Chapter 3: [Industrial Magic Academy (Makouien) (2)]
Sunday, May 16th. Tatsuya was in the linear shinkansen 11 bound for Fukuoka.
On the seat adjacent to him was Miyuki, and across from her was Lina. Their destination was the terminal station, Hakata. It was a two-hour trip, only stopping at Shin-Osaka on the way.
"I guess we didn't have to fly for this one." 12
As the train entered Chubu from Kanto, Lina muttered to herself as she looked out the window. Though her voice was rather loud for a soliloquy.
"Flying is faster, but it wouldn't make much difference, and the procedures take a lot of time, you know."
Assuming she wasn't talking to herself, Miyuki replied to Lina.
"Oh, that's a pain in the ass, I know. It's annoying how much more time it takes for mageists."
Miyuki gave a big nod to an indignant Lina, and Tatsuya chuckled.
"There was even a time when Magians weren't allowed to fly on commercial airliners. Considering that, this is an improvement."
"Yeah, I know, but…"
Lina's anger faded when Tatsuya pointed that out. At the time when she came to Japan again three years ago, some states of the USNA prohibited not only mageists, but also magians, from using commercial airliners. With that in mind, she couldn't help but admit that it was still better than the additional pre-boarding procedures.
"Lina, we don't get to ride the linear shinkansen very often, so why don't you just try to enjoy it instead of thinking about all the bad things?" 13
"……I guess that's true."
With Miyuki's appeasement, Lina once again turned her attention to the scenery flowing at a high speed outside the window.
After disembarking at the last stop, Hakata Station, they had lunch at a rather fancy restaurant. As having Miyuki and Lina together meant that they would need a private table, or at least a semi-private one, to enjoy their meal in peace.
After the meal, they boarded an autonomous taxi instead of a conventional Cabinet and arrived at their destination in the suburbs of Fukuoka City at 2:05 p.m., slightly later than the appointed time.
"How should I say it… it's fairly average, isn't it?"
As Lina got out of the taxi, she looked through the gate and made a remark, sounding surprised, which neither Tatsuya nor Miyuki disagreed with. The house of the head of the Yatsushiro family of the Ten Master Clans, which they were visiting for the first time, looked just like an ordinary two-story traditional wooden house.
Tatsuya pressed the intercom button.
He got an immediate response. It was in a rather faltering tone of voice. As they were told "Please come inside and wait a moment", they traversed the premises and stood in front of the front door.
They didn't have to wait long.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
Accompanied by a high-pitched voice, the figure that appeared was a boy about the age of an elementary school student.
"P-Please come in. My father is waiting for you."
He said "father", which meant that this boy was probably the son of the head of the Yatsushiro family, Yatsushiro Raizou. Being thirty-four years old, it wasn't surprising that he would have a kid of this age.
The boy's red face was probably due to being nervous in the presence of Miyuki and Lina. No wonder. Both of them were extremely beautiful women, where calling them "peerless" wouldn't even be an exaggeration. The fact that he was able to speak coherently, except for a bit of fumbling, was a rather remarkable feat of courage.
The boy led them to the parlor. There, Yatsushiro Raizou and his brother, Takara, were waiting for them.
Raizou and Takara stood up to greet Tatsuya's group.
One by one, they exchanged greetings. It was the first time Lina was meeting the Yatsushiro brothers, so she introduced herself. When that was over, they also exchanged greetings with Raizou's wife, Iori, who had brought them tea, and then the five of them got down to business.
Tatsuya's proposal was to have Takara take over as head of the Industrial Magic Academy.
"……So, in other words, the Yotsuba family wants my brother to become their subordinate?"
"Formally, he would be a subordinate of mine and Miyuki's, but we wish to have him as a co-worker."
Tatsuya flatly countered Raizou's barbed remark.
"Takara-san, if you don't mind me calling you that."
Tatsuya gave Takara a quick glance.
Takara responded with a small nod as a sign of approval.
"I believe that a place of work that would require more of you as a researcher than as a Magician would be preferable for you, Takara-san."
Yatsushiro Raizou possessed the magical power befitting the position of head of the Ten Master Clans. But apart from that, he was also recognized as a brilliant physicist in the field of Gravitational Theory, to the extent that he had been asked to teach at a university in Fukuoka City — not by a Magic University, but by a University that had nothing to do with magic.
He was the de facto custodian of the still-operational Eighth Institute of Magician Research and Development, and his position wasn't based on his competence as a magician. The staff of the institute found Raizou's deep insight into magical theory worthy of having him as their supervisor.
While Raizou was the head of the Yatsushiro family, he was more of a scholar than a magician, but it was with his younger brother, Takara, where this aspect was even stronger. Yatsushiro Takara's name was better known in the international community as an expert in radio-frequency engineering 14 rather than his status as a magician. He was only thirty years old, but even if Takara didn't have the Magic Factor, he would be an world-class expert in radio-frequency engineering. In addition to his knowledge in the field of radio engineering, it was impossible to ignore his specialty in emission-type magic and his high sensitivity to electromagnetic waves.
"The Specialized Academy of Industrial Magic Technology, scheduled to open in September, will be devoted to teaching the technologies of the practical application of magic in the fields of manufacturing and infrastructure development and management. Through the use of these technologies, we hope to help the magians, who have difficulty making a living through magic, to be able to make a living even with low magical power. The academy is an educational and vocational 15 institution for that purpose."
"And then you would ensure employees who would be an asset to your company?"
Takara asked Tatsuya. Despite the words used, there was no hint of irony in his tone.
"We don't intend to commit our graduates. Stellar Generator Inc. will be just one of many employment opportunities for them."
Tatsuya instantly, without a moment's delay, denied Takara's inquiry.
"Shiba-san. You say that your aim is the 'self-defense of the human rights of the magicians' or so, I've been told. However, your first attempt was not to speak out against human rights violations, but rather a development project aimed at lesser magicians. Now, where do your true intentions lie?"
Takara peered at Tatsuya directly in the eyes.
Tatsuya met his gaze head on.
"I'm not only concerned with restoring only magicians to their rights as persons; I'm concerned with all the ones that possess the magic factor, including the magians whom Takara-san referred to as lesser magicians."
"Is that what you meant by Magians?"
Takara had been aware of both the formation of the Magian Society and the founding of the Magian Company in the news. But honestly, he had paid little to no attention to it. He didn't really seek to learn the details before today's meeting. It wasn't that he wasn't interested in what Tatsuya had to say, but he simply thought that he could ask what he didn't understand on the spot.
"An old Jewish prophet once said, 'Man shall not live by bread alone,' but at the same time, one must eat to live. Beliefs and ideals are essential, but they alone are insufficient. It is said, "If one has enough food and clothing, one will know civility" but if a person is in need, they will be willing to give up not only civility, but even their rights as a human being. Having the financial ability to support oneself is a major prerequisite."
What Tatsuya had said was, in a sense, self-evident.
"That's true enough."
Takara didn't look particularly impressed and just gave a perfunctory response 16 .
"How will I live? What will I do to live? Freedom of choice is only possible when there is a wide diversity of possible workplaces where one can earn a living. I believe that people can live the way they want to live only when there are not only diverse workplaces, but also opportunities to learn the skills that are needed for the job they want. This isn’t something that is exclusive to Magians."
"What about yourself, Shiba-san? You have the skills and the opportunities. How has that made you free? Is your position as a military deterrent itself really what you wanted?"
"It was my own choice."
Tatsuya didn't flinch when Takara pointed out the contradiction.
"I admit that I had practically only one choice. But now, I am not just a deterrent. Excluding the magician that is a Strategic-Class weapon, I'm proud of what I've made with my own hands."
"And that would be the Stellar Reactor Plant… the Stellar Generator?"
"Yes, it is. It's an alternative for Magians, other than becoming weapons."
There were no lies behind Tatsuya's words. Just not quite the whole truth.
The Stellar Reactor Plant was built to break the trend in society that Magians are supposed to be treated as weapons. In that way, it was meant for all magicians, for all Magians.
The underlying motive was that he didn't want Miyuki to become a tool for destruction and slaughter as he did. He wanted to remove any possible future in which Miyuki was forced to live as a weapon. That was Tatsuya's true goal.
"However, as I mentioned earlier, the Stellar Generator is not the only option."
After saying so, Tatsuya shook his head, with a visible "No……."
"Or, rather, I should have said that the Stellar Generator shouldn't be the only option."
"So you think it's important to have more options?"
Tatsuya responded to Takara's question without any hesitation, nodding his head with a resolute "Yes, that's right". Neither Takara nor Raizou could find any hint of falsity or concealment in Tatsuya's demeanor or tone.
"I know that there is no such thing as a person with infinite choices, but I still believe that this status quo, where a Magian is given far fewer choices than the Majority, after all, just isn't right."
"Magicians, or, as Shiba-san calls them, Magians, aren't forbidden to work in professions that are unrelated to magic, though, are they? If they study just as hard as the Majority, they can get a regular job just as easily."
Still, Takara wasn't entirely convinced. He continued to argue, refuting Tatsuya's story because he found himself taking it more seriously.
"Is that really true?"
And Tatsuya too, for his part, had no intention of ending the discussion half-heartedly.
"Are you referring to the substantial work restrictions?"
"Let's put the informal restrictions to the side for now."
As if to give a moment's pause, Tatsuya took a sip of the tea, which he hadn't yet touched.
"Those who have given up on their magical talents by the time they reach junior high school may find it easy to switch careers. However, for those who entered a magic high school and acquired magic skills of a certain level or higher, but when the only career paths where they can make use of their talents and skills are the military or police, would they ever be able to choose another path?"
"In that case, there's no choice but to give up on that, is there? This whole story about not being able to get a job where you can make use of your talents isn't something that's only limited to Magicians."
"If the job doesn't exist, then that may be the case. Alternatively, that would also be the case if they have no means to adapt their talents for the purpose they desire."
"So, in short, Shiba-san, your goal is to increase the number of alternatives, and you want to ask my brother's help to do so."
Raizou interjected at this point.
His voice wasn't harsh, nor was there a demand for an answer from Tatsuya in his tone.
"Takara, Shiba-san's answers have been consistent. It doesn't sound like he is trying to benefit the interests of the Yotsuba family."
"Yes, you are right. Shiba-san, I apologize if I seemed to only be trying to find fault in your words."
Takara gave a small nod to Raizou and then bowed to Tatsuya.
"It wasn't just nitpicking. All of your points were perfectly valid."
Tatsuya returned the bow to Takara. He didn't do it because social etiquette demanded it, he truly meant it.
The Magian's right to choose his profession was a delicate topic that was rarely spoken about. Given these circumstances, Tatsuya didn't have many people with whom he could have this kind of discussion.
"You know, both of us brothers have always wanted to live our lives by studying what we love since we were children."
Tatsuya wasn't really startled by Raizou's words. He just back-channeled "I see" in response.
"Fortunately, the Eighth Institute had a strong inclination towards academics, so it was relatively easy for me to double as both a magician and a researcher of the Ten Master Clans."
Takara nodded at Raizou's words.
"Since we cannot ignore the duties of the Ten Master Clans, we cannot live on research alone, though."
"Well, I suppose that's true."
Tatsuya's back-channeling had a real emotion laced into it. He wasn't bound by the Ten Master Clans' duties, but by the 'world-destroying magic' in his possession. Still, the fundamental issue of not being able to live freely because of it was the same.
"Therefore, my brother and I do understand the suffocating feeling of not being able to live as you had wished to. Now that I'm convinced that you don't have any ulterior motives involving the Yotsuba family's self-interest, I'm more than willing to lend you my brother. Takara, what about you?"
"I would like to take up Shiba-san's offer."
"Shiba-san, I'll take your word for it. But I have two conditions."
"What would they be? Feel free to tell me."
Tatsuya urged Raizou on without a trace of perplexity.
"First, once the Specialized Academy of Industrial Magic Technology is on track, I want it to become a legally incorporated educational institution, allowing the Yatsushiro family to participate in its management."
"Agreed."
The Yatsushiro siblings looked clearly surprised at Tatsuya's immediate answer.
However, that expression soon disappeared. Both of them figured that the condition for participation in the management must have been predicted by Tatsuya.
"The other condition is your personal cooperation, Shiba-san. We would like to ask for the help of the genius magic engineer 'Taurus Silver' in our research."
"…..May I ask about the details concerning it?"
This time, however, the answer wasn't so immediate.
"A temporary competition to the Stellar Generator business, that we believe will eventually lead to an expanded and profitable market."
"A competition in the energy industry……. You mean a Degeneracy Reactor!?"
Tatsuya asked wide-eyed.
In a nutshell, the Degeneracy Reactor was a system where energy was extracted from a micro black hole. Theoretically, black holes were thought to lose mass as they radiate heat, in other words, they evaporate. This phenomenon was called Hawking radiation.
According to the theory, the smaller the mass of a black hole, the higher the energy from the Hawking radiation was expected to be. And, at the same time, it would evaporate and disappear in a short time.
A micro black hole would be created and the thermal radiation from the evaporation would be used as an energy source. If the heat energy recovered was sufficiently larger than the energy required to create the micro black hole, it should have been feasible to use it as a power generation system.
Since micro black holes disappear in an extremely short span of time, the risk of them running out of control was also minimal. And because the mass of the black hole was directly converted into heat energy, there was no radioactive waste.
This was the Degeneracy Reactor, a high-powered, emission-free power generation system. It made sense for the Yatsushiro brothers to work on its implementation, especially considering their expertise in gravity and electromagnetism.
Raizou gave a wry smile at Tatsuya's question.
"Good grief, you sure didn't mince words with this, did you? You are correct. We've been researching for some time to see if we can achieve a Degeneracy Reactor using Gravity Control magic."
"…………"
"……Tatsuya-sama."
"……Tatsuya."
Miyuki and Lina, who had so far remained silent, addressed Tatsuya in a serious tone of voice, when he became speechless.
This time, it was the Yatsushiro siblings who were wide-eyed, wondering what had happened.
"……Yatsushiro-san."
With Miyuki and Lina looking attentively, Tatsuya opened his mouth in a grave tone.
"Have you forgotten? The creation of a micro black hole carries the risk of inviting Parasites into this world."
In early February of 2096, news from the USNA reported that a micro black hole experiment was the cause of the Parasite outbreak. This was a fact that should have certainly been shared among the Ten Master Clans.
"We are aware of the risk of the invasion of Parasites during the formation of the micro black hole. We would like Shiba-san's help with the countermeasures for that as well."
"…….I understand. I will cooperate with you."
After a brief consideration, Tatsuya agreed to the condition.
Miyuki and Lina, both pulled on Tatsuya's sleeves from each side. Surely both of them wanted to say, "is it really okay to cooperate with a plan that risks a Parasite incident?"
As for Tatsuya, he didn't like the idea either. But he was sure that the Yatsushiro family wouldn't stop the development of the Degeneracy Reactor regardless of his lack of cooperation. These two were clearly scholars bent of mind 17 . He felt that they would prioritize their own intellectual satisfaction over a small amount of risk. Since they were going to do it regardless, he preferred to be a part of the plan so that he could keep an eye on it.
"Really?! Then I'll gladly look forward to working with you."
Raizou beamed with joy at Tatsuya's reply.
"I look forward to working with you, Shiba-san. When would you like me to come to the Industrial Magic Academy?"
Takara straightened his posture and bowed.
"Then, as soon as both of you are ready, circumstances permitting, it would be great if you could come."
Although the sooner the better, it wouldn't be a good idea to rush it. It was obvious enough that Tatsuya didn't need to be the one to tell them that.
"Then, how about this Saturday?"
"Are you sure you can come so soon?"
Tatsuya asked back, deliberately showing his surprise.
"Yes. Unlike my brother, I don't hold any lectures, that's why."
Takara's answer was a straightforward one. Tatsuya knew that he had quit his job at the city's university in October last year. If that hadn't been the case, Tatsuya wouldn't have extended the invitation for the Industrial Magic Academy, but it seemed that Takara had even less lingering attachments to the university than Tatsuya had previously thought.
"Then, I'll be waiting for you on Saturday."
Thus, Tatsuya succeeded in inviting Yatsushiro Takara as the head of the Industrial Magic Academy at the cost of a great deal of anxiety about the resurgence 18 of a Parasite outbreak.
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