[Teacher] echoed in the remnants of a memory I could no longer recall.
A ray of sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting its warm glow on the golden-haired man lying on the street bench. His handsome face was etched with exhaustion, his eyelids flickering before slowly opening.
Awakening from the void of unconsciousness, Otto found himself on a street bench. Had someone been speaking just moments ago? The words had already slipped away.
"Oh?"
Otto casually extended his hand, savoring a sensation long forgotten.
"Is this my body from before the soul steel modification? Only the Imaginary Tree could accomplish something like this."
"Did they see my potential? Or was I marked the moment I became a false god?"
No matter. The current Otto had no desires left. If the Imaginary Tree wanted his existence, he would gladly surrender it.
Yet, something felt amiss.
"I can't sense any Honkai energy since I arrived."
"This doesn't seem like my world."
Glancing at a group of children nearby who kept stealing glances at him, Otto's gaze lingered on the halos above their heads. He smiled and waved, causing them to shriek and scatter in panic.
Watching the children flee, Otto's eyes followed their path before he reclined back on the bench, gazing at the sky with its massive halos.
"A world beyond the Imaginary Tree? It seems my appearance here is no coincidence. How intriguing."
Sitting up, Otto straightened his clothes and discovered an invitation. It was from the Federal Student Council president, inviting him to become an advisor to the Federal Search Society. Alongside it was a mysterious card.
Without accepting the position, he'd be spending the night on this bench.
"I might exit the stage even before then," he mused.
The intermittent sounds of gunfire and explosions contrasted with the seemingly indifferent pedestrians passing by. Otto made a decision.
Though he cared little for his own life, Otto had standards for his death. He desired an end befitting a savior, not a random stray bullet on a nameless street.
With purpose, he set out to find the Federal Student Council.
---
Federal Student Council Hall
A graceful figure stood motionless, her black and blue hair nearly touching the ground. Her white uniform and coat complemented her black stockings perfectly. This was Seven God Rin, who for the nth time looked up at the wall clock and sighed.
"Invited by the Student Council president or not, such a lack of punctuality is truly concerning for future work."
"Since he hasn't arrived, I'll review the current situation again."
"With the Student Council president absent, most functions of the Sanctum Tower have stopped, causing the Student Council to nearly cease operations and throwing Kivotos into chaos."
"To solve this problem, we must quickly restore the Sanctum Tower's operations. For this, we need the help of the Sumeru teacher."
"But we're back to the original problem—he still hasn't arrived. Should I send someone to retrieve the teacher? But we don't even know his location."
"No, I don't even know the teacher's appearance. The Student Council president told us absolutely nothing."
Rin sighed, her hand massaging her throbbing temple.
"Where exactly is this Sumeru teacher?"
"Ah, I'm right here."
Rin spun around, "warmly" fixing her gaze on the speaker—a blonde-haired man who appeared to have been waiting for quite some time.
How tall—was Rin's first thought upon seeing Otto, quickly followed by, 'The adult who's arrived at this moment must be him.'
Though she could guess Otto's identity, she waited for his explanation.
"Hello, my name is Otto Apocalypse. I've been invited by the Federal Student Council president to serve as a consultant teacher for Sumeru."
After Otto's introduction, Rin responded: "Welcome to Kivotos, Mr. Otto. I'm Rin of the Seven Gods, the Federal Student Council's executive, and I've been waiting for you for quite some time."
"The children downstairs urged me to come up. When I entered and saw you deep in thought, I didn't want to disturb you. If I've caused you any inconvenience, I'm truly sorry."
Otto offered an apologetic bow, his gesture almost theatrical.
Rin's momentary irritation dissolved, and she asked with furrowed brows, "Teacher, did you encounter any problems on your way here?"
"I didn't have money for public transport, so I had to walk. Fortunately, it wasn't too far."
Only now did Rin notice his white shirt was drenched in sweat, his once-flowing hair now stringy and clumped—details previously overlooked due to her embarrassment and Otto's peculiar behavior.
"I apologize, Teacher. We should have sent someone to meet you."
"But the Federal Student Council didn't have my contact information, right?"
"This is our oversight. Please allow me to apologize again."
"No need, no need," Otto waved his hand. "The most important thing now is solving Kivotos's current problems."
"Don't you need to rest? You're not from Kivotos, are you?"
"My physical condition is quite good. While I can't deflect bullets like Kivotos residents, walking a few steps is no challenge for me."
"Hmm, in that case, we might need personnel to protect you."
Otto's joke was met with Rin's serious contemplation of his security needs.
Rin glanced at the clock. "It's getting late. Teacher, would you mind coming with me? I'll explain the details on the way."
Otto, indifferent as ever, followed her into the elevator.
"Let me introduce you to Kivotos's basic situation," Rin began.
"Kivotos is a massive federated urban center formed by thousands of academies. It will be your workplace going forward."
"Many matters here might differ from where you're from, so adapting initially might not be easy."
"But since you were personally invited by the Student Council president, I suppose I needn't worry."
"I'll explain the details about that later," Rin paused.
"To solve Kivotos's current troubles, we need to restart the Federal Student Council. For this, I need you to go to Sumeru's activity room."
Otto promptly asked, "Sumeru's activity room?"
"Yes, about 30 kilometers from here, in the outer region. It's currently an empty building, but the Student Council president had us place something in the basement."
As the elevator doors opened, they were greeted by a noisy scene. A crowd of young girls stared at them with unfriendly expressions.
Seeing this, Rin couldn't help but place her hand on her forehead.
"Sigh."
End of Chapter