"By the way, Yotsuba, was it truly wise not to have Takkun act as the caller for this meeting?"
"If Tatsuya's name were attached to it, it might alienate certain individuals. Looking at the bigger picture, he has a habit of making enemies both inside and outside our ranks."
While his actions in the original sequence of events were driven primarily by his desire to put Miyuki first, it was also true that far too many within the Master Clans and the Twenty-Eight Families simply failed to grasp the harsh discipline he gained through his military experience. While letting actions speak louder than words was a logical way to force realization upon them, the sad reality was that most of these people lacked the depth to read between the lines.
"Since the Kamagurazaka family is stepping forward personally, and the Kamiizumi family is issuing the call under Brother Mototsugu's name, Tatsuya—despite holding authority equivalent to a head or proxy—is still far from establishing a firm foothold in magician society... Still, as a formality, including Tatsuya as a co-proposer under the banner of Maya-san's proxy might be a viable option."
"Even though we formally announced Takkun as the next family head during the New Year and sent out official greeting letters?"
"Those letters were sent to the heads of the Twenty-Eight Families and the Hundred Families purely as a matter of formality. I highly doubt the meeting's participants truly processed their significance... disappointing as that is."
Having confidentially obtained the minutes of the young leaders' meeting, he was well aware that Tatsuya was addressed merely as 'Lord Yotsuba.' Yet, even if one were to list Tatsuya's achievements, they consisted only of public events like the Nine Schools Competition—covered heavily by the media—and the 'Stellar Reactor' demonstration experiment last spring. All other matters pertaining to the National Defense Forces or tasks undertaken for the Yotsuba Family belonged to the shadows, bound by circumstances that prevented open disclosure.
Even if people knew Tatsuya was affiliated with the Yotsuba Family, the true scale of his achievements remained submerged beneath the surface of magician society. As for the truth about 'Taurus Silver,' it had already been decided that it would be made public upon his high school graduation at the latest—though that timeline would inevitably be pushed forward sooner or later.
"Regarding those greetings, if I'm being completely honest, they likely harbor doubts about their credibility—including his engagement. In my case, I happened to have a prominent, high-profile figurehead like the 'Crimson Prince' to draw the spotlight."
"When you put it that way, it makes sense. Very well, I'll bring it up with Takkun eventually."
"I'd appreciate that."
Returning to the main topic, the conversation shifted toward the "magic battle" near the Soya Strait that Tatsuya had recently been involved in. Naturally, the focal point of the discussion was Bezobrazov's Strategic-Class Magic, Tuman Bomba.
"Yugen-san, how would you go about neutralizing it?"
"...The quickest method would be to manipulate atmospheric currents to lower the density of the water vapor within the target area. But if we're talking about related countermeasures, utilizing the Strategic-Class Magic Ozone Circle to forcibly recombine the oxygen within the area into ozone—thereby shifting the ratio of oxyhydrogen gas—would be the most logical approach."
There were several ways to negate it.
For instance, one could completely neutralize the CADs or other processing units required to activate the spell, reducing the raw power of Tuman Bomba itself. Alternatively, one could drastically lower the atmospheric pressure within the area, spiking the energy required for the combination or decomposition of oxyhydrogen gas.
The real issue lay in the fact that the number of magicians capable of reacting to a spell like Tuman Bomba, which detonated in a fraction of a second, was extremely limited.
"My, can you use Ozone Circle, Yugen-san?"
"Actually, when I traveled to Australia a while back, I was ambushed by military magicians from the Australian Defense Forces. I managed to extract the magic sequence data for Ozone Circle during that encounter. I assumed Lieutenant Colonel Kazama had already informed you about that."
"I see, so the Lieutenant Colonel knew as well... That's a bit frustrating, I must say."
"I fail to see your meaning."
An even more extreme solution would be to lure Bezobrazov onto Japanese soil and beat him to a pulp, but that carried the risk of exposing the existence of Mirror Gate. It was best reserved as a absolute last resort. It was precisely to avoid such a scenario that the new Strategic-Class Magic, Cosmo Nova, had been developed in the first place.
"On a related note, though it isn't widely discussed, one of the massive magic activation signatures detected in the Bering Sea eight years ago was caused by Bezobrazov's Tuman Bomba. In that battle, he killed the 'Sirius' of that era—William Sirius—along with other magicians from STARS."
"I see. If he was able to slay even the 'Sirius' of that time, he is not an opponent we can afford to ignore."
"Considering the possibility that he may move to physically eliminate this country's Strategic-Class Magicians in the future, I have been providing magic spells to our side. I'm entrusting Mizunami with defensive magic schemes, and Miyuki with Strategic-Class Magic."
He had previously avoided actively handing out magic spells, but after the incidents late last year, the risk of Tatsuya himself being targeted had skyrocketed. Furthermore, looking ahead to the Stellar Reactor project, there was certainly no downside to Tatsuya becoming even stronger. Naturally, Miyuki and Mizunami, who would stand by his side, needed to grow stronger as well.
"Is there nothing for Takkun?"
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