Upon deleting all data related to their thesis from the data storages and devices they brought for the competition, Yuuji and Mayumi led everyone to the First High School's green room to begin planning for their next move.
"Now then, about our next move… Only one enemy ship has invaded the harbor. The area around the shore is more or less under enemy control, though they seemed to have suffered quite the casualties as well thanks to the heightened security around that area.
Ground transportation has been mostly paralyzed as well, perhaps due to the guerillas."
Mayumi explained the gravity of the situation to everyone in the room. It was bad, but not as bad as it would've been if Yuuji, Aika, and Tatsuya hadn't alerted their comrades in the military about the possible attack in Yokohama. If they didn't… Then Mayumi couldn't even begin to imagine what sort of situation they could be in.
"What could they be after…?"
Kei asked.
"The fact that they specifically came here means there's something they want in Yokohama… And although there's also one in Kyoto…"
"The Magic Association branch office. Or to be more precise, their main database."
Mayumi nodded to Yuuji's answer.
"Yes. All the crucial and confidential data about our country's magical technology is being centrally managed in Kyoto and Yokohama. So it would make sense for them to come here if they wish to steal our country's magical technology."
"...When will the rescue ship arrive?"
Mari crossed her arms as she kept her gaze focused on the map of Yokohama displayed on the screen.
"It should be arriving in another ten minutes… But it doesn't look like it has the capacity for this number of people."
"Regarding Nakajo-san and the others who are headed for the shelters through the underground passage, it seems that Tsubakihara's concerns were unfortunately correct. However, since the enemy force was small, they should be able to drive them away soon, according to Hattori."
Suzune reported, having just received the message from Hattori from her phone.
A sigh of relief escaped their lips before Mari turned towards everyone.
"You've heard of our situation. Unfortunately, we won't have the chance to get on the ship. At this point, we'll have to head to the shelter ourselves even if it's somewhat risky."
"...Tatsuya. I'll leave this one to you. If I do it, I can't guarantee the driver's life."
"Alright."
"Brother…?"
Hearing their exchange of words, everyone turned to look at Yuuji and Tatsuya, who suddenly moved around towards the wall behind them.
Then, with one swift movement, Tatsuya whipped out his Silver Taurus and aimed straight ahead into the wall.
"B-Brother?"
"T-Tatsuya-kun?"
Mayumi quickly tried to activate her CAD and cast a spell that would allow her to see through walls to find out why Tatsuya suddenly raised his gun.
And then she saw it. A massive truck racing right into the building. But before it could even reach the stairs to the entrance, the entire thing suddenly turned to dust, leaving behind the driver that fell and hit the stairs from the sudden disappearance of his vehicle.
Her eyes widened in shock… She had heard of his abilities from Yuuji before, but she didn't think it was to this extent…
Then suddenly, a familiar voice snapped her out of her daze.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting!"
Entering the room was a beautiful jet-black hair woman, dressed in the militaristic green uniform of the JSDF.
"K-Kyouko-san?!"
"Long time no see, Mayumi-san."
Everyone stood frozen in their position as they stared at the JSDF officer who suddenly walked into the room.
Then, following right behind her, a middle-aged man, similarly dressed in the green military uniform entered with a solemn expression. Without even having to look at the emblem sewn into the collar of his shirt, his sheer presence and air alone told them that he was a high ranking military officer.
"Special officers, information control has been temporarily disabled."
Yuuji, Aika, and Tatsuya nodded to Kyouko's words and immediately saluted their commanding officer, Major Kazama Harunobu.
Just then, Juumonji and Kirihara, who was being led to the first high's green room by Captain Sanada that they met in the entrance, also arrived to see Yuuji, Aika, and Tatsuya saluting Kazama.
"I am Major Kazama Harunobu of the JSDF."
Recognizing the name and face, Juumonji immediately introduced himself as well.
"So you are that Major Kazama… I am the acting Master Clan Conference representative for the Juumonji Clan, Juumonji Katsuto."
Kazama nodded at the Juumonji clan representative before shifting his gaze back at the special officers, who were standing at attention.
"Fujibayashi, give him the rundown on the current situations."
"Yes sir."
Kyouko quickly accessed the terminal and entered a security key to gain more access into the system. And when she was done, symbols signifying the JSDF forces and the hostile forces' location in the map appeared.
"Currently, our forces stationed at Hodogaya are battling the invaders. We also have one battalion from Tsurumi and Fujisawa each rushing to this site. The Kanto Branch of the Magic Association has taken a defensive position on its own."
"Good job. Now, special officers. In light of these special circumstances, our battalion, which had been on its way to Hodogaya on a separate mission, has been ordered to add our support to the defense. In accordance with the JSDF special assignment regulations, I'm hereby ordering you to mobilize as well!"
Gasps filled the room as their classmates and friends finally understood the reason why the JSDF suddenly came and shared this information with them…
Aside from Erika, Mayumi, and Miyuki, who knew of their involvement with the military, every single one of them looked at the three in shock and disbelief.
"The JSDF requests that these special officers' rank remains confidential. Please be aware that this is based on the JSDF's secrecy protection law. I hope you understand."
Heavy silence filled the room as they slowly processed the revelation in their minds. But before they could even finish processing, another officer came from the back door and addressed the three.
"Officers, we have the Mobile Suit you designed ready for you in our trailer. Let's hurry."
"Captain Sanada. Understood."
Yuuji said as they all nodded.
"My squad and I will be providing protection for the rest of you. So please rest assured."
Tatsuya then turned towards his sisters and friends.
"I'm sorry. You heard them. Go with the upperclassmen and evacuate to the shelter."
He swept his gaze across Leo, Mizuki, Mikihiko, Honoka, and Shizuku, who were most definitely still reeling in from the shock. But just as he was about to walk away, a hand caught his shoulder.
"Tatsuya. Before that…"
Yuuji stopped him and directed his gaze towards Miyuki. And as he followed the direction of his friend's gaze, Tatsuya's eyes widened when Miyuki approached him shyly. Her cheeks were dusted with pink as she raised her hands and caressed her beloved brother's face.
He slowly closed his eyes, enjoying the warm sensation of his little sister's soft, loving touch, and kneeled down before her in a ceremonious manner.
She raised his chin slightly, and pressed her lips lightly against his forehead.
In that moment, an overwhelming amount of Psions that had been sealed for so long suddenly burst out of Tatsuya's body, creating powerful winds that forced everyone to brace themselves from getting blown away.
And with a soft, heartfelt whisper, Miyuki bestowed upon her brother a few words of encouragement, and a prayer.
"Brother… You now have free rein. May the favors of war be with you."
May he return to her side safely and continue living this peaceful, dream-like life together.
"Thank you. Then I will be off."
As the winds caused by the unleashing of Tatsuya's power disappear, Kyouko made her way towards Yuuji and Aika as well, approaching them with a smile.
"Yuuji, Aika-chan. You should do it as well."
"Kyouko-nee…?"
A look of surprise flashed across Yuuji's face. Having unleashed his power, Tatsuya alone would've been enough to take care of this situation. There was no need for him and Aika to unleash the "seal" that they, according to the "setting" the Chat Group had created, put upon themselves and set each other as the key.
"Yuuji, let's do it…"
"Aika?"
Yuuji turned towards Aika with widened eyes when she tugged on the hem of his blazer uniform.
"Let's give it our all… So that everyone will be safe."
Realization of what they actually meant finally fell upon him, and he nodded.
"Alright. Let's do it."
Kyouko stepped back from the two, her eyes still watching over the two with a gentle, loving smile as they faced each other.
Time seemed to slow as everyone stared at the two silently.
Unlike what Tatsuya and Miyuki did, which resembled more like a ceremony of loyalty from a knight to his princess, what Yuuji and Aika were doing resembled more like a wedding ceremony.
Yuuji held onto Aika's arms as the two stared at each other's eyes with a smile filled with love and affection.
He slowly leaned in towards her while Aika tiptoed to meet his lips. Then, in the next moment, their lips met. And just like Tatsuya, an overwhelming burst of Psions exploded out of both of their bodies.
The winds blew strongly, even more powerfully than before as their bodies, connected through their lips, continued to shine and glow.
And when the winds finally subsided, the two separated from their kiss.
"Let's do this, Aika."
"Of course~ We'll definitely kick some butts~!"
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
Splitting off from Erika, Mayumi and the others, who would be heading to the shelter with Kyouko and her squad protecting them, Yuuji, Aika, and Tatsuya went with Major Kazama and Captain Sanada to a military owned property in Hodogaya to pick up their mobile suits.
Upon arriving, the military jeep stopped in front of a reinforced container truck that had been parked there.
They alighted from the jeep, opened up the entrance into the container that had been secured with several layers of security, and entered.
Inside, there were pods lined up along the length of the container's interior, each one storing a jet-black, combat suit complete with a full-head helmet that the three immediately changed into. Yuuji and Tatsuya quickly equipped their combat suit, while Aika had Yuuji cast an invisibility spell on her and the suit while she changed.
They were form fitting combat suits, and although the armor and metal parts of the suit did hide Yuuji's and Tatsuya's well-defined figure, it did little to hide Aika's shapely figure. It was certainly something Tatsuya and Yuuji needed to take into account and fix for the next iteration of the suit…
"The flying unit is hidden inside the belt. It's bulletproof, heat-resistant, shock-resistant, and resistant to biological and chemical weapons. I've also added a basic power-assist function, just like you designed."
Captain Sanada explained with a proud smile. Although it was not something he designed on his own, there were a few things that he added to push this suit further into the realm of cutting-edge technology.
Upon touching a button on the side of his head, the front part of his helm split open, revealing Tatsuya's countenance as he turned to look at Sanada.
"I can see that it's an upgrade over my own design."
Yuuji similarly opened up the front part of his helm and moved his body around.
"It's amazing. And it feels comfortable too."
"Mm… It's a bit tight for me, especially around my chest and hips…."
Rubbing the back of his head, Sanada smiled apologetically at Aika.
"I'm sorry. It was made with your measurement months ago… We'll adjust it more after this mission."
"Mm~! Thank you!"
"Ah, that's right. Aika, wear this."
Yuuji approached Aika and put a necklace on her, letting it rest above her breasts.
"This is…"
"It's an experimental CAD which would create a gravity barrier around you."
"Oh? Is it a new creation of yours?"
Captain Sanada asked as he looked curiously at the necklace.
"It is. I'm sorry for not reporting it to you. I planned on reporting it soon, but this happened…"
Yuuji said apologetically towards Sanada and his direct superior, Major Kazama, who nodded understandingly.
"It is fine. You can use this chance as a field test for your new device. Just remember to report it back to us after this. We might be able to upgrade these suits with it."
"Yes, sir!"
Yuuji, Aika, and Tatsuya then lined up and stood at attention before their superiors.
"All right, I know you just got here, but I'd like all three of you to join Yanagi's unit."
"Understood. We shall assist Captain Yanagi's unit."
Major Kazama nodded at Yuuji before turning his attention towards Aika.
"Don't push yourself. If you feel uncomfortable with the suit, you may stay back and support them. Your "blessings" alone would be enough."
"Yes~! I understand, major!"
"Mm."
With that, the three activated the flying unit in their belt and took off into the sky.
And moments after, they immediately caught sight of an unmanned drone right in front of them.
"Tatsuya, I'll leave this to you."
"Ah."
With incredible speeds, the three took off even higher to the sky. And upon leaving the surveillance range of the UAV, Yuuji and Aika made their way to the location of Yanagi's unit, leaving a sonic boom in their wake.
On the other hand, Tatsuya deactivated his flying unit, let himself fall headfirst from the sky, and shot the UAV with his Silver Horn the moment he was eye level with it.
The drone turned to dust in an instant, and Tatsuya quickly reactivated his flying unit and burst off to try and catch up with the other two.
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
4:11pm / Sakuragicho Station.
Civilians, who were unfortunately in the area during the time of attack,and students, who had failed to follow after the larger group of students heading to the shelter through the underground path, were led by Mayumi and the police to gather in the entrance plaza of the station.
Mayumi and Shizuku had requested rescue helicopters to be sent by their family to pick them up at their location. They will arrive at around 4:30pm, meaning they would have to stand their ground, protect the civilians as well as the landing area until the helicopters arrive.
A full twenty minutes of defending the defenseless from foreign military robots equipped with machine guns and chainsaws, tanks, and armed soldiers…
If Mayumi, Suzune, Shizuku, and Mari were alone with only some police officers helping them, the situation might have been hopeless. But Erika, Miyuki, Mizuki, Leo, and Mikihiko had formed a unit to be on the lookout for hostiles and help defend the area. Chiba Toshikazu, who had come to the venue following Kyouko's request, was also present and helped defend the area with Kanon, Kei, Sayaka and Kirihara.
With these two teams, their chances of successfully defending the plaza until the rescue helicopters would rise significantly. Though, worry still found its way into Mayumi's heart. In fact, her worries only increased…
Standing by in the middle of the crossroads leading into the station, Erika's team had formed into a formation with Erika, Mizuki, Leo, and Mikihiko facing towards four different directions and Miyuki standing in the middle.
As they were on a lookout, Mikihiko held a talisman in between his forefinger and middle finger with his eyes closed and cast a spell that would allow him to survey farther and larger areas.
And soon, he found the enemy.
"They're coming."
From the corner of a road to their right, two massive robots equipped with a massive chainsaw as its right arm, a high caliber anti-magician gun in the other arm, and a heavy machine gun on its head came barrelling through with immense speed.
Immediately, Miyuki raised her arms into the air and brought them forward, releasing a powerful wind of ice that immediately covered the asphalt road and the surface of the robots, stopping them in their path.
Then, Leo brandished his hilt-shape CAD and activated the technique he had been learning from Erika. Using his specialty Fortifying Magic, Leo solidified the flatness of the extremely thin black membrane that was released from the Chiba Family's secret sword technique, "Usuba Kagerou", creating an ultra thin blade of carbon nanotubes woven into an ultra thin plate that was 5 nano-meters thin.
He dashed towards one of the frozen robots and slashed horizontally, cleanly slashing off the robot in half along with the pilot within it.
Then, Erika similarly brandished her Orochimaru, the sword Toshikazu had brought along for her, and dashed towards the second frozen robot with her movement accelerating magic. Then, with her massive nodachi raised into the air, she swung down and bisected the other robot cleanly into two and shattered the ground with it.
In the other area, where Toshikazu's team were guarding, Kei had also detected hostiles going through his detection spell he had set up around the area beforehand.
"Here they come…"
As soon as those words left Kei's mouth, two military robots appeared from the corner of the road and rushed towards them.
"Haaaaah!!!"
Swinging her arm, Kanon activated her spell, causing the ground beneath the robots to shatter and cave in.
"Now!!!"
Using this opening, Toshikazu dashed towards the one in front with his massive blade and swung down, slicing the robot in half before retreating to avoid the massive explosion that came after.
Kirihara also rushed towards the second one and was welcomed by hail of bullets from the machine gun units equipped on their head and shoulders.
From behind, Sayaka threw her magic-enhanced blades towards the machine gun units, slicing them in half and stopping the rain of bullets, and Kirihara slashed down the robot with his sonic blade, eliminating the second robots of the first wave of hostiles coming their way.
The fighting continued on both fronts. Waves of robots, tanks, and foreign soldiers wearing military uniforms similar to the ones that attacked them in the conference center, came in doves, continuing to scrape down their defense little by little until they were overwhelmed.
Fortunately, the twin-engined large rescue helicopters Mayumi and Shizuku called for came before they were overwhelmed.
But just as they were about to land, thousands upon thousands upon buzz filled the air as dark clouds began to appear and move towards the helicopters unnaturally, hindering their landing. Upon a closer look, the dark clouds turned out to be massive amounts of flying insects from a spell that flew towards the helicopter.
Shizuku immediately aimed her gun-shaped CAD towards it and used "Phonon Maser", the spell she used during the NSC's Pillar's Break event against Miyuki, to try and kill off as many insects as she could and help the helicopter land.
But no matter how many times she tried, the dark clouds always reformed and continued surrounding the helicopters.
That was, until the dark clouds suddenly began to move away from the helicopters.
"Eh?"
"What's happening…?"
Their eyes instinctively followed the direction in which they're moving. Rather than being blown away, the dark clouds seemed as if they were being sucked away before disappearing into nothingness.
And when the sky finally cleared up, they saw a figure of a man in jet-black combat suit, floating in the air above them with one hand holding a beautiful gun of gold that reflected the orange-red light of the afternoon sun.
Right by his side was another figure in a similar jet-black combat suit, but this time, they could see that it was clearly a woman, and a familiar woman as well judging by the obviously voluptuous body figure that no clothes could ever hide.
Then, six other figures in similar suits came to their sides and stopped, floating in the mid air right beside the helicopters.
A look of shock and recognition painted all of their faces except for Mayumi, who immediately smiled and waved her hand at the two in front.
The male figure nodded, lowering his gun, and looked towards the feminine figure.
She nodded back at him and began to descend slightly towards the crowd as they watched and stared in shock and slight wary, still uncertain to the nature of their intentions.
But, the doubts quickly disappeared as the feminine figure opened her arms, like a mother welcoming her child into her warm, loving embrace. She began to glow with brilliant golden light, and above the entire entrance plaza of Sakuragicho station, a beautiful golden magic formation appeared and encompassed every single one of them.
Shining particles of light fell upon them as the golden magic formation glowed brighter and brighter. And upon touching the particles of light, , all their wounds and fatigue disappeared completely, as if they were never there in the first place.
"T-This is…"
"Amazing… I don't feel tired at all…"
"It feels so refreshing…"
"My wounds are healed… Even my sprain…"
"This is a miracle…"
No matter if they're regular civilians, students, or members of the police, gasps of shock and awe began to spread amongst them. Mari, Suzune, Shizuku, and Honoka were similarly surprised by such miraculous abilities.
Although extremely rare, healing magic was by no means unknown. As daughters from influential families, they knew of its existence, but they never knew there was one this effective.
Healing magic in Modern Magic was a spell that gave the illusion that healing existed in this world. They are simply temporary measures and were only used as first-aid until they were able to get proper treatment.
But this… This was far from being just an illusion… This was true healing… All of their injuries, pain, fatigue, everything disappeared as if time had reversed for them.
A true miracle. It was a Goddess's blessing.
Right after healing them, the feminine figure raised back up towards the figure with the golden gun, spoke a few words, before flying away, accompanied by three other figures who seemed to be escorting her.
Meanwhile, the figure with the golden gun and the rest of his comrades began to form a defensive perimeter around the evacuation zone.
They would then escort the helicopters until they reached a save zone and fly away to combat the rest of the invaders in other areas.
Meanwhile, after separating from Yuuji, Aika went to where Kanon and Kei's team were to help.
Erika and Miyuki's team would be fine since Tatsuya was already heading there with the detachment Captain Yanagi lent him. Yuuji and the detachment he received from Captain Yanagi would also be enough to escort the rescue helicopters to the safety.
But Kanon's team was alone, and she knew from the anime that they'd be pinned down quite badly. Kirihara would lose an arm and a leg, while Kei would receive heavy injuries from being struck by a piece of sharp metal that flew off during an explosion. So, she'll need to hurry and go to their location.
She increased her speed, followed by the other soldiers from Yanagi's squad, and she soon arrived at the location.
The battle was intense with Toshikazu still fighting tanks and armed soldiers while having sustained some injuries. Kei and Kanon were using the destroyed tanks and cars as cover while they flung spells, while Kirihara and Sayaka helped Toshikazu as vanguards.
Fortunately, they haven't sustained heavy injuries like they have in the anime. So Aika quickly rushed towards them and used her healing magic, the one dubbed "blessings" by the military, to cure their wounds and rejuvenate their stamina.
"Eh? This light…?"
"W-What is this?"
"Could it be…?"
Kei, Kanon, Kirihara, and Sayaka all looked at themselves in shock as wounds from all around their body began to close and energy filling their bodies.
Meanwhile, Toshikazu, who was similarly shocked, noticed this sensation to be similar to the tales he had heard from his friends in the military.
A tale of a divine light that heals all wounds, replenishes the soul, grace them with another life, and turn the tides of battle.
He thought it was just simple exaggerations commonly found from tales in a battlefield made up by disoriented and hallucinating soldiers who had just returned from the battlefield.
But this… this was real… He could feel himself filling up with energy and the pain quickly disappearing.
On the other hand, seeing this light, the invading soldiers all gasped and shouted in pure shock.
"T-This is…?!"
"No way… W-Why is she here?"
"This light… the "Sacrament"?!"
"Why is the "Divine Light" here at a time like this?!"
All of their attention turned towards the feminine figure in the sky. This was the first time they've ever seen the figure of the "Divine Light", a ghostly figure in the battlefield that had been said to turn the tides of battle against after reviving hundreds of enemy soldiers. The phenomenon that plunged many soldiers into despair after believing that they were "going against the heavens itself".
And after the light dissipated, the "Divine Light" turned towards them and raised her hand into the sky. As she did, massive dark clouds began gathering in the sky above them, plunging the land into darkness.
"F-F-Fire at her!!!"
"Kill her!!!"
"H-Hurry!!!"
Bullets and tank shells flew towards her in doves, exploding and covering the entire sky in dark smoke.
But, as soon as it dissipated, they saw the "Divine Light" still floating there, unharmed, with the necklace on her chest glowing in blue light.
And that was the last thing they saw before lightning struck each and everyone one of them, and darkness filled their vision.