287 The Pure White Angel

"...She’s snoring," Luna whispered.

"Should we try a test attack?" I asked.

"That’s a bit much, don’t you think—"

Maybe letting her feel just a tiny bit of my mana would be okay.

I released a wisp of mana—about as much as a mosquito landing on skin—and let it drift toward Coco’s forehead. But the moment it touched her, it popped and dissipated.

It’s similar to my Inviolable Domain (Barrier), but her mana consumption is incredibly low. It probably adjusts its properties based on the incoming mana. I’ve been taught this technique before, but she seems to have optimized it even further.

"Mmm... I want to eat more... keep cooking..."

She’s having some incredibly arrogant dreams. What an outrageous teacher.

"Luna, let’s try it together."

"Wait, i-isn't that a bad idea?"

"It’s fine. Coco won't get angry over something like that."

I didn't actually know if that was true, but hey, it'd probably be fine.

We timidly flicked small amounts of mana at her, and she repelled both. However, I’d dialed mine up just a notch. Her defense consumed more mana on the side I hit. As I thought, she was repelling the threats with the exact amount of force needed.

So this is Formula Optimization.

"Not enough... make more, more... Hm? What are you kids doing?"

Suddenly, she opened her bleary eyes and rubbed her lids with a wide yawn. Luna jumped, but I kept my cool and answered her directly.

"Scouting the enemy," I said. "We intend to win the upcoming exam, after all."

She let out a little chuckle.

"You’re as diligent as ever. So, did you learn anything, boy?"

"For now, just that you're amazing."

Whether she liked my answer particularly much or not, Coco burst into a raucous laugh. Her bottomless cheerfulness reminds me of Shari. She's worlds apart from Teacher Milk in that regard.

"So, is Luna-chan your secret weapon?"

"Maybe," I replied.

"Wait, m-me?! I haven't done anything!" Luna squeaked.

"It’s a rare magic," Coco said, looking at Luna. "Certainly something we faculty don't possess."

Coco stuck something that looked like a non-smoking pipe into her mouth. She didn't actually want to smoke; apparently, it just helped her relax.

"What about Teacher Milk, Darius, and Teacher Chloe? Find out anything about them?"

"Not yet. We're still gathering intel and figuring out how to defeat them."

"Haha! Well, I'll give you a tip. We’re arrogant. We’re going to look down on you no matter what."

"I see. Anything else? Any other obvious weaknesses?"

"Vai-kun?! Surely that’s going too far—"

"I suppose so," Coco cut Luna off with a smile. "In that case, how about I tell you my weakness?"

Coco stood up, still smiling.

This was unexpected. If Allen were here, he’d probably ramble on about wanting to fight fair and square, but I couldn't care less about that. A win is a win. I'll use every advantage I can get.

"Well then, let's have a little spar."

But then, I reflexively averted my eyes. As Coco asked, "What's wrong?" Luna shrieked at the top of her lungs.

"T-Teacher! Your skirt is hiked up! Your underwear is showing!"

"Hm? Oh, I see. My, my... you're surprisingly innocent, aren't you?"

Good grief.

By the way, they were a blinding, pure white.

"...Hm?"

In that moment, I felt a slight chill in the air, but it was probably just my imagination.