Infinite Stratos - Volume 3, page 10
"SHUT IT YOU IDIOT! IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BREASTS, AREN'T YOURS BIG ENOUGH?"
"Hehehe, Chi-chan's so lewd."
"GO TO HELL!!"
After being kicked really hard by Chifuyu-nee, Tabane-san's face got buried fully into the beach sand. Let me emphasize this again. This woman in front of us is the peerless genius who single-handedly developed the basics of IS and practical design.
"So what about the thing I requested from you...?"
Houki sounded somewhat hesitant as she asked that. On hearing that, Tabane-san's eyes lit up.
"Fufufu, I prepared that already. Here, behold the great sky!"
Tabane-san pointed up at the sky. On hearing her say that, Houki and the other students looked up at the sky.
*ZUUUNNN!*
"WAHHH!"
Suddenly, really suddenly, with the sound of an impact, an unidentified metallic object dropped onto the sand.
The silvery metal block looked like it's a wall for a moment as its front part falls down. Then we see the contents inside. What's inside is--
"Jya jyan~![3C 1] This is Houki-chan's personal IS [Akatsubaki]![3C 2] Its specs are superior to every IS in every way and was made personally by Tabane-san!"
As if in response to Tabane-san, that crimson red armor was moved out using mobile arms.
The red armor was reflecting the bright sunlight, probably because it's a new IS. It's really eye-catching. Huh? Did Tabane-san just mention something unbelievable? The specs are all superior to the current ISes. In other words, it's the newest and strongest frame!
"Here, Houki-chan, it's now time for the optimization! I'll help out from aside, so it'll end soon♪"
"...I'll leave it to you then."
"That's so rare~. We're blood siblings. You should talk to me in a more affectionate manner--"
"Hurry up and start."
Is this what they mean by 'playing alone'? Houki ignored Tabane-san completely and prompted her to move.
"Mn~ well, that's true. Let's get started then."
*Pi*-Tabane-san pressed the remote control, and [Akatsubaki] activated, opening the cockpit to allow the pilot to enter. It even kneeled down automatically to let the pilot enter it easily. Ohh, that's rather amazing.
"I've input Houki-chan's data to a certain level. Now I just need to update the recent values! Then, *pi, pa, pa♪*!"
Tabane-san opened a control panel and slided her fingers on it. She then summoned out 6 screens in mid-air to navigate through the huge amount of data on the screen, and typed out on the emulated keyboard in mid-air.
"It's a close-ranged suit that's adjusted to being an all-around type, so I guess you will get used to it soon! Not to mention there's automatic support equipment! Onee-chan prepared them all!"
"Oh, thanks."
Houki still sounded rather cold. Really, since you two are sisters, I think you should warm up to her more.
I'm not too sure of this myself, but Houki seems to hate Tabane-san because she had to transfer schools when Tabane-san introduced the IS.
But that was a long, long time ago. She should let go of it now, right?
"Mn~fu, fu, fufu~♪ Houki-chan's kendo skills are even more refined. I can tell from your trained muscles. Yaa Yaa, onee-chan's really proud of you."
"..."
"Hehe, I got ignored--okay, optimization is complete~ that was fast, as expected of me."
Spouting nonsense, Tabane-san never stopped typing. It resembles someone playing the piano more than typing a keyboard, fast and fluid, and she even went through all the pages that switched around.
Though she's rather frivolous, she is a super genius. Again, I realized this.
On a side note, probably because of the pre-input data, the IS [Akatsubaki] didn't change amazingly like the [Byakushiki]. The more it felt like was that it was suited for Houki's body.
Speaking of which--
(This suit's also for close-range, right? There's nothing else other than a pair of Japanese swords on both sides of the waist.)
I suddenly thought of that because I felt that it resembled [Byakushiki].
But just now, Tabane-san just said that it has 'automatic support' and 'a close-ranged suit that's adjusted to an all-rounder'. Maybe it might have equipment like Blue Tears.
"That IS is to be given to Shinonono-san...? Because they're family?"
"Yeah, it feels a bit unscrupulous."
Voices like these can be heard from the crowd. Unexpectedly, the one who quickly squashed all these reactions was actually Tabane-san.
"Oh my, haven't all of you read history? This world has never been fair."
The girls who were called out immediately went back to work. As for Tabane-san, she just left it that as she continued the adjustments, or rather, she never stopped typing even though she was talking. She's really a genius.
Then, the adjustments were complete, and Tabane-san closed the screens.
"After that, it'll just be adjustments, and the personalization will be complete. Ah, Ii-kun, let me see [Byakushiki]. This Tabane-san's really enthusiastic!"
"Huh? Ah, okay."
After closing all the screens and keyboard, Tabane-san turned to me. Her light skirt flutters as it gives off a polished woman vibe that's completely opposite of her childish personality.
Anyway, I put my left hand on my right arm as I concentrate.
(--Come out, [Byakushiki].)
As if responding to my thoughts, [Byakushiki] dispersed in balls of light. The lights then gathered in mid-air to form a circle, spinning a few layers around me before forming.
This is my personal IS [Byakushiki], a machine that was developed for close-ranged combat. The weapon's a [Yukihira Niigata] sword, and it is a stubborn suit that refuses to have any more armaments--well, that doesn't sound right.
"Let me see the figures~uriya!"
Saying that, Tabane-san just inserted the circuits into the Byakushiki's armor. And just like before, the screens appeared in the air.
"Mn~...to actually create such an unbelievable diagram like this. What is this? I never seen this state before. Is it because Ii-kun's a guy?"
Let me explain this. The diagram here refers to the development path the IS takes according to the person. In human terms, it's the genes.
"As for what Tabane-san just said...why can I pilot an IS when I'm a guy?"
"Hm? Well, why..., I'm not too sure myself. I could understand it if we were break it down to nano units. Can I do it?"
On a side note, the target of breaking down would definitely include me.
"How can I..."
"Ah haha, I knew you would say that. Well, forget about it. I'll just won't know about what I don't know then. I set the ISes to evolve on their own when I created them, so it was obvious such a thing would happen, hahaha."
Well--the problem wasn't solved anyway.
"Also, why can't I have any other armaments?"
"Well, I set it like that."
"Huh...WHAAAT? Tabane-san created [Byakushiki]?"
"Mn, yup. Actually, I just retrieved the scrapped flawed machine and tweaked it slightly until it could move. But thanks to that, you can use the [One-off Ability] in your first phase, right? That's super convenient. Yup! Also, how should I say it? It was developed like this, you know? In Japan."
"Idiot, stop revealing so much classified information!"
*BAM!* Tabane-san's head got hit without mercy. The one who attacked was obviously our instructor from hell Chifuyu-nee.
"OWWW! Huh, Chi-chan's affections have been too intense up till now."
"SHUT UP!!"
And another hit! While Tabane-san's rubbing her head in pain, a girl called out to her.
"Ex-Excuse me! I heard of Professor Shinonono before. If possible, could you please check my IS?"
I thought who that girl was. It's Cecilia. Most likely, she felt excited about seeing the famous Tabane-san in front of her as her eyes are glowing exceptionally. However--
"Ah? Who are you? I don't recognize some blond person. And right now, it's a touching reunion with Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun after so many years. I don't know why are you interrupting me. Who are you anyway?"
Her tone suddenly got cold, the content, the eyes and even the tone got cold.
"Huh, that..."
"Shut up and move aside."
"Uu..."
After being rejected again, even Cecilia backed away while looking completely distraught. She got rejected without even having the chance to be shocked by the sudden change in Tabane-san's attitude as her eyes got teary.
Well, this person hasn't changed at all...
According to her, the reason is that 'I can't tell the difference between humans. The only people I know are Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun. Papa and mama may count as well. Ufufu, that's because I have no interest in other people at all!"
That's why Tabane-san treated everyone else beside us like that. But, well, she did improve in this case, which made me rather shocked.
(She would ignore others in the past...)
On a side note, that seemed to be trained into her by Chifuyu-nee. At least she would answer others now.
"Hoo--weird blond hair. I hate the thick skin of the Japanese. Japanese are the best~ but I don't care about Japanese either way except for Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun."
"Uncle and aunty too?"
"Hm? Well--...that's right."
Hm? Why do I find that her answer was a little false?
"Never mind, that's not important. More than that...Ii-kun, I'll modify your [Byakushiki]."
"Huh? Well...let me ask this. How?"
"Hmm...how about a butler? I always felt that Ii-kun's well suited to wear a cocktail suit! Or a maid outfit."
Very good. I'll just pretend that I didn't hear that last sentence.
"Can you not say it now..."
"'Kay! Oh, you agreed! Then let's begin--"
"Ahh! DON'T MISTAKE MY WORDS DELIBERATELY!! I'M SAYING NO! NO! NO, THANK YOU--!"
"Well, I'll Northern Lights then!"
Huh...what's with this unrelated match of starting things with 'no'...
"So how about it, Ii-kun? How would you look as a girl?"
"WHAT WAS THAT?"
"Hm? I've been reading these scenarios in manga recently."
"DON'T EXPERIMENT THE CONTENT OF A MANGA ON ME!!"
"Che~ Ii-kun's really too much!"
"Ah--ahem."
Houki coughed twice to interrupt our conversation.
"Am I done here?"
"Mn, it's done. Oh, 3 minutes over. Ahh, I could have used the time to cook a cup of instant noodles. Too bad."
No, there's nothing to feel bad about...also, nowadays, instant noodles won't even need 3 minutes, Tabane-san.
"Then try taking it for a ride. Fly it a bit! It should follow Houki-chan's thoughts~"
"Okay, I'll try it."
*Phoosh phoosh!* With that sound, the cables linking to it were removed. After that, Houki closed her eyes, and [Akatsubaki] flew off at a really fast speed.
"WAH!"
The sudden acceleration caused shockwaves that made the sand dance about. As I turned to look at Houki, [Byakushiki]'s super-sensors captured [Akatsubaki] that was flying 200m above.
"How is it? Much more mobile than what Houki-chan expected?"
"Mn...yeah, sort of..."
Tabane-san's most likely strapped with an IS as well, as I can sense that she's using the public channel to communicate.
"Then try swingging your swords. The right one is [Amatsuki][3C 3], and the left one is [Karaware][3C 4]. I'm going to send the special data of the weapons over!"
After saying that, Tabane-san danced her finger at the sky. Having received the weapon data, Houki drew both swords with a swoosh. The clean strike amazes me.
"Let's add on Tabane-onee-chan's explanation~♪! [Amatsuki]'s used to attack one person. The blade will create an energy blade attack when it attacks. It can turn an enemy into a beehive if it's used consecutively! It's a wonderful weapon~ the range is about as far as an assault rifle, no? It can't reach the range of a sniper rifle, but it's balanced out by the speed of [Akatsubaki]."
I don't know if she was going along with Tabane-san's explanation, but Houki got ready to swing the blade. She raised her right hand to her left shoulder into the Shinonono-nitoryu kendo style-the shield-sword style. That's a position that can easily turn defense into attack, using the force of the attack to counter.
As the blade got swung out, the surrounding space let out several red lasers, forming a ball-shaped thing. They then formed bullets of light and pierced out several holes in the clouds in the air.
"The next one's [Karaware]. It's a weapon used to deal with a group, and can launch a shaped attack with the slash! It can extend its range when it's swung, so it's super useful. Try hitting some of them here!"
After saying that, Tabane-san summoned a 16-missile pod firing machine. As the lights gathered and formed it, it shot out its missiles at that instant.
"Houki!"
"--Don't worry! If it's this [Akatsubaki]!"
Like what Houki said, she swung the [Karaware], that was tucked under her right armpit, one round. The red lasers extended out just like Tabane-san said, taking out all 16 missiles.
"Powerful..."
Gradually appearing from the smoke of the explosion, Houki and her red IS looked as imposing as ever.
Everyone present looked stunned and mesmerized by the overwhelming outcome in front of them, unable to say anything. Tabane-san seemed satisfied as she viewed the scene in front of her, nodding away.
"..."
However, only one person's staring at Tabane-san sternly.
That person is--
(Chifuyu-nee...? Why would she show such a look? It seems like she's looking at an enemy--)
"TH-THI-THIS IS BAD! O-ORI-ORIMURA-SENSEI!"
The sudden voice of Yamada-sensei caused Chifuyu-nee to keep her sharp eyes and turn to her.
Though Yamada-sensei's normally panicking, it felt different this time.
"What's wrong?"
"Pl-Plea-Please look at this."
On seeing the visual image Yamada-sensei passed over, Chifuyu-nee's face darkened.
"Class A special mission, and a request to deal with it immediately..."
"Th-That's...located at the Hawaiian research--"
"Shh! Don't leak confidential information. The students will hear it."
"So-Sorry..."
"The pilot of the personal IS?"
"One-One's missing. The rest are present."
Chifuyu-nee and Yamada-sensei seem to be discussing about something in a soft voice. Once they notice several students looking here, they started using hand signals instead.
(Uu, not a normal sign language...is that a military related hand signal?)
I used to see those hand signs when Chifuyu-nee was the representative of Japanese. It feels that both of them are alike.
"I-I'll contact the other teachers then."
"Got it--EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION!!"
After Yamada-sensei ran away, Chifuyu-nee clapped twice to gain everyone's attention.
"The IS Academy teachers are now going to carry out a special mission, so today's testing will be over. Every class is to keep the ISes and return back to the resort. You are to remain in your own rooms. That's all!"
"Huh...?"
"End? Why? The special mission is..."
"I don't understand at all..."
The unexpected situation caused the girls to chatter away.
But Chifuyu-nee roared,
"EVERYONE IS TO HURRY UP AND HEAD BACK! WHOEVER'S COMES OUT WITHOUT PERMISSION WILL BE LOCKED UP! AM I CLEAR!?"
"""YE-YES!"""
Everyone started moving frantically, removing the equipment on their bodies, shutting down the activated ISes and putting them on the vehicles. It seems that they got scared by Chifuyu-nee's roar.
"Personal IS pilots are to gather! Orimura, Alcott, Dunois, Bodewig, Huang, and...Shinonono!"
"Yes!"
Answering really loudly was Houki beside me. Oh yeah, she can be considered as one with a personal IS.
(But is it...really alright...?)
For some reason, I developed this weird sense of anxiety from this panic.
◇
"Now, let me explain the situation."
The room full of teachers and personal IS pilots, as we all gathered inside the deepest banquet hall of the resort, the Kachihana Room. The room with the lights still off has a large screen floating in mid-air.
"There's news that 2 hours ago, the [Silver Gospel], a 3rd generation military use IS that was developed by both America and Israel, went out of control in the test facility in Hawaii and left the surveillance facility."
Hearing Chifuyu-nee's sudden explanation, I was gob-smacked all of a sudden...huh? What? Military use IS? Out of control? Why must they inform us?
Somewhat puzzled, I'm rather mindful of the other members' reactions as I look around.
"..."
All of them are looking serious.
Everyone else other than Houki and I are official representatives of other countries, so maybe they've received training for this kind of situation. Laura's eyes are looking exceptionally serious.
"After that, through satellite tracking, we found that the [Gospel] will enter our air space, 2 km from here. That will happen in approximately 50 minutes from now. Thus, according to the Academy's higher-ups jurisdiction, we have to deal with this situation.
Chifuyu-nee calmly said on. What she said next came unexpected.
"All staff members, please use the Academy's training suits to seal off the air space and sea. The main operation will be done using personal ISes."
Wha what? That means that that rampant military IS--will have to be stopped by us?
"Next, we'll be beginning the planning of the battle. Anyone with doubts, please raise your hand."
"Yes."
Cecilia immediately raised her hand,
"Please explain the specs and data of the target IS."
"I understand. But these are the highest military secrets of those two countries, so it definitely can't be revealed. Once the data's revealed, the parties involved will be court-martialed, and they have to take at least 2 years of probation."
"I understand."
I don't really understand the situation now, but including Cecilia, everyone present are already discussing about getting the data.
"Hehehe, Chi-chan's so lewd."
"GO TO HELL!!"
After being kicked really hard by Chifuyu-nee, Tabane-san's face got buried fully into the beach sand. Let me emphasize this again. This woman in front of us is the peerless genius who single-handedly developed the basics of IS and practical design.
"So what about the thing I requested from you...?"
Houki sounded somewhat hesitant as she asked that. On hearing that, Tabane-san's eyes lit up.
"Fufufu, I prepared that already. Here, behold the great sky!"
Tabane-san pointed up at the sky. On hearing her say that, Houki and the other students looked up at the sky.
*ZUUUNNN!*
"WAHHH!"
Suddenly, really suddenly, with the sound of an impact, an unidentified metallic object dropped onto the sand.
The silvery metal block looked like it's a wall for a moment as its front part falls down. Then we see the contents inside. What's inside is--
"Jya jyan~![3C 1] This is Houki-chan's personal IS [Akatsubaki]![3C 2] Its specs are superior to every IS in every way and was made personally by Tabane-san!"
As if in response to Tabane-san, that crimson red armor was moved out using mobile arms.
The red armor was reflecting the bright sunlight, probably because it's a new IS. It's really eye-catching. Huh? Did Tabane-san just mention something unbelievable? The specs are all superior to the current ISes. In other words, it's the newest and strongest frame!
"Here, Houki-chan, it's now time for the optimization! I'll help out from aside, so it'll end soon♪"
"...I'll leave it to you then."
"That's so rare~. We're blood siblings. You should talk to me in a more affectionate manner--"
"Hurry up and start."
Is this what they mean by 'playing alone'? Houki ignored Tabane-san completely and prompted her to move.
"Mn~ well, that's true. Let's get started then."
*Pi*-Tabane-san pressed the remote control, and [Akatsubaki] activated, opening the cockpit to allow the pilot to enter. It even kneeled down automatically to let the pilot enter it easily. Ohh, that's rather amazing.
"I've input Houki-chan's data to a certain level. Now I just need to update the recent values! Then, *pi, pa, pa♪*!"
Tabane-san opened a control panel and slided her fingers on it. She then summoned out 6 screens in mid-air to navigate through the huge amount of data on the screen, and typed out on the emulated keyboard in mid-air.
"It's a close-ranged suit that's adjusted to being an all-around type, so I guess you will get used to it soon! Not to mention there's automatic support equipment! Onee-chan prepared them all!"
"Oh, thanks."
Houki still sounded rather cold. Really, since you two are sisters, I think you should warm up to her more.
I'm not too sure of this myself, but Houki seems to hate Tabane-san because she had to transfer schools when Tabane-san introduced the IS.
But that was a long, long time ago. She should let go of it now, right?
"Mn~fu, fu, fufu~♪ Houki-chan's kendo skills are even more refined. I can tell from your trained muscles. Yaa Yaa, onee-chan's really proud of you."
"..."
"Hehe, I got ignored--okay, optimization is complete~ that was fast, as expected of me."
Spouting nonsense, Tabane-san never stopped typing. It resembles someone playing the piano more than typing a keyboard, fast and fluid, and she even went through all the pages that switched around.
Though she's rather frivolous, she is a super genius. Again, I realized this.
On a side note, probably because of the pre-input data, the IS [Akatsubaki] didn't change amazingly like the [Byakushiki]. The more it felt like was that it was suited for Houki's body.
Speaking of which--
(This suit's also for close-range, right? There's nothing else other than a pair of Japanese swords on both sides of the waist.)
I suddenly thought of that because I felt that it resembled [Byakushiki].
But just now, Tabane-san just said that it has 'automatic support' and 'a close-ranged suit that's adjusted to an all-rounder'. Maybe it might have equipment like Blue Tears.
"That IS is to be given to Shinonono-san...? Because they're family?"
"Yeah, it feels a bit unscrupulous."
Voices like these can be heard from the crowd. Unexpectedly, the one who quickly squashed all these reactions was actually Tabane-san.
"Oh my, haven't all of you read history? This world has never been fair."
The girls who were called out immediately went back to work. As for Tabane-san, she just left it that as she continued the adjustments, or rather, she never stopped typing even though she was talking. She's really a genius.
Then, the adjustments were complete, and Tabane-san closed the screens.
"After that, it'll just be adjustments, and the personalization will be complete. Ah, Ii-kun, let me see [Byakushiki]. This Tabane-san's really enthusiastic!"
"Huh? Ah, okay."
After closing all the screens and keyboard, Tabane-san turned to me. Her light skirt flutters as it gives off a polished woman vibe that's completely opposite of her childish personality.
Anyway, I put my left hand on my right arm as I concentrate.
(--Come out, [Byakushiki].)
As if responding to my thoughts, [Byakushiki] dispersed in balls of light. The lights then gathered in mid-air to form a circle, spinning a few layers around me before forming.
This is my personal IS [Byakushiki], a machine that was developed for close-ranged combat. The weapon's a [Yukihira Niigata] sword, and it is a stubborn suit that refuses to have any more armaments--well, that doesn't sound right.
"Let me see the figures~uriya!"
Saying that, Tabane-san just inserted the circuits into the Byakushiki's armor. And just like before, the screens appeared in the air.
"Mn~...to actually create such an unbelievable diagram like this. What is this? I never seen this state before. Is it because Ii-kun's a guy?"
Let me explain this. The diagram here refers to the development path the IS takes according to the person. In human terms, it's the genes.
"As for what Tabane-san just said...why can I pilot an IS when I'm a guy?"
"Hm? Well, why..., I'm not too sure myself. I could understand it if we were break it down to nano units. Can I do it?"
On a side note, the target of breaking down would definitely include me.
"How can I..."
"Ah haha, I knew you would say that. Well, forget about it. I'll just won't know about what I don't know then. I set the ISes to evolve on their own when I created them, so it was obvious such a thing would happen, hahaha."
Well--the problem wasn't solved anyway.
"Also, why can't I have any other armaments?"
"Well, I set it like that."
"Huh...WHAAAT? Tabane-san created [Byakushiki]?"
"Mn, yup. Actually, I just retrieved the scrapped flawed machine and tweaked it slightly until it could move. But thanks to that, you can use the [One-off Ability] in your first phase, right? That's super convenient. Yup! Also, how should I say it? It was developed like this, you know? In Japan."
"Idiot, stop revealing so much classified information!"
*BAM!* Tabane-san's head got hit without mercy. The one who attacked was obviously our instructor from hell Chifuyu-nee.
"OWWW! Huh, Chi-chan's affections have been too intense up till now."
"SHUT UP!!"
And another hit! While Tabane-san's rubbing her head in pain, a girl called out to her.
"Ex-Excuse me! I heard of Professor Shinonono before. If possible, could you please check my IS?"
I thought who that girl was. It's Cecilia. Most likely, she felt excited about seeing the famous Tabane-san in front of her as her eyes are glowing exceptionally. However--
"Ah? Who are you? I don't recognize some blond person. And right now, it's a touching reunion with Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun after so many years. I don't know why are you interrupting me. Who are you anyway?"
Her tone suddenly got cold, the content, the eyes and even the tone got cold.
"Huh, that..."
"Shut up and move aside."
"Uu..."
After being rejected again, even Cecilia backed away while looking completely distraught. She got rejected without even having the chance to be shocked by the sudden change in Tabane-san's attitude as her eyes got teary.
Well, this person hasn't changed at all...
According to her, the reason is that 'I can't tell the difference between humans. The only people I know are Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun. Papa and mama may count as well. Ufufu, that's because I have no interest in other people at all!"
That's why Tabane-san treated everyone else beside us like that. But, well, she did improve in this case, which made me rather shocked.
(She would ignore others in the past...)
On a side note, that seemed to be trained into her by Chifuyu-nee. At least she would answer others now.
"Hoo--weird blond hair. I hate the thick skin of the Japanese. Japanese are the best~ but I don't care about Japanese either way except for Houki-chan, Chi-chan and Ii-kun."
"Uncle and aunty too?"
"Hm? Well--...that's right."
Hm? Why do I find that her answer was a little false?
"Never mind, that's not important. More than that...Ii-kun, I'll modify your [Byakushiki]."
"Huh? Well...let me ask this. How?"
"Hmm...how about a butler? I always felt that Ii-kun's well suited to wear a cocktail suit! Or a maid outfit."
Very good. I'll just pretend that I didn't hear that last sentence.
"Can you not say it now..."
"'Kay! Oh, you agreed! Then let's begin--"
"Ahh! DON'T MISTAKE MY WORDS DELIBERATELY!! I'M SAYING NO! NO! NO, THANK YOU--!"
"Well, I'll Northern Lights then!"
Huh...what's with this unrelated match of starting things with 'no'...
"So how about it, Ii-kun? How would you look as a girl?"
"WHAT WAS THAT?"
"Hm? I've been reading these scenarios in manga recently."
"DON'T EXPERIMENT THE CONTENT OF A MANGA ON ME!!"
"Che~ Ii-kun's really too much!"
"Ah--ahem."
Houki coughed twice to interrupt our conversation.
"Am I done here?"
"Mn, it's done. Oh, 3 minutes over. Ahh, I could have used the time to cook a cup of instant noodles. Too bad."
No, there's nothing to feel bad about...also, nowadays, instant noodles won't even need 3 minutes, Tabane-san.
"Then try taking it for a ride. Fly it a bit! It should follow Houki-chan's thoughts~"
"Okay, I'll try it."
*Phoosh phoosh!* With that sound, the cables linking to it were removed. After that, Houki closed her eyes, and [Akatsubaki] flew off at a really fast speed.
"WAH!"
The sudden acceleration caused shockwaves that made the sand dance about. As I turned to look at Houki, [Byakushiki]'s super-sensors captured [Akatsubaki] that was flying 200m above.
"How is it? Much more mobile than what Houki-chan expected?"
"Mn...yeah, sort of..."
Tabane-san's most likely strapped with an IS as well, as I can sense that she's using the public channel to communicate.
"Then try swingging your swords. The right one is [Amatsuki][3C 3], and the left one is [Karaware][3C 4]. I'm going to send the special data of the weapons over!"
After saying that, Tabane-san danced her finger at the sky. Having received the weapon data, Houki drew both swords with a swoosh. The clean strike amazes me.
"Let's add on Tabane-onee-chan's explanation~♪! [Amatsuki]'s used to attack one person. The blade will create an energy blade attack when it attacks. It can turn an enemy into a beehive if it's used consecutively! It's a wonderful weapon~ the range is about as far as an assault rifle, no? It can't reach the range of a sniper rifle, but it's balanced out by the speed of [Akatsubaki]."
I don't know if she was going along with Tabane-san's explanation, but Houki got ready to swing the blade. She raised her right hand to her left shoulder into the Shinonono-nitoryu kendo style-the shield-sword style. That's a position that can easily turn defense into attack, using the force of the attack to counter.
As the blade got swung out, the surrounding space let out several red lasers, forming a ball-shaped thing. They then formed bullets of light and pierced out several holes in the clouds in the air.
"The next one's [Karaware]. It's a weapon used to deal with a group, and can launch a shaped attack with the slash! It can extend its range when it's swung, so it's super useful. Try hitting some of them here!"
After saying that, Tabane-san summoned a 16-missile pod firing machine. As the lights gathered and formed it, it shot out its missiles at that instant.
"Houki!"
"--Don't worry! If it's this [Akatsubaki]!"
Like what Houki said, she swung the [Karaware], that was tucked under her right armpit, one round. The red lasers extended out just like Tabane-san said, taking out all 16 missiles.
"Powerful..."
Gradually appearing from the smoke of the explosion, Houki and her red IS looked as imposing as ever.
Everyone present looked stunned and mesmerized by the overwhelming outcome in front of them, unable to say anything. Tabane-san seemed satisfied as she viewed the scene in front of her, nodding away.
"..."
However, only one person's staring at Tabane-san sternly.
That person is--
(Chifuyu-nee...? Why would she show such a look? It seems like she's looking at an enemy--)
"TH-THI-THIS IS BAD! O-ORI-ORIMURA-SENSEI!"
The sudden voice of Yamada-sensei caused Chifuyu-nee to keep her sharp eyes and turn to her.
Though Yamada-sensei's normally panicking, it felt different this time.
"What's wrong?"
"Pl-Plea-Please look at this."
On seeing the visual image Yamada-sensei passed over, Chifuyu-nee's face darkened.
"Class A special mission, and a request to deal with it immediately..."
"Th-That's...located at the Hawaiian research--"
"Shh! Don't leak confidential information. The students will hear it."
"So-Sorry..."
"The pilot of the personal IS?"
"One-One's missing. The rest are present."
Chifuyu-nee and Yamada-sensei seem to be discussing about something in a soft voice. Once they notice several students looking here, they started using hand signals instead.
(Uu, not a normal sign language...is that a military related hand signal?)
I used to see those hand signs when Chifuyu-nee was the representative of Japanese. It feels that both of them are alike.
"I-I'll contact the other teachers then."
"Got it--EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION!!"
After Yamada-sensei ran away, Chifuyu-nee clapped twice to gain everyone's attention.
"The IS Academy teachers are now going to carry out a special mission, so today's testing will be over. Every class is to keep the ISes and return back to the resort. You are to remain in your own rooms. That's all!"
"Huh...?"
"End? Why? The special mission is..."
"I don't understand at all..."
The unexpected situation caused the girls to chatter away.
But Chifuyu-nee roared,
"EVERYONE IS TO HURRY UP AND HEAD BACK! WHOEVER'S COMES OUT WITHOUT PERMISSION WILL BE LOCKED UP! AM I CLEAR!?"
"""YE-YES!"""
Everyone started moving frantically, removing the equipment on their bodies, shutting down the activated ISes and putting them on the vehicles. It seems that they got scared by Chifuyu-nee's roar.
"Personal IS pilots are to gather! Orimura, Alcott, Dunois, Bodewig, Huang, and...Shinonono!"
"Yes!"
Answering really loudly was Houki beside me. Oh yeah, she can be considered as one with a personal IS.
(But is it...really alright...?)
For some reason, I developed this weird sense of anxiety from this panic.
◇
"Now, let me explain the situation."
The room full of teachers and personal IS pilots, as we all gathered inside the deepest banquet hall of the resort, the Kachihana Room. The room with the lights still off has a large screen floating in mid-air.
"There's news that 2 hours ago, the [Silver Gospel], a 3rd generation military use IS that was developed by both America and Israel, went out of control in the test facility in Hawaii and left the surveillance facility."
Hearing Chifuyu-nee's sudden explanation, I was gob-smacked all of a sudden...huh? What? Military use IS? Out of control? Why must they inform us?
Somewhat puzzled, I'm rather mindful of the other members' reactions as I look around.
"..."
All of them are looking serious.
Everyone else other than Houki and I are official representatives of other countries, so maybe they've received training for this kind of situation. Laura's eyes are looking exceptionally serious.
"After that, through satellite tracking, we found that the [Gospel] will enter our air space, 2 km from here. That will happen in approximately 50 minutes from now. Thus, according to the Academy's higher-ups jurisdiction, we have to deal with this situation.
Chifuyu-nee calmly said on. What she said next came unexpected.
"All staff members, please use the Academy's training suits to seal off the air space and sea. The main operation will be done using personal ISes."
Wha what? That means that that rampant military IS--will have to be stopped by us?
"Next, we'll be beginning the planning of the battle. Anyone with doubts, please raise your hand."
"Yes."
Cecilia immediately raised her hand,
"Please explain the specs and data of the target IS."
"I understand. But these are the highest military secrets of those two countries, so it definitely can't be revealed. Once the data's revealed, the parties involved will be court-martialed, and they have to take at least 2 years of probation."
"I understand."
I don't really understand the situation now, but including Cecilia, everyone present are already discussing about getting the data.
