Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - Volume 04 - Nine Schools Competition (II)

by Sato Tsutomu

  "Hm...... I can understand that feeling."

  Mayumi's expression seemed to say: how childish.

  Tatsuya's strengths lay in mobility, analysis, and his ability to surprise.

  Compared to his Magic Power, it was his combat ability that was more striking, which the two matches today clearly testified to.

  How could Tatsuya be taken in by such blatant baiting, Mayumi thought.

  Yet, Katsuto didn't receive that wordless communication, so he continued onward.

  "Shiba will most likely accept that challenge."

  "Eh? Tatsuya-kun?"

  "At the original distance, he has no chance of victory. This may be his only opportunity."

  "I don't believe it, that's simply......"

  In the audience stands far from the main pavilion, of course there was no way for Katsuto's opinion to reach Tatsuya's ears. Nonetheless, Katsuto's point was mirrored in Tatsuya's mind.

  He was also aware that this may be Third High's, and Kichijouji Shinkurou's in particular, real intention: to reveal the only way for him to emerge victorious while at the same time forcing a direct confrontation.

  The tricky part was, besides accepting their opponent's invitation, First High didn't have any other options that had a higher chance for victory.

  (Well played, "Cardinal George"......)

  "Seriously, what kind of defensive ability is that!"

  "In the end, the only thing we caught a glimpse of was Ichijou-kun, which was our mistake. This way, we have no way to plan for our encounter."

  Leo and Mikihiko must have misinterpreted Tatsuya's comment.

  The two of them seemed to be overwhelmed by Masaki's strength, but at least they were better off than he was. He was in the process of being devoured slowly by this quicksand hell, so they undoubtedly suffered less mental stress than he did.

  "In regards to Kichijouji-kun, I have a rough estimate. I have no idea about the third person though."

  "Oh, really?"

  Tatsuya proceeded to correct their misinterpretation.

  "The 'Cardinal Code' that Kichijouji Shinkurou discovered is a fundamental code used in Weight-Type Magic and he appeared in Speed Shooting.

  Thus, his favored magic would probably be 'Invisible Bullet', which applies increased weight to select points."

  "Cardinal Code?"

  "So he's not altering the target's Eidos but only applying increased weight to a certain portion, but is that possible?"

  "Well...... Looks like this explanation will take some time, is that fine?"

  At Tatsuya's query, Leo hesitated briefly, but Mikihiko immediately nodded.

  "Within Magic Sequence research, there is a theory known as the 'Cardinal Code Hypothesis'.

  There is considerable popular support behind this theory. There are the Four Great Systems and Eight Major Types, 'Speed', 'Weight', 'Movement', 'Oscillation', 'Convergence', 'Dispersal', 'Absorption', and 'Release' as well as their corresponding positive and negative poles for a total of 16 fundamental Magic Sequences. This theory believes that, through the various combinations of these 16 Magic Sequences, any magic from any of the major systems can be created.

  Meanwhile, the Magic Sequence that serves as the basic building block is called the 'Cardinal Code'.

  In summation...... It is capable of constructing any and all the Systematic magics. Strictly on this point, the theory is incorrect, but the 'Cardinal Code' truly exists."

  "......The theory is incorrect but the code exists?"

  "......Sorry, you lost me."

  Faced with Mikihiko and Leo's responses, Tatsuya waved his hand as if to say "Don't be hasty".

  "Calm down, let me go over it again slowly.

  There is magic within the Four Great Systems that cannot be created by the 16 'Cardinal Codes' no matter what combination you try, hence the Cardinal Code theory is incorrect. Then again, based on its fundamental principles, there does exist a Magic Sequence that is capable of being a building block.

  Within modern magic, certain effects will take place after redefining the status of an object after phenomenon rewriting.

  While the driving force behind the change has been defined within the Magic Sequence, this driving force would not exist without a definition of what happens after the magic has affected the target.

  However, Cardinal Codes are able to create the driving force themselves.

  In other words, Cardinal Codes are Magic Sequences that literally define 'Speed', 'Weight', 'Movement', 'Oscillation', 'Convergence', 'Dispersal', 'Absorption', and 'Release'.

  Thus, rather than having an overall effect on the Eidos themselves, these act on a single object — and render them possible.

  Currently, the only discovered Cardinal Code on record is the one from Weight-Type Magic.

  And the one responsible for that discovery is Kichijouji Shinkurou of Third High — 'Cardinal George'."

  Hearing the last few words, Mikihiko displayed a cowed expression.

  "Kichijouji Shinkurou, no wonder I thought that name sounded familiar...... So he's 'Cardinal George'!"

  Seeing his face, Tatsuya thought: "Damn it." Regardless, he had already said the words, so there was nothing he could do about it.

  "Exactly. So Ichijou-kun isn't the only one we have to be on guard against. While it is true that talented researchers are not necessarily talented users, so long as he is capable of wielding the 'Cardinal Code', he will be a fearsome opponent."

  "Magic that relies on the Cardinal Code has no need to define the altered phenomenon that is mandatory in normal magic because the driving force itself has been defined. Under this condition — where force is applied unilaterally, the magic that directly involved Tatsuya in Monolith Code, 'Battering Ram', and 'Invisible Bullet' share the same characteristics, but 'Battering Ram' required additional force — especially on the point of attack — in order to rewrite the entire phenomenon. Compared to that, 'Invisible Bullet' had no need to rewrite the surface that force was applied on — regardless of whether it was a wall, the surface, or even the human body. 'Invisible Bullet' was a magic that directly improved the force itself.

  Not rewriting the entire Eidos, the Magic Sequence needed to rewrite only the necessary portion was naturally going to be smaller. Because this was not altering the Eidos of the target itself, 'Data Fortification' — abilities that defended against rewriting the Eidos — was unable to defend against it.

  Smaller Magic Sequences and the ability to influence the Eidos in spite of Data Fortification makes this a powerful advantage for using this type of magic.

  Fortunately, 'Invisible Bullet' was hampered by the absolute necessity of visual confirmation. Rather than relying on the Eidos, a direct confirmation of the object was a necessary, but ironic, handicap. Owing to this handicap, cover was a useful defense against the attacks from 'Invisible Bullet'. While Wide Area Interference is viable, Data Fortification is no defense, so be very careful!"

  "Got it. I will be extra careful."

  "Ho...... I still don't understand one point."

  After Mikihiko nodded in understanding, Leo politely opened his mouth.

  "What is it Leo?"

  "This doesn't really have anything to do with the match...... Tatsuya, earlier you said something about 'there are magics that cannot be constructed by the 16 Cardinal Codes', right? In other words, Tatsuya knows all 16 of the Cardinal Codes?"

  Though his attitude and tone might claim otherwise, Leo was no fool in his own right.

  Setting aside general knowledge, he was still highly intelligent.

  Tatsuya was well aware of this, but was still caught by surprise by this keen statement.

  "......Currently, Kichijouji Shinkurou is the only one who has discovered a Cardinal Code. I only know that there are magics within the Four Major Systems that cannot be created by the Cardinal Code Hypothesis."

  "Onii-sama, isn't it time to go?"

  Leo opened his mouth — he wanted to ask another question but was interrupte
d by Miyuki.

  "You're right. They're about to announce the setting for the next match. Let's return to the pavilion."

  Upon rising, Tatsuya's figure denied any more follow up questions.

  ◇◇◇

  The match against Ninth High was set in a "Valley" setting.

  The layout of the arena was an artificial valley shaped like a Japanese "<". If the water was moving, there would be a difference between being upriver or downriver, hence rather than being referred to as a valley, this was also described as a long "<" shaped lake surrounded by cliffs. No, it wasn't deep enough to be a lake (the greatest depth was only 50 cm or so), so maybe it should be called a "<" shaped "pond".

  This match was the perfect stage for Mikihiko's solo performance.

  A white fog covered the entire length of the arena.

  From the side of the completely blinded audience came a loud shushing noise before all returned to silence.

  After all, for the audience to be so affected by the magic competition and the sheer difficulty of maintaining this magic was quite telling on who owned the advantage.

  In addition, the First High players were only covered by light fog whereas the players from Ninth High were enshrouded in a dense fog.

  Under the effect of the mist, the players from Ninth High had great difficulty approaching the First High monolith.

  They repeatedly sought to dispel the mist, but after several half-successful attempts to blow the mist away, the pure white cover swiftly returned to rob them of their sight as if mocking their efforts.

  Even if they summoned the wind to blow away the mist, the replacement air was still filled with mist, making this a pointless gesture. Also, any attempt to raise the temperature only prompted the "lake" to evaporate and increase the unpleasantness.

  The Ancient Magic responsible for creating this "Barrier" of mist was unrelated to the level of moisture and simply congregated the vapor in the air. Even if the temperature was raised, this would only increase the amount of water vapor and make the mist even thicker. "Barrier" Magic naturally included the "Sealing" concept, so even manipulating the air currents would only cycle the air filled with mist.

  Fundamentally, trying to sustain magic on a vague target was one of the weaker areas of modern magic.

  In order to use modern magic to dispel this "Magical Mist", they had to identify the magic that Mikihiko used to create this area — "Barrier", otherwise no countermeasure would be effective. The new students from Ninth High appeared to be lacking in their knowledge of Ancient Magic.

  Besides having a slightly denser cloud of artificial mist hanging over the area, there was nothing that surpassed the laws of nature.

  Since there was no paradoxical effect, there were no signs of the magic weakening. Likewise, there was no effect that locked people in place.

  The only aspect directly being restricted was visibility and subsequently, mobility.

  The attackers from Ninth High advanced along the cliffs with trepidation. Tatsuya took a quick glance before diving into the mist and easily arriving at Ninth High's position.

  The mist intentionally became thinner around his immediate position, which wasn't a problem to maintain if he was only walking quickly. Then again, even if there was zero visibility, that would pose little problem to Tatsuya anyway.

  Here, he didn't have to worry about the audience watching him, so he could freely use his vision to identify the entities around him.

  Looping behind the unsuspecting defender from Ninth High, Tatsuya fired the "key" into the monolith.

  Upon hearing the "outer lid" of the monolith falling away, the defender frantically whirled around, but Tatsuya had long since evacuated.

  This time, Tatsuya didn't need to summon the spirits.

  Mikihiko was the one controlling the spirit that upheld the barrier of mist. Within this mist, nothing could escape Mikihiko's "eyes".

  The match between First and Ninth High ended in First High's victory without a single shot being fired.

  ◇◇◇

  The finals would take place after the compensatory round.

  Regardless of how long matches lasted, each match for Monolith Code never exceeded 30 minutes. Thus, the finals were comfortably set for 3:30 PM, which was two hours from now.

  Tatsuya was in charge of CAD calibration, so he opted to stay in the competition area for the next two hours, but Mikihiko and Leo needed to blow off some steam, so they left the competition area.

  —There's no way he could last if he saw those siblings sticking together like glue again. Maybe that was the reason why......

  They arranged to meet up one hour before the match, so how they spent their time until then was their personal choice.

  Leo said he wanted to grab a bite from the cafeteria before heading back to his room to rest.

  Mikihiko wasn't as gluttonous, so he elected to visit the tourism room on the highest floor of the hotel.

  The hotel was erected near the Fuji Exercise Grounds, so the tourism room had a direct view of Mt. Fuji.

  The "Divine Earth Magic" of the Yoshida Family was Ancient Magic that belonged to the Shinto System and more specifically the branch concerned with Earth Deities within the Shinto System (deification of the country).

  Mt. Fuji had a special meaning for Magicians who used Ancient Magic from the Shinto system.

  The god enshrined at Mt. Fuji was joined with one of the heavenly gods, so Mt. Fuji was worshiped by both heaven and earth denominations.

  Even excluding this religious meaning, "Spiritual Mt. Fuji" was a locale that powerful magics revolved around.

  Walking out onto the exposed balcony of the tourism room was like bathing in the mountain's aura. Mikihiko had this in mind as he ascended to the highest level, but there was an unexpected individual waiting for him.

  "Ah, Mikihiko-kun, why are you here?"

  The one turned to ask him was Erika, who was wearing a straw hat to shade herself from the sun as she placed her elbows on the railing and gazed upward towards Mt. Fuji.

  "I came to see Mt. Fuji...... Erika, why are you here alone?"

  As Mikihiko said, the tourism room — including the exposed balcony on the highest level — was empty save for Erika's presence.

  No, Mikihiko was here now, so the amount doubled.

  This was only natural, considering all the visitors today would naturally be here for the Nine Schools Competition.

  Even though it was the break period, the match for Third Place was about to start soon. Besides Mikihiko, who had a special reason for visiting, anyone choosing to visit this tourism room that could only see Mt. Fuji now must have brain damage.

  "I probably wanted to be alone for a while."

  Seeing Erika turn her gaze back to the scenery and the loneliness accompanying her face, Mikihiko felt a little flustered.

  This was hardly the time to retreat or just stand there, so he had no choice — at least his consciousness told him he "had no choice" — but to sidle along Erika.

  "Mikihiko-kun."

  Erika spoke with her gaze still fixated on Japan's highest mountain.

  "Eh, what?"

  —Something's awry.

  "Don't you feel it?"

  "Eh?"

  "You came to bathe in the aura of the mountain, right? Are you properly soaking it in?"

  Though the words were the same, her voice was altogether different.

  It was as if her tone was just as usual, but still different at the same time.

  Leaning against the railing, Erika's expression was incredibly earnest, more sincere than any time in the past four months, nay, the last couple years.

  The last time he saw this expression was before she cut her hair short, when it was even longer than when she allowed it to grow out last spring. Two years ago, she never loosened her grip on the sword in her hand......

  "......Mikihiko-kun?"

  "Ah, sorry. Uh, yeah, just as Erika said."

  Mikihiko stammered a reply and f
inally realized what was wrong.

  — Erika was calling him "Mikihiko" —

  "I came to soak in the aura."

  "Not that."

  "Eh?"

  "I'm not asking that. ......Are you properly feeling the aura around the mountain?"

  Stupefied by her oddly intent gaze, Mikihiko braced himself and adjusted his breathing.

  He expelled all the air within his lungs and breathed deep.

  Maintaining a proper pace was important, but imagination was even more so.

  He was taking in and releasing the air in controlled motions.

  And he wasn't breathing in and expelling, but expelling and then breathing.

  After taking two or three breaths Mikihiko's body was suffused with power. This wasn't like the "crumbs" from psions or pushions, but was something closer to the original oscillations of the waves, also known as a "power" called "prana".

  Mikihiko perfectly absorbed the prana surrounding the peaks. After verifying this with her own eyes, Erika let out a restrained smile that was wholly unlike her.

  —A somewhat lonely smile.

  "Erika......?"

  "See, you still have it in you!"

  "......I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about."

  This wouldn't be the first time someone had spouted some abstract comment without sparing a thought towards others, but today, Mikihiko felt that it was more like his fault for not understanding her.

  "Mikihiko-kun, have you noticed? Today, you were able to wield magic like before the incident, when you were known as the 'prodigy of the Yoshida Family'!"

  "Eh?"

  "No, you're not the same as before, you have made great strides compared to then. Regardless of whether it was Sense Tuning, the barrier of Mist, the absorption of prana, they have become as natural as breathing for you."

  He didn't say: how is it possible.

  Likewise, Mikihiko didn't say, why would you say that.

  He was well aware what sort of "eye" the "Swordsman of Chiba" Erika possessed.

  "Isn't that wonderful!"

  With a sudden "pah" and a slap on the back, Mikihiko nearly staggered.