Horizon:Volume 9A Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Up-and-Downer of the Observation Cell

Rise, rise

To ecstasy

Drop, drop

Before me

Point Allocation (Waiting for a Kiss)

●

“Mom, sorry I’m in such a hurry.”

Masazumi let the wind wash over her with an earthy aroma.

She was in the elevated graveyard on Okutama. The wind smelled of sand because of the collapse in Kyou below. Crossunite had said all the damage to the crust had sent dirt and dust into the air like volcanic ash. He had said it would have accumulated on the surface areas of Musashi by tomorrow.

…And I came here because that worried me.

She was cleaning off her mother’s grave as if dusting it. She also removed the weeds she recognized as such.

She felt bad doing such a rush job, but she was already running late for the Mukai bathhouse.

After the meeting on Tama and after Asama had distributed compressed sleep spells to everyone, the Date Vice Chancellor had commented that organizing so many people sounded like a pain, so everyone had split into two groups: one going to the bathhouse and one returning to their respective homes.

Horizon had said she wanted to sing at least one song, so that group had stayed with them. The idiot had rung the bell so much one of the remaining surface residents had called the guards, but Asama had taken care of everything.

Then that group had gone to the Main Blue Thunder while Masazumi came here to get a break from it all.

“We removed a lot, huh?”

Most of the blocks had been removed from the base hulls, including the residential, commercial, and business blocks. Looking aft from here, the nature district, the Asama Shrine, and the park looked like they were floating in something like a cup, which was strange to see. The Asama Shrine had been prepared to be purged using dedicated towing belts so that it could be removed at any time, so was it really safe as a meeting point later on?

…We really are preparing for battle, aren’t we?

Masazumi saw a few automatons jogging along the edge of the open hole to measure the size of the hole. They had said they would be covering it with a defense spell, so this was probably preparing for that.

She was most surprised to see the gantry cranes and derrick cranes – practically the symbols of the 1st and 3rd port and starboard ships – being folded up.

First the 3rd ships were positioned alongside the 1st ships and the gantry cranes were lifted and laid on their sides using the derrick cranes and transport ships. Then the derrick cranes laid each other on their sides. The final remaining derrick crane was lifted and laid on its side by a transport ship, but then they were all linked with towing belts and used as a midair pathway across the open hole in the ship. This use case had likely been built into the design.

“Neshinbara’s novel said the derrick cranes could be launched as shells, but that must not be true.”

But was he aware it wasn’t true? That group would be preparing for sleep at the Mukai bathhouse right now, but…

“Will they actually be able to get to sleep? We can’t have them going into battle sleep deprived.”

●

Tenzou let the wind wash over him in front of the Mukai bathhouse.

The long black plaza had lost its shape. The floor was sitting open in preparation for transport. Supplies and dismantled underground wide blocks were occasionally placed on lifts that carried them up before returning.

It all worked well, so even the wide blocks were split into four pieces and loaded vertically on the lifts. Transport ship attachment pallets were placed below the lifts to allow a transport ship to carry them away as soon as they reached the surface.

Tenzou had helped transport pieces of underground wide blocks in a few of his part-time jobs and the method had been taught in a ninja chain of command class he had taken. But he was impressed by the system set up for doing the same across all the ships.

There’s no one around, he noticed.

He could hear the sounds of construction and feel the tremors. It reminded him of when the Musashi was being modified in the Ariake.

“But this place is always full of life.”

It was fortunate the bathhouse was still here and remained functional.

The bathhouse group – those whose homes had already been transported away – were within the soundproofed walls of the bathhouse. The Suzu’s Bath bathhouse was located toward the bow of Okutama. It helped that its long block functioned as a major transport route, but a lot of activity traveled through the bow, meaning it would be removed toward the end of the process.

They had time to sleep here. Or in other words, they would have to leave once this section was removed.

…This battle is going to be a big one.

Tenzou sighed while his mind wandered.

Everyone was already asleep inside. Neshinbara had insisted he needed to watch the dismantling of the Musashi because it would make for great reference material, but he had fallen asleep the instant he lay down in his futon. The exhaustion of the day’s battle and the satisfaction of the curry must have hit him all at once.

Tenzou had come out here to guard the others while they slept, but really his thoughts were too scattered.

He couldn’t get to sleep. That seemed a bad sign since self-management was crucial for a ninja, but…

“Worrying too much to sleep before a major battle makes me sound like the main character of a story!”

“Oh? Trouble sleeping, Master Tenzou?”

Mary’s voice from behind without warning brought a slight squeezing to his heart. In a bad way.

●

“Oh!? Huh!? Mary-dono!?”

He was seated on the edge of the hole in the plaza, wearing his jacket over his sleepwear.

Mary had her blanket wrapped over her sleepwear. She had expected it to be hot even though summer was over, but it was unexpectedly chilly, maybe because the base hulls were being removed across all the ships. A wind smelling of metal and wood blew up from the bottom of the pit and she could tell the wind spirits were having a busy night.

“You couldn’t sleep either, Master Tenzou?”

“Well, I also have to keep everyone safe. It’s my job.”

That wasn’t quite what she had asked, but she knew what he meant.

That pleased her. Back when she lived in England, this level of understanding had been a rarity when she spoke with the people of Oxford or the name inheritors.

They had been able to hold a sensible conversation, but that didn’t mean they actually understood each other.

On Musashi, it was the opposite. There were times when the conversations were far from sensible, but they still resulted in a real understanding. It could be disconcerting, but it still pleased her. The way one of them would be talking about chest size and the other would be talking about national power yet they ultimately concluded that ‘if a god can’t do it, no one can’ almost seemed like some kind of performance art, but it was entertaining to watch.

That was something that had never happened in England.

Or maybe it did happen in England, just not along the path she had chosen.

That she had come to Musashi in the end told her that the path she had chosen in England simply hadn’t been possible for her to follow.

…I used to be far too stubborn with myself.

Lately, she had learned to give in but in a good way.

“Master Tenzou,” she tried saying. “I hope things can stay like this forever.”

●

Tenzou could sense that he had successfully brought his future wife this far.

He nodded on the inside and felt a desire to touch Mary. Not in a perverted way, though. How should I put it? I want to use my actions to show her that I feel the same way.

So he decided to place his arm around her shoulder to show her how important they were to each other.

But suddenly…

…Hm?

Did “stay like this” mean she didn’t want any kind of change whatsoever?

If so, he felt he shouldn’t do anything to disturb her quiet thoughts.

“…”

He froze and then sensed movement next to him.

Mary had scooted over to sit right next to him. She was so close he could feel her warmth even though they weren’t touching. Which told him…

…It’s alright! Go ahead and do it!

Fortunately, there was no one else around, so no one would post about it on the divine network if he placed his arm around her shoulder.

So he decided to do so…and did.

…Oh.

She didn’t lean into him, but he felt her firmly at his side. He felt her heat in his arm and he supported her back while pulling her closer.

“Ah…”

She expressed minor surprise but did not resist.

…That’s right.

Holding her like this must have been something she thought he might do but didn’t have to do. So she was a bit surprised he actually had, but she wasn’t opposed to it. That meant she had accepted it even if it wasn’t quite what she had expected.

He had hesitated over whether he should do it or not, but Mary had made up her own mind over whether or not she would accept it and she had chosen to trust him.

Tenzou felt his hesitation was a good sign because it meant he hadn’t done this carelessly.

But he knew going any further would be a bad idea. So…

“Mary-dono?”

“Judge. What is it?”

When she turned her blue eyes toward him, he was honestly unsure what he should say next. But…

“Do you like things the way they are?”

He decided to voice the doubt in his mind. And…

“Do you not?”

That question made him think of the idiot, the landlord, and the tenants (figuratively speaking for the second two). If what they had said during dinner was true, the Main Blue Thunder was sure to be full of excitement because something new was happening there.

Tonight’s battle really was going to be a big one. It involved the Genesis Project, so the stakes were high. So…

…Would we have been doing the same if our house hadn’t been purged?

He briefly imagined it. And…

“––––––”

Wait, wait, wait. I can’t imagine that with my arm around her. I need to focus on reality right now. Yes.

…But I would like to do that eventually.

After that mental correction, he spoke to Mary.

“There are some things I would like to change.”

“Like what?”

He saw no concern in her tilted head. Her face showed the anticipation of learning what he was thinking.

She really trusts me, huh? he thought, but he had worked hard to be someone she could trust. So…

“After we win the Honnouji Incident…let’s go house hunting.”

●

Mary gasped at Tenzou’s response.

This had surprised her through and through. Because she had been thinking the same thing.

…Yes.

It pleased her so much they could understand each other without speaking a word.

She basked in that feeling until ether flowers started scattering from her hair.

“I had been planning to wait until we had more money saved up, but we can get Asama-dono to arrange a good installment plan for us.”

So…

“I thought we could stroll around the Musashi and take a look at what’s available, even if only for fun. If it goes well, we might even find a decent surface house.”

“Judge. That sounds wonderful. A place close to the academy would be nice. Oh, and close to the market.”

She felt like she was getting ahead of herself, but the words just spilled out.

“What do you think, Mary-dono?” he said.

“J-judge!”

She fully agreed with this plan, so she gave part of her own plan.

“A-and I want at least two children!”

●

Naruze held her palm back toward the others, telling them to stay put.

“Now this is getting interesting. I’m so glad we feigned sleep to see what happened.”

“Wow. Mary-san is blunt,” said Adele.

“And wasn’t that a bit of a non sequitur on Ma-yan’s part?” asked Margot.

“That’s something royals have to think about,” said the Date Vice Chancellor.

If that was true, it would make Naruze’s storyboards a lot easier to write. It let her skip a lot of setup. But…

Asama: “Um, Naruze, I feel like we’re violating their privacy.”

Art-Ga: “There is no expectation of privacy when you flirt in a public plaza.”

Silver Wolf: “I seem to recall receiving no privacy when I was in my mother’s private home.”

That doesn’t count because the homeowner is on my side.

Vice President: “Hey, why are you stopping me at the stairs leading down to your long block? What do you expect me to do, sleep here?”

Wise Sister: “Oh, you insensitive girl. Now, how is Tenzou handling this?”

It looked like the ninja had frozen. But…

Asama: “He’s fine. The night before our training camp, I told him to always listen to what Mary tells him.”

Art-Ga: “If only you could be so proactive concerning your own relationship.”

And not just to help Naruze’s storyboards. Maybe now wasn’t the best time to say it, but…

Art-Ga: “It was only pure luck that idiot noticed your feelings when you spent all your time cheering him on and helping him chase after Horizon, so keep in mind that being timid is only going to hurt your chances. …Your chances of giving me more material.”

Silver Wolf: “Y-you could have omitted that last part!”

That must mean Mitotsudaira agreed up to that point.

“The ‘I’m happy as long as he is, so I can live with this’ trope is really unpopular, you know?”

Naruze was especially sensitive to it because she had said something similar once and received the kind of lecture that sticks with you for life.

But the Main Blue Thunder group had to be busy right now. If so…

“C’mon, Tenzou. Give me some good material.”

●

…At least two!?

For the first instant, Tenzou started calculating out how much money he would have to earn to support a family of that size, but now was not the time for such realistic concerns. Their house hunting was a “dream” in much the same way. So…

“If we had twins, would they grow up to be like you and Elizabeth-dono?”

He honestly felt like he would be in for a rough time if they had a kid who grew up to be like the Fairy Queen. But…

“They might grow up to be like you and me,” said Mary.

For the first instant, he imagined a girl who grew up to be like him.

…I would feel so bad for her…

He felt like he would have to teach her to take her hat off sometimes, but what would he do if she pointed out that he never removed his?

…Could I tell her my hat is a part of my body?

Then he could tell his daughter that her hat was not a part of her body and he knew because she hadn’t been wearing it when she was born. And he could get his parents to tell her he had been born with his hat on. Yes, that’s perfect.

“That too would make for a lively family.”

●

Flat Vassal: “I would feel sorry for a girl who took after him.”

Gold Mar: “Would she worship busty blondes too?”

Art-Ga: “Male or female ones? If female, she could find what she’s into at home.”

10ZO: “I-I took a peek because I was curious and I’m not sure why I expected any better out of you!”

●

Anyway, thought Tenzou.

…This means Mary-dono is not opposed to doing that kind of “joint work” with me.

Of course, she must have been prepared, or at least understood it would happen eventually, when she decided to be with him. And he wanted to do more than just adore her from afar, so…

“How should I put it?”

I keep learning new things about her, he thought as he put it to words.

“By being together, we create new connections between us, don’t we?”

“Well…”

“Oh, but it is possible our kids might hate one of their parents – and that would almost certainly be their father, but, um.”

Unturning: “Hurry it up. I want to get to sleep.”

…Then go to sleep!!

He knew that thought wouldn’t help, so he focused on what he was saying.

“Our relationship will create a new relationship that only we could have made.”

When he said that, Mary looked at him.

Her face gradually grew more red.

“Um, did I say something indecent?” she asked.

“No, what you said made me happy.”

“Happy?”

“Judge,” he replied. “To sum it up, this all started back when I fell in love with you.”

“O-oh, um, but…”

…Did I say the wrong thing!?

Tenzou briefly felt a cold sweat, but then Mary said more.

“I think I fell in love with you before you did with me.”

●

The 4th Special Duty Officer had been leaning out from the bathhouse’s entrance, but now Adele saw her turn around.

She had her lips pressed together on an otherwise blank face and she made a waterfall gesture.

“A cascade of sugar.”

“Tenzou and Ma-yan are incredible when they start these happiness competitions.”

“They certainly are,” said the Date Vice Chancellor, but Adele tilted her head.

“You find this amusing too?”

“A-Adele…you shouldn’t…call it…amusing?”

“Was that a question?” said the 6th Special Duty Officer, but that aside, the Date Vice Chancellor looked up at the ceiling before answering Adele.

“Their lives are so different I can’t apply any of it to my life.”

“Yeah, but listening to the romances of attractive people on the divine radio dramas is entertaining because it’s so far removed from your own life.”

Vice President: “By the way, I’m still sitting up here on the stairs. I haven’t even taken a bath yet.”

Bell: “Oh…s-sorry. I already shut off…the boiler.”

Tachibana Wife: “The bathwater is still there, so you should be fine.”

Vice President: “Hm, but I won’t be able to use the shower.”

Gold Mar: “So, Seijun, is it just me or do you care more about your bath than Ma-yan and Tenzou?”

Vice President: “I care about them a lot. They are classmates, after all. I just hope they don’t cause any international incidents.”

Girls: “That’s a lot of pressure!”

“Anyway,” continued Adele with a sigh. There was only one thing she could say right now. “Mary-san is making the most of her time before the battle, isn’t she?”

●

Tenzou listened to Mary.

“You see, I already had feelings for you before we worked to pull the swords out of the graveyard.”

“Really?”

“Judge.” Mary nodded. “You protected me from a piece of that transport ship, remember? And I mistook your intentions there.”

“You mentioned that in the bath.”

…That she got in the bath with me because she had feelings for me shows just how direct she can be.

But that is a very Mary thing to do, he added. And on that note…

“It probably would have changed history had I kissed you in front of the Tower of London.”

“Hee hee. Especially because your religion would have required you to confirm the size of my chest.”

If he had done that in front of her family, he was certain he would have been publicly executed.

…Elizabeth-dono clearly loves Mary-dono a looooooooooooooooooooooot.

He stretched that word out, but he felt like he needed to stretch it out five times as long to be accurate. That aside…

“Mary-dono.”

He looked to her, preparing to tell her it was time to get to sleep.

“–––––––”

She turned toward him with eyes shut and chin somewhat raised.

●

…Does she want me to kiss her!?

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiss. He tried stretching the word out in his mind and it seemed about right, but he still didn’t understand what was happening. But when he thought about it…

…Oh! Because of what I said about the Tower of London!

This is her way of being thoughtful, so I need to respond in kind.

“–––––––”

But the angle was bad. Not the angle of her raised chin. Their position was fully visible from the bathhouse’s entrance.

Should he use his “sitting position shift” ninjutsu to adjust her position? But then she might notice the change after the kiss. But…

…If I kiss her like this, there will definitely be a doujinshi about this released after Honnouji.

If he was unlucky, it could come out during Honnouji and he could be stabbed in the back.

…What do I do?

No, I can worry about all that later, he decided. So…

“Hey, look grampa! Check it out!”

Hiro and Taizou arrived from below, riding a lift carrying a dismantled wide block. On the surprisingly fast-moving lift, Taizou pulled Hiro behind him.

“Pretend you didn’t see it, Hiro. …What is that boy thinking doing that here?”

…I thought he was on my side, but I guess not!!

But the timing was still convenient. Mary started to open her eyes from the wind caused by the passing lift. And she seemed to realize other people could see them here.

“U-um, Master Tenzou.”

Before she could say anything, Tenzou grabbed her shoulders, spun her around a little and pulled her in front of him. He didn’t have her sit on his lap, but he held her a bit like a princess carry, hiding her from their classmates behind him.

“Mary-dono, this is what I wanted to do in front of the Tower of London.”

How long should I stretch this out?

●

Adele saw the 4th Special Duty Officer stand up and walk to the center of the bedroom constructed in the bathhouse changing room. She then struck the floor with her hands.

“He isn’t even letting us see!? Does he have any idea how long I stayed up for this!?”

“Oh, wow. There’s a huge shower of flowers out front, Ga-chan. Don’t you want to see?”

“Keep track of how much flowering she does for me, Margot.”

The Non-Fallen Angel rolled onto her side without pulling a blanket over her and kicked her legs in her pajamas. Then she went through a few breaststroke motions.

“Now what book should I draw for the event coming up after Honnouji?

“You don’t have any other material?”

“No, I have too much. This post summer break period has been a goldmine.”

Still on her side, she held her hand up in the air and opened several Magie Figurs.

“If we win at Honnouji, then we’re the big winners. There’s bound to be a festival. This will be a turning point for the world, but it will be for Musashi too. The event is going to be a big one, so I want one book I know will be a hit, but I need a second book too.”

“And you had been planning to use the 1st Special Duty Officer for that one?”

“Judge. But how things are going there, people aren’t going to buy those two would just start doing it because ‘it’s the night before the big battle’. It would be more convincing to have them house hunting after Honnouji, find a room they like, and start doing it in there to ‘test it out’ before making a decision.”

“If they could do that, they wouldn’t be making such a big deal about one little kiss.”

The 4th Special Duty Officer made a gesture with her wrist to say “that’s a separate issue”. “Hmm,” she groaned.

Art-Ga: “Asama, Mitotsudaira.”

Silver Wolf: “Yes?”

Art-Ga: “Do you want me to draw you?”

Asama: “Why would you ask us directly!?”

“Good point,” she said, laughing out loud, so her indecision had to be pretty bad. But Adele did have one question.

“What is it you know will be a hit?”

“Judge. The second book might end up being similar…but the Chancellor and Horizon.”

“Wow,” said Suzu, her shoulders shaking. And while Adele was pretty sure she had seen a few doujinshis about that already…

“What scenario will you be using?”

“Judge. Just about anything should work with them. The only problem is the reality with those two might go beyond my wildest imagination, so I need to be careful of that. Heh heh heh. I need to draw on all my ability as a writer to make this book worthy of the big victory celebration.”

In other words…

“That event is going to be a competition to see who can produce the best art and composition for something entirely unnecessary.”

Back to Chapter 11

Return to Main Page

Forward to Chapter 13