The classroom was nothing like I imagined.
The walls were cracked, the windows were old and cloudy, and the desks looked like they'd been passed down for centuries. Of course. Class F—the dumping ground of Aether Academy.
I dragged my feet inside, ignoring the whispers.
That's when I noticed them. My so-called "classmates."
A boy with messy brown hair leaned back in his chair, legs on the desk. "Another unlucky one, huh?" he said with a smirk. That was Fuji, and from the look in his eyes, he was already sizing me up.
Near the window sat a girl half-hidden in the shadows, like the light itself avoided her. Her name was Suki. She glanced at me once, expression unreadable, before turning her eyes back to the outside.
Beside her was a boy with the exact same face—her twin, Yuki. Unlike her, he grinned at me, tossing a pencil in the air. "Don't take her silence personally, new guy. She's been like that since forever." His tone was casual, but sharp, like he was just waiting for an excuse to cause trouble.
At the back of the room, two students with strange accents whispered to each other in low voices—Talia and Jackson, the transfer students. They looked out of place, yet their eyes scanned everything with an odd intensity.
Near them was a small girl hunched over her desk, fiddling with her pen nervously. Mikasa—I could already tell she was the shy one. She flinched when I glanced at her.
And then there was Mikio. A tall, quiet boy sitting perfectly still, eyes closed as if he wasn't even awake. Not a word came from him. But the atmosphere around him was… different.
This was Class F.
The lowest of the low.
And apparently, my new home.
The classroom was already loud with chatter when I walked in. I was just about to take the seat in the back corner when—
"Hira-kun!!"
The voice made me freeze. No way.
Before I could react, someone threw themselves against my side, clinging to my arm like we were best friends reunited after decades.
I turned, and there she was. Sakura.
Pink hair that framed her cheerful face, sparkling eyes that hadn't changed one bit since grade school. She was smiling like the sun itself had followed her here.
"It really is you!" she beamed. "I was hoping it was, and look! We're even classmates again!"
"…Sakura?"
"Yup! It's been so long, Hira-kun!" she said, way too loudly for my taste. "Ahhh, this is amazing! Who would've thought we'd meet again here of all places?"
I sighed. Of course it had to be her.
She hadn't changed at all. Still the pushiest person I knew, still acting like we were inseparable, still using that nickname I told her to stop using years ago.
The worst part? She plopped right into the seat next to mine with a grin.
"It's fate, right?"
"No," I muttered. "It's bad luck."
But truth be told… I did remember. Back in grade school, when everyone else avoided me because of my clan name, Sakura was the only one who stood up for me. She was the popular one, always surrounded by friends, and yet she always dragged me along, whether I wanted it or not.
And now, here she was again.
Still childish. Still pushy.
Still… Sakura.
The sight of her smile tugged at a memory I'd buried years ago.
—Grade school. A hot afternoon. I was standing in the schoolyard with my back against the wall, surrounded.
"Hey, Kage," one of the boys sneered, grabbing my collar. "Your clan's useless, right? Everyone says so. Why don't you just quit coming to school?"
I said nothing. I'd learned early on that words didn't matter. No one cared what the outcast thought.
The fist drew back, and I braced for it.
"Stop it!"
A voice cut through the crowd like a bell.
Everyone turned.
There she was. Sakura. Tiny, pigtails bouncing, face red with anger. She stomped up without hesitation, standing between me and the boy twice her size.
"Pick on someone else if you want a fight!" she shouted. "But if you touch Hira-kun, you'll have to go through me first!"
The group of boys hesitated. Nobody ever stood up for me, and they didn't know how to handle it.
"She's crazy," one of them muttered. "Forget it."
They scattered.
Sakura turned to me, hands on her hips, grinning wide like she'd just saved the world.
"See? You don't have to worry when I'm around, Hira-kun!"
"…I didn't ask you to help."
"Pfft, you're welcome anyway."
That was Sakura. Always charging in. Always smiling. Always calling me Hira-kun no matter how many times I told her not to.
And now, years later, nothing had changed.
I sighed, dragging a hand down my face.
Why did it have to be her… in the seat next to mine?
The morning sunlight spilled through the tall glass windows of Aether Academy's east wing. Even though this was supposed to be one of the most prestigious schools in the world, the room I stepped into wasn't anything impressive. Wooden desks lined in crooked rows, a squeaky blackboard that looked like it had survived twenty years of abuse, and windows that didn't close properly.
Class F.
I dropped into the seat assigned to me, second row, near the window.
The door slid open.
Click.
A woman stepped inside. She had a warm smile, golden-brown hair tied into a loose braid, and the kind of energy that immediately filled the room. She wore a cream-colored jacket over her black dress, looking more like a young office worker than a teacher.
"Good morning, everyone!" she said brightly, clapping her hands. "I'm Clarissa Aori, your homeroom teacher. But don't worry about all that formality. You can just call me Miss Clarissa."
The class erupted in surprised whispers. Calling a teacher by their first name? That was unheard of.
She leaned against her desk, eyes sparkling like she was in on a joke. "Since this is our very first day together, let's keep it simple. We'll start with introductions. Name, maybe something you like, maybe something you don't like. Easy enough, right?"
Groans filled the room. I sighed. Introductions were always pointless.
Miss Clarissa pointed to the front row. "Fuji, let's start with you."
The boy with spiky black hair stood up. He had sharp eyes that gave off a serious vibe.
"Fuji Kane. I like sword training. I don't like lazy people."
His voice was short, clipped, like every word was a blade.
"Very cool, Fuji," Miss Clarissa said with a grin. "Alright, next!"
A tall boy with messy dark hair slouched in his chair and lazily raised a hand. "Yuki Mikazuki. Don't expect me to follow rules I don't like. And don't tell me to smile either."
His twin sister shot him a glare. She stood gracefully, her long black hair falling over one eye.
"I'm Suki Mikazuki. I like quiet places. I don't like my brother's attitude."
The class chuckled. Yuki smirked.
Miss Clarissa clapped her hands once. "Great contrast! Twins always bring spice to a class."
The next student stood silently. A boy with red hair covering half his face and he wore a metallic mask covering half his mouth and nose. He looked like he didn't want to be here.
"…Mikio Taiyo," he wrote In the air with fire, then sat down again.
That was it.
"Short and mysterious," Miss Clarissa said cheerfully, unfazed. "Nice to meet you too, Mikio."
A shy girl stood next. She had short blue hair and clutched her skirt nervously.
"M-Mikasa Aori… I-I like drawing… I don't like… crowds."
Aori. Same surname as Miss Clarissa.
The class muttered curiously, but Mikasa quickly sat back down, cheeks red.
Two foreign-looking students stood next. The boy was tall with bronze skin and sharp green eyes, while the girl beside him had light blonde hair tied back in a ribbon.
"I'm Jackson Chi," the boy said, giving a small salute. "I like sports, especially basketball. Don't like sitting still."
"I'm Talia Hoshino," the girl said politely. Her accent was faint but noticeable. "I like reading. I dislike people who underestimate me."
"Transfer students, right?" Miss Clarissa asked. They both nodded. "Perfect, Class F gets a little international flair!"
Finally, the girl sitting one row ahead of me shot up with too much energy. Her short pink hair bounced as she waved.
"I'm Sakura Kitzune! But you can all call me Sakura-chan!" she said cheerfully. "I like sweets, festivals, and making friends. I don't like gloomy faces!"
Her eyes flickered to me. I looked away.
Still… Sakura.
"Great energy, Sakura!" Miss Clarissa said. "Alright, last but not least… Hikaru?"
I stood reluctantly, hands in my pockets. "Hikaru Kage. Nothing I like. Nothing I don't like."
A pause.
Then Sakura laughed. "That's such a lie, Hira-kun!"
My eye twitched. I sat down without another word.
Miss Clarissa clapped once more. "Perfect! Now that we all know each other's names, we can finally begin our year as Class F. Remember this — your class is your team, your family. Even if the other classes look down on you, you'll grow stronger together. That's my promise as your homeroom teacher."
The room was buzzing with mixed reactions. Some hopeful. Some indifferent. Me?
Not that I care.
Miss Clarissa glanced around the classroom, her arms folded loosely.
"Now that introductions are out of the way, let's get to something more exciting," she said, her smile widening. "I'm sure most of you already know, but at Aether Academy, we don't just leave students drifting alone. Every single one of you will be placed into an Exorcist Squad."
The room stirred with whispers.
"Squads?" Yuki muttered, resting his chin on his palm. "Sounds like group detention."
"Think of it like this," Miss Clarissa continued, undeterred, "exorcists work in teams, not as lone wolves. Evil powers — curses, rogue ability users, monsters — they don't fight fair. Squads are your lifeline, your shield, your second family. You'll live together, fight together, and rise together. If one falls, the others pick them up. That's the creed of every exorcist."
I stared out the window. Family. Team. Words that had no meaning to me.
"And here's the fun part," she added, tapping the board with her chalk. Click! "Squads are formed on your very first day. That way, your teamwork grows naturally. No fakes. No masks."
"On the first day?" I muttered under my breath.
Miss Clarissa caught it anyway. She gave me a teasing grin. "Yes, Hikaru, on the first day. Don't look so gloomy. It won't bite."
I scowled. A test right after getting dumped into Class F? What a pain.
Clarissa raised her hand, and a glowing magic circle spread across the classroom floor. The desks vanished in a blink, leaving us standing in an empty training hall.
Gasps filled the room.