The Asterisk War, Vol. 11: The Way of the Sword

by Yuu Miyazaki

  Copyright

  THE ASTERISK WAR, Vol. 11

  YUU MIYAZAKI

  Translation by Haydn Trowell

  Cover art by okiura

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  GAKUSEN TOSHI ASTERISK Vol.11 JINSHIN SESSA

  © Yuu Miyazaki 2016

  First published in Japan in 2016 by KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo.

  English translation rights arranged with KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo, through TUTTLE-MORI AGENCY, INC., Tokyo.

  English translation © 2019 by Yen Press, LLC

  Yen Press, LLC supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact the publisher. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Yen On

  150 West 30th Street, 19th Floor

  New York, NY 10001

  Visit us at yenpress.com

  facebook.com/yenpress

  twitter.com/yenpress

  yenpress.tumblr.com

  instagram.com/yenpress

  First Yen On Edition: October 2019

  Yen On is an imprint of Yen Press, LLC.

  The Yen On name and logo are trademarks of Yen Press, LLC.

  The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Miyazaki, Yuu, author. | Tanaka, Melissa, translator. |

  Trowell, Haydn, translator.

  Title: The asterisk war / Yuu Miyazaki ; translation by Melissa Tanaka.

  Other titles: Gakusen toshi asterisk. English

  Description: First Yen On edition. | New York, NY : Yen On, 2016– | v. 6–8 translation by Haydn Trowell | Audience: Ages 13 & up.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2016023755 | ISBN 9780316315272 (v. 1 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398589 (v. 2 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398602 (v. 3 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398626 (v. 4 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398657 (v. 5 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398671 (v. 6 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398695 (v. 7 : paperback) | ISBN 9780316398718 (v. 8 : paperback) | ISBN 9781975302801 (v. 9 : paperback) | ISBN 9781975329358 (v. 10 : paperback) | ISBN 9781975303518 (v. 11 : paperback)

  Subjects: CYAC: Science fiction. | BISAC: FICTION / Science Fiction / Adventure.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.1.M635 As 2016 | DDC [Fic]—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016023755

  ISBNs: 978-1-9753-0351-8 (paperback)

  978-1-9753-0430-0 (ebook)

  E3-20190819-JV-NF-ORI

  Contents

  Cover

  Insert

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Chapter 1: Separate Ways

  Chapter 2: The Amagiri Household

  Chapter 3: Father and Mother

  Chapter 4: Haruka Amagiri

  Chapter 5: The Toudou Household

  Chapter 6: Family Ties

  Chapter 7: What Comes Next

  Chapter 8: Determination

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  Yen Newsletter

  CHAPTER 1

  SEPARATE WAYS

  It was early winter, the time of year when the cold truly began to seep into one’s body.

  The five of them—Ayato, Julis, Claudia, Saya, and Kirin—had gathered in the academy’s cafeteria as they did every school day.

  “Ah, um, everyone!” Kirin began, bowing her head deeply. “Thank you—again!”

  It was a little over a month since the Gryps had come to a close. Even Kirin, who had been hospitalized for three days following her injuries in the semifinal, had by now fully recovered. It seemed that her eyes, which had been the group’s main cause of concern, would be fine so long as she didn’t overuse her newfound clairvoyance ability—the power to read her opponent’s movements through sensing the way they channeled their prana.

  “…For what?” Julis, having finished her lunch, stared blankly back at her over the lip of her teacup.

  “Ah, r-right! I just got word that my father was released the other day…”

  “Well now, that is cause for celebration!” Claudia clapped once, a warm smile lighting up her face.

  Kirin’s father, Seijirou, had been imprisoned for killing a thief who had tried to take her hostage many years ago, but it sounded like, thanks to Kirin’s long efforts, he had been released without issue.

  No matter where you went in the world, if a Genestella ended up hurting an ordinary person, the punishment tended to be much more severe than it would be for anyone else. Under normal circumstances, Seijirou would have had little hope of being released for at least several decades, and yet—

  “So, in only a month, his sentence gets reduced thanks to a retrial, and then he gets out thanks to time served… They really do move fast.” Saya nodded to herself, as if impressed.

  Of course, all that had only happened thanks to the integrated enterprise foundations that had acted on Kirin’s behalf after their team had won the Gryps.

  “And…he sent this. Please, take a look.” Kirin took a carefully folded letter from her pocket, holding it out formally with both hands.

  Ayato took it in his own, opening it slowly to reveal the solemnly written, polite words of thanks.

  It was a straightforward, simple letter—the kind of message that revealed a genuine, honest character.

  “I know it says so right there, but he’d like to thank you all in person too. So…I know this isn’t really the same as when Julis invited us all to Lieseltania last year, but if you can make it, I’d be so happy if you could all come and visit us during the winter vacation…”

  At that, Ayato and the others each exchanged uncertain looks.

  Julis was the first to speak up. “Hmm… I’m grateful, but I’ll have to decline,” she said, shaking her head sadly. “The Gryps has made me all too aware of just how far I still have to go if I’m going to win the Lindvolus next year. I need to get stronger. Which is why I plan to spend the vacation training.”

  “Really?” Ayato asked. “Does that mean you’re not even going back to Lieseltania?”

  “Ah, my brother’s keeping me up-to-date on everything. And Flora, too,” Julis answered with a somewhat forlorn smile.

  Whatever they were telling her, it must have been in relation to her own wish as a champion of the Gryps.

  That wish was to greatly expand the authority of the king in order to pull Lieseltania out from under the thumb of the IEFs—but, of course, that wouldn’t be an easy feat. At any rate, it would unmistakably be to the disadvantage of the foundations.

  Naturally, given that Julis had already publicly announced what she wanted, there was no way they could openly ignore it—that would be against the rules of the Festa. But as with the furor that Claudia had brought down on herself—although strictly speaking, Lieseltania probably wasn’t worth as much as Claudia’s information—if the loss outweighed the gain, and push came to shove, it wasn’t clear how the foundations would react.

  As such, Julis’s brother, Jolbert, seemed to be working things out behind the scenes. Winners of the Festa had one year to formally request their wish, and Julis intended
to spend that time hammering out the details while maintaining a suitable power balance among the various foundations.

  “…I’d really like to go as well, but I have something I can’t get out of,” Saya added regretfully.

  “Ah, you mean that Lux development facility that you mentioned?”

  “Yes. They’re moving it to a new location right around the start of the break. So I should probably be there for it.”

  Among Asterisk’s six schools, only Allekant Académie had formal Lux development facilities. The other schools generally received their Luxes from their parent foundation and only had sufficient equipment to adjust and configure what they were given.

  It wasn’t as if knowledge of Seidoukan’s unofficial facilities had been leaked to the public, but thanks to the school’s successful joint development of the new Rect Luxes with Allekant, the decision had been made to come to a more formal arrangement.

  Incidentally, Saya, now a member of the Society for the Study of Meteoric Engineering, had already managed to secure herself a factory for her own exclusive use.

  “This is still confidential,” Claudia began with a chuckle, “but Saya’s father, Souichi Sasamiya, is going to take up an expert advisory role at the Matériel Department for the next academic year.”

  “Huh? Really?”

  This was the first that Ayato had heard about it. Nonetheless, given that Souichi had in the past worked with Galaxy’s research institution, there was nothing particularly unusual about this turn of events.

  “We’re planning to set up a direct line with him soon,” Saya added with a glowing smile.

  For her wish after winning the Gryps, Saya had immediately settled on money.

  Her father, Souichi, had lost his body in an accident, and his mind was now integrated into his laboratory in Germany. The maintenance alone required a considerable, continuous supply of funds, and while it wasn’t as if the Sasamiyas had been living in need thus far, Saya had no doubt wanted backup resources for whatever the future might bring.

  On top of that, Saya was interested in developing her own Luxes, and she seemed to have put some of her newfound capital toward her own uses, too.

  “I’m terribly sorry, but my schedule is rather tight for the winter vacation as well…,” Claudia said with a bitter smile as she folded her hands together in her lap.

  Since the end of the tournament, Claudia seemed to be even busier than usual. Apparently her discussions with Galaxy were picking up pace.

  “I—I see… You all sound very busy…” Kirin’s shoulders slumped with disappointment.

  They each had their own reasons, of course, but she mustn’t have been expecting all of them to turn down the invitation.

  At that moment, she timidly glanced up at Ayato. She stared at him with almost-tearful, imploring eyes, like those of an abandoned puppy.

  “Um, ah, I mean… Ayato…h-how about you?”

  Ayato found himself at the center of an indescribable vortex of pressure as everyone silently turned toward him. “I’m sorry, Kirin,” he said with a shake of his head. “I have to go home, too… I got a message from my dad. He said he needs to talk about something.”

  “Oh…” At this response, Kirin closed her eyes, slumping back in her chair. The shock, it seemed, was too much for her to bear.

  Ayato was struck by a wave of guilt, but given the situation, there was nothing to be done.

  “A message from home…?” Julis asked carefully. “About your sister?”

  “Probably. I’ve got something I need to discuss with him myself, so it’s good enough timing, I suppose…,” Ayato answered, his mind going back to his meeting with Madiath Mesa the other day.

  “Well now, sit down,” Madiath Mesa said with an affable smile, as he welcomed Ayato into his office at the Festa Executive Committee headquarters.

  A vague sense of nervousness came over Ayato as he took a seat on the sofa. “…All right.”

  He had already met Madiath face-to-face several times, so he was hardly a stranger, and yet Ayato couldn’t help but feel slightly on edge.

  “Let’s get down to business. Your wish this time is to wake up your sister, correct?”

  “Yes.”

  Madiath, sitting across from him, with his hands folded, leaned forward. “I’ll start with our conclusions—the result of our investigations… It seems waking her, in and of itself, is by no means impossible.”

  “Really?!” Before he knew it, Ayato had begun to rise to his feet in excitement.

  Madiath merely looked back at him with a troubled smile. “Stay calm, now. Let me go through everything in order.”

  “Y-yes, of course… Sorry,” Ayato responded as he sat back down.

  “Firstly, it goes without saying that the person most knowledgeable about your sister’s condition is Director Jan Korbel,” Madiath began slowly. “He hasn’t been able to find a way to wake her over these past five years, but now that the conditions have changed, you could say that a new possibility has revealed itself—a new form of treatment that he would like to attempt.”

  “The conditions?”

  “If it’s to fulfill the wish of one of our Festa champions, the integrated enterprise foundations will support you fully. Whether its funds, facilities, staff, or anything else that you might require, all of it will be put at your disposal.”

  Of course.

  Thus far, Director Korbel had been treating her out of his sense of responsibility to help those in need, so there were no doubt limits to the options available to him.

  “That said, we’re only talking about a possibility here. The Director tells me that this new form of treatment is still only theoretical. Moreover, it sounds like it would probably take quite some time. This is, of course, outside my area of expertise, and I can’t claim to understand the details, but it sounds like it involves analyzing the junction pattern of the ability that she set on herself and then dispelling the mana. That would be a time-consuming process, apparently. According to the Director, it would take at least a few years…quite possibly a decade.”

  “A decade…?!” That was enough to send Ayato, having just gotten his hopes up, flailing once more into the depths of despair.

  Of course, it was undeniably good news to hear there was now a chance of waking her, and yet…

  “Well… There is another option available to you,” Madiath continued, with a faint smile.

  “Huh?”

  “As it happens, one other individual has stepped forward to offer their assistance.”

  Ayato knew at once what he was getting at.

  “…Magnum Opus, you mean?”

  “Oh? She did say her name would suffice to remind you, but it sounds like you didn’t even need that.” Madiath nodded in admiration. “But yes, I’m talking about Miss Rowlands from Allekant Académie. She claims that if you fulfill her request, she will be able to wake your sister without delay. And our own investigations suggest she isn’t merely boasting.”

  Ayato cast Madiath a glaring look. “Is it really befitting of the Festa Executive Committee Chairman to consult such a dangerous person?”

  Relying on Magnum Opus meant giving her free rein to continue her other pursuits.

  Rowlands’s so-called research had already swallowed up Julis’s childhood friend, Orphelia Landlufen. Ayato couldn’t allow another tragedy like that to befall someone else.

  “Dangerous…? Ah, you’re talking about her experiments? Well…” Madiath stared at him in apparent surprise, before leaning back into his chair as he loosened his collar. “They certainly are rather inhumane. And yet…what’s the matter?”

  Ayato found himself shuddering at the sudden iciness that had engulfed Madiath’s voice and countenance.

  “Befitting of the Festa Executive Committee Chairman, you say…? Hah, quite the opposite, Amagiri. It’s precisely because I am the Executive Committee Chairman that I’m obliged to listen to what she has to say. Just as the winners of the Festa may be granted any
wish they desire, so too must we be ready to deal with any possible wish that happens to come our way. You don’t honestly think that all our champions are as noble-minded as Miss Riessfeld, interested only in helping others, now, do you? Wealth, fame, women, revenge…people hide all kinds of desires that they would never reveal to the outside world. And we have always done our utmost to grant every last one of them. Of course, there are always those we can’t publicly be seen to play a hand in, and, of course, those that are simply impossible to realize. But in the end, it’s always a question of degree more than anything else.”

  “That’s…”

  There was no arguing that the Festa—or rather, all of Asterisk—was that kind of place, that it existed for that very reason. And it was true that many wishes granted to winners were never made public.

  Even Ayato understood that—but only now did it truly feel real to him.

  “Don’t misunderstand me. We are on your side here, not hers. I’m merely pointing out to you, after investigating all your options, what looks to us like the optimal solution. Whichever course of action you choose is up to you.”

  Madiath’s eyes seemed to bore into him, but there was no falsehood in them. Ayato understood that intuitively.

  And so Ayato couldn’t bring himself to respond.

  “I may as well ask about her request… Am I correct in assuming that she wants her penalty revoked? Well, we can always ignore that and simply compel her to assist you. That’s always an option. And yet…I would caution against that in your case. I’m sure I don’t need to explain why.”

  “…Because she’s the only one with the necessary skills, so success or failure is up to her. Right?”

  If they tried to force Magnum Opus to do what they wanted, and it ended in failure, it would all be over. The deal stood only so long as they each had something to gain from it.

  “Exactly. You might use the power of the foundations as something of a threat as well. We could set it up so that if she failed, she would never have that penalty of hers withdrawn again, for example… But I’m guessing someone of her disposition wouldn’t appreciate that.”