Of course, individuals capable of such feats--like the half-incubus magus Merlin--were exceedingly rare.
"Correct," Pascal said, nodding. "First, we can confirm that Code-name 112 is out of contact. Excluding the possibility of a prank, the only magecraft capable of leaving a person standing while unconscious is an illusion.
"Second, we've been monitoring him the entire time. The fact that he was speaking with Arisa just before losing contact suggests he realized something was wrong. His vital signs are healthy, so the probability of him being trapped in an illusion is extremely high.
"Illusions are typically cast through either sound or sight. Wayland found a conch shell. When we pick up a shell and hold it to our ear, we hear the sound of the ocean.
"This is because the inner surface of the shell reflects and amplifies ambient noise, such as flowing water, through its resonance chamber. Our auditory system then captures and interprets that sound.
"In other words, Wayland heard a sound from within that shell--an auditory illusion from the Age of Gods that has remained potent even after two thousand years."
A collective gasp echoed through the bridge.
The members of the Department of Policies looked at one another, their expressions dark.
If an illusion could remain active after two millennia, what sort of being had cast it? A human... or a god?
"Pascal, what should we do?" Hishiri asked.
Pascal stroked his beard, trying to remain calm. "There are many ways to break an illusion, but I've never dealt with one from the Age of Gods... I can't be certain of the outcome, and I'm afraid of causing some unforeseen complication."
"While Age of Gods magecraft and modern magecraft use different methods, their fundamental effects remain the same. In theory, modern magecraft can be used to dismantle it," Hishiri said, reciting a basic principle taught in every General Fundamentals classroom.
After a moment of thought, she gave the command. "Pascal, take two men with you. Secure your own audio insulation and pull Wayland up. His oxygen is almost gone. Bring a soundproof container for the shell and ensure not even a whisper of its sound can escape."
"Understood!"
Pascal immediately moved to carry out the order, leaving the bridge.
Meanwhile, Wayland felt his body becoming lighter and lighter. His head was spinning, and then, he was flying.
He opened his eyes and saw the earth far beneath him.
Wayland flapped his black wings, soaring through the high-altitude air with a surge of excitement.
Flight had always been a dream of humanity, but even for a magus, true flight was no simple matter.
'Humanity...?'
Wayland realized something was wrong.
He wasn't human anymore.
He was a... crow.
He opened his mouth to speak, but only a sharp, discordant 'Caw!' emerged.
It was a desolate, raw, and rasping sound.
A sound no human could ever produce.
'What's happening?'
His small, black crow's head was a complete blank. It was as if his memories had been wiped clean, leaving nothing but a vast, empty void.
Just as he was beginning to contemplate his new life as a bird, an ancient song drifted from a distance.
For some reason, it felt strangely familiar.
But only for a heartbeat. His ability to think was suddenly gone, his eyes turning a vivid, blood-red as a single image filled his mind.
A figure in a pitch-black magical robe. A deep hood hid her face and long hair, revealing only a pair of thin, tightly compressed lips.
Wayland let out a piercing, agonizing shriek and began to fly toward the source of the song.
On the deck of the Ocean Phantom.
Pascal laid Wayland's body flat on the deck and stood up, his right hand held open.
Inside a small, transparent, soundproof box sat the grayish-yellow conch shell.
Hishiri picked up the box. "What's the next step?"
"To break the illusion, I need to understand the resonance and the casting process," Pascal explained, pointing toward the shell. "In other words, we need to release the magecraft one more time."
"Absolutely not!" Hishiri refused without hesitation. "We cannot risk a second team member."
"Wait, wait!" Pascal said, waving his hands. "I didn't mean that someone should listen to it directly. I'm not even sure I could survive it myself, so I certainly wouldn't ask anyone else to try."
"Then what are you suggesting?"
"A recording device." Pascal used a word Hishiri hadn't expected. "Captain, you aren't an expert in illusions, so you might not understand the finer points. Illusions are rooted in the theory of Sympathetic Magecraft. Simply put, they use prana to deceive the senses.
"Sound is the medium, the magical formula, while prana is the kinetic energy. Together, they create the auditory illusion.
"A recording device is a dead object; it won't react to an illusion. If we use it to record the sound, we're essentially filtering out the prana. When we listen to the recording, the magical formula will still be present, but without the kinetic energy, it will be nothing more than a piece of audio."
"I see."
Hishiri let out a sigh of relief. She pulled out her phone and hit a button. "Louis, bring your MP3 player up here. No excuses! Just bring it!"
A short while later, Louis arrived on deck. He looked at Wayland's body but showed no surprise. As a member of the twelfth team, he was responsible for shipboard operations and had witnessed the earlier events.
He handed over the MP3 player, clearly reluctant to let it go. "Captain, this is the latest model. It cost me three hundred pounds."
"Relax, we won't break it," Pascal said with a grin as he took the device.
"Do you even know how to use it?" Louis asked. Technology was generally looked down upon by magi at the Clock Tower, and very few actually bothered to learn how to operate it.
"I might have a lot of beard, but I'm about the same age as you," Pascal retorted. "I know how to use an MP3 player."
Pascal looked at Hishiri. "Captain, I'll set up a Soundproof barrier first."
He stepped back and manifested a circular magical field on the deck. An invisible barrier enveloped him.
He put on a pair of noise-canceling headphones, set the MP3 player to record, and pointed the microphone toward the opening of the shell. Then, he carefully opened the transparent box.
The ancient, melodic song immediately began to flow.
After waiting for about ten minutes, he closed the box and deactivated his magecraft.
"That should do it."
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]