Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei (Manga) Steeplechase Arc

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Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei Sutiipurucheesu-hen (魔法科高校の劣等生 スティープルチェース編) is the manga adaption of the 'Steeplechase Arc' from the 13^th light novel. The adaptation is by Aonagi Nobu (蒼和 伸). It was serialised in Dengeki Daioh, beginning in March 2019 and ended in November 2020.

Synopsis

July 2096. This year, The National Magic High School Goodwill Competitive Magic Tournament, also known as the "Nine Schools Competition", which is the biggest summer event for magic high school students, will be held. But this year's Nine Schools Competition is a bit different. Both the events and rules have been revised. The Magical High Schools will be forced to respond quickly to the drastic changes brought about with only a month to prepare.

One day, an anonymous message is delivered to Tatsuya, who was in charge of planning the strategy for Nine Schools Competition. It is an indication of the existence of a new conspiracy set at the Nine Schools Battle. A battle that unfolds behind the glamorous competition. Tatsuya runs through the dark artificial sea of trees and challenges this conspiracy and betrayal!

The second years Nine Schools Competition chapter has arrived!

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 3

Chapter

Title

1

The Main Points of the Meeting

After finishing his work for the Student Council, Tatsuya joins the Leo and Minami to train with First High’s Mountaineering Club. Meanwhile at the former Ninth Research Institute, Kudou Retsu and current family head Kudou Makoto inspect the results of their research onto installing Parasites into Gynoids. The researcher tells them the assimilation rates have reached 60% and are ready for testing. Pleased with the results Retsu tells them to use this years Nine Schools Competition and will have the military intervene to make the changes. Later Retsu returns to the Kudou main house and visits his grandson Kudou Minoru who is sick in bed. Retsu reassures him his Minoru is disappointed he cannot participate in the Nine Schools Competition. Retsu reassures him and reflects on Minoru’s poor health and his motives of stopping Minoru being used as a human weapon by replacing magicians with the dolls. Back at First High Miyuki and Tatsuya discuss the upcoming Nine Schools Competition and the work President Nakajou has put into preparing for it on their way to the Student Council Office. On arrival however they find Nakajou slumped over her desk, investigating they discover the Nine Schools Competition has undergone major changed with three events replaced, several others split into separate team and solo competitions, as well as a number of other changed made. Isori tries to cheer Nakajou up but his fiancé Kanon walks in and gets the wrong idea. After school the Shiba’s tell their friends about the changes and explains the new games. Rowers and Gunners, replacing Battle Board, is a two-person game with a Rower guiding the boat and a Gunner shooting targets. Shield Down, replacing Crowd Ball, is a combat match where the aim is to destroy the opponents shield or knock them out of the ring. And the problematic one, Steeple Chase which replaced Speed Shooting, a very dangerous military training exercise which could carry the risk of death. This revelation shocks the others and makes them very uneasy as the impact of the Yokohama incident is very clear. Tatsuya and Miyuki reassure them and affirm they will resolve anything that happens.

2

The Circumstances of Third High School

First High weren’t the only ones upset by the changes. Kichijouji of Third High was livid at the lack of notice they had been given and all the wasted effort in the preparations for the scrapped events. Ichijou Masaki's mind was elsewhere and not really listening to Kichijouji, to Kichijouji's annoyance. When Kichijouji finished venting the conversation moved on to the new events and how Third High has an advance as they focus more on actual combat skills than First High. Ichijou Akane arrives with drinks for the pair and after some bickering about her not knocking Akane turns her attention to Kichijouji and shows off her new uniform and Kichijouji compliments her. Masaki gets annoyed and Kichijouji quickly denies anything untoward. Akane gets upset at this and accuses Masaki of trying to monopolise Kichijouji and insinuates they’re too intimate, much to their distress. After a hard day at school dealing with the revisions to the Nine Schools Competition the Shiba’s are back home and Miyuki is waiting on Tatsuya as usual. Releasing she’s tired Tatsuya asks Miyuki to relax with him and she snuggles up to him despite Minami’s presence. An message arrives for Tatsuya and Minami goes to accept it but finds there is no sender and Tatsuya opens it up on the main screen. Elsewhere Zhou is receiving orders from his master using a mummified corpse as a medium. He reveals the weapons test and orders Zhou to use a spell to make the weapons go berserk to weaken Japan by targeting the magicians participating in the competition. Back at the Shiba’s the three are mortified at the contents, indicating a weapons test would be carried out at the Nine Schools Games. Tatsuya decides it must be investigated and decides to visit Kokonoe.

3

Tatsuya's Mentor

The following morning the Shiba’s visit Kokonoe’s temple in training gear and Tatsuya demolishes the apprentices during the usual ambush. The three moved inside to discuss matters and Tatsuya has Miyuki but up a barrier to stop anyone listening in. They then get straight into the discussion of the Kudou plot to use the Steeplechase event, an exercise dangerous in its own right, to test Weapon-P. They mention Kazuma may no more but hasn’t said anything and as such he knows little at the moment. They agree investigating is necessary and Kokonoe mentions a trip to Nara may be in order. At school the Student Council Room is in a frenzy of activity, with everyone busy making preparations. Having passed the investigation to Kokonoe, Tatsuya works with Hattori to decide the new line up of athletes. Later, Tatsuya visits Erika in one of the gyms to ask her for a favour. Initially on guard she relaxes when she realises its for the student council, and although reluctant agrees to help. Erika arrives at the meeting room to find Leo waiting there, at her enquiry as to why, he points out Tatsuya summoned him too. Tatsuya arrives and introduced the pair to the pair they to train with, the third years Sawaki Midori and Chikura Tomoko. Meanwhile at the Kudou main house Kudou Makoto meets with Zhou Gongjin. After some greetings Zhou states that he has three Taoists refugees, fleeing the GAA, who are having problems due to being ancient magicians. He then asks the Kudou to harbour them. Makoto agrees to consider it and asks for time to think about it to which Zhou agrees and gives Makoto the profiles of the three refugees. After Zhou leaves, Makoto reads the profiles and realises the men were working on something similar and would be useful for the P-dolls but is concerned about the convenient timing they were offered to him.

4

Mock Battle

Training for the Solo Shield Down matches has begun and Chikura Tomoko is facing off against Erika whilst Tatsuya and Hattori observe. Erika is overwhelming Tomoko with speed and sends her flying out the ring with a shield bash. Meanwhile the boy’s team is practicing on the other field with Team Sawaki (comprising Sawaki and Leo) and Team Kirihara (comprised of Kirihara and Tomitsuka). The mock battle begins with Kirihara charging Leo head on. Tomitsuka tries to flank and is sent flying off the field by a gust of air used by Sawaki, whilst Kirahara’s shield gets destroyed by Leos strengthened shield. Watching the matched Tatsuya and Hattori discuss the results, Hattori suggests switching the participants to Erika and Leo, but Tatsuya points out the restrictions will stop them from winning. Calling over Minami Tatsuya asks her and Erika to spar. Erika approves and wonders what advise Tatsuya is whispering to Minami. The match begins and Erika launches at Minami and bit hits an invisible wall and is bounces into the air and out of bounds in an instant. Hattori mistakes the technique for the Juumonji Phalanx, but Tatsuya points out it’s a much simpler type of shield. Coming over to the three girls to give advice. Tatsuya points out Erika’s attack is too straight forward. Tomoko states she can’t use shields like Minami, and Tatsuya then tells Tomoko to use her specialisation, Vector Inversion, to send her opponents flying out of the ring in a similar fashion. Tatsuya’s terminal then goes off and he hands over to Hattori and heads to the pool. Tatsuya arrives at the pool which is being used to practice Ice Pillar Break and is enthusiastically greeted my Miyuki. Trying to break the mood Kanon and Shizuku comment on the freezing technique and the Shiba’s complement each other’s contribution, Tatsuya’s spell and Miyuki’s utilisation. With everything prepared Kanon and Shizuku face off against the solo Miyuki, with Honoka and Izumi watching on. Kanon is looking sullen after five matches of being overwhelmed by Miyuki despite the two on one handicap. Tatsuya discusses the result and states its due to lack of practice together as their spells are overlapping. He points out that to win only one pillar need be standing. Miyuki asks for advice but Tatsuya states he’ll only give it if she loses and scold her is its deliberate. Looking on Kanon is upset Isori isn’t the engineer but decides to endure it. Later on, at the Saegusa main house, Nakura gives his report to Saegusa Koichi. He reports Zhou has informed him that a GAA magician was sent to the Kudou and will interfere with the weapons test being carried out at the Nine School’s Competition. As his own daughters were not at-risk Koichi decides not to interfere.

5

Day Off

Tatsuya visits the lab at FLT and meets with Ushiyama where the team is testing the new Silver Model Thought Activated CADs. When he gets home he finds a flustered Minami who is concerned about Miyuki, who’s shut herself away and her magic is going out of control. Tatsuya noticed she’s been studying and realises the pressure of everything at school is getting to her. Minami is concerned Tatsuya will get hurt if he gets too close, but he goes in to talk to Miyuki and calms her down. She then asks him to take her out and rushes off to get ready. Minami stays home. The Shiba’s go out shopping and Miyuki is having a great time choosing clothes. They head to the changing area for her to try them, but the cubicles are all full, so the clerk has them move to the ones in the swimsuit section. Tatsuya decides to be considerate and vacate the area but walks straight into the Saegusa Twins. Kasumi is outraged at his presence, but Izumi is just excited she may get to see Miyuki. Mayumi comes out to see what the fuss is in a swimsuit and is very embarrassed to have been seen by Tatsuya. He tries to calm her down, but she retreats into the changing room and screams. Shortly after the five are at a café to discuss the incident. Miyuki apologizes for taking Tatsuya there and Mayumi apologizes for making a scene. Kasumi still isn’t satisfied but Izumi wants to join the Shiba’s for the afternoon. Mayumi subtly rebukes her and Kasumi jumps in saying Izumi shouldn’t interrupt the Shiba’s date. This leads into a debate about how the siblings shouldn’t be going out together dating as they have a duty to have children, to which Tatsuya points out by that logic she shouldn’t be going out with her sisters either. The Shiba’s take their leave at this point and Tatsuya pays as he goes. As the pair leave they discuss what happened with the Saegusa’s. Tatsuya worries he went too far but Miyuki reassures him he didn’t. His phone rings and Tatsuya takes the call from Kokonoe to discuss their next course of action.

6

The Former Ninth Research Institute

The athletes are all working hard at First High in preparation for the competition. Meanwhile the Shiba’s, along with Yakumo and Minami are in a private compartment in a train headed to Nara, and the girls are thoroughly enjoying the trip and lunch. Tatsuya had intended to travel with Kokonoe alone but Miyuki had insisted she join Tatsuya while Minami insisted on attending Miyuki even though he doesn’t want them to come along at first because she doesn’t like being left at home. Arriving at the station Yakumo separates from the other three and Tatsuya takes the girls to the hotel and gets changed for the mission. Miyuki is unhappy at being left behind but Tatsuya managed to convince her to stay, albeit reluctantly, at the hotel by stating it’s improper for a young lady to be out at this hour. Heading out on his bike Tatsuya heads to the former Institute 9 and stops on the road nearby. Speculating the new weapon is either based of the Magatama Relic or Parasites, like Pixie, he decides to scout it using Elemental Sight from the road. Scanning the whole facility Tatsuya’s ‘eyes’ fall upon female robots containing Psions. Just as he starts analysing the dolls, he gets a message from telling him to flee. Suddenly there is a blast of magic, both Mental Interference and Lightning, and Tatsuya realises he can’t reach his CAD in time.

7

Parent and Child of the Kuroba

The sudden attack leaves Tatsuya without time to even draw his CAD as he claps his hands together and leaps back and a huge blast blankets the area. At the hotel, a worried Miyuki waits for Tatsuya’s return when Minami informs her that they have guests. They head to the lobby to meet Kuroba Mitsugu and Kuroba Ayako. After exchanging pleasantries, the four Yotsuba settle down to talk over coffee in a private room. Mitsugu tries informing Miyuki of the plot to use the Nine Schools Competition to test weapons, but she reveals they not only know, but Tatsuya is already investigating. They confirm Weapon P is a mechanical doll hosting a parasite and Ayako hands over a copy of the data the Kuroba have gathered on the project. Ayako mentions the enemy is one of the Ten Master Clans, so even Tatsuya cannot finish in a single night. Mitsugu points out Ayako’s skill set is suited for this, whereas Miyuki is suited to combat. Their business concluded Ayako and Mitsugu leave, leaving behind Miyuki, who is disappointed she couldn’t help Tatsuya like Ayako has. Back at the lab, Tatsuya has blocked the attack using his own magic and quickly gets on his bike and withdraws. The next morning the Shiba siblings, Minami and Kokonoe are sharing a train cabin back home. Miyuki is still down from the day before and when Tatsuya enquires, she reveals the visit and the intel they were given. Kokonoe lets slip he knew the hotel was owned by the Yotsuba. Kokonoe wants a look and after Miyuki agrees he peruses the intel on his terminal and once he’s done Minami drops the privacy barrier she was maintaining.

8	Now Comes the Nine Schools
	Zhou Gongjin has returned to meet Kudou Makoto at the family’s estate and Makoto agrees to take in the magicians as Zhou requested. This is later reported to Kudou Retsu but he is not concerned and thinks it may be fortuitous as it will force Miya’s son to act. First High’s preparations continue to bear fruit and its quickly time to depart for the competition. Tatsuya is seen introducing Kento to Pixie by the Saegusa sisters and Kasumi is not happy he’s bringing a ‘Maid Robot,’ Izumi corrects her that it’s a 3H unit but Kasumi continues complaining until Shizuku interrupts and the twins hurriedly board the coach. After an uneventful trip the students arrive at the hotel and it’s time for the evening party. Miyuki is in a great mood was Tatsuya gets to wear his own uniform to the event this year. Minami is a bit perturbed by Miyuki’s enthusiasm, but it’s shared by all the girls from the previous year who have surrounded Tatsuya whilst the boys are in a separate group. Ichijou Masaki and Kichijouji Shinkurou come over but Masaki ignores Tatsuya to greet an unenthusiastic Miyuki, but Shinkurou greets him. Tatsuya complements their performance in Yokohama to Masaki’s embarrassment. Masaki then asks if Tatsuya thinks something is off about this year’s competition.

9

Presentiment

Tatsuya, Masaki and Shinkurou discuss the changes to the competition, specifically Steeplechase which really stands out as being risky and the whole situation seems suspicious. Tatsuya suggests since the Ichijou have the means they should investigate and points out excess intel never hurt anyone and there are still 12 days before the event. Though flustered Masaki agrees to contact his father and leaves with Shinkurou. The serious talk over Shizuku brings over her cousin who wants to introduce someone to them. They bring the Kuroba twins who act like it’s their first meeting with the Shiba siblings and ask for guidance in engineering in the future. Tatsuya agrees but says it’ll have to wait until after the competition, making an excuse for the four to meet up in the future. As they leave and Mikihiko comes over to Tatsuya and warns him there is a rumour the twins are from a Yotsuba branch family and to be careful of them. As Mikihiko finishes giving his warning a woman appears onstage and the guest speakers give their speeches but Kudou Retsu isn’t amongst them.

10

Every Expectation

The evening ends and the students retire for the night. Back in his room Tatsuya comments on Kudou Retsu’s absence and comments it’s likely but an excuse and he’s not actually ill. Turning to face his roommate Miyuki, wanting to know why she’s there. Upon hearing the reasons, Tatsuya makes it clear he disapproves of the arrangement with Kanon and Kei and helping an unmarried couple share a room before heading out dressed in black, rather than his uniform. Quickly traversing the terrain Tatsuya evades the security and makes his way to the Steeplechase course, which he finds is heavily guarded, likely due to the events the year before. While using his Elemental Sight to survey the course Tatsuya notices the Kuroba Twins nearby who are also investigating. The Kuroba’s are trying to figure out how to access the course when Tatsuya suddenly appears behind them, giving them a scare. After Ayako snaps at Tatsuya they discuss the course and confirm not even Ayako’s magic can get them inside. Fumiya suggests a more direct approach, but Tatsuya says it’s a bad idea which Yakumo agree with as he joins the three. Tatsuya confirms his identity to the Kuroba’s and the three discuss the situation with Yakumo confirming he accessed the course which is just a normal course and that for the time being, the Parasite Dolls are not present yet and with the way it’s set up it’d be impossible to guess as to where they’ll be placed, though it does confirms they are designed for combat. Yakumo suggests they leave it here for today.

11

The Curtain Rises

The day after the failed infiltration attempt the Shiba’s are going to lunch with Shizuku and Honoka at the hotel when they bump into Erika, Leo and Mizuki who have just arrived, and they head to eat together, with Mikihiko joining the in the café. Enjoying their meal Mikihiko lets slip he and Mizuki exchanged contact details and Erika proceeds to tease them, much to their embarrassment. The conversation turns to the protesters who delayed the arrival of Erika’s group and their objection to the games being a form of recruitment exercise for the military. Tatsuya points out that since 45% of magic high graduates will likely make contact with the military at some point it’s easy to make such propaganda since the proportion is high. Erika mistakes this for Tatsuya agreeing but he refutes this, given the fact he’s already military. The opening ceremony is completed, and the competition gets underway, the first day begins with Rowers and Gunners, and Tatsuya is hard at work preparing for the day’s events. Tatsuya heads to meet with Azusa, Eimi and her partner, Kunisaki Kumiko and they make the final adjustments ready for the event. In the stands Miyuki, Erika, Leo, Honoka and Mizuki watch Eimi’s team in the Rowers and Gunners event, with Kumiko piloting and Eimi shooting. That day the paired Ice Pillar Break events also take place. At the end of the day the results are in with Eimi taking first place, with the boys taking third and both teams qualifying in Ice Pillar break, though overall Seventh High took the top spot for the day points wise, though Hattori points out it may be beneficial overall as it will take points from Third High. Kanon comments maybe they should have assigned Tatsuya to the men’s team instead of Ice Pillar Break, which earns Miyuki’s ire, the hostility causing Kanon to reflexively go on guard. Tatsuya and Isori quickly step in to stop things escalating and point out changing engineers won’t make a difference and changes the subject to advising the competitors.

12

Intermission

It’s evening and the usual group of friends, joined by Kento, are enjoying coffee by the technical vehicle outside the hotel. Miyuki displeased with the usual vehicles made arrangements for better ones to be provided for the team this year which has allowed for this get together of friends. Pixie is serving drinks to the bemusement of Miyuki and Minami. The absence of Erika and Leo is noticed and Kento comments he saw Leo talking to Ernst Rosen. Leo arrives and the group have a lively chat. Once everyone else leaves Tatsuya checks up on Pixie who has been searching for the Parasites, but she has thus far been unable to do so. The Shiba’s and Minami decide to call it a night. Later that night Miyuki is watching over a sleeping Tatsuya and a little out of it due to sleep worries he is cold and ends up slipping into bed with him. After she falls asleep Tatsuya, who was woken up by Miyuki, slips out of the room, leaving her to get some sleep. The next morning the Shiba’s arrive at First High’s tent and greet Nakajou who noticed Miyuki is very embarrassed and keeping her distance. She asks what happened, but Tatsuya casually deflects the question.

13

The Adversary Before You

Third High’s Cardinal George is participating in the men’s Rowers and Gunners matches. Despite doing well Third High is in second place, behind Seventh High, and he is disappointed with his performance. The other members try to cheer him up and ask Masaki for his opinion, which is that First High will catch up and they need to focus on the championship. At First High’s trailer, Kento is worrying about the results but Tatsuya isn’t concerned. Masaki arrives to talk to Tatsuya about his investigation into the competition. Tatsuya takes a break, and the two talk outside and Masaki reports there is a faction of hardliners involved, led by Colonel Sakai. Tatsuya ponders how this relates to the Kudou and contemplates how to deal with the situation, even considering simply blowing up the course to cancel the event whilst Masaki tries to explain Sakai is just an acquaintance of his fathers due to the Sado invasion, nothing more. Ichijou mentions a possible mutiny which gets Tatsuya’s interest, but it’s only rumours. Masaki says he’ll contact Tatsuya if he learns more and heads off. Tatsuya takes a moment to think and is concerned even with Kokonoe’s help there isn’t enough time and Maya likely won’t approve.

14

After Three Days

Day three of the competition and it’s it time for the Shield Down finals and Tomitsuka and Kirihara are up against Third High’s team. Tomitsuka charges and Third High’s attacks aren’t affecting him. He then cancels out an attack with a shockwave, surprising the opposition. Flashing back to before the competition when Tomitsuka was training and struggling to master an air-based attack. Chiaki offers to help and devises a spell he can use, generating the shockwave from his shield. Back to the present, Tomitsuka overwhelms the third high player and pushes him back. Kirihara takes position between them and drops to one knee to brace, creating a vibration field to knock the opposition off balance. The pair then charge with Tomitsuka knocking on out of the field whilst Kirihara breaks the others shield, winning. Chiaki watches on with tears of joy. The day ends with the girls taking first place in Ice Pillar Break pairs matches but dropping out in the preliminaries of the Shield Down pairs matches, whilst the boys took third place in Ice Pillar Break pair matches and first in Shield Down pairs matches. Third High did well, increasing their lead to one hundred points overall. Later some of the First High students gather to celebrate Shizuku’s win with a tea party and discuss Miyuki’s matches tomorrow, before teasing Eimi over Tomitsuka, the conversation ending with Shizuku telling Eimi she needs to be direct as Tomitsuka is genuinely dense. Tatsuya excuses himself to see Pixie. Inside the camper Pixie informs Tatsuya she both detected and was detected by the Parasites and confirms there are sixteen present and points out their location on the map. Tatsuya contemplates a plan and when he’s ready to head out the tea party is over, and the others are leaving. Once they’ve gone, he tries to leave but is stopped by Miyuki.

15

Truly Important

As Tatsuya tries to leave Miyuki stops him. Tatsuya says they have a lead, but Miyuki makes it clear he has no responsibility to clean up the Kudou’s mess and can leave it until the day. She then makes it clear she will seal both of their magics if necessary, to stop him. Tatsuya tries to argue back but she points she’s willing to do it even if it means dropping out of First High to stop him overworking himself further as he’s going to break if he doesn’t stop, the though reducing her to tears. Upon seeing those tears Tatsuya agrees to stop as she’s correct, she’s his only true concern, and leads her back to the hotel. Minami who had been watching follows behind them silently and embarrassed. At the headquarters of the 101st, Major General Saeki gets a call from the Yotsuba. Hayama apologizes for the late time and asks if she has time to speak. On confirming the call is passed to Yotsuba Maya. Getting straight to the point they discuss the plans of Colonel Sakai for the Steeplechase event at the Nine Schools Competition. Maya asks Saeki to cooperate and tie up loose ends after the incident in which Tatsuya is involved which in exchange would weaken the influence of the Ten Master Clans on the military. Saeki agrees. After the call Hayama asks if Maya’s actions were wise. She points out she didn’t mention Kudou’s name for that reason and were it not for the sponsor she’d use violent means to resolve the situation but as it stands they’ll only be lending a hand.

16

A Return to Form, And Newcomers

The competition goes into it’s fourth day with Miyuki winning both her Ice Pillar Break solo matches with overwhelming power, much to the delight of President Nakajou who was watching on with Tatsuya. Miyuki’s matches over Tatsuya heads over to the men’s Shield Down and meets with Sawaki. Sawaki comments on Tatsuya’s improved condition, a shock to Tatsuya as everyone else hadn’t noticed. Tatsuya passes it off as fatigue and Sawaki heads into his match, which he wins decisively by throwing his opponent out of the ring. The day ends well for First High with them in first place for both solo Shield down events and first and third for Ice Pillars Break, reducing third High’s lead to 60 points. There streak continues into the newcomer events with both teams taking first in Rowers and Gunners, with Tatsuya supporting the boy’s team and Kasumi on the girl’s team supported by Kent. The second day of the newcomer events ended with the boy’s in third and the girls in first for both events, Isumi taking the win in solo Ice Pillars Break and Minami in Shield Down. After the match Izumi is so delighted, she hugs Miyuki. The third day however is Mirage Bat, and unsurprisingly to the Shiba siblings, Ayako is dominating her matches. Using one of her signature spells she is moving at such an overwhelming speed the opposition are simply unable to compete. On the final day of the newcomer events it’s last of the boy’s Monolith Code matches. First High is against Fourth High and Takuma is defending First High’s monolith when he’s attacked by Fumiya and quickly taken out, ending the match as all three of First High’s team members had been incapacitated.

17

Ninth Day, Tenth Day, Night

It’s the ninth day of the competition and Third High’s lead has been reduced to almost nothing. Honoka is getting ready for Mirage Bat and is embarrassed to be alone with Tatsuya in the competition’s outfit. It’s time for the final and First High has two competitors while Third High only has one. Subaru enters and declares she’s going to end Tatsuya’s undefeated streak by taking first. The match gets underway and Honoka takes the victory, with Subaru in second. Honoka is really elated to have won and her enthusiasm leaves Tatsuya a little bewildered. The boy’s Monolith Code matches stretch from the ninth day into the tenth. That evening First High celebrate their victory. The team are discussing the victory and call over Tatsuya, who’s engineering for Mikihiko on the tenth day to thank him and Hattori and Carey express their confidence in an overall victory. That night Tatsuya takes Pixie to the roof to inspect tomorrows course. There he meets with Kokonoe and Fujibayashi. Tatsuya affirms she was the one who sent the message. Deciding it’s too exposed to talk, the three head to an RV. There Fujibayashi informs Tatsuya she didn’t send more information as she is under surveillance by the military. Kokonoe asks the position of the Fujibayashi family, and she states they are neutral. Kokonoe infers from this they are against the situation but cannot oppose the Kudou on it due to the awkward situation due to being related to the Kudou by marriage and the situation with the Traditionalists. Tatsuya expresses his annoyance with the lack of intel, and Fujibayashi lays the situation out. —The Anti-GAU faction changed the events in the competition. —The Kudou took advantage of this to test the Parasite Dolls. Retsu spearheaded this. —Her uncle, the current Kudou head brought in the foreign occultists. —The occultists seem to be planning to use the experiment to weaken Japan by reducing the number of new magicians. With the situation as it’s outside his duties they cannot order him to so Fujibayashi requests aid in dealing with the situation, leading him to a box containing a mobile combat suit. She states they cannot act as it could spark a conflict between the military and the Ten Master Clans. Tatsuya agrees so she hands over the keys and informs him if he presses this button, the van’s contents will be destroyed after five minutes. As she leaves Tatsuya states he’ll expect the favour be returned.

18

The Night Before Steeplechase

After the meeting with Tatsuya, Kokonoe speaks to Fujibayashi outside and challenges her on the truth of what she told Tatsuya, that in fact there are failsafe devices on the Parasite Dolls so they won’t actually go out of control, having checked with an expert in the field. Kokonoe uses magic that induces fear to coerce Fujibayashi and she confirms there are and that should the Parasite Dolls become violent then they would be shut down though the testing hasn’t gone far enough to know if the parasite would need reattaching if unsealed. Satisfied Kokonoe calls out to Kazuma who was listening. Kokonoe confirms that Kazuma has a reason to have Tatsuya run amok. Kazuma goes on to state that Major General Saeki doesn’t know the details as she’s only versed in modern magic. He then asks why Kokonoe didn’t stop them, to which he points out stopping Tatsuya would be unpleasant due to an oversight in the planned test. That the parasites look for hosts with strong pure thoughts, making the students prime candidates if the spells binding the parasites to the dolls fail, such as if one were destroyed. Kokonoe ends the conversation by asking who sent the foreign occultists and Fujibayashi states it was Zhou Gongjin. Kokonoe says he’ll keep quiet about the information withheld from Tatsuya and leaves instantly, leaving Kazuma and Fujibayashi alone. They promptly start to leave as well while Kazuma asks if Fujibayashi knew the whole truth, and she confirms she didn’t and she wasn’t able to report in later, causing the incorrect information to be reported.

19

Steeplechase Cross Country

It’s the final day of the competition and Tatsuya is hard at work getting all the CAD’s prepared for his assigned competitors. Getting finished in time Tatsuya gets changed whilst watching Miyuki and the other female contestants gathering at the start line on screen. As he heads to the van provided by Kyouko he summons Pixie and finds she is accompanied by Minami. Minami explains she was sent by Miyuki to assist since she herself couldn’t. Tatsuya doesn’t contest and dons his armour inside the van whilst Pixie monitors the course. Pixie locates the sixteen parasites and Tatsuya warns Minami that they can sense Pixie as well so the trailer may be attacked. With roles established Tatsuya jumps the fence into the course, fully aware he had barely twenty minutes to finish before the contestants were attacked.

20

Start

The girl’s Steeplechase match begins and the contestants rush into action, most cautiously though one overeager contestant gets caught in a trap immediately. Meanwhile, at the command centre for those responsible for the weapons test, one of the staff detect Tatsuya’s breach into the course. Quickly working to get an image, Tatsuya’s armour is immediately recognised as one of the new suits from General Saeki’s unit. Kudou Makoto quickly takes charge and has the Parasite Dolls to change target to the intruder (Tatsuya) and aim to suppress him, whilst another group is to seize Pixie. Using intel from Pixie, Tatsuya closes in on the first Parasite Doll but as he closes, he’s hit by Telekinesis and thrown into a tree, but not before bracing to minimise the damage. Tatsuya springs up using pure speed, not even having time to Flash Cast. Tatsuya uses his CAD to prepare a counter to the PK and dodges and closes on the Parasite Doll and uses a blast of Psions, knocking it down. It gets up and charges again only to be taken out by a repeat of the attack blowing away its psions.

21

Breaking Through

Tatsuya looks down at the defeated Parasite Doll and realises that the parasite is going to get free, a threat to the students competing, due to his attack damaging the sealing spell. Because of this Tatsuya restores the control spell but the Parasite Doll remains inert due to a lack of psions. Tatsuya communicates with Pixie and gets the location of the next two Parasite Dolls from her while the van she is in is under heavy assault from the forces of the Kudou family, though they are unable to breach Minami’s shields. Tatsuya takes off at high speed to reach the next two Parasite Dolls and quickly neutralises them. Watching on Colonel Sakai and the researchers were aghast as they saw their test units taken out by a seemingly immortal soldier. That’s when one realises that the attacker is Mahesvara. Realising his connection to the 101st Independent Magic Equipped Battalion, Colonel Sakai wonders why such a monster has appeared. Meanwhile, the First High girls are making their way through the course while Tomoko tries to warn Kanon that she’s going too fast, but she doesn’t listen and ends up caught in a trap. Kanon quickly rushes off again. A little later Subaru notices one of the fallen Parasite Dolls. Miyuki immediately recognises it, but the others wonder why it’s there or if it’s part of the course. Kanon comments not to let it slow them down.

22

Prime Four

Minami is hard a work maintaining the shield to protect the van and Pixie from the heavy assault of the Kudou troops when they attack suddenly stops, only to be replaced by demands from the base’s security forces for them to surrender which Minami adamantly refuses whilst wishing for Tatsuya’s swift return. Meanwhile, on the course, Tatsuya is steadily disabling the P-Dolls, though it is taking longer than expected, leaving Tatsuya concerned as there is only ten minutes or so left before Miyuki reaches his position. After finishing a group of dolls, Tatsuya restores his arm and is attacked by the remaining four P-Dolls at once. The researchers watching on are mortified as this would mean a stain on the project, but the lead researcher believes the Prime Four will not be such easy prey for Tatsuya. The Prime Four attack Tatsuya and force him on the defensive with a variety of attacks, one after the other, as well as a barrier defence which saves one from Tatsuya’s counterattack. The head researcher watching on orders the Prime Four to use more lethal attacks despite being ordered to stay non-lethal, dismissing the issue as fine due to Tatsuya’s regeneration. Tatsuya is continuing to fight when Pixie contacts Tatsuya, telling him how to avoid the incoming attacks, explaining that she can hear the thoughts of the Prime Four as they communicate. Tatsuya has her relay the communications to him. Their plans intercepted, Tatsuya turns the fight around and quickly takes the four of them out, ending the P-Doll experiment. Back in the Van, Pixie congratulates Tatsuya, and Minami is relieved they are finished but is concerned when she gets a call from Fumiya, who checks that it’s her defending the van and she’s not acting as a decoy. Once she confirms that the security guards are a threat, Fumiya quickly incapacitates them all. On the steeplechase course Miyuki is nearing the finish line with Kanon and Subaru but the pair decided to rush in an attempt for first and end up getting caught in traps instead, allowing Miyuki to take first place.

23

Epilogue

Tatsuya returns to the van and thanks Fumiya for his aid. Minami asks if it is over and Tatsuya says he just needs to dispose of his equipment and the van. In the event, Miyuki takes first place for the girls, and Ichijou Masaki takes first for the boys, bringing the tournament to the end. At the after party, Kichijouji Shinkurou congratulates Masaki on his win whilst the girls from first High celebrate the overall victory. Isori Kei comes over to speak to Tatsuya, who is watching on from the side lines, when the pair are approached by Miyuki and Kanon. Miyuki apologises to Isori and asks for Tatsuya. As Tatsuya and Miyuki dance they discuss what happened and Miyuki mentions seeing the fallen P-Doll on the course and Tatsuya states he does not wish for her to be harmed and the pair have a moment. Elsewhere, the officers and researchers who performed the P-Doll test tried to flee but are struck by magic and captured in the parking lot, offering no resistance. Kudou Retsu hosts a meeting with his co-conspirators and discuss the result of the experiment, with Retsu saying it’s not a total loss as the subjects put up a decent fight which should garner some approval. Suddenly the meeting is interrupted by Major General Saeki and Captain Kazuma. Kudou makes it clear they are unwelcome, but Saeki plays a recording from Colonel Sakai confessing to the experiment performed at the games. They then explain the confession was provided by the Yotsuba on condition it is not made public as their goal is purging Colonel Sakai’s group. Saeki then makes their demand clear. Retsu is to retire and leave magician rights to those in active duty. Retsu is forced to agree. August sixteenth. Yokohama Chinatown. Zhou Gongjin is cornered by Kuroba Mitsugu. Zhou reveals he knows Mitsugu’s identity as a member of the Yotsuba. Mitsugu states he knows Zhou is responsible for all the recent events such as helping the GAU forces and smuggling in the Parasites. The pair continue the exchange until Zhou suddenly summons a familiar which attacks Mitsugu before he can respond, and it takes his arm. Zhou comments it was work the ten years it took to make it in exchange for Mitsugu’s arm and disappears. Fumiya arrives with Tatsuya moments later. Seeing his father, Fumiya asks for Tatsuya’s aid. Mitsugu tries to refuse but Tatsuya states it would make Fumiya and Ayako sad, and heals Mitsugu regardless. Seeing Mitsugu’s state, Tatsuya realises Zhou will be a concerning opponent. The mission over, Tatsuya returns home to find Miyuki waiting up for him as she greets him on his return.