Chapter 4
Japanese time: July 5, 9:00.
The government of the Great Asian Alliance met with the New Soviet Union to establish a truce. An hour after that, the government of the New Soviet Union presented the terms of the truce. These conditions included the extradition of war criminals.
Japanese time: July 5, 10:20. Local time: 11:20.
Liu Li Lei was hiding in Vozdvizhenka, located north of Vladivostok and Ussuriysk, and was summoned to the commander of the escort unit.
“The New Soviet Union demanded my extradition?”
In a strained voice, Liu Li Lei asked Lin, the commander of the escort detachment, confirmed whether she would be considered a war criminal.
“Right. The list of war criminals given by the New Soviet Union included the name of Second-Lieutenant Liu. This is reliable information,” Lin confirmed.
Liu’s escort consisted entirely of women, and the squad’s commander was no exception to this. Lin was more than 10 years older than Liu, but she had the same rank of Second-Lieutenant. However, Liu also had a special rank "school-officer1", used exclusively within the army of the Great Asian Alliance. This was a countermeasure made to avoid frontline commanders having the ability to give willful orders to Liu just because they are higher in rank. The rank made sure Liu did not submit to higher officers in accordance with the usual rank system, instead reporting directly to high command. This also meant that School-Officer Liu had a status immediately following the top command, so she was higher in status than the commander of the escort unit, Second Lieutenant Lin. The rank was comparable to Tatsuya’s rank of “Special Lieutenant”.
“War criminals...”
1The title of Liu is written as “school” + “junior officer” in the original kanji. Though the result sounds silly, I used a more literal translation to try to keep accuracy. The
Russian translation used the translation of “special lieutenant”, and the wiki translates this as “captain”.
Liu Li Lei bit her lip. Despite her shock, she understood why. She knew that when using Strategic class magic, just as when using weapons of mass destruction, many civilians are killed. By being the victor, the magician can avoid their crimes, but if they lose… in the best case, the perpetrators would simply be sent to execution for having committed war crimes.
Commander Lin took Liu’s right arm with both hands in an attempt to cheer her up.
“School-Officer Liu, let's run away.”
“Commander Lin?” Liu asked, not quite comprehending.
“You shouldn’t be forced to submit to the court of the winner because you obeyed orders.”
“But if I run away, there will be no truce...”
“You shouldn’t think about such things,” Lin comforted.
“But when the Motherland is in such a difficult situation...”
“Special Lieutenant Liu... No, Xiao2-Liu...”
2For those unaware, Xiao (?) is fairly common in Chinese nicknames. It means
“little” and often conveys affection. As stated below, it can be compared to the Japanese honorific “-chan” (although I would consider the meaning to be kept in the literal translation).
?
The tone of commander Lin's voice changed from the tone of a higher officer to the tone of an adult talking to a child. “Xiao-Liu” can be compared to “Liu-chan” in meaning.
“You do not need to think about something that. Xiao-Liu, you're still a child.”
“...I'm not a child. I am an adult magician,” Liu protested slightly.
“No. You are only fourteen years old. If the Motherland protects you, you must repay your debt to the Motherland. But if the Motherland chooses to sacrifice you, then need not obey. Xiao-Liu, you must live.”
“But…” Liu was still reluctant to abandon her home country.
“Then think about this: If School-Officer Liu is executed, then our Homeland will again lack a Strategic Class magician.”
Commander Lin returned the officer's tone and continued trying to convince Liu Li Lei, who could not decide on this. In actuality, the Great Asian Alliance had 6
unofficial Strategic Class magicians, but this was an extremely well-kept secret of the Great Asian Alliance about which Junior Lieutenant Lin was not informed. However, each of the other six had significant flaws in their magic, and they would not be used until a crisis occurred calling into question the survival of the nation. Other than Liu Li Lei, there were no other Strategic Class magicians suitable for permanent use, so at least in this sense, the assertion of Second Lieutenant Lin about the absence of a Strategic Class magician was not wrong.
“If you run away now and get the mark of a traitor, in the future you will become a great asset to the Motherland.”
“Yes...” Liu was finally beginning to be convinced.
Give everything up for the Motherland, including your reputation. The role of “tragic heroine” touched the Liu’s heartstrings.
“I think you are right, commander.”
“You decided? Thank god…”
Seeing the excessive emotion of Commander Lin, Liu felt her reliance on this woman in her heart.
“I will immediately prepare for the escape! I will definitely deliver Special Lieutenant Liu to a safe place,” Lin claimed.
“I’m relying on you. Also, please call me "Xiao-Liu". I’m refusing my status as a soldier of the Great Asian Alliance and fleeing the country.”
“Then you call me Lin-jiejie3. Wait here a little, Xiao-Liu.”
Second Lieutenant Lin's voice became friendly again as she winked at Liu and left the room. Liu Li Lei, with embarrassment on her face, focused her gaze. The escort of Liu Li Lei was hiding at the civil airfield in Vozdvizhenka. Fortunately, there was a private plane capable of traveling up to 2000km as well as a tank of fuel large enough to fully fuel the plane.
“Hurry up with the preparation for departure! Have you finished refueling!?” Second Lieutenant Lin turned to her subordinates working in the hangar.
“We’ll finish about five minutes!”
“All aircraft indicators are normal!”
“Runway check is complete! Everything is clear!”
They had begun aircraft maintenance the previous night under the assumption that they would be forced to run. It was obvious to them that they should leave the small jet plane with its larger radius of flight. In addition, the jet would fly faster and would not as easily give away the passengers.
Junior Lieutenant Lin went to the control room after she checked her subordinates’
work. She was the only one there at the moment, and she sat down in front of the communication device and turned it on.
“Govorit Gospozha Tayga. Pozhaluysta, otvet'te.”
Her full statement translated to mean “This is Ms. Taiga. Answer, please.” The word
“Gospozha” corresponded to the English title "Ms.", and "Tayga" corresponds to
“Taiga”, or a coniferous forest4 in the sub-arctic zone. “Gospozha Tayga” was the codename of Junior Lieutenant Lin, and it carried the word “tiger” pronounced in
“tayga” - a military symbol of the Great Asian Alliance.
3The Russian translation had this as Lin-chie and put Lin-neesan in parentheses. Since
“chie” is not any pinyin in Chinese, I’m assuming it was intended to be “jiejie” (??) or older sister based on the context and reference of Lin-neesan.
4The hanzi (Chinese pronunciation of kanji, ??) for Lin is ?, meaning forest
“Govorit Snezhnyy Baran. Dolozhite o tekushchey situatsii.”
This translated to “This the Snow Sheep. Report on the current situation.”
“Ubezhdeniye Lyu Liley proshlo uspeshno. Teper', kak iyezhat' do etogo.
planirovalos', my otpravimsya v Yaponiyu.”
“Prinyato. Voyska iz Khabarovska pribudut v Vozdvizhenka meneye chem cherez chas. Uspeyte sbezhat' do etogo.”
“Govorit Tayga, vas ponyala.”
Their conversation continued in Russian. Their exchange was as follows:
“Liu Li Lei was successful persuaded. Now, as planned, we will go to Japan.”
“Affirmative. The troops from Khabarovsk will arrive in Vozdvizhenka in less than a.n hour. Hurry up to escape before they arrive.”
“Taiga speaking, understood.”
Second Lieutenant Lin was an agent who had switched sides from the Great Asian Alliance to the New Soviet Union, and she had presumably been speaking with a member of the New Soviet Union.
Before noon, a small jet took off from Vozdvizhenka airfield heading South.
Even though the conflict was still officially going on, as the truce had not yet been established, the army of the New Soviet Union only reacted when the plane flew east of Vladivostok. Pursuit fighters were raised, but the chase stopped as soon as the plane entered international airspace. Though the Japanese army caught these maneuvers on its radar, they were only interpreted as reluctance of the New Soviet Union to provoke Japan and America while the conflict with the Great Asian Alliance was still going on, so no one really thought about it.
The small jet was allowed to continue its flight over the Sea of Japan unhindered.
Once it entered Japanese airspace, Japanese Air Force fighter jets were sent to intercept it, and it landed on the Komatsu base in the former Ishikawa prefecture.
Edward Clark was at his private office in the California branch of the National Science Agency. He somewhat ignored his work schedule, and had been staying in this room overnight for quite some time.
Local time: July 4, 22:00 (Japanese time: July 5, 14:00). As Clark continued his work at his terminal, an encrypted message arrived in his mail despite the time close to midnight.
“…As planned.”
After reading the message, deep wrinkles appeared on Clark's forehead.
“Liu Li Lei was allowed to flee the country, giving the Russian fleet their pretext to go South? It’s a rather crude strategy, but this isn’t the time to be clever…”
His unconscious mumbling was the result of mental shock. The reasoning behind the invasion of the Great Asian Alliance had been unfounded. They had begun the invasion based on inaccurate information and wishful thinking. It was a foregone conclusion that as soon as Bezobrazov used Tuman Bomba, the war would be over.
However, while the original conclusion was widely known, Bezobrazov’s predictions had been exactly what happened: there was not the slightest difference between his plan and actual events.
"With such intelligence and ability, why did he fail...?"
He couldn’t help but shudder at the idea that Bezobrazov, with all the power he possessed in being able to toy with the Great Asian Alliance as if they were a child combined with his immense magical abilities, was still unable to kill Shiba Tatsuya.
Was it luck?
Or was the strength of Shiba Tatsuya just even higher?
Covering his eyes with his index finger and thumb, Clark shook his head. He had no time to think about unnecessary things. Bezobrazov had only passed his information to Clark, and now Clark needed to report to various authorities that the strategy had advanced to the next stage.
"It's early morning in London..."
The destinations for information to be sent also existed outside the country.
Clark decided that because of the time difference on the other side, the information should be conveyed by message rather than a phone call.
Given that it was late evening in California, he decided that local calls should also be avoided, so he did the same as Bezobrazov.
Tatsuya arrived home after 5:00 PM and saw that he had a message from over 17 hours ago. The message read, "There is one urgent matter. Please write when you are available for video," and one touch of the screen later, he sent a response. Almost immediately after that, the phone in the living room rang out.
Stopping Miyuki as she walked towards the videophone, Tatsuya got up from the couch to answer it himself. As he looked at the second display of the console, he made sure that the encryption was set to the highest possible level and pressed a button to establish a connection.
“Tatsuya, I'm sorry to disturb you during your home holiday.”
The face of Kazama on the display expressed sincere apologies.
“It’s alright if the case is urgent,” Tatsuya reassured him. “So, what happened?”
“Liu Li Lei, the apostle of the Great Asian Alliance, fled to our country.
“How could that ever happen?” Tatsuya asked.
“This morning, the Great Asian Alliance proposed a truce to the New Soviet Union.”
“A sensible solution.”
“Shortly after the proposal, the New Soviet Union responded that it would agree to an armistice subject to certain conditions,” Kazama stated.
“That is, it was not a requirement of unconditional surrender?”
“As far as we can judge at the moment, no.”
The Great Asian Alliance was already facing political instability because of discontent with the humiliating truce with Japan after the Yokohama incident. This time, they were officially defeated, so national reserves would have to be spent on the
suppression of the opposition and separatist groups advocating for independence of their regions. This process would weaken the Great Asian Alliance, so disintegration of the state was no longer impossible. Because of this, if the New Soviet Union now started to pressure the Great Asian Alliance, the Great Asian Alliance would become more united in response to the external threat. In other words, the Great Asian Alliance faced internal strife in peace but could find unity in response to a common hardship. Understanding this, the government decided it would be less costly to move South now instead of waiting for the NSU to relinquish their control.
Both Tatsuya and the NSU agreed with this line of thought.
“One of the conditions imposed by the New Soviet Union was the issuance of war criminals,” Kazama continued.
“They are probably going to hold a demonstration of retribution. It seems that the name of Liu Li Lei was included in this list of war criminals,” Tatsuya speculated.
Ignoring Tatsuya’s cynical remark, Kazama signaled to return to the main topic.
“Is that why she ran away?” Tatsuya asked.
“So it seems,” Kazama answered.
“Have more soldiers escaped with her?”
“Yes. It seems that they served as an escort detachment Liu Lili.”
“Her escort unit? That’s a bit suspicious…” Tatsuya responded.
If a Strategic class magician betrays their country and goes to the enemy, there is a significant upset their military forces. Because of this, militaries strictly control their Strategic class magicians - an escort assigned to a strategic class magician would not just be protecting the magician; they would be observing the magician in order to prevent escape as well.
“The commanding officer claimed that this was done in order to preserve the Great Asian Alliance’s Strategic Class Magician for the future.”
“Their excuse seems reasonable,” Tatsuya said. “Still, our self-defense forces need to be wary of the fact that they could also be agents pretending to run away from their country.”
“No, you're right. We need to be alert, but regardless of whether their escape was real or not, because we accepted them, their circumstances are being heard. That brings us
to the main point. Could was assist the help of a certain special officer?” Kazama asked.
“Well, I can cope with torture, but there will be no particular benefit in bringing me in for the interrogation...”
Kazama looked at Tatsuya from the videophone screen with such a look as if he was trying to understand the true meaning of his words.
“We are not asking for help with an interrogation,” Kazama eventually responded.
In the end, Kazama took Tatsuya’s words about torture as a joke and continued on.
“Special officer. Am I correct in that you have a technique to seal a magician’s magic?”
“Do you mean ‘Gatekeeper’?” Tatsuya asked.
“Would you be able to seal Thunderclap Tower with your magic?” Kazama answered Tatsuya’s question with a question.
“Can’t you take away her CAD? That is a much simpler way to prevent her magic.”
“It seems that Liu Li Lei does not have a CAD,” Kazama responded.
“…Do you mean that she does not use a CAD at all?”
“According to the commander of the escort squad, Liu Li Lei specializes in two types of magic: Thunderclap Tower and blocking electromagnetic waves. She does not need a CAD for these magic, but in exchange she cannot use any other magic,” Kazama explained.
“She specializes in two types of magic…” Tatsuya felt a sense of sympathy for this magician, who, like Tatsuya, could only naturally use two types of magic. However, he wasn’t sure if it was a coincidence or a natural limit: perhaps when using magic without the help of devices, two types is the limit?
“The base commander, concerned that Liu Li Lei cannot be prevented from unleashing her magic, asked for help from Her Excellency Saeki who he knew had a Strategic class magician as a subordinate.”
Tatsuya was not actually subordinate to Saeki. He was a Special Officer who was only under the command of Saeki during hostilities, but Kazama was aware of this so Tatsuya did not bring it up.
“Which base it Liu Li Lei detained at?” Tatsuya asked.
“Base Komatsu,” Kazama answered.
“Would it be possible to transport her closer?”
“It will be difficult. We cannot bring a Strategic class magician to a metropolitan area when we are still unsure of their hostilities.”
“Understood. I apologize, but it will be difficult for me to help you,” Tatsuya gave his answer.
“Does you mean you can't leave Tokyo?” Kazama asked.
“If I leave Tokyo, there is a chance that the Parasites who penetrated Japan will attack. I can't leave Tokyo for long.”
“Regardless, the potential threat of Liu Lili also can not be ignored,” Kazama said.
“If Liu Li Lie is at Komatsu base, why don't you ask the Ichijou family for their cooperation?”
“Will Ichijou-dono be able to prevent the use of the Thunderclap Tower?” Kazama asked.
“The First Laboratory studied the effects of magical exposure on the human body, or in other words, magic causing a direct impact on the body. The magic should also be suitable for neutralizing the body in a way that will not come off as suspicious,”
Tatsuya said.
“Do you mean to use Rupture should Liu Li Lei become a threat? If we, without reliable evidence, use lethal magic on a refugee, it would cause a wave of criticism both here and abroad.”
Kazama’s main knowledge of the Ichijou family’s magic was Rupture, a magic capable of evaporating all liquids in an object. He assumed Tatsuya intended to use in a worst-case scenario in order to kill Liu.
“From what I know, the wife of the current head of the Ichijou family came from the Isshiki family. The Isshiki family specializes in mental-interference magic and manipulating electrical currents in the nervous system. This is the perfect magic for neutralizing without killing. The Ichijou family may be known for Rupture, but both Ms. Ichijou and her daughter have inherited the magic of the Isshiki family. The eldest
son, Ichijou Masaki, could also have the ability but may currently be hiding it,”
Tatsuya explained.
“Then, wouldn't it be simpler to contact the Isshiki family directly?” Kazama asked.
“The Isshiki family will find it difficult to cope with an emergency.”
By "emergency", Tatsuya did not mean a preventive neutralization of Liu Li Lei but the possibility that if Liu showed serious hostility and needed to be killed. Also, even if Liu Li Lei really had escaped, she was still a magician brought up in the Great Asian Alliance. If she felt that harming Japan was in her nation’s national interests, she would likely do so without hesitation. However, Kazama understood Tatsuya’s wording and did not need an explanation.
“The Ichijou family is also the closest to the Komatsu base... alright. I will tell the commander of this base that Her Excellency Saeki recommends contacting the Ichijou family.”
“I am sorry for not being able to offer my own help,” Tatsuya apologized.
“No, it is only expected as we have not offered our assistance in the case with the Parasites. Our team is currently fully occupied with the opposition of the New Soviet Union, and I am very sorry that we are unable to assist in the matter with the Parasites.”
“Nothing can be done, given the situation.”
“Thank you for saying so. Your recommendation for the Ichijou family is more than enough help,” Kazama said.
“Thank you.”
Tatsuya saluted, looking at the screen. Kazama did the same, after which the screen of the videophone went black.
Current time: 8 pm
One of the rooms in the hostel on the Higashi-Fuji training grounds was "East Fuji."
Chiba Naotsugu was a fourth-year student of the special department of martial arts at the National Academy of Defense. Despite still being a student, he held the rank of
Second Lieutenant. Watanabe Mari, a second-year student of the same department, was visiting, and she temporarily held the rank of Sergeant.
“Shu, take a break,” Mari said.
“I will. Thank you, Mari.”
They were in a long, narrow room with a bed, locker, and simple writing desk.
The room was too small to hold a kitchen, and the iced coffee currently on the table had been purchased in the vending machine located in the corridor. Mari wished to treat her lover with a homemade drink rather than a cheap one from a vending machine, but she was not able to think about such luxuries during an operation. As for Naotsugu, as a man, even a drink from the vending machine tasted special when brought by his lover. Naotsugu drank all the coffee looking pleased.
Mari sat down on the bed with her own drink in her hands. She felt bit of shame as she sat on the bed Naotsugu used every night, but she had no other place to sit down as the room was too small
“Shu. You’re working too hard...”
“I have never been good at paperwork,” Naotsugu said with a bitter smile. Mari had an anxious look, but he still asked, “Mari, do you want to help me?”
“Xu, you know that I don't know much about such things.”
“Haha, really.”
In order not to upset Mari who turned away confused, Naotsugu turned back to his work and started typing on his keyboard.
“It takes more time when there is nothing to write.”
Suddenly, as if he felt his eyes on his back, Naotsugu turned back toward Mari without taking his eyes off the display. His "hard work" was to compile a report daily.
He would have felt more confident if he had done it each day, but there was a system of duties in place splitting the work between the unit. Today, the third day after departure, Naotsugu's turn to write it came for the first time. He could have asked what the others had written, but there had been only 2 reports prior to this one, so it would not have been enough for him to understand what he should write.
Usually, the lines could be filled with something like a description of training or of constructing the fortifications, but as Naotsugu said, today’s report was difficult
because they were just waiting at the ready. They were not assigned to the search as it was the responsibility of other departments, so their current task was to wait, combat ready, for some kind of clue to appear. However, as a consequence of this, Naotsugu had no events to write about.
“It looks like the information resources of the self-defense forces are engaged with the activities of the New Soviet Union.”
At Mari’s question, Naotsugu turned around completely to face her.
“It seems that way. Even though it is already the third day, there is still no information,” Naotsugu said.
“Maybe I shouldn't say this, but wouldn’t it be better for us to regroup and return to Tokyo, since that girl Sakurai Minami, Kudou Minoru’s ultimate goal, is located there?
After Mari’s question, Naotsugu almost laughed involuntarily. He managed to restrain himself, but it was still noticeable in his face.
“…What's so funny?” Mari said with a slightly bashful face.
“It’s nothing, sorry. Sakurai Minami is only 3 years younger than you, isn't she? Why did you call her ‘girl’?”
“Because there was no other suitable expression!” Mari exclaimed, indignant.
“Yeah, I guess. Yes, the goal of Kudou Minoru is the abduction of that girl.”
Marie pursed her lips in disgust. She was not very good at using female “tactics” to negotiate - in other words, she did not know how to sulk, grumble, or cry to bargain selfishly.
“I agree with your idea, Mari. However, our squad has to stay here for some reason unrelated to the original goal.”
Another reason different from the original goal to capture Kudou Minoru…
“The invasion of the New Soviet Union...?” Mari speculated.
She made a serious face at this. She had suggested a possibility to be taken seriously.
“We will be needed if a sudden landing occurs,” Naotsugu said in response to Marie’s speculation.
Saturday, July 6th. Ichijou Masaki was called by his father Goki after finishing his final exam and returning home.
Without even having dinner, Masaki went to his father’s office. Akane, one of his younger sisters – a second-year student in middle school, was also there.
There were two sofas facing each other in his father’s study, and Goki was currently sitting opposite Akane. Masaki sat down at the other end of the triple sofa that Akane was sitting on.
“Dinner will be soon, so I will be brief.”
Hearing Goki’s words, Akane's brow furrowed slightly. Masaki didn’t really care, but Akane didn’t like her father’s rough manner of speaking. However, Goki ignored his daughter’s reaction – he had probably gotten used to it.
“Liu Li Lei, the official Strategic class magician of the Great Asian Alliance, fled to Japan.”
“Liu Li Lei of the Thirteen Apostles?”
Masaki asked a useless question out of surprise.
“Yes.”
Despite delaying the conversation, Goki was not annoyed. He couldn’t believe the news either when he first heard it.
“At the moment, hidden in Komatsu base.”
“Have the self-defense forces asked you for something related to this?” Masaki asked.
“It’s good that you figured it out so quickly, but their appeal does not concern you.
Rather, they want Akane,” Goki answered.
“Me?!”
Akane had been listening to her father and brother’s conversation as if it was not her business, but the surprise at Goki’s statement caused her to inadvertently let out this exclamation.
“To be precise, they require a magician from the Ichijou family with the ability to use Nerve Disturbance.”
"Nerve Disturbance" was officially called "Nerve electrical current disturbance," or "Nerve impulse jammer," and it was the trump card of the Isshiki family of the 28 houses. This magic disrupted the five senses and paralyzed the recipient’s muscles by interfering with nerve impulses. Masaki's mother, Ichijou Midori, although from the Isshiki family, was not able to use Nervous Disorder as a representative of the lateral branch, but due to some genetic accident, Akane ended up suitable for the magic even though some members of the direct hereditary line of the Isshiki family could not even use it.
“F-for what!?”
Akane had no experience in affairs with the self-defense forces, and her cry was from the heart.
“Liu Li Lie’s escape was somewhat suspicious,” Goki answered.
“Is there a chance that the escape was a cover?” Masaki asked.
“Yes.”
Goki nodded in response to Masaki’s question.
“Thunderclap Tower deals significant damage to electrical equipment. If she uses it to sabotage the base’s facilities, the air defense network may be paralyzed,” Goki continued.
“Is there no countermeasure against electromagnetic radiation to protect electronic equipment?”
Goki shook his head in response to his son’s obvious question.
“Any countermeasure we prepare can be overcome by a load exceeding its strength.
We do not know the maximum power of Thunderclap Tower, but we don’t want to experience it.”
“So we use Nerve Disturbance to paralyze her if we are suspicious of her actions?”
Masaki asked.
Goki answered with a nod.
“We can’t carry out a deadly attack from suspicions alone. Killing a refugee taken under our care will worsen international relations, and it will be too late to neutralize
her after the activation of magic. Liu Li Lie apparently doesn’t use a CAD, so if we lose our guard for even a moment, we could get hit by her Strategic Class magic.
“…I understand why we can’t use Rupture, but why not turn to the Isshiki family?”
Though some members of the Ichijou family could use Nerve Disturbance, anyone knowledgeable about the internal affairs of the former First Laboratory knew that it was the Isshiki family’s magic. The military was undoubtably aware of this.
“Y-yes! I’m still just a Junior-High student!” Akane shouted.
Akane's complaint was valid. She may have been able to use magic suitable to the situation, but her age and lack of experience made it unlikely that she would be able to understand the situation in the first place.
Goki hesitated for a second after the protest of his eldest daughter because he too did not want the self-defense forces to impose their work on his fourteen-year-old daughter. However, he quickly changed his appearance from that of a father to that of the head of one of the Ten Master Clans.
“The Isshiki family is not strong enough.”
“…!? She does have a suitability with Nerve Disturbance, but ...”
When Masaki referred to his sister with “she” instead of her name, she puffed out her cheeks, but did not complain because she understood he was speaking in her defense.
“My strength will not be stronger that a member of the Isshiki family, right?” Akane added.
“That’s not the point.”
Goki replied in a serious tone and shook his head. Neither Masaki nor Akane had expected this answer and waited for Goki’s follow up.
“They might not be planning to go about it secretively, and if Liu Li Lei goes to deadly measures, they will not be able to stop her. The magic of their family is too short range, and they do not have the combat prowess otherwise to go up against a Strategic Class magician,” Goki explained.
Both Masaki and Akane understood what Goki meant. In order for the magic of the Isshiki family to work, the magician needs to get within a few meters of the target.
If Liu was secretly planning an attack, in order to neutralize it, the caster of Nerve Disturbance needed to be near Liu. However, if Liu was prepared to kill the caster, the
Isshiki magicians would not be able to resist. In this case, the short range of Nerve Disturbance becomes a weakness.
“Because of this, Masaki, I also called you.”
“...Will I go along with Akane?” Masaki asked.
“Yes. In an emergency, you must protect Akane.” Goki did not say the words, “and kill Liu Li Lei,” but they understood.
Instead of replying, Masaki looked at Akane. Seeing this motion out of her peripheral vision, Akane turned to meet his gaze.
“Akane, despite what father says, you can refuse,” Masaki told her.
Akane opened her eyes wide and then turned away sharply.
“No… I will do it.” Akane replied, trying to act confident but still facing away from Masaki and Goki. “And I don't need Nii-san's protection… but the help of Nii-san would be useful if I have to deal the final blow...”
Masaki was speechless at the determination of his younger sister. He had always thought of her as an ordinary girl despite her talents, so her answer caught him off guard.
“Akane has answered. Masaki, what will you do?” Goki asked.
“I will accompany her of course.”
Masaki answered Goki without any delay. Masaki thought it was an incredibly dumb question: “Is it possible to do so badly as to force your younger sister to face danger all alone?”
“Okay. I will tell the self-defense forces that we agree.”
Goki nodded in satisfaction.
“By the way, would it not be safer for us to keep Liu Li Lie at our house instead of going to Komatsu base?”
To get rid of the current atmosphere, Masaki proposed an idea.
“Why do you think so?”
Without bothering to conceal his surprise, Goki questioned Masaki’s proposal.
“Well, if you take her away from the base, the risk of an attack on the base will be lower and it separates her from the soldiers with which she fled.”
“Ah. Liu Li Lie is only 14 years old; the same as Akane. If you remove her from the adults making the decisions, she would be less likely to do a suicidal sabotage...”
Goki murmured to himself in a tone that made it seemed as if this was not a response to Masaki.
“I will propose this to the self-defense forces,” Goki said with a contented smile.
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