When I finished my rough explanation, I felt rather surprised at the very different facial expressions the three of them showed.
First of all, I had proposed the creation of a joint club between Class A and B, who were like cats and dogs before.
Second, the one who proposed something like that, namely me, wasn't someone with a magic major, but someone completely ignorant of magic.
The proposal is amazing, but why are you the one making it?
I could feel them wanting to ask that question.
"That is what I had planned out. I will also join the club."
"But you're… A supernatural power user."
"Yes, I understand, but I…"
"Right…"
All three of them expressed their own doubts. Since the talk I brought up was related to creating a club, not some kind of scolding or something, the remaining anxiety within them seemed to have disappeared.
Because it wasn't Harriet but me who made the request, they didn't seem to understand what I'd be doing there. To be honest, it seemed rather difficult for me to participate in all of the activities.
"Yeah, there's nothing much I can do. I'll just be present. Just think of me as a kind of bridge. In other words, I'll be someone in charge of the chores."
"Chores?"
"You?"
"…You're lying."
No, why were those guys, who didn't even know me that well, looking at me as if to say "There's no way you'll do that" when I told them that I would take care of the chores?
I didn't know if anything would come up, but I'd most definitely do it. What else would I be able to do there? Did they want me to teach them magic circles or something? They should've just thought of me as a useless, decorative folding screen.
"Anyway, I think it's a good opportunity for you and the Class A kids. In the end, the key to all of this is you, Louis Ancton."
"…I should teach the others magic?"
I had already told them that Louis Ancton would teach the other students. Their reaction was quite something. All three of them had their mouths wide open and were like, "What nonsense are you talking about?!"
"I can't even use magic, so what kind of magic do you want me to teach them? I only study magic theory, but I can't put anything I learn into practice."
As he felt quite embarrassed for having to say something like that himself, Louis Ancton's face reddened. While he couldn't become a wizard, he still dreamed of becoming a magi.
But what magi didn't want to be a wizard?
They were people who completely understood the principle behind magic with their heads but couldn't actually put their knowledge to practical use. As such, Louis Ancton must've certainly felt resentful and frustrated that he was unable to use magic.
That was why his face went all red when he said something like that—he felt some kind of repulsion towards himself.
"Why not? I heard there are a lot of amazing spells that have been created by magi. According to Harriet, there are as many great people among the magi as there are among wizards."
That was what I'd heard from Harriet.
When I carefully laid out how I could tell Louis Ancton to teach others about magic, I found out there were actually cases like that.
That was what happened, after all.
Louis Ancton, who couldn't use magic, had actually greatly succeeded in improving the magic skills and ranks of spells of the other students in the original.
That was why there was a background setting that even magi were more than capable of teaching wizards.
According to Harriet, some of the greatest magi had actually accomplished far more than any archmage and were held in high regard.
When I said that there was nothing a great magi wouldn't be able to teach a wizard, he shook his head.
"That's true… but…"
I could feel that he appreciated my words.
A magi who couldn't use magic had to live with the fate of someone born with a plastic spoon in their mouth.
I'd heard that among wizards the enchanter and magic crafter jobs were seen as high-ranking, while Battle Mages had lost their places in the job market.
However, he wasn't a battle mage or any kind of wizard, he was a magi.
Even if they didn't do anything wrong, the scorn they would earn from scholars and wizards would be immense.
However, depending on their achievements, they could also become even greater figures than archmages and leave big marks in the world of magic's history.
Louis Ancton was still a student. The reason why that guy grew so twisted and looked down on and ignored anyone who was less intelligent than him was he had nothing else he could trust other than his intellect.
On the inside, he was a mess of indignation, resentment, and frustration because he was unable to use magic.
So while his self-esteem seemed to be incredibly high, it was actually really low.
Louis Ancton, B-2, owner of an academic talent.
"Can I… really do it?"
I folded my arms and frowned at his words.
"Who else but you would do it?"
"Huh?"
"If not you, who else would be able to do something like this? I'm sure you're the only one who is capable of this. If you don't believe me, you can just try it for this semester. If it doesn't work, I'll crawl through your legs like a dog."
"H-huh? Y-you'd do that?"
Not only did his expression become brighter at my show of determination, but the people who were listening were also shocked.
"Fuck, why would I have to do something like that?"
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"There's no fucking way it won't work out. You punk."
If things didn't work out, I would crawl through Louis Ancton's legs like a dog, but I had no intention of actually doing that.
—Because there was no fucking way that it wouldn't work out.
Louis Ancton's expression turned a little strange when he witnessed my wild conviction.
It showed something other than joy, sadness, or any other emotion.
He looked like it was the first time in his life that someone had recognized him.
* * *
We still had a long discussion after that, but in the end, they all gave their okays.
Louis Ancton, who felt inferior to wizards, seemed to hold a lot of expectations of being able to actually teach magic to wizards.
So, while he didn't seem to believe in what I told him for the moment, he was willing enough to at least give it a try.
Christina, who had a pretty cheerful personality, said something along the lines of, "It sure looks fun if that's how it is," and "I'll join you."
She slightly scratched her cheek as she gave her consent.
"Actually, I was a little scared. I wondered if I'd crossed you in some way."
"No, you didn't do anything like that."
"That's true, but…"
At first, she seemed a little tense, but Christina's expression quickly brightened when she realized that I held no ill will towards her and actually wanted to request something.
That bastard Reinhardt is calling me? Did I do anything to that guy?
Now that I thought of it, when Louis, Anna, and Christina all came in they wore the same expression. They seemed to think something like "Who annoyed that lunatic this time? Is he trying to blame us this time?"
However, in the end, I wasn't looking for them for that reason.
"I completely misunderstood you."
"…Most of the things you know about me aren't misunderstandings, but I'm not the kind of guy who would beat up others for no reason."
"Is… is that so…?"
It was true… None of the facts they knew about me were wrong…
It was just that I wouldn't hit anyone who didn't actually do something first!
"By the way, Reinhardt, you aren't a wizard, right? You said that Louis would teach us magic, but why would you recommend creating such a club for us?"
That was a valid question. I wasn't even that close to those three. I'd only talked to Louis a bit at most. While we did see each other often, that was as good as our first meeting.
They asked a similar question to Harriet, after all.
"Do I need a specific reason? What's bad about trying something that could benefit you, right? You guys might end up improving because of my suggestion. Let's say you buy me a meal later if all works out, hm?"
"…A meal? That's all you want?"
Was a meal too little to ask for?
"Well, if you want to give me money, I'd take that as well. I do like money, after all."
Louis and Christina grinned, knowing that I was just joking.
'Yeah, you got it now, you guys? I wouldn't do that stuff for no reason. I'm not the type of dog that bites others if they don't touch me first, got it?' That was why I was living calmly.
Anna looked at me as she nodded silently.
"You… were a good guy…"
"…Huh?"
Anna was smiling at me as she was talking.
What was with her?
Why was I getting goosebumps from her looking at me with that smile?
While Dettomolian simply seemed gloomy, Anna had a similar vibe about her, and yet it was slightly different.
Should I call it dreary? Feeling like there were cold shivers running down my spine, I tried taking control of the conversation again.
"Anyway, all of you agreed to participate. Then let's get together and talk about the details."
Some might have said "See you in a few days" in that situation, but I wanted to get things done as quickly as possible. So I said, "Let's get together today to plan out how we are going to move forward from this point on and decide on what research projects you would pursue."
One semester wasn't that much time, after all.
* * *
We had no specific plans for the club yet, and Harriet was of the opinion that we should figure things out once we all met up and talked.
So once I persuaded the three students from Class B, I left the dormitory, just as Harriet and Adelia left Class A's.
We could have had our talk in the dormitory, but to switch things up, we decided to go out to the cafe alley not too far from our classroom building.
As we arrived at the cafe, there were a total of six people seated around a large table, myself included.
4 Harriet de Saint-Owan. [Talent : Magic]
7 Adelia. [Talent : Summoning Magic, Magic Crafting]
11 Reinhardt. [Talent: Self-suggestion, Mana Sensitivity] (Useless)
B-2 Louis Ancton. [Telent: Studying]
B-5 Christina. [Talent : Enchantment, Alchemy]
B-6 Anna de Gerna. [Talent : Black Magic]
All of the first-year students with magic-related talents and one teacher were gathered there.
There was also one useless person.
We sat around the table with our ordered drinks before us.
—In silence.
No one was saying anything. All of them were sipping on their drinks, but no one uttered even a single word.
They were all trying to read the room.
"What? Why are you staring at me?"
They were only looking at me.
Of course, they didn't seem scared or intimidated by me.
All their expressions seemed to shout, "Just say something!"
No, I was just a useless person. Someone in charge of chores. I hadn't actually planned on joining at first, but Harriet had whined that she wanted me to join, so she came up with the idea that we'd create it together!
I did have some responsibility for bringing up the idea, so I bit the bullet, but suddenly I also had to play host?
I was the least suitable person present to do something like that, but all of them were just looking at me.
Harriet was only close to the Class A girls. Of course, one could also say that she was rather close to me, though I feel like I was the first one to approach her.
I mean, that girl also wasn't really the sociable type.
Then there was Adelia.
The word that best described her was, 'coward'. If she were to become the center of attention, her blood pressure would go through the roof.
Louis Ancton…
While he was smart, he was pretty much a snarky guy. He also didn't know how to properly socialize with other people.
Christina…
Although she was a pretty lively girl, she seemed rather nervous having the two Class A magic majors sitting before her.
Anna…
Scary! Don't look at me with those gloomy eyes of yours!
Yeah, let's not mention Anna.
No…
But if one looked at me as a character as well, wasn't I just as bad?
I should've been the least sociable one there, right? How could they look at me like that, asking the guy who'd let his fists speak first to lead the conversation, even after they all heard the rumors going around that I was a twisted bastard? Shouldn't I be the last person to ask to do something like that?
I wasn't sure if my having brought up this whole thing also meant that I had to take full responsibility for it as well.
"I wanted you guys to get together and talk about your personal views, desires, direction and so regarding magic, but with how things are going now, all of you will just end up finishing your drinks and then go back to the dorm to sleep."
I wanted them to talk freely among themselves, but they'd left the stage to me, who had nothing to do with magic.
"Anyway, all of you already know the gist of this. I think Louis Ancton here has the qualities of an excellent magi. Of course, that is not all, you can also freely select a research topic and work on it in your own way, or something like that. Or you might be able to solve some of the problems you are struggling with right now by acquiring knowledge of other fields of magic. While I have no clue about magic, I do know that if I struggle with something, I often find the answer to my problems in completely unexpected places."
I wasn't sure if they had concepts similar to "Confluence" or "Convergence" in magic, but knowledge was power, right?
"So, you do know that all of you will be part of a Magic Research Club, right? I wanted you guys to talk things through and discuss if you really want to do it or not… If all of you are acting like this, we won't get anywhere, guys."
Let's decide after a lively discussion about magic with each other! No! I don't want to join!
Far from coming to that conclusion, those guys were far too shy to utter a single word.
I didn't have the ability to lead a debate about magic.
Everyone seemed to gesture for me to do something about the situation, so I just had to do whatever, I guess.
-Slap!
I pounded on the table.
"Are you gonna join or not? Those who won't, raise their hands."
Everyone opened their eyes wide, staring at me, at my sudden declaration asking for a show of hands.
"No one? In that case, it's decided then. You'll join."
Confused at my sudden suggestion to vote and hurriedly concluded it like that. Harriet stared at me in astonishment as I concluded it so quickly that none of them had the chance to voice their opinion.
"H-huuh? Hey! How could you just decide that so suddenly? We still need to talk…"
"Then tell me, who was it that looked at me like a bunch of kids who didn't have a clue as to what to say and couldn't come up with a solution until just now?"
"Th-that's…!"
"Then let's have a very lively discussion about magic research then. Yes?"
"Th-that's just…"
Harriet blushed when I told her to immediately start the discussion, and while she trembled, she didn't say anything.
"If you don't want me to hurry the process, start the discussion now."
It wasn't only Harriet, but all of them, as if they had become mute, they didn't say a single thing.
Yeah, what normal person would just go, "Yeah, sure" when told to suddenly start a discussion?
So I suggested a show of hands.
Usually, more people wouldn't raise their hands than raise them in those kinds of votes.
So if one wanted something to get passed, it was better to suggest those who were against it to raise their hands instead of the people who were for it.
Because they didn't want to stand out weirdly, they wouldn't raise their hands—that was just how humans were.
That was why I said that those who wanted to join shouldn't raise their hands, and those that didn't should.
Ah, no one raised their hands, so it was unanimous. Done. No redoes.
"Anyway, we already decided to go through with it. You decided you would do it, but now you wanna bail or say you can't do it? Huh?"
'You left the speaking to me, so now you have to pay the price for not doing anything.'
"I was just… telling you how it is."
Being perceived as some kind of delinquent sure was advantageous. Every time a topic came up that I didn't like, I could just act like that to suppress it quickly.
Although all of them went there to talk, they were forced to form the club because they didn't actually talk. Everyone was looking at me with a puzzled expression.
—Except for one person.
"But…"
"…Huh? What? Got something to say?"
Anna de Gerna showed me an eerie smile.
"Who'll be… the club president, then?"
"President?"
Right.
A club needed a president and a teacher in charge. For a Royal Class Club, six people were quite a lot, so would they just assign us a teacher?
While we didn't really need a vice president, we did need a president, as we had six members.
Anna seemed to think that we needed to decide who would be in charge of the club because we had decided that we were going to go through with it.
…But why did she keep looking at me?
"…What?"
It wasn't only Anna who looked at me, the others did as well.
"No. Seriously, that can't be right."
Don't say anything weird, you punks.
Whether we called it the Magic Research Club or Magic Research Society, it would be a magic-related club.
Shit.
You're fucking kidding, right?
I was just someone who'd be in charge of chores, someone completely useless. There was nothing else for me to do in that club.
Being a club president was a huge responsibility. And of course, the president had to be able to use magic.
If anything club-related came up, I would be called to various places, have to talk to teachers when we needed to get permission for something, and I might have some run-ins with the student council. There were so many things to do, so I, who was only in charge of chores…
Ah…
Huh?
Weren't those chores?
Harriet looked at me with a satisfied smile decorating her face.
She was planning something.
That look…
"Those who don't want Reinhardt to be president, raise your hands!" Harriet shouted.
"Me!"
I was the only one who raised his hand.
I…
I became the president of the Magic Research Club while being completely unable to use even a bit of magic.