This was exactly like “a frog frozen under the eyes of a serpent”. It
looked like he was unable to extract himself by his own power,
Tatsuya concluded with a mental “That’s far enough”.
“Guys, I apologize for barging in on your conversation, but shouldn’t
we relocate?”
Hearing another voice break into the conversation, Erika blinked twice
and reluctantly pulled out a mostly undamaged information terminal.
“I believe people are converging here?”
At Tatsuya’s hint, Mikihiko frantically removed his own information
terminal.
Erika verified the time. Almost five minutes had elapsed since they
made contact with the vampire and masked Magician. The other
groups would probably arrive shortly.
Mikihiko unfolded the pursuit display. The bright lights indicating
allied investigators were advancing along irregular lines, a clear
indication that they were definitely not acting in concert with the other
investigating teams.
“You don’t have approval from the Clan Meeting, do you?”
While they were not part of the investigative team led by the Saegusa
Family, they acted on anything worthy of punishment.
Still, if at all possible, it was worthwhile to avoid notifying the
Saegusa and Juumonji Family’s investigative team that they had
engaged in combat within their jurisdiction. This could prove to be
especially troublesome if they ran afoul of the previous Student
Council President.
While the two of them agonized over this, Tatsuya was preparing to
evacuate without a care in the world.
“Erika, need a ride?”
Once again boarding his motorcycle, Tatsuya asked aloud,
“Sure, thanks.”
To which Erika jumped onto the backseat and wrapped her arms
snugly around Tatsuya’s waist.
“Tatsuya, what about me?”
“Sorry, over capacity.”
In response to Mikihiko’s agitated question, Tatsuya flipped the engine
switch.
“You’ll get fined for riding without a helmet!”
Hearing the shout rom behind him intermixed with frustration (and not
a small amount of unwillingness to admit defeat), Tatsuya sped off on
the motorcycle. (Speaking of which, the fine for not observing the
duty to wear a helmet no longer existed in the 21st century. Instead,
the driver could be charged with vehicular manslaughter depending on
the extent of the passengers’ injuries.)
After losing his jacket and being left behind, Mikihiko could only
stand there blankly for the moment.