Unknown Assailant

“Senzo-senpai?!”

“Shinzo-kun?! What happened? Wait, let’s discuss what happened when we get to our HQ. Just to be safe.”

We headed to this HQ that Senzo-senpai was talking about.

“Yuki-chan, I’m back! Guess who that violator was”

“Wait?! Violator? What do you mean?!”

“Well, you see that big projected screen over there? That’s the academy’s power adapter tracking system. Those blue dots on the map, those are all the registered adapters here in the academy. When a student uses his/her power adapter, that yellow dot changes color and becomes yellow. Those areas in the map covered with a green shade, are safe zones, which means that magic use is allowed there. Those areas shaded with red are prohibited zones. When a yellow dot turns blue inside the prohibited zones, the system alerts us and we dispatch a peacekeeper to check the area.”

“Ohhh”

“So, Shinzo-kun what happened back there?”

Tachibana-san steps forward. “Kazuchi-kun only activated his adapter to protect us from some stray dagger that came flying out of nowhere.”

“Yeah exactly, I didn’t just use my power adapter for no reason. I was forced to use it given the situation I was in.”

“Relax Shinzo-kun. Koyasu and I both know that if it was you who activated your adapter inside a red zone, it must be for something reasonable.”, Usami-senpai says as she kept spinning on one of those office swivel chairs.

‘Kawaii’

“Hahaha, well Yuki-chan is right, we know that you’re not some delinquent. In fact, if it were up to me, I would just overlook this violation without writing a report. But sadly, we are obliged to report such violations to our commanding officer.”

“Commanding officer?”

*Footsteps from inside a separate room*

*Door opens*

The door opens, but no person could be seen entering or exiting it.

“Speak of the devil, there he is… Our captain, Miyuki Tachibana”

“Excuse me, Senzo-senpai, I don’t see anyone there…Also, “Tachibana”?! So he’s – “

“My big brother, yes…He’s constantly using Astral magic to project an exoskeleton all over his body which makes him undetectable to the naked eye.”

‘Wait, you can use astral magic like that?! And is he really that obsessed with being invisible?’

“Koyasu, report”, a heavy voice comes from somewhere beside Senzo-senpai.

“Yes captain! At 17:05 today, our monitoring system alerted us to a power adapter being used within the prohibited zones. The officer on afternoon surveillance duty, yours truly, set out to check the area and catch the violator. And in doing so, the violator: Shinzo Kazuchi, has been successfully apprehended and is now awaiting sanctions. “

“Miyuki-nii, please don’t sanction Kazuchi-kun for violating school rules this one time!”

“Uruha, you were there during the incident, so … If this kid really did violate school rules to preserve his well-being as well as yours. Then that’s understandable and I will just overlook this whole incident.”

“Thank you very much sir!”, I don’t know where to look exactly since I can’t see the person I’m talking to, I just have a vague idea of where he is based on the direction from where hi voice comes from.

“Thank you for understanding Miyuki-nii!”, Tachibana-san then proceeds to do tiny hops across the room and towards Usami-senpai.

“Miyuki-nii! Can I borrow Yuki-chan again?”

“Eh? Sure, there’s not much for peacekeepers to do anyway since it’s past class hours”

“Yey!”, Tachibana-san drags Usami-senpai by the elbow towards a door that says “Female staff Changing Room”.

“No-no-noooo! Wait! I don’t want to wear those weird clothes agai- “, those were the last words that were heard coming from Usami-senpai just before the door closes.

“Hang in there Yuki-chan!! Pf-fff-huaha-”, Senzo-senpai has trying desperately to control his laughter.

“An unknown person attempting to harm students huh… I will personally investigate about this incident. We still don’t know which of you two was the real target of the attack. There’s even a possibility that the attack was aimed at both of you.”

“We can probably scratch the possibility that the assailant is a student in this academy since the monitoring system only detected Kazuchi-kun’s adapter being activated in that area. Do you know anyone who might have some grudge on you outside of the academy?”

“I don’t really know. I mostly try to avoid interactions with other people”

“I see, well, you should be warier of your surroundings from now on. We don’t know if the assailant will try to attack you again. If he or she does try to do something like this again, I want you to inform us peacekeepers immediately.

“Yes sir!”

“Koyasu, what about that new recruit you told me about yesterday? Where is he?”

“Ohh, right… Well this is that guy right here, Shinzo.”

“Wait, you want to recruit me as a peacekeeper and that’s why you told me to come here?! "

“Please consider it Shinzo-kun… You see, we peacekeepers have been lacking members who are  B-level magicians. And judging from the magic you’ve displayed in the practical exams, you’re probably somewhere between A and B-level.”

~Magic users are entitled such level classifications based on the raw magic potential that they possess. Measuring a magic user’s power level requires that certain person to hold on to two pairs of gold-colored steel rods which are located in a shrine inside the Halls of Wisz. Those rods will drain the person’s magic power and he/she must hold on to the rods for as long as he/she can. There are of course safety features installed in the measuring device which prevents it from draining lethal amounts of magic power from a person. The worst possible side-effect is a mild fatigue which lasts for a day or two. Knowing this, most people just avoid getting their power level measured unless it is necessary.

~Regarding the power levels, magic users are classified as either: D, C, B, A, and S-level. Most magic users are classified at D-level. They have weak magic capabilities and can only perform minor incantations. Those at C and B-level are often the ones you see in Academies and most of the time, get employed in jobs that require certain levels of magic aptitude. A-level magic users are rare and they possess a very large amount of magic power. Most of the apprentices taken by the Master Sorcerers are at A-level. Lastly, there’s S-level, the only known S-level magic users are the three Master Sorcerers from each of the three affiliation.

“A-level?! Ahahaha don’t make such jokes Senzo-senpai”

“Well, captain, what do you think? You too witnessed him freeze the whole stadium. And just now he just protected your younger sister. He’s already acting like a peacekeeper even before he's admitted to the role.”

“Yes I do agree that he does possess an exceptional amount of magic power, I did see it for myself back then… Alright, if you really want to be a member of our squad, then you may submit a formal application anytime this week. You should also get your magic power measured since knowing one’s power level is important if you want to take on the role of peacekeeping.”

“Hmm, I think I might actually want to be a part of this group. But I still need to consult about this to my parents.”