Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 10 - Visitor Chapter (II)

by Sato Tsutomu

  "Tsugu-aniue? Please come in."

  As she said that, she migrated from above the bed to in front of the desk.

  "Sorry for interrupting your rest, Erika."

  Erika sat in front of the desk with the chair rotated toward the door, with her spine straight and both hands placed on her knees, but her next eldest brother, Naotsugu, took in the condition of the bed in a fleeting glance and voiced an apology.

  Well, this level of observation power from an elder brother given the title of the 'Chiba Kirin' wasn't surprising.

  Actually, Erika didn't even twitch an eyelid.

  "No, I was just resting my body a little. Well then, you needed something?"

  Seeing him with that female during summer vacation had unfortunately sent her into a frenzy, but other than times like that, being by the side of this brother was for Erika the place her heart felt most at ease.

  She would only raise her voice to this brother when he was entangled with that female.

  "Hmm… I'm puzzled about whether I should tell you or not, but… after all, I think I will tell you. Erika, I believe you have a male classmate named Shiba Tatsuya?"

  "Yes, what about him?"

  It didn't show in her face, but at this moment, Erika was pretty disturbed. Her next eldest brother suddenly asking about Tatsuya was completely unexpected.

  "He is under surveillance by the National Defense Force."

  "…Uh?"

  "It's not surprising that you have difficulty believing it without any warning, but it's the truth."

  Certainly, she had trouble believing this surprising information, but she probably found it hard to believe for a different reason than Naotsugu thought.

  Erika knew that Tatsuya is what is known as a civilian member of the National Defense Force.

  At that time, an officer had taken him away and told them that the fact Tatsuya is attached to the National Defense Force is a highly classified national secret.

  So it was likely that the lower ranks of military personnel would not be aware of his status.

  But still, Erika felt it was so ridiculous that she didn't even want to laugh, that a member of the National Defense Force would be used to conduct surveillance on Tatsuya, who was a member of the same organization, albeit an atypical one.

  Naturally, dumbfounded as it made her, that had no connection to the duties given and so,

  "I have also received an informal order."

  It seemed that using a member of the same organization was not pure stupidity.

  "Does the mission really need you, Tsugu-aniue, with your formal status as a student at the military college? What on earth could you…"

  "Watching him and, if necessary, protect him."

  "Watch and… protect?"

  "Ah. Apparently Shiba-kun has got himself involved in some kind of trouble that the military has an interest in."

  Erika thought that rather than being involved, he was the matter the military had been concerned with for some time now, but she thought she'd better not say anything for Tatsuya's sake and for Naotsugu's sake as well, so she was silent.

  "Erika, I think it's better if you stay away from Tatsuya for a while."

  "Do you mean even inside the school? He and I are in the same class."

  She wasn't going to automatically listen and obey no matter how much she respected her next eldest brother, but — make no mistake, if her eldest brother had said that she'd be laughing her head off — for now she was going to try to investigate this extremely fishy matter.

  "No, I believe that he won't be attacked at school."

  From those words, she understood the true motive of the party that gave Naotsugu the order — rather than being a target, Tatsuya was acting as bait.

  In short, the main attackers were a different lot than Lina; even if Lina was a part of it, the possibility of a different group was high… Erika decided.

  "In that case Aniue, there's no need for concern. Since Shiba-kun and I are friends that go to and from the station together, we aren't close enough to make plans for after school or go to each others' homes."

  "That's true. Really you should avoid commuting to school with him… since it wouldn't be good if you stir up uneasiness."

  "Anyway, be careful, Erika."

  "Thank you, Aniue."

  —As she had been told to when she was with Tatsuya, she'd be careful, Erika added on in her heart.

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  Immediately after they got home, Miyuki took the paper bag full of chocolates from her brother's hand and stowed it in the refrigerator.

  Up until last year, even when he received no more than one or two, he had been concerned about his younger sister's response; however, this year, to Tatsuya's great relief, Miyuki's resentment had been cooler than he thought it would be.

  "Onii-sama, I will soon start preparing dinner, so will you please stay in your room for the time being?"

  Miyuki abruptly turned to Tatsuya, who had followed her into the kitchen in order to see how she was, and, with an unnaturally wide smile, thrust that barb.

  If he translated it, she meant "don't come out and look until I call you." Remembering with a touch of unease how bizarrely things had played out last year, Tatsuya meekly shut himself up in his room.

  And in about one hour,

  "I've come…"

  Without thinking, Tatsuya murmured that aloud.

  The dining room was filled with a sweet fragrance, the genuine article completely different from Mayumi's fake concoction; there could be no mistake, this was the smell of chocolate.

  With a smile — this time it was a natural smile — Miyuki invited him to take a seat.

  Her appearance stunned Tatsuya into silence.

  "How may I help you, sir?"

  Her smile transforming into a wickedly mischievous one, Miyuki tilted her head slightly as she asked him.

  Clearly, the face of someone who was aware of what she was doing.

  "…I don't know where you could have gotten that costume."

  "Costume? These are simple clothes used by waitresses."

  Now that she mentioned it, the clothes certainly might be suitable for use by the hospitality industry.

  However, not only did Time and Occasion have to be considered, but Place, and he did not think it suitable here.

  If this was not a dining room in a private home, but rather a restaurant that served clientele with certain inclinations, then it could be said to fit the Time, Place and Occasion.

  Miyuki’s waitress uniform had puffy sleeves, a high laced jumper skirt, and an apron full of ruffles. In short, it was Julie Andrews style.

  Even though he could understand how the concept suited the food, hadn't she gone a little too far…

  "Umm, could it be that I don't look good in these clothes…?"

  "No, it looks good on you. Very cute."

  When his sister asked him that question in an unsure tone of voice, no matter what Tatsuya thought, he wasn't going to say anything that would hurt her and cause him to look for something to hit his head against.

  "Thank you!"

  In contrast to what was going on in the depths of Tatsuya's heart, Miyuki's spirit had revived and she brought out her dishes one by one. Leaving Tatsuya with no reason not to go to the dining room table.

  On to the all important menu for today.

  The main meat course was a beef filet in chocolate sauce.

  It was accompanied by cookies full of nuts and a chocolate fondue.

  The dessert was fruits with a brandy-infused white chocolate fondue.

  Without exaggeration, it was overloaded with chocolate.

  "Onii-sama, please enjoy this feast. I, Miyuki, have prepared this Valentine Chocolate especially for Onii-sama."

  Certainly, this was not something that could be done if you didn't live together.

  This presentation of cooked chocolate as something other than a sweet.

  All things considered, it would certainly go int
o Tatsuya's mouth today.

  Everything here was the result of Miyuki stretching her resourcefulness.

  Around the time he finished the dessert, Miyuki's face was tinged with a lot of red. While he was eating the white chocolate fondue, he had been worried that Miyuki didn't cook out enough of the brandy's alcohol, and apparently it wasn't just a figment of his imagination.

  Because Miyuki hadn't eaten as much as he did, she had absorbed a higher quantity of alcohol than him, but…

  "Miyuki, are you okay?"

  "Yes? What is it?"

  As Miyuki answered with a puzzled look on her face, she got up to clear the table.

  The pronunciation of her answer was slightly off.

  Miyuki piled all the plates on top of each other in order to take them away in one go.

  Tatsuya felt this was dangerous.

  The normal Miyuki would have taken two to three trips to carry this many dishes.

  She was probably not thinking about the difficulty and had unmistakably made the choice out of an unconscious desire to get it done quickly.

  Tatsuya swiftly and silently went around the table.

  "Eek!?"

  As feared, he had to embrace his sister's body to keep her from falling when she tripped over her own feet.

  There was no crash of dishes hitting the floor.

  While one arm supported Miyuki, the hand on the other arm was catching the rest of the plates.

  Smoothly, he twisted his body and returned the dishes to the table.

  Afterwards, he once again supported his sister's body with both hands and straightened.

  "Th…thank you, Onii-sama."

  "Miyuki, rest on the sofa for awhile."

  Miyuki did not protest that she was alright.

  The only result of protesting would be causing unnecessary trouble for Tatsuya and that would be awful.

  He piled the dishes in the sink and left the rest for the HAR to take care of for her. Even though she knew it wasn't a lot of work, she felt guilty for letting her brother handle the clean up alone and tried to rid herself of at least some guilt.

  However, she could not avoid becoming depressed.

  Despite the nice atmosphere she had created, at the very end she had clumsily stamped it out… was the lie she told to herself.

  She could not help feeling that something beyond human understanding might be disgusted with her.

  No, from the start it should be called disgust. It should be called an obstacle. It should be called a curse.

  "…Why must I be Onii-sama's younger sister?"

  With a large sigh, the words unintentionally sprang from her mouth.

  A piece of her real wishes had gushed forth.

  A shard that reflected her heart.

  A phrase that had been repeating over and over in her heart since yesterday.

  Panicked, Miyuki turned around.

  The statement she made just now must never be heard by her elder brother.

  A thought that must never be uttered.

  She was not unhappy to be his younger sister.

  These were Miyuki's true feelings, not a falsehood.

  After all, the reason Miyuki could be with Tatsuya was because she was his sister.

  Indeed, it was because she was his sister that her brother was constantly concerned about her.

  However — without a doubt — there was also a self that desired a different relationship within Miyuki's heart.

  For now, there weren't too many pieces.

  Nevertheless, someday, that self might overwhelm the self that thought it was good to be his little sister.

  Miyuki feared that day.

  She feared her brother finding out about the part of her that wished for that.

  When she had looked behind her, Tatsuya was still in front of the sink.

  Even with the five sharp senses he possessed, the distance was too far for him to catch a soft whisper.

  Miyuki was relieved.

  In a corner of her heart, there was regret that he had not heard her.

  She averted her eyes from that part of her.

  Chapter 11

  It was in darkness.

  Despite its consciousness being awakened, it could not move the physical body.

  The eyes wouldn't open.

  The ears wouldn't hear.

  The sense of smell and the sense of touch also wouldn’t work.

  If it were human, it would have probably gone mad in half a day. Nevertheless, it was not human. In the usual meaning of the words, it was not a living thing.

  It could wait forever. After all, it did not possess the concept of what is called a life span. Since its consciousness had awakened, it had housed itself in something and itself was continuing to ponder something. In order to fumble for that, itself would have to learn about the vessel itself was housed in.

  It soon realized what itself was. What had given it consciousness in this empty vessel it was inserted into, it did not ponder in the least. Because it was indeed an empty vessel, it was not distracted by thoughts that would become mere static.

  It understood the purpose for which it was born. All that was left was to acquire the power of movement.

  Patiently, it continued to wait when suddenly, it felt energy flowing into the vessel.

  Quickly, it seized the body. The knowledge of how to do so was stored in the brain. Unlike last time, it took liberties, but happily, it did not remember that time. Within the brain, bustling electronic signals were changed into Psion signals; reading someone's mind was something it had experience with from last time. Even if it did not remember doing it, it understood how to do it and luckily, this vessel had accumulated a large quantity of Psions.

  It read itself by immersing the interior in Psion signals it, itself, emitted. It learned the way to use this body. The eyes were able to see. The ears were able to hear. The fingers, arms, and legs moved. With this, it was now able to be used by that person. It did not want to intentionally show the joy from acquiring a body that moved.

  —Nevertheless, the expression did not change. This body did not have a mechanism for changing expressions installed. Therefore, it had, with its own power, made the happy expression while it searched for that person with the brain it had acquired.

  ◊ ◊ ◊

  Fifteenth February.

  Instead of the unpredictable atmosphere of yesterday, a mysterious confusion floated over the campus of First High.

  It had nothing to do with any of the students. Quite the contrary, the majority of the students had no direct contact with the incident.

  Despite that, in a twinkling of an eye, a wave of curiosity about the mystery spread throughout the whole school.

  Tatsuya stepped on to the scene of the incident during the noon break before lunch.

  There was no way that this was a display of his curiosity. A first year whose face was familiar — an actual 'person involved in the incident' — had begged him until he reluctantly agreed to come.

  "Ah, Shiba-kun."

  When he recognized Tatsuya, Isori called out to him from somewhere in a relieved voice.

  "Isori-senpai, thank you for calling me. Has Nakajou-senpai also been dragged into this?"

  Needless to say, Tatsuya calling Azusa 'Nakajou-senpai' instead of 'President' wasn't because he still thought of Mayumi as president or any other secret meaning. As usual, Kanon was beside Isori. Among the crowd of people, Tatsuya focused on Hattori, the Group Management Leader, who was also there.

  "A large number of students felt uneasy about the phenomenon…"

  Azusa, herself, uneasily answered. Although she had been called in, this problem did not seem like one that was in her wheelhouse.

  "However, to be truthful, I think the incident is beyond the skill of a high school student. Have we heard anything from the teachers?"

  'To be truthful,' the fellow first year who had brought Tatsuya here, was in the vicinity and seemed to be thinning his lips in dissatisfaction becaus
e he felt that that did not apply to Tatsuya.

  The 3H, [Humanoid Home Helper: a human shaped housekeeping aid robot] — a mechanism in human form — was smiling; it was said to have been hit with magic power.

  If all the humanoid had done was smile, it probably wouldn't have accumulated this much concern. There was already a humanoid-type robot prototype equipped with an expression changing function. For a Type P94 that did not have an expression changing function installed to actually change expression was indeed an abnormal situation, but that would not bother people unfamiliar with technology all that much without a doubt. And in a Magic High School, there is a pronounced tendency to be unfamiliar with non-magic arts like purely mechanical arts.

  However, if a puppet that wasn't supposed to be able to change expressions had been made to smile through the use of magic, then it was a paranormal incident that magic high school students could not ignore.

  Even if they who used magic dealt with the 'Arcane,' they did not deal with the 'Paranormal.' In fact, they probably felt even more fear and unease from abnormal incidents because they were people who manipulated the supernatural.

  "Until a little while ago, Tsuzura-sensei was investigating, but he stated that he could not draw a clear conclusion."

  "He could not eliminate anything either?"

  "That's right."

  As he answered, Isori appeared to become a degree more bewildered.

  "He was able to observe traces of a high Psion concentration from the body of the P94. Sensei said it seemed like they were being released from within the inner workings of the chest, outward."

  As Isori replied, Tatsuya scowled, which might be only natural.

  "The chest portion of a 3H is the containment unit for the electronic brain and the fuel cell? From which is it coming from?"

  In the framework of the 3H, the communication unit and main sensor were in the head part, a single fuel cell was installed in the chest, taking up both the left and right parts with the electronic brain jammed into it, and information cables and energy cables passed within the skeletal frame.