Maidens of Cygnus - Volume 5 - Chapter 1.1

Cygnus Maidens

New - Irregular at Magic High School

Magic, club activities, and love.

As the two girls enter the school

And their chests swell with their reunion,

A new wind blows through the Magic High School.    

Chapter 1 – Plans for the Summer Break

The party that brings closure to the Nine Schools Competition is also nearing its end. The curtains will soon close on 2099 edition of the Nine Schools Competition, which, when including the eve party, extended for about two weeks.

On the floor where only some desserts were left untouched — there is a large crowd with hearty appetites, so it doesn’t seem like any food will be wasted in the end — students from each school were mingling and tugging on each other, as if reluctant to depart. The music has been a waltz for some time now, so both the students who got tired of it and the students who couldn’t dance to begin with were enjoying themselves near the wall, chatting with drinks in hand.

Among the groups having a conversation, there were also those who had no intention of dancing with members of the opposite sex from the start.

And included in this group were both Alisa and Marika.

“The Nine Schools Competition is over, huh... It felt both long and short.”

During a break in the conversation, Alisa suddenly revealed how she felt.

“It wasn’t long at all. It went by super fast!”

Marika immediately objected. It seems that from her perspective,  two weeks is not enough for it to feel long.

“It probably felt extra fast for you because your schedule changed so much, Marika.”

The reaction to that objection came from Hiyori, who had also become a wallflower[1] just like them.

“You had an impressive showing in the end, too.”

To the other side of Hiyori, Mei joined the chat. She also didn’t participate in the dance from the start.

Were they lacking initiative towards the opposite sex, or did they not have much of that kind of interest in the opposite sex? What can be said for sure is that these four look like they were cut from the same cloth.

As an aside, from their usual companions, Koharu joined the waltz circle. And she seemed to quite enjoy it. Given the impression she usually gives off, her skillful steps were a little surprising, but considering she comes from a family of managers of a big corporation, it wasn’t strange. She must undoubtedly have been accustomed to ballroom dancing since she was a child.

“Yeah, well... It was unfortunate for Ichika, but I got good memories out of it.”

Though a tinge of guilt flashed in Marika’s smile, just as her words hinted at, she appeared satisfied.

“Alisa and Hiyori won. And I, well, I guess I’m content with my result too... It’s a shame we couldn’t win the overall tournament, but just like Marika said, the Nine Schools Competition will become good memory.”

Neither Alisa nor Hiyori seemed to oppose Mei’s review.

“— What are we talking about?”

Heading to them after having her fill of the dance, Koharu joined in.

“About the Nine Schools Competition becoming a good memory.”

At Alisa’s answer, an expression showing she agreed appeared on Koharu’s face.

“But, I guess it feels a little unsatisfying, since the summer vacation is going to end.”

Koharu added that.

“Hmm, that’s true.”

Hiyori agreed.

“But Mina has special training for tournament at the end of the month, don’t you?”

The ‘tournament’ Alisa brought up is the ‘Martial Magic Arts National Tournament’. It is an open tournament that has no requirements for entry other than the participant having to be a resident of Japan with an age of 15 or older. After Marika suffered defeat at the hands of Ichijou Akane in an interschool competition against Third High last month, she swore the national tournament would be her stage for rematch and revenge. 

“Hmm...”, Marika nodded, not making herself clear, and then Mei asked “Won’t you have a training camp?”

At the moment Marika was going to answer, the President of female division of the Magic Arts Club, Chika, walked across in front of her.

“President!”

Chika, brought to a stop by Marika, turned around and asked “What is it?”

“Are we going to have a training camp for the tournament at the end of the month?”

Marika asked, thinking Mei was saying ‘If you have a training camp for the club, you can do the special training and the summer vacation at the same time’.

“We won’t even be able to find a place to have one.”

The reply came from the President of the male division, Chigusa, who was next to Chika.

“It’s the summer season, after all. There’s a lot of competition for boarding houses with martial arts halls and gyms.”

“...Even if there is no martial arts hall, a gymnasium will be fine?”

Koharu interposed, talking like she had some kind of idea.

“Even a gym for ball sports would be no hindrance for our training.”

Chika replied with much interest, a feeling of anticipation appearing in her eyes.

Marika’s gaze as she awaited Koharu’s response was also clearly filled with anticipation.

“If I’m not mistaken, there should be a vacancy in the schedule of a training institute in Okutama maintained by my dad’s company. I’ll ask him when I get home.”

“If there is, can we use it!?”

Marika jumped at Koharu’s response.

“I ask you as well. I’ll be thankful if you let us rent it.”

Chika followed Marika.

“Of course. As long as it’s available, it should be fine.”

Until last month, Chika wouldn’t have been able to ask for it so readily, and Koharu also wouldn’t have agreed in such a friendly manner.

A connection between senpai and kouhai with no clubs or committees in common.

This can also be said to be a consequence of the Nine Schools Competition.

“I’ll check and send you a message tomorrow.”

They are still staying the night at the hotel within the Nine Schools Competition venue, and they’ll be returning home tomorrow.

Alisa and everyone else could see Chika and Chigusa jointly replying “Please do” in response to Koharu.

◇ ◇ ◇

The following day, August 15th, 8pm. Alisa launched a video chat with the terminal installed in her room. She had received an email in the evening from Marika asking her to ‘login at 8pm, there is something I want to talk with you about’.

When she joined the chat, thinking hard about what in the world it was about, four people were already there. Mei, Koharu, Hiyori, and the one who invited Alisa, Marika.

She was not surprised by these members. This chatroom was set up by Koharu for their friend group to have fun chatting among each other.

The Vidiphone, as is the standard, also a chat feature. However, it is a paid service based on how much it is used. If they want to talk without caring about the time, they have to subscribe to a service with a fixed charge. Not that there aren’t free services at the end of the 21st century, but those have questionable security and privacy policies.

As regulations about the misappropriation of access data have become stricter, the advertisement business model has become tougher. As a result, free services have gone underground, and it’s rare for users to use their real names.

It is also due to such changes in the internet business environment that it has become normal to use paid services to connect with real world acquaintances.

Though it is paid, the fee is such that, if it is a small chatroom for ten people or less, it can comfortably be used by high school students. More specifically, it is equivalent to having fast food four or five times a month.

—That ends the digression.

Alisa, who had just logged in, greeted her friends lined up on the monitor with “Did I keep you waiting? Sorry about that.”

“You’re just in time”, Marika replied, “I only just got in too”, Mei answered at the same time.

“So? You had something you wanted to talk about, didn’t you?”

Mei then continued with that.

“Yeah. Everyone, you don’t have plans for next week, right?”

She had checked this with them last night when their discussion shifted to how they’ll be spending their time during the remainder of the summer break.

“I haven’t really decided yet.”

Hiyori replied and both Alisa and Mei nodded, as if backchanneling.

“Then how about you guys come too?”

To Marika’s remark, Alisa and Hiyori slightly tilted their heads while saying “Hmm?”.

“...You mean to ask for us to go along with you to the Magic Arts Club training camp?”

A beat late, Mei supplemented Marika’s words inside her own head and asked back.

“I checked the schedule at the training institute and it was completely free all of next week.”

That reply came from Koharu.

“Even if everyone from the Magic Arts Club participates in the training camp, there is still room for about ten more people.”

“What about the meals?”

This time, Alisa asked Koharu.

“When it comes to the cafeteria, I believe they would appreciate a larger number of people to reduce waste. Of course, you can also cook for yourself.”

That is to say, even if the four girls in Alisa’s group, along with the Magic Arts Club, stay over at the training institute, from among the necessities of daily life they will have no issue in neither ‘food’ nor ‘shelter’.

“Koharu told me a bit ago that next week the Mountaineering Club is also holding a training camp at a boarding house very close by. Wouldn’t it be fine for you to go hang out with them while we’re practicing?”

“With the Mountaineering Club?”

Is that really okay...?, Alisa had a face like that.

“They’ll probably welcome us if we go along with Alisa.”

Mei said in a teasing tone, the corners of her mouth pulled upwards.

“Geez! What are you saying.”

As a natural consequence, Alisa complained about what Mei said.

“I also think it’ll work out exactly as Mei said.”

However, Hiyori promptly gave Mei her backing. This too may be a natural development.

“Then Asha has to join, no matter what.”

“Eeh!?”

Alisa once again raised her voice to protest against Marika, who brought the conversation to an end in the way most convenient to her.

“Koharu, what will you do?”

Hiyori asked Koharu.

Alisa’s protests were ignored.

“I’m fine either way. If everyone is going, I’m going too.”

“Oh well. Actually, I would prefer to go swimming than to go to the mountains, but...”

Hiyori showed her hesitation with both her expression and her words. Though, that said, it wasn’t as exaggerated as that makes it sound.

“But you can swim? There’s a river with plenty of water nearby. It will be a little cold, but the water is clean.”

“I’m in.”

As proof of that, Hiyori immediately decided to go with them as soon as she heard Koharu’s response.

“What about you, Mei?”

And then she brought the question to Mei.

“I’ll go too, since all of you are going.”

Mei followed the same logic as Koharu.

And then, the gazes of the four girls concentrated on Alisa.

Despite being on camera and across circuitry, Alisa felt as much pressure as she would have if they were all around a single table. 

It’s not as if Alisa particularly dislikes going to the training camp with her friends. She just doesn’t actively have the feeling that she ‘wants to go’.

“...Since everyone is going, I’ll go too.”

Alisa had no reason to go against the peer pressure from her four friends, among of them being her best friend.

In the end, out of the five of them, three expressed their wish of leaving the decision to the others.

Though it seems that this was not particularly unusual.