"Phew, I'm so tired..."
My night shift is over, but I still have to go to school.
I wish they'd scheduled my night shifts on weekends, or given me the day off after one, but the Butei High School isn't that lenient.
I don't know when I'll be unable to attend, so I have to go while I can. Even if I fall asleep, I have to be in my seat to get attendance credit. Remedial classes are something I can deal with later.
I have to admit, my way of thinking is at its worst.
So, I'm heading straight to school from Division 6.
I don't have to go to Division 6 today since my night shift is over. It's basically a half day of school. After this, I'll rest to my heart's content.
Or so I thought...
"I was sound asleep..."
Thanks to Mrs. Natsuki not having a class, I wasn't forcibly woken up when I fell asleep. That's just how the teachers at Butei High are.
Before I knew it, class was over and it was lunchtime. I had planned to go home and rest, but now I'm not sleepy anymore.
"You must have been really tired."
"Yase..."
"Was there even a point in you coming today? You were asleep the whole time."
"Yeah, I guess so..."
I didn't mean to fall asleep. Well, I was tired, but I did try to fight the sleepiness. I just lost.
"That's pointless."
"I know, I'll make up for it on the test."
"It's impressive you can say that."
It's all thanks to my perfect memory.
"Speaking of which, where's Tsuchimikado?"
I don't see my second watchdog who's always bothering me.
"I don't know. He left somewhere after class. Said he had some business to take care of."
"Huh? That's unusual. He's never busy."
Could he have something more important to do than watch me? Is it related to Index?
Yase... well, he probably doesn't know the details. They're under different jurisdictions.
"Well, I'm heading home now."
I don't have anything to do at home, but I don't see the point in staying at school when I don't have classes.
"What about Princess Lara?"
"Ah, she's fine for today."
Kurumi's in charge of her again today.
Lara is a princess, but she still has to follow school rules. She has her own classes, and I can't attend them since we're in different years.
I said goodbye to Yase and left the classroom.
As I exited the school gate, I got an email.
"Hm... from Her Majesty the Holy Emperor?"
It was an unexpected sender.
But if I've been summoned, I can't just ignore it.
I changed my direction from home to the Holy Emperor's residence.
---------
"I apologize for calling you so suddenly."
"No, not at all."
30 minutes later, I was facing the Holy Emperor.
The table wasn't set with tea, but with lunch. It's probably because I got an additional email asking if I had already eaten on my way here.
I didn't have a reason to hold back, so I replied honestly, and now there was a meal set out.
"I should be the one apologizing for making you wait for lunch."
The Holy Emperor was wearing a school uniform, not her usual casual clothes (dress?). It was probably the uniform of the school she couldn't attend much due to her duties.
She must have made time to see me between her school and work.
"Oh, um, I've already been to school. I have work after this, so I have to change and leave soon."
"You're busy, aren't you?"
It was between school and work. But it was still busy.
"Well then, let's start our conversation. Oh, please don't hesitate to eat."
"Thank you for the food."
The Holy Emperor doesn't do the rude thing of talking while she eats. I followed her example and focused on eating for a while.
After about 5 minutes, the Holy Emperor spoke.
She put down her chopsticks and looked at me.
"So, about our conversation... oh, Shō, you can keep eating."
The Holy Emperor stopped me as I was about to put down my chopsticks.
"The Japanese government contacted me."
"Mph! The Japanese government? What, what did they say?"
Even I couldn't help but be on my guard when she mentioned the government. The Holy Emperor's serious face made me straighten my back.
"Hehe, don't worry, it's not about you, Shō."
"Please, don't scare me like that..."
The Holy Emperor laughed and said sorry. Was she doing that on purpose?
"So, about the message from the Japanese government..."
"Yes."
The Holy Emperor moved on before I could question her.
"We received a report that a certain individual has illegally entered this island."
"A certain individual?"
A new character. The words made my heart flutter. Illegal entry means the person is likely a villain.
"Yes. The individuals are named 'Hiruko Kagetane' and 'Hiruko Kohina'."
"I see..."
So that's where those names come from.
"They are the product of a top-secret Japanese plan, the Mechanized Soldier Project, which was designed to neutralize mages."
The Mechanized Soldier Project is a term from Black Bullet. It's a plan to create soldiers with superhuman offensive and defensive abilities by enhancing them with drugs or embedding mechanical parts in their bodies.
It was carried out in Japan, the U.S., and Australia. In Japan, it was called the "New Human Creation Plan."
Since the subjects didn't need any special talent, anyone could undergo the改造手術.
Looking at it this way, it seems like something that would happen on Academy City as well. Though the Mechanized Soldier Project is supposedly carried out by each country without the help of Academy City.
"The Mechanized Soldier Project was conceived to counter mages, but due to the low success rate of the surgeries and the underwhelming abilities of the resulting soldiers, it has been frozen for a long time."
"Then why now?"
"Hiruko Kagetane is one of the few successes. He's one of the most complete mechanized soldiers created in the later stages. Hiruko Kohina... she's a young girl and not a mechanized soldier. The information we have says she's his daughter, but her mother is unknown and there's no information about her."
According to the original story, Kagetane forced a kidnapped woman to have his child, and then made the children kill each other until only Kohina was left.
It's probably not much different in this world.
"Hiruko Kagetane was once a member of the Japanese army, but he committed crimes and was put on a wanted list. Hiruko Kohina was also involved in the murder of police officers and military personnel. We don't know why these two have come to this island, but..."
"They wouldn't come to a remote island like this for no reason."
"Yes..."
The Holy Emperor's voice was filled with anxiety.
Anyone who hears about criminals illegally entering would think of crimes. It was only natural for the Japanese government to issue a warning.
The Holy Emperor probably had nothing to do with the plan, but she might feel a sense of responsibility.
"The Japanese government just gave you the information and didn't do anything else?"
If so, that's pretty irresponsible.
"No, I'm planning to contact Division 6 and Tatenashi-san now. It's difficult for Japanese police and military to operate on this island."
"I see."
That makes sense. Even if they can't openly send people, there's no problem with using the people already on the island to solve the problem. In fact, they have to solve it.
In that regard, Division 6, which can unconditionally intervene in incidents on the island, and the Shinonono family, one of the families responsible for Japan's defense, are perfect for the job.
The reason she's contacting Division 6 and Tatenashi-san separately is probably because she's separating the contact to the Bureau of Magical Affairs and the contact as the nation of Japan.
"...Huh?"
"Yes. Is something wrong?"
"You haven't contacted Division 6 and Tatenashi-san yet? Or do you want me to tell them?"
The Holy Emperor said she was planning to contact them now. That means she contacted me before them.
"Yes. That's right."
She looked at me as if to say, "What's wrong with that?" Why?
"I thought you'd want to know as soon as possible, Shō. If something happens, you'll jump right into it. So I thought it would be safer if you knew the information from the start."
"I'm not a child you have to worry about..."
"You have Yukina-san, Coccoro-san, and many others who worry about you, don't you? I'm one of them, so I wanted you to know that there are such people on this island right now."
"...Okay. Thank you."
If those two cause a stir, I'll definitely get involved. I promise myself to not cause any more worry.
"From my perspective, I'd like you to refrain from doing things that cause worry."
"...I'll do my best."
The Holy Emperor's troubled expression made me give a wry smile.
It's probably impossible, though.
---------
While Shō was talking to the Holy Emperor.
"Alright, take a break!"
At Signum's command, Division 6's training went into a break.
Today, Nanoha is off after her night shift, so Signum is acting as the instructor.
"Phew..."
Yukina wiped off her sweat with a towel. She didn't forget to rehydrate with a drink. Yukina and Yō are trainees, so they won't be deployed as Division 6. They'll be training every day until next year.
Training itself isn't difficult for Yukina, but it was frustrating that she couldn't be deployed with Shō. If it's a Division 6 mission, she knows what he's doing, so the frustration is less, but Shō always gets into trouble when he goes outside, so she can't rest easy.
But today, Yukina was feeling a little better.
It was obvious to everyone around her.
"Yukina-san, did something good happen recently? You seem to be in a good mood today!"
Erio, who had just finished sparring with her, spoke to her with a smile.
Yukina had been training with Erio, who uses a similar weapon, a lot recently. That's why he noticed first.
"You're right. A few days ago, she seemed to be using brute force, but today, her old softness has returned."
Signum, a seasoned warrior, also nodded.
But Asuna and Yō, who live in the same place as her, had no idea.
"I, I wonder?"
But Yukina knew why. That's why her words were a little awkward.
"No matter what it is, it's a good thing that you're in a good mood."
"That's right!"
Signum and Erio didn't try to pry. Signum wasn't interested in the details, and Erio thought it was ungentlemanly to pry into a woman's business.
"Yes. Thank you..."
"So, what happened?"
Signum and Erio left, but Asuna and Yō—especially Yō—wouldn't let her go.
"Well, actually..."
Yukina told them what happened at school today.
She was told about the outcome of the plan that the Madoka Magica group had set up for Shō the other day.
"I see."
"Shō-kun did that..."
Asuna and Yō nodded at Yukina's report.
"For those words to put you in a good mood, you're pretty simple, Yukina. He didn't even say it to you."
"Ugh..."
Yukina knew that. That's why she didn't want to tell people about it.
But it was true that there were girls who were unhappy with Shō during the fiancée candidate commotion, even though they knew what was going on. They were worried that maybe, just maybe, even though they knew it was highly unlikely, his relationship with Lara would sever his relationships with the other girls.
To quell that anxiety, Shō made a point of stating the truth to someone who didn't need to know it.
It was enough to remove that anxiety.
"But, that's what happened."
"Oh, there's another simple one here."
Asuna was pondering Yukina's words.
"All three of you."
Signum called out to the three of them who were creating an atmosphere that only those who knew Shō would understand. The three of them thought the training was resuming, but it wasn't.
"I've been contacted by our master. Let's go."
At those words, the training was interrupted.
---------
"Alright, everyone's here."
The people gathered in the meeting room were Signum, Asuna, Yukina, Yō, Erio, and Caro, who had been in the middle of training.
Standing in front of them was Hayate, the commander.
"Just a moment ago, Her Majesty the Holy Emperor contacted me. There are currently criminals who have illegally entered this island. Their names are Hiruko Kagetane and Hiruko Kohina."
Information was displayed on the monitor. It was the exact same information that Shō had been told by the Holy Emperor.
"Are we to be the ones to search for them?"
"Nah, not exactly."
Hayate shook her head at Signum's question.
"Her Majesty the Holy Emperor just gave me some confidential information personally. Officially, the Bureau of Magical Affairs hasn't received any request."
"Politics, then. I don't understand it."
Signum dismissed it in a cold tone.
"Well, well. So, for now, we'll wait until something happens... officially, of course. Everyone, be on your guard."
" " "Yes!!" " "
Everyone replied to Hayate's loose warning.
"And now, for the main thing, the investigation our unit will be helping with..."
The monitor changed.
"Recently, the number of attacks on Mazoku has increased dramatically."
The bar graph displayed showed a sharp increase in the number of incidents over the past few days.
The number of attacks (those beyond simple skirmishes) on Mazoku, especially those of the D-type—commonly known as vampires—had increased significantly.
Asuna, who quickly read the graph, asked a question.
"Is this the work of that person named Hiruko Kagetane as well?"
"We can't say for sure. The timing coincides, but it doesn't make sense for them to come to this remote island just to go after vampires. What would be the meaning of that?"
This time, Yukina spoke up.
"Is this the work of the same person?"
"The attacked vampires have all had their magical power drained and have been desiccated. It's strange for all of them to have the same symptoms, even if there was a fight, isn't it?"
It was indeed strange for all of them to have the same symptoms.
"So, for a while, I'd like everyone to join this investigation. As for the details..."
Hayate continued to talk about the investigation of the vampire attacks.
--------------------------------------------
🚀 Want Early Access (80+Chapters ahead ) & Bonus Content?
"Loving this story so far? You can read ALL chapters RIGHT NOW by joining my P4tr3on!
✨ Unlock instant access to the full completed novel
✨ No waiting for daily updates
✨ Support your favorite degenerate author (that's me!)
Only $5.99 for the full experience!
🔗 Check my profile for the Link!!