So long as the so-called "defense line" was not crossed, Yugen would not take to the battlefield as Special Lieutenant General Tatsuzo Kamijo—such was the conclusion Soga presented. In those words, Yugen felt Soga's earnest wish that, even if Yugen harbored distrust toward the Defense Force, he would not sever his personal connection with him.
"...Understood. To repeat what I have mentioned previously, should personnel from the Defense Force use us as bait or threaten us, I will exercise the authority granted to me to handle the matter. When that happens, I intend to obtain direct authorization from the Minister of Defense, so please ensure an appropriate response." "Understood... Truthfully, this is not a matter that should be entrusted to someone as young as you, but I leave it in your hands, 'Yugen-kun'."
Yugen's words—those encompassed future matters concerning Tatsuya and Lina as well. Though it was unclear how much Soga had seen through, he conveyed his tacit approval by quietly murmuring Yugen's name.
◇ ◇ ◇
Around the time Tatsuya was visiting the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion Headquarters in Kasumigaura and Yugen was at the Army General Headquarters in the Ministry of Defense, Katsuto was attending a meeting with Tomokazu Saegusa. The meeting location was an upscale traditional Japanese restaurant in Tokyo. It was a establishment frequented by major politicians and top business figures—a venue for VIPs—yet as Katsuto sat upright in the private room, the phrase 'out of place' simply did not apply to him... Though, as a side note, Katsuto had once been shocked when his step-sister Riri asked him last spring, "Do I really look that old...?"
After Katsuto, looking far older than his nearly twenty years, waited at the ebony low table for about a minute, his meeting partner, Tomokazu, made his appearance.
"My apologies for keeping you waiting." "I have only just arrived myself. Please, do not stand on ceremony—feel free to relax your legs."
Saying so, Tomokazu bowed and sat opposite Katsuto, but looking somewhat uncomfortable as if unaccustomed to sitting formal posture (seiza), Katsuto offered him a word of relief.
"Thank you very much. In that case, I shall take you up on your kindness."
Taking advantage of Katsuto's courtesy, Tomokazu shifted his legs into a cross-legged position, whereas Katsuto remained in seiza. Compounded by their sitting postures and natural difference in physical build, Katsuto ended up looking down on Tomokazu. Neither paid this any mind; after exchanging social pleasantries and sipping non-alcoholic beverages, both naturally shifted into meeting mode. However, rather than both speaking at once, Katsuto was the one who broached the subject.
"Saegusa-san. I heard from your sister that there was something you wished to consult me about." "Yes, let us get straight to the point. Juumonji-san, how do you think we should address the recent anti-magician sentiment?"
Anti-magician sentiment was something seen before. The 'Blanche' incident two years ago and the media fanning anti-magic movements last spring were primary examples. Moreover, regarding the latter case, Katsuto had learned during a meeting with the head of the Kagurazaka family (who was then the next head) that the father of the person sitting before him—the head of the Saegusa family—had been involved. While foreign intelligence fell outside the Juumonji family's scope, they maintained contact with the Saegusa family (Mayumi) and the Mitsuya family (Mika) as part of information sharing. This was because the likelihood of riots or disturbances arising from anti-magician ideologies—things this country had remained largely free of—reigniting through imported foreign ideologies was by no means low. In the midst of this, Katsuto felt a slight sense of surprise that Tomokazu sought concrete steps rather than mere opinions.
"Not what I think about it, but how we should address it? Are you suggesting, Saegusa-san, that we need a proactive response toward the anti-magic trend?" "Precisely."
Tomokazu acknowledged Katsuto's phrasing directly without evasion or misdirection. In this regard, he did not particularly resemble his father, Koichi.
"I believe we can no longer survive by simply responding after suffering damage." "You believe that if we leave aggressive propaganda against magicians unchecked, it will escalate beyond control? What specifically do you have in mind?"
During his time at Magic High School, Katsuto had witnessed the 'Blanche' incident firsthand, taken command on the front lines to restore order on campus, spearheaded the raid on their base, and personally apprehended Tsukasa Hajime, the leader of Blanche's Japan branch. During the Hakone terrorist incident, he had no particular turn to act thanks to the 'Shinkai'; though ordered to capture the terrorists as the person in charge, he was saved by Gozou Kamiizumi just as the terrorists were on the verge of being killed by 'STARS'. Without giving voice to his experiences regarding anti-magic movements, Katsuto questioned Tomokazu.
"I fear that bomb attacks surpassing the Hakone terrorist incident, or even kidnappings and murders targeting infants and children who cannot yet use magic, could occur." "You believe atrocious crimes involving non-magicians will occur in succession?" "Precisely. To prevent that from happening, what should we do?"
Truth be told, the practical measures taken against anti-magic sentiment had mostly involved the two Guardian families rather than the Ten Master Clans. To be even more specific, the current head of the Kagurazaka family—Katsuto's junior—had utilized his vast assets to launch a public tender offer for media-related shares, effectively suppressing the 'power of the pen' held by journalists through sheer financial strength. Now that nearly half of the country's media had undergone a virtual "purge," the remaining half harbored constant anxiety over meeting the same fate. After all, intelligent journalists would instantly understand the weight of possessing the capability to buy out prominent foreign media outlets in lump-sum cash. Not only in finances, but his remarkable skill in magic was also well recognized, yet his achievements had not been made entirely public even at the Master Clans Conference. Judging from Tomokazu's question, Katsuto assumed it was reasonable to think he had been told nothing by his father. Keeping that in mind, Katsuto voiced an honest opinion.
"Nothing comes to mind immediately. No, even if I took time to ponder it alone, I do not believe I could devise an effective plan." "Truthfully, I do not know either. It is too heavy a problem for one person to tackle, and to begin with, a single family could not execute it alone." "...Indeed, acting alone, one certainly could not oppose the current anti-magic movement."
Seeing Katsuto agree, a look of relief washed over Tomokazu's face. While Katsuto was caught off-guard by such an honest surrender from someone whose character he knew, he mentally wanted to refute Tomokazu's words, though he swallowed it back. After all, even if not strictly alone, the ones who had directly confronted the anti-magic movement head-on were the Kagurazaka and Kamiizumi families. When it came to possessing the strength to involve multiple sectors and suppress anti-magic movements, no others existed at present. And to Katsuto's ears, Tomokazu's consultation sounded as though he were attempting to counter those two families.
"I believe this issue requires gathering the wisdom and unifying the will of not just the Ten Master Clans, but many more magicians." "By many magicians, do you mean this should be submitted to the General Meeting of the Japan Magic Association?" "No, even if we gathered a large number of people suddenly, I doubt we would reach a conclusion beyond generalities. Furthermore, even if family heads gathered, I do not think fruitful discussion could occur while everyone is busy probing each other's motives." "However, if representatives from each family do not attend, it would degenerate into a mere exchange of opinions. Even if something were decided, the likelihood of it remaining a mere idea is extremely high."
Even if they gathered opinions from many magicians, implementing the final compiled ideas would eventually require consulting the Master Clans Conference or the General Meeting of the Japan Magic Association. Having experienced exchanges in the Master Clans Conference acting on his father's behalf, Katsuto recognized that Tomokazu's argument carried a certain persuasion. Responding to Katsuto's counterargument, Tomokazu nodded vigorously, as if to say "you took the words right out of my mouth."
"That is precisely why, rather than the current heads or those of their generation, we should gather the younger generation—those already designated as the next heads. We could start with the Twenty-Eight Families, then expand to the Numbers and the Hundred Families." "In that case, as someone who is already a family head, I would not qualify to participate." "No, Juumonji-san, you are young, so if the purpose is gathering the younger generation..."
Since assuming the position of family head, Katsuto felt a shift in his thought process. Rather than what was optimal or best, he prioritized feasibility above all else. In short, it came down to a decrease in flexibility, but clinging to idealism ran a high risk of confusing matters further. In that case, Katsuto reasoned that gathering next-generation heads or direct line descendants—who, despite being forced to consider feasibility, were not as bound as current heads—to pool their wisdom might yield constructive proposals for the Master Clans Conference. However, when Katsuto pointed out the ambiguity of the definition, Tomokazu naturally flustered. As a result of their discussion, they settled on defining the younger generation as those under 30 years old. Normally things would end there, but Katsuto brought up figures who had not been mentioned up to this point.
"By the way, Saegusa-san. I have one question." "What is it?" "You mentioned the 'Twenty-Eight Families' earlier, but why are the heads of the Kagurazaka and Kamiizumi families—current members of the Master Clans Conference—not included?" "That is... because the current heads of those two families are blood relatives of the Mitsuya family..."
Indeed—he spoke of Yugen Kagurazaka, who served as Chairman of the Master Clans Conference, and Mototsugu Kamiizumi, who served as Vice Chairman. Yugen was currently 17, and Mototsugu was 24; if the goal was gathering the younger generation, both fell under that category. Tomokazu's reasoning held weight, but the fact that they were blood relatives of the Mitsuya family was not hidden, and both had already been removed from the Mitsuya family registry. Having them present would even carry the advantage of making proposals easier to pass when presenting consolidated opinions to the Master Clans Conference. The fact that Tomokazu had not chosen this path led Katsuto to believe this proposal had not originated from Tomokazu alone.
In the end, bowing to Katsuto's pressure, Tomokazu agreed to include the heads of the Kagurazaka and Kamiizumi families as targets for participation, while explicitly stating he would handle contacting the two families himself, leading Katsuto to accept the proposal.
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