Chapter 8

"..."

When I woke up, the first thing I saw was a stark white ceiling.

...Huh? What was I doing again?

I tried to recall with my fuzzy head.

"Seiya!!"

"Wha—!?"

Something suddenly charged at me from the right side.

"Wait, Mai?"

Ah, she tackled me. I almost reacted out of reflex.

"That's good... That's good..."

...What's good?

...Ah, right. We were doing something like a mock battle, weren't we?

I must have passed out. I probably looked like a weakling, but it's really embarrassing. I must have been utterly defeated.

"There's no way I'd be taken out by something like that. Thanks to the cushioning magic, I'm completely fine. What are you worried about?"

I patted Mai's head, which was still clinging to me.

"B-because... I put a lot of magic power into it... And besides, I didn't mean to hit you... I'm sorry. I thought you could dodge, but—wait, what are you holding back for?!"

"You switch gears so fast!?"

Don't change your attitude in a split second like that!!

"I told you to go all out!!"

"There's no way I can do that!!"

"You didn't use any magic except for body reinforcement!! What are you mumbling about?!"

"Shh!! Shh!!"

I covered her mouth before she could say something embarrassing.

"Wha—!? What are you doing!!"

Mai protested with a slightly blushing face.

"Calm down a bit. I don't want anyone to hear."

"...It's fine. Do you know what time it is?"

"Huh?"

I looked at the clock. It was 8:00 PM.

"No way... It's already this late?"

"You've been sleeping. In this infirmary."

I looked around. This was the infirmary, huh. I just noticed.

"Where's the teacher?"

"She's already gone."

Mai showed me the key she had on her finger.

"...Hey, is it okay to give students the key?"

"I told her to hurry up and go home."

That's a bit harsh.

"...Huh? So, you were waiting for me to wake up?"

That's what it seems. But Mai's reaction was unexpected.

"N-no way!!"

She stood up with a red face.

"No, that's exactly what happened, right? You were here the whole time, weren't you?"

"N-no... n-no... n-no..."

She opened and closed her mouth, then lowered her head.

"Hey... Mai?"

"Fine, fine!! I was worried, okay!!"

Mai, who shouted with a red face, looked very cute, but I decided not to point it out to avoid making things more complicated.

"So, why do you hide your true strength?"

Mai, perhaps trying to cover her embarrassment, fiddled with her hair and asked.

"Why...? My job this time is to guard. I don't want the other party to know too much about me."

"...Hmm"

"Hey, Mai?"

Mai, who seemed to be thinking about my answer, put her hand to her mouth and looked contemplative.

...Did I say something I shouldn't have?

In the end, I didn't know what it was. After thinking for a while, Mai suddenly looked up and suggested we go back.

"Can we lock it?"

Mai locked the door as we left the infirmary.

"It's fine. There's a spare key in the staff room. I'll return this tomorrow."

I thought if Mai locked it, the infirmary teacher would be in trouble tomorrow, but it seems I was overthinking it.

"Alright, let's go back."

"Okay."

Mai nodded in response to my voice.

☆

"I'm hungry... Is the dorm cafeteria closed already?"

Walking back to the dorm with Mai, I muttered while looking at my watch. It was already past 9:00 PM.

"It's open."

Mai replied casually.

"Really? It's open quite late."

"Kids in clubs eat late. Most of them are back in the dorms by now, but the cafeteria stays open late. Until 10:00 PM, though."

"Thirty minutes, huh?"

"Last order is thirty minutes before closing."

"Five minutes!!"

Why didn't you say that earlier!!

"Hurry up. We might make it."

"Ah, ...have you eaten already?"

"No, of course not. I was by your side the whole time."

"Alright, let's go together then?"

"Eh?"

Mai looked at me with a surprised expression.

"Hey... Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Eh, ah... No, um..."

Mai fumbled with her words and avoided eye contact. I understood her reaction.

This girl doesn't have friends to invite to dinner. Reflecting on her actions during lunch break, it made sense.

"Fine, I'll go with you."

Unaware that I had figured out the truth, Mai scratched her head and said.

...What a stubborn girl.

"What's that look for?"

"No, nothing."

She glared at me, and I quickly shook my head. I didn't want to make things more complicated.

"You're weird. Let's go."

I wanted to say, "What are you talking about?" but held back at the last moment.

Hmm, I feel like I'm forgetting something.

"...Ah."

I realized a major problem.

"...What?"

Mai asked, looking at me with a puzzled expression.

"Sorry, I can't make it."

Before I could finish my sentence, Mai grabbed my collar.

"Wh-What do you mean!!"

"Whoa!!?"

My head was shaken violently.

"Calm down!!"

"What a liar!!"

"No, I'm serious!! Listen to me!!"

I shook off her arms and shouted.

"What do you mean, 'No, I'm serious'!!"

In response to Mai's rebuttal, I said something that was clearly a disappointment as a person, without even thinking.

"I don't have any money!!"

☆

"Ah, um... Sorry."

"...Why are you being so humble? It gives me goosebumps. Stop it."

"O-Okay. Then, let's eat."

"Let's eat."

Mai started eating after I picked up my chopsticks.

In the end, I had to accept the result, even if it meant being called a useless man.

In other words, Mai was treating me. When I declared I had no money, Mai gave me a look like "What, you?" and said, "Then, I'll treat you." I thought it was too much and tried to decline, but she silenced me with a look.

To at least choose something cheap, I tried to press the button for plain udon at the vending machine, but Mai reached over and said, "Oh, you like udon? Here," and chose the most expensive "Seiran Udon." When I saw the udon handed to me by the cafeteria girl (apparently, Seiran Magic Academy hires students for part-time work in the cafeteria), I was shocked. The toppings were so abundant that the noodles were barely visible. There were pieces of meat and tempura, and the shrimp tempura was so large it hung over the edge of the bowl. The price was... at least not a one-coin meal.

I feel bad. I intended to choose plain udon, but ended up causing an extra expense.

"What's wrong?"

She put down her chopsticks and tilted her head. As expected of a lady, her manners were impeccable. She looked so cute that if I didn't know her twisted personality, I would have—no, I'll hold off on saying that for a while. At least, I don't have the right or position to say such things now.

...I'm completely being taken care of.

"Thanks, I appreciate it. You saved me."

I thanked her.

"It's fine. It's not a big expense."

She seemed to lose interest and picked up her chopsticks again.

But, Mai, you're wrong. Sure, you're a lady, so this amount of money is probably nothing to you. But you didn't make a big deal out of it. You just naturally helped someone. That's a precious kindness. Despite being twisted, you're a good person.

"By the way, now you owe me. How will you repay me?"

...Can I correct you? You do make a big deal out of it.

"Then, I'll take orders. From now on, you have to eat with me at the school."

She declared with a smug look. I couldn't help but smile. She must have been lonely. Of course, school life can be lonely. It's not that she doesn't make friends, but she can't.

...Why do you put up with it? You're usually so selfish.

"Okay. I'll do it."

I agreed in a light tone to hide my embarrassment. Mai looked happy and went back to eating.

...The problem is my finances, though.

☆

After a late dinner, I parted ways with Mai at the cafeteria.

The boys' and girls' dorms are in separate buildings. The cafeteria and common areas are shared, but the girls' dorm is in a separate wing, separated by a connecting corridor. When we parted, I saw a password-protected door, which is understandable for teenagers.

In other words...

"...I guess there's no need to guard her once she's back in the dorm."

Based on what I saw in her room, Seiran Magic Academy has strong defensive magic on the windows and walls of the dorms. As long as the doors are locked, it should be safe inside.

"Leaving the locking to her... I should check the surroundings, though."

I was feeling drowsy, but unfortunately, my duty starts now.

"I'll do a patrol. I should also check the layout of the school."

I shouldn't enter the dorms or the main building through the front doors. I don't know when curfew is, and I need a student ID to enter, which would leave a record. I don't want to be noticed as a transfer student wandering around the school at night.

Thinking this, I returned to my room and used a teleportation spell to move to the courtyard below.

☆

The summer break, similar to summer vacation in Japan, had already passed, and I transferred to Seiran Magic Academy a little into the second semester. The residual heat was still there, and even at night, the warm breeze made me sweat as I walked back along the avenue we had just walked with Mai.

The only sounds were the chirping of insects and the rustling of grass. The school felt desolate without the usual activity. As expected, the defensive magic circuits around the school buildings were still active, even at night.

There's no need to check inside the buildings.

"Wow, this is even stronger than the barriers around the school and dorms."

I hid in the shadows to observe the main gate. The barrier was much stronger than I imagined. The guards are just for show. This barrier should deter most threats. If something powerful enough to break it, the people inside would notice.

The guards' main job is probably to identify people trying to enter the school, like when I tried to enter yesterday.

"Everything's fine here."

I muttered to myself and headed to the next destination.

☆

"This place is huge in every way..."

I walked down the path extending from the left side of the school building and entered the area with sports facilities. The first thing I saw was the club building. As expected, it also had a defensive magic circuit.

"Preparing such a large building for club activities... How many clubs are there? Ah, I see."

When I got closer to the entrance, I understood one reason for its size. There was a map of the club rooms on the side. It turned out that not only sports clubs but also cultural clubs were housed in this building. It was a comprehensive club building.

The entrance also required a student ID, like the dorm. After confirming that, I headed towards the field.

"...It's huge."

While crossing the field, I thought about how annoying it would be to run a marathon here. The gym was at the end of the field.

The security here was also perfect.

Mai might be right; I might not be necessary. The school is almost completely isolated from the outside. Even if someone broke in, hiding in a nearby building should buy some time.

"Well... There's one more place I haven't checked."

Walking there would be far and troublesome. I wanted to use a teleportation spell, but I couldn't.

☆

My teleportation spell has several limitations, one of which is that I can only teleport to places I can see. It's not impossible to teleport to unseen places, but it's very dangerous.

The teleportation spell works differently from the usual spellcasting system. Instead of chanting a spell, I fix my coordinates by imagining where I want to go. The clearer the image, the smoother the spellcasting, and the closer I can get to my intended destination. That's why I can teleport instantly to places I can see, as the coordinates are easier to imagine. This is the core of my close combat technique.

Conversely, it takes time to imagine distant or vague places, and the margin of error is higher. The farther the destination, the more magic power is required.

Fundamentally, my teleportation spell erases my existence at point A and rewrites it as if I had always been at point B.

That's why it looks like I'm moving instantly from A to B. This is why it's called "instant teleportation."

However, in reality, there's a second limitation. To alter events bound by the law of conservation of mass and the law of inertia, I have to fundamentally twist these laws.

For example, moving a few centimeters doesn't require much effort, but the farther the distance, the stronger the resistance to the teleportation spell.

To overcome this, I need a significant amount of magic power. Long-distance teleportation could consume so much magic power that it might drive me insane, and if such a large amount of magic power is suddenly released from my body, the coordinates might not stabilize, and I could end up in a completely different place.

"The last place is on the other side of the school building."

For these reasons, I can't teleport to the church, which I've never seen or been to.

I'll walk there leisurely.

Thinking this, I started climbing the gentle stairs behind the school building.

☆

I reached a circular, white landing.

There was a fountain here, smaller than the one near the main gate. This one featured a naked woman holding a pot from which water flowed. It was clearly related to some religion.

"...Coming here makes me forget that this is a school campus."

It's a mystical space. Even though I'm not a believer, I feel a sense of purification.

As I walked to the front of the church, I noticed something.

"Oh? There's more ahead..."

To the side of the church, there were more stairs leading up. Unlike the stairs I had climbed, these were not neatly paved with white blocks but had a more natural, hiking trail-like atmosphere.

"...I don't think this was marked on the campus map I was given."

Twisting my neck didn't help. Unfortunately, the map was in my room at the dorm.

"...There's no point in thinking about it. I'll check it out later."

For now, I approached the church door.

"The door is impressive too."

Just looking at it, it exudes a sense of authority. There's no place to insert a student ID. It seems to welcome all comers. I had a feeling about that.

I hadn't reached out to any door I had checked so far, but my hand naturally extended to this one.

"If I don't need a student ID, there won't be a record, right?"

I muttered an excuse to no one in particular and reached for the door.

"It's probably locked..."

I said as I pushed the door. To my surprise, it opened smoothly with a solemn sound, contrary to my expectations.

"What, it's open all night...?"

Surprised that it opened, I decided to go inside. If it's open, it must be okay to enter. I confidently stepped inside.

"Wow..."

I've seen such buildings in TV and movies many times. The interior is almost the same. However, the sacred atmosphere I felt was something I couldn't experience through a screen.

A straight path extended from the entrance, with wooden benches on either side, presumably for worshippers. The ceiling was covered with stained glass, bringing moonlight into the church.

At the end of the straight path was an altar, and there—

I've never met her directly, but I'm sure it's her.

—Himeyuri Ayane's younger sister.

Himeyuri Saya was there.