The Infinite Dimensions Starting from The Irregular at Magic High School

There was indeed a woman standing up there, but behind her, an elderly man with white hair was hidden.

The old man had activated large-scale mental-interference magic to conceal himself.

Although it was not especially strong, and its range only covered the entire venue, it was enough to affect everyone's vision and keep him from being discovered.

And the old man had perhaps noticed his stare.

As he grinned in his direction, he also cast him a meaningful look.

"Heh, that shameless old man really hasn't changed at all. Still so fond of playing around," Yotsuba Mahiro muttered with a disdainful look.

"Mahiro, do you mean Mr. Kudo is on the stage?"

"Yeah. You just didn't notice because you were affected by the magic he activated. Kudo Retsu has actually been on the stage the whole time. He's just cleverly hiding behind that woman," Mahiro said with a low sneer.

Mayumi and Sayaka were startled. They focused their attention and carefully looked toward the spot he indicated, and sure enough, they saw another person in the darkness!

Sayaka's magical talent was slightly weaker, so she could only see a vague figure.

But Mayumi was different. Possessing Multiple Observation, she could see it all clearly: an elderly man with white hair was standing there.

It was none other than the legendary magician of the Kudou Family—Kudo Retsu!

Besides being known as a master magician, Kudo Retsu was also the teacher of Saegusa Koichi and the Yotsuba sisters.

However, just as Yotsuba Mahiro had said, the old man Kudo Retsu really was a shameless old coot who loved to play around.

First, he activated a wide-area mental-interference spell to secretly observe the reactions of the students below.

Then he suddenly revealed himself, first lecturing the students on their lack of vigilance.

After that, he showed off his own magical talent, explaining how he could use magic with such exquisite precision that even an extremely weak spell could still deceive the geniuses present.

Only a mere handful of people had managed to discover him.

One could only say that he truly deserved to be called one of the world's strongest magicians, the "ultimate" and "most skillful" Trickster.

And he was also a shameless old coot.

And so, the speech banquet where the nine schools had gathered ended with this little farce.

After the banquet dinner, the students returned to their respective rooms.

With a beep, Yotsuba Mahiro swiped open the hotel room door.

What entered his view was a room that could only be called luxurious—and it was even a suite.

The floor-to-ceiling windows, made up of several panes of glass, were enough to give a view of Mount Fuji in the distance as well as the dense forest on the mountain.

If there were a fireworks show in the distance right now, he dared guarantee that this room would absolutely be the best place to enjoy it from.

Was this the legendary executive suite?

And a single room, at that.

Could this be a benefit of being one of the Ten Master Clans?

As he thought this, his body had already sunk deep into the sofa. Tilting his head back to look at the ceiling and chandelier, which could be called models of luxury, he let out a sneer for who knew how many times in the past few days.

"Heh, capital...

"Really is wonderful."

The first half was still a disdainful sneer, but the second half simply turned straight into praise.

Just as he had once said, there was no such thing as fairness in the world. If something felt unfair, it was only because that special treatment had not landed on one's own head.

He, Yotsuba Mahiro, was the same. Like everyone else in the world, he was a vulgar man.

When faced with such a high-class room, how many people could hold back from enjoying it?

Not to mention, he had a beauty keeping him company.

That was right. He was not the only one who had returned to the room—Sayaka had been brought back by him as well.

She was sitting on the other side of the sofa with a restrained look.

Though using the word "brought" did not seem entirely accurate, because Sayaka had followed him over of her own accord.

Of course, Mahiro had not refused.

It was just that with a lone man and woman alone in the same room, the atmosphere was somewhat awkward. As a fresh-faced rookie driver just getting on the road, he did not know how to get along with this upperclassman Mibu.

After a long while, he only managed to squeeze out one sentence.

"Um... Sayaka, what did you think of tonight's banquet? Was it as good as you imagined?"

She was a Course 2 Student, after all.

Aside from a monster like Shiba Tatsuya, the others more or less held fantasies and curiosity toward the places Course 1 Students came and went from—especially a banquet like the Nine Schools Competition's.

Otherwise, why would Erika have been willing to go in as a server just to take a look at the banquet hall?

And as a Course 2 Student, and a second-year at that, Sayaka was naturally no exception.

"Mm... It was... it was all right, I suppose. It was somewhat similar to what I imagined, but mostly different too. But I'm very happy that I got to witness that Master's presence with my own eyes. Most importantly, I got to be there with you, Mahiro."

Perhaps because the conversation had finally started, the awkward atmosphere lingering in the air vanished at once.

Although Sayaka was still somewhat halting at first, she grew more and more fluent as she went on, until by the end, her cheeks inevitably flushed red once again.

She stole a glance at Mahiro, then could not help asking curiously:

"...Mahiro-kun, what about you?"

"I'm really happy too. If it weren't for you, Sayaka, I probably wouldn't have lasted even half an hour."

That was the truth.

Although the banquet had a buffet, the taste was only so-so.

So if it were just about eating, ten minutes would have been more than enough.

The rest of the time would have amounted to looking at pretty girls, then finding a corner to sit in and zone out. In the end, he probably would have slipped out of the venue.

But with Sayaka keeping him company, it was different.

Being able to see with his own eyes how flustered she looked, like a startled little deer, was completely worth the price of admission.

Not to mention that, besides Sayaka, there was also Mayumi, who had been keeping him entertained the whole time.

"Right, do you want to take a bath?"

"T-t-t-t-take a bath?"

It seemed his question had accidentally stepped on this beautiful girl's landmine, and her voice instantly rose by an octave.

However, Sayaka immediately realized that she seemed to have overreacted, and said softly, "Sorry, just now I... didn't mean to. As for the bath, Mahiro-kun, you go first."

Originally, he had wanted to tease Sayaka a little and ask if she wanted to bathe together or something like that.

Now, it seemed that was not very likely.

So he did not refuse either, and walked straight into the bathroom.

As for Sayaka, sitting on the sofa, after seeing him leave, she involuntarily buried her face in her arms and let out a quiet whimper.

This clearly was not how she had planned it.

What on earth was she doing...

The light in the bathroom was orange-yellow, not glaring, giving off a warm and comfortable impression.

Moist heat filled the surroundings, carrying a hazy kind of beauty.

Hanging on the wall was a three-tiered storage rack—shampoo, body wash, facial cleanser, and other items were arranged neatly upon it.

Mahiro soaked alone in the bathtub filled with hot water.

It was not cramped inside. There was enough space for him to lie flat, and as he immersed himself in the hot water, his whole body could not help relaxing in comfort.

Looking up at the ceiling and recalling Sayaka's appearance just now, he felt a little like laughing.

He was not an idiot.

What Sayaka had come to the room with him to do, he had known perfectly well from the start.

But unfortunately, he had never had a relationship of negative distance with a woman before, so he had absolutely no idea how to handle it...

"Forget it. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. One step at a time!"

With a splash, Yotsuba Mahiro submerged his entire body in the bathtub.

Not long after, he finished washing and came out of the bathroom, and Sayaka went in to wash instead.

He leaned comfortably back on the sofa, listening to the pattering sound of the shower coming from inside the bathroom. It was like a magnificent heavenly movement.

About half an hour later, the sound of the shower stopped, and a few minutes after that, the sound of the bathroom door opening came.

He subconsciously looked toward the bathroom. He and Sayaka had both changed into the pure white yukata provided by the hotel.

But when his gaze fell on Sayaka, he could not help freezing.

To be honest, Sayaka's appearance in a yukata was indeed very alluring, but what drew his attention most was her long hair.

The high ponytail that had always been tied up tightly had now suddenly been let down.

That head of glossy black hair naturally fell to her waist, looking as smooth and soft as black brocade.

Compared to her usual gallant appearance with a high ponytail, it created a perfect contrast!

"...Wh-what is it? Is something wrong?"

Sayaka grew a little nervous under his stare.

"No, everything is right. Perfect. Sayaka, you look stunning with your hair down."

"D-do I? I'm used to tying my hair up when practicing kendo, and over time, it became a habit..."

She grabbed her hair and looked at it, then picked up the towel and began wiping it again.

Though she looked very calm, there was a hint of stiffness and nervousness in that delicate voice.

However, halfway through drying it, Sayaka's movements paused ever so slightly. She turned her cheek away a little, as if deliberately keeping Mahiro from seeing her current expression clearly.

She parted her cherry-pink lips and whispered softly.

"...Mahiro-kun, could you help blow-dry my hair?"

"Of course, no problem!"

The hair dryer whirred, sending out a steady stream of warm air.

Standing behind Sayaka with it in one hand, Yotsuba Mahiro gently lifted her lustrous black hair with the other, carefully blow-drying it back and forth.

He had to admit, Sayaka's hair really did have a wonderful texture—smooth without losing its softness, thick yet still fine.

Only, compared to her hair, there was something else drawing his gaze.

Because they were both wearing yukata, from the angle where he stood, he could just happen to peer into that deep valley.

Like proud winter plum blossoms standing amid the snow.

Watching those crystalline drops of water fall from the tips of the hair at her temples, then slowly slide down along her delicate collarbone and disappear inside...

Hiss—

He couldn't help secretly drawing in a cool breath to steady himself.

And Sayaka never said a word the entire time. He couldn't see her expression either, leaving the atmosphere between them thoroughly delicate.