03-07 The Commencement of the Practical Skills Cla.s.s (Warm Up)

It was almost time for the next cla.s.s, so, Shinichi had to run through the halls in a desperate attempt to find himself ready in time.

Within that hustle and bustle, the violence that had occurred just moments ago seemed to have been forgotten, but its traces could still be seen as Hausen and Kanru visibly fumed.

"What"s wrong with that guy? That waste of an Earthling!"

"This is exactly why Earthlings are a bunch of barbarians with no respect for the strong!"

"…"

They walked through the halls with the Ojousama Ringlet Curlsin between them. But for some reason that same Ojousama was as meek as a lamb, and made no remarks. Worried, they called out to her.

"Padyuel-sama? Padyuel-sama!?"

"Hmm? What is it, Rizet?"

"Is something the matter? You"ve been s.p.a.cing out."

"Oh, i-it"s nothing. I was just thinking."

She shook her head, and the two students with contrasting hair color looked at each other. Tacitly, they agreed, and one of them spoke.

"You"ve been acting odd lately, Padyuel-sama.
It"s all well and good that you"re zealous about training, but you"ve been trying out weird stuff all the time lately. And today, you didn"t even bother shutting that Shinguuji up. A rude guy like that, you should just beat him up to show him how big the gap between you two is."

The male student, Oruto Kanru, pointed out.

"We"ve had to meet the Earthlings we haven"t had much interaction with too.

Padyuel-sama, you are the proud daughter of the n.o.ble house of Padyuel.
I advise you to keep away from the lesser people."

The female student, Rizet Hausen, said as she pointed out the proper conduct for a n.o.ble.

"…"

But their advice fell on deaf ears, as Aristel F. Padyuel, the ring curls ojousama, had - for some reason – found herself gradually drifting from the teachings grounded into her in her youth. Even though it was something she had been raised to believe in. And even though these people advising her were the same servants she"s been with for many years now.

"…I have to confirm it."

But that is also the reason why she intentionally did not reply.
Because deep inside her was still something that she couldn"t fathom.

"Padyuel-sama?"

One of her servants tried to ask her, but those words once again fell on deaf ears.

She had made up her mind.

"Please inform the next teacher that I"m exercising my right as a special cla.s.s student to exempt myself from cla.s.s. And please inform the instructor of the first years that I"m going to be joining his cla.s.s as an a.s.sistant."

Sports Ground 2 was different from Sports Ground 1. It wasn"t the kind of place anyone would call a field. If anything, they"d call it a stadium. And it was in a corner of that stadium that the students of 1-D were lined up, wearing the gym uniform of the academy that had its insignia on the shoulders.

It was rare to see Frire with the man in lab coat, but it was even rarer to see ring curlsAristel in her gym uniform.

Seeing such a famous person up close, it was only a given that the students of 1-D would be excited.

"To think a day would come that I"d be able to see Padyuel-Senpai this close!"

"The n.o.bles of Garesto are seriously the real deal. You can really tell that they"re from a different world."

"She looks so good even with such a high status."

Suddenly those dead eyes of 1-D were resuscitated, and signs of life could be seen in them.

She wore the same gym uniform as they did, but contrary to popular belief it was the person that made the dress.

Her curvaceous body line, her beautiful face… Each and every single one of her features drew the attention of the cla.s.s to her. It didn"t matter whether it was a boy or a girl, no one could help but be drawn to her. No one except for one boy.

"---Would it be alright then, Doneju Sensei?"

Yet though she stood in the middle of the spotlight, she stood there calmly, unfazed, and in full control, as she waited for the response of the teacher. Albeit, waiting might be too weak a word, for her words seemed to hint that she wouldn"t take no for an answer. And the teacher Frire, who looked much like a judge, did not take so kindly to her behavior.

"Well said for someone who knows full well that I have no right to refuse."

"That goes for both of us… So, will you grant me permission?"

Students of the special cla.s.s have the obligation of supporting their lower cla.s.smen

As a result, teachers can ask students for help in their lecture, and the latter will have no right to refuse. Likewise, a student can offer his or her help, and the teacher will have no right to refuse.

"…Do you mind, Frank Sensei?"

As she was hesitating, she turned to the man wearing a lab coat.
He was playing with his long, purple hair when she asked him.

"It"s fine.

You don"t have to mind, just teach as usual."

"…So, in other words, you can join the cla.s.s.
But it"s only been a month since enrollment and there"s also a transfer student, so we"ll have to hold a refresher course as well as an introductory."

"You can leave the transfer student to me then. I"ll take care of the introductory lesson, and you can take care of the refresher course."

Frire glared at her for deciding that on her own.
She smiled back as if to run away from that.

"Weren"t you the type to hesitate, Padyuel? Pray, I wonder what has you so eager?"

"Nothing of the sorts. Nothing at all. It just so happens that a certain transfer student has caught my interest."

What Frire was really asking was "What are you scheming?" And in response she answered with a mere "Interest."

Frire might not be satisfied with that answer, but there"s nothing she could do.
The first one to fold was her.

"Sigh… Nakamura, you ok with that?"

A plain white shirt and a pair of shorts, Shinichi was the only one dressed in a different uniform.

He seemed troubled by the question, but all the same, he gave an uninterested response.

"If there"s no difference in the content of the lesson, then… I don"t mind."

"You won"t have to worry about that, Nakamura-san.
Padyuel-san is at the top of her cla.s.s. She is an exceptional student, even in practical cla.s.s where she still easily places within the Top 3. Teaching a beginner should be no sweat off her back."

The man in a lab coat known as Frank thought that Shinichi was uncertain of being taught by Padyuel, so he a.s.sured him that everything would be ok.
It"s a misunderstanding but since there"s no point in correcting him, Shinichi just nodded.

"Please, Sensei, that"s too much. I"m only the best amongst students. It"s nothing compared to the Sword Saint or the famous Doneju Sensei."

Flattery left her lips as she turned to the white-haired woman.
There was admiration in those eyes of hers, but there also seemed to be a desire to compete.

"Tch."

Someone had clicked her tongue, but no one else heard that except for Shinichi. Then Frire went to face the cla.s.s of 1-D that was lined up. As she looked at each and everyone"s faces, she said the same thing she said in her 1st cla.s.s.

"You"ve all just enrolled to this school, so I don"t know much about any of you.

This field here wasn"t actually built with sports in mind but for combat training.

Do your warmups, then run around the field. After that get your partner for your skills. Now, go!"

"""Yes!!"""

"E-Eh?"

Shinichi was at a loss when he heard that.

It was a mystery whether they actually were eager or not, or perhaps, it"s only because the teacher was scary that they responded like that.
Either way, he quietly criticized their behavior.

"Frank Sensei and Padyuel, I"ll leave Nakamura to you two.
After warming up, have him go through the introductory lesson, and then the shooting range."

As she said that, Frire went to her students, while Shinichi left with Frank and Padyuel.

"Hi, I"m Frank Doneju.

For the meantime, let me congratulate you for making a safe trip back home."

Unlike the other teachers, it seems he acknowledges him as a returnee.

Frank extended a hand to Shinichi, but he was caught off guard, so, it took him a moment before he could receive it.

"…Yes, let"s get along, Sensei."

He knew nothing of Frank"s situation, so he had to stifle the irritation he felt as he shook his hand.
It was the thin hand of a scholar though for some reason calluses littered it.

"By the way, you said Doneju just now."

"Yes, I"m the older brother of your vice-adviser.

And besides Frire Sensei is really famous, so I tend to be just the "older brother"."

He was smiling but his eyes weren"t.

His feelings were clearly different from what he was actually showing.
Then Shinichi turned to the only girl in this place.

"…"

He met her gaze.
Those eyes of hers seemed to be looking for something. A confirmation of sort.

"Yes?"

"…It"s nothing. Please excuse me.

A student of the special cla.s.s 3- A, as well as its representative.
I will be in charge of your cla.s.s today."

Although she wore a gym uniform, she acted with grace.

That wasn"t an act an impostor could pull off, she must"ve practiced it her whole life.

"It"s the real thing. Or at the very least, her etiquette is," he thought.
For someone like him who has actually seen the real thing, her being able to make him think that was indeed praiseworthy.

"Do I also have to be as proper as… you?" (?)

"Ah, no. It"s fine even if you just talk informally."

Shinichi heaved a breath of relief.

She did some exercises, and he followed.
They stretched their knees, they stretched their legs, and so on…

"Oh, hey, about what the teacher said a while ago.
What did she mean by extermination? We exterminating something?"(?)

"You"re starting from that?
I, did, hear, that you didn"t have any, previous knowledge, but I didn"t expect it to be this much."

Padyuel wryly smiled. It was amazing that he actually managed to get into the academy.
But although he knew himself that the question was supposed to be common sense, he still asked it anyway.

"Well, it"s not like I ever made contact with the civilization back there."

"I, understand. But, since we"re, just warming up, it would be a waste. Frank Sensei, can you, show us an image of a "Ray Beast"?"

Padyuel asked that while she and Shinichi continued to exercise.
As Frank nodded, he took out his tablet with a screen the size of an A4 paper. And after a few presses here and there, 3D images started popping out.

"Wow, it can also do stuff like that?"

"Mn, mn… I"d rather, you be surprised, about the contents, instead, ahh."

Shinichi was amazed to see something as small as a tablet project such realistic 3D images.

Some of the images resembled known beasts or insects, but they were far more horrifying than their known earth counterparts. Their nails were sharper, their fangs were sharper, and their bodies were bigger. And even monsters that appeared in Earth"s fiction were there.

"So these are Raybeasts.
Each one of them dazzle like light. Do they all have photoph.o.r.es?"

"Right. If you were, to translate those, to Garesto"s language, mmn. Monster, or beast, would be appropriate. Fuu. Though, I hear, people mix them up, with fict.i.tious terms."

Although they come in many forms, all the so-called monsters have photoph.o.r.es, so, they were all beasts that shone. And for that, they were given the official name, Raybeast.

"Ahh, umm… Frank Sensei, please continue the explanations."

Her body seemed to be stiff as she exhaled hard every time she moved.

It seems that he was also tired of just standing and listening.

"Umm, I…"

Padyuel argued, but…

"I understand, I"ll do it."

Whether he understood his intentions or whether it was just more efficient that way, the teacher quickly wrapped up the lesson on the Raybeasts.

"Raybeasts are harmful creatures that exist both on Garesto and on Earth. I"ll leave their origin and history for now as you"ll be studying those in-depth later. But to give a quick explanation of what they are and where they come from, well, when dimensional energy enters into the world through quasi-lifeforms, and enough energy is acc.u.mulated, raybeasts are born."

Frank showed a simple drawing of the Earth, around which arrows pointed in from the outside. And in the direction they pointed, a video of things turning into monsters were shown.

"Outside? Wait, there"re raybeasts on earth too?"

"Is it that shocking? Everyone who"s heard it has reacted the same way. You should"ve heard of them already. Divine beasts, specters, ghosts, UMA. There"re plenty of records of such events, but those are all raybeasts. However, because the chance of meeting one is far less than Garesto"s, it seems earthlings just didn"t acknowledge their existence."

"…Seriously?"

Right. It"s not like humans have walked all of the Earth.

And even if humans nowadays know that otherworlders exist, just one showing proof that he"s an otherworlder is enough to shock a person.
All the more so when they say that monsters exist.

When Frank saw just how shocked Shinichi, he continued, and this time the projection showed a gate.
That then changed into a drawing with arrows pointing to the Earth.

"The dimension gate in the floating city, Kutoria, gathers dimensional energy, which results in the birthing of raybeasts. So, we"re gathering all that energy to the field isolated from the academy."

"…And then you use those raybeasts as extermination targets to serve as combat training. By doing so, you also reduce the odds of raybeasts being born elsewhere." Shinichi said.

Essentially, killing two birds with a stone.

And besides, so long as one considers this academy as a military academy, then it"s easy for one to come to terms with it.
But then Shinichi threw one last question.

"But then wouldn"t it also gather those from Garesto?" He asked.

"…Well, at the very least, it would gather those around Garesto"s gate."

Frank said with an astonished face.
In response, Shinichi nodded his head as he muttered, "I see." Then after a while he finally finished warming up.

"Su-ha-… Please don"t misunderstand.
Such few raybeasts won"t even affect Garesto."

After a light jump, she took a deep breath.

But he never seriously believed they would do something like that. At the very least, if they would, they would do it much better than this.
Although he did suspect them a bit.

"Anyway, you sure move well." Shinichi said after she finished warming up.

He didn"t know whether it was because their body wasn"t that different from earthling, but the so-called warming up that they did was pretty much the same as on Earth.

"What"s the matter?" She asked.

"They"ve been watching you, you know?"

He pointed to the people running on the track behind them as he said that.

The school gym uniform is similar to Shinichi"s, only with differing design and color that made what was underneath appear even more striking.

She reached for her back, she bent forward, then backwards, then she jumped, and then she took a deep breath.

She didn"t mind the attention.

"Oh, you don"t have to worry about that. I"m used to being watched.

And as a woman, there is no greater praise." Padyuel laughed.

It seemed that on top of knowing she was being watched, she also went out of her way to put on a show.

After all, the person herself said that it was a given that people would look at her.

"…Well, if you"re fine with it, then it"s cool, I guess."

Oy vey, Shinichi seemed to say as he uninterestedly shook his head.
His cla.s.smates seemed to share his feelings as they trudged on through the tracks.

"Oh, weren"t you also looking intently at me?" She teased.

But the only reason she said that was because she didn"t feel any malice from his gaze.

"Yeah, I couldn"t take my eyes off at all… Who would"ve thought such big things wouldn"t even touch?"

"Eh? What!?"

Which is why when those words came, she was caught off guard. And she quickly covered her chest with her arms as if to hide them.

Especially, when the person himself hadn"t the slightest hint of shame.

"…Why didn"t they hit the ground? Even though they"re always moving around."

"Huh?"

"I mean isn"t it odd? They"re that long and big, and yet, no matter what you did, they never hit the ground. It"s almost as if they"re alive, and are dodging on purpose!"

"Wait just one moment! What on Earth are you talking about!?"

"Your ring curls, of course." Shinichi said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

When she heard that, her jaws dropped to the floor.
Although she was aware of her special hair style, the fact that he only looked at her hair and nowhere else tugged at her the wrong way.

"Why are you so fixated with my hair!?"

"…Erm… Now that you mention it… Oh, hey. Do you know?"

"I"m the one asking!"

Shinichi himself didn"t know, so he could only incline his head in confusion.
But of course, there"s no way she would know the reason.

"Anyway, don"t mind the minor things, Ring Curls Senpai."

"Please don"t use it as a name! My name is Aristel!"

"Got it, Aris Roll… Oh, that went pretty good."

"Please don"t mix them! Am I a piece of candy!? Do I look like candy to you!?"

Now, where did all that grace go?

And Shinichi just kept egging her on because he found it amusing, so, the ring curls just kept going and going…