Anomalies Of A Holy Grail War

Chapter 2 - Part 2 "Student"

Ayanokouji POV

I slid open the door of the chairman's office. I was just asked to call in Himeno Yuki.

"The chairman said for you to enter."

She was very uneasy. Of course, any normal civilian that witnessed that scene would be. She quickly walked past me and greeted the chairman with a tremble in her voice.

"Please, I assure you you're not in any trouble. Take a seat and make yourself comfortable."

She sat down quietly but still kept switching her gaze between the chairman and me.

"Himeno-san, I would like to ask you a favor. Please keep the events of last night a secret. I know it may be hard to believe, but what happened last night wasn't an illusion."

He spoke with a gentle voice and a smile as a parent would. He used his magecraft, a spell of suggestion.

"..."

Without any indication, I used a simple spell. It was just a ball of light used for lighting up dark places. I decided to step into the conversation.

"Listen, what you saw last night and what you're seeing right now is magecraft. In the world, you can find a number of magi just roaming around."

I thought she would be less guarded if we just reveal the truth right away.

"Mage... craft?.."

I nodded.

"We're only telling you this because you don't seem like a person who tells others secrets. To explain, magecraft is dwindling."

"No way... Are you saying stuff like magic is real?"

"Well, yes."

"Then, if magic is dwindling, why do you guys keep it secret?"

"You see, technological and scientific advancements are incompatible with magic. The more the 'Mystery' of magic is preserved, the more it doesn't weaken."

"... Why are you explaining this to me? Don't you have something to make me forget or something?"

"Well, I don't have anything like that. It's simply not my specialty."

"And I can only have the ability to convince people. It won't be able to erase a memory. Especially one that leaves a strong impression. It's hard to alter a memory you know."

"And to answer your first question, we're going to teach you. Well, I guess mostly me. But only if you want to learn. It won't matter to us if you learn it or not, and you could use magic to make your life easier. It only matters when you tell someone else about this. If magecraft is revealed to the public, it might actually die off."

We decided to avoid the topic of her mother. As far as I'm concerned, it's a family problem. It wouldn't do any good to bring up something that may cause her great distress.

"So do you want to learn?"

Of course, I would rather not involve anyone at all. But, I owe the chairman for what he's done for me so far.

"... Of course... If I knew there was magic, and that I could learn it, it would be stupid to refuse."

"Ok, well it's settled. Kiyotaka-kun, Himeno-san, please return to your classes. The period for Homeroom is about to end."

We then headed to our classrooms. For a while, only the sound of our footsteps was heard.

"Hey... Are you really going to teach me?"

"Of course."

"Then, when will we start?"

"Well, I mostly have a free schedule after school. But for now, let's exchange contacts."