End of the 1st week

"To die, to sleep. To sleep, perchance to dream.. ay, there's the rub,

For in this sleep of death, what dreams may come…" Max recited the lines. The class was just at the point of finishing.

*Ding Ding!* The sounding bell went off ending the lesson.

Punctual as always, Max closed the book and sat it down. The class was going through Hamlet. For extra coursework. The regular lesson came first, and anything to provoke their young minds was spent the remainder of the class.

It was optional of course. If the students did not want to know, they were to stay quiet and do other things. Catch up on other assignments.

"Alright, the extra assignment is to figure out what this means to you personally. Have you ever had thoughts like this? And do you feel up to this point that Hamlet is actually still a Hero?" Max watched the few paying attention nod before getting up. "Also, class is hereby canceled by me on Saturdays. Do not come. I of course will be here for a few hours. But not much."

"Ehhhh can you do that?" Asuna asked mouth agape.

"I can. I have already passed it through the Committee board. The Dean made a little fuss, but yielded in the end." Max rolled up his sleeves and unbuttoned his collar. "The caseload of those in my class is already large. Since I have changed my curriculum to higher standards, they have seen what it can entail. The day off is to both allow my students time to get work done. Or for those already doing ok, a day to improve in other studies."

"But with students that do poorly.." Ayaka the class rep mumbled. Her eyes travel to Asuna and a few other students quickly. ".. will it not be disadvantageous to them?"

"If they are lazy yes. Finishing class assignments and showing me you are understanding of the work goes a long way. The biggest thing you must obtain from this class, is the ability to read, write, and overall comprehend. For students who know what they want, this will help them more." Max went to the board and wrote details out quickly. "Those who wish to travel abroad, those whose jobs will put them in the limelight of media, those who want a military job or military type jobs need this. Especially if you wish to be a spy and want to blend into other countries."

A few of his students all looked up at that. A few students passing in the hall actually had stopped in. Max had started a small tutoring for other students that made comments in passing. It was to help a few of the other teachers with their caseloads.

Just the students really struggling of course got his attention.

Student Natsumi from Max's class actually moves to the front to hear more. She was a part of the Drama club and this made sense to her. She already received an updated read list for her acting. But they contained ones in multiple languages. Her turtle smile and freckles always made Max chuckle mentally.

She reminded him of a daughter he once had.

Max had a small book as he moved around talking and writing on the board. Every now and then he would glance at a student and write in the book again.

"Anyway, check your school email. A detailed note went out. Containing any issues you may have or your guardian may have. If they disagree, your parent can request a transfer. But if you suffer, that is just proof of you not rising to the challenge." Max's voice turned a little stern. "This is an Academy to strive for excellence and betterment. If you do not want those types of things, just transfer to a regular school."

"Ehhh, I guess." Ayaka said. She forgot about the few places in the area. But something Max said bothered her just a little. 'He seems to want to change things. But not force people to. Well besides us in class. Maybe he is targeting someone?'

For the next hour, Max went over various parts of English. Both traditional, urban, broken, and Classical. His voice and mannerisms changed with each one.

The exercise was to help students pick up when someone may be a foreigner. To get them ready for when something was uncomfortable in their minds. Different accents can trigger fear in people. Specially trained people.

After that, the tutor class switched to math and science. Faster ways to find basic answers. Nothing complex in the math department. The science class was a warning not to mix regular home appliances. And to be wary of certain smells. Especially brain-altering ones. Things such as dizziness, and double vision, A small demonstration was shown about what would happen with an accelerant in certain chemicals. The twins Fuka, and Fumika paid close attention to that.

*Pew!* The jar lid popped up.

"The chemicals involved are labeled as low yield. As well as the purchase order. A few students have purchased this as a joke to pull." Max eyed the twins and another girl from a different class. "The problem is that water caused it to go out of control as you have seen. The mixture kicked it up. Rainwater would do the same thing, or someone throwing.. let us say dirty mop water out at a temple."

"Hehehe, sorry." Miki the outside student said. "I will not do it again." Max had run into her while searching around the city for hotspots.

An old Temple pulled him to it. The girl had set a trap for another member. But a nun threw some mop water out making it go really badly. So bad, Max was detained by cops for suspicious behavior. It ended nicely enough. With the girl having to apologize and clean the mess up.

"That is all for today. I will see most of you Monday." Max ended the study session. "Send any and all questions to my email. I will respond on Saturday by Noon. Do not send it afterward because I will be busy. Most likely sleeping."

"Hehe, the Teacher requests the change just to sleep in." Kazumi chuckled. Her full name was Kazumi Asakura. She is part of the School Newspaper and a snoopy person. Nice enough girl other than that. "Since all the business is over, personal time."

"Oh, are you sure child? My personal history can get you killed in time. This is no threat but facts." Max said leaning against the front of the desk. "To you, it is the info you must have, but a lot of people's lives are affected by it."

"No need to try and scare me." Kazumi said unaffected. But the shift in Max's body posture scared her. A few of the students left not interested and needing to head to class. "It can not be that scary."

"The signs of an idiot that can not read a situation." Max wagged his finger at her in disapproval. Kazumi looked at him angrily. Her pride had taken a hit. "And easily offended. You will not go far as a reporter. Death is sure to claim you before you graduate at this rate."

*Thunk, thunk.* Evangeline, one of the few that remained, tapped the desk near Kazumi.

"He is serious. Be careful."

"Oh, you and Teacher have gotten really close lately. Is there something going on?" Kazumi asked with out a hint of shame. Evangeline was caught off guard and was slightly embarrassed. Her face recovered and turned cold staring at the girl. "Just joking. Sorry."

"Do not say I didn't warn you. As well as the others who remained in the class." Evangeline turned to face Max. "They made the decision on their own. You cannot fix stupidity or curiosity."

"Hahaha, this is true. Go ahead and ask child."

"Fine! Who .. are your parents?" Kazumi looked at her sheet and chose randomly.

"Two dead people you might as well say." Max shrugged.

"What does that mean?" Nodoka asked in a whisper.

"Biological father is Nagi Springfield. A womanizer and an idiot. He makes up for it by being adept in getting out of trouble and doing, his "work" pretty damn good." Max crossed his legs at his ankles. A small pulse of magic left from the heel. 'That will keep eavesdroppers and looky-loos away. As well as help me find them for later.'

*Vripp!* Magical lines shot off to track down several people.

"So he did not raise you?"

"No. Too busy getting himself in trouble and whatnot. My biological Mother's name is Arika. Too stupid and good to realize what was at stake. Was manipulated by her own people and paid for it." Max's tone was detached and contained no warmth. The students shivered a little at that. "They are both dead to me and can do nothing for me. As well as their friends."

"That sounds awful. You shouldn't think that way." Asuna said. The mention of the names caused her head to turn fuzzy a little.

"Of course, I can. If you can not take care of your child do not have one. Clinging to a chance at a normal life and not paying attention to your own situation is very stupid and irresponsible." Max waved his finger at her again. "Parents are supposed to protect their children. Or provide an environment for them to grow. This did not happen at all in my case. I am just that type of person."

"You sound like a terrible adult." Asuna grumbled.

"Yeah, you are right. But that is just your view. You are just a brat who only knows so little." Max pinched the space between his fingers. "You know nothing about how to survive in the "Real" world. Death or manipulation will come for you, just like her. The useless and the stupid only have that waiting for them." Max walked over to a desk.

"Eh, what is it?" Natsumi asked frightened a little.

"Students like Natsumi who adapts, will live a long time if they continue to try hard." Max placed a small book in front of her. "Various facial expressions. To help you identify things people could be hiding more."

"Thank you." Natsumi took the book and opened it after another thanks. "It is handwritten and drawn."

The book had various facial expressions of the students from the last two hours. A small word at the bottom as a description of it.

"Do you have any siblings?" Kazumi asked breaking the tension in the room.

"I do not. I have two I consider as such. But they are not." Max moved back in front of his desk. But not before correcting one of the students' work. It was a small error. "I have a distant relative in this classroom right now. Very distant blood-wise on my biological mother's side."

"Ehhh!" The gathering of students exclaimed together. They looked around trying to figure out who.

"If you know who, it will put them in danger. Are you willing to ruin a classmate's life?" Max stared hard at Kazumi. She hesitated for a little bit before nodding. "It is Asuna."

"No way." Asuna said lowly. Looking at Max she felt he was not lying. Her head started to throb as the image of Nagi overlapped with his. "You.. no.." She started to pant hard.

Konokka, and Yuna Akashi helped her to the infirmary. Yuna was the daughter of another teacher. She was part of the basketball club. The others watched worriedly.

"Information can even cause mental problems. The human brain is trash like that. In the disguise of protecting it locks memories away. In tragic incidents, this happens a lot. More harmful than good most times. Add in something else, and you end up with a damaged person." Max said thoughtfully.

"If.. if.. she .." Ayaka trembled. Despite the fact she argued with Asuna constantly, the girl could be considered her best friend. She glared at Kazumi hatefully. A look at Max and she felt bothered. "You knew this would happen!?"

"Calm yourself. You are acting very unladylike. She will be fine. I did warn." Max grinned. He would not apologize in any way. "Consider this a life lesson for each of you. Information is very harmful. But it can also be used as a shield. Think about the various reasons your parents would keep something from you. Think of the pain it would bring you. The knowledge, the backlash, and if you really wanted to know it in the end."

The remaining students grumbled and felt bad but also thought it over. A few gave weird glances at each other and left. Only members of Max's actual class remained. Zazie, Mana, Evangeline, and Lingshen Chao. The last is someone from the future who causes a lot of problems later. An actual end boss that pushed the students a lot in the end.

"So... Chao girl... you ready to die?" Max said. His magic bore down locking her in place. "You broke a lot of "laws" coming here."

Evangeline felt a stirring inside her. The notes Max passed to her before were already tried by her. She felt her body age naturally for a few months. Not a lot but enough for her to notice.

"You endangered Earth. Big mistake."

"What are you!?" Chao yelled pushing back against it. Her own magic acting off. 'Is the room causing this trouble?' To the side, carved seals lit up. The ones she placed on herself looked to be destroyed.