On the seat in the cabin of his hypersonic private jet, Tatsuya returned the pistol-from CAD to its holster, which had been pointed at the void moments ago.
A favored specialized CAD that he himself has improved and adjusted for the many years it has been in his service.
Silver Horn Custom, [Trident]
Tatsuya's preferred and most efficient way of activating his innate magic [Decomposition]. "Tatsuya-sama, what did you just destroy now?" Miyuki at his side asked in curiosity with a tilted head gesture. She didn't even seem alarmed at the event and was more flippantly asking "What was this time."
"It was just Ichijou, he seemed to have failed to shoot down one of the drones. It was the least I could do. Well, it's no big deal, regardless."
Tatsuya's nonchalant answer had Lina's head popping up from behind the seat in front of them, "Don't joke with me, of course it's a big deal. How many hundreds of kilometers are we talking about here?"
"I used the signs I marked when I 'observed' it with the real-time feedback in the control room as the target. You know that once you have the coordinates, things like physical distance are irrelevant." Fom the way he said it, he didn't seem convinced there was anything special about this event.
"Look at what you're saying... How is all of that anything normal to begin with?" At the face of such absurdity, Lina could only shrug her shoulders in disbelief.
Miyuki smiled reservedly while watching the exchange between the two.
◇ ◇ ◇
"What just happened!? Did the drone strike fail!?" Chen Jingna exclaims at the news that all drones launched were lost.
To her contrast, Lu Weichen inquired with an unperturbed expression and a calm tone, "Ma'am, captain, should we abort the operation?" "Now that we've come this far!? We can't!" The landing site is right ahead. They would be wasting not only their investment cost, but the opportunity and the reputation on the line as well if they back down now. "What about the missile boats, is it still operational?"
"Ma'am!" answered not Lu Weichen, but the captain of the spy ship supporting them in this infiltration operation. "It is waiting outside Japan's contiguous waters, as scheduled."
The twelve small vessels that left Vladivostok were in fact high-speed missile boats.
At present, those twelve missile boats were cruising on a route about 30 nautical miles (≈56 km) from the dividing border between the Noto Peninsula and Sado Island, and about 70 nautical miles (≈130 km) from the coastline of the Joetsu region.
The original plan was to use drone strikes on urban areas to direct the resources of the Japanese authorities to the Joetsu and Chuetsu regions. The missile boats would then launch a second wave of attacks and then move eastward off the coast of Sado Island. If successful, Japan's naval assets would be redirected to the waters off Shimotsu and Shonai, allowing for the spy ships to be smuggled in from the western side of the Noto Peninsula.
But the very first step of that plan has failed. The drones were destroyed before they even reached land range, let alone released a bomb.
But that alone is not enough to call off this operation. If it was just GAU's it would be one thing, but this is a joint effort with the New Soviet Union. They need to save face argument just as to their domestic competitors as it was to their collaborator.
"Let's move on to the second phase," Chen Jingna's decision elicited a collective "Huh!?" from the surrounding individuals. "Ma'am, there is a high possibility that the missile boats will not be able to divert enough Japanese forces away from the area under the current circumstances," Lu Weichen urges a reconsideration, pointing out the possible complications.
"Once the missiles are fired, even if the Japanese are able to intercept, they can't ignore them. When they do, we'll get our opportunity to land, albeit the window will be very tight."
"The missile boats will be completely wiped out in this scenario."
"They'll have to play their part," Chen Jingna's eyes were fixed on Lu Weichen when she gave him her response.
"Send the order to all the missile boats to start the attack. Execute the Call to Arms code at the same time."
With the exception of Lu Weichen, tension was strewn all over the faces of the crew in the spy ship's command center at those orders.
The "Call to Arms code" is a brainwashing program that forces officers and men to continuously fight on behalf of the command forces. Soldiers imprinted with this program are conditioned to respond to specific sonic signals which cause them to lose their sense of reality. They misperceive the battle in which they are engaged as if it were an inconsequential VR game or simulation, and believe that they will not die if they are killed in battle. They continue to fight for the reward of completing the mission ─not victory or survival.
The soldiers do not know whether they have undergone this conditioning program. There is an innate fear at the mention of this code, that they never know when it'll be their time to respond and become sacrificial pawns.
"...What are you all waiting for? Hurry up, relay my order and execute the code." At Chen Jingna's irritated voice, the ship's communications officer hastily operated his console.
The Great Asian Union officers and men aboard the NSU missile boats that departed from Vladivostok threw their lives on the line to start what seemed by all accounts a desperate and futile attack.
At the same time, the spy ship transporting Chen Jingna and her men moves toward the planned infiltration point.
Chen Jingna was fully resolved for the failures to come. But she couldn't help but think that, at this rate, the worst was yet to come.
For her, the worst that could happen is she dying in combat.
But running back now, with her tail between her legs, would be the worst decision she could make. She would be for certain used as a tool until she died, and after that, until nothing remained of her. It was an outcome she wished to avoid at all costs, by dying in combat she would at least preserve her dignity as a human being.
She knew being Chen Xiangshan's daughter meant nothing. There is no parental love or affection between them. She became, and will only continue to be his daughter for as long as she is of use to him. And if he could no longer get results from her as she is now, he would just find another use of her.
While on the surface she was trying her best to appear headstrong and determined, in her heart she had already made such a grim resolution.
Fortunately for her, coincidence was on her side.
At this point, the New Soviet Union forces in Sakhalin launched their invasion.
◇ ◇ ◇
The NSU forces commenced their incursion.
When the news from the NDF reached Tatsuya, he was aboard his small private jet, still on the ground.
He was already aware of the NSU movements as they happened thanks to the HAPS feed he had his staff access it by hacking. He was waiting for the information to come expressly from the NDF, so that he can take off with their previously agreed request for cooperation.
"Yotsuya-san, please get us flying at full speed," Tatsuya gave the order to the exclusive pilot of his private supersonic aircraft, Yotsuya Tetsu, to take off.
"Understood, sir! Proceeding with takeoff!" Yotsuya announced the departure in high spirits.
The aircraft that had been sitting on the runway until now, finally received permission to take off. Right away, the hydrogen engines began to roar louder and push the aircraft forward as it began to lift off.
Its pilot, Yotsuya has taken the liberty of naming this small jet, capable of flying through the stratosphere at Mach 7, the "Raisen."
To achieve its impressive performance this aircraft incorporates a system that uses an artificial relic Magistore for assisted operation of inertia control and airflow manipulation magics. Therefore, Yotsuya's ace pilot skills during his service in the NDF Air Force only earned him Raisen's pilot seat when in conjunction with his high aptitude for those two types of magic.
Extensive magic application permitted for many exceptional capabilities. Such as using inertia control beyond the expected windows of acceleration and deceleration. Increasing its inertia during forward travel at a constant speed allows for greater fuel economy, and extending its effective rangel. This specific application has earned "Raisen" ─as it is commonly referred, with Tatsuya's tacit approval─ the added capability of being a long-range aircraft in spite of its small size.
Raisen additionally has a flight unit in the same fashion as the AirCar as a subsystem. Although Yotsuya magic power alone is not enough to fly Raisen with the flight magic unit, if there are high-ranking magicians onboard, such as Miyuki or Lina, their magic skills would enable Raisen to perform vertical takeoff and landing.
The new Soviet contingent that departed Sakhalin aimed to land not at Cape Soya or the islands of Rebun or Rishiri, but in the area along the northeastern coast of Hokkaido, between the town of Edasai and the city of Monbetsu.
Before its vessels could reach the shores of Hokkaido, Raisen took advantage of its vertical takeoff and landing capabilities and dared to land on a national highway along the coast.
"Lina, I'll leave the shielding to you."
"That's not my forte, but yes, sir!"
Raisen vertical descent was greeted with a volley of fire from the New Soviet Union surface vessels. This pyrotechnical show was soon put to rest by Tatsuya using [Decomposition] to erase the heavy explosive shots from the Fleming Launcher, and Lina's [Vector Reversal] defensive shield magic bounced back any gunfire.
While [Vector Reversal] does exactly as its name implies, due to many factors, like air resistance, simply sending the bullets and whatever else back the path they came was no guarantee they would hit whoever shot them in the first place. However, being assaulted with a hail of gunfire, be it from their weapons or not, is not the most pleasant experience, so the NSU vessels were forced to cease fire to avoid shooting themselves down.
While both sides exchanged their greetings, Raisen finished a landing right in front of the enemy forces. At face value, landing in front of the enemy forces, that is, throwing away the aircraft's greatest weapon, its mobility, seems like folly. It would be, if the aircraft was engaging in combat. This, however, as far as Tatsuya and his party were concerned, was a field experiment.
"Ok, now we'll stick to the agreed upon procedure."
"Yes, Tatsuya-sama. Please, take care."
"Don't worry about protection, I got that all handled. Go play out there."
With Miyuki's help, and Lina's encouragement, Tatsuya stepped out of the plane.
The magic sequence has already long been constructed in his mind.
Tatsuya aimed his pistol-shaped specialized CAD Trident at the New Soviet Union warship. A landing ship that served as the key piece for the landing operation.
All it took then was a pull of the trigger. The next moment, the landing craft seemed to sway, vibrate and blur as if it had always been a mirage, and then, like one, vanish altogether.
Tatsuya preferred variation of Decomposition, the magic [Mist Dispersion].
Everything from that vessel, from its hull, to its weapon, even the battle tanks it carried, all crumbled to dust.
The only exception from that fate was its crew.
Without the hunk of metal to keep them dry, the crew of the landing ship fell into the sea. Some frantically called for help when not battling the waves, others swam towards the shore on their own. A sad irony that it is, not a few of the crew members drowned and were claimed by the sea despite being seamen.
Affronted with this ghastly spectacle, the NSU general immediately recognized what monster had just set their eyes on them.
With cries in their native tongue of "D'yavol!" (The Devil!), panic broke out among the soldiers.
Captains and officers tried their best to calm the panic among their men, to little to no avail.
Tatsuya unleashes a follow-up [Mist Dispersion].
In the blink of an eye, two medium-sized warships vanish in thin air.
Panic is strewn even among the most senior officers present.
Confusion, fear and panic cause the collapse of command and discipline. Collisions between vessels occur all around as even the helmsmen, who are supposed to be in a highly responsible position, lose their nerve.
Another use of [Mist Dispersion] by Tatsuya.
[Mist Dispersion] is used again.
Not once or twice. Tatsuya exercised his decomposition magic until there were no more ships left.
At a "glance" Tatsuya noticed that all the vessels mobilized by the NSU are propeller-based.
And like that, Tatsuya's next magic destroyed all the propellers in the vessels. It didn't take too long. When they tried to exercise that option, the crew of still remaining vessels realized they had no means of escape.
Panic was at its peak.
◇ ◇ ◇
The missiles fired by the NSU missile boat, crewed by GAU personnel, off the coast of Joetsu were intercepted by pulse laser weapons deployed at the top of Mount Kinpoku on Sado Island and at Rokugozaki on the tip of the Noto Peninsula. Both constitute part of the advanced missile interception infrastructure that was recently established from the lessons learned from the invasion of Sado Island eight years ago.
The capabilities of the pulse laser launchers exceeded the expectations of both GAU and the NSU. Credit which can be attributed to the NDF'S exhaustive counter-espionage efforts.
To further their surprise, the subsequent counter-attack and pursuit of the missile boats was not as severe as the invading force had anticipated. If anything, it was rather lenient. Although half of the twelve missile boats were sunk by anti-ship missiles, the remaining half were allowed to flee back to Vladivostok. No cleanup sweep by air power, nothing.
Chen Jingna, the one in command of the infiltration operation, was understandably puzzled by this turn of events. Unbeknownst to her, the NSU had taken action roughly the same time they made their move.
The Japanese military's dull responses with them were due to most of their attention being focused on Hokkaido.
This unexpectedly convenient turn of events led Chen Jingna to suspect a trap. Nevertheless, she did not retreat.
─If this is a trap, then I'll rip through and use it to my advantage.
Steeled with such determination, Chen Jingna led her infiltration team ashore on the western coast of the Noto Peninsula.
◇ ◇ ◇
The remaining vessels in the NSU invading force closing in on the northeastern coast of Hokkaido had lost all means of propulsion, becoming unable to advance and having their means of escape effectively cut short.
Observing the NSU forces in disarray, panic prevailing from the low-ranking soldiers to the high-ranking officers alike, Tatsuya raised his hand in a signal to his private supersonic jet, Raisen, behind him.
More specifically, for Miyuki, who was waiting for it aboard.
She rested deeply against her seat, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Beside her is a box that resembles a suitcase with a carry handle. A new large CAD device of the same type that Masaki used three years ago during his first deployment of [Ocean Blast].
Raisen's off and hostile tracking system feeds the large CAD unit with sighting data.
Miyuki opened her eyes and put on the spectacle-type HMD (Head Mounted Display).
The nighttime seascape unfolds before Miyuki, as bright as daylight.
She grasps the handle of the large CAD system with her left hand.
Through the handle, the activation sequence flows from the large CAD device to Miyuki.
It is a colossal sized activation sequence, but nothing that Miyuki can't handle.
And so she does.
She processes and translates the activation sequence, which already contains the sighting data, into a magic sequence. And, once ready,
Miyuki activates the crowd sleep-inducing magic,
[Hypnos Chain]
The approximate epicenter in the information dimension corresponds to a point in the sea area where the remaining vessels of the new Soviet Union are scattered.
More than a thousand information bodies referent to human consciousness are unevenly dispersed.
A small magic sequence was applied to the point most accessible to each of these information bodies.
It rapidly multiplies and spreads throughout the information dimension.
In the blink of an eye, they fill the area in the information dimension that the magic has set as the target.
Then the multiplication stops.
The next moment, the "magic of sleep," which forcibly shuts off the consciousness of people in the area, stopping communication between the body and the mind, is truly activated.
With little to no delay, the NSU officers and I who had been until now in bouts of shouting, cursing, grappling, and even brawling amongst themselves aboard and within the ships, all collapsed at once.
The truly unfortunate ones were those whose boats disappeared and were cast at sea.
Now dragged into sleep, only to be awakened by the agony of not being able to breathe. Of those, only a few came back to the surface.
Tatsuya didn't further meddle with the NSU invasion force. They now looked nothing more than a fleet of ghost ships, and he was not interested in cleaning up the soldiers left, who were effectively out of action. Taking captives was also not on his itinerary. And he's not part of the military, so he wouldn't have the right to take prisoners in the first place.
His purpose here was to conduct a field test of the countermeasure to [Gjallarhorn].
Having confirmed the effectiveness of the [Hypnos Chain] on the panicked battle groups, that objective was complete, and he had no further business here.
Tatsuya turned his back on the eerily silent night sea and returned to the small jet where Miyuki was waiting.
The National Defense Forces closed in from the land and the sea. They had refrained from interfering, under orders from Akiyama.
Tatsuya did not address them either. No "I'll leave the rest to you," or anything, he simply boarded his plane.
"Leave the takeoff to me," Lina announces and proceeds to supply magical power to the flight magic subsystem.
Once the aircraft reached a sufficient altitude, its pilot increased the throttle and took the hydrogen jet engines out of idle.
At the same time, the inertia neutralization magic is activated.
Like an arrow shot from a drawn bow, Raisen launches upward into the stratosphere.
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