Part 4
Harutora crossed the iron railing that the shikigami had crushed, entering the construction site.
Buildings were lined up before his eyes, and it became noisier and noisier. He clumsily splashed through puddles, his entire body soaking, as he ran.
He ran towards the back of the construction site.
There was a parking lot in the back of the construction site, and there was a big truck stopped there as well as two armored vehicles with their lights on.
In addition, there were big and small human figures fighting in the rain.
Those people were Suzuka and the Mystical Investigators who had showed up yesterday.
There was a big difference between the current state and the battle yesterday, and Suzuka had been tightly surrounded, with only two shikigami present - giant, three-meter tall shikigami being manipulated by the Mystical Investigators. Suzuka's shikigami that had displayed overwhelming might yesterday was not present.
No, looking carefully, there were scattered scraps of paper covered with mud on the unpaved surface of the parking lot. The scene by the taxi just now should have been mirrored here, and the wreckage of the scripture could even be seen by Suzuka's feet as it was battered by the rain.
...But, why?
Harutora was a bit confused, but he soon found the answer to that question.
There were ten Mystical Investigators surrounding Suzuka, and among them there were only two fighting Suzuka directly, with the other eight continuously chanting incantations as they encircled Suzuka.
An intense light was rising from the ground around the Mystical Investigator chanting incantations. The sound of the incantation and the sound of the wind and rain formed a unique melody, following the oscillations of the light.
"......Is that a barrier? Are they using that to seal the shikigami?"
Of course, Harutora didn't know it was named the 'Eight-Point Barrier', a powerful technique of exorcists that was prohibited in combat. It was mostly used to seal spiritual disasters third phase or higher, and normally wouldn't be used against humans. This time, the Onmyou Agency had specially permitted those in charge to take the same measures as for a spiritual disaster in order to deal with the rebellion of a National First-Class Onmyouji.
The use of that prohibited move proved that the Mystical Investigators' ambush was successful. Suzuka had used Harutora and obtained Natsume's spiritual power, and the Mystical Investigators had taken advantage of her putting all her effort into seizing that spiritual power.
"......Stop right there. Even if you're the 'Child Prodigy', you can't destroy the Eight-Point Barrier from the inside. Listen to me and surrender."
One of the Mystical Investigators persuaded Suzuka with a strict tone.
Afterwards, the two giant shikigami standing on both sides of the Mystical Investigator moved forward. They were the heavy-duty law enforcement shikigami 'G1 Emperor', and they seemed colossal compared to Suzuka's small body.
...Had they won?
Harutora hid behind a building, holding his breath as he watched the situation unfold.
"......Don't think you've won......"
Suzuka murmured inside the barrier.
Her tone was breathless, and her thin shoulders were heaving up and down, she was soaked, and her originally tied-up golden hair drooped down heavily. Her appearance as she stood in the rain was like a child who had been abandoned by her parents.
But, her round eyes were still shining with light, and her small body gave off a dangerous air.
"To think you treat humans like spiritual disasters...... But unfortunately, you should have taken the opportunity to shoot me quickly or taken some other actions. I see that you guys don't have enough real battle experience."
The rain dripped down the girl's face.
She didn't wipe off the rain, but showed an appalling sneer.
"Do you know what my research specialty is? I'll let you experience the original creation, not by me, but by Tsuchimikado Yakou - The military-use shikigami that he created!"
Saying this, Suzuka turned around, casting her gaze on the truck stopped in the parking lot.
She shouted at the container on the truck:
"Spell release! Come, Tsuchigumo [12] !"
Crash - A heavy sound rang out, and the container was destroyed from the inside.
Crash, crash, the container was destroyed, torn open, split into fragments, and fell to the ground.
Immediately after, a strangely-shaped form appeared in the rain.
It was a spider.
It was a giant spider made of steel. It had eight long legs, and its body was far larger than the container. Samurai armor was affixed to the top half of its body, around its head, abdomen, and the muzzles of the cannons that poked out from both sides.
It wore an ancient conical samurai helmet with a flashing golden pentagram on the front, and a dim flame shone in the rain from the half-covered eye holes.
"......A, An 'Armored Juggernaut [13] '!?"
The Mystical Investigators voiced their surprise one after another, and the chanted incantation paused because of this, the light of the barrier vanishing accordingly.
Suzuka laughed loudly.
"Go."
The steel spider moved.
Its outer appearance was like a heavy machine, but its movements were about the same as a normal shikigami, as if it were just a living spider. It moved on its eight legs, closing in on the Mystical Investigators step by step.
"......Ugh!"
One Mystical Investigator among them opened fire on Tsuchigumo. The bullets sparked and were easily repelled. Guns were useful against man-made shikigami, but they were worthless against a steel shikigami.
"Damn!"
The Mystical Investigator who had just been speaking to Suzuka sent out the two Emperors, trying to suppress Tsuchigumo's movements.
However, the movements of the modern Emperor shikigami were inferior to the Armored Juggernaut built for war. Tsuchigumo leaped up, kicking aside an Emperor and piercing through the body of the other.
The Emperor that had been pierced through grew blurry as if its body were being tampered with, showing 'lag' effects. The Armored Juggernaut slashed out again with a huge blade.
The blade flashed in the dim lighting.
As Armored Juggernaut swung the knife, cleaving the giant shikigami in two, the shikigami's charm tore in half, falling onto the rain-battered ground. Tsuchigumo speared the other Emperor with a fluid movement.
The Mystical Investigators were in disarray.
Gunfire rang out, and countless charms flew through the air, but none of these attacks were effective.
"What kind of monster is that......"
Harutora muttered, dumbstruck.
Regardless of whether it was fire or shikigami generated from charms, magic would become 'ambiguous' upon coming in contact with material, and though the laws of physics were unable to affect them fully, receiving a strong external impact would wound its materiality and lead to a 'lag' phenomenon.
Since the Armored Juggernaut had a steel body, it was directly imbued with 'hardness', and the spells engraved on the inside of the armor upped its strong defensive power against magical attacks.
It had been crafted 'flesh' through oil and metal, and had compensated for its 'ambiguity'. It was a shikigami that had true destructive force and defensive power.
The Armored Juggernaut was a military shikigami.
...H, How could they defeat this kind of thing?
The parking lot of the construction site turned into a burning battlefield of magic.
Flames spread and engulfed the darkness, torrents of water swept up the rain, fragments of metal danced through the air, and sharp spikes of earth flew from the cracked ground.
Tsuchigumo's movements were nimble, like an armored vehicle fighting infantry. There seemed to be no ammunition in its cannons, but even without firepower, there was an overwhelming difference between the fighting power of the two sides.
Spider silk shot from the mouthpiece of the wrathful-looking samurai armor on Tsuchigumo.
One Mystical Investigator after another was captured by the spider silk, quickly becoming weak and unable to resist. It was a similar scene to Natsume when she had been stung by the bee-shaped shikigami, and he knew at a glance that their spiritual power had been absorbed.
Tsuchigumo drove off the resistance of its enemies one by one, continuously spitting silk to constrict the Mystical Investigators.
Then, its feet stomped down forcefully, and the final Mystical Investigator collapsed.
The noise of the rain became more apparent in the inadvertent silence that fell. Harutora clenched his teeth, but he could do nothing at all other than hide in the darkness.
...What the hell.
This was truly the worst possible situation. Since the manpower assistance from Tokyo hadn't come on time, they had basically announced that they could no longer stop Suzuka, and of course it wasn't at all possible for there to be an opportunity to sneakily beat her up.
...What should I do?
Harutora couldn't think of a single clue as he stood blankly in the rain.
Just then, a phone rang again. It was Harutora's phone that rang, not someone else's.
The lively sound of the ringtone echoed through the post-battle parking lot, and he actually felt his own heart leap.
"Who's there!?"
Suzuka asked fiercely, and the originally motionless Tsuchigumo began warming up simultaneously. Was it the fault of his luck for being that bad, or was it his own fault for not thinking to silence his phone? Harutora couldn't help but stare into the sky.
Regardless, he was now stuck between a rock and a hard place, and he showed himself in the parking lot, depressed.
Suzuka's fierce look disappeared momentarily upon seeing an unexpected person emerge.
"You're from yesterday......"
"......Hi."
Harutora grudgingly called out.
He had declared in the cafe that he would step up and fight, and he hadn't thought he had been forfeiting his life, but after he saw how Suzuka used the bee-shaped shikigami and how she easily fought off the Mystical Investigators, his confidence from that time had already vacillated immensely.
However, Suzuka didn't give him the same fate as the Mystical Investigators.
He didn't believe that communicating with Suzuka could reverse the situation, but it was better than sitting still and waiting for his death. More importantly, he hadn't thought of any other way, and a compromise by both parties was the best way to keep Natsume from getting dragged into the situation.
Suzuka didn't stop sizing up Harutora, her gaze filled with suspicion.
Harutora checked his constantly ringing phone. He couldn't help but show a dry smile upon seeing the caller ID on the phone.
It was from Hokuto.
...Really, she was so nosy.
Judging by the time, it was probably Touji's fault. He had definitely told Hokuto about Harutora's current situation, and Hokuto had called him out of worry. Even though the two of them had fought and parted yesterday evening.
"......Who's calling you? Is it alright not to answer?"
Suzuka asked coldly. Harutora made a 'nn' sound, hanging up without answering the phone.
If Hokuto had learned of his location from Touji... If she noticed she had been hung up on, it was possible that she would immediately rush over here even in the current typhoon. Touji should also be here soon. He had to take action as soon as possible, before they got here.
...Though on the other hand, what action would that be.
He mocked himself while breathing deeply at the same time, letting his mood calm down.
He stared into Suzuka's eyes, thinking about what step to take.
First......
"......Nice of you, making your shikigami stay a whole evening in my stomach. Just thinking about it makes me shiver."
"......Hmph, let me tell you, that was my first kiss, so it's a small price to pay. Right, darling?"
Suzuka remained vigilant, but her attitude facing Harutora was much more relaxed than with the Mystical Investigators. The tone she replied with was as overbearing as yesterday's, but it was kind of intimate.
"But don't get me wrong, you're no longer useful. I don't know how you found this place, but if you want to follow me around like a pervert, I won't forgive you."
No longer useful - Suzuka's goal really was to seize Natsume's spiritual power, and in other words, everything was already prepared now. Harutora cursed in his heart.
"Let me tell you, you weren't the person I was originally looking for. If there was a photograph in the research lab database, I wouldn't have made that outrageous mistake."
"......Research lab? It seems like you usually shut yourself inside there, right? Judging by your appearance at the festival yesterday, you're not very worldly."
"What? You're too arrogant, do you not understand your position?"
"Did I hit the mark?"
"Ugh...... You, you're really maddening!"
Suzuka narrowed her eyes, looking like he really had hit the mark. But she seemed as if she instantly remembered something, asking: "Right! What happened with you and that ugly girl yesterday? Did you fight?"
"......It wasn't all you."
"Haha! You deserved it, who asked you to perform that crappy drama. What a joke."
Harutora narrowed his eyes, and Suzuka clapped her hands and cheered while looking on, looking like she was having fun, it now being Harutora's turn to be angry.
"......You're really such an uncute brat."
"Huh, are you blind? You can't find many girls in this world as cute as I am."
"Never mind your appearance, your personality is terrible."
"Haha, what 'never mind appearance'. You're angry because you realize it, huh? So simple."
"Shut up, let me tell you, there definitely won't be anyone liking you in the future!"
"How's that possible, I'm a beautiful prodigy Onmyouji, there will definitely be a big group of people scrambling for my favor!"
"Don't speak nonsense, you near-criminal!"
He inadvertently roared, and maybe because he had hit the mark, Suzuka suddenly closed her mouth. Damn, Harutora also returned to his senses at the same time.
He had carelessly spoken the words in his heart, and if this went on, 'properly discussing' was a pipe dream. If Touji were here, he would definitely be shaking his head with a face full of pity.
But, that unreasonable conversation seemed to have eliminated the knife-edge atmosphere from the area. Harutora mustered his courage, slowly approaching Suzuka.
"......Hey, why don't you stop this, alright?"
"What? What are you spewing? Are you really an idiot?"
"I realize that I'm stupid, but you're also being dumb."
Harutora replied candidly, wording it directly. Anger plainly showed on Suzuka's expression, but she didn't interrupt Harutora's words, so it was a decent reaction.
"You said you wanted to revive your brother, right?"
He spoke to confirm, and Suzuka showed a stiff expression.
Harutora didn't back off, continuing to speak:
"I don't have brothers or sisters, but I can understand your feelings. After all, it's a normal feeling for people to want to revive their dead family, but you shouldn't do it. Even if your brother is revived, you and even your brother will become criminals."
"......You're really annoying, what are you trying to say?"
"Idiot, my meaning is, your brother won't be happy even if you revive him like this."
"Don't talk like you understand my brother, I'm the one who knows my brother the best!"
Suzuka howled, her eyes staring straight at Harutora.
Tsuchigumo behind her stomped the ground with its eight legs, responding to its master's emotional agitation. Tsuchigumo was shockingly imposing from up close. Harutora held his breath, but he couldn’t give up here.
"Did you tell your parents? Did they not oppose you doing this?"
"Hmph! I don't have parents, I definitely don't recognize them. Those two people only used my brother and I like garbage."
"Hey, don't talk about your own parents like--"
"They aren't even people! How do you think I became a Divine General at this age? Since I was born - no, since before I was born, they tortured me! They cast forbidden spells on my body, and they killed my brother like that!"
Suzuka's face twisted as she yelled loudly. Harutora momentarily didn't know how to reply upon hearing the girl's devastating accusations.
In other words, Suzuka had been made into an experimental product by her parents - who had probably both been magic-users. They had cast various magics on her body in order to make her become an excellent magician, uncaring of her wishes.
Since she had been born, she had been forced to bear a tremendous darkness. It was different from himself who grumbled about family traditions.
Harutora felt anguished, but there were things he felt he had to say.
"......I shouldn't have spoken rashly without knowing anything. Sorry, I'm sorry for that......"
"Stop joking around! I don't need your sympathy!"
"......I thought so too. But listen, since you hate your parents so much, that’s even more of a reason not to do the same thing as them."
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login