WITH APPROXIMATELY FIVE MINUTES until the opening bell, Emi surveyed the area and noticed a massive crowd had formed around the canopy. The students whispered among themselves, watching in awe as an extraordinary scene unfolded before them. It was hard to blame them—it was definitely something one had to see to believe. Yuki Kageryuu, a sophomore at Phoenix Academy, stood in the shadow of the sapphire-haired boy, tugging at his ear with the exasperation of a parent disciplining their child. It was a spectacle bound to capture the attention of everyone around.
“You don’t see something like this every day,” Emi remarked, turning to glance at the canine girl beside her. “Isn’t that right, Ca…dy?”
Emi's voice trailed off when she realized Cady was in a daze, her tail wagging excitedly as the only indication of her awareness.
I guess that confirms it.
“Now why would my sweet little Sacchan want to hide from me, I wonder?” The raven-haired girl mused, tilting her head as if genuinely contemplating her own question. She lightly touched a fingertip to her chin and even produced an audible “hmm” for good measure. Then, she pulled out her mana crystal-powered (MCP) smartphone and held it in Gayle’s face.
“Could this be the reason?”
“Grr, damn that old Cuthbert,” Gayle growled. “Whether it’s primary or secondary, once a snitch, always a snitch…”
Yuki put away her phone and swiftly thwacked the boy on the back of his head.
“Oww!!”
“Is that any way to speak about an instructor?” She sighed and pinched the brim of her nose. “Gayle…it's the first day of school, classes haven't even started yet, and you're already pulling stunts like this? Vandalizing school property? What are you, twelve?!”
Ah, so that’s what he did. Emi thought. As foolish as that was, she was under the impression he had done something much worse. At that moment, her previous altercation with the boy replayed in her mind as well as the baseless accusation she’d made. A strange feeling washed over her.
“Relax, I didn't use the permanent spray paint so it'll wash off, no problem!”
“That isn't the point!” Her expression turned deadly serious. “Do you have any idea who you’ve just crossed?! Not only the Harvesters, but Radical Red as well! Once they find you, there’ll be…” She stopped and heaved another sigh. “You know what? We'll talk about this later. As for right now…”
Yuki then turned to the girls and smiled warmly. “Ladies, I would like to apologize on my friend's behalf. As his elder and senpai, I have taught him that he should always think before acting. As you can see, it hasn't quite sunk in yet. If he has offended you in any way, I humbly ask for your forgiveness. He will face appropriate consequences.”
Yuki bowed deeply. Emi raised her hand to protest, but then she saw the raven-haired girl give Gayle’s ear another forceful tug, instructing him to bow before them. He obediently lowered his head, face reddened with embarrassment and shame.
“I-I’m really sorry…”
Emi had to fight back a smirk. Not too long ago, the boy had some kind of tough-guy routine going only to find himself being humbled in front of strangers by an upperclassman just moments later.
This is just too good.
“Now, I do believe you all were in the middle of introductions?” As the others nodded, the girl gave the boy’s ear another tug.
“Ow… I’m positive you two already know my name at this point,” he grumbled, “but whatever, common courtesy and whatnot...“
Emi rolled her eyes. You’re one to talk about common courtesy…
The raven-haired girl tugged his ear yet again.
“Ow!! Okay, okay… Ahem. Anyways, I’m Gayle T. Mazin, the only son of beast hunter Rufino Mazin. After my pops died, things got.... messy regarding House Mazin’s line of succession, so my mother and I have been living in Little Hōjo ever since.” He pointed one thumb in Kat’s direction, the other in Yuki's. “S’where I met these two.”
As he finished, Emi brought a finger to her chin. “Hmm, I knew I recognized that lightning bolt strand from somewhere…” After mulling it over some more, her eyes widened. “Wait a minute...”
She and Cady looked at each other, and their gazes then drifted from the boy to his two friends. The contrast between the trio was much too remarkable for one to simply ignore. Their eyes finally settled on Gayle, both sporting quizzical looks.
““You're a noble??””
“Why the hell is that so surprising?!” Gayle hissed, clearly annoyed with their reaction.
The raven-haired girl then locked eyes with Emi, giving her a quick once-over before she continued. “I guess I’ll join in. My name is Kageryuu Yuki or ‘Yuki Kageryuu’ by Taqoran standards. Sophomore. Surviving daughter of the noble Clan Kageryuu of Little Hōjo. My ultimate goal is to rebuild my fallen clan from the ground up!”
So much charisma…
Yuki Kageryuu… The girl was a celebrity of sorts, especially considering the tragedy that wiped out her family just four years prior. The incident came to be known as the Kageryuu Massacre. With the death of her father and older brother, Yuki became the youngest head of a noble household in all of Taqora. Emi knew that Yuki attended Phoenix Academy, but never in her wildest dreams did she think she’d get to see her in the flesh so soon. And on the very first day of school no less.
“O-Oh, um… A-A pleasure to meet you, Lady Kageryuu,” Emi responded nervously with a reverent bow. Her heart was racing out of control. “My name is Emi Suzuki. Freshman. I’m a technomancer aiming for the Support Program.”
“Hm? Oh!” Cady eyed her new friend with curiosity before quickly mirroring her posture. “The name’s Arcadia Reynoso, but just call me ‘Cady’! I’m a freshman Investigator, hopin’ to become a patrol officer someday!”
Yuki chuckled at the sight. “Oh my. At ease, girls. That isn’t necessary here, we’re schoolmates after all. With that said, just ‘Yuki’ will suffice.”
Cady perked up. “Ooh, ooh, can I call ya, ‘Yu-yu’??”
Yuki giggled, using her free hand to cover her mouth as she did so. “Yes, you may.”
“Woo-hoo!!” Cady’s arms shot up into the air in celebration. Emi glanced over at her and furrowed her brow.
“Are you on some sort of school-wide nicknaming conquest?”
“Mmmmaybe...” She said with a sheepish grin, playfully shuffling her feet. “Although, I still haven’t thought of one for you quite yet.”
“Do I really need one, though?”
“Of course! Every friend I make at this school is getting one!!”
Emi winced. “Gods, help us all.”
“Suzuki…” As the girls ceased their prattling, Yuki appeared to be in deep thought, a finger on her chin, eyes downcast. When a thought finally dawned on her, she brought her gaze over to Emi.
“Say, Emi, you wouldn’t by any chance happen to be…?”
DING!
DONG!
DONG!
DING!
The opening bell sounded off and the crowd of students quickly dispersed. Students had approximately five minutes to report to their assigned classrooms. Yuki straightened up and shook her head.
“Hm. Another time, perhaps.” She gave Emi a small nod before she flicked her gaze over to Kat. “I was wondering where you’d run off to, Kabō.” She gestured to the canopy behind her. “Seems you’ve found the ideal napping spot.”
“Indeed.” The blonde-haired boy smiled, his blonde locks gleamed as the sunlight shone on the back of his head. He almost looked like an angel. “Sorry for not telling you where I was, Yucchan.”
Yuki gave a comforting smile. “Think nothing of it. I’m just glad to see that you’re relaxed.”
“What?!” Gayle looked appalled. “How come he gets off scot-free??”
“Because Kabō hasn’t damaged school property, unlike a certain someone I know.”
“Erk…!”
Gayle clutched his chest, his friend’s words seemed to have cut deep. He opened his mouth to say something else, but an umpteenth tug at the ear made sure to cease any further attempts to speak.
“Now, If you three will excuse us, I’ve got to go make sure this one here cleans the blackboards he ruined until they’re spotless.” Yuki bowed slightly before turning an eye down to the slouching boy. Gayle’s eyes grew wide with horror.
“Come now, Sacchan. Off to Class 3-A, we go!”
“Wha… ?? Aww, dammit!!”
“It was a pleasure to meet you both, Emi and Cady! Let’s meet up again during lunch hour!” Yuki waved before she and Gayle descended into the shadow under their feet. Gayle screamed and flailed about, but they continued sinking deeper until they were gone completely.
What the…?
“Um… Did that just happen?” Emi asked incredulously.
Katsumi simply nodded. “Mm. It is Yucchan’s preferred method of transportation. It may take some getting used to.”
“I…see…” She still needed to process what she’d just seen.
Kat gave a small chuckle and turned his eye to the girls. “Well, then. Shall we head to class?”
“Uh, sure! I guess…”
“Lead the way, Mister Kitty!!”
Without another word, the blonde-haired boy and the girls strolled down the south promenade and into the schoolyard.
◆◇◆
“Mm. A cat girl with bandages, you say?” As the three of them walked, Katsumi pondered this, his lone eye wandered over to the open fields, where the sparring students were now scrambling for their belongings, running across the neatly trimmed grass towards the academy’s main building. “Ah! That would have to be Ms. Freya Ginóbili from Clan Nishikawa!”
“Clan Nishikawa?” Emi repeated. That would explain the cat girl’s Hōjinese etiquette earlier.
“Mm. For generations, the Nishikawas, much like my family, have served as vassals of Clan Kageryuu,” he said proudly. He removed his shinai bag from his shoulder, admiring the Clan Kusanagi insignia stitched along the flap. A split second later, something changed in his lone green eye as he traced his finger along the insignia.
““......””
“Following the massacre…many of the major clans fell to that demon…Countless loved ones were lost…” His words gave off an air of both melancholy and tranquil fury. Emi felt her heart sink. It was well known that Yuki wasn’t the only one grieving from such a heavy loss.
“Huh?! Oh! M-My apologies…” The blonde-haired youngster broke from his momentary trance and exhaled. With a smile back on his face, he continued. “However, the few surviving clans remain loyal to the black dragon and, by extension, to Yucchan...or perhaps 'Lady Yuki’ would be more appropriate.” He gave a light chuckle. “Among those clans are the Nishikawas, who helped the rest of us a great deal during the aftermath.”
Emi nodded. “I see.” Learning more about the Nishikawas only sparked more questions about Freya. “So how’d she end up with them? And do you know why she’s all bandaged up?”
Katsumi shook his head, putting his shinai bag over his shoulder again. “Alas, I know not the details of her injuries,” he replied, “but I hear she was held captive by sapiencentric terrorists. It's not a stretch to assume they're connected to her time with them.”
“What? That’s…horrible!”
“......”
Emi exclaimed, but Cady remained silent. Her gaze met Katsumi's, quietly asking him to continue. Upon seeing this, he nodded.
“During the Battle of Cambridge, Nishikawa-tono, the family head, came across Ms. Freya. Nishikawa-tono, according to my father, kept silent on the specifics of her ailment, saying only that she was ‘constantly in pain’ and that he was ‘working on a solution’.”
“Hmm, a ‘solution’, eh...” Cady took a sip of her expresso. “Makes me wonder what exactly this ‘ailment’ is…”
Emi turned to face her. “You sound like you might have an idea.”
The dog girl shook her head. “Nah. Not at the moment. I’d need to see this catgirl myself before I could even begin to hazard a guess.”
“Makes sense.”
Cady's tone had changed after hearing about the mistreatment of another beastkin, but perhaps she was choosing to tackle this with a cool head rather than allowing any emotions she was experiencing to run wild. A stark contrast to the cheerful young pup she'd met earlier that morning.
“Mm. At any rate,” Kat continued, “I can assure you that Gayle is innocent. Yes, his behavior may give off…a less-than-favorable impression. You’ve witnessed it first-hand.” He smiled as he said this, but then his face became solemn, and Emi felt her chest constrict. “However, looking down on others for being different isn't something Gayle would do.”
Upon hearing all this, an intense feeling of guilt and shame washed over Emi. It was unbecoming of her to jump to conclusions like that in the absence of solid evidence. She would have realized it sooner if she had properly regulated her emotions. She felt like a fool.
I’ll have to apologize the next time I see him...
“Hmm.” Cady twirled her espresso can thoughtfully. “Then, if Sapphie didn’t bully that cat girl, then who did?”
Emi furrowed her brow. “‘Sapphie’?”
“My new nickname for the Mazin boy!”
“Gotcha.”
“Well, in a place like Phoenix Academy with countless students from many diverse backgrounds, you’re bound to find a few who truly believe other races to be inferior to themselves...” Kat said, shaking his head. Despite his matter-of-fact tone, his body language betrayed his true thoughts on the subject. “Even demi-humans do it amongst each other. What they hope to accomplish in doing so remains a mystery to me.”
The girls nodded. It had barely been a century since the enslavement of beastkin was abolished during the middle of the Industrial Age, however, enmity remained between the beastkin and the numerous noble households who previously owned their kind.
“I don’t want to hurt you…or anyone… So I beg of you… Stay. Away.”
Freya’s words echoed in Emi’s head. She tensed up, wondering where the cat girl had gone and if she was okay. Cady turned to Emi. Noticing her inner turmoil, she gave her a consoling pat on the shoulder.
The three of them had stepped through the entrance to the main building and into a massive crowd of students. Judging by their neckties, the majority of them were freshmen. The first-floor classrooms were where they would be spending the remainder of their academic year. The first period would serve as their homeroom. They would then switch to another classroom come the next passing period.
As for Emi, Cady, and Kat, their destination was Class 1-A.
“Oi! Move it, you dullards! If any of you make my sister late on her first day, so help me…”
“Huh?! P-Pardon me!”
“O-Oh! S-Sorry, Sir…”
“It won’t happen again!”
Emi spun around, eyes focused on where she’d heard the voices. Standing outside of Class 1-D yelling at a group of freshmen was a tall human boy with short auburn-colored hair. His orange necktie donned the “III” numerals, indicating that he was a junior. He had a nasty scowl on his face, serving as a warning to everyone around him that he wasn’t to be trifled with.
“What’s a junior doing here?”
“Wait, isn’t that Valcour Harvester?”
“Yeah, it’s gotta be.”
“Oh, man. Who’re those cuties with him…?”
Many students spoke amongst themselves as they eyed the situation from afar. With Valcour were two female students. On his left stood a human girl with long curly hair that was an identical color to his. She was rather pretty with soft and bright facial features. The kind of looks that certainly caught the eye of many boys in passing. Judging from the numerals on her necktie, she was a freshman, just like most students present.
Emi deduced that this girl must be the ‘sister’ that Valcour was making such a fuss about. She was blushing heavily and mussing her hair nervously. Her brown eyes wandered around the halls as her brother continued to rip into the panicked freshmen. Given how boisterous he was being, Emi could hardly blame her. As she assessed the situation more thoroughly, Emi came to realize that some of the frightened students weren’t even looking at Valcour.
“Come now, Lord Val. Can’t you see you’re embarrassing poor Lady Jessica?”
Emi’s gaze flicked over to the taller girl on Valcour's right, who had long flowing pale green hair. Unlike her companions, she wore a Taqoran-style maid’s uniform; a black knee-length dress with a white ruffled apron with a matching headdress. Judging by this attire coupled with the way she’d addressed the siblings, it was safe to assume that she belonged to them. It was here upon further inspection that Emi noticed something rather unique about this girl. First, it was her eyes. They were an aqua color so bright that her pupils were barely visible. Next, two large silver antennae were protruding from where her ears would’ve been, had she’d been human. Emi gaped in awe.
An automaton? Wow…
That alone meant that she was probably their bodyguard as well. Nobles often purchased automatons to protect their children while in public as they were more cost-effective than employing natural-born servants. No weekly pay was required and the only replenishment they needed was manatite to keep their cores running. This, however, only applied to noble families that were pro-magitech. There were still many others that condemned its existence entirely, the natural enemy of any aspiring technomancer.
“Gah!”
It then hit Emi that she’d been staring too long. Jessica was the first to notice her, eyeing her with alarm and confusion. Then the automaton maid met her gaze as well, looking back at Emi with a frigid calm.
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“U-uh…”
With her breath catching in her throat, Emi quickly turned on her heel and scampered away. Looking straight ahead, she noticed that Cady and Katsumi had already reached their destination. Not wanting to be left behind, she dashed for the classroom without looking back. Just as she’d stomped through the door…
DING!
DONG!
DONG!
DING!
◆◇◆
Unlike their rival schools—Requiem School for Girls and St. Magnus Academy of Scholarship and Knighthood—Phoenix Military Academy’s interior took on a more Eastern-inspired architecture rather than the traditional Taqoran approach. Class 1-A was no different. The floorboards were crafted from Everwoodian Oak, buffed to create a nice glossy effect, reflecting the fluorescent light tubes hanging from the fixtures on the ceiling above. Forty desks, made from the same oak, were rowed up in tens, each in a single file line facing a wooden podium adorned with the PMA insignia and long, rectangular blackboard.
Class started fifteen minutes ago, yet Emi, Cady, and Katsumi sat with thirty-four other students with no instructor to speak of. With nothing left to do but wait, most of the kids engaged in idle chatter to kill time. Seated by the window, Emi turned her attention outside. Her eyes lit up with wonder as she saw a flock of spear-beaked herons flying over the now-empty fields. She’d seen plenty of them in New Dragonia during her travels with her mother. That nation had a lot of creeks and rivers teeming with aquatic life, the perfect nesting spot for birds such as these.
As Emi continued to admire the mabeasts from afar, she felt a tap on her shoulder from behind. She turned to see the Boonean canine girl smiling back at her.
“So, whaddaya think our instructor will be like?”
Emi shrugged. “Beats me. Although, it is a bit odd. Normally, an academy of this caliber would only employ the best mages for the job. Competent and punctual. So either something came up, or we’ve got a wild card on our hands.”
Her mother had warned her about these types of instructors. They were a mixed bag. Unconventional, frequently marching to the beat of their own drum. While few have proven to be clever enough to produce some of the greatest mages in past generations, others have gone down in academic history as the continent's biggest laughingstocks. Put simply, many young mages were apprehensive to place their future in the hands of such a figure.
Just then, Cady perked up, ears twitching.
“Ooh, ooh! Someone’s…”
The door flew open with force, drawing every eye in the classroom towards the sapphire-haired boy standing there. He was doubled over, panting heavily as he tried to catch his breath.
“...coming.”
Oh, gods… Emi groaned. Yet another thing she dreaded had become a reality.
“I…I made…it!” He surveyed the room and furrowed his brow. “What…no instructor?”
“Hasn’t turned up, yet,” a large orcish boy replied. He was sitting at the first desk by the door. His eyes were laser-focused on his knitting. “Can’t be marked late if there’s no instructor to call it. Consider it a win.”
“Heya, Sapphie! Guess Yu-Yu’s finally let ya outta timeout, huh!” Cady called out, waving to him.
Gayle’s eyes found the trio. He stood up straight and scoffed. “Sapphie? What the hell happened to ‘blue hair’?”
“Cady had chosen a more fitting nickname in your absence,” Katsumi explained, sitting at the desk across from Emi. Gayle walked over to an empty desk in front of his childhood friend and sat, crossing his right leg over his left. The other students were now speaking in hushed voices, all the while shooting glances in the foursome’s direction. Due to the ruckus from earlier, it wasn’t too far off to assume they’d gained quite a bit of a reputation among their peers.
Emi covered her face in embarrassment. This was the last thing she wanted. And just when she thought things couldn’t get any more awkward, Cady addressed the mammutusk in the room.
“Emi’s got something to say to ya, Sapphie!”
“Huh?”
“What?!” Emi whirled around to eye the dog girl with a look of apprehension. “C-Cady! What are you…”
“Listen, Emi,” she said, lowering her voice. “When Mr. Kitty cleared Sapphie’s name, ya seemed awfully glum. That’s a look of guilt if I’ve ever seen one. Sooo, why not take this chance to set things right?”
“B-But…!”
Cady just smiled back at her. The kind of smile a person made when they knew they’d won.
“......” Emi was dumbfounded. She’d only met this girl earlier this morning, yet she already seemed to know what was on her mind. Was she that easy to read? If so, she was glad her mother wasn’t around to see her crumble like this.
She heaved her heaviest sigh of the day.
“...Fine.” After hurling such a wild accusation at the boy, she owed him at least this much. She didn’t want to make enemies with her classmates, or anyone for that matter, so clearing the air here was the most optimal solution. Emi sat up straight and glanced over to Gayle, who was waiting to hear what she had to say. This made her gulp. She could feel the pressure building as she began to open her mouth to speak.
“H-Hey, Gayle was it?”
He nodded. “Mm-hmm. What’s up?”
“Look, it… It was wrong of me to blow up at you the way I did back there and cause a big scene. I don’t even know you and I went and accused you of something so awful. That wasn’t fair to you at all. So for that…I’m sorry.”
“......”
“......”
““......””
A hush fell over the four teens. Emi and Gayle maintained their eye contact, never breaking it. Cady and Katsumi were watching the scene unfold with bated breath, closely analyzing both the scarlet-haired girl and the sapphire-haired boy. Reading their body language, they silently speculated on which of the two would break the stalemate first. Gayle finally satisfied their curiosity.
“Um… That’s cool, I guess,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “But do I know you from somewhere?”
“H-Huh?!”
““Wha…?!””
Emi and the others exclaimed loudly at Gayle’s curt response. Here she was trying to carry the can for her wrongdoing and all she got in return was nonchalance. She was trying to apologize here! Was he trying to make a fool out of her?
“Why, you…” Her blood began to boil again. Having had just about enough of this boy, she stood from her seat and fixed him with a mean glare. Right when she was about to give him a piece of her mind, his eyes lightened up.
“Oh! It’s you, Red!” Gayle beamed, pounding his open palm with his fist. “Wow. I didn’t even recognize you with that cute expression. It’s like night and day! With the way you were scowling at me before, I’d figured that ‘angry’ had to be your default expression.” He let out a chuckle before stroking his chin in thought. “Hmm…Though, if I had to choose, I’d say this look suits you a lot better.”
“......!” Emi turned beet red. She was at a loss for words following his tactless comments. There had never been a single person in her fifteen years of life who could make her so angry in such a short amount of time. That stupid grin on his face only served to exacerbate her fury.
“You…you insufferable little…”
Cady stood up and put a hand on her new friend’s left shoulder. “Now look whatcha did, Sapphie.” She frowned at him, shaking her head. “You’ve gone and poked the drop bear!”
“Yeah, yeah. What else is new?” Gayle scrunched his face in annoyance and shrugged. “Getting angry all the time is bad for your health, y’know!”
“You’re one to talk,” Katsumi chimed in, appearing to have fun with this exchange.
“Urk!” Gayle clutched his chest, wounded by his friend's words.
“Perhaps I wouldn’t be having this problem if someone didn’t up and jack my coffee!” Emi reached out her right hand to the boy expectantly. “And now that I know you’re some big shot noble—you owe me fifty grams!”
“What?! As if!” Gayle snorted at her, crossing his arms. “Because of you, I still have this gods-awful taste in my mouth! What that coffee did to my buds should be considered a capital offense!”
She lunged forward and grabbed him by the collar. “You know what—”
Before things could escalate any further, the classroom door swung open once again. Just as before, all students present broke from their conversations to focus their attention on the entrance. Had their homeroom instructor —who was now twenty minutes late —finally arrived at last? Emi certainly hoped so. If she had to sit in class any longer with nothing to distract her from this sapphire-haired dolt, she was going to have an aneurysm or worse! That hope was dashed only a few seconds later.
“......!”
In walked a bizarre-looking girl of average height and a mature figure. Her hair, flowing down her waist, looked as if it had been splashed with several different coats of paint, A faded red with additional strands of blonde and blue that was styled into twin ponytails.
This was, in fact, the most extreme example of miasma exposure that Emi had ever seen.
The strange girl’s alternate uniform was far more risque than what even Yuki was wearing, consisting of a midnight blue vest embellished with the Phoenix Military Academy emblem over a black long-sleeved fishnet top that stopped just shy of her exposed navel (which had a piercing). Paired with this was a short black skirt and reddish-orange thigh-high stirrup leggings. It didn’t take Emi long to realize that the girl wore no shoes with her leggings, the bands at the very bottom wrapped tightly around her insteps and arches. The balls of her bare feet slapped against the Everwoodian Oak floors as she made her way to the front of the room.
The most eye-catching element of her peculiar attire, though, was undeniably the colossal pink tricorne perched atop her head, adorned with a striking yellow skull emblem.
“Whoa…who is she?” Emi wondered in a low voice, eyeing the girl curiously.
“No clue,” said Cady. “It’s odd, though. I picked up neither a scent nor sound comin’ from out there…”
It may not have been obvious to Cady, but Emi and the other mages, even at their level, could easily deduce that the older girl was using her mana to mask her presence. Even now, they couldn’t pick up even a trace of energy from her. Had she not been in their line of sight, none of them would’ve noticed her. In any other setting, be it combat or general survival, an oversight such as this could spell fatal consequences.
The older girl finally stopped in front of the podium and turned to face the dumbfounded freshmen class. Her eyes were closed and she appeared to be humming something to herself. Emi took in the girl’s visage a bit more and noticed the tattoos on either arm underneath her fishnet sleeves. Due to the dragon-like shapes she could make out, Emi surmised that New Dragonia was the girl’s country of origin, where many followers of the Church of Gyrfyr remained. Around the girl’s neck was a mini orange necktie that had the ‘IV’ numerals stitched onto it.
A Senior? Is she here to relay a message from our instructor? That was the only conclusion Emi could come up with.
“Ahem!” The girl coughed humbly as if requesting the class’s undivided attention. Not that she needed to, there wasn’t a soul in that room who dared look away from her. How could they? She finally opened her eyes, revealing a striking bright violet color that wandered around the classroom, seemingly appraising every student present one by one.
She stayed like that for a while. Feeling a bit nervous, Emi turned to Katsumi for answers, but just like the rest of the class, his gaze remained solely on the older girl before them.
And then, without warning, the strange girl raised her arms, then positioned her feet outwards. She then put one foot in front of the other, her right heel touching the instep of her left foot. Bending her knees, the senior girl leaped into the air, twirling like a spinning top. The students gasped at this sudden happening before them. With not much else to do, watching was their only option.
But at this moment, one question came to them collectively: Is…is she really…dancing?
When she finally landed, the girl broke into another dance, twirling, falling backward only to land in a full-bridge position. Pushing herself back to her feet, she leaped into the air once more, crossing her right leg in front of her left, raising her left arm while pointing her right one to the floor. Returning to the floor, with her arms still in their previous position, she began to sway her hips and undulate her torso in rhythmic motions.
“......”
“......”
“......”
The class continued to watch on in silence as the girl shimmied and shook her entire body, bringing her arms together, her hands moving in a circular motion as if she were forming some sort of sphere.
“......!” Emi was speechless. This was unlike anything she’d ever seen before. Could this have been some kind of New Dragonian custom she wasn’t privy to?
The senior girl then spread her arms outward, throwing her head back and looking up to the ceiling. After a brief pause, she crossed her legs for a final time and leaned forward, bowing.
“......”
“......”
“......”
Is it…Is it over?
No one took their eyes off the girl as she remained in that position a while longer. She was as still as a statue. To Emi, it didn’t even look like she was breathing. Before her concern could mount up, the senior girl then raised her head and her body returned to a neutral position. Without a single word, she spun on her heel and walked out of the classroom, shutting the door behind her.
““““““......”””””
The students took a moment to ruminate on the passing moment. Not long after…
“The hell was that all about?!”
“Was that real?”
“Looks like that senior had way too much to drink last night!”
“I’ll say! Either that or she was doin’ some kinda freshmen hazing ritual!”
The classroom erupted with confused yet lively chatter. Many of the students present couldn’t make heads or tails out of what they’d just witnessed, but one thing was for sure, it was something they would never forget.
“Heh. Well, that was certainly somethin’!” Cady beamed, tail wagging with excitement. “An interesting way to welcome a freshmen class, don’tcha think?”
“Honestly, I’m still trying to process the whole thing,” Emi admitted sheepishly.
“I see, so that must have been her,” Katsumi said, mostly to himself.
Upon hearing this, Emi turned to him. “Hm? What do you mean, Katsumi? You know who she is?”
He crossed his arms and nodded. “Indeed. That girl…was none other than the Ferine Fable herself…Shina Urahara.”
“Shina Urahara…” Emi repeated the name to herself. Why did it sound familiar?
Gayle turned to face Kat, slamming his hands on his desk. “Are you serious?! Project Galanga’s second strongest showed up here? What for?”
“I too share in your confusion, my friend. It is quite bizarre, to say the least.”
A lightbulb lit up within Emi. That’s where she’d heard the name before. Project Galanga was an elite faction exclusive to Phoenix Academy, consisting of five of its strongest students. The young woman dubbed “The Ferine Fable” certainly lived up to her epithet. Despite being ranked second only to “Black Fang”—the alias of Dante Leerex the school’s current ace—in truth, very few outsiders had ever seen Urahara in action. She never participated in any of the annual events, not even Academy Showdown. Thus, many folks often called her standing within Project Galanga into question, especially students who were gunning for a spot in the faction themselves.
That still doesn’t explain why she was here, Emi thought. And that dance, there has to be something to it.
As she replayed the dance routine in her mind, she recalled that Shina had worn a solemn expression on her face throughout. What could it mean?
Knock!
Knock!
Knock!
There was a sudden knock at the classroom door, the students looked over to see a tall grizzled man standing in the doorway. He sported neck-length black hair and a goatee with a gray streak in the middle. A big scar shaped like an ‘x’ sat on the left side of his brow. He was dressed in a blue sports coat over a white button-up, matching dress slacks, and black leather dress shoes. The students gazed at him with curiosity. Given what they'd just witnessed minutes before, they weren't exactly sure what to expect here.
“Good morning, class,” he said in a raspy voice, pushing up his oval-rimmed glasses with his fingers. “Please do forgive my lateness, I had a bit of business to attend to that needed to be dealt with swiftly.” He sported a look of bemusement at that last part. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he trudged over to the front of the classroom. “Y’see, normally, we’d start off these school years with an opening ceremony; our headmaster would give a long tired old speech about ‘applying yourself’ and ‘being the best students you can possibly be’, but get this: said headmaster decided to breach protocol and cancel the ceremony altogether and then take a trip across the country instead, leaving his faculty to pick up the slack…”
Emi remembered reading that on PMA’s virtual bulletin. While she did find it perplexing at first, she’d figured there was a plausible reason for it. However, upon hearing this from their instructor the moment he walked into class, coupled with the exasperation in his tone, Emi was getting the impression that the reason for the headmaster’s departure was anything but plausible.
Finally, the instructor stopped at the podium and faced his students.
“So, one angry Kazam call, later,” he went on, “we finally managed to smooth things over with The Board, no one got suspended and/or terminated, and that’s why I’m standing here before you, twenty-five minutes late.”
“Twenty-seven,” a blue Oni boy called out.
“Ah, twenty-seven minutes, sorry.” The instructor smirked sheepishly at this. He didn’t seem too carefree, Emi thought. Perhaps she was too hasty in her earlier assumption about him potentially being a wild card. She mentally kicked herself for once again jumping the gun about a stranger. Disappointed in herself, she chose to stifle those thoughts and focus on the instructor.
“Now that that’s outta the way, let’s get down to business!” He extended his right hand, palm upward. With a single wave, the blackboard behind him shifted. Seconds later, the board appeared to be made of concrete. He then muttered an incantation as he raised his left hand. Following his incantation, dew drops danced about his fingertips before dissipating into the air, forming a sphere-like shape above his palm.
SWHUPSSSSSSSH!!!
Swinging that arm back towards the board behind him, the water splatting on the hard surface. The children observed as the water began to travel over the board, forming a variety of shapes. Emi's eyes glowed with recognition.
They’re forming letters!
“The name’s Martin Seagrain. Water mage. I’m a former student here at PMA, Class of 3120. Seems there are a lot of familiar faces in this class. That can only mean that some of your parents were probably classmates of mine…” His eyes fell on Emi. She tensed up at his gaze, bracing herself for what this could mean. “Why, some of which I’d consider to be good friends.”
“Oh?”
A warm smile spread across his face and Emi sighed with relief. Thankfully, his words weren’t filled with indignation like she’d feared but rather admiration. I see…so she actually did have friends, she thought. Her mother never really spoke of anyone else during her time at Phoenix Academy, so Emi assumed that she didn’t get on well with her peers. Guess I was wrong.
Mr. Seagrain looked at a few others before he continued. “Y’know, things were a lot different when this academy was founded. ‘Phoenix Military Academy’ used to mean that young mages were trained specifically to join the Royal Army upon graduation.” His gaze traveled out a nearby window, where one could see The Yolk looming eerily in the sky some hundreds of miles away. “My, how times have changed. Centuries ago, before the founding of the academies, the raids from The Yolk were even worse. Our ancestors needed all of the firepower they could get, so many young mages had to learn how to fight and defend their homes alongside the adults. However, many of those children were far from ready and met cruel fates at the hands of the savage monstrosities that emerged from that red sphere…”
“......”
He paused for a moment, perhaps letting what he’d just said sink in for his students. Once he saw that he had their full attention, he went on. “Hence, The Board was formed and in turn, they worked with the nobility and their territories to form the major secondary schools of Taqora that you know today…” He pointed outside towards The Yolk. “All to properly educate the young into strong and productive mages for generations to come. To ensure that at any given time… whatever abomination may pass through that thing…”
Mr. Seagrain brought his finger over to his students, pointing with purpose. “...kids like you will be ready!”
There was another moment of silence following these words. It was clear to Emi that Mr. Seagrain wanted them to truly understand what it means to be a student at not just Phoenix, but the other major academies as well. All that their forebears established in the past was to better prepare their descendants for what was to come.
With that, Seagrain lowered his arm and sighed.
“These days, we’ve reached an ‘era of peace’,” he said, folding his arms. “Hell, there hasn’t been a raid in some twenty years, but don’t think for a second that means we can take it easy. The ‘military’ in Phoenix Military Academy may only be in name alone these days, but whatever career path you happen to be shooting for, the classes will be tough, and as the years go by, they’ll be even tougher. Any upperclassmen can echo that sentiment. It’s the way of things…so that this world doesn’t swallow you all whole.”
““““““......”””””
That last sentence struck a chord with everyone in the room. Emi Especially. Doubt began to creep in as a specific childhood memory resurfaced…
“Get up, Emi. We’re far from finished.”
“B-but, Mom…I can’t do it. I…”
“I get it. Your mana pool is extremely small, but if you can’t even cast a simple defensive spell to protect yourself, what use will you be to anyone else? Your peers will see that and consider you as nothing more than a liability.”
“A liability?”
“Precisely. And I'm sure you don't want that, now do you?”
“W-Well, no…”
“Thought so. All the more reason to keep trying. If you want to make a difference in this world, quitting and feeling sorry for yourself isn’t an option. Do you understand?”
“......”
“Do you understand?”
“...Yes, Mom…”
Her mother was a strict teacher, but Emi finally understood why she was so hard on her. With her mana pool, she'd never be as strong as Dante Leerex, as discrete as Yuki, or as enigmatic as Shina Urahara. It simply wasn’t going to happen. So Emi decided long ago to move her focus elsewhere, to science. Her mother took a similar path, albeit in a completely different area. With the dominance of magitek in the Contemporary Age, there was a place for her to become a technomancer, a mage who uses mana (typically their own) to construct magical weapons and gadgets to perform all sorts of feats. Emi had just enough mana within her to generate two of her mana capsules per day. To her, achieving that was more than satisfactory.
That's why she wanted to be a part of PMA's Support program. So that when she graduated, she'd be sought after for her skills by a mercenary company, a traveling party, or, better yet, The Crown. She hoped that her talent for invention would compensate for her lack of combat skills in the long run.
Mr. Seagrain sighed heavily, appearing to be stewing over what he’d said. Holding his head up, he gave a slight nod and clapped his hands together. “Alright! Now on to my favorite part of Opening Day….”
The class watched him as he reached for something behind the podium and produced a large clear orb. As soon as it came into full view, a majority of the class collectively groaned.
An Affinity Test… Emi’s heart skipped a beat.
“Yes, yes, I’m sure your instructors had you go through this back in primary, but you’re all still growing boys and girls, so your magical potential may be much different than last time.” He placed the orb upon a cushion atop the podium. “Plus, it’s a pretty neat way to do roll call, dont’cha think? Now, let’s see here…Seth Cohen, please step up to the orb.”
The large orcish boy from before set down his knitting needles and walked over to the podium. He raised his hand and touched the orb and it emitted a slightly dim glow. It then shifted to the color orange and projected the image of a stone, the sigil for geo magic.
“I see.” Mr. Seagrain grinned. “With your mana pool, and a lot of training, you’re fit to become quite the Fighter, Mr. Cohen.”
“So, it’s the same as last year,” Seth sighed, his tone betraying his disinterest. “Great…”
He trudged back to his seat and resumed his knitting. Mr. Seagrain simply shrugged and called a few more kids to the front.
The orb's purpose was to accurately track the growth of a young mage. While most people are born with specific affinities and techniques, they might change during adolescence. They may develop an affinity for new elements, or their mana pools may expand. It was critical to assess a young mage's potential in this manner considering that they will have reached their pinnacle as mages by the time they reach maturity.
“William B. Fox.”
A tall human boy of Anubian descent stepped forward. The orb shined relatively bright before shifting to the color purple. Soon after, the image of a weighing scale appeared. This was the sigil for gyro magic. Emi gulped as the list of names drew closer to the letter ‘S’. Her heart rate increased tenfold. A cold sweat traveled down her spine. Cady turned to her, sporting a look of concern.
“Hey, you don’t look so hot, Emi,” she remarked, attempting to bring a hand to her forehead. “What’s the matter, you comin’ down wit’ somethin’?”
Emi leaned back, waving her arms frantically as she spoke. “I-I’m fine, Cady! Really.” Her nose twitched. “I’m…um…just a little nervous is all.”
“Hmm…” Cady studied her dubiously before finally smiling and nodding. “H’yeah! Guess I can’t really blame ya, there. I’m purdy antsy myself.”
Emi forced a smile before feeling someone’s gaze on her. She turned to her right to see Katsumi watching the Affinity Test unfold. Had he been staring at her? If so what for? The prospect of that alone brought forth an indescribable feeling.