Chen Xiangshan strode through the Magic Association branch's corridor, climbing stairs on foot, unnoticed. His subordinate, Ryu Gouko, served as a decoy, but Chen's stealth stemmed from Kimon Tonko. Beyond divining auspicious directions, this spell manipulated perception, twisting awareness to guide attention away. Using this mental interference, Chen bypassed defenses, unlocking the branch with an electronic Kinzan to infiltrate.
A chilling aura halted him.
"Kimon Tonko? Enlightening," Miyuki said.
"Shiba Miyuki…" Chen muttered.
"You know me, so you're the one stalking Onii-sama," Miyuki replied, her voice tinged with relief.
"Why are you here? My spell failed?" Chen asked.
"I was warned to mind directions," Miyuki said. "It didn't make sense, but I figured watching all 360 degrees might work."
Absurd, yet her vigilance broke his spell.
"We had a mage who sees the unseen," Miyuki continued. "Your hidden presence was spotted. If you're the voyeur, your absence will bring us peace."
Her radiant smile signaled Chen's fate.
"Rest for a while," she said. "I've improved, so you'll wake eventually."
Her words plunged Chen's consciousness into darkness.
Tatsuya and Yanagi's efforts led the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion to sight the enemy's disguised landing ship. The enemy's forces—twenty armored vehicles, sixty upright tanks, eight hundred fighters, including many mages—were decimated: no vehicles remained, and seventy percent of soldiers were lost. Pursuing the routed foe, forty fliers led the charge. Yanagi wouldn't let the ship escape.
"Ignore stragglers—rear units will handle them. Attack the ship, disable its navigation!" Yanagi ordered.
Using Mobile Suits' aerial agility, they could leap over remnants and seize the ship internally, but Yanagi preferred efficiency. Soldiers with directional vaporizing missile launchers, guarded by those with penetration-enhanced rifles, formed ranks.
As they prepared to launch, a voice interrupted.
"Captain Yanagi, hold off direct attacks," Kyoko said.
"Fujibayashi, explain," Yanagi demanded.
"The ship uses hydrazine fuel cells. Damaging it in Tokyo Bay would devastate marine life."
"Then what?"
"Stand down, Yanagi," Kazama's voice cut in.
"Major?" Yanagi questioned, not the speaker but the order.
"No mistake. The operation isn't over. Leave mop-up to Tsurumi and Fujisawa units. Return to base."
"Understood," Yanagi replied, ordering his team back.
At Bay Hills Tower's rooftop, Kazama, delegating command to Yanagi, stood with Sanada, Kyoko, and Tatsuya. It was 6:00 PM—twilight, the hour of demons.
"The enemy ship's heading south through Sagami Bay at thirty knots, between Boso Peninsula and Oshima. Sinking it is safe," Kyoko reported, checking a portable monitor.
Kazama nodded, turning to Sanada. "Unseal Third Eye."
"Yes, sir," Sanada said, grinning as he unlocked a large case brought from Kasumigaura base. Secured by card key, vein scan, and voice authentication—a flourish of Sanada's—Third Eye, a rifle-shaped CAD, emerged. Sanada handed it to Tatsuya, still in his Mobile Suit and helmet.
"Special Lieutenant Ooguro, sink the enemy ship with Material Burst," Kazama ordered.
"Understood."
"Link established with stratospheric surveillance," Sanada said.
"Material Burst activated," Tatsuya murmured, pulling the trigger.
Aboard the Great Asian Alliance's disguised ship, relief permeated. Tracked by stratospheric platforms, they believed attacks were over.
"Mark my words, we'll repay this humiliation twofold," an officer swore.
As they neared Oshima's east, an alarm blared. A searing orb appeared on deck, heating air into a shockwave, melting metal into vapor, igniting hydrazine and all combustibles. The ship became a colossal fireball.
Material Burst, the ultimate decomposition magic, converted mass to energy, observed via stratospheric cameras from Bay Hills Tower.
"Explosion confirmed at the ship's coordinates," Sanada reported. "Water vapor explosion obscures details, but sinking is presumed."
"Sunk," Kazama confirmed. "Tsunami risk?"
"None," Kyoko assured.
"Eighty kilometers, targeting a fifty-cubic-millimeter droplet with precision," Sanada boasted. "Third Eye performed flawlessly."
Kazama nodded silently to Sanada, then to Tatsuya. "Well done."
"Sir," Tatsuya saluted.
Kazama declared the operation complete.
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