Mahiro never expected Mayumi to gift him a CAD!
How generous and elegant of her...
And wealthy too!
Though it was an older "general-purpose" model, it seemed to be one the senior had phased out of use.
Still, it was more than enough to surprise him.
After all, how bad could a CAD once used by the young lady of the Saegusa family be, even if it was an older model?
Mayumi even told him he could keep using it until he got his own CAD.
However, her cheeks were visibly flushed as she said this.
Mahiro understood—transferring a CAD to someone else was akin to exposing all one's secrets to them.
Still, he declined the invitation to join the disciplinary committee.
Being a "sandwich maid" (note: a playful term for disciplinary committee members) might sound fun, but it was exhausting—patrolling every day.
Most importantly, club recruitment week was just around the corner, and that was the busiest time of all.
Joining a club for fun sounded much better.
But Mayumi told him not to rush his answer and to take his time considering it.
She also asked him to come to the student council after school for CAD adjustments.
"This feels like such a hassle..."
And indeed, it was.
Especially when, by the time school ended, the situation had devolved into chaos.
After a day of settling in and getting acquainted, small groups had naturally formed among the students.
The good news was that his own little group had gained three more members.
Aside from his classmates Mitsui Honoka and Kitayama Shizuku, there was also Saijou Leonhard from Tatsuya's class—a burly guy skilled in hardening magic.
The bad news? Their group had clashed with another.
Mahiro, who had originally planned to let Miyuki and the others leave first at the school gate, ended up witnessing—and even getting dragged into—the scene.
"Give it up already! Miyuki said she's going home with Yotsuba-san—who are you to butt in?"
"Who Miyuki spends time with is her own choice! What right do you have to decide for her?"
Mizuki, her adorable cheeks puffed up, was loudly confronting the group blocking their way.
"Spending time together...? M-Mizuki, are you misunderstanding something?"
Hearing Mizuki's words, Miyuki—shielded behind Tatsuya—visibly panicked.
The cause of the conflict was simple.
Friction had already arisen between the two groups during the morning and lunch breaks, and by dismissal time, these jealous male classmates had come looking for trouble.
At its core, it wasn't just their infatuation with Miyuki's excellence and beauty—it was also their disdain for the Second Course students.
They believed someone as outstanding as Miyuki shouldn't associate with Second Course students.
"Miyuki, we need to talk to you about something!"
"Yeah, we just need to borrow them for a bit!"
Their entitled remarks drew a haughty laugh from Leonhard.
"Hah! You guys really love hearing yourselves talk! If you had something to say, wasn't break time enough?"
Erika, too, responded with a mocking smile and tone.
"If this is supposed to be a discussion, shouldn't we first get the concerned party's consent? Ignoring Miyuki's wishes can hardly be called a discussion. You're all high school students, yet you don't even understand such a basic principle—I'm genuinely worried about your futures for your parents' sake."
"Shut up! An outsider from another class, especially a weed like you, has no right to lecture us blooms!"
Using "weed" to refer to Course 2 Students was prohibited by school regulations due to its discriminatory connotations.
Though the rule had become largely nominal in most situations, it still shouldn't have been used so blatantly in public.
Hearing his brazen words, several Course 2 Students glared furiously at the speaker.
The atmosphere grew inexplicably tense, while the opposing group seemed to maintain their air of superiority.
Surprisingly, the first to react to the insult was Mizuki, who appeared the most delicate with her large bust and glasses.
"You all—"
But before she could speak, someone suddenly pulled her back.
"Yotsuba-san?!"
Mizuki was utterly shocked by Mahiro's sudden appearance.
As he held her back, he stepped forward and said, "Let me handle this."
"You? What's so impressive about catching Saegusa-senpai's attention by chance? Just a discarded failure from the Yotsuba family! I don't know what underhanded tricks you used to sneak into our Course 1, but trash like you belongs with the weeds! You're not fit to stand beside Miyuki-san!"
Morisaki Shun, the ringleader, glared venomously at Mahiro, his words dripping with contempt.
His family name, Morisaki, belonged to the lower ranks of the "Hundred Families," known for their Quick Cast Magic.
His blatant insults had already angered many present—at the very least, Miyuki reacted, her face flushing with anger as she drew her CAD.
A dense mass of psions faintly swirled around her.
However, Mahiro stopped her.
"Hah, interesting take!" He took a step forward. Though he was laughing, the fury in his voice was unmistakable.
"Yotsuba-san, don't act recklessly! Using magic against others without permission violates school rules. Let's call the disciplinary committee instead," Honoka hurriedly said, tugging at Mahiro.
"Right, this isn't the school's competition grounds," Shizuku added expressionlessly.
"Do we even need magic to teach them a lesson? You're overestimating them."
Mahiro scoffed dismissively.
That single remark instantly froze the air around them.
It ignited the already thick tension.
"Oh dear, this is bad," Erika muttered under her breath, clutching her head.
She knew all too well—those arrogant Course 1 Students, many of whom carried "noble" bloodlines and had grown up hailed as geniuses, would undoubtedly be provoked by Mahiro's taunt.
Yet anyone could see the grin on her face.
Her hand had already slipped into her coat pocket, pulling out a collapsible baton.
"Hah! You've got guts saying that. Then I'll gladly teach you a lesson!"
As an honors student, Morisaki Shun aimed his pistol-shaped CAD at Mahiro amidst the screams of onlooking students—
And pulled the trigger.
The clearly visible psion waves swirled around Shun as magic rapidly took form under the simple activation sequence prioritizing speed.
"Idiot, don't you know fists are faster than magic within five meters?"
Just as everyone thought Mahiro would be blasted away by Morisaki Shun's spell, his figure suddenly vanished.
With a gust of wind, he appeared before Shun as if teleporting.
They stood so close that the panic on each other's faces was unmistakable.
"Did he pre-cast an acceleration spell?"
"No, that was simply Mahiro-nii's physical speed."
During this brief exchange between the emotionless loli and Miyuki, Mahiro had already struck.
Under his opponent's terrified gaze, a slender hand shot out like lightning, grabbing Morisaki's face before slamming it viciously into the ground!
The sickening thud of skull meeting concrete and the sight of shattered pavement froze everyone.
Even Erika, who'd been about to intervene, and Leonhard preparing a hardening spell stood stunned.
This Yotsuba junior hit... just a tad too hard.