Chapter 212: Girl, You'd Better Learn Cooking from Me
The flow of magical power is controllable.
This is common knowledge in this world, yet not everyone can comprehend and master it.
As it happens, Mahiro is one of those who has not only grasped this knowledge but mastered it.
Thus, when the violent torrent of light shattered the dome, threatening to devour everything around like a ravenous beast, Mahiro took action.
"Magical Backflow—Spell Reversal."
Snap!
With a crisp finger snap, pure white magical energy surged from Mahiro's body.
Magical power and psions are inherently interconnected—one could say they belong to the same category.
In this world of magical science, people excel at shaping magical power into various forms and states to accomplish different tasks.
What Mahiro was doing now was weaving his diffused magical power into threads, tracing streams of pure white light in mid-air like ropes, intertwining them with the pillar of light erupted by Shadow.
"So beautiful..."
Alexia was utterly captivated by the clash of their magical energies, mesmerized by the spectacle before her.
Black and pure white.
Like heaven and hell intertwined, a battle between demon and deity.
The demon sought to devour the mortal realm, while the deity used its own body as a shield to protect humanity.
But what held her spellbound wasn't just the dazzling light show—it was the incredibly refined density of the magical power and the ultimate control over it, creating a veritable visual feast!
So beautiful it enthralled her, stirring longing in her heart.
Their clashing magical energies had already pierced through the sewer dome, reaching the distant night sky.
Azure-purple and white magical powers wrestled and entwined, spiraling across the firmament like a helix!
The scattered fluctuations were powerful enough to disperse the clouds.
The pressure of the magical energy shook buildings and made the earth tremble.
Yet remarkably, under the suppression of the pure white magical power, the azure-purple pillar of light was gradually shrinking.
Mahiro's technique was working.
Under his containment and restraint, the magical power was reversing its flow, returning to its point of origin.
Like time flowing backward, it was being compressed and dissipated.
This apocalyptic spectacle lasted less than ten seconds before Cid's nuclear blast technique was completely silenced.
"Is it over already?"
Alexia stood dazed on the spot, only coming to her senses after what felt like an eternity.
But everything before her had already returned to normal.
Gone was the terrifying magical power capable of tearing the world asunder and obliterating the royal capital. Gone were the divine sword techniques wielded by mortal hands. Gone too was Zenon Griffey, who had transformed into a monster only to be struck down in a single move when he intervened in the conflict.
And the instigator of it all, the man in the black coat, had also vanished...
Nothing remained except for what appeared to be a massive hole piercing through heaven and earth straight to the ground, and the starlight streaming down from its opening above.
"Snap out of it, we're leaving."
At the gentle call, Alexia finally regained full awareness, instinctively turning to see Mahiro's figure.
Strangely, this thought surfaced in her heart—
Ah, so not everything is gone after all. Yotsuba-sensei is still here by my side...
"Teacher... where... where did that person go?"
Still seemingly not fully recovered from the shock, Alexia stammered out her question.
But Mahiro replied as if it were obvious:
"Of course, he ran away. What else could he do? Did you actually want to catch him?"
Alexia almost instinctively wanted to answer yes.
But as she quickly regained her composure, she stopped the words that had already reached her lips.
Catch him?
That notion was utterly laughable, especially after witnessing everything that had just happened.
That terrifying magical power and inhuman sword techniques—even the equally powerful Yotsuba-sensei hadn't been able to capture him. If he had really stayed, could her elder sister and the knights under her command actually have caught him?
It was pure delusion.
However, Alexia was mistaken about one thing.
Mahiro had let Cid leave not because he couldn't catch him, but because he didn't want to, and there was no need.
He was just a teenager in the advanced stages of chuunibyou, who hadn't done anything that crossed Mahiro's bottom line, nor was he some great evil. Why bother catching him?
To uphold the laws and order of the Midgar royal family?
That had nothing to do with him.
Besides, letting Cid go wasn't completely without consequences.
Although he had annihilated and decomposed part of the magical power earlier, most of it had been reversed and forcibly shoved back into Cid's body.
No matter how strong his physique or how precise his control over magical power, he would probably suffer considerable injuries.
At the very least, he'd be bedridden for ten days to half a month.
This could be considered properly venting Claire's anger for her.
However, while leading Alexia back to the knights, the second princess's mental state seemed somewhat poor, always appearing distracted.
Several times she nearly reenacted Gamma's trademark tripping on flat ground, but each time he caught her steadily.
This was actually normal.
After all, his battle with Cid—though he didn't want to boast—had been a fight that transcended humanity.
After witnessing such inhuman scenes, not being scared enough to wet one's pants could already be considered strong.
Let alone someone like Alexia who had enjoyed a VIP front-row seat to appreciate it up close.
But in reality, what occupied Alexia's thoughts, or rather what kept echoing in her mind, were the scenes of Mahiro's duel with that black-clad figure.
Clang, clang, clang.
Completely different from a battlefield, the crisp sound of clashing swords like during practice sessions kept echoing in her mind.
The trajectories of the black rapier and silver blade meeting in the air, the sparks scattering from their impact.
Although the subsequent magical explosion was more shocking, compared to that, the sword technique exchange between the two left a deeper impression on her.
Her mind was involuntarily deeply drawn to that duel, unable to break away.
Because that was...
"The sword of mortals."
A realm reachable through mortal strength and personal effort, the ultimate goal she yearned for.
In her childhood, Alexia had envisioned the completed form of her ideal swordsmanship.
Unrelated to talent or magical power, simply the "sword of the have-nots" achieved through daily accumulation of fundamental skills.
However, because she had an older sister who was more gifted and talented, with magical power far surpassing her own, her swordsmanship was often compared to her sister's and frequently mocked as "the sword of a commoner."
Thus, Alexia lost her way.
Even so, she couldn't abandon this ideal.
That's why she was drawn to Mahiro's sword techniques during class, even abandoning the first group to follow him to the ninth group.
In her heart, she prayed for guidance to advance further.
But what she never expected was that the sword techniques she yearned for were actually possessed by this very Yotsuba-sensei, who was renowned throughout the academy and the royal capital!
In this match that could be called unparalleled in history.
Without using any magical power, without any flashy movements, just what appeared to be ordinary sword swings—it could be called "the sword of nothingness."
And there were actually two people who possessed such sword techniques!
"Yotsuba-sensei, just who are you...?"
Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Alexia spoke up and asked.
But Mahiro looked at her with a strange expression.
It felt as if he had heard a question like, "Master, what do you do for a living?"
"You're calling me sensei, so who do you think I am? What if I said I raise pigs, how would you feel?"
"...Haha..."
Alexia forced an awkward laugh, realizing her question was somewhat strange.
She quickly explained:
"What I mean is, aside from being an academy teacher, who exactly are you?"
Even the royal family couldn't uncover any background about him.
He possessed extraordinary sword techniques and terrifying magical power.
It felt like he was the kind of peerless master hidden among the common people, just like in the bestselling novels in the royal capital...
"Aside from being a teacher..."
Mahiro also rubbed his chin, thinking carefully and seriously.
"If I had to say... you could think of me as a passing Kamen Rider."
He said with complete seriousness.
"Ha....?!"
Kamen Rider?
What is that?
He wasn't even wearing a masquerade mask.
Mahiro didn't answer her question, just smiled and brought her back to the knights' headquarters, handing her over to Iris.
"As promised, I've brought your little sister back."
Though it seemed this first princess was a bit busy, or rather, the entire knights' order was bustling due to the sudden commotion in the royal capital.
So he didn't disturb them further, left Alexia there, and departed directly.
Afterwards, he took Millia, who was still unconscious, out of the ring and handed her over to Alpha to handle.
Shadow Garden happily adds one more member...
By the way, Shadow Garden's operation tonight was also very successful, basically cleaning out the Cult of Diablos lurking in the royal capital from top to bottom.
But unfortunately, these people were only peripheral members of the cult, never managing to reach the core.
Only fragments of information mentioned the Knights of the Round Table.
And one place name—
Holy Land Lindwurm.
It is one of the holy sites of the world's most widespread religion, the "Sacred Faith."
Legend has it that the goddess Beatrix bestowed her power upon three legendary heroes, and the Sacred Faith emerged accordingly—a religion that worships Beatrix as its sole deity.
"So, what do we do next? Are we going?"
In the room, Alpha was holding the sleeping Millia in her arms, a gentle smile gracing her face.
"Well, of course, we're going. That place holds part of the truth you're searching for, and it also has something I'm looking for."
Mahiro sipped the coffee Alpha had brought while watching her care for Millia.
Truly, Alpha was remarkable. Though still a young girl, she radiated an unusually mature maternal aura.
Perhaps it was because she had often taken care of Beta and the others when they were children.
"But before that, there's one more thing I need to do."
Hearing his words, Alpha paused mid-action as she brushed the stray strands of hair from Millia's forehead. She looked up at him, blinking.
Her deep blue eyes held a trace of confusion, but it seemed she had thought of something.
"Is it about Miss Sherry?"
"Yes, I can't just leave things as they are. It's time to bring this to a conclusion."
Mahiro set down his coffee cup, stood up, and walked to the balcony, gazing into the distant night.
In the days that followed.
As expected, Cid took a week-long leave of absence.
It was shorter than anticipated, suggesting Cid's constitution was still quite robust.
Meanwhile, Po Tato and Skel Etal, the two members of the mob trio, exchanged bewildered glances. They never expected their seemingly sturdy idiot friend to take such a delicate-sounding leave.
Without their usual target for teasing, the two felt utterly out of sorts.
But what surprised Mahiro was that Claire did not take time off to care for Cid.
When asked, she only replied coldly:
"That child Cid doesn't need me anymore. He can take care of himself."
It was as if, with the passage of time, Claire had come to a profound realization.
It seemed the events of that night had hit her quite hard.
Under normal circumstances, Claire would have been deeply worried upon hearing that Cid was on sick leave, right?
Ah, but it was no one else's fault—Cid had brought this upon himself.
...
On the academy rooftop.
The midday sun poured down from the sky.
Though it was still early summer, the sun was already beginning to show its harshness. At this moment, Mahiro stood there, enjoying the refreshing cool breeze blowing against him.
Across from him stood a silver-haired beauty.18kds
"Miss Alexia, skipping lunch at noon and specifically calling me here—is there something you need?"
He had originally planned to visit Vice Principal Lutheran during the lunch break, but this girl had dragged him here instead.
"..."
Alexia nodded silently.
As if organizing her thoughts, it took her a long while before she finally spoke:
"Due to Master Zenon's disappearance, my engagement with him has been dissolved. Additionally, some matters regarding the Griffey family were uncovered, leading Elder Sister Iris and Father to strip the Griffey family of their nobility title and imprison all family members."
"Well, that sounds quite good, doesn't it? Congratulations."
"Also regarding my previous kidnapping incident, it has been confirmed that Senior Claire was not involved. Princess Iris asked me to convey her sincere apologies to Claire on her behalf."
"You shouldn't be telling me this—you should be saying this directly to Claire."
"Besides this, Elder Sister seems to have uncovered some inside information and is currently assembling a specialized investigation team. I plan to assist with the investigation as well, so I'll have plenty to keep me busy going forward."
"While staying busy is good, don't neglect your studies."
"I know. However, I haven't told Princess Iris about your matters, Yotsuba-sensei. Although I don't understand what you mean by 'Kamen Rider,' I believe you mean no harm... And I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused you before."
The girl bowed deeply to him.
He couldn't tell if it was just his imagination, but it felt like Alexia had deliberately pulled him here just to make conversation?
None of these matters were particularly relevant to him...
Well, no—except for the part about her helping conceal his identity.
But actually—
"It doesn't really matter either way."
Mahiro shrugged.
At worst, it would just mean he couldn't continue being a teacher and would have to resign from the academy—nothing particularly significant.
As for the knight order and Princess Iris, they weren't even worth his attention. They couldn't even catch Alpha's eye—frankly, they were utterly insignificant.
Their conversation consequently fell into silence.
A breeze passed between them.
The girl's skirt fluttered up, revealing her fair thighs tightly wrapped in white stockings.
"If there's nothing else to discuss, I'll be going now."
"Please wait! There's one more thing I need to say."
"Alright, go ahead then."
The girl called out to stop him. Mahiro, who had just turned to leave, halted his steps and turned back toward her.
But her expression seemed somewhat strange, as if she was carefully weighing her words about something difficult to say.
"Um, Yotsuba-sensei... The sword technique you displayed that day was beautiful. I was completely captivated by it."
"Yes, and then?"
"So... I want to request that you instruct me in swordsmanship! I want to learn your sword style!"
Alexia's voice was loud, as if she had mustered all her strength—perhaps only this way could she feel somewhat better about herself.
Because originally, what she had been infatuated with and admired was her elder sister's swordsmanship.
Although she had always pursued ordinary sword techniques, if possible, she wanted to become as outstanding as her elder sister with the sword.
Until Mahiro appeared.
His supremely refined sword technique completely captivated her.
She wanted to learn it!
But... in her heart, she felt an inexplicable sense of betrayal toward her elder sister, a feeling of guilt.
However, Mahiro's response was even more decisive.
"No. Not interested. Too troublesome."
After delivering this triple rejection, he turned to leave.
"Ah? Wait, please wait!"
Seeing him about to leave, Alexia quickly called out, "Yotsuba-sensei, though this may be somewhat underhanded, I'm sure you wouldn't want what happened that night to reach Princess Iris's ears!"
"???"
Mahiro slowly typed out several question marks.
What Alexia was referring to was naturally the battle between him and Cid.
Although the second princess didn't know it was Cid, knowing that one of them was him was enough.
However, that wasn't what concerned him.
MOXE....
The same tactic I often use to threaten others is now being used against me???
Girl, you have talent. Forget about learning swordsmanship.
Come learn how to cook (love) with me instead.