Three Idiots
It was the hour Blow was deep in his duel. At the Nyx Inn, Hans finished cleaning the shop and stepped into the kitchen, where Melo stood at the counter slicing tomatoes.
"Melo, what are you making this time?"
"Mm-hmm! Tomato pasta, for later!"
"Hmm... I've had oil pasta plenty of times, but tomato pasta's a first."
"I saw it in the book the Young Master gave me."
"If you're the one making it, it's bound to be good."
"I practiced with Mom a few times back in Blanya! I have to go buy meat later, though..."
At the look in Melo's eyes, Hans smiled and smoothed a hand over her hair.
"Let's head out together in a bit. The Young Master left some money for the shopping before he went."
"Okay! It'd be nice to get meat, and onions, and things!"
"Once you're ready, we'll go right out."
"Okay!"
Melo answered brightly. Then, as if that brightness had never been, she let her shoulders sink and murmured in a voice full of worry.
"I hope the Young Master comes back soon."
"...Don't worry. He'll be back before long."
Hans stroked her hair once more. Even so, a worry he could not shake had settled over his own face.
After Blow's White Sphere appeared, the student council threw the exits open all at once and guided the spectators out. Yulia and Rebecca had gone up onto the arena floor; the rest of the council scattered through the stands to keep the crowd in hand. More than half the audience, though, had no thought of leaving and no thought of moving at all. They simply stared, blank, at the duel.
Most of them were upperclassmen, and every one of them seemed captivated by the White Sphere floating above Blow.
"Young Master!! Please, pull yourself together!!"
Hervena beat aside the magic Blow was spraying and pressed in. She closed on him because of a request Yulia had made.
Whether it was Blow, the White Sphere hanging over him, or Rachel Campbell far across the floor, neither road looked easy. Blow's case was the worse of the two. They had to wake him from that senseless state while doing as little harm to his body as they could. The spells he was hurling at her were of a higher order than she had expected, and she found herself wishing someone — anyone — would come and join her.
Blow Deblique, emptiness held in his eyes. Taking his magic head-on, Hervena dashed the bloody tears streaming from her own.
Nothing like the caliber of magic the Young Master used to cast. Is it that White Sphere?
She was right. The Flame Dance he had just thrown burned far more vivid, and struck far harder, than the first blow he had landed on Greig. It had torn through her high-tier defense enough to drag even her cancellation into play, if only by a fraction — an experience she had not tasted in a very long time.
Maybe that sphere is what's moving him now. First, I'll put a shot into it.
She had no idea what the thing was. What she did know was that Blow had gone wrong the moment it appeared. If the sphere was a kind of spirit, then it was an entity apart from him, and destroying it here and now would probably do him no great harm. It was not a certainty. Even so, she meant to test it, and she built a violet-glowing magic circle until it touched the sphere.
⟨ Set Trajectory ⟩
The sphere, as yet, was still.
Let's see if you stay that calm after you choke this down!
Hervena clenched the hand she had held open.
A violet lizard slid out of the circle, struck the sphere, and exploded.
KRA-KOOM—
Bracing for a counterspell that might or might not come, Hervena shifted sideways and stared at the sphere with everything she had.
"...Please. Land!"
Not a thread of smoke rose from it.
"What the hell even is that thing!"
Hervena's brow drew tight. In that span Blow's gaze slid over to her, and he sent a wave.
Water magic now? Wait — why is the density like that?
Her eyes flew wide, and she called up her highest defensive spell.
By any measure of the magic he used to have, the wave should have broken and died. The spell that came on, undiminished, struck her down.
Him suddenly throwing water magic is absurd enough — but this power!
While she was still reeling, Blow closed the distance in long strides. Her magic, it seemed, had not pleased him in the slightest. Watching him come, Hervena's mouth curled. She cracked a potion, poured it down her throat, and summoned her spirit.
"Right. So fire doesn't work, is that it?"
A small fairy-spirit, shedding violet light, its face sorrowful, fluttered in circles around her. With it beside her she built magic circle after magic circle.
"Then I'll ram every last one of them in."
The circles flashed, and the spirit laid a blessing of enhancement upon the spell.
Blessed by circle and spirit, the wave swelled to the size of a house. Only then did the spectators who saw it scramble up from their seats in a panic.
"R-run!!"
Meeting the enormous wave as it bore down, Blow wrapped his whole body in flame. A detonation, as if something had burst apart, echoed through the arena.
"We are doing what must be done."
That was the moment Hervena first came face to face with Blow. Yulia, with Rebecca beside her, was standing in Rachel's way. Rachel rested her sword across her shoulder and looked at Yulia as if she could not believe her ears.
"Doing what must be done?"
"This is our school's affair. We will bear the responsibility."
"You failed to, and that is why I myself stepped in. Is it not?"
"Even so, we can hardly sit on our hands."
"Responsible for what? You've kicked up a mess you can't even handle."
"That is..."
Even so, Yulia could not let Rachel through. Handing the matter to a student of another school would look bad enough on its own, and she was afraid Rachel might take her revenge on Greig, who lay collapsed and foaming at the mouth.
"Very well. Then please give us a little time. Grant Hervena Westriver and the rest of us the time to face Young Master Blow."
KRA-KOOM—
The tremor of Hervena's Detonating Salamander shook the earth. Rachel did not so much as flinch.
"And what do you claim you can do if you go?"
"Who can say. Something better than cutting him down, I would hope."
"Cutting him down? I only meant to hold a conversation with my sword."
The appeal did not move her an inch. Rachel took one step toward them, then another.
No choice...
Seeing those steps, magic circles bloomed in Yulia's hand and in Rebecca's. Rachel snorted, as if the sight were laughable.
"Standing in someone's way only works if you have the strength for it."
"Even if that is true, we still have to do what must be done."
"With nothing but power like yours?"
"The only ones who can stand before you are the two of us. We have no other choice."
But Rachel's gaze went past Yulia. Sensing the presence, Yulia turned — and found Skadi Hetaya, Jane Foresti, and one green-haired second-year whose name she did not know, trembling from head to foot.
"I believe we asked everyone to evacuate—"
"Have you ever seen such empty-headed things."
Rachel cut her off, let out a hollow laugh, and glared at the newcomers.
"Those two look exactly like that scoundrel's retainers. Hm? And you, wine-red — aren't you the youngest of the Hetaya family?"
At being named, Skadi took a step toward her.
"Never showed your face at a single gathering, and this is where you've been? I've seen your brother and sister often enough."
"Hah. Why would I go somewhere that dull?"
"It's more amusing than you'd think. Julbert will be hurt."
Rachel smiled at her ease, then shifted her gaze to Rebecca.
"Ah. Or was it that Rebecca Settelund made you uncomfortable?"
"That's quite enough."
Yulia tried to stop her. She could not stop what came next.
"Oh? Is that it? Skadi Settelund?"
Fire lit in Skadi's eyes at the provocation, and Rebecca loosed her golden mana as well.
"I haven't used that name in a long time."
"Time passing doesn't mean you get to throw it away. Well then, daughter of the North — are you standing here when you can't even stand shoulder to shoulder with anyone present?"
"...I only came up because I couldn't stand to watch."
Magic circles unfolded with the words. Rachel set a hand to her brow and burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! Truly, nothing but lunatics around that scoundrel! You mean to loose your magic on me? On me?"
"...No reason we shouldn't."
"I agree. Completely."
"Skadi! Jane!"
Yulia Edfolk stepped in front of them and shook her head, firm. Even so, four magic circles — Jane's and Riné's among them — began to shine. Yulia, who had wanted above all to avoid a clash with Rachel, shouted in a voice gone urgent.
"What do all of you think you are doing! You know exactly who that person is! Rebecca, even you...!!"
None of them showed any sign of retreat. Just as Yulia was at a loss, a heavy crash rang through the arena.
"What now?"
Yulia could not believe what had happened in front of her. Rachel's enormous black greatsword stood planted in the earth. To the lot of them, staring dumbfounded, Rachel offered an easy smile.
They all looked at Rachel with startled eyes. Yulia asked it back as if she had misheard.
"What brought this on?"
"Hard to say. I don't think it was you, Yulia Edfolk. If I had to give a reason... those three idiots, perhaps?"
Even then Skadi was still watching her with open displeasure, and Jane let her eyes drift slowly shut, then open. Unlike the two of them, Riné breathed out in relief and pressed a hand to her chest. Rachel suddenly crooked a finger toward her.
"Hey. You. Green hair. Come over here."
"M-m-m-me?"
"Yes. You. Over here."
"W-why?"
"What, if you'd rather not, shall I come over there?"
"I'll come!"
The instant she saw Rachel's fierce expression, Riné scurried over. To Yulia, still struggling to make sense of any of it, Rachel spoke as if the whole matter bored her.
"Best if it doesn't take too long. Indigo Witch."
"You have my thanks for the courtesy."
...Whatever the reason, for now it was a whim in their favor.
Thinking so, Yulia took the others and ran for Hervena. Rachel watched them go, gave a short laugh, and turned her eyes on Riné, who stood trembling in front of her.
"You're a rather interesting child."
"Th-thank you for the praise."
"What's your name?"
"R-Riné Planche."
"A fine name. That purple-hair is quite high-level, though. Next year's Academia ought to be a little entertaining."
Then what entered Riné's sight was the wave of tremendous size Hervena had called. Riné's eyes went enormous.
"'W-Wave: 4'!"
"And what's that?"
"A t-top-tier w-water spell."
"Is it?"
Rachel's tone stayed utterly flat, even with that giant wave before her. Grown anxious, Riné stammered it out.
"I-if that reaches the stands...!!"
"It's water either way, isn't it?"
"I-I could cast a barrier, at least."
"It'll be fine."
Rachel pulled her in tight from behind and rested her head atop Riné's. The girl, shaking like a leaf, squeezed her eyes shut as if she could not bear to look. In that time Hervena's wave struck Blow and rolled on toward the stands.
"Anyone who can use defense magic, get it up!!"
"Take Hervena's spell like this!? Just run!!"
"Aaaaagh!"
Just as everyone in the stands was staring that way, faces struck with terror, a shadow stepped in before them.
"Rebecca!!"
"Head of Planning!!!"
RRRRUMBLE—
Before the wave sweeping in as if to swallow everything, a golden magic circle was summoned.
With Rebecca's chant, a single shaft of light was fired into the wave, and the water began to freeze in an instant, from its heart outward. But the crest, where her magic had not yet arrived, was a breath from pouring into the stands. Rebecca saw it and was hastily spreading a defensive spell to wrap the seats when another shadow appeared.
The ice magic Skadi sent struck the crest that had not yet frozen. Her ice locked from the top downward and met Rebecca's in the middle. Frozen exactly in the shape of the wave: Rebecca's white crystals, and Skadi's, shot through with a faint red light. Before that sheer cold beauty the spectators forgot the terror of a moment before, and each of them let out a cry of wonder.
In the midst of it Rebecca's eyes met Skadi's, as Skadi flew with fluid grace.
"......"
"Tch."
Face twisted, Skadi flew on without another word, and Rebecca too sprang up and cleared the enormous wave of ice. Rachel, watching from well back, gave Riné's shoulder a few pats.
"Look. Told you."
"Y-you did."
Rachel looked down at the girl, who was still shaking, and asked as if she truly wanted to know.
"So, Riné Planche. Scared as you are, why did you come up here? That white-haired girl looks like she has a story, so I'll leave her be."
"Th-the p..."
"Hm? What, because you're his retainer?"
To that indifferent guess, Riné squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
"He pays really well! The Young Master does...!"
No sooner had she said it than the fear of what she'd blurted set her trembling all over, eyes welling. And at the sight of her, Rachel laughed harder than she had all day.