Editing Mahou Sensou:Volume 2 Chapter 3 (section)

===Part 8===
After the magical festival began joyfully as if it had been the bursting of fireworks, the excitement of it kept up the whole time. On the second day of the festival, Takeshi spent most of the day serving at the Sabbat Café. He was barely able to visit the B-class ghost ship with Kurumi and had no opportunity left to visit the other events. He was unable to enjoy the festival as it was meant to be. Kurumi mentioned that the result of her prediction was simply not a good thing. She was still depressed a week after the festival was over. Mui seemed not to have listened and her mind seemed to wander into another dimensional plane. Only Ida was satisfied with her work done as the chef of the Sabbat Café, but now that the semester exams were upon them, she had also become depressed. On top of that, he still couldn't control his magical affinity well and was angry at himself for burning his own desk in the previous day's class. Takeshi was preparing for the semester exams, and he would have liked to focus only on studying, but he wasn't good enough with magic to suggest that to Ida either, so he said nothing and continued training together with Ida and Kurumi.

This time the gym had much fewer people than it always used to hold. Takeshi brandished Twilight while Kurumi held her butterfly-patterned lipstick. Ida for her part, was focusing on her closed right hand where her look was which was a silver skull ring.  In that hand, she held an empty bullet casing. Which was Twilight. Oyassan the shopkeeper, had told Takeshi that Twilight's true ability, was the ability to harbor and cast magic from other mages as long as the mage was of intermediate or advanced level. To do that, the user of Twilight, had to deposit his magical power into it to make the cartridge appear and deposit the bullet filled with another mage's power there. Once inside, a trigger would appear which, when pressed, would fire the bullet releasing the magical power. Twilight would mix both magics to become stronger. Twilight's cartridge only held three rounds and Takeshi had received three of those special bullets from Oyassan. To use those bullets he had to hold the bullet in his hand and activate the affinity magic and then control as many magic particles to deposit them in the metal casing. Something extremely difficult to accomplish for even a basic level mage. However, it was quite useful to learn how to control the magic power so Takeshi handed one bullet to Kurumi and one to Ida. At that moment, Ida was in the process of activating her affinity magic while holding the bullet in her hand. However, as Ida's orange-colored magic particles began to gather in her right hand, they gradually expanded and contracted again and again.

Ida finally reached her limit and gave up. Then the orange particles dispersed completely and flew around the place blowing a hot air over Takeshi and Kurumi. However Kurumi protected herself from it by activating the "Protection" spell quite naturally.

-Aah! I can't take it anymore. -Said Ida throwing herself on the gym floor and lying down.

Takeshi and Kurumi looked at each other.

Ida's lack of concentration was a big problem. And that's why she was getting in that state every five minutes.

-Ida, try a little harder. -Takeshi suggested.

-A little longer? But I have to go home to buy dinner.

-But, you said you've already found a way to concentrate your magic power in your arms only. If you train more you will be able to master it.

At Takehsi's suggestion Ida threw a tantrum on the floor and said:

-Aaaahhh but I'm too tired.

Kurumi saw Ida do that, and stood in front of him and saying:

-Listen, if you don't train properly, you'll go around burning desks every day. Think more seriously about the problems you cause others and....

Takeshi stopped her at that moment

Kurumi looked up and looked at Takeshi and remained silent.  He didn't say anything to her, he just showed her a smile. Kurumi kept quiet as a sign that she didn't want to argue, but it was too late. Ida stood up and said:

-Ahh, okay, as you say. From now on, I'll do it on my own. Sorry to be a bother to you, Princess.

Ida raised a hand and prepared to leave for home.

-No, Ida! It's not what you think," Takeshi exclaimed.

She ran up to him and grabbed him by the back of his shirt to stop him from leaving. And said:

-Isoshima, I think that will be all for today.

-But, Takeshi....

Kurumi stared at Takeshi but he, just turned to look at her silently and nodded. Then she answered:

-Okay. In that case, I'll see you tomorrow.

-Okay.

Kurumi put her lipstick in her pocket with the finest care as if it were a treasure and left the gym.  Takeshi looked around noticing that the other teams were also training and were very focused on their own business. There were fewer students than usual, but they were all preoccupied as it seemed that had more priority over the semester exam. Everyone practiced in two-square-meter spaces and were spaced far apart, but the voices of everyone performing incantations and activating their magic echoed throughout the place. Between them all, their voices were drowned out. Also, since Ida's explosive magic was already quite well known, no one was close to them.

-I'm doing the best I can. -Ida mentioned. Who continued to be held by Takeshi's back.

-I know...

Takeshi was really aware of it. Ida was really putting her all into it.

He hadn't missed a single day since he was transferred. Something that used to happen at the previous school aside from late arrivals. On top of that, he practiced with the team without a break. His only drawback was that he didn't concentrate properly, but that was no big deal. At that moment, Takeshi released Ida and then sheathed Twilight.

-Then why am I not getting better? -Ida asked.

Then she turned to look with a face full of fury in a way that Takeshi had never seen before. It was truly disappointing to see.

-Don't worry. There's still time... the teacher said so, remember? Look at me, I can't control Twilight well either, but if we both train together....

-You're wrong!

ida exclaimed shaking her head.

-Ida...

-I don't have as much time to train as you do! -Ida said desperately.

Takeshi's expression turned grim and he replied:

-I'm sorry, I don't mean to have that much time to spare.

-Your magic doesn't hurt others. You can train without any problems. But I... I could burn someone with these hands at any time.

—…

-Or but still... I could burn Futaba just by touching her... -...

Even understanding Ida's frustration, Takeshi didn't know what else to say.

-Then... Train!

-Haven't I been training? Don't tell me anything else, it's no use.

-Ida, you're wrong...

-Now I'll do it on my own, so leave me alone!

-IDA!!!

Taking advantage of the fact that Takeshi had released him, Ida fled from the gym. Takeshi did nothing as Ida looked impatient.

"I think I'm an idiot..."

Learning to control her magic with training was something Ida was already aware of. Takeshi had nothing but the seemingly obvious. However, what Ida didn't know was how long it would take him to control it and as things stood, Ida was becoming more and more scared of her own power. Every time she burned something in the classroom, she received angry stares from the other classmates. The teacher always told her to train hard and that if she did it together with the two who transferred with him, it would be much better.

"Aah, lightning!"

Takeshi bent down and Twilight's hilt protruding from his hip, embedded in his ribs.

"I don't know what to do anymore..."

He stood up again and unsheathed Twilght again. Instantly, purple particles began to emerge from his body and gathered on the sword. The silver Twilight blade became covered with the particles and turned a very dark purple color.

The first time she activated her magic with the sword in the store, she had managed to make a cartridge appear in the hilt, but since that time, she had not been able to do it again. It wasn't enough that level he was using. But it was not possible to give more than that for fear of what happened last time. He would end up losing his magic power and they would have to take away his sword.

-Sorry... could you move aside...

Suddenly he heard someone's voice speaking behind his back, but before he turned to look, Takeshi lifted Twilight up and held her behind her head.

Immediately after that, she was hit by an air mass in the shape of a sphere about a meter in diameter that bounced off her head. Looking back, the sphere exploded releasing a blast of air that lifted Takeshi's hair. The purple circles of evasive magic inside Takeshi's pupils did not disperse in that wind, but instead cleared his vision. The girl who had launched that ball of air from a distance was stunned. But when the wind disappeared in front of Takeshi, she felt relieved and exclaimed:

-Sorry... Are you all right?

Takeshi whispered lightly that she was fine and sheathed Twilight again. Then the magic circles disappeared from her eyes leaving only a feeling of fatigue.