Welcome to Astrix Academy

"Morning, Jonas."

"Hi, Carl," Jonas replied in his truck. "Long time no see. How are you?" he continued while turning the toast into the pan.

"As you can see, I'm fine." Carl looked at the toast and then the menu. "I'll take a sandwich and latte. And-" he deliberately hung his sentence as he turned to the right. To be precise, to Miku, who stood next to him.

Miku knew Carl was waiting for her, then replied, "I'm not. I've had breakfast."

"It's not for breakfast. It's for lunch." Carl reached into his pocket and took out the money to pay.

"Why do you have to buy it now? Lunch is still long. Besides, we can go to the canteen," she said, confused.

"I have to correct it. It's for a snack."

Instantly, Miku fell silent. She then turned to face Jonas. "As for snacks, I want the same."

Carl chuckled at that. Miku looked embarrassed.

"Without a drink?" Fluff joined after finishing the previous customer's coffee.

Miku shook her head. "No. Just a sandwich."

"Okay."

Carl paid for their food, then slightly moved while waiting for his latte to come. The following person went ahead to order.

"Are you a student at Astrix Academy?" Instead of saying his order, he asked Carl.

How did Carl know?

Simple.

He was wearing the Astrix Academy uniform, it seemed.

"Yes. You too, right?"

"Yes." A bright smile crossed his face. "In what year?"

"First year. I just got in."

"What a coincidence. We just rolled in too." His companion answered.

"Oh, nice." Carl smiled back. "What major?"

"Fighter." Again, his companion replied confidently.

"I'm sorry. He's always excited," he interrupted. "I know it's weird wanting to be a fighter," he continued.

The world was in peace, and there was no reason to be a fighter. Also, fighters usually ended up joining either the police or the army. Those were the prestige version. Many ended up becoming trainers or martial arts instructors.

Carl smiled understandingly. He knew how it felt because he had it, too. "I've never seen you like that because I'm there too, wanting to be a fighter."

His eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

Carl gave the nod. "Yeah. We might be classmates."

"Yeah. How about we go to school together?"

"Okay. But you have to finish your order first."

As if realizing something, he turned and saw Jonas was waiting for him. "Oh, right! I almost forgot. Two toasts, please," he said to the salesman.

As Carl said, he was waiting for him, and they set off together towards Astrix Academy.

"So your name is-"Carl started a new chat on their way.

"Thomas. And my companion is Dex." Finished saying that, Thomas took a bite of his warm toast.

"I'm Carl, and my companion is Miku."

"You're lucky to have a female companion," Thomas said with his mouth full. "Mine? He's only suited to be a fighting partner."

"Why? You want to fight me again? Here?" Dex immediately reacted hard. But that was not a real fight but joking ridicule.

"You'll definitely lose to me," said Thomas, not wanting to lose to him.

Dex's face hardened. "I'll use my magic."

"I'll fight you using a magic antidote," Thomas said disdainfully.

Dex let out a loud snort. "Cheating!"

"So hurry and get strong so you don't always have to rely on your magic." Thomas ended their brief debate with some advice. "Moreover, your magic is just like that," he added.

Dex pursed his lips. "Okay." He was no longer going against him because everything Thomas said was true.

Carl smiled at their interaction. Dex seemed to be younger than Thomas even though they were on the same level. So, they looked like a sibling fighting to him.

It was also funny as he remembered that he was in a similar position to his brother. That was when they were a child.

"You guys look good," he commented.

"What?!"

"What?!"

Thomas and Dex responded in unison.

Thomas glared at Dex, then turned to Carl. "Absolutely not. He often challenged me but always ended up losing to me."

"No, it wasn't like that. I didn't know human equipment was that great."

"That was only an excuse, wasn't it?"

"No. In my village, only a few people were called here."

Carl smiled again. Apparently, they continued their little fight.

"Miku and I are like you, too. She trains me."

The debate stopped. Thomas looked at Carl and Miku in turn. "Is that real?"

"Yeah. She even told me to be a fighter."

Miku, who was silent for a while, just smiled when her name was called.

"She looks tough," Thomas said while nodding. "She's definitely stronger than mine," he added, glancing at Dex.

"I'll be strong." Dex reacted hard.

"Yeah, you better get strong soon." Then he turned back to Carl. "By the way, how did you get a high-level companion?"

Carl really had to get used to receiving similar questions, especially since it was his first day at Astrix Academy.

--

"Carl!" An exclamation called Carl's name from the hundreds of students in the vast courtyard.

Carl turned around and found a girl approaching him. "Oh, you!" His brain worked fast to remember her name. "Flo, right?" He said a name as the girl stopped in front of him.

"Yeah," she answered, smiling brightly. "You still remember me?"

"Of course." Carl smiled back. "You made here. Congratulations."

"Thanks. You too."

"Who is this, Carl?" Suddenly, another voice joined in.

And it reminded Carl that he had been with Thomas all along. "This is Flo, my first new friend here." He reacted quickly, introducing Flo to Thomas. "And this is Thomas, a new friend I met on my way to school." Vice versa.

Then, Flo and Thomas took the time to greet each other and shake hands.

"Is she your companion?" Miku joined in their chat.

"Oh, I haven't introduced my companion yet," Flo remembered something. She didn't have one the last time she met Carl and Miku. "You're right. She's my partner. Her name is Alia."

Alia looked around and smiled nervously. It seemed that she wasn't used to getting attention.

"Don't worry. We'll be friends." Miku calmed her down and put her arm around her shoulder. Alia was slightly shorter than her.

"Thanks," Alia replied softly, so only Miku could hear her.

"You must be quiet." Suddenly, a voice was coming right behind them. The culprit was a flat-faced guy. He continued to stare straight ahead as they turned their heads to question him. Inevitably, they followed his gaze and found several teachers walking over.

Apparently, the opening ceremony was about to begin.

"Good morning, everyone," said the oldest one standing in the middle. "Welcome to Astrix Academy."

Then, fireworks appeared out of nowhere and formed a welcome sign.