[258] The Truth Revealed (3)
Nade stepped forward. He usually liked getting along with everyone, but with Shirone in this situation he couldn't help but take his side.
"That's enough, you lot. Sure, it's shocking that Shirone's a commoner, but he didn't deceive anyone on purpose. If you'd asked him, he would've told you honestly. That's just who Shirone is. Students from the same school shouldn't be attacking each other over things unrelated to competition."
"Competition? Don't be ridiculous. A commoner, a commoner! You hang out with commoners outside? Of course you don't! At home you're waited on by countless commoners—how can you accept Shirone?"
Nade sighed.
There was no reasoning with them; trying to persuade them any further would be pointless.
James did have a point, and their feelings weren't entirely incomprehensible.
But what could he do? Shirone was already his closest friend, and he couldn't bear to see him upset.
James, convinced Iruki and Nade were already smitten with Shirone, turned his attention to Dante.
"Dante! Say something. You're supposed to be the angriest. You just took that humiliation from a commoner!"
Dante made a baffled face.
"Angry? Is there a special anger just for commoner aristocrats? I lost—so I lost. That's it."
It was the first time he'd voiced his feelings about the duel, and even that came out flat.
At last James grasped how things were playing out.
Dante's group and Shirone's group didn't want to be tied to the mid-tier crowd. It was as if badmouthing Shirone would make them any less like him, so they chose to ignore reality.
James lowered his head, trembled, then couldn't help himself.
"So that's it? You all just want to latch onto Shirone? No one can beat him at school anymore! You think siding with Shirone makes you look impressive? You're no different. In the end, you're all losers!"
Dante idly swirled the ice in his iced coffee.
"That's a bit over the top. I lost—why are you getting all worked up?"
"Don't pretend! You're obviously furious and can't stand it. You lost so miserably and act like it's nothing. Come on—Shirone roughed you up and knocked you out. What do you even think about when you live your life?"
"They kept staring at us like that!"
Closer couldn't hold back and jumped in. The kids who hadn't even dared meet Dante's eyes before his loss were suddenly emboldened and running wild.
"Enough. Stop."
Dante stopped Closer, looked up at the ceiling, and after a long pause spoke slowly.
"What if... the automaton's design had been simplified a bit more?"
James's face contorted at the sudden remark.
"What? Where did that come from?"
"Pascal's circuit should've been more intuitive. Assign roles clearly—attack for attack, defense for defense. There were too many basic magic types. If we'd left Fireball out and relied on Wind Cutter, mobility would've been better."
The students stared blankly as Dante continued without pause.
Iruki and Nade listened intently.
If they'd organized it that way, the flow of the match might've shifted a little.
James clenched his jaw and trembled with fury.
Dante rose, coffee in hand, and walked up to him.
"If you ask what I'm thinking, all that's in my head is magic. I'm at a school for magic, after all. So what are you thinking about? Whether Shirone's a commoner or a noble—what does that have to do with your magic?"
James's face flushed a deep red.
Shame washed over him like a tide; he wanted to bolt.
But he couldn't make a scene in front of his juniors.
Having lost the argument, he resorted to petulance.
"Shut—shut up! And what about you? You didn't even kneel to Shirone. You talked big about killing him and whatnot, and yet you're still alive!"
Closer's eyes went cold.
"James, do you want to die?"
James flinched in fear, but the words were already out. Besides, Closer was the one who'd been roughed up by Iruki, so he couldn't actually use force here.
"It's true! Tell me! Aren't you just two-faced?"
Dante fell silent for a moment.
He wasn't lost in deep thought—he was just waiting for the voice in his head to stop.
"Well..."
Dante said casually.
"I couldn't die. Dying's scary."
"What?" Iruki snorted with laughter.
She wasn't mocking Dante. Of course dying is frightening to anyone. As Shirone had said, they're only human.
Dante's crisp, automaton-like clarity wasn't exactly Iruki's favorite thing about him, but she respected it.
"I did go in prepared to die, but when it actually happened, I couldn't. That's it. But I still won't kneel."
James completely lost his temper.
He couldn't understand what Dante's group or Shirone's group were thinking; to him, everyone looked insane.
"Haha! So that's it, you loser! You finally tucked your tail for Shirone. You never had the guts to die from the start! Go back to that proud Royal School of Magic, why don't you?"
Closer seriously considered pulverizing James.
Up until now James had been too dejected from defeat to attack anyone, but he couldn't let someone insult Dante and walk away.
"Dante, don't stop me this time."
Closer rubbed his fist and strode toward James.
But Dante stopped him again.
"It's fine. This is the fate of the defeated. You can't prove it anyway."
Closer looked like he might explode.
"Dante..."
But Dante truly was fine.
James's words were just noise—empty insults without meaning.
Wasn't he the one who'd quit school as a kid because he hated those who loudly pontificated about others without any self-reflection?
Dante answered the agitated James with a smile.
"And James, I'm not going back to the Royal School of Magic. I'll stay at Alpheas School of Magic and graduate from here."
Closer blinked, surprised enough to forget his earlier anger.
It was sudden—Dante had said nothing about his future plans until now.
Sabina asked in disbelief.
"Dante, really? Even Teacher Olivia hasn't confirmed whether she'll accept the vice‑principal post yet."
"It has nothing to do with my teacher. If Shirone's here, of course I'm staying."
Relief and delight lit Closer's face.
"So you're saying you'll take revenge? Good! When?"
"That's not for me to decide. I lost, and I don't want to cling to excuses. But I still have one chance to make up for it. I won't give that up just to transfer."
"Huh? A chance?"
Dante looked at Iruki.
"The graduation exam. It's a gate no magic‑school student can avoid. Shirone will take the graduation exam too."
Iruki nodded as if it were obvious.
"Of course."
Dante felt lighter at last.
There were still variables to consider, but declaring it made him feel better. As Shirone had said, he was only human. There was no point obsessing over petty winning percentages.
He planned to start again from there.
"Closer, I'll take the graduation exam here. And I'll beat Shirone and graduate first."
Closer flexed and bellowed.
"Alright! This time we'll win for sure! Let's start special training today!"
Nade grabbed Iruki.
"Haha! You really think first place is that easy? We're not just going to sit back and watch."
Dante nodded in acknowledgment.
Nade and Iruki were indeed formidable rivals, just like Shirone.
"Fine, bring it on. First place will be mine anyway."
Dante turned to James, who stood there like a stuffed sack.
"Prepare yourself too. You still have to graduate to become a mage, after all."
James said nothing. He bowed his head and left the cafeteria.
The students who'd badmouthed Shirone exchanged glances and quietly followed. Shirone's group alone was already a handful, and now Dante's crew would be competing in the advanced class—things already looked bleak.
Dante tossed his empty cup into the trash and walked toward the door.
"We're off. Tell Shirone we won't lose next time."
Iruki snorted.
"Why don't you tell him yourself?"
Dante paused, looked up at the ceiling, and said, "I could. If I have time later."
Then he opened the door and left as if nothing had happened.
That cool, nonchalant air seemed innate.
At that moment the door opened again and Sabina came in. She glared at Nade, bit her lip, and then, as if steeling herself, marched forward.
Now that Dante had decided to try again, she had to shake off her fear of Nade.
Sabina's eyes widened and Nade drew his head back.
He knew she feared him after the lynching. He felt guilty for branding her with the terror of death, even if she had insulted his family.
"N-next time, I won't let you get away with it."
You could tell how much courage it had taken Sabina to say that.
Nade forgave her.
He wasn't especially interested in the mage license, but he wanted fair competition through to graduation.
Nade smiled.
"Alright. Let's have a proper match next time."
"Hmph."
Sabina flushed and darted out of the cafeteria as if fleeing. Her heart pounded with the confidence of having done it.
Iruki watched Sabina leave, dazed.
"What was that all about?"
Not knowing the backstory, she couldn't grasp the exchange's meaning.
Even Nade—who normally would step in—kept quiet.
"What? What's wrong? Are you—are you and Sabina... something like that?"
Nade waved his hands in surprise.
"No! Sabina is... ah, never mind. It's complicated."
Iruki didn't press further once he made it clear he didn't want to talk.
Whatever Sabina and Nade's relationship was, it was their business.
Personally, Iruki wanted to support it. She didn't much like Sabina, but if Sabina could chase away the ghost lodged in Nade's heart, she'd be fine with it.
"Alright. Anyway, let's hurry and go. Shirone'll be waiting."
@
Supernatural Psychical Science Research Club.
Left alone in the lab after his friends left, Shirone sat lost in thought.
On the sofa lay the Spirit magazine Nade had brought, and Shirone's gaze lingered on the page with his parents' interview.
"Sigh... why..."
He couldn't believe what had happened.
He wasn't ashamed to be the son of commoners; he was proud of his parents.
But he was old enough to know how the world worked.
There were many classmates at the School of Magic who could tell right from wrong, so he'd avoided serious trouble until now, but the world's view would be different.
He wanted to see his parents. What must they be feeling now?
His father surely understood that revealing their son's status could cause trouble.
How on earth had Kilrain been made to confess?
If coercion had been used, he couldn't forgive her.
'I hope Mom doesn't get hurt.'
Since the interview had been printed in a magazine distributed across the kingdom, if he submitted a leave of absence now it might well be approved.
Above all, the principal of Alpheas would treat it as his own matter.