Schools in Tokyo City weren't as large as one might imagine—in fact, they were surprisingly small.
What was most astonishing was that the school didn't even have its own dedicated grounds. Instead, it occupied a former church, with classes held inside the building.
When Nino Nakano first saw students attending school in a church, she was so shocked her jaw nearly dropped, thinking she had stumbled into a seminary.
But after seeing the number of students, she understood.
The entire school had just over thirty students in total.
There was no need to divide them into classes—all the students sat on the pews in the church hall, while the teacher wheeled in a portable blackboard to conduct lessons.
Yet, in a city of over a hundred thousand people, having only thirty-some students was a ratio that didn't make sense at all.
After observing the students, Nino's confusion only deepened.
Because among the students gathered here, only seven or eight were teenagers. The majority were young adults and middle-aged individuals, spanning nearly every age group—men and women alike—except for the elderly.
Shouldn't students all be children or teenagers?
Why were there so many adults attending classes here?
With this question in mind, on her second day there, she asked the other students about the content of the lessons—and immediately understood the reason.
Because the classes held here weren't lessons in the conventional sense.
—They were classes specifically teaching magecraft.
"Nino, where should I put these potatoes?"
Just as her thoughts were racing, a voice sounded beside her.
Itsuki Nakano returned to the kitchen carrying a basket of peeled and soaked potatoes, rubbing her lower back with a pained expression. In less than three days, she had already suffered the hardships of manual labor.
"Cut them into chunks and toss them into the pressure cooker. And wash those vegetables too—oh, and crack the eggs as well..."
Nino didn't even look up, firing off instructions like rapid gunfire at Itsuki.
"Slow down! I can't keep up!"
"Then adapt faster! Unless you want us to go back to being refugees? Or would you rather be taken home by some pot-bellied old man to be his servant?"
"Absolutely not! And isn't it kind of rude to assume all magi and security team members are pot-bellied old men?"
"I don't care! We finally got a job—I'm not giving up this opportunity. I refuse to go back to the refugee camp!"
A look of intense disgust flashed in Nino's eyes at the mention of the refugee camp.
Crammed together with countless people who hadn't bathed in who-knows-how-long, the stench alone was unbearable—not to mention the constant uncertainty of when their next meal would come.
She'd rather die than go back there!
That's right.
Nino had initially thought that Mayor Tohno had arranged for her to attend school so she could learn magecraft and become one of this world's elite.
But who would've guessed they were actually brought here to be cooks?
Because of her cooking skills, she had been chosen.
But how could Nino possibly accept that?
"Hurry up and finish lunch, then we're going to sit in on the class!"
She viciously kneaded the dough while growling at Itsuki.
"That's not a good idea!"
Itsuki was startled by her boldness.
"What are you scared of? Does the school have any rules against sitting in on classes?"
"Well… I don't think so..."
"This really isn't possible—I've already checked thoroughly!"
Nakano Nino's eyes sparkled with stubborn determination.
Tohno Akiha's purpose in establishing the magic school was to cultivate as many homegrown magi for Tokyo as possible.
However, determining whether residents had the aptitude for magic required testing each individual, and the magi of Tokyo simply didn't have that kind of free time.
Thus, only those with confirmed magical potential were admitted into the school for training, while others were left to pure chance.
Fundamentally, those whose ancestors had never produced magi rarely had descendants with magical talent.
Moreover, magic required extensive, prolonged study—sometimes accumulating knowledge over generations—to master. An ordinary person who became a magus might spend their entire life studying magic and still struggle to defeat even a single magical beast. Therefore, widespread dissemination of magic was essentially pointless.
Additionally, with extremely limited teaching resources, while the school didn't prohibit ordinary people from attending lectures, it also didn't encourage mass attendance—once all the seats in the chapel were taken, no one else could enter, even after the rush for spots ended.
So, even though Tohno Akiha had founded the magic school, these apprentice magi couldn't possibly become combat-ready within just a few years.
Unless someone was exceptionally gifted—but the odds of that were akin to winning the lottery.
The chapel had only so many seats, and over thirty were reserved for fixed students, leaving the remaining spots highly contested.
Fortunately, the two of them were the school's cooks, giving them an advantage—there was no reason they shouldn't be able to secure seats!
With a chance to learn magic right in front of them, they couldn't let it slip by.
Spurred on by Nino, Itsuki quickly became enthusiastic as well. After preparing lunch, while the students headed to the cafeteria, the two girls grabbed a couple of bread rolls and hurried to the chapel.
Their efforts paid off—though the back rows were already crowded when they arrived, they managed to claim two seats toward the rear.
"Nakano sisters, you two came too?"
After lunch ended, the school's fixed students—those already confirmed to have magical aptitude—returned to the chapel and took their seats in the first three rows.
Among them, a girl with shoulder-length chestnut-brown hair tied into twin tails noticed the two and approached with a friendly smile.
"You are...?"
Nino and Itsuki looked at the girl, their faces blank with confusion.
"Ahaha, I really don't leave much of an impression, do I?"
The brunette girl chuckled self-deprecatingly before pointing at herself and introducing, "I'm Yumizuka, Yumizuka Satsuki—also called Sacchin, so I've noticed you two."
Nino and Itsuki exchanged glances, understanding why this girl had approached them.
She shared a similar name as Nakano Itsuki—what a coincidence.
"Hello, I'm Nakano Nino."
"And I'm Nakano Itsuki."
"I know, I know! You two have only been here a few days, but you're already famous as the school's beautiful chefs!"
Satsuki smiled brightly.
But then, as if remembering something, her expression grew strained.
"However, this title comes with a slight drawback. After all, this is a place that trains magi. Although they start as apprentices, some quickly advance to the rank of minor magi, at which point they become eligible to take on attendants. It seems a few people already have their eyes on you two, so be careful."
She whispered this warning to the sisters.
Nino and Itsuki both held their breath in unison, fear flashing across their faces simultaneously.
Though they had secured jobs, they were essentially still refugees—and worse, without any master's protection.
If someone here graduated quickly, became a minor magus, and set their sights on them, it would be an absolute disaster!
"Hey, Yumizuka, why are you talking to those refugees? Our group is where you should be mingling, isn't it?"
At that moment, a teasing voice came from the front row, though its owner remained unseen.
***
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