The Mirage Bat finals took place under clear skies, a stark contrast to the morning's weather.
"Onii-sama, I'm brimming with energy. I'd like to use flight magic from the start."
"Go for it. Fly to your heart's content."
"Yes!"
Tatsuya's smile brought out an even brighter expression in Miyuki, so radiant that Hanzou, standing nearby, flushed. His reaction was purely from his innocent nature, not any fickleness.
"Still, Shiba-san, to recover so well after using that much magic this morning—without any trace of a 'capsule'?"
"I made sure she slept soundly for five hours."
"Going into the match refreshed is ideal. Still, against Shiba in that state, even I'm not sure I could win."
"True. That Second High player, neck-and-neck with Mari as a favorite, ended up eliminated in the qualifiers."
Bad luck had pitted Second High's champion contender against Miyuki in the qualifiers, leaving no pre-tournament favorites in the finals. It was inevitable, given Mari and the Second High player were the top picks.
"If Shiba-san wins this match, First High secures the overall Nine Schools championship."
"Shiba-kun, I heard you handed the flight magic CAD to headquarters?"
"Yeah, to avoid any fuss over cheating allegations."
"But that means…"
"It's starting."
Cutting off Azusa's question, Tatsuya turned his gaze to the players. Mayumi and the others followed, their eyes on the field.
"Flight magic!?"
"Other schools mastered it in such a short time!?"
"That's not a magic you can learn so quickly…"
"They prioritized victory over player safety?"
"Looks like Nakajou-senpai's worries were spot-on. But that sequence has a safety mechanism built in. If they're using Taurus Silver's exact sequence, we won't see a repeat of the qualifiers' incident."
Azusa glanced at Tatsuya, catching a hint of amusement in his expression.
(Did Tatsuya-kun anticipate this and hand over the CAD to the committee? But that'd only disadvantage Miyuki-san…)
Lacking Tatsuya's jaded perspective, Azusa couldn't fathom his intentions.
"Aren't you worried, Tatsuya-kun?"
"About what?"
"If this keeps up, Shiba might lose…"
"Didn't you just say, President? And the Committee Chair mostly agreed."
"Me?"
"What did I…?"
Seeing their confusion, Tatsuya explained without changing his expression.
"Flight magic isn't easily mastered, as the President noted. And the Committee Chair's point about prioritizing victory over safety is proven by their using it without preparation. But as you both feared, a first-time user of flight magic can't compete with Miyuki, who's trained extensively. You'll see soon enough."
As Tatsuya finished, a player lost balance mid-air. Just as they seemed to plummet, the sequence's safety mechanism kicked in, lowering them gently to the ground.
"I see. It's a tactic that relies on Shiba's psion reserves."
"Resident-type magic is unsustainable for most magicians over long periods."
As another player dropped out, Tatsuya harbored a darker thought.
(The high-profile Nine Schools, especially the Fairy Dance event, is the perfect stage to showcase flight magic's safety. This is prime advertising.)
Though he kept his developer role anonymous, Tatsuya held significant sway within FLT's third division. Promoting flight magic was crucial for both the division's contributions and his own freedom.
"It's like they're just here to make Miyuki-san shine…"
"Victory's practically guaranteed."
"Indeed. Unless Shiba-san forfeits, no other player can overtake her points in the final period."
"She could just stand there and win."
"Miyuki would never do that."
Though not in response to Tatsuya's words, Miyuki kept piling up points in the final period, securing First High's victory—and the overall Nine Schools championship—with an overwhelming lead.
Even with the championship secured, First High stayed subdued, preparing for tomorrow's Monolith Code. But among the first-years, there was some grumbling. They hadn't celebrated much after the rookie tournament win due to lackluster main event stats, so they felt restrained.
To avoid seeming rebellious, the first-years organized a modest victory party. Yet the key figure behind the triumph, Tatsuya, was absent.
"Is Tatsuya-san already asleep?"
"Yes, he said he was exhausted."
"No surprise. He's been phenomenal non-stop."
"So Tatsuya-san's out cold, huh?"
"Honoka?"
Miyuki cast a curious glance at Honoka's slightly forlorn tone. It held a hint of restraint, but Miyuki wasn't so jealous as to make it obvious.
"Oh, Kei-senpai?"
"Hey, Erika-kun."
"Erika, you know Isori-senpai?"
"My family's indebted to Kei-senpai's. He even handled this engraving sequence for me."
"I just tweaked it a bit."
"Still, handling engraving sequences is amazing."
"Kei's a genius!"
Mizuki's earnest praise prompted Kanon to puff out her chest. Noticing Kanon's sharp glance at Erika, Miyuki wondered, (Is there some history here?)
"By the way, where's Shiba-kun?"
"Tatsuya-kun's asleep, according to Miyuki-san. Did you need him for something?"
"No, I wanted to ask about the sabotage incident… but he must be wiped out. Plus, he's injured."
"Oh, congrats on the win, Shiba-san."
"Thank you, Chiyoda-senpai."
"Kei-senpai, are you ready for tomorrow?"
"Not quite…"
Kei's glance at Kanon clued everyone but Mizuki into why he was here.
"Then shouldn't you hurry?"
"Yeah, but…"
"Mizuki, read the room a little."
"No helping it, huh?"
"It's Mizuki, after all…"
Leo and Mikihiko, silent until now, cast sympathetic looks at Kei.
"Huh? Did I do something?"
"No, it's nothing… I should go."
"Aww, stay a bit longer!"
"Kanon, I still have adjustments to finish. Be patient."
"You'll breeze through it, Kei. And if you don't finish, just ask Shiba-kun for help."
"He's been swamped until today. I can't ask more of him."
"But come on…"
The noisy seniors—no, Kanon—left, and silence settled over the group.
"Kei-senpai's got it rough."
"But he seemed happy."
Erika and Shizuku's exchange said it all about the pair.
Kanon's wariness was utterly pointless, though…
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