Just my name? I’ll tell her that as many times as she wants. “I’m Misaki Hotaru. Today’s my first day at this school.”
“Well, obviously. Why else would you be here? More importantly, I guess that means you really are Misaki.” For some reason, she sighed when she said my name. It sounded like she knew something about me as well.
“Am I famous in some way?”
“You... could say that. You were the only one who didn’t move into the dorm.”
“Move in? Oh, right, everyone lives in dorms here. But, wait—can you move in before school even starts?”
“Of course you can! Didn’t it say that in the brochure? The official move-in date isn’t until today, but the early birds checked in two weeks ago, and even the latecomers arrived yesterday. You’re the only exception. I waited and waited, but you never showed up. I was convinced you’d given up on coming here at all.”
“Oh, you know, life got in the way.”
Ugh, I REALLY should have come earlier. If I’d known all this, I could have cut down on expenses AND arrived on time.
“Still, I’m surprised you remembered my name.”
“If you’re wondering why, it’s because I’m your roommate.”
“Fair enough.” My roommate? But that means...
“There’s no use trying to brush me off. There’ll be plenty of time to make you talk.”
She’d seen right through me. A dry laugh came from my throat. “Haha...”
Well, it wasn’t that I didn’t want to talk about it at all, just that I couldn’t explain it very well because I didn’t understand any of it. Once I’d made sense of things, there would be no problem.
So I’ll be sharing a room with this girl for a year?
“Um, nice to meet you. About the dorms... Is it two people to a room?”
“No, they’re four-person rooms.”
“I see. So there are two more.” That was a relief. If it had just been the two of us, that would’ve been a lot of pressure. “By the way, could I ask your name too?”
“Nah,” she replied.
“What?!”
“I’m kidding.”
It had sounded pretty serious to me. It was like she saw me as her enemy.
She added, “I’m Kirara Hoshino.”
“Miss Hoshino... Can I just call you Kirara?” I thought maybe we’d develop a closer bond if we called each other by our given names. And yet...
“Nah.”
My breath caught in my throat.
“I’m kidding! Do whatever you want.”
I sighed helplessly. Was it really such a crime to look like I was friends with Himeko?
I bet it’s not just Kirara, either. The other girls must be thinking along the same lines. Telling them the truth—that I wasn’t Himeko’s friend or acquaintance—was starting to feel a little more urgent.
I let out a quiet breath as the springtime melody softly drew to a close. It seemed the ceremony was finally starting. Sitting up a little straighter, I applauded the two bowing musicians.
While I couldn’t exactly say it had all gone smoothly so far, I had at least been able to reach the starting line, and that was good enough. Now it all depends on good old hard work. I can do this!
✤
The entrance ceremony was the kind you’d expect to see at any other school. Amanotsuka Academy may have been slightly unusual, but even here, the ceremony started with an opening speech and then followed a completely normal program: the national anthem, an address from the principal, then some celebratory words from a guest speaker.
The solemn atmosphere made me keenly aware that I had taken the first step on the road to my new life. I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. Even Kirara, who had looked so tough before, watched with sparkling eyes.
Then it was announced that the next item on the agenda would be a greeting from the representative of the current students.
I cocked my head in thought. Hmm. That has to be the student council president, right? I bet it’ll be Himeko.
But that was not the case. Instead, a girl sitting on the side opposite Himeko stood up and walked to the center of the stage. “Congratulations to all of the new students, and welcome to the academy! I’m Rika Yasuki, president of the student council. As the current student representative, I’m so glad to see you all here.”
This was definitely the student council president, and it was clearly not Himeko.
Still, she seemed to be pretty popular and well-known herself. Soft cheers broke out, with voices crying, “Lady Angelica!”
Incidentally, the cheers were once again coming only from the Domestic Arts students. Not one of the Societal Arts students was making the slightest fuss.
The student council president was wearing a white uniform, so I could surmise that she was a Societal Arts student as well. It seemed like maybe all the Societal Arts students held some special significance for the Domestic Arts students.
I’d only just arrived, but already I had the feeling that there were a lot of students in the Societal Arts program who were particularly elegant and refined. It was like wherever they stood, they shone as brightly as their white uniforms.
But why “Angelica”? Hadn’t she just introduced herself as Rika Yasuki?
Unable to hold that question in, I turned to ask Kirara. “Hey, why are they calling her Angelica?”
“If you write her name in kanji, it’s like this.” She drew in the air with her finger. “And if you read the kanji differently, it could be pronounced ‘Angelica,’ right?”
“Right, right. I was wondering if she was from another country or something.”
“There are rumors about that as well, but I don’t actually know. It’s not like I’ve checked. Her features don’t seem wholly Japanese, though.”
“Yeah, I can see that. Her soft, silvery hair, her high-bridged nose... and she’s just a little too beautiful.”
In terms of looks, she gave Himeko a run for her money. I could see why she was so popular. Still, something bothered me. As I listened to the student council president’s words, I whispered another question to Kirara. “Everyone seems to know the current students really well. Why is that? Normally you wouldn’t know anyone at a school before you start going there.”
“I mean, why wouldn’t you do that level of research before arriving? Isn’t that the bare minimum?”
“The... bare minimum?”
“You’re so weird. You walked in here with Lady Himeko but you hardly even know her. You haven’t moved into the dorm yet. You don’t seem to have the slightest clue about this school. Why did you even come here?”
I suppressed another sigh. I was pretty sure Himeko had asked me the exact same question. Timidly, I asked, “Is this not a normal school?”
Kirara gaped at me as if I were spouting nonsense. “You really don’t know anything, do you? And someone like you went and beat me to the punch. How humiliating.”
A wall had gone up between me and Kirara; that much was clear. I thought we’d been starting to get along, but now it felt like we’d taken a step backward.
I wasn’t sure how to respond. “Um...”
“It’s fine, you don’t have to say anything,” Kirara replied, sighing and pointedly looking away. “You’re going to tell me everything later anyway, right?”
“Right,” I muttered. “I’ll tell you everything, so... could you tell me a few things, too?” I was starting to feel like things could go very wrong for me if I spent too long at this school without knowing anything about it.
After a moment, she said, “Fine. You’ve got some connection to Lady Himeko, so I suppose getting along with you could be good for me, too.” With calculating eyes, she smiled, the corners of her mouth twisting.
The next part of the ceremony was a pledge delivered by a representative of the new students. This role was also filled by a Societal Arts student. Every single one of her movements was graceful, and just looking at her made me enamored with her beauty.
I wondered if everyone knew this girl as well, but I decided not to ask Kirara because I didn’t want her to look at me exasperatedly again and say, “How could you not know that?!”
Then, when the ceremony was on the verge of ending, a lingering question that I’d almost forgotten about was finally resolved: the mystery of why Himeko was sitting on the stage. She had been sitting so perfectly still, it had completely slipped my mind.
“Next we have the address from the chairman of the board,” said the emcee. “However, due to various circumstances, today’s address will be delivered by the deputy chairman.”
In response, Himeko stood for some reason. I couldn’t keep myself from thinking, Absolutely not. There is no way. And yet, as if it was nothing out of the ordinary, she walked over to the middle of the stage.
Nevertheless, she abruptly began her speech. “Congratulations to all the new students on your arrival at the academy. On a day like today, with the cherry blossoms in full bloom, I am overjoyed to be able to greet so many new schoolmates.”
My jaw dropped of its own accord.
Why was a mere student the deputy chairman? That was obviously weird, wasn’t it? I half expected someone to stand up and shout, “Objection!”
But no one seemed to think it was strange except me. Everyone was listening to her speak with earnest expressions on their faces. The Domestic Arts students were practically spellbound.
Deputy chairman? Really?
That would definitely explain why she was so famous. It also meant I’d been right to think it was odd that her surname was the same as the school’s name. Himeko Amanotsuka. Amanotsuka Academy. Her family must own the school, I guess.
“Whew.” I unconsciously let out a sound that was both a sigh and an expression of wonder.