novelHex Suspect of the Magician World (1)
| ← Ch.026 | Ch.028 → |
Part 1
Even if the reality before your eyes was inexplicable, time would still flow unremittingly.
Putting aside Kamijou, who was at a loss at what was happening, Touya, Index, and Mikoto decided to play at the beach. They ordered Kamijou to change into his swimming trunks, secure a place in the beach, and stand under a beach umbrella.
Under the beach umbrella and sitting cross-legged above the leisure sheet was Kamijou, alone.
(Is it alright to be wasting my time like this? I don't understand what's happening, but the world's in deep crisis right now. That said, I don't know of a means to deal with it. )
Due to the large jellyfish outbreak, there were no other people besides Kamijou at the beach today. A strident music song played lonesomely from the speaker, fastened from one of the trees that stood interspersed throughout the beach. Being like this, it seemed like the world was at peace; however, the TV program that he had seen earlier reminded him that it was not.
No matter what channel you tuned in to, all you'd see were mismatched people.
If all the channels were like that, it would mean that this commotion was occurring not only on this beach, but throughout Japan—no, in the worst case scenario, probably the whole world.
(... U-n. Maybe I'm just seeing a hallucination?)
(If there was trouble occurring throughout the whole world, then that scale would be simpler. If "being mismatched" was normal for other people, even if you certainly thought you were right, you'd rethink that maybe the fault's within you, ) the easy-to-be-influenced Kamijou thought.
Kamijou, sitting cross-legged, heard footsteps made from the crunching of sand approaching from behind.
"Hey, Touma! Good work on securing the place; well, we're the only people today, so I guess it wouldn't make a difference even if you didn't. Wahahaha, " laughed the big man.
Kamijou was petrified.
"Hoo~ What is it, Touma? You like my swimming trunks that much?"
Kamijou totally ignored Touya, and directed his gaze to the girl beside him. He looked at Index who was supposed to be his mother, Shiina.
(H-hey, wait, what's with that ungodly swimsuit!?)
Index was wearing a black bikini unbefitting her small figure.
A bikini usually comprises of string and cloth; however, in Index's case, the string was made up of a transparent nylon. Therefore, the cloth seems like it was taped to the part it was concealing when seen from afar.
Frankly, anyone who saw it would say that it was an adult swimsuit.
(Kuhh... Is this what you call the realm of gap and unbalance!? No, wait. This isn't the time to be glad. How did that Index, with zero pocket money, get her hands on that swimsuit?)
Index palmed her cheek with one hand as she gazed at the face of the perplexed Kamijou.
"My, my, Touma-san. Your face states that you have a problem with my swimsuit."
"That's beyond the problem! Where did you get that swimsuit? It's different from what you used yesterday!"
"My, my. I just prepared two or three different swimsuits beforehand."
"Ahahaha, " laughed Touya."Yep, Mom still has her sex appeal active. Good to know it's worth giving this to Mom as a present even though it cost me a lot to buy it."
Kamijou's eyes gleamed the instant he heard that.
"Confounded father! What do you think you're doing bribing people!? More importantly, how did you know Index's three sizes!? Don't tell me you two went to the supermarket together without my knowledge!"
"My, my, Touma-san. If you keep pushing your thumbs against your dad's carotid artery, it won't be long until he meets his maker."
"This lolicon is after your body, so don't stop me, Index!! Gaaaah!" Kamijou roared with a vehemence that could even spit fire from his mouth."Shit, I knew it was weird that Mom looked younger than her age. Confess already, she's just twenty years old, right? In that case, how old was Mom when I was born!? Answer me, you pedo father!!"
"Bwrghgh. C-calm down, Touma. Here, have this souvenir that I bought from Ireland. It's an amulet to preserve family welfare."
"What's this naked figure of a woman!? Are you implicitly telling me that you're dying to do that kind of thing!?"
"N-no. It's their goddess of fertility named Sheela na Gig, I thi—Ggggahh!!"
Misaka Mikoto walked towards Kamijou, who was one step away from making a wrong decision in life.
"Are~ What's the fuss about, Oniichan? Ah, don't tell me there's an event revealing that you were not actually blood-related?"
"You, too, stop that forceful inclusion of 'stepfamily setting'! By the way, what's with that attire? We're not in a school pool anymore, so why are you in a school swimsuit?"
"Eh? Is it weird?"
"Kuh. So you're playing the cute sister character to the end, eh?"
Kamijou, cast off his hands from Touya's neck, slumped his body like an unmotivated octopus before breathing out a sigh. Touya, coughing violently while grasping his neck, looked at his son...
"Uhh, It's my careless mistake... I didn't know Touma had this mother complex..."
"My my. I didn't know that the Oedipus Complex, Freud-sensei's psychology theory that boys unconsciously hated their fathers, was real."
"This is bad. The side effect of living a solitary dormitory life for years has probably caused Touma to develop a strong desire for family love."
"Why is everyone like this... ?" Kamijou said, gnashing his teeth."On top of making a completely amateur diagnostic, they label people as mother-cons! Everyone, line up in that corner! I'll bury all your bodies with the hole that I dug using this mini-spade!"
"Kyaaahh!" the three happily screamed as they scampered to the sea.
"I won't let you escape!" Kamijou pursued them with a mini-spade in one hand—when he suddenly realized that he was forgetting something.
Kamijou then heard the crunching of sand from behind.
That's right; Aogami Pierce was also here for some reason. Kamijou froze upon remembering that.
If memory served him right, Index had worn a white one-piece swimsuit yesterday.
Today, Aogami Pierce was wearing the same sister suit that Index had worn.
Therefore, the dress that Aogami Pierce would wear when at the beach would be...
(W-wait. That's stupid... What on earth is this answer that you'd arrive at from this syllogism—?)
"Touma, Touma! I'm late, sorry for waiting."
Horrifying. This cute manly voice was indeed too horrifying.
(Don't turn around, ) Kamijou thought.
He would probably lose a precious something after witnessing Aogami Pierce. Yet, as if facing a terrifying reality, he slowly swivelled his head around like a rusted robot.
In his view was...
A devil in a one-piece swimsuit.
"...... Hahhh!?"
When Kamijou regained his senses, the sun was already positioned at the highest point in the sky. In his hand was a mini-spade, and near his feet was the head of a swooned Aogami Pierce sticking out of the sand.
"Did I do this? I wonder what I've done..."
Judging from the angle of Aogami Pierce's neck, he was buried perpendicularly in a pit. Kamijou mulled over the issue, but he didn't consider exhuming his friend; he was sure that he would lose something precious after seeing his getup.
(That's right, where's Fath—eh, what the hell is he doing enjoying himself while playing beach volleyball with Index and Mikoto!? Moreover, his eyes are filled with seriousness, and he's directly aiming for Index! D-damn! My long-awaited summer vacation is ruined because of him!)
(Anyway, I have to bury that useless lolicon father at all costs!)
Kamijou, with a mini-spade in one hand, ran towards the direction of the three. On the way, he had a feeling that he was overlooking something more important...
"Unyaaa-! Kami-yan, I finally found you!"
... when a weird voice rushed in. If one asked what was weird, the origin of the cat-style-like speech was not a girl but a man.
(W-what? That voice just now sounds familiar. Could it be... !?)
Kamijou stopped his feet and turned around. His gaze reflected the image of a big man with a height of 180 centimetres running towards Kamijou's location.
"T-Tsuchimikado?"
Tsuchimikado Motoharu: Kamijou's next-door neighbor, and his classmate (he thought so, but because of his memory loss, he couldn't say for sure). His long arms were distinctive—they could even reach his knees when straightened out—and he had a tall height and spiky blond hair. He was wearing an aloha shirt and half pants. Light blue sunglasses covered his eyes. Dangling on his neck was a gold chain that matched the outfit of delinquents. Kamijou knew that he didn't have one bit of delinquency in him and was just wearing it because he wanted to become popular with girls. He had a stepsister named Tsuchimikado Maika, who was frequently seen in a maid outfit, that turned Tsuchimikado into a besotted and doting brother whenever they were together.
"Hey, wait a minute! What are you doing here outside the city? How did you leave Academy City? Is Maika with you!?"
"If possible, I'd like you to not call my sister so casually, but... there's not much time left, Kami-yan. I have one thing to ask: do you see me as 'Tsuchimikado Motoharu'?"
Kamijou couldn't comprehend the point of Tsuchimikado's question.
"Haah!? What are you talking about? Putting aside that nonsense question, how did you get he—?"
"Then that means... No, that's not possible..." Tsuchimikado mumbled to himself."Well, whatever. Anyway, Kami-yan, you must get out of here ASAP. It's dangerous. What's dangerous, you ask? Soon, an irate nee-chin who went ballistic will come at you at any moment!"
"Hah? Nee-chin? Hey, don't tell me you did something?"
"Quit asking and just listen to your neighbor's advice!"
Tsuchimikado was probably in a state of confusion, as he couldn't convey his intention properly to Kamijou.
Kamijou just sloped his head to one side. Seeing his reaction, Tsuchimikado flusteredly badgered Kamijou to a degree that made his blue sunglasses slip off.
"Eeii! Kami-yan, did you notice something peculiar when you woke up this morning!?"
"Hmm? Yeah, everyone was somewhat strange, as if their insides (identities) and outsides (appearances) were swapped. Huh? Why do you know this?"
Kamijou glanced at the seaside where the three are playing beach volleyball.
"Just like I said! Nee-chin thinks you're the culprit who cast this 'swap' magic!"
"Ha?"
(Culprit?) Kamijou who was completely in the dark continued tilting his head. Then...
"I finally found you, Kamijou Touma!"
A girl's animosity-filled voice rushed in from his side.
Tsuchimikado faced the sky in despondency. Kamijou turned to the direction of the voice.
A girl with a height of 170 centimetres, too tall for her gender, was standing there. Her long hair was ponytailed in the back with a length that reached her hips. She had a nicely shaped body. One could easily associate her white skin with that of a princess, but mysteriously, unlike the conventional princesses, there was not one bit of transience or fragileness present in her.
The reason must have been because of her clothing style. She wore a half-sleeve T-shirt on upper body with the lower part of the T-shirt rolled up and tied exposing her navel. On her lower body was an overused jeans... but one lateral half was cut deliberately, exposing one of her white legs. Boots like those from wild wild west movies adorned her feet. An extra belt tilted on top of the other one that was fastened around the waist, had a holster to hold a handgun.
But the thing that was supposed to be in there was not a gun, instead, a Japanese sword. One could tell at first glance that this sword, somewhere around two metres in length, was an extraordinary one. Combining it with her pony-tailed jet-black hair, she resembled a samurai during warring state period.
That Bakumatsu [1] swordgirl was glaring at Kamijou.
With rage in her face, she unreluctantly edged up to Kamijou's.
What was scary was that this girl had been repeatedly touching and letting go of her sword.
"Kamijou Touma! I know you are the one behind this swap magic... this Angel Fall! In the count of three, turn everything back to normal or else... !"
The girl was already before Kamijou's eyes. Her irate words had the subtext that she would even beat Kamijou before she could finish counting. Kamijou was fazed. Being approached by an angry person with a huge sword, anyone would be scared.
"Eh? What is this person saying? Tsuchimikado, is this the 'nee-chin' you're talking about?... Hey, don't run away by yourself, bastard!"
Tsuchimikado, who was furtively distancing himself while Kamijou was focused at the girl, froze at Kamijou's shout, then turned around. His sunglasses light blue lens glittered.
Kamijou gazed at the seaside. The distance between Index and others and Kamijou was more or less a hundred metres away. Yet, Kamijou felt for a moment that other side was a distant paradise that he wouldn't be able reach even if he spent an eternity.
Kamijou felt the desire to flee there, but doubled back on that thought. There wouldn't be any difference. A different problem would be waiting for him there.
The girl in front of him had probably calmed down and said, "Ah, I see. That's right. I apologize. It seemed my rage clouded my judgement. For the record, let me ask you: who do you see me?"
(Who, you ask... ?)
Kamijou sloped his head at the strangeness of the question. From the way she had asked, she assumed that her appearance might look like a different person. Well, first of all, Kamijou, who had suffered memory loss after a certain incident didn't even remember that girl. Throwing a question like this to him, he had no answer but to tilt head.
The Samurai girl seemed to have sensed something from Kamijou's reaction. She said in an impatient voice, "... Geez, Putting up a lame act. You called me 'nee-chin' a while ago. My name isn't nee-chin. I am Kanzaki Kaori, an Anglican magician from Necessarius. I am aware that it was a short term encounter but don't tell me you've already forgotten about me."
Kamijou was shocked at Kanzaki's words, in two ways.
First, that queer Samurai girl, a mix-of-Japanese-and-English existence was actually his acquaintance.
Second, that she revealed her identity as an Anglican magician.
The Anglican Church's organisation Necessarius was a group that specialised in dealing with magicians, and Index and Stiyl Magnus were both members. Speaking of which, though Kanzaki's weird outfit didn't fit current society, she did have the same job as Index and Stiyl (though mentioning this may be rather rude).
But if that was true, then there was another suspicion within Kamijou's heart.
Why was Tsuchimikado related to this real magician?
At that moment, Tsuchimikado sighed, and said, "Oi oi, Kanzaki nee-chin, you don't have to be so combative."
"What are you saying, Tsuchimikado? I'm just trying to solve the current problem. To me, you lack the sense of being a magician."
Hearing that, Kamijou gasped.
"Oi, what did you say? What about being a magician?"
Kamijou stared at his neighbour Tsuchimikado in disbelief. In response, Tsuchimikado let out a sinister smile.
"That's right. I'm a member of Necessarius too."
Tsuchimikado said casually.
It took a while for Kamijou to realise the meaning of what Tsuchimikado had said.
The blue sunglasses were glittering.
The sunlight reflected from it became a weird colour.
"Wait... wait a second... you're saying that you're a magician?"
"Yeah."
Tsuchimikado straightforwardly nodded his head.
"Did you think that there aren't any magicians inside Academy City? It's the complete opposite. Academy City is the enemy of the world of churches, so it isn't strange to have one or two spies planted inside, right? Besides me, there seems to be many others."
"... But..."
What Tsuchimikado said didn't make sense.
But to hear Tsuchimikado that he knew from his normal everyday life say such logical things made Kamijou feel extremely unusual.
"Why do you think I could get to the 'outside' of Academy City? Don't you find it strange? Actually, thirteen hours ago, I was in Windsor Castle in England, together with Kanzaki nee-chin. Of course, I didn't write a permit, I didn't get nanomachines injected in me. I used a technique of getting out by the back door."
"..."
Even if he heard it from the person himself, Kamijou couldn't believe that this was true. To Kamijou, Tsuchimikado Motoharu was just his hostel neighbour in his everyday life. Purposely dressing up like a hooligan to be popular with the girls, frantically running over to Kamijou's room for help when his non-blood-related sister Maika just got summer flu. Anyway, he seemed like an ordinary guy, and shouldn't be related to that abnormal world called magic.
Thus, Kamijou unconsciously racked through his brain for an excuse.
"Wait... hold on! You did go through the lessons and training of Academy City, right? I heard that espers can't use magic! So—"
"That's right. Thus, to sneak into the enemy's territory, I, Tsuchimikado, was forced to give up on magic and the title as the Onmyoji professor of the highest order. But in the end, I got a Level 0 ability that I couldn't use at all, what a loss!"
The dorm neighbour let out a sinister smile.
"But in this world, in order to earn the trust of others, some spies can hide their names for at least fifty years! If I couldn't endure such a sacrifice, I'm too naïve."
"But you..."
Kamijou wanted to ask something else, but couldn't continue on.
Seeing Kamijou look so surprised, Tsuchimikado let out a self-mocking smile and said, "That's right. This is Tsuchimikado's real identity. A tool that reports every single action that Academy City does to the Anglican Church. Basically, I'm a spy."
A spy.
The word that didn't have any surreal sense, the word that could only be heard in a movie.
At this moment, Kanzaki completely ignored Kamijou's shock and asked Tsuchimikado dully.
"Let me ask you again, Tsuchimikado. Is it really alright for you to reveal your real identity like this?"
"No problems. Besides, the higher-ups knew about it, they just didn't take action. Right now, my situation is as if they're playing me in their palms."
Through the blue shades, Tsuchimikado's eyes narrowed.
"Since I haven't met any harm up till now, it means that the information I got isn't enough for them to kill me... it's true that we won't be able to fight them once they know the truth about the Imaginary Number District - Five Elements Institution. Besides, it's just a job, and I don't want to lose my life because of it. It's about time to retreat, there's some danger in probing further. Besides, we won't be able to do any damage to Aleister. Really, Academy City's dark side is not fun to deal with."
"..."
Tsuchimikado's words made Kamijou tremble.
Kamijou didn't hear any explosive inside story. Actually, he didn't understand anything at all. However, since Kamijou couldn't understand Tsuchimikado's words, it showed that Tsuchimikado and Kamijou weren't people of the same world.
"... So this means... that you're a real magician?"
"A somewhat unique, rather one-of-a-kind magician."
A spy.
Even if he knew this, the impression that Kamijou had of Tsuchimikado Motoharu wasn't broken at all. To Kamijou, Tsuchimikado was still his dorm neighbour, a good brother to his little sister Maika, a bad good guy that provided shelter for his little sister when she snuck out of the girls' dormitory.
Even if the man himself had just said his real identity, it didn't affect Kamijou's impression of him; that showed how much he had integrated into Academy City, and that was truly the most terrifying point.
"Hm, let's not talk about this first."
Tsuchimikado briskly changed the topic.
"Right now, the main point is how we should handle the substitution in roles? Kami-yan, you should have noticed this scenario, right?"
"Hold on... hearing you say that, I suppose you're clear about what's going on?"
"Ah, it's not really that. Right now, we know only one thing, that the substitution in roles isn't the main aim here, it's just a side-effect nya."
"Side-effect? For what?"
Kamijou frowned. He could understand the meaning of 'substitution in roles'. Everyone wasn't right when he woke up that morning, he saw some strange things when he turned on the TV. But what did he mean by 'side-effect' and 'main aim'? Using those terms made it seem like it was all man-made.
Seeing Kamijou look suspicious, Kanzaki couldn't help but sigh.
"Tsuchimikado, it seems really hard for anyone to understand if the person hasn't heard of the Kabbalah tree theory."
"I know. But if so, wouldn't your original theory be wrong?" Tsuchimikado laughed and said, "How can a magical amateur like Kamijou Touma cause such a large spell that changes the inside and outer appearance like Angel Fall?"
Shocked by Tsuchimikado's words, Kamijou stared intently at him.
"What? What has this got to do with me?"
Kamijou questioned Tsuchimikado, but the one who responded was Kanzaki, who didn't look convinced.
"... There's a boy, for some reason, there were a lot of things that commonly happened around him. Right now, with that boy as centre, something else occurred. The entire world is affected by this, and the only one not affected by this is this boy in the middle of the commotion. In this situation, we suspect that this boy is the culprit, isn't it unreasonable?"
"Oi... oioi! Hold on! You're saying it really strangely! What 'something happened' again? By your explanation, are all these man-made?"
"Do you think that these are natural disasters?"
Kamijou inadvertently remained silent.
Tsuchimikado forced a smile and said, "Oi, Kami-yan, don't be so silent! Or you'll be blamed for this!"
"Tsuchimikado, who did you say will be blamed for this? Right now, the only people in the entire world who aren't affected by Angel Fall is—"
"Hold up! What's that 'Angel Fall' which you talked of so many times?"
Kamijou picked out a term from Kanzaki's words, and the two magicians turned over to look at Kamijou.
"Ah—Angel Fall is... it's rather troublesome to explain it. Kanzaki, I'll leave it to you nya—"
"Tsuchimikado, don't be so old-fashioned when you talk." Kanzaki looked bored as she sighed, and said, "Basically, this substitution in roles phenomenon is a human-made event caused by someone using magic."
"Human-made event?"
Kanzaki silently nodded her head.
Kamijou looked like he didn't understand, and Kanzaki continued, "Right now, the entire world is affected by some magic, creating this phenomenon. Even the records of the library of England have nothing regarding this. As the specific spell and construct of the spell is still a mystery, we went according to the features of the phenomenon and temporarily called this spell Angel Fall."
"... You didn't know how it was made, but you knew what's going on?"
How far away.
Such a conversation content made the noises of Index and everyone else playing seem so far away.
"It's like a mysterious giant beast attacking a city."
Tsuchimikado smiled as he explained.
"Even after the guards investigated for at least half a day, they couldn't find out the real identity of the beast. They just know that they have to stop it to prevent the damage from becoming more widespread. Kami-yan, you're just restrained by common knowledge and your own perspective. You just need to imagine it as gaming rules, and it should be rather easy for you to understand it."
"Your example here made me unable to understand it at all."
Hearing Tsuchimikado's words, Kanzaki looked completely perplexed as she tilted her head and said it.
(To think that this woman could do such a cutesy action. ) Kamijou thought rather rudely.
"Let's explain it a little further. This spell called 'Angel Fall' includes the ideas of the Kabbalah. Have you heard of it?"
"... No impression."
Actually, Kamijou seemed to have heard of it before, but since he didn't really remember, he denied it. Thinking about it, the magician Stiyl seemed to have said it before during the battle against the alchemist.
"The so-called Tree of Life is basically a hierarchy of identities, separating God, angels, humans and souls into ten levels on a pyramid; this is the basic concept."
"It's based on the picture drawn out to show that God reigns supreme over everything. Well, simply put, this picture shows that humans can only reach a certain level, and beyond is God's territory, so it can't be invaded."
"The number of humans and angels were already decided, thus in ordinary circumstances, humans are definitely unable to be promoted to become angels. In contrast, angels are never to be demoted to be humans."
"Because every single realm is already filled up."
Following off what Tsuchimikado said, Kanzaki continued, "But this spell called 'Angel Fall' is just as what the name implies, it can force an angel that's in the heavens to become a human. And the human realm is like a cup full of water, if a drop of angel is to fall in—what will happen to the cup of water?"
"Ah... eh..." Kamijou looked rather awkward as he said, "An... angel... ?"
"Yes. Strictly speaking, it's not heaven's messenger, but God's messenger. Are there any questions?"
Kanzaki answered seriously.
"Hm..."
Kamijou's mind stopped thinking.
Mikoto and company were having fun playing with the beach ball, and the sounds reached the ears of the completely silent Kamijou. As there were only the few of them on the wide coast, the sounds brought a bit of loneliness.
It was not like Kamijou didn't understand, but trying to click with those people who were from the magic world with scientific knowledge was impossible. Basically, Kamijou once got involved with a case involving vampires, and nearly lost his life.
The problem is... an angel? Wouldn't it be too far-fetched?
(If anyone were to hear that 'the problem that's happening on Earth now is caused by an angel!' and yet could respond with 'this is bad, what should we do?', it was likely that they had lost all hope on their own lives, right?) Kamijou seriously thought.
"... What angel? This is truly hard to believe. In this age, space shuttles can break through the atmosphere, and there's no sign of a heaven..."
"Mm, the high and low relationship of heaven and hell isn't of height."
"Then what is it?"
"Here's an example. Human eyes can't see infrared rays, and human ears can't detect high frequency sounds. You can understand this right, Kami-yan?"
"Ah? Mn."
"The high and low refers to this, anything that's above or below what humans can detect. They can't feel it if it's too high or if it's too low. So even if God is to appear beside Kami-yan, you should be unable to detect it."
Tsuchimikado delightedly smiled.
"Yeah. The low is referring to hell of the devil. What's opposite Infrared rays are ultraviolet rays, and low frequency in contrast to high frequency; in other words, an inversion. Though both waves are different, both are still waves. In other words, even if there's an angel standing beside a demon, they won't be able to detect each other unless they interfere with each other in the area between heaven and hell called the 'human realm'."
"Tsuchimikado..."
Kanzaki's tone sounded rather stern.
She didn't seem to like Tsuchimikado using infrared and high frequency as examples.
"But once objects are lit by infrared rays, they will grow hot. Glass will vibrate when there's a high frequency sound. This is called a Divine Retribution or a miracle. So on first glance, the heaven that doesn't react will sometimes affect the human realm. Of course, there may be opposite effects."
Kamijou still didn't understand.
Tsuchimikado continued, "Oh yes, Kami-yan. In religions that worship idols like Buddhism and Christianity, the power of God or power of angels do actually exist around us."
"..."
Kamijou looked suspicious.
"I'm not lying to you. Here's an example. Wouldn't there be a cross at the top of the roof of a church? These crosses have a special power, but are these crosses the ones used to kill the saints? The answer is obviously no."
Tsuchimikado continued to wave his hand and said, "The crosses on the top of the churches are all fake, but even a fake can have power. As long as the shape and purpose is similar, it can obtain a small portion of the real one. This is the Idol Theory."
Basically, adding a metal sword and light magic together will create a light magic blade.
"This Idol Theory rule applies to angels as well. As long as one uses some special skills, the power of an angel can be placed on an item. For example, an angel's sculpture on the tip of a sword can cause the blade to be infused with angelic power. Carving an angel's name onto a protective magic array will grant the defensive power of an angel... of course, the amount of power a substitute can get is extremely little. Only in the Old Testament of the Bible did an angel truly descend on earth."
"These are to be made under one assumption, that angels exist."
"... This is really unbelievable."
Even though Kamijou was still suspicious, he didn't dare try to act snobbish. Besides, these guys were experts, and they were serious, not joking at all. When he faced off against the alchemist, Kamijou really had a hard time because he didn't listen to Stiyl's explanation seriously; thus, he learnt his lesson.
"Sorry, I just want to confirm this... is this really not a prank?"
"I don't understand what you mean."
Kanzaki coughed a bit, and continued.
"Anyway, Angel Fall is a spell that forcefully pulls an angel down from above, and this will affect the four worlds—in other words, the original world, the world of creation, the formed world and the physical world."
"... Eh, Tsuchimikado-sensei, may I know what language this Missy is speaking?"
"I'll explain this. Like what you see, Kami-yan, everyone's inside and outside have switched. This is like a musical chairs game, once the game starts, the chairs and the people sitting on the chairs will change completely. But in this game, not everyone will get a chair eventually. The only one left without a seat will be squeezed into the sky—to sit on the chair that the angel originally vacated."
A substitution of roles.
What resulted were the scenes that Kamijou saw at the seaside and on the television.
Kamijou finally understood that part.
Tsuchimikado casually chuckled and said, "However, the theory isn't important at all. We just need to know that something strange happened and that we have to stop it."
"... Stop it? Is there a way?"
"Yeah. It seems like this spell called 'Angel Fall' is still incomplete. If we want to stop it, now's the time. Even if it's your right hand, it can't revive someone who's been burned to ash, right? Same logic, it will be too late if the spell is complete."
"..."
Your right hand.
Though it may not seem important, but how did Tsuchimikado know about the Imagine Breaker?
Seeing Kamijou look so suspicious, Tsuchimikado paused momentarily, before continuing.
"Oi oi, do I need to explain this as well? The battle for the Index, the invasion of Misawa Cram School, the termination of the Level 6 project, I knew about all these events. I was even the one in charge of investigating for two of those events."
Tsuchimikado casually said such shocking things before returning back to topic as per normal.
"Though the real spell is a mystery, Angel Fall is a global spell. It's too much for a magician to try and carry it out, so the culprit should have carried out a ritual centre like barrier or magic array."
Tsuchimikado then said with an enthusiastic tone, "Thus, there are two ways to prevent Angel Fall. One is to beat the caster, and the second is to destroy the ritual centre. Of course, there's a time limit, but we don't know how much time do we have, which makes this thrilling."
In the end, Kamijou was still confused. Anyway, because of a certain someone, everyone's inside got switched... that's what he meant, right?
At this moment, any ordinary person would have shouted 'isn't this too ridiculous'? But Kamijou himself was living in a city with 2. 3 million espers, and had fought against magicians before. Thus, he knew that there were many things that can't be brought through with just a simple 'this is too illogical'.
Thus, Kamijou started to be bothered.
It seemed like everyone's actions looked so strange because of the substitution in roles. Kamijou recalled what had happened that morning. It was extremely disastrous ever since he woke up this morning, Misaka Mikoto actually became his little sister—
"—Wait... hold on! This is too weird! Why do I have an extra little sister? I don't have a little sister at all!"
If all those strange phenomenon were caused by the substitution in roles (though it sounds ridiculous), how did Mikoto become Kamijou's little sister?
Kanzaki casually continued.
"Well, who knows? But since there's a substitution in roles, it means that there should be someone that originally exist. Or maybe you really do have a little sister in this world; just that you don't know of."
"What? So I found out about my family's big secret due to this?"
Kamijou was shocked severely, but still managed to make a little joke. Unfortunately, he was not really convinced.
"Speaking of which, what's the culprit's intention to blow it up like this?"
"I can guess two reasons. One is to capture the angel who falls to earth as a slave, the other is to take the original position of the angel."
"No matter what the reason is, if it succeeds, it'll be something big within the Kabbalah world. The members of the Golden Dawn should be panicking like crazy now."
"If it were to be used for malice—an angel's power can destroy the entire Vatican. This isn't a joke, the criminal's aim can't just be for something casual."
"Excuse me..." Completely being ignored, Kamijou carefully opened his mouth and said, "Can we get back on topic? What should I do now? What do you guys intend to do to me by coming all the way here?"
"Ah, about this..."
Tsuchimikado's tone seemed to indicate that this wasn't important at all.
"We've just said it before. According to the results of the investigation, this strange phenomenon seems to be caused by you at the centre, Kami-yan. However, you're unaffected even though you're at the centre..."
"... What?"
Kamijou was stunned and his eyes widened.
"So you're suspected as the culprit. It's like a hacker spreading a virus worldwide, the hacker won't let his own computer be hacked, right?"
"Wait... hold on! If you say so, aren't you guys still the same?"
"Kanzaki and I were lucky. I said before that Angel Fall started because it spread from you. Kanzaki nee-chin and I just so happened to be in London when the spell was activated."
"... So this meant that everyone in London is okay?"
"As if. The power of Angel Fall is tremendous. We just so happened to be inside Windsor Castle. Windsor Castle has a stronghold-level defensive barrier, and its defensive capability is definitely not less than the white Walking Church. Besides us, it seems like the people inside the deepest parts of Westminster Abbey and Southwark Cathedral are alright."
Tsuchimikado chuckled.
"Under the double protection of the distance and the barrier, we managed to escape. However, most of the magicians got hit by the poison of Angel Fall, there are very few people who realised this."
"Oh... though I don't really understand what's going on, isn't this a silver lining in the cloud?"
"Not just that. Nee-chin was okay, but I wasn't inside the deepest part at that time. If I didn't set up a barrier for myself during the 300 seconds when the outside barrier was activated, even I would be affected."
"... Eh? But you just said that you can't use magic..."
Even now, Kamijou was still rather confused about this thing called magic.
However, Kamijou did witness the students of Misawa Cram School who were manipulated by the alchemist use magic, and their bodies exploded due to the rejection. Anyway, espers can't use magic.
Tsuchimikado seemed to understand what Kamijou meant, as he smirked slightly and said, "That's right. This is why there are some parts of me that are absolutely terrible now. I'll definitely die the next time I use magic."
A gust blew by, lifting up Tsuchimikado's flowery shirt.
Kamijou saw that underneath the shirt—there was a large black bloody patch on him. It seemed like his body had gotten corroded by something unknown.
"Even so, I haven't completely escaped the control of Angel Fall." Tsuchimikado chuckled, and continued, "Besides us and you, to others, I'm 'switched' now. My current appearance is of an idol superstar named Hitotsui Hajime. A few days ago, this person was exposed by the tabloids to have an affair with another famous female star. Thus, right now, if any of those rabid girls is to see me, they'll come chasing after me with metal bats. This is truly a unique life experience."
Tsuchimikado then pointed at his sunglasses and said, "So I have no choice but to disguise myself."
"Erm... this means that..." Kamijou carefully asked Tsuchimikado, "So you're that handsome idol to those substituted people?"
"That's the case."
Tsuchimikado said casually.
"Aren't you all too popular now! I'm in a mess here and yet you're so popular out there!"
"Well, this life is rather tiring as well. Besides, if I want to destroy this Angel Fall, I can't let myself be dragged down by the crowd."
"... Well, at least you're being professional here."
Kamijou turned to Kanzaki and said, "That onee-san got switched in other people's eyes as well, right?"
"..."
Kanzaki remained silent, her shoulders trembling slightly.
(Eh? Don't tell me I tripped on her land mine?) Kamijou wondered.
"... —iyl."
"What?"
Kamijou was shocked.
Kanzaki then continued in a flat tone, "My appearance right now is that of Stiyl Magnus. That's right, to them, I'm now one over two metre tall man with long red hair. Once I enter a bathroom or a changing room, someone will call the police, I'll be mistaken to be a pervert while taking the train. Yes, I was shocked. For a moment, I thought that the whole world was against me."
Kamijou thought, so a human's emotions aren't necessarily expressed in facial expressions or tone. Such a monotone that doesn't have any emotions in it can actually be that terrifying.
Kamijou could be certain.
That onee-san really seemed to be angry.
With an emotionless puppet-like expression, Kanzaki forcefully placed her hands onto Kamijou's shoulders.
"Did you really not do anything? You were the culprit, right? To be honest, I won't be angry. An angel being controlled by a magician, this is one huge event that's unheard of. Do you know how dangerous that is? I had enough, I should immediately settle this. Do you know how terrible it is to be treated as a big and tall Englishman with a sissy's voice?"
"Uu... oooiii! Stop... shaking... stop shaking me!"
Without showing any expression, Kanzaki shook Kamijou's shoulders back and forth with a terrifying force that exceeded human logic. Kamijou was terrified that his neck would snap.
"Do you understand now? Being at the centre of this strange phenomenon, you'll be viewed by every other magician in the world who escaped this as the culprit; you'll be hunted by them."
"STOP WATCHING THE SHOW FROM THE SIDELINES! HURRY... UP AND TELL HER TO STOP SHAKING ME!"
Kamijou shouted, feeling like he was about to throw up.
"U... uuugh... THINK ABOUT IT, YOU GUYS! ANGEL FALL IS A MAGIC SPELL, AND I'M AN ESPER, HOW CAN I CAST MAGIC!?"
The hands of Kanzaki that were shaking Kamijou violently froze instantly.
Without moving, Kanzaki looked into Kamijou's eyes, and like ice in a cup melting, she frowned slightly, revealing a puzzled expression.
"If so, this means that we're completely clueless here. We have no idea what the culprit intends to use the angel for, but we have to quickly prevent Angel Fall. Am I going to continue living on as a foreign juggernaut who's very fluent in Japanese but talks like a lady... ?"
Hearing Kanzaki say this, though this incident wasn't Kamijou's fault, he did feel a sense of guilt and sadness.
What was that feeling? It was like seeing a neighbour's perfect nee-chan suddenly crying. It was completely different from the feeling that Index gave of wanting to protect her.
Originally feeling casual, Tsuchimikado seemed to have that feeling as well. He said, "All right, all right. If so, I guess that we have to start over our investigations again."
"... Oh yeah..."
Kanzaki looked at Tsuchimikado and said, "Tsuchimikado, you're an esper as well, but you did use magic before... so it's likely that..."
Kanzaki's tone was rather calm, but Kamijou felt goosebumps on his back, and quickly clarified, "Hold... hold on hold on! The problem is that I have no knowledge of magic at all!"
"That's right, but you do have the Index with you, right?"
"That's right, that's a blind spot, " Tsuchimikado said in a casual tone, sounding rather impressed.
And after which, he found Kamijou glaring at him and felt somewhat embarrassed, so he quickly rounded off, "But Kanzaki nee-chin, if espers use magic, it'll greatly damage their bodies. At the very least, there will be bleeding, and in serious cases, a massive body explosion—it was mentioned in the report of the Misawa incident, right? You can see that Kami-yan's body is rather healthy here."
"Mn, then let's confirm it."
After saying that, Kanzaki naturally reached her hand out and tapped Kamijou's stomach lightly.
"WAH! WHAT... WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"
"Why are you jumping up out of a sudden? I'm just checking to see if there are any wounds. Seeing your overreaction, there are some parts inside that are damaged and can't be seen by the human eye, right?"
"NO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT WON'T JUMP AT THIS! THIS IS A NATURAL REACTION, STOP TOUCHING ME LIKE THAT, FOR GOODNEES SAKE!"
"That's too suspicious. You're afraid of being checked, right? If you're innocent, you won't be mindful of being checked no matter the means, right?"
Kamijou stared at the shallow beach. If Index and the rest were to see him being molested by a nee-chin, it would be over. He wouldn't be able to wash his sins away even if he were to jump into a river.
"... (To indicate that anyone who refuses to be checked is the culprit. Kanzaki nee-chin really is one of the radical juries of the Anglican Church's Necessarius. )"
Rather understanding of the workings of the magic world, Tsuchimikado seemed to be rather impressed. Of course, Kamijou wouldn't know about such things.
"Ugh... all... all right! My innocence can be proven if I don't have any external wounds or internal bleeding, right... OOOOIII! STOP... DON'T TOUCH ANY STRANGE PLACES!!"
"??? Anyway, please don't move."
Kanzaki's slender fingers moved underneath Kamijou's armpits, chest and other areas slowly. Though Kanzaki gave an icy impression, her fingers were unexpectedly warm. Facing this predicament, Kamijou started to sweat profusely. The sweat-stained fingers of Kanzaki felt like someone licking Kamijou's body with their tongue.
(Hold... hold on... ! Not good... ooiii!! If... if she continues to touch me like this... I'll develop some weird interests in the future... !)
"..."
Kanzaki moving fingers suddenly stopped.
She silently looked down.
Kamijou Touma's beach pants.
That's right. Since Kamijou Touma was a healthy high school student, there was a reaction to Kanzaki Kaori's reckless palpation, and the centre of that reaction was hidden inside the centre of the beach pants.
"Wait... wait a second! Miss Kanzaki! This isn't some! This is an effective factor! It's an irresistible accident! I'm sorry, I'm wrong! It's my fault, please don't serve me up with that Japanese sword!"
Kamijou frantically tried to explain after being stunned for a while. However, Kanzaki didn't seem to be thinking about that.
Like a stone statue, she remained silent for a while, and finally said, "... You're right. If we're to start checking, we have to be thorough, even inside the pants."
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? WHO WILL ALLOW THAT... AHHH, YOU'LL VIEW ME AS THE CULPRIT IF I SAY 'NO', RIGHT!? BUT I WON'T AGREE TO IT NO MATTER WHAT! DON'T I HAVE A RIGHT TO PROTEST AS A HEALTHY YOUNG BOY!?"
"Hm."
Kanzaki moved her eyes up from the beach pants.
"Alright, maybe my method isn't working. Since I'm of the opposite gender, it must be painful to be checked here like this."
"That... that's right! Just like this! We can still talk if you calm down!"
"So, being of the same gender, Tsuchimikado, please do the honours."
"Wait... Tsuchimikado? Like that palpation just now? Inside the beach pants? No... NOOOO!! I DON'T WANT IT!!"
"Really? Then I'll do it then."
"Why... WHY IS IT 'IF IT'S NOT A, THEN IT'S B'!? WHY ARE THERE ONLY A AND B AS OPTIONS!? HOLD... HOLD ON! MISS KANZAKI! WHY ARE YOU WEARING SURGICAL GLOVES!? HOLD... HOLD ON! WAIT... AHHHHH—!"
Option C, raising a toy shovel and shouting: "I'll kill you."
Embarrassed and angry, Kamijou's tears were about to come out as he increased his distance from the strange neighbour and the nee-chin with the Japanese nodachi. Using his hands to hold down the beach pants that he barely managed to defend, he stared at those two like a wounded beast.
The two magicians felt rather awkward as well.
"S-see? I was right, right? Kami-yan wasn't switched not because he was the culprit, but because the effects of Angel Fall got negated by the Imagine Breaker."
"Hm, but if so, this is a bit problematic. We have already lost track of our goal. If Angel Fall is complete, it will cause devastation on a mythical scale; but we don't have a single clue..."
"It's not that we don't have a clue at all. At least we know that the Angel Fall started with Kami-yan at the centre, so the culprit should be near him!"
"The problem is that we don't know whether the culprit actually interacted with Kamijou Touma."
"That's rather troublesome. My pulse will explode if I use magic again. Ah, that's right, how about we get Kami-yan to help us track this culprit?"
"Your suggestion is rather illogical. Are you going to ask your guests to help you build your house when you don't have enough workers?"
"That's alright, isn't it? We will protect Kami-yan from being attacked by the culprit, and Kami-yan will destroy the location of the Angel Fall spell. We'll still need him though. What do you think, Kami-yan?"
Kamijou didn't answer.
He was silently writing a few words with his fingers: I'm going to sue you.
Part 2
After 8PM, the real night of summer descended.
Kamijou's family was gathered at the first level of the seaside resort, sitting around the round table. Even though it was Kamijou's family, the roles had switched.
As 'Kamijou's friend', Kanzaki Kaori naturally blended into that crew of strange characters. Of course, to the rest, she was a rough red-haired foreign delinquent.
Kamijou was feeling rather insecure. Since they didn't know when Angel Fall would be complete, how could she be sitting down there so casually? But to Kanzaki, since the phenomenon was centred around Kamijou, it seemed like protecting Kamijou was also one of her priorities.
However, Tsuchimikado hadn't joined in. Right now, he should be playing with sea roaches along the barrier reefs. To the others, he was an idol who just got into trouble; and as a professional spy, Tsuchimikado most likely wouldn't want to get caught up with having to handle people.
So right now, everyone who was sitting around the round table were ordinary civilians (on the surface).
Everyone was hungry, but there was no sign of the shopkeeper.
Turning on the television, they only saw Komoe-sensei reporting the depressing news that the serial killer Hino Jinsaku had escaped from prison, and still had not been found. They were unable to use that as a topic for conversation.
Even though he didn't know what to say, Touya still tried to talk to Kanzaki.
"Hello, I'm Touma's father. I didn't know that Touma has foreign friends; it's really the age of globalisation. Ah, let me give you an Egyptian talisman as a greeting gift. It's a scarab from Egypt. It's said that once you have it, you won't get lost in the desert."
Touya pulled out a grounded pepper-sized bottle, and Kamijou was stunned before he shouted out.
There was a dried dead insect stored inside.
"Isn't this a dung beetle? Don't put such a thing on the dinner table, stupid dad!"
"No."
Kanzaki said calmly.
"In Egypt, the scarab represents transmigration. It is a representative gift of Egyptian culture, like the Eye of Horus and the Ankh (key of life)."
"Erm... yeah... that's right! Touma, Dad's not too sure, but you shouldn't be so quick to deny other countries' cultures like that."
"What... am I the only one? Am I the only one who feels that one shouldn't put a dried dead insect like that onto the dining table?"
Kamijou was hit greatly, but at that moment, Mikoto, who was sitting beside Kamijou, tugged his shirt and said, "... No, I'm on onii-chan's side. It's scary to use that kind of thing as a mobile phone keychain. It may also tremble when the phone vibrates."
"I really want to thank you for your honest opinion, but hearing that act-cutesy voice of yours really irritates me."
"What!?"
Mikoto puffed her cheeks, but Kamijou completely ignored her.
At that moment, Kamijou remembered something.
Kamijou's family shouldn't have a little sister. To everyone, who was Mikoto?
Thus, Kamijou moved his position to secretly ask Index, who was taking the role of his mother.
"(Oi oi, let me ask you, who's that imouto? I'm really curious... )"
"Ara ara, so does Touma like girls who are like that little sister?"
Seeing his that his mother's brain was short-circuited, Kamijou raised his fist and knocked her head slightly as if he was knocking a faulty television.
"Ara ara, you really don't take care of a girl's feelings. That's Touma's cousin, Otohime."
"(... Cousin)?"
"Ara ara, has Touma forgotten about her already? Then you don't remember uncle and aunt Tatsugami already? You probably never met them ever since you graduated from kindergarten and entered Academy City. However, you did take an afternoon nap together with Otohime in the same bed."
"But... but no one was here yesterday?"
"She just came in this morning."
As they talked, footsteps could be heard from the entrance leading to the seaside. The owner was back.
"Sorry sorry, I didn't have time to say hello to you people. The loudspeaker on the seaside was broken, and it took a while to repair it.
The one closest to the owner, Kanzaki, turned around and said, "Please don't mind, the loudspeaker can be used to report any incoming tsunami and assist in relief work, it's most important to handle this since it involves human safety... Sti... Stiyl? What's going on?"
"Stiyl? Is that a common slang?"
The tall and huge man with long red hair said suspiciously.
"You're about to eat dinner, already, right? There's not much variety here, but the advantage here is that we're fast!"
"No... erm... (I was too careless... I forgot that Stiyl's here in Japan to hunt people down!)"
It seemed like Stiyl was completely controlled by Angel Fall. Thinking of which, all the magicians in the world should be the same now, and besides, there were very few magicians who detected that anomaly, like Tsuchimikado and Kanzaki.
| ← Ch. 026 | Ch. 028 → |