Tatsuya immediately canceled his plans to visit Miyaki Island and report to FLT. Instead, he headed to the Independent Magic Battalion headquarters on the Kasumigaura Base.
He had, of course, already reported his decision to Maya. As luck might have it, they were able to discuss things directly. Ultimately, Maya was optimistic about mending relations with the National Defense Force. The large unit that the Force commanded was a commodity much too valuable to lose.
“Thank you for coming, Specialist Ooguro,” Kazama greeted him.
Tatsuya simply responded with a salute, so Kazama solemnly returned the gesture. The only one to show any visible emotion was Fujibayashi, the lieutenant colonel’s aide.
“There is only one reason I called you here today,” Kazama continued. “I want you to tell me about Bezobrazov.”
After the attack on the Izu villa, Tatsuya had told Kazama that Bezobrazov was not the magician he had taken down. He had not informed the military about the attack on First High. However, he had reported the incident to the main family. If the Yotsuba family had shared the information with the military, Tatsuya wouldn’t need to explain himself now. For better or for worse, it seemed that Maya had kept it to herself.
“I did not attack Bezobrazov directly,” Tatsuya said. “But I did dismantle a large operational CAD, so he could have sustained some damage.”
“Are you referring to the train-type CAD you mentioned the other day?” Kazama asked.
“Yes.”
“If a CAD is destroyed while connected to its user, it can cause significant mental damage through the magic-calculation region,” Kazama said. “Are you certain Bezobrazov was connected to the CAD you destroyed?”
“Since Tuman Bomba hasn’t attacked me lately, it seems pretty likely,” Tatsuya replied.
“Hm…” Kazama took a moment to digest the information before continuing, “What do you think the chances are that Bezobrazov is dead?”
“Barely one percent,” Tatsuya said.
“So zero?”
“You could say that.”
Tatsuya paused before adding, “That said, the chance of his death in an unrelated accident later on isn’t zero.”
“Then, what about his recovery?” Kazama pressed. “Do you think Bezobrazov will be back in time to face the Great Asian Alliance’s invasion?”
“If New Soviet leadership is willing to essentially use Bezobrazov as a sacrifice, he could be on the battlefield today.” Tatsuya shrugged. “Now, if they want meaningful results, I doubt he’ll be ready to fight again that soon.”
“How long do you think it will take?”
“Based on past cases, recovering from a forced CAD disconnection typically takes about ten to twenty days.”
Tatsuya and Kazama were speaking on Friday. Tuman Bomba had attacked First High the previous Thursday.
“So the earliest he would return is in two days, and the longest would be two weeks?” Kazama confirmed.
“That’s right,” Tatsuya said.
“…All right.”
Tatsuya took a lull in the conversation as an opportunity to change the subject.
“Lieutenant Colonel, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you as well.”
“Go ahead,” Kazama replied.
“You may already know this, but our country is once again facing the threat of parasites.”
“Yes,” Kazama said. “I’m aware of the Kudou family situation.”
“But that’s not all,” Tatsuya continued. “New parasites have also appeared in the USNA.”
“What?”
It seemed the National Defense Force was still unaware of this situation, or perhaps the information just had not yet reached Kazama’s ears. Either way, Tatsuya had no intention of withholding any details.
“A mutiny broke out at the Stars headquarters last week,” Tatsuya explained. “It was instigated by a group of soldiers who had become parasites. Now those parasites effectively occupy the entire headquarters.”
“Did Major Sirius inform you of this?” Kazama asked.
“No,” Tatsuya quickly replied. “I gained this information from Miss Angelina Kudou Shields, a relative of General Kudou.”
Like the last time they spoke, Tatsuya subtly emphasized that he was not sheltering anyone by the name of Major Sirius.
“I see,” Kazama said, disinclined to press the issue further this time.
“What’s more,” Tatsuya continued, “it appears at least two of the USNA parasites have infiltrated Japan.”
“What?!” Kazama exclaimed.
A look of surprise and panic spread across his face.
“The surveillance team at Kansai Airport identified two illegal tourists that were using telepathy,” Tatsuya explained. “Since the tourists arrived on a direct flight from Los Angeles, chances are at least one of them is a Stars member turned parasite.”
“I will discuss this with Commander Saeki,” Kazama replied.
“Good idea.”
The Hanshin area surveillance teams were not ones to keep information to themselves. It was hard to imagine them only passing on this kind of news to their direct superiors while withholding reports from central command. Whether or not they would then share this information with the National Defense Force, however, was a gray area. Territorial instincts might make them hesitant to rely on external support. That said, it was also possible that Saeki had already heard about the incident through private channels.
“Wait,” Kazama began again. “If one of the tourists was a Stars member, what about the other one?”
“The other tourist was Raymond Clark,” Tatsuya stated plainly.
“Are you certain?” Kazama asked.
“Positive.” Tatsuya nodded. “I checked the police photos myself.”
Just then, Fujibayashi, who had been standing diagonally behind Kazama, interjected, “Specialist Ooguro, is Raymond Clark related to the founder of the Dione Project?”
“Yes.” Tatsuya nodded again. “He’s Edward Clark’s son.”
He paused before adding, “Raymond is also one of the so-called Seven Sages, who exposed Taurus Silver’s identity with the information-gathering system Hlidskjalf that runs on Echelon III’s backdoor system.”
“Hold on,” Fujibayashi gasped. “That is too much information to wrap my head around.”
“I’m not even finished,” Tatsuya said unempathetically.
“Continue.” She sighed.
“As Tatsuya Shiba of the Yotsuba family, I would like to request the cooperation of the National Defense Force’s Independent Magic Battalion,” he announced.
Kazama’s eyes sparkled with intrigue, while Fujibayashi straightened at full attention.
“I am almost completely positive that the USNA parasites will try to collaborate with our recent local parasite, Minoru Kudou,” Tatsuya continued.
Fujibayashi paled at the mention of Minoru’s name. Tatsuya knew the Kudou family had informed her about Minoru’s parasite transformation. That being the case, he decided not to empathize with her emotional distress.
“And,” he said, “if the Stars are conducting illegal activities in Japan, it’s hard to believe they will only send one person.”
At this point, Tatsuya was excluding Raymond from the count. It’s not that he underestimated the American teen. In fact, he anticipated Raymond would be very powerful after becoming a parasite. He simply believed that the Stars wouldn’t count him as one of their own.
“We need reinforcements. And soon,” Tatsuya stressed.
“That makes sense,” Kazama replied.
He found no grounds to argue against Tatsuya’s logical assessment. Tatsuya suddenly shifted the focus of the discussion from the Stars to Minoru.
“Minoru Kudou’s target is my family’s employee, Minami Sakurai. If Minoru Kudou and the Stars join forces, not even the combined power of the Yotsuba will stand a chance at protecting Minami.”
“So you want us to provide security?” Kazama asked.
Tatsuya shook his head. “Not exactly. All I’m asking is for you to prevent the Stars from infiltrating shared bases like the ones in Yokosuka or Zama.”
The Yotsuba family monitored civilian airports and air force bases in the Tokyo metropolitan area. National Defense Force bases, on the other hand, could be observed only from the outside. It was not impossible to infiltrate them, but that proved too complicated, given the current situation.
Having the National Defense Force monitor their own bases was the much simpler move. Besides, it was their job to stop illegal trespassers from entering the country. Even if those trespassers came from an allied nation.
“All right.” Kazama nodded. “I will discuss the matter with the brigade commander and see what we can do.”
He didn’t propose an alternative, since he knew Tatsuya was simply asking the National Defense Force to do their job.
“By the way, Specialist Ooguro,” he continued, “what do you think about the conflict in the Far East?”
“Are you asking for my predictions on the outcome?” Tatsuya asked.
“Yes.” Kazama nodded.
Having thought about it on his way to the base, Tatsuya’s answer was immediate: “The New Soviet Union will probably win.”
“Why do you think that?” Kazama pressed.
“The Great Asian Alliance only invaded the area based on unreliable information about Bezobrazov’s absence,” Tatsuya explained. “I’m sure the moment Bezobrazov returns to the battlefield, the Great Asian Alliance offensive will collapse.”
The moment Bezobrazov reappeared, he would cast Tuman Bomba. Kazama understood the hidden meaning in Tatsuya’s words.
“Huh…” Kazama reflected. “So in your mind, there is no chance the conflict will be resolved before Bezobrazov returns?”
“Well, in terms of military strength, the New Soviet Union and Great Asian Alliance aren’t that different,” Tatsuya said. “A quick victory won’t be easy, even if the Great Asian Alliance uses Pilita.”
Pilita was a large-scale attack spell used by the Great Asian Alliance’s strategic-class magicians. The spell was developed by Yunde Liu, who perished during the Scorching Halloween—when Tatsuya’s Material Burst devastated the southern tip of the Korean Peninsula. Now Yunde’s granddaughter, Lirei Liu, had inherited Pilita and become the Alliance’s new top strategic-class magician.
Kazama suddenly stared directly into Tatsuya’s eyes.
“What if the New Soviet Union decides to invade Japan after they win the war? Can the National Defense Force count on you?”
“That’s fine with me,” Tatsuya replied.
He had made a deal to deter military conquests in exchange for Aoba Toudou’s power. Even if Kazama had not asked, Tatsuya had planned to take action. But there was no need to disclose this information. It served Tatsuya better to let Kazama feel that he was “borrowing” the high schooler’s strength.