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### **Shadows of the Elite – Volume 3, Chapter 2**
**December 19, 2026 – Haruto's Perspective**
Morning hit like a cold slap to the face.
Class 1-C was loud as usual. The second we walked into homeroom, the chatter started—everyone still buzzing about the mysterious arrival from yesterday. The helicopter. The bodyguards. The weird energy hanging in the air since that moment. People were throwing around wild theories like they were on some detective drama.
Me? I brushed it off.
There was no point getting caught up in the noise. Whatever that was yesterday, it didn't concern me. Not yet.
I sat down, eyes forward.
> "Okay, that's enough chatter," Mr. Unagi said, voice firm as he walked in with his usual slow, confident steps. "I have something to announce to you all."
That shut the class up.
> "We have a new student joining the school—and apparently, they've been assigned to this class."
I leaned back in my chair slightly. Great. More surprises.
Across the room, Daiko—loud as ever—grinned and cracked his knuckles.
> "Finally! Maybe the new guy'll have some talent and face me off in a sports duel or something!"
Unagi gave him that tired look, the one that said "I've taught middle schoolers with more brain cells."
> "Who said it would be a guy?"
Daiko's grin disappeared like someone yanked it off his face.
> "Wait… you mean the new student's a *girl*?"
Unagi ignored the question, looking at the clipboard in his hand. He raised his voice.
> "Come on in. Welcome, **Rika**."
The door creaked open.
Every head turned.
She stepped inside like she owned the floor beneath her. Around 5'5", pale blue hair that looked like it had been frozen midwinter, and those eyes—**crimson violet**. Piercing. Cold. Her uniform was perfectly in place, every crease sharp, every detail meticulous. She didn't look nervous. She didn't look excited. Honestly, she didn't even look interested.
She looked… detached.
Dangerously so.
The class went quiet. People watched her like she was some rare predator walking into a zoo.
Except Kei.
He didn't move. Just kept staring out the window like the clouds were more important than any of this.
Unagi clapped his hands once.
> "Introduce yourself. Tell us a bit about you, your hobbies—"
> "Can I just sit down already?" Rika cut in, cold and sharp like broken glass.
A few people blinked. I swear I heard Daiko mutter something under his breath. Unagi looked caught off-guard but tried to play it off with a sigh.
> "You seem a bit antisocial. I guess I know someone who might slightly relate to you."
Rika raised an eyebrow.
> "And what the hell is *that* supposed to mean?"
> "Nothing," Unagi said quickly, waving it off. "Go sit next to Kei."
She glanced around, clearly unsure who Kei was.
Ayame pointed toward the window.
There he was—**Kei Fushimiya**. Still lost in his own world. The boy who hadn't said more than a full sentence in weeks. He turned his head slightly. Just enough to acknowledge Rika's presence.
Then turned back to the window.
She took her seat beside him without another word.
I sighed quietly.
> "*Those two are gonna be one cold pair.*"
Unagi clapped his hands again.
> "Also—I made a pop quiz today. I think everyone will like it."
Daiko groaned.
> "Oh, come on, that's just a load of crap!"
> "This quiz covers everything we've been practicing. A bit of Algebra II, some Pre-Calc, and actual Calculus."
Daiko looked like he was seriously considering jumping out the window. I honestly couldn't blame him. Most of us were still catching up to the Algebra II stuff.
Unagi passed out the papers quickly.
I could tell just by the look in his eye: **this quiz wasn't for us**. It was for **her**. And for **Kei**.
And Kei knew it too. His expression didn't change, but I could feel it.
Unagi spoke again.
> "This is an advanced school. You live in dorms funded by the school. You're given top-tier resources. So the passing grade is 80%. Be glad. You're learning sophomore-level material as freshmen. That's an opportunity."
> "And why the hell should we be glad abou—"
Shuto clamped a hand over Daiko's mouth before he could finish.
Ayame sighed.
> "Shuto, you need to put a leash on your best friend. He's too aggressive."
Daiko stood up, furious, but Shuto yanked him back down.
Rika watched the whole exchange, then muttered under her breath:
> "Some class this is."
Her tone was cold. Not surprised—*disappointed*. Daiko said nothing, but I saw his fists tighten under the desk.
I turned to the quiz. No more distractions.
---
**15 minutes later.**
Unagi moved like a machine. He had every test graded before most of us finished stretching.
The papers came back. Mine had a **90%** stamped at the top. Not bad.
Ayame, Shuto, Mei, and Kei all hit 80%. Not surprising.
Daiko? 60%.
He looked like someone just stepped on his ego.
And at the top of the leaderboard, the new girl.
**Rika: 100%.**
Unagi clapped once.
> "Well, it appears you have more potential than you seem. You have more value than you seem."
She didn't respond. Didn't smile. Didn't even blink.
Unagi sighed.
> "Right. Not much of a talker. Let's move on to the main lesson."
---
**A few hours later.**
Finally, class was over.
Chairs scraped back. People grabbed bags. But just as we were about to leave—
> "Also," Unagi called out, "before you go, would anyone like to show Rika around campus?"
The room fell silent. You could hear the wind outside.
No one volunteered.
Can't blame them. Rika didn't exactly scream *warm welcome.*
I didn't raise my hand either. Something about her rubbed me wrong. She reminded me too much of Kei—*too cold, too unreadable.*
Then Unagi dropped the bomb.
> "How about you, Kei?"
Heads turned.
> "You go give her a tour of the school."
I blinked.
> *What the hell is he thinking?*
Rika was already out the door, but she paused. Turned back slightly.
> "Well? Aren't you going to escort me, you weirdo?"
Kei didn't answer. He just stood and walked out.
No resistance. No emotion.
I hesitated.
Then made up my mind.
> *Screw it. I'm following them.*
Kei hadn't spoken in weeks. And now he was going to walk side-by-side with the coldest new student we've seen all year?
This wasn't just a school tour.
This was something else.
I slung my bag over my shoulder, slipped out quietly behind them, and kept my distance.
Time to see what these two were *really* made of.