The next two days served to confirm Sunset’s routine.
Evangeline began to narrow Sunset’s course of study, devoting only half of their time to general magical education and the other half to converting Sunset’s natural talents into Earth magic. A task that became more difficult the longer they worked at it, as it became apparent to both of them that Equestrian magic and Earth magic were more fundamentally different than Evangeline had realized.
“So let me get this straight,” Evangeline muttered, massaging her temples as they sat in one of her villa’s libraries on Friday. “In order for you to conjure a fireball in Equestria, you had to actually pull heat from the surrounding environment, filter out and compress combustible gasses from the air, and bring them together along with a literal spark from your horn.”
“Correct.”
“You then would take those areas that you pulled heat from,” Evangeline continued, “and use those conditions to aid in casting your ice spells.”
“Very few unicorns in history have managed it to the point where it was usable in combat, but yes.”
“And on top of that,” Evangeline was practically grinding her teeth together at this point, “you would use the resulting low- and high-pressure systems to create natural currents that would help you to cast lightning magic.”
Sunset nodded, turning a page in her book of spellcraft. “Not even the creator of the combined pyro-cryomancy style ever managed that.”
Evangeline slammed her hands into the table that stood between them. “How the Hell did you keep all of those conditions in your mind at once?! There’s being a genius, and then there’s being a freaking monster!”
“None of which is helpful, since magic here is tied more to domains than physics.” She sighed and closed her eyes, massaging the bridge of her nose. “Fireballs are formed by calling upon spirits of flame and turning raw mana into fire itself. Ice is conjured. Stone is conjured. Heck, it seems like fifty percent of spells in this world boil down to either conjuration or self-transmutation. Makes telepotation easier, but screws a lot with my accustomed style.”
Evangeline nodded. “Yeah, fire and ice spirits don’t exactly get along. You’re fine using both for low-level spells, but you’ll see some definite pushback as you start getting to the more high-end stuff. And you can forget about asking Ifrit and Jack Frost to both get along with you. I don’t suppose there are any Equestrian spirits you could call on?”
Sunset sighed. “I’ve tried that a few times. It feels… normal, I guess. It feels like when I invoke spirits from this world, at least. But somehow I don’t think that windigos will get along with ancient dragons any better.”
They shared a moment of silence before sighing simultaneously.
“Well,” Evangeline huffed, “no sense banging our heads against this wall. We’ll figure something out.” She picked up a notebook that she’d been using to take notes on Equestrian magic. “Now, what’s this you’ve mentioned before about ‘holy magic?’”
*****
Setsuna’s lessons continued to focus on combat techniques and sparring rather than fighting with ki.
“You aren’t ready yet,” Setsuna lectured, stepping back out of Sunset’s range and bringing her bamboo blade between them. “You need to familiarize your body with how a measured amount of ki feels. You’re keeping up with the exercises I prescribed?”
“Yeah yeah,” Sunset grumbled, putting her fists back up as she began to circle Setsuna, looking for an opening she knew wasn’t going to be there. “One hundred punches with each arm at five, fifteen, twenty-five, fifty, seventy-five, and one-hundred percent power each per day. Same with kicking with each leg. Same with headbutts, elbow-strikes, knee strikes, everything.” She juked forward slightly in a feint, and was gratified to see Setsuna’s grip on her sword tighten slightly in response. “I know it’s important. I get how muscle memory works. It’s just frustrating to have to go through it again with my body when I mastered it with my horn decades ago.”
“I understand,” Setsuna replied. “I wish I were confident enough in my own abilities to provide a safe environment for you to spar with your ki, but I cannot guarantee my own safety should you lose control, not your safety should you overcompensate in reigning yourself back. My own combat experience is lacking; the curse that comes with the blessing of relative peace, I suppose.”
“‘Five minutes in a fight for your life is worth five years of training,’” Sunset quoted. “Some of my CO’s were particularly fond of that saying. Can’t say they weren’t right.” She smirked. “On a different topic, how are things with Konoka? Have you formed a pactio yet?”
Setsuna’s moment of embarrassment created the opening Sunset needed to dart in close, but not enough of an opening for her to land a blow. Setsuna drew her arms in close, fighting to keep her blade between them as she backed up, trying to give herself some distance. “O-of course not!” she snapped. “And while I applaud your psychological tactics, I will remind you that you will not always have such material to use against your opponents.”
Sunset ducked a sweep from Setsuna’s blade and lashed out with a low kick, gritting her teeth as she jumped over it. “Tch. I might, if I have Nodoka fighting with me.”
Setsuna took another swing at Sunset as she stood, the fiery-haired girl catching the blade and straining to wrest control of it from the swordswoman. “That is, urg, a fair point. However,” Setsuna lashed out with a kick of her own, forcing Sunset to relinquish the sword and leap back to avoid the follow-up strike, “even then you do not have a guarantee.” They began to circle each other once again, Setsuna blushing slightly even as she kept her eyes on Sunset. “But… things have been going well. We have been speaking of more casual things as of late, and I find it easier to initiate conversation.” Her blush intensified and she took a cautious step back as she broke eye-contact. “Though I am still uncomfortable with her displays of physical affection.”
Please. Sunset rolled her eyes. She’s downright prudish compared to Equestrians. Still, that’s better than most Japanese, who are celebate by comparison. “You’ll get used to it,” she reassured. “If nothing else, it will help you build up a tolerance for uncomfortable situations. If you can handle her, you can handle anything. Trust me, there’s nothing in the world more awkward than receiving a platonic hug from someone you desperately want to sleep with.”
“S-S-S-S-S-SLEEP WITH?!?!?!”
Sunset’s punch connected easily.
*****
“How many times was that?” Takamichi asked.
“T-twelve,” Sunset gasped, clutching her arms as she struggled to remain standing. “I c-can manage s-something like sixty if I… if I space them out through the d-day.” She took a deep breath and stood upright, her arms and legs still trembling from pain. “But twelve is my absolute maximum in a minute.”
“Still, that’s impressive.” Takamichi sat down at the table he’d dragged out to the forest and invited Sunset to do the same. He began pouring both of them a cup of tea. “When I first started out, I was lucky if I could manage six in ten minutes before I passed out. You’ve come a long way already.”
“Not enough.” Sunset groaned in relief as she sat down across from him. “And I haven’t made any progress with kanka since my breakthrough three days ago.”
Takamichi raised an eyebrow. “You mean yesterday?”
“Evangeline’s got this time-warped villa,” Sunset explained, waving him off. “A day inside is one hour out here. It was three days from my perspective.”
“I see.” Takamichi set Sunset’s tea in front of her before taking a sip of his own. “It was interesting to hear your take on it, by the way. I’ve never really thought of mana having a will of its own before. To represent the incompatibility of magic and ki as a philosophical quandary is a unique perspective.”
“Not that it helps,” Sunset grumbled. “If anything, it makes me question even more how kanka is even possible. It’s an idea more difficult to conceive of than Ifrit and Jack Frost getting along.” She picked up her cup and took a brief sip. Finding she didn’t hate the flavor, she downed the rest. “Maybe it’s just me and my mind for conflict, but I don’t see how two absolutely opposed philosophies can coexist like that. Work together as separate entities, sure; that’s why I started training with you in the first place. But becoming one?” She shook her head and poured herself another cup. “I don’t see it.”
“Give it time,” Takamichi said, setting his own cup down and smiling. “And don’t limit yourself to thinking it out logically. Every kanka user I’ve ever heard of operates by feel rather than by thought. If you can feel your way to the right balance, then perhaps the result will enlighten your mind and teach you the philosophical answer as well.” He let her consider that for a moment before speaking up. “And on the subject of opposed forces getting along, are you still planning to sabotage your standing with Ayaka-chan?”
Sunset sighed and swirled her tea, watching the waves threaten to break over the sides. “I’ll admit that I don’t hate my classmates as much as I used to. Tell them this and I’ll rip your head off, but I’m actually starting to like more of them.” Her contemplative frown morphed into a glare. “But some of them I just can’t stand, and Ayaka tops the list. The way she’s come on to Springfield so brazenly from the very beginning is just sick, and for someone who comes from a superior upbringing, she has almost no sense of self image where he’s concerned. If you’re going to be a stuck-up little princess, at least have the integrity to go all the way with it.”
Takamichi frowned. “Perhaps she has her reasons.”
“I can’t imagine any circumstances that would justify her behavior.” Sunset drained her tea and stood. “Alright, I should be good for a bit. What’s next?”
*****
Sunset yawned as she stretched out on her bed. It had been a long Saturday between training and catching up with club activities. The Library Exploration Club had wanted her help disarming traps in a few new passages, and the boxing club had shown up to drag her off for two hours of matches as punishment for neglecting to show up for so long.
She’d won most of them before getting her butt handed to her eight times in a row by her upperclassmen.
But now her day was done. Her homework was double-checked, most of her classmates were asleep, and she was ready to follow them into the realm of dreams.
Which is why she began to contemplate murder when someone knocked on her door at twenty minutes to midnight.
With a resigned sigh, Sunset stood and trudged over to the door. She cracked it open to see who was on the other side and found her eyes widening in surprise. “Zazie?” she asked, opening the door wide. “What are you doing here?”
The dark-skinned girl cocked her head and pointed at her wrist.
“Well of course I know what time it is,” Sunset said, glaring. “That’s why I’m wondering what the heck you’re doing here at twenty to midnight.”
Zazie pointed in the direction of Mahora Academy.
“How did you know that…” Sunset sighed and rolled her eyes. “Look, I know Springfield has his apprenticeship test tonight, and I don’t see why I should care.”
Zazie pointed at Sunset.
“So what if I’m Evangeline’s student too?” Sunset demanded. “I doubt we’d be training together. And even if we would, that’s between him and Evangeline.”
Zazie held up a fist.
“No, I don’t need to see his fighting style.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “I’ve seen Ku Fei fight a couple of times, and I’ve asked around for some basic info on Chinese Kung Fu. I doubt anything Springfield does will surprise me.”
“...”
“...really?”
*****
Sunset felt like she’d been tricked.
The train hadn’t been deserted, as she’d expected. With the benefit of hindsight, she realized that it made sense for Asuna, Ku Fei, and Setsuna to be attending the match that night. Even Konoka and Makie made sense, the latter for involving herself in the fight in the first place, and the former to heal Negi up after his inevitable beating. But the others…
“Remind me why the three of you decided to tag along?” Sunset asked with a glare.
“Believe me,” Akira muttered, “I’d much rather be in bed. But Makie let slip that Negi-sensei was going to be doing some big important test with Evangeline-san and Yuuna insisted that we come along to watch.”
“Makie seemed really excited about it,” Ako added, repressing a yawn. “She said that Negi-sensei is going to be showing off his Kung Fu!”
Sunset frowned at where Yuuna and Makie were chatting excitedly. That idiot. Did she advertise this as some sort of exhibition match? “I don’t think this is going to be as enjoyable as that,” Sunset warned. “It isn’t going to be some simple display. Springfield is going to be fighting seriously against Chachamaru, and from what I’ve seen, she’s a very accomplished fighter.”
Ako and Akira shared worried looks. “You don’t think she’s going to hurt Negi-sensei, do you?” Akira asked.
Sunset shrugged. “He probably won’t get out of this unscathed. He passes this test if he manages to land a single blow on Chachamaru, but that’s like telling a mouse to bite a hunting cat. Even if he succeeds, he isn’t walking away without a few bruises.”
Ako winced. “W-well at least he’ll have a day to recover before class on Monday.”
“Yeah, about that.” Sunset looked away and rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. “Sorry I’ve kind of abandoned your tutoring since we got back from Kyoto. A lot of stuff has happened recently and I’ve lost track of a few things. It’s been important stuff, but I shouldn’t let everything else slip.” She winced and rubbed her arm. “The Boxing Club did a really good job driving that lesson home today.”
Ako giggled. “It’s fine, Nichi-chan. I’m not so hopeless that I need help every single day.”
“Though you should probably approach Asuna-san about that,” Akira added. “She’s been looking depressed every time she gets grades back this week.”
Sunset snickered. “Yeah, I noticed. I’ll be talking with her later tonight.”
They continued to chat as the train neared Mahora, and Sunset was surprised to find another student that didn’t aggravate her in Akira. The long-haired swimmer was relatively quiet most of the time, though the more Sunset spoke with her, the more she got the impression that she just didn’t see the need to contribute to an already chaotic environment. The topic turned quickly from academics to extracurricular interests, and Akira was able to recommend a few exercises to Sunset that would help her strengthen less-used but still important muscles.
“You use every muscle group imaginable when you swim,” she explained. “Arms, legs, and core are the obvious ones, but there are a lot of smaller muscle groups that most people neglect.”
Sunset nodded and gave Akira an appraising look. “You know, I never really thought of you as the muscular type, but looking closer,” she reached forward and lightly pinched Akira’s arm, you’re pretty solid under that smooth skin and shapely form.”
Akira blushed and swatted Sunset’s hand away. “Th-there’s no need to put it like that,” she muttered. “Ako-chan was right; you really have no shame when it comes to giving compliments.”
“And you all have too much when it comes to accepting them.” Sunset shook her head. “I mean, there’s humility, and then there’s you girls. Why can’t you just accept that you’re stunningly beautiful and that Ako is one of the most adorable girls in the class?”
Ako flushed as well and glared at Sunset. “H-hey! Leave me out of this! Besides, I bet you’d get flustered too, Nichi-chan!”
“We’ll never know,” Sunset replied, shrugging. “You’re all as bad at giving brazen praise as you are at receiving it.” She smirked and turned up her nose. “Works for me. I’ll just keep telling you how wonderful you are and making you flustered and there’s nothing you can-”
“Y-YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL!”
Sunset blinked. “Eh?”
Ako glared at Sunset, her face red with a mixture of embarrassment and determination. “Y-you’re one of the most beautiful girls in class! You’re smart! You’re talented! You’re really good at teaching others and helping them have confidence in themselves! There are times I wish you were my older sister, and every time I see you I get jealous of your chest!” She stood there for a minute, panting heavily before shooting Sunset a shaky but cheeky grin. “H-how’s that for brazen?”
Sunset blinked a few times, a very light blush coming to her own cheeks. “Um, pretty good. But it probably would have worked better if I weren’t distracted by our audience.”
Ako’s face switched rapidly from triumph to confusion to dread. She slowly turned her head to see that the entire train car was staring at her in an amusing mix of shock and encouragement. Setsuna was almost as red-faced as Ako. Konoka looked like she was about to start squeeing. Asuna, Ku Fei, and Negi were staring in confusion, while Makie’s face betrayed absolute cluelessness.
Yuuna shot Ako a grin and a thumbs-up. “Nice confession!”
Sunset and Akira spent the rest of the train ride trying to comfort their mortified classmate.
*****
They reached the World Tree Plaza just as the midnight hour struck. Chachamaru and Evangeline stood at the top of the plaza, the former in her uniform and the latter in a short white dress trimmed in black. Evangeline smirked when she saw Negi. “Hmph. So you came after all, boy. Well then, let’s hurry up and get started.” She jerked her thumb at Chachamaru. “If you can hit Chachamaru even once with your Kung Fu, then you pass. The match continues until you’re dead and can’t attack anymore.”
Negi nodded, smiling confidently. “Are those all the conditions?”
Evangeline’s smirk fell, the vampire put off by Negi’s lack of concern. “Yeah, that’s fine.” Her eyes narrowed. “More importantly…”
She pointed at Sunset and the girls who were gathered below and snickering at Evangeline’s dramatics. “CAN’T YOU DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR DAMN AUDIENCE?!”
“What’d she expect?” Sunset muttered to Akira as Yuuna and Ako started cheering. “She knows what our class is like. I’m surprised we managed to keep everyone else in the dark on this.”
“I think Yuuna-chan sent out a group text while we were on the train,” Akira replied. “Hopefully no-one sees it until this is all over.”
“Which hopefully happens soon,” Sunset said, keeping her voice low. “This match is either going to be really short, or a good deal longer than you all are going to be comfortable with.”
Akira raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“I have some idea of what Springfield might do to try to win this,” she said, watching as Negi and Chachamaru exchanged formalities. “If I’m right, he’s going to put everything he has into these first couple of minutes in a dead sprint. But if that doesn’t work…”
Evangeline lifted a hand, gathering everyone’s attention. “You may begin!”
Chachamaru dashed forward as Negi began to quickly chant under his breath. Sunset noticed him slip a wand up into his sleeve right before Chachamaru reached him. Her left fist struck out, and Negi barely got an arm up to stop it from smashing in his face. Chachamaru followed up with a right-hand punch, which Negi deflected. He spun around the outside of her arm, aiming an elbow-strike for her side. Chachamaru dropped her right arm to block it before turning and striking Negi with a rapid series of blows which he struggled to block and deflect.
“Wh-what’s going on?!” Ako cried, her eyes snapping this way and that to try to follow the action.
“They’re really going at it!” Yuuna cheered. “Just who are those two?!”
“Chachamaru doesn’t have a particularly fancy technique,” Sunset commentated, “but her straightforward style combined with greater speed and strength make her a dangerous opponent. Springfield is focusing on deflection and counters, which are his best bet at getting a solid blow in.” She frowned. But he’s running out of time. If he’s using the same trick he used in Kyoto to give his physical abilities a boost with his magic, then he probably only has a couple of minutes total. Athleticism is one thing, but improving speed, strength, reactions, senses, and everything else involved in a fight is going to be draining on his reserves.
Chachamaru lashed out with a kick, sending Negi flying backwards despite his block. He landed in a ready stance, but stumbled, falling almost to his knees.
“Oh no!” Ako cried. “Negi-sensei!”
Sunset smirked. “No,” she said. “He’s fine; it’s a feint.”
Chachamaru landed in front of him, lashing out again with her right fist. Negi suddenly grabbed her arm, pulling her down and straightening out of his crouch. He brought his right elbow forward to strike her unprotected chest.
Chachamaru jumped.
In a display of acrobatics that shocked everyone, especially Negi, the robot leapt over Negi’s head and landed behind him. She kicked out with one leg, striking Negi in the back and sending him flying forward. He rolled across the ground for a few dozen meters, eventually skidding to a stop.
Sunset sighed while the other girls stared in shock. A good try, but she saw right through it. That’s it, then; things get ugly from here.
“Too bad, boy,” Evangeline called down, “but that’s just how you are. Go wash your face and fix yourself up.”
“Aw, I can’t believe Negi-kun lost,” Yuuna whined as Asuna and Makie ran down towards him. “He looked like he was going to hit her there.”
“I can’t believe Chachamaru could move so fast,” Akira said, astonished. “Or that she’d be so rough with sensei.”
“Yeah, well,” Sunset muttered, “she’ll have to get a lot rougher than that before this is over.”
Ako stared at her in shock. “What! But Negi-sensei can’t fight anymore! Evangeline-san wasn’t serious about him dying, right?!”
“She wasn’t,” Sunset said, pointing down at Negi, “but he might be.”
Sunset watched in exasperation and the others in shock as Negi leapt to his feet. “Heh. Not yet. I’m not dead yet, Evangeline-san.”
Evangeline sighed, her face twisting in disdain. “What are you talking about? The match is over. Time for little brats to be in bed. Go on, shoo.”
“The condition was ‘until I die,’” Negi reminded her with a smirk. “So that means there’s no time limit, right?”
Evangeline’s eyes snapped wide. “W-What?! Don’t tell me that you’re...”
Negi took a stance facing Chachamaru. “That’s right. I’m going to stick at it until I land a hit, no matter how long it takes. Chachamaru-san! Let’s continue!”
Chachamaru hesitated, obviously reluctant. “B-But, Sensei-”
“Yaaaaaah!” Negi charged forward, striking out at Chachamaru.
And moving far slower than before. Chachamaru sidestepped him easily and brought her elbow down on the back of Negi’s neck, driving him into the ground.
Sunset sighed. “That’s what I was afraid of. His sprint is over. He doesn’t have enough energy to maintain his previous speed, and Chachamaru hasn’t slowed at all.” She hopped onto a low wall and sat down as Negi slowly pulled himself to his feet. “Might as well get comfortable,” she said. “We’re going to be here a while.”
“B-but that’s crazy!” Ako cried. “There’s no way Chachamaru-chan will-”
Negi’s fist smacked into Chachamaru’s open palm before she casually backhanded him across the plaza.
“Of course she would,” Sunset said, watching as Negi struggled to his feet again and threw himself back into the fray. “Springfield wants to be recognized as a warrior. I wouldn’t be surprised if he insisted that Chachamaru not go easy on him.”
“B-but that’s…” Akira whispered.
“He’s got no chance of winning,” Yuuna whimpered.
“D-does Negi-sensei really intend to continue?” Ako asked, tears in her eyes. “Even like this?”
Sunset nodded, watching as Negi went down again and slowly rose to his feet. “Like I said, we’re going to be here a while.”
*****
Five minutes turned into ten. Ten into half an hour. By the time a whole hour had past, most of the girls were shouting for Negi to just give up, begging him to stop. Even Evangeline seemed uncomfortable as another blow sent Negi to the ground.
“H-hey, come on, boy. Isn’t that enough?” She looked embarrassed at this point and like she was considering calling an end to the match despite Negi’s protests. “You’re motivated. I get the point already.”
“N-not yet.” Negi staggered for a moment before setting himself back into a stance. His left eye was swollen almost shut, and a line of blood was flowing down from a split lip. His whole face was beginning to be tinged in black and blue. “I’m not giving up yet.” With even less speed than before, favoring his left leg, he threw himself at the untiring Chachamaru.
Sunset sighed and looked over his audience. Yuuna, Ako, and Konoka were in tears. Akira’s face was frozen in a sort of numb horror. Even Setsuna had donned her mask of stoicism. Ku Fei and Asuna looked ready to jump into the fight themselves. Makie was the only one who watched the match with a degree of desperate hope.
She should just knock him out, Sunset thought, watching as Chachamaru smacked Negi away again. I’m surprised Evangeline hasn’t ordered her to do so yet, but I guess she’s determined for him to give up on his own. Chachamaru’s been as gentle as she can be, all things considered, but I’m pretty sure that breaking a leg or two is the only way Springfield will surrender.
“I… I can’t watch this anymore!” Sunset turned to see Asuna pulling out her pactio card. “I’m going to stop him before he gets himself-”
“NO! ASUNA!” To everyone’s surprise, Makie threw herself in front of Asuna, arms spread, desperate tears in her eyes. “DON’T STOP HIM!”
Asuna took a step back, stunned. “B-but-”
“Even if he’s badly injured,” Makie pleaded, “he still tried really hard to get to this point. I know what you’re thinking. I know, but… but it would be terrible for Negi-kun if you stopped him now!”
Sunset’s eyes went wide. Makie… do you actually, somehow, understand?
“Didn’t Negi-kun say he’d try his best?!” Makie shouted. “No matter what?!”
“But, but he’s just a kid who doesn’t know any better!” Asuna retorted. “He’s just being stubborn. I’ve got to stop him-”
“NO!” Makie screamed. “Negi-kun is an adult!”
“M-Makie-chan,” Asuna tried to reason, “no matter how you look at him, he’s a-”
“A child could never be stubborn to this point!” Makie argued. “I… I can’t express it well, but, I think Negi-kun is prepared.”
“P-prepared?”
“Negi-kun has an objective,” Makie insisted. “And he’s decided to give everything he has to achieve it. Asuna, do you, your friends, or your senpai know any boys who have an objective like Negi-kun does? Not just someone with a vague, ambiguous dream, but someone who can say ‘This is what I’ve decided to live for’?”
Sunset’s eyes went wide, and, unbidden, a memory forced itself into her mind. “I will ascend! I will become an alicorn on your level! And then I will make sure that no-one, NO-ONE has to suffer as I did! You can restrict my access to these tomes. Cast me out of the castle! Bind me hoof and horn in the dungeons if you want to! But I will never, NEVER stop until I’m powerful enough, measured enough, wise enough, to keep everyone safe!”
“Negi-kun is an adult!” Makie insisted, the desperation in her eyes replaced with surety. “He’s got an objective and he’s doing his best to achieve it! So… you can’t stop him now.”
Asuna was at a loss. She stared at Makie, dumbfounded. So did Sunset. So did the rest of the girls.
So did Chachamaru.
“Ah!” Evangeline shouted. “Hey! Chachamaru!”
“Eh?”
*CLANG*
Every pair of eyes snapped from Makie to Chachamaru, her head tilted sharply downward. Negi stood before her, breathing heavily, his fist bruised where it had struck her cheek.
“It… it hit…”
Negi collapsed to the ground, and the plaza erupted into cheers.
Thank you
I hope sunset doesnt figure out kanka. She’s already got both negima magic and equestrian magic, so she really doesnt need something as gamebreaking as kanka to be on the level of asuna or pre-magia erebea negi. Also, kanka is kinda already asuna’s thing.
I saw the "Hikari" part of Sunset's new name and I instantly realized what you did with it; I'm equally angry and amused . Not gonna lie, I'm a huge fan of Negima and I'm fascinated by the transformation it went through during the School Festival arc, so I'm really curious as to what to you do with this story.
Congrats on the update, and new cover art?!
Hope Sunset can master the duality she finds herself stuck in again. Looking forward to more!
I really enjoy this story and the new cover art. Where did you get the new cover art anyway?
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10181723
Meownishes commission on Deviantart.
10181628
Welcome to the party! I'm really looking forward to the Mahorafest arc myself. Hope you enjoy what I've got planned!
10181626
Eh, balance ain't really her thing. She's more of a "beauty in contrasts" type of character. She might get it eventually, but not any time soon.
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You're welcome!
10181772
Thanks for the info
Nice new cover art dood.
10181781
That's good to hear. Kanka would be ludicrously story-breaking at this point in the timeline. Also, I can't wait to see what Nodoka gets from her inevitable pactio with Sunset. Tho it would be pretty fun if it was sunset who ended up with the pactio card...
I think the best way I can describe Sunset is seeing the destination and the present, but not being able to see the journey. She knows she wants power, and she knows why she wants it in theory, but she isn't quite seeing what and where the paths she outlines for herself will cause and end up. The ends just justify the means for her.
Still, awesome chapter. The huge cast is getting a lot of personality to them, and I think your posting style helps. Since we can get a couple nicely sized chapters that makes it easier to read through them and pace your reading. It's easier to swallow than one huge chapter with the sum of the word count, and bulking them like this legs the plots of the moment and the character development flow more effectively.
I hate be that guy but have to disagree with makie what negi did isn't being an adult it's being a child, negi. He was being stubborn he wants something and does not care if it's the smart thing to do, as sunset pointed out chacha could have knocked him out, at any time that makes his win even more pathetic because that implies that she is pitying him, it's not a victory it's pity it also shows how that negi isn't mature enough to grow, because sometimes we have except defeat so we can grow. What negi did is nothing for anyone to be proud of or cheer for.
10181956
I don't know. Bull-headedness can definitely be a childish trait, but I think it can be an adult one too. The difference is, in my mind, motivation. Children are stubborn for the sake of being stubborn; they don't want to admit that they're wrong. Adults who exhibit this sort of stubbornness come in two flavours: the childish adult with childish stubbornness, and the adult who refuses - absolutely refuses - to back down because they know that what they're doing is right. This is the soldier who follows orders despite gunfire and explosions all around. This is the surgeon who continues to operate on someone even when they have a less than 1% chance of saving their life. This is the guy who faces down three thugs with knives despite being overweight and unnamed so that his girlfriend has time to run. This is someone who becomes a household name in basketball despite his high-school coach telling him that he would never succeed. This is the stubbornness of the martyr, willing to suffer any fate or indignation in pursuit of their goal, not because they're too proud to give up, but because the reward is worth it.
Negi knows that Chachamaru won't kill him. He also knows that Evangeline is his best chance at being able to eventually beat Fate. He has no reason to back down, so long as there's even a sliver of hope of success. And so he doesn't. And he takes his beating again and again and again because it is nothing - nothing! - compared to the thought of abandoning his goal.
Oh, you say that now...
10182034
Yeah, that's going to be an interesting scene.
10181975
The question then becomes, when do you stop acting? Just because Takamichi is teaching here now doesn't mean he hasn't acted. Sunset said it herself, he's a seasoned warrior. He's been taking actions for years. And (at least in canon for the source) he's still acting even while teaching. These issues aren't one that can be solved by one person, or by one means only. Sunset is probably still in the Equestrian outlook. As you've said, things are a bit simpler there. Not so much in the Negima!world.
AND on top of that, Takamichi is also at the academy for a reason. Negima spoiler reasons, but he has a reason for being there.
Oh, and to the ignorant mundane comment: It might be more of a protection than you realize. Most of the really dangerous magicals don't care about the mundanes unless there is some intersect between the worlds directly, like the School Trip where the class were just in the radius of the target, who was magical (though ignorant of that at her family's desires).
But it does leave the question: is someone obligated to give endlessly just because they are strong?
Sunset's not wrong, but neither is Takamichi. There are more than just one answer, and more than one part to the solution as well. Part of being able to act is being taught how to be better. It's like the chicken and the egg. Will to act, Ability to act, Knowing how and when to act... It's complicated xD
10182385
Yep. It's more than just the top mages being busy. It's just the nature of sapients in a sense. Even in the magic world, where magic is open and known, the same type of issues that plague the mundane one plague them too. Just with magical means instead of just mundane ones. Magic isn't really a cure all.
All this is the reason my favourite quote from the series is "Our Magic is not omnipotent... a little bit of courage is the real magic."
10182398
You wrote a good Sunset, and you wrote a story that keeps us entertained and also gets us invested and thinking lol
10182021
Honestly I agree with you on your statement on good stubborness, never give up attitude is a good thing in certain situations, but just not how negi actions came off because once again he knows chachi won't kill him and his holding back instead of knocking him out he won because they pity him chachi had to be distracted for him to win so he what's the gain he didn't prove anything because he was givin the win because of pity. I know negi means well and what he is does makes sense but it doesn't and that's what makes him a child. The mature thing to is to stop and acknowledge he isn't strong enough yet but he will Eva was going to train him regardless. Getting beat half to death didn't give him anything. I going give an example of this done right Luffy vs katikuri from one-piece Luffy got the dog crap beat out of him but he kept fighting because his friends needed him so he didn't give up, Ichigo vs noritora same thing Ichigo was beat but he had to fight no matter what because his life and his friends lives were on the line. Fighting someone until you die against and advisory who you can't beat and is only fighting you out of pity and win because her own master had to distract her, isn't a something to be proud of .
10182487
The point of giving her that much ki is that it's basically unusable in actual combat right now. She's facing the early Deku situation of all or nothing. With a bit of time to measure herself, she can tone it down to a specific usable level, but you don't have that sort of time in combat.
As for the why: that's how much magic she had in Equestria.
10182535
He he he, we shall see.
10182487
As odd as it might seem, it kinda works in the setting? Negima really did start off with a good third of the cast being overpowered from the beginning, until a couple arcs in when they power levels they had to deal with proved they were really still in the shallows of the serious water.
10182472
Meh, it could be seen either way. And certainly Makie's little speech didn't convince everyone entirely. We'll just have to wait and see how others' views of Negi change from this little adventure.
10182547
Overall though still a great chapter
Nice to see a new set of chapters.
10182587
Nice to publish a new set of chapters.
You know, Sunset will have kittens when she see Asuna using kanka on the first try!
I wonder if Sunset presence will make Asuna and the others train harder from the beginning. Because right now, they won't stand a chance in the tournament.
10182666
I'm still figuring out how much her presence will effect Asuna and Negi, but she will definitely be a heavy influence on others.
Well, Sunset definitely will have to either stop doing some activity or somehow get extra time to sleep.
10183477
Or just pull a Hayate and superhuman her way through 3 hours of sleep per night.
10183568
That doesn't really work. Humans need a minimum of five hours of sleep a day to stay sane and they start going crazy after three days of no sleep.
10184129
You've obviously not read Hayate the Combat Butler to have not understood the reference. I recommend it highly.
Welp, there is a Harry Potter in this world, the book that is, and a Jack frost, wow, OK, this is getting there :D.
10184636
Why should they be limited to Mediterranean myths and creatures? :)
10184575
Even Batman needs to freaking sleep.
10184990
Batman doesn't have magic. ;)
Or a time-altering villa to sneak into to catch an extra day of studying and schoolwork.
10185064
Using time magic to get extra sleep is one thing.
Using magic to avoid sleeping? Is terrible.
Heck a Buffy episode covered it, it had more side effects that drugs that wreck you immune system and body.
10185931
Counterpoint: this isn't the Buffy-verse. The Negima-verse is silent on the question of sleep-replacing restoration and rejuvenation spells, which means that any author entering that universe (being me, in this case) gets to set the rules. I'll also point out that other universes, D&D for example, have perfectly healthy sleep-substitution spells, so the idea is hardly without precedent. To take the rules, standards, and patterns of one fantasy universe and apply it across the entire genre of fantasy is folly; there is far too much contradiction.
10186001
Counterpoint: Most creatures do sleep for a reason and those that do not sleep like dolphins have a short.lifespan.
No one in Negima no matter the version whatever uses magic to avoid sleeping no matter how workaholic they are.
Don't you think there must be a reason for that?
10186044
No-one uses such magic *that we see.* We aren't with every character every hour of every day, far from it. And the mage that we do follow the most, Negi, is shown early on to have a limited repertoire of spells, and those he learns later on are combat-focused. An absence of evidence is not an evidence of absence.
10186129
To me it seems that if magic to prevent sleeping was ever used in Negima it would either go wrong by Negi casting is wrong or it would be to teach the lesson that people should get enough sleep.
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=negative+effects+of+lack+of+sleep
Besides Sunset literally can get extra sleep hours in the villa.
If that's not enough she should stop doing boxing since boxing is terrible as a fighting style, kick boxing is a bit better, but she is already learning martial arts.
10188041
Again, an absence of evidence is not an evidence of absence. The author couldn't possibly include every spell and scenario that could exist in his world. Or do you think that the spells we see in Harry Potter are the only spells that exist in that world?
Boxing is actually a decent fighting style. At the very least, it's a good foundation. Balance. Deftness. Anticipating your opponent's moves. Footwork. Strength. Speed.
That is one interesting parallel, the one between Negi and Sunset. Interesting, and somewhat scary.
In other news, there's actually two sports that use all of the body's muscles. One, as it's well known, is swimming. The other is artistic gymnastics, that is actually practiced by many MMA champions to better condition themselves. Sadly, Makie practices rhythmic gymnastics... Though that too needs quite some training.
10188119
Kickboxing you mean.
Boxing as is taught nowadays is not a good fighting style. Not only you don't use your legs, that are usually stronger that your arms unless you have been lifting weights a lot, but in a real fight your opponent is not just gonna use their arms and is probably use some weapon.
If you get a good punch you may knock someone unconscious or even kill them. But people does tend to protect their face and boxing has a whole lot of face punches. That's not gonna work well against mage barriers.
Not to mention her lack of control of her ki, she is way more likely to kill someone accidentally punching their face with a boxing punch that using another style.
Sunset is learning martials arts, so to combine that with boxing punches kickboxing is way better.
Thing is, while she liked boxing at first she completely forgot about it already and instead of talking things she got beaten up because she stopped going.
What if they want her to take part on a tournament or something? She might accidentally use kicks and get disqualified.
Plus her dropping boxing shows she actually knows she can't do everything and has to pick what to do.
A sports club is a huge waste of time, she may have liked it at first but why keep going if its evident they don't like her there?
If a person stops going to a club you find out what is going on and talk to them first, not have every member beat her up, that's bulling.
Worse, they had her fight people one after another so there was no way to win, since she would get tired from all the fights and eventually lose.
I find hard to believe she is being so much of a pushover.
This is the same mare who insulted her princess and yelled at her for not getting what she wanted.
She had completely forgot about the boxing club so why the hell would she keep going?
The boxing club are not the people who took care of her for months.
Why is she letting herself be abused and pushed around?
10188146
Is not bad for getting in shape since is both gymnastics and dancing. But is also quite easy to get hurt.
10188322
Pure-strength, hit 'em till they stop boxing hasn't been the dominant style since Jack Johnson dominated the boxing scene in the western world and Muhammad Ali coppied his style.
If she loses control of her ki, it doesn't matter if she's using a haymaker or a palm-strike; the person's either got powerful shields, or she's dead.
Martial arts? Where'd you pull that from? She's learning how to adapt her boxing into a more well-rounded style, but I never said she was learning a new style altogether.
You're assuming a lot about her association with the boxing club that I'm finding little textual evidence for.
First is the assumption that she totally forgot about the boxing club because she didn't care about it. She went 2 months without it being part of her routine, and when she got out of the villa, her priorities were mastering her new ki, studying magic under Evangeline, and working on her general combat skills so she could one day maybe stand a chance against Fate. Some things - boxing club, tutoring, library exploration - fell by the wayside without habit to reinforce them.
As for the club's actions, let me put it this way: did you like Newbie Dash? If you hated it, then the club's actions won't be anything but cruel to you no matter how I explain it. If you liked it, then it's a boxing club; boxing is how they communicate and a certain amount of physical repercussion is par for the course. Sportsball has arduous drills. Marching band has pushups. (*haunted* so many pushups...) Boxing has, well, boxing. Lots of boxing. And having served in her military, she would get that.
Sunset is at the point where she can mostly keep her ki suppressed while undergoing intense magical and physical training/combat You really think she doesn't have the mental discipline to keep herself from using illegal techniques?
I've already shown before that she's begun to form a camaraderie with her fellow boxers. They may not be the ones who took her in for months while she was helpless, but they do connect to her in a different way than the Library girls. (Fists connecting to faces, lol.)
Maybe I haven't shown her with her club enough. If so, that's my bad and I now know that I need to work on that. But you're making a lot of assumptions that simply don't have support.
Hey @Show Stopper, I was wondering about the music themes from MLP: FiM and EG canon (which you've hinted when Sunset Shimmer asked to learn to play the guitar). Well, do you plan to have Sunset experience more of music in the human world?
I hope you don't mind this question. I just watched this last night and it got me wondering about the EG music and Sunset Shimmer (both in EG canon and in this story). Then there is the Phantom of the Opera shoutout from the MLP: FiM kirin episode, Sounds of Silence ........
Plus, I listen to these YouTube music accounts too which got me wondering....... more so since this is Mahora Academy we are talking about so what are the chances of Sunset learning about other styles of music and being dragged by her classmates into sampling them. Basically, it's something for slice of life for her. I hope you don't mind the question.
https://www.youtube.com/user/ThePianoGuys/videos
https://www.youtube.com/user/ViolinTay/videos
10189464
As a fan of musical theatre, believe me, I caught the Phantom reference. :) I'm also rather a fan of the Piano Guys.
I haven't put overly much thought into Sunset's musical involvement, considering the action-adventure nature of Negima. However, there is quite a bit of SoL stuff in the series as well, and Sunset could always use more reasons to connect with her class. Definitely something for me to think about.
Thanks for the idea, and thanks for reading!
10189517
Thanks for replying and thanks for the story which also reminded me of the Negima manga series. I forgot about following it due to RL and the length it was.
As for music, well, it was one of the main selling points for both Sunset Shimmer and Equestria Girls canon. So why not bring some of that into the Negima setting while also hinting some of Sunset's life from musical world Equestria? Plus, I felt it'll help form slice-of-life side-story arcs which are unique to both Sunset and her musical minded friends/classmates.
Plus, that MLP: FiM Kirin episode hints that both the Phantom of the Opera story and musical never existed in Equestria before so it'll be something new for Sunset to see and hear. The same goes for the Piano Guys and other musical examples.
10188533
You showed her going to boxing once, liking it, and then it felt in the wayside due to the whole vampire deal.
Then she was almost killed by said vampire, who did not even ask or warm her that unlocking her Ki may kill her, then you time-skipped months and somehow Sunset and Evangeline were friendly with each other despite, again; that Eva almost killed her.
Is Sunset suicidal or something? She knows very well that Eva not only almost killed her, but did something very dangerous to her without explaining the risks or even asking for permission.
Worse she doesn't tell her friends anything!
If she really cares about her friends so much then why is everyone so ignorant that Evangeline almost killed her?
10189597
I've shown her in the club a couple of times.
Sunset has, as written, experienced flares and burnouts before. She doesn't consider her life to have actually been in danger. And despite Evangeline's rhetoric, she knew that Sunset would survive. "I hope you're ready for this, Nichibotsu. Because if you aren't, it'll probably devour you." You're reading far too much into this line, especially considering Sunset had less than two seconds to register that line before she was overwhelmed and passed out. Her next experience was waking up safe and sound and learning that she has a new source of power.