《The World of Adventurers》 Chapter 1 -Beginnings and New Beginnings The door swung open. Walked in, a man wearing a suit and dark sunglasses. "Boss." The office chair whirled around and sitting in it, a sixteen year girl with long orange hair looking at a photo in her right hand. "Everything is set, we''re ready when you are." "Good" she replied. "We''ll leave in ten minutes. Tell everyone to stand by outside." "Right." The man responded. He turned around and started to exit. As he is halfway through the door, he stopped and turned around. "Fumiko, are you sure about this?" Fumiko looked up from the photo. "Sure about what?" She replied with an angry tone. "I just thought that we should go over the plan. It¡¯s dangerous." He told her. Fumiko put the photo down on the desk and walked up to him. "Hiro, you''ve known me since I was a little girl. You were the first one to comfort me after my father''s death. You''ve practically been my father since then." Fumiko continued to get closer until she was face to face with Hirokazu. "You also know how long I''ve been waiting for this day. I need to do this. This is the only way I can avenge him." "I understand that." Hirokazu responded. "I miss Dairoku too." he told her as he looked down and stared at his black shoes. "But even still, it¡¯s for that very reason that I dont want you to do this. Please, reconsider. This old man doesn¡¯t want to lose anyone anymore.¡± Fumiko walked back to her desk and pick up the photo of her and her father. "Tell everyone to go outside. I won¡¯t say it again." She told him again, her back still turned to him. "Right." he replied. As he left, he closed the door. "Just wait, father." Fumiko spoke to herself. "I kill that bastard for you." She put away the photo away in her pocket and walked out of her office. As she headed down the stairs, she saw Masou, 21 year old who is a new member of the Akazawa group, fumbling around and eventually, dropping all the bullets he was trying to load into a gun he was holding. "Masou." Fumiko said with a sigh. "What are you still doing here? I thought I told Hiro to tell everyone to wait outside.¡± Masou looked up from the bullets he just spilled and realizes that he just messed up in front ofthe boss. ¡°Boss!¡± he said as he got up frantically. ¡°Hirokazu did tell everyone to wait outside but he gave me his gun and told me to load it for him.¡± ¡°Well finish up and get your ass outside. Don¡¯t ruin this day for me.¡± Fumiko responded. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right.¡± Masou replied. ¡°Today¡¯s the day you guys have been preparing for right? For four years you guys have been preparing weapons and cars just for today.¡± Fumiko walked up to him and punched him in the stomach. ¡°If you understand that then hurry up.¡± She told him in an even angrier tone than the one she used for Hirokazu. ¡°Right.¡± He responded with tears in his eyes. Fumiko went outside and waiting for her is the entire Akazawa group which consisted of 29 members and multiple black cars.Stolen novel; please report. ¡°Boss.¡± Fumiko looked to her right and standing there is Kenji, who¡¯s been a member of the group since her father was in charge. He held out a gun. ¡°Your gun, boss. Today¡¯s the day huh.¡± Kenji said as he handed the gun to her. ¡°I¡¯ve waited for this day.¡± Fumiko smiled as she put the gun into her back pocket. ¡°Me too.¡± She replied. ¡°Also.¡± Kenji said as he reached for a brief case on the wall behind him. ¡°This is for you.¡± Fumiko took the case, put it on the ground and opened it. Inside, a sheathed sword. Fumiko pick up the sword, unsheathed it and held up to the night sky. The moonlight shone on the sword so brightly that she can see her reflection. ¡°It¡¯s your fathers own.¡± Hirokazu said as he approaches Fumiko and Kenji. ¡°It fits you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to stab the bastard with this.¡± Fumiko said as she sheathed the sword and strapped it to her back. ¡°Where¡¯s my gun?¡± Hirokazu asked Kenji. ¡°Masou had it when I was coming out.¡± He replied. The automatic doors of the Akazawa group¡¯s building opened and rushing out of it, Masou holding Hirokazu¡¯s gun. ¡°Hirokazu.¡± He says as he bended over to catch his breath. ¡°Your gun.¡± Hirokazu took it. ¡°Took you long enough boy.¡± Hirokazu checked the gun, then nodded at Fumiko. Fumiko nodded back at him, then addressed the members of her group who have been standing in front of the cars. ¡°Todays the day. The day most of us dreamed of. I know I certainly have, ever since I was twelve. The day we get our revenge against the Kabane group for killing my father.¡± Fumiko raised her gun in the air. The other members did the same. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± She screams at the group. They reply with roaring approval. 20 minutes after the Akazawa group got into the cars, they arrived at the front of the Kabane group¡¯s building. ¡°It took 4 years the find them.¡± Kenji said. ¡°4 years too long.¡± Fumiko replied. ¡°Stick to the plan.¡± Hirokazu reminded Fumiko. ¡°I know Hiro. You don¡¯t have to tell me. One of the black cars that we brought has explosives attached in it and it¡¯s driven by a computer system. Once it rams into the front of the building, we blow it up and go in when I give the signal.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Hirokazu replied. ¡°Now we wait.¡± 2 minutes later, a black car drives into the building and blows up. Fumiko got out the car and fired her gun twice into the air. ¡°GO!¡± She yelled and everyone got out of the cars and rushed inside gunning down everyone who survived the blast. ¡°Head up the stairs! That¡¯s where the bastard is hiding.¡± Fumiko commanded at the members of her group. As they headed up the many flights of the stairs, the Akazawa group shot and killed everyone who stood in their way. When they arrived room where Kabane, the leader, was hiding, they blasted it open with a grenade. Masou charged in lost in all the confusion. ¡°Boy! What are you doing!? Stick to the plan!¡± Hirokazu yelled at him. ¡°There¡¯s nobody here.¡± Masou said as turns around back towards Hirokazu. The second he turned his back, Kabane popped up behind a desk, pointing a pistol at the back of Masou. ¡°BOY, LOOK OUT!¡± Hirokazu yelled. Masou turned around in fear and saw the gun fixed on him. He closed his eyes when he heard the gunshot and waited for the pain of being shot to register. He waited second, then two. He didn¡¯t still feel anything. He opened his eyes to see Fumiko, in front of him. ¡°Boss!¡± He cried out as she crumpled to the ground. Kenji fired a bullet at into Kabane¡¯s head and he dropped down behind the desk. ¡°Why boss?! Why?¡± Masou sobbed with tears in his eyes. ¡°Why¡­.I wonder.¡± Fumiko replied painfully. ¡°Fumiko!¡± Hirokazu cried out. ¡°Hiro..I-¡± She started to cough up blood. Kenji crouched down and saw the bullet hole in her chest. ¡°It¡¯s bad, Hirokazu.¡± He told him with grief in is voice. ¡°Fumiko!¡± ¡°Boss!¡± Hirokazu and Masou wailed. Fuimiko could only hear the voices of the Akazawa group as she slowly faded out of consciousness. ¡°Boss!¡± ¡°Fumiko!¡± ¡°Rei¡± When she opened her eyes she found herself laying in a bed. She stared at the wooden celling above her. ¡°Where am I?¡± Fumiko closed her eyes and thought herself. ¡°Rei¡­Rei¡± The voice wouldn¡¯t stop. Fumiko thought the voice was in her head. After a couple of more times she couldn¡¯t take it anymore. She opened her eyes and looked to her left. Standing there, was a girl who looked no more the age of 7, with red hair and red eyes. ¡°Who is this kid?¡± Fumiko said to herself. ¡°Who?¡± The little girl was surprised. ¡°I¡¯m your little sister.¡± She answered. ¡°Sister?¡± Fumiko replied. ¡°We look nothing alike.¡± ¡°But we do.¡± The little girl said. She took her hand and dragged Fumiko out of the bed, to a nearby mirror. ¡°See.¡± The girl said. When Fumiko looked her the mirror, she saw an older version of the little girl in the room. The girl in the mirror had long wild red hair and red eyes. Chapter 2 -A "New" World Fumiko stared at the wood-framed mirror in disbelief for some time until the little girl tapped her arm. ¡°Rei, what''s wrong? You''re acting weird." She said. Fumiko looked at her. "What''s wrong? What''s wrong is that I don''t even recognize myself. I don''t know who I am, where I am, and who you are." Fumiko answered. The little girl laughed. "If you keep joking around, you''re going to be late." She said while giggling uncontrollably. "We''re in our room and I already told you Rei, that I''m your-" "Stop calling me that!" Fumiko retaliated in an angry tone. "I''m not your sister. I don''t even recognize you. Fumiko tried to think about what she was doing before she woke up in the bed. Nothing came to mind. Instead, she got a huge headache from just trying to remember. The little girl was so surprised at Fumiko''s sudden change of tone that she staggered backwards and fell on her bottom. Tears started to form in her eyes. ¡°Rei , this isn''t funny anymore." She replied while tears started to roll down her cheek. "You''re acting scary." "Just shut up!" Fumiko yelled at her. The little girl burst out crying and bolted out of the room, and ran down the stairs. Fumiko tried to think even harder about the situation. "Who am I, where am I, where was I before waking up here?" Fumiko thought long and hard trying to answer these three questions but to no avail. Instead, she was greeted with even more headaches, this time, worst then before. She looked around the room. To her surprise everything thing was old-fashioned. From the floor, to how the desks, bed, and bookshelves appeared. Even the windows were old looking. Fumiko groaned and headed out the room, down the hall, down the stairs, and eventually, into what it seemed like the kitchen which appeared old-fashioned as well, where she was greeted by two more unfamiliar faces. This time, a woman and a man. "Reina, why''d you make Yui cry?" Asked the man. "You should be nicer to your little sister." "Reina?" Fumiko thought to herself. "Your father is right Reina." The woman added. "You need to talk to your siblings kindly. It''s not good to yell." "Father?, Yui?, Reina?, Who?" Replied Fumiko. "Who are you people?" The little girl that Fumiko saw in the room that ran out not too long ago, came from hiding behind the man''s leg. "See!" She exclaimed while wiping away tears from her cheeks with her hands. "She''s been acting strange ever since she woke up! "Reina, what''s gotten into to you?" The man questioned her. "Cut the act, you''re scaring Yui, I won''t ask you again." "And you''re not even dressed for school yet." Followed the woman. "You''re still dressed in your pajamas. Honestly Reina you''re-"Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. "Stop calling me Reina!" Fumiko shouted at the pair. "That''s not my name. My name is.........my name is..." Fumiko couldn''t remember her name. "It¡¯s........it¡¯s..." She started to get yet another headache. She began to moan and groan once more. "Reina?" Now, the man seemed genuinely worried." Are you okay? Do you need to go to the doctor? "Is Rei sick?" Yui asked the woman. "I honestly don''t know what''s gotten into her this morning." The woman replied. "Reina, what''s wrong? Why are you acting like this?" At that point, Fumiko had enough. She couldn''t stand hearing people she didn''t know fire question after question at her anymore. She ran out the kitchen, bolted through the hallway, and out the front door. When she was outside, she looked around her. Everything looked old. All the houses around her were made of old materials and had no lights. The road, instead of being the usual asphalt and cement, were made of cobblestone and gravel. The neighborhood looked more like a village than a modern day neighborhood. Fumiko couldn''t understand what was happening. Everything looked out of place. "Rei!, Rei!" While Fumiko was taking in her surroundings, she ignored the voice that seemingly, was calling out to her. "Rei!" Fumiko finally stopped looking around and instead, looked in front of her. A girl with short, yellow, curly hair, wearing burgundy blazer, a tucked in white shirt, and burgundy skirt was calling out to her. "Rei, why aren''t you dressed? You''re going to be late and it¡¯s only the second week of school. Fumiko was about to blow a fuse. She was tired of people she doesn''t know acting like they know her. Tired of people asking her questions that she doesn''t know the answer to. Tired of not knowing anything about her surroundings and most importantly, tired of not knowing anything about herself. She gave it one more try. She closed her eyes and tried to think about where she was and who she was. She thought she was coming close to a realization until the girl who was calling out to her before, grabbed her by the shoulders. "Rei you''re bleeding!" "What?" Fumiko said as she put her hand to the top of her mouth and pulled it back. The girl was right. Fumiko was bleeding from her nose. "Why am I-" her vision started to blur. She felt all her strength vanish from her body as she fell to the ground and blacked out. When Fumiko woke up, she found herself in another bed. This time, it wasn''t the bed she woke up in before. She looked around and determined that she was in some sort of hospital room. The room had barely anything in it. It had just the bed she was laying in and a desk, along with cupboards that had what it appeared, medicine inside. The room was old-fashioned as well, just like the rooms in the house that she was in previously in. She sat up in the bed and looked outside from the window that was right next to the bed she was laying in. It was afternoon. She checked her nose to see if she was still bleeding. She wasn''t. "I must have been out for the whole day." She thought to herself. She was still staring out the window when the sliding door opened. A nurse walked in. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re finally awake." She said as she leisurely walked toward Fumiko. She had a clipboard in one hand and a pen in the other. "How long was I..." Fumiko tried to get up but was too dizzy and fell back into the bed. "You shouldn''t move. Well at least not yet. You''ve lost some blood." The nurse said. "I asked your family about some of symptoms you showed them this morning. It seems like you have severe case of amnesia." "Amnesia?" Fumiko was stunned. "No, that¡¯s impossible. I didn''t recognize them at all." "Well, that¡¯s what it does to you." Replied the nurse. "They''ll come by soon to pick you up." "Amnesia? I.." Fumiko couldn''t put how she felt into words. She felt like there was a storm swelling up inside her and it could burst out into a rage of different emotions at any given moment. "It might be a little hard to believe so I can understand your confusion." The nurse told Fumiko." In the meantime, you''re probably wondering why this room and the outside world looks so old right? They should have taught everybody this in preliminary school but given your case, you probably don''t remember why, do you?" Fumiko shakes her head. "I don''t. Why does everything look like this?" The nurse smiles. "Well, it all started 30 years ago, when what we call now, The Time Meteor flew past Earth for the first time. Chapter 3 -The Time Meteor "The Time Meteor?" Replied Fumiko. "What''s that?" "Hmmm." The nurse murmured to herself as she walked to the desk that was in the corner of the room and grabbed the chair that was resting behind it. She picked it up and placed it next to the bed that Fumiko was laying on and sat on it. "Where should I begin? It''s a long story so get comfortable." The nurse waited for Fumiko to finish readjusting herself in the bed before she began. "30 years ago on a day just like any other, the world changed forever. The nurse told Fumiko. "An undetected asteroid entered the Earth''s atmosphere. This wasn''t like any other meteor however. Instead of burning away like any other meteor would, it got stuck in the atmosphere and eventually, in Earth''s rotation as well. But, this is where things start to get strange." "How so?" Asked Fumiko. ¡°Well, you understand how the Earth rotates from West to East or, as most people say, left to right?" "Does it? Well, why would that matter?" "As I said before, the meteor got stuck in Earth''s atmosphere right? Well that''s not entirely correct." "What do you mean?" " Instead of the meteor following the direction of Earth''s rotation, it followed its own. The meteor went from East to West or, another way of saying it,-" "Right to left." Finished Fumiko. The Nurse smiled. "Exactly." Fumiko was still confused though. "Okay, it went in its own direction, why does that matter?" "The Earth also rotates at 1000 miles per hour or, 1600 kilometers an hour." Continued the nurse. "However, this special meteor was traveling in the opposite direction of Earth''s rotation at 10000 miles per hour or, a little faster than 16000 kilometers an hour. It was moving so fast that it actually began, to reverse Earth''s rotation." "How is that even possible?" Asked Fumiko. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "No-one knows." The nurse answered. "However, the impossible, doesn''t end there. Along with Earth now spinning in reverse, all of its achievements, went with it." "Achievements? You''re saying-" "Yes, Earth''s progress, or a simpler way to put it, time, started to reverse." Fumiko couldn''t believe what she just heard. "You''re joking." The nurse laughed a little more. "Well just take a long look around the room, or even outside. Does it seem like I''m joking?" She asked Fumiko. "Well, even if what you''re saying is true, that doesn''t explain why everything in this place looks outdated. Even if time reversed, the objects like phones, computers, and light bulbs that already existed, shouldn''t go with it right?" Fumiko asked. The nurse burst out laughing. She was laughing so much that tears started to appear in her eyes. "Sorry I-" She tried to collect herself but couldn''t. Fumiko didn''t like being laughed at. "Did I say something funny?" She asked the nurse in an irate tone. The nurse gradually stopped laughing. "It''s just that I thought you noticed already." She said as she wiped a tear from her eye. "Renia, right? Take better look around, do you see any lights, computers, or any technology? Fumiko surveyed the room and unexpectedly, found no such things. The only thing lighting up the room was a few candles on the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. She averted her eyes to the nurse¡¯s desk. No computer in sight. "Think back to when you were in your house. Did you see a T.V.? Any wall plugs? You went outside right, did you see any cars parked in the driveways of any homes?" Fumiko thought back to this morning. She realized the nurse was right. There were no light bulbs in the room she woke up in, only lanterns. There wasn''t a T.V., nor did she see any cars outside. "The meteor circled the Earth nearly 2000 times in a span of merely 20 days before inevitably burning up, according to the scientists who observed the meteor from an observatory." The nurse continued." During those 20 days, technology was literally disappearing from the face of the Earth. It first started with relatively new advancements like smartphones and computers, but later on, cars and trains were disappearing as well. Not only that, but as humanity neared the end of the 20 days, the landscape everywhere also was changing. What was once huge cities, became vast plains, deserts, and many more different types of environments. 100 story tall buildings eventually became small structures that you could barely call buildings. Neighborhoods turned into villages. You could say for each time the meteor made one complete revolution around the Earth, a year was lost and with it, all the advancements we made that year." And at the 20th day, the world looked like it is now. Fumiko stared at the nurse in disbelief. She wanted to think that the nurse was joking around but everything she said made sense. "What happened when the 20 days were over?" Fumiko asked the nurse. "Chaos." Replied the nurse." Governments relied so much on technology that they couldn''t operate without it. There was no contact between countries anymore due to the fact that there was nothing they could communicate with. The world went dark. Governments broke down, stores and factories couldn''t operate so people couldn''t live. So of course, riots ensued and it looked like we would destroy ourselves. That lasted for about a year, what historians now call, The Dark Year." The nurse leaned back into her chair. "Luckily, we were able to somehow restore balance and create a new society. Things were looking up, we thought we could manage. But, we overlooked something. Not all pieces of the meteor burned up in the sky. Some hit the ground and implanted themselves into it and remained there undisturbed for a year, the same year The Dark Year occurred. After The Dark Year, out of nowhere, strange structures started to appear around the country. Caves, mysterious ruins, and what we recognize now as dungeons, arose from the ground and within those constructions, monster like creatures. They easily attacked our homes and murdered thousands. We, were powerless." "Why didn''t you guys fight back? You had weapons and the military, right?" Fumiko questioned. "Unfortunately, no, we didn''t." The nurse said painfully. "Remember, the meteor took everything, even our weapons. The military isn''t the military without any weapons. We lived in fear everyday waiting for the fiends to come out of their caves and dungeons to attack us. It was a scary time to live in. However, a year later, the meteor gave us humans something too." The nurse opened her right hand and faced her palm toward the ceiling. "What did it give you guys?" A flame spontaneously appeared from the palm of her hand. She smiled and answered "Magic." Chapter 4 -Aki The orange flame in her hand illuminated the once dim lit room as she continued. "Apparently, the pieces of the meteor that buried itself into the ground were radioactive. It wasn''t too long after the Dark Year that most of us started to awaken to these mysterious powers. Before we received them, we thought all hope for humanity was lost. That we were nothing but powerless playthings for the monsters. With these new powers, we thought we could finally fight back and protect ourselves from them. However..." "However?" "We were still too naive." The nurse replied with a grim look. She closed her hand and the flame vanished. "The adults at the time would form groups and march straight to their caves and try to take them head on. My father, being one of them." She started to choke up on her words. ¡°But, they didn''t know how to properly use their powers and ended up getting themselves killed. But even so, more and more people went and more and more people died senselessly. We didn''t know any better. I mean, what else could we do? It seemed like nothing had changed after all. Because of that, a lot of us kids back then grew up without parents. You were considered luck to even have one. But for that very reason, a few years later, a system was set in place by the government. A system that helped us learn more about the magic that was granted to us from the remains of the meteor. A system that would teach kids of that time, who possessed magic, how to use it so that their parents, who went into those dungeons, didn''t die a meaningless death. And that system is-" ¡°This very school, B¨­ken Academy." A voice from behind the wooden sliding door said. The door slid open and behind it was a man, who appeared to be in his mid-thirties wearing a light grey suit, with a burgundy tie. ¡°Good afternoon, Ms.Iwasaki. Sorry for listening in on your conversation¡± "And to you too, Yano. Don''t worry about it." Iwasaki replied. "Have you figured out what''s wrong with my student here?" "Amnesia. And it''s bad. She doesn''t remember much of anything. But, she was able to recall some of the lost technologies. Did you go over that in the first week of school?" "No, after all, it''s only the first week." He replied. "We didn''t do much of anything besides go into more detail about the past and explain why the school was founded." He walked closer to the bed until he was about 2 feet away from it, crouched down so he was eye level with Fumiko. "Tachibana, you really don''t remember anything? Fumiko was didn''t know if he was talking to her. "Tachibana?" She replied with a confused tone. Yano stood up. "So it is true. She can''t even remember her own family name." He looked at Iwasaki. "Do you know if her memories might return? This might pose a problem."Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Iwasaki shook her head. "I honestly don''t know. They may or may not. Only time will tell. Even if they do return, it won¡¯t be anytime soon." "That''s unfortunate then." He replied "I''ll be sure to tell the class what going on tomorro-" Yano was interrupted by the wooden door suddenly sliding open. Behind it this time, was the girl that Fumiko saw this morning. "Rei!" She dropped the bag she was holding, and dashed toward Fumiko and hugged her. Fumiko didn''t have time to react since the girl sprinted over to her quickly. Not to mention she was still feeling a little lightheaded. "Akira, the school day ended hours ago, what are you still doing here? Yano asked her. She let go of Fumiko and turned towards her teacher. ¡°After she was taken here this morning, I couldn''t stop worrying about her." She replied. "I couldn''t focus at all in class today. I needed to know if she was okay." She then turned towards Iwasaki. "Ms.Iwasaki, do you know what''s going on with her?" "A bad case of amnesia." She replied. "We don''t know if her memory will return." Akira was heartbroken when she heard those words. "So...she doesn''t remember anything, anyone? Not even me?" "Unfortunately, no." Iwasaki replied. Akira looked as if she was going to cry. But, instead of bursting into tears, she turned towards Fumiko once more and hugged her again for about a couple of seconds before letting go. "Well, that doesn''t change who you are to me." She said while smiling. "You''re still my very best friend." She went to go pick up the bag that she dropped when she entered earlier. "Your mom couldn''t make it here so she gave me some clothes for you to wear so you don''t have to walk home in your pajamas." Fumiko looked under the covers and realized she was still wearing what she woke up in earlier. "Yes, that¡¯s what you guys should be doing, returning home soon, it¡¯s getting late." Yano told his two students as he and Iwasaki headed out the door. Fumiko looked out the window to her left. It was late afternoon, the crisp, glowing sun stood in the middle of the blood orange sky, towering above the campus of B¨­ken Academy. "Here." Akira said as she handed the bag of clothes to Fumiko. "I''m guessing you don''t know your own way home." She said while grinning. She walked to the door and turned around. "Oh, that¡¯s right, I haven''t told you my name again yet. It''s Akira, just call me Aki like you always have since we were little. I''ll be waiting for you outside." The grin turned to a smile. "I''m glad you''re okay, Rei-Chan." She said before closing the door, leaving Fumiko alone in the room. Fumiko didn''t know what to make of the events that just unfolded in front her. She just sat there for about 3 minutes going over everything. ¡°Amnesia? The Time Meteor?" She thought to herself. It felt like she was just thrown into a storm of confusion and she''s barely staying afloat. Her mind was still racing when she got a knock on the door. "Rei, have you forgotten how to put your uniform on too?" Akira joked from the other side of the door. Fumiko decided to just go along with everything. After all, what else could she do? "I''m fine." She replied. It felt like she hasn''t spoken in forever. ¡°Just give me a few minutes." Fumiko opened the bag and looked inside. There lay, a white shirt, brown shoes, and a burgundy skirt and blazer. She put them on and looked at a reflection of herself from a glass cabinet since the room lacked any mirrors. She felt out of place. "I don''t belong here. But if I don''t belong here, where do I belong?" She thought to herself. She sighed and called out to Akira. Akira opened the door, saw her best friend and smiled. "Let''s go home." Chapter 5 -New Kyoto (Revised) Fumiko and Akira exited Iwasaki''s office and walked out into the hallway. The smooth, yet rough looking floors of the spacious hallway were partially covered by a wine and gold pattern rug, that stretched out from one end of the hall to the other connecting ones. As Fumiko followed Akira and walked down the long corridor lit only by chandeliers, Akira turned around. "Hey Rei," She called out to her. "Why don''t I show you around the campus a little? We wouldn''t want you to get lost Monday when I''m not with you, right? I mean, after all, B¨­ken Academy is kind of a big school. Fumiko decided that walking around for a little while wasn''t such a bad idea. She wasn''t particularly in a rush to go home to a family that she doesn''t recognize. "Sure." She replied. "I don''t mind." "Well, follow me." She told Fumiko while smiling. "But first," Akira walked up to Fumiko and pulled out a golden badge. She gently grabbed the outside of Fumiko''s blazer with one hand and pinned the badge above her heart with the other. "The teachers just passed these out today.¡± She told her. ¡°I asked to hold on to yours so I can give it to you later when you were feeling better." She then reached into her other pocket, pulled out another badge and did the same to herself. Fumiko looked down at the badge. Engraved in the middle of the badge was a picture of two swords crossed. Inscribed below the emblem were words that read "nee incerta spe". Before Fumiko could ask what the badges were for, Akira took her by the hand and led her to, and down the stairs. She didn''t let go until they arrived in front of another wooden sliding door with a sign above it reading "1-C". Akira slid open the door, stepped inside, and turned around back towards Fumiko. "This," She said with her arms outstretched into the air as if she was showing off something. ¡°Is our classroom." She told her. "You''ve already been here but, you don''t remember right?" "No, I don''t." Fumiko answered her as she walked into the classroom. The classroom was about 3 times the size of a regular classroom. The wooden walls of the room, a light brown color, much brighter than the dark oak walls that covered the hallways. In the middle of the room stood a podium. 10 feet behind it, towards the front of the room, to the immediate right of the door that Fumiko and Akira entered through, was a huge blackboard that looked like it was just recently used. In front the podium, instead of the standard classroom desks, were 4 rows of long tables each set at a different height from the other. Behind each table, were 4 chairs. On both ends of the first row of tables, were stairs covered by more red carpet that allowed you reach the tables high up in the back.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Akira went up the stairs until she reached the third row of tables and sat in the third seat from the left. "This is my seat and," She pointed to the seat on her right. "This is yours. We picked them out together last week. After all, we¡¯ve always sat next to each other since 1st grade." She sat there for a while and closed her eyes, as if she was remembering something. Eventually, she got up, walked down the stairs, toward Fumiko, and clasped Fumiko¡¯s hand. "Rei," She started. "I know Ms. Iwasaki told me already but I want to hear it from you. Do you really not remember me?" She asked in a soft tone. Fumiko somewhat understood what kind of person she meant to Akira before she lost her memories. She didn''t want to make her upset. She was the only person who, since this morning, didn''t look at her strange or treat her like she was some poor soul who you should take pity on. But she didn''t want to lie to her for those exact reasons. To make her feel false hope didn''t stand right by Fumiko. She couldn''t lie to the one person she somewhat felt comfortable around. "Sorry, I don''t." Fumiko answered. "Oh." Akira said with a disappointed tone. She stared down at her shoes. "But, I appreciate you for helping me out all day." Fumiko said trying to make her feel better. "Even though you know I don''t remember you, you still worried about me. Thanks, Aki." That was all Akira needed to hear to make her feel better. She looked up from her shoes smiling from ear to ear. "Well, that''s what best friends do for each other." She walked towards the door that they entered from and turned around. "It''s getting late. We should start heading off the campus." Fumiko looked at a nearby window and saw that the once orange sky, was turning a dark red. "Yeah." She replied. Once outside the campus, Fumiko looked back at the grounds that she was just on not too long ago and noticed how big B¨­ken Academy. "You weren''t kidding, it''s huge." "Hmm? Oh, the campus? Yeah. Supposedly, before the effects of the Time Meteor, It used to be a school called "Kyoto University". Akira told her as they continued walking. "Kyoto University?" "Yeah. Oh," Akira said as if she forgot something. "Rei, I know your memories are missing but surely, you know what country we live in right?" "Hmm? No." Akira laughed a little. "Well, I guess I shouldn''t be surprised. We live where people used to call "Japan" according to what we were taught in preliminary school. After the Time Meteor incident, and a little before B¨­ken Academy was founded, the citizens living here of that time didn''t want to change the name of their country or any of its cities, even though you couldn''t say it was the same country anymore after everything was altered by the meteor. So," She continued. "Instead of calling the country and its cities by a completely different name, they just added the word "New" to everything even though, everything looks old. Pretty Ironic right?'' She said as she giggled a little. By the time Akira finished talking, they arrived at the house Fumiko woke up in. Fumiko walked through the gate and just before she entered the house, Akira called out to her. "Since we have a day off tomorrow, I can show you around the city if you want. After all, New Kyoto has all sorts of good places to visit." "Sure, I don''t have anything else to do obviously." They both laughed. "I''ll come by tomorrow around noon then." She ran down the street before turning around and waving at Fumiko. Once she was out of sight, Fumiko turned towards the door, sighed a little, then slid it open. Chapter 6 - Mask After Akira waved goodbye to Fumiko, she turned around and began to head down the street to her own house. As she walked, she began to recall the events of the whole day in her head. She didn''t know how to feel about them. She was lost in emotions that have been swirling inside her ever since the day started. It wasn''t just sadness, or simply being upset. It was something much worse. It made her sick to her stomach. So much, she felt as if she was going to throw up. She hated feeling like this. She wanted to rid herself of these undesirable emotions. However, she couldn''t. She couldn''t get rid of these detestable feelings because she knew that they were important to her. And that the reason they are important her is because Fumiko was important to her. She thought that if she simply threw them away, it would be the same as throwing away her relationship with her best friend. And she couldn''t do that. Akira couldn''t understand what she was feeling but there was one thing that she understood clearly. "This is the worst day ever." Akira said to herself. As she continued to walk down the cobblestone road, she began to curse her luck. "Why me? It''s not fair." She complained to herself. She knew that she was being selfish, making it all about herself, when in reality, her friend was the one suffering, not her, but she didn''t care. "Why couldn''t someone else have forgotten their memories, why did it have to happen to Rei?" She wanted to burst out in tears and blame somebody, anybody really, for stealing Fumiko''s memories from her but she couldn''t do that either because their was nobody to blame. Nobody to blame at all. As she made the left turn onto the street where her house resided on, she kept thinking about what she should do. If there was one thing that she was sure about, it was that she wanted to keep being Fumiko''s best friend no matter what. She cherished the relationship between them as much as she cherished her own life. But now, the relationship that she holds dearly to her heart, is in jeopardy of falling apart and her, with it. She still couldn''t grasp all the events that transpired from morning till now. Still lost in thought, Akira eventually made it through the gate, to the front door of her house and slid open the door. "I''m home." "Oh, your back." Akira''s mother said as came around from the corner. "You''re late. Where were you?" "I stayed after school for a while." Akira answered as she took of her shoes and set her bag down. "Something happened to Rei this morning you see." "With Reina? What happened? Is she okay?" Akira''s mother asking her those two simple questions was all it took for the suppressed emotions swirling inside her to swell up and explode. The mask that she had been wearing in front of her classmates and Fumiko shattered. Akira began to cry.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "She doesn''t remember anything, mom! She doesn''t remember me!" She wailed in response. "She''s lost all of her memories. She didn''t even know who she was! Upset, Akira ran past her mother, up the stairs, into her room, locked the door and sprawled face first onto her bed. She tried to muffle the sound her crying by burying her face into the bed. She heard her mother calling out to her but chose to ignore her. She just wanted to be alone. Akira''s mother knocked on the door "Akira, are you okay?" She asked her softly. "Let''s talk about it." Akira threw a pillow at the door. ¡°Just leave me alone!" She yelled at her mother. "Why Rei, why Rei, why Rei!" Aki cried out. She remained there for about 10 minutes shifting between crying and complaining out loud. Eventually, she got up and sat upright on the bed. She decided she needed to calm down and accept what had happened to her best friend. She wanted to stay strong for Fumiko and herself. Akira got up and walked over to her mirror. Her face and eyes were red and puffy from crying. "Honestly, I''ve started high school and I''m still such a crybaby." She mumbled to herself. She then, went to the bathroom to wash her face. She felt bad about yelling at her mother so when she was done washing her face, she went down the stairs and saw her mother washing the dishes and entered the kitchen. "Mom." Akira called out to her gently. "I''m sorry for yelling at you. I was just upset and I lashed out." Her mother turned around. "It¡¯s fine. You''re going through your rebellious phase that every new high schooler goes through right? She joked. "That''s not it at all," Akira responded while giving a small smile. She walked to the sink and began helping her mother. "Before you ran upstairs, you told me that Reina lost her memories, is that true?" "Yeah, she doesn''t remember anyone, not her family, her classmates," She paused for a bit. "Or me. I don''t know what to do." "Oh, I see. That''s horrible. I''m so sorry Akira." Her mother replied as she finished the last dish. She went to over by the table to dry her hands. "But, I don''t think you have to change the way you treat her, Akira." "Huh?" "She may have lost her memories of you, but, you didn''t lose any of her. You still want to be friends right?" "Yeah, of course." "Then just be there for her. That''s good enough." Akira''s mother told her. Akira realized her mother was right. Just because Fumiko''s memories are gone, doesn''t mean she had to change the way she acts her. She ran to her mother and hugged her. "You''re right mom, thanks." Her mother smiled. "I see no matter how old you get, you''re still baby at heart." "That''s not true at all." Akira pouted. They both laughed. Akira goes back towards the stairs and before going up, she looks back at her mother. "Thank you, mom" "No problem." She responds with a smile. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The next morning, Akira headed to Fumiko''s house. When there, she rings the doorbell. Instead of Fumiko appearing on the other side, it¡¯s Yui, her little sister. "Hey Aki, Rei said you were coming yesterday." "Yeah, is she up yet?" Yui shook her head. "I tried to wake her up but she''s not a morning person I guess. "Huh? But its noon." Akira thought to herself. "Just wait here, I''ll go get her." Before Akira could respond, Yui bolted back into the house and up the stairs. Akira, a few seconds later, could hear playful screaming and laughter from inside. A few minutes afterwards, Fumiko came out. "Sorry Aki, the little brat loves to play around. Did you wait long?" Akira was glad to see her friend again. Especially since she got all of her worries of her chest with the help of her mom the previous day. "I don''t have to change anything." She thought to herself. "Because no matter what, I''m still her best friend." "Nope." She replied with a wide smile on her face. "Not at all." Chapter 7 - The Second First Day At Boken Academy Fumiko and Akira headed away from Fumiko''s house and down the street. The baby blue sky above them was clear of clouds. The only obstruction was the orange sun that stood tall in the middle of the sky. Akira hummed a light tune as the two walked down the street. It was only for couple of minutes after departing, that Fumiko''s curiosity got the better of her. ¡°So Akira-" "Aki." Akira reminded her. "Sorry. Aki, where are we going? I''ve been following you blindly for some time now." "Oh, you''ll see." She replied while grinning. "Aki, I don''t like surprises." "Well," Akira said as she did a little spin. "That''s just too bad then." She said while giggling. The pair exited the neighborhood and continued walking down the sidewalk for about twenty minutes. Akira, humming during most of it. "You''re in a good mood. Did something happen?" Fumiko asked her. Akira looked at her, flashed a smile, and looked away. "Nope." They walked for about two more minutes and eventually, arrived at the front of what seemed to Fumiko, a park. "A park?" Questioned Fumiko. "Just wait until we get to the other side. You''ll see." Akira answered. To enter the grounds, they''d have to walk into one side of the brick tunnel and out the other. Akira took Fumiko''s hand and walked through the tunnel. When they got out the other side, Fumiko was surprised. On the other side was a long walkway and on both sides of it, thousands of flowers that stretched as far as the eye could see. Both sides held flowers of different colors. "It''s a flower garden." Akira told Fumiko. "It''s one of my favorite places in the city." On the right side of the walkway, were hundreds of flowers with their colors being, red, blue, yellow, and green. On the left side, were flowers the colors of purple, pink, orange, and white. Still holding hands, Fumiko and Akira walked down the path for a while, looking at the flowers until something caught Fumiko''s eyes. She let go of her friend''s hand and went to one section of the flowers and crouched down to examine them. "Aki, what are these?" In front of Fumiko were flowers that weren''t one solid color. The flowers had petals that had multiple colors spanning from violet, green, yellow, red, and blue. "Oh those," Akira crouched down next to her. "Are special flowers. They caught your eyes the first time we went here together too." "We? The first time?" Fumiko asked confused. "Yeah." Akira replied. "We came here on a school trip in middle school about two years ago. It''s only natural you don''t remember though. The guide back then told us that before the meteor came, there weren''t any flowers like this. I don''t remember the explanation he gave us though. It was something about the pieces of the meteor in the soil being absorbed by the plants." "Oh." Fumiko turned back towards the flowers and tried to remember if she''s seen them before. She couldn''t. "Why don''t we get something to eat?" Akira asked Fumiko. "The sandwiches here are to die for." "Sure." This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. They walked to a nearby bench and sat down. "I''ll be right back." Akira told Fumiko before she took off to a nearby food stand. While Akira was gone, Fumiko surveyed her surroundings from the bench. And noticed how beautiful the garden was. She felt bad. Not for herself, but for her friend, Akira. Akira told her that it was one of her favorite places and that they even came here together once but she couldn''t remember. "It must be hard for her." Fumiko thought to herself. "Having a friend who doesn''t remember you." "Rei." Fumiko snapped out of her thoughts and realized Akira was handing her a sandwich wrapped in a napkin. "Oh, sorry." She apologized as she took it from her friend. "You seemed like you were thinking about something. Were you?" Akira asked Fumiko. Fumiko didn''t want to make her friend worry about her more than she has already has. "No, I was just stunned by how nice this place is." Fumiko responded. "Yeah, I love this place. I come here a lot." Fumiko was about to bite into her sandwich before Akira hit her with another question. "Are you getting along with your family? You and Yui seemed better than today you did yesterday." "Yui? Oh, the brat." She put down the sandwich. "I guess so. They all had a talk with me yesterday when I came back. I still felt kind of out of place though." "You shouldn''t feel that way Rei. I mean, they are your family." "I guess so." After they finished eating, they walked around the garden until it was closing time. By the time they left, it was already late afternoon. The once, brilliant blue sky now shown a dark orange. As the two were heading home, Akira proposed something. "Rei, there''s one place I want to show you before the day''s over." Instead of entering the neighborhood, the walked past it, going in the opposite direction than the one they went in previously that morning. They came to a stop at a small cafe on the side of the road and entered it. Inside, it was roomy. In the middle of the cafe, there was bar section where customers could sit and order. The walls of the shop were made of wood. The seating and tables in the back of the cafe, with it. "Akira, is that you? Welcome." The middle aged man behind the bar said. ¡°Oh, Reina you''re here too. Please, take a seat. The usual?" "Yes please." Akira replied. "Another unknown face?" Fumiko thought to herself. She looked at Akira in confusion. Akira responded by just quietly laughing to herself. They take a seat at a table far in the back. "Who is he?" Fumiko asked her friend. "He''s the owner of this place. We used to come here all the time. I don''t think you should tell him about your amnesia though, he''d be worried sick." "Oh. How long-" "Well if it isn''t Ms. Last Place." An unfamiliar voice interrupted Fumiko. Akira and Fumiko turned their heads. Standing beside their table was a girl who looked their age with long golden hair reaching her waist and eyes the color of emeralds. The smile that Akira had on her face quickly came off and a frown replaced it. "Shiina, I told you to stop calling me that." Shiina laughed. "Isn''t it fine? After all, you did come dead last in all sections of the entrance exam. You''re even the worst in the class for Magic Affinity. It''s a name that fits you perfectly. How''d you even get into Boken?" She scoffed. "I...." Akira couldn''t respond. She stared at her feet. Fumiko didn''t appreciate some girl she didn''t know making fun of her friend. "I think you should back off." Fumiko said in a heated tone. Shiina turned her attention to Fumiko. "Or what, Rei? What are you going to do? Ever since the 1st grade you''ve always hid behind Aki. Not to mention, you''re not too far off from her in terms of the exam rankings." She started to laugh once more. At that point, Fumiko had enough of Shiina. Her temper flared. "Oh I''ll show you-" She tried to get up but Akira pushed the top her leg down. She looked Akira as if to say "Why?" but Akira just shook her head. Akira then turned towards Shiina and put on a fake smile. "You''re right." She told her. "I was just lucky." "Hmpf, of course you were." She looked at Fumiko who was still staring daggers at her. She gave another "Hmpf", then exited out of the cafe. When she left, Akira slid back into her chair and sighed. "Who was she?" Fumiko asked Akira. ¡°She¡¯s in our class at Boken." Akira answered. "She also was classmates with us up until the start of middle school. She wasn''t always this mean though. I guess ranking second in the exams got to her head." "I don''t like her." "Well, as she is now, me neither." When Fumiko and Akira were done eating, they left the cafe and returned to their neighborhood where Akira walked Fumiko home. "First period starts at eight." Akira reminded Fumiko. "I''ll be outside at your gate at 7:30. Don''t be late for your second first day." She joked. Fumiko smiled. "I won''t." Akira left and Fumiko entered her house. She immediately went to her room and collapsed onto her bed. "School huh?" She thought to herself. She wasn''t sure if it was right for her to go. "I''ll just see what tomorrow brings." She thought before closing her eyes. [Arc 2- First Quest] Chapter 8 - Unforgetable Bond Fumiko opened her eyes. She sat up and looked at the clock that was hanging from the wall right above the door. She squinted her eyes and tried to make out what it read. "10:00". Immediately after recognizing what time it was, the words that Akira told her before she left replayed in her head. "First period starts at 8:00. Don''t be late." She quickly looked outside from the window that was to the right of her bed fearing that she overslept. However, it was still dark and the stars were out. "It''s still the same day." She thought to herself. She sighed and tried to get out of the bed only to realize that something was on her under the covers. She lifted the covers and found Yui attached to her side. Trying not to wake her, she gently pried Yui''s hands off her and walked to the bathroom, lit the candle on the wall with a match that was on the counter, and studied herself in the mirror. Her long, ruby colored hair was all over the place. She continued stared her reflection. Fumiko only partially believed that she was meant to be there. The other part, not so much. She felt as if she was living a life that wasn''t hers. "You don''t just wake up one day and have amnesia." She complained to herself. As she turned towards the door to go back into her room, she saw Yui, in her green button up pajamas, standing in the doorway, her eyes half opened. "Sorry, did I wake you?" "No." Yui replied as she groggily wiped her eyes with her balled up fists. She yawned. "I wanted to wash my face." She walked over to the stool beneath the sink and stepped up onto it, and turned the faucet on. When she was finished, she walked back into the room. Fumiko blew out the candle and followed. "By the way Yui, why were you in my bed? Isn''t yours the one in the other corner?" Fumiko asked. Yui shook her head sluggishly. "No, that''s yours. I thought you wanted to sleep together since you were already in mine when I came upstairs." "Oh." When the two sisters returned to their room, Yui hopped back into the bed she was sleeping on. As Fumiko walked over to the opposite side of the room, where the other bed was, Yui called out to her. "Rei." Fumiko turned around. "Yeah?" "Come sleep with me?" Yui asked. "But you just said that-" "So no?" Yui started to pout. Fumiko didn''t want Yui to cry and wake up their parents over something so trivial. "Sure." She said as she sighed. "Just don''t cry." Upon hearing those words, the frown on Yui''s face transformed into a smile. She shifted over on the bed, making room for her sister, and eagerly waited for Fumiko to crawl in. And she did. A few minutes later, Fumiko found herself restless. She couldn''t fall asleep as easily as she did earlier. Questions she had on her mind before, started to resurface. "Do I really belong here? Is this my life?" She had many on her mind but one question stood out amongst the others. "Who am I really?" She felt like she couldn''t answer them herself. She looked over to her little sister.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "Yui, you still awake?" She asked her "Mhm." Yui replied half asleep. "Who am I to you?" Fumiko asked, not expecting a thoughtful answer. "Who?" Yui rolled over, facing her older sister and gently grabbed her arm. "You''re my sister." She said with her eyes still closed. Fumiko smiled. Even though, the words of a seven year old who''s half asleep shouldn''t mean much, it did to her. It made her feel at ease. She closed her eyes and fell back asleep. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª- When Fumiko opened her eyes again, it felt to her as if only mere seconds passed by. She looked over to the clock again. This time, it read 7:00. She lifted the cover to get up, expecting Yui to be there. She wasn''t. Fumiko walked out of her room, into the wood floored hallway, and into the bathroom where she found her sister brushing her teeth. "Rei you''re up." Yui said with a toothbrush in her mouth as she handed Fumiko one. Fumiko took it and joined her. When they were finished, they headed back into their room and changed into their respective uniforms. Fumiko didn''t know what to do with her wild hair so she left it alone while Yui slid on a scrunchie onto hers, creating a ponytail. They then, went down the wooden steps into the kitchen where their mother had already prepared two pieces of toast on the table for them before leaving. Yui sat on a chair on one end of the table and Fumiko sat on the other. When Fumiko finished eating, she looked at the clock above the stove that read 7:25. She turned over to Yui, who had butter and bread crumbs smeared around her mouth and grabbed a napkin from the stack that was sitting on the table. "Yui, how are you getting to school?" Fumiko asked her as she reached across the table to wipe her sister''s mouth. When Fumiko removed the napkin, she answered. "Kaori comes here around 8. We always walk to school together." Fumiko wanted to ask who Kaori was but she assumed it was her friend who she forgotten about and didn''t really care to confirm. "Oh, Okay." "Actually Rei, how are you getting to school? Do you remember the way?" Yui asked. "No, not really." Fumiko answered as she took the two plates that they used for breakfast and put them in the sink. "Aki said she''ll be outside at," She looked at the clock again. This time, it read 7:30. "Right about now." She walked to the front door, picking up her bag along the way and put on the brown shoes that she came home in two days ago. She was about to open the door before she heard Yui call out to her. She turned around, hand on the door. ¡°What is it?" Fumiko asked. "Have a good day." She told her older sister with a huge smile on her face. Fumiko smiled back. She felt as if she had gotten closer to her sister even though she could only remember their memories together dating back to the past two days. "Thanks, You too." She slid open the door and closed it once she was outside where, she was greeted by Akira. "Good morning Re-" Akira started but stopped once she saw the mess on Fumiko''s head. "What happened to your hair?" She exclaimed. "Oh, I didn''t really know what to do with it." Fumiko answered while walking through the front gate of her house." Akira sighed. "Well, you can¡¯t go looking like that. Turn around for a second." Fumiko turned around and heard Akira unzipping her bag and rumbling around in it before pulling something out. "I don''t have a comb on me right now but," She pulled out a black ribbon and tied it on her friend''s hair, making a ponytail that reaches down to her waist. She stood back admiring her work. "That''s a little better. She picked up her bag. "Let''s go." [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 9 - The Class of 1-C Fumiko and Akira exited the neighborhood and headed further into the city, towards Boken Academy. As they walked down the streets of New Kyoto, Fumiko couldn''t help but notice how busy the city was. On the city streets, instead of cars, were horses drawing carriages with families inside. If not a carriage, then they were drawing wagons full of goods and materials. Markets were bustling on both sides of the street selling things such as fruits and meat, to clothing and hats. "Selling only the freshest apples and oranges! Come get em''! "Shirts, pants, and shoes! All for sale!" It was a lively scene. The voices of the townspeople filled the air. Fumiko turned towards Akira. "Is it always this loud so early in the morning?" "It''s like this most of the time. The people of this city never sleep." She joked. "There''s always something going on. That''s one of the reasons I love this city so much." Akira said proudly. They headed further into the city until they reached the first entry gate of the academy''s campus where their fellow academy students were either waiting for their friends or hurrying to the second gate, which was further beyond the first. ¡°Nervous?" Akira asked Fumiko. "Not in the slightest." Akira laughed a little. "You don''t have to lie, Rei. It''s alright to be a little nervous. You were a week ago." Fumiko didn''t feel nervous however, she did feel a little uneasy about attending the academy. She wasn''t entirely sure if a school for magic and other things related, were right for her. Fumiko and Akira headed through the gate, where they were then greeted by a woman with short, brown curly hair, who was observing all of the students entering the main building. "Good morning, Ms. Morika." Akira told the woman as she walked past her. "And to you too Akira." She then turned her attention to Fumiko. "Good morning, Reina." She said in a stern tone. Fumiko didn''t really know how to respond so she just nodded her head and kept walking. Just as she was about to walk past her, Ms. Morika grabbed Fumiko by the shoulder. "Reina, where''s your badge?" She asked her. Fumiko looked down at her blazer and realized that she forgot it back in her house. She thought back and remembered leaving it on the dresser. Akira turned around and walked back towards Fumiko and Ms. Morika. "What''s going on?" "Your friend here forgot her badge." Akira inspected her friend''s burgundy blazer. "Oh, you did forget it." "Is it that really much of a big deal?" Fumiko questioned. "It''s just a badge." "It''s more than just a badge." Ms. Morika fired back. She leaned forward towards Fumiko. "It''s your identification. That badge is proof that you are a student of this prestigious magic academy. It also allows you to enter most of the rooms on the campus." She leaned forward more. "So yes, it is a big deal." She reclined back and sighed. "Normally, I''m not supposed to let you onto the campus grounds without it. But, then again, it''s only the second week of school. I''ll let you off the hook this time. Be sure not to forget it again." Fumiko didn''t appreciate the tone of the teacher. "It''s just a stupid badg-" She started before Akira pushed her head down and lowered hers. "Thank you, Ms. Morika. I''ll be sure not to let her forget it next time." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "Good. And Reina, don''t leave your shirt out. Tuck it into your skirt. You represent this school everywhere you go while wearing our uniform. Go along now, don''t be late for first period." She told them before turning her attention back towards the students entering through the first gate. "We won''t.¡± Akira answered as she pushed Fumiko forward from behind through the second gate. Once through, she stopped pushing her and walked by her side. "Are all the teachers strict like her too?" Fumiko questioned her Akira. Akira sighed. "Rei, I think it''s just your attitude." They walked through the doors of the main building, through the halls lit only by the sunlight shining through the large glass windows on the walls, and arrived at the first year¡¯s hallway. They walked up to the door labeled "1-C". From outside, Fumiko and Akira could hear loud chatter coming from inside the room. "It seems like everyone is already in there." Akira said to herself. She then, turned towards Fumiko. "So Rei, ready to meet your classmates for the second time?" Fumiko sighed. "Sure. I don''t have a choice do I?" "Nope." Akira replied while smiling. "I promise you, they''re all friendly." She told her as she took off her badge and held it in front of small device that was attached to the wall. There was a little clicking noise and the door adjusted itself a little. She fasten the badge back on her blazer. "Here we go." She opened the door. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "And then I told her-" As soon as Akira opened the door and the two entered the room, all chatter ceased. All fourteen pairs eyes turned towards them. It was so silent, that an eerie atmosphere started to form in the classroom. "I guess they know." Akira whispered to Fumiko. They walked towards the tables and headed up the small stairs that was attached to side of all 4 rows of tables. As Fumiko followed Akira into their row, she could hear the small murmurs of her ¡°new¡± classmates. "Do you think it''s true?" One of them said to another. "I don''t know." "Shhh. She''ll hear you." Fumiko tapped Akira on her shoulder. "So much for being friendly, right? "Sorry. I guess they''re just curious." She whispered in response. They entered the third row and took their seats. The silence continued. It wasn''t until two minutes later, that it was broken by a boy, who appeared no taller than Akira, with messy, short, tan hair walked up the stairs and into the row Fumiko and Akira were sitting in. "So Reina, since everyone is scared to ask the famous question, I''ll ask it for them. Is it true that you have amnesia?" He smirked. "If it''s true that you do, let me introduce myself again." He put one foot on the table. "You see, I¡¯m your boyfrien-" He started before the girl sitting in the row above Fumiko reached down and smacked him on the head with her notebook, causing him to lose his balance and fall on the floor. "Knock it off Hibiki!" The girl told him. "Oww, why do you always have to ruin the fun, Miyuki?" Hibiki said from the floor while rubbing head. "Let me shine." "Your definition of fun is twisted." She then turned towards Fumiko. "Sorry Reina. You know how he is. Always playing around." "Or does she?" A voice came from the back of the room. Everyone looked in the direction where the voice came from. Not to Fumiko''s or Akira''s surprise, it was Shiina. "I overheard your conversation last week with Ms. Iwasaki and Mr. Yano in the nurse¡¯s office." She stood up. "I did the favorable deed of letting our dear classmates know about what I heard." "Ahh, here she goes again." A boy in the second row said while shaking his head. "So tell us, Rei." She snickered. "Do you remember any of our precious classmates?" Fumiko already decided back in the cafe that she didn''t like Shiina. This only further proofed to her that her judgement was correct. She stood up. "You-" Before she could finish what would have been a rude remark, the classroom opened. All eyes turned toward it. Mr. Yano walked in. "Be quiet and take your seats." He told his students in a low, yet demanding tone. Immediately, everyone who was standing, sat down. All except for Fumiko, who was still glaring at Shiina. "Sit down, Reina. I won''t tell you again." Akira gently pulled Fumiko down to her seat. Mr. Yano walked up to the podium and flipped open the book that was laying on it. He murmured under his breath and opened his left hand, palm faced towards the ceiling. Immediately after he was done murmuring, a flame appeared in his hand and shot into the air. He pointed at the flame that was now hovering in the air above the students with his right hand and began moving it. The flame followed his hand motions and separated itself onto the candles that were on the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. He closed his hand and the left over flame in the air vanished. "Let''s start class." [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 10 - Identities "But, before we do, I have an announcement to make." Yano told his class. "Though, it seems like you guys already know based on what I heard before I walked in." He then, focused his gaze on Fumiko. "Reina, come down here." Fumiko looked at Akira who nudged her head as if to say "Go on." and got up out of her seat, made her way down the steps and stood beside her teacher. "There''s no easy way to put this so I''m just going to tell you all bluntly." Yano began. "Your classmate Reina, has a case of severe amnesia. That''s why she was missing last class. We don''t know if her memories will return." Murmurs began among the class of 1-C. "So it is true." "So, she doesn''t remember anybody at all?" "So I really had a chance of being her boyfriend if it wasn''t for Miyuki, the four eyes?" "Shut up Hibiki!" "Quiet. I''m not done speaking yet." Yano said. The murmurs died down. "I know that most of you guys have only known her for a little more than a week but, we''re still a class and I expect you all to help her adjust to how things work here." He turned his attention back to Fumiko. "With that being said, let me introduce your classmates to you since you''ve forgotten them." He faced the class once more and said. "First row, stand up." They listened and the entire row stood up. "From right to left are, Kouta, Narumi, Katsumi, and Saburo." Yano told her. "If you have any questions when I''m not around, ask Saburo. He''s your class rep. We held an election last week and you guys selected him. "It''s unfortunate what has happened to you Reina but you can count on me for anything! Anything at all!" Saburo told Fumiko in a loud, sturdy voice. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. "Why is he always so loud in the morning?" Katsumi complained. "I think he''s always this loud." Kouta replied. "Take your seats. Next row, stand." The first row sat down and the next, directly behind it, stood up. "In the first seat is Kana, then you have the Kitamura twins, Takuma and Takumi, then Hibiki." Yano told Fumiko. "Nice to-" One of the twins started. "Meet you for the-" The other continued. "Second time Reina!" They both finished. Fumiko couldn''t tell them apart. They both had long blonde hair that stopped at their eyebrows, and brown eyes. Their voices sounded the same too, both high pitched. Hibiki cleared his throat and pointed at his chest with his thumb. "Forget about Saburo, come to me with all your problems. After all, I''m the most capable person in this class. And your soon to be love interest." He told Fumiko proudly. "Yeah right. More like least capable." A boy with dark brown hair said behind him. Hibiki turned around. "Damn you Itsuki! Just because you ranked first in the exams doesn''t mean you can walk over the rest of us!" "I have no idea what you''re talking about." He replied while trying to hide his amusement. "You two, be quiet." Yano told them. "Third row, stand up." The second row took their seats and the third row got out of theirs. "You have Itsuki, your good friend Akira, then Masou." Akira smiled and waved at Fumiko and Masou did the same. "I hope we get along as well as we did the first time." Masou told Fumiko. "You guys can take your seats. Last row, rise." The third row sat and the one behind it, the last row, rose. "In the last row, there''s Daiki, Arata, Miyuki, and Shiina." "It''s a little weird saying this but nice to meet you again, Reina." Miyuki said to Fumiko. "Yes, nice to meet you again, Rei. I''m so glad that my dear childhood friend is alright." Shiina said with a smirk on her face. "Good, take your seats." Yano told the last row. "You too, Reina." Fumiko walked up the stairs and back to her seat. Where Akira was waiting for her. "So what''d you think of your classmates?" Akira asked her. Fumiko didn''t know how to answer question. After all, she had already forgotten half their names and faces but she didn''t want to let Akira know that. "I guess they¡¯re alright." "See, I told you they were friendly. They were just curious at first." "Alright, eyes up here." Yano told them from the podium. "We didn''t really get to discuss what we will be doing for the first couple of weeks since last week was all orientation related." He continued. "As you all know, Boken Academy is a magic school that prepares students for three years from the time they enter, to the time they graduate to become full-fledged adventures. Obviously, since you guys are still kids, there will be limits to what we can actually do. But, don''t think for a second that this year will be easy. It won''t. I can guarantee that. "Sheesh, Mr. Yano only knows how to say things one way doesn''t he." Kouta whispered to Narumi. "Yeah he''s kind of scary." She replied back to him. "Kouta, Narumi, did something I say warrant a conversation?" Yano asked his two students. "N-No Mr. Yano!" They both replied simultaneously. "Then be quiet and listen. And the next person who speaks when I''m speaking is staying after and cleaning the entire first floor." "Sorry." "At Boken Academy." He continued. "The first years take a test after the first couple of weeks of school called "The First Quest Evaluation Test". We''re going to spend most of our time preparing for it. We''ll go more into detail about it tomorrow but remember, we''re still a school. Academics take priority over the Adventurer Course. So for now," He reached into a little compartment inside the podium and pulled out a book. "It''s time for English." The entire class filled classroom with theirs groans. "What was that?" Yano asked the class. The once loud groans of the class turned into halfhearted and sarcastic cheers. "That''s what I thought I heard." [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 11 - Life at Boken Academy "Also, when writing sentences, you-" Yano tried to instruct the class before being interrupted by the bell that rang across the school''s magic intercoms which signaled the end of first period. "Thank God." Hibiki sighed in relief as he slumped back into his chair. "I didn''t know how much more of that torture of a lesson I could take." "Same here." Daiki agreed. "English is needlessly hard. Why do we even have to learn it? It¡¯s not like we speak it here." "And we can''t even go to where people do speak English." Hibiki added. "Honestly, it¡¯s so pointless." "Are you two done thrashing my subject?" Yano asked them in a low, menacing tone. Hibiki turned his attention from the fourth row where Daiki was sitting, and back to the podium, where his teacher, who he thought walked out already, was staring his cold, grey eyes into his. He raised his two hands to his chest and began nervously shaking them in the air. ¡°No Mr. Yano! We weren''t talking about English! We were talking about....uh....." He tried to think of another subject. "History! We were talking about History." "Yeah, History!" Daiki added. "Oh, I see." Yano replied. Hibiki sighed. "That was close." He thought to himself. He thought he was safe until he heard his teacher''s next words. "Did you forget I teach History too?" Yano asked the two in an even more menacing tone. Both Hibiki''s and Daiki''s eyes widened. Hibiki turned back to Daiki and gave him a look that screamed "Help!" but Daiki just shook his head as to say "We messed up. It''s over." Hibiki nervously turned back to Yano. "You see, Mr. Yano, we-" "Don''t try to talk your way out of this one." Yano interrupted him. "You''re staying after and cleaning this entire floor." He looked up to the fourth row, where Daiki was crouching down, trying not to get caught. "You too, Daiki." He exited the classroom but not before turning back and addressing the class. "And if the rest of you guys thought that one little subject was hard, wait until tomorrow." A small smirk appeared on his face. "You''re going to be begging to learn English rather than what we''re going to be doing." He left and as soon as he closed the door, the entire class of 1-C gave a huge sigh and slid back into their chairs. They began talking amongst themselves. "Why is Mr. Yano so mean to us. It¡¯s not like we did anything to him." "Yeah, who let that man teach at our school? They should be fired." "Honestly." "Yeah, and who let Hibiki into this school too, even though his head''s lacking a brain. They should be fired as well." Itsuki tried to slide in. "Shut up!" Fumiko turned to Akira. "Aki, how much longer do I have to be here? I can''t believe you guys do this almost every day of the week." "Well, not every day is like this." Akira replied. You''ll get used to how the day goes. Besides, it¡¯s only first period. We still have seven more to go." Fumiko couldn''t believe what her friend just told her. "Seven? More of these? You''re kidding." "Don''t be like that Rei. Our next subject isn''t that hard. The teacher will be in here soon. I think we have Math next. And luckily for you, you''re sitting next to the person who ranked 1st in the exams. Isn''t that right, Itsuki?" Akira asked as she leaned forward and turned her attention to the boy sitting on the right of Fumiko. Itsuki stopped harassing Hibiki and looked at Akira and Fumiko. "Well, Math isn''t my best subject but I''m good enough to get by. Ask me if you have any trouble." He replied. The classroom door made a small clicking sound and shortly after, slid open and entered a woman, in the same black suit Yano was wearing with long light brown hair who appeared to be in her early twenties. "Good morning class!" She said cheerfully as she walked towards the podium and set her books down onto it." "Good morning Ms. Tomita!" All ten boys in the class replied back heartfully. "Now there''s a real teacher!" One of the boys exclaimed.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. "Mr. Yano needs to take notes!" "I hate Math, but if she''s the one teaching it, I don''t mind at all!" "Whoever hired her needs a raise!" "What a beauty!" "Beauty? She''s a total babe!" "She''s been my favorite teacher ever since last week!" "You think she''s single?" "No one in their right mind would want to date you Hibiki." "Shut up!" "Alright now settle down now class." Ms. Tomita told the class in an attempt to calm them down, mainly the boys. She walked over to the large blackboard on the wall and picked up a piece of chalk. "Let''s begin." After Math, the class had Science, taught by Kumagai, for third period, then History, taught by their homeroom teacher, Yano. After 4th period ended, the bell rang, signaling the end of the regular studies, and the beginning of the Adventure Course studies. In between the transition of the two courses, was lunch. "Don''t forget that map that we just went over. Look forward to tomorrow." Yano told his class before leaving the classroom. "I don''t know how I got through another one of Mr. Yano''s lessons but I did." Hibiki told himself. He sprang to his feet. "Well, now that 4th period over, it''s time for lunch! I''m starving!" The class filed out their classroom and into the hallway, making their way to and eventually arriving at the entrance of the grand lunch hall. The dining hall was a huge space, holding multiple tables, and had a wide variety of different cuisines the students at Boken could choose from. "Even though I''ve seen it before, I always get surprised by how big this place is." Narumi told Kouta. "Yeah same here." He replied. "This place is huge." "Line up now!" Saburo tried to direct his fellow classmates. "Don''t rush into hall! There''s enough food for everybody!" Arata sighed. "I get that you''re our class rep but you don''t need to hold our hand for everything, Saburo." "Yeah man relax, no one¡¯s even pushing anybody." Masou agreed as he and Arata leisurely walked past their class representative, paying him no mind. "Yeah Saburo." Takumi followed. "Take a-" "Chill pill-" His twin brother added on. "Dude." They both finished. Saburo sighed and shook his head. "That same carelessness and nonchalant attitude will be the death of you once we become adventures." Saburo muttered to himself as he hurried to catch up to his class. "So Rei," Akira started after she and Fumiko had gotten their food and began to walk to a table. "How are you enjoying your second first day?" She joked. Fumiko hadn''t really thought about it. She felt as if she was just going through the motions. After all, she was imitating whatever Akira did up until that point. "Good, I guess? I''m not really sure. The classes are hard though. Tiring too." "Well they should get a little easier in the afternoon. We''re finished with the regular studies for the day." They made their way to table that was occupied by only one person. A girl. She had long hair like Fumiko''s, only with a lighter shade red, held back by a white headband. "Kana, do you mind if we sit here?" Akira asked her. "Kana?" Fumiko thought to herself. She felt as if she heard that name before. Eventually, she realized that she was in the same class as her. "She was so quiet, I forgot about her." Kana looked up from her tray of food, startled, to see two of her classmates in standing in front of her. So startled, that she dropped her fork that she was holding, onto to the table, which ricocheted off of it and onto the floor. "O-Oh Akira and Reina. S-Sure." She answered in a quiet tone. She got up, picked the fork off of the floor, and hurried back to the lunch line in an attempt to exchange it for a clean one. "She''s always been sort of quiet and clumsy." Akira told Fumiko after they had taken their seats. "I forgot she was in our class." "You shouldn''t. That¡¯s not nice." She scolded. "She''s a really nice person though. One time I-" "Ms. Last Place, you shouldn''t talk when you''re eating. Did your parents teach you any manners? Or could it be that they didn¡¯t have any themselves, so they had none to teach you?" Fumiko had heard that voice enough to recognize who it was without even looking. They both looked towards the left of them and not to their surprise again, it was Shiina, with a crude look on her face. [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 12 - Feud Shortly after Yano ended his 4th period and left the classroom, he walked through the halls and into the teacher''s office, where some teachers were preparing to leave for the day, and others, preparing for Boken''s afternoon Adventure Course classes. Drained, he walked over to the far left of the room, to the corner, where his section was located, and sat down. Shortly after he sat down, he was greeted by his fellow colleague, Ms. Tomita, with a cup of hot coffee in hand. "Good work today, Mr. Yano." She told him as she handed the coffee to him. "Oh, Tomita. Thanks. And you don''t have to call me Mr. Yano, Yano is fine." He replied as he accepted the cup of coffee and put it on his desk, which was covered with papers and other documents. "Sorry, it just feels natural to call you that. After all, you were my teacher when I attended her a few years ago." "Oh, well, do as you please. Anyway, how''s my homeroom class treating you? Your second period. I know you''ve only started teaching here a week ago. Hopefully they aren''t giving you any trouble." "Oh, not at all." She answered. "They honestly might be my favorite class to teach. There''re very uh.....very energetic." "Oh, is that so." He picked up the cup of coffee, took a sip, and put it back down. "Energetic, you say? They don''t seem very energetic when I''m the one teaching them. Actually, it seems like there''re just waiting until the bell rings every time I¡¯m in front of them." Tomita laughed a little before replying. "Well, English and History aren''t the easiest subjects to learn. Even I struggled with them. I think there''re nice kids at heart though." She told him before sitting down at her desk which was located directly next to his. "Maybe you should be their homeroom teacher then. They seem to like you more anyway. It would be better for them, from a teaching perspective." "That''s not true at all Mr. Yano!" She responded emphatically. "You''re a great teacher. Our class loved you. You were everybody''s favorite teacher. Yeah, you were kind of strict and all but you taught us everything we know. I''m sure those kids will understand soon enough." "If you say so, though, I would much rather be in a dungeon, hunting Class A monsters then spending time here, teaching." Tomita sighed. "You would always say that back then in front of us too, Mr. Yano. I hope you aren''t saying that in front of them." "It''s the truth." "You still shouldn''t say that though." The door connecting the teacher''s office to the hallway slid open and walked in, a man with long grey hair that reached the top of his shoulders, wearing the same suit that Yano and Tomita were wearing but instead of black, it was the same color of the blazers the students who attended the academy wore, burgundy. Upon seeing him walk in, all the teachers in the office immediately ceased what they were doing and stood up. He raised his hand and they all resumed what they were doing prior to when he first walked in. He then, made his way to where Yano and Tomita were seated. "Principal Nomura," Tomita addressed him. "Good afternoon." If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. "And to you too, Tomita. Or should I say Ms. Tomita. You''re no longer a student here now. "Please, Tomita is fine." "Alright." He turned his attention to Yano. "How''s the second week of school coming along? Still wishing to be part of a guild again?" He asked him in a jokingly manner. "You ask me the same question every year and I keep giving you the same response, Principal Nomura." Nomura let out a loud laugh that roared through the teacher''s office and so loud, that the students walking the hallways probably heard it as well. "Even with age, he never changes huh?" One of the teachers asked another. "He''s always so lively." "Well he did hold the position of being the number three adventure on the Adventure''s Rankings for some time." "Still the same as ever, Yano." "I could say the same about you too, Principal." "Where was I? Oh yes. Has your class went through the awaking process yet?" "Not yet." Yano answered. They haven''t even went through ¡°The Forest Maze¡± yet, let alone received their grimoires. I''m planning to take them tomorrow." "Ah, ¡°The Forest Maze¡±. I remember our class going through it when I attended here." Tomita told her former teacher. "Though, I don''t think we did it this early into the year. Are you sure they''re ready for it?" She asked. A small, sly, smirk appeared on his face. "Oh, they better be." The smirk widened into a malicious looking grin. "After all, they don''t have a choice." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ???????? ???? ?????? ?????????? ?????????? ????????... "Shiina, I-" "She told you to stop calling her that." Fumiko Interjected. Shiina darted her eyes toward Fumiko momentarily before placing them back onto her other childhood friend. She put the tray of food she was holding onto the table, flipped her long, golden hair behind her, and continued to pester her. "Perhaps they were bottom feeders as well, barely getting by, as you currently are yourself." She let out a chuckle. "Must run in the family." "That''s it." Fumiko attempted to stand up but once again, Akira put her hand on her knee, pressing down on it. Fumiko didn''t let her friend''s hand stop her this time however. She swatted away her hand, and rose up, face to face with Shiina, mere inches separating them. "Woah, woah, woah," Hibiki let out as he and the rest of the class who finished getting their lunch from the line, approached the table. "What''s going on here?" "Are they about to fight? Right here?" "Aren''t they childhood friends? Shouldn''t they get along with each other?" "Well then again, no one gets along with Shiina." "You''re right about that." At that point, Fumiko and Shiina had garnered the all of the students who were eating in the hall attention. "Shut up!" Shiina retorted at her murmuring classmates. She looked back towards Fumiko. "Get out of my face, Rei. We both know that you aren''t going to do anything. It''s just not in your nature. No matter how old we get¡­ actually." She stepped closer until the two childhood friends were nose to nose. She stared her emerald colored eyes into Fumiko''s ruby''s and spoke. "No matter how old you get, you will always be that scared little girl who''s all talk. Or did you forget that too? Along with everything else?" Fumiko had no idea what Shiina was talking about but, she didn''t care. She didn''t appreciate somebody who she had deemed an annyoing person, get into her face. She attempted to throw forward her right arm but someone held her back. "What are you all doing?" The voice from the person who had restrained Fumiko spoke. Quickly, Fumiko turned around to see who had grabbed her. It was Narumi. "You guys are just going to watch your classmates fight?" Narumi scolded her class as she struggled to pull back Fumiko, who, was attempting to break free. "She''s right." Miyuki agreed as she appeared from behind Shiina, who was still surprised that Fumiko actually tried to hit her, and grabbed the top of her shoulder. "We''re a class. You guys shouldn''t be fighting no matter the reason. Especially, not in here." Shiina looked around and noticed that everybody was looking at them. She shook Miyuki''s hand off of her shoulder, picked up her tray, and walked away, but not before turning around and giving Akira and Fumiko a mean look. "What''s going on here?!" Saburo exclaimed as he went over to the gathering of his classmates, with half of a piece of lettuce hanging out of his mouth. "Dude, you already missed it." Arata told him. "And finish whatever you''re eating before you start running over." The commotion being over, the members of the class spread out to their own tables, trying to finish their food with the little time for lunch they had left. The students who were watching, as well. Narumi let go of Fumiko. "Reina, it''s not good to be fighting with her. I don''t think she''s the nicest person ever but still. Doing stuff like that might get you suspended, at worst, expelled. Fighting Shiina isn''t worth it." "Thanks, Narumi." Akira told her as she pulled Fumiko back to her seat. "If you weren''t here, Rei might not be a student here anymore." Narumi giggled a little. "No problem.¡± She turned to Fumiko. "As much as I wanted to see you bash in Shiina''s face, I couldn''t let you do it here. But I''m sure you''ll get to do so without the risk of getting expelled soon." She picked up her tray that she left on another table, and went to join her other classmates at the next table. Once she left, Akira let out a sigh. "Rei, you shouldn''t have done that. You were lucky Narumi was there to stop you." "Shiina started it though. You''re okay with letting her walk over you like that?" Fumiko asked her friend in disbelief that she wasn''t on her side. "Of course I''m not. I wanted to punch her too, for talking about my parents like that. But, it¡¯s not worth getting suspended or worse. Though," A slight smile spread across her face. "It wouldn''t have been too bad to see Shiina get what she was asking for." Shortly after the two finished eating, the bell rang once more, signaling the end of lunch, and the beginning of Boken''s Adventurer Course [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 13 After the lunch bell rang, the students finished up their lunch and filed back out into the hallway, to return to their classrooms. Fumiko and Akira, joined by the rest of the class, exited the Grand Lunch Hall and walked through the spacious hallways of the Magic Academy. Their walk back to their classroom was anything but quiet. The hallways were filled with students talking about Fumiko''s famous run-in with Shiina during lunch. "Hey, did you see what happened in the lunch room?" One girl asked her friend. "Yeah I did. Who were they? I can''t believe people are fighting already. It''s only the second week of school." "Do you think they''ll get suspended? Or even kicked out?" "I hope so. I don''t want to be around anybody as violent as those two." Akira sighed. "You hear that Rei? People are already talking about you and it''s only your first day back." "Why should I care what they say? It¡¯s not like it matters. I don''t know them." "That''s all the more reason. You don''t want people to start spreading nasty rumors about you around the school, right? "I mean, it¡¯s not like I car-" "Right?" Akira put more emphasis on it this time. Fumiko could see that her friend wasn''t budging. "Right." She said reluctantly. "Good." The class eventually split from the rest of the students who were leaving the lunch hall and made their way into the first year hallway. They continued walking until they arrived at their classroom door. Since Katsumi was the first one who arrived at the door, he took his badge off and displayed it in front of the security device. The door can only stay open if the small security device is reading a badge so naturally, Katsumi had to hold it in front of the device until all of his classmates were inside. Only a couple of the members of the class made it inside before Hibiki started his usual antics. "Oh what''s this? Stuck holding the door I see?" Hibiki joked as he leisurely took his time entering the doorway. "Shut up, Hibiki. You can''t even hold your badge high for device to read it enough because you''re shorter than most of the girls in the class." He fired back. "Yeah, yeah, just do your job, doorman." Hibiki responded. As soon as he put one foot through the door, into the classroom, and the other, between the door and the wall, Katsumi quickly lowered his badge from the scanner, causing the door to shut, trapping Hibiki''s leg between the space and made him fall face first onto the ground. "Just do your job doorman." Katsumi mocked in a high pitched voice before erupting in laughter. "Open the door clerk boy!" Hibiki demanded as he tried to twist his leg free from the door. "Oh? Is that any way to ask somebody something?" He replied, waving his golden badge in the air. Itsuki, who was already in his chair, got up and walked over to the wailing Hibiki. "Yeah, where are your manners Hibiki? I think we may have to teach him some. Right, Katsumi?" "Agreed." He replied while nodding his head. Itsuki reached into his back pocket and pulled out a black marker. "Hold still now." He told Hibiki while crouching down and uncapping the marker. "I wouldn''t want to mess up." If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°No! Stay away! I''m sorry! And why do you have a marker in your pocket anyway?!" "Huh? I can''t hear you over the sound of our classmates'' chatter." "Our classmates?! No one¡¯s even saying anything! Actually, there all just watching!" "Now, now, don''t sweat the small stuff Hibiki." Katsumi told him with his arms folded, shaking his head. Itsuki held Hibiki''s head up and started to doodle a strange image on his face. "All done." He let go and Hibiki returned to lying face first on the ground, defeated. Katsumi returned his badge to the scanner, and let his remaining classmates, who were still on their way to the classroom, enter. They didn''t see Hibiki lying on the ground so they just step on, or walked over him while entering the classroom, ignoring the grunting sounds he made whenever he was stepped on. After everyone entered the classroom and was seated, except for Hibiki, who was still remaining face first on the ground, motionless, their 5th period teacher, Ms. Morita walked in. "Good Afternoon." "Ow." Morita didn''t realize she had just sunk the back of her black heels of her shoe into Hibiki''s back. She continued walking and set the book she was holding on top of the wooden podium. She was about to start teaching before she saw Hibiki lying in front of the doorway. "Hibiki, why on Earth are you lying on the ground, return to your seat this instant!" Hibiki started to get up. As soon as he lifted his face from the ground, most of the class burst out in laughter, Itsuki, the loudest. "And why is there a drawing of a trash can on your face? Go to the restroom and wash it off at once! And, just for your little prank, you''re staying after and cleaning the entire first floor." Hibiki turned around and walked back to the door. A sly smirk appeared on his face. "Stupid Ms. Morita," He thought to himself. "Mr. Yano already told me to stay after and clean this floor. So basically, you didn''t give me a punishment at all!" "Ms. Morita," Katsumi called out. "Mr. Yano already told Hibiki to clean the first floor." "Oh? She turned to Hibiki, who had begun to shake nervously. "Then you''re cleaning the entire 2nd floor too." He quickly turned around to look at Katsumi who only grabbed the tip of the imaginary hat on his head and nodded his head, like a clerk boy does after he had finished helping a customer. "Katsumi you little-" "To the bathroom, now." Morita commanded him. He walked out of the room and into the hallways, mumbling to himself. "Honestly, kids these days." Morita said under her breath. "Always up to no good." She went over to the vast blackboard that stretched out almost from one end of the room, to the other. "Saburo, where did we leave off last week?" Saburo quickly stood up. "We were reviewing the different types and classes of monsters, Ms. Morita." He answered. "We were? That¡¯s good. I trust you and your classmates remembered them." She picked the chalk that was set on the side of the board. ¡°But just to be sure." Some members of the class seemed to know what she was going to say next. "Oh no." "Please don''t tell me it''s what I think it is." "I think we all know what it is." "No,no,no, I can''t go through another one!" When she finished writing on the board, she stepped aside revealing what she wrote, confirming the classes'' fears. "Open your notebooks class. Today, we''ll be having a pop quiz." [Arc 2 - First Quest] Chapter 14- Monster Classifications After the class, excluding Fumiko, finished their disastrous 10 minute pop quiz, Masou collected the notebooks and handed them to Ms. Morita. While she checked them, the class conversed among themselves. "Does the classes and characteristics of the monsters really matter?" Narumi asked Kouta. "It''s not like adventures sit there and study them when they''re in dungeons, they just kill them and move on." "I mean, you may be right but it wouldn''t hurt to know what you''re up against when you''re down there. You never know, maybe learning this stuff might pay off." "I don''t know, Narumi may be right though." Katsumi agreed. "Do you think all the Platinum ranked adventures care what''s in front of them? They just do their jobs. That''s how they became great, cutting down anything in their way." "Sounds like you admire them a lot huh?" Narumi asked. "I mean how could you not? Those guys put in so much work and effort to keep this city safe. I want to be like them when I graduate." "That''s a cool dre-" Kouta was about to tell his classmate before Saburo interrupted. "How foolish." He said while pushing up his glasses to his nose. "Here he goes." Narumi said as she sighed and shook her head. Katsumi stood up. "Excuse me?" He questioned in an offended tone. "What''s foolish?" "The fact that you think you can become a Platinum adventurer. The very thought of it is foolish. You think you can become one by just slaying whatever''s standing in your way? Don''t make me laugh. With that childlike approach, I''d be surprised if you even manage to pass this semester let alone becoming an actual adventurer. "And you think you can become one?" He retorted angrily. "Of course." He swiftly answered, "I possess the talent and discipline for it. If anything, I have a better chance than you. Oh but don''t worry, I''ll still let you clean my swords after I finish questing." "Enough you two." Ms. Morita told them without looking up from the notebooks she was grading. "It''s pointless arguing over something that''s so far away at the moment. Being an adventurer takes more than just talent and discipline. You kids couldn''t possible understand at this point in time. Reluctantly, Katsumi sat down.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Now," Morita continued. "What you kids need to worrying about, instead of rushing your way to dungeons, is these.¡± She held up one of the student''s notebooks in the air with her right hand. "None of you guys passed. It sounds like you guys need a refresher.¡± She got up from her desk that was in the corner of the room and walked over to the podium that stood in the middle. She opened the book that was on it and chanted something. She turned around towards the board and put her hand out to it, her palm exposed. Instantly, the board was filled with data titled "Classification of Monsters." Under it, were the words, "Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D, and Class E". "What type of magic did I just use?" Morita asked her students. Katsumi and Saburo stood up at the same time. "Katsumi, answer." Katsumi flashed a small smirk at Saburo before answering. "Projection Magic, Ms. Morita" "Very good. Now tell me, is Projection Magic classified as Primary or Secondary Magic?" Katsumi didn''t know the answer. "Uhhh-" "Secondary, Ms. Morita." Saburo interjected, then replicated the smirk that Katsumi showed him and fired it back. "Good. Do well to remember this class. Both of you take a seat." She tapped the section labeled ¡°Class E" on the board. The other information on the board disappeared and the words "Class E" flew to the upper left corner. Under it, information on Class E Monsters appeared and with it, an image of a spider like creature. "Class E Monsters are the lowest class of monsters according to the Official Classification System. By no means does that mean that they are weak. No matter what adventurers face, they always take precaution. Even the slightest mistake could cause you harm, or even worse." "Kind of scary don''t you think?" Akira whispered to Fumiko. "I guess." "Moving on,¡± Morita slid the board to the right and this time, the information presented was labeled, "Class D". Under it displayed a yellowish slime creature. "Class D, is the second weakest class. Many of Class E and D monsters are found in ruins, not caves or dungeons. They are usually no bigger than 5 feet tall. "Hey, Hibiki''s almost that tall. Almost." Itsuki joked out loud. A few chuckles emerged from the class. "Shut up!" Hibiki responded. He had a large smudge of black marker on his left cheek due to him not being able to completely wash off the trash can Itsuki drew on him earlier. Ignoring them, Morita slid her hand across the board again, revealing the next class. "Next we have Class C Monsters. These monsters are dangerous and should be dealt with using extreme caution. They''re mostly found in caves rather than ruins. The chances of an adventurer defeating one alone are very slim. That''s why adventurers should never enter a cave and engage with one these monsters by their lonesome. She pointed the image under the text , a picture of a large wolf with 3 eyes. "Imagine facing one of these by yourself." Some members of class began to laugh nervously. "Exactly." She slid over once more, displaying information on the next class. "Class B Monsters are the second strongest classification. They usually are in groups and have a leader among them. They''re smart and can get the jump on you if you don''t strategically plan your attack on them. They are found in dungeons and sometimes caves." The image this time showed a picture of a group of three golems that were each labeled 8 feet tall. "That brings us to our last class, the strongest of them all." She swiped across the board one more time. "Class A monsters, are the most dangerous creatures on the Classification System. Unlike the others, only a few creatures are classified as this type, including dragons. Your teacher, Mr. Yano, is famously known for slaying one by himself." The class let out a loud "Huh??" "You''re joking right? There''s no way Mr. Yano did that!" Arata exclaimed in disbelief. "Someone like that?!" "I didn''t even know he used to be an adventurer!" "I thought he was just some lazy teacher!" "That''s not true." Morita told them. "He used to be a Gold adventurer after all. "Gold?!?!" The class erupted in disbelief. "There''s no way." "Why didn''t he tell us?" "Maybe he didn''t want us to know." Morita walked back over to the podium and closed the book, disabling the Projection Magic. The information on the board disappeared and the board went back to its normal, empty state. "Now that we''ve reviewed the content, let''s try this one more time. Saburo, come pass back the notebooks, we''re taking another quiz since you all failed the first one. "Not again!" The class finished up Monster Studies, then went on to their 6th and final period, Magic. After it ended, the bell rang for the last time, signaling the end of the day at the magic academy.