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

In the private chamber of the Yotsuba main house sat Maya Yotsuba, head of the family and one of the world's mightiest magicians, known as the "Demon King of the Far East" and "Queen of the Night." At 46, she looked barely 30, her youthful visage defying her peers. But today… she was sulking.

"Mmph…" Maya pouted, a sound unbecoming of a clan head.

Hayama, the Yotsuba's chief butler, stood at a distance, a faint smile on his lips. Maya, who'd never shown a hint of femininity, had changed since the Okinawa Defense Battle three years ago. Her "growth" would surely delight her late father in the heavens. The only concern? The one sparking this change was the same age as her sister's children.

"Hayama-san," Maya said.

"Yes, Madam?" he replied.

"I want to see Yugen-kun."

"…That might upset Miya-sama," Hayama cautioned.

Even he offered a mild rebuke to her blunt request. Yugen was a Mitsuya, favored—respected, he claimed—by Miya's daughter, Miyuki, and trusted by both Miya and Tatsuya. Toying with him for personal whims was questionable, Hayama implied, though he didn't say it outright.

Maya wasn't clueless.

"Even I don't want to cross Ane-san," she said. "But that boy made me aware of myself as a woman. Ane-san's rejuvenation was his magic's doing, right? But her eyes when she spoke of him… they weren't just a mother's. They were a woman's, hoping for a taste. Twin intuition, you know."

It started after the Okinawa battle. Reuniting with Miya after six years, Maya was stunned—Miya looked mid-20s, younger than her. Worse, her gaze when discussing Yugen wasn't merely maternal but predatory. Later, meeting Yugen, Maya sent him a Valentine's gift on a whim. His handmade sweets in return unleashed emotions she'd long suppressed.

Determined to outshine her sister, Maya resumed magic training she'd neglected. Aoki fainted at the sight, and branch family heads were baffled by the main house leader's vigor. Recalling this, Hayama couldn't help but smile.

"I'm not saying marriage," Maya said. "I just want a boy like Yugen-kun… I know my duties as Yotsuba head."

"I see," Hayama said. "So you taught him that spell?"

"Right," she nodded. "I never thought he'd use it that way—completely unexpected. That makes him the 'third,' though the 'second' is currently unusable."

She hadn't meant to one-up her sister, but Maya had taught Yugen a spell. When he applied it to mental interference magic, both she and Hayama, present at the time, were awestruck. His magic's depths were truly unfathomable.

"By the way, Madam," Hayama said. "The Magic Association sent an invitation for the Nine Schools Competition. Your decision?"

"We'll attend," Maya said. "I can't meet those two, but Yugen-kun should be fine. I'll greet Major Kazama too—His Excellency will likely be there. Arrange the escorts as you see fit."

"Understood," Hayama replied.

The "Untouchable" and the "Untouchables"… what would happen when they met again? No one knew.

That afternoon, the Nine Schools prep meeting in the club alliance's conference room crackled with tension. The topic: Tatsuya's inclusion as a member.

Selection for the Nine Schools Competition brought grade bonuses and homework exemptions, with stellar performance adding more points. The event carried immense weight, so finalizing the roster was critical. Tatsuya doubted this meeting would end smoothly, a sentiment Yugen and the others shared.

"Let's see if this meeting's a farce or just a dance," Yugen quipped.

"That's like saying it'll never end either way…" Honoka replied.

Yugen knew complaints were inevitable. Compared to his sisters' time, this was tame, but whiners would always whine. Better to disrupt the petty bickering than let it drag on.

"Some people just want to complain, right?" Shizuku said.

"Exactly," Yuzen said. "Miyuki staying behind was a stroke of luck."

Miyuki was meant to attend but Yugen convinced her to mind the student council room, acting as her proxy for Tatsuya's nomination. Given the predictable chaos, sparing her the stress was a no-brainer.

"Next day, we'll all catch colds or frostbite at best, hibernation at worst," Tomoya said.

"…As your brother, what do I even say?" Tatsuya sighed.

"Uh… sorry, Tatsuya-san. I got nothing…" Honoka said, offering a wry smile.

Tomoya's jest wasn't entirely a joke, leaving Tatsuya at a loss. Honoka could only laugh awkwardly.

As seats filled, Mayumi took the chair's seat and spoke.

"Let the Nine Schools representative selection meeting begin."

Attendees included pre-selected athletes, technical and tactical staff, club presidents, student council officers (Miyuki absent), and club alliance leaders—standard fare. But this year, two external support staff joined.

First, Kana Mitsuya, a second-year at National Magic University, former First High student council president during their three-year championship streak, discoverer of the "Weight-Type Minus Code," dubbed "Cardinal Kana" (or "Kana-Kana" by some).

Second, Naotsugu Chiba, a second-year at the Defense Academy's Special Tactics Department, former club alliance head, and a reserve officer with Chiba family swordsmanship accolades.

After introductions, the meeting began.

Tatsuya sat with Yuzen and other pre-selected members in observer seats. Naturally, some quickly spotted the "outsider"—a first-year Course 2 student—raising objections from the start. Though Tatsuya had proven himself as a Discipline Committee member, supportive voices existed. Still, over half opposed, not with reasoned arguments but emotional gripes about "Course 2 status," sending the meeting into chaos.

"They don't even know Tatsuya-san's skills…" Honoka muttered.

"I want him tuning my CAD," Shizuku whispered.

Their quiet complaints had context. Once, when their club CADs malfunctioned, they visited the lab and found Tatsuya and Yuzen sorting junk CADs. Yugen fixed Shizuku's, Tatsuya tweaked its software, and they tuned Honoka's too. The results were night-and-day better, fueling their trust in Tatsuya—though Honoka's trust wasn't just about his skills.

"Hey, Mitsuya," a first-year male member called to Yugen. "A Course 2 tech staff? That's absurd."

No prior acquaintance, just some guy from another class, clearly itching to bash Tatsuya. Yugen, annoyed but keeping his voice low to avoid disrupting, replied.

"There's precedent for Course 2 tech staff," he said. "The student council's nomination was mentioned, right?"

"But a Course 2 in the Nine Schools—"

"Quiet," Yugen cut in, glaring with menace. "Keep this up, and you'll derail the seniors' meeting."

The boy flinched, silenced. He looked like he wanted to retort but gave up, facing forward.

Kana and Naotsugu, listening to the bickering, were in foul moods—downright hostile. Kana, who'd bonded with Course 2 students, stayed silent but her rare blank expression screamed displeasure. Naotsugu, with a Course 2 first-year half-sister in the Chiba family, felt the emotional jabs personally but kept his face neutral, silent.

Unable to stand it, Katsuto finally spoke, his voice soft but commanding, halting the chaotic chatter.

"Enough. The issue is we don't know Tatsuya's skills. So, test them."

"Fair, but how?" Mari asked.

"Let him tune a CAD," Katsuto said. "I'll volunteer as the test subject."

His proposal was simple but risky, unspoken by others. Magic CADs required precise tuning to match a user's quirks, like an athlete's gear. Magicians linked their mental calculation zones to CADs, reading activation sequences directly. Modern CADs had tuning functions for speed and smoothness, increasing user strain. Mismatched tuning could cause mental damage—mildly, reduced efficiency; severely, hallucinations. High-performance CADs demanded exact precision, making Katsuto's offer to let an unproven technician tune his CAD a bold gamble.

"Dangerous!" someone shouted. "A bad tune could cause serious injury!"

But accepting objections would loop the meeting back to square one.

"Then, as the one who nominated him, I'll volunteer," Mayumi said.

That implied the student council didn't fully trust Tatsuya, and with Miyuki on the council, it risked cries of favoritism. Then, Kirihara, a second-year Kendo Club representative, stood.

"No, let me do it," he said.

Tatsuya sensed genuine grit in Kirihara's offer, tied to an April incident Yugen had detailed. He kept quiet, for Kirihara's sake.