[388] One-Man Team (4)
Amy jabbed a finger at the Screamer.
"Would you have gone after me instead of him? Honestly, the Magic Knight's killer tactic did fail, didn't it? I could understand that, but why take it out on an innocent teammate?"
The Screamer's face went blank.
Even when he got emotional, he usually paid attention to context.
By contrast, Shirone's group was just bulldozing ahead with no plan at all.
'Aren't these guys all crazy together?'
If you let your emotions run things, you just get used.
The Screamer saw an opening immediately.
This was an opportunity.
If he could easily take twenty points in exchange for the five he'd lose, it wouldn't be a bad trade.
'Any team with Maya on it is bound to lose.'
Decision made, the Screamer offered a deal.
"All right. If you're so sure of yourselves, why not prove it?"
"Prove it?"
"You know there's a full evaluation in two weeks, right? Hill Capture. If you put Maya on your team and beat me, I'll concede."
Hill Capture was a contest where both sides planted flags and shifted offense and defense to steal the opponent's banner.
For the graduation exam it was 15 vs 15, but in group evaluations they played 5 vs 5 mini-matches.
'Of course—graduating class. He's really trying to sink his teeth in.'
Shirone caught the Screamer's plan.
He intended to slot in Maya—the perceived weak link—and lock in the full twenty points.
When Shirone hesitated, the Screamer split his lips into a grin; his red tongue lapped.
This is why you can't just charge in. Whether they accepted or refused, it was a match he'd win.
"What? Getting cold feet now you actually have to do it? All that bluster for nothing?"
After a moment's thought, Shirone spoke.
"It's true Maya's acoustic magic is below average."
"Hahaha! Finally you admit it! See, when you think you'll lose, you can't help yourself—"
"But."
Shirone's face twisted with disdain.
"At least that's better than having someone like you on the team."
The Screamer fell silent and scrubbed the expression from his face. The gaze he fixed on Shirone was the same look that used to make local thugs tremble.
"Do you mean that as a request to boot me off the team?"
Shirone looked to his friends.
"Guys."
Iruki, Nade, and Amy stepped forward one by one and flanked him.
Amy wagged a finger. "All right, let's do it. We'll have to put together the best team we can. We'll probably get smashed, but whatever."
At that, Maya was flustered.
She'd blown the evaluation and been chewed out. Normally that would have been the end of it, but things had escalated far beyond what she could handle.
She was grateful Shirone's group had her back. All the more reason she didn't want to be a burden.
"Wait, I don't intend to—!"
Before she could finish, Nade pulled her into his arms.
Maya's face flushed as she opened her mouth to protest, but Nade raised his fist toward the Screamer and bellowed.
"Let's fight!!"
Nade's voice boomed across the training ground.
No regrets. If anything, it felt like the resentment that had been building while they watched who made the graduating class was finally getting vented.
'Yeah, this is how the Shirone crew should be.'
Maya went pale. But it was too late to dampen the momentum of Shirone's group.
The Screamer controlled his anger.
Objectively, it was practically a win: they'd lose twenty points and he'd gain twenty.
"See you in two weeks."
He stalked out of the training ground. The students stared, stunned.
Not only Fermi's crew, now they'd gone and tangled with Screamer, who'd made a name for himself in Class Two.
'What are these hotheads?'
Sabina, standing next to Dante, sighed. Even if she tried not to care, Nade being involved made it impossible to ignore.
"They're nuts. Why are they always causing trouble? Of course it's a disadvantage with Maya on the team. Now Nade's going to lose twenty points for nothing. Shouldn't Shirone have stopped them?"
"Didn't you know?"
Dante snorted and turned away.
"Shirone's the ringleader of idiots, isn't he."
Combat Readiness (1)
Shirone and his group spent a rare, quiet afternoon at the Supernatural Psychical Science Club.
Between training and Gaold's mission, Shirone didn't have enough hours in the day, but his mind had been restless lately, and he'd come with his friends to clear his head.
Lying on the sofa on a day off and staring at the ceiling felt indescribably good.
Why had he used to complain about boredom and not appreciated this?
He remembered what had happened a few days earlier.
"By the way, Maya—turns out she's a commoner. I didn't know," Nade said.
"Same. I looked into it after that day—technically she's an outsider," Iruki added.
"Outsider?"
"A mysterious tribe. A small ethnic group from the south—about two hundred settled in Tormia. They cultivated the tribe's sacred herb Kapura as a medicinal crop, but twenty years ago it got classified as a narcotic and they were ruined. They're left with debt and the stigma of a drug tribe—can't get a foothold in society. Things are rough."
"I see. So Maya's family must be struggling."
"Probably. I heard she's one of seven siblings. The tribe must be pooling money to support her. If she becomes a mage, it'd lift the tribe's reputation."
"But how did she get into the Academy? I wouldn't have even cleared special admission without being from the Ozent family."
"Teacher Colli recommended her. I don't know the details, but there must've been some connection—like yours."
Though strict as head teacher with the graduating class, Colli had a kind heart; it made sense he might help Maya.
"There were rumors back then. Then her grades turned out mediocre and everyone just let it drop."
Was that lucky?
Shirone thought if he hadn't stood out on the entrance test, he probably wouldn't have drawn such intense resentment either.
"Anyway, it's sad. The pressure must be enormous. The whole tribe's expectations on her, and she can't graduate. Seeing her chew meat with water to try to increase her vocal power—makes you feel for her."
That bothered Shirone too.
"Yeah. And she's a girl. Who wouldn't want to look pretty? If she actually slimmed down she'd probably be cute. But being in the graduating class, there's no avoiding this."
Iruki asked, "Want to see what Maya looked like before?"
"Huh? How?"
"Nade saved a bunch back when she was still doing it. You'll remember—those picture books."
Shirone snapped awake.
"Oh, the ones published by the Women's Anatomy Study Group?"
Nade pushed himself up from the sofa.
"Right! We're graduating now. Most of the repeaters are probably in there too."
Before he finished, Nade crawled under the desk.
"Iruki, give me the volume and page," he said.
Iruki, who never forgot anything, answered, "The most accurate is the latest issue. Volume 48, page 8."
"Volume 48's from last year—she'd still be chubby then," Nade said.
"You'll see. Bring it."
Nade rummaged through the picture books piled in the safe.
Since Shirone arrived he'd lost interest, but he couldn't bring himself to throw away his collection—such is a man's heart.
"Let's see. Volume 48… ah, here."
Nade put the book on the table. Shirone and Iruki squeezed onto the sofa and leaned in.
On page eight was Maya's old look.
"Wow…"
For work from the Women's Anatomy Study Group it was modest and reverent in expression.
But what surprised them was something else.
"Is that really Maya? She's so pretty."
By Tormia's urban standards she wasn't conventional, but she had a fresh, bright charm anyone could fall for.
Nade nodded. "I remember. I once saw this and wondered who it was."
Iruki explained, "Maya started gaining weight in her second year in the graduating class. But the Study Group seems to only draw her earlier look."
"Strange. Do they like Maya?"
"Maybe. But it feels more like respect than affection, doesn't it?"
Shirone's curiosity flared. "Who are they, exactly—the Women's Anatomy Study Group?"
Nade said, "I don't know. Those guys get expelled the moment they're caught. But they'll be in the graduating class. They can't be in the advanced class and be drawing the graduating class at the same time."
That sent a chill through him. In other words, they see them every day—and they're drawing them now for the graduation evaluation.
"Let's check the others. This is last year's issue, so some girls who are graduating now should be in it," Nade said.
Iruki scanned. "Page 14 has Pony, page 16 has Suabi, and the last page is Dorothy. Those three are in the graduating class now."
Shirone looked at Iruki. "You—did you really remember because of your servant?"
Nade pointed at the page. "Hey, Pony, Pony."
Pony's look was exactly the same as now.
A symmetric parting emphasized her broad forehead; golden hair like thread framed her face. Wearing a dress that revealed her shoulders and collarbones and with her chin slightly lifted, she exuded royal dignity.
"Oh, Suabi's here too."
Suabi knelt by a stream, a blanket draped over her naked body. A bird sat in her cupped hands and she wore a smile the school never saw.
"That's Dorothy? Seeing her like this is really different."
Dorothy had tugged up the hem of a black knit and held it to her mouth in a rebellious pout. Her narrow waist and a cute teardrop-shaped navel stood out, and with only underwear below, her long, giraffe-like legs showed. Her tin-can doll clutched her neck—the signature detail.
"They really draw well. It's like they stuck the real thing in there."
Nade snapped the book shut.
"Man, how are there so many beauties at school yet none in our class?"
"You've got Shirone," Iruki said.
"No—! I mean—!" Nade shot Shirone a sharp look. "Wait, didn't you say you went on a trip with Amy? Nothing happened, right?"
"Huh? Nothing?"
Shirone's face flushed. Nothing had happened—so why was he blushing?
"This is suspicious. You should confess!"
Shirone rolled his eyes left and right. With no one to vouch for him, he resorted to the last option.
"Whatever! I'm going to sleep! I'm exhausted. Wake me in an hour!"
Sleep was the best way to clear worries.
* * *
When Shirone woke, he pushed himself up from the sofa. His friends were gone—probably back to their dorms.
"Hmm, what time is it?"
A note lay on the table.
We went ahead. You looked tired, so sleep it off and we'll meet in the cafeteria later. And absolutely do not look at volume 24—the red book in the safe under the table. It's incredible.
Shirone yawned, crumpled the note, and stood.
"Still feels great after a nap."
He grabbed his toiletries and headed to the graduating class building. No need to go back to the dorm—he'd wash at school and head to the cafeteria.
By the time he finished brushing his teeth and washing his face, the five o'clock bell rang.
"Ughhh."
He shook off the last of his sleep and walked down the corridor when music drifted from somewhere.
"What's that?"
Someone was singing in the music room at the far end of the hall. It wasn't the operatic pieces mages borrowed—it was a pop song.
"Wow, she's really good."
The singing was astonishingly skilled.
'Could it be a real singer?'
He opened the music room door and saw Maya at the piano by the window, playing and singing.
It was the upbeat R&B tune she used to hum in the migrant farming village—"Nothing More Beautiful Than You."
The moment the door opened and her voice hit him, Shirone froze, a chill running down his spine.
There's nothing more beautiful than you.
It wasn't just that she sang well. Shirone knew nothing about music, but the certainty hit him the instant he heard it.
Maya's singing was different.