After finishing his report to Hayama, Tatsuya moved to conclude the briefing.
"When I delivered Angie Sirius to the mobile relay vehicle, the backup units I had neutralized were already gone," Tatsuya noted.
"I see. Someone else who was monitoring the situation must have recovered them," Hayama replied.
"They likely decided that recovering their people was a higher priority than continuing their surveillance of me. Shuji Chiba, who was incapacitated at the time, was also gone by the time I returned to the scene."
Hayama fell into a brief moment of contemplation. The lack of artifice in his manner was a testament to his years of experience—a polished grace that felt entirely natural.
"That surveillance likely belonged to those under the Saegusa family's influence."
"The Saegusa? Not the Chiba?"
"Tokyo is currently within the Saegusa's sphere of influence. I had heard whispers that Lord Koichi was moving his pawns for some design of his own. Your decision to limit your magic and rely on close-quarters combat may have been intended to hide your hand from those watchers, but the fact that they've tagged you at all is... less than ideal. Still, I am well aware that you have committed no blunder. It is your duty to protect Lady Miyuki, the candidate for the next head of the family, but that burden does not rest on your shoulders alone. Madame Maya agrees that it is too early for other families to learn the truth of Lady Miyuki's position—though, knowing Lord Koichi, he likely suspects something."
"Suspects" was Hayama's way of saying Koichi knew Tatsuya was a relative of the Yotsuba. Tatsuya felt a private surge of respect for the man's mastery of understatement.
"Regardless, we cannot allow them to move from suspicion to proof. Please transmit the data you've backed up to me. For the time being, we will handle the USNA military's presence."
Hayama's casual tone didn't strike Tatsuya as a boast. It was a simple statement of fact.
"Once the National Defense Force loses its pretext for mobilization, Lord Koichi will likely pull back for the foreseeable future."
Tatsuya might have doubted another aide, but Hayama's word was ironclad. He initiated the data transfer and gave a short, respectful nod toward the camera.
The moment Tatsuya arrived to pick her up, Miyuki's eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"Is something wrong?" Tatsuya asked.
"No, it's nothing."
Her answer was a polite formality, clearly intended for any eavesdropping ears. She offered a lady-like smile, accepted Tatsuya's escort into the car, and waited until the vehicle had pulled away into traffic.
Then, without warning, she lunged toward him.
"Onii-sama! Are you hurt?!"
Tatsuya was caught completely off guard as she clung to him. "Miyuki, please. Calm down."
"I cannot be calm! This 'scent'... Onii-sama, you fought Lina, didn't you?! And it wasn't just her! This 'smell'... it's the scent of a battle against at least ten others!"
Just as Tatsuya perceived "Information" through sight, Miyuki perceived it through touch. However, her intuition often translated those complex digital signatures into a pseudo-olfactory sense. Physically, Tatsuya hadn't left a single trace of the struggle, yet she had "caught the scent" of the violence regardless.
"Please, calm yourself. You know as well as anyone that unless I allow it, no one in this world can leave a wound on me."
His bewildered reassurance seemed to strike a chord. The feverish excitement in her eyes began to dim, and within five seconds, her breathing returned to its rhythmic calm.
"...My apologies, Onii-sama. I have shown you a truly unsightly side of myself."
She shrunk back, her face flushing with genuine shame. Tatsuya shook his head, a small, gentle smile appearing on his face.
"No. I'm the one who should apologize for making you worry."
"That isn't true... It is a sister's duty to worry for her brother!"
Is it? The reflexive question crossed Tatsuya's mind, but he was wise enough not to voice it. He merely reflected on the thought that while family concern was natural, Miyuki's brand of it was... exceptionally intense.
"I know that no matter how many times Lina challenges you, she could never win," Miyuki added softly. "I doubt there is anyone in this world who could best you."
"I have you waiting for me," Tatsuya replied. "That is why I will never lose to anyone."
The moment the words left his lips, he realized he had gone too far—or perhaps, he had played his hand too well. Seeing the hazy, heat-flushed look in Miyuki's eyes as she gazed at him, Tatsuya recognized his tactical error.
But a word once spoken cannot be retracted. Even if it were possible, the current atmosphere wouldn't allow it.
(...Well, I suppose this is better than being interrogated for the details of the fight,) Tatsuya thought, drifting into a brief state of mental escapade.
It was well after midnight when Lina finally reached her apartment. "After" was an understatement—the only saving grace was that dawn hadn't quite broken yet.
Because her primary and backup information terminals had been taken, she couldn't call for a transport. And because she relied entirely on digital currency, she didn't have a physical wallet. Furthermore, for the sake of the mission, she had been carrying no personal identification. As a result, she had been unable to use the city's twenty-four-hour public transit. She had been forced to make the trek home entirely on her own.
Thanks to biometric authentication, she had no trouble getting into her room, but the memory of the grueling journey back ignited a fresh wave of indignation.
(What did I ever do to deserve this, Tatsuya?!)
From an objective standpoint, Tatsuya had plenty of reasons to hold a grudge against her, but such logic rarely applies to the heat of one's own emotions.
(Right... I have to check on the Colonel and the others.)
Lina forced her exhausted body into motion. She threw on her CAD and gear and took to the night sky from her balcony, heading for the building that served as their secret command center. It would take an hour of thorough, frantic searching before she realized that not a single soul remained there.
The following morning, news outlets were flooded with reports of a small USNA naval vessel that had drifted into Japanese waters due to "engine trouble" and had been rescued by the National Defense Navy.
The fact that a high-ranking military attaché from the USNA Embassy in Tokyo had been on that ship was never reported.
And on that same day, the beautiful exchange student at First High stayed home for a second day, citing poor health.
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