What were they up to?"
The first thing Miyuki asked when she came out of the changing room
was about the earlier scene.
"Scouting, I think? Still felt pointless though."
Tatsuya tilted his head and chose to reply in neutral terms and handed
Miyuki the CAD he had prepared for her while she was changing.
If there were any extraneous distractions before the match, this would
only negatively impact the match itself, so Tatsuya moved to curtail
the conversation with haste. Yet, after Miyuki heard Tatsuya's reply,
she burst into laughter as if finding some profound meaning in his
words.
"I think that's their declaration of war, Onii-sama."
He wasn't ignorant of what his sister was referring to. He himself felt
those two came to specifically challenge him.
But in Tatsuya's eyes, this was a pointless gesture.
"......You don't believe me?"
Even though Miyuki rolled her eyes upward and pouted sulkily, this
wasn't something he was going to let slide so easily.
"No, well...... I'm not a contestant, right? I don't believe these two
renowned individuals who have extended their reputations beyond the
scope of magic high school students would view a nameless person
like myself a rival."
"Rival" was based on the assumption that they acknowledged that
both sides were equal.
Objectively speaking, from outward appearances, he wasn't even in
the same strata as those two. Superficially, comparing themselves with
him was a ridiculous notion. Furthermore, they didn't appear to have
discovered his secrets either.
Ordinarily, it was frankly impossible for the "Crimson Prince" or
"Cardinal George" to see him as an opponent — Tatsuya thought.
Upon seeing her older brother actually thinking this way and not out
of humility, the sister sighed deeply.
"......Onii-sama, underestimating your own abilities would be fatal in
battle. Exactly how highly you are valued, how greatly you are
watched, even how much other schools view Onii-sama — how
fiercely their antagonism burns because of Onii-sama's skills and
strategies — I think Onii-sama should consider all of this objectively
once more."
For Miyuki, this was an exceedingly rare, and blunt, counsel.
This was a completely unexpected boldness and unimaginable
reproach. Tatsuya could only stand there and watch her blankly.
This was the third time Miyuki used her mysterious beauty to
captivate the hearts of the audience at the same time that she wielded
her terrible might to vanquish the enemy.
◊ ◊ ◊
On the waves where Battle Board would be decided, the first round of
the Women's semifinals was about to begin.
The players were already at their starting positions.
Honoka's figure was among them.
"Hm~"
"............"
"That's a little......"
"............"
"OK, that, uh......"
"............"
"What the heck are you two doing?"
All three players were side by side at the starting line. In the stands,
Erika was humming in frustration while Mizuki was utterly silent by
her side. Finally caving, Leo asked reluctantly.
"Isn't that just~, a little strange? All the players are wearing
sunglasses."
"Erika-chan, those are called 'goggles'......"
Indeed, just as Erika and Miyuki said, not just Honoka, but the other
two were wearing dark protective goggles as well.
"Isn't that obvious? This is the most reliable countermeasure to
Honoka-san's light magic."
Mikihiko's analysis was grounded in common sense, causing Erika to
adopt a "How boring~" expression as she laughed mirthlessly.
"......What's wrong with that?"
"But~, doesn't that mean they fell for Tatsuya-kun's strategy? Battle
Board players don't use goggles because the water droplets may
interfere with their sight. This is a key reason. Yet they quickly
adopted goggles after being flashed once...... There should be other
ways to counter light magic......"
"Is Honoka-san planning on using the water to obscure their vision?"
Erika nodded in disinterest.
However.
"That's hard to say...... I doubt that Tatsuya will rely on such a
mundane tactic."
"......Possibly."
Mikihiko's words seemed to rouse some of Erika's interest.
This time, no flash occurred immediately after the start.
"She's slow out the gate!?"
"No, she's right behind!"
As they navigated the snaking tunnel in front of the observation deck,
Honoka was in second place entering the first sharp curve.
"Eh?"
At this location, the player in first place took an odd route.
Not only did she massively reduce speed, she even drew close to the
middle of the route.
Honoka also decelerated, but took a steeper angle that just barely
cleared the bend and snatched first place from the player who took the
roundabout route.
"What, just happened?"
Normally, players either reduced speed drastically and hugged the
inside route, or took a wider angle but controlled their deceleration.
The route taken by the other player could be described as amateurish.
Not only did she drastically reduce speed, she also left a huge passing
lane.
"......There seem to be shadows floating in the waterways."
Following Leo's observation, Erika squinted and shouted out.
"Ah, there it is again!"
This time it was a wide arc way.
The player that Honoka passed once again left a huge gap between her
and the wall and slowed down more than necessary to pass the angle.
The ensuing result left her farther and farther behind Honoka.
"......No wonder, so that's how it is."
"Eh, what?"
Erika asked Mikihiko, who was nodding in appreciation.
"Tatsuya's intent was to have the other players don goggles that are
shaded against light. This point coincided with Erika's guess."
Mikihiko spoke with animation, as if completely abandoning his usual
irrational stubbornness.
"However, this isn't for using the water spray to occlude their sight,
but to make the dark areas harder to perceive."
"So that's why! Illusions can also be used like this......!"
"Indeed. By turning the lit areas darker, you are able to manipulate
your opponent's moves. Ultimately, magic depends on application......"
"......Would the two of you care to enlighten me as well instead of
amusing yourselves."
At Leo's displeased voice, Mikihiko finally stirred from his daydream.
"Sorry, sorry. In other words, Tatsuya's strategy is......"