Chapter 181: Arcadia's Team-Building Event?
"Hey hey, Mahiro-nii, how do you like my swimsuit?"
"Move aside, let him see mine first!"
"No way!"
Early in the morning, shortly after Mahiro woke up, his door was knocked open. As soon as he opened it, a group of girls in swimwear rushed in.
He didn't need to look to know it was Kasumi, Izumi, and Kuroba Ayako.
But there were two more people following behind.
Honoka? Shizuku? Why are you two here too...?
"We were hoping Mahiro-kun could give us his opinion on our swimwear and point out any unsuitable aspects."
Honoka's face was flushed red, and she seemed too embarrassed to speak properly for a long time.
In the end, Shizuku had to act as her spokesperson, voicing what she wanted to say.
Although Shizuku's face was slightly flushed too.
That's right, they were also participating in the pilot shooting event, since their original event had been canceled.
And when it came to tacit understanding, aside from twins, there probably wasn't any pair more in sync than them.
"Alright, alright, girls, you all look great. So hurry up and get ready for the venue—the competition will start soon."
Mahiro herded the chattering group of girls outside, urging them along.
After he finished washing up and helped them with some final adjustments, the first day's competitions had already begun.
Aside from pilot shooting, the first day's events included shield dueling.
Neither of these events had novice divisions—they were only separated into male and female categories.
Pilot shooting was actually quite simple—it combined the previous "Battle Board" and "Speed Shooting" events. Participants had to navigate through a circular water channel within a limited time while accurately hitting one hundred targets. The time taken to complete the course and the number of targets hit were the key factors determining victory.
Fortunately, both the Saegusa sisters and the pair of Honoka and Shizuku performed excellently.
Especially Izumi and Shizuku, who served as shooters.
The two once again amazed the entire audience.
Shizuku used the "Multi-Shot" spell he had designed last year—both in speed and accuracy, no one could surpass her performance this year. Meanwhile, Izumi used an advanced version of Mayumi's "Magic Bullet Shooter."
The enthusiastic cheers from the audience and her performance suggested she was well on her way to inheriting her older sister's title of "Elven Sniper."
As for Ayako and Fumiya, needless to say, they were already elites in practical combat. This kind of competition was almost too easy for them.
As for the shield dueling arena, honestly, it was quite surprising.
"Haa——!!!"
A girl in full protective gear activated hardening and acceleration magic, instantly sending her opponent flying out of the arena.
"I never would have thought... clearly such a beautiful girl, yet she likes participating in this kind of event..."
That's right, the one standing in the arena was none other than the young lady of the Isshiki family, Airi Isshiki.
"Thank you for your tactical advice, Yotsuba-senpai!"
In the player's tunnel, Airi removed her helmet after the match, revealing her tied-up ponytail, and bowed deeply to him.
Though clearly extremely excited, for some reason she seemed to be desperately restraining her emotions.
All to maintain that dignified young lady demeanor.
How adorable...
Mahiro smiled and said, "No need to thank me, this is just what I should do as a technician. Besides, no matter what tactics I come up with, they'd be useless if you didn't put in the effort yourself."
"For the upcoming matches, just do your best. I'll prepare different tactical plans for you. Remember not to use the same tactics in every match—it makes you easy to counter. Understood?"
"Yes, Yotsuba-senpai!"
Airi straightened her posture, her eyes filled with reverence.
She finally understood why her father had insisted she come to First High School instead of her original choice of Third High, and why he'd specifically arranged for her to interact with Mahiro-senpai.
She also finally understood why so many girls gathered around Yotsuba-senpai.
Because he was truly amazing!
Not only could he tune CADs to peak performance—making them more comfortable to use than her own specialized CAD—but he was also brilliant at tactics!
Originally, she had wanted to compete in Massball, but unfortunately, this year's Nine Schools Competition organizers had unceremoniously canceled the event. So she decided to participate in the close-quarters combat-focused "Shield Down."
Mainly because the rules were simple—
You just needed to shatter your opponent's shield or knock them off the platform to win.
And the solution Yotsuba-senpai provided for her was even simpler and more direct!
Airi Isshiki knew she wouldn't have any advantage in strength against opponents trained in martial arts, and breaking shields would likely be difficult. So Mahiro's solution was to leverage the CAD's advantages—casting Acceleration plus Hardening spells simultaneously through dual instant-casting to catch opponents off guard.
Emphasizing that speed itself is power.
While using this technique would certainly put some strain on the caster, the effect was far from simply one plus one!
It was practically a secret technique!
Meanwhile, in the spectator stands, Erika's elegant eyebrows had furrowed into a frown, her arms crossed in clear displeasure.
"Erika-chan, what's wrong?" Mizuki asked curiously.
"Nothing really, it's just... that first-year prodigy's moves look somewhat familiar..." Erika muttered, pursing her lips.
That technique felt almost like her secret move, Armor Split.
And the way she used the Acceleration Spell—that was something the Chiba-style sword techniques specialized in...
"That Mahiro... he's really something else."
When the first day of competition concluded, the results were as expected. In the Rower and Gunner event, the Saegusa sisters, Kitayama Shizuku, and Honoka won with absolute dominance in both categories.
In individual matches, Ayako and Fumiya successfully advanced to the semifinals, making it into the top eight.
The same went for Shield Down—Airi successfully reached the top eight and would proceed to tomorrow's semifinals.
This outcome left several major schools both frustrated and astonished. But when they learned the technician was Mahiro, and recalled last year's terror of being dominated by this demon king, they resigned themselves to the situation.
They began planning to abandon these events and focus on capturing the championship in tomorrow's "Icicle Destruction."
Unfortunately for them, the participants for Icicle Destruction—Miyuki and Shizuku—were also under his technical guidance.
Logically speaking, technical engineers are supposed to handle projects rather than personnel, but they had forgotten the terror of Mahiro—he could single-handedly manage adjustments for all projects.
Just like the previous tournament, he only needed to select some preferred candidates for maintenance.
Thus, the current situation unfolded.
"Earth Roar!"
Shizuku, dressed in a water-blue furisode kimono, aimed her pistol-type CAD at the opponent's ice formation and pulled the trigger. Though it was merely an A-class offensive magic, it caused the entire arena to tremble.
As if an earthquake had struck!
Instantly shattering all of the opponent's ice pillars.
This was unavoidable—after receiving the enhancement drug, things became this absurd. Both magical power and brain computational capabilities had reached the level of a Strategic Class Magician.
Not to mention gaining superhuman physical abilities.
Just as he finished watching Shizuku's match and prepared to head to another venue to watch Miyuki's competition...
Suddenly, a group of beautiful girls emerged from the dense crowd.
Even within the vast sea of people, those girls were dazzling enough to make pretending not to see them impossible.
"Yahooo~"
"Erika?"
Erika, with her small ponytail, pushed through the crowd and immediately jogged forward to greet him.
Besides her, there were also Mizuki, Mayumi, Sayaka, Mari, and others.
But what surprised him most were those following behind.
"Mr. Mahiro, we've come to cheer for you."
What met his eyes was a girl so pure white she seemed holy, wearing a white sun hat tilted on her head, her movements elegant and graceful like a devout nun.
Who else could possess such demeanor but Seitenshi?!
But it wasn't just her—there were also Kisara, Mine, Remus, Womyn, and all members of the Enhancement Unit. Even Lina and the Little Emperor, plus that Sumire who usually never leaves her laboratory!
"And us too, Mahiro-nii/Mahiro-sama/Mahiro-san!"
Enju, Asaka, and Tina all rushed into his embrace at once.
"..."
For a moment, Mahiro was at a loss for words.
What was this, an Arcadia group outing to the Nine Schools Competition?
"Hey, why does your look feel so weird when you glance at me?"
Lina raised her eyebrows, placing hands on her hips discontentedly.
Her appearance now was completely different from before—her golden long hair was no longer in twin tails, but left completely loose to cascade down her back, making her look much more mature than previously.
She wore a white sleeveless top resembling a tank top, paired with pure white straight-leg pants that accentuated the slenderness of her legs.
As she spoke, the two hoop earrings hanging from her earlobes swayed slightly.
A complete gal-style outfit!
After giving her a brief once-over, Mahiro chuckled teasingly: "Well~ it's not exactly weird, I'm just curious. Even though you've left Arcadia, you actually didn't try to escape?"
His expression and tone were full of playful banter.
"Hmph, no helping it... Even if I wanted to return to USNA, I can't go back... They want me to conduct some bullshit surveillance and appeasement mission against you, how could I possibly do such a thing..."
Lina turned her head away, crossing her arms over her chest, muttering in a voice as faint as a mosquito's hum.
But in reality, aside from this mission, it was mainly because she had grown accustomed to life in Arcadia.
Spending carefree days every day with her teammates and those children.
What did it matter if she was no longer a Strategic Class Magician and could no longer use magic?
After all, this was the life she had always dreamed of!
If she were forced to return to the battlefield filled with slaughter and the days of being constantly restrained by others...
Frankly speaking, compared to that kind of life, she would rather let Mahiro have his way with her a few times!
"By the way, Mr. Mahiro, I just met someone on the way here who looks very much like Ms. Maya. I think you should go see for yourself."
It was Seitenshi who spoke, even thoughtfully pointing him in the right direction.
However, just from that description, he had already guessed who had arrived.
He hadn't expected them to come so early, but at least they would still be able to catch Miyuki's match.
So he nodded and said, "I understand. I'll head over there now and be back soon."
"..."
Kurome and Akame, who had been snacking and eating lunch, instinctively reached out when they saw Mahiro leaving so quickly.
They had specially saved a portion of food for Mahiro, but now they hadn't even had the chance to give it to him...
What a pity.
But they couldn't let the food go to waste, so they might as well eat it themselves.
Just as the two of them were stuffing the food into their mouths, Mayumi gracefully approached them and said softly:
"That's just how he is. When he's free, he lazes around like a salted fish, but once he gets busy, it's hard to keep track of him."
"...Is that so?"
Akame blinked innocently.
After all, she had spent some time undercover in Night Raid and wasn't very familiar with many things. Her impressions were mostly limited to training sessions.
So she turned her gaze to her younger sister.
But Kurome also shook her head, indicating she didn't know. In her memory, Lord Mahiro had always seemed to be in a state of relaxed leisure—this was the first time she had seen him so busy.
"Ah..."
Mayumi seemed to notice the discrepancies in their perceptions of Mahiro.
So she looked at the unfamiliar faces with a charming smile and said, "Let me introduce myself. I am Saegusa Mayumi. Since everyone has gathered here, you must share a deep bond with Mahiro-kun, right?"
Cornelia, Tsukushi, and Gin exchanged glances, then nodded in agreement, each showing a friendly, understanding smile.
Both Mayumi and they had come to realize one thing—
The other party must also be Mahiro-kun's (Lord Mahiro's) partner!
"Wah, what are you all whispering about? Why aren't you including me!"
The Little Emperor... no, she should be called the Little Princess, pouted discontentedly, hands on her hips, and declared willfully, "I want to join too!"
Following Seitenshi's directions, Mahiro searched through the crowd for a long time before finally spotting the person who resembled Maya in an inconspicuous corner.
She was wearing a pink sun hat, using both hands to press down the wide brim, covering most of her face, making it difficult for anyone to see her clearly.
Dressed in a pale blue gown with long sleeves, the conservative outfit revealed no skin yet still accentuated her graceful, slender figure.
Simultaneously as he arrived, she also noticed his presence.
She gently lifted the brim of her hat, revealing an elegant and intellectual beauty's face.
That's right—this woman was Miya Yotsuba!
Removing her sunhat, Miya tossed her raven-black hair lightly and smiled joyfully at Mahiro.
Her unintentional charm was enough to make hearts flutter.
"What's wrong? Surprised to see me?"
Since crossing that threshold, the way Miya looked at him had changed—beyond mere gentleness, there was now an indescribable emotion.
"Not at all. I just didn't expect you to arrive so soon, Aunt."
Mahiro sat boldly beside Miya, breathing in the subtle fragrance lingering around her as he watched Miyuki, dressed in shrine maiden attire on the field.
"So, how's Miyuki's match? Exciting?"
"Mmm, quite impressive. Miyuki has grown significantly."
Miya also gazed at the arena, her eyes overflowing with tenderness.
Her daughter had truly lived up to expectations, becoming an outstanding magician.
"Would you like to see it up close?"
"Huh?"
Hearing his words, Miya looked at him in surprise.
"Don't make that face. Come with me—I'll take you to the premium seats. We can also let Miyuki see you. I'm sure she'll be thrilled."
"So suddenly? But... I'm not prepared... Hey!"
Ignoring Miya's astonishment, Mahiro took her hand and led her away from the spectator stands toward the competitor's passage.
...
Meanwhile, Miyuki, engaged in her match, shifted her gaze and spotted Mahiro at the passage entrance, her face lighting up with delight.
Brother Mahiro came to watch my match!
I have to do my best!
Miyuki lightly tapped her Card Assisted Design, dancing atop the pillar like a sacred kagura performance meant to please the gods. Every movement carried a purity rivaling Seitenshi's, yet also an indescribable allure.
The audience watched, mesmerized, before erupting into thunderous cheers.
Her opponent, seeing this, understood she was preparing a major spell and reinforced the information bodies on their side of the field.
"It's useless. All in vain."
"Inferno!"
Instantly, a cold mist descended.
Simultaneously, scorching heat waves surged across the opponent's field, the blazing airflow threatening to incinerate everything.
Even the surrounding spectators could clearly feel the terrifying heat.
Lina, who specialized in such cationic electromagnetic repulsion amplification magic, stared in stunned disbelief at the overwhelming heat assault.
"Miyuki... is this strong?"
Witnessing the scene on the field, her pupils contracted sharply, almost unable to believe her eyes.
Across the way, the ice pillar stood amidst the ionic flames. With each lick of the fire, the pillar melted further, and in mere seconds, it had nearly vanished.
"Damn it!!!"
The opponent tried to turn the tide.
But how could Miyuki give her that chance? She intensified the magical force altering the information body.
The next second.
Boom! With a deafening roar, the ice pillar shattered instantly.
By the time the heat wave dissipated, even the arena's ground had been scorched to the point of distortion.