They were both wearing black tailcoats with bright green accents.
Dum had his buttons undone to reveal a checkered waistcoat underneath. His untucked shirt and loose necktie made him look like a playboy.
Dee, on the other hand, wore his shirt and necktie properly, like a model student.
The designs of their outfits resembled those of Dark and Jack. That was when I realized something. Dum’s outfit must have been made for Jack, while Dee’s was made for Dark originally. The width was the right size, but their trousers fell short of their ankles.
I wondered if Jack and Dark were sad to see that the twins had grown taller than them.
“Your uniforms look alike. Did you transfer here from another boarding school? This place takes on students that other schools couldn’t handle, but it’s rare to see four of you come from the same school.”
Dark smiled back beautifully at the student’s suspicious gaze. “We fell for the same noblewoman and started a big fight at school.”
“I see. That’s an English gentleman’s solution to problems, all right. We can’t treat a baron’s daughter like a maid, so I’ll ask the headmaster if we can make a special exception and admit you as a female student. Follow me, and I’ll show you to the dorms for now.”
The student’s robe fluttered as he turned on his heel. I introduced myself to him properly.
“Thank you for your hospitality. My name is Alice Liddell. And yours?”
“I’m Charles Dodgson. You sure have a lot of luggage there.”
“We’ll carry it ourselves, so don’t you worry about it.” Leeds followed by calling Dum and Dee to push the wagon with him.
I walked ahead with Dark and Jack behind me.
As Charles led our group, he looked up at the distant, towering castle. “That old castle is the schoolhouse. There aren’t even two hundred students here, including the new first years. The school was founded to raise fine gentlemen through studies and communal living.”
The island was slanted upwards toward the ground where the castle sat. A long, winding slope carried visitors through the forest to the castle. It circled the ripening chestnut and maple trees over and over, making you wonder if you would ever reach your destination.
Few people must make that trip, judging by the way the undergrowth jutted out into the path. It was just an island with a school and nothing else.
We exited the forest after about three times as long as I thought it would take. The first thing I saw was the sky starting to turn inky black.
The next thing was the thick castle gates. Lit torches were fixed to its sides. Holes were in the rough stack of boulders to fire at oncoming enemies.
“Doesn’t look like much of a school, does it? But even the navy used it as a stronghold once. It’s a place with lots of history,” Charles explained. “A few times every year, the students still make a big fuss about seeing some strange shadow around the place.”
“How frightening,” I remarked.
The coachman had feared the monster at this school, but Charles made it sound like nothing more than a ghost story shared between students. In my past life, stories about ghosts haunting the toilet stalls and pianos playing on their own were common in Japanese schools, too.
The castle drawbridge opened up for Charles to pass through.
Dark, Jack, and I followed him. The bridge pulled back up once Leeds and the twins were inside, its rusted chains creaking under its weight.
The old castle sat directly behind the wall. The center portion was small, but the building sprawled out to the left and right. Both outer walls seemed to have animals carved into them, but I couldn’t tell what kind—the rain and wind had whittled them down over time.
A grassy plaza was in front of the castle with a lion statue on the left and a unicorn statue on the right. Behind each were two-story western-style houses. The one on the lion’s side was made of bricks, while the one on the unicorn’s side was white stucco.
“Those houses are the dormitories. Students at Ark School are separated into two dorms as a matter of tradition. We’ll have to see the headmaster tomorrow since it’s late now. Why don’t you and some of your attendants stay in Lion Dorm tonight, Miss Alice? I’m the prefect there. The others can stay in Unicorn Dorm.”
“I want to go with Alice.”
“I don’t want to leave Alice.”
The twins were the first to volunteer. Charles nodded.
“All right. You two can come to Lion Dorm. The rest of you, head to Unicorn Dorm.”
Dark and Jack looked like they’d been given prison sentences.
“Not the guard dog…”
“Not this bastard…”
It wasn’t going to be an easy dorm assignment for them, either. As I stood there worrying about them…
“Charles!”
A small boy was running our way from the plaza. He wore the same uniform as Charles, but his necktie and vest were blue.
Charles furrowed his brow when he saw the boy holding a cricket bat. “Up this late playing sports, Robins? Us prefects are supposed to be the ones greeting the new students.”
“My bad, I got really caught up in our match. Hey, why’s there a girl here?”
Robins got close to me and looked my face over.
That allowed me to get a good look at him.
His skin was tan from sun exposure, and freckles dotted his nose and cheeks. The boy’s dark brown hair was messy, like a ball of yarn clawed up by a kitten. He radiated a cheerful attitude.
Perhaps the choker he wore on his neck was why he reminded me so much of a puppy. But his age stuck out to me as strange. Boarding school students usually only became prefects in their final year of school, yet Robins looked like a first-year.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but are you really a prefect?” I asked.
“Pffft!” Charles burst into laughter. Robins puffed his cheeks up angrily.
“Don’t laugh, Charles!”
“Sorry. Robins is in his final year, just like I am, Miss Alice,” Charles said. “Only prefects are allowed to wear waistcoats in the color of their dormitory.”
Robins’ waistcoat was bright blue. He laughed off what I now realized was a rude question.
“Gosh, I wish I didn’t look so young. I’m Robins Duckworth, the prefect of Unicorn Dorm. Welcome to Ark School, everyone! Did you decide where you’re staying? Yes? Come with me, those of you in Unicorn Dorm.”
Robins tucked the bat under his arm and took off running like a referee had blown the whistle to signal the start of a match.
Leeds whistled in praise at his speed. “Ah, isn’t it so nice to be young? I wonder if I’ll be able to find any promising students who suit my requirements.”
“Don’t you dare flirt at a time like this.” Jack shoved the corner of the trunk he was carrying into Leeds’ behind. “Be careful, my lady. I’ll try my best not to kill the earl.”
“Please do. I’d like to survive this adventure,” I said.
Dark would probably go up in flames if he stuck to his usual routine of teasing Jack. Finding our demon would be the least of my problems at that point.
“Dark, be sure not to fight with Jack, okay? No killing each other! Just repeat the mantra, ‘Life is precious.’ Be good boys, okay?” I bent down and lectured him. Dark had been smiling the whole time, but now he was still.
“…Very well. Sweet dreams, Alice, and twins.” With that quiet farewell, Dark turned and headed toward Unicorn Dorm.
I wondered what had gotten into him all of a sudden. I wanted to stop him, but he was already too far away. He didn’t take anything with him either. Jack angrily carried two trunks off in the same direction.
“Let’s go, Alice.”
“Let’s go, Alice.”
“Right…”
Dum and Dee pulled the wagon while Leeds and I followed. We walked toward Lion Dorm.
The flames of the torches in the plaza suddenly roared higher when I walked by, which startled me. I didn’t see any shadows of lesser demons around.
However, the creature that laid the trap was definitely nearby.
I have to give it everything I’ve got if I want to turn the others back to normal. I squeezed the strings of my pouch, determined to set things right.