Shutra Magic Academy (2-1)
“For the time being, I would recommend refraining from visiting the Hero Academy.”
“Huh? You’re telling me not to go?”
The moment I returned, Armonia summoned me and forced me into a meeting. The topic was the Hero Academy.
“I am not saying you must not go.”
Armonia began explaining her reasons properly.
“Other worlds have variables in play as well, but those were all within the range of what you could handle alone, Suho. The incidents currently unfolding at the Hero Academy, however, pose far too great a danger to you.”
“Hmm…”
In other words, she wanted me to be careful until I at least possessed enough power to keep myself alive before Rena could deploy. Thinking back, if it hadn’t been for Rena this time, I wouldn’t be sitting here having a leisurely conversation aboard the ship. There was a very real chance I would have ceased to exist entirely.
Still, Armonia hadn’t told me not to go.
“I am merely saying that a greater degree of caution is required.”
“Yeah, I get it. So when I head to Shutra and Yggdrasil this time, I need to learn something that can at least protect my own body.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“What’s there to thank me for…? All right, then I’ll go see Viola—”
I was wrapping things up and rising to go meet Viola when she stopped me.
“There is one more item on the agenda.”
“Hm?”
After hearing everything Armonia had to say, I headed straight for Viola’s living quarters. The moment I stepped inside, Viola threw her arms wide open and welcomed me with pure delight.
She pulled me into a tight embrace and cried out,
“Suho!”
“Been doing okay?”
“Yes!”
Her face was so radiant with joy that it seemed impossible for anyone to look brighter. Even so, my heart felt heavy.
She doesn’t look any different, but I can’t just brush off what Armonia said.
The final item Armonia had raised was about Viola.
Excluding me, four people lived aboard this ship: Armonia, Viola, Rena, and Beatrice.
Armonia was practically one with the ship itself; she had no particular interest in the outside world. Rena, after a life of being pushed around by others, was content to enjoy the quiet, modest daily life the ship offered. Beatrice, having spent her days without friends until now, still seemed satisfied with her current existence.
But Viola was different.
I had brought her out of pity after she had been locked away in that bunker palace—only to end up confining her aboard the ship instead. Beatrice and Rena were still around, so there was no immediate crisis, but Armonia had said it was about time we prepared a proper solution.
Viola came here looking purely at you, Suho—not at Rena or Beatrice. Even if you have to use a warp during a mission, I believe it would be best if you made a little time for her.
To my eyes, Viola had never once shown any sign of feeling stifled by the ship. Armonia’s view was different.
…Wounds can heal, but the scars remain. Please take care of her before any wounds form.
I couldn’t find a single word to answer her. Her expression held nothing but quiet pity for Viola.
…She’s always so deadpan, but when you think about it, Armonia is the only one who worries about everyone.
Whether it was a CEO’s sense of responsibility or something else entirely… for now, I needed to focus on the girl right in front of me.
“I was gone too long this time, wasn’t I? Sorry…”
“No, not at all! I’m just so— mmph…”
I immediately rained kisses on Viola. We were locked in a sticky, lingering kiss and about to move on to the next stage when something that had been fidgeting in the corner of the room lifted its head with a soft tok and began grumbling at us.
“Go do it outside, nyang…”
I felt a little bad for Beatrice, but in the end we never left the room. The freeloader—me—kicked out the actual resident, Beatrice, and Viola and I spent the night tangled together in bed.
Morning came. I made a silent resolution as I stepped into the warp case.
Once I’m in Shutra this time, whether it’s a day trip or an overnight, I’m taking Viola outside.
While I was lost in thought inside the warp case, Armonia—dressed neatly in her captain’s uniform—spoke over the comms.
Then we will depart.
“Okay!”
A cascade of multicolored light engulfed me. Moments later, I was drawing cool, refreshing air deep into my lungs. I exhaled slowly and opened my eyes.
“Haa… Shutra. It’s been a while.”
The moment I arrived, the majestic form of Shutra Magic Academy filled my vision. The exterior of the buildings, which could have looked oppressive in pure black, was layered with ornate decorations that banished any sense of gloom and instead projected a splendid, imposing presence.
I walked up to the main gate of that imposing school and handed the guard a paper containing my identification. The guard checked the document several times, then nodded and spoke.
“So you’re the student who received a one-month suspension. Go on in.”
“….”
Did he really have to use the word “suspension”?
I’ll get you back for that…
…
Silently vowing revenge, I took the paper back from the guard and passed through the school gates.
It was still before class, so the voices of students mixed together and echoed out from inside the school. Everyone was finishing breakfast and moving to their lessons. Some strolled along chatting leisurely; others clutched stacks of documents in both arms and hurried past in a fluster.
Against that bustling backdrop, a single woman stood facing the main gate. Silver hair cascading to her waist, a neat school uniform, both hands demurely clasped together in front of her. Simply standing there, she radiated elegance.
That graceful, refined woman looked at me and offered a faint smile.
A difference of one month versus several months. Yet the woman smiling before my eyes still wore the same unchanging face that had waited for me all those months.
Without a single calculation in my head, I ran toward her. I wrapped my arms tightly around Luna’s waist as she stared at me in surprise, then lifted her clean off the ground.
“Kyaaah!”
After a brief look of shock, Luna grabbed the nape of my neck and smiled.
“There are… students behind us right now.”
She was right. The moment I scooped her up in a fierce hug, the students milling about behind us started staring. But those gazes meant nothing to me.
“I missed you.”
“…I missed you too.”
Luna ignored the students behind her and leaned her face toward mine.
Chuuup…
And so our reunion was commemorated with a kiss.
Walking side by side toward the lecture hall, Luna grumbled.
“I got scolded because of you.”
“Huh? Because of me?”
I looked at her with a thoroughly baffled expression. Our sticky kiss had been cut short by a professor who happened to be nearby. The scolding hadn’t been especially harsh, but it was still the kind of reprimand you got for behavior unsuitable on campus.
Luna glanced at my face, then continued with a little huff.
“If you hug someone like that, of course everyone’s going to stare.”
“Hold on, hold on… After that, it wasn’t me who did anything.”
Excuse me? The one who kissed me was you, Luna.
But she deployed an invincible defense.
“If you hadn’t hugged me first, I wouldn’t have gotten carried away by the mood either.”
“….”
Yes. It’s all my fault.
This romanticist! The fault of Sung Suho!
…
After that, Luna and I asked after each other’s well-being and eventually reached the lecture hall. Along the way I learned a few things that had changed.
First: the Lightning Magic Research Club that Sonya had led was currently suspended.
“As you know, I’m the only member left. And the biggest reason is that Professor Sonya is preparing for the Assistant Professor track, so she can’t attend. The club can’t be maintained like this.”
“Ah…”
Right. I had heard that Sonya might become an Assistant Professor. I’d also heard it wasn’t confirmed yet.
“So the club has been provisionally disbanded for now.”
“…That’s a shame.”
I’d gained so much from that club that the disappointment hit harder than I expected. Being able to form magic circles in midair was useful on its own, but if I hadn’t learned the superconductivity-related magic from the club, the Mana Golem would have beaten me to a pulp long ago and everything would have been over. Lightning-attribute magic had become indispensable to me.
More than anything, the club had given me some unforgettable memories.
Deus Ex Cabinet…
…
Thanks to that cabinet, I’d been able to enjoy a thoroughly vigorous school life.
Luna studied my expression carefully, then tilted her head and spoke again.
“And the most important thing this time…”
She was about to move on to the next topic when a tall, handsome young man came striding over from a distance. He stopped in front of my desk, looked down at me, and smiled.
“Yo~ How’ve you been?”
“….”
Louis. Still conscious of other people’s eyes, he addressed me with surface-level courtesy in the crowded lecture hall.
I smiled back and returned the greeting.
“Yeah. You been well?”
“Of course. Attending class diligently and everything…”
Louis answered, then began grinning slyly at me.
“Come to think of it… you were suspended, right?”
At the word “suspended,” several students in the lecture hall turned their heads to look at me. Almost no one—no, absolutely no one—would know the real details. If anything, strange rumors had probably spread.
“I heard that if you get suspended from Shutra, you’re not even allowed to live inside Shutra’s territory. How’d you manage all that time? The forests around here are pretty dense—must’ve been rough coming and going.”
“….”
I kept my smile fixed in place even under Louis’s provocation and spoke over the comms.
Provoking me from day one, huh.
It would be best if you were careful not to get drawn in.
I took that as a reminder to keep my head on straight.
Louis kept prattling on.
“Then again, Shutra’s public safety is good, so sleeping in the woods nearby probably wasn’t a big deal. Does camping out make your mana fill up better or something?”
“Louis!”
Before I could say anything, Luna slammed her desk and stood up.
“What kind of rudeness is that?!”
“…Luna.”
Louis, who had been grinning with pure enjoyment at humiliating me just moments before, saw his expression turn ice-cold at Luna’s shout. The one scolding him wasn’t even the target of the insult—it was Luna.
“If you’re going to talk like that, go back to your seat.”
“Luna…”
A complicated mix of emotions crossed Louis’s face. I wondered what had happened between the two of them while I was suspended. But there was nothing I could learn about them right this second.
I stood up, stepped between them, and intervened.
“All right, all right… both of you, calm down. Louis.”
“….”
I gave a couple of light pats to the shoulder of the Louis who was grinding his teeth and glaring at me.
“Let’s save the reunion celebration for after class.”
“Hmph…”
Louis swatted my hand off his shoulder as if the contact disgusted him, spun around, and stalked back to his seat. Once the other students saw him leave, they returned to their own business.
After confirming that every gaze had been withdrawn, I turned back to Luna and smiled.
“Thanks.”
“….”
Hearing my thanks, Luna sat down at her desk and muttered under her breath,
“I only did it because Louis was being far too rude.”
I smiled and simply looked at her. Under that steady gaze she grew embarrassed and tried to pick up the conversation she had been about to start earlier.
“So… going back to what I was trying to say…”
Rattle.
The lecture hall door opened and a professor and teaching assistant entered. Their appearance instantly blanketed the room in silence—and Luna was caught in that silence as well.
She whispered,
“I’ll tell you later…”
“Okay.”
We finished our conversation and turned our eyes to the podium. The professor standing there opened his mouth.
“All right, everyone already knows, yes?”
…No? I don’t know a single thing?
As if he had read my mind, the professor’s lips curved slightly as he continued.
“Starting tomorrow, we enter the examination period.”