You might think that being suddenly given the ability to read the minds of those you touch would make dating easier. And to a degree, it does – Adachi, who became a “wizard” after reaching his thirtieth birthday a virgin, might not even have begun to notice his coworker Kurosawa if he couldn't hear his thoughts. Arguably, Adachi would have been in a sadder place in his life had this not happened, because he hasn't been single because he has no interest in romance; he's simply never had the opportunity or the courage to pursue it. Discovering that someone was interested in him helped him to overcome some of his hesitancy and self-esteem issues, especially because the “someone” in question is the heartthrob Kurosawa.

Things really begin to move between the two men across these three volumes, with four and five being the strongest of the batch. In large part this is because Adachi is at long last recognizing that Kurosawa is truly serious and not just acting on a whim. The men's temporary cohabitation in volume three goes a long way towards this, because Adachi is put face-to-face with Kurosawa's love in a way that makes it harder for him to write off. Their time together also has a very real impact on Adachi coming to terms with his own feelings – that it doesn't matter to him what Kurosawa's gender is or how out of his league he believes the other man to be, he's falling for him anyway, and that's a positive thing.

Because the third volume is still in the “getting there” mode, volumes four and five end up feeling a little more rewarding, because we're finally getting the payoff from three books of Adachi stumbling around his own emotions. Not that there aren't some wonderful moments in volume three; it's more that they're overshadowed by the events of the two that come after it. Chief among them is the entire “Kurosawa plans a date” debacle, where he tries to make the perfect day for Adachi and ends up tripping over himself a bit. His plans are unquestionably romantic; they just don't work quite as he hopes they will in practice. In large part this is because Adachi isn't entirely certain that he deserves the sort of pampering that Kurosawa has planned for him, but it's also because he's constantly uncertain about being seen in public with the other man. This, it should be noted, does not appear to be because of any internalized homophobia; rather, it's because he feels so inferior to Kurosawa that he's concerned that others will think he doesn't belong with him. Amusingly enough, the few minds he's able to read during the date don't reveal that at all – everyone seems to be gently entertained by how head-over-heels Kurosawa is for the clearly not quite comfortable Adachi, with the clerk at one store thinking that Kurosawa looks at Adachi like he's buying him clothes in order to be able to take them off later.

It goes without saying that Kurosawa is over the moon for most of the latter two books. He can't quite believe that Adachi likes him back and is bound and determined to keep things going. As he sees the other man's determination, Adachi begins to worry about one very specific thing: whether or not he should tell Kurosawa about his psychic ability. His hesitation is very understandable; it's what got the two of them together if you trace their relationship back, after all, and the more comfortable he gets around Kurosawa, the harder it is for him to hide his power. But he's got a point when he worries that revealing that he's known how into him Kurosawa is for a long time now or that he's been privy to his (mildly creepy) fantasies from the outset could spell the end of what's become an important relationship to him. At this point he doesn't want to lose Kurosawa, and that's why he's seriously considering revealing the truth. This, more than anything, really highlights how important the relationship has become to him, because his fear is solely that if he knows the truth, Kurosawa will leave him - and that's not something that he wants to think about now that they've really connected.

All three volumes continue to make a bit of a mockery of the parental advisory on the cover, as there's nothing racier than kissing, and that's only in one of the books. They're all also pretty short, so there's not a ton of bang for your buck, but the fact that there are so many chapters added for the volume releases (as opposed to the original digital serialization) is a positive for anyone who has been following this in the original Japanese, and it speaks well to the creator's investment in the story. Each book also has the accompanying side romance about Adachi's friend Tsuge and his budding romance with the deliveryman/dancer, and the two stories do merge briefly in volume five, which is a nice touch. Also, if you pay attention to these things, the drama announcement is made in volume four, which should give you a decent idea of how much of the extended version of the manga it follows; as of this writing the drama is available to watch streaming on Crunchyroll, and it's a pretty good show.

Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! has done a lovely job of rising above its mildly uncomfortable premise. Adachi's psychic powers now feel less like a gimmick or excuse and more like a manifestation of his social awkwardness, and the sweetness of the romance is able to shine through. It's a gentle and occasionally funny BL series, and if the title has been turning you away, it's worth ignoring to get to the charming story it hides.