Entering the School

Do you long for power?

I often wondered: what exactly was power?

Take out a picture book I'd just drawn and flip through it quickly, and the stick figures could perform a complete set of divine martial arts. Wiping out a thousand enemies would be no trouble at all!

But did that really mean anything?

Hoshino listlessly propped his head up with one arm, his eyelids so heavy they seemed ready to fall shut. Chabashira-sensei was still "going on and on" at the front of the classroom. The lesson was a little dull, and it wasn't as if it had any particular practical use. Everyone was forced to repeat this same unchanging routine, year after year: studying and teaching just to get into the next school...

"Haah... this is so boring!" Hoshino began to yawn and turned his gaze toward the window.

A breeze blew through, lifting the curtains slightly. The warm air brushed against Hoshino, making him feel even more tired. Slowly, he slumped over his desk, resting his head on his arms as his breathing grew slower...

Advanced Nurturing High School, the school Hoshino had come to attend, was known for its one hundred percent employment rate. It was famous throughout the country.

Hoshino had come here on a whim. His family wasn't particularly wealthy, just ordinary—the kind you could find anywhere in the crowd. His parents worked at a small company, and he had no siblings. His life was pretty comfortable, except that his parents were especially busy.

Anyway, wherever he went, he'd just be waiting around! So why not come here? He could even "get" spending money for free. What was there to lose? When he saw the recruitment flyer on the street, Hoshino thought about it for less than a second before making up his mind.

The entrance exam questions weren't particularly difficult, just standard fare. There were quite a few people taking the exam; nearly every school near Hoshino's home had a test site. The written exam was fairly easy. The entrance exam also included an interview, which was unusual, but no big deal.

"What do you hope to achieve by attending Advanced Nurturing High School?"

"Um... I don't have any particular goals. I just think it'd be nice to get money for free."

"How were your grades in the past? Are you satisfied with them?"

"Can't say I am. They were average."

"..."

The questions were nothing out of the ordinary, and there was nothing interesting about them.

Although the promotional posters he often saw advertised a hundred percent employment rate, Hoshino didn't think he could get those benefits without doing anything. Still, the school probably wouldn't be a total scam. At worst, things might not go so well; he wasn't worried that he'd fallen into some huge trap. But with his grades, getting in seemed difficult. There really were a lot of competitors.

Mulling it over, Hoshino stepped out of the interviewer's office.

To his surprise, Hoshino was admitted to the school in his first year of high school.

"What's the point of exams, anyway?" Hoshino had wondered about it before. After all, his grades were only above average. He might have had an advantage when there were fewer people, but in a larger crowd, he didn't stand out. His interview answers had been a textbook example of failure, with nothing remotely good to be said about them. Somehow, he'd gotten in, so Hoshino had come.

"Ding-a-ling!" The bell rang, and Chabashira-sensei showed no hesitation as she gathered her lesson materials. After saying, "Class dismissed," she left the room.

The uproar that erupted in the classroom finally woke Hoshino.

A whole class had passed in the blink of an eye. He'd been at this school for a week now, and most of his classmates had already found their own little circles. During breaks, they often gathered to chat and joke around, but Hoshino couldn't care less.

His seat was by the window in the middle of the classroom. It was a pretty good spot, and Hoshino was quite satisfied with it. He could look outside, and the view was nice.

As a famous school, Advanced Nurturing High School had deep pockets. It sat on an artificial island, complete with a shopping district, parks, dormitories, and every facility a student could need. Each student had a dorm room of their own, and the facilities and greenery were regularly maintained. The cherry trees and lawns outside the window were kept in perfect condition, with no sign of overgrown weeds or neglect. The school buildings also looked as if they'd just been built, clean and tidy.

All in all, the accommodations were far better than Hoshino had expected.

While Hoshino hadn't noticed, the teacher for the next class had already entered the room and begun teaching...

People often said that interest was the best teacher, and that was certainly true. At least when it came to drawing, Hoshino had improved a lot in a short time.

As the illustrations in his textbook gradually took on "his own shape," Hoshino felt an inexplicable sense of accomplishment. As for listening to the lessons, Hoshino learned more efficiently on his own, so he rarely paid close attention in class. With nothing else to do, he usually drew illustrations or little "animations," and the time passed quickly.

During lunch break, groups of three or five left the classroom for the cafeteria. Some had brought their own lunches, pushed their desks together, and chatted as they ate.

The "busy" Hoshino stopped working and slowly stood up, then walked out of the classroom.

"You're Hoshino, right? Wait!" Light footsteps sounded behind him, followed by a clear voice calling out to him.

"Hm?" Hoshino paused, slightly surprised, and turned to look at the person who had called him.

Bright eyes, thin cherry-red lips, a delicate, slightly upturned nose, and short grayish-yellow hair framing a cute face. Her eyes held a lively sparkle, but something else lurked deep within them.

Hoshino vaguely remembered her. He thought her name was Kushida. On her first day, she'd declared that she wanted to "become friends with everyone." Hoshino wasn't interested, but it was hard not to notice things like that.

"Um, Hoshino, I'm Kushida, your classmate. Are you free after school? Could we talk?" Her bright eyes clearly showed a pleading look.

"Is there something you need?" Hoshino stared into Kushida's eyes without expression, as if trying to see what lay beneath them.

"Uh... well, I want to become friends with you, so could we talk after school?" It seemed Hoshino's unwavering gaze had frightened her. Kushida took half a step back and clasped her hands nervously in front of her chest, her brows slightly furrowed. A moment later, she seemed to summon all her courage and asked Hoshino again.

"Sure!" Hoshino said, then looked away and turned to leave, paying no attention to Kushida behind him.

She was putting on quite an act! Hoshino decided. It wasn't that he had any deep insight into her; he'd simply sensed something off about Kushida.

There had been a time when Hoshino was interested in observing people's behavior.

Even the popular kids had been part of his observations. To put it simply, they seemed to have this indescribable "we're all good friends" vibe about them.

But Hoshino didn't sense that from Kushida. All he felt was the hypocrisy of an "important leader inspecting the troops," along with an uncomfortable sense that she thought she was "better than everyone else." The fact that Kushida was a pretty girl only slightly masked the feeling, keeping it from being too obvious.

Hoshino had agreed to Kushida's request because he understood that going along with her was the best way to avoid drawing attention. She wasn't his superior, after all, and it would be easy enough to humor her a little. She only cared about the "good friends" label anyway. Going against her would only make her unhappy, and there was no point in that.