3 days of sleeplessness + over 10 cups of coffee + a bit of free time = this

(Found out that I can write a lot more while being high on caffeine, who knew?)

(Wrote this chapter when I am in a caffeine high and have barely gotten 2-3 hours of sleep in the last 3 days, forgive me for grammatical errors)

(Thanks for making this story one of the top 15 stories of Mahouka, and-Holy Shit, over a 30k views, never expected it to grow this much when I first started it due to the small size of it's fans)

(Found an awesome trailer for this anime, go on youtube and search Mahouka AMV-Blood and Stone)

(Also, I seriously need a beta for all my stories. PM me if Interested)

(Slow updates till next August as I have got to go out of station and may not get net access, so am writing a chapter for each of my stories and will get them out by mid October)

Answer To Reviews:-

TsukiBleu:- That conflict is the whole story, the whole plot of current arc is based upon the conflict in the magic society due to Yotsuba's power.

AshKetchumXSerenaYvonne:- The OOCness of characters is always certified in any AU, but you have to keep in mind the fact that Tatsuya's family feared him, directing most of their actions towards him. But in this story, his family didn't fear him, they just looked down on him due to his inability to cast magic, which changed after the meeting. So them being OOC is justified.

Chimera629:- That was the point of saying that they found Miya's 'eggs' and not 'egg'. As stated before, this time Tatsuya's decomposition has not been revealed making his treatment by the rest of the family a bit better, all will be told in the flashback chapters. The shadow clan part will be resolved in a few chapters.

Guest who sent a review on September 8 (the review before Chimera629):- Thanks for the review. Will try to improve my writing but may need a beta for that. Will decide that after the reviews for this chapter comes in. Thanks for the advice. And about the multiple pairings part, I started writing down all the pairings in any story I write due to the people who always keep on repeating the pairing requests in the reviews section (like the review just before yours). It is just to show them all the pairings there are in the story so that it can give way to the more useful reviews (like yours in this case). I focus on most of these pairings only during different arcs of the story (example:- Yakumo Kokonoe/Sakura Honami will be during flashback arc, Ushiyama/Haruka will be during the ESCAPEES arc, etc.), and even then only because of the fact that it can help advance story more easily and I can move the plot a bit faster(You will understand how when you read it in a few chapters).

Blakegriffin89:- I only need one word to start the multiple pairings part: Politics. The Yotsuba have become too powerful. They have completely eclipsed the 10 MC. Others would now try to weaken them by using magicians to take away members of the clan. If that becomes impossible, then they would try to exert some form of control over them. And what better way to control someone who loves his family, than becoming their family.

GunBlade2018:- You should really read the light novels, the attention to even the smallest scientific details (even though I can't understand a word of it on my first read, and have to read it over and over again to be able to understand what the author basically meant and wanted to imply). And then it's also addicting as hell. Read one and brain automatically says 'let's read one more', after that, 'what harm can another cause' and so on.

TatsuyaShiva4:- Sorry that you felt that way. I know that my story feels a bit rushed, but I was never able to concentrate a lot on details. Guess it's just my style of writing. And no important events are going to take place till 9SC arc in my AU anyway. I am only going to add enough chapters so that the character development seems plausible, as well as to show the plans being made against the Yotsuba to either weaken them or to have enough influence to be able to manipulate them from the inside (Oops, that line can tell a lot about what is going to happen in future chapters).

fencer29:- While the Maya at this point will seem only a bit like her canon self, it is only because of Tatsuya. In the canon, she had become completely insane because of what happened to her and having no one to help her out of her insanity (she pushed Miya away after accusing her of killing her), but over here, Tatsuya keeps her holding onto that last thread of sanity she has, and her relationship with Miya improved after she agreed to give birth to her son. In time she will become a lot OOC. As for believing what she said, that's why I included that last line of the chapter. And if anyone still doesn't believe her, what would be the most likely thing they would do?

V. Imp. Note:-The pairings which I mention are the ones which are going to be in the overall story, doesn't necessarily mean that I would focus on them. I write them down so that there is no confusion further down the line and people don't keep on sending me pairing requests. I will focus on all these pairings to get them going, but I may not focus on their developments a lot. I would pay more attention to the main pairings (the ones with no brackets next to it saying 'I won't focus on it a lot').

Pairings:

Yotsuba Tatsuya/Shiba Miyuki/Saegusa Mayumi/Mitsui Honoka/Kuroba Ayako/Fujibayashi Kyouko/Angelina Kodou Shields Sirius/Kitayama Shizuku/Tsukuba Yuuka(Removed Asuza)

Kuroba Fumiya/Saegusa Izumi (Will start in this chapter)

Saijou Leonhard/Chiba Erika (will focus on it during the 9SC)

Yoshida Mikihiko/Shibata Mizuki (will focus on it around the 9SC)

Chiba Naotsugu/Watanabe Mari (won't be focusing a lot on this pairing as canon has pretty much solidified it till now)

Jumonji Katsuto/Ichihara Suzune (around the announcement of project Dione, won't focus on it a lot)

Ushiyama(Mr. Taurus)/Ono Haruka(won't be focusing a lot on this pairing before the ESCAPEES arc)

Kudou Minoru/Sakura Minami

Ichijou Masaki/Isshiki Airi (will start a bit before 9SC arc, will focus on it only during that time)

Kichijouji Shinkurou (Cardinal George)/Ichijou Akane (LOLICON, will start a bit before 9SC, won't focus on it a lot and I would be a slow going one due to Akane's age)

Shippou Takuma/Saegusa Kasumi (9SC, won't focus on it a lot)

Kokonoe Yakumo/Sakura Honami(Changed Yakumo's history a bit, would be more like flashback type as Honami is dead and Yakumo is a priest, focus will only be on when their POV is on)

Reactions, Crush and Attack

1 February, 2097

Today was the day when it was announced that the 10 MC conference was going to be aired live for all magicians in Japan to know how they worked to keep the public safety. Every person was trying to get one of the tickets so that they won't have to sit towards the end of the halls where the conference would be aired.

One Angelina Shields Sirius and her partner, Benjamin Canopus had gotten instructions to attend it as it may be the location being targeted by Gu Jie, as well as help in gathering information on the inner workings of the 10 MC. USNA may know how they work from the end results of such meets, but to know it on a firsthand basis was always better. A special screening had been arranged for them for the same purpose.

Unfortunately, since it was declared at the start of the first school period, all the tickets were sold out. It was a real breather for the Magic high and university students that they had gotten free seats. But one Tatsuya Shiba had other plans in mind for his friends.

We find Tatsuya and his entourage in the Student Council room during the recess, having been invited by Miyuki to join them for lunch, discussing this new development.

"But there has to be some ulterior motive for them to do this, right?" Asked a curious Chiba Erika in one of her rare thinking poses.

"They are doing this for two reasons Erika. First is to show all Japanese magicians the inner workings of the 10 MC so that our trust in them would increase. And the second is to show the Humanists a united front, to show them that the 10 MC is behind every single one of its magician. That they would protect every single one of its magician." Replied Tatsuya in his usual toneless voice and his poker-face on.

"Ah. So it's like that huh...Then we should meet up early so that we can get nice seats towards the front. Won't do to sit towards the back and miss most of the excitement right?" Asked Erika showing first her understanding and then the excitement she was so famous for.

"There's no need for that Erika. Onii-sama's mother sent has sent us passes so that we and our friends can sit in the VIP box." Miyuki told them all. What she didn't tell them was that the VIP box was only accessible to members of the 10 MC.

"Wait, what do you mean by Tatsuya-san's mother? Won't she be your mother too Miyuki?" asked a confused Mizuki.

Miyuki exchanged a look with Tatsuya before answering her question.

"I guess we hadn't told you, had we? Onii-sama is my adopted brother. The powers that he possessed were deemed too destructive and therefore my mother's special MI magic was used to seal his MCA. For this he needed to stay close to her, so we ended up adopting him. After Okaa-sama's death, that responsibility became mine due to my special MI magic, Cocytus. What you had seen me do in Yokohama was removing some of those seals temporarily."

"So you are adopted siblings huh? It would mean that Miyuki still has a chance with Tatsuya-san. Your competition just got tougher Honoka, now that Miyuki-san can actually get together with him. You must redouble your efforts if you want to be together with him" Said Shizuku to an increasingly red-faced Honoka. Shizuku didn't know why but the ache in her heart which came every time she talked about Tatsuya with another girl just kept on increasing in the past year. She knew what it was about, but she couldn't voice it out even in her thoughts. Both of her best friends and rivals were in love with one person, she won't get in their way. She had buried her own emotions deep under just so that her only true friends could be happy. She wouldn't dig them out if it meant hurting Miyuki and Honoka.

"It's nice that you are not actual siblings. It would have been weird if siblings acted that way." Said Leo looking strangely relieved.

Miyuki thought about what he meant and her mind eventually went back to all her interactions with her now fiancee. It was only then that she realized just how obvious she used to be. It was too much for her and she turned as red as Erika's hair. Tatsuya picked it up from here to save her any further embarrassment.

"So I wanted to ask you all if you wanted to come with me. Okaa-sama has sent enough tickets for all of us."

In the end, Erika, Leo, Mikihiko, Shizuku, Honoka and Mizuki agreed to come. Izumi, Kasumi, and Asuza had already agreed to go with Mayumi and the others.

February 4, 2097

Tatsuya and group had to meet up at the broadcasting center near the hotel in Hakone where the conference would be taking place. Nobody knew that the conference was being held in the hotel just two blocks away from them. All they knew was that it was taking place nearby. Only the members of the 10MC were aware of the actual meeting place. As such, it was Tatsuya who led them over to the hotel, where there were special rooms available for the members of the MC and their guests to watch the conference.

Reaching the doors of the hotel lobby, they were stopped by a few guards. Because the conference was being aired now, therefore additional security needed to be provided. The VIP seats were located inside the hotel for that very purpose.

"Halt. Show your identification and Invitation." Called the guard who stopped them in a professional tone.

In response, Tatsuya put a hand inside his blazer, making the guard tense, but only pulled out an envelope along with his ID card. Handing them over he waited for the usual reaction that followed after seeing his family name, and he wasn't disappointed.

The guard's eyes widened and hands started trembling. It got so bad that the invitation and ID fell out of his hands. The invitation was written in English, and his friends were able to catch the first few words before Tatsuya snatched it up again. It read 'The 10 MC cordially invites Tatsuya Y-', that was all they were able to read before it was taken back by Tatsuya. They thought that it must be Tatsuya's birth name, but didn't comment on it.

They continued on to the room assigned to the VIP visitors. Before they could enter, Tatsuya had something to tell them all.

"You are going to have a lot of questions today, but please control yourselves. All will be answered in due time."

Before they could ask anything, he opened the door.

Inside was a small hall which had been converted into a theater for the duration of the two days of the conference. Every person inside turned to see the new people.

"Hey, what are you doing here? This place is for the members of the 10 MC and their guests only." Said a member of the Itsuwa Clan. They were one of the weakest in the 10 MC, only retaining their position as they had Japan's only registered Strategic Class Magician, so they were used to making others look inferior so that they could feel better.

"They are with us." Shouted out Saegusa Mayumi and Ichijou Masaki together but for different reasons. Mari was still searching for ways to break what Tatsuya told her to Mayumi so that it won't hurt her feelings. Therefore Mayumi still wanted to try and get together with him. As for Masaki, he wanted to be with Miyuki, as simple as that. In both their excitements, they forgot that only a member of the member clans was allowed to enter over here.

Tatsuya ignored them all in favor of walking towards the Kuroba twins who were quietly standing in a corner, waving at them to come over. It was an open secret that the Kuroba family was a member of the Yotsuba, so nobody stopped them when they came in.

"Good Morning Tatsuya-nii-sama" "How are you Tatsuya-nii-san?" greeted Fumiya and Ayako at the same time in a cheery voice while looking up at Tatsuya like he was their idol.

Hearing this effectively shut up every person from the room. Tatsuya's group suddenly knew what the 'Y' in his name meant.

"I am so happy, Toushu-sama finally accepted you back into the Clan. You can finally use your magic freely nii-sama." Said Fumiya, looking like he may blow up from the happiness he felt now that his nii-sama was going to be recognized by the world as the god he is, not like a second-rate magician which they saw him like right now.

"Ayako, Fumiya, meet my friends Honoka, Shizuku, Mikihiko, Mizuki, Leo, Erika, and Izumi, and Kasumi, the Saegusa Twins. You may already know Saegusa Mayumi-senpai" Tatsuya said while pointing to his friends who had all followed him all the way to the seats reserved for them. Even Masaki, George, Mayumi and her guests had followed.

"Shiba, Shiba-san, you are members of the Yotsuba?" Asked a shocked Masaki. He couldn't think his 'perfect' Miyuki doing the jobs generally given to the Yotsuba, namely, assassination and the like.

"I am a member of the Yotsuba, not Miyuki, Masaki." Masaki thought that the lack of an honorific was disrespectful, but let it drop seeing that he himself never used one with him.

"Tatsuya-nii-san and Miyuki-nee-sama are adopted siblings Ichijou-san." The one who answered the question in every person's mind (except for students of First Magic High School, even Mayumi was told that they were not real siblings by Izumi and Kasumi) was answered by Ayako.

"Is it just me or do you too think that all of Tatsuya's sisters are attracted to him? First Miyuki, and now Ayako. Is the Yotsuba into incest or something?" Asked a deceptively innocent looking Erika, but no one could deny the mischievous glint in her eyes.

"I-It's not like that Chiba-san" screamed a red-faced Ayako.

Tatsuya chuckled a bit at this. Still smiling a bit, he spoke up, "You shouldn't take her words seriously, Ayako. She's just teasing you."

Ayako looked up from the hands which she was using to cover her face, only to turn an even darker shade of red and cover her face once again. Tatsuya, who had never stopped smiling, turned around to see that the other girls of the small group were all blushing. Realizing what the problem was, he quickly set his poker-face back on, but the damage was already done.

"Now I understand why you always keep that poker-face. If you didn't, then you would have to be arrested for the mass murder of the girls of the nation via nosebleeds." Said Erika who was doing a very ice imitation of a tomato, what with her red hair and red face combo.

"So it's not their fault that they came to have a crush on Tatsuya-kun" Said Mayumi with a teasing smile. A smile seeing which everyone in the vicinity understood that he was going to be a part of Mayumi's next target.

Fortunately, any further discussion had to be stopped as the conference was about to start.

Mayumi's POV

My name is Saegusa Mayumi; I am a daughter of the Saegusa Clan, one of the Ten Masters Clan. I am the former Student Council President of First High School, and I am one-third of the strongest era of said school.

I also happen to be a woman in love.

Who is the man that I love?

His name is Shiba Tatsuya.

Or Yotsuba Tatsuya, as he explained just now.

I have a duty towards my clan to increase our power and influence. For this purpose, my father, Saegusa Koichi, has been forcing me to go on dates with people who I barely know, people who never looked at me, just my body. There were exceptions, of course. The best example would be Jumonji Katsuto. The perfect example of a gentleman, always focusing on my face, getting to know the real me. But I never saw him that way, he was always the nice older brother to me. And then I met him.

It first started as just curiosity. A person who got an average of 96% in the entrance examinations, where students normally got 70%, not even Asuza or Suzune could do that.

Then when I first met him. I was searching throughout the school for this mysterious Shiba Tatsuya, a person whose entire background was classified. I knew that it was a fool's errand but I couldn't resist the temptation. When I found him sitting on the bench, I couldn't understand why he was a course two student. The power that clung so tightly to him, the tight reign he had kept on his psions, it was the sign of an experienced magician. Throughout their conversation, he managed to keep his poker-face. That was new. Even Suzune couldn't do that. That made me interested in him, and I made a mental note to keep an eye to him. And I did just that.

I got to know a lot about him even as he was walking away. The way he carried himself, was one of a war veteran. His almost emotionless voice, his dead eyes, all told me that he had killed more people than I may have ever met in my life. All these told me that he was a combat oriented magician, someone I should be cautious of, but the temptation was too big to resist. I wanted to solve the mystery that was Shiba Tatsuya.

And to test it out, I may have to challenge him to a duel. Or maybe I could get my Vice-President to do it. So I formulated a plan.

The next day, things were about to get out of control. That freshman was going to destroy my plan if everybody knew about his powers, so, I intervened. And I am glad I did. Seeing him standing up to Mari for the sake of his friends and people he didn't even know, It just increased my curiosity.

The day after that, after Suzune's explanation on how he defeated Hattori in less than 5 seconds, it was only then that I got the proof I so desperately needed to change the course two system. They were not being measured correctly!

My curiosity only kept on rising as I saw him in the 9SC. Every participant he helped, either by adjusting their CAD, making battle plans for them or by creating their training regime, won by an overwhelming margin. They utterly destroyed their competition. And then came his Monolith Code. He and the team he hand-picked kept on winning matches against the very best the other schools had to offer. And he only used the very basic spells. Spells so simple that I could have used them when I was only 7. And using these spells and Gram Demolition, he defeated the Crimson Prince, Ichijou Masaki. It wasn't until the Yokohama incident that I knew why he had to keep his abilities hidden.

And I had to say, I was impressed.

I wasn't able to get him out of my mind after that. No matter what I did, whom I met, I would always keep on thinking, 'How would he have done this' or 'He has better looks'. It got to the point where Kasumi heard me when I accidentally spoke it out loud and then began to think that the person must be a jerk to not have already asked her nee-chan out already. That was the reason why she attacked Tatsuya on her first day in high school.

Even in university, I couldn't stop myself from thinking about him. I had to eventually take the help of her senpai, the person who had groomed me to be her successor just like I had Miyuki, so I went to one Tsukuba Yuuka (AN:Yup, Yuuka's only 4 years older than Tatsuya in this, and she used to be the student council president). She was the one who told me that I was in love. Then I wanted to do anything possible to stay with him, but I knew it would be difficult. I thought that he was an extra with the number '4' in his name, therefore my father would protest any relationship with him, but I thought that I could convince him in the end by telling about his abilities.

But to know that he was a member of Yotsuba, I knew that Otou-sama would do anything in his power to weaken the Yotsuba and hearing about his abilities made me smile a bit. 'He would be begging me to marry him now' I thought.

But to know that he was the son of Yotsuba Maya, the heir to the Yotsuba and engaged to Miyuki, all these facts broke my heart. There was no way now that he was going to marry me off to him. It would increase their power. The Yotsuba had already eclipsed the 10 MC completely, he wouldn't risk handing them more power

'I won't be able to be with him' I kept on thinking while a few tears left my eyes. I could feel my sister's hands on my back, trying to calm me down, but there was no way I could calm down now. How do they expect me to calm down when the person I love is no longer in my reach. I got up and went to the washroom to hide my tears from the others sitting there.

I never saw Izumi following me.

Honoka's POV

My name is Mitsui Honoka, I am a Light Element magician.

Elements were some of the first magicians to be created in labs. There were 5 types of elements. Light, Earth, Fire, Water, and Lightning. We were deemed too powerful and so our genes were modified so that each one of us would become dependent on someone and won't be able to live without them.

I am an element who has become dependent on someone.

That someone is Yotsuba Tatsuya.

But I know that I may never be able to get him.

I am normal person, or as normal a magician today could be.

I am not that beautiful and my figure is average at best.

The only thing noteworthy about me is my magical abilities and talents.

For as long as I could remember, only my best friend, Shizuku, was able to match me when it comes to anything related to magic.

Shizuku and I were close friends and rivals since elementary school. Until middle school, I saw Shizuku as my best friend and strongest opponent and vice-versa, I think.

Even in our cohort and circle of friends, no one could match us in terms of magical talent.

Upon entering high school and receiving official magic training, both Shizuku and I yearned to meet someone other than each other who could push us to our limits. Yet, somewhere in the depths of our hearts, there was a stubborn belief that could not be eradicated told that told us that we would never meet someone who mirrored our talents.

After all, nobody could touch us during our elementary and middle school days, what are the odds that it would change during our high school days.

In the same school, in the same tutoring class, there were no children from the Ten Master Clans, but several children from the "Numbers System". Still, none of them were worthy of being a new rival.

However, upon entering the high school entrance examination, our conceit was thoroughly annihilated.

By the divinely crafted young lady that goes by the name Shiba Miyuki.

Shiba Miyuki, that girl is made by the Gods themselves. She is the most perfect being that I ever laid my eyes upon.

Beauty that could shame Goddesses.

Body crafted from the finest marble.

And magic that would make jealousy itself look ridiculous.

Shiba Miyuki possesses all of those.

And the way she carries herself is something to be admired.

Miyuki, regardless of how magnificent she is, she is still humble and tries her best to further herself. She is a graceful woman with manners and etiquette befitting that of a noble. In fact, I would go so far as to say that Shiba Miyuki is the epitome of an aristocrat. She's a genteel woman.

The way she moves, the way she looks, the clothing that she wears and how she wears it, the way she looks at her surroundings, the expression on her face as she interacts with those around her, everything she does just screams elegance and grace.

Because of her openness, innocence and modesty, coupled with her lovely, beautiful appearance makes her popular not just among male freshmen students of their school, but also among females and upperclassmen.

Her aura is calm, peaceful, and soothing yet there is always power in her aura that made others hesitates to even be near her.

And need I mention that she looks like a fictional Goddess.

Shiba Miyuki is in a league of her own.

And I could not help but admire her because of her flawlessness.

But she was not the one who caught my eye. No, it was her brother, Shiba Tatsuya.

I was in their batch during the entrance exams and saw him casting magic. Being a Light Element, I was able to see the amount of wasted psions in a person's spell due to their interactions with photons. But his magic had not a single drop of wasted psions present in them. To have such godly control over one's magic, to be able to calculate it down to its very last detail, that was what made me interested in him.

Then after the second day at High School, when he defended me from the head of the public morals committee, I felt something inside her. I would describe it as a weird feeling in my heart. I didn't know why but I wanted to stay close to this person, as if staying close to him would solve all my problems.

When asking a question while heading towards the station, I referred to him as Tatsuya-kun. I don't know why I did that but it just felt natural, and I liked the way his name rolled off my lips, so I started calling him that.

As I was integrated into his group of friends, slowly but surely I began falling for him. He was extremely handsome, but hid it behind his poker-face. That was definitely a plus for me.

Then when I saw him working on CAD's during the 9SC, when I saw him fight in the Monolith code, I knew that I had fallen in love with him. And therefore, I told him my feelings during the vacations. But he crushed my heart by telling me that he can't feel any 'besides oneself' emotions. I could see the pain he felt over not having emotions in his eyes. So I decided to find a cure for him, to give him back his emotions. It was the only thing I could give him anyway.

Hearing that he was a member of the Yotsuba, the son of Yotsuba Maya no less, had no effect on me. Even the godly nature of his magic didn't phase me in the slightest. It didn't matter who's son he was, I loved him and that was a fact.

But when it was said that he was engaged to Shiba Miyuki, it broke my heart into a million pieces. I had been going on for the last year and a half on the dream that I could be together with Tatsuya one day. As that dream shattered, so did I.

I was unable to keep the control over myself that Mayumi had and openly started crying. Shizuku had to help me out of my chair and took me somewhere. I didn't know where she took me, I was too busy crying to notice. My entire world had shattered right before my eyes. I had become dependent on Tatsuya, but couldn't be together with him. I did not want to live anymore.

Shizuku's POV (This was a pain in the ass to write, she really doesn't show any emotions, so writing how she would think becomes difficult)

I go by the name of Kitayama Shizuku.

For those who know me, I am just Shizuku, their aloof friend that has a somewhat permanent poker-face, but to those who don't know me, they will merely recognize me because of the name Kitayama.

The Kitayama was not affiliated with the Ten Master Clans. The only reason why people will recognize that name is because my family owns many businesses throughout the country.

According to the stock market, my family controls at least twenty percent of Japan's economy.

In other words, I'm rich, rich enough to not work a day of my life and still have enough money to buy anything I desire.

My father tends to over spoil me, to spoil me rotten. He has no problem wasting money just to make me happy.

My father loves his family a lot. He buys a lot of lavish gifts for me, my brother and my mother. No matter how busy he is, he always finds time to spend with us. He is the best father anyone could wish for, except for his tendency to waste money for leisure and material things.

Even Honoka can get irritated sometimes by his casual use of money.

Mitsui Honoka, one of my only 'true' friends. You see, being rich has a huge disadvantage, you don't have many real friends. Most people just want to become your friends so that they could get a hand into your riches. Honoka was one of those few who always refused to take treats from her, always paying her share herself, even though she was an orphan and only had her monthly installments which came from the governments to fall back on. We had initially met became friends as she was the only one who could match me in magical prowess, which is a testament to her magical abilities as I had been trained by some of the best tutors of Japan from a young age, while she had done absolutely no studies in the magical topics till her junior high school. Still, even after having a lot of tutors teaching me, Honoka and I are still equal when it comes to magic. That alone speaks volume of how much talent Honoka has in magic, as well as my hard work in trying to make both my father and mother proud.

I love my parents and I admired them greatly.

You see, in today's society, marriage between a magician and non-magician is frowned upon. Female Magicians are encouraged, to the point that it is almost mandatory, to bear children that are capable of wielding magic to increase the power and prestige of the country. With that said, the society today strongly urges magicians to marry other magicians to guarantee the birth of a magic capable child. A marriage between a magician and non-magician is almost heresy because the child that would be produced in the union will have a fifty-fifty chance of being a magician. The example of that are me and my brother. I'm a magician while my brother is not.

Regardless of knowing that fact and how their peers will look at them, they still fought tenaciously for their relationship, and I could not help but admire and applaud them for it.

That is the reason why I must be a great magician. I cannot fail so that those who frowned upon the union of my father and mother would shut up.

That is why I work hard so that I could keep up with magicians that have two magically attuned parents.

And as my days in junior high pass by, my hard work pays off as only Honoka can rival me in terms of magical prowess. In our school, and even in our circle of acquaintances, nobody is a match against us that it became boring.

Oh well, at least Honoka would still push me to my limits.

That thought followed me all the way to high school, the place where Honoka and I will receive proper magic training. I thought to myself, I was assured that either Honoka or I would top the entrance exam considering how skilled we were in magic.

That thought was crushed by a boulder the size of Japan. A boulder which was in the form of one Shiba Miyuki. The difference between the practical scores of her and the person in second place, me, was so big that it should have been impossible. But Honoka had become interested in another individual, Miyuki's brother, Shiba Tatsuya. The things she said about his magic should have been impossible too, I had thought. But it seemed that the Shiba siblings existed to defy reality, that was the general consensus of everyone in our small group.

It wasn't until the 9SC that I started talking to him more than necessary, and I immediately recognized what Honoka and Miyuki saw in him. The way he could understand and break down complex things and explain them in a way which was easy to understand for anyone, it showed his high intelligence. His CAD engineering skills, to be able to compress complex spells into smallest possible activation sequences showed his unreal IQ. And the way he used his magic. I had requested my father to record his match using a special film which can capture the photons reacting to psions due to the special energy they release. Watching him use magic was like watching a artist painting a masterpiece. The way he manipulates his psion, the way he invoked his magic, the way he cast his spells, they can't be explained in human terms.

But that is not all; watching him fight is like watching a meteor shower on a dark night after seeing the sunset on the beach.

The way he fights is nothing short of magnificent.

The way he fights is like watching a dance and a game of chess at the same time. He analyzed his opponents, their strength and their weaknesses, and then takes them down, as quick, as effortless, and as clean as possible. The way he moves his body when he moves was something beyond a human being, it still baffled me how a person could move that quick with just pure physical ability, with no aide from magic.

But that one thing that truly left me numb and stunned in awe was the way he used his spells against his enemies. With just basic spells, spells so basic that even a novice can perform them, he was able to best every rival thrown at him with minimal effort, and one of those rivals was the heir of Ichijou family, a direct descendant of the Ten Master Clans. He wielded such basic spells to such degree that he was able to turn those mundane and weak spells into something to be reckoned with.

I then had the chance of getting to dance with this enigma multiple times during the after party. It was then that I realized that I had developed feelings for Tatsuya-san.

I thought of it to be some childish crush, something that would go away with time, so I buried my emotions to be able to help Honoka to get Tatsuya, willing the pain in my chest to go away the entire while.

It never did. And as I continue my friendship with Tatsuya-san, I could not help but be attracted to him even more.

There was something about him that attracted me to him, something which was in plain sight but I couldn't place it.

My question was answered a few months later when I saw Miyuki release his true power.

A violent array of photons, enough to sear the eyes, burst from Tatsuya-san's body. These were no photons, but psions wrapped in physical light. Staggeringly active psions coursed around him, spiraling around him like a dazzling display of light.

The huge amount of psion that surge through his body, the power that I felt when Miyuki released her brother's shackles, and the aura that is so close to divine that Tatsuya-san emitted as he walked to the battlefield made me realize why I am so attracted to him.

I am rich; I am used to getting everything I want in a snap of a finger. I might have been aggravated because of this, but I had grown accustomed in having everything I want.

But Tatsuya-san, he is special. I want to have him, but he is unattainable. I don't know the nature of Tatsuya-san's power, but it seems strong enough for him to be a member of the military. And according to Miyuki, the power that he has at his disposal can be considered close to that of a God.

And as far as I know, no mortal can have a God all to herself; regardless of how rich you are or how much money you have in your pocket.

Still, I want to have him. I want to hug him. I want to kiss him. I want to love him. And I want him to love me back. I want to be his lover.

And it scared me. It scared me a lot.

I still consider Honoka as the twin sister I never had and Miyuki as my best friend. I don't want to take Tatsuya away from them.

And therefore, I accepted the foreign exchange program that came from USNA to calm my feelings down a bit.

But even over there, the thoughts of Tatsuya would never leave me alone. So I decided to give it another year for Honoka before I made a move on him. One whole year I would bury my motions even deeper and limit my interactions with him to a minimum.

And now here I am, a month before the end of the school year.

I had thought that his magic was close to that of a god. I was so wrong. The magic he wields can put even gods to shame. He is something else. A transcendent

I had thought that I would be happy when I got to know that one of my friends was now in a relationship. Instead, I feel an intense pain. I almost cry out loud due to it, but managed to hold it in.

I heard sobbing sounds from my side and turned around only to see Honoka crying. Oh, I almost forgot. She was an Element, and she had 'imprinted' on Tatsuya-san. It must be much harder on her than it was for me.

So, thinking that it would do us both good that we were not here if anymore heartbreaking news was delivered, I took hold of her shoulders and guided her towards the washroom.

Angelina's POV (don't know enough about her past to write her history, so it's going to be shorter)

My name is Angelina Kudou Shield Sirius. I am one of the 13 Apostles, the Strategic Class Magicians officially recognized by their governments.

To my friends, I am just Lina.

An year ago I came to Japan to investigate one Shiba Tatsuya in relation to the Scorched Halloween, to see if he was the Strategic Class Magician responsible for this, and also to execute the deserters from STARS.

That was the year that I fell in love with him.

Every single interaction with him made him seem as nothing but an ordinary student. An ordinary student with an extraordinary brain. His brilliance was so high that at one point I considered whether he had traded his MCA for IQ. But that thought was squashed when he defeated me. He defeated me due to the element of surprise, I didn't know that he still had his arm, but I still considered that a loss. That got me interested in him more than ever. I started to go through every file on him, tried to get as much information about him as possible. And as time went on, I found myself falling for him.

That is why I was searching for chances to be able to go back to Japan. To be able to meet him. To talk to him more. To hear how he breaks down even the most complex things down so that others can understand.

And I finally got that chance thanks to Jiedo Heigo. I was planning on taking his help, just to be able to stay close to him, even if his sister would be there too, I didn't mind, as long as I could stay with him. And honestly, his sister too was beautiful beyond belief. I wouldn't mind having a three...No, mind out of the gutter Lina. Mind out of the gutter.

But now I have lost my chance. He is now engaged to his not-sister Shiba Miyuki.

But if something was to go wrong on this mission, if Japan were able to trace the bombs back to USNA, then the relationships would get strained between the two. We would need to show some sort of compromise to strengthen the relations between us. Compromise like an arranged marriage.

An arranged marriage between their Strategic Class Magicians.

Even if he was already engaged with Miyuki, on the basis of his godly powers, the government would force him to spread his genes as much as possible. And so would the other clans in order o get a member inside the Yotsuba, in order to have some form of leverage against them. It wouldn't be for the first time, all the magicians with extreme magical abilities were encouraged to do so. It hadn't happened for the past 40 years or so, but there was a part in the law-books about it.

So, Lina came up with a plan even as she was busy crying her heart out in the arms of her father figure, Benjamin, as he consoled me.

General POV

Erika couldn't believe her ears. She knew that Tatsuya was a part of the Yotsuba, the conversation she had with him during the parasite incidents had confirmed that. But to hear that one of her best friends was the son of Yotsuba Maya, the Demon Lady of Far East, was something she never expected. But that wasn't what surprised her the most, it was Tatsuya's magic. She had been around Mikihiko's family enough to hear them talk about Astral Beasts. It was formed by crystallizing spirit particles (pushions). That in itself was a feat which required several magicians, and even then, it may take somewhere between weeks to months to summon a creature as powerful as an Astral Body depending upon the caliber of the mage. An Astral Beast was thrice as powers as an Astral Body and many times more difficult to create. And Tatsuya was able to summon one when his magic just got out of control. Just what was he?

Meanwhile, Mikihiko and Mizuki were having the same thoughts. Mizuki had started studying ancient magic during the first 9SC so that she could help her friends more with what her eyes could see. On the other hand, Kasumi was feeling ashamed of herself. She had first thought of him as a pervert on her first day in high school and then thought of him as a jerk for not asking her sister out when it was so obvious that she was in love with him. But to think that he couldn't feel any emotions towards her. That must be the reason why he tried to keep his distance from her. He didn't want to hurt her. Didn't want to give her hope only to snatch it away later.

Leo...Well he was Leo.

"Wow, bro your magic is amazing. To think that I was around you for so long but still didn't know" Leo said with a huge smile. Many may think that he didn't understand the seriousness of the situation, but it was the opposite. He could feel the tension in the air and was trying to better everyone's mood. Unfortunately it was too late for Mayumi, Honoka and Shizuku, who had already left, along with Izumi who had gone to see if her sister was fine.

"Where did Izumi, Onee-chan, Honoka-senpai and Shizuku-senpai go? They were here just moments ago." Asked Kasumi in a worried tone. As others began looking around, Fumiya answered them.

"They went outside after the announcement of Miyuki-nee-sama as Tatsuya-nii-sama's fiance. I will go look for them." As he said this, he got up and started moving towards the door.

He already knew that they had gone to the washroom to get some more privacy. Yuuka-nee-san had told them that Mayumi-senpai was in love with Tatsuya-nii-sama, and it was pretty easy to figure out that Honoka was too. And seeing the way that Shizuku was carrying herself, as if she was in intense pain, he was sure that she was too. And that beautiful girl, Izumi was her name, had gone out after Mayumi to see if she was fine.

The entire place was quiet, strangely so.

Almost like the calm before the storm.

Unconsciously, he brought his CAD closer and put his innate magic, 'Direct Pain' to standby.

As he got closer to the ladies washroom, he began hearing the sounds of someone crying, but dismissed as them only being sad about Tatsuya's engagement. It wasn't until he reached the door of the washroom that he heard the sounds of shouting.

Male voices.

Trying to dispel the premonition he was getting, he reached out his hand to open the door. But before he could do so, he heard the sound of running footsteps. Turning around, he almost cast his magic before seeing that it was Tatsuya. His sigh of relief was cut short as he saw the expression on his face.

Within his eyes, making mere rage seem lukewarm, burned an all consuming hellfire.

He raised his right hand, psions dancing on his palm, and cast his innate magic.

The door to the female washroom turned into mere dust on the ground.

In place of the door was a small flame. As the flame burned out, Fumiya gasped.

The sight that greeted him was one that would be etched into his memory forever.

Inside were the guards who were supposed to be at the entrance to the lobby. But that wasn't what shocked him, nor was it that was that they were holding guns. They had Antinite rings on their fingers, and they were pointed at the girls they were searching for.

As the door decomposed, all eyes turned towards him. Even before he could think about what he was doing, Fumiya activated Direct Pain. He kept it at a level where the person would be kept on the edge of consciousness. Not able to escape the pain, but not able to move either.

Their screams were heard throughout the hotel.

Tatsuya's POV

I was worried about the girls. They had all left crying due to him. I felt a sense of duty to make them feel better. To tell them the reason why I had done as I had done, about the most obvious move the 10 MC, the Magic Association and the government was going to take. I couldn't stand to see the people I could feel for being sad. That was the reason I had always played along with Mayumi's teasing. So when Fumiya left to search for them, I activated my elemental eye to see how they were.

What I saw made me angry.

No, angry was too light of a word. I was furious. I hate traitors. The events of Okinawa made sure of that. And when I got to know that the guards who were stationed at the entrance of the hotel were all humanists, and what they were about to do, I couldn't control myself.

Willing a few spectrals into existence, I took off towards the washroom, barely aware of Miyuki following close behind me.

I could feel the eyes on my back as I ran across the room and down the hallway, but I didn't care. The people I love are on danger. That is all that matters.

As I was running, I saw Fumiya reaching for the door of the washroom. I knew that the door had been blocked, so I used Mist Dispersion on the it. There was no time to draw a CAD and change the spell inside it, so I flash-cast it instead.

I saw Fumiya freezing momentarily at the scene before him, but recovering quickly and casting Direct Pain on the guards. I saw them writhing about in pain.

'Good' I thought. Anybody who dares harm my loved ones deserves worse, but this would do for now.

Tatsuya may like the pain they were in, but he would never appreciate their screams. It would alert the others abut what was going on.

And just as he expected, he saw a guard on the floor below going to sound the fire alarm.

'Must be some sort of signal' I thought as I couldn't see any fire in the vicinity. I quickly disintegrated him, but I forgot to take into account the flame that would ensue. The alarm was activated regardless of my efforts. And immediately a group of people inside the lobby started to ascend the stairs.

My immediate concern should have been the clan heads, but I couldn't bring myself to care about them for the time being. 'They will have to wait' I thought.

I knew that they (the people in the lobby) were just corpses from reading their Eidos, as well as the fact that they were carrying bombs on their selves. There was no electrical signals going through their brains. They were being controlled by a foreign pushion body which was further working through psions being received through an external source. An external source which I found to be one Jiedo Heigo.

Flames erupted around my body as I summoned several ghosts, mentally willing them to slow down the progress of the undead. Looking closely, one could see an outline of blood red surrounding these flames which themselves were so dark that they seemed to suck in the light around it.

Ghosts can cause electronics (like the trigger for those bombs, effectively neutralizing them) to go haywire, but their effect wasn't limited to electronics only. They could disrupt the flow of pushions in any area due to the fact that they were made from it's crystallized form. A spectral would be better to do it on a more controlled scale, as well as disrupt the psion flow as an added bonus, but I hadn't recovered enough control over my magic after having it unlocked to control many spectrals at the same time.

Black flames erupted once again as I summoned his Avatar to guard the perimeter. my Avatar was basically a personification of my will. It was human on all aspects except for it's appearance. It's appearance showed the monster that I was.

As the flames died down, emerged a figure which would have been called majestic by many. It was an American style of dragon with hands and legs. It's body's base colour was black with linings of red throughout. It had feathers at many parts of it's body like the back of it's head to it's back, the shoulder blades, the back of it's forearms, etc. A long pointed tail and spikes at the joint of it's wings. (Don't own the picture, replace the _ with dots, and the spikes on the body of the dragon with feathers of same colour and change base colour from silver to black:- i_pinimg_com/originals/6b/3b/37/6b3b37f12699ec54d574ac85eec2d232_jpg)

I slowed down as I approached the washroom, putting up my hands in a non-threatening gesture as I slowly made my way towards the girls. It was their first time almost dying. Sure, they may have killed before, but it never prepared one to be on the other side of the rope. They ran towards me as soon as they saw me, clinging onto my shirt for dear life as I tried to calm them down, to tell them that they were fine, that no one would hurt them, just like my mother had done for me when I faced the same scenario. That was when I was 4.

Turning around, I saw red faced Fumiya being hugged by Izumi, who was thanking him for saving them over and over again. So little Fumiya had a crush huh...Nice blackmail material. 'Must tell this to Ayako'. From the time I had dropped his mask in front of the clan, I was able to finally give in to my temptations of teasing the living hell out of my family. Katsushige could confirm that. I am a bit like Mayumi that way.

The following scene may seem out of character to many. I am not really good at romance scenes. Reading a few romance novels for it, but they seem just so boring)

Talking about Mayumi, she was looking at me with an expectant gaze, almost as if asking me to explain someth...Ah, so she wanted to know. Well she deserved an explanation, the others too. So I glance behind me and call out,

"Fumiya, You never saw what is about to happen, alright" I said in a tone which demanded obedience. I had been trained to be the next clan head from the time I was born. It came to me naturally now.

At his nod, I continued in a soft tone.

"Mayumi-senpai, Honoka, Shizuku, I wish I could have explained it to you before, I really didn't want to hurt you-"

"Why would you care. You can't even feel any emotions for anyone except for your family, right? And, guess what? We are not your family. And we never will now" Said Mayumi in an extremely sad tone, looking like she may burst into tears once again.

"That is not true." I said, causing all eyes to turn towards me. But I decided to not answer the question that arose.

"What do you think the government would do now that they know about these powers of mine?" It took a few moments, but a light bulb appeared over Izumi's head.

"They would ask you to spread your genes as much as possible, meaning..." She said in a shocked voice.

"Multiple marriages, but they can't force me. I am the heir to the Yotsuba Clan, the son of the current clan head at that, I can potentially start another world war just by making my clan leave Japan. But with me, the strength of the Yotsuba has increased to such heights that we have completely eclipsed the 10MC. The other clans can't take me or Miyuki away from the clan due to our engagement, so they would try to influence us from the inside.

There are not many members of the clan known at this point of time. Only me, Fumiya, Ayako, and Minami, once they know that she is like a sister to me. Taking the Kuroba's away won't effect the clan that much, so they would try to get the most likely heir to Kuroba family, Fumiya, to marry someone from another clan so that they might influence us at some level. But even it won't be enough, so most of the clans too would try to get me to marry multiple times.

It would be the same in any country I go, so it would be best if I simply accept it. But then I would need people whom I can love right? Miyuki already knows about all this and she was the one who told me that you loved me.

I had started recovering my emotions when I was 12, but Oba-ue had tried to give them back to me when I was 8. It didn't work, but I was able to start recovering them naturally at that point of time, only they would get converted into mere information after passing a certain threshold.

It's true that I can't love. But I can be taught how to. And you were the ones who taught me how to love.

I was born a monster, I was raised as a weapon, it was only you all who made me a human.

I have ended thousands if not millions of lives, and from the lives I've ended, I regret none. Still, my ledger is soak with blood, so much that the thought of marrying a woman had escape my thoughts. I have sin, so many times that I never imagine myself holding anything fragile, much less a woman. Yet, regardless of my sins, regardless of what I have done in my life, all of you have accepted me completely, for who I am and for what I am. For that, I am grateful. I am not an emotional person. I still have trouble and problems displaying my emotions outwardly so allow me to go straight to the point. Saegusa Mayumi, Mitsui Honoka, Kitayama Shizuku, I love you and though I am undeserving of your affection, I will gladly spend my entire life loving and protecting you. Will you be mine forever?"

Mayumi's POV

I know there are tears in my eyes. Tatsuya-kun always knew how to make me feel special.

Shiba Tatsuya would never be the most romantic guy in the world. He is straightforward and blunt. Still, whenever he says something anything, he means it. He has never told any lie to anyone. Sure, he may tell half truths to manipulate others, but he always told the truth nonetheless.

Some people never have to say a word to tell you how much they love you. It speaks in their eyes, and in their action towards you. Being with Tatsuya-kun made me understand that love isn't about constantly rattling some sort of love poem or constantly saying some sort of litany like a spell to make people understand your feelings.

While that might make you feel good to have someone tell you how much they love you, true love shines through actions. People can lie when they tell you how much you mean to them, but when someone lays their life for you repeatedly, what need is there for words.

So I know that he was telling the truth when he asked us to stay with him. He was telling the truth when he proposed to us.

I am aware of Miyuki standing in the doorway, shedding silent tears. Tears of joy that her 'Onii-sama' could finally be true to himself. Joy that he won't have to hurt anymore.

I am aware of Izumi watching me with a blush on her face. Maybe this whole scene was a bit too adult for the innocent little girl. Or was it because of the boy whose arms she was still in? Will have a little talk with her later.

I am aware of the joy radiating from both the girls around me. We'll have to plan a girl's day out with them to get to know everything that our Tatsuya-kun had hidden from us.

I am aware that they are all watching me as I throw my arms around his neck, pulling him own on top of me.

I am aware of his bewilderment as I crash my lips to his own. I was extremely happy that I was able to finally get a reaction from him.

I am aware of how nice his lips felt against mine. The slightly moist feel of his lips, the bitter taste of coffee still lingering on them.

I let my body run on autopilot after that, let my tongue lick his lips, asking for entrance. I could feel him opening his mouth, his appendage easily overpowering mine and exploring and memorizing every corner of my mouth. I could feel myself go weak in the knees. Could feel him supporting me with his arms around my waist.

I was extremely disappointed when he pulled back, even letting out a cute whimper in protest, but could do nothing but watch as he left me and the other girls puled him in for some action as well.

Still, I was the happy. Happier than any other person before. So happy that it should be a crime.

Two distinct THUMP's pulled me out of my thoughts. Looking over, I saw Fumiya and Izumi had fainted with their faces redder than my eyes. I couldn't help but giggle a bit at the way they were laying. Izumi was still holding Fumiya in a hug, but now their faces were on top of each other, their lips touching. Little Izumi had lost her first kiss without even knowing about it. Now where did I keep my phone...

Tatsuya's POV

After discretely clicking a picture of Fumiya, I made my way towards the conference room. I still had to inform them that the hotel was under attack (even if the attackers could do as much damage as an ant now). I quickly swapped the magic spell in my CAD to increase my casting speeds for the battle I was sure was about to come.

Entering the room, I saw them all tense. Jumonji Katsuto was about to ask me why I had interrupted the meeting, but I beat him to the punch.

"We are under attack" I spoke in my usual emotionless voice.

I sent a glance at my mother as they got up with their CADs, ready to fight.

"Was it him?" She asked, in an extremely cold voice. Seems like he still made my mother as angry.

"Hai. It was as we thought, the ship which docked on the Yokohama port indeed carry Jiedo Heigo. All the attackers are corpses carrying explosives being controlled via an external pushion body, his signature magic. It appears that he was able to get a few Humanists in the guard detail around the hotel." I replied in a similar manner. He had made my mother mad, and his people had tried to kill my loved ones. That were two of the greatest sins possible for me. He was going to get no mercy from my side.

"They tried to attack Kitayama Shizuku, Saegusa Mayumi, Saegusa Izumi and Mitsui Honoka in the washroom, using Antinite rings to prevent magic, but were dealt with by Fumiya. Nobody was hurt. Unfortunately, Fumiya and Izumi fell unconscious after that due to unknown reasons and are currently being looked after by the others." I added as an afterthought.

"Puppet terrorists! Such a terrible thing they've done." Gouki clicked his tongue intensely upon seeing the suicide bombing continue.

Puppet terrorism was basically suicide bombing using humans as puppets to perform the act. Using Magic or drugs to make human dolls out of human beings, dead or alive, there were also ways to deprive someone of self-control with magic. What Gouki sensed was the former, a magic that controlled the body of a dead person. He felt slow-moving presences in the first floor's lobby, as well as the corridors of the first couple of floors, it seemed to be coming upwards (the hotel had 20 floors, the conference taking place on the top floor and the VIP seating on 18th floor). Tatsuya's magic may have slowed them down by a great deal and prevented the bombs from going off, but it couldn't completely stop these human puppets.

The Ichijou family and the Magicians of the 'One' were skilled in Magic that interfered with the flesh and body, but the magic that manipulates the movement of the body has always been forbidden. There have been examples of 'losing one's number' for those who ignored that law. That is why even if Gouki understood what exactly was happening, he didn't know how to stop this wicked thing known as Puppet Terrorism.

"It's going to be tough finding a countermeasure to the Media." Gen complained all the while loading magic which would be useful in such a situation.

"I guess we have no way of deceiving them at all." Atsuko made a comment with a tone of resignation.

"Although we have the CCTV to prove the fact that it was corpses who were holding the bombs…I think revealing this to the public would have quite the negative effect." Said an almost depressed Isami. He had one of the best brains out of all of them all, one of the reasons why the Itsuwa were still in the 10 MC, and he knew that if it came to a fight, then he would be one of the members to get no action at all.

"You need not worry about the media, I replaced the broadcast with the footage of the Okinawa battle a minute after my announcement as clan heir, and a bit before my announcement as Taurus Silver, and got a few spectrals guarding the area. I have effectively disabled the explosives with the ghosts, but any sort of magic outside it's Eidos will not effect the bombs, and their Eidos are being guarded by pushion entities, which i specialize in, so I will take care of the corpses as well. You should work on the evacuation of civilians from the premises. It will work to gain points with the Humanists." I said in my normal emotionless voice, but secretly, I was glad that the secret about me being Taurus Silver could remain like that for a bit longer.

The clan heads consider my words for a few moments, before nodding in agreement and separating to get the civilians out as quickly as possible, while Tatsuya strolled out at a casual pace towards the lobby where he knew there were more humanists present, planting bombs to kill off the 10MC, all the while using Astral Projection to control the spectrals into 'killing' the pushion body possessing the corpses, thereby releasing them into the sweet hold of death.

When he reached down, he saw a sight that would make the world happy that he couldn't feel much emotions, or god knows what may have happened to the surrounding blocks.

There were a another dozen humanists down here, thinking that those mindless bots would do the work, and were enjoying their time over here with a few women who were unfortunately caught by them in an attempt to get out. Clothes were lying all around the place, a pair of trousers near the entrance, a shirt on the floor and bits and pieces of women's clothing lay all around. Grunts of pleasure and sobs of helplessness echoed all around. They were so busy in what they were doing that none noticed his arrival.

Even though Tatsuya couldn't feel much, he still felt the anger at the scene before him. He knew that it was just based on chance that these women were captured. I knew that it could have been someone he knew. And just the thought of something like this happening to them drove him over the edge.

He didn't even bother with his CAD, and simply started walking forward. His calm stride not betraying his inner turmoil. The soft carpet muffled his footfalls so that he was soon standing behind the first of his victims with him being none-the-wiser. With a simple flick of his wrist, the head fell on top of the carpet with a dull thud, the blood still flowing out of the neck alerting the others of his presence. In a flash, they were all on their feet, their to get their pants while reaching for their weapons.

He didn't have time for this. The civilians would be evacuated soon and he had to take care of these bastards, the people they had raped and deal with the cleanup. So instead of trying to take them on in a hand-to-hand combat, he chose the other option.

He smiled.

And such a smile, the likes of which they thought could only exist in imagination. The smile was everything a smile shouldn't be. Cold, calculating and promising death to everything who ever saw it. How could a young teenager have a smile which could only be hoped to be seen on the devil himself?. Little did they know that what they were facing was worse than the devil itself. It sent a shiver of dread down the spines of everyone present making them loose focus for a few moments.

And that was all the time that Tatsuya needed.

Even though these people were not magicians, their Eidos had been covered by a spell which took the person's concentration to maintain. By scaring them, he made that concentration waver a bit allowing him to bypass the spell in it's entirety and straight away decompose their bodies, instead of decomposing the spell whose feedback would alert the caster to foul play. Now since the designated target were no more, the magic terminated itself without any feedback.

In a bright flash of light, suddenly they were no more, their hearts having vanished into thin air. He had to leave the bodies to find out whch cell as responsible for this attack.

At the same moment, he had loaded up Regrowth in his virtual MCA and cast it on the poor women who were unfortunately caught in the crossfire, giving them back their dignity. He then used the same magic on the pieces of clothes on their bodies, returning them to the state they were in before the assault.

But nothing he could do would remove the mental trauma they faced.

They were staring blankly at the wall in front of them even after he had carried them all outside and sat them down in the ambulances and told the authorities what happened. After-all, he couldn't save everyone from everything.

And that was his biggest fear.

What would happen if he failed to protect those close to him?

The day ended with a lot of discussion a lot of discussion with the authorities and the press singing praises of the magicians for going out of their way to save the civilians first before evacuating themselves.

After a talk about his future plans, the clan heads agreed to keep silent about his identity as Taurus Silver. But the ever-present glint in their eyes told him that they would try to get in his good graces after this and also try a bit harder to control the Yotsuba from the inside. It was all going according to plan.

That just him with the girls in a hotel they were staying in for the night.

Life was good.