Ch.33Chapter 33

Just like last week, this Friday’s morning lecture was with Sera and Aria.

“Advanced Applications of Mana Circuits.” I was being pestered by both of them before the lecture that was practically mandatory for Magic Composition Department students like Sera and Aria.

“Ourr, when are we starting the study group?”

Sera sat on my right and linked her arm with mine. My body tilted halfway to the right, and Sera gently pulled me as if suggesting I should lean on her. Whether it was due to our weight difference or not, I was helplessly drawn toward her regardless of whether I resisted.

I tried to resist at first, but as my posture collapsed, I soon found myself leaning against Sera. Since it wasn’t exactly unpleasant, I unconsciously surrendered to her comforting warmth.

While nestled against her, I rolled my eyes, but I had no answer to Sera’s question.

“…I wonder?”

I didn’t know anything. I had only asked if they wanted to join a study group I was forming, but since I wasn’t going to be teaching systematically right away, there wasn’t much I could decide.

Wouldn’t the Professor match schedules with the students when they had time? If some students could join and others couldn’t, the Professor would have to see everyone in rotation, which seemed troublesome.

Even if I thought about it seriously, the right answer was to do whatever the Professor suggested, so there was no need for me to add anything.

“When will Ourr… become independent?”

While I was awkwardly responding to Sera’s words, Aria gently pulled me from the left. Just as I thought I might escape from Sera’s embrace, I ended up in Aria’s arms instead.

With a soft “poof,” an even softer sensation than before enveloped me.

Maybe it was because the Professor hugged me often, but I was surprisingly accustomed to being held in someone’s arms. And I even found myself enjoying it without realizing. Soft, gentle, warm. I liked those feelings.

“What’s this about independence?”

But separate from that, Aria’s words caught my attention, so I slightly raised my eyes to look up at her. Aria met my gaze with her golden eyes and wore a smile.

“You need to be independent so you can go places with me.”

Seeing Aria’s smiling eyes, I gave a bitter smile.

“B-but is there any reason to hold me like this?”

More than that, I was concerned about Sera and Aria holding onto me like they were playing tug-of-war. At first, I thought I was just leaning against Sera so I didn’t mind, but when Aria joined in, I felt like my arms were going to stretch.

If I could grow taller this way, that would be great for me, but I was terrified that only my arms would get longer.

“This is how girls normally play around.”

Sera said that as she moved her chair closer. Unable to pull me more while holding my arm, she seemed to have chosen to approach me instead. I could definitely feel Sera pressing against me more than before.

All girls play like this…? Come to think of it, it did seem that way… I think I’ve seen girls walking arm in arm in school hallways before, so maybe this was what that was.

As I hesitated and tilted my head wondering if that was the case, Aria gently pulled my arm.

“Don’t lean on Ourr too much. Ourr needs to be hugged.”

“N-no… I’m fine.”

Sera was trying to lean on me, and Aria was trying to hug me. Because of this, our postures collapsed like dominoes. Starting with Sera, it was as if I was being passed to Aria.

Of course, Aria didn’t fall over. She firmly straightened her back and embraced me. I couldn’t help but be shocked as she held the back of my head and pressed it against her chest.

“Whoa…”

“Comfortable, right?”

Aria asked in a flat voice.

I felt self-conscious about the stares around us, wondering if this was appropriate. Perhaps because of that, my first thought was that it was uncomfortable when she asked if it was comfortable. I groaned as I felt Sera’s weight.

Thinking that Sera was pressing on me too much, she supported herself with her arm and stood up.

“Isn’t that too much?”

Aria shrugged at the complaint directed at her. Meanwhile, I slipped out as her arm strength loosened, feeling bewildered by the sensation pressed against my cheek.

Whether this was how everyone normally played around or not, these actions were too shocking for me.

Isn’t it normal for people of the same gender to avoid contact for more than three seconds? No, is that just something among men…? Even so, this lack of hesitation in skinship was just…

While I was at a loss for words, the Professor’s appearance announcing the start of the lecture silenced everyone.

I had to sit through the lecture sandwiched between Sera and Aria, who had moved their chairs close to me.

The Professor’s voice rang out loudly.

“I’m sure you all know that magic composition is quite difficult.”

It was always amazing how the Professor’s voice could be heard throughout the lecture hall, which was built in a tiered structure. Perhaps the space itself was specially designed.

The Professor took out an oil lighter from his pocket. With a “ting” sound, a flame rose.

“Creating fire is this easy. However, when you try to make it with magic, it becomes difficult. With the advancement of the world, truly simple magic has become almost obsolete, as convenient tools like this have increased.”

Click. The sound of the lid covering the flame. The Professor showed the lighter in his hand to all the students and looked at it carefully.

“But even so, we haven’t abandoned the magic composition for creating fire. The reason is that it’s a basic formula that can definitely be used somewhere. Do you know that?”

When the answer “Yes” rang out, the Professor moved on without asking further questions. It seemed he assumed everyone knew since it was something they all learned in their first or second year.

I don’t know, though. But since magic looks fun, I’ll just listen. I focused my ears with that thought. Honestly, watching and listening to this was now more interesting than studying texts.

I don’t know if it’s because my wish to come to a world like this has come true, but I found everything interesting.

“It’s included in the formula for engine magic that goes into cars right now. That’s why we take this magic, disassemble it, break it down, examine it, and then put it back together. And clearly in a new form.”

The Professor drew a diagram on the blackboard. It was a magic circle. I couldn’t read what it was meant to create, but from the flow of the conversation, it was clearly a magic circle for creating fire.

The Professor tapped the chalk twice in different places and turned to the students.

“Now, this is a magic circle needed to create fire. Is it easier to light the lighter we saw earlier? Or is it easier to use a magic circle by drawing it on magic paper or engraving it on a tool? The answer is clear to anyone. Yet we still read and understand magic circles with the belief that we can do something with this fire, and then reassemble them. As I said in the previous lecture, in a form where everything can mesh together and work.”

The Professor began to scatter the magic circle he had drawn. Leaving only the circle, the components were drawn in different areas as if they were scattered.

It was different from Professor Yuria who accompanies me. I appreciated that this male professor’s lectures were infused with research on magic.

He slowly explained what the circle was, what meaning each polygon drawn inside had, and how they were used, then began to insert something different and reassemble it.

It became a completely different shape from before, but the Professor still called it fire magic.

“It’s a complex form, but this is also fire. How will you use the fire, will you add more fuel and increase the firepower? Or will you just use it to boil water? And after that, how will you use it? You must provide answers to those questions.”

The male professor unbuttoned his jacket and took out a piece of magic paper from an inner pocket. As if he had prepared it in advance for this lecture, he showed it to the students.

And while they were focusing on it, he channeled mana into it.

“Using fire to boil water to create steam, then breaking down the water particles in the steam and cooling them to create a small cloud. This proves that there’s no law saying it must be fire magic even if fire is involved.”

A small dark cloud floated above the Professor’s hand. It seemed like the cloud would continue to exist as long as the Professor supplied mana to the magic paper.

It was a bit nerve-wracking as it looked like it might rain at any moment, but the Professor added, as if dismissing the concerns of the students including myself:

“This is a shallow cloud with low reflectivity, which is why it appears dark. Let’s look at this magic circle again and think. What is the method to create such an interesting phenomenon while making everything mesh together?”

“…Professor?”

Meanwhile, Sera slightly raised her hand. The Professor nodded as if to say he wouldn’t refuse questions.

“Professor, many things have already been composed, so is creating something new a matter of creativity? Or is it testing the limits of magic composition?”

“Oh, that’s an interesting approach. Unfortunately, at this point, I can only explain that it’s both. Because so many things have already been created.”

The Professor answered Sera’s question with interest, then waved his hand in warning.

“But be careful not to create dangerous magic recklessly in the name of creativity, or you may face sanctions.”

It seemed that magic was much more complicated than I had thought.