In front of him lay a world starkly contrasting the typical city he had grown up in. The surrounding area stretched out for miles, and he could barely make out the tall, clustered city buildings in the distance. Many might think they were on the outskirts of the city, amidst vast, clean farmland, but that was far from the truth. He, along with thousands of others, was in the heart of Tokyo’s metropolitan area.
The grass stretched farther than the eye could see, perfectly manicured and healthy. Old oak trees stood firm and vibrant despite fall drawing near. Bushes lined the area's entrance, while expensive marble statues loomed above him majestically.
Although it was a beautiful sight, the main attraction was far more impressive and eye-catching. All around them stood grand old academy castles, said to have been built over two hundred years ago, at the beginning of the cultivation of Sense’s era. Compared to the dirty and rusted cities he and many others knew, the difference in architecture was blatant.
Similar castles were scattered across the beautifully manicured area, almost resembling a village in some ways. This is where the Knights must train and learn, I'm guessing, Sen assumed, judging by the number of castles. But the main one must be this one. Looking past a large, luxurious gold gate, a castle far bigger than the others stood in the center. Its age was apparent, but it stood tall and solid, exuding a luxurious glow.
Behind the gateway to the main castle, thousands of people waited impatiently in front of the courtyard.
"Wow… this is a lot more people than I expected," Hana shuddered. When he made his way to the academy by public transport, Hana, Kaiyo, and Hyo had all arrived simultaneously.
"I was expecting that much…" Sen shrugged.
"You're not worried?" Kaiyo inquired. Sen wanted to reply bluntly and agree with her, but he needed to sound more concerned to make it believable. He rarely felt the pressure of anxiety. He often wondered how other people felt when faced with the same circumstances, but it was useless to ponder over something he would most likely never feel.
Although that feeling before... Sen remembered that rare jolt of excitement he had felt. It's not the only odd thing recently, though. I caught myself enjoying things I shouldn’t have. Like when the child screamed in fear after accidentally bumping into me. Psychologically, it didn't make any sense why he would enjoy that. Seeing no possible conclusion to his own question, Sen dismissed it, just like before.
"Of course, I am… This is my only shot at ever coming close to my dreams." Sen wanted to gag after uttering those words. They left a bad taste in his mouth.
Sen also didn’t want to talk too much in public, either. There could always be someone with Hearing spying on what they were saying. Letting out a sigh, he approached the gate, which two Knights guarded solemnly.
“You must fill out some information before you’re allowed in,” a female voice spoke.
Sen turned his head to see a woman stationed in a small registration house not far from the large gate. I see, this is where they make you fill out your information before entering. Sen had anticipated this. They couldn’t just let random people in, especially if they had a criminal record. Not only did teenagers enter the academy every year, but also adults, although the margin was far smaller.
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“Ah, thank you. What information do I need to provide?” Sen asked, needing to tread carefully. One wrong move, and he wouldn’t even make it through the academy's gates. His friends eyed him with concern.
“You just need to provide your full legal name, and I'll search for your ID. Then, I can grant you permission to enter, with a waiver, of course. You'll also be patted down for any weapons, etc. Only those with permits are allowed to bring one.”
Though it was obvious they needed to verify if people had dangerous criminal backgrounds, Sen had hoped they wouldn’t require an ID with additional information.
Nonetheless, it was expected. He couldn’t forge a fake ID and name to enter the academy—they would quickly discern the scam and throw him in jail for ID fraud. It was riskier than entering blindly with his real name and information.
Sen gestured for Kaiyo to go first, just in case. With a nervous glance in his direction, she told the lady her full name. The lady used a simple identification checker, and Kaiyo's birthday, Sense, and other information appeared immediately.
After confirming everything was correct, the lady nodded and handed Kaiyo a waiver to sign. Kaiyo swiftly signed it before the gates opened to let her through. Once Kaiyo entered the academy gates without issue, she looked back at Sen with uneasiness.
Kaiyo doubted he would overcome the first hurdle. Sen signaled to her to have faith in him and waited for Hyo and Hana to proceed. As expected, they were allowed to enter without issue. Now, it was all up to him.
“Could you give me your full legal name, please?” the lady, appearing fed up with her job, requested.
Instantly, he had found something that he could exploit. Observing her facial movements and gestures, he formulated a solid plan, aiming to make a good impression that many wouldn’t bother with.
“Good morning, you must be exhausted from working so much,” Sen expressed sympathetically.
“Um, yeah, you could say that. I've been at this for hours already. Someone was supposed to take over my shift, but they didn’t show,” she groaned.
“That’s terrible. You deserve a bonus if you ask me.”
That’s all he needed to feed her into doing what he pleased. A good first impression had a higher likelihood of success.
“Right? I probably won't, though. My boss is a pain in the ass. This is so unfair,” she complained.
Sen wanted to roll his eyes. The lady seemed to want to vent how she felt for a long time, but Sen couldn’t care less. Regardless, this was precisely what he wanted.
People genuinely are predictable. They only want to hear what they want, after all. If you know that, then you can persuade them. People who appear to be the nicest and most understanding are likely thinking ill of you behind your back.
“That’s unfair. You need to stick up for yourself. People like you don’t get appreciated enough. You should know your worth…”
The conversation went back and forth for a few minutes until Sen was satisfied enough.
“Finally, someone that gets me!” the lady exclaimed. “Anyway, I still have a job to do as much as I would like to sit and talk. What’s your full legal name?”
“Senju Ano,” he replied confidently. It was only a matter of moments before something would pop up on her screen that would puzzle her.
“Um…” she murmured confusedly as if trying to decipher what was on the screen.
“Is there something wrong, miss?” Sen asked politely.
“It doesn’t say which Super Sense you have. It just says none.”
“What? That’s odd. Could it be a glitch or something?” Sen acted genuinely surprised.
“I’m not too sure. The computer was doing just fine all day. I might have to ask my boss—”
“You know, it must be because my mother forgot to update my documents after middle school when my Super Sense started activating. She was too ill to do it,” he frowned.
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that…”
Sen didn’t want to bring up his mother, but seeing how she was about to call in her manager, he needed to resort to it.
“She was too weak to cook for herself, so I needed to do it for her. But regardless of her condition, she has always supported my dreams of entering the academy. So, I just wanted to make her proud today,” Sen faked a voice crack. It appeared that did the trick.
“O-Oh y-you know, don’t worry about it. It must be some weird glitch on our end. It looks like your record is pretty clean, so I'll let this slide. Which Sense do you have so I can manually input it?” she asked him with sympathy. And just like that, it was over.
“I have hearing,” he lied, giving an innocent smile.