Records of Magic

In the year 2069, the Japanese Imperial Hierarchy, unknown location in Japan.

Ten Master Clan Conference was always a big thing ever it happened.

Though with the establishment of the Japanese Imperial Hierarchy, things got a bit different, as previously, every Clan during the Master Clans Conference, each of the Houses among the Ten Master Clans is equal in status; thus, there is no hierarchy.

This is made possible because the meeting is held at a round table.

Right now, four Clans had far superior position, even among their peers.

Kudou Clan, with the strongest military and political background, under his leadership, became one of the strongest clans not only in the entire Japan but also in the entire world. And this was not counting their Shields Branch in the USNA.

The second and third were the Tsuchimikado and Dairenji Clans.

Both of them were Ancient Onmyōdō Clans who had been separated from mortal matters for far long and preferred to keep things for themselves.

Also, among all the Clans, their numbers were especially small, even smaller than the Yotsuba Clan. Practicioners of the Onmyōdō were rare in the modern age, even despite the fact that in the past, they were rather common and were at the peak of their strength.

Though what made them fearsome were an enormous number of Shikigami Familiars that literary numbered in hundreds, several of whom had firepower compared to the Strategic-Class Magicians.

Previously, they didn't want to have anything to do with politics and what was going on in the world. Still, surprisingly, one visit from Yotsuba Genzou changed that all, and both Clans came out of their seclusion.

What was worrying was that, in all cases, Yotsuba, Dairenji, and Tsuchimikado acted as one entity on all matters. The common interest that was binding all of them was the strive for their very own survival, not to mention the Dairenji Clan and Tsuchimikado Clan, as two ancient Onmyōdō Clans, were also aware of the impending doom that the world was facing.

Especially the Tsuchimikado Clan was descended from one of the greatest Magicians that were ever born on the planet Earth, Abe no Seimei, the first Imperial Onmyōji and the founder of the Imperial Style of the Onmyōdō. 

Finally, the Yotsuba Clan.

At the heart of this gathering was the Yotsuba Clan, renowned for its unparalleled strength in both military might and strategic magic. Led by Yotsuba Maya, a formidable figure even among the esteemed heads of the Ten Master Clans, the Yotsuba Clan's influence spanned continents, far outshining the other of the Ten Master Clans due to their sudden raise in strength.

Yotsuba Maya, despite her position as Clan Head, chose to send her fiancé Kiritsugu as her representative to the conference—a decision laden with both strategic calculation and personal dynamics.

Even before the assassin, mercenary Magus Killer, was said to marry Yotsuba Maya; their Clan was known as the strongest force among the Ten Master Clans for their individual and collective strength.

With the addition of another Strategic-ClassMagician, Yotsuba Clan housed two Strategic-Class Magicians; three of you count Yotsuba Maya, who didn't properly master her Strategic-Class Magic.

Today, Kiritsugu attended the Ten Master Clans Conference in place of the Yotsuba Clan representative.

In the event that a Clan Head is unable to attend the conference, a substitute is allowed to take their place, Maya was currently the Clan Head, as Genzou retired and gave his responsibilities to his daughter, but she just didn't feel like going on and sent him in her place.

'Maybe I shouldn't have joked about her age?'

Thought Kiritsugu as he was wondering if his fianceé wasn't actually punishing him, though he didn't dwell too much on this topic, as he observed people entering the Hotel where the Ten Master Clans Conference was taking place.

Not many had the courage to talk with him due to his reputation as an assassin and extra ruthless person who de facto killed thousands. Not that it bothered him; at least he had less trouble because he hated dealing with all of these pretentious people.

'In the end, all of you are just a means to an end.'

He thought as he observed the Head of the Saegusa Clan entering the room. Saegusa Koichi Senior looked at him before quickly averting his gaze.

'Spinless coward... at least we know from where his son inherited it.'

Thought Kiritsugu before he was interrupted from his train of thought.

"Interesting, isn't it? All of them celebrating and enjoying the few minutes of false glory of unknowingly remaining unimportant characters in the backround.."

Said a soft male voice as Kiritsugu turned around to see Dairenji Shidou.

Dairenji Shidou was Head of the Darienji Clan after marrying the previous Clan Head's daughter. He wore something similar butler outfit, as he wore a white shirt, a purple vest, with a yellow tie with some gem on the tie. On his right eye, he wore a monocle that was magically enhanced.

"If we don't get strong enough in time, and achieve at least 5th-Order, then our plans are in vain preferable though would be someone who could at least contend with the greater powers, but that is a pipe dream..."

The first three Orders were known collectively as Mortal Realm, which was basically for the ordinary Mortals. People who reached these two Realms were still considered as average Mortal Lifeforms and were still considered as rather ordinary.

From the 4th-Order to the 6th-Order, be it Magicians or any other Professionals or creatures, were collectively known as the Hero Realm. These personas were each Hero on their own, people capable of overturning disasters into blessings and fighting against the terrible fate that awaited them.

From the 7th Order, Professionals were known as the Champions, who were the pioneers of the Eras; in the stronger worlds, they were the leaders of their very own nations, and their powers were legendary, passed from generation to generation, always being the inspiration for the later generations and guardians of the entire nations for time to come.

"I have gone through some records obtained from the Toudou Clan and also ones from the ruins of Camelot, and as it appears, most of the worlds have someone on that level, if not higher, as guardians."

Kiritsugu said gravely as he looked at Dairenji Shidou.

Right now, from the Japanese Imperial Hierarchy, only the Yotsuba Clan, Tsuchimikado Clan, Dairenji Clan, Kudou Clan, and Imperial army were aware of the full extent of the Project Exodus and worked on it collectively.

The size of Project Exodus was so enormous that it was impossible even for them alone to realize this, so sooner or later, the rest of the Ten Master Clans would be inducted into the Project.

"At worst, we could perform a ritual ceremony and summon Shikigami with that level of power. Sacrificing one or two smaller countries should be no problem."

Dairenji Shidou said with his typical creepy vibe, as Kiritsugu had a feel to facepalm right here and now.

"Why does everything you release from your mouth sound like a second-rate villain from American movies?"

Questioned another male voice that approached them.

"Ts... Yasazumi, you killjoy."

Tsuchimikado Yasazumi was an acting head of the Tschuchimikado Clan. He was a young-looking man with sharp features, wearing a dark grey kimono and glasses.

"Though I don't want to support Shidou's villain tendencies, he might be right. If nobody from our Clans could reach at least the 5th-Order Magician, then this would be the only choice to secure a foothold in the new world. Earth is lost; the moment the barrier cracks, we all know that we will either die or become slaves."

Stated Kiritsugu as he erected around them a small soundless barrier to prevent others from hearing their conversation.

Unfortunately, the foundation of Earth is weak and short in time; that was one thing that they currently didn't really have.

From what Kiritsugu saw in one of the journals recovered from Camelot, those who prey on other worlds are at least above the Realm of Champions, often they were at least Demigods, Evil Gods, mighty Sorcerers who broke the constraints of their very own mortality, and beings or the various factions like the Burning Legion.

Beings like that could easily destroy the entire world, like planet Earth with ease, so one world was a piece of cake. If some world is invaded, then it is highly possible that someone on the 8th-Order being or higher is initiating the invasion and pulling the strings.

And as the Earth became valuable for particular type of beings, because it had recently undergone Psionization, and thus for some very powerful beings in the Universe, it had great value as material for Advancement.

It would be bad luck if one wanted to say it all in one word.

Earth had just bad luck, as it was located pretty close to some very powerful worlds, whose rulers immediately noticed its psionization and decided to take the planet for themselves.

"Indeed, based on what we know, even becoming Ranker is a hassle, and in the current environment and our degraded evolutionary process, we are at a serious disadvantage, especially when it comes to the condensation of the Psion Core, necessary for the feat."

Tsuchimikado Yasazumi stated plainly about their not-that-good-looking situation.

To become a Star-Order Magician in their Magic System, one needed to awaken their Magic Circuits that were dormant or construct them if they were non-existent. For the people of Earth, for the 99% of the population, it would be the second choice because they were not born with the Magic Circuits. 

Magic Circuits are a pseudo-nervous system that spreads itself through the human body and what qualifies a person to be a Star-Order Magician, obtaining far greater strength than before.

It was noted that Star-Order Magicians who mastered Strategic-Class Magic could cast them without any support and could destroy entire cities and flatten mountains.

The Magic Circuits have two basic functions; one is to convert ambient Psions and Pushions into Magical Energy, and another is to allow their owner to access Thaumaturgical Foundations.

Due to these changes, that were so significant that one may even call them Evolution, Star-Order Magicians were entirely different beings from the ordinary lifeforms and were way better attuned to the existence of Magic. 

And to reach the Orders above, above the Star Order Magician, one needed to create and condense something like a Magic Core in their bodies, but such knowledge was already lost to the people of Earth.

As they were talking, more and more people arrived, be it from the 10 Master Clans or from the 18 Assistant Hou,ses or other representatives of the minor Clans that won't be present at the meeting itself.

Instead, they would be waiting in the lobby, as every decision made in the Ten Master Clans Conference would be life-changing for the entire nation.

Kiritsugu could see many unfamiliar and familiar faces at the same time and was already thinking about when this thing would end, as it was starting to become more and more annoying with each passing second.

After the Head of the Juumonji Clan, Juumonji Gai, arrived, the meeting could start, as everyone was already seated in their places.

Kiritsugu nodded at the Juumonji Gai, as the entire Juumonji Clan was one of the more agreeable Clans in Japan, mainly because they were a more honest bunch and not dirty backstabbers with countless side intentions, like most of the room.

Among the Magician Clans in the Japanese Imperial Hierarchy, most of them cared only for their benefit. At the same time, some of them created alliances or smaller factions to get more power and get ahead of their competitors.

"Welcome, Ladies and Gentlemen. Now that we all have arrived here, please come so we can start the meeting."

Stated Kudou Retsu as he gestured the Clan Heads and their +1, if they have someone, to follow him into the conference room.