Chapter 1.4 - Archer

Beep! Beep! Beep!

The blaring noise of my phone's alarm system.

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the unfamiliar white ceiling; different compared to the blueness I was familiar with when I used to wake up. It wasn't only the room structure that was different; the environment was different from my memories too.

The curtain of the window swayed gently. I could smell the humid fresh air with feint scents of the ocean near the school. The proximity that was mostly filled with blaring noises of vehicles and peoples' yelling in the past, were no longer there. That was the moment when reality completely sinked into me.

I took a deep breath and exhaled.

'So, yesterday wasn't a dream after all, huh?'

It wasn't a bad thing of course. In fact, I was actually glad. I didn't know when exactly I fell asleep last night. Probably some time early in the morning. But I do remember being a bit reluctant to sleep, thinking that I might regain consciousness back in the previous world.

Seeing how that didn't happen, I guess I finally have the right to sleep in peace now, huh?

I pulled the phone in front of my face and stopped the alarm. My body craved for more sleep, given how late I stayed up last night. But the four digit number burning on the phone's display made me reconsider.

It was sharp at seven, only two hours prior to the time we were told to be present at school. It wasn't as though I was late for school or anything. I just had a few things that needed to be taken care of. For example, I wanted to learn more about my body.

Yes, I'm aware of how weird that must've sounded.

Something I noticed yesterday was the fact that I could no longer use my magecraft. My magic circuits were either fried, or didn't exist anymore. My body had also slimmed down to a high school version of me. There was a small delay in my actions, as if my body couldn't keep up with what I commanded it to do. I was having a bit of difficulty adjusting because of it.

Either way, my physique changed significantly, and I needed to make peace with it, fast.

I got out from the bed and went to the office (toilet) to attend the daily business meeting (toilet). After I brushed my teeth, I jumped inside the school provided gym uniform and headed outside. My destination was the local track field I spotted yesterday when coming back from school.

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While jogging toward the field, I noticed a few students (who were most likely seniors) walking toward the main campus.

I went there to check what it was all about. Turns out, they were carrying tables, banners and other decorative ornaments and such. At first, I thought about looking at the contents of that banner. But it was neatly folded and beyond my vision. Judging by the instruments however, I could speculate what it was all about.

"Haff~!"

My gaze hovered over to a rough looking female senpai who was carrying a foldable table on one hand, and a handful of chairs on the other. She was panting heavily in exhaustion. It was apparent that she was having difficulty carrying all those instruments by herself. They were clearly too much for her. Her clubmates were way ahead of her too, carrying handful of stuff as well. I walked toward her.

"Need a hand, senpai?" I asked.

The senpai turned at me with a shocked face. The kind of face that you'd make when you get caught slacking off in a part-time job.

"N-no, no. It's fine. I can totally handle all this." she said, trying to sound tough and reliable. I sighed and extended my right arm, prompting her to hand something over.

"Just leave the table to me. It'd make things easier, wouldn't it?"

"Ah.. I... Well, if you're that persistent then, I guess I'll take you up from the offer."

She reluctantly handed me the folded table. It was moderately heavy, and tall.

I looked at that girl's hand. They weren't long enough to grab the other edge of the table's top. No wonder why she was having trouble carrying it alongside those chairs.

I held the table on my right horizontally in between my underarm while gripping the edge tightly. It became easier for me to carry that way.

"Lead the way, senpai." I said.

"Of course."

The senpai walked a bit ahead of me, albeit she was a bit slow. I also walked slowly to match her pace. We were following the trail of where the other club members were headed.

It was exactly as I had expected. They were headed toward the main campus area after all.

"You're quite the gentleman, aren't you, kouhai?" the senpai suddenly commented while smiling.

"Just giving a hand to someone who needed it." I replied with a shrug.

"Hm.. Quite humble too, apparently."

Not really. It was a bit sad to see a young lady like her struggling in a state like that. I felt pity so I decided to offer my hand.

Though, I really wonder if I would've done the same if it was a guy...

"By the way senpai, what's with all these festivities?" I asked.

"Oh, we're headed to the gymnasium. Our club is setting up a stall for the club fair."

"Club fair?" I pretended not to understand. "Is that like a festival of some sort?"

"I guess you can say that." she replied. "Basically, different clubs set up their stalls to recruit new members for their club. It's held every year when the new freshmen gets admitted to the school."

"So, it's like a competition between clubs to recruit as many first years as they can, huh?"

"Haha! That's certainly an interesting way of putting it." she laughed.

It wasn't that different from the analogy, though.

The more members a club had, the more budget they'd receive from the school. That's how clubs were able to get better training equipment. It was ideal to gather many new members as a budgetary increase, and then simply to bench them the rest of the time, like phantom members. Many of the clubs used those tactics to manipulate the beginners for the points. That's just how it was.

"You're a first year, aren't you?" the senior suddenly asked. "How's the school faring for you?"

"It's a bit... complicated, if anything."

Let's take a note here. I did recently get ejected from my own reality, and ended up in this school with no explanation.

At first, I was confused. But then... I got even more confused.

Despite the lack of comprehension, I somehow needed to make peace with it. I had to accept the fact that I was going back to high school with kids who were about six years younger than me. Put your feet inside my shoes for once.

"I can understand how hard it must be for you guys. Living alone in the dorms, away from your family, trying to adjust with this new environment. It almost sounds crazy, isn't it?"

"A little bit."

A bit exaggerated, to be honest. Admittedly, it was a bit unusual to see high school students living away from their family to study. But, it's not like it wasn't a thing at all. For example, there were boarding schools, or missionary schools, where students could reside in hostels and commute to school from there. Ikusei Kyodou had similarities on that regard.

However, unlike a boarding school, Ikusei Kyodou gave too much freedom to it's students. I'm sure it had something to do with forming the students' individuality. Truly something only a school of elites could do.

"How were you like, back in your first year days, senpai?" I asked.

"Oh, you just reminded me of my dark history haha!" she sweatdropped.

It seemed like I made her think about some displeasing memories, but she didn't stop talking..

"Though it's kind of embarrassing to admit, I used to cry a lot when I first got here."

....

"If it's something you're uncomfortable with, let's jus–"

"Nah, it's fine. I can tell you all about it." she continued. "It might not seem like a bad deal in the early days. I mean, the freedom is great and all, and you'd probably let yourself get high on it at first. But at some point, you slowly start to realize that... it's just so hard without them."

"...."

"You want to see them so badly, or talk to them. But you're not allowed to anymore. It just breaks your heart."

I silently listened to her words as she kept telling her story with a sad smile. It made me realize how cruel this must've been for some people.

This school was completely detached from the outside world. 'Completely', in all sense of that word. The students were prohibited from all sorts of communication with their family for three whole years.

Even though I didn't have any loved ones in this world anymore, I could imagine the agony both sides had to go through, the students and their loved ones. It was an unrealistic aspect of this story that I didn't like.

"Do you still miss them?"

"Of course. Everyday. Who wouldn't?" she replied with a snicker, as if she found my question a bit funny. "But, you just kind of get used to it, you know..."

"Is that so?"

"Mhm.." she hummed. "I'm sure there will be moments when you'll feel a bit down. But trust me, it's going to be alright."

"I see..."

Frankly, I thought she was just an unreliable senior at first. That she was just a random character who didn't have any purpose in the story.

Turns out, I needed to change my way of evaluating things. This was no longer just a 'story' full of words, the people were no longer 'characters'.

Looking at her now, I couldn't help but puff in admiration. She was actually a nice and reliable senior after all.

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"We're here." the senpai said.

When we reached the gymnasium, a scenery full of hustle and bustle came to my view. Many seniors were scattered across the area setting up their respective stalls. Some students were the queen bees, commanding others to do stuff; some were the worker bees, actually getting stuff done; while the others were the lazy bees, simply slacking off and chattering around. Classic group work hierarchy.

I had put down the table where she'd asked me to. The other members of the club already got busy decorating the stall. By the way, I was yet to learn which club they belonged to. It didn't matter anyway, as I was genuinely doing voluntary work.

"Thanks for the hand, kouhai-kun. It was much appreciated."

"It was nothing. Please don't mention it, senpai."

I was free from my voluntary role, that's why I was free to head out as well. But then suddenly...

"Ah, I didn't get your name, kouhai-kun." that senior student called out to me again.

Of course, where are my manners? I forgot introduce myself.

"My name is Aozaki Levent. First Year, Class D. Please just call me Levent."

"Levent? That's an unusual name." she commented. "Are you a foreigner?"

"I get that a lot." I deadpanned.

"Haha! Of course you do." she snickered in amusement. "Anyways, my name is Hashigaki Satsuki. Third Year, Class B. I'm the captain of the archery club."

Archery club? Wait, did she just say she's the club president?

"It was nice to meet you, Aozaki Levent-kun. I hope we meet again."

"Same goes to you, Hashihaki-senpai." I replied. "Well then.. I'll take my leave now. Good luck on your club fair."

"Thanks, kouhai. Be sure to come by when the fair begins."

Of course, no promises were made that day. But, I didn't say no either.

Honestly, I didn't expect her to be the archery clubs' president. She didn't seem that reliable as a senior at first. But we all know that's just a bullshit analysis on my part.

I was thankful though, that she didn't pester me with a club invitation right after I helped her. That would've been kind of awkward otherwise.

That aside, my curiosity was quenched enough, so I intended to resume my physical assessment. I ran toward the track field again and spent a good hour and a half doing intense physical training like I used to.

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The second day, technically our first day at class, we spent most of our time running over the course objectives. The teachers formally introduced themselves and gave us brief overview over the future lectures.

Luckily, the curriculum was the same as the one I went through in my previous world. It was a relief to know that I had all of those topics covered from my previous iteration of the game called 'high school.'

That aside, let's talk about the behavior problem of class D.

The students were a bit cautious in the beginning. They were actually being respectful and taking note of the lectures the teacher was providing. It was the period of time when they had the minimum bit of common sense left in them to at least not use mobile phones, or talk loudly during the class.

Of course, that didn't even last a period. As soon as they'd realized that the teachers wouldn't do anything to stop them, all hell broke loose. From playing games, to reading manga, watching metube, talking to the phone, sleeping in class and whatnot. Cross everything I mentioned above and more.

You know, Japanese schools usually boast about their teachings in discipline and respectfulness. Let's go back even further, a child born in Japan usually has to go through a strict upbringing. I'm talking Spartan-level strictness.

They were taught to act in a graceful and respectable manner since their birth. I'm sure all of them went through the same teachings.

So, where the hell did everything go wrong?

Of course, the teachers wouldn't stop them. And the students didn't think too hard about the questions I had raised yesterday either. I was aware of what they were going to do from the beginning. But seeing it with my own eyes truly baffled me.

I secretly threw a glance at Horikita, who had an utterly displeased look on her face the whole time. Couldn't blame her, as I shared the same displeasure with her. I think just about anyone would be speechless if they witnessed the chaos unfolding before them in a school full of elites.

"Hah~" I sighed.

Having nothing else to do, I picked a textbook and began reviewing it for problems that I'd probably forgotten about due to not practicing them for ages.

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Lunch Time.

The population inside the class was relatively low during this time. Most of the students rushed toward the cafeteria area to buy food. Some of the few who remained in the classroom had brought their own lunch.

The remaining others were just sitting ducks, wasting time on an empty stomach, just like me.

It was a bit sad that I couldn't make friends with anyone. I mean in the first place, I couldn't help but feel a bit weird when attempting to 'vibe' with my classmates. Curse the restriction put by my age.

"..."

Actually, it'd be just an excuse to blame my mental age like that.

To begin with, I used to be the lazy type of guy who thought friends were a pain in the ass. This misconception probably birthed from my sophomore years of highschool when people used to pester me to join their groups to basically carry their 'group' assignments, and help them when they cried for it.

I passionately hated those types of people. At first, they'd treat you like you're the bestest friend they'd ever made, and basically worship you. But as soon as it's all over, you wouldn't even fucking exist in their world.

That's what prompted me to think that friends we just incompetent people using each other for their own personal benefits, and nothing more.

Of course as I had mentioned before, that was a misconception in my philosophy, and I learned it the hard way on the later stages of life.

In any case, my belly wasn't happy with me slacking off from feeding it. So, I decided to visit the cafeteria at last.

"Hm?"

"...."

While getting off the seat, my eyes suddenly met with the person behind me who was also sitting alone, duck faced. He quickly averted his gaze and looked left and right, for what I assumed was to look for partners to have lunch with.

There were barely any people inside, so obviously he didn't find anyone. He gave up and looked at me with a sad excuse of pleading eyes. 'Help me, Levent! Save this hungry soul from starvation and loneliness.' is the kind of gaze he was staring at me with. Gross.

That was the protagonist of the story. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, the 'masterpiece' of an awkward loner.

"Hah~ Get a move on if you want to get lunch. We're going to the cafeteria." I sighed as I motioned him to start moving.

"Uh...of course." he said as he got out of his seat.

We ventured outside the classroom and walked through the now crowded hallway. The cafeteria wasn't too far away from there. A convenience store was also nearby as well, in case there were students who couldn't buy their fills from the cafeteria.

"How adorable."

As we were headed to that direction, we crossed path with a certain brunette in the hallway. I looked at her arms that were carrying a packed sandwich, and a juice box. She was probably returning from the cafeteria herself.

"What exactly do you find adorable about this, Horikita?" Ayanokouji deadpanned.

"Two loners accompanying each other to lunch just to feel less lonely. If that isn't adorable, than I don't know what is." Horikita said with crossed arms in her usual emotionless tone, mocking us.

I had enough of her talking down to me yesterday, so I decided to strike back a bit.

"You sure like to blur the line of hypocrisy, being a walking example of a loner yourself." I insulted back.

"Don't misunderstand. Unlike you two, I prefer to be alone." said by every single loner I had ever met.

"That's nothing to be boastful about. Rather, it's a sign of insecurity. Take counseling sessions if that's the case." I mocked back.

"You've sure grown quite the smug tongue to talk like that, haven't you, Aozaki-kun?" Horikita raised her eyebrow.

"With all due respect, you initiated this verbal warfare. If you feel like biting someone, make sure that you can handle being bitten as well, Horikita-san." I replied, respectfully.

Apparently, Horikita didn't like that. She pointed her fiery glare at me as a by product of that.

"You must be quite arrogant to think that you can talk down to me like that. Are you sure you're not being delusional?"

"My apologies, if my words managed to hurt your ego. Please don't mind, and have a wonderful lunch by yourself, alone." I began walking forward, reflexively giving that final jab at her.

"Where do you think you're going?" she stopped me on the way. I took a deep breath and sighed, trying to think rationally again.

Horikita was glaring holes at me. So I narrowed my gaze a bit, showing her a bit of my annoyance as well.

"This conversation is meaningless. The lunch period is coming to an end as we speak. Surely you've got better things to do than to obstruct my way to get lunch?"

It was getting a bit late, and the time was running out. So, I decided to attack in a way that'd actually hurt her pride the more she talked to me.

"You're correct. This was indeed a waste of my time. Please, by all means, go ahead and enjoy your lunch." she said before she strode past us, not forgetting to leave a glare at my direction. I also shrugged it off and walked forward without looking back.

Perhaps my words would get stuck in her head for a while. And as far as I've read about her, she was a stuck up jerk. She'd definitely hold a grudge against me over this for a while.

Guess it was kind of my fault, actually. I should've known better than to bang heads against a teenager. So much for the 'maturity' I've shown, being someone who's supposed to be older than her. If she didn't hate me enough already, she'd totally despise me by now.

Whatever, that wouldn't matter anyway. If things went the direction I intended, then by the end of the first month, I'd probably end up being the most hated person to ever exist in her eyes.

While approaching the cafeteria area, Ayanokouji who silently witnessed our sharp exchange finally opened his lips.

"I can already tell, you, and her, will get along just fine."

"..."

I stopped walking on the hallway, so did Ayanokouji. He turned back at me, looking a bit confused as to why I stopped. Not sure what kind of expression I was making back there. But if I were to make a guess, I'd say it was probably a disgruntled one.

"Dude, do you have dementia?"

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「At five PM Japan Standard Time today, we will be holding a student club fair in Gymnasium No.1. Students interested in joining a club, please gather in Gymnasium No.1. I repeat, at-...」

A sweet voice rang out from every speakers of the school. Student Council Secretary Tachibana officially announced the club fair event.

"Do you wanna take a look at it?" Ayanokouji said before taking a big bite out of his cream bun.

I was again reminded of the invitation that third year student Hashigaki Satsuki gave me. She probably wasn't counting on it, but it would seem a bit rude not to visit them after they went out of their way to invite me like that. There was no way they could convince me to join them, but it wouldn't hurt to say 'hi' to them.

"I'r shink abouf if." (I'll think about it.) I said while stuffing half a sandwich on my mouth.

"...Eat slowly. It's not like it's going anywhere."

"Showwy, bab havvif." (Sorry, bad habits)

Ayanokouji sighed. "In any case, I'm asking Horikita, see if she comes with us."

"Go for it.." I gulped down the sandwich.

"Alright."

I was almost a hundred percent certain that it was a bad idea for him. I'm sure she would mercilessly turn him down immediately. Especially after we'd spat fire at each other earlier in the hallway.

But who knows.. Maybe Ayanokouji will show his genius here and persuade Horikita somehow.

Go get em tiger. Break a leg.

"Hey, Horikita. Do you wanna-"

"I'm not interested in joining a club." As expected, Horikita shot him down, not even letting him finish his sentence.

"I didn't even ask you anything yet." Ayanokouji deadpanned.

"Well, what is it?"

"Are you interested in joining a club?"

"Ayanokouji-kun, do you have dementia, or are you just an idiot? Didn't I just tell you that I'm not interested?"

"That doesn't mean you wouldn't join." Ayanokouji muttered to himself. "Also, why does everyone keep saying that I have dementia?"

"Now you're just splitting hair. Don't argue for the sake of arguing." she lectured while glaring at him.

"Alright." Utterly defeated, Ayanokouji looked forward at me.

"Well, at least you tried. I'll give you a D for effort." I consoled.

"That does not make me happy at all." Ayanokouji stared at me with narrowed eyes.

"In any case, it seems we'll be heading home a bit late. The fair starts right when the school breaks at five."

"Guess it'll be just the two of us."

Do not make it sound weird, you fucking psychopath!

"We're not going there to mess around though." I stated.

"Do you have any specific club you want to join then?"

"No. Do you?" I asked with half-closed eyes.

"I don't have anything specific in mind. But maybe that can change if we go check it out?" he replied while scratching the back of his head.

"We could do that too, obviously. But you know, it's a great chance to interact with a lot of seniors. Maybe we'll get some advice from them and gather more information that way, don't you think?"

Ayanokouji's eyes followed my line of sight and looked beside him, understanding what I was actually trying to go for. "So, it's all for information gathering?"

"The seniors from both years are attending the festival. They've been residents of this school far longer than us. So, it's realistic to expect to learn some 'hidden information' about the school from them." I said.

"Wait, what do you mean by 'hidden information'?"

"Aside from what the school wants us to know, we basically don't know anything about it. For example, did you know about the private point system before applying here?"

"....Point taken. But exactly what kind of information are we look for, Levent?" Ayanokouji asked.

"We won't find out unless we visit there." I answered, while secretly throwing a glance at Horikita. "Would've been ideal if there were more people though."

"Hmh..."

I knew she was secretly tuning in to our conversation. She wasn't going to admit that, and she wouldn't listen if we talked to her voluntarily when she got stubborn. That's why I made sure our conversation was as audacious as it could be without making her suspicious.

She was described as a stubborn 'Ohime-sama' in the early days of the story. That's why we had to take the indirect 'Tsundere' way of persuading her.

Don't misunderstand. I-it's not like I was doing all that for her, b-baka!

[E:  ;) ]

"Club activities, hmm. I see..." Horikita audaciously muttered to herself. "Well, if it's only for a little while, I'll go with you two"

"....What?"

"You've asked me earlier, haven't you? I've decided to tag along with you a little."

"...Of course. Feel free to join us if you want." Ayanokouji replied.

"Again, only for a little while."

What an easy girl~

"In any case, we'll be going after the classes are over. If you have any plans for the evening, better postpone it, because it could get a bit late." I announced.

"I've got no issues here." Horikita responded.

"Sounds like a plan." Ayanokouji replied.

"Alright, guess it's fixed then."

The three of us made plans to attend the club fair together at five, after the classes were over. Tagging along with the main characters from a story, something I couldn't possibly picture myself doing, but I was doing it anyway.

"Watching you flail about as you fail to make friends sounds somewhat interesting." Horikita commented.

"....."

"..... Sure."

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"Make sure to review these problems at home tonight." The math teacher Sakagami ended his lecture and bowed before departing from the class. My eyes hovered over at the wall clock hanging just a little above the backboard. It was exactly five o' clock.

I packed my notebook and instruments inside the bag, and got out of my seat. Ayanokouji and Horikita seemed like they were about to leave as well.

"Let's go."

After classes had ended for the day, the three of us went to the gymnasium. As we went through the entrance, about a hundred people were waiting around. We stood near the back of the room and waited for the fair to begin.

"Seems like there are more crowd here than expected." Ayanokouji mused.

"It's pretty common for a school festival, actually." Horikita replied.

The fair hadn't officially started yet, but some clubs were distributing pamphlets among the first years. They tried giving us too, but after seeing Horikita's grumpy face, even that senior got demotivated. I took one from him and took a glance over the pamphlet.

"Look, Ayanokouji. It's from the calligraphy club."

Even the pamphlets were hand written as well, emphasizing on the originality of the clubs purpose.

"Exquisite work, don't you think?" I asked.

"Yeah, I couldn't possibly imagine myself doing that."

This brat...

"Your handwriting is so pristine though. I could've sworn that you'd practised calligraphy in the past." I prompted.

"You flatter me, Levent." Ayanokouji shrugged. "If you're that interested, why don't you check it out?"

I stared at him with deadpan eyes. "My hand writing's as bad as an ant walking on a piece of paper with ink sticking to it's feet."

It was anything but beautiful. Some would say they were specimen of  modern art.

I looked at the stalls around us. They were exhibiting all their clubs' expensive equipments and features for the first-years to see, hoping to attract some of them.

"This school actually puts some budget to it's clubs." I wondered aloud.

"Every club seems to operate on a high level. It looks like many athletes and club members here are famous throughout the nation." Horikita replied.

"I wonder if there are famous clubs in this school. For example, the karate club." Ayanokouji mused.

We decided to walk around the place a little to take a good look at the stalls.

"These facilities are significantly more substantial than ordinary schools. Look, they even have O2 chambers. The equipment here is so luxurious, it puts the professionals' stuff to shame. Oh, but it looks like they don't have a karate club after all." said Ayanokouji.

"That's weird. Shouldn't there be at least one martial arts club in a school like this?"

"It's not particularly weird for schools to have one or two clubs missing." Horikita replied dismissively. She didn't seem particularly interested in that topic.

As we were walking past one of the stalls, a young lady handed me their clubs' pamphlet. It was from the light music club.

"Can you play any instruments, Levent?" Ayanokouji asked.

"I don't know. Haven't tried anything seriously in the past. But I feel like I have an affinity for a guitar."

"I see."

"What about you?" I asked back.

"I can play the piano a little."

"Cool." I replied.

We didn't bother asking Horikita what she was good at. That, apparently, struck her in her ego.

"I suppose I'm quite fluent at playing a violin." she declared anyway.

"Advanced level?" I asked.

"I am indeed in the advanced stages." she replied pridefully.

"Wow, you really are amazing." I cautiously replied, trying not to let her feel the sarcasm.

"Hey, what if the three of us actually pulled a band together? That'd be awesome, don't you think?" Ayanokouji suggested.

"Meh.. I don't think a 'rookie' guitarist, a supposedly 'novice' pianist, and a violin player would be a good suit for a band though. It's not nearly enough." I replied.

"I agree. You should stop daydreaming, Ayanokouji-kun." Horikita gave the thorny version of the lecture.

"At least let me dream~" Ayanokouji muttered with his head slumped down.

Suddenly, the speaker installed in the four corners of the gymnasium fired up.

「Thank you all for waiting, first-year students. We will now begin the club fair. A representative from each club will explain their function. My name is Tachibana, the student council secretary and the club fair's organizer. It's nice to meet you all.」

Secretary Tachibana delivered the opening remarks. Soon after, representatives from each club quickly lined up on a stage. The club representatives included everything from burly athletes in judo uniforms to students dressed in beautiful kimonos.

"I don't know about Karate, but there's your Judo club, Ayanokouji." I remarked.

"Hey, if you want to get a fresh start, why not try joining there? That upperclassman looks kind, and I'm sure he'd encourage you."

Horikita pointed towards a big and scary looking senpai. His height was somewhere around six feet two, and his muscles were practically tearing through his tight Judo uniform. We were like kittens in comparison to that spectacle of a man.

"What do you mean 'kind'?! He looks like a gorilla! He'll kill me for sure!" Ayanokouji snapped.

"He'll probably talk passionately about how easy judo is."

"Cut it out!"

Wow, even the ice cold Ayanokouji could show emotions from time to time, huh?

"You seem like you could handle that senpai, can't you, Aozaki-kun?"

"Hard pass." I deadpanned.

It wasn't like I couldn't do it. I just didn't feel like doing anything that'd occupy my free time after school.

"Hello, first years! My name is Hashigaki Satsuki, the captain of the archery club."

"Huh?"

My eyes grew big as soon as I heard that sentence. My head immediately twirled toward the stage to confirm the identity of that voice.

It was indeed the exact same raven haired senpai I had met in the morning.

So, she was THAT senpai from the novel, huh?

"Many students may be under the impression that archery is an old-fashioned, simple activity, but it is actually a fun and rewarding sport. We welcome beginners with open arms. If you're interested, please consider joining." Hashigaki bowed and left the stage. As she was leaving, I traced her back to the archery clubs' stall.

"–that's why newcomers should be welcomed." Horikita continued whatever she was telling Ayanokouji.

"Then why don't you join them?" I pointed toward the archery clubs' stall. "They seem to accept newcomers. I'm sure they'll be happy to teach a thing or two about archery..."

"I respectfully decline that offer." Horikita replied. "Firstly, I have little to no interest in archery. Besides, athletic clubs are just gatherings of people with nothing better to do. Also, I probably wouldn't have fun if I didn't know anyone there. I'd end up quitting in the blink of an eye."

"Isn't that simply your twisted personality speaking? I'm certain that you didn't even bother remembering our classmate's names." I remarked.

"Yes, you're absolutely correct."

Wow, this girl just casually agreed to it.

"But athletic clubs are still a no-go."

"Guys, stop arguing." Ayanokouji stepped between us. "Let's go back to the original purpose of why we came here."

"Now that you mention it. Instead of wasting time pondering about the club, we should ask the seniors around." Horikita nodded.

"Of course. Let's go with that, then." I replied.

"So, should we split up, or..." Ayanokouji asked.

"If we came here just to split up, then what was the point of banding up in the first place?" Horikita deadpanned.

"That's true... I guess." he sighed.

And thus, we began our chaotic, fruitless search for answers.

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As to why I said it was a fruitless effort, it's because none of the seniors gave us any special hints about the school or it's rules. I was able to distinguish because I knew the rules myself.

They kept spouting information that was already available for the public. It almost sounded repetitive, as if they had rehearsed the same lines to decline the first years whenever they asked.

"Something feels weird about this, don't you think?" I asked.

"I agree. Most of their information are either vague, or, what we already know of. They also seemed a bit reluctant to talk whenever we brought this topic." Ayanokouji remarked.

We stopped at a corner of the gymnasium to organize what we little information we had collected from the event.

"You reckon there's a rule that prohibits them from giving hints to the first years?" I questioned.

"I don't know. It seems unreasonable, but I can't decline the possibility either." Horikita replied. "Something's definitely weird about this school."

"In any case, one thing's for sure. The seniors won't be giving us anything for a reason." Ayanokouji summarized.

"Was this a waste of time after all?"

"Depends on the way you look at it." I commented. "We did learn that the seniors are reluctant to share information about the school. So there's definitely a catch."

"So it seems." Horikita pondered.

We were standing at the corner, silently observing the stage. The club representatives kept circulating the stage to introduce their clubs' and invite new members. Many first years who were interested in them followed as they head to their stalls.

"Look, your Judo-senpai is about to give his introduction." I mischievously pointed at the said.

"Would you stop that?!" Ayanokouji grumbled. "I'm not joining the Judo club, and you can't convince me otherwise!"

"I'm just saying." I shrugged. Ayanokouji simply sighed in response. It was kind of amusing to see him get riled up like that~.

"There's surprisingly a good number of clubs in this school." he remarked.

"Yeah, the number of representatives in the stage doesn't seem to go down. What is this?" I mused.

"As expected of a government funded school, huh?"

"What do you think, Hori–"

As I was about to ask Horikita, I'd noticed that she was staring at the stage in awe without blinking once, her face paler than snow. She looked tense, as if she'd seen a ghost. I followed her line of vision and immediately understood what was going through her brain.

"What's the matter, Horikita?" Ayanokouji called out to her, but she was too concentrated on that one spot of that backstage.

The nii-san of this story had finally made his appearance.

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Eventually, the other representatives walked out of the stage, only a lone third year student remained. Everyone's attention fell on him.

He wore sharp glasses and had a piercing, calculating gaze. An aura of gracefulness and maturity surrounding him. He stood in front of the microphone, and calmly looked around at the first-year students.

He didn't say a single word.

"Hey, did you forget to bring your notecards?"

"Do your best!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha!"

The first years began snickering amongst themselves because of his unusual behavior. But no matter how many embarrassing comments were thrown at him by the first year students, he maintained his poker face.

When the laughter had reached a crescendo, it suddenly died.

"What's with this guy?" remarked an astonished student.

He simply stood there, quiet and motionless, staring fixedly at the crowd. We weren't given any orders, but not a single student present in the gymnasium dared to open their mouth.

The gymnasium that was buzzing with people's chatter just a second ago, now had pin drop silence.

"My name is Horikita Manabu. I'm the student council president." He finally began his speech, calmly looking over the audience.

"The student council is looking to recruit potential candidates among the first-year students to replace the graduating third years. Although no special qualifications are required for candidacy, we humbly ask that those considering application not be involved in other club activities. We generally do not accept students involved elsewhere."

Manabu managed to silence the entire student body present inside the gymnasium. It wasn't his position as the student council president that granted him this deference. That was simply Horikita Manabu's power. His presence dominated everyone around him.

"Furthermore, we in the student council do not wish to appoint anyone who possesses a naive outlook. Not only would such a person not be elected, he or she would sully the sanctity of this school. It is the student council's right and duty to enforce and amend the rules, but the school expects more than that. We gladly welcome those of you who understand this."

Immediately after finishing, he hopped off the stage and left the gymnasium. Everyone was silent even after his departure.

That was the leadership of our current student council president.

"Thank you all for coming. The club fair has ended. We will now open the reception area to anyone interested in signing up. Also, registration will be open until the end of April, so if any student wishes to join at a later date, we ask that you please bring the application form directly to the club you wish to join."

Thanks to Tachibana's announcement, the students who were at shock snapped out of it. The crowd scattered and began rushing toward the stalls they were interested in.

Now..

Tst!

I snapped my finger in front of her face.

"Ek!" Horikita let out an unexpectedly cutesy yelp. Guess she was a girl after all.

"Hey, you're in a trance. Snap out of it." I said.

"What's happened, Horikita?" Ayanokouji asked.

"N-nothing. It was nothing. I was just pondering a bit. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You seem a bit out of it though? Let's get you out of the crowd first."

"I said I'm FINE! Don't make me say it again." she uttered in a cold tone. I sighed and gave up trying to help that person.

You know what the word 'FINE' stands for? Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional. Though it's ironic, that's what perfectly suits your current situation, Horikita Suzune.

"That person, the student council president... He's your brother isn't he?" I asked.

"That's none of your business." she grumpily replied, but it wasn't as grumpy as usual. Ayanokouji and I collectively decided not pursue on this matter anymore.

"The club fair's over. Feel free to head back if you want." Ayanokouji stated.

"In that case, I'll take an early leave." she said before hurriedly stepping out of the gymnasium. She almost seemed vulnerable when the topic was related to her brother. I took note of that, of course.

I then turned to Ayanokouji who blankly staring at her direction as well. "She looked pale. Maybe you should go with her."

"And what are you going to do?" he asked.

"I have a few things to take care of. I'll see you tomorrow, or back in the dorm I guess?"

"See you soon, Levent." Ayanokouji hurried toward Horikita's side and accompanied her all the to the dorm.

Alright, time to take care of all the loose ends.

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"Ah, kouhai-kun. Glad to see that you didn't run away on me." Hashigaki greeted as soon as she noticed me approaching their stall.

"Good evening, Hashigaki-senpai." I bowed and greeted her in return. "How has the club fair been for you?"

"It's as you can see. We've been getting a little packed, actually." she replied.

I noticed a few of her fellow club members behind, briefing the first years about their club. You'd expect there to be less crowd in an unpopular club like Archery, but boy, are you wrong...

"Seems like you're doing well." I mused. She simply smiled back at me. I didn't like the vibe of what she was hiding behind that smile.

"So, why don't you join our club, Aozaki-kun?" she suggested.

"I'm sorry, but I'd like to decline." I declined immediately.

"Ehh...But why not?" Hashigaki pouted.

"I don't think Archery and Aozaki Levent belong in the same sentence, senpai." I replied. "Besides, I'm probably no good with bow and arrows."

"But you wouldn't know without trying, now would you?" she refuted.

"That's crazy. It's not like I can try out in a place like this."

"Hmhmhm..." she hummed in amusement for some reason. Again, I didn't like that vibe she gave me.

"Luckily, we had arranged a short range for the member to try out their archery skills. Pretty amazing, don't you think?"

"...."

Wow.. Can't even complain. That's actually pretty clever.

"Are you sure it's safe though? What if the arrow ricochets off to somewhere with people?" I expressed my concern for the well-being of the people around me.

"It's all taken care of." she gave me a thumbs up. "We're not that careless, you know? I've taken taken all the safety measures to make sure that never happens." she then forcefully handed me a bow and an arrow. "Now pull, aim and release!"

That senpai's enthusiastic nature was contagious. It even made me a bit fired up to try it out. Surely, that must've made her popular among her peers and juniors alike.

"Fine. I'll do it just once. But no promises though. I'm not joining the club for a good reason." I grumbled.

"That's totally fine. I just want see kouhai-kun's archery." Hashigaki replied.

"Also, if I miss, please don't laugh at me. I wouldn't be able to mentally recover from that."

"Just shoot, dammit!"

Hey, don't rush me!

I absentmindedly took the archery gloves from one of the seniors. That was ensure that my fingers didn't get sprained when I released the arrow. I took my position and held the bow and arrow.

"Haff!~"

I rubbed the feathered end of the arrow as I let out all the air from my lungs. After properly placing the arrow on the mechanical bow, I pulled the string while taking a deep breath at the same time.

It was my first time using a bow, so naturally you'd expect my aim to be chaotic. That's why I held my breath because that'd makes it easier for me to aim. Holding breath makes the aiming function of our brain more precise as we can concentrate more on a single spot that way.

After I aimed the sharp end of the arrow toward the bullseye, I pulled it a little above and a bit left, in all accordance to the distance and the surrounding wind pressure.

It really was my first time using a bow. Archery had the same mechanics as using a gun, or a sniper rifle, if not simpler. I wasn't expecting the arrow to hit the bullseye. However, I couldn't help but notice all the familiarity I had with archery.

After all, in more than one ways...

Archery surprising felt the same as shooting someone in the head.

"Fuu~"

The arrow was released.

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"You sure you haven't done archery before?" asked a senior from the circle of members surrounding me.

"Yes, that was my first time using a bow." I replied.

"Wow, You're totally a natural!" puffed a member of Archery club in admiration.

"You should really consider joining us, kouhai. You're a raw talent you know?" said another member.

"Though I appreciate your good gesture, I think that's a bit exaggerating things. I'm a hundred percent certain that I simply got lucky back there." I replied.

"Seriously? You think hitting a bullseye in first attempt is just luck?! Do you realize how crazy that is?" exclaimed a member.

It's exactly as she said. The arrow landed precisely at the center of the mid red spot of the target, thus making it a bullseye. It was like the ultimate achievement of the archery, or basically any other shooting related sports.

Yeah, now I even regret putting the minimum bit of effort behind that shot.

"Hey, give him some space! Don't force it into him if he doesn't want it." Hashigaki-senpai immediately began her crowd control, which I was grateful for.

"Thanks for understanding, senpai."

"No, it's okay. Though it's a bit sad that you didn't join us, I'm sure you had your reasons."

Exactly.

"Thanks for having me senpai. Shooting the bow was indeed a fun experience."

"Feel free to drop by the archery club anytime. You're always welcome there."

"Farewell, Hashigaki-senpai."

"I'll see you around, Levent-kun."

I parted with the senior, and distanced myself from the club fair event.

Sorry, but I will most likely forget about you and your club in the future.

The sun had already sunk beyond the horizon, and the tube lights in the streets flared up, lighting paths for the students to follow. My shadow fell in front of me as I stepped on top of it while walking forward.

This has been fun and all, but there were things that would soon be a matter of concern for me. I was planning to do something tomorrow that'd almost make me seem like an absolute fool, or a madman, even.

I knew the consequences of the impending action...and I was prepared to shoulder all of it. If I wanted to gain something in the long term, than that was the only way. And in an event where the negotiation fails, that's completely fine as well.

Because I've been used to walking along the empty streets, alone, all by myself, for a long time.

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