"Alright, let's go!"
"Yes!"
Nanoha and I launched from the Section 6 base.
The transport aircraft carrying Index had come under attack. We had no further information. We didn't know who the enemy was or how much damage had been done; all we received was an emergency call.
We had changed into our combat uniforms.
Nanoha, of course, was in her familiar Barrier Jacket.
I wore a replica suit and then equipped the Gundam armor on top of it. I also summoned two more Gundams: the Z Gundam and the Wing Gundam. They were both transformed into their respective Waverider and Bird modes.
"Replica, I'm entrusting you with the control."
"Understood."
I used the Gundam's thrusters to take flight, using the Waverider like a base unit.
"If you're here, Shō-kun, it's like we have a whole army by ourselves."
"Not quite. I can't unleash 100% of their performance with my control."
Replica gently denied it.
We flew through the sky, heading for the location of the transport aircraft that was sending the distress signal. We quickly spotted our target.
The transport plane was above the island, surrounded by numerous egg-shaped machines.
"Those are... Gadgets!? Why are there Gadgets here!?"
"...Indeed. What in the world is happening?"
Nanoha's voice was filled with surprise. I was also taken aback by the unexpected enemy.
I had assumed it would be a magical attack, but the opponents were Gadgets. What kind of enemy is behind this?
There were many unknowns, but there was only one thing we needed to do right now.
"I'll destroy the Gadgets!"
"Be careful because of the AMF! And don't hit the transport plane by mistake!"
"Got it!"
I held a beam rifle in both hands, equipped a shield on my back, and increased the speed of the Waverider. The Wing Gundam followed in perfect synchronization.
I also began to enhance Nanoha's abilities with the power of the Princess Knight.
"I'll go ahead!"
"Just like in practice!"
Since my combat power is less susceptible to the effects of the AMF, I took the vanguard position while Nanoha provided support. This was the strategy we had been practicing lately.
I closed in to the effective range of the rifle. The combination of the machine's correction and my ability (Kinji's gunmanship) gave me the sensation that the muzzle was being drawn to the target.
I pulled the trigger.
With a familiar sound, a pink flash shot out in a straight line, piercing through the Gadget stuck to the side of the transport plane.
After their comrade was destroyed, the Gadgets targeted me. They didn't change color or make a sound, but I could sense their anger.
"Take this!"
I pulled the trigger again without hesitation, blowing up two Gadgets that were lined up in my firing path.
Opponents of this caliber are no match for me. Of course, I wouldn't let my guard down, but I didn't feel any undue tension either.
I continued to calmly eliminate the Gadgets.
---------
"He's good..."
Nanoha murmured as she watched Shō fly around the transport plane, shooting down Gadgets.
The Gadgets were clinging to the transport plane, so she had warned him to be careful of misfires, but watching him, she felt there was no need to worry.
Every shot was a bullseye. He was hitting even the Gadgets that were on the very edge of the plane. And this was while he was riding an SFS (Sub Flight System), which limited his firing angles.
He wasn't just shooting, either; he was also mixing in a technique that used Nanoha's guided missiles to curve the trajectory of his beam—a technique he had taught her during training, calling it "Chain Cannon."
On top of that, he was simultaneously enhancing Nanoha's abilities.
"(It makes sense that everyone is so focused on him...)"
She understood the complexity of Shō's situation without even needing to ask. Not only was he a Stand user, but he also seemed to have a constitution that attracted trouble, as he was constantly getting caught up in tricky situations.
And he had faced all of them head-on without turning away.
She had also come to understand that he had a tendency to shoulder too much, and in some ways, she felt he was similar to her younger self.
That's why she wanted to guide him properly as his instructor.
And also as her best friend's love interest.
"(Well, that part might be a little complicated.)"
Nanoha smiled wryly, thinking about how Shō's problems weren't just about fighting but also about his romantic entanglements.
"Accel Shooter!"
She was deep in thought, but Nanoha wasn't just idling. She launched a barrage of guided missiles processed for anti-AMF, accurately hitting the Gadgets that Shō had missed.
"Raising Heart, please collect the wreckage."
She had entrusted Raising Heart with the task of collecting the wreckage of the destroyed Gadgets. This was for two reasons: to get clues about the attack from the debris and to prevent secondary damage from the wreckage falling into the city.
One after another, the Gadgets ceased to function and fell. But when they reached a certain altitude, they stopped perfectly in mid-air.
It was the levitation magic controlled by Raising Heart.
"As long as no strange intruders show up, this should be fine... That's not a flag, is it?"
Nanoha was thinking something very rude about Shō, but she wasn't him, so it was probably fine.
As Nanoha had thought, the number of Gadgets was steadily decreasing.
---------
There were only a few Gadgets left. Everything was going smoothly. I had thought the transport plane had taken a lot of damage, but it had surprisingly little. Maybe the people inside were defending it.
Just then, Replica spoke to me.
"Shō. It seems this transport plane is being hacked."
"From where?"
"It's not a remote hack; it's being hacked directly. It's the Gadget near the cockpit."
"Got it!"
After the sensor scan, we had prioritized the cockpit area last, knowing there were no people there. As a result, the number of Gadgets swarming the cockpit area was the same as when we had arrived.
Even as I was taking down the surrounding Gadgets, those ones never joined the fight.
"Nanoha-san, please handle the rest!"
"Got it!"
The conversation with Replica was being transmitted through my thought-link with Nanoha-san. She had heard the conversation, too.
I pulled out my saber and leaped from the Waverider. The Gadget in the cockpit, now a target, was finally trying to take a fighting stance, but it was too late.
Faster than it could fire a beam, I skewered the Gadget.
"Alright...!"
"I'm done over here, too."
I looked around, and all the Gadgets around the transport plane had been shot down.
There were no signs of reinforcements.
"Is this the end...?"
"It appears so. It was a rather half-hearted force."
As Replica said, it was a very half-hearted attack. Was this really all there was to it...?
It was unsatisfying, but the enemy seemed to have been completely eliminated.
The transport plane began to proceed to the airport without any problems.
It seemed that this was the end of the mission.
---------
After shooting down all the drones, we escorted the transport plane to the airport.
Watching the plane land on the runway, we headed for our designated landing space (the runway for planes and the landing area for those who use flight magic are different).
Following the air traffic control's instructions, Nanoha landed gracefully.
I jumped from the Waverider about 10 meters in the air, used the Gundam's thrusters, and landed with a loud Kachon!
"Alright. Replica, put away the Z Gundam and Wing Gundam."
"Understood."
With that voice, the two transformed machines dissolved into particles of light and vanished. They had returned to the hangar. I also released the Gundam armor.
All that was left was Replica in his Barrier Jacket form. Nanoha also hadn't released her Barrier Jacket. The area wasn't completely secured yet.
"Shō-kun, Subaru and the others have met up with the escort target. Should we head over too?"
"Yes."
We walked for about five minutes without taking any detours, arriving at a room in the airport.
When the door opened,
"Nanoha-san! Good work!"
"You too, Teana. And..."
Nanoha's gaze shifted behind Teana-san.
There, in addition to Kanzaki, whom we had met at Section 6, was a flamboyant man with a two-meter tall physique, bright red hair, and a barcode tattoo under his eye.
When the man saw us enter the room, he looked at Subaru, who was nearby.
"Oh, these are people from my unit! They were escorting the plane just now!"
"I see..."
The man looked at us directly and said,
"Thank you for your help just now. I am Stiyl Magnus, of the Church of Necessary Evil, Necessarius."
"I'm Takamachi Nanoha, of the Special Section 6 of the Bureau."
"And I'm Yotsuki Shō."
I was able to confirm their appearance and names.
And there was one more person.
"And that girl is..."
Even though Stiyl's large body was trying to hide her, Nanoha didn't miss the small figure behind him.
"..."
Stiyl didn't answer Nanoha's question, but
"It's okay, Stiyl," the person behind him said in a clear voice, stepping forward.
"A sister?"
Nanoha was stating the obvious.
She was a girl who looked very slender, although it was hard to tell for sure because she was wearing a slightly oversized nun's habit of pure white cloth with gold embroidery.
Her emerald green eyes looked straight at Nanoha-san as she said,
"I am Index-Librorum-Prohibitorum—the Index of the Anglican Church."
"...Huh?"
Nanoha didn't seem to understand what was said and looked at Teana-san and Subaru-san, who had already arrived.
"Yes..."
"It seems so..."
Nanoha was speechless.
She probably never dreamed that the "child of the Anglican Church" who possessed absolute power against magic would turn out to be this young girl.
"I hope we can get along," Index said, trying to be as polite as possible, and she bowed.
"Okay. Nice to meet you, Index-chan. Is that your real name?"
"Yeah. You can just call me Index."
Nanoha seemed to understand Index's feelings and immediately faced her with a firm attitude.
"Nice to meet you!"
"Nice to meet you, Index-san."
Following Nanoha's lead, Subaru and Teana also greeted her. These two didn't have any strange prejudices, even if the person in front of them was a grimoire library containing forbidden books.
Seeing this, Kanzaki and Stiyl seemed relieved. These two wouldn't be on the island forever. They would be under the care of the local Anglican Church and the Special Section 6. It must be a good thing for them to have people who understand their situation.
"Well, let's move now. There's no point in staying here."
"Shō-kun, you don't seem very surprised?"
"Huh? Oh, well... I guess things like this happen."
After all, I already knew about it.
What I was worried about was what was going to happen from now on.
The situation was completely different from the first volume of "A Certain Magical Index." Index clearly retained her memories of Stiyl and Kanzaki. If these two weren't going to be enemies, would those events be completely skipped?
That would be easy and fine, but then I'd be worried about what would happen to Index's biggest problem.
But I couldn't ask about it on our first meeting. No way. Absolutely not. It would lead to questions about how I knew such a top-secret matter.
I had no choice but to stop here for today.
"Alright, let's head to your accommodation. We'll take my car."
"Understood."
Kanzaki nodded at Teana-san's words.
"Nanoha-san, what should we do?"
"Since there was an attack, let's follow them all the way."
"Got it."
And so, we all headed to the Anglican Church group's accommodation. Everyone couldn't fit in Teana-san's car. The plan was for them to be transported by Teana-san's car from the airport, but it wasn't expected that Nanoha and I would be joining them.
So, we flew through the air.
Nothing happened, and we arrived at the accommodation. It was the Anglican Church on the island.
Subaru and Index got out of the car, chatting happily. It seemed they had become good friends during the ride. However, Index's expression seemed a bit unnatural.
Stiyl placed a hand on Index's shoulder and led her into the church.
"See you later, Index!"
"...Okay. Goodbye then."
Subaru waved goodbye cheerfully.
Seeing this, Kanzaki came over to us.
"Thank you very much for today. We were able to complete the transport safely, thanks to you."
"No problem. We're just glad everything ended well, despite the trouble."
"When can we see Index again!? I want to introduce her to everyone in Section 6!"
"...I'm sorry, but there are various procedures that need to be followed. I don't think we'll be able to contact you for about a week."
"...I see."
Subaru looked dejected like a child.
"Subaru, they have their own circumstances."
"Yeah... I know, Teana."
Seeing this, Kanzaki smiled kindly.
"Please, continue to be friends with her... and with her a week from now, as well."
"Yes! Of course!"
"You don't have to worry about this one. She can get along with anyone."
Subaru replied energetically.
But I was bothered by Kanzaki's last words.
"'...and with her a week from now, as well...'"
However, I didn't press the matter any further at the moment.
And so, the Index transport mission came to a relatively quick conclusion.
--------------------------------------------
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