On the screen, Brother aimed his CAD, which resembled a large handgun, at the enemy soldiers. In his line of sight, the enemy soldiers turned to dust one after another.
"The exception that Tatsuya didn't completely lose... that is the answer. The only complete impulse remaining within him is sibling love. The emotion to love and protect his sister, meaning you. That is the only clear, genuine emotion left within him."
I wanted to raise my voice and interrupt Mother's words midway. I wanted to say, "I shouldn't have asked, I didn't want to know." But I knew I couldn't possibly be allowed such a thing. Perhaps that's why I unconsciously covered my mouth with both hands. Or perhaps it was a conditioned reflex. I was so overwhelmed that no scream could escape, so perhaps my voice wouldn't have come out even without covering my mouth.
"Tatsuya knows himself well. 'Considers precious' likely refers to that. He only recognizes me as 'Mother,' and the filial love that should naturally accompany that relationship does not exist. The only person Tatsuya genuinely considers precious right now is you, Miyuki-san. What happened earlier, his helping me, was merely a side effect. Or perhaps he judged that you would be sad if I died."
"Did you... intentionally choose for it to be that way, Mother?"
Though I was asking the question myself, it sounded as if someone else were speaking. It even felt as if a not-me was moving my body and making me ask.
"I didn't quite intend it that specifically. However, if only one impulse could be left due to capacity limitations, I believed it should be the affection directed towards you. After all, you will spend far more time with Tatsuya than I will."
"And did you tell... no, did you tell him that?"
"Of course, I told him. He, despite appearances, is quite particular about common sense, you see. There's no need for him to trouble himself over trivial things like being unable to feel affection for his parent."
As she said that, I thought I caught a faint glimpse of Mother's anguish over being unable to feel affection for her child.
"Is there anything else you wish to ask?"
"Then one more thing... What was the reason Mother raised her voice earlier during Auntie's phone call?"
Mother was always calm, always spoke elegantly, yet at that moment, she had raised her voice and seemed to lose her composure.
"That child... Maya has always said she wants to take Tatsuya in as her own child, as a Yotsuba. Even when Tatsuya was chosen as the subject for the Artificial Magician Project, she opposed it—that's how extraordinarily interested Maya is in Tatsuya."
Come to think of it, long ago, when I visited Auntie for greetings, I felt that Auntie's interest was directed not at me but at Brother... At the time, I just thought a child Guardian was unusual, but that's what it was about, then.
"And regarding the content of the conversation, Maya is now seriously trying to adopt Tatsuya as... no, she wants Tatsuya as her own child. To the extent of championing Tatsuya as the next head of the Yotsuba family."
"That person, as a candidate for the next head of the Yotsuba family...?"
That would mean Brother's position would be equal to mine... no, if that came to pass, Auntie would likely designate Brother as the next head, putting him above me. Does this mean Brother would no longer be looked down upon within the Yotsuba family?
"Well, if Maya and Tatsuya were to fight, Tatsuya would almost certainly win, and perhaps she doesn't want Tatsuya as an enemy. But even so, making Tatsuya a candidate for the next head... I wonder about that."
"I could never hope to understand Lady Maya's thoughts..."
"You're right... Even I—even I, her twin sister—can't understand what that child thinks... So there's no way Honami-san would understand either."
As Mother sighed in exasperation, Brother aimed his large handgun-shaped CAD at an enemy soldier on the screen and pulled the trigger. Of course, the enemy soldiers weren't just taking it; they were attempting to retaliate, but before their counterattacks could reach Brother, they vanished without a trace.
"(Ah!)"
An enemy soldier, abandoning his attack on Brother, changed his target to another soldier and attacked. The next moment, just when I thought a hole had been pierced through the soldier's body, that soldier moved as if nothing had happened. Brother must have activated magic, aiming the CAD in his left hand.
The enemy's turret spat fire.
It didn't hit Brother.
Brother aimed his right hand.
The enemy vanished. It was like a tokusatsu film.
An allied soldier fell.
Brother aimed his left hand.
With just that, the fallen soldier stood up as if nothing had happened.
The images displayed on the screen, even to me, who was more deeply accustomed to magic than others—not just ordinary people but the vast majority of magicians—lacked realism and truly felt like a movie.
But that was the impression of an irresponsible bystander.
For the soldiers fighting alongside Brother, it was unexpected good fortune. A dreamlike situation where injuries, even fatal ones, healed instantly.
And for the enemy army facing Brother, it was an unforeseen catastrophe. A nightmare where enemies they'd defeated rose again, and they themselves were erased without leaving a corpse.
Transformed into a demon, Brother strode across the battlefield. Solely for retaliation because I had been shot. If this had been predetermined seven years ago, when Brother was six, then how could I ever repay him? What could I possibly give back?
At this moment, even this very life, I had received from Brother.
I had originally planned for Maya to take him in as an adopted child in the final stage of doting on Tatsuya, but the original work beat me to it... I'm very disappointed.
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