“Good!” Midoriko complimented James after he completed the exchange. “Your stance has improved considerably.”

  “Thank you, Sensei,” James replied, between laboured breaths. His armour made everything easier, but Midoriko had insisted he train without it, to build real stamina. “But those ninjas still managed to evade me easily.”

  In any other school, mentioning that you had been fighting ninjas would have resulted in scornful disbelief, or possibly a quick trip to the police. Midoriko just nodded, as if ninjas were an everyday occurrence.

  “Ninjas can be tricky,” she acknowledged. “Hazusu or kawasu, they are masters of them both.”

  James nodded, despite not being sure how to translate those terms. He understood they meant ‘evade’ but with different connotations. “How do I counter them, Sensei?”

  “You need to use maki-otoshi or kaeshi,” Midoriko explained.

  She showed him the techniques, moving her sword as delicately as a calligraphy brush. She demonstrated both how the ninjas had been evading his blade and how to counter it.

  “The sword is faster than the eye, so use your sword to find their line,” she explained. James nodded in understanding.

  “But which should I use in any particular situation?” he asked.

  Midoriko shrugged. “Both will work, if performed well,” she said. “Which one is better in the moment—you will have to let instincts be your guide.”

  She practised with him some more before the time for their session ran out.

  “Thank you for your instruction, Sensei,” James said, bowing.

  “Get some rest tonight,” she told him. “Don’t forget that you have the first hour patrolling the festival.”

  “Yes, Sensei,” James said, trying not to wince. All the other students were getting the morning off to attend, but the PMC’s work was never done. At least it was only the first hour.

  “How was practice?” Suki greeted him with a warm smile at dinner.

  “Exhausting,” James answered honestly. “How was…”

  He hesitated, looking around to see who was listening. He was losing track of whom he was keeping secrets from. Junko and the rest of her clique weren’t sitting at the table; she preferred to hold court in a different location if there wasn’t Idol Club business to discuss. It should be safe.

  “…learning Magic?” he finished.

  It had turned out that deciphering Tan Wira’s journals had required more than learning another language and unravelling his codes. The notes assumed an understanding of the practice of Chinese sorcery beyond that of a beginner. Suki had thrown herself into the task wholeheartedly, but progress was going to be slow.

  “Poorly,” Suki admitted. “I think I have to concede that I can’t actually practice magic.”

  “She’s got no soul,” Harue explained. “I knew those things had to be good for something other than snacks.”

  James glared at her for her insensitivity, but Suki just sighed.

  “That seems to be correct,” she conceded. “I can draw the diagrams—the simple ones at least—but I can’t push Qi through them.”

  James thought about it. “If pushing is all that you need,” he mused, “Maybe you just need an assistant? Someone who is too dumb to understand the diagrams, but can manage the push for you?”

  “Hey, I understand the magic just fine!” Harue protested. “I just have better things to do than poring over musty old diaries.”

  “I was talking about me,” James said.

  “Oh, well, then I forgive you for calling me stupid. If you wake up with cockroaches in your bed, that wasn’t me.”

  “Are you sure, James?” Suki asked. “You’re so busy with the PMC and the oni…”

  “It’s fine. I’m starting to get used to the training, and I’m not contributing anything useful to the interrogation. Professor Toei can handle that without me.”

  Shugen had proved to be a treasure trove of archeological information. He didn’t know how, but he’d been sealed in the cave a few years after the Dragon God-king’s defeat. Professor Toei was intent on wringing every possible detail of that time out of the poor oni.

  Despite all his bluster, he turned out to be not much more than a footsoldier in the God-king’s armies. He had fought the Jade Warrior, but he was not so powerful that the man—Professor Toei had been very interested in the testimony that there was a man—had needed the giant robot to defeat him.

  “Well, if you’re sure,” Suki said doubtfully. “I could use the help. I can’t promise it will be anything but dull, though.”

  “I’m sure we’ll find some way to make it interesting,” James’s mouth said before he could stop it.

  Suki blushed and looked down at her food. “That’s… probably true,” she mumbled.

  “Ah, that’s—” James’s mouth froze up, and he looked over at Harue, awkwardly trying to change the subject.

  “There had better not be cockroaches in my bed,” he growled.

  Harue grinned and spread her arms, palms up, in a show of innocence. “I’ve been right here the entire time,” she pointed out. “Becoming a cop has made you paranoid.”

  * * *

  James had patrol the next morning. Suki probably shouldn’t have accompanied him, but there… okay, there were rules against it, but Midoriko was pretty lax about talking while on duty.

  “I don’t see a Kotodama stand,” Suki said as they toured the area. Despite being a school event, the festival was being held on the open ground between the town and the main beach. It was close enough that the captive alien’s squid stand was doing brisk business.

  The festival itself was comprised of a swathe of high-tech corporations, mostly Japanese. None of them had been content with showing up with a table and a few posters. Technological demonstrations were strewn about the grounds with wild abandon.

  It said something about the clout of the Academy that all these companies were prepared to spend this much just on the off-chance that an Aramara student would want to sign up with one of their companies.

  “Do you think they bothered applying?” James asked, “Because I can’t see them getting accepted.”

  “Probably not,” Suki agreed. “I never know what to think with this academy, though. For all the declarations of safety, they can seem extraordinarily lax sometimes.”

  “There’s stuff you don’t see,” James told her, thinking back to the boats being pulled under the water, “But I’m here to protect you, specifically.”

  Suki blushed. “Thank you for your kind words, Sir Knight,” she said. James had to look away and pretend to pay attention to the stand they were passing. Which was by…Haneda Aerospace Systems?

  “What even is this?” he asked, watching a second-year student gyrating on a platform suspended from a crane.

  “It’s a zero-G mobility platform,” the stand attendant said, handing him a pamphlet. “The low-energy thrusters keep the platform stable despite Hanami’s… activities. Would you like to try?”

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  “Ah, no… I’m on duty,” James said, excusing himself from the sales patter. Suki giggled as he rejoined her.

  “Some protector you are, leaving me all alone to flirt with a booth babe,” she teased.

  “I wasn’t!” James protested.

  “A likely story. Oh, hello Junko!”

  Suki’s fellow idol was also touring the festival in the company of her two followers, Shimada Kaori and Toudou Ema. James was amused to see that Ema was also on duty and doing the exact same thing as he was.

  He greeted the trio and then waited while Suki and the other three idols exchanged more effusive greetings.

  “So, do you have an interest in technology?” Suki asked. They started walking again, having merged the two groups. James and Ema automatically took positions at opposite sides, both to provide a watch and maintain visibility from as many directions as possible.

  “Given my family's position in the Ogasawara Group, I have to keep up with the industry, on at least a superficial level,” Junko said loftily.

  “I see. Does your family have any representatives here today?” Suki asked. James couldn’t tell if she was just making conversation; she seemed perfectly sincere.

  “Some of the companies are Ogasawara subsidiaries,” Junko admitted. She pointed further down the row. “Suzuhara Mechatronics, for example. But Father prefers to maintain a low profile.”

  The next stand they came to had a name that was vaguely familiar to James. It seemed to fluster Junko.

  “I suppose I should thank them for handling that matter with some discretion,” she muttered.

  Seeing James’s confusion, Suki stepped close and murmured, “Kanzaki-Volkswerk is the manufacturer of the Frames Junko ordered.”

  “Hello!” the booth attendant said, smiling warmly. Not a booth babe. “Would you kids like to go on a free boat ride?”

  She pointed down to the beach, where what looked like a mobile home was driving at full speed into the ocean. Just as it crashed into the first wave, though, it transformed into a sleek motor launch.

  James had never seen the like.

  We’re living in the future, he told himself. Though, as he thought about it, the uses for something like this must be pretty limited.

  “I just need to get your names for insurance purposes,” the lady said, holding out a data tablet.

  “I suppose a boat ride might be fun,” Junko allowed, taking the offered table. “Can we all go together?”

  “Of course!” the woman said.

  James hesitated before filling in his name, wondering if he was allowed to go on rides while on duty. Ema had already signed, though, so he just shrugged. Midoriko would probably allow it.

  “Fantastic!” the woman gushed as they handed back the tablet. Was it James’s imagination that her smile became a little more fixed when she glanced at it? Or was he getting paranoid like Harue had said? “The boat will be back in just a bit. I’ll have someone look after you until then.”

  James frowned. He was about to say… something, he wasn’t sure what, about her expression, when a long, lanky figure burst out of a tent behind the stand. He almost stumbled, but lurched upright again and staggered over to where they were.

  “Hello, I’m Sebastian Klein,” the young man—barely into his early twenties—said with a charming smile. His long, curly hair fell over his face, and he brushed it back with an apologetic grin.

  “I’m… Ogasawara Junko,” Junko said, blinking up at him.

  “I’m very happy to meet you, Junko-chan,” Sebastian said. He took Junko’s hand with such poise that, for a moment, James thought he was going to kiss it. He didn’t, giving her a firm handshake while looking into her eyes.

  “And the rest of you, of course,” he continued, sweeping his smile across the group like a stage light before refocusing on Junko. “Why don’t we move to the hospitality tent while we wait?”

  He didn’t wait for an answer, drawing Junko back toward the tent he had emerged from. He hadn’t let go of her hand. Or she hadn’t let go of his, James couldn’t tell.

  The rest of the group followed the pair into the tent. It contained a table and some stylishly comfortable chairs.

  “Please, take a seat,” Sebastian gestured at the chairs. He held one out for Junko.

  “I’m terribly sorry about all the mess,” he said as they seated themselves. He started rummaging in some storage containers. “It’s been ridiculously hectic since we flew in this morning.”

  James looked around, confused. The tent was spotless, the table clean and bare, at least until Sebastian slid some pastries and small plates in front of them. There was no one else in the tent.

  “Help yourselves,” Sebastian said. “Would you like iced tea? Or a soda?”

  “These pastries are from a Tokyo bakery,” Ema said. She almost sounded accusatory.

  The girls all stared at the wrapper. James was aware that there was a hierarchy of bakeries in the eyes of ojou-samas. He had no idea if their knowledge extended as far as Tokyo, but he supposed it must. They hadn’t spent all their lives on Aramara Island, after all.

  “Yes, we flew in from there this morning,” Sebastian said with a yawn. “Boulangerie Shirogane, do you know it?”

  “Of course,” Junko said. From the way that they all reached for a pastry, James thought that Boulangerie Shirogane must be high enough to impress.

  Sebastian brought their drinks—his fridge had an impressive selection—and took a seat directly opposite Junko. Apparently, so he could treat her to the full force of his smile. It wasn’t ineffective.

  Finally flustered, Junko took out a fan to cover her face and looked away. “I don’t know if you’re familiar with the incident, Mr Klein-san—”

  “Call me Sebastian, please. I’m just an intern, hardly worthy of such formality.”

  “Seb—Sebastian-san, then.” Junko swallowed. “There was an incident involving the mistaken purchase of some Frames.”

  “Oh, that,” Sebastian said, waving dismissively, “Please, put it out of your mind. I can tell you, unofficially, that the company deeply regrets putting you through all that. Corporate bureaucracy being what it is, I can’t make it official, but you have my deep, personal apologies for the whole matter.”

  “Apologise to me?” Junko exclaimed. “But I was at fault!”

  “Not at all,” Sebastian chuckled disarmingly. “Believe me, Engineering was very angry at Sales when they learned your machine had been sent back.”

  “But why? I did violate the warranty.”

  “Those terms and conditions are for people who damage their machines,” Sebastian said. “Not for geniuses like you that manage to improve them.”

  “Oh, I’m not any sort of genius,” Junko declaimed, “Wait—improved?”

  “Yes, I’d love to have a more in-depth discussion about the modifications you made to the gyro-stabilisation—”

  “Oh, I didn’t make any modifications,” Junko said. “Matsuri-san did all that.”

  “Oh, I see.” Sebastian’s smile didn’t waver, but James thought he heard the slightest hitch in the man’s voice. “Do you think you could introduce us? Perhaps she’d like a ride on the boat?”

  They still got the boat ride. It was a lot of fun, crashing through the waves at speed. The transformed boat was a real cruiser, not just a motorhome with a sealed hull. Then they transformed and drove right out of the surf.

  Sebastian remained charming throughout the ride, but he stopped focusing on Junko once she had put him in touch with Matsuri.

  “Do you know,” Junko confessed to Suki, once the joyride was over and they’d moved on, “I think he might have been hitting on me!”

  “Oh, he definitely was,” Suki agreed. “Does he have a chance?” she teased.

  “Don’t be ridiculous!” Junko protested. “He was so much older than me—at least twenty!”

  “Isn’t it better with an older man, though?” Kaori suggested diffidently. “More experienced. And Sebastian was dreamy…”

  All three of the girls sighed.

  “I don’t think it matters,” Suki said. “For one thing, you’re all idols, so a relationship was out of the question.”

  “But—” Junko started. She looked at James. “But you—”

  “For another, I think he might have only been interested in your technical expertise,” Suki added, making the words sound salacious.

  Junko huffed with disappointment. “He did seem very interested in Matsuri-san, didn’t he?”

  “Should we warn her?” Ema asked.

  “She’ll be fine,” Junko said dismissively. “For one thing, Sebastian-san is a representative of a major corporation. I’m sure he wouldn’t do anything untoward.

  The other two girls sighed.

  “For another, Matsuri-san was with Shion-san, and I think she plans to bring her along.”

  The three girls, Suki included, winced in unison.

  “Well, now I feel sorry for the guy,” James said.

  They split up after that, when James reminded Ema that they shouldn’t be bunching up their patrol. Truthfully, he didn’t care; he just wanted to spend more time alone with Suki. There wasn’t anything nefarious going on at the festival.

  Or so he thought, until he saw Harue and was reminded that danger lurked in the most innocuous of places.

  “Hey! Just who I was looking for!” Harue declared.

  “Why?” James asked cautiously. He could feel the rest of his time with Suki slipping away.

  “You’ll never guess who I ran into,” Harue said. “C’mon!”

  She dragged James into the next aisle of stands, practically throwing him into the path of one of the tourists wandering around.

  “Do you remember this guy?” she asked James.

  James didn’t. Although the Hawaiian shirt was ringing a bell.

  The stranger jerked back and pointed at Harue. “I remember you!” he said. “You stole our pizza!”

  “That’s how you remember that night?” Harue said scornfully.

  The man looked at James, his eyes flicking to the sword at James’s hip.

  “Ah, kuso! It’s a cop!” The man turned to run, but got exactly one step before Harue tripped him. He went down in the sand with a yelp.

  “Don’t be alarmed!” James called out the small crowd around them that had noticed the incident. “This is PMC business!”

  That worked better on school grounds than it did on this mixed crowd, but enough bystanders reacted properly to inhibit a response from the others.

  “Harue, you can’t just trip a guy for—what are you doing?”

  Harue had grabbed one of the guy's fingers and was pulling him up by it.

  “Ut-ut-ut! Stop it, you pizza thief! Ow!”

  He wasn’t coming quietly, but he was complying. James gasped as a memory was triggered by the sight.

  “You remember Toji, right?” Harue asked. “He’s a yakuza!” Harue declared, confirming James’s sudden revelation. “He’s one of the guys who kidnapped Junko!”

  “Ow-ow-ow—I haven’t done nothin’!” Toji shouted. “Leggo of my finger!”

  “How is that—let go of his finger, Harue. You’re not PMC.”

  Harue sniffed, but complied. She made a point of standing behind the man, who glared over his shoulder at her.

  “That’s police brutality, that's what that is. I could sue!”

  “I could care,” Harue replied.

  “How did you get on the island?” James demanded.

  “What? I just took the ferry, just like everyone else,” Toji said. “It’s allowed, I never did nothin’.”

  “They’re supposed to stop criminals from even getting on the ferry!” James exclaimed.

  “I ain’t a criminal!” the man said proudly. “I’m a distraction.”