Chapter 53 ~ Reason: Coincidence? Luck? Or…

The library of the Magic University affiliated First High school was unlike any normal Library Yuuji would know of from his world.

Bonyari High School, the highschool Yuuji attended with his sisters, was one of the, if not, the most prestigious school in the city. It's library was also quite sizable, containing thousands of reference books, text books, work books, etc. even though students rarely visit it for research purposes since they have access to uncountable information from the internet at their fingertips.

But even his school's library paled in comparison to the library in First High school. Instead of a school's library, it's more akin to a national library, where rare, valuable, and significant research papers and works could be accessed.

That's why, although it was impossible to access the more confidential papers, it was the best place for students such as themselves to go when they're researching information.

The entire building located right beside the main school building was dedicated for the library, storing hundreds of thousands of books, research papers, text books, etc. There were also numerous tables and computers that students and teachers could use, even private rooms with a computer for those who wished to do their research or studies in a more private environment.

Sitting before one of the many computers in the row, Yuuji skimmed through the numerous pages displayed on the screen, each one densely filled with words and information with one or two images or graphs occasionally popping up to give a more accurate and visual representation about the subject described.

They were information on the Emerald Tablet, Philosopher's stone, and various other objects that were related to alchemy. And although he seemed to just be scrolling down quickly without properly reading them, he was actually reading them very carefully and absorbing every single piece of relevant and significant information into his mind at incredible speeds.

Sitting right beside him, Tatsuya was also doing the same research. Yuuji was simply helping him in his research because he and Aika were the only ones who knew what he was up to.

"Hm?"

Just then, Yuuji and Tatsuya sensed a familiar presence rapidly approaching them. But before either one of them could react, Yuuji was suddenly pushed by a heavy, soft, and warm sensation accompanied by a fragrant flowery scent.

"Heya~ What'chu doin', guys~?"

"Hello, Aika."

"A-Aika… Can you stop slamming into me as a greeting…"

"Fufufu~ What's wrong~? Don't you love feeling my soft body all over your back~"

"...Shut up. What do you want?"

Aika giggled, rubbing her cheeks against Yuuji as he blushed silently. She understood her beloved boyfriend completely, after all~ And as annoying as it was, she wasn't wrong…

Her body was just so squishy, soft, and voluminous in all the right places. Even though he had enjoyed ravishing them nightly, he never got tired of it. It was physically impossible to get tired of his girlfriend's sexy body.

"Aika-chan! You should've waited for me."

Soon after Aika's grand entrance, Miyuki also appeared, jogging towards them with slight exasperation on her cute face.

"Hehe~ Sorry, Miyuki~ I just couldn't wait to return to my hubby~"

She let out a deep sigh before turning towards her brother with a bow.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you while you were busy, onii-sama."

"It is fine. What's wrong, Miyuki?"

"Yes. Actually, you and Yuuji are called upon by Mayumi-senpai and Mari-senpai to go to the student council's office."

"Eh? But why? Is there some trouble?"

Yuuji asked, wondering what urgent business Mayumi and Mari could have with him and Tatsuya. After all, they didn't get any prior notice, which was quite strange coming from the two. Normally, if it was something simple like Mayumi inviting him for lunch, he would get a message from her.

"Hehehe~ You're such a worrywart, Yuuji~ Of course it's not~ It's a good thing!"

"Hm?"

"Geez, just go already~! They're already waiting for you two!"

"A-Alright! Stop pushing me!"

"Fufu~"

"Onii-sama."

"Mm. Let's go."

--------------------------------X--------------------------------

Hirakawa Koharu, one of the brightest and exemplary third-year students who had achieved a spectacular victory and astounding feat as the engineer of the Mirage Bat main event winner Kobayakawa Keiko, sat nervously in front of members of the student council.

Sitting adjacent to her at the end of the table was Saegusa Mayumi, the student council president and heiress of the Saegusa Clan, a member of the Ten Master Clans. And sitting right opposite of her were Watanabe Mari, Chief of the Public Morals Committee and a member of the Watanabe family, one of the prestigious "Hundreds" families, and Nakajou Azusa, secretary of the student council.

To her right were two of her similarly bright and intelligent underclassmen, Isori Kei and Ichihara Suzune. They were her teammates for this year's National High School Magic Theory Thesis Competition. And finally, sitting to Isori Kei's right was his fiance, Chiyoda Kanon.

If the Nine Schools Competition were a grand stage for athletes, then the Thesis Competition was a grand stage for magic engineers such as themselves. It was an extremely prestigious event that's held on the last Sunday of October where magic high school students showcase their research on Magic Theory and Magic Engineering; its venue alternating between Kyoto and Yokohama with this year held in the Yokohama International Convention Center.

The presentations were subsequently entered into the Magic Index, where they're occasionally accessed by universities and corporations. Thus, if they could give an impressive presentation, they could boost their careers after they've graduated from High School into the sky.

For such a prestigious event, Koharu, Suzune, and Kei have been working hard and had submitted their final draft and outline of the materials and sequences used in their presentation to the Magic Association In advance.

The deadline of the final revised version of their presentation would be two Sundays from now, in which they'd have to submit everything to the Kanto Branch of the Magic Association through the school. And to allow their supervising teacher, Mr. Tsuzura, extra time to go over their submission, everything must ideally be done by next Wednesday.

They've done their best with just a bit of finishing and final checking left, which they could easily do before next Wednesday. And although she was quite nervous about it, the biggest reason behind her nervousness was far from it.

After all, With Kei and Suzune, two of the brightest minds in the school, as her teammates, she was confident in her ability to win the competition.

The reason for her nervousness was because she was about to meet him… The man whose figure had been seared into her mind ever since their interaction during the Nine Schools Competition.

She unfortunately hadn't had the chance to talk to him ever since, that is… until now.

All participants of the Thesis Competition would be assigned a bodyguard who will protect them during the event. It was an extra layer of protection for the participants in addition to the high level of security in the venue of the competition.

And the reason why it was an extremely guarded event wasn't solely due to its prestigious nature. But rather, as a form of protection for the magical technology of the country.

Many discoveries, inventions, innovations, and theories that could improve the advancement of technology would be shared during this competition. Things that many rival nations would like to obtain for themselves and the advancement of their own magical technology.

Thus, with such stakes at risk, all of the magical university affiliated high schools and the Magic Association wouldn't hold back in their efforts to protect the students in case something happened.

The Magic Association will hire professionals to create high security details for the venue. But to make sure of the safety of their participating students, each school will also assign personal bodyguards to them. They will also have more guards to protect their school's presentation materials and equipment

And Koharu had chosen Yuuji to be her personal bodyguard.

His strength and prowess was obvious for anyone who had seen his performance in the Nine Schools Competition. He was… peerless. Even the combination of the heir of the Ichijo Clan and Cardinal Georgle couldn't hold a candle against him. So her request was easily accepted.

But the true reason behind her choice was… a more personal one. She… She wanted to get closer to Yuuji!

She knew this was a childish reason… But she didn't know how else she could get the chance to spend time with him!!!

All she had was her brain and intelligence… Even then, there are a lot more intelligent girls than her and more magically talented as well. She wasn't cute by any means, and she was also two years older than him. Compared to the beautiful Kiryuu Aika or Shiba Miyuki, she was a simple side character who wouldn't even be able to interact with Yuuji more than once. Even so… she didn't want to give up.

If she could at least become someone close to him… a friend, or perhaps, a close friend through this… As long as she could stay near him by his side, then she would be satisfied.

*Knock**Knock*

Koharu flinched at the sound of knocking coming from the door. She immediately straightened her back and brushed her hair, making sure she looked proper and neat before meeting him.

"Please come in~"

Mayumi, the student council president, announced. And right after, the door slid open automatically, revealing the dreamy figure of the man Koharu had dreamt of.

"Please excuse us."

Following closely behind him, Aika, Miyuki and Tatsuya also entered and greeted them politely with a bow.

Koharu's eyes immediately widened before the blush on her face grew even redder. It was him! It's Yuuji! She finally got the chance to meet him again!!!

"Welcome, everyone~ Please take a seat~ There's something we'd like to discuss~"

""Yes./Yes~""

Miyuki took the seat right next to Azusa, followed by Tatsuya, Yuuji, and finally Aika at the end, right opposite of Kanon.

"It's been a while, Yuuji-kun, Tatsuya-kun, Aika, and Miyuki."

"It has been a while indeed, chairwoman. I see you have recovered fully by now."

Yuuji said with a soft smile, and Mari replied with a smirk.

"Thanks to you. Well, we can catch up another time. Mayumi."

All attention turned towards the beauty of a student council president, who nodded at her friend, before addressing the newcomers.

"Mm. Thank you for coming on such short notice, everyone. Mari and I have called you today to discuss about the security during the competition."

"Security? Is the Disciplinary Committee going to provide that?"

Yuuji asked. He knew the answer to it, as well as Aika and Tatsuya, but he asked it regardless to confirm the details.

"Not the security of the venue. The Magic Association will be hiring professionals for that."

Mari answered with her arms crossed, propping up her sizable chest, as she leaned back relaxedly to her chair.

"Mm. What we wanted to discuss is personal bodyguards for each team member and people to guard the presentation materials and equipment. We will be using valuable materials at the Thesis Competition, after all."

Mayumi explained, before Mari continued.

"Yes, and because they are valuable, teams for this contest are sometimes targeted by industrial spies. That's why, our school provides security every year. The members of the security squad are chosen from the Disciplinary Committee and the Extracurricular Activities Federation. But as far as who specifically guards whom, we will respect their wishes."

"I see…"

"Fufu~ And I'll be the one to protect you, Kei~"

"A-Ahahaha…"

Kanon hugged her beloved fiancee's arm tightly and rubbed her cheeks against him, showing off her love for him.

Yuuji smiled slightly, seeing the two's lovey-dovey interaction. It reminded him of his own relationship with Aika and Erika.

He then turned his attention towards Suzune and Koharu, who immediately blushed and looked down to her lap in embarrassment, causing him to tilt his head slightly in confusion.

"So… Am I right to assume that Tatsuya and I will be assigned as your bodyguards?"

"Hanzou-kun and Kirihara-san have been assigned to be my personal bodyguards. The two of them would be enough."

Suzune answered in a matter of factly before glancing towards Koharu with a slight smile.

"Kobayakawa-senpai?"

"Y-Yes! U-Uhm… I-I've actually requested y-you, Yuuji-kun, to be my p-personal bodyguard. U-Umm… A-After seeing your performance in the NSC… A-And our personal interaction during it… I-I think you would be a great…"

"I see…"

Yuuji fell silent and acted as if he was considering it for a moment.

In truth, this was an extremely welcomed surprise. He had been thinking how he could participate in the event for a while since Tatsuya wouldn't be participating in the competition as a participant with Koharu not withdrawing. Perhaps, he could simply go along with Aika and Tatsuya as a part of the security squad on behalf of the Disciplinary Committee of his school. But this was even better.

This would give him a solid reason to be there in the venue, and especially, in Yokohama during the invasion.

This is perfect. Thank you so much for this opportunity, Kobayakawa-senpai!!!

He smiled at the blushing girl and nodded.

"Thank you very much for your praise, Kobayakawa-senpai. It will be my honor to be your personal bodyguard. I will do my best to ensure your safety on the days leading to the competition and during the event itself. Please take care of me."

Immediately, a look of shock appeared on Koharu's face before an expression of absolute delight appeared on her countenance.

"Yes! Please take care of me as well!!!"

"Great. Now then, with that settled…"

Mari nodded with a satisfied smile and turned towards Tatsuya and Aika.

"You two will also be a part of the security squad. If personal bodyguards' main concern is the participant, then your main focus should be securing the perimeter and protecting the valuable materials and equipment they'll use."

"Very well."

"Roger~ Leave it to me, Mari-senpai~"