Hidan no Aria - Volume 11 - Chapter 3

Chapter Three.
The next day was a school-holiday, so… because I am a diligent student, I went to the library to do some serious studying. However, Riko was there, and she gushed:

「Let’s find some H-books! Come on, let’s look together!」

I tried not to be pulled into such a dirty, non-school event. So Riko brought several books of female nudes and medical texts, chasing me from around the library, and so my morning was wasted. Finally, she got tired and went home, but at noon Mutou (a.k.a The Idiot) showed up.

「I am a treasure hunter, and I could use your help with something.」

Spouting nonsense like that, it was practically the same scene as this morning with Riko. As a result, my visit to the library was like a game of ‘Metal Gear Solid’, and was spent running and hiding.

Having completely lost my motivation, I returned to my apartment that afternoon, staggering with fatigue…

Oh! Something smells good in here…

Having worked up an appetite, I went straight into the kitchen where there was a pot of curry already prepared. This is a treasure! Kaname’s curry is delicious. Did she change some of the herbs? But she isn’t here. It seems that she’s out somewhere.

Well, the first-year ‘interns’ are used for all kinds of chores. They’ve probably been drafted to do the clean-up from the Sabage with real bullets.

On the table, Kaname’s handiwork: ‘Onii-chan Plush’ + ‘Kaname Plush’ were placed. She gave them to me a few days ago, and apparently she discovered them inside the bullet-proof closet where I had discarded them.

Having lost all intention of studying, I decided to watch some television while eating curry, but as soon as I had eaten, and because of the increased blood flow to my stomach1, I became tired.

「There is no greater pleasure in the world than sleep…」

And so, while mumbling my grandfather’s favourite phrase, I went to my bedroom, and flopping onto my bed, I laid down.

Then…

Riko was straddling me, forcing me to look at Goya’s ‘The Naked Maja’ that had somehow become ‘The Naked Aria’ so, I woke from that horrible nightmare and jumped to my feet. Concerned that I might hysterise in my sleep, I checked my pulse… I… I’m fine…

「*sigh*」

With that sigh of relief, I reached the bathroom. It seems that Kaname hasn’t returned. The charger for her HMD2 has moved, so she came back at least once and went back out again but… the leftover curry hasn’t been touched. Thinking that I might have some messages, I checked my mobile.

…?

What’s this? The signal reception is turned off!

Instead, a status is displayed: 「Standalone Mode」. The mobile connexion is cut off. It is a mode where you are unable to receive either calls or messages. I never use that setting. ‘Someone’ changed it.

I tapped through the menu to disable Standalone Mode, when…

I received voice-mails and messages from Jeanne, Shirayuki, and the others, along with several from other numbers. As I was about to check the contents of the messages, I received a call from an unknown number. I answered it out of reflex.

「Tohyama? Not answering your telephone was a little worrying. Gird yourself for battle quickly!」

That voice… It’s Tamamo.

「Gird? You mean put on combat gear? Why?」

「’Why’s’ and explanations are unnecessary! Begin!」

「…!?」

I had a bad feeling about this…

「Mine Shikigami3 have reported. G-Third has returned to Tokyo.」

Tamamo had spoken the words I did not want to hear.

「The location is East-South-East of the Shinagawa Thermal Power Station. Shirayuki and Jeanne are at the Ebara Temple nearby. You must hurry there! Is G-Fourth–Kaname– with you?」

「No…She isn’t.」

「That is very unfortunate…」

Worried, Tamamo was silent a moment.

「That G-3! He has great battle-luck. While we are scattered and our defences spread thin, he turns up. I sense that it will be a hard-fought battle… 」

Agitated, she fell deep into thought.

For Tamamo, good luck is required in all important matters. Now it seems she is holding her in her hands.

「In any case, I have to go too. What about the others?」

「Riko and Reki are already underway. Aria is at that place called AMDO and moving at high speed. Watson called me a moment ago, and he has set out and is on his way to your apartment.」

Having rapidly summarised the situation, the intercom doorbell rang.

Watson was here.

Wearing the same equipment from the day of our battle at the SkyTree, he arrived to help, and with my gun, bullet-proof uniform, a magazine, and my right and left hand Orochi4, we flew out of the boy’s dormitory. In front of the building, Watson’s Porsche 911 was parked. It had a revolving red emergency-vehicle light attached to the canopy.

「What now, Tooyama?　It appears that G-3 is on the opposite bank from Butei High, near the Thermal Power Station.」

Watson asked as he jumped into the driver’s seat and started the car.

By ‘What now’, I guess he’s asking about logistics.

「Going by sea would difficult. We don’t have a boat ready, and the coastal route is full of bridges and flood gates that might dead-end.」

「And as for going by car…. Unfortunately the Tokyo Harbor Tunnel is under repair. Crossing on foot, let alone by car, is impossible. We’ll　have to take the highway and turn off at Shibaura. But that will take twenty minutes!」

Damn it! It’s because it’s almost the end of the year. This is the annual ‘Seasonal Road Maintenance’. The only direct route is by air, but getting something like a helicopter would take even more time.

「There’s no time to hesitate. We’ll take the car. Go!」

As I jumped into the passenger seat, I turned off the handbrake and shouted at Watson to drive.

「*Sniff*… Tooyama, what did you eat today?」

I heard this sudden question, and Watson leaned over while driving, confusion on his face.

「Nothing special. Just some of Kaname’s curry…」

「It’s faint, but the smell… your breath smells of Valerian. It is a sleeping drug, and its smell can be masked when mixed with other herbs. You’ve taken quite a lot. Hadn’t you noticed?」

Watson is also a doctor, so for him to to say that… I gasped with realisation. Now that I think about it, today’s curry smelled and tasted a little different than usual.　Kaname is usually very particular: ‘I will make the curry exactly the same way that you liked so much.’

What does this mean… Kaname?

I immediately tried to call Kaname with my mobile, but of course, she never answered.

Did you go… to where G-3 is?　What are you planning to do? Kaname…!

Inside the car, there is　a dual-use monitor for a SatNav. The screen also had a video-conference call function linked to Jeanne and was transmitting a video feed from the mobile that she had cleverly placed in the chest pocket of her school uniform.

We turned left, towards the Rainbow Bridge entrance and…

Damn it…!

The road is jammed. For now, we can only monitor the situation on the screen. The monitor and tied-in onboard speakers were of such high quality, we were hearing Jeanne’s voice so clearly that it was like we were there with her.

「Tohyama, Watson. I don’t have my headset5, so I’m using　my mobile’s earpiece with speaker-phone turned on. They may hear any loud noises you make, so please be advised.」

Maybe it was because she was so close, but Jeanne’s voice was tense.

On the monitor, and carrying Irokaneayame, Shirayuki’s profile was displayed as she stole a glance at the situation. They are operating as a two man unit– a wise choice.

Jeanne and Shirayuki are moving past the hexagonal prism shaped cooling tower, erected south of the Shinagawa Thermal Power Station. Beyond them, I see a natural gas tanker in Tokyo Bay.

Meanwhile, Riko, Reki, and finally Aria were connected to the feed in ‘Audio-only’ mode.

「Ugh…」

In unison, we all groaned, with hint of surprise in our voices.

It’s him…

His grim face was painted as if he were wearing sunglasses, and he also wore an HMD.

That awesome presence… there can be no mistake.

Striking a bold pose, it’s G-3– standing on top of the water!

Judging by his balanced posture, he seems to be standing on something, but I can’t see what it is. Whatever it is, it’s probably invisible.

He is wearing an outrageous jet black helmet, several pieces of armour, and a matching black coat that is fluttering in the wind. Both coat and armor were trimmed with gold and gold thread.

Remembering the day of the Bandire6— G-3 is as flashy as ever.

He is angry with someone on the shore, and his attention is turned towards what appears to be a public park. G-3 is talking to someone on the lawn.

It’s Kaname…!

In addition to her HMD, she is also wearing body armor. On both hips she is wearing two swords, and crossed on her back are two more– in all, she has four Neue Ange blades. This is the most heavily armed I have seen her.

And to make matters worse…

「Wha…?!」

As Jeanne emitted a gasp, words failed me, and my eyes widened in shock. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t do anything but stare in astonishment.

That person took everyone’s breath away. They caught every eye, because of their angelic beauty.

In the corner of a shipping yard, a crane on the border of land and sea soared into the sky. They were wearing a bulletproof brown long-coat and high-laced combat boots.

Ka…Kana!

Kana sat on the crane arm.

And judging by the distance of her position… She is not on Kaname’s side, but rather on G-3’s!

G-3 was gone for a while, in order to meet Kana?!

Her braided chestnut hair fell to her waist and swayed in the sea breeze. Regardless of the fact it was only on a screen, her unchanged beauty left us breathless and made us forget our enemy. But Kana is not only beautiful. She can enter Hysteria Mode at will, and　is infinitely more skilled in using that super-human power.

While it is true that on one occasion I beat my ‘Nii-chan’ in Hysteria mode, I could never win against ‘Kana’. If we were to fight, I am not confident of victory. Kana is a very special case. It’s likely that she has discovered how to use higher form of Hysteria Mode that I don’t know about, and is on an entirely different level. Moreover, the battle at IU seems to have brought her skills to maturity, and now there is a certain aura about her.

「…」

With her long lashes, Kana sat bathed in the twilight haze… but she is only observing the scene below. On the screen… Jeanne, despite her trembling, moved closer to the three　principals.

「I will now set the camera to wide angle mode. Pray the fortunes of war favour us.」

From her Butei handbook、 she pulled out a fish-eye lens and attached it to her mobile’s camera. Then she set her mobile on a tree branch. At first the image was stretched and warped, but the monitor’s auto-detect function corrected it, creating a panoramic video.

All of them were now displayed on the screen: Kaname, G-3 , Kana, plus Shirayuki and Jeanne, so we were able to grasp the entire situation.　Then Watson began operating the equalizer,　cleaning up the audio and from the speakers…

「Third,　we don’t need to kill them. Baskerville… DEEN, they aren’t the enemy.」

…Kaname’s voice was heard. I got the impression that Kaname was trying to persuade G-3. It also appears that Jeanne and Shirayuki have been detected, and are talking about what they should do.

「Fourth, it’s an order!」

G-3 snapped.

At that moment, Shirayuki showed herself to support Kaname.

「G-3, in addition to Kaname… we have just learned of your emissaries to the Six-Tailed Kitsune, Tamamo-sama, and the Hotogi clan gives you the same answer. We will not hand over our, ‘Irokane and everything to do with it’, to you.」

It seems that G-3 was in private communication with members of DEEN, and that seems to be the connexion where the Hotogi mikos are concerned.

Enough, Shirayuki…!

That man is dangerous. Don’t say anything to provoke him!

Meanwhile, we had just made it to the south end of the Rainbow Bridge, tires squealing as they turned. We have finally made it to the half-way point of our journey. We are ten minutes out.

Taking the current situation into account, and concluding that we should temporarily retreat, I…

「Jeanne! Take Shirayuki and Kaname, and get out of there!」

I screamed at the mic beneath the monitor, and as a result, my voice blasted from the mobile’s speaker.

On the screen, recognising that voice, Kaname turned her head.

「…Onii-chan…?!」

This was unexpected. She probably wanted to keep me from being involved, so her plan was to put me to sleep. I guess I’m awake sooner than she thought.

Your didn’t do enough research, Kaname. Pharmaceuticals have almost no effect on me.

「I… Baskerville… isn’t the enemy, Third…」

Flustered Kaname tried to speak, but…

「Fourth! Are you going to follow my order!?」

「Kaname! Get out of there!」

G-3 and I shouted at the same time. Our voices overlapped, as Kaname cringed away. Then straightening, with knees trembling… she drug her feet as she walked. Making a right about-face, Kaname made her way to G-3’s side. Her face– an expression of wide-eyed panic.

「Kaname …」

I understand perfectly. It’s like watching myself.

Kaname, I’m sure… Whenever my brother gave me an order, I had exactly the same reaction. I couldn’t defy him, because he was so much stronger than me. No matter what, his orders had to be carried out. I had to obey.

「I have to… Someone stronger than me…」

Her voice, like her shaking hands, trembled…

「… I absolutely can’t disobey… because it is completely illogical…!」

Crossing both arms, she drew the swords that were on both her hips.

This is bad… This is very bad…!

Looking down at Jeanne and Shirayuki, Kaname’s face… was becoming a sharp glare.

Kaname’s personality is being replaced. Taking control is the old personality from when we first met– that of G-Fourth!

「I owe him a debt. He was the one that helped me escape Los Alamos…」

Repeating those reasons to herself, Kaname began to radiate her fighting spirit. Lowering her stance, I saw her concentrate strength into her legs.

「Do you intend to fight? That blade will not work against us.」

Sensing Kaname’s fighting spirit, Jeanne and Shirayuki, each drew their swords and stood shoulder to shoulder, the same way as the night of the Lumberjack, taking up the same position for the ‘tag-team’ technique that destroyed Sonic.

「Kaname, surrender! You can’t beat us. That’s something you should have realised just recently.」

Shirayuki said, joining in, but Kaname …

「That was a Duel; This is War.」

To her right, and left, a blue fluorescent line glowed on her katanas as she grasped their hilts.

「The one that you were able to destroy was only one of thirteen types of Neue Ange swords!」

*Swish!*

From under Kaname’s foot, grass and dirt flew and scattered. Thanks to her exo-skeleton’s assistance Kaname closed distance with girls in a superhuman leap, unsheathing her blades mid-air… No…

「Arc Edge7…!」

Drawing those things that cannot be called swords… but rather light-sabers8. Drawn from their sheaths, they were a glittering metre long, as Kaname attacked Jeanne and Shirayuki from above, and they spread out to avoid the light-saber…

*Whoosh!*

As she landed, her shining blades gouged a hole in the ground. Molten lava and white fumes immediately rose and filled the crater she had made.

What… That’s…!

It was like a scene from a movie. Her swords looked like the fictional weapons from Star Wars– only more powerful. There is no possible way to safely receive such an attack. Just one touch would slice a person in half… no… rather, disintegrate them. Kaname stowed her light-sabers, and only the grips in the scabbards on her hips remained.

「…Jeanne!」

「Understood.」

Eyes wide, I watched as Shirayuki and Jeanne exchanged their respective blades for magic. Shirayuki began　tracing symbols in the air with her hands, and diamond dust began dancing around Jeanne.

Observing Kaname’s attack, G-3 gave a snort of disdain.

「Just as I thought. You’re broken, Fourth.」

「It’s not like that, Third. I’m holding back my weapon’s full power. Compared to yours, mine’s reaction rate is slower.　Boot-up takes longer.　If I don’t wait for full deployment, the ‘multi-faceted crystal’ will fuse.」

「No, the problem is with you!」

G-3 growled, like a lion– the king of the animals. Turning around, Kaname could only gasp wordlessly.

「Fourth, you can’t fool me. Your attack was only half intended to kill, and the other half to let them escape.」

「…That’s not it…! I…!」

Shaking her shoulder-length hair sideways, Kaname tried to clamour an excuse.

「You’re damaged, and stooping to the level of a mere human!」

「No, no, no!」

Holding her head in her hands, Kaname dug her nails into her scalp, as if to rid herself of the alternate personality in her head.

「Fourth! Remember who you are! You are a weapon, and this is war… Move!」

I see now. G-3 is trying to ‘fix’ Kaname– trying to turn her back into G-4. Without attacking himself, that bastard is trying to make Kaname do it.　His plan is to ‘fix’ Kaname by reverting her personality.

「Why…? Why did it have to become a War…?」

Hiding her face, Kaname…

*Shine!*

Spreading her arms wide, she drew the twin swords that were fastened on her back. They looked like executioner’s swords that were used in the Middle Ages to behead those sentenced to death, but the double-edged blades’ fullers were carved hollow. With the ‘U’ shaped tip… she pointed them at Shirayuki and Jeanne to check their advance, as they stood ready with fire and ice.

「I… I’m… sick of war!」

*Whoosh!*

Following a high-pitch noise, blue light surged from the swords’ hilts.　Running swiftly down the edges of the blades and converging at their tips, the light shot out, without a hint of recoil.

「…!」

Speeding on, as if they had been fired from a rifle, the bullets of light, flew toward Shirayuki and Jeanne…

Jeanne made a motion to ward the bullet of light with her sword, but it was not something that could be deflected. Because she was anxiously preoccupied about what would happen to Jeanne, Shirayuki’s response lagged, and she was unable to make any kind of move to defend herself.

In the next instant, light-bullets gave off a sound like a rocket-launcher strike (and compared to the size of the bullet, the explosion was on an entirely unbelievable scale) that made me burst into a shout.

「Shirayuki…! Jeanne…!」

As if they had been hit by a train, they were sent flying left and right.

Shirayuki bounced off the ground and collapsed, and Jeanne disappeared from the screen.

「Shirayuki…!」

I watched the screen anxiously…

Underneath Shirayuki’s bullet-proof uniform, it seems that she had been wearing chain-maille as a precaution, and now it was in ruins. Then I saw her move and stir slightly. She wasn’t insta-killed, but it looks like she has been gravely injured. She can’t keep fighting. She needs help now!

Sheathing her swords on her back, Kaname　turned towards G-Third, her expression seeming to　say: ‘That’s enough, right?’. But his response was…

「What are you stopping for? Do you want me to finish it?」

By ‘finish’, he means ‘kill’.

Stop it… Just stop it!

I screamed this uselessly inside my head.

Kaname lifted her sorrowful, tear-stained face. Strapped to her leg was a knife-shaped object– that must be an advanced blade, too. Drawing it…

「A weapon has to fight… Even if they don’t want to, they must…」

*Step!* *Step!*

Crossing the scorched earth, she moved toward Shirayuki.

Silently observing the situation, G-3 chuckled softly with a smug, satisfied smile on his face…

「G-3, rather than just worrying about others, why don’t you spare a thought for yourself?」

Kana shouted from atop the crane.

And in the next instant,

*BAAANG!*

From the on-board speakers came a thunderous noise. It was the sound of a gunshot from someone who is connected to the video-conference in ‘audio-only’ mode.

After a few seconds…

*BANG*

From beside of G-3’s head, orange sparks flew, and a concealing dust cloud rose from the ground.

Wha-… What was that?!

「The bullet has been deflected. Reason: unknown.」

I realised that the voice from the on-board speakers was Reki’s. The loud noise was the sound of a shot from a large calibre sniper rifle– the Barrett M82.　The barrel of the M82 is no less than 29 inches long. Its gross weight is over 14kg, and it is almost as long as Reki is tall. Carrying such an impractical weapon, she has secured the ‘base’ of Academy Island9, and accurately sniped G-3 in Shinagawa at long-range. The dust cloud was caused by the impact of the bullet, which possesses more power and is of a larger calibre than a Dragunov.

But if so, why did she miss?

I can’t believe Reki failed. Those ‘sparks’ that exploded near G-3… somehow, he
blocked the bullet. The Barrett is an anti-material rifle, with rounds powerful enough to pierce armoured plate, and yet he deflected it… with ease…!

「…!」

Then, high above G-3– from the arm of the crane…

Riko…!

Some time ago, Riko must have sneaked up behind G-3, and now she is diving toward him.　In her hand was the same tactical knife that she used in the April hijacking when she tried to kill Aria. She is targeting his head– the only place that is unprotected.

From what I have seen, Reki and Riko…　It seems that they are trying to take out G-3– the boss– first. If they succeed, then Kaname will no longer have to follow his orders. That’s their plan. They are using the same strategy, and it looks like it’s going to work. G-3 is still watching Kaname; he hasn’t even looked up toward the falling Riko.

But …

「’Worry’? About things like this…?」

And after he said that…

*Smack!*

Just as Riko was about to reach G-3, he sent her flying like a baseball. Fresh blood spattering, there was a splash, and a without cry, she fell into the sea. This time I saw what happened. G-3 swatted a hand, effortlessly deflecting her, all without even glancing in her direction…

It’s useless… We can’t beat him!

We have just sped onto Goshiki Bridge10. Our ETA is 5 minutes.

With Neue Ange blade in hand, Kaname stepped up near to Shirayuki.

What should we do?

「Huh… What is that? Tooyama!?」

As we reached Big Kounan Bridge11, Watson screamed, but he was not watching the monitor, but looking outside the window. Then, pushing my hair back, I turned and looked high and to the right.

「…?!」

In the sky… I could see a light, high above the container yard.

A star… No, it’s too close. It’s too slow to be a missile, and it doesn’t seem to be any kind of aeroplane either– it’s much smaller.

The small light soared over the Shinagawa Thermal Power Station.

「In war ‘anything goes’… And I was created for war…」

On the monitor, Kaname raised her knife, and when I looked back at the screen…

「Heh. If ‘anything goes’, then take this!」

From the on-board speakers we heard a seiyuu-like voice, and in rapid succession..

*Bang!* *Bang!*

「…!?」

At an angle that left Shirayuki protected, something swooped in towards Kaname. Two bullets detonated with an explosive sound, engulfing Kaname in a shower of orange sparks. What I’ve just seen was…

Incendiary Ammo…!

Bis-hydroxyl Aluminium and Naphtha: exploiting the extreme oxidising nature of these chemicals and their ability to burn at high temperatures, they were incredibly small Napalm bombs. These were just one of many kinds of Butei bullets. This was an air-raid.

*Tumble* *Tumble*

Rolling, Kaname has escaped the flames and smoke, and is now looking up into the sky. She is probably seeing the same light we had seen in the sky just moments ago. The hand that had held the knife seconds before was empty. The Butei bullets have knocked it away.

「Aria…?!」

Retracting the canopy of his Porsche convertible…

His short hair whipping in the wind, Watson looked up into the sky. Looking in the same direction, now it can be seen with the naked eye– the true shape of the light we saw moments ago.

「Aria… Is that you!?」

With a single layer of white, tasset-like plates flaring from the the back and sides of her bullet-proof uniform skirt… It’s Aria!

The contraption was divided into seven variable wings, and below each of them the flames of a jet engine glowed.　From what I’ve seen of their shape and articulation… they’re a cross between compact, high-output rocket thrusters and stabiliser planes. These ‘wings’ attached to her waist allow her to fly.

「Wha-? You’re flying! When did you get that?!」

Seeing Aria flying as if it were the most natural thing in the world, I couldn’t help blurting this out.

「This is a ‘Hover Skirt’! It was delivered a little while ago, so I thought that I’d see what it can do. Kinji, stop dragging your feet and get over here!」

As she said that …

*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*

Firing Incendiary, Exploding, and Fragmenting bullets, Aria was raining an endless hail of Butei bullets onto Kaname. The sound of gunfire coming from the speakers could now be heard directly as well. Rather, it sounded like a real war!

On the screen, I saw Aria shoot armour-piercing rounds at the hollow, double-edged blades that had brought down Jeanne and Shirayuki, knocking them to the ground and damaging them. With her Barrett M82, Reki targeted and finally destroyed them.

That reminds me…

Tamamo said:‘Aria is at that place called AMDO’

This is what　Aria had ordered while she was in the hospital, and she had gone to pick up her ‘rocket booster’– to Hiraga’s. If you think about it, her inventions are a lot like ‘Neue Ange’. Hiraga is an inventor who creates new, unimaginable weapons one after another, regardless of their reliability.

Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, and technology against technology– In a truly Aria-esque manner, she prepared to face G-3 and his allies head-on.　Transformed into a human attack-helicopter, I watched her, dumbfounded.

「All of you, I have rescued Riko. Concentrate on bringing the enemy down.」

Using what had to be Riko’s connection, a voice flowed from the speakers. That voice…

「Hilda…?」

In the corner of the screen, the shapes of countless bats had merged– forming something like a black net– and is pulling Riko from the water.

「Hilda, I　need you. Hurry and save Shirayuki and Jeanne too!」

I said that but she answered,

「Ho ho! Fool! I do not wish to! Who would follow the orders of an uncouth man like you?」

I still don’t know if she is an ally or enemy.

「This…! This is an emergency, and you’re babbling about…」

「Let me, Tooyama.」

I was screaming in anger, but covering my mouth with his hand, Watson…

「Sorry for asking you to do something you can’t do, Hilda. Although it’s gone down a lot, the setting sun is still a problem for you, right?」

While driving, Watson said in a louder voice.

「What!?」

Flying into a sudden rage, she raised her voice as well and…

「Watson, I believe that I told you this a long time ago. If I have a parasol, the sunlight is nothing to fear. I have even picnicked at a graveyard in the middle of the day!」

「That’s alright, don’t push yourself too hard– it’s fine. It was thoughtless of Tooyama to ask.　It’s impossible for you– rescuing Shirayuki and Jeanne.」

「Watson! You insolent, insolent wretch! You　are speaking to a noble– the daughter of Count Dracula, herself…!」

*Click!*

Watson disconnected Riko’s line to stop Hilda’s piercing shout.

「H-Hey, Watson!」

「Don’t worry… Now she will definitely rescue Shirayuki and Jeanne.」

Speaking with such confidence, Watson urged me to look back at the monitor, and…

*Flap!* *Flap!* *Flap!*

With an almost angry motion, countless shapes of bats slipped underneath Shirayuki, and dragging her along, carried her away.

Hilda really rescued them– even though it didn’t take her even a second to reject my request.

「She isn’t strong enough to fight yet, but we can leave the rescue to her. However, we definitely have to praise her afterwards.」

Now that I think about it, Watson was in contact with Hilda before we met her. The more time you spend with someone, the better you know how to deal with them, right?

Opening my eyes wide at this unexpected side of Killer-Hilda, I looked back at the center of the screen…

Kaname and Aria are still fighting, and Aria clearly has the upper-hand. She is firing Butei bullets unsparingly, applying a brute force approach to the problem.

「*Grunt*…!」

With sticky bullets　sealing both of her ‘Arc Edge’ blades on her hips, Kaname…

*Whoosh!*

Raising both arms and turning to face the sky, she moved her arms like she was presenting something. Then, from the white smoke that rose from the power plant’s smokestack– something flew out of the white sheet-like sky. Spinning as it flew, it was her cloth-like ‘X’-shaped cutting weapon. The　very same offense/defense flying weapon that had defeated Aria, P-FIBER…. But this time there were two of them, and they closed in on Aria from the left and right, to attack from both sides.

「The same trick won’t work twice!」

From her twin Governments, Aria fired two shots. Not at the fabric-like blades, but at Kaname herself. Then…

*Shine* *Zoom*

Each bullet gave off a burst of light like two tiny suns.

Blinding　Flares!

Despite that, Kaname leaned over, unmoving, but the glow has managed to blind her.

With a somersault, Aria nimbly avoided the X-shaped cloth, and it was unable to cope with her sudden evasion. Out of Kaname’s control, the two blade-like sheets collided mid-air, slicing each other in half. Delivering the coup de grace, Aria shot sticky bullets to tangle them together completely.

Th-That movement just now…!?

Watching the falling cloth-blades, just now… I saw Aria flare her twin-tails to slow herself like an aeroplane.　That was not a flutter in the wind… That was …

「Ha Ha!」

Watching Aria, G-3 laughed happily.

「I was able to see a hint of the ‘Hidan no Aria’. Kana, your ‘Cognis’12, as always, was truly amazing!」

「My Cognis is incomplete. I wasn’t able to reach that level of reasoning.」

‘Hidan no Aria’, ‘Cognis’… Kana and G-3 were using the same made-up terms Sherlock used when we were at IU.

Why? What are those two talking about? But now isn’t the time to think about it.

「I’m out of Butei bullets. And I only have 30 seconds worth of fuel. Kinji, how long will it take for you get here?」

Aria’s whispering voice came from the car speakers.

「Not long, It’ll be another… Hold out for another three minutes.」

「OK. I’ll arrest Kaname. You really wouldn’t be able to do it because she’s your sweeeeet little sister, right?」

Remarking this somewhat sarcastically, Aria left behind her a vapour trail like a jet engine contrail and came in for a landing. Then, while suddenly accelerating…

*Whoosh*

Pulling her two Japanese swords from behind her back, she lunged at Kaname.

「Kaname!」

「Aria!」

Reaching out and clasping her hands… from her armour, a ring of light spread. It was like the light of Arc Edge, expanding in a circle and looking like a buzz saw.

「Uwaaaa!」

With a shout, she lunged at as Aria as she swooped down, and with a flying leap she received a slashing attack to her body armour, even as she split the side of Aria’s flying unit open.

「Ugh!」

Losing her balance, Aria made an emergency landing, but with a skillful twist, she turned to face Kaname. Then– perhaps because ‘Arc Edge’ was not designed for long-term use–, after confirming that it was no longer active… Using her functioning rear propellers, Aria launched herself at Kaname.

Ever since I met Aria, it’s always seemed like she had rocket boosters– charging in hard and fast–, but this time, equipped with real rocket boosters, she rushed at Kaname, not giving her the time to draw her next weapon, pushing for a hand-to-hand battle.

「Tooyama! From here, run!」

Finally, Watson and I arrived on the scene, and ran to the south side of the power plant that was turning into a battle-ground.

At the power plant itself… In the shadow of the plant’s smokestack Riko, Shirayuki, and Jeanne were piled together. They were in no condition to stand.

「…Girls…!」

Seeing this scene, my mind immediately went back. It’s exactly the same as that time– the first time G-3 and Kaname attacked.

Once again… I wasn’t in time to be of help.

「Tooyama, I’ll take care of the wounded. You back-up Aria!」

With a first-aid kit from MEDICA, Watson ran that way. Grinding my teeth and drawing my Beretta, I headed towards the open space the led to the sea. While running….

「Aria, are you alright…!」

Wounded in the battle against Kaname, Aria had sagged to her knees. I saw Kaname start as I arrived, and some P-FIBER extended from behind her back– two sheets on a side. They were probably folded up and stored inside her body-armour. It looked like Kaname had 4 tails.

「Aria, are you okay?」

Threatening Kaname with my Beretta, I moved into a position to guard Aria…

「I’m not finished yet! Watch out, that body-armour is assisting　Kaname’s hand-to-hand fighting. Each blow packs a punch! That cloth blocks　my attacks automatically, and it’s hard to get one in.　Even though Reki has been giving me cover-fire, I still can’t get through.」

With a hiss of steam, Aria ejected from her Hover Skirt. I guess there isn’t any fuel left, so it had only become dead-weight.

Now Aria tried to take up a Baritsu13 stance… but it was no good– her injuries were too great.

Moments ago, Aria had the battle-power and mobility of a fighter jet. If only it had lasted a little longer– then we might have been able to win. But now she is out of fuel and her wounds are very serious. We can’t do anything but retreat.

「Kaname …!」

The truth is, she’s amazing— You’re amazing.

The first time, you single-handedly brought about the crushing defeat of Baskerville. The second time, you’ve cornered us now. And besides Kaname there, further away G-3 remains unharmed. This is far beyond my ability to handle. However…

…We can still win.

「…Kana! What are you doing up there? Get down and help me fight!」

I yelled at Kana who was sitting on top of the crane wearing her long-coat. If Kana was on our side, we might be able to turn things around. I planned to use her as our trump card, but…

「Kinji, I only came to observe one of the battles of FEW.」

In the fading twilight, Kana stood… unmoving.

「Besides that, I’m ‘Neutral’… I have no obligation to fight anyone.」

She blinked her gemstone eyes once and…

「However G-3, you have made Baskerville your enemy. In this war, when someone is defeated… they are either killed or become their enemy’s subordinate. To see that those conventions are followed was also one of the reasons I came here today.」

And so saying, she fell silent. In reply…

「I don’t care about that… Ha ha! Finally, all of the ‘G-bloodline’ are gathered together!」

Standing above the sea, G-3’s voice boomed.

「Still, I’ll kill that worthless guy. There’s something strange between Kinji and Fourth.」

Then, crossing the invisible barge he stood on, he started walking towards me.

‘G-bloodlines’…?

That’s a strange phrase, but I’ll have to think about it later.

Since I couldn’t convince Kana, I’m out of battle-options. It’s time to flee. Taking Aria, Kaname, and everyone else…

「Oi! Don’t you run away.」

As if reading my thoughts, G-3 said this, drawing closer with each step…

I felt a terrible air of menace emanating from G-3. He still hasn’t moved a muscle to make any preparations to fight.

H-he’s strong! Even so… This guy… I understand that much about him.

It seem that even behind me, Aria felt it too, and I heard her swallow her saliva with an audible gulp.

「Kinji, you idiot, what kind of ideas did you put into Fourth’s head? She says that
she knows how… but now, of all things, she insists that she can’t enter HSS.」

Hearing our conversation, Kaname turned a flustered look towards G-3…

0171

And then facing me again, started panicking.

Kaname…

「Besides that… I don’t know what kind of warm welcome they gave her, but she won’t finish off those girls either.」

Standing behind the petrified Kaname, G-3….

*Bam*

With a matte-black metal boot, he kicked Kaname in the back.

「Ah!」

*Thud!*

Having fallen immediately to her hands and knees without resistance, he said to Kaname…

「Oi Fourth! You’ve stopped when you could have crushed her. All this time you’ve had the enemy on the run. But now it’s not too late. Finish it!」

G-3 barked, making it an order. Pulling her arms and legs in like a turtle, Kaname groaned. Meanwhile… several places of her armour glowed with an intensifying fluorescent blue light.

「Onii-chan… Forgive me… someone that is stronger than me… I absolutely cannot defy them… That would be, That would be ill-… illogical, so… Forgive me, Forgive me, Forgive me…」

With a trembling voice, how many times was she going to apologise to me? Again, Kaname was trying drawing another advanced blade from somewhere.

Even though she did her best. Even though she gave it everything she had.　Even though she doesn’t want to fight…

G-3…!

Even in this situation, you still keep pushing her…!

「…Kaname! You don’t have to fight! Just stop, don’t take orders from someone like that.」

I yelled this boldly, as I pointed　my Beretta at G-3.

「He is deceiving, and only want to use you! I don’t know why you feel so indebted to him… Don’t you see that he only saved you to make you a tool for his own designs! You don’t have to pretend to be strong anymore. That guy… You don’t have to rely on people like G-3, because I’ll always be there for you!」

「You sure talk a lot, don’t you Kinji? Oi, Fourth, shut this guy up too.」

Pointing a thumb at me, G-3 said this…

「…Don’t…」

Kaname, having laid face-down on the ground, muttered something, but it was said in a low, trembling voice so we couldn’t hear it well.

「What was that, Fourth?」

「Don’t call me that.」

This time she spoke in a clear voice. Kaname stood up from the ground.

「DON’T CALL ME THAT NAAAAME!!」

And turning toward G-3…

*Clank!* *Clank!* *Clank* *Clank!*

Like a kind of shell being cracked, Kaname’s body-armour opened in several places. On the inside tiny nozzles were ranged in lines.

*WHOOOOSH!*

And with that, her jet engines flamed to life.

「Raaaaahh!」

With explosive force, Kaname launched herself at G-3. Enveloped by blasting hot wind, Kaname and G-3 clashed…

…And closing distance, they missed each other.

「Kaname…!」

Hidden inside her armor, was what I suppose is a disposable solid-fuel rocket engine. The flames have already died down. With unfathomable explosive force, I saw Kaname dart forward in a ramming attack from point-blank range with her insta-kill equipment… and using that she only managed to rush past G-3 behind his back.

As more and more fumes rose, Kaname staggered a few steps…

「Huh…?」

Not understanding what had just happened, Kaname turned and looked back.

「…」

G-3, remained silent. He had not moved a single step from where he stood.

It looked like Kaname had simply brushed passed G-3. But from the fingers of his metallic bullet-proof fiber gloves…

*Plop!* *Plop!*

…fell drops of blood.

「Ha Ha!… I…I was completely illogical…」

With a forced smile, Kaname turned towards me…

Her chest armour was split low in the middle.　I saw that in her black skin-suit… there was a deep gash.

「Kaname!!」

I heard Aria scream behind me. I couldn’t see anything… With his bare hands, G-3 had just opened a hole in Kaname’s chest.

「Fourth. Are you going to waste what little life you have left?」

As G3 faced the other direction, Kaname replied…

「If it’s a waste…」

As dark blood trickled from her mouth…

*Shing!*

Reaching both of her gauntleted hands inside her armour, Kaname drew two blades.

「…Then I’m going to waste it all!」

Again, Kaname launched herself at G-3 but…

*Thud!*

She was thrown right back more than ten meters. Totally shattering her blades, guards and all, the pieces scattered like glass.

I couldn’t see that one either… G-3’s attack.. it’s too fast! It’s impossible for the eye to follow…!

「…You’re a fool, Fourth. I always knew that you were just weak.」

G-3 said in a low growl without turning back.

「Kaname!!」

The scene being too much for her to bear, finally able to stand Aria ran from behind me to Kaname, even though they had just been fighting. Then, Kaname having collapsed onto her back, Aria lifted the upper half of her body and cradled her in her arms.

Following her example and unable to think straight, I rushed to Kaname’s side
ignoring G-3.

「Kaname…! Kaname…!」

Both of us holding her in our arms… Her face was covered in blood, and she was staring off into the distance.

「…Now I think… I know why… I wanted to be close to you… Onii-chan…」

She mumbled deliriously.

「I…　wanted to believe… that I was human… so I was looking for a family… a human brother.」

「Kaname, don’t speak! You’re making the bleeding worse!」

Applying pressure with her hand to the wound in Kaname’s chest, Aria was removing the remnants of her destroyed armour.

「Now… I know the reason… why I defied Third too. More than Third’s wishes… I wanted to protect you, Onii-chan」

「Kaname …!」

I also put pressure on the wound but… the blood won’t stop!

I… can’t help her!

「Ahaha…　You didn’t say it… today. Remember whenever I called you ‘Onii-chan’… and every time you’d say … ‘You’re not my little sister’? You said it over and over… and each time I heard it… it hurt so much I really thought that I’d die, but… you didn’t say it today…」

Running out of strength, Kaname was able to smile.

「Kaname…!」

Kaname.

Argh! Why　didn’t I realise it until just now! By my denial, I was only hurting her. Why did I do that…?!

Mere regret could not conjure this emotion rising within me… It rose up from the bottom of my heart. My heart ached as if it were bleeding.

「I am your sister… that will never change… so… I couldn’t show you how much I loved you. These feelings, I couldn’t let anyone know… so… I used them to give me strength to fight. Even against someone stronger than me–against Third…」

As if to chide herself, Kaname gave another brief smile….

「I’m…human…and your sister. By doing such illogical things… I became human. At the very end… 」

Tears fell from Kaname’s eyes, and from inside her armour… There had been some kind of charm, and it had fallen into the pool of blood. It’s hideous… It’s similar to the hand-stitched ‘Onii-chan Plush’ matching set that I have. It was a little smaller than the stitched ‘Kaname Plush’ she sowed for me… It was the hand-made felt Leopon-Chimera she had received from Aria and the girls after the Sports Festival.

「Kaname… This isn’t the end. It’s not that bad!」

Tears in her camellia-coloured eyes, Aria spoke words of comfort, and Kaname replied…

「Aria, thank-you too…」

Kaname said　in voice that was barely a whisper.

「Coming to this school, spending time with everyone everyday… even fighting… it wasn’t all bad. In the end though… I made a complete mess of things…」

「Kaname…!」

Kaname began to squint their eyes like she was sleepy… Finally, gathering what was left of her strength, she wrung out these words.

「Third is… only a weapon… Onii-chan… please… don’t fight… run away…」

Kaname…!

Kaname’s breathing had already become erratic, but I replied…

「Kaname. I’m sorry, but I can’t honour that request.」

I said, loud and clear. Looking at her face, covered in blood, I continued.

「There isn’t a brother that can forgive someone who hurt his younger sister.」

I told her that. Hearing those words… tears spilled from her narrowing eyelids…

*Drop* *Drop*

One after another they fell,　mixing with the blood and running down her cheek.

「Onii-chan… you told me not to cry… so I decided not to, but…」

With a laugh and a small smile… As if the final thread had been cut, Kaname collapsed.

Kaname…

「Kanameee…!」

Hearing Aria’s scream… I turned around and stood up. With his back still facing us… I glared at G-3

I understand…

I feel a strange rush of blood to the inner core of my body, and realisation dawns.　I’m different from my cowering self. A dangerous feeling was overflowing.

It was… Rage.

He had hurt Kaname, used her like he might use a hand or foot, and in the end, threw her away like some thing. Rage towards that man…

「…」

He had to have sensed my gaze.

0181

Expressionless, G-3 turned his head to look back.

「Now do you know why I was waiting? For you to become that!」

What G-3 said…　Although not completely, I understand.　This boiling　feeling… is　some kind of Hysteria Mode.　I’m becoming hystericised.　It’s similar to Berserker Hysteria Mode, but stronger. It feels vastly more powerful.

「Come, Kinji.」

*Swish*

With a flutter, G-3’s coat flapped… Without a glance towards Kaname, G-3 walked towards the sea.

「Are you sure? Now that I’ve become “that”, I’m not in the mood to be pleasant.」

Although I can’t explain the details to Aria… right now the state of the current “me” is different from normal Hysteria Mode and is 1.7 times stronger than Berserker. It is obviously a more powerful level. And besides, my enemy is a man.

「Kinji…」

Still hugging Kaname, Aria looked up at me… Sensing this new, dangerous side of me… she watched with a puzzled expression.

Ah yes, I understand.

Now the current “me” has seen the whole picture and knows the reason my brother… and late father both just snapped sometimes, radiating a blood-lust that was impossible to ignore.

「I-I also…」

That she would also fight was what Aria was trying to say, but I held her back with a glance.

「I’ll take care of it. It’s revenge for my sister.」

「…*Gasp*…」

Looking at me like as if I had become a different person, Aria was speechless. Then, she tried to say something…. but since she was unable to, instead…

「Kinji…」

「…」

Without answering, I turned my back toward Aria…

「Don’t die. Please…」

She said, imploring me in a tremulous voice. Doing so, Aria seems very feminine.

******************************************

1. In order to better absorb the nutrients in food, there is an increase of blood flow to the digestive system after one eats. While it doesn’t totally deplete the rest of the body of blood supply, some medical researchers believe that it can lead to fatigue.

2. Acronym for ‘Head-Mounted Display’. Kaname’s augmented reality goggles.

3. Shikigami are invoked or conjured spirits that are said to serve the conjurer in various ways– mainly in tracking and surveillance.

General Note: Tamamo speaks an archaic Japanese. If rendered literally, it would make no sense, so I’ll throw in a couple of ‘thee’s’, ‘thou’s’, and the like to indicate this.

4. Gauntlets that Kinji had specially made to deflect bullets with his hands.

5. Jeanne is talking about military-grade hardware that usually has a dedicated laser or satellite connection and a throat-mic for stealth.

6. Lit. “Proclamation” or “Declaration” in Italian. A traditional meeting between two opposing factions. It reads as something like “War Council” in Kanji. It was the meeting in Volume 8 where the factions ‘Deen’ and ‘Grenada’ were decided for Far Eastern Warfare.

7. ‘Single Lighting Ring/Band Slice’ in Kanji.

8.Yes it actually says this. The literal kanji say ‘blade of light’, and Star Wars is referenced, so the parallel is obviously meant to be drawn.

9. The author is referencing a children’s game, ‘Jintori/Jindori’, which is similar to capture-the-flag. In order to win, you have to occupy/capture the ‘base’ of opposing team while keeping the other team out of your own. Reki is covering her ‘base’ on Academy Island, and attacking G-3 in Shinagawa.

10. Lit. ‘Five Colour Bridge’.

11. Lit. ‘Great South Harbour Bridge.’

12. ‘To gain knowledge’ or ‘to reason’ in Latin. ‘Predictive Reasoning’, in Kanji– specifically carrying the meaning ‘precognition by means of logical reasoning’.

13. A mis-spelling of ‘Bartitsu’, immortalised by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in his Sherlock Holmes stories. It was the martial art form Holmes used.