(Dazai Crowley's POV)
Cerulean Academy, Present Day
I present to Ester the truth of my ambitions.
"—So that's it, huh."
"Yeah."
"I see."
I see? Such a response was rather too ambiguous for my liking. And judging from how low her voice is, I can't exactly tell whether she was surprised or saw this coming either.
Knowing her though, it was probably the latter.
—Eh, it's not like it matters though. Because no matter what happens, I know for certain that Ester isn't the type of person who would stand in my way.
It would go against everything we stand for, after all.
That's why I decided it was okay for me to tell her in the first place.
Suddenly though, on the other side of our call, I could hear a door slowly open in the background.
"Oh, looks like my roommate has finally arrived."
"About time."
"I know right? In any case, I think I should probably go ahead and get off the phone now. Good night."
"Yeah, good night. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Mhm."
She mumbles softly in agreement.
Now that our conversation was drawing to a close, I put the phone away from my ear for a moment.
But before I decline the call—
"—Oh, and Dazai?"
"Hmm?"
I stop, my finger only an inch away from the button.
"I hope you get what you're looking for."
Heh.
I smile a little on the inside.
"Thank you."
And with that, she cuts the call.
Silence fills the room.
"Yeah…—I hope so too."
I take a deep breath.
Around that time, Emmel enters the room with a happy, yet at the same time, exhausted smile.
"—Aah, finally. All done~...."
"Finished?", I asked, though it was obvious he was since some parts of his shirt had stains of dishwater.
"Yep, about…—time too. I was starting to get a little sleepy…", he says. A slight yawn delaying his words.
—Yawn.
Oh, wow.
I guess yawns really are as contagious as they say.
"Welp, I don't know about you, but I think I'm going to go on ahead and turn in for the night. Cya."
"Night."
With that, Emmel climbs onto the top bunk and tucks himself underneath the bed sheets.
Meanwhile, I reached out to the lamp on the nearby table and cut it off before finally laying down on, what was now-to-be, my bed.
"—Ah, I'm tired…"
I mumble softly to myself, making sure to whisper in a tone that would not wake Emmel up.
I yawn again.
Then I sigh in exhaustion.
…Hmm, looking back on it now, today really has been a long and, almost, eventful day, hasn't it?
Cerulean Academy and the city that I hail from is about an hour away if you go by bus. A short ride, sure, but not exactly the most comfortable…
…Ugh, my ass still hurts just thinking about it.
Then there's the opening ceremony. Not much needed to be said with this one, but it was still annoying and exhausting all the same. Standing around for an hour isn't exactly what I call "fun".
And then, of course, there's the situation with Class D. It's unfortunate to see that, up until now, none of the new students were able to realize the special "catch", or condition, that comes with the promise of granting a wish upon graduation.
That being to graduate specifically from Class A.
And now, because of this huge lack of judgment, one way or the other, we've all ended up in a very tight spot…
"From this point forward, we will need to fight".
If it wasn't obvious already, this is the premise the school is basically trying to tell us.
"—I wonder how I should approach this situation."
Should I involve myself with the internal affairs of the class? Or perhaps, should I focus on just myself? I ask myself these two questions.
Unfortunately, it's impossible for me to determine the best course of action at this stage…
That's fine though.
My journey is just getting started after all.
Although I already knew this before coming here, today has helped me realize something important.
—That I have a very long road ahead of me.
Sigh.
I shouldn't worry about that for now though. Tonight, I should focus on just getting some rest.
Telling myself that, I close my eyes.
"—Hey, Dazai?"
Suddenly though, Emmel calls out to me.
"Hmm?"
"...Ah, sorry, were you asleep already?"
"Almost. Did you need something though?"
"No, nothing in particular. I was just curious about something. Do you mind if I ask you a question?"
"If it's within my capability to answer, sure."
"Hmm, what a strange way of saying "yes"..."
"Oi, are you trying to criticize me right now?"
"Eh, oh well, here goes."
For some reason, I braced myself for his question.
"—Why were you placed in Class D?"
I raise my eyebrow.
"What are you talking about?"
"Do you remember what Mrs. Gwein said earlier today? That the students of Cerulean Academy are basically divided into the four classes based on their "performance", and whatnot. However, we aren't solely judged on just our academic ability unlike other schools though. The interviews, the practicals, the background checks…—all of these were used to find factors that help determine our placing, right?"
"—Where are you going with this exactly?"
"Unlike me, you seem like a smart guy, Dazai. And yet, despite that, the two of us were still placed in the same class. I'm trying to figure out is why."
In other words, what Emmel was getting at was that he doubted the reason why I was placed in Class D was not because I was lacking in the academic department, but rather something else entirely.
I suppose that's something to be curious about.
However—
"I don't see why that's so important. Also, I look smart? I think you're giving me too much credit."
"Hmm, is that so? Does that mean you also flunked your tests too?"
Sigh.
"I wonder about that."
Answering vaguely, I roll over and close my eyes.