The Untouchable of Magic High School – A New God Enters the Game

July 19, 2095

Third High, affiliated with the National Magic University, sits on Kanazawa's outskirts. Officially, "Ishikawa Administrative District" replaced "Ishikawa Prefecture," but old habits linger. Media still use "Ishikawa District (former Ishikawa Prefecture)," reflecting public attachment to prefectural names.

The Ichijo family, a Ten Master Clan, lives thirty minutes away. Pure coincidence—Third High's location was chosen for its spacious land, not clan influence.

In the Ichijo estate, patriarch Gouki summoned his son and heir, Masaki. "Masaki, how's Nine Schools prep?"

"On track, but… something bothering you, Dad?" Masaki asked.

"I'm attending this year to see your debut," Gouki said.

Masaki blinked, surprised. His father's duties rarely allowed such trips. The pressure of bearing the Ichijo name grew heavier, especially with Gouki watching. Sensing his son's unease, Gouki continued, "Your mother, Akane, and Ruri are coming too. Schedule's clear unless an emergency arises."

"News to me!" Masaki exclaimed.

"Didn't mention it. Got a problem?" Gouki asked.

"No, but you're not one to attend just for me. Is it Mitsuya Yugen? George and I discussed him—his strength's a mystery."

Third High's reconnaissance on First High failed—blurry photos, no solid data. Masaki suspected Yugen was Gouki's focus.

"Check our database. Watch all Nine Schools matches with Mitsuya members. That's all I'll say," Gouki advised, closing his eyes.

Masaki, puzzled, left for his room, accessing the database. Filtering Mitsuya matches, he began to grasp Gouki's concern.

The next day, Nanae Watarase, Third High's twin-tailed strategist, sulked at her desk. Her reconnaissance team failed completely. Airi approached. "Nanae, you look down."

"Of course! My magic couldn't crack their defenses. They're not normal," Nanae groaned.

Nanae, whose parents worked at Kanazawa's Magic Research Institute, met Airi and Shiori there. Close to Masaki like Shinkuro, she competed in Women's Ice Pillars Break. Her perception magic, [Telescopic Sight-Seeing], failed to gather intel, shocking her.

Pamphlets listed Nine Schools competitors. Nanae investigated but missed most boys and some girls. "Sorry, Airi. I'm stumped."

"If you couldn't do it, no one could. Half is impressive," Airi reassured.

Nanae marked ten names: boys Yugen Mitsuya, Toya Rokutsuka, Takasuke Igarashi; girls Miyuki Shiba, Shizuku Kitayama, Honoka Mitsui, Eimi Akechi, Subaru Satomi, Kazumi Takigawa, Nanami Kasuga—mostly Tatsuya's group, unknowingly shielded by a certain figure.

"What's up, Masaki?" Shinkuro asked, finding him in the library, not training.

"Just… something," Masaki muttered, glued to last year's Women's Cloud Ball final footage.

"Studious for you. Got a crush?" Shinkuro teased.

"Not that. Dad said to watch all Mitsuya matches."

Shinkuro, familiar with Gouki, knew he wasn't joking. Likely grooming Masaki as an Ichijo heir. "Skipping training for this? Find anything?"

Masaki shook his head. "I get Dad's point—their magic tech surpasses high school level. There's stuff to learn, but 'watch all' implies more."

Masaki admired Mitsuya's prowess but felt it didn't fully explain Gouki's directive. Shinkuro noticed something. "Mika Mitsuya's first-year scores were Ten Master Clan-worthy, but her second and third years surged."

"Really?" Masaki checked, confirming the growth post-loss three years ago.

"Except finals, she won by massive margins in two sets. Facing another Ten Master Clan with a six-set strategy? That's not normal," Shinkuro said.

"If we face a Mitsuya, normal tactics won't work. Their multi-magic control is battle-ready. We might aim for second or third," Masaki realized.

With Mitsuya's prominence in one men's and three women's events, and Mototsugu's Monolith Code and Cloud Ball history, intel on Yugen was scarce. "Mitsuya don't feel like Ten Master Clan peers," Masaki said.

"I've been there," Shinkuro replied.

Meanwhile, Yugen muttered, "Heard some loser duo badmouthing me…"

At First High's Speed Shooting practice, Shizuku asked Yugen, busy with student council duties, to assist. "Practice support?"

"Sure. Okay?" Shizuku asked.

"No problem," Yugen agreed.

The facility mimicked competition conditions—score trackers, name displays, regulation clays. Two lanes, soundproofed. Toya and Morisaki sparred in one; Shizuku's teammates rested.

"Start," Yugen said.

Shizuku readied her rifle CAD. At the signal, her magic—[Active Air Mine], crafted by Tatsuya—activated, shattering clays with vibrations. Tatsuya asked Yugen to check for improvements. Their approaches differed—Tatsuya's theoretical, Yugen's intuitive—so Yugen observed Shizuku's mastery first.

Checking Tatsuya's streamlined [Active Air Mine] sequence on a foldable terminal, Yugen marveled. Trigger-pull processing? Where's the flaw?

Ninety-nine variations were ready, sufficient but not perfect. A perfect score sounded; Shizuku relaxed. "How was it?"

"Time's fine, top-tier for qualifiers. Still worried?" Yugen asked.

"Direct matches might not be clean. I trust Tatsuya's skill, but I'm uneasy," Shizuku admitted.

Third High likely had her caliber. Yugen brainstormed. "Tweak the sequence to your traits." He showed a modified [Active Air Mine], adding acceleration, weight, vibration, and convergence—four systems.

Normally, this doubled strain, but Yugen's unique approach limited it to Shizuku, Tatsuya, and himself via psion wave pattern specificity, cutting consumption by 60%, halving activation time, and reducing calculation strain by 40%. The encrypted sequence required a 100,000-character algorithm to crack, accessible only to them.

It mirrored ancient magic concealment in modern form. "Tatsuya's amazing, but so are you," Shizuku said.

"Just mimicking him. His base sequence. I'll let him decide adoption. Cool?" Yugen asked.

"Thanks," Shizuku nodded.

Tatsuya approved it for finals with the rifle CAD, appreciating the encryption. Registration in the Magic Index was likely. Only Yugen and Tatsuya knew unauthorized users would barely crack clays.