Tomorrow, April 7th, is the entrance ceremony for the nine Magic High Schools.
Two years ago, I was supposed to be the freshman representative, but due to Major General Saeki's "insane request" regarding the Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion, I couldn't attend. That ended up shifting the burden onto Miyuki and forced Tatsuya into a difficult position, effectively mirroring the original timeline.
Last year, as a member of the Student Council, I was tasked with handling the VIP guests. That led to my reunion with Katsuto and the Saegusa sisters, including an episode where Mayumi—the "Little Devil Senpai"—went on one of her rampages, though things ended relatively peacefully.
This year, I'm helping with the ceremony as the head of the Club Federation. Considering the lineup of guests, leaving everything to Miyuki alone would invite vultures with ill intentions. I'll need to handle the reception myself.
To be fair, compared to the original timeline, the Student Council has expanded to seven members. The division of labor has significantly reduced the burden on Tatsuya and Miyuki. Honoka, having recovered from her cold, is full of energy—prompting a characteristically sharp remark from Shizuku: "I just hope she doesn't overdo it and collapse from a nervous fever again."
Despite the lighter workload, Tatsuya and the others agreed on an early night to prepare for tomorrow. However, when Yugen returned to his room after his bath (lately, the order had settled into Tatsuya, then Yugen, then Miyuki, followed by Minami), an ultra-secret encrypted email was waiting for him.
Yugen immediately booted up his terminal. Using Yata no Kagami, he pulled the change logs for all peripheral data, stratospheric camera feeds, and sensor arrays centered on Sado Island. While hearsay is useful, he preferred to grasp the raw data of the situation first.
Once the information was organized, he transferred it to the Shiba family's secure cabinet. Exactly forty-five minutes after Yugen had returned to his room, as if he had been waiting for the transfer to complete, Tatsuya called him on the internal line.
Yugen expected Tatsuya to demand the info immediately, but it seemed he had waited for Miyuki and Minami to finish their baths. When Yugen stepped into the living room, Tatsuya, Miyuki, and Minami were already seated, their eyes turning toward him.
The shutters were already closed; the chance of a leak via external observation was near zero. Yugen took the empty seat next to Miyuki and faced Tatsuya.
"Sorry, did I keep you waiting?"
"No, I needed a moment to think anyway. Did you get the data?"
"Thanks to the extra time. Cabinet, code 'Ixion'."
At Yugen's command, the display in the cabinet flickered to life, showing a map of the area surrounding Sado Island. Miyuki and Minami, still in the dark, tilted their heads in confusion, but Tatsuya showed no surprise—he had likely already received an email from the Yotsuba main house.
"This afternoon, fifty nautical miles north of the tip of Sado, a suspicious cargo ship that had been drifting there since yesterday was approached by an Ichijou family survey ship. The Ichijou ship was hit by a magical attack. To put it simply, that ship was a lure—a trap."
Yugen hadn't issued a warning beforehand. He had assumed that since the incident five years ago had been resolved, the Ichijou family would understand that taking unnecessary risks was dangerous. Instead, the head of the Ichijou family had jumped straight into the trap to unmask the enemy.
"In an attempt to defend against a wide-range naval bombardment, Lord Gouki Ichijou has fallen into critical condition. He's conscious, but his body is unresponsive."
"The main house speculates it's a state of paralysis caused by an overload of the Magic Calculation Area (MCA)... Yugen, what's your take?" Tatsuya asked.
"The assessment is correct. Given my position, I've seen people with these symptoms before."
Miyuki gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. Minami's expression went blank with shock. Yugen and Tatsuya shared a look and offered a wry smile.
Tatsuya had been trained for lethal magical combat, and Yugen had sparred with military magicians through the Third Institute and his grandfather, witnessing the fallout of MCA overloads firsthand. It was simply a difference in experience; they couldn't blame the girls for their reaction.
"It's not physical nerve damage. If he's conscious, there's hope for recovery. Still, Lord Ichijou was reckless."
Knowing the original plot, Yugen felt conflicted seeing the timeline converge like this. According to the Yotsuba report on Tatsuya's terminal, Gouki had deployed four layers of magic barriers. Three were shattered, but the fourth held—barely.
Gouki had chosen barrier magic to protect a large number of people, despite it being notoriously inefficient in modern magic. Knowing how much Gouki valued his men, it was clear he had put his life on the line for his "comrades."
"Just because Lord Ichijou is incapacitated doesn't mean Masaki can just slide into the seat of the family head. As the current head of the Kagurazaka, I understand that better than anyone."
In terms of raw magical power, Masaki was qualified. But the "prestige" of the Ichijou family wasn't just about output. It was about the presence they maintained—specifically, the volunteer militia they organized during the Sado invasion five years ago.
Masaki (and Toya, acting as a civilian) had been the stars of the battlefield, but the political willpower required to mobilize that militia came from Gouki.
Yugen had become the next head of the Kagurazaka by proving his strength, but he solidified his position by dissolving the "Traditionalists" and constructing the Sanctuaries. Masaki lacked that level of "foundational achievement" to command the same respect as a head of state.
"The Ichijou family has protocols for the absence of a head. The Ichinokura and the newly promoted Isshiki family will offer support, but as a neighbor to their guarded territory, the Yotsuba can't treat this as someone else's problem," Yugen continued.
"Will we be dispatched? Or will you, Yugen-san?" Miyuki asked.
"The risk is too high for that. Besides, I have... history with the Ichijou family. Feuding during an emergency is stupid, but Masaki wouldn't react well to my presence."
Yugen's innate magic, Reinforce, was powerful for medical treatment, but he was loath to use its side effects on the Ichijou. Furthermore, the friction over Miyuki remained a significant hurdle.
Even if Yugen healed Gouki, there was no guarantee Masaki's attitude would change. As Masaki was the future head of a Ten Master Clan, Yugen didn't want to trigger decades of resentment by overstepping now. Therefore, Yugen had already presented an alternative to the Mitsuya, the Yotsuba, and the Shippou family (who guarded Hokkaido).
"I've asked the Mitsuya to focus on gathering overseas intelligence in the Pacific. I've advised the Shippou to heighten their vigilance toward the NSU. And I've informed the Yotsuba main house that I am dispatching Yuka-san as the Kagurazaka family's official magic physician."
"Can Yuka-san treat magicians?" Miyuki asked, surprised.
"I've hammered the techniques of magic healing and the knowledge of the MCA into her. Her frequent visits to the Shiba house weren't just about fiancé socialities."
Yugen had taught Yuka—who was already researching "MCA Overheating" at the Magic University's graduate school—the secrets of the MCA that modern technology had yet to uncover, including the "Linker Core," "Gate," and the magician-specific "Material Circuit."
Yuka's response had been a weary sigh: "If I published even one of these findings, I could live comfortably for the rest of my life." Yugen accepted that he was abnormal, but he still found her disbelief slightly annoying.
"I've taught her basic self-defense too, but this plays to her strengths... Am I right, Miyuki-san?"
"You are," Miyuki replied, leaning into him.
"...Save the flirting for your own rooms," Tatsuya cut in.
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