Forty-Fifth Chapter
A Bizarre Candidate
The Second Magical Institute’s campus festival was off to a spectacular start.
The gates opened for admission at 9:00 a.m., but there was a line waiting before that. This scene was almost a tradition at the festival.
Alus wasn’t all that impressed at the thought of this crowd rushing in all at once at the start of the event. That said, he didn’t have the time to complain.
As part of the security team, he reviewed his assigned patrol area again. His route went through the front of the main building that was packed with stalls and the area around the training grounds. Simply put, they were the locations that were going to be the most crowded.
Frankly, it was a pain, but after Illumina told him she wanted the event to be a success because Felinella was the management committee chairperson, he couldn’t think of a good excuse to get out of the work. Not to mention that he couldn’t refuse after seeing a rare smile on her usually expressionless face. And that was how he took on the job of security.
Right now, Alus was in front of the main building. After the gates opened, the crowd was expected to pour in here like raging bulls. “This is the front of the main building. I’m in position.”
“Understood. The gates will open in five minutes.”
Using the Consensor in his ear, Alus reported to Illumina, who was at the headquarters. He had the security armband on his right arm, and also had his AWR with him even though he probably wouldn’t need it, but with these things he at least looked right for the job.
He’d drilled all the important points into his head, so his only remaining issue would be if any acquaintances from the military happened to see him like this. He could easily imagine them mocking him for becoming quite the diligent student in the short time he’d been here.
Well, it was true that he’d contributed a lot to the class this time around. He was the one who’d fixed the lack of prizes problem for his class. But before his classmates could express their gratitude, they’d begun to rummage through the extravagant items, causing an uproar.
Not only were the prizes valuable, but they were also precious things that any Magicmaster would want, which prompted all kinds of speculation on Alus’ origins.
Alus himself hadn’t heard the rumors directly, but at some point him being ex-military had become the most prominent guess. Similar predictions had also been made about Loki, and this incident made it seem all the more probable.
Because of that, the disrespectful stares and blatant harassment of him had all but stopped. In fact, he’d been treated the opposite way lately, and it was all but confirmed among the girls that he was rather strong for a Magicmaster.
However, his rank was still being kept a secret. And his impression of a problem child who did poorly on tests, skipped out on classes, and was sometimes called to the principal’s office remained unchanged.
Yet that rough side had started to be seen as mysterious instead, giving him an unapproachable atmosphere among his classmates. Of course, none of this mattered to the person in question.
Putting that tangent aside, having arrived at his post, Alus pushed away the thoughts of the visitors gathering at the gates to the side and turned his attention back to Illumina on the other end of the Consensor.
The next moment, she spoke up. “It’s opening time. Please proceed as planned. Again, I would like to reiterate that you report any problems that occur right away.” Her last report for everyone before the event began didn’t require any answers.
Alus wordlessly stared in front of him. The gates slowly opened... and even though he’d mentally prepared himself, the sight that played out before him made his cheek twitch.
I thought they were told not to run.
The crowd was like a surge of energy to the extent that “surge” wasn’t enough to describe it. Even the security team members calling for their attention were swallowed up in the wave.
The ground rumbled, seemingly shaking the main building, and all the students manning the stalls flinched at the stampede.
In the blink of an eye, a flood of people was right in front of Alus, each person having their own goal, and they split into two around him.
One half headed to the main building. They probably wanted to look through the stalls one at a time starting from there.
The other group headed for the training grounds. There was still time before the mock battles began, but they were going to secure seats early.
The first hour of mock battles would see students fighting each other. And then, after a short break, anyone was free to join in.
Magicmasters and those who sought to become one were allowed to enter so the Institute could showcase its achievements and give a demonstration to anyone who was looking to join.
For example, quite a few students in Alus’ class year had joined because they admired Felinella, who’d fought in the Friendship Magical Tournament and in some mock battles during the campus festival. So it was no surprise that Tesfia, Alice, and Loki, who’d all been the stars of this year’s tournament, would be taking part in the mock battles.
It wasn’t unusual for a prospective Magicmaster to admire someone and set them as their goal. The ranking system also helped speed that up. Because of that, the area Alus was assigned to was indeed the most trafficked area of them all.
He spotted a girl looking like she might get crushed in the crowd and smoothly pulled her out of the human wave.
Next, he quickly supported an elderly person who looked like they might fall over after getting pushed.
These kinds of things happened one after another, so no one he helped even had the time to thank him.
About an hour of this went by. Alus was working nonstop to assist visitors, when he received a report through his Consensor. It seemed an incident was taking place, and in response, he immediately rushed to the scene.
To him, no matter how crowded it might be, it wasn’t enough to stop him in his tracks. He slipped through any gaps, taking the optimal route between people to reach his destination.
The location was a corridor in the main building, right in the middle of traffic. For some reason, two students were at each other’s throats. One was an Institute second-year student. The other appeared to be from a different institute, judging from his uniform.
Both sides had already drawn their sword-type AWRs. Mana was running through the AWRs, so it was a very explosive situation.
Alus didn’t particularly panic, simply relieved that he’d arrived before the situation turned even worse. “Security here, excuse me. What’s the problem?”
The student from another institute had his back turned to Alus and ignored him, but the Second Magical Institute student was clearly flustered upon seeing him. They must have heard of Alus’ accomplishments in the tournament. He’d thought his unintentional show of force had been a blunder, but it was unexpectedly helpful after all.
“N-No, it’s nothing...”
The second-year student’s fighting spirit had mostly disappeared, but the other student shouted out loudly without even turning to look Alus’ way. “Don’t you fucking call this nothing!! I said I’ll pay! Me, the son of the Owen family! If you understand your place, then don’t get in my way!”
Alus couldn’t help but mutter, “Huh?” when faced with the boy’s shouts.
That’s when Ciel popped out from behind him, explaining the situation to Alus in a whisper, “I don’t care if he’s nobility or not, I don’t like him... The truth is...”
But Alus didn’t so much as turn around, as he raised his arm to interrupt her. “Sorry, but no matter the circumstances, drawing your AWR here is forbidden.”
Indeed, he didn’t even need to listen to Ciel’s explanation. Using an AWR was forbidden outside of the training grounds. Normally, he could just take him in without question. But he didn’t want to do anything too serious in front of the public. If they could settle this with talking, that would be best.
But the troublemaking noble scornfully laughed at Alus instead. “Shut up. I’m talking to this guy! You have nothing to do with this, so don’t get in the way!”
Alus ignored him, turned to the second-year, and glared at him. Realizing his intentions, the mana in the second-year’s AWR dispersed. He couldn’t exactly overlook him, but he could still be excused, having de-escalated right away when told to. Probably, anyways.
Alus would normally never be so roundabout, but Felinella was the committee chair this time around. He could at least put some effort into it. “That won’t happen. I’m security here. And you’re causing trouble for the other visitors.”
“I don’t care who you are, but don’t you dare talk to me like that!” The troublemaker gazed at Alus with contempt. His were the eyes of someone used to misusing his power, used to looking down on those around him. Those around him had surely seen this overbearing and insolent attitude a lot.
Which meant that Alus only needed to fulfill his duties. He spoke to the boy, polite on the surface... and determined on the inside. “It’s a pain, but I’ll have to follow procedure then. You give me no choice but to use force.”
“You think the Owen family would lose to some Alpha coward? Give it your best shot! And learn your place!”
“Then I’ll take you up on your words and do just that.”
Without even waiting for Alus to finish his sentence, the boy slashed horizontally with his enchanted sword. It was a strike meant to take him by surprise, a dirty move for a noble, but he tried it on the wrong person.
The onlookers held their breath. Everything fell silent for a moment as if time had stopped.
Alus narrowed his eyes, calmly observing the unmoving sword. He’d raised up two fingers and caught the boy’s sword between them.
“What?!”
Of course, only an idiot would try to catch an enchanted AWR with their bare fingers. His fingers were covered in a thin film of mana, so he hadn’t stopped it with just brute strength.
And—the boy let out a pained yelp as his body snapped forward. Alus had driven his knee into his gut.
The troublemaker passed out, and Alus supported him with his arm before handing him over to the other security members that had rushed to the scene.
And so the incident was resolved. The second-year student that had dispersed his mana when Alus pressured him got off with just a warning. With the job done, Alus rubbed the nape of his neck as if wiping away some sweat.
The next moment, the onlookers burst into applause. Among them were many non-Magicmaster civilians. It was a good thing that it didn’t turn into a big deal, but Alus was suddenly assailed by an unsettled feeling. Thinking about it, this might be the first time he received earnest praise from the general population.
That’s when Ciel looked at him with a frown. When Alus finally noticed, he saw where they were standing. This is my classroom, isn’t it? He felt a strange premonition as Ciel opened the door and entered the room.
“Do you want to listen now?” she asked, her head peeking out from behind the door. She wasn’t happy over how he’d brushed her off earlier. Even her large adorable eyes had narrowed. She must have offered to explain out of kindness.
Alus answered her politely, realizing he should change his attitude. “I’m sorry. I need to get a good grasp of the situation for my report. Will you please explain?” He closed his eyes and lowered his head.
Seeing that, Ciel burst out, “I saw the whole thing!” and invited Alus into the classroom. The noble student from before had said something about how he’d pay. So it was probably related to some stall. Not to mention that it was Ciel who was trying to explain, and it had taken place in front of Alus’ classroom, meaning... it was related to the shooting gallery. Realizing this, Alus couldn’t help but have a bad feeling about it.
When he stepped into the classroom, his eyes opened wide, and he froze in place. And of course he would.
It was just a shooting gallery, but business was booming... so perhaps the onlookers outside hadn’t gathered because of the incident, but for the stall.
Alus had dropped by the other day while preparations were still being made, so he’d seen the shooting gallery before. The stall was set up so customers used the elevated podium that the teacher taught from, while the gallery utilized the space that the students normally occupied.
All the open space was used in full to display all of the prizes. The most valuable prizes were put in the hardest to reach places.
There was a system in place that graded the prizes on a five-step scale. Incidentally, it wasn’t the prize itself that people shot at, but a plate next to the prize, which differed in size and weight depending on the difficulty.
The prototype AWR that Alus had supplied sat as the top-grade prize, but right next to it... was the white scrunchie hair tie that Loki made.
Sure, it was well made for a first try. But why was it next to his AWR...? Was that just how valuable Loki’s handicraft was? That felt problematic, but Alus chose not to think too hard about it.
Setting that aside... one step lower, in the center, was a large furball-type object that looked like a coiling snake. Apparently this was the muffler that Alice made. It had probably been rolled up so the other prizes could be lined up next to it, but it was clearly long enough to wrap around your neck five times over.
But Alice’s personality was shining through it, as it had been meticulously made. In short, despite being made by amateurs, these prizes were highly valued because they were handmade. Even lined up next to Alus’ ludicrously expensive goods, he could grudgingly accept it.
He couldn’t make any sense, though, of the bizarre item next to it. Considering where it was positioned, it must have been valued the same as Alice’s muffler. What is that thing? Alus guessed it might be a stuffed animal. Or at least he hoped it was.
But what kind of animal was it? He furrowed his brows, thinking. “A human...? No, it has some kind of animal ears... besides, each hand is a different length.” The legs were also strange. It was just barely keeping its balance sitting up on the shelf.
He hesitated to call it a prize. To some it might have a daring underground feel to it, showing some sort of twisted artistic worth, but he had no idea of what.
It had an off-kilter shape with a hint of madness to it. It was probably sitting on all fours, but one of its hands was just unusually long, giving it an eerie look.
Ciel quietly watched Alus from the background with a wry smile on her face, as if she could tell exactly what he was thinking.
That’s it, Alus suddenly realized. I see, I guess this is the result of her studies. He nodded to himself as he stared at the stuffed animal and spoke confidently. “Wow... to think she made a Fiend.”
“Wrong!!” Ciel sharply corrected him.
... And Alus blurted out, “It’s not?!” out of reflex. “Now, now, Ciel, there actually is a Fiend like this. It’s pretty common in Alpha, and they bring it up in lectures too...”
“Geez, Alus, I’m glad Fia’s not here right now.” Ciel moved to Alus’ side and whispered in his ear, “That’s a dog. Or rather, a kind of wolf.”
“You’re kidding. In what world is that a wolf? Nobody’s going to buy that.”
Alus couldn’t believe it, but when he turned to Ciel, she shrugged with a happy, gentle smile on her face. She’d thought Alus was perfect, so seeing an unexpected side of him was enjoyable.
But he had his reasons for being surprised. He’d seen a real wolf, though its breed had been through some improvements. And he compared that to this. No matter how he looked at it, the stuffed animal was just terribly made. It could hardly even be called an animal. So that’s why she never showed me the finished version. She sure is clumsy, Alus muttered to himself.
Looking at it one more time, he tilted his head, unsure whether to be happy or exasperated. The shape aside, he couldn’t help but think it was being overvalued just because Tesfia made it, considering the things he had provided. Were they saying this creepy stuffed animal was worth the same as his gems? The thought that even garbage would be valued highly if Tesfia made it scared him.
But that was what the campus festival was like. Since it was aimed at the male students who didn’t know Tesfia’s true side, he supposed it was fine in its own right.
After thinking about that for a moment, he quietly looked around the classroom and saw something that didn’t quite match that thought. He’d vaguely noticed it when he first came in, but subconsciously turned away, hoping it was only his eyes playing tricks on him.
Alus could understand there being a lot of parents here with their kids at a shooting gallery, using the popular spell gun toys. He could also understand why there were so many male students here. They must’ve heard there were prizes made by three beauties... their goal was obvious.
But this simply made no sense.
Mixed in with the children and male students were adult men, all of them from the military, Magicmasters in fact. Actual adults were holding the toys, taking the game as seriously as they could, fully invested in the shooting gallery.
They looked like snipers ready to shoot their targets. With sweaty foreheads, they stood in a row taking aim.
When Alus saw they weren’t after the girls’ homemade crafts but the goods that he had supplied, he finally understood the situation. With a bitter stare he looked over at Ciel, who wore a triumphant expression.
“That’s right. This is all because of the AWR you brought in being so popular.” Ciel pointed not at the AWR itself but at a poster hung on the wall. It was sort of a prize catalog.
If you looked at the customers lined up at the shooting gallery, the situation could be described as a great success. There was a man who appeared to be an AWR engineer, a well-built soldier, and even a senior student wearing a Second Magical Institute uniform. Of course, there were also students from other schools, like the troublemaker from before.
“I see. So that guy wanted to buy the prize he failed to get before.”
“Yeah. We refused, but he put up a lot of money and caused a commotion... then a senior student started complaining. And you know what happened after that.”
“Well, it is rather expensive. That said, it wasn’t intended to make a profit, so that was the correct response. If someone else starts acting unreasonable, contact security. I’ll be around here for a while.”
“Hehe, good work out there. Why not take a little break?”
“I can’t slack off now, can I?” Alus actually had a reason for wanting to wrap things up. He gazed around the classroom, then imagined the long line outside. Even if I tried to take a break, they’d just ask me to help them.
The shooting gallery was having a bigger turnout than expected, with eight classmates already sent to manage the line. If he fell for Ciel’s invitation here, he wouldn’t get the time to rest. Not to mention, he couldn’t afford to have people think he wasn’t paying attention to his security job.
Having concluded that, he told Ciel he’d do what he could and turned his back on her.
However—
A female student stood in front of the door, blocking Alus’ exit. He figured she was just another customer and stepped out of her way.
Ciel peeked over at her. “Oh, sorry. We will call you when there’s an opening.”
But she gave both of them an amused smile, following Alus with her gaze. “Oh, I’m not a customer.” The smile remained on her face as she locked eyes with Alus. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, my future senior.”
She elegantly bowed, at the same time grabbing the hem of her black dress in a curtsy. It was a sophisticated and alluring dress that accentuated the curves of her body.
The girl had wavy, pearl-gray hair, with the tips curling under her chin. Two mounds pushed up her clothing, making it tight over her chest, embodying a woman’s ideal proportions. Despite all that attractiveness, she still had a young girl’s look.
Alus and Ciel glanced at each other, as if to confirm that this was the first time they’d met the girl. However, Ciel was also shocked by the words she’d said. “No way! You’re younger than me?!” she blurted out.
The other girl didn’t deny it. “Yes, I will be applying for the Second Magical Institute. I had the chance to see you in action at the Friendship Magical Tournament,” she added, directing this at Alus and putting on a cheerful smile again.
Alus wasn’t sure what to say. At times like these, the first thought that crossed his mind was that this was a pain in the ass. A bad habit of his. “... And you are?”
The girl gasped as she realized the situation and put her hand over her chest. It was a very noble gesture, showing her good upbringing. “Pardon me for not naming myself. I am Noir Valis Oud.”
Regaining his composure, Alus, aware of his position as her senior, introduced himself. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Noir.” He met politeness in kind. It might have been the first time he’d done so since enrolling at the Institute.
However, he’d missed the second half of the tournament. If it was a matter of impression, Loki should have left a deeper one. Her view was plausible, though. Either way, it seemed the tournament had had a bigger influence than he’d thought. He could understand now why Berwick and Cicelnia were so set on winning it.
“There’s no need to be so formal with me. Please just call me by my name. As you might have noticed, I am nobility, but just my name is fine,” Noir pointed out with a small smile.
Alus nodded. “No...ir, unfortunately I am on security detail now, so I don’t have time to spare.” They might eventually attend the same institute, but he had some resistance to becoming familiar right away.
He also picked up on her somewhat peculiar atmosphere. For some reason, he wanted to avoid getting too close to her. “Another time, perhaps.” He passed by her side and attempted to walk out the door when he felt a tug on his sleeve.
“Wait! Just a moment of your time, please. This is my first time here at the Institute, so I was hoping you could show me around...” When Alus didn’t say anything, Noir put on a mischievous smile. “Don’t tell me you’d ignore a younger girl’s request, Alus.” It was clear as day that she was enjoying the situation.
Ciel’s gotten used to me in a bad sense as well, he thought to himself. Was it someone else’s influence, or was this just how she actually was? Either way, this Noir girl was getting too close for comfort. Then again, considering the crowd, he could understand her wanting a guide.
“Ms. Noir, sorry, but I’m in the middle of work.” When Alus refused, he felt like he was receiving glares from those around them. Surely that was just his mind playing tricks on him? Perhaps from an onlooker’s perspective, he’d curtly refused an elegant and dainty girl’s request.
“Can’t I get you to change your mind, somehow... please?” Sensing that the people around them were on her side, Noir pressed the matter. She shook off her disappointed look and gave him a daring smile, with a hint of desperation, as she asked him one more time.
Of course, Alus had his own circumstances to deal with, so her request was just unreasonable. But having made himself an enemy of the public around them, he no longer had an escape.
He sighed. “Fine. Then I’ll check if it’s okay to leave my post... and if it’s not, you’ll just have to give up.” He let out another sigh and turned his back on her, putting his finger on the Consensor.
Shortly thereafter, he turned around again with drooping shoulders. “I’ve got 20 minutes...”
“Thank you very much,” Noir said, smiling brightly.
Seeing this, Ciel nodded in satisfaction.
Illumina was known to be straight-laced, so her consent came as a surprise. Alus had run out of luck when he told her it was a noble who was looking to enroll next year that wanted an escort.
Surely the smattering of applause Alus heard was his mind playing tricks on him again. There were some jealous stares mixed in, but maybe that was unavoidable, considering who he was dealing with. She had adult proportions, and the word beautiful suited her better than cute.
Alus shook his head, and with Ciel seeing them off, they walked down the hallway as if it were a makeshift wedding aisle.
Incidentally, with the short period of time they had, there was no way Alus would be able to guide her through the entire Institute, so he’d need to narrow down the places to show her. But when he asked where she wanted to go, he only got a vague response in return.
That made him wonder if she had any serious interest in the Institute or not, but she did say it was her first visit. In that case, she could be forgiven for not knowing a lot about it. Though it would help if she could at least point him in a direction.
And so, he decided to give her a tour of the main building, and then follow up by heading over to the research building.
Starting with the main building, Alus gave her explanations as they walked along, but as he spoke, he realized that he wasn’t all that familiar with the Institute himself. He’d stumble for words, but Noir kept a smile on her face.
Suddenly, he realized something. “Noir, do you practice martial arts or some competitive sport? I was just thinking that you don’t have an amateur’s footwork. I don’t think saying it’s part of the etiquette of a noble family would be an excuse.”
Noir’s eyes opened wide. Maybe she was surprised, as her tone of voice sounded stiff. “How impressive. Would you mind if I asked how you noticed?” Her smile had disappeared.
“Well, you don’t make any unnecessary noise, and the way you shift your center of gravity is very smooth. You should pass the practical portion of the entrance exam with flying colors.”
“I certainly hope so.”
“Your mana will be measured to test your aptitude for becoming a Magicmaster. But I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Alus said, but since he’d enrolled without any exams, he didn’t actually know the details. He’d heard it was difficult. Even with all that, though, he felt that the way Noir moved her feet reflected a high degree of skill.
He wrapped up his tour of the main building. But before they went to the research building, they stopped by the auditorium. The cafeteria next to the auditorium was open for business as usual. It was also lunchtime, so it was somewhat crowded.
After a quick look around the cafeteria, the two went to the upper floors. Here there were spaces for meeting and chatting, as well as training rooms for the students.
But right now... “There are quite a few people here,” Alus observed.
“So it seems. What’s happening?”
This was the biggest hall in the Institute. “It looks like the principal is explaining the Institute to the legal guardians of potential students,” Alus said. “Based on the timing, it’s probably the third time she’s done it.”
“That’s a lot of potential students.”
“Yes. There’s been a lot of changes this year, so the explanation probably covers those too. Do you want to listen in? It should be helpful if you’re going to enroll next year.”
Noir was lost in thought for a moment. When she was thinking with such a blank expression, that pale, well-shaped face of hers looked like a doll’s face. “You’re escorting me now, so I think I’ll pass for today. I can always hear it some other time.”
“Right.” Alus had hoped to get rid of her here... but it seemed he’d have to give up on that. He glanced at the wall clock, and the two left the auditorium behind.
When they arrived at the research building, they went to the exhibition hall. On display were the research results of student groups under teacher guidance. The two looked over the exhibits, but when they got to a room on the third floor, Alus noticed something odd.
Upon entering the room, his eyes were drawn to a certain man. The man had a clean and stylish formal appearance. But the way he gazed at a specific display on the wall with a fire in his eyes was abnormal.
He doesn’t look like a Magicmaster. Who is he?
Among the twenty or so visitors, upon closer inspection, Alus saw another two people that stood out as not looking like Magicmasters or researchers.
One of them was standing next to the first man. The third was some distance away from the other two. The strange thing about the first two was that they seemed to become aware of each other at the same time, as if there was some timing involved.
The exhibition had all kinds of things from delicate machinery to new military equipment to prototype AWRs. There were even new magic circuits that made use of artificial mana, which was a great academic and military presentation for the students.
Photography was forbidden in the exhibition. There were also rope dividers set up to keep the exhibits from being touched.
Suddenly, the sharply-dressed man leaned over the divider. He brought his face close to a strange orb on display and let out an impressed sound.
Alus stopped in his tracks, his nerves on alert. And sure enough, in the next instant, a loud clatter rang out. The man who’d leaned forward must’ve gotten caught on something, as the rope dividers fell over each other.
Seeing the man fall backwards, a noisy chatter erupted from the guests.
Alus sighed. “Sorry, Noir. Give me a moment.” Normally he wouldn’t do anything. It was just an accident, and it wasn’t like the exhibit had been damaged. Indeed, this sort of event would usually end with nothing more happening.
However, he still chose to use a more forceful method. Moving up to the man in the blink of an eye to secure the scene, Alus said, “Sorry, but you’ll have to accompany me to security headquarters. Of course, you’re free to resist, if you like.”
“W-Who the hell are you?!”
Alus twisted the arm of one of the mysterious duo who stood next to the man who’d fallen over.
“This is unreasonable. I haven’t done anything!” The man insisted on his innocence by shouting and attracting attention. But once Alus pried his hand open, revealing what was inside, the onlookers’ stares turned hostile.
In it was a piece of magic equipment used in a precious new technology. It wasn’t allowed to be photographed, let alone touched, and would likely fetch a high price. So the man’s crime was obvious.
Alus then took the man’s other arm, holding both arms behind his back, and scooped up the evidence.
The man spun around and took a swing at Alus’ face. Seeing as he dislocated his arm to do it, he was no amateur even if he wasn’t a Magicmaster. He was clearly used to this kind of fighting.
There were a few guards stationed at the research building, but they probably wouldn’t have been able to handle it. Especially considering the skills these people used to steal and their ability to force their way through even when restrained.
Alus decided that even if he were to dodge the attack, it would take an extra amount of effort. Moreover, breaking his arms or legs to prevent his escape would be unwise in such a big crowd. Security or not, he was still a student, and he didn’t want to damage the exhibit.
That said, it would be a pain if he used magic. The man might not be a Magicmaster, but Alus wasn’t going to let his guard down around someone this suspicious.
He lightly interfered with space, as he deflected the man’s fist. When he did so, the man’s fist that should have been only somewhat parried suddenly changed its trajectory, as if it had hit a sturdy wall.
With his stance broken, the man staggered. Yet he immediately tried following up with another attack.
However, Alus was pressed for time and didn’t let him. He swept his legs out from under him, and when the man was in midair, grabbed his collar and drove him headfirst into the floor to knock him unconscious.
Alus’ attention immediately shifted to the other person who’d appeared unrelated at first. This one was secretly cooperating with the man Alus captured. He’d stayed at a distance through the whole incident and was now trying to make his escape.
Standing at the entrance he was hurrying towards was Noir. She stood there like Alus told her to and just happened to be in his way.
With bloodshot eyes and frustration in his voice, he growled at Noir, “Move!”
Since he was an accomplice to the man Alus had caught, it made sense to assume he had similar skills. Leaving the unconscious man on the floor, Alus tried to get to Noir to help her, but...
Noir didn’t so much as try to get out of the man’s way. Instead, she stepped right into his path. “Where might you be going? You’re in on it, aren’t you?” she said with an unfaltering smile.
When he understood Noir was purposefully standing in his way, the man sneered and looked down at her. He shook his sleeve with a small movement, and a knife-type AWR fell out, landing in his hand. Wordlessly, the man constructed a spell while hiding his hand inside his sleeve, smoothly closing the distance to Noir.
But the man found himself unable to stab her in the abdomen as he’d planned. He couldn’t even cast the spell he’d readied. Instead, he felt like his world was spinning.
Before the man knew it, Noir had grabbed his wrist with both hands and used his momentum against him to throw him.
He looked like he would crash headfirst into the floor like Alus had done to the first man, but he continued to spin and was neatly dropped on his feet. He was then poked in the back of his knees, forcing him to sit on his knees without even realizing what had happened.
Standing behind him, Noir’s smile turned obscene. Her cheeks were a light red as she twisted his arm. She covered his eyes with her hand and whispered something.
Before long, the man’s lips began trembling, and he dropped the knife.
Finally, Noir spread out the fingers of her hand that covered his eyes like a magician, and the man’s entire body shook as he hung his head low.
Once that was done, Noir searched his body and found another stolen exhibit that he’d taken at the same time the first man committed his theft. She then gleefully held it up for Alus. “I got it back!” Not paying any heed to the dumbfounded crowd around them, Noir turned her joyful glance on Alus alone.
Alus was relieved to see she was safe. “Right, now it’s your turn. Bring out that thing you put in your pocket and come with me to security headquarters. Once those two start to talk, you’ll be exposed anyways,” he told the sharply-dressed man who’d fallen over.
The man must have fallen over on purpose to create a scene, giving the other two a chance to steal the goods. He too was involved in the wrongdoings here. Seemingly giving up, the man pulled out two small cameras from his pockets. The two men had apparently delivered these to him before they committed their own crimes. Then they’d distanced themselves from one another and timed their thefts.
In other words, while those two stole the items, the sharply-dressed man secretly took photos. All three of them were working together. And as long as any one of them could escape, it would’ve been enough.
In fact, Alus believed the two thieves were a distraction, and their capture was probably considered acceptable. From his point of view, it was the designs that were valuable. Even if they had the parts, they wouldn’t understand the inner workings.
Being as large a nation as it was, Alpha had its fair share of corporate spies. But the man Alus captured used strange martial arts, and the man who’d rushed Noir even brought out an AWR to use magic. It was rare to see spies being so combative.
Regardless, it wasn’t Alus’ job to deal with. So he called a nearby security member over and instructed them to bring reinforcements.
The first captured man spoke up in frustration. “You’re pretty skilled for a student.”
“That doesn’t matter. Just tell me who hired you.” Alus didn’t so much as listen to him, as he curtly demanded an answer.
“...”
But his answer was silence. It seemed these men were professional criminals. So it probably wasn’t going to be easy to make them talk.
“You don’t know when to give up, do you?” Noir uttered with a chilling smile, as she slowly walked over to the man. She bent down, putting her hand on her chin as she stared into the man’s face, before her expression contorted into a sneer. “Don’t you think so?”
“—!!” The man’s face twitched, his body stiffening...
... But Alus stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Sorry, Noir... but could you wait a minute?” It wasn’t like he was worried she’d get hurt. If anything, he felt it would be a good idea to keep her away from the men for their sake.
All he had to do was hand the men over to security. While he was on the Consensor, he contacted Illumina to enhance security around his classroom as well. It was filled with precious items like the prototype AWR, after all. It wasn’t so much the AWR itself, but rather the technology inside of it that might be valuable to corporate spies.
But Illumina said, “You don’t have to worry. We’ve already received the information. All done by the book, of course.”
He didn’t quite follow what she meant, so he gave her a vague reply, but it seemed he wouldn’t have to worry about the same thing happening elsewhere.
Once he was done with his conversation, Alus was greeted by a waiting and fidgety Noir. “Did I mention that I saw your match in the tournament?”
“Yeah,” Alus casually replied. But he felt a cold sensation run down his spine at her next words.
“So... What is your affinity?” Noir calmly smiled, as if poised for the answer. Despite her soft demeanor, her stare fixed Alus in place.
She hadn’t enrolled at the Institute yet. So she shouldn’t have any professional insight into the field of magic. He’d thought of her as nothing more than a prospective student, but it appeared he’d been naïve.
The magic Alus used to repel the thief’s attack didn’t have an affinity. He’d used spatial coordinates to create an invisible force field that deflected the attack. But even if you saw it firsthand, it wasn’t something a normal person would be able to tell.
Alus wasn’t careless enough to let someone who wasn’t even a novice Magicmaster yet catch on to his magic. Even if the man that threw the punch was a Magicmaster, even he shouldn’t have been able to see through it.
“... Well, I’m sure you’ll find out if you get the chance,” Alus told Noir vaguely, with some sarcasm mixed in, trying to emphasize the unspoken rule among Magicmasters that one shouldn’t pry into others’ magic.
“That’s true. I’ll figure it out eventually.” Noir gave an unexpectedly understanding answer.
It took the wind out of Alus’ sails, but at the same time, he found her interesting.
Speaking of which—after Noir had splendidly dealt with the second thief’s attack—his soul seemed to leave his body when she covered his eyes. Also, she already had an understanding of the unspoken rule between active Magicmasters.
It was this mysterious side of Noir that left an impression on Alus, rather than the strange actions she’d performed on the thief. Truly, it was frightening in a sense.
Eventually it was time for the tour to restart. And Noir’s mood seemed lighter than before. But it wasn’t as if she’d forgotten what happened. “By the way, Alus, are you familiar with martial arts?” She casually let her gaze wander, as she deliberately took a step beyond the unspoken rule.
Alus decided to at least give her an answer. Of course, he didn’t reveal his affinity, nor was his answer particularly witty. “Well, just a little. Although I suppose you could call it self-taught. I don’t think observing it in action would be of any help.”
“Oh, how modest. Though I don’t think that an ordinary student could master that kind of skill.” This was a sharp observation, but perhaps Noir had mastered martial arts too. “On top of that... you also seem familiar with how to destroy the human body,” she muttered.
Alus answered with a wry smile, as if to deny this disturbing and gloomy truth. “Oh, not at all. Even Magicmasters need more than just magic to survive in this world, so you have nothing to lose from training your body.”
“Hmmm,” Noir murmured, tilting her head. There seemed to be some confusion in her eyes.
Alus began feeling uncomfortable, as if his mouth was moving on its own, but nevertheless, for some reason, he became a little more talkative. Even though he was feigning friendliness, it was unusual for him to speak this much with someone he’d only just met.
But the fact that he had to escort Noir in the first place was something that couldn’t be helped. Not to mention that he’d received Illumina’s approval, so he had to play the role of a friendly senior, which prompted his tongue to loosen more than usual.
As they walked, their conversation gradually drifted away from the Institute and turned into Alus talking about himself, like how he thought and felt about certain events.
He felt a haze coming over his thoughts. The atmosphere turned vaguely sweet, and he could feel his mood improving. Eventually, he even forgot about the time as he held a lively chat with Noir.
Before he realized it, Alus was standing at the Institute gates. He was just about to say goodbye to Noir.
“Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule.”
“Don’t worry about it, I enjoyed it too.” Alus waved as he saw her off.
There were still plenty of people waiting to be let into the Institute, yet Noir stopped, interrupting the flow, and gave Alus a deep bow.
Even after that, she’d look back from time to time as if she was reluctant to go, until eventually she was swallowed up in the crowds.
Alus turned around and shrugged. “What a strange girl.” She’d left a bit of an impression on him for a noble.
But the next moment, he thought about the nobles gathered around him, and a smile naturally formed on his lips. So that’s what it is.
The proverb about birds of a feather wasn’t lost on him.
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