"So— the second semester is rather hectic. There are so many activities during this time that we can't count them all: Daihaseisai, Ichihanaransai, hiking, training, school excursions, Art Appreciation Day, Social Learning Day, Cleaning Day, end-of-term exams, tuition, and the dreaded after-class remedials! To prepare for all those festivals, everyone will be very busy."[1]
September 8th.
In the afternoon, Tsuchimikado Maika spoke casually while moving down the corridor. She was about as old as Index and maybe a bit smaller than her, but she always wore a maid uniform. What was more amazing was that she normally sat on a cylindrical cleaning machine. Whenever the cleaning machine tried to move according to its instructions, Maika would put a mop in front of it so that it could only shake about gently.
"But I'm bored now. What should I do? Touma doesn't even care about me or play with me!"
Shaking her body about and protesting at Maika, Index rattled on. Her silver hair swayed together with her white nun cap. The calico cat in her slender arms raised its front paws and swung them around, seemingly attracted to the shiny gold embroidery on her cap.
Index understood that Kamijou seemed busy recently. But in Academy City, Kamijou was the only one who talked to her.
Of course, Kamijou Touma had not confined Index to his room in the dormitory; Index had the spare key to the room, and when Kamijou was at school, Index would spend her time walking around. (But she was powerless when it came to the automatic ticket gates; any fingerprint, pulse, or human nervous flow identifiers; or anything related to electronics, and would run away from them).
Academy City was different from any other city.
Academy City had been built soon after the development of west Tokyo, and eighty percent of its population was composed of students. When Kamijou went to school, Himegami and Komoe were also at school. So, even if Index wanted to find someone to talk to, the streets would be empty; though, after spending a week exploring, Index had found that the young lady at the clothes shop would talk to her when she was not arranging the goods. Index felt, however, that her objective was not to talk to just her.
Only Tsuchimikado Maika could be considered an exception.
In Academy City, where everyone had to act according to schedule, only she was not constrained by it. No matter if it was morning or afternoon, Index would occasionally find her on the streets. She could be found everywhere: convenience stores, department stores, parks, bakeries, station buildings, student dormitories, streets, schools...
The robot continued to try and move forward, and as Maika smacked it with her hand, she said,
"Kamijou Touma has his own things to do...you can't give him too much trouble. Anyway, it's not like he's intentionally left you behind. Studying is a really tiring thing."
"Uhm...I understand...but why doesn't Maika need to go to school?"
"Hoho, because I'm an exception; a maid doing practical work is a very normal thing!"
The home economics school that Tsuchimikado Maika attended was not just any weird school that still produced maids in this age. The maids from that school were specially trained to assist their masters. From cleaning up chewing gum on the streets to having a meeting with the leaders of the world, nothing could stump them. So, Maika had to go everywhere to do all sorts of practical work. Not all the school's students could go out and do such work like Maika, however; that was a special privilege that was earned after the school had tested the student and had felt that "although she is an apprentice maid, she is capable enough to not disgrace the school's name".
Index, who did not understand the toil and tears behind all that, tilted her cute little head and said,
"As long as I'm a maid, I can go wherever I want, anytime? Not confined by school? I would even able to go to Touma's school?"
"No, a maid isn't really like that—"
"Then I want to be a maid! I can then go and play with Touma!"
"Although it sounds touching, the life of a maid is really tough, especially for someone like you, who can't do housework and waits for a boy to prepare your lunch in the morning. Being a maid would be really tough for you."
"Then let Touma be the maid! Then I can call Touma to play with me!"
"That really sounds so touching that someone could cry, but for Kamijou Touma's sake, I advise you not to tell him that."
"Uuu—uuuu..."
The bored girl beat her cheeks, rapidly swinging her body about.
"Hm, I'm sorry; whether it's you or him, neither of you will have the time to be maids."
A voice suddenly came from behind the pure-white girl.
"Eh?"
Index's mind instantly went blank. Maika, who was facing Index, saw the figure behind her. Besides panic, there was a look of fear on her face.
Who was it...?
Before the nun could turn and ask, a large hand covered her mouth like tape.