Chapter 2: The Magus and the Academic City.
Ayumu's days have been hectic lately, the sudden disappearance of the General Student Council, Delinquent Students running amok and Kaiser Corporation wanting to take advantage of the chaos to take over the city as a whole.
Not to mention ever since the disappearance of the President, the Sanctum Tower that has all the administrative rights over the city was effectively shut off from the rest of the General Student Council.
Ayumu's paperwork hasn't seemed to decrease at all since she started early in the morning, "Haaaa…" Ayumu could only sigh at the giant stack of papers on her desk as she continued to work endlessly, but before she could lament at her situation she reminded herself of something.
"I can't be complaining with just this much. Rin-senpai has it far worse than I have right now! I need to at least finish all of these! It's the least I could do for her right now!" and with that Ayumu started to work again with renewed vigor.
So much so that she didn't notice someone in front of her desk, "Sorry to bother you.. But can I speak to Nanagami Rin? The President sent me here." the stranger asked politely.
Ayumu looked up from the paper she was just about to read and was surprised at what she saw. A bespectacled young man who looked like in his early twenties, with messy black hair and eyes resembling aquamarine stones. The more that Ayumu looked at him she realized there's a striking resemblance between him and Rin, the Man stood in front of her patiently waiting for a response while scratching his cheek.
"Ah!" Ayumu realized she was staring at him quite hard, "Uhm….. D-did you say the President sent you?! Thank goodness! I'll go call Rin-senpai right away!" she replied to him, Ayumu stood
up from her desk so quickly that she ended up knocking over one stack of papers, making a mess out of the paperwork she was working on.
Ayumu's expression dropped after seeing how big of a mess she caused. So she started picking up the pieces of paper that got scattered, when suddenly the man helped her gather the paperwork that were scattered on the ground and in the desk.
"Y-you don't have to help me! It's a mess that I caused so…." Ayumu started to say but the man interrupted her, "Don't worry too much about it. I'd be troubled if I just watched you pick all this up so at least let me help a bit." Ayumu was still worried but seeing how he still wanted to help anyways made her relax a bit.
After a little while they finally cleaned up most of the mess, some papers are still unorganized but it's fine for the most part. "I'm sorry for the delay but I'll go get Rin-senpai now! P-please wait a minute!" she said to the stranger, Ayumu then bowed and excused herself to look for Rin inside her office.
Rin doesn't know what to do, she's utterly confused with the current events that happened from the disappearance of their President to them losing Administrative Rights over the Sanctum Tower.
Even though she acts as the leader of the General Student Council temporarily because of their President suddenly going missing, she can't help but feel inadequate when it comes to solving the multitude of problems they're currently having.
"I can't give up just yet. There's still a lot of work to do, the President most likely left some notes around the files somewhere…. Anything would help at this point." as she was thinking aloud she stumbles across a special file under the folder named 'Independent Federal Investigation Club S.C.H.A.L.E', it was a proposal written by the President herself about the creation of a club that acts as a problem solver for Schools and Students alike.
The file included something about hiring a helper from outside the city to serve as an Advisor for the Club and it's main force, a file is attached on it containing a resume for a man named 'Ritsuka Fujimaru' a 25 year old Male from outside of Kivotos, his former jobs are all redacted for some reason and there's a note on the resume with the President's handwriting saying. "Please help him get acquainted with our City and the various Schools Rin-chan!"
As Rin kept reading the file the weirder it got, the Club's Authority can sometimes be higher than the General Student Council itself and has a higher authority than all the Schools in Kivotos combined. It can access any information about any Student from any School, "This might be a problem…. I doubt that girl from Gehena and that Paranoia Ridden girl from Trinity would just accept this.." Rin muttered.
Before Rin could read any more about this mysterious club that the President founded secretly, a knock could be heard outside her office. "Rin-senpai…? Can I come in?" Ayumu said timidly behind the door. "Yes you can come in, Ayumu..." Rin replied while she put down the SCHALE Club's papers on her desk. Ayumu went inside her office and closed the door behind her, the blonde seemed more nervous than usual so Rin got suspicious.
Rin can already feel the headache incoming seeing Ayumu like that. "Did you make another mess Ayumu…? Why are you fidgeting so much.." Rin asked her while she's pinching the bridge of her nose. "N-no! There's someone wanting to see you Rin-senpai! They're apparently sent by the President!" she replied while being flustered at Rin's comment about her usual clumsiness.
Rin gave Ayumu an exasperated look and told her, "It's most likely another prank from the other Schools, just send her home. We're busy as it is already." She then picked up the SCHALE File to read it again but Ayumu interjected, "But he's not a student! …. O-or at least I don't think he is by the way he's dressed…." Rin looked confused by the sudden mention of a 'He' but then she suddenly realized. She looked at the SCHALE file again and read the Note from the President once more "Please help him get acquainted with our City and the various Schools Rin-chan!"
"I see… So you do have a plan." Rin muttered while looking at the note, Ayumu only had a confused look on her face after hearing Rin talk to herself like that but before she could say anything Rin said "Bring him in Ayumu, We might finally have the solution we're looking for."
After a few minutes, Ayumu came back with a Man behind her. The man politely thanked Ayumu for helping him and she immediately got flustered and said it's just her job to do so, "Thank you Ayumu, you can resume working now. I can handle it from here." Rin said to Ayumu before she left her office.
The silence between the two of them as they observed each other closely was deafening, until the Man finally spoke. "Is this the interview for the job?" Rin shook her head and replied "Yes. But we need some introductions first, I'm Nanagami Rin the current Acting Leader of Kivotos and the General Student Council, I heard you were sent by the President? ."
Rin stood up from her desk and offered him a handshake, he graciously accepted it and introduced himself as well, "Nice to meet you Rin, I'm Fujimaru Ritsuka and to answer your question I think I was." Rin was surprised at his choice of words, "You think?" the Man, who's name is Ritsuka sheepishly scratched his head and said "Ah, that's because my memories are a mess ever since I came to this city."
Rin raised an eyebrow and asked him "Then why did you say she was the one who sent you here?" "She has long Blue Hair and Blue eyes right? I may not remember exactly what we talked about but I do remember some bits of it, Like her suggesting that I come look for you first." he explained calmly while they shook hands. After that Rin gestured to Ritsuka to take a seat in front of her desk.
"I'll trust you for now. But that's only because of the strange circumstances we are currently in, and it's not exactly out of her character to pull something like this. It's as if she knows that your memories would get jumbled like that in the first place." Rin sighed as she sank to her own chair but after a short while she continued their discussion.
"Ritsuka Fujimaru, born in Tokyo Japan, Single, Prior Job Experience as a High School Teacher but, The rest of your previous occupations are redacted." Rin read out Ritsuka's file in front of him. "Do you remember what your previous jobs were? Or are your memories messed up there as well?" Rin genuinely asked Ritsuka.
Ritsuka thinks for a moment before responding "I don't exactly remember where I came from or what I was before. But I am sure about these things.I am Fujimaru Ritsuka, and I am a Magus." Rin gave Ritsuka a confused look with what he just said.
"Magus…?" she asked him "Yes. Magus, Mage or whatever you want to call it." Rin was still confused by his words "So…. You use curses and the like…?" she asked again but Ritsuka merely shook his head. "I think it's faster to show you this than explaining it." And so he grabbed his suitcase and opened it up, Pulled out a Golden Card from it and said "Install:Phantasm Summon!"
After he said those words his body was immediately wrapped in a golden light and a sword materialized from nowhere, Rin was utterly shocked at what she's currently witnessing. "Wha-" but before she can say any more Ritsuka spoke once more "This is what I can do. This boost can only last for a short amount of time because I get really tired when using it."
"Uninstall." Ritsuka announces yet again and the golden glow that wrapped his body dissipates and the sword slowly dematerializes.
Rin began to realize why the President hired him in the first place, this strange 'Magecraft' and this strange adult might just be the one who can to help them in their current crisis.
But Rin couldn't help to ask the most glaring question in her mind right now. "Why are you revealing all of this to me then? If that technique or Magecraft as you'd most likely call it is your trump card why would you trust me to not just leak it?"
"Because I think you're not that kind of person. The President trusted you enough to make me go here after all so there's no way you'd use any information about myself to get an advantage over me." he said like it's the most obvious thing in the world, Rin couldn't help but chuckle at his words.
"I don't know if that's naiveté or you're just that trusting but nevertheless, You have proven to be capable enough to help us with our current situation. From here on out you're the one and only Sensei of the Federal Investigation Club S.C.H.A.L.E as per the President's request." Rin then showed Ritsuka a couple of papers requiring immediate attention.
"Our first line of business must be to retrieve the Administrative Rights to the Sanctum Tower that we have now lost thanks to the President's sudden disappearance." Ritsuka nods his head as he listens to Rin's explanation, "So how exactly can I help?"
In response Rin opened up another drawer on her desk that was labeled 'FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY' and rummaged through its contents and read one of the notes left by the President. She then hands Ritsuka the Tablet PC from inside the Drawer, "On one of the notes that I have just found mentioned giving this Tablet to you, apparently you'd know what to do with this but since your memories are…. Like that, you don't have to push yourself too hard."
Ritsuka opened up the Tablet and it asked him for a password, "A Password huh…." Ritsuka muttered, Rin sighed "I see…. Well that's fine we can still look for other notes mentioning how to restore the right-"
"We long for the Seven Wailings, We bear the Koan of Jericho." Ritsuka spoke to the Tablet's microphone and it miraculously opened. "How…..? I thought your memories were lost...?"
Ritsuka looked confused as well, he explains, "I have no idea how I knew the password as well….. But I have a feeling that I've seen it somewhere before…" Rin was still suspicious but decided to just accept it.
"We'll leave it at that then. Now I have to call some Schools for help because we have to regain control over SCHALE's main building to access the Sanctum Tower's database. As the GSC is currently lacking in Manpower we have no choice but to rely on other schools, Then meet Ayumu for a spare Uniform as we just can't let you wear that expensive looking suit in battle, then meet me later after you've changed and got yourself used with that Tablet." Rin said as she got up from her chair and started to walk outside her office before turning back and says a few last words.
"I'll trust you for now and I hope you can meet my expectations, Sensei." Rin gives a faint smile before she left her office and shut the door behind her.