Problem Student?

At the podium.

Himeko looked at Kiana, who automatically became drowsy the moment culture class began, then at Xina, who had been sitting with her head lowered over a book without moving for quite some time, seemingly asleep. The worry hanging over her heart finally died.

It was over. The number of problem students who refused to pay attention had gone from one to two.

Himeko looked heartbrokenly at Xina, who sat perfectly still and looked no different from someone asleep aside from her open eyes, and decided to try saving the situation.

She raised her voice and continued the lesson, hoping to draw the attention of these two "problem students."

"Honkai is a periodic disaster phenomenon. No one knows why it appears."

"Wars, epidemics, climate disasters, comet impacts—the forms Honkai takes have always been unpredictable."

"In modern times, however, the form Honkai most commonly takes is... Herrschers. Xina, do you know what a Herrscher is? I just covered it."

"Ah! A Herrscher, me?" Interrupted from her train of thought, Xina stood up. She hesitated for a moment, then, after recalling Himeko's question, began her "self-introduction."

"The birth of a Herrscher is one manifestation of Honkai. Every Honkai eruption assigned a designation will inevitably be accompanied by the birth of a 'Herrscher.'"

"When the instantaneous output of a Honkai eruption exceeds 1000HW, one person within the affected area will survive. That Adept is the Herrscher!"

"A Herrscher obtains the corresponding Herrscher Authority by condensing a Herrscher Core. They possess an extremely strong affinity for Honkai energy, and all Honkai Beasts produced within the area of the eruption are commanded by that Herrscher."

"Correct..." After confirming that Xina's answer was almost word-for-word identical to the standard answer, Himeko finally felt somewhat comforted.

Although this child might have been spacing out just now, at least she had still been listening to the lesson, right?

At that thought, Himeko could not help letting out a long breath—until, from the corner of her eye, she noticed Kiana sprawled over her desk, sleeping soundly...

Crack!

With a crisp snap, the chalk in Himeko's hand broke in two, and she accurately flung it at Kiana's forehead. "Ki-a-na!"

In her seat, Kiana was suddenly jolted awake after being precisely struck in the forehead by Himeko's dead-on chalk-dart throw.

"Ah! What happened? Is class over?"

Kiana stood up and stared blankly at Himeko, who stood at the podium with black lines practically hanging over her head and seemed to be glaring at her. Helplessly, Kiana used the back of her hand to rub the red mark the desk had pressed into her cheek.

"Pfft..." The surrounding students struggled to hold back their laughter, making the half-awake Kiana scratch her head awkwardly.

"Kiana, tell me the dates of several key events during the Second Honkai Eruption! Mei, you are not allowed to help her." Himeko glared viciously at Kiana, her expression practically saying that Kiana was finished if she could not answer.

"Psst, psst." Xina deliberately made a little noise to catch Kiana's attention.

"Huh!" Kiana turned her head and happened to see Xina sitting in her seat, silently mouthing words while gesturing to her.

"Huh, that mouth shape is... start?" Kiana painstakingly made out Xina's lip movements, then looked at the numbers Xina was gesturing with her hand before answering tentatively.

"The Second Honkai Eruption began on... February 1st..."

"Mm." Himeko gave a soft snort and nodded. "Continue..."

"February 2nd, Schicksal personnel arri... arrived... at Babylon Tower..." Kiana answered as she watched the gestures.

"Mm, continue..."

"February 3rd, Anti-Entropy and Schicksal formed an alliance..."

"Mm..." Himeko could not even be bothered to say "continue" anymore. She simply hummed a few times and quietly watched the bizarre sign-language performance between the two.

"..."

Only when Xina gave no more gestures or lip movements did Kiana realize she had finished answering the question. She cautiously raised her head and glanced at Himeko.

"Hmph! Guess you got lucky!" Himeko glared at Kiana irritably. "Don't sleep through class next time. Sit down."

"Hehehe."

Kiana smiled sheepishly, then sat down... and continued feeling sleepy...

All Himeko could do was shake her head and continue the lesson...

Ring, ring...

Time passed quickly. Xina had only just sorted through her previously muddled thoughts when the crisp sound of the dismissal bell drifted in from the end of the corridor.

Himeko checked the time on her wristwatch, closed the textbook in her hand, and tucked it beneath her arm. "All right, it's getting late. We'll end today's class here. Dismissed."

Upon hearing that, Kiana, who had automatically woken up one minute before the bell rang, had already packed up her things. The instant Himeko said the word "dismissed," she sprang from her seat like a coiled spring.

Her vigorous energy after class formed a stark contrast with her half-dead state during class, leaving Xina with a deeply puzzled expression.

"Xina, idiot Kiana has always been like this. You'll get used to it eventually." Bronya, who sat in front of Xina, packed up her things and reminded her expressionlessly.

"Huh, what are you talking about? Xina, hurry up and come out!"

In the blink of an eye, Kiana had already dragged Mei to the classroom door.

"When did you get from the middle of the classroom to the doorway? With that creepy speed, don't tell me you're the Herrscher of the Void..."

As Xina complained about Kiana's ghostly state after class, she turned to look at the other students, who were completely unfazed.

At that moment, she seemed to understand something.

So these classmates were so calm because they were already used to it.

After packing up her things, Xina and Bronya walked toward Kiana and Mei at the door.

"Xina, don't leave just yet. Your assessment results are out. Remember to visit the Headmaster's Office in a little while."

Himeko, who had returned after leaving, stopped them in front of the classroom door and spoke gently to the girls before her.

"Aunt Himeko, you mean my aunt actually finished evaluating Xina's assessment results in just one morning? I thought she'd drag it out until next week!" Kiana stared at Himeko in disbelief, as though the efficient Theresa Himeko described was entirely fictional.

"Well... actually, Principal Theresa, she..." Himeko's eye twitched, as though she wanted to salvage Theresa's damaged reputation.

But in the end, Himeko reached a consensus with Kiana. "Fine! You're right. I think it's fake too. How could Theresa possibly work that efficiently? With her personality, she's definitely the type to read comics for three minutes as a reward after working for one!"

Xina: "..." So that was how they saw the Principal? Terrifying. Truly terrifying.

Mei: "..." No, was it really okay for the two of them to gossip about her like that?

Bronya: "..." Though it did make some sense, they still should not be so relentlessly cruel to her...