“Duel? What do you mean?” I slap his hand away from me and take a step back. “And back off, you creep.”

Contrary to my reaction, the strange boy is still wearing a smile on his face. “Oh, sorry if it offends you. I just wanted to try doing that - it gives a very ‘villain’ vibe, doesn’t it?”

“Well… yes, but you’re a magician. And what’s with the childlike attitude?”

“What, don’t you ever wish to play the bad guy at least once?” A chuckle comes from the boy.

“But I digress,” he continues. “As for the ‘duel’, seeing that you’re unsatisfied with my performance, the rules will be simple. I’ll do another trick, and if you can guess the secret behind it, it’s your win. In return, if you can’t, it’s mine. How does that sound?”

“Then what’s in it for me?”

I can’t seem to wipe the smug look off his face, as he once again smirks and answers. “What’s in it? Sometimes it’s just nice to have some healthy competition, no?”

“Sounds like someone with too much free time on his hands to me,” I sarcastically reply.

“Ah, but you approached me first, right? Wouldn’t that make both of us people with too much free time on our hands?”

... Curse you and your correctness.

“But… if you wish for it, then sure, I’ll throw in a bit of a wager to spice things up,” the boy then continues. “If I win, then you have to admit in front of everyone here that ‘Kuroba Yoichi is the best magician in the world’. How does that sound?”

“Yoichi, huh? Even your name sounds cocky,” I let out a smirk of my own.

“It is only the truth,” the boy, now Kuroba Yoichi, replies. “So, do we have a deal?”

“Fine, game on. And if you lose, you’ll have to admit to everyone here that ‘Kuroba Yoichi is nothing special’.”

“Sounds like a challenge to me,” replies Kuroba. “Now, let us…”

“Okay, stop it right there, you two!” A quick hit on both of our foreheads as well as an irritated voice puts a halt to the heated atmosphere. “Need I remind you that it is still within school hours? And Hakuen, what did I say about leaving the room?”

Crap. I forgot about Natsume for a second. Well, not like I forgot about her, but you get what I mean.

Before I can answer, however, Kuroba has already taken a step forward. “Now, now, my fair lady,” the bastard lightly touches her hair, causing her face to fluster like a red target. But he retracts his hand only a second after the initial move, and, as if by magic, a crow emerges from his devious hand.

“I reckon that letting the people see my performance would calm things down more, no?”

As if to answer his suggestion, from afar, the sound of someone in the Disciplinary Committee makes its way through the storm of screeching:

“Let him do it, Natsume! We can’t hold them off much longer!”

“F-Fine,” not having any other choice, Natsume complies with a nod. But her still blushing face suggests that she is also delighted to see this guy…

“Well, since we have the Committee’s permission, shall we begin?” Kuroba turns to me once more.

“Tch, get it on already!”

“Just the words I want to hear… oh, right, I haven’t asked for your name yet.”

Only now do I realize that simple fact also.”But don’t you know my name already?”

“By listening to your previous conversation, yes, somewhat.” He lets out a nod. “But that’s not proper etiquette now, isn’t it?”

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“You and your annoying etiquette.” I click my tongue. “Fine. Fuutsuno Hakuen.”

“Kuroba Yoichi.” A polite bow comes from my opponent. “Now, Hakuen, let the duel commence!”

Kuroba raises his arm high into the sky, and, with a snap of his fingers, signifies the start of the competition. At the same time, the flock of crows resting on the ground, as if being triggered by a command, all fly up in a scattered formation, leaving behind another storm of jet-black feathers blinding us in the scene. Once the plumes come to a halt, every one of those birds has already disappeared without a trace, except for one resting on Kuroba’s finger.

“I have to ask, though,” swiping off the stray feathers on my clothes, I say. “What’s with the crows? Don’t magicians normally use pigeons?”

“Well, one reason is they share a similarity with me,” Kuroba answers as he lightly rubs the crow’s chin with a finger. “But more importantly, crows are actually the smartest among birds, which means that they’re much easier to train, and once they are trained, they can do a lot of things…”

Pausing for a second, a smirk forms on Kuroba’s face.

“Like this, for instance.”

As the words leave his mouth, Kuroba flicks his wrist. A small card appears between his fingers out of thin air while the bird disappears without a trace, but that’s not the most important thing to notice. What’s important is that… it’s not any regular playing card.

“Is that…”

I reflexively check my pockets, unable to believe my eyes. It can’t be…

It’s not there.

As much as I deny it, it’s the truth. That card Kuroba is juggling around is, without a doubt, my student ID.

“But… how…”

“That was my trick just now,” Kuroba answers with a grin. “Well, Hakuen, time for you to guess. What exactly did I do?”

What is this pressure I’m feeling? Not only his shit-eating grin, but… the rest of the schools… all of their prying eyes are on me, like I’m a prey or something…

No, don’t give up! Think! Even if you have to rack your brain for ideas, think! There’s no such thing as magic in this world! There has to be a trick to it! Think about it! What is the most prominent thing Kuroba has done so far?

It is at that moment that an idea crosses my mind.

Did… did I do it? Is this the answer I’m looking for? When you piece everything together, it makes perfect sense, right?

Yeah… Yeah, this has to be it! This is the correct solution! There is no way for me to lose now!

As the excitement overflows within me, I let out a light chuckle.

“Oh? Seeing your elated expression, I assume that you’ve found the answer?” Kuroba raises his eyebrows in doubt and amusement.

“Your tricks suck, you half-baked magician,” with a grin of confidence, I declare. “When you flicked your wrist, your crow must have flown away to my back and stolen the student ID from my pocket, right? And once it’s done, it drops the card right as your movement is finished, so it looks like the card has appeared in your hand!”

As I finish my explanation, I can already hear whispers among the crowd. Of course, in front of a natural genius like me, they must be extremely shocked. I don’t blame them, though. After all, who could have thought that he would use his crows that way?

“Well? Am I correct, or am I correct?” I let out a taunting remark at the pretentious magician. Contrary to my expectations, however, Kuroba doesn’t confirm or deny my claim. Instead, the bastard has the gall to turn to Natsume, once again touches her hair to pull out another crow and ask:

“My fair lady, did you see any crow appear behind Hakuen just now?”

“I, uh…” Taken aback by the sudden action, Natsume stutters once more, her cheeks remain hotter than ever. “I didn’t…”

Turning to the rest of the audience, he asks once more, louder than ever:

“Did anyone else see a crow behind Hakuen?”

It’s only a few unsure words at first, but the longer it goes, the more resounding everyone gets.

“No!”

“I haven’t seen anything!”

“What was that guy thinking, guessing something as stupid as that?”

Wh-What do they mean by “stupid”? It’s the only solution! There’s no way there could be another, unless he has actual magical powers! And that’s impossible!

“Well, there you have it,” Kuroba shrugs and lets out a sigh of regret. “I’m afraid I can’t accept that solution.”

“Y-You’re wrong!” I try to save what tiny bit of pride I have left. “If you’re so good, then explain to me your trick! I won’t accept that I lost if it’s not logical!”

“... All right, I’ll explain it,” nods Kuroba, fully expecting the situation. “Well, I’ll have to give you credit where credit’s due, you were correct about one of my crows stealing your card.”

“Then…”

“But, Hakuen,” with a confident smile and a wag of his finger, Kuroba continues. “You’re wrong about the timing. Your card was stolen before you even stepped forward against me. I simply hid it under my sleeve and flipped it up just now.”

“From… before I faced you? But… how? That was completely a spur-of-the-moment action… you can’t…”

“Oh, but I can,” answers Kuroba, gesturing towards his eyes. “I’m a magician, remember? My eyes are sharper than most others. I can even read others’ hearts with ease, and yours was an open book from the moment you set foot in the schoolyard.”

“That’s… impossible…”

“That, my dear Hakuen, is what’s called ‘generational talent’... something that I don’t think you’d understand.”

I…

I lost. Completely and utterly.

“Y-You’re not getting away with it!”

Those words of nonsense are the only thing that I can say, as my vision blurs and my heartbeat accelerates. As if being led by a supernatural force, I tear my way through the crowd, with the sole hope of finding a place as far away from here as possible.