Chapter 309 Master Clans Conference Arc - The Untouchable of Magic High School

―――The year 2097 AD

Normally, hearing this date wouldn't ring any bells for anyone. No one can predict the future that awaits. However, I possess a certain degree of knowledge from the original story. Given how chaotic the world situation has become, will events unfold exactly as they did in the original story? ...Looking at what has happened so far, I cannot definitively say they "won't."

First, the anti-magic debate sparked by the suicide bombing incident caused by Gu Jie. It's largely his fault that the Youth Conference unfolded the way it did. Are you asking about the problems caused by Brazil using Synchro-Liner Fusion on guerrillas? That was their own fault, reaping what they sowed.

Besides, in this world, the very state of South America has changed. President Brestiro of the SSA (South American Federation) launched a massive economic policy right at the start of the New Year, completely suppressing anti-magic public opinion. The guerrilla forces from back then have now been transformed into a robust military thanks to Gozo's iron-fisted discipline, and one could say they are now world-class in counter-guerrilla warfare.

Returning to Gu Jie: it is almost certain that Raymond Clark was the one who leaked information to Angie Sirius—Lina—regarding the small missiles scheduled for disposal that were used in the original story. It was also likely Raymond who leaked information to Colonel Virginia Balance.

Assuming the "corpse" part is handled by the connections from No Head Dragon or Blanche, I made a list of people who could divert small missiles. The name Kane Lowes, the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President (the assistant to the Chief of Staff, who supervises White House staff, manages the President's schedule, and coordinates meetings), came up first.

The group including him chose to direct the hostility of humanists within the USNA toward foreign targets. However, choosing their ally Japan as the primary target suggests that comparing their ideology to the radicalism of the humanists is really just "six of one, half a dozen of the other."

However, even if they divert the missiles, the problem is that without meticulous alteration of information, military personnel would quickly find out. Even if they intend to hand them over to Gu Jie—who wants to expose the Yotsuba to society and make them taste the same suffering he did—unless someone well-versed in information systems is involved, it would be easily detected.

Even if they were scheduled for disposal, they are still weapons. Considering the recent Stars escape incident, they must have upgraded to considerably high security to prevent a repeat offense. One would have to breach that latest security and alter the information regarding the small missiles. Such systems should also have a direct reporting mechanism to the Department of Defense, so that too would need to be deceived.

To breach such high-level security would require an incredibly skilled hacker, a supercomputer for analysis, or... it would be extremely difficult unless the system's designer himself was involved.

Someone who knows Gu Jie's objective, knows the objective of Kane Lowes' group, and plots to bury the Yotsuba. And that person is related to someone who knows that Tatsuya and I are Strategic-Class Magicians. Furthermore, the "true mastermind" who provided weapons to Gu Jie through Kane Lowes' group.

An expert on large-scale information systems at the NSA—the National Science Agency of the United States of North America—the central designer of the global interception system Echelon III, and the administrator of the backdoor system Hlidskjalf: his name is Edward Clark.

What he feared was likely "retaliation" from the Yotsuba against the USNA, but in that case, he would have been better off not interfering. "Let sleeping dogs lie," as they say. But upon learning that Tatsuya is a Strategic-Class Magician and a member of the Yotsuba family, he is first trying to socially obliterate the Yotsuba using Gu Jie.

As one of the countermeasures, we will be using a Kagurazaka-affiliated hotel in Hakone. Luckily, due to reconstruction work for aging facilities, there is a wing currently unused, so we decided to hold the Master Clans Conference there this year.

Even if it gets blown up, Senhime remarked, "If terrorists go out of their way to handle the demolition for us, it would be a great help to the demolition contractors." Since missiles are involved, she likely judged the firepower would be sufficient.

Of course, we have other countermeasures in place, but for many of them, it would be best if we didn't have to use them.

Stars will likely come to crush Gu Jie out of fear that the USNA government scandal will be exposed. However, in a previous meeting with Colonel Virginia Balance, I made a promise: "Since the Parasite Incident, if any human coming from the USNA commits actions equivalent to a crime, they will be processed according to the laws of this country."

Since it was a verbal promise between two parties, there is a possibility they might feign ignorance, saying, "We didn't actually sign anything." Though, in that case, several organizations serving as funding sources for Kane Lowes' group will likely "disappear." If we eliminate the funding sources for the humanists while we're at it, the momentum of humanism will stumble all at once.

It would be nice if Edward Clark would quiet down with this, but since he views the Yotsuba as an enemy, that wish is likely meaningless. If Gozo were to learn of this... I wouldn't be surprised if the next day, Edward Clark's home and workplace were burned down by a lightning strike.

Eliminating him would be the fastest method, but one reason for not doing so is to encourage the USNA's self-cleansing action. And if that is not fulfilled... it is to have the USNA execute something they can never pay for financially. Edward Clark does not yet know that interfering unnecessarily with us, including the Yotsuba, is a "Hell or Hell" scenario where both advancing and retreating lead to ruin.

January 2, 2097 AD. The message issued by the head of the Yotsuba family, Yotsuba Maya, to the Japanese magician community sent a massive shockwave through those concerned.

The content was the nomination of the next head of the family, as well as the recruitment of fiancées for the next head. It stated that Shiba Tatsuya, a second-year student in the Magic Engineering Course at First High School affiliated with the National Magic University, is the biological son of Yotsuba Maya, and in addition to nominating him as the next head of the Yotsuba family, they would be recruiting fiancées.

Some were puzzled by the intent behind the Yotsuba family, which had rarely appeared in public until now, making such a public announcement. However, the answer lay in the content of the New Year's greeting issued on the same day by the former head of the Kagurazaka family, Kagurazaka Senhime.

It stated that Mitsuya Yugen, formerly the third son of the Mitsuya family of the Ten Master Clans who had received the nomination for next head in the summer of the year before last—now Kagurazaka Yugen—had assumed the name of the head of the Kagurazaka family as of yesterday, New Year's Day. It also included that although Kagurazaka Senhime had become the former head and retired, she would serve as the guardian and assistant to the head for Yugen, who was still a high school student.

It was written that he would be recruiting fiancées just like Tatsuya, but preceding that, it was announced that Shiba Miyuki, the daughter of Yotsuba Maya's twin sister Shiba (Yotsuba) Miya—a relative of the Yotsuba—had become engaged to Kagurazaka Yugen.

The matter of the Yotsuba family's next head was significant, but the message that the head of the Guardian Kagurazaka family was engaging a direct descendant female of the Yotsuba family—implying she was chosen as the de facto "legal wife"—was a major event that shocked various quarters.

Moreover, Yugen and Miyuki were both powerhouses who had won the men's and women's championships in the Pillars Break Solo and Steeplechase Cross-Country events, respectively, at last year's Nine Schools Competition. For those aspiring to be future magicians, the engagement between two idol-like figures they admired was a topic of great excitement.

Meanwhile, Tatsuya had been steadily building a track record as an engineer, and his popularity was steadily rising to the point where an unofficial fan club even existed.

For those who knew them well, some were shocked by the fact that Tatsuya and Miyuki were direct descendants of the Yotsuba, while others judged that since Yugen was formerly of the Ten Master Clans, it made sense that he was close with them. For the boys and girls who harbored feelings of friendship, rivalry, or something more, the message was truly a "bolt from the blue."

However, since almost no one enrolled in First High was unaware of the relationship between Yugen, the current head of the Club Management Group, and Miyuki, the current Student Council President, the majority opinion on the engagement message was rather, "They're finally engaged?" Some of them even reportedly let their delusions run wild, suspecting Miyuki might already be pregnant.

One such person who was a student at First High and knew the three of them—including Tatsuya—well was Mutsudzuka Touya. He was a second-year student in the Magic Engineering Course like Tatsuya and had recently been nominated as the next head of the Mutsudzuka family. Touya had been called by the current head and his genetic older sister, Mutsudzuka Atsuko, and was relaxing under the kotatsu in her private room.

Touya had returned to the Mutsudzuka home for a homecoming visit, but his fiancée, Igarashi Tsugumi, and Michaela Hongou (who had naturalized and taken the name Hongou Mia) had accompanied him. The two girls had gone to the bath saying they had "important talk" to attend to, leaving Touya with free time, which led to him being summoned by Atsuko.

And then, the relaxed atmosphere was broken by a single word from Atsuko.

"Touya. You know about Shiba Tatsuya-kun and Shiba Miyuki-san, right?"

"Of course. I was in the same class as Miyuki last year, and I'm in the same Magic Engineering Course as Tatsuya. Did something happen with them?"

"Today, a message arrived from the Yotsuba family via the Magic Association, accompanying their New Year's greeting."

The fact that the Yotsuba name was mentioned after bringing up those two names meant she had undoubtedly realized that Tatsuya and Miyuki were related to the Yotsuba family. Touya had suspected for some time that Tatsuya and Miyuki were connected to the Ten Master Clans, and since they hadn't denied it, Touya had kept it a secret. Whether she knew that or not, Atsuko continued her explanation.

"Lady Yotsuba has reportedly nominated Shiba Tatsuya-kun as the next head of the Yotsuba family. They are also recruiting fiancées."

"Tatsuya is... the Yotsuba's?"

"It seems Shiba Tatsuya-kun is the biological son of Yotsuba Maya-dono, born via artificial insemination from a frozen egg. Since they presented not only family register data but also DNA test data, there can be no mistake."

"I see."

In response to Atsuko's explanation, Touya gave a short reply and did not try to probe deeper. If it were just the family register, that would be one thing, but if they politely included genetic test data, it must be recognized as fact.

The suspicion had simply been cleared. Because he knew Yotsuba magicians were extraordinary, Touya had an almost certain intuition that Tatsuya still held secrets that Touya himself did not know. Then, Touya tilted his head, wondering why the topic was only about Tatsuya and nothing about Miyuki had come up. Atsuko noticed Touya's demeanor.

"Touya, does the fact that Tatsuya-kun was a member of the Yotsuba family bother you?"

"Eh? Ah, no. I vaguely thought Tatsuya might be related to the Ten Master Clans, and since they didn't deny it, the announcement serves more as confirmation of the facts. What I was curious about was what position Miyuki, Tatsuya's sister, would be in."

Touya had heard a little bit that Miyuki was not born to her current parents (her father and his remarried partner). His sister, sitting in front of him, was a huge fan of Maya. She cherished commemorative photos with Maya, some of which were even respectfully vacuum-sealed, a sight that somewhat creeped Touya out.

Looking at Maya in those photos, Miyuki resembled her. Yet, the Yotsuba family's message only acknowledged Tatsuya as Maya's son, not Miyuki. That point bothered him.

"Regarding the photo of Lady Yotsuba that you cherish, Sister... the more I look at it, the more Miyuki resembles Lady Yotsuba. But if that's the case, I wondered why Lady Yotsuba didn't acknowledge her as her daughter."

"It's simple. Lady Yotsuba has a twin sister named Yotsuba Miya. Ostensibly, it is said she has no children, but a letter from the Kagurazaka family informed us that Miyuki-san is Miya-san's daughter."

Yotsuba Miya was ostensibly said to be living a long life of recuperation due to the overuse of the forbidden extra-systematic magic Mental Structure Interference. However, Atsuko deduced that if Miyuki was not Maya's daughter, she must be Miya's.

Miyuki clearly possessed Maya's features, but Maya had lost her reproductive functions in a past incident and could no longer bear children. Thus, she considered the possibility that Miya, who might still have the ability to bear children, was involved. That prediction was confirmed as fact by the message from the Kagurazaka family.

"In a letter that arrived from the Kagurazaka family on the same day, in addition to Kagurazaka Yugen-kun assuming the headship, they are recruiting fiancées. Prior to that, it was announced that Yugen-kun and Shiba Miyuki-san have become engaged."

"...From my perspective, the feeling is 'Finally, they're engaged?'"

Touya heard from the individuals themselves that they had confessed their feelings after the Nine Schools Competition the year before last. Although they didn't flirt openly like Isori and Kanon, there was clearly no gap for anyone else to intrude.

Because he had witnessed this firsthand, Touya expressed his honest feeling that this announcement simply meant they had finally stood on that line.

"I watched the Nine Schools Competition the year before last in person, and I thought it was amazing how he overwhelmed that 'Crimson Prince' back then. Lord Mitsuya must have been very happy inwardly."

"So, is there anything else you want to ask me?"

"...I heard a rumor that the 'Crimson Prince' has fallen for Shiba Miyuki-san."

"Ah, I can state definitively that that is no mistake. However, Sister, Miyuki strongly appears to be in love with Yugen. Sticking one's neck into the engagement circumstances of another family that has cleared both genetic and registry issues is aberrant."

Having experienced the most trouble regarding genetic and registry issues due to his own birth, Touya tilted his head, wondering what problem there could possibly be for the Ichijou family to interfere with the engagement between Yugen and Miyuki.

In response to Touya's question, Atsuko explained while recalling the past.

"I think I told you this a long time ago, Touya, but remember when an emergency Master Clans Conference was held at the proposal of His Excellency Kudou regarding Yugen-kun's de facto withdrawal from the Ten Master Clans?"

"That did happen... Are they going to object, claiming that Miyuki marrying into the Kagurazaka family amounts to a 'withdrawal from the Ten Master Clans'? That is unreasonable to an extreme degree."

Generally speaking, before Yugen became the next head of the Kagurazaka family, his older brother Mototsugu became the head of the Kamiizumi family, and his older sister Shizuru married into the Yaguruma family. Singling out only Yugen while not making an issue of Mototsugu or Shizuru, and then objecting because Miyuki is marrying into the Kagurazaka family, shows a complete lack of consistency in their principles.

"In the first place, is it just me who thinks the Ten Master Clans shouldn't be able to intervene in the engagement matters of a Guardian family? Since when did the Master Clans Conference become a surveillance organization for the Guardians?"

"You think so too, Touya. Most likely, Lord Ichijou will rely on someone like Lord Saegusa."

"...I don't like saying things like this, but are they idiots? In the worst case, they will be crushed by the Kagurazaka and Yotsuba families."

"Harsh. But well, that cannot be denied."

Honestly, not only Touya but also Atsuko felt they had been truly "saved" by the fact that there were no girls of eligible age in the Mutsudzuka family. It was a miracle akin to a trick of fate. From Atsuko's perspective, if Touya, who was more capable than herself, succeeded the Mutsudzuka family, the seat in the Ten Master Clans would be almost secure.

However, Touya did not rest on his laurels and continued his training. Because he had felt the presence of someone even more powerful firsthand, he intuitively knew he could not be conceited.

"In any case, it seems best to send a congratulatory telegram to the Yotsuba and Kagurazaka families immediately."

"Yes, let's make this one under the joint names of myself and Touya. We received congratulatory telegrams from the Yotsuba and Kagurazaka families when Touya was nominated as the next head recently, so shall we make this a return gesture including New Year's greetings?"

Coincidentally, the Ten Master Clans' Mutsudzuka family was blessed with the next generation. Atsuko, the current head, was relieved to have obtained a next head capable of common-sense thinking. Perhaps at the root of this was a sentiment akin to reverence for the Yotsuba family.

Whether the rumor that the next head of the Mutsudzuka family climbed the stairs to adulthood that night, pressed by two women, is true... only God knows.

Model

Here is the translation of the provided text. I have maintained the novel-like, narrative tone while ensuring the name consistency as Yugen.

Master Clans Conference ArcTouya's Frank Pointed Remarks

―――The year 2097 AD.