Daikoku's eyes began to open slowly. He slowly raised his head, a red mark could be seen on his left cheek from where his hand had been. He rubbed his eyes before looking around the classroom, to his dismay there was no one. The classroom was completely empty. Daikoku sprang up, a look of horror washing over his face. He frantically looked around the classroom as he was struck by the reality of the situation.
"I slept through the whole day…my first day!" Daikoku thought to himself in a panic.
"Oh, you're awake," Ms. Shine said, entering the classroom.
"I...I'm sorry...I didn't mean," Daikoku said, his voice shaking.
"Please, don't worry about it," Ms. Shine responded kindly.
"What?" Daikoku asked, confused.
"You were tired after helping your friend, there is no reason to reprimand you for something like that," Ms. Shine said.
"Th…thank you so much, ma'am, it won't happen again," Daikoku said, lowering his head.
"Now get going," Ms. Shine said with a smile.
"Um…where's Red?" Daikoku asked.
"I guess you would need to know that. He's being treated in the nurse's office," Ms. Shine responded happily.
"Thank you Ms. Shine," Daikoku said, relieved that Red stayed true to his word.
Daikoku quickly slung his bag over his shoulder and exited the classroom, hastily making his way down the corridor towards the nurse's office. Even at this quickened pace, his steps fell silent. All Daikoku could think about was Red's condition, he prayed that his new friend was alright. Daikoku rounded a corner and could see a sign with a red cross a little further down. His fast pace quickened into a jog as he approached. As he did he saw what seemed to be a figure approaching at unimaginable speeds. He stopped dead in his tracks and swiftly moved against the wall, if someone was moving that fast he didn't want to get in their way, lest he get killed on impact. Before the figure reached him it turned sideways, its left leg straightened and its right leg bent close to the ground, it looked like it was trying to slide to a stop. The figure's maneuver was successful as it skidded to a stop, leaving a trail on the ground from its shoes. Daikoku's heart seemed to stop temporarily as he realized who now stood before him.
"The hell are you staring at?" Iliya said, crossing her arms and giving Daikoku the death stare.
"Uh…I just didn't expect you, you surprised me that's all," Daikoku said, diverting his gaze.
"Mhm, sure. I'm assuming you're here to check on Red as well?" Iliya asked.
"Wait, you're here for him too?" Daikoku responded surprised.
"You thought I wouldn't be when I helped you carry his ass?" Iliya said, annoyed. "Plus, my sister wanted to see him after I told her what happened. Speaking of which, where the hell is she?" She said looking around.
Daikoku looked past Iliya to see a figure approaching, a girl with brunette hair and a relatively more pronounced figure than Iliya. The girl approached the two of them slowly, her left hand was across her body, holding her right arm. She looked down to the right as she approached, timid and clearly nervous.
"There you are!" Iliya said enthusiastically. "What took you so long?"
"You know I'm not as fast as you," the girl responded meekly.
"And whose fault is that?" Iliya said, placing her arm over the girl's shoulders. "Oh Daikoku, this is my twin sister, Iris."
Daikoku looked back and forth between them, confused. They were sisters? And twins at that. They barely looked anything alike. Daikoku stood in silence for a moment, trying to process how that was possible. From what he knew, twins were supposed to be identical, but they were the furthest thing from it.
"It's um…it's nice to meet you," Daikoku said, still confused.
"Now that that's out of the way," Iliya moved to open the door, "let's go see the moron."
"Why'd you call him a moron?" Daikoku thought.
Iliya opened the wooden door and entered the room, Iris and Daikoku followed closely. The room was almost completely white, lined with multiple equally white beds and curtains. In the corner sat a single brown desk with a monitor with rows of cabinets lining the wall behind it. The three looked around the room before being greeted by a woman in a nurse's uniform, her brown hair was in a neat bun and she wore glasses with circular lenses.
"You must be Red's friends, please follow me," she said leading the group to a bed towards the middle of the room. "I'll leave you to it," she said pulling the curtain.
"Hey guys," Red said, sitting up to greet them.
"How you doing man?" He said turning to Daikoku.
"I should be the one asking you," Daikoku responded.
"Fair enough. You got nothing to worry about, the nurse healed me up real good, Red said with a smile. "Hey, who's the new girl?" He said, looking at Iris.
"She's my twin sister," said Iliya, her arm once again over Iris' shoulder.
"Bullshit" Red said instantly.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean!" Iliya yelled, moving to lunge at Red.
Iris and Daikoku quickly grabbed her arms to hold her back. Daikoku saw how fast she was and knew she was likely strong as well. If she got a hold of Red, it likely wouldn't bode well. Daikoku held back Iliya with all his might, he didn't want Red to die like this. Iliya struggled in their grasps, she was freakishly strong, just as Daikoku thought she'd be.
"Sister please, you can't do this again," Iris said meekly.
"Oh yes I can!" Iliya yelled, still trying to escape their grasp.
Daikoku was barely hanging onto her, he was nowhere near strong enough for this. Iris, however, seemed to barely be struggling with holding her sister back. Before Iliya could get free, a scalpel flew past their faces and lodged itself in the wall to their left. Their eyes went wide and all struggle ceased, looks of terror and regret crossed their faces as they turned their heads to face the now pissed-off nurse. An ominous aura surrounded her as she pointed a second scalpel at the group.
"If you continue this activity, the next one won't miss," the nurse said firmly.
"U…Understood," Daikoku said, horrified.
The three students took a moment to collect themselves before continuing to check on Red. Thankfully, he was cleared for discharge and could thus leave with the others. The four of them left swiftly, wanting to get away from the nurse as soon as possible. As they left Daikoku couldn't help but smile ever so slightly. He was glad his friend was okay and that he could call these odd individuals his friends as well.
Daikoku and the others began to make their way out of the building and towards the dorms. As they exited the main school building Daikoku froze immediately. Ten feet in front of them stood the students the blonde-haired man was talking to earlier in the day. Daikoku couldn't help but feel frightened by the sight of them, if they were friends with that man this could only lead to another incident. As Daikoku was processing the situation one of them turned to face the group.
"Hey aren't you the guy Gil kicked the shit out of?" He asked with a smirk, walking towards the group. He was a tall and lanky guy, even more so than Red.
"What the hell? Are you friends with the guy who hurt Red?" Iliya asked, visibly irritated.
"Like it matters, you lot are still below us," the lanky man said, still approaching. "After all, we're friends of Gil's, there's nothing you can do to us."
"What do you want?" Red asked sternly, taking a step forward.
"Oh nothing really, I'm not gonna hurt ya," The man said, now standing right in front of them, "Just trying to make an observation."
The man looked intently at the group, before his gaze fell firmly on the timid Iris. He reached out, moving his hand towards Iris. Iris' eyes went wide, she didn't know what was going on, she just stood there, frozen. The man slid his hand under her hair, raising the strands towards himself. He was attempting to take a whiff of her hair. But before he could do so, a devastating crack rang out through the area. Red's body was turned sideways and his right leg was raised in a kick. His foot had made impact with the lanky man's calf, the kick was powerful and the form was perfect. It was evident he'd practiced the move hundreds, maybe thousands of times before. Red pulled his leg back into a boxing-like stance as the man cried out in pain. In that instant Iliya launched herself forward, the pressure from her movement nearly knocked the others off their feet. With her shoulder forward she collided with the man, driving him across the courtyard before halting and letting his momentum carry him as he flew through the air. The man skipped across the ground before skidding to a halt. The other two students, to whom the man was previously speaking, rushed to his aide. He wasn't dead, but certainly unconscious. Blood ran down his face and right arm, his face seemingly petrified in a scream. Iliya stood over them, a bright aura surrounding her.
"If any of you ever think about touching my sister again I swear not even Ouroboros themself will save you!" Iliya yelled.
The two students picked up the lanky man and hurriedly moved to the main building. The lanky man's feet dragged across the brick walkway, his body hung limp. As they entered the building one turned to face the group.
"You'll regret this when Gil hears about it," he said, his voice shaking.
Iliya walked back towards the group, her fists still clenched and face full of anger. Her aura had not yet subsided, casting them in a golden light. Daikoku couldn't help but feel nervous seeing Iliya in such a state. He didn't know what she'd do next. Nobody spoke as she approached, they were all in a state of shock after witnessing her display. She stopped just before the group and paused for a moment. Her fists relaxed and her aura subsided. She leaped forward and wrapped her sister in a warm embrace.
"Are you okay?" Iliya asked, fearing what the ramifications would be.
"I'm okay," Iris said softly. "Thank you."
"Okay I don't mean to break up the tender moment but," Red interjected, "what the hell was that!?"
"I…I'd like to know too," Daikoku sputtered.
"What do you mean?" Iliya asked.
"What else could I possibly mean?!" Red pronounced enthusiastically, "What you did to that ass hole!"
"Oh, that. I guess you guys wouldn't know what I can do. See, I'm a descendant of the god of Venus from Mesopotamian mythology, Ishtar," Iliya said, seemingly proud of that statement.
"Wait then that would mean you're…" Red said, looking at Iris.
"Ereshkigal," Iris said softly.
"Th…that's really cool," Daikoku said, a slight smile on his face, "I…I thought you were amazing before but that makes you even cooler!"
"You can save the flattery, but thank you," Iliya said, waving her blonde hair over her shoulder with a grin.
"Seems like you'll take as much as you can get," Red said in a mocking tone.
"Shut up!" Iliya yelled.
"H…hey maybe we should just go back to the dorms," Daikoku suggested, trying to avoid further conflict.
"Sounds good to me," Red said, his usual smile showing on his face once more.
"We still have some stuff to do here so we'll see you around," Iliya said.
The group split off, heading their respective ways. Back at the dorms, Daikoku and Red entered their room and almost immediately collapsed on their respective beds. They were completely exhausted after what they had to deal with. The mental strain was almost too much to bear.
After a few minutes, Red got up and grabbed a change of clothes to go take a shower, feeling that he desperately needed one. Daikoku thought the same, but he'd let Red take his first. Daikoku lay in his bed, thinking about the events that transpired. A cold chill ran down his spine as an image of the blonde-haired man appeared in his mind. He could not help but be unsettled by the very thought of him, and what he had said. Every word ran through Daikoku's mind over and over again. What he had done to Red made it even worse as Daikoku winced at the thought of it. Daikoku's mind continued to replay the situation, to the point that he completely lost track of time.
Thirty minutes had passed and Red was finally finished in the shower. He exited the bathroom and promptly sat on his bed, signaling that it was Daikoku's turn. Daikoku pulled his change of clothes from his dresser and headed to the shower. He undressed and turned on the water, he wouldn't have to wait long for it to heat up. After a minute he climbed into the shower, turning the water to the hottest setting possible. The water felt warm on his skin, he felt truly at ease for the first time that day. He ran his hands through his long black hair, as all the worries of the day faded away. It became almost impossible to see as the bathroom filled with steam. Daikoku took this as his signal to finish up. He exited the shower and began to dry off. Using his hand he cleared off part of the mirror and began to blow dry his hair. After he finished he threw on his clothes and exited the bathroom. Steam poured out of the bathroom and radiated off his body. Red sat in utter disbelief at the site but decided it was best not to question it. Thankfully no homework was assigned on the first day so the two boys elected to get as much sleep as possible. Daikoku lay in bed and slowly drifted off to sleep again.