The faculty corridor on the top floor of the main academic building lay silent, its floor covered in lavish red carpeting.
Yūki had just casually pulled the office's heavy, carved solid-wood door shut behind him when he looked up and saw a tall, striking figure approaching in slim-heeled ankle boots.
She wore a crisp, fitted Obelisk Blue girls' uniform, her long golden hair swaying gently against her shoulders with her slightly hurried steps.
Alexis Rhodes.
They came face-to-face in the middle of the corridor. Asuka paused briefly, a flicker of surprise passing through her beautiful eyes.
"Yūki? Did you just come out of Professor Crowler's office?"
She waved the PDA in her hand, its red light flashing furiously, and knitted her lovely brows, a hint of helplessness in her voice.
"Back at the Special Training Hall, I'd only just watched you receive an urgent summons. Then, the moment I got downstairs, my PDA started going off like an alarm. Mine was marked red and desperately urgent too..."
"What's gotten into Professor Crowler today? Sending email after email to round people up first thing in the morning?"
Looking at the familiar scarlet exclamation mark on her screen, Yūki's mouth twitched slightly, and he sighed with a peculiar expression.
"How should I put this..."
Yūki stepped aside to clear the door handle, his eyes full of sympathy.
"Once you get in there, you'd better take a deep breath first."
"...Huh?"
His out-of-nowhere warning left Asuka startled, and she gave him a couple of suspicious looks.
"What did you do this time?"
"It really wasn't me this time."
Yūki spread his hands, looking utterly innocent.
"Go on. Best to get it over with."
Asuka rolled her eyes at him, half convinced. She straightened her collar, raised her hand to knock lightly, then pushed