that it wasn't fair or cowardly. She herself only had a knife, and this girl hid the gun. She understood her naivety. Mari's own pride didn't allow her to turn away from there.

"Juumonji! No matter how impressive it was, in the end it's a neutron ray! You can defend yourself with your neutron barrier!"

Instead, she shouted a "don't give up" speech at Katsuto.

But Katsuto continued to remain motionless on his knees.

"Unfortunately, the neutron barrier will not protect against Baryon Lance."

"What!?" Mari was surprised.

"He's bluffing, Juumonji-kun! The neutron barrier is a suitable magic. You can completely stop the neutron beam" Mayumi cried.

To this argument, Tatsuya returned a mysterious answer: "That's why." No, it can be more precisely expressed by these words: "His answer was a mystery for Mayumi and Mari." Because Katsuto already understood the meaning of his words.

The neutron beam has a very high penetrating power. Since the properties of the substance are reflected in the "information", information is also embedded in the neutrons Eidos that its penetration power is high.

Magic is a technology that interferes with a phenomenon through information. It is difficult to block a neutron beam with magic, which is informationally designated as "having a high penetrating power". With it there is a definition of "difficult to block."

At the dawn of its appearance, modern magic was primarily aimed at preventing disasters caused by nuclear fission reactions. Blocking neutron beams was also an inevitable theme in modern magic. A lot of research resources have been poured into the search for ways to block neutron beams using magic.

The result of these studies was the Neutron barrier. This is a perfected magic whose only purpose is to block neutron beams.

To block neutron beams, magicians don't use any other magic except the Neutron barrier. This is the only magic that is suitable for blocking neutron beams. Since the magic has already been perfected, no further spells have been researched, so there is no other example of a spell capable of stopping a neutron beam at this time.

The same can be said about the magicians of the Juumonji family.

Among the wide range of magic barriers included in Phalanx, only the Neutron barrier can stop neutron beams. Since the only useful spell is known ahead of time, then it cannot escape the fate of being destroyed by Tatsuya, because there is no magic that he cannot "decompose."

In addition to the process of converting the substance of the "Spear tip" into a neutron beam and the process of neutron return by "Regrowth", there is one additional process in Baryon Lance that is responsible for the "decomposition" of the neutron barrier.

Even if you defend yourself with the help of Zone Interference, this won't change anything. The neutron barrier is destroyed simultaneously with the neutralization of the Zone Interference and then the neutron beam reaches its target.

Katsuto had already used the Neutron barrier. The protective version of Phalanx is a magical defense that "can withstand any type of attack." In addition to protecting against high-speed objects, spraying liquids, penetrating gases, sound waves, electromagnetic waves, gravitational waves, psion waves, and so on, it also includes a barrier against neutron rays.

And Tatsuya's Baryon Lance passed through this defense. Both Tatsuya and Katsuto knew that trying to repeat would lead to the same result.

"... I admit defeat."

"Juumonji-kun !?"

"Juumonji!?"

Under the screams of Mayumi and Mari, Katsuto got up and raised his right hand, showing that he was surrendering.

? ? ?

Watching the battle through binoculars, the intelligence agent code-named "Monkey," was shocked by such an ending. The Intelligence Department expected Katsuto to win after 2 strikes. After that, they planned to kidnap the weakened Tatsuya.

He hurriedly turned on the communication device. It was shut down because of fear of being detected by radio wave detectors. This, as well as the use of the old-fashioned purely optical binoculars these days, was a precaution against the accidental detection of observers.

And even turning on the communication device, he didn't do anything careless, like sending a voice. He only sent pre-determined signals.

The answer came quickly. Permission to interfere.

His soul dropped to his heels. He was a weak magician, and his morale was destroyed by the battle he had just seen. This isn't a level which they can cope with.

"Monkey" belonged to the special issues unit. They couldn't rely on the

Tooyama family magic like the counterintelligence unit, even though they belong to the same Intelligence Department. He didn't think that the magic of the Tooyama family, not even one of the Ten Master Clans would help against the magician of the Yotsuba family.

But an order is an order. The monkey rose to go to the main unit. He reassured himself that he wasn't good enough to be ordered to shoot at this monster. He cautiously stepped back so that the figures of Tatsuya and the others disappeared behind the trees, and then turned around, without looking away from that place.

At that moment a multicolored stream swept into his eyes. Light particles of all shades of color that a person can discern have filled his entire field of vision and moved chaotically. His mind went off in an attempt to escape from this insane glimmer.

? ? ?

Tatsuya and Katsuto looked at each other. Katsuto's left arm has already been restored to its original state by Tatsuya's "Regrowth."

"Shiba. What are you going to do with me?" Katsuto asked for the terms of his surrender.

"You leave empty-handed and don't return with such conversations anymore." This was Tatsuya's only condition.

"... Understood."

Katsuto decided that it would be appropriate. More precisely, he understood that as the loser he couldn't object.

"Shiba. As I said earlier, the situation has reached a state where you cannot delay any longer."

He couldn't help but say this.

"The Magic Association will announce that you are Taurus Silver, despite the fact that this will irritate the Yotsuba family. And when this happens, public opinion will force you to take part in the project."

Tatsuya didn't say anything. It was clear that Katsuto didn't return to the previous conversation, but approaches him from the other side.

"If you refuse to participate in the project after that, you can hardly continue to remain in the Japanese magical community, no, in this whole country. I'm sure that even Yotsuba-dono will not be able to protect you."

"Even if this happens, I cannot participate in Project Dion." Tatsuya answered without hesitation.

"Why !?" The cry of Mayumi was filled with a misunderstanding emanating from the depths of the soul.

"Why are you so stubbornly refusing!? Going to America doesn't mean that you will become a guinea pig there, or you will work for free! In a sense Tatsuya-kun you are the official international representative of Japan. Invited to the project. And "Project Dion" itself is trying to solve the difficulties facing the future of mankind! How can you talk about refusing, setting yourself apart from all of Japan!"

"The main advantage of the peaceful use of magic is that magicians themselves should enjoy it." Tatsuya answered Mayumi in the same tone as he had answered Katsuto's words before that. Mayumi became entangled in this game of words.

"...What do you mean?" Mari asked when Mayumi couldn't find the words.

"Project Dion" has a hidden purpose behind it."

"What?"

"The official goal is the terraforming of Venus. A hidden goal is the expulsion from the Earth of those magicians who are considered a threat."

"...In what sense? Tatsuya-kun, what are you saying ...?" Mayumi wondered.

"The more I think about "Project Dion", the more I'm sure that this project is intended more to achieve the hidden goals."

"Explain it to us."

Tatsuya decided to respond to Katsuto's request.

"According to "Project Dion", in the orbit around Venus, in the asteroid belt, close to the surface of Jupiter, on Ganymede a satellite of Jupiter, many magicians would be placed directly at the stages of the project. Given the current space flight technology, those who will do this work, will not be able to return to Earth for a long time. Even if there is a certain work schedule, then most likely you will have to return to your place of work immediately after recovery.

"It's unlikely that it will be so bad ..."

"Magicians who meet the requirements of the project are too few in comparison to the number of people required."

Tatsuya rejected Mayumi's objection.

"Magicians who are abandoned for the implementation of the projects stages will be victims for the sake of the future of mankind. The scheme in which magicians are used as tools is no different from the current situation, when magicians are used as weapons."

? ? ?

Receiving instructions from the special affairs unit agent who was watching the battle between Tatsuya and Katsuto, the Tatsuya abduction unit, prepared by the Intelligence Department, began to move.

Among them was Tooyama Tsukasa. She was shocked by Katsuto's defeat, but managed to not show it on her face.

Tsukasa's intuition whispered to her to abandon the operation and retreat. However, the current operation was the decision of the deputy director of the Intelligence Department. She didn't have the authority to stop this operation.

"Katsuto-san does not seem to have lost his fighting power ... the young lady from the Saegusa family will also give us strength in the event of an emergency."

Deceiving herself with such consolations, she silently moved forward along with the rest of the capturing squad.

The goal (Tatsuya) is on a closed golf course.

Tsukasa and her associates approached not from the side of the road leading to the golf course, but from the mountains surrounding him. Finally, from the top of the mountain they could see the goal. This moment was the beginning of the battle. At that moment, when they stepped on the densely overgrown hillside of the trees, their caution increased extremely.

Suddenly, a stream of chaotic color appeared in front of the Intelligence Department agents. The light particles at first glance seemed to shimmer in a random order, actually depicted a color pattern that caused people to fall asleep.

Half of the attacking team fainted. The remaining half somehow managed to avoid this fate with the help of Tsukasa's instantly deployed personal magic barriers that were capable of blocking light magic.

The lieutenant appointed the commander of this attack called for the restoration of positions. However, out of more than thirty people in the platoon, fewer than twenty remained capable. Of the three officers, there was only one left on his feet.

Due to the collapse of the command system, the detachment was disorganized.

She took advantage of this moment for a surprise attack.

From the slope the figure of a small-looking woman rushed at them. No, their small size was an optical illusion. It was a girl with a medium height for a woman.

No one had time to blink an eye. She paid no attention to disturbing tree branches and overcame the distance between them approached the lead soldier, and waved her weapon with a sparkling silver gleam.

This weapon was a sword. Her blade stopped, crashing into the individual shield placed by Tsukasa.

However, the soldier, who didn't have to get a chopping blow, still fell.

"This is that previous hypnotic magic!"

At the moment when the barrier switched to anti-object mode, light magic attacked a friendly soldier knocking them asleep. Watching him fall, Tsukasa couldn't hide her confusion.

But the commanding lieutenant didn't understand this trick, and he didn't hesitate with the decision.

"Fire!"

By order of the lieutenant, the assault rifles were aimed at the girl. However, before they had time to open fire, the girl was overshadowed by a guy with a large build.

There were the sounds of gunfire and most of the shots hit the guy's body, but he didn't fall. There was no blood either. The bullets bounced off him.

"High-powered rifle detachment!"

The lieutenant's voice was close to screaming, but his decision was right.

Pushing aside the conventional assault rifles, 4 soldiers with high-powered rifles designed specifically to fight magicians readied their guns.

The thunder roared, but wasn't not shots of high-powered rifles, nor the sounds of real thunder. A deafening roar shook the air around him. Tsukasa's individual shields protected against sound wave attacks and none of the soldiers received significant damage from this rumble.

But this prevented the execution of the order.

The rumble didn't just happen once. As if someone was beating a drum, the sounds that shook the air were repeated again and again, as if the god of thunder descended from the ancient paintings.

Even their bodies were shaking so the soldiers didn't notice that it wasn't just air that was shaking. Suddenly the ground under them cracked.

The cracks ran in all directions. Trees began to fall, exposing their roots. The cracks were shallow. But that was enough to cause chaos in the soldiers ranks.

"Retreat! Exit the forest!"

After the lieutenant gave the order, the rumble suddenly stopped.

Intelligence officers rarely participated in open area group battles. Usually their field of activity is the urban area. Even when it was planned that there would be a firefight, operations were usually designed with one or two agents, no more. So their running retreat could be called unorganized.

Their legs tangled in the grass. It seemed like the grass itself wrapped around their feet.

Many of them couldn't stay on their feet and fell.

Tsukasa couldn't understand this confusing situation. Although she had information about the positions of the allies still on their feet, she lost the coordinates of the falling soldiers, because they disappeared from her field of vision.

The individual shields provided by Tsukasa disappeared at the same time she lost sight of the soldiers.

The rain of lightning struck them, despite the fact that they were in a dense forest. Lightning came not from the sky, but from the spaces between the trees.

We can say that the soldiers who managed to run out of the forest found themselves in a slightly better situation than their colleagues, who had fallen under the lightning. They probably just regretted it.

On top of them came shells with immobilizing nets, to be sure that none of the intelligence agents escaped.

Tsukasa was left alone in the woods and bit her lip when she saw this scene. Her personal barriers didn't miss bullets, bombs, or poisonous gases. However, they don't give the protected partner superhuman physical abilities.

When the entire shield is covered in a net, they cannot escape or resist. Tsukasa couldn't even think that these nets, designed to suppress rebels, could be a natural enemy of her magic.

So, there was only one left.

A sword girl with a katana, Chiba Erika turned to Tsukasa.

Tsukasa knew about her approach and about the fact that the way of retreat has already been blocked.

"Chiba Erika-san?"

"Yes that's right." Erika answered shortly. It wasn't expected by Tsukasa's talkativeness.

"I am from the National Self-Defense Forces, Sergeant Tooyama Tsukasa."

"Yes? Clearly."

Tsukasa tried to determine whether Erika's disinterested behavior was a real or an acting game, but it didn't work out.

"Chiba Erika-san. We were actually on a mission."

To begin with, Tsukasa decided to attack with words, ignoring the sword aimed at her.

"Hmm, so what?"

"Attacking, injuring, interfering in official state affairs, breaking the law on carrying weapons ... all these accusations can be applied to you after you've stopped us."

Erika took a deep breath, keeping her eyes on Tsukasa.

"You don't study at all, do you?"

It seems that Erika wasn't even a little scared.

"What do you mean?"

"Even if you are a soldier of Self-Defense Forces, you need permission and notice to carry weapons with you outside the base and practice grounds. You've a firearm with which there was no notice. Therefore, it is you who violated the law by carrying weapons, not us."

"... You know quite a lot for a schoolgirl."

"You used guns without permission during those so-called exercises, didn't you? The police were extremely unhappy about this."

"But you yourself are not a policeman?"

"There are real policemen outside the forest. Although I can say that you already know this."

Saying the last words in a slightly disgruntled voice, Erika lowered her hand with the sword. But from this, she didn't have any weaknesses.

Without any action, she was in the "Intangible Pose" *.

[Another translation option: "Intangible state". Although it sounds pathetic, but it's only a pose in kenjutsu, closed from attacks from all directions.]

"The police can request cooperation from civilian magicians to confront the magician-criminals. This is a fairly well-known exception for us, magicians, isn't it?"

A smile appeared on Tsukasa's face. This smile didn't carry in itself anything that could be called emotion.

"Therefore, please obediently let yourself be seized. Or do you want to have a little painful experience?"

"At the moment Erika finished speaking, Tsukasa activated a magic barrier. After that she instantly activated move-type magic. The target of the magic was herself."

Erika didn't panick at all, took a step to the side, avoided Tsukasa flying over her and hit her body flying past her in the torso.

With a sonorous metallic echo, the sword broke. The blade couldn't stand the stress from striking Tsukasa's barrier.

After that, Tsukasa tried to escape to the side of the mountain. But before that her way was blocked by Leo.

In the jump Tsukasa took the pose of a shoulder attack. Leo fortified the position of his body relative to the ground to meet this attack.

Tsukasa hit Leo's body.

Leo didn't move a millimeter, and Tsukasa jumped back. As a result, the effect of the move-type magic was cancelled.

Erika ran smoothly at Tsukasa.

At the same time, she had a stable posture, as if she was walking on a flat highway, and not making her way through the cracks and roots of trees.

Tsukasa got the impression that she would not be able to evade the movement to the left, to the right, or backward.

The only thing she could do was to protect herself with a barrier.

To be able to move at any time and not to run into obstacles, Tsukasa built a flat barrier in front of her body.

Erika swung her broken sword. The rest of the blade didn't reach Tsukasa nor her magic barrier.

"She didn't calculate the length of the broken blade, it's unexpected luck, and it's a chance" Tsukasa thought.

Erika remained in a pose with the sword lowered. More accurately, she froze in it. She saw Tsukasa intending to run sideways from her, she started moving, taking the first step with her right foot.

The knee of this leg lost its strength and buckled. This didn't just happen with the right foot, but the left leg also suddenly collapsed. Strength disappeared from the whole body.

Tsukasa's body collapsed to the ground.

Erika came out of the fighting stance. Tsukasa looked up at her.

At this point, Tsukasa finally noticed that Erika's broken sword had instead of a material blade, a psion blade that looked like heat shimmer.

The hazy shimmering blade has disappeared.

"Ethereal Hidden Sword Technique - Kirikage" Erika muttered

At that moment Tsukasa lost consciousness.

? ? ?

"... The plan where magicians are used as tools is no different from the current situation, when magicians are used as weapons. I would never submit to something like that."

Tatsuya's announcement suppressed Katsuto, Mayumi and Mari. All present understood that Tatsuya is refusing "Project Dion" not because of simple stubbornness.

"... But!"

Tatsuya's determination was clear. His convictions were understandable, but that's why Mayumi couldn't remain silent. With tears in her eyes, she couldn't stop her cry.

"Even if Tatsuya-kun's reasoning is correct! Tatsuya-kun will lose his home anyway! Tatsuya-kun will suffer in isolation!"

Tatsuya should not become a victim. It was the cry of Mayumi's heart.

Mayumi wanted to convey the idea that it would be better to pretend that he's participating, even if it's a lie to the people of America, Japan and the whole world. But the voice that came from the forest didn't allow Mayumi to finish speaking.

"Tatsuya-kun won't be isolated."

Tatsuya and the rest were now on the smooth field of the former first hole of the closed golf course. To the right was a mountain that preserved the original terrain.

From the dense forest that covered the mountain slope, came four familiar people.

Erika. Leo. Mikihiko. Honoka.

Mizuki and Shizuku also clearly were somewhere nearby, although they didn't show themselves.

"Because he has us."

Leo carried a woman on his shoulder. Seeing who it was, Katsuto frowned.

"She's familiar to Juumonji-senpai, isn't she? Could you take care of her?"

Leo fearlessly approached Katsuto and put Tsukasa on the ground next to him.

"W-we will not allow Tatsuya-san's isolation!"

Honoka was tense and couldn't hide her fear, but still collected all her will to say so.

Mikihiko, the last to speak looked Katsuto directly in the eye and said.

"We are Tatsuya's friends. No, not just friends. I owe Tatsuya so much that I will never be able to repay him. Even if Tatsuya becomes a criminal, I will not turn against him for anything. I will not allow Tatsuya's isolation."

"Hey hey, Mikihiko. What obligations? We're friends. No other reason's needed."

Leo wrapped his arm around Mikihiko's neck in a friendly manner.

"You're right" Mikihiko said with a strained smile.

Katsuto lifted Tsukasa from the ground and turned to Tatsuya.

"Shiba. You've good friends. I'm a bit jealous."

Katsuto turned around and went to the off-road vehicle left by the villa.

"Juumonji-kun, wait!"

Mayumi hurried after Katsuto.

"Well well. Still lost."

Mari shrugged and followed Mayumi.

With a puzzled face, Tatsuya looked at his friends. All of them wore embarrassed smiles. Only Erika tried to turn away, but she couldn't hide a smiling face.

Tatsuya turned to Miyuki. Tears flowed from her eyes, and she tried to wipe them with her fingers.