Returning to his room after parting with Airi, Tatsuya sighed, sensing five presences inside. Two would've been fine, but five?
"(Either they don't trust me, or they're really bored…)"
The first thought was for Leo and Mikihiko; the second, for Erika. He'd expected Miyuki, and figured Mizuki was just dragged along by Erika.
"Quite the crowd for this hour," Tatsuya said, stepping in.
"Tatsuya…" Miyuki started.
"Hey, Tatsuya," Leo cut in. "Juumonji-senpai dropped some wild news. Is it true?"
"Saegusa-senpai might pull something like that, but Juumonji-senpai wouldn't lie," Tatsuya replied.
Mikihiko muttered, "I don't even get the 'Saegusa-senpai' part…"
Tatsuya gave a wry smile, recalling Leo and Mikihiko's limited history with Mayumi. "Fair point. But it's no lie or joke—it's real."
Erika frowned. "You in Monolith Code makes sense, but why these two? There were better athletes, right?"
"My name's Mikihiko!" he snapped.
"Brother, may we hear the reason?" Miyuki asked.
Tatsuya repeated the explanation he'd given Mari and Mayumi. Leo, initially grumpy, perked up when Tatsuya said he'd chosen them for their skills, growing eager to compete.
"Classic Tatsuya, always thinking ahead," Erika said.
"But, Tatsuya," Leo said, "I'm no good at long-range magic. Monolith Code bans direct attacks, right?"
Tatsuya handed him a device. "Use this."
It was the integrated CAD, Kotsuren, which Leo had tested before.
"Is that okay?" Leo asked, hesitant.
Erika tilted her head, skeptical, but Tatsuya passed them a rulebook. "It says here that launching physical objects at opponents isn't against the rules."
"Physical objects…" Leo's eyes lit up. "Got it!"
"Wait!" Erika exclaimed. "You planned for this when you made it!?"
"Not always scheming," Tatsuya said with a wry smile. "This was pure coincidence."
He brushed off Mikihiko's overthinking.
"What about CAD prep, Tatsuya-san?" Mizuki asked. "Leo-kun's using that, but what about Mikihiko-kun's and yours?"
"It's not just this one, and it's not fully tuned, right?" Leo added.
"I'll handle the CADs," Tatsuya said.
"It's past nine," Mizuki said. "Will you make it?"
"One hour per CAD. Start with Leo's to give him time to practice with Kotsuren."
"One hour…" Mizuki blinked. "That's midnight."
"Mine takes ten minutes," Tatsuya said.
"Ten…"
Erika, who knew CAD tuning's complexity, was speechless. Leo, Mizuki, and Mikihiko realized how abnormal this was.
"Hey, Tatsuya," Mikihiko said.
"What?"
"You told me my magic issues aren't my fault, but the spell's inefficiency."
"Yeah."
Erika froze, stunned. To call the prestigious Yoshida family's spells flawed? Only an arrogant genius or a reckless fool would dare—and Tatsuya wasn't the latter.
"So you'll teach me a better activation sequence?" Mikihiko asked.
"Not teach. Adapt," Tatsuya clarified.
"Sorry, I don't get the difference."
"Your lightning spell from before—it's a derivative of Raidoji, right?"
Mikihiko nodded, awestruck. "You knew just by looking… Yeah, it's a Yoshida-adapted Raidoji. The inefficiency you mentioned is probably that."
"Right. It's designed to counter interruptions during chanting, a relic of old magic. With modern CADs' speed, that's just dead weight."
"Haha, so ancient magic's power loses to modern speed," Mikihiko said, his tone oddly upbeat, almost self-deprecating.
Erika and Mizuki exchanged uneasy glances.
"You're wrong, Mikihiko," Tatsuya said.
"Huh?"
"Your master said it's about usage. Modern magic wins in direct clashes for speed, but ancient magic's stealth shines in ambushes. I picked you for that stealth."
"No one's ever said that before…" Mikihiko said, conviction growing. "Alright, I trust you." He handed Tatsuya his CAD.
"Since you're trusting me, one more question," Tatsuya said.
"What? My dad wouldn't mind, even if it's a secret."
"I won't spill," Tatsuya assured, with Miyuki, Mizuki, Leo, and Erika nodding—this stayed in the room.
"Cool, ask away," Mikihiko said.
"Can you use Visual Synchronization?"
"You know everything, don't you? Yes, I can handle up to two Sensory Synchronizations at once."
"Visual's enough. Now, for the strategy…"
Tatsuya leaned in with a wicked grin, whispering to Leo and Mikihiko. Erika and Mizuki exchanged looks.
"I knew Tatsuya was cunning, but this is next-level…" Erika muttered.
"It's unavoidable," Mizuki said. "He was just asked to step in. Without some cunning, they'd have no shot."
"You know I can hear you," Tatsuya said, shooting them a deadpan stare.
Leo piled on. "Gotta say, that plan is pretty devious."
"So you're with Erika on this," Tatsuya teased.
Erika and Leo flustered. "Don't lump me with him!" Erika snapped.
"Yeah, I'm not on her side!" Leo protested.
"Hand over your CAD, Leo, including Kotsuren. I'll start tuning," Tatsuya said, his warm glance fleeting as he refocused.
Time was tight. Tatsuya tuned Leo's CAD in under an hour, and Leo, with Erika, dashed to the training field. A young man and woman alone at night might raise eyebrows, but with Leo and Erika, no one worried about trouble.
In their place, Azusa arrived, offering to help Tatsuya. To Miyuki, she seemed oddly fidgety…