[226] 2. Waiting for the New Term (4)
"We lost. Please—keep this a secret."
"Huh? Weren't you the one threatening to crush us and get us expelled a minute ago?"
Humiliation made him tremble, but the mercenary leader was a realist.
He had to swallow his pride for the sake of his own future and that of his comrades.
"Sorry! Just help me this once! You're going to be mages too, right? And I'm technically your senior—no need to wreck everyone's livelihoods over this, is there?"
Dante shook his head as if that still wasn't enough.
When the mercenaries realized what the boy was asking, their faces flushed. Even the four standing behind them bowed politely and apologized.
"Cut us some slack. We've got to make a living, too, you know?"
Only then, satisfied, Dante put a hand on the leader's shoulder.
"Don't worry. We were just bored over the break and decided to play a bit. Still, weren't you being a little careless? I don't know how you managed to get an official certification."
At that moment the door opened and a woman stepped in. The mercenaries straightened reflexively and pretended nothing had happened.
"Oh my! It's already over. Ah, what a pity."
She had short curly hair brushing her cheeks. Her mischievous face made her look like someone in her early twenties, but in truth she was over thirty.
"You are… Killain?"
She worked in the Council's journal editorial department, traveling to magic schools across the country to file feature reports.
Her articles ran in the magazine Spirit, which was distributed to magic schools nationwide; getting published there meant fame was only a matter of time.
"I heard the rumors and came to see—well done. Dante, did you really create this sorry scene all by yourself?"
Killain struck a dramatic pose and the photographer with her snapped a picture.
The mercenaries were mortified.
To them Spirit was a relic of the past, but it was also a major national magazine. If their disgrace appeared in an article, it would shame their families.
"No, no. How could I have beaten them without help from my seniors? I asked to do some practical training and they kindly agreed. I learned a lot from them. Thank you, seniors."
When Dante turned and praised them, the mages who had been trying to look composed quickly brightened.
"Haha! It's nothing. Still, impressive. You really are the kingdom's top star, aren't you?"
Killain's eyes sparkled as she turned away.
"Oh! You know Dante? The kingdom's prodigy really is different. Still a student, and already talked about among frontline mages."
"Of course. I sometimes talk about Dante with my colleagues. I believe Dante will one day become a first-grade archmage."
Killain diligently took notes for the interview.
Spirit was already popular, but on the day an article about Dante appeared, sales jumped by half again.
Dante's looks were beautiful enough to capture girls' hearts, and the jealous attention of men didn't hurt either.
"Aww, how cute. He's really grown up, our Dante."
Killain, who had interviewed Dante since childhood, had risen alongside him. Her current success as the kingdom's top reporter owed much to Dante.
"All right, the interview's done—let's go celebrate. The Council's footing the bill!"
As Dante left the hideout, Airhein's butler, who had been waiting outside, approached with a parcel.
"Master Dante, Lady Olivia sent a package."
"From my teacher? What's going on all of a sudden?"
"I'm not sure… but the lady of the house said it should be handed over personally."
Even Dante, who feared nothing in the world, went quiet at the mention of Olivia. She had recognized his talent as a child and gotten him into the Royal School of Magic—mentor and benefactor both. The same applied to his classmates Closer and Sabina.
"All right. Give it here."
Dante opened the parcel and pulled out a thick transfer application. As he read each page, his brow furrowed.
"What's this? A transfer application?"
Closer and Sabina peeked over his shoulder. Attached were Dante's profile and even their own profiles.
Killain hovered, curious.
"What's this, Dante? Huh? What is it?"
"Um… this is a transfer application. My teacher said she's been appointed temporarily as head of a school. She said if we want to study with her, we should come…."
"Then of course we're going. If our teacher is going, how could we not follow?" Closer said.
"Where is it? Does it say which school?" Sabina added.
"It's the Alpheas School of Magic. But where is that located?"
Students from Vashka didn't care about regional details. All they knew was that Alpheas was one of the kingdom's five great schools.
Killain sniffed the scent of a scoop and lit up.
"Alpheas School of Magic? And Olivia as temporary head? This is huge. Alpheas ranks fourth among magic schools. It's in Creas City. One of its most famous alumni is the current chairman of the Magic Association, Michea Gaold."
"Oh, Gaold is from there."
They'd reacted coolly to "ranked fourth," but the name Gaold changed their expressions. If a certified first-grade archmage—there were only five in the kingdom—had studied there, transferring wouldn't be a disgrace.
"Let's go. The new term's starting nationwide anyway. We can time the transfer to match," Closer said.
"Right. The teacher will be there when she assumes the post."
Dante tucked the letter away and gave the application to Sabina. They could sort out the details in person; for now he was just happy that something interesting had broken the boredom of daily life.
Watching the sunset slip down the mountain, Dante smiled at his friends.
"This'll be fun—Alpheas School of Magic."
3. Where's Shirone? (1)
The latter half of the term at Alpheas School of Magic began.
From morning the main gate teemed with carriages carrying students.
A spectacle unfolded: parents accompanying small children who bawled and dragged their feet, refusing to go to school.
Meanwhile, adolescent boys—too embarrassed even for their butlers' attendance—passed through the gate with indifferent faces.
The entrance ceremony was scheduled for 11 a.m., and students returned to their dorms to unpack.
Shirone, who had arrived early, shelved his books and put his clothes and necessities in place.
"Shirone!"
His friends burst in and threw the door open.
"Nade! Iruki!"
Shirone grinned and ran to meet them. Thirty days apart felt like a year.
So much had happened. If they knew he had been to heaven, what kind of faces would they make?
They clasped hands and shouted in unison.
"I have amazing news!"
Then they stared at each other, stunned.
They didn't know what the news was, but it was clear the day would be short.
"All right. Let's decide the order. Shirone, you go first."
"Okay. I went to Galliant Island with Amy—"
Nade suddenly grabbed him by the collar.
"What! You mean… surely… that…! Damn it! You traitor! I'm jealous!"
Shirone's face flushed red.
"No, that's not it! Listen to the whole story."
"Argh! No way. I figured I might be forever single, but I thought I'd be faster than Shirone. How—!"
Nade was about to lose his mind.
Even Iruki's pupils trembled; whatever it was, it was a man's greatest dilemma.
Shirone firmly denied it before he could continue.
An hour flew by. None of them noticed how much time had passed.
"Wow. You really… almost died. That was incredibly dangerous."
"And that last war—how to put it—it's so extreme it almost doesn't sound serious."
Their impressions of heaven left Nade and Iruki deep in thought for a long while.
Relieved to have told his story, Shirone wanted to hear how his friends had spent their vacation.
"Now you two. What great things happened over the break?"
They glanced at each other and Iruki spoke first.
"I ate lobster-flavored ice cream."
"A fist-sized spider appeared in my workshop."
"Haha! Sounds like you had fun."
Just imagining it made them laugh. Lobster-flavored ice cream. And a fist-sized spider—that was creepy.
"Damn it!"
Nade pushed Shirone's cheek with the heel of his hand.
"Ouch! What was that for?"
"You had an exciting break all by yourself! And with the super-pretty senior Amy!"
"I really almost died! And what's this 'super-pretty Amy'? That's cheesy! Ow!"
While Nade pushed Shirone's face again, Iruki slapped his forehead in regret.
"What a waste. I should've pretended to be crazy and gone home. I'm curious about that Ataraxia magic you mentioned—can you show me?"
"Ataraxia?"
Shirone could perform it anytime, but the situation wasn't right. Casting it would drain his mental energy, and doing it where people were would only complicate things.
"I'd like to, but later. If there's a chance, I'll show you."
"Oh ho? Holding back? Fine, then I'll hide my new magic for a while too."
At mention of new magic, Shirone's eyes shone. With Iruki's servant-syndrome tendencies, any new spell he'd learned would be on another level from ordinary students.
"What is it? What kind of magic?"
"It's a secret. Hint: it's a secret weapon that can beat you."
Saying that, Iruki looked at Nade and asked, "How about you? Surely you weren't just playing around all vacation."
"I was busy. I've been studying alchemy lately. I reinforced some of the magic needed for that field and so on."
Alchemy is a vast branch of magic but isn't taught at magic schools; the Alchemy Foundation trains alchemists separately.
Iruki looked worried. Nade had focused on something outside the regular curriculum over the break.
"Will that be okay? If you want to be a magic engineer, having a mage's certification might be more advantageous."
"Of course, but I want to learn materials science too. Function starts with form, and form begins with the primordial substance. I thought I should at least learn the basics of alchemy."
From the corridor came the housemaster's voice.
"The entrance ceremony will begin. Students, please gather at the central auditorium."
@
All students from Class One through Class Ten gathered on the training ground.
Shirone scanned the platform for the headmaster, but for some reason the principal wasn't there.
"Huh? The headmaster's not here?"
"Six months' suspension. A temporary headmaster will take over from today. I don't know who, but please don't make our studies miserable."
Nade closed his eyes and prayed. He wanted to be a magic engineer, but he still had to graduate; making classes harder would be the last thing he wanted.
A murmur rose as the newly appointed headmaster appeared on the platform.
Iruki's face fell.
"Oh no… of all people, it had to be her."
"Huh? You know who it is?"
"Jerome Olivia. She used to be head of the Royal School of Magic. She's probably a certified second-grade archmage."
Shirone studied Olivia closely. She looked far younger than her years and, above all, beautiful. Teachers flanked her on both sides, each barely hiding their tension.
'She's an impressive person. Head of the Royal School of Magic…'
Olivia waited for the students' murmurs to die down before beginning her speech.
"Hello. I am Jerome Olivia, newly assuming the post of headmaster this term. Although my appointment is temporary, I promise to do my best to teach the students during my tenure."