Ch 175: Teaching Magecraft.

Saturday morning at 08:00, Rin and Akeno entered the school's gymnasium. A few tables had been set to the side with coffee machines and a number of drinks, as well as some pastries. Near the center, twenty chairs faced a mobile electronic chalkboard and a large desk.

The candidates were already present, chatting in small groups. As soon as Akeno and Rin appeared, Sayaka made a beeline to them.

"Akeno, Rin, I… thank you very much. You've done so much for me, even after…" she stopped after Akeno put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently.

"It's fine, Sayaka. We all know you're a good person, and seeing you getting punished would have left a foul taste. And we are still friends, aren't we? Treat us to coffee some other time, and we'll be even."

"…Yes." smiled Sayaka.

Akeno next greeted Kyouko, Erika, Leo, Eimi, Shizuku and Honoka, then turned to Mayumi, and the two younger sisters standing beside her.

"Hi, President. Thank you for your help earlier." smiled Akeno.

"Ma-Yu-Mi." insisted Mayumi with a grin.

"Good morning, Akeno-sama." said Izumi, her eyes wide and her face slightly blushing as she stared at Akeno like she was the world's most beautiful scenery.

"Morning, Akeno-senpai." smiled Kasumi, before glancing at her sister and shaking her head.

The two sisters were twins, a head shorted than Mayumi, with green eyes and dark brown hair, and dressed in First High uniforms. Izumi's hair were styled in a straight bob reaching her shoulders, with a black and white ribbon atop her head like a headband, while Kasumi had shorter hair in a boyish cut, and a black and white ribbon above her left ear.

When Mayumi had brought over her younger sisters to receive their mana circuits, Izumi had been positively smitten by Akeno's looks, almost immediately asking her to become her big sister. Mayumi had almost collapsed hearing that, wondering loudly why Izumi wanted to replace her with someone else.

"Good morning, Izumi, Kasumi. I hope you are both doing well." smiled Akeno.

"Yes, thank you for your concern, Akeno-sama. We are eager to learn from you."

"I am glad to hear it." smiled Akeno.

She walked to the last group, four people wearing the red and dark gray uniforms of Third High.

"Hi, Masaki-kun, Airi, Shiori, Touko."

"Hello, Akeno, Rin." said Masaki with a confident smile, echoed by the three girls.

Akeno served herself a cup of coffee, offered one to Rin, and they took their seats behind the large desk. Their new disciples sat down as well.

"Our objective for today…" started Rin. "…Is for all of you to learn how to circulate your mana inside your body and focus it on your limbs, in order to gain greater physical strength. All of you have mana circuits good enough that jumping five meters in the air and landing without injuring yourself shouldn't be an issue. But before we get started, if some of you have any question, feel free to ask."

Izumi eagerly lifted her hand, but she wasn't the only one.

"Yes, Izumi?" asked Rin.

"Akeno-sama, do you have a boyfriend? Or a girlfriend?" eagerly asked Izumi.

Rin facepalmed.

"That's a bit of a sensitive question. The place I come from is… a lot less strict in those regards. I have a boyfriend, and also multiple girlfriends, Rin being one of them."

She ignored the gasps of shock. Even Leo, Erika, Shizuku and Honoka weren't aware of this.

Izumi's eyes seemed to lit up with inner flames as she muttered something about having a chance, and rivals.

"Now, does anyone have a question that is related to Magecraft or our lessons?" asked Akeno, stressing the latter half and not wanting to give them time to ask follow-up questions on that matter.

Izumi lifted her hand again, but Mayumi sitting close bonked her head and forced her hand down.

"Yes, Airi?" asked Rin.

"What selection criteria did you use to select us? I am grateful for the opportunity, please do not misunderstand, but I was wondering, since there are only two Magic High Schools represented."

"Some have been given the chance because we know them, and we are confident in their potential." said Akeno. "Others, like you, because we read their student profiles and found them interesting. Lieutenant Kyouko Fujibayashi is there because the government suggested her, and her talent is undeniable. We examined at least thirty profiles from each high school, but only people from First and Third High inspired us."

More hands were raised.

"Yes, Leo?" asked Akeno.

"You told us not to use our mana circuits until now, because it could be dangerous. How so?"

"First, because mana deprivation is a thing, and in cases severe enough, it can kill you." replied Rin. "There is a difference between behind mana-deprived and overusing modern magic, though. A Magus will lose consciousness before reaching their limit, and lethal cases happen when a third party drains them of their mana completely. A modern magician using psions will die from activating or channeling a magic sequence to the point of using up all their psions will only lose consciousness after they have exceeded the point of no return and die a few minutes later.

"So using Magecraft is marginally safer?" asked Leo.

"Yes, marginally. We also told you not to experiment until now because you might do something reckless, like jumping high in the air and forgetting to keep your mana circulating in your legs and back on your way down. That's how you get broken legs, or worse."

Another hand was raised.

"Yes, Kyouko?"

"Will we be able to engrave mana circuits on other people by the end of your agreement with the government? You didn't specify a precise end date for our cooperation, and if we aren't able to do this when it ends, that will be an issue."

"Yes. Technically speaking, you will probably be able to do it by the end of the day. It is only a matter of slowly pushing your mana into the other person's body. However, the process is painful, as we mentioned before, and the pain blocker we used for you guys isn't part of what we will teach you. Keep that in mind."

"Why not?" frowned Touko.

"Because the pain blocker is part of something more potent than Magecraft, and it can block more than just pain. With it, we could, as an example, make a piece of body armor much more resilient than normal, without needing psions or mana from its wearer. We teach you Magecraft with the understanding that you will be able to teach it in turn to others, and potentially all Japanese Magicians on the long term."

"Our more advanced techniques, however, will require you to first sign binding contracts preventing you from leaking those techniques, as well as using them against us. And that is if we agree to teach you those."

"More advanced techniques? How strong are they?" Asked Airi.

"Strong enough that, while Rin and I couldn't be considered as strategic magicians due to us lacking the ability to cast spells on a strategic scale, we could face most of them in battle with favorable odds." shrugged Akeno. "We can't destroy fleets or cities in a single attack, but when it comes to taking out specific individuals..."

"Alright, let's start the lesson on Magecraft." cut in Rin. "If we wait much longer, some of you will have to stay late until you learn body reinforcement. The first thing you need to learn is how to circulate your mana without consciously focusing on any part of your body. To do this…"

As they had decided beforehand, Rin took the role of the main teacher. She had practiced magecraft a lot longer than Akeno did. After the theory, they would divide the disciples into two groups and help them do mana circulation exercises.

…

Three weeks passed since Akeno and Rin gave their new disciples their first lesson in Magecraft. There was no major incident, at school or outside, to disturb their routine.

On Sunday's late afternoon, after the lesson was over and they all stashed the gymnasium's furniture away, Erika stayed behind.

"Akeno, please teach me Shunpo." she asked with a grin.

Akeno nodded and created a soul contract for her to sign. The terms were clear and unambiguous. In exchange for learning Shunpo, Erika agreed not to leak any information regarding the technique or the training process. She would have to obey Akeno's instructions related to the training and would not be allowed to quit before she had learned it.

"You need to sign with a drop of blood, Erika." smiled Akeno, creating a small knife of compressed light.

"Fine."

Erika nicked a finger on it, pressed it on the contract, and it disappeared in a burst of blue flames.

"Let's go home. Erika, you will come with us. We will start right away." said Akeno.

"Okay. You told me you live in a home. Will we have enough space to train?"

"Yes, that won't be an issue." nodded Rin with a smile.

The three girls left the campus as they chatted about various matters, took the bus, and reached the home that Akeno and Rin had been given by the government.

They removed their shoes at the entrance, and Akeno checked on the clock.

"It is just past 18:00. We must head back to school tomorrow at 7:00, so that leaves us thirteen hours. We can make this work."

Thirteen hours, with a time dilation factor of twenty, might be enough for Erika to complete her training. And if not, Akeno would train Erika during class as well... No, that wouldn't be a good idea, with Tatsuya being able to se through matter. It would be a problem if he ever saw Erika in class, wearing a chastity belt with plugs under her uniform.

"Follow us, Erika." said Akeno, heading for her bedroom.

"Yes." said Erika, and she paused when she saw the bedroom.

Akeno took the Sanctuary from her inventory and held it in her hands as she charged it with enough for ten days.

"Akeno, what is this?" curiously asked Erika.

Akeno didn't answer, and Erika waited.

After a few tens of seconds, Akeno was done and set the crystal ball on the shelf. Then she disappeared inside, taking Erika and Rin with her.

"Huh? Where are we?"

"We are inside the crystal ball, Erika. This is where we will train."

"Tell me you're pulling my leg." frowned Erika. There's no way a ball that small could contain all this. How did we get there?"

"No, we really are inside the ball. In a pocket dimension of sort." confirmed Rin. "This can be replicated by Magecraft, but it's very advanced Magecraft. We probably won't have time to teach you this. The crystal ball was made by Noah."

"Okay?" said Erika as she bent down to touch the snow. It crumbled between her fingers like real snow, but it wasn't cold.

"The main reason I bought us here, Erika, is that inside this space, time flows faster." smiled Akeno. "I have loaded it with enough mana to last over a week inside, an only a night will have passed in the outside world. That is one reason we made you sign the contract. This crystal ball is far too valuable to reveal its existence. Let's go inside."

"If it really works, I can see how useful that would be… Wait, is that why you're progressing so fast with modern magic?" asked Erika with wide eyes.

"There's also the fact that we are very talented, but yes." grinned Rin.

The girls entered the wooden house, and Erika looked around.

"It's a nice place. It even has a fire going."

"The fire is a fake one. It's always lit up, and we never have to put in more wood." said Rin.

"Sit down, Erika. I declare your training to learn Shunpo to now be underway." said Akeno, and Erika quickly sat.

"Now, I am sorry, Erika, but I have something to confess. We couldn't be completely honest about one thing, and I hope you'll understand why. This is about the way to learn Shunpo. You aren't going to like it."

"What do you mean? Aren't we going to train outside of this house?"

"Shunpo isn't really learned. Well, technically, it can, but it requires decades of training and a certain type of internal energy you do not possess. There is, however, a way to receive it. It is part of a package of several abilities, including an immunity to hypnosis, the light swords you saw us use, being able to speak all languages, and more. We agreed to teach you Shunpo, so you will get them all."

"Okay? That doesn't sound bad at all so far. I guess you're about to speak about the part I won't like." smiled Erika.

"Indeed. Give me your right hand, please." nodded Akeno. Erika extended her right hand warily, as if expecting for Akeno to stab her with something.

Akeno took her hand and traced a Stop rune on the back of it, to prevent her from using mana or psions.

"Yes, the part you won't like. My boyfriend Noah is the one who does the bestowing, but I can also act in his stead. He is able to share some of his powers to his subordinates."

"…Are you saying that I need to join his organization?"

"That is one way to put it." chuckled Rin, sitting near Akeno.

"Yes. Although you need to mean it, for it to work. For example, there is Nei, a cute twelve-year old who considers Noah as her big brother, and agreed to be a good little sister to him. Noah takes good care of her, and because she admires Noah a lot, she could be considered to be loyal to him, and that has unlocked the requirements to share his powers."

"But in your case, since you aren't an innocent little girl, but a smart young woman who has seen the world, something a tad more drastic is required, in order for you to accept Noah as an authority figure."

"How about you stop tip-toing and give it to me straight, Akeno?" sighed Erika, and Akeno snorted.

"Fine, the straight version… Erika, I will train you to become my sex slave. And since Noah isn't just my lover, but also my Master, you will come to see him as your Master as well. That is how you will gain his abilities."

Erika stared at Akeno in shock, and then in anger. She jumped to her feet.

"Don't be ridiculous! How can you say such a thing!"

"Remove your clothes, Erika." softly said Akeno.

"There's no way I'd… I'd…"

Her eyes widened in alarm as her hands moved on their own, removing her coat and loosening her tie.

"Stop that, damn it!" shouted Erika as she struggled in vain.

"You signed the contract, Erika. You can't disobey me, and you can't reveal to anyone the things that will happen in this place. There is no escaping this."

Erika panicked as her hands loosened her gown. She thought about the terms of the contract, desperately trying to find a loophole, but she couldn't find any.

No, there was one.

As soon as she would recover control of her hands, if she could knock down Akeno before she had time to issue another order, she might be able to escape. She still wouldn't be able to speak about this to someone else, but it would be the first step toward getting out of this mess.

She gritted her teeth as her hands removed her white bra and panties, and she felt the control of her body return. She immediately jumped at Akeno, trying to punch her, but her punch was easily seized before it reached her face, and Akeno smiled.

"You will not try to attack me or Rin, Erika."

"Damn you, Akeno!"

"Put this on." calmly said Akeno.

Erika lowered her gaze to see what was in Akeno's other hand. A black leather collar. As soon as she saw it, her hands moved on their own again, taking it, opening the collar, and fastening it around her neck.

"Just accept it, Erika." suggested Rin. "I was in your position not so long ago. I tried to resist, but it was useless. And before I knew it, I started liking it. Akeno is very good at this, and she doesn't make mistakes you will be able to exploit."

"You're one of her victims, too?" exclaimed Erika.

"I don't regret it." shrugged Rin. "Yes, I am her slave, as well as Noah's slave. But she treats me like a sister, and the sex is great. So it's fine. Mostly. Even if it's still embarrassing as Hell to admit it. And once you have learned Shunpo, Akeno won't be able to control your body anymore. The contract's terms will cease to apply."

Akeno smiled as she stood and used an index to hook up the D-rind in front of Erika's collar.

"I'll make you pay for this, Akeno!" promised Erika, fuming.

"After your training is over, maybe I'll give you a chance. It's been a long time since I have let someone dominate me, and I am starting to miss it a little."

"Hey, I call dibs on that!" protested Rin.

"Fine." chuckled Akeno. "Now follow me, slave. Don't worry, I'll be gentle for your first time."

Akeno headed for the bedroom, her future slave in tow, and Rin followed behind.

…

Zhou Gongjin jumped from building's top to building' top, traveling faster than a racing horse at full speed. His heist had started well, but as he left, he misjudged the timing before the next patrol came into view and had been seen leaving the premises.

It had been hours since then, but the chase was relentless. He had managed to break contact several times, but they still found him somehow.

He reached the roof of another building, then hid behind a ventilation shaft as he pondered. There were three ways for him to be tracked. The UNSA soldiers could have a magician able to locate him. He could be targeted by a surveillance satellite. Or there was a tracker in the data module he stole.

Deciding to test the third possibility, since he couldn't do anything about the first two, he examined the module closely. The small black box was featureless, aside from its connection port. Using one of his throwing knifes, he inserted the edge along the plastic seam and twisted.

It took him some effort, but he finally managed to open the module and looked at the electronic components inside. One of them was separate from the rest, and connected to what could only be an antenna.

Zhou Gongjin smiled as he removed that component and closed the module. He threw the component inside the ventilation shaft, intending for his pursuers to think he was holed up inside that building, put the data module back in his costume's inner pocket, and headed for the next rooftop.

He suddenly jerked back just in time to avoid a magic projectile.

"Stop right there and surrender!" said a woman's voice.

He turned to face his pursuers, smiling.

"Oh my, I had hoped for a longer respite. But I am honored to have caught the interest of the UNSA's top magician." he said with a slight bow.

Facing him near the opposite edge of the rooftop stood five magicians. From their uniforms, he recognized two members of the Stars, and three members of Stardust, their support organization.

The one who had spoken to him, their leader, had long crimson red hair and golden eyes that could be seen through the black mask covering most of her face. The mask had an angular design and pointy horns protruding from the forehead, giving her a slightly demonic appearance. Her cold glare as she stared at him didn't do anything to dissipate that impression.

She was Angie Sirius, the only publicly known Strategic-Class Magician belonging to the USNA.

"You have taken something that doesn't belong to you." said Angie.

"That is correct. I apologize for being so rude." smiled Zhou Gongjin.

Angie Sirius slowly walked toward him, her four companions also moving to encircle him.

"I will also apologize to the inconvenience, but I do not intend to let you capture me, so…"

He suddenly dashed to the side, using Ghost Walker to disrupt the opponents' cognition.

According to his information, the Stars were extremely strong in direct combat against equally brutish enemies, but they had issues with magicians that relied on subterfuge and illusions.

As he had hoped, the deluge of magic projectiles and flying knifes attacked the position he previously occupied. They immediately realized that they were firing on a mirage and spread out, but no matter how much they searched for him, they couldn't locate him.

This was how terrifying Ghost Walker was. By interfering with the opponent's perception, he could stand right in front of them, and they would still search for him. His presence simply wouldn't register in their consciousness. It was similar to the difference between 'seeing' and 'watching'.

And Zhou Gongjin didn't intend to just stand there. He had already jumped to another rooftop and was quickly getting away.

…

Angie Sirius felt depressed as she entered her quarters and removed her mask. Her camouflage magic, Parade, deactivated itself with the mask's removal, and the image of the imposing redhead dissipated, leaving place to her true appearance, that of an attractive young woman with blue eyes and long blonde hair.

There was a knock on the door, and Angie walked to it, opening it with the press of a button.

Standing behind it was warrant officer Sylvia Mercury First.

"Yes, Sylvia?" asked Angelina.

"Lieutenant-Colonel Shields." replied Sylvia as she saluted. Angelina groaned internally as she saw it. Sylvia going all formal like that was her way to say that Angelina was going to receive a major dressing down… Or that something really important was going on.

"Colonel Walker is requesting your presence in the communication room."

"I'm coming." said Angelina with a nod.

The shower would have to wait.

A minute later, she was alone in the communication room, with the Stars' Base Commander facing her on screen.

"I have read the report on the chase, Lieutenant-Colonel." Said Paul Walker.

"I am very sorry to have failed, Colonel."

"This failure is most unusual of you, Lieutenant-Colonel... Do not make it a habit." said the Colonel with a frown.

"Yes, Colonel. I will not let this happen again." said Angelina with a ramrod straight posture, and a perfect salute.

"Good. Your chase wasn't a complete waste of time, however, and it allowed us to identify the thief. A man called Zhou Gongjin."

A photo appeared on the screen, and Angeline immediately recognized the source of her current troubles.

"He works for the GAU, and one of our Chinese sources managed to intercept the latest set of orders he received. In a week, this man is supposed to go to the Chinatown of Yokohama, Japan, and make preparations for another operation. he will likely be there for a few months. And that will give you an opportunity to kill him."

"Colonel? Am I going to Japan?" asked Angelina.

"Yes. Your first mission will be to deal with him. And since you will be over there, we want you to do something else. We have begun to hear a few… rumors. Rumors about two miracle students who can grant others immortality and resurrect the dead."

"Colonel? That is ridiculous. There is no way magic could do that."

"We think so, too. However, even the most ridiculous rumors are sometimes based on a nugget of truth. This caused us to pay more attention to what the Japanese government is doing, and… they are hiding something. Something big. Our usual contacts either do not know, or outright refuse to talk. We have used other means to obtain information and got a few breadcrumbs. Whatever the government is hiding is happening inside their First High Magic School. There was also mention of something called 'Magecraft', and of a breakthrough toward fusion energy for civilian use."

Angelina's eyes narrowed. The nation that would be first in producing fusion reactors would receive a huge economic windfall. There was no way the USNA wasn't going to try to steal whatever research Japan had done on it.

"Lieutenant Colonel, we will use the pretext of a student exchange program to insert you in that school. You will investigate the rumors and report. Sabotage whatever it is their government is hiding without revealing your identity and retrieve their data if they really have made a breakthrough in fusion energy."

"Once you are done with this, you are to make sure you participate in Japan's Thesis Competition in three months. This event is set to happen in Yokohama. That will be a good opportunity for you to track and kill Zhou Gongjin. He will likely have lowered his guard by then."

"I see… Colonel, what about what he stole from the Institute?"

"Ah, you do not need to worry about that." nodded the Colonel. "What he stole was a decoy. Instead of getting sensitive data, he and those behind him only received worthless data, and one of our best malwares… You have your orders, Lieutenant-Colonel."

"Yes, Colonel." replied Angelina as she snapped another salute, and the Colonel ended the communication with a nod.

As she returned to her quarters, her mood improved considerably. She would have an opportunity to make up for her blunder, and a long-term infiltration mission in Japan… There were so many things in Japan she wanted to buy! She would need to bring additional suitcases to carry it all back home.