'Master... Master... Master!'
At the sound of a desperate voice, I shakingly woke up and nearly hit my head against the side. Waking up like this brings back some close memories of Maki. After knowing that I would be going to Altheria Academy, I purposely avoided Maki so I wouldn't have to go through a dreadful goodbye scene.
Either way, I bet she'll be mad.
'Master, you woke up as if something was scaring you.'
Kuro, my partner, said.
Just like me, she was wearing the black and yellow uniform of Altheria Academy–most of the uniform was black. I brought some personal belongings with me since I would be here for three years.
The black-haired girl climbed across me and stuck her face out of the window beside me. She turned back to me with a gleaming smile on her face.
'Master! Look! I can see the school!'
We're already here, it seems.
Just like Kuro, I stuck my head out of the window.
It wasn't a single building or a school area. It was something bigger than that. It was a whole city. The city was already beautiful but the sun and the azure ocean enhanced its beauty even more. My neighbourhood pales in comparison.
A few minutes later, the bus came to a stop and both of us got out. We stopped in front of some place which looked like a school. I'm surprised that they have an island near Japan. No one's ever mentioned this. It's probably some government secret.
Now... where are we supposed to go?
Light footsteps could be heard coming my way. As I looked forward, I saw a man. His hair was spiky and ash-blonde while his eyes were coloured emerald. He wore a black suit and shirt with a white tie.
'Hello, and welcome, to Altheria Academy, Japan Branch.'
Japan Branch? I guess there're other schools like this worldwide.
The man raised out his arm. There were two cards in his possession. I took them from his hand and read them.
'These are... student IDs?'
One was mine and the other was Kuro's. Mine said "#00000" and Kuro's one said, "#00000+." After handing over Kuro's ID card, I faced the man. I wanted to thank him, but I didn't know his name.
'Umm... Thank you, uh...'
'I'm the Principal, Weissmann Mori.'
'Thank you, Princi–'
'Please call me Weissmann.'
Why is he being tricky for?
'Thank you, Sir Weis–'
'Weissmann.'
'Thank you, Weissmann.'
Should he really be pressuring a student like that just so that they can say his first name? That doesn't matter now, I guess.
Weissmann snapped his finger. A maid appeared out of thin air. She had black hair and was tall. She was nearly taller than Weissmann. The maid was definitely taller than me, though. Her most noticeable feature was the scar on her right eye.
Her blank stare caused me to break out into a cold sweat.
'Ophelia, could you please lead Sasaki-san to his class?'
Wait, he's using honorifics and calling me by my second name? I really don't get this Principal.
The maid, Ophelia, turned to me and squinted her eyes. Nervously, I give a smile though she starts walking off. Kuro started following her and so did I. We left Weissmann behind.
We entered the school building. Ophelia walked through the scanners but they wouldn't let me through. Apparently, I needed to present my student ID. I did so and it let me in. Kuro didn't need to use her student ID.
As I turned to Ophelia, I saw her give Kuro a suspicious glance. We started venturing toward my class after that.
Before long, we stopped in front of what seemed to be my class. It was Class 1-B. It had an image of some sort of bird on the class sign.
'That is a phoenix. Each class has its own legendary beast. Class A is a dragon, Class B is a phoenix, Class C is a sea serpent and Class D is a gryphon.'
It seems like she can predict what I'm thinking. Or it's just what anyone thinks when they see a picture on a class sign.
'Well, I must get going. Please, enter your class. They are all waiting for you.'
'Okay.'
'Ah, do not forget. If you want your familiar to live a normal life at school, you would find it in your best interests to hide her identity as a yokai.'
I didn't question her but I nodded, instead. She bowed and left without another word.
Now that I think about it, Kuro's acting really closes even though we've only known each other for two days or so. Not that it bothers me.
'Kuro, don't show anyone your cat abilities unless you're in battle or something. I have a feeling that they'll mistake your ability for a Singularity.'
'It's fine. Let's go inside, Master.'
She said, looking intently at the door.
I wonder what type of life she's had up until now to be focused on meeting those beyond the door. All that I can say is that I guess it was a shit one.
Walking close to the door, I hear a voice speaking. Opening the door, all eyes diverge onto me, although this isn't really anything new. I'm often late to class, so I didn't feel any pressure.
'Ah, here he is.'
I hear a feminine voice speak. My eyes travelled to the teacher who was standing in front of me. As soon as I saw her, my jaw dropped.
She sat, cross-legged, on top of the lectern. Her hair was silky, black, and long in the shape of a ponytail. She wore a suit without a tie. And her eyes... they were silver, a trait that she got from our mother. The smirk on her face was impeccable and annoying.
Raising my arm–it was shaking as my finger pointed at her–I spoke.
'What are you doing here, Ai-nee?'
Ai-nee gave me a triumphant smile.
'Is it wrong for me to be at my job?'
I don't even know what to think. My homeroom teacher is my lazy bum of a sister!