Sunset came to slowly, a splitting pain in her forehead warning her that she’d recently been in combat, and a cold compress over it assuring her that she was being cared for. The mana pathways in her arms ached terribly, but she was otherwise unharmed. Sunset lay still with her eyes closed, trying to remember what had happened.
That’s right. The martial arts tournament. Wildfire beat me. She huffed a laugh, a small, self-deprecating smile flitting onto her face. Sneaky little trick. Should have figured after his follow-up against Takamichi. You beat me good, Wildfire. Well done.
Sunset opened her eyes and glanced around. The medical tent was mostly empty, everyone out watching the final match. Sunset could hear cheering outside and bits of Kazumi’s commentary, but she paid it little attention; whatever she’d missed, she could find out from the others later.
Her main concern at the moment was the girl seated by her side. “Aren’t you supposed to be overseeing the tournament?”
Chao Lingshen shrugged, her usual emotionless smile stuck on her face. “You and I both know that Colonel Sanders-san is going to win. I was a little concerned about what he might be plotting, but it looks like it’s nothing to do with my plans.”
“Right. Your plans.” Sunset sat up and turned to face Chao head-on. “By which, of course, you mean your plan to expose magic to the world. Tell me, how long have you been planning this?”
Chao looked up in thought. “Well, I only found out about magic by chance about a week ago. But I thought that-”
“You can drop the act.”
Chao blinked, her smile slipping and leaving her face blank. She stared at Sunset for a moment. “How’d you know?”
“It’s obvious,” Sunset replied, swinging her legs off the bed and standing up. She stretched her arms above her head and let out a groan of satisfaction. “Something this elaborate takes time to organize, no matter how rich and influential you are. Several of the devices you loaned me for the Horror House would only be possible with magic or ridiculously advanced tech. You helped create Chachamaru. Finally, you just confirmed it.” She lowered her arms and smirked at Chao. “But none of that really matters because, when it comes down to it, my instincts say that you’ve been planning this scheme for a lot longer than a week.”
Chao stared at Sunset for a moment more before smiling again - a much more natural and slightly sinister smile. “Heh, she was right about you. Nothing slips by your attention, does it?”
She? Sunset shrugged. “I like to think that I have a pretty good grasp of the machinations that go on around me.” She waved a hand flippantly. “Not that your machinations are any of my concern. Whether magic gets exposed or not is nothing to me.”
“Of course, of course,” Chao said, nodding in agreement. “After all, if all else goes wrong, you can always wait for the mirror to open up again.”
Sunset’s body stiffened for an instant before she forced herself to relax. “Mirror? What mirror?”
Chao giggled into her hand. “Oh, I think you know which one,” she lowered her hand, fixing Sunset again with that slightly sinister smile, “...Equestrian.”
“...so you do know.” Sunset’s eyes narrowed, her hands clenching. She noticed for the first time that her rings were gone from her fingers. She must have taken them off of me while I slept. Smart of her to limit my options. “How do you know about Equestria? And how much do you know about me?”
“Hm. More of the latter than the former.” Chao stood and began circling Sunset. “I’ve never been to your world, nor do I have any particular desire to visit. But I know you quite well, Hikaru Nichibotsu, Student of the Sun. Powerful and feared warlock hunter. Renowned magical theorist. Master of an ancient, all but lost style of twin pyromancy and cryomancy. Wielder of the Annihilation Beam consisting of mana and anima.”
Sunset frowned. How does she know all of this? “You’re quite well informed. Just who have you-”
“Only daughter of two Canterlot bakers.” Sunset’s eyes went wide at Chao’s interruption. “One brother, a firefighter; you haven’t spoken face-to-face with him in years. Raised in a castle by Tenko-hime since the accident that killed your parents. Jealous of Keidensu-hime ever since Tenko-hime adopted her as her niece. Banished from the castle after being caught researching dark magic while trying to find out how to ascend. Always wanted Tenko-hime to acknowledge you as her-”
Sunset rushed Chao, grabbing her by the neck and lifting her into the air. “HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT-”
Chao was gone. No, she was suddenly standing about three feet behind Sunset, unworried. No, not suddenly. Sunset’s instincts told her that she’d been there for a while. Sunset slowly turned around, still glaring balefully at Chao but compelled to be on guard. “...how did you do that?”
Chao raised a mocking eyebrow. “After all of the instant movement and teleportation you and the others have been pulling off all day? I can’t believe you’re surprised by-”
“That wasn’t teleportation,” Sunset interrupted. “There was no flare of energy. And besides, you’ve been standing right there for a while, haven’t you?” Chao’s eyes grew wide, telling Sunset that she’d hit the nail on the head. “Reality warping like that is no mean feat. You didn’t just move there, you retroactively made it so you had been there all along. The only question is: how?”
Chao stared at Sunset in shock for a full minute. “I… will admit it. I underestimated you. I knew you could see through this sort of thing before, but that you can do so already…” She shook her head in amazement. “I suppose you weren’t the head of Research and Development for nothing.”
“No, I wasn’t.” Sunset’s glare shifted from anger to suspicion. “I ask again, how did you do it? And who told you so much about me?”
Chao hesitated a moment before chuckling. “I will answer the first question by answering the second.” The sinister smile returned. “You told me, Hikaru-sama. Or at least, you will.”
Sama? Sunset’s mind was awhirl with possibilities, but one of them stood out before all the rest. “Time travel.”
Chao smirked and reached into her pocket. She pulled out a palm-sized device, similar to a pocket-watch but with several knobs and far too many visible gears. “As sharp as ever, Hikaru-sama. Or should I say, I suppose you were always this sharp?”
Sunset’s eyes darted between the device and Chao. “How far?”
“That’s not really important.” Chao slipped the device back into her pocket. “Far enough for you to be a significant player on the world stage. Far enough for you to have several apprentices, even if you refused me. And far enough for me to know of an upcoming disaster that could be avoided by exposing magic here in the twenty-first century.”
“A disaster that you’re here to try to prevent.”
“Naturally.”
Sunset considered the girl before her. Chao had an excellent poker face and could easily be lying. She probably was lying. But the question is: how much is a lie? Time travel would certainly explain a lot; I don’t think I can count that a lie. And it would have to be fairly far into the future for me to have built up a significant relationship where I would tell her all of that. That leaves her motive. Since there aren’t a plethora of time-travelers all throughout Earth’s history, I can assume that it’s heavily restricted. Either the means are extremely difficult or they’re highly regulated. Or both. In which case, it would have to be a pretty significant event to motivate someone to leap back in time to change it. Which leaves two questions. “How big is this disaster? And how many people does it affect?”
Chao chuckled and raised her hands in defeat. “Right to the one vulnerability in my story; I shouldn’t be surprised anymore.” She shook her head. “Would you believe me if I told you? I have no evidence to back up any claim I make, especially since this disaster heavily involves the magical world. As I recall, you still haven’t been there at this point in time.”
Sunset conceded the point with a nod. “So all I have to go on is your word that some disaster in the distant future will be prevented by revealing magic now. What do you want from me, then? You want me to help you?”
To Sunset’s surprise, Chao shook her head. “As you gathered, this plan has been in the works for quite some time. All of the pieces are in place, all of the preparations made. There’s only one wildcard I couldn’t quite predict, and that’s you.” She let out a frustrated sigh and shrugged. “I asked your future self what you would do in reaction to my plan, and she claimed she didn’t know. She didn’t even care. In her words: ‘whether you succeed or fail, the world will be significantly altered. Either this world will cease to be, replaced by a new world in which the current me does not exist, or you will create a parallel reality in which another me will have to live with the consequences. Either way, it is for the me of that new world to decide what path the world should take.’ In any case, all I ask of you is that you stay out of my way.”
Sunset began dissecting the quote, looking for any clue or flaw. That certainly matches what I know of large-scale time-travel theory and universal anti-paradox theory. And that does sound like something I’d say. I’m surprised I’d be so level-headed at the possibility of no longer existing as myself, but with how powerfully I believe in destiny, I can’t see myself getting too worried about how other-me might turn out. And if future-me has lived a long enough life to be at peace… wait! “Chao, in the future when you know me, have I ascended?”
Chao considered the question for a moment before shrugging. “I suppose you’d only be asking that question if you’d figured it out. Yes, the future I’m from is beyond the reach of a human’s natural life-span. In the future I’m from, you have ascended. I only tell you this because the future you said it wouldn’t affect your decision.”
Sunset smirked. “She was right; it doesn’t. Destiny is far too powerful a thing to be derailed by a little time-travel.” And I already knew it was my destiny to ascend someday. But it’s nice to get confirmation all the same. “How does it happen?”
“I don’t know; I never bothered to ask.”
“...right.” Whether that’s true or not, I won’t be able to trust anything she says about it anyway. So, back to the matter at hand. “So let me get this straight. You want to turn this world on its head by revealing the existence of magic and mages. You want to bring the Inner World into the light of day. All to avert some future disaster. And all you want from me is a vow not to interfere?” Chao nodded. “I see.”
“I won’t ask for your answer now,” Chao said. “It’s a lot to take in, and a big decision. But I will ask that you give me your answer by tonight.” She turned and headed for the exit. “You’d better come out soon; the final match should be wrapping up any second now.”
She left the tent, leaving Sunset alone with her thoughts. “One thing’s for sure,” Sunset muttered as she followed after, “this festival is about to get even more interesting.”
*****
“THE SKILLS OF THE WINNER ARE TRULY THOSE OF THE SCHOOLS- NO, IT WOULD EVEN BE FAIR TO SAY THE WORLD’S STRONGEST! AS THE CURRENT TOURNAMENT SPONSOR, IT WAS AN INCREDIBLY SATISFYING EXPERIENCE FOR ME YO!”
The stage had been repaired and three platforms placed in its center by the time Sunset made her way out of the infirmary tent; she’d barely made it in time for the award ceremony and Chao’s closing remarks. She stood next to Kaede on the lowest platform, Colonel Sanders standing on the tallest platform to her right and a well-battered Negi on the third platform on his other side. From what little she’d gathered before being ushered onto the stage, the final match hadn’t even been close.
“ALTHOUGH, IT SEEMS THAT DUE TO THE HIGH LEVELS OF THE COMBATANTS, OR PERHAPS BECAUSE OF THE UNBELIEVABLE MATCH CONTENTS, THERE ARE SOME WHO BELIEVE THAT THIS WAS A FAKE PERFORMANCE ARRANGED BY THE TOURNAMENT’S OFFICIALS. I’LL LEAVE THE QUESTION OF AUTHENTICITY UP TO ALL OF YOU NE.”
Sunset rolled her eyes at Chao’s antics as Asakura took over the commentary again. Now you’re just baiting them. Still, she applauded politely as Sanders accepted his massive, ten-million yen check, those fights were pretty flashy. I wonder how long until the paparazzi… Sunset’s thoughts trailed off as a massive group of approaching reporters answered her unasked question. They swarmed Colonel Sanders, shoving microphones in his face as they trained their cameras on him.
“Mahora Sport! Contestant Colonel, what do you have to say about your victory?!”
“How are you planning to spend the ten-million yen?!”
“Mahora Occult Society! Are you really the child teacher’s missing father?”
“Mahora Filmography Club! What sorts of special effects were you using in your fights?”
Sanders weathered the storm of questions for only a few seconds before raising an apologetic hand. “Excuse me, but I’m not good with interviews.” Instantly, he vanished.
“Eh?!”
“Where’d he go?!”
“He’s not around anywhere!”
“It can’t be helped; get the child teacher!”
“Contestant Negi! Mahora Sport with a question for you!”
Sunset chuckled as the teeming hoard turned its sights on Negi, who immediately followed Sanders’ example and fled. A quick glance around told Sunset that both Chao and Kaede had vanished as well, leaving her as the sole contestant on the stage. She briefly contemplated leaving herself before shaking her head. Please. I’ve dealt with the Equestrian paparazzi for years. This lot will be a cake walk.
It took a moment, but one of the reporters finally noticed her. “Contestant Nichibotsu!” He nearly tripped over himself as he rushed to shove a mike into her face, obviously thinking that she could vanish at any moment. “A moment please!”
Sunset shrugged, showing no hint of umbridge at having her personal space violated. “Sure, I’ve got time.”
The hoard’s collective ears perked up at this and Sunset soon found herself surrounded by a barrage of questions.
“Contestant Nichibotsu! What do you have to say about your matches?!”
“Mahora Sport! Contestant Nichibotsu, where did you learn to fight?! What styles inspired your unique style?!”
“Mahora Romance Society! Contestant Nichibotsu, do you have a boyfriend?!”
“Contestant Nichibotsu! What do you have to say regarding the rumors that this entire tournament was nothing but a show put on by Chao Lingshen?!”
Sunset weathered the barrage of questions for a minute, sorting them in her mind into a few categories. Finally, she raised a hand for silence. “This tournament was rewarding in its difficulty,” she began. “I entered vying for the win, and I’m happy to say that I gave it my all. Both Evangeline and Setsuna were worthy opponents, and Wildfire - that is, Negi Springfield - managed to pull out more than one surprise that I wasn’t expecting. I’ll admit it; he got the jump on me and beat me fair and square. I look forward to the chance to challenge him to a rematch in the future.”
She allowed for another barrage of questions and quickly narrowed in on the biggest topic. “I don’t know where the rumors of this tournament being fake are coming from, but if there’s any truth to them, I know nothing about it. I fought with my own power in every match, as did each of my opponents. If there was any shenaniganry, you’ll have to ferret it out of Chao or one of the other contestants.
“As for my fighting style,” she continued, “it is a conglomerate of many different styles. My foundation is ki-reinforced boxing, but I’ve branched out a lot and learned various things from several teachers. Currently, I am studying different techniques under Evangeline, Setsuna, and Takamichi, and I have regular sparring sessions with Kotarou. Some of my fellow club members have also been teaching me some kick-boxing and a few judo throws. Really, I can’t call this style anything but a Nichibotsu original.”
Another round of questions assaulted her. Some of them went into more specifics on her style or the tournament, but most of them seemed to be turning to other topics.
“I do not have a boyfriend or girlfriend,” Sunset answered the Mahora Romance Society. “That’s right, I swing both ways. I’m not really looking right now, but if I were, I wouldn’t want another fighter. A lot of girls with my sort of strength talk about how they’ll never marry a guy unless he manages to beat them in a fight. But that’s not what I’d be looking for. Honestly, I’m too hot-headed to get along with another type-A personality.”
Sunset answered a few more questions before begging out, explaining that she hadn’t yet had a chance to explore the festival. After promising herself to more in-depth interviews after the festival and giving a shameless plug for the 3-A Horror House, she left the paparazzi and the Tatsumiya shrine.
“Finally,” she muttered, stretching her arms above her head. “Those leeches are the same in any world.” She cast her gaze to the clocktower that loomed over the academy. “Hm. Almost one o’clock. Guess I should get some lunch.”
Sunset meandered her way over to one of Mahora’s several plazas, one which was surrounded by restaurants. The plaza was filled with small tables with three or four chairs set at each, perfect for a small group of friends to share a quick meal at. What am I in the mood for? Sunset wondered as she surveyed the various restaurants. I burned a lot of energy in the tournament. I should… hello? What have we here?
Sunset was distracted from her hunt for lunch by a very curious sight: a tall, handsome young man with vibrant red hair dressed in a sharp suit with a long overcoat. Definitely a foreigner, British if she had to guess. What really caught Sunset’s eye, however, was the unconscious figure of Ako Izumi in his arms. Stranger still, Sunset was certain she recognized the young man.
“Oy! Wildfire!” The young man jumped at Sunset’s shout, confirming his identity. “So it is you.” Sunset jogged over and gave the man an appraising look. “...very nice.”
Negi Springfield blushed at Sunset’s lecherous expression before shaking his head. “H-how did you know-”
Sunset scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Please. You don’t look that different. Just a grown-up version of your regular self. I’d say… about sixteen years old?” Negi nodded. “Very nice.” Her eyes fell to the unconscious Ako before darting back up to him, narrowing into a glare. “So? What’s the story here?”
Negi opened his mouth to answer, but hesitated as Ako started to stir in his arms. “Oh no!” he hissed. “Nichibotsu, I can’t explain right now, but I need you to keep who I am a secret. Kotarou can explain everything!” With that, he turned and dashed for one of the tables.
“Dog boy?” Sunset looked around and, sure enough, spotted an aged-up Kotarou hiding in some nearby bushes. Sunset gave Negi one last suspicious glance before jogging over to join Kotarou in his hiding place.
The dog-eared boy had aged well, too. His muscles were more pronounced than ever, and he was dressed in thuggish clothes that made him look like the son of a crime boss. He wasn’t alone, however. Hiding with him were Chachamaru - dressed in a full-body rabbit suit - and Chisame - aged down to elementary-school levels and dressed the part, with the addition of cat ears and a tail. Sunset stared at the strange trio for a minute before shaking her head. “Okay, lots of questions, but I guess the biggest is why one of my good friends is unconscious in Wildfire’s arms.”
Chisame raised an eyebrow. “That’s your biggest question?”
Sunset pointed at Chachamaru. “Cosplay is standard fare for this festival.” She next pointed at Kotarou. “You and Wildfire need to disguise yourselves to hide from the paparazzi.” Finally, Chisame. “And I heard that you were the one who told Wildfire about the rumors of magic flying around the internet; I figured you’d clued in to the big secret of the Inner World, and both your appearance and your present company confirm it. That leaves the situation with Ako as the biggest mystery.”
Chisame considered Sunset’s logic before nodding. “Fair enough. Still, this is going to be hard to explain. See, Izumi missed her concert tonight.”
Sunset was about to correct Chisame - surely she meant that Ako “would miss” her concert - but hesitated as she remembered what she had just learned. “...Chao gave Wildfire a time machine?”
Both Kotarou and Chachamaru’s jaws dropped. Chisame just chuckled and shook her head. “How did I know you’d still manage to be on top of that? Are you even really a middle-schooler?”
“Nope. Thirty-six year old Unicorn from another dimension.”
Chisame let out a long, heavy sigh. “Well at least you were already one of the weird ones.”
“I’ve got to say,” Sunset remarked, “you’re taking all of this amazing well. Even Yue didn’t take the reveal of magic in stride quite like this.”
“I’ve had time to process,” Chisame grumbled. “And the revelation came slowly over the course of the tournament.” She shrugged. “Besides, freaking out over it won’t change the fact that magic exists.”
“But getting riled up over the antics of our class will change things?”
“One can hope.”
The two of them shared a chuckle before Sunset turned back to watch Ako and Negi. “So? Something happened to Ako tonight?”
Chisame nodded. “The kid burst in on her while she was changing. Got a look at her scar. She ran out in tears. She must have lost track of time, or something, because the kid found her by the big fountain well after the concert was supposed to start. He used a spell to put her to sleep and took us all back to five minutes ago with her. Apparently, he’s planning to make her think that everything that happened earlier today, er, from now on but before… all of that, was just a dream.”
Sunset considered that plan for a moment as Ako woke up and started freaking out at seeing Negi sitting across from her. “I see. Should work. I’ve recently been reminded to what lengths the Outer World will go to convince themselves that nothing strange is going on. If she doesn’t know about magic yet, then she’ll buy that easily. So, what’s the plan now?”
“Negi said he was gonna take her on a date,” Kotarou piped up. “Help her calm down and relax before her show tonight.”
Sunset observed Ako’s furious blush as Negi spoke with her and snorted in amusement. Kid has no idea what he’s getting into. For some reason, she felt a spark of irritation. “That works, I guess. Who does she think he is, anyway?”
“Negi-sensei’s cousin, Nagi,” Chachamaru said. “Here on vacation from Wales for the festival. The story is that Negi-sensei likes to talk about his students to his family back home. That will keep Izumi-san from suspecting anything strange if he mentions anyone else in the class.”
“Nagi? Seriously? Isn’t that the name of his old man?” Sunset shook her head. “Unimaginative, but I guess that makes it easy to remember. So what are the three of you doing?”
“Running interference,” Chisame grumbled. “In case something goes wrong. There’s no way that that kid won’t mess things up, and we have to make sure that they don’t run into their past selves.”
“So we’re spying on Wildfire and Ako as they go on a date?” Sunset looked back at the couple as they stood from the table and began walking off. She glared after them. “By any chance, do you know if Wildfire is planning to go back in time again today?”
Kotarou looked up, scratching the back of his head. “I think so. His schedule is pretty busy, what with all the ane-sans who want his attention. Why?”
“Because my shift covering the World Tree starts in half an hour,” Sunset said, starting after her teacher and her friend. “And if I’m going to be stuck making sure Wildfire doesn’t do something stupid to Ako, then he’s going to repay me by making sure I don’t miss it.”