During his time in Germany, he dueled a lot of people. At his middle school, there was a secret combat society known only to the select few. The teachers probably knew about it but let it run anyway. Dio hold the title of GOAT for he was undefeatable.

"How nostalgic…" He whispered.

"Hmm? Did you say something?"

His whisper did not escape Mayumi.

"No, it's nothing."

After school, he went to the promised place. Practical room A was basically a magic training ground. It was a spacious area covered in pure white metal wall. There were a lot of CCTVs around the room. Perhaps some magic sensors as well. Dio and the other stood at the corner of the room to witness the first battle, Shiba Tatsuya versus Hattori Gyoubushoujo Hanzo. From the general perspective, the odds were on Hanzo but Dio beg to differ. Tatsuya was superior in any aspect compared to Hanzo except for the use of modern magic.

"Who do you think will win this duel?"

Mayumi asked Dio. Her beautiful red eyes looked at Dio expecting something. Her lips formed a curve akin to that of crescent moon.

"Tatsuya, probably."

"Eh, why? Hanzo is one of the best course one students you know…"

Mayumi was surprised at his answer. There was no way Hanzo would lose in her eyes. She was expecting a good fight from him, sure. But she would never say Tatsuya would win the duel. There was a sound theory behind that reasoning. Magic is the act of manipulating psion to change information body. If information changed, reality would follow because the world was made of body of information. Modern magic was the apex of magic method (what the propaganda said) because of faster activation sequence. During this era, speed was king. The person who could activate their magic first would win. In conclusion, Hanzo would win because he was faster.

"I am good at judging people."

Dio grinned at Mayumi.

"Mou…" Mayumi pouted her lips.

Hanzo entered the arena first. He brought a pistol shape CAD. CAD or casting assistant device was an important tool for modern magician. CAD was essentially a computer to calculate complex magical formula. CAD could significantly speed up the activation sequence of a magic. Modern magician could use magic without CAD but they would lose 90% of their speed. General modern magicians are basically useless without CAD.

"Sorry I am late."

Tatsuya entered the room with a silver briefcase. Unlike the student council member and moral committee member, normal students were not allowed to carry their CAD without permission. Tatsuya had to fetch it first. That was why he took some times to get there.

He opened the briefcase to reveal two silver handguns!

This reminds me of some bad memories.

Leaving Dio thought aside, Azusa looked really excited.

"Taurus Silver! That CAD must be the latest Taurus Silver series!" She shouted loudly as she peeked the CAD.

"Azusa know her stuff huh…"

Dio made the comment while observing Tatsuya's CAD. The two CAD were twin. They looked like silver handguns with 9mm caliber. Pistol was a common design for combat CAD for its efficiency. The user just needed to pull the trigger after all. Besides, it looked cool. Another common design was a bangle or a mobile terminal.

"Well, Azusa is Taurus Silver huge fans after all."

"Mayumi-senpai. Please don't tell anyone."

"It's kind of obvious though…"

Azusa looked down embarrassedly. "Ah, I also like Rosen Magicraft CAD! I just like Taurus Silver design more. That's all there is to it."

Dio smiled at her quick response. "Who can blame you for liking something, Azusa."

"Uuu…"

She was about to cry from embarrassment.

Mari looked confused instead. "But why two CAD? You can't use two magic at the same time unless you're from the Mitsuya family."

The Mitsuya family was another one of the Ten Master Clan. Their specialty was multicast or control of multiple magic. Even then, their efficiency was nothing to boast. There was simply no way to activate two different magic sequence at the same time. Well, according to the theory anyway.

"I can't reveal my trick right now." Tatsuya smiled and said that teasingly. "I'm ready."

They both faced each other.

Tatsuya versus Hanzo.

Mari nodded her head. "The rule is simple. No lethal magic and no destructive magic beyond level B. The one who fall unconscious or surrender first lose. Begin!"

Hanzo raised his right hand to aim his CAD at Tatsuya. He activated his magic, a singular-type speed magic to make Tatsuya knocked back. The impact from hitting a wall would make Tatsuya fall unconscious. However, Tatsuya already raised both of his hands and activated his own magic, a consecutive psion wave to disorient Hanzo mind to the point of falling unconscious. Tatsuya was faster than Hanzo because psion wave didn't require any complex activation sequence. You could say that it could be activated in an instant. The first wave hit Hanzo and it made him dizzy. The second wave cut his mind from his brain as if a string had been cut from a puppet. He fell over to the ground.

Everyone was silent.

Only Dio watched the scene with such clarity. Everyone else still unable to comprehend what just happened. The fact that Hanzo fell over so suddenly didn't register in some of their mind yet.

"Um, isn't it time to announce the winner." Dio said awkwardly.

"Ah, right. Winner, Shiba Tatsuya!"

Dio clapped his hand when other was silent. "Congrats." He said softly.

"What… happened…?" Mayumi asked her question. She was as confused as the other.

"Shiba Tatsuya, did you cheat?"

Mari accused Tatsuya of cheating with a serious face.

"Cheating—what…?! How could you make that accusation?"

Miyuki was really angry. How come that was her assumption when her brother won? She bet Mari would not make the same assumption if Hanzo had won instead.

"Well, it just happened so fast. Tatsuya is indeed a course two student but he can activate his magic first. I'm just wondering, how come he isn't a course one student?"

"I used ninjutsu technique to move fast. I also used psion wave, a simple magic that can be activated instantly. Of course, it's faster than any magic that need activation sequence." Tatsuya tried to explain in detail without lie. Meanwhile, the other students carried Hanzo to the nursing room.

"Ninjutsu…?"

"Onii-sama is Kokonoe Yakumo student." Miyuki answered with a bright smile. Her anger subsided. She seemed proud at that fact.

"Kokonoe Yakumo? That famous ninja?"

"Yes, what Miyuki said is true." Said Tatsuya.

"I see. That make sense then. I am sorry for my previous accusation." She bowed her head 30 degrees.

"No, it's fine."

"Will Hanzo be okay…?" Azusa asked nervously.

"Psion wave is not harmful nor lethal, Nakajou-senpai. He should wake up in five or ten minutes." Tatsuya explained to everyone.

Mayumi and Mari nodded in approval because they too knew the effect of psion wave.

"So, the second round…?" Asked Mari to Mayumi.

"S-sure!" Mayumi looked nervous somehow. Perhaps she was still in shock because of Tatsuya. Again, Hanzo was not some random nobody. He was one of the best senior magicians at First High School. The fact he lost to a junior shocked Mayumi. "Alright, I already have my CAD with me." Said Mayumi as she showed a silver bangle on her right hand. "Dio, what about your CAD?"

Since I have to make the Rosen family proud… "Don't worry about me. My power come from here." Dio pointed his chest with his thumb finger while smiling. He looked really cringe when he said that. Even Mayumi got second hand embarrassment from him.

"Dio, please be serious."

"But I am serious." Quite literally.

Dio gazed seriously at Mayumi. She lost the staring battle and looked away. This guy is bad for my heart…

"I won't continue if you don't use your CAD."

"Hehe…" Dio laughed mischievously. He took something from inside his uniform. It was a jet-black cross necklace. "This is my CAD so to speak. A Heilig Bogen." The necklace looked so beautiful. It did not reflect any light. On the contrary, it absorbed light as if a black hole.

"That small cross is a CAD…?"

Azusa looked so confused. There was no way such a small object could be a CAD. A common CAD would be a bracelet or a bangle. Even then, it was inferior to pistol type CAD because the computing unit was smaller in size. Something even smaller would be less efficient in theory. This was obviously Rosen Magicraft sorcery!

"What is that?" Asked Mayumi.

"Heilig Bogen? What does it mean?" Asked Azusa.

"It is German for Holy Bow."

"Why a bow…?" She asked again.

"Well, that part is a secret. Hehehe."

Everyone marveled at his CAD.

Tatsuya used his special ability in secret. There, he found out, Heilig Bogen passively absorbing psion around it at a fast rate. This discovery shocked Tatsuya even more. There is a possibility it can store magic sequence. If that is true, Germany is a bigger threat than I thought. He thought seriously.

"Well, this is a prototype thought-based CAD by yours truly, Rosen Magicraft."

"Thought based?!"

Everyone, including the mostly expressionless Tatsuya was shocked at the revelation.

"There is now way such thing exist."

"Right. It's not even possible."

Japan was one of the world superpowers after third world war. There was no doubt about that. However, after the establishment of the Ten Master Clan, technology slowed down. After all, only powerful magician admired in this country just like in the Sengoku Era. Japan had some clan controlled magic institutions but innovation was slow. Meanwhile, Germany embraced everyone equally, magician or not. Everyone contributed in their perspective field in magic. Rosen Magicraft was owned by not only the Rosen family but also by the people.

"Well, I guess the only way to prove it is to use it. I am allowed to use this, right?"

"Sure. I am curious at its performance." Said Mayumi confidently. She was confident Japan technology would not lose.

Mari nodded her head. "Okay, we'll go with the same rule—"

"Except physical contact. Physical contact is not allowed." Mayumi said as she crossed her fingers.

"Dio, are you okay with that?" Asked Mari.

"Sure." Said Dio.

"Fine. Let's begin!"

Mayumi was confident she would win. Dio hold the title of rank two for the entrance exam and his magic ability was just below Miyuki but the gap was quite far. Mayumi was somewhere along the gap, lower than Miyuki but higher than Dio. Even so, Dio confidence made her nervous. That was why she did not hold back.

Mayumi raised her right hand to operate her bangle-shaped CAD on her left hand. She moved very fast to tap a few buttons on her CAD. Her plan was to use her ace right of the bat. Why is he not moving? Does using his CAD take a lot of times? This is my chance!

Mayumi went straight for the victory. Her magic sequence started and activated in less than one second. It was very fast even for veteran magician. This was talent, this was her bloodline! In a world of modern magic where talent was one of the most important aspects of magic, Saegusa Mayumi stood at the top of the hierarchy along with other geniuses.

Out of nowhere, a small icicle formed in front of Dio. It formed and launched very fast akin to that of a sniper bullet. This was Mayumi ace magic—

Dry Meteor.

It created a block of dry ice made of four processes of carbon dioxide convergence, condensation, acceleration, and release, relying on the shock wave and carbon dioxide poisoning to render the enemy immobile upon impact. This magic was quite complicated that only a few could use it. Even then, Mayumi could activate it faster than other who used the same magic.

I won. She thought confidently.

At the moment of impact, Dio smiled. It was not an arrogant smile. It was a happy smile that said, "You did well…" but far from my level.

Death Dealing…

Along with his Schrift, Dio also activated his magic, Air Blast. It was a basic movement-type magic to stretch the air around him. Because Dio used the magic in the shortest possible time, it could not encompass the whole room but enough to reach Mayumi. This could be considered as kamikaze had Dio not use Death Dealing to make himself immune to the lack of oxygen.

Mayumi could not respond fast enough and inhaled her own poison. The range was too short for her to activate another magic.

"Ugh…"

As she was about to fall, Dio caught her with Hirenkyaku. He smiled and asked her, "Are you okay…?"

Because of the wind scattering, Dry Meteor lost its potent effect. It only managed to make Mayumi felt dizzy because the lack of oxygen. "I… yeah… I lost…" She eventually fell unconscious anyway.

"It's better if you rest." Whispered Dio.

"Winner, Dio Rosen!" Declared Mari to end the duel.

"I-I will carry Mayumi-senpai to the nursing room." Azusa volunteered by herself but Suzune helped her.

Dio stood up and somehow felt bad for Mayumi. Then again, he was not sure with how to finish the duel peacefully. This was not the violent duel he used to participate. He thought this was the best way to end the duel without showing much of his power while establishing his rank among the students. This way, he would be troubled by some punks less often.

"Congratulation with your victory, Dio." Tatsuya said while offering a handshake. Dio held Tatsuya hand for a handshake but Tatsuya refused to let it go. "You have some interesting power." He said smiling. "Your first magic should be something similar to Data Fortification but instead of strengthening, you modify your own information to adapt to substances such as oxygen. Is this your innate magic?"

Dio also smiled. He was not surprised Tatsuya could see a bit of his power. "That is quite correct. You're quite observant, Tatsuya."

"Of course. A magician needs to always learn to create innovation."

Only after that Tatsuya released his hand.

"Wow, is that true…?" Asked Mari.

"Yes. It was my innate power. I am a born-specialized magician. Maybe…"

"Maybe? What do you mean?"

"Well, it's not based on modern magic theory. So, I am not sure if it can be categorized as magic."

"… That shouldn't be a problem."

Mari was speechless. She knew Mayumi as one of the best magicians in Japan. She dared to say she was the strongest magician at First High School along with Juumonji Katsuto. And yet… she lost to a freshman. No, she did not just lose, she was annihilated with no chance of victory. Mari also knew how fast Dio was. Mayumi had no chance at all if Dio used his full power. Even then, she could feel that Dio still hide his power.

After that event, everyone dispersed questioning their own abilities as magicians. Tatsuya and Dio were very powerful in terms of combat. Everyone in that room felt they wouldn't win against them. They started to compare the two with some of the most powerful magicians in Japan like Yotsuba Maya or Kudo Retsu. Some felt inferior while the other had craving to be stronger.

Tatsuya was brought to the Public Moral Committee office while Dio went home after Mayumi woke up and declared him as guest member of the Student Council. Mayumi looked downcast when Dio left and he thought it would be better to left her alone for a while.

The twilight sky was beautiful.

Dio walked to his home while playing his card game until a man stopped him. He wore an anime t-shirt with a pair of jeans. The man was bald and tall.

"Gerard… why are you here?" Asked Dio, confused at the man appearance. "You're done with your task?"

"Yes, my lord. I am done with my investigation. Currently, a terrorist organization called Blanche is on the move. They delegate their task to the Japan branch to steal any research about magic from First Magic High School."

"Wow, faster than I expected… You're really efficient."

"Thank you for the praise, my lord."

"Have you uncovered their lair?"

"Yes, I managed to scout their headquarter. They currently hide inside an abandoned factory near your school. Should I launch an assault?"

"Not yet. I believe the leader is not there. There is low chance the actual leader—not the puppet—would mingle with the mobs."

"I thought so as well but I can't find their actual leader. He never appeared in public."

"I guess it's fine. They're not an actual threat anyway. I simply do this for my own curiosity. Just bring me the document and wait for further order."

"Yes, my lord."

"Until then, enjoy your vacation…"

He was gone the next second with the same movement technique as Dio. He used Hirenkyaku. When he was adopted to the Rosen family, a lot of things happened. One, Dio got one random Schrift for every nine months. Second, he realized he could give his blessing—quincy power to other people. Third, he established the Sternritter, secret police to protect his family in secret. He acted as Sternritter Grandmaster. One year before he went to Japan, Dio had sent three unit of Sternritter to scout the country for potential danger. The seed he planted had started to bear fruit.

"Well, I guess my romantic comedy school life is wrong as I expected."

Dio looked at the beautiful twilight sky and continued his journey home.

"Oh right, I wanted a cake. I guess I am going to a cake shop before going home."