Twelfth Spell: Confrontation with the Class Empress

"Oh, Hikari," Rui said to the girl with the auburn hair. "I didn't see you."

"You should get your eyes checked, Rui," Hikari responded before glancing at Haru. "And who are you?"

"Um, Haru Ryuji," said Haru nervously.

For a moment, Hikari looked surprised. Then she hid her surprise by removing the black sachet from the wiggling sugar moth before popping it into her mouth whole.

"He's going to be joining our year," Rui continued. "But he has to take remedial classes."

"Why's that?" Hikari asked Haru. "Are you that bad with your magic?"

"No, I'm an Osozaki," answered Haru.

Hikari snorted. "You can't be an Osozaki. They're just a myth!"

"No, they're real!" Rui argued. "Ishi-Sensei did a whole lecture on every Osozaki who's ever lived, remember?"

"Yeah, but I wasn't taking him seriously." Turning her attention back to Haru, she held up the black sachet. "If you really are an Osozaki, you should have no problem removing these Tenbutsu Cards from my hand—being more powerful than a normal wizard and all."

Angrily, Haru picked up his wand which he didn't put with his luggage. Thinking about the basic spells he learned from Higa, there wasn't a lot of options. So Haru had no choice but to use the Firelighting Charm Higuāng. From Haru's wand a small fire leaped forth and singed the black sachet causing Hikari to drop it on the table.

"Ow!" Hikari exclaimed, waving her hand frantically. "What are you trying to do? Burn me?"

"It was an accident," Haru said nervously and got up to check Hikari's hand. "Are you okay?"

"Get away from me!" Hikari snapped, forcing Haru to step back. "I can take care of myself."

From the fold of her brown robe, Hikari produced a wand made of cherry tree wood and pointed it at her hand.

"Karahé!" Hikari announced.

In a matter of seconds, the redness on Hikari's fingers disappeared.

"What was that?" Rui wondered.

"The Ailment-Curing Spell," Hikari said casually. "Heals minor injuries and illnesses. It's one of the spells we're going to be learning later in the year."

Rui was shocked. "You read ahead?"

"Of course I did! I always want to be prepared." Hikari then glared at Haru. "What you did doesn't count as proof that you're an Osozaki. All it does is prove how much of an idiot you are!"

As Hikari stormed back to her seat, which was towards the end of the cart they were in, Rui sighed heavily.

"Sorry you had to meet the Class Empress that way," Rui said.

"Class Empress?" Haru was confused.

"Everyone calls her that because she gets top grades in every class she takes, and so her kimono always stays gold," Rui elaborated until she realized something. "Oh! You haven't gotten your kimono yet, so you don't know how they work."

From there, Rui explained how each First-Year Primary Student received an enchanted kimono that would grow as they got older. The kimonos would also change color depending on the wearer's experience with novices wearing pink while those who aced their classes wore gold.

"Is there anyone who wears white kimonos?" Haru asked, thinking about Warumo.

Rui looked nervous. "A white kimono is worn by someone who disobeys the Japanese Wizard Code and gets expelled."

"Was Warumo one such student?"

"Yes, he was…along with his followers."

"Then my father Taka must've been expelled too."

"Actually, he graduated Mahoutokoro before his affiliation with Warumo-Uragi was found out."

Letting this sink in, Haru was quiet for the rest of the train ride. By the time the sun was starting to set, the M Line stopped in Nagasaki. Here, everyone got off wearing kimonos and brown inner garments. While some like Hikari wore gold-colored kimonos, the rest were a mix of green, blue, purple, and red. Then at the front were younger kids that didn't have kimonos, which Haru was reluctant to join.

"Everyone, gather round!" shouted a familiar voice.

Haru looked towards the stairs leading down from the platform and saw Higa standing with a paper lantern in his hand.

"First-Year Primary Students, you will be the first to ride the petrels to attend the Ceremony of Kimonos. The First-Year Secondary Students will follow after them and attend the Initiation Ceremony. As for the rest of the Secondary Students, they'll bring up the rear. Any questions?"

One small hand raised at the front.

"Yes?" Higa addressed.

"Will we go home after the Kimono Ceremony?" asked the little girl whose hand was raised.

"No, you and the other First-Year Primary Students will spend the night in the guest quarters then attend your first day of school tomorrow before heading home on the petrels. Does that make sense?"

"I guess so," replied the little girl.

"Okay, I'll take that as a 'yes'. Now let's go!"

From the Nagasaki Station, Higa led the Mahoutokoro students to a seaside coast with a steep cliff. It was here that Higa took out a wooden flute and played a chirping melody. Soon enough, a giant gray petrel the size of a car landed on the edge of the cliff.

"All right, kids," Higa said, addressing the younger kids. "I'm going to need you to pair up, because these birds can only carry two people at a time."

So the young kids paired up and stood in two straight lines. Haru quietly made his way to the back of the lines, and was hoping nobody else would notice. But the little girl who raised her hand spotted him and went to the back.

"Aren't you a little old to be in this line?" the little girl said.

"Well, I'm a special case," Haru said. "It's because I'm an Osozaki."

The little girl's eyes widened in delight. "Then you must be special! My grandma says Osozaki are really special and can do cool magic stuff. I'm Chio Mika!"

Looking down at the little girl, Haru thought he saw his adopted sister Daichi's face for a brief moment. But unlike Daichi who had short black hair, Chio's was tied into small pom-poms.

"You don't look well," Chio said, holding Haru's hand. "Should I call the bamboo hat guy?"

Realizing she was referring to Higa, Haru said, "No, that won't be necessary. I'll be all right."

To be continued…