“So the Student Council Meeting room is over here, Igni.”
Igni: “Thank you so much.”
As soon as Class D was done with their classes, the Student Body President charged into the room, and Igni was practically abducted out of the classroom. Only Yoori chased after the two.
Alicia and Ellis were both highly interested in the Fortunate Telling club.
“You don’t look so excited, Igni.”
Igni: “Really? I’m acting no differently than usual.”
Igni makes the comment while following after the Student Body President’s chestnut hair.
“But you were so much more enthusiastic the first time you said you’d join us.”
Igni: “Oh, that. Yes… I’m very sorry. I got carried away at the time.”
If anyone who knew Igni’s true nature was around, they would have immediately made a terse comment, but there is no one at this school like that yet.
So, Igni can get away with saying comments like these.
“And...was it Yoori? Did you also have interest in the Student Council?”
Yoori: “No, I’m just with Igni.”
“Oh, were you two together?!”
Igni: “No, we’re friends. He’s a guy btw.”
“Wh-, a guy?!”
Yoori: “I’m a guy no matter how you look at it!”
“Wh—....but…………..!!”
The Student Body President was impacted hard by these words.
“.....OH! I completely forgot to introduce myself! I’m Miru. I’m a [DARK] : [SS]. I’m looking forward to this semester with you!”
Yoori: “Miru... wait. Miss Student Body President, are you perhaps Miru, ‘The Undoer’?“
Yoori recognized the name and had to ask.
Miru: “That’s right! That’s my *nickname!”
But Igni did not know about her.
Igni: (.....Hey Yoori, is she famous?)
Yoori: (Y-yes. She’s a genius who came to this school at the age of 13….!)
Igni: (Impressive)
Yoori: (Be careful, Igni. They say she’s REALLY strong!)
Miru: “Okay, we’re here~!”
Miru opens the door to the room that says “Student Council.”
Miru: “Ta~da~!! Here are some potential 1st Year recruits!”
3 sets of eyes stare at Igni and Yoori.
Miri: “Okay! Igni, go ahead and introduce yourself!”
Igni: “Hello, I’m Igni. My compatibility is [FIRE] : [F]. It’s nice to meet you.”
Igni bows politely.
“Da ****?! Compatibility [FIRE] : [F]?! Hey, Miru! Just because you can’t find anyone to join the council means you can just bring anyone!”
“Hey, Miko, don’t be so upset. If he’s really a [FIRE] : [ F], being able to come here really means something.”
“....the teacher was saying… there was one, this year, who broke ‘the target.’ Igni, was that...you?”
“........”
Out of the 3, one seemed to be pretty violent and rough on the edges. She was called, “Miko.”
Another person seemed very calm, but she seemed to have trouble talking.
….and the last one is a mystery.
He or she is wrapped up in bandages like a mummy.
Igni: “Yes.”
Yoori: “Wait, that was you?!”
Yoori is surprised to hear that it was me who broke the “target.”
I forgot that I never spoke to him about it.
Miko: “HA! Interesting. Yo, Igni! You wanna go a round with me?!”
Igni: “...Are you being serious?”
Miko: “Very! C’mon, let’s go! Let’s go now!”
And we switched locations.
We came to the Practice Battle Field.
And all of the Council members came too.
Miru is rooting for me, and the quiet person remains silent.
I don’t know about the bandage person. It’s hard to gauge him or her one way or another.
Miko: “Trying to figure out Valía? That mummy is collecting curses right now, so you won’t hear her say a peep.”
Igni: “I see…”
Igni: (It’s likely related to a certain type of magic.)
Mira: “Miko, Igni, are you both ready?”
Igni: “Yes, I’m ready.”
Miko: “All good.”
Mira: “Then here we go! Let the battle...begin!!”
The practice battle began without much momentum.
Miko: “Okay, Igni. Show *me (o-leh) what you got!!”
Miko kicks the ground hard and charges in head first.
Igni: “....o, o…! It’s an O-LEH girl?!?!
<<<<>>>>
[Grandpa, aren’t girls who act like boys scary?]
[Huh? What are you blabbering about. Focus on your training.]
[I don’t like boku-girls but I don’t like o-leh girls either.]
[Igni, you will one day eat those words.]
[?]
[Firstly, you have no clue about the true qualities of an o-leh girl.]
[What qualities? There are none.]
*SLAP!!
[OW!! WH—?! WHY ARE YOU SO PISSED?!?!”
[YOU FOOL!!]
[WHY YOU SO TRIGGERED?!?!]
[Yes, it’s true that girls who say o-leh can be tomboyish and rough around the edges! But! Now listen to me, Igni! BUT…! In that rough demeanor, you will find a wisp of kindness…! It’s that gap in their personality that makes them so great….!!]
[Yeah, whatever gramps. I don’t get it.]
*SLAP!!!!
[OW?! AGAIN?!?!]
<<<<>>>>
For a second, for just a second, I grasped the o-leh girl quality very briefly.
But Miko arrived faster than Igni’s flash of epiphany and stood right before his eyes.
Her legs were muscular beyond what any human can do.
Igni: (The [Physical Enhancement] of a [LIFE] magic type. A single hit would put me out of commission.)
Igni: (Her thighs are amazing. I wish I could be squeezed by them.)
Igni runs two parallel thoughts at the same time.
Igni creates a [FIREBALL] and...
*BOYON!! (*sfx jiggly bounce)
Miko: “.....!!”
And Igni used his [FIREBALL] as a <CU•SHION> and absorbed Miko’s fist.
The jiggly [FIREBALL] instantly changed shaped and wrapped around Miko’s arm.
Miko: “Ew. What is this?”
And all of Igni’s [FIREBALL]s remains under his complete control.
Thus...
Igni: “[FAME ARMOR - IGNITE]”
The sudden concentration of magic flowing into his [FIREBALL] strikes the air with a piercing ring as the temperature rises...
Igni: “[EXPLOSION C - FIRE]!!”
The [FIREBALL] detonates.
BOOOOOOOM!!
The entire Practice Field trembles and shakes from the impact.
From the smoke, Miko holds on tightly to her right arm as she steps back quickly to get away from Igni.
Miko: “His spells… are strange.”
Miru: “I told you so~. Isn’t Igni a good kid?”
Miko: “You call anyone who can use magic well a good kid.”
Miru: “That’s not true~”
And Miss Miru laughs light-heartedly.
Igni: “This time, I”ll come for you, Miss Miko!”
Miko: “Bring it, Igni!”
Igni creates 3 [FIREBALL]s around him.
Igni: “[FLAME ARMOR - IGNITE]”
And he pours magic into each one.
But Miko again closes in the distance between her and Igni in a flash.
Igni: “Miss Miko, you say way too much with your eyes.”
The next moment, the ground beneath their feet grow red hot.
Igni: “[DETONATE - FIRE]!”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!
Igni detonates the [FIREBALL] he created inside the ground of the Practice Field. Out of the flames, Igni allows the impact of the explosion to push his body away.
But Miko remains standing where she is.
Miko: “....You’re quicker than you look.”
Igni: “Thanks”
Igni created 512 small [FIREBALL]s as he detonated the one in the ground, and connected them together, and surfed away with the wind created from the explosion!
But Miko did not expect the ground they were standing on to explode and was caught in Igni’s [FIREBALL]’s explosion.
Igni: “I thought you would be able to withstand this much, Miss Miko.”
Miko: “....ha! Such a big mouth.”
Miko was covered in smoke, soot, and dirt, but Igni remained practically unchanged from the start of the battle.
Miko already finished tending her wounds with [HEAL] magic.
…..It was apparent who the victor was for this round.
Miru: “See~?! I told you he’s a good kid, Miko!”
Miko: “....fine. Yeah, I admit that he’s a good find.”
Miko: “Hey, Igni! You got a scratch on your cheek.”
Igni: “Huh?”
Putting a hand to his cheek, Igni realizes that there is blood running down his cheek.
Miko: “Come here. I’ll fix it for you.”
Miss Miko grabs Igni, and gently places her finger on his cheek and performs her [HEAL] spell.
Miko: “There, it’s fixed.”
……….it’s…..IT-----IT’S THIS!!
At that moment, Igni understood everything.
Igni: (Grandpa...I...understand now…. THE QUALITY OF A O-LEH GIRL!!)
Yes, Miss Miko’s personality is rough and boyish…!
But that faint hint of kindness she just showed….!!!!
I GET IT NOW………..!!!
Igni arrived at the answer.
Yoori: “You’re amazing, Igni! You beat one of the Council members!!”
And all of a sudden, Yoori jumps into Igni’s arms.
Igni: (...why isn’t Yoori a girl…..?)
But Igni’s complaint did not reach anyone’s ears.
************************
CHONKY NOTES
************************
I already had a spiel about BOKU (僕) (younger masculine) and BOKU-Ko (僕っ子). Here, it is O-LEH (俺) (like OLÉ!) which is an “older” masculine pronoun. It should be written as “ore” in romaji, but that invites too much mispronunciation for my taste. In general, the current level of sexism in Japan is roughly about the level of 1980’s U.S. culture. And I am NOT a proponent of discrimination by gender or sex. Just putting that out there. In Japanese culture, women are not encouraged to use masculine pronouns. Hence, Igni’s categorization of women who do so.
*Wizard Title (Futatsu-na) (二つ名) -- The futatsu-na is literally translated, your second name. It is similar to a nickname or title, and it is used in many genres of literature. It could be thought of as an unofficial professional title (or how you are known in a certain field). e.g. “The Wolf of Wall Street.” Like when a movie character says, “Do you know what he or she is called?” or “Do you know what he or she is known as?” Unlike a business or professional title, the name usually signifies a certain unique trait that separates you from the general pack (this is how it deviates from how some nicknames are used in the U.S.). If you want more examples, read Naruto or One Piece. They are chock full of it. In general, Japanese people are embarrassed by a “second name” because it reveals something that sets them apart from everyone else, and the entire culture of “wa” (peace) (和) is based on blending in completely. You could argue that the rampant use of it in Manga and Anime culture stems from severely repressed desires for individuality. But don’t take my word for it.
