My First Fan: Baek Miju, the Good Friend from the Same Class (4)
The afternoon training session in the drill hall wrapped up right on time.
“That concludes today’s regular practical class. Everyone worked hard.”
“““Thank you for your guidance!”””
It was four in the afternoon. Normally I would have bolted straight home the second class ended, but Baek Miju had hit me with an absurd request and now I was stuck here. Damn it. All I wanted was to crawl under my soft blanket and sleep. My precious comfort was slipping away one piece at a time.
Maybe the teacher noticed something was off, because she pointed out my unusual behavior.
“…Kim Jihye. Aren’t you going home?”
“Ah… well. I ended up making a ridiculous promise.”
“A promise? Ridiculous enough to keep you from heading straight home?”
Exactly on the nose. The teacher really did have sharp instincts.
“Haha… something like that.”
“…So you’re changing little by little after all.”
“What was that, teacher?”
“Nothing. Are you planning to use the drill hall?”
She had spoken so quietly that I couldn’t catch what she said. I hoped she wasn’t badmouthing me right in front of my face. The teacher wouldn’t do something that petty, but I guess even I can’t help feeling a little paranoid. Combat mages might be rough around the edges, but they’re not the type to gossip behind people’s backs. I trust her.
“Yes. I’d like to use the hall for a bit. Yaaaawn.”
When I said I wanted to use the drill hall, the teacher looked genuinely surprised. She thought for a moment, then shifted her gaze behind me. It seemed she’d figured something out.
“You? …No, looking at the kids behind you, I can guess what kind of trouble you’re about to cause.”
“Teacher! We would like to request permission to use Training Room 3 for after-school practice!”
The diligent class president among the little chicks behind me spoke up confidently. That self-assured attitude was pretty impressive. So you need a teacher’s approval to use the facilities after hours. I hadn’t known that.
The teacher granted the request without a second’s hesitation.
“Permission granted. I’ll let the facility supervisor know.”
“Th-thank you, teacher.”
Tap.
A hand suddenly landed on my shoulder. It was the teacher’s.
“Oh, and just in case—Kim Jihye, don’t overdo it.”
Don’t overdo it? Was she worried because I’d passed out during that last sparring match? She really was the type to act indifferent while secretly being considerate.
“Teacher, do you think I’m some kind of kid? You don’t have to worry about me.”
“Jihye… you’re still only seventeen.”
Hey now, class president. Even if I look like this, my mental age is well past thirty. The teacher seemed satisfied with my answer. She silently organized the equipment and left the drill hall without another word.
Once she was gone, only students remained inside. There were more of them than I’d expected, which caught me a little off guard. Regular class time was over—why were they still here?
I had no choice but to ask the class president.
“Are all the people still here doing individual training?”
“That’s right. Practical class time alone isn’t enough to keep up with the pace.”
This was news to me. I always dashed home the moment class ended, so I’d had no idea.
“Mijeong, you too?”
“Y-yes… I usually train for at least two hours every day…”
Two hours. That meant she stayed at the academy until six in the evening? How horrifying. For me, six o’clock was the time when I’d finish eating, watch a bit of drama, and start wondering if I should drift off to sleep.
“You guys really work hard staying so late…”
“That sounded exactly like an old man just now.”
“What do you mean, old man… Anyway, if you finish that late, when do you get home? When do you even sleep?”
I almost slipped up. Fortunately, before the class president could question me, Miju answered quickly.
“There’s no need to go home.”
“Huh?”
“W-we have dorms. So… sometimes when we get in the zone, we keep going until nine or ten.”
Ah… I’d thought the academy grounds were unnecessarily huge. So there were dorms too? I’d never even looked in that direction during my time here, so I hadn’t noticed.
“By the way, I live in the dorms too. Most students who attend the academy stay there. The commute takes too much time, the dorms and other facilities are excellent, and you can train late into the night.”
“I see… so I’m the unusual case.”
“Pretty much. Though in your case, Jihye… you don’t really need to stay late and train, do you? I’m a little jealous of that…”
What the class president meant was this: There’s a guy who sleeps at school, skips classes, yet gets perfect scores on every test. So people figured he must study like crazy at home—except he doesn’t study there either. He just sleeps. If I’d heard that back in high school, I would’ve been insanely annoyed. Now I finally understood why my classmates felt hostile toward me. They stayed behind after regular hours, working their hardest, while I crushed everyone without putting in any effort at all. Of course they’d get hit with a reality check. This was exactly why I said I didn’t want to attend the academy, you stupid little sister of mine.
“Haaaaaaaam.”
But there was no putting spilled milk back in the carton. If that was the case, I should focus on what I could do right now. Even though yawns kept pouring out and my whole body felt exhausted, I had no choice but to push through little by little.
“Alright. I roughly understand the situation now… Shall we start the tutoring session?”
“Yes, please.”
“I-I’m looking forward to it!”
You don’t have to look forward to it that much, Miju. The way your eyes are sparkling is a little overwhelming. Every time those jewel-like eyes—brighter than anything in a jewelry store—turn toward me, I can’t help realizing just how much expectation she’s placing on me. Of course I am someone worthy of that expectation… but these days I’m not so sure anymore. Even I’m losing confidence in myself.
Still, I had to do it. Not only Miju but the class president was counting on me too. Repaying the expectations of these little chicks was the duty and mission of a senior magical girl, after all.
“What have you learned in our classes so far?”
I’d debated what opening line to use, but nothing beat this one.
“We practiced the basic spells Shield and Magic Missile until we could use them comfortably.”
“What about theory, not just practice?”
“F-for theory… we learned about the three elements of spell activation.”
Before diving into the actual tutoring, the most important thing was a reminder—a review of what they’d already learned. Studying is like building a tower. If the foundation you learned at the beginning is shaky, you won’t be able to properly absorb the advanced material that comes later. That’s why a good, excellent educator must guide and discipline their students so they don’t build the next floor of the tower sloppily.
“I’m sure the teacher said during theory class that the most important of the three elements of spell activation is the mana preparation stage. And you learned why through the textbook, right?”
“Yes. She said that depending on the method used in the mana preparation stage, casting speed can be dramatically reduced.”
“Why do you think that is? Why does the mana preparation stage show such incredible efficiency compared to the other stages? Have you thought about it?”
“That… I still…”
Miju’s voice sounded dejected, like she didn’t know the answer. This was difficult material for a first-year academy student, so there was no need to feel so down. Not knowing something isn’t shameful. It’s actually something to be happy about—a good opportunity to realize, “Ah, I didn’t know this part.” But saying that would only make the tutoring session longer, so I kept it to myself.
“To resolve that question, you need to understand the fundamental principles of how magic works. Only then will you realize why spells must follow the exact sequence taught in theory class to activate properly.”
If I could, I’d demonstrate it myself to make it easier to understand, but my body’s mana was in such terrible shape that it was impossible. If I used any more magic here… I might end up sleeping at home for two or three days straight without being able to come to the academy.
“First, let’s get this straight—magic usage differs from person to person. Or rather, it has to differ.”
“Huh…? If everyone uses magic differently, then what are we even learning? We’ve all been able to learn and use magic by following the teacher’s method.”
As expected of the class president. She’d immediately spotted the contradiction between my words and her own experience and pointed it out.
“That’s because you’re all still using the basic core and kernel.”
“Basic core… kernel? I think the teacher mentioned it briefly last time…”
The students’ overall level was excellent. Miju seemed to possess a brain on par with the class president and had decent recall. Teaching them actually felt rewarding. The soul of the educator that had been lying dormant inside me began to glow faintly.
“It’s also called the magic core or kernel. It’s a kind of tool that helps a magical girl use magic correctly. If I were to borrow someone’s words, it could be described as ‘a spear that allows a human known as a magical girl to wield the laws of magic that alter reality.’”
Incidentally, that someone was also a poet who loved using pretentious language. So whenever I said this to kids, their expressions would turn strange. Even though I knew they’d react that way, the reason I quoted it was because that person’s words explained the concept of the core better than anything else. If there’s a saying that humans communicate with the world through a spear, then through the core, magical girls commune with the laws of magic.
“Since people are all different, each person must modify their core to suit themselves. But that’s an extremely difficult and complicated task, so it’s not something you should attempt recklessly. At the very least, it’s not something fledgling magical girls should be doing.”
“So does that mean you’re not a fledgling?”
…Huh? When you put it that way, I guess I’m not. I hadn’t thought of that at all. The class president was a much sharper student than I’d given her credit for.
“Um… yeah, I suppose so. Haaaauuuuaaaawm. Suddenly feeling sleepy.”
I’d talked for too long after such a long time and burned through too much energy. The drowsiness was hitting me hard all of a sudden. I stretched, yawned, and tried to play it off, hoping to dodge the class president’s question, but—
“Kim Jihye~? Why are you dodging the subject? You’re not actually a new academy student, are you?”
“W-what? You mean Jihye is actually… a secret agent from the Association who infiltrated the academy…?”
Neither the class president nor Miju was about to let this bait slip away. They stepped on the gas and closed in on me.
…Ah, crap. I should’ve just kept my mouth shut and done the tutoring without saying anything. I was already starting to regret it.