Date A Live

Summer break has ended and it became the 8th of September. There was an event happening in the afternoon, which had still not escaped from the summer heat.

There was a bizarre atmosphere around the gymnasium of the Raizen high school.

"One year ago ……………we learned many things."

Itsuka s.h.i.+dou"s cla.s.smate, Yamabuki Ai, stood on stage while clenching her fist, and squeezed her voice out to the mike.

Ai"s best friends, Hazakura Mai and Fujibakama Mii were standing at both of her sides, holding the Raizen high school flag up on her left and right. They had, incidentally, took up an "At ease" posture of a bodyguard or an imperial guard from somewhere... Together, with the bizarre vigor Ai put into her state, it was like looking at a country"s ruler about to declare war.

"The meaning of a bitter experience, the humiliation of a defeat…………the cold feeling of the ground when made to grovel on the floor."

Ai said that with detest, swinging her fist, and nimbly raised her face.

"Well then, gentlemen. This pitiful army of defeated gentlemen. I want to ask all of you. Are we still experiencing the feeling of bitterness? Are we still groveling on the ground? Are we still stuck sunk in defeat……….!?"

*Dan!* Ai slammed her fist on the podium. The microphone"s audio feedback echoed around nearby.

"No! No way! Those guys have committed a grave mistake; they have given us time to sharpen out fangs of revenge! Our dearest time of fulfillment has come! Let there be glory to Raizen! Let there be honor to Raizen! With a strike with all our strength, we will bite their throats to a thousand pieces!!"

At the same time Ai swung her fist upwards, as if responding to that-----

""OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOhhhhhhhhh!""

The students crowded in the gymnasium raised their voices all at once.

The gymnasium"s gla.s.s windows shook slightly and the tremendous voices echoing on top of each other shook his eardrums until they hurt.

"Haha………… They are so full of energy."

Itsuka s.h.i.+dou cracked a wet smile while gazing at his cla.s.smate giving a speech up on stage.

Nonetheless, it was not like he didn"t understand the reason why they were so wildly enthusiastic about it. That"s becauseーーー

"s.h.i.+dou, what on earth is Ai saying? Is she trying to start a war somewhere……….?"

A doubtful voice echoed from his right side.

When s.h.i.+dou turned to look where the voice had come from, he found Yatogami Tohka standing beside him directing her attention at him.

She had night colored hair reaching her waist, and a pair of crystal eyes that stared back at s.h.i.+dou. She was a beautiful girl, beautiful enough to think it was not something she was naturally born with.

Nonetheless, right now, her face was perplexed with a very bewildered expression.

Well, that"s probably normal. If a person with no prior knowledge about the situation saw that speech just now, then without a doubt the person would be confused. No matter how much one looks at her, the current Ai looks like a war hero or a lecturer giving her own seminar.

"It"s because this month is the Tenou festival."

"Tenou festival? What"s that?"

"Hnnーーー Well, an easy way to say it is that it"s a super big school festival."

When s.h.i.+dou said that, Tohka"s eyes sparkled.

"School festival………………. Ooh! I"ve seen that before in the television. It"s a dream-like festival with food vendors lined up in the school!"

"Hnn. That"s not wrong but……….."

"Ooh……… I see. We"re going to do a school festival! That"s, unn, I think it"s good!"

She said that, and after making an ecstatic expression for a while, she once again twisted her head.

"Nu………………? So, why do we need this kind of meeting for the school festival?"

"Aah, the Tenou festival is a little different from other school festivals. ーーーIt"s a combination school festival with the ten high schools inside Tenguu city."

"Ten schools…………. Combination?"

Tohka opened her eyes in surprised. s.h.i.+dou [ahh] nodded.

Tenguu city, the place s.h.i.+dou and the other are living in, was a reconstructed area of the northern part of Kantou region, from the Tokyo metropolitan area which suffered devastating damage by a south-east grand disaster 30 years ago.

Right now for sure, using it as a test city with state of the art technology, they planned to make it suitable for humans to live in, but during the time they started the reconstruction, probably thanks to the threat of a s.p.a.cequake having not faded, there was an unbalanced time where the number of citizens was very small, compared to the completion of areas or inst.i.tutions in the region.

It was at that time when the union festival, called the "Tenou Festival", came in to practice.

"Well to put it simply, since the number of schools and students was small at that time, it would seem they planned to do it together to make it more exciting. That continued even after the number of citizens increased."

s.h.i.+dou made a wry smile while shrugging his shoulders.

At first it was a festival planned together by the schools in the underpopulated area, but right now it"s a great event held in the Tenguu square"s giant exhibition hall, with it being reserved for three whole days.

For Tenguu city, which presently seemed to have approved the festival that had grown to such a big event; it couldn"t just let the Tenou festival end.

In addition to the sensational nature of the event, and as a natural consequence of it being covered by television, there are some economical reasons for this much fanfare; It attracts tourists from outside the city and a considerable number of middle school students, from both locally and among the many visiting tourists, will be determining their High School of choice by the results of the Tenou Festival.

Even so, the event that was at first an idea beginning with famous schools joining together and making the school festival livelier, started to gain a different meaning because of the many schools joining in.

Which meant------

"This time! This year! This year for sure, our Raizen will obtain the Laurels of Kings!"

Ai shouted from the stage. And the other students responded.

Yes. The Tenou festival has voting categories such as the stage division, exhibition division, and refreshment booth division to pick the best school, and the school that is deemed to be the best, will be crowned king for the year after this.

When the school is decorated with such a beautiful ideology, other than the existing antagonism towards famous schools, it was obvious that the normally dormant fighting spirit and school love inside everyone would be stirred up. The people that normally show not even a speck of interest in soccer are now probably doing something similar to swinging the j.a.pan flag with the dream of going to the world cup.

While s.h.i.+dou was explaining the details to Tohka, he heard a voice coming from behind him.

"Kuku…………..I see. I now know the reason why Ai and the others were so excited!"

"Convinced. If that is the reason, then we can"t lose."

When he looked over, there were two near identical girls standing there.

One of them had long braided hair and was a girl with unyielding spirit. She had a characteristically delicate body that looked like it would break if hugged too tightly and a proud expression befitting her.

The other was a girl with her hair braided into three strands. Having beautiful facial features, decorated powerless half-opened eyes and model-like proportions made her all the more alluring to s.h.i.+dou"s eyes.

"Kaguya, Yuzuru…………….why are you here?"

Yes, the ones over there were the Spirits that had their Reiryoku sealed by s.h.i.+dou during the month before the last---------they were the sisters Yamai Kaguya and Yamai Yuzuru, who had transferred to 2nd Year cla.s.s 3 located beside s.h.i.+dou"s cla.s.s since the beginning of the semester.

At first they had planned to be transferred to Group 4, which was the same as s.h.i.+dou"s, but since unlike Tohka, who"s mental state would become unstable if she were to be separated from s.h.i.+dou, both of their mental states were stable as long as they were together. They therefore decided to be transferred to the neighboring cla.s.s.

Naturally since it was a.s.sembly time now, they were supposed to be lining up following their own cla.s.s separately. The Yamai sisters were also supposed to be forming a line with Group 3 separately.

However, the reason was immediately discovered. The excited students repeatedly chanting "Raizen" had made the line that formed to separate the cla.s.ses completely pointless.

"Fuu, nonetheless, as long as the Yamai sisters are here, Raizen"s victory will not be shaken."

"Agreed. Yuzuru and Kaguya"s combination is the strongest. We are invincible to any opponent that comes."

"Kuku, so that"s the case? That"s because, anything can be perfectly accomplished if Yuzuru goes."

"Affirmative. And Kaguya who is more perfect than Yuzuru is there too. There is no reason to lose."

"Iyaafufu………..Why you~, what~, it"s itchy Yuzuru. Tsun Tsun."

"Smile. Kaguya too. Tsun Tsun."

Saying such things, they cracked a happy smile while poking each other"s second arm.

"…………haha."

Looking at both of them like that, s.h.i.+dou cracked a powerless smile. After displaying the happy relations.h.i.+p of a sweet couple that has been dating for about one week, who on earth would believe that just around two months ago, these two sisters dragged an entire region into their big fight?

After appearing and quickly starting to make a world of their own, s.h.i.+dou s.h.i.+fted his sights from the Yamai sisters back to Tohka.

When he did that, Tohka made a difficult moan before, *fumu* nodding.

"I see………..which means there will be a lot of food shops right?"

"………..aah, un, well, that"s right."

When s.h.i.+dou said that while smiling powerlessly, Tohka pat her chin while *fun**fun* the breath coming out her nose becomes rough.

"Is that so, fumu, is that so……….fufu, I"m looking forward to it s.h.i.+dou. How many shops are there?"

"Uhn--, that"s…………."

"Let me explain!"

Faster than s.h.i.+dou replying back, this time a voice echoed from the front. Looking over, his cla.s.smate Tonomachi Hiroto was, standing there while taking a tokusatsu[6A 1]hero-like pose.

"Tonomachi, what"s with the hurry?"

"I will appear before the voices of damsels in distress. You wanted to know what kind of food stands there will be in the Tenou festival, right?" When Tonomachi said that, Tohka"s eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Ooh, do you know about it?"

"Of course! I investigated for Tohka-chan!"

After saying that, Tonomachi took out a memo book out from his pocket and flipped through it.

"Inside this, the information of all the 10 schools partic.i.p.ating in the Tenou festival refreshment booth"s is listed. All of the approximately 90 booths are in it!"

"Oooh!"

"Do you want me to tell you, Tohka-chan?"

"Umu, please tell me!"

"Then try begging for it!"

"I beg of you, s.h.i.+dou"s friend!"

She said that with a face that showed no care. There was not a speck of bad intention coming from that expression.

Tonomachi probably antic.i.p.ated that. After making a complicated face, *Kiii* he shot a glance in s.h.i.+dou"s direction.

s.h.i.+dou sighed, then whispered the name "Tonomachi Hiroto" into Tohka"s ear.

"Oooh……………I see. I beg you, Tonomachi!"

Upon hearing Tohka say his name with such energy, Tonomachi"s facial expression lightened up.

"O, one more time!"

"I beg you, Tonomachi!"

"Using the last name!"

"I beg you, Hiroto!"

"Using a pet name filled with affection!"

"I beg you, Hiropon!"

It turned into a name that sounded like a dangerous medicine but Tonomachi seemed to be satisfied by it. He twisted his body, as if overcome with emotion, and lowered his sight towards the memo book.

"I can"t refuse after being told like that! Let"s see……..speaking of refreshment booths, Eibunis.h.i.+ leaves excellent results every year. That"s because their home economics are strong. It"s a whole different level compared to the cooking club. Last year, the doner kebab stall was something thought of not as a school festival level…………."

"Aah…………..I think something like that happened now that I think about it."

"It seems this year"s main force is, [Meat War! The fastidiousness black minced cutlet]. Using luxurious ingredients such as Hokkaido"s j.a.panese black cattle or Kago Island"s black pig, and making it into a gem that doesn"t need sauce."

"Wha,what………….."

Tohka said that while shaking both her hands. Her eyes were glittering, and drool was flowing out from her mouth.

"The next thing is……….well probably it"s a.s.sociated with Senjou university. Those guys can use the escalator directly to university level because they are affiliated with the school, and have only until 3rd year to stand out."

"Fuun…………so the favorites are probably around that area."

When he said that, Tonomachi *Tsk**Tsk wagged his finger.

"What are you saying. Did you forget? The king, The Rindouji Academy for Girls."

"Ah---…….."

s.h.i.+dou scratched his cheeks. Now that he thought about it, he really had forgotten about it.--------Last year"s winning school.

"This year too, they are getting everything done perfectly………………Their self-awareness as the city"s most beautiful girls is nasty. The taste and ingredients are first-cla.s.s, but more than that, they get votes by courteously serving the customers. The refreshment booth they had last year was seriously just handing them money in a contact level similar to a handshake event level. I can"t remember how many times I lined up there."

"Don"t just go lining up seriously."

When s.h.i.+dou glared at Tonomachi, he then *cough* cleared his throat.

"We,well anyways, they are extremely scary Ojou-samas. Also, what"s more-------- one more thing happened in Rindouji this year, a suspicious rumor."

"Rumor?"

When s.h.i.+dou tilted his head, Tonomachi [aah] replied.

"Remember, didn"t it make news at the beginning of April? That a student transferred to Rindouji."

"April……….huh~"

s.h.i.+dou furrowed his eyebrows as if to search his memories once more but……….he couldn"t remember anything. Rather, speaking of April, his head was filled with the matter with Tohka. He didn"t have the pleasure to care about anything else.

"You"re serious? Don"t you remember? It"s Miku-tan you know, Miku-tan?"

"……..…….Who"s that?"

s.h.i.+dou honestly said that, not remembering anything.

Still, it seems that reply was something completely unbelievable to Tonomachi. After making a shocked face, he then changed his expression and suddenly. *PAChiiin!* Tonomachi pulled s.h.i.+dou"s cheeks.

"Wha,what was that for, all of a sudden?!"

"That"s my line! You b.a.s.t.a.r.d, I won"t let you say you don"t know the mysterious Izayoi Miku-tan!? Aah? Is it that? Is it that, "I have no interest in the idol everyone is *kya**kya* talking about?" Is it the typical cool character appeal?"

"It can"t be helped even if you say that right! It"s normal for someone to not know who---------------"

"Doesn"t exist! Doesn"t~~ Exist~~!! At the very least, the people inside our generation, there"s no one other than stupid Itsuka-kun that doesn"t know about the super national idol Miku-tan!"

"You said it!? Then what are you going to do if someone in our generation didn"t know about Miku-tan?!"

"Hah, the day that happens, I"ll kneel down on the ground and eat spaghetti with my a.s.s!!"

"Are you serious!?"

"YEAH!"

"Hey Tohka, do you know who Izayoi Miku is?"

"That"s cheating; Itsuka you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!?"

The moment s.h.i.+dou tried asking Tohka, Tonomachi clung onto s.h.i.+dou"s shoulders.

But, it seemed like that was unnecessary. Not only was Tohka completely unaware of their quarreling--------

"Umuu…….."

While making a dazed out face, she was holding out both her hands as if she was holding onto something. Then after opening her mouth wide and *pakun* eating empty s.p.a.ce, she then *chew**chew* start chewing before making an ecstatic expression.

It was an impossible air minced cutlet. Because she made such a realistic posture, even s.h.i.+dou and the others could see the shadow of the delicious looking minced cutlet.

"……….Oii~, Tohka?"

When he poked her shoulders while saying that, Tohka immediately twitched her body and wiped off her drool.

"Nu, What"s wrong s.h.i.+dou?"

"Hnn, nothing……………"

When he was told that with those carefree eyes, he somehow didn"t feel like finis.h.i.+ng his sentence. At the edge of his view, he saw Tonomachi *Houu* patting on his chest.

"But…………….I see. That"s very nice. Hey s.h.i.+dou, let"s go eating on that day!"

A smile floated on Tohka"s whole face while she stuck her right hand"s pinky finger up.

"Hnn?"

"Reine taught me this! It seems it"s called pinky swear"

"Aaah…………I see."

After s.h.i.+dou scratched his head, he stood his pinky up like her. For the first time, starting with Tonomachi, s.h.i.+dou"s whole body was getting pierced by stares coming from the few guys around them.

"Okay, then---------"

In that moment Tohka, moved her right hand closer to s.h.i.+dou"s.

When he thought a fast human shadow flew out from the crowd, she gently entangled her pinky finger with s.h.i.+dou"s, and at the same time, someone had grabbed Tohka"s pinky finger and twisted her finger joints.

"GuGyaa!"

Tohka jumped up, and pulled her right hand back in panic.

"O………..Origami!?"

s.h.i.+dou opened his eyes in surprise, and called the name of the intruder that appeared in between them.

Having silky hair that tickled the tip of her shoulders, and a shape like a doll------her face also held no expression like a doll. That was unmistakably s.h.i.+dou"s cla.s.smate and Tohka"s natural enemy; Tob.i.+.c.hi Origami.

"Pinky swear, if you lie then you will have to drink sleeping medicine in my room."

Origami spoke with a rhythm-less voice, then swung the hand that was connected to her pinky finger.

"Why is it sleeping medicine instead of 1000 needles!? What on earth are you planning to do!?"

"If it"s a boy then Takas.h.i.+, if it"s a girl then Chiyogami."

"What were you seriously planning to do!?"

While s.h.i.+dou continued shouting, Tohka lifted her face and glared at Origami sharply.

"Yo, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d! What were you trying to do!"

"This has nothing to do with you. On the day of Tenou festival, s.h.i.+dou and I promised that we would go around the booths together."

"Wha,what did you say!? Don"t screw with me! That promise is mine!"

When Tohka shouted, Origami *Fusu* made a breath out of her nose like she won and jerked her chin to show her pinky finger wrapped around s.h.i.+dou"s. Incidentally, his finger was being held by Origami"s pinky with monstrous strength, and it looked like it wouldn"t be easy to unfasten.

"Guh, le,let go you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!"

Tohka frowned her face and grabbed s.h.i.+dou and Origami"s wrist to pull them apart. But,

"When these fingers separate, it would mean [A pinky swear]-------signifying the completion of the promise."

"Wha………..! Don"t let go! You can"t let go!"

After Origami said that while remaining emotionless, she made a small nod.

"U,umu. If you do that then the promise will not complete. So with this………….."

Tohka made a relief sigh and patted herself on her chest-------and immediately [Hnn?] wrinkles formed between her eyebrows.

"Wait a second! If that"s the case, then it means you can"t let go of s.h.i.+dou!"

"That is inevitable. It"s something that can"t be helped."

"!? Yo, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d, you tricked me!?"

Shocked, Tohka said that with full detest.

"Oi, you two……………."

s.h.i.+dou twitched his cheeks while slowly losing feeling in his pinky finger wrist.

And at that moment, there was a slight change in the gymnasium that was covered with wild enthusiasm.

""Silence, gentleman. I have properly received all of your feelings.--------so with that, I have one wish""

After saying that, Ai took the mike and continued.

""My beloved brethren, a small number of friends under Student Council President Kirisaki have fallen half-way in good-will. So, I want to invite comrades that are willing to succeed the President"s and the gang"s ideals. If there is such a person, name yourself!""

The students started getting noisy. Probably no one even understood the meaning of what they were just told.

Not long after, a student standing in front raised up her hand.

"Errr, what do you mean by that?"

After Ai scratched her head, she continued as if she forgotten the act she was going on until now.

""Unnnn………well put in simply, since Prez and the gang collapsed because of the stress and work load, we have no choice but to choose a subst.i.tute. Is there anyone willing to be in the executive committee for the Tenou festival?""

In that instant------

The students who were making voices loud enough to cause an earthquake were now completely quiet.

They were probably thinking this is bad, Ai made a gesture while a fellow entered and help.

""No well, even if we said this, most of the work has been done you know? It"s true, it"s true. All you have to do is sit down during the meeting! It"s seriously a super cozy committee meeting! It"s connected to the skill up so!""

For some reason, the phrases in the second half turned into an invitation for a part-time recruitment for a black organization.

The spirits of the students that were going wild just now, suddenly turned cold. In order not to make eye contact with Ai, everyone started averting their sights.

But s.h.i.+dou didn"t have the pleasure to notice the change of atmosphere in the gymnasium.

"I get it!"

After Tohka opened her mouth after she thought of something, the opposite side of Origami------she intertwined her pinky finger with s.h.i.+dou"s left hand"s pinky finger.

"How about this!? With this, it"s a tie!"

"A pinky swear done with the left hand signifies the end of a relations.h.i.+p; it shows that you don"t want to be a.s.sociated with that person anymore."

"Wh, wha………….!?"

Tohka let out a horrified voice, and after alternately looking at s.h.i.+dou"s face and their connected fingers, she made a face as if she was going to cry any moment.

"s.h.i.+,s.h.i.+dou! I-it"s wrong, I didn"t mean to………..!"

"…………..No, I"ve never heard that before."

When s.h.i.+dou said that, Tohka immediately opened her eyes in wonder and-----------

"Da, d.a.m.n you, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d! Not once but twice!"

She shouted like that and pulled s.h.i.+dou"s pinky finger. Origami not wanting to lose, pulled s.h.i.+dou towards herself by only using the fulcrum of her pinky finger.

"Oucoucoucoucoucoucoucouch! St,stop!"

If this was the child fight of Ouka Echizen, then it should be about time when one of them let go of their hands but in reality, it wasn"t that kind of fight. Both of them put more energy into it.---

"Kuku……………. You people, what are you doing on your own accord after leaving us out? In such a pleasant festival like this, wasn"t it already decided s.h.i.+dou was going to indulge in such a pleasure with us?"

"Warning. s.h.i.+dou is Yuzuru and Kaguya"s shared property. It is not exempted even to Master Origami. In case one wants to borrow him, please apply and compile the doc.u.ments at the very least one week before the date."

The Yamai sisters who were flirting around joined in the commotion and barged into the conversation. Since s.h.i.+dou couldn"t move, both of them snuggled in from the front and back.

"Un, unu! Kaguya and Yuzuru, even you two as well!"

"…………., If you two don"t want to die, you should go away."

Putting more strength into it, both his hands were pulled.

"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!?"

"Why you………..! Isn"t s.h.i.+dou getting hurt?! Let go already!"

"That is my line. You should release him as fast as possible."

"Kuku, you two can continue your unproductive fighting."

"Consent. In that time, Yuzuru and Kaguya will have him."

What"s more, the worst thing happened, since their surroundings turned unusually quiet just now, there was a lot of attention acc.u.mulating. Starting with Tonomachi, the male students were *grind**grind* grinding their teeth while shooting sharp stares, while the female students started *chatter**chatter* talking.

And, when s.h.i.+dou thought Tonomachi turned his body around after glaring at him enviously, he raised his hands high up while shouting out in an unexpectedly loud voice.

"Chairman!"

""Yes, Tonomachi-kun?""

"I nominate Itsuka s.h.i.+dou-kun as the Tenou festival executive member!"

"Wha…….?!"

s.h.i.+dou opened his eyes wide at his friend"s sudden betrayal.

"Ton, Tonomachi you b.a.s.t.a.r.d! What are you sayi……….oucoucoucouch!?"

He voiced his objection but he was interrupted because of the strong winch coming from his left and right hands.

At the same time, the guys who were approved by Tonomachi started raising their voices one after another.

"Agreed! I"m counting on you, Itsuka-kun!"

"Agreed! Itsuka is the only one we can entrust our will with!"

"Agreed! Get worked to death and sent to the hospital, d.a.m.n it!"

"Oi the last guy, your real motive came out!?"

Even when he shouted, the male student who showed no sympathy to s.h.i.+dou didn"t take back the last part. Incidentally, as if riding on, the girls send an Itsuka call together.

""Silence!""

And as if to stop all of that, Ai"s voice echoed from the stage.

In an instant, he thought Ai was just calming everyone down, but………..as expected, that kind of thoughts was too naïve.

""I have properly obtained everyone"s voices! 2nd Year Group 4 Itsuka s.h.i.+dou-kun, due to the large number of people who have agreed with the nomination, you will be appointed as the Tenou festival executive committee!""

"Wai………!"

""OOooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooohh!""

s.h.i.+dou"s voice was swallowed by the large cheer that shook the gymnasium.

In the suite room of the top floor in the Imperial hotel located at the west side of Tenguu city, Isaac Westcott sat down while sighing. He raised his chin while slightly flicking the tip of his dark ash blonde hair, and further narrowed his eyes which looked like sharpened blades.

Right now, the thing that Westcott was looking at was a bundle of doc.u.ments bound together with a clip. He distorted the side of his lips while s.h.i.+fting his sights to his left.

"-------I see. Not only the AAA rank Spirit but also a boy who can use the Spirit"s power. Those two going to the same school, is certainly quite interesting."

"Yes."

The one that was on hold there was, the girl that created those doc.u.ments.

Ellen M Mathers: DEM industries prided, humanity"s strongest Wizard.

"What"s more, "s airs.h.i.+p appeared at that spot."

. That name had a deep connection with Westcott and Ellen.

Using peaceful means to contain the s.p.a.cequake outbreak, and providing protection to the main cause; the Spirits. It was an organization that held the ideal that spat out random words that could only be spat out while drinking sake[6A 2].

Westcott couldn"t hold back his smile and placed his hands on his mouth.

"Kuku, I wonder why, I am a little happy. --------Those greenhorns, to think they outwitted me."

"I wonder if that is so. I can only feel discomfort."

Ellen replied without leaving any gap in between. Finding Ellen quite weird, Westcott used the hand that was placed on his mouth, and covered his face before laughing.

Probably not satisfied with Westcott"s reaction, Ellen did not change her expression, and looked at Westcott with a slightly stern expression. After Westcott swung his hand around as if to apologize, he talked.

"So, how is that side going?"

"Smoothly. Ten personnel under Adeptus 3 have been a.s.signed to the executive team starting today."

"Enough."

He nodded, satisfied. In order for this to be forced through, several bribes would be needed, but-------------well that was probably trivial.

It"s true, establis.h.i.+ng a new system or organization was the better and efficient way to move his Wizards around. But it required a large sum of funds as well as time. In order to use military weapons in public, this was the most reliable and quickest way to do it.

"Itsuka-------s.h.i.+dou."

He lowered his sights at the doc.u.ments once more and read out the name written on it.

At that moment, Westcott exaggeratedly shrugged his shoulders.

"But so, the most important photo is not here. This is unlike you."

Yes. There were several pictures of Yatogami Tohka taken from a distance attached on the doc.u.ments, but there was none for this boy.

"I didn"t think any other doc.u.ment other than the Spirit was needed. I will get it ready immediately."

"No, it"s okay.------instead, I want to meet the real him soon."

When he said that, Ellen made a small sigh.

"Understood. Without fail."

"Aah, I"m expecting it."

After Westcott said that, he threw the doc.u.ments onto the table and stood up from the sofa.

"------Oh yeah, one more thing."

He then slowly walked over to Ellen, and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"If is involved with them…………..then don"t you think we should give them a grand welcome?"

"A welcome?"

"Aah, that"s correct. A big welcome grand enough to give those arrogant pacifists a good punch in the head and a wake up call."

After saying that, Westcott leaked out a chuckle.

It was 17:30 and the sun had completely set. s.h.i.+dou was walking on the dim road completely exhausted.

"I-I"m tired……….."

In the end after that s.h.i.+dou, unable to oppose some of the mayhem, was officially appointed as the Tenou Festival"s executive committee and halfway through was forced to take over the work.

Starting from choosing the set-up for the booths, because after dividing and distributing the budget to each matters, he also had to cram all types of other information together in one go. Thanks to all that, his mental exhaustion was much more serious than his physical fatigue. I see, if someone were to deal with this amount of information, it"s no wonder their stomach would hurt. It"s quite amazing Ai Mai Mii were still going on filled with energy.

While swinging his grocery bag on his left and his school bag on his right hand, he walked normally on the road.

Today rather than the super market, he finished his shopping in the nearby south shopping district. At first he didn"t want to go to the super market because he was tired but, putting it in words…………..

("It"s almost the Tenou Festival season, I am counting on you this year too you know---? Here, take these green peppers with you.")

("The ground meat is off by a few grams too much? Haha, just eat a lot and refill your energy completely.")

("This? Take it. It"s okay, it"s okay. Here, give it to the girl that you always come with.")

Just like that, he was given stuff from people he knew from all directions.

Since people start to acc.u.mulate inside the city when it"s the Tenou Festival, the nearby shopping districts started getting lively. In reality, it seems it was the time to earn profit after the New Years.

While looking at the colorful posters of the Tenou Festival pasted lined up on the walls of the street, he cracked a small smile. Just having this profitable week, the Tenou Festival contributed greatly to the Itsuka family"s finance.

"……………Hn?"

And, at that point s.h.i.+dou stopped his legs.

In front of s.h.i.+dou-------------on top of the street being s.h.i.+ne at by a streetlight, he saw a small human shape there.

Putting on a straw hat with wide visors, and wrapped in a lightly colored one piece, there was a pet.i.te girl. Having beautiful blue eyes and the rabbit puppet worn on her left hand left an impression. It would seem she was looking at the poster pasted on the wall. With complete interest, she opened her big eyes even wider.

"Yos.h.i.+no?"

"…………….!"

When he called her name, the girl----------Yos.h.i.+no twitched her shoulders in surprise and turned her sights towards s.h.i.+dou.

"Ah……….s.h.i.+dou, san."

"Oooh, Found ya~"

After Yos.h.i.+no said that with a soft voice, the puppet on her hand [Yos.h.i.+non] spoke in a high-pitched voice.

"What"s wrong? Why are you in a place like this? It"s already this dark…………"

"Ah,err…………..I, went to s.h.i.+dou-san"s house just now, but…………….s.h.i.+dou-san was late and Kotori-san was getting worried……….so………….."

It seemed she had came to check up on his condition. s.h.i.+dou scratched his head.

"I see. But it"s already this dark. The two of you coming out alone isn"t a good idea."

When s.h.i.+dou said that, Yos.h.i.+no shrugged her shoulders apologetically.

"Ah, auuu……………"

"Don"t get angry please~. Yos.h.i.+no didn"t have any bad intentions~. She was worried about s.h.i.+dou-kun you know~~."

"I get it. Thank you, Yos.h.i.+no."

"Y,yes….!"

After saying that, Yos.h.i.+no made a big nod. Probably because of the big straw hat, s.h.i.+dou could not see her face from the position he was at.

"You haven"t had dinner yet right? It"s going to be quite late so, come over and eat."

"Yes…………thank you very much. And, err, there is one thing I want to ask but…………."

Yos.h.i.+no then slowly used her right hand"s index finger, and pointed it towards the poster she was looking at just now.

"This is……..what………"

"Hnn? It"s the Tenou Festival."

After s.h.i.+dou made a small nod, he then gave a simple explanation of the Tenou festival similar to the one he talked with Tohka.

When he did that, Yos.h.i.+no groaned in a somewhat interested manner.

"Is there……………something like that………."

"Haa~ It looks fun~"

"Aah, it"s fun. If it"s alright, why don"t Yos.h.i.+no and Yos.h.i.+non come too?"

When he said that, Yos.h.i.+no opened her eyes wide as if she was surprised.

"!, I-is that………okay………..?"

"Of course. Since my school is also displaying a lot of things, come over and play."

"AaRaa~~ Good for you, Yos.h.i.+no."

"U,un………….!"

[Yos.h.i.+non] poked Yos.h.i.+no"s cheek. And Yos.h.i.+no consented happily.

He doesn"t feel bad after being shown such happiness. s.h.i.+dou somehow in a bright feeling, headed on home with Yos.h.i.+no together.

"-------I"m back."

Since both of his hands were occupied, he had Yos.h.i.+no open the door and raised his voice towards the deep part of the hallway.

He then placed the luggage on the doorway and after taking off his shoes, *BATAN!* the living room was burst opened and a young girl with a black ribbons tying her hair flew towards him. And then,

"You"re Laaaaaaaaaaateeeeeeeeee!"

At the same time with her raising a shout, she magnificently gave a flying kick towards s.h.i.+dou"s stomach.

"Ugaah……………..!?"

From the sudden attack, he fell right on to his b.u.t.t. After he stood up while rubbing his stomach which held a dull pain, his sister was standing there making a daunting pose while holding an unhappy expression.

"Fuun………. Ugaah you say. Why don"t you go do karaoke?"

"Wha,what"s with you, suddenly…………."

"………….That"s my line. Why are you so late? Not even one phone call back."

s.h.i.+dou scratched his cheeks. It"s true he was late, but it was still after 8pm.

"I"m sorry. I was suddenly made the executive committee for the festival."

"Executive committee."

When Kotori heard what s.h.i.+dou said, for some reason, she made a sigh.

"………………..It"s not like your health turned bad, or something like that right?"

"eh?"

"…………Nothing. ---------More importantly, what"s the idea calling Yos.h.i.+no to bring yourself back. It"s already this dark"

"No, that"s…………"

He tried to object but……………he stopped his words.

"Hnn, I guess so, sorry. I"ll be careful from now on"

"Ah…………er,err, Kotori-san, s.h.i.+dou-san is…………….."

"It"s okay."

s.h.i.+dou stopped Yos.h.i.+no who was trying to defend him. For some reason, after looking at that, Kotori distorted her face unhappily further more.

*Fun*She then rang her nose and walked towards the living room.

Until they were unable to see her back, Yos.h.i.+no lowered her head apologetically.

"I"m very sorry……………because of me………."

"Don"t mind it."

After muttering that, s.h.i.+dou made a nod. Taking today as a good example, speaking of which, last month around the time s.h.i.+dou came back from the school trip, Kotori was kind of strange.

It was not like she was different from usual but, when s.h.i.+dou turns sluggish, for some reason she gets oddly un-calm.

After s.h.i.+dou scratched his head and stood up from that spot, he grabbed the groceries and walked to the living room. Yos.h.i.+no followed after him.

At that moment, he noticed the door of the living room was slightly opened. Coming from that gap, there was an eye peeping out releasing a stare. ------It was Kotori who was supposed to have left after going deep inside the room.

"Wha, what. Is there something more?"

When s.h.i.+dou said that, coming from the door *korokorokoro*……………..he heard the cute sound of a stomach growling.

"…………………"

Kotori"s cheeks blushed. After s.h.i.+dou lowered his bag, *sigh* he exhaled before loosening his expression.

"Is there something particular you want to eat?"

"…………hamburger."

"Now………….?"

It was a menu that requires quite some time. s.h.i.+dou confirmed the current time on his phone clock.

When he did that, on the screen, he found Kotori"s missed calls being displayed on it. ……………….it would seem, she was quite worried about him.

"…………………."

After s.h.i.+dou put away his phone, he swung his shoulders around while walking towards the living room.

"It"s going to take some time alright?"

"………………hn."

With a stern expression, Kotori went inside the living room and dived onto the sofa.

When he brought his eyes towards there, he found out there was someone else inside the living room other than Kotori. Tohka who finished changing her clothes at the mansion next door was holding a game controller in front of the television.

s.h.i.+dou did not hear her say she would wait for him until the executive meeting ended, but as expected since it had become late, she went on ahead and returned home before him.

"Ooh s.h.i.+dou, welcome home! Rather, Kotori! Hurry up and help me!"

Tohka shouted while moving her body left and right matching the screen. But Kotori buried her face on the cus.h.i.+on and let out a mumbling voice.

"Hnn…………..Yos.h.i.+no, please."

"Eh,eeh……………?"

Yos.h.i.+no who was suddenly appointed as her successor, ran towards Tohka"s side in panic.

"Eh, errr………..this, what should I……….."

"If you go ZUGAAT then PIIT then it will BAAN! Over there!"

"Er, err………..that……."

"Well, getting used to it is better than learning. Yos.h.i.+non will be in charge of the left while I leave the right to Yos.h.i.+no okay~~"

"I-I understand……….."

Yos.h.i.+no and [Yos.h.i.+non] grabbed the controller at the same time and joined the game.

"………..haha."

After looking at that, s.h.i.+dou randomly just threw his bag and then finished off was.h.i.+ng his hands and rinsing his mouth before reaching towards the ap.r.o.n being hanged on the back chair.

And, by the time he started peeling the skin of the onion off, Kotori who was lying on the sofa suddenly raised her face and talked to him.

"………………nee, s.h.i.+dou. Is there really nothing?"

"Hnn? What, are you worried about me?"

"Y,you"re wrong! Yeah…………..it"s Tohka, Tohka! It will be big trouble if Tohka"s mental state collapses if anything happens to s.h.i.+dou! That"s why I am saying you have to properly maintain your health!"

"Yeah yeah."

When s.h.i.+dou said that while laughing, Kotori raised her body and set her sights to him with a sullen angered expression.

Tohka who noticed her name being called, [What!?] raised her voice, but it would seems that the boss character appeared at that moment. She then immediately returned back to the game.

Kotori made a sigh and laid her body on the back of the sofa. She then continued talking in a volume where Tohka and Yos.h.i.+no could not hear.

"……………….but, seriously be careful. It has become quite a troublesome situation."

"A troublesome situation?"

When he asked that, Kotori [eh] nodded.

"There is quite many but…………well for the time being it"s ."

"…………..? What"s that. A spirit"s code-name?"

"Five years ago, it"s the [something] that appeared in front of us. It"s quite inconvenient using [something] every time. We gave it a convenient code-name in the last meeting."

"Aah…………err."

5 years ago. Giving Kotori spirit powers and sealing s.h.i.+dou and Kotori"s memories. Even not knowing if it"s a spirit or not------ an unknown existence.

It"s true that existence is a problem. Furthermore even now, its image or motive is completely shrouded in mystery.

"And one more thing--------it"s that company."

"DEM company…………….right?"

When s.h.i.+dou said that, he saw Kotori lowering her head to the front.

It was a matter that happened last month. s.h.i.+dou who was having his school trip on a certain island encountered the two-team spirits Yamai Kaguya and Yamai Yuzuru. During that occasion, he also met the wizard Ellen M Mathers, robotic dolls that can use CR-units, and, what"s more, they were also attacked by a giant Airs.h.i.+p.

The culprit was DEM------DEUS EX MACHINA industries.

It was a company that advances in various fields but, following its roots, it seems it rapidly grew from a defense industry. It was not open to the public, but it would seem the one"s manufacturing the Realizer for the JSDF"s AST to use was also the DEM Company.

"But………………somehow I don"t feel the reality of it even now. For that DEM company to do something like……………."

"Don"t sleep talk. If those fellows have such ethics then Mana wouldn"t be-----------"

"Eh?"

Hearing Kotori words, s.h.i.+dou twitched his eyebrows.

"Mana……………? Did something happen to Mana?"

That name. Someone that appeared in front of them before. It was the girl that announced herself as s.h.i.+dou"s real sister, but she was injured and suffered terrible wounds from a fight with a spirit and was supposed to be receiving treatment in the hospital.

After Kotori made a [Oh no] face, she shut her lips tightly and looked away.

"O, Oi, what do you mean. What happened to Mana…………"

As expected, he couldn"t just ignore that. He placed the onion that was on his hands on the table and removed the ap.r.o.n while walking towards the living room after walking around the dining table.

But, the moment s.h.i.+dou stood in front of Kotori--------

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU--------------

"……………! Wha------"

The living room"s big window slightly shook and the s.p.a.cequake alarm inside the city rang.

In an instant, Kotori stood up straight, turned her skirt around and slipped through under s.h.i.+dou"s armpit.

"O-o-oi! I haven"t finished talking yet------"

"Will you do that later? s.h.i.+dou get ready. ---------it"s time for work."

After saying it like that, Kotori took one Chupa chaps from the candy holder equipped inside her skirt that looks like a leg holster, unwrapped it and shove it into her mouth.

Going a little back in time, inside the Tenguu JSDF garrison.

"------Master sergeant Tob.i.+.c.hi Origami. You are hereby released from the imposed house arrest. We will have you return to AST common tasks as well as training."

"Roger."

Hearing those words given by a superior in a room of the base, Origami replied back with a salute.

Yes. Since Origami committed a grave deplorable act back in April, during this whole time she was banned from using the Realizer as well as joining activities inside the JSDF.

Naturally she would be lacking basic training but, since she can"t use the Realizer, there is no way she can join the Spirit countering trainings. Origami had been going through around 2 months while grinding her teeth filled with the feeling of being powerless and impatient.

Nonetheless, if she thought about the original situation where receiving a criminal punishment rather than a disciplinary discharge was not strange, just to be able to once again join the team was something like a miracle.

"There won"t be a next time. If there is a repeat case like this, then bear in mind the fact that you will never return back onto the team."

"Understood."

And, when Origami replied with those short words, the room door opened without getting knocked on.

"…………..?"

Origami turned her head around, and confirmed the culprit before doubtfully raising her eyebrows.

"…………….Captain Kusakabe?"

Yes. The person that entered the room excessively excited was the AST captain that keeps talking about courtesy and budget, Kusakabe Ryouko.

But completely opposite to what Origami"s thoughts were, after Ryouko walked heavily further inside while p.i.s.sed, she then slammed the bundle of doc.u.ments that was in her hands onto the superior officer"s table.

"What do you mean by this!"

"Wha,what on earth, is it…………….."

Tsukamoto Sansa was also pressured by Ryouko"s threatening att.i.tude, and his body reacted without asking her to watch her manners.

"What happened?"

When she asked that, Ryouko finally noticed Origami"s existence.

"Aah………..Origami. Speaking of which, today was your team reestablishment. -------Good timing. What do you think about this?"

After saying that, she gave her the bundle of doc.u.ments that was slammed onto the table to her. Origami lowered her sights towards the page.

"This is………"

Towards the unbelievable content written on it, she slightly brought her eyebrow roots together.

"This organizing is too much! 10 members from foreign countries……………and what"s more that independent team is granted special discretion during unusual circ.u.mstances……….!? What on earth is the higher ups thinking!"

After saying that, Ryouko once again *BAM* slammed the table. Tsukamoto Sansa *twitch* shook his shoulder in shock.

The thing written on that doc.u.ment was information regarding the new AST members.

That itself isn"t much of a problem.

But, the number of new AST members added was more than 10------what"s more all of them are members transferred from DEM industries. Adding to the fact that all of the members were foreigners, then it"s a different case.

On top of that, they have the authority to free themselves from Ryouko"s direct commands when deemed necessary. This is the equivalent of buying stocks and then subsequently losing control of them due to the company"s actions.

"The AST isn"t a baseball team right!? There shouldn"t be any foreigners able to join the team right!? On top of that, I think there is some problem with giving them these authorities!"

"Tha,That is…………."

Sakamoto faltered. After Ryouko scratched her head in irritation, and [I don"t want to talk with you anymore] turned around.

But, at that moment, the room door once again opened, albeit slowly this time.

And then--------- around 10 foreigners entered the room one after another.

"----Ara?"

And thus, probably after looking at Ryouko and Origami, the redhead female leading them distorted her lips. She was probably around Ryouko"s age.

Maybe due to her eyes having an angled feature, she was a woman that would make someone somehow think of a fox.

"Those faces look like you"ve seen the doc.u.ments. AST"s miss captain and------yes, was it Tob.i.+.c.hi Origami?"

After saying it in a unique international way, the woman thickens her smile.

"……….You are?"

Ryouko asked back. When she did that, the woman nodded exaggeratedly before bringing forth her right hand.

"I am Jessica Bayley and I have been a.s.signed into the AST as of today. Please take care of me from now on."

"…….fuun."

After Ryouko distorted her face unpleasantly, she then flipped her hands and pressed Jessica"s right hand, before exchanging a handshake.

"I don"t know the reason that you came here for, but I won"t let you do things as you please here. As long as you are affiliated with the AST, you will have to follow my orders."

When she said that, Jessica opened her eyes in surprise and turned her eyes towards her subordinate her before shrugging her shoulders.

"If we follow your orders, will we be able to defeat the Spirit?"

"………..What did you say?"

"We have heard a lot of the you peopleAST. These past few years, while being a team that counters Spirit"s in the area where the world"s most s.p.a.cequake occurrence areas happen, you people are the Omamagoto[6A 3] team that has not even once hunted down a single Spirit."

"Wha-----"

Jessica distorted her eyebrows and moved her sights from Ryouko to Origami.

"I have also heard about you, you know? You seem to have went to kill a Spirit on your own accord and had received a house arrest as a result. Ahaha, you might be the one a little close to us."

When Origami remained silent, Jessica closed in to her face.

"But, it"s not good. You"re not worth the talk. For unreasonably trying to use the defective unit , in the end, there were no results brought out, right? Fufu, unsightly."

When Jessica said that while grinning, the members behind her started to leak giggles out.

"Captain, don"t you think that is too much?"

"You can"t compare our standards with this far-east worthless team."

"Isn"t that right.? It"s not like they want to be this weak."

The woman with freckles, the woman with a thick lip and the woman with narrow eyes-----following in that order, made fun of the people before them. Origami gritted her teeth while not changing her expression.

"Ara, are you angry? Kyahaha, what are you going to do after getting angry? You people who have not even defeated a Spirit, did you actually think you could match us who are the DEM Adeptus numbers?"

"……………..Hey, all of you enou-------"

And, when Ryouko was about to stop Jessica...

Coming from nearby, a high-pitched alarm rang and echoed.

"……………! Get ready to dispatch! Your skills haven"t dulled yet right!?"

"Naturally."

When Origami replied and started to run, once again Jessica and the group made a smile.

"Whether or not your skills gotten dull or not, isn"t it the same if you can"t kill the Spirit?"

"………………"

"Stop, Origami. Now is not the time for that."

When Origami glared at Jessica, Ryouko entered between them to stop them.

"We will also dispatch. No matter what you say, we have to protect this city no matter what………….what will all of you do?"

"Ahh, us? Let"s see………..alright, it"s a nice timing anyways so, we will also sortie. We will teach you people the way to fight. However-------"

Jessica made one finger stand up before, continuing her words.

"We have a special mission wrapped around us. Depending on the situation, we will have you let us prioritize that first."

"………….Special, mission?"

Origami said that while distorting her eyebrows.

Wondering why, coming from those words, she felt an uneasy echo coming out from it.

"Kuh……………"

s.h.i.+dou unintentionally frown his face. The same time with a weird levitating feeling like riding a high speed elevator wrapping his body, the scenery being shown in his view has changed from a gloomy building interior to the streets at night.

Due to an equipment installed inside , within a second, he was transported with a speed that is half of an instant. While pus.h.i.+ng his forehead to stay conscious in his drunk-like distorted conscious, s.h.i.+dou stepped on the ground with his foot.

After the haziness disappeared from his view, he fixed himself and looked at his surroundings.

The place s.h.i.+dou went down to was a plaza placed in front of the Tatsunami station located at the west side of Tenguu city.

Since it was a station closest to the multipurpose event hall the Tenguu arena, during the days where live concerts or events take place, it was a spot that will be filled with people. Last time, when s.h.i.+dou pa.s.sed by the area not knowing there was a live concert of a popular band taking place, he was shocked by the huge number of people.

But, right now in front of the station, he could not see even a single shadow of a person.

That was also a normal thing. The scenery that unfolded inside s.h.i.+dou"s view was of a huge portion of the area that was gouged out, resulting in a crater. A large section of the plaza in front of the station was lost and only a part of the fence was left intact.

s.p.a.cequake. The outbreak type calamity that ruins the humans and the world.

It is a wide area tremor phenomenon that makes [Things over there] disappear in an instant.

"Looks like you reached the spot safely."

Coming from the small incam equipped into his right ear, he heard Kotori"s voice.

Right now the Commander of Kotori was monitoring s.h.i.+dou"s condition from the airs.h.i.+p from its position in the sky, 15000 meters above him.

"The Spirit"s readings have been heading south ever since the s.p.a.cequake occurred. Please Hurry."

"Understood………..!"

After replying, he started running.

---Spirit. Being called as the worst thing that destroys the world, they are special calamity designated creatures.

s.p.a.cequake is an aftereffect that occurs when the Spirit appears here from the dimension called the [Other world].

"……….ototo."

While almost slipping down, he somehow managed to continue running. There was probably a live concert or an event taken place recently because the illuminated street was scattered with colorful leaflets and fans with pictures printed on it. In an instant, he thought it was the bad manners of the audiences but, if the s.p.a.cequake alarm suddenly rings, they would probably have no choice but to throw the leaflets they were holding and start running.

"Kotori, where"s the Spirit"s readings!?"

"Please wait for a second. We are trying to get a precise coordinate right-------"

And, during that instant when Kotori was saying that, s.h.i.+dou twitched his eyebrows in surprise.

In front-------coming from the Tenguu arena, he could hear something coming from there.

"This is………a song………?"

Yes. He could only hear a little because the walls were blocking the noise, but that is unmistakably a [song].

There"s no way. After the s.p.a.cequake alarm rang, even after all the audiences evacuated, there was a singer that stayed behind and continued singing alone on stage. For an instant that thought floated in his mind---------he immediately shook his head.

s.h.i.+dou pushed open the door half dumbfounded, and stepped into the arena.

And then, he walked forward until he could see the whole view of the stage.

That moment--------s.h.i.+dou"s body was a.s.saulted by an overwhelming feeling.

In the middle of the arena. Most likely the actors or staff members evacuated the area after leaving the stage"s equipme