With You, I Must Be (Irregular at Magic High School) (Boyxboy)

Chapter 1

I grew up knowing we would one day marry. It wasn't uncommon for arranged marriages amongst the clans to not be between a man and a woman. No, those were originally for marriages meant to produce a child. Had that been the idea, my sister would be the one marrying the Juumonji heir, not me.

She was already married to a member of the Nanase clan, one of the other 18 Assistant Clans. The agreement of their marriage was made before the Juumonji proposed creating a bond between our families. They had other ties with the other '10's, so they wished to form one with us as well. I think the fact we weren't a threat to their position as a Master clan probably influenced that decision somewhat, but nobody bothers asking me what I think.

I'm just 'Tsukasa's little brother' and nothing more. No matter what I tried to become, the fact I was a Tooyama made it impossible. So I kept with it. I developed my magic skills to a point I could easily beat my elder sister, honed my body until I take down the soldiers in the National Defense Forces. Instead of stopping there, I kept trying to improve in any way I could. Not out of ambition, but because I wished to become useful. Father seemed very pleased with my diligence, and when the day came where I met the father of the man I was to marry, he seemed pleased as well.

The first time I met the person who was Juumonji Katsuto, a small terrorist organization attacked the shopping mall we'd met up in. During the ensuing chaos, we'd gotten separated from our parents. I don't know how, but that person was able to calm and organize the group of civilians we were with. As we took them to safety, a woman had stepped out and aimed her magic at him. We had each reacted in different ways that ended in disaster. He cast his magic on her to knock her down, and I cast my magic on him to get him out of the way.

Mine finished first, his not a second later. Had mine been slower, the entire thing could have been avoided. As my magic shoved him out of her trajectory, his magic cast itself. But now his aim was off. His magic hit her wrist rather than her core, knocking her aim towards me. I didn't react fast enough. Her weapon fired a beam that tore through the flesh and bone of my upper arm, just having missed my face by a mere inch.

I don't remember feeling the pain of it. I only remember feeling relief that it was me, a lowly member of the Tooyama clan, rather than a member of one of the ten Master clans. Relief that this person whom I existed for was not harmed. I remember the stunned look on his face as he saw the damage after the blinding light of that woman's magic cleared. He was able to detain her, and kneeled beside where I had fallen, just as our father's ran up with the police at their heels.

Oh good... You didn't get hurt.

I remember saying that to him. Me, a boy of 11 years. And now, as a man of 19, I don't regret it in the slightest.

My gaze travels over to the window of the car, looking out at the passing scenery. A month after Katsuto's graduation from First High, our engagement was made public. A month after that, we were officially wed. There was no big ceremony, only a signing of papers followed by an extravagant party with so many people that we hardly saw anyone we knew, much less each other. I wasn't bothered by it. Nor was I bothered by the news that I would be staying with my new husband in a hotel on a private military base.

The very same one that hosted the Nine School Competition year after year. That was what bothered me a little. Sure, I wanted to spend some alone time with the man I was practically born for, but why did it have to be on a military base? And where many friends of his from school would see him in just two months? And... they would see me. I dislike being looked at, but with my appearance being the way it is, being stared at is inevitable.

My gaze moves away from the dull scenery of the military base as we enter. I stare down at my right arm, my casting arm. After losing it in the incident, an experimental treatment was done that gave me a new arm. In some ways, it seems mechanical, but it's quite alive. Alive and as much a part of me as my other arm was. I'm fully capable of magic and movement, the only downside being the looks I get for it. Nobody likes the sight of a MABR. Magically Assisted Bioframe Repair. They tended to be common amongst soldiers, but the treatment was eventually voted off of the table due to the unethical and painful process.

I like my arm. It sets me apart from everyone else, despite the looks I get for it. This arm allows me to continue being who I am, to continue to be of as much use as possible. My elder sister was furious at our father for allowing me to go through the horrible process, but I was grateful all the same.

Because this arm does one thing my old one did not.

Void Magic.