. In spite of the dire situation, Kenji was resolved to defend them until the end.

“Nii-san... You’re not the real Blue Knight, so don’t try and play it so cool...”

“What’s a guy to do? I’m no Blue Knight, but I’m still your brother.”

Kenji was going to protect his little sister and her friend. Even if he wasn’t the Blue Knight, he could still play the part when he needed to. He had faith in that, and he had faith in himself. So, fake or not, he certainly looked like the real deal in Kotori’s eyes. It gave her the courage and the strength to smile through the tears.

“You don’t have to worry anymore.”

Nalfa was smiling as well, but something about her smile was fundamentally different from Kotori’s. She was beaming with conviction that they’d be saved.

“Nalfa-san?”

“He’s here.”

Indeed, Nalfa’s smile was brighter because she believed in something greater than just Kenji.

“Who are you talking about, Nalfa-chan?”

“The man who believed in himself and made himself a real knight. The legendary hero―”

Boom!

“Waaah!”

“Wh-What’s going on?!”

The sound of a weak explosion followed by screaming could be heard from outside. It seemed someone had made a sudden appearance and blown away the soldiers that had gathered around the hole. And that someone...

“Good job, Mackenzie. I was able to make it in time thanks to you.”

“Layous Fatra Veltlion, the man known as the Blue Knight,” Nalfa muttered.

Indeed, the voice calling down from outside was familiar to both Kenji and Kotori.

“By the way, if you apologize to Kin-chan now, I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”

“Kou?!”

“Kou-niisan?!”

Of course, it was only natural that his voice was familiar to them. It was the voice of their childhood friend Satomi Koutarou. It was precious to both of them. So precious that they’d never be able to forget it even if they tried.

Sanae had been the one to locate Kenji and the girls. Since they’d turned off their phones to avoid being tracked, Koutarou and the others were forced to look for them by their auras. Sanae was able to isolate their general area, and once they got close enough, even Koutarou could pick up their auras. He then immediately took off and was the first to arrive on the scene.

“Sakuraba-senpai, I think we should reconsider this way of flying...” Koutarou mumbled.

“Really? But this is the most efficient way of using mana,” Harumi replied through the magic power of the sword.

“Riding, or rather standing on Signaltin makes me feel like I’m doing something I shouldn’t be.”

“Okay, then I’ll prepare some special slippers for the occasion next time.”

“That’s not what I meant...”

“Besides, I wanted to try this out so I could do this... Ha!”

“Whoa!”

Boom!

“Waaah!”

“Wh-What’s going on?!”

The explosion that Kenji and the girls had heard was Signaltin being thrust into the ground. It released all of the mana it has been using for flight, and in turn sent the nearby soldiers flying.

“...Haahh!”

Koutarou landed shortly after that. With Signaltin suddenly accelerating towards the ground out from under him, he’d actually fallen the last several meters of his trip. Of course, with spiritual energy and magic strengthening his body, he wasn’t hurt. Moreover, Signaltin’s mana burst had kicked up plenty of dust and dirt, which shielded him from incoming gunfire. Harumi had come up with this move for emergencies when Koutarou wasn’t wearing his armor—like right now. Having Koutarou move around on Signaltin before sending it in ahead of him to attack and then kicking up a cloud to protect him was all part of her plan, and it worked flawlessly.

“The soldiers aren’t dead, are they?”

After he hit the ground, Signaltin came spinning back to Koutarou, who readily snatched it out of the air.

“Don’t worry. They’re just out of commission.”

“Thank goodness...”

“Yeah. Now, more importantly... Good job, Mackenzie. I was able to make it in time thanks to you.”

Koutarou fixed his grip on Signaltin as he called down into the hole below. He could sense the auras of two people waver, telling him how surprised they were.

“By the way, if you apologize to Kin-chan now, I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”

“Kou?!”

“Kou-niisan?!”

It seemed the main source of their surprise was Koutarou himself. He could tell from their voices and their auras that they were shocked to see him.

“Kou, what are―”

“Don’t get any closer right now, you two! Wait until I take care of things up here!”

Seeing that they were both ready to run over to him, he beat them to the punch and warned them back.

“Nii-san, let’s wait for now.”

“Y-Yeah...”

While they didn’t understand what was going on and they were worried about Koutarou, they decided to listen to him for now. It was vexing, but if they went outside, they would only make the situation worse. It sounded like a few of the enemies had already been taken out, but there were still plenty more. They were converging on the spot at this very moment, meaning the danger was far from over.

Let’s see... There’s just under forty of them left. They really went all out on this, huh?

Koutarou didn’t need his spirit sight to see the approaching enemies. They were plain as day now that the dust cloud had dispersed on the wind.

“You think you can do something on your own, you stupid kid?!”

“You’ve gotta be the stupid one, man! That’s the Blue Knight!”

There were still more than thirty soldiers remaining, the vast majority of which were gradually closing ranks in an encirclement. The rest were dragging their blown away allies to safety.

There’s no hesitation in their movements. On top of that, they’re prioritizing the evacuation of their injured. These guys know what they’re doing...

Koutarou could tell that the soldiers were formidable and well trained from the way they were behaving. As the last of Vandarion’s troops isolated on Earth, a loss of manpower would be a devastating blow. That was why they’d prioritized rescuing their downed men while Koutarou was still alone and kept in check by the rest of their forces, who were moving as one.

“Captain, are we still holding?”

“Don’t fire yet. Wait until the Blue Knight goes on the offensive and then focus your fire on him.”

They knew that not a single one of them would be able to beat Koutarou if they acted independently, so their plan was to cooperate and focus their fire. The squad captain in charge was well aware that Koutarou’s defenses would be lowest while he was attacking, so he ordered his troops to hold their fire until Koutarou made a move.

“That would ordinarily be a good idea...” said Koutarou when he realized what they were up to. “But this time, it’s going to come back to bite you.”

“What are you mumbling about?!” shouted a nearby soldier.

“...Here we go, Sakuraba-senpai!”

“All right. I’ll leave the rest to you.”

With his sword in both hands, Koutarou charged forward. In order to keep Kenji and the girls safe, he needed to take out as many enemies as possible.

“The Blue Knight’s making his move! Fire!”

Foreseeing that Koutarou was going on the offensive, the squad captain gave his men the order to attack. Following his lead, a total of twenty soldiers opened fire. Between the machine guns and rifles going off all at once, the gunfire was like a glorious crack of thunder. But not one of those several hundred bullets would ever reach Koutarou.

“Halt!”

At Harumi’s command, Signaltin emitted a white light that coalesced into a yellow shield around Koutarou that deflected the incoming bullets.

“Impossible! He’s not even wearing his armor!”

The squad captain was astonished. He’d seen the data collected on Koutarou, and knew that he normally wore armor equipped with a distortion field. Koutarou didn’t have it on now, however, and should have been totally defenseless. Yet he didn’t have a single scratch on him.

“Captain, there are no space distortion reactions or electromagnetic irregularities! That’s not a distortion field or an electromagnetic field!”

“Then what mysterious technology is it?!”

“I don’t know, sir!”

Completely unfazed by the rain of bullets, Koutarou swung Signaltin. He wasn’t within reach of any of the soldiers, but five of them some meters ahead were sent flying thanks to the shockwave coming off of his blade.

“And what was that?!”

“I still don’t know, sir! No distortion or electromagnetic reactions detected!”

“Where’s that much power coming from?! No wonder His Excellency Vandarion couldn’t win!”

The squad captain in charge gritted his teeth in frustration. Koutarou was but a lone boy, yet they couldn’t defeat him. Certainly, their original plan had something to do with that. Their intent was to assassinate Nalfa with Earth weaponry, so that was all they’d brought with them and subsequently all they had to fight the Blue Knight with. It simply wasn’t enough to break through his mysterious defenses. If they actually had Forthorthian weapons with them, things might have been different. But if they were going into what-if territory, they also had Koutarou’s allies to take into account. Either way, it seemed there was no way they could win against him, so the squad captain swiftly abandoned hypotheticals and made his decision.

“All units, suppress the Blue Knight and fall back!”

After giving the order, the squad captain quickly got to work too. His plan was to withdraw from here. It had been made in haste, but it was the wise call. The captain knew they didn’t stand a chance against Koutarou, so the only victory to be had was assassinating Nalfa. And in order to do that, they’d need to split up. Koutarou’s greatest weakness was that there was only one of him. There was no way he’d be able to stop all three dozen soldiers from trying to get past him at once, which meant they’d actually done themselves a disservice by gathering and trying to work together.

“You’re not getting away!”

Koutarou boldly stepped forward in pursuit of the fleeing soldiers. His intent was to capture a couple if he could, both to reduce their numbers and gain information. But the remnants of Vandarion’s faction were an entirely different beast now that they were on the retreat.

“Don’t aim for the Blue Knight himself! Go for his footing! Throw your grenades towards the transfer student! We don’t have to fight him on his terms!”

The squad captain’s commanding shone even when withdrawing. Under his lead, the solders pinned Koutarou down with gunfire while bombarding him with grenades and rockets. They were no longer trying to kill him—they were just trying to keep him busy. The explosives they used destroyed the terrain, making it difficult for Koutarou to run. His spirit sight helped him see through all the dirt and smoke, but it didn’t help him keep his footing. All in all, it turned out to be quite a troublesome attack. And worse yet, while he was occupied, a handful of soldiers began lobbing attacks towards the hole where Nalfa and the others were hiding. They didn’t need to score a direct hit; they only needed to force Koutarou’s hand.

“Damn it, these guys really are formidable!”

Koutarou had no choice but to position himself between the soldiers and the hole. He then expanded the range of his magical defenses to try and keep his friends safe. And now that the soldiers had Koutarou pinned on the defensive, they had an opportunity to recover their fallen comrades and retreat in an orderly fashion. It was a simple reminder that no matter how strong Koutarou was, he couldn’t win on his own. This wasn’t just some squabble or a fistfight. This was war.

“I guess this is the best I can do on my own...”

“Ohoho! Now do you appreciate our true worth?”

Just as Koutarou realized the trouble he was in, a familiar voice called out to him from overhead. Reinforcements had arrived.

“Theia! Good timing!”

“This is just a stand-in for now.”

A small unmanned fighter descended next to Koutarou. It was the same kind that Ruth used, but it had an elegant coating of gold and red paint as well as several ornamental parts. Its silhouette was stylized to resemble the armor used in ages of old.

“So that’s the new one you made?”

“Indeed! It’s not as pretty as I am, but with me piloting it, you can bet it’s a sight to behold!”

Theia was controlling the fighter remotely. It was something she’d been crafting in her spare time for fun, but it happened to come in quite handy now. Launching it was far less time consuming than equipping her Combat Dress and sortieing herself. Using a remote fighter was also a nice and easy way to circumvent the faux pas of having a princess take the front lines.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Master.”

“Mackenzie-san and the others are safe now.”

The arrival of Theia’s fighter also heralded the arrival of the other girls. The reason for their delay was simply due to their speed and the time they needed to prepare. There was no way they could keep up with Koutarou, who’d flown in on Signaltin at a moment’s notice.

“Kou-niisan!”

“Kou, what’s going on here?!”

Kenji, Kotori, and Nalfa all emerged from the hole, protected by Ruth and Maki. Kenji and Kotori in particular couldn’t keep up with the situation, and were bewildered by the rapidly unfolding events. Considering that they were now surrounded by their friends—who they’d assumed were normal people—all decked out in full gear, perhaps that bewilderment was only natural.

“Wow, the Satomi band of knights all-stars are all here! This is great!”

In contrast to Kotori and Kenji, Nalfa was over the moon. She’d whipped out her camera once Koutarou arrived on the scene, and was happily filming away now. In her viewfinder were the Blue Knight wielding Signaltin, the Indigo Swordsman standing next to him, Theia and Ruth’s unmanned fighters soaring in the sky above, and a mysterious girl who was flying without any assistance. There was also a girl wielding a large staff, a martial artist brave enough to fight barehanded, and a dark-haired woman with keen eyes and two haniwas floating at her side. And behind all of them even still, watching over the progress of the battle, were Clan and a girl with silver hair. They were the Satomi band of knights, also known as Theiamillis’s Blue Knights. And seeing them together was a dream come true for Nalfa. She simply couldn’t contain her excitement.

“Well, it’s complicated,” Koutarou tried explaining to Kenji.

“You’re telling me, Kou! Highashihongan-san over there is freaking flying!”

“Heya, Glasses-kun!”

“I’ll fill you in on the details later. Right now we need to deal with those guys.”

“‘Deal with them’? Come on...”

Now that the girls were there to guard the defenseless Kenji, Kotori, and Nalfa, Koutarou could move freely. Turning away from the group, he strode forward without hesitation. Maki wielding a greatsword, Sanae flying circles in the air, a somewhat distracted Shizuka in half-dragon form, and Theia and Ruth’s automated weaponry followed after him. Apart from the automated weapons, no one in that lineup really looked like they were cut out for fighting. Kenji stood there rooted in place, half confused and half worried.

“Don’t you worry, Mackenzie. We’re surprisingly strong.”

Meanwhile, Koutarou was smiling. He knew there was no way they could lose to a mere forty infantrymen. In stark contrast to the bewildered Kenji, he was brimming with confidence.

Aside from when someone was in danger, Sanae’s motivation was largely influenced by how much fun she thought something would be. And now that she knew Kenji, Kotori, and Nalfa were safe, it was time to have some fun—and she was more motivated than ever.

“Maki, let’s advertise ourselves as a new magical girl duo! Oh, I know! As magical knights!”

“That might be a good idea since it looks like Yurika’s looking to become the sixth head of a yakuza gang now.”

Sanae was proudly wearing her blue and white Satomi knights uniform, embellished with touches of her personal color—purple. With Maki standing next to her in a matching outfit with indigo accents, they really did look like a pair of magical girls.

“I’m not going to become a yakuza anything!” objected Yurika.

“Well, you certainly don’t look like a magical girl...” replied Maki.

“Nah, just go ahead and embrace it, Yurika. The sixth head can totally be a magical girl!” encouraged Sanae.

Yurika, who was still wearing her suit and sunglasses from work, stood out like a sore thumb standing next to Maki and Sanae. Maki was right—it definitely wasn’t a magical girl look.

“No, I don’t want that! Here, let me prove to you that I’m a real magical girl!” shouted Yurika.

“Sounds like you’re getting fired up!” replied Maki.

“She better be!” added Sanae. “We’ll be in a lot of trouble if she doesn’t pull her weight here!”

Her outfit aside, Yurika promptly fell into her role as a magical girl and cast spell after spell to protect Koutarou and the others. While it wasn’t on purpose, she had become a yakuza underling. In order to make up for that, she knew she needed to shine here and was surprisingly enthusiastic for once.

“I, for one, really don’t want to pull my weight... But now’s not the time to be worried about that.”

“Shizuka, rather than trying to hold back with your power, I think it would be better to settle things forthwith.”

“I was just thinking the same thing, Uncle.”

While Shizuka loved martial arts, she didn’t actually care for combat—especially since getting serious in a fight meant a serious increase in her weight. But she was willing to make an exception right now. Her friends had almost been killed, so her temper was flaring in a way it didn’t usually. Her anger and Alunaya’s mana both welled up within her, transforming her into her fierce half-dragon form. Right now, she was more than ready to fight.

“Get ready to dig in, everyone. It looks like they’re getting serious too,” Koutarou suddenly called out to everyone.

Off in the direction he was looking, several mobile weapons had appeared. Each was meters in size, and easily capable of free flight and rapid fire. Compared to Ruth and Theia’s unmanned fighters, these were bigger, stronger, and better armored. They were more like tanks crossed with fighter jets. Koutarou and the others would need more than just defensive magic to protect themselves from these crafts. The fact that Vandarion’s faction had called them out to cover their retreat, however, was a testament to how seriously they were taking the threat that was the Blue Knight and his allies.

“The attack craft from earlier very well may have been carrying all forty of those soldiers. But for them to have six mobile weapons... They must have a destroyer hiding out there somewhere,” observed Theia.

“There were several ships from Vandarion’s fleet that were never located,” replied Ruth. “It’s not impossible that one or more of them may be here on Earth.”

“So despite being able to return of their own volition, they chose to stay and continue their investigation on this planet... These might turn out to be some problematic foes.”

Theia was concerned that they might actually be up against a greater force than they’d imagined, but put it out of her mind for the time being. Before she could get to the bottom of any of that, she’d have to take care of the six mobile weapons that had shown up.

“Ruth, let’s form a wall with our fighters! Protect Koutarou and the others as they move forward!”

“As you wish, my princess!”

Ruth positioned her twelve fighters in a star formation in front of Koutarou and the others. And not a moment later, the enemy mobile weapons made their move. They split into two groups of three, forming up in two triangles stacked on top of each other. They had no blind spots this way and could fire 360 degrees; it was a formation designed to maximize both defense and offense. And as soon they got into position, they began a bombardment with beam cannons.

“Engaging active defenses!”

Seeing the signs of an incoming bombardment, Ruth employed a defensive algorithm that she’d scripted with data based on all their previous encounters and moved her fighters accordingly. The distortion field a single one of them—just over a meter in size—deployed wouldn’t be able to block the large-caliber beam cannon fire. To make up for that, she grouped the fighters together in units of three to increase the strength of their barriers. By carefully positioning the four groups of fighters, she was successfully able to deflect the incoming beams. It was only by a few degrees, but that few degrees was enough to make sure Yurika’s spells and the haniwas’ spiritual energy field could do the rest. Over the past two years, Ruth had gone from a good operator to a superlative one, especially for her team. She knew just how to use her barriers to complement everyone else’s and could achieve things no one else could. And it was thanks to her that Koutarou and the others were able to close in on the mobile weapons safely, even while under attack.

“Pardomshiha really has been doing the incredible as if were nothing recently...”

“Ruth is a different type of genius from you, Clan-dono. She excels at gathering information and analyzing it. As a result, the more time passes and the bigger the scale of the battle, the more she can put her genius to work.”

“Ruth-chan knows what we can and can’t do, ho!”

“But in return, we have to do everything we can, ho! So no slacking off, ho!”

Ruth’s real power was allowing her allies to perform to the maximum of their abilities. She could essentially draw out their true potential and help them put it to good use. It might seem like a superfluous, mundane power at first, but it made a critical difference in serious combat and large-scale battles.

“I think that Vandarion really should have gone after Ruth-san and Kiriha-san first. His obsession with Satomi-san was ultimately his downfall,” said Harumi.

And she had a point. During their battles in Forthorthe, Kiriha had been their chief strategist while Ruth was always the one that helped make Kiriha’s plans possible. The two of them, as keystones of the team, should have been Vandarion’s primary targets. But Vandarion had been blinded by Koutarou, who always took the front line, and overlooked them. Excluding the influence of the whirlpool of chaos, there was a large gap between them. And right now, Ruth’s mission was safely getting Koutarou and the others to the mobile weapons. There, they would be able to take the stage and attack at full strength.

Upon reaching the six mobile weapons, Sanae jumped into the air over the rest of the group using her psychic powers. She then extended her right hand and...

“Come, Saguratiiiiin!”

Her eyes sparkled as she loudly called out for the sword. As she did, a purple, sword-shaped crest appeared on her forehead which seemed to act as a beacon. For the next moment, a beautiful glowing sword appeared before her. Sanae reached out and took the handle of the golden blade floating in the air.

“It’s here! My time is finally coooome!”

Sanae had always fancied herself a magical girl, but in reality, she was a psychic girl. However, by giving a portion of her life to Signaltin and Saguratin, she’d gained the ability to use a little magic. She could now summon Saguratin and communicate mentally with the other girls via the crest on her forehead. And so, as far as she was concerned, she’d done it—she didn’t care how little magic it actually was. She was now officially a magical girl, and that was the reason she was feeling so motivated today.

“Saguratiiiiin, chaaarge!”

As Sanae gripped Saguratin tightly in her hands, the glow it was giving off turned purple. It also dramatically brightened now that she was pouring her own spiritual energy into it.

The sword’s power came from a contract formed on the premise that Koutarou would be wielding it. So even Sanae, one of the contractors, couldn’t use Saguratin at its full power. At best she could wield about one tenth of it, which was a far cry from the real thing or even the greatsword that Maki wielded. But when Sanae poured her own spiritual energy into the sword to forcibly make it stronger, that changed things. The purple glowing sword in her hands was about as strong as Maki’s greatsword, and actually even a little stronger than the spiritual energy bow that Sanae usually used.

“Sanae-chaaan Special Attack!”

The petite Sanae would ordinarily be no match for the weight and momentum of a giant sword like Saguratin, but she used her psychic powers to keep herself balanced and in control as she hefted the blade overhead. As she did, the spiritual energy around the sword expanded outward like the very blade itself was growing. She then swung Saguratin downward in a full body spin.

Fwoosh!

The giant blade made of spiritual energy—two meters wide and nearly ten long—closed in on one of the mobile weapons at a frightening speed. The machine couldn’t recognize spiritual energy, but after analyzing the visual data it was receiving from its cameras, it determined the incoming attack to be some kind of beam sword and deployed its distortion field. The mobile weapons had barriers durable enough to withstand their own beam cannons, so breaking through one would take an extraordinarily powerful attack.

“Heavenly Slaaaaash!”

Yet Sanae’s spiritual energy blade slipped right through it. A spiritual energy attack was the same as an attack from a ghost—essentially ethereal. Bending space wasn’t going to stop it. And so the purple blade easily cleaved the mobile weapon in two.

“...I’ve wasted my power on a worthless opponent.”

With her target destroyed, Sanae landed gracefully on the ground and swiftly sheathed her sword. Having practiced the gesture hundreds of times before now, she looked like a master swordsman straight out of an anime. But as Sanae paused for theatrics, another mobile weapon appeared behind her.

“Aww, too cute! Did you wear those clothes today because you knew you were going to be using the sword?”

Crunch!

However, the moment the second mobile weapon was about to fire its weapon, a nonchalantly thrust fist punched a hole straight through the barrier and the machine itself. Silhouetted by the resulting explosion was Shizuka, casually standing there in her regular everyday clothes.

“Yup! It’s super magical girl-y if Maki and I wear matching outfits, right?”

Sanae grabbed the hem of her skirt and twirled around to show her outfit off to Shizuka. She’d been in her school uniform just before, but now she looked just like a magical knight.

“I’m really enjoying working together, Sanae-san...”

Next, five Makis attacked another mobile weapon. Two of them were shot down, but the remaining three closed in and swung their swords in synchronized fashion. Surprisingly, all three disappeared afterward. The next moment, a sixth Maki appeared inside the distortion field.

“But I’m still not sure what I think of the title of ‘magical knight,’ heehee...”

The sixth Maki was actually the real one—the other five had all been illusions. The illusions had been able to attack freely, and when the mobile weapon lowered its barrier to retaliate, Maki had closed in. And she was now walking away after thrusting her sword though the mobile weapon’s power source.

“Hey, I don’t mind you calling yourselves magical knights!”

Theia was currently fighting against yet another of the mobile weapons vicariously via her unmanned crimson fighter. Since the mobile weapon’s generator far surpassed hers in terms of output, however, almost all of her attacks were blocked by its distortion field... Or so they should have been. Yet for some reason, every time Theia fired one of her guns, the round would pierce right through the mobile weapon’s barrier.

“It sounds much more militaristic than regular old magical girls.”

That effect was courtesy of the red sword crest glowing on Theia’s forehead. As another one of the contractors, Theia had also gained the ability to manipulate the excess mana from Signaltin and Saguratin. As she had little talent with magic, however, that mana was simply converted into raw attack power. Not that Theia minded. She was a natural born sharpshooter, so pure power was all she craved.

Pew!

Enhanced by Theia’s mana, the slightly red beam she fired penetrated the mobile weapon straight from the front. Its distortion field had already given out, so her beam went right through the most heavily armored part of the machine like a hot knife through butter.

Tink!

“Ah, that’s much better. Signaltin is just too majestic to stand on.”

Using Theia’s fighter as a stepping stool, Koutarou made a move on the fifth mobile weapon. Without wearing his armor, however, he had difficulty moving in the air. Theia’s fighter had just happened to be in a good spot, so Koutarou seized the opportunity to use it to get into position.

“Ah, yes. The Harumi De-de-do is quite cool, isn’t it?”

The Harumi Blade Ride Tornado was what Theia had named Harumi’s new move that combined mobility, offense, and defense—or the Harumi De-de-do for short.

“Um... Do we have to call it that?”

Harumi herself wasn’t particularly pleased with the name, and looked a bit troubled over Theia insisting on it. She would have preferred something more romantic, like “Harumi’s Shooting Star.”

“Yes, we do.”

“Don’t worry, Sakuraba-senpai. I’ll just win without the De-de-do!”

“Not you too, Satomi-kun!”

While listening to Harumi complain, Koutarou swung down Signaltin on the mobile weapon in front of him. Harumi’s control of the sword was perfect even while pouting, and the instant it connected with the distortion field, she released a burst of mana. The massive flash of energy was converted into heat, and Signaltin easily burned through the distortion field and mobile weapon hiding behind it.

All said and done, it didn’t take more than a few minutes for Koutarou and the others to destroy all but one of the original six mobile weapons. In Kenji’s eyes, however, it was all over in an instant.

“I had no idea Kou was this strong...”

And that brief instant was revelatory. In it, Kenji realized that there was a side to Koutarou he didn’t know. He easily repelled the forty soldiers that had trapped Kenji, Kotori, and Nalfa; and he and his friends readily dispatched the mobile weapons like it was nothing. Kenji’s worries about his best friend, it seemed, were completely unfounded. He couldn’t even imagine what Koutarou had been through for him to become this strong.

“Kou-niisan is... It’s like that play came true...”

Kotori felt the same way. Really, what surprised the brother and sister so much was that they hadn’t realized the change that had come over Koutarou during the past two years. That’s what shook them the most. If they’d caught even a glimpse of it while it was happening, surely this wouldn’t have been so much of a shock.

“It’s not like he was that strong from the start. He was just a normal boy at first.”

It was Nalfa, who was ardently filming even now, that answered the question on their minds. She knew what Koutarou had accomplished in Forthorthe, and she’d gotten the chance to get to know him a little after coming to Earth. As such, she had a rough grasp of the life Koutarou had been living and the path he’d walked to get there.

“But he could never overlook the misfortune before him. He always strode forward, desperately trying to overcome it.”

“Yeah... That sounds just like Kou.”

“He’s been like that ever since he lost his mom...”

Kenji and Kotori knew what Nalfa was talking about. They hadn’t realized that Koutarou was getting stronger, but there was a part of him that hadn’t changed at all. Whether it was getting into fights or feeling like he was about to be crushed by loneliness, Koutarou had always moved forward with outstretched hands.

“Even though he’s the one that needed help... Stupid Kou.”

“Yeah...”

“After an uncountable number of those small steps forward, he ended up carrying himself an unimaginable distance... The result of that is the man you see in front of you now—the Blue Knight, Layous Fatra Veltlion, who saved Forthorthe twice over.”

Koutarou had never intended to become a hero, but he carried the hopes and dreams everyone pinned on him as he walked forward. There were likely countless people who were genuinely stronger than he was, but Koutarou’s strength came from those hope and dreams. People supported him. They wanted him to win, and that inspired him to go even further. And that, eventually, was how he’d ended up becoming a hero.

“The Blue Knight...? Are you saying he really is the Blue Knight from the play?”

“Yes, that’s the short of it.”

“What an idiot... You should’ve just stuck to playing a part, Kou. What kind of dunce actually goes off and becomes a real hero? I need to teach you a thing or two about restraint...”

Kenji couldn’t help recalling all the scars he’d seen on Koutarou during their school trip as second-years. Koutarou had only stepped forward for the sake of the people around him. And because those people became special to him, he went above and beyond for them, going so far as to put his life on the line for them. The scars he carried were the result of that—proof that he’d lived selflessly as a hero.

“But everyone loves Kou-niisan precisely because he doesn’t know how to hold back. I don’t think he can help giving it his all.”

“Perhaps the ones fighting with him feel the same way...”

“Heh, yeah. I bet they do, Nalfa-san.”

As Kotori, Nalfa, and Kenji watched over Koutarou with all kinds of emotions whirling inside of them, he took out the final mobile weapon. Koutarou had become a hero at a price, but all the scars he carried were a sign of the strength he’d gained along the way. Kenji and the girls could tell that Koutarou had only ended up this way because he’d stayed true to himself. Indeed, this was the result of ceaselessly walking forward, even if it was only one small step at a time.

It didn’t take long for Koutarou and the girls to take out all six mobile weapons, but it was still long enough for the forty soldiers to retreat. Koutarou had wanted to capture at least one alive, so them all getting away was a painful blow.

“Veltlion! Of the two attack crafts that appeared, one is retreating with all of the troops! The other is unmanned and moving to attack! It’s probably intended to stall us!”

“So they’re sending over an attack craft to cover for them now? That’s pretty bold. If things go south, they could lose the craft.”

“If anything, it sounds like something you’d do, Veltlion.”

“Nah. If they thought like I did, we wouldn’t be fighting in the first place. I suspect they actually have something else in mind, so don’t let your guard down.”

While Koutarou and the others were fighting the mobile weapons, the retreating soldiers had boarded an attack craft and were now retreating on it. Moreover, they’d called a second to their location to keep Koutarou and the girls busy while they got away. It was much larger and sturdier than any of the mobile weapons, and packed a substantially bigger punch. Fighting it would be a totally different game.

“They’re scared of you, after all, Satomi-kun. They’re up against the legendary Blue Knight,” said Maki.

She figured the enemy was going to such extreme lengths out of fear. It was a sign of desperation—they’d do anything they could to stop him. Since Maki had once felt that way herself, she had something of an idea what was going through their enemy’s head right about now.

“So they’d treat me like the Blue Knight even when I’m not in my armor, huh? I’m not all that impressive on my own, though.”

“Based on results alone, you are truly legendary with or without your armor,” said Kiriha. “It’s perfectly natural for them to be overly cautious in a fight against you.”

“But if they’re getting serious, should we bring out the big guns too?” asked Theia.

And by “big guns,” she meant a bombardment from the Hazy Moon, which was currently in orbit. Ruth, however, objected to this idea.

“An orbital bombardment in an urban area is a violation of the galactic treaty.”

If the Hazy Moon were to attack the enemy craft from its current position, the only option was an orbital bombardment—which was expressly against the treaty Forthorthe had made with its neighboring nations upon entering its space age. It would also cause local problems here on Earth after the laws regarding Forthorthe that Japan had passed just the other day. So in short, they wouldn’t be able to attack directly with the Hazy Moon unless it was an absolute last resort.

“Hahh... Fine, I guess we’ll have to compromise. Hazy Moon, the anti-ship beam cannon!”

So instead, Theia decided to summon the largest weapon she could from the ship. That way, she’d have the excuse that she was using a hand-held firearm to protect herself... flimsy as it might be.

“As you wish, my princess.”

Obeying Theia’s order, the Hazy Moon produced a large cannon with a several-meter barrel from a space-time hole. Theia linked it up with her fighter’s firing control system and took aim at the attack craft. As she did, the sword-shaped crest appeared on her forehead again and the large cannon began glowing red. She was gathering excess energy from Signaltin and Saguratin to increase her attack power, just like she’d done earlier.

“I’m aiming for the one that’s transporting the troops!”

“Don’t you blow it up, Theia!”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?!”

As soon as preparations were complete, Theia pulled the trigger without hesitation. Her target was the attack craft carrying the retreating soldiers. It had only just taken off, so she intended to snipe its flight control system to force an emergency landing in the dry riverbed. Of course, that would be no simple task, but Theia’s marksmanship was prodigious. Her beam flew true, striking the heart of the computer compartment on the underside of the craft.

“That thing again?! Koutarou, that spinny thing is here! The disgusting spinning thing!”

“What?!”

When it hit the ship, Theia’s beam came into contact with something gray. The first thing to happen was a bright flash. As a result, the gray something shrunk somewhat, but the red light also vanished from Theia’s beam, reducing it to a normal beam attack. Immediately following that, it lost its brilliance and color altogether, and was swallowed by the murky gray darkness. The darkness then grew bigger and distinctly began swirling. That gray whirlpool was a terrible, chaotic force that empowered people through malice—and this wasn’t the first time Koutarou and the girls had seen it.

“Tch, why’d that thing have to appear now of all times?!”

Theia clicked her tongue in frustration. Not only had she lost the perfect opportunity to capture their enemy, but her gut told her that things were about to get hairy.

“But what is this...? It doesn’t have the same power it normally does.”

Sanae cocked her head to the side in confusion. She knew that the whirlpool appearing was bad, and she had felt it get stronger by absorbing the beam. But something was decidedly different from when they’d fought Vandarion or Dark Purple. The whirlpools they’d seen before had the power to overwhelm their surroundings, but Sanae couldn’t feel anything like that coming from the whirlpool on the craft.

“Is it possible it just doesn’t have enough willpower behind it yet, Sanae?” Kiriha asked over the comms. “That thing converts hatred into power, right?”

“Maybe... It only looks like it’s trying to help the soldiers escape. I don’t see anything like it on the other craft, either. Maybe it’s just an echo of Vandarion’s will...”

What Sanae called the disgusting spinning thing—the whirlpool of chaos—absorbed people’s will and discharged the power to alter reality. Vandarion, who had been driven by terrific willpower, had received terrifying power from it. But the opponents Koutarou and the girls were facing now didn’t seem to be as strong-willed. They’d already abandoned the fight and were in the midst of a retreat. Sanae and Kiriha collectively concluded that the situation simply wasn’t conducive to the whirlpool’s dark powers.

The real question is why it showed up in the first place... I hope Sanae was right and it’s just an echo of Vandarion.

Kiriha still had her doubts, but she put them aside for the moment. Right now she needed to focus on coming up with a way to deal with the whirlpool.

“Master, there’s a high energy reaction coming from target B! They’re firing!”

Ruth was indicating the approaching attack craft. Attack crafts were multipurpose military spaceships, but their primary role was delivering troops to the front line. As such, they were equipped with the armaments necessary to breach enemy territory and the gear to land safely. They were inferior to ships intended explicitly for combat, but they still had more than enough firepower to take out ground troops. And its beam cannon would be firing any second now.

“This is bad! Everyone gather around! If we’re spread out―” Koutarou called out.

“Master!” Ruth interrupted. “It’s not aiming for us, but the city!”

“It’s what?!” Theia shrieked.

Ruth had analyzed the attack craft’s target based on the angle of its beam cannon’s barrel, and hearing her grim prediction shook Koutarou and the others to the core. In order to pin them down and escape safely, the enemy had chosen to attack the city. It was big, but defenseless. It didn’t have a prayer against a Forthorthian beam cannon. A single shot would kill dozens of people, maybe even hundreds. That alone could end up being the ember that ignited public opinion against the aliens, so Koutarou and the girls had to drop their pursuit of the enemy and do everything they could to stop it. It was a terrifying attack that used Koutarou and the girls’ priorities against them.

“No, they’re not aiming for the city. They want me.”

Koutarou unleashed Signaltin’s power and used it to soar up into the sky. He was going to place himself in the beam cannon’s line of fire and protect the city.

These are the remnants of Vandarion’s faction... They’re just as brutal as before and even more cunning!

Koutarou had caught on to the enemy’s real goal. Their plan had three parts. The first was to pin down Koutarou and the others with the unmanned attack craft. The second was to drive a wedge between Japan and Forthorthe. And the third was Koutarou. If he stood in the way of the bombardment and got himself killed, that was fine. And if he didn’t, they could use footage of the Blue Knight abandoning the Earthlings to save himself for propaganda purposes. That’s why they’d intentionally given him time to choose to put himself in the line of fire or not—both options were fine with them They’d either get to assassinate Koutarou or the Blue Knight’s image.

“Koutarou, you can’t! The whirlpool is lending its strength to them! This isn’t an attack you can deal with on your own! You’re going to die!” Kiriha tried to warn him.

“It’s unfortunate... but I can’t use that as an excuse.”

Koutarou had flown right into the enemy’s trap knowing full well what he was doing. But there was no hesitation in his actions. He was simply taking another small step to prevent the tragedy about to occur in front of him.

It’s not who your enemy is that matters. It’s who you won’t betray... That’s what I told Her Majesty Alaia...

Koutarou didn’t really care what happened to him. He didn’t mind that the whirlpool was involved or that he might end up dying. All that mattered to him was standing in front of that beam cannon to protect the city and the hopes and dreams everyone had pinned on him up until this day.

Nalfa could tell something wasn’t right as she was filming. The feeling first struck her when the gray whirlpool appeared. Something told her it just didn’t belong, much the same way one might feel when noticing a UFO or a ghost in a photo. That sensation grabbed a far sterner hold on her attention than the attack craft about to fire its beam cannon.

I don’t want to record Koutarou-sama being defeated by that...

Nalfa, however, wasn’t aware that she was immediately recognized as an enemy by the whirlpool. No, all she was doing was praying for Koutarou’s safety. She didn’t want to film some tragic headline. She’d much rather record an uneventful day of Koutarou playing with his friends than the Blue Knight’s dramatic final moments.

You don’t have to pull off an amazing victory like in the movies. Just please come back safe, Koutarou-sama... If you’re going to get hurt, I hope it’s just something stupid we can all laugh about later. If not, I... We won’t be able to take it.

Nalfa continued to pray as her camera rolled. That really was her only wish, and her humble prayer triggered something.

Sparkle...

If Kenji and Kotori had been looking at Nalfa in that moment, they would have seen her faintly glowing in the colors of the rainbow. But both of them were looking up at Koutarou, and Nalfa herself was focused on her camera. The three of them were oblivious.

Nalfa...? What is that light around her?

But the observant Kiriha, who was watching over things from the rear line, saw it. Yet not even she understood the meaning of the shimmering light Nalfa was emitting.

The attack craft was currently functioning without a pilot present, meaning there was a limit to the extent of the control that the whirlpool was capable of exerting over it. The whirlpool was a rift in the order of the universe, but it still required a willing human conduit to generate power. And Ralgwin, who was operating the attack craft remotely, was also keeping a cool head. As such, the will he poured into the whirlpool was paltry, as was the power he gained in return. Even with the echoes of Vandarion’s will lending him aid, the malice and willpower currently being channeled into and generated from the whirlpool were but a fraction of what Vandarion had exhibited in his decisive battle with Koutarou... but the same was true for Koutarou as well.

Back then, Signaltin and Saguratin had gathered not just the power of the invaders, but also the power of Koutarou’s former comrades and the hopes and prayers of everyone wishing for his victory. Compared to that, Signaltin wasn’t shining nearly as brightly now. With his will and the girls’ combined, they should still easily be able to overcome the whirlpool of chaos, but Koutarou was at a clear disadvantage at the moment with the whirlpool’s power being channeled directly into the attack craft’s beam cannon.

I just hope this limits the damage to the city...

Koutarou readied Signaltin and drew as much power from the blade as he could manage. His resolve was firm. He didn’t even have time to put on his armor, and he was going up against a large-caliber beam cannon with just the sword to protect himself. There was a considerable chance his defenses wouldn’t hold. The beam would likely be fatal, and even if he survived, he would be seriously injured. One way or another, he would be knocked out of the battle and he’d have to leave the rest to the girls. He’d done his best—shoring up his defenses and placing himself directly in the beam’s path to protect the city—and now all that was left was to pray.

“Do something, Saguratin!” shouted Sanae.

“Everyone, cast defensive spells on Satomi-kun!” rallied Harumi.

Sanae unleashed a powerful, protective burst of her spiritual energy and the magicians tried to help Koutarou with defensive spells, but in the end, it still likely wouldn’t amount to much in the face of the enhanced-strength beam cannon. The only one that really stood a chance of shielding Koutarou was Alunaya, who was too far away and would never make it in time. With the cards stacked against him, it seemed Koutarou’s fate was sealed. He was going to die, and despite the desperation of the moment, none of the girls could do a single thing about it. They all fell into a panic, but it was too late. The moment was upon them.

Fwooooosh!

The beam the attack craft fired was stained a murky gray, but that wasn’t an indication of a lack of power. No, rather than meaning the temperature of the particles making up the beam had dropped, it was simply the visual effect of the beam having been altered by an outside force. The dark gray torrent snaked its way towards Koutarou like it had a will of its own.

“Koutarou! Fly away!”

“Uncle, do something!”

“Ruth, have the fighters wedge themselves in!”

“I’m trying! But they won’t―”

“Alaia-sama, please protect Satomi-kun!”

“Satomi-kun, take me with you if you’re going to die!”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Satomi-san!”

“Veltlion, don’t leave me behind again!”

“We’re not going to make it! Why now of all times?!”

All nine girls screamed out at the same time, their panicked voices overlapping in an indistinguishable panic. But the sentiment was the same—they were all worried for Koutarou’s safety. But alas, worry as they might, that wouldn’t be enough to save him. Yet in the very next moment, something strange happened.

“Huh, what is this?!” Sanae exclaimed.

“I don’t care what it is, just use it to protect Koutarou!” Theia shouted.

All of a sudden, light began flowing out of the girls at an explosive rate. The colors varied, corresponding with the crests on their foreheads. And through those crests, the nine lights were transferred to Signaltin.

“Is this everyone’s power?!”

While Koutarou was astonished by this strange phenomenon, the rainbow of lights flowing out from Signaltin wrapped his body in nine layers which came together to block the incoming beam. More accurately, the rainbow-colored light negated the murky darkness of the incoming attack, reducing it to a normal beam which it deflected upward. It took everyone by surprise, including Kiriha...

These nine colors... They’re the same as that glowing light around Nalfa. Is that coincidence... or inevitability? Does it have something to do with our lost memories?

But thanks to the small amount of insight she had into the situation, she was a little less taken aback than everyone else. That allowed her to snap back to her senses sooner, and she quickly shouted out to Koutarou and the others.

“Everyone, it’s time to counterattack! Don’t let it get off a second shot!”

Koutarou was now protected by the rainbow of light and the invaders were all aglow with power. At last, they were finally in a position to do something. But it would have to be quick. If they waited too long, the enemy ship would fire again with reckless abandon. They couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity.

“Aiming for the city?! You’re a disgrace to all warriors, you scum! And you dare fire at our precious Koutarou?!”

The first to move was, as expected, Theia. She had the crimson fighter that she was controlling remotely charge right at the attack craft while repeatedly firing its beam cannon. Normally, a beam cannon of its size and power wouldn’t be capable of doing any real damage to a full-on attack craft, but right now Theia and her fighter were both enveloped with a magical red light. It easily gave the small fighter’s cannon enough power to pierce through and shut down the ship’s distortion field generator. It was as magnificent a display as Theia fighting in her Combat Dress.

“Target B has released a large number of flying objects— they’re missiles!”

Like Theia, Ruth was also fighting with unmanned fighters. But in her case, she was controlling multiple units like they were a single organism. Her control, which was already superb in its own right, became exquisite when she and her drones were draped in yellow light. They danced around each other, working flawlessly to block and shoot down all of the missiles incoming at high speed.

“Shizuka, Maki, let’s go! Time for a triangle magical knight attack!” called Sanae.

“Ooh, I get to be a magical knight too?” asked Shizuka.

“Heehee, when it comes to mana, no one has more than you, Kasagi-san!” giggled Maki.

Thanks to Ruth’s defensive maneuvering, the three of them were able to approach the attack craft without worry. With its distortion field already destroyed, they dared to brave engaging it at close range in order to unleash their most powerful attacks. Together, the three girls—Sanae wielding the purple Saguratin, Maki her indigo magical greatsword, and half-dragon Shizuka her dark flames—destroyed a great deal of the attack craft’s weapons.

“We should aim for its propulsion engine towards the aft. But downing the craft recklessly could spell disaster in the city, so our best option would be to use high voltage to force a temporary shutdown,” advised Kiriha.

“Okay, Yurika-san!” shouted Harumi.

“I’ll match you, Sakuraba-senpai!” shouted Yurika right back.

With her keen wit sharpened even further by the green light around her, Kiriha immediately identified the optimal plan for bringing down the enemy ship. Harumi and Yurika then used their magic to make it happen. The gigantic bolt of white and blue lightning that they conjured by combining their powers directly assaulted the attack craft. As planned, the strike temporarily shut down the ship’s system, engaging emergency devices that would safely land it.

“I’ve managed to infiltrate the craft while it’s in the process of rebooting,” announced Clan.

“You really are a genius when it comes to shady business like this,” teased Koutarou.

“Clam it! Why don’t you ever compliment me on anything nice, like my feminine charm?!”

“Oh, but Your Highness happens to look particularly lovey today―”

“I said clam it!”

Like Kiriha, Clan’s intelligence was enhanced by the orange light around her. She could handle a computer intuitively as it was, but in this state, she worked it like it was an extension of her own body. And with it, she swiftly and decisively took control of the ship by wedging herself into its gravitational wave communications.

“...Wait, what’s this?! Veltlion, the craft is set to self-destruct!”

“So they’re planning on destroying any evidence!”

Upon taking over the ship, Clan realized a very dangerous and time-sensitive problem. The attack craft was set to explode soon, which would reduce it and anything around it to mere debris. Koutarou and Clan could only assume it was the enemy’s way of covering their tracks—and a sacrifice they’d decided to make once they realized they couldn’t win.

“I’ll leave that to you!” shouted Koutarou.

“What about you?!” shouted Clan.

“People are going to die if I don’t deal with that whirlpool!”

“Understood!”

Despite knowing the dangers of the self-destructing ship, Koutarou still prioritized the whirlpool of chaos. If the whirlpool added power to the explosion, it would turn a disaster into a catastrophe. He knew it had to be taken out first, for everyone’s safety, and he knew he could leave the exploding craft to the girls. He was sure they could handle it; he was confident in every single one of them.

“Sanae, you come with me!” he called.

“For a combo attack?!” she called back in excitement.

“That’s right!”

Sanae by his side, Koutarou flew off towards the whirlpool. Based on his previous experiences, it would take both Signaltin and Saguratin to get rid of it. Its magic would need to be dispelled, and the evil spiritual energy within it would need to be exorcised—just like what had happened with Vandarion.

“Heehee, our love is being tested!” Sanae giggled.

“I don’t think that’s what’s happening,” replied Koutarou.

“I’m not talking about that kind of love; I’m talking about the bigger kind!”

“Yeah, I guess it does feel like that’s being tested.”

“Right? But don’t worry! I know your love for Sanae-chan is bigger than the whole world!”

The whirlpool pulled away from them as if retreating from the rainbow speeding towards it. It seemed to know it was lacking in willpower, and therefore couldn’t stand up to Koutarou as he was. In order to remain intact until the ship self-destructed, its best option was escape. Of course, Koutarou and Sanae wouldn’t let it get away that easily. They chased after it with their magical and psychic powers, rapidly closing the distance. Seemingly displeased, the whirlpool began hurling attacks at them generated from the pure power of chaos.

“Sanae, get behind me!”

“That’s it! This is love!”

The chaotic energy condensed into bullet-like projectiles, each a dark, murky gray. Koutarou’s rainbow would be much more effective at blocking them than Sanae’s purple, so she circled around in an elegant, sweeping arc to get behind him, joyfully clinging to his back. Not a moment later, the chaos bullets struck them. The rainbow shield in front of Koutarou, however, was as tough as it was brilliant. Not only had it blocked the bullets, it continued to shine its warm, colorful light. The dark waves of chaotic energy didn’t stand a chance against it.

“All right! Now you follow me, Koutarou!!”

Realizing the danger had passed, Sanae kicked off Koutarou’s back and started flying again. She charged in towards the whirlpool, Saguratin held at the ready in both hands. Koutarou flew right after her.

“Don’t get too reckless, Sanae!”

“Sometimes not looking back is its own form of love!”

“What are you on about?!”

As though it had realized its energy bullets had no effect, the whirlpool sped away from Koutarou and Sanae like it was fleeing. It tired to throw them off by suddenly changing direction and moving behind objects when possible, but it was all a fruitless struggle. It couldn’t escape Sanae’s spirit sight.

“Let’s do this, Koutarou!”

“Yeah!”

“Secret Technique: Heavenly Supreme Love Love V-Slaaash!”

Vwish!

Sanae came from the right and Koutarou came from the left, their strikes flawlessly coming together in the shape of a V. It cut into the whirlpool, which rapidly began shrinking as its magic and spiritual energy began bleeding away.

“Well, Sanae?”

“Um... Yeah, it’s completely gone. We’re okay now.”

Sanae continued staring at the whirlpool long after it seemed to disappear, keeping an eye on it with her spirit sight. It still existed even after it had shrunk down to the point it was no longer visible to the naked human eye. But at that size, it burst in a miniscule explosion when a single beam of the rainbow light shone upon it.

But that was Koutarou’s... wasn’t it?

Just before the shrunken whirlpool disappeared, Sanae thought she could feel the aura of a very familiar person on the other side

“What’s wrong?” Koutarou asked.

“Oh, nothing. I think I was just imagining things,” she replied.

Surely that’s all it was. After all, the person she thought she felt was right beside her. There was no way someone could be on both sides of the whirlpool at the same time. It was far easier to think she’d simply been mistaken. So now, with their job finished, Sanae and Koutarou both turned around to see how their friends were doing. It was just about then that the explosion went off.

Boom!

The attack craft, which had landed on the riverbank, self-destructed. However, it was a rather small explosion. It scattered parts this way and that, but the ship was still largely intact. The surrounding baseball and soccer fields would be a mess, but that was about the extent of the damage.

“Is everyone okay?!” Koutarou called out.

Though the explosion was relatively small, he wasn’t sure where the girls had been when it went off. He wanted to know they were safe.

“No, I’m not okay! I have no idea how much I’m going to weigh after this!” shouted Shizuka immediately.

“Thanks to Shizuka and Yurika, we’re all fine over here,” clarified Kiriha.

Fortunately, all was well. After Clan hacked into attack craft’s systems and landed it, Shizuka and Yurika broke in. They tried to dismantle the self-destruct device at first, but they ran out of time and were forced to let it blow. It was a dangerous proposition, but Yurika had used a teleportation spell to send the self-destruct device far away while Shizuka used Alunaya’s mana to shield everyone.

“That’s great news,” said Koutarou with a sigh of relief.

“It’s terrible! I’m going to weigh a ton!”

“We finished up here, Shizuka, so we’re on our way back to you guys now.”

“That would be good,” said Kiriha. “Kenji and Kotori-san are asking for an explanation.”

“Yeah, I bet... I’ll be right there, so tell them to wait for me.”

“Understood. I’ll let them know.”

Wrapping the discussion there, Kiriha cut the comms line. Koutarou let out another sigh. The battle was over, but he knew he had a whole other fight ahead of him.

“Are you going to tell them the truth?” asked Sanae.

“I think I should. They’ll find out eventually even if I try and hide it,” Koutarou replied.

“That’s true.”

“Jeez, what to do...?”

He realized that there was no longer a way he could keep things from Kenji. He’d come clean and tell him everything. At least, that’s what he wanted to do—but he didn’t have the slightest idea how to explain or even where to start. The story of how he’d gotten to be in the position he was in was so long and involved that he wasn’t even sure he’d be able to tell it properly. The thought made his shoulders sink.

“Can’t you just start from the beginning and explain everything in order? I’m sure it’ll take a while, but even if you don’t tell him now, it’ll all come out eventually, right? Glasses-kun is your best friend, after all.”

“Yeah, you’ve got a point there.”

Koutarou knew Sanae was right. Even if he only told Kenji the short version now, he’d end up giving him all the details eventually down the line. That being the case, he might as well just fess up and tell the whole story. He’d be saving himself time in the long run.

“You know, Sanae, you’re pretty brilliant every now and again.”

“Heehee, make sure you praise me when I am!”

“Good girl.”

“Eeheehee!”

In the end, the attack craft carrying Vandarion’s forty soldiers escaped, making the politics of the encounter rather complicated. But nevertheless, Nalfa and the Matsudaira siblings were safe. As far as Koutarou was concerned, that was a victory. He and Sanae could return to their friends with proud smiles on their faces.