In the middle of Negi's welcome party, Miyazaki—who was notoriously timid around men—approached the young teacher for some reason.
"Ah, Miyazaki-san, number 27, right? Do you have a moment for me?" Negi asked.
True to her reputation, she looked like a startled small animal, fidgeting nervously yet clearly determined to speak with him.
"Um, thank you for saving me earlier when I was in danger... Please, take these book coupons as a token of my thanks!"
She held the coupons out to Negi with such stiff formality it looked as though she were receiving a graduation diploma. Naturally, the students of Class 2-A weren't about to let such a moment pass in silence.
"Look at that! 'Bookstore' is already making a move on the teacher!" Asakura shouted, her voice laced with blatant mischief.
The crowd erupted into a chorus of "Ooooohs!" in response to the provocation. But there was one girl—or rather, one maiden—whose specific... sensibilities wouldn't allow her to remain a silent observer.
"Negi-sensei, Axel-kun. Please, accept this from me as well..."
Ayaka produced an object from seemingly thin air: a bronze statue of Axel and Negi shaking hands.
Where exactly did she pull that from? I wondered. Does Ayaka have some kind of spatial storage ability too?
"Whoa! A statue of Sensei and Axel-kun?!"
"What the heck is that?!"
As expected, it was Asuna Kagurazaka who delivered the inevitable retort.
"Are you an idiot!?"
"What?! I certainly don't want to hear that from the likes of you, 'Baka-Red' Asuna-san!" Ayaka shot back.
Once they started, the outcome was predictable—the usual "affectionate" bickering between Ayaka and Asuna. The surrounding students immediately began placing bets: "A hundred yen on Asuna!" "Three meal tickets on the Class Rep!"
Meanwhile, in the corner of the room, a certain pair of master and servant watched us—or more specifically, Negi—with calculating gazes. It was, of course, Evangeline and Chachamaru. I stuffed the last remaining meat bun into my mouth and walked over to them.
"So, what do you think of the Thousand Master's son?" I asked.
"Hmm. His mana capacity is certainly impressive," Evangeline mused. "I suppose he truly is that man's son. However, his personality is the polar opposite. If he's really his father's boy, I expected him to be more... you know."
"It seems Master is disappointed that the child of the person she likes didn't meet her expectations," Chachamaru added flatly.
"Hey! Chachamaru! Have you been growing in a weird direction lately because Axel's influence is rubbing off on you?!"
"No, that is not a fact," the doll-girl replied without blinking.
"Is that so? You seem quite different now compared to before you met him," Evangeline muttered.
At those words, Chachamaru silently averted her eyes.
"...Hey," I interjected. "Save the banter for later. You're supposed to have a talk with the Headmaster tonight, right?"
"Indeed. Tonight," Evangeline smirked, a predatory glint in her eyes. "Hehehe... I'm going to squeeze him for everything he's worth."
"Try not to go overboard. It won't be funny if you draw the attention of other magic-users."
"Hmph." Evangeline turned her face away, pouting at my warning.
The way she dodges the subject is exactly like Chachamaru, I thought with a dry smile.
"Huh?"
I scanned the room and realized the crowd had thinned out. The guest of honor, Negi, was gone, and so was Asuna. Even Asakura, who was usually at the center of any chaos, had vanished, along with Ayaka. At a glance, it looked like several others were missing too.
"Axel-kun, are you just over here chatting with Evangeline-san and Chachamaru-san?"
Chizuru approached, offering me a glass of peach juice. As usual, Natsumi was right by her side.
"Nah, just getting their impressions of Negi."
"Heh, so even Evangeline-san is interested in Negi-kun," Natsumi said, looking surprised.
In this class, Evangeline's image was that of the eccentric, solitary transfer student who only spoke to a select few—namely Chao's clique, and more recently, myself, Ayaka, and Chizuru. Thanks to Chizuru, Natsumi had also started talking to her more often.
"Hmph. I happen to have a bit of history with that boy's relatives," Evangeline replied coolly.
"So, where's Negi?" I asked. "I don't see Asuna or Ayaka either."
Chizuru sighed, resting a hand against her cheek with a troubled look.
"What happened?"
"Well, when Ayaka realized Negi-sensei and Asuna-san were missing, she went to look for them, and well..."
"Apparently, they were caught in a full-on embrace," Natsumi finished for her.
"Oh? Asuna Kagurazaka is bolder than she looks," I remarked.
"That Asuna, who claims to hate kids, was hugging Negi? Are you sure it wasn't just some kind of accident?"
"Who knows? But Asakura apparently caught the 'decisive moment' on camera. It'll probably be the lead story in the Mahora Newspaper tomorrow."
I couldn't help but let out a wry laugh. That was just like Asakura—she'd do anything to boost her circulation.
"Well, since the guest of honor is gone, the party's probably over anyway."
"True," Evangeline agreed. "I have my meeting with the old man tonight. I have no desire to linger at this trivial gathering."
"It wasn't that trivial, was it? You learned a lot about Negi."
"I won't deny that. I saw it in class too, but it's hard to believe Nagi's son turned out to be such a textbook 'good boy'."
"Nagi?" Chizuru asked, tilting her head at the unfamiliar name.
"Yeah. That's Negi's father."
"Kuku... Nagi's son is Negi? I wonder if there's a 'Nigi' or a 'Nugi' somewhere in the middle?" Evangeline joked.
"Evangeline-san, that's a bit much..." Chizuru replied with a forced smile.
Nagi and Negi, huh? I thought. With naming sense that lazy, there was no doubt I was in some kind of fictional world. Well, the existence of magic had already confirmed that much. And so, the welcome party drew to a close.
The next morning.
I woke up just in time to sense Ayaka's "awakening kiss"—fueled by her usual unbridled desires—and managed to sidestep it. After a quick change, I sat down at the table where Chizuru had laid out breakfast. However, one thing was different.
"Huh? Where's Natsumi?"
Usually, she would be eating with us, but she was nowhere to be found.
"Natsumi-chan headed to school about an hour ago," Chizuru explained. "She said she had morning practice with the theater club."
"Natsumi-san is certainly a hard worker," Ayaka added, nodding in approval.
Honestly, if you only look at her in moments like this, she's the perfect refined lady, I thought.
"Well then, let's eat."
"Itadakimasu," we all said in unison.
Breakfast was a quintessential Japanese spread: grilled salted mackerel, miso soup packed with vegetables, various pickles, kombu tsukudani, and tamagoyaki. After enjoying the meal, I took the lunchbox Chizuru had prepared and headed for school.
By now, most students in the girls' dormitory had grown used to my presence, and I no longer drew the shocked stares I once did. Still, the fact that I was never completely ignored was a reminder of just how much of an anomaly I was in this place.
"Hm? There's Negi and Asuna."
I spotted our homeroom teacher and classmate entering the school building. Behind them was Konoe on her roller skates.
"Oh, you're right. Knowing Asuna-san, she's probably treating Negi-sensei quite roughly. I'll go check on them."
With that, Ayaka dashed off toward them—or rather, toward Negi.
"Oh dear, Ayaka never changes," Chizuru giggled. I couldn't help but join her.
"Well, that's just who she is."
"Ah, Axel-kun! Good morning," Negi called out as we caught up at the shoe lockers.
"Morning. Did you manage to get some sleep?"
We chatted as we walked down the hallway.
"Yeah. Asuna-san had to leave early for her part-time job, so Konoka-san made breakfast for me."
"Oh? Is Konoe a good cook?"
"Yes! The fried eggs were perfectly runny, just the way I like them—"
Because he was distracted by our conversation, Negi didn't notice the chalkboard eraser wedged into the door frame. He reached for the handle, but—
"Honestly! To play such a prank and interrupt Negi-sensei's conversation with Axel-kun... I won't have it!"
Ayaka snatched the eraser out of the air right before it could fall on Negi's head.
We entered the classroom, Miyazaki (the day's class monitor) gave the morning greeting, and the first period—English—began. The lesson followed a standard format: Negi would read an English sentence from the textbook, then call on a student to translate it.
"Now then, who should I ask to translate this... Let's see..."
At Negi's words, everyone who lacked confidence in their studies immediately looked away. Leading the pack was the "Baka-Ranger" squad, specifically Asuna, who lived with Negi. She turned her head nearly 90 degrees in a desperate attempt to be invisible. Despite her panic, she didn't stop twirling her pen with her left hand—impressive in its own way, though I wasn't sure why I was impressed.
Negi, however, was merciless. He turned his gaze straight toward her.
"Asuna-san, if you would."
The cold hammer of judgment fell.
"Wh—Why are you picking on me?! Usually, you go by the date or the attendance number!"
Asuna protested, but her logic was wasted on Negi's accidental airheadedness.
"But Asuna-san, your name starts with 'A', so you're at the top," Negi replied innocently.
"Asuna is my first name, you brat!"
"Also, I chose you as a token of my gratitude."
"Gratitude for what!?"
"In other words, you simply don't know the answer, Asuna-san," Ayaka interjected, standing up with her textbook. "Allow me, the Class Representative, to take your place—"
Not wanting to be outdone by her rival, Asuna stood up defiantly, clutching her book.
"Fine! Uh... 'Jason... fell on the flower, and spring came?' And then... 'Jason and the flower... ate a hundred bone-branches in a tall tree?' Uh, the bones were... in the tree..."
"Asuna-san... you really aren't good at English, are you?" Negi let out a small, honest sigh.
Oof. I knew Asuna was a member of the Baka-Rangers, but Negi didn't have to lay it out so bluntly in front of everyone. He's still a kid, so he probably doesn't understand social nuance yet. I figured I should probably pull him aside after class to give him a tip or two on student-teacher relations.
"Hey! You little...!"
Fuming at the laughter coming from the class, Asuna grabbed Negi by the collar and yanked him close. As she did, her long hair tickled his nose.
"A-achoo!"
The moment Negi sneezed, a massive surge of magical energy erupted.
"?!"
Several students in the room reacted instantly to the pressure. A localized gale ripped through the classroom, and when the wind finally died down, Asuna was standing there, for some reason, in nothing but her underwear.
Character Profile: Axel Almar
Level: 38
PP: 625
Melee: 262 | Ranged: 282 | Skill: 272
Defense: 272 | Evade: 302 | Hit: 322
SP: 462
Ace Bonus: SP Boost (Consumes SP to enhance Slime performance)
Growth Type: All-Rounder / Special
Terrain Adaptability: Air: S | Land: S | Sea: S | Space: S
Spirit Commands:
Accel (SP 4)
Effort (SP 8)
Focus (SP 16)
Direct Hit (SP 30)
Awaken (SP 32)
Love (SP 48)
Skills:
EXP Up
SP Boost (SP Up Lv.9, SP Regen, Concentration)
Psychokinesis Lv.10
Attacker
Gunfight Lv.9
In-fight Lv.9
Morale Limit Break
Geass (Grey)
Magic (Fire)
Magic (Shadow)
Magic (Summon)
Total Kills: 376
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 70 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"