Knock, knock, knock.
Knock, knock, knock.
I woke up to the sound of knocking on my door.
I got out of bed and walked to the door.
I reached the door and opened it.
The visitor at my door was Reina.
"Good morning, Yuto. The exam results are about to be posted! Let's go see them together!"
Oh, right. I remembered in my sleepy haze that today was the day the exam results would be posted.
It seemed Reina came to invite me to go see the results with her.
"Yeah, okay. I'll get changed, so wait for a bit."
I said, closed the door, and went to get changed.
The exam results... I'm a little nervous about whether I passed.
Thinking that, I finished getting changed, left my room, and headed to the place where the results would be announced with Reina.
The results were being announced in a slightly open area in front of the dining hall.
The results were probably already posted. A crowd of examinees was gathered around the wall where the paper was posted, and I couldn't see the results from here.
Many of the examinees were either happy, sad, or frustrated about their results, and they didn't leave the area.
Then, a man walked away from the crowd.
The man was the one who was with Zaco and lost badly to Day in the combat exam.
He was walking slowly.
His face was dark and filled with despair, as if it were the end of the world.
Seeing his face, I knew he must have failed the exam.
He continued to walk unsteadily, not seeming to notice us, and went past us toward his room.
Putting that aside, Reina and I looked at each other and decided to go check our results separately.
The exam results were organized in alphabetical order by last name, and I was going to check "Shi" for "Shindo." Reina's last name started with "Re," which was in a different place. So we decided to split up and meet up again after we were done.
Since some time had passed, the crowd had thinned out a bit, and I went into the crowd a little forcefully.
After a while of pushing through the crowd, I was able to see the paper with the names of the passers.
I was desperately looking for my name.
I found the "Sa" section, and my eyes went to the "Shi" section.
I frantically searched for my name in the "Shi" section.
But the "Shi" section ended without me finding my name.
I looked again and again, but I couldn't find the name "Shindo."
I bit my lip in frustration.
But I still had hope.
The list was organized by first name, not last name.
So, it would have been natural for me to find my name in the "Yu" section, but I was so nervous that I looked in the "Shi" section first.
Since my name wasn't there, I moved on to the "Yu" section.
I quickly found the "Yu" section and checked if my name was there.
The result was immediate.
Below the name "Yuin Cril" was my name, Yuto Shindo.
"Yes!"
I was a little happy when I saw my name, and I pumped my fist in the air.
After I did that, I left the crowd so I wouldn't get in anyone else's way.
I got out of the crowd and looked around for Reina.
I found her right away.
She was a little away from the crowd with some other people.
But Reina was crying.
Did she fail the exam?!
Thinking that, I ran to her.
When I got close to her, I noticed who she was with.
It was Day.
For some reason, they were together.
Reina looked up and saw me.
"Yu-Yuto..."
Reina called my name while crying.
Day didn't say anything and just stood there.
"What's wrong? Did you fail?"
I asked Reina, but she shook her head.
It seemed Reina hadn't failed.
Then why?
I was confused.
"I passed, but Yuto..."
Huh?
What about me?
"I looked for your name, but it wasn't there. I thought maybe something from the exam got you disqualified..."
I failed the exam?
That can't be. I just saw my name with my own eyes.
And what Reina meant by "something from the exam" was probably about Valin.
I thought that even if Valin could use her power to make me fail, she probably wouldn't.
The reason was that she told me, "When we meet again at the academy, remember this."
She kept her promise to me and apologized to Reina when she lost.
She was the kind of person who kept her promises, so I didn't think she would break her promise to me.
If someone was going to make me fail, it would be her butler, not her.
But the fact was that my name was there.
There was no conspiracy to make me fail.
But I was confused about why Reina said my name wasn't there.
"Huh? My name was there."
I said, looking confused.
"Huh? Really?"
Reina looked up and asked.
Day also reacted to my words.
"Yeah, it's over there."
A lot of time had passed, so the crowd had thinned out.
I led Reina and Day to where my name was.
Reina and Day looked at my name.
Reina looked at my name with a confused expression.
"Huh? Yu-Yuto? Yuuto? Huh?"
Reina kept saying my name.
For some reason, the intonation of my name was different every time she said it.
Oh, wait. Could it be?
I finally realized why Reina's pronunciation of my name felt so off.
No, that can't be right... can it?
"Um, Reina? A-actually, my name is Yuto."
I thought it was impossible, but I emphasized the "u" and said my name to Reina again.
Reina froze.
Her white skin started to turn red, and her body was shaking.
Ah, my hunch was right.
Reina had been calling me "Yuuto" instead of "Yuto."
How could she confuse "u" and "o"?
Well, the names in this world are different from the names in Japan.
Most of them are foreign names. It's probably not that strange for her to make that mistake since she's not used to Japanese-style names.
"I-I'm so sorry. I-I've been calling you Yuto wrong all this time.
You must have hated it."
Reina, who had been frozen, apologized.
Well, even though Reina was wrong, I didn't notice it either.
I didn't notice it, so it's not just Reina's fault.
"No, it's my fault for not noticing, and I didn't hate it."
I told Reina.
And come to think of it, if Reina and Day thought I failed, did they get my name wrong too?
"By the way, Day, you also thought I failed, right? Did you get my name wrong too?"
I asked Day.
"Nah, I saw that your name was there, but then I saw Reina crying and asked her what was wrong, and she said you failed."
Just because she said so?!
Then, Day nonchalantly told me he passed.
From his tone, it seemed he didn't get my name wrong.
"Fr-from now on, I'll say it right. Yu- no, that's not it. Yu-Yuu..."
As I was talking to Day, Reina was struggling to say my name.
It's probably hard to change how you say something you're used to.
I didn't know what to do in this situation, but what I did was...
"If you're okay with it, can you just call me Yuuto like before?
It feels more natural that way."
I asked Reina to call me Yuuto.
It wasn't my real name, but it felt familiar and nice.
In my old world, no one called me by a nickname except for "that person," so it made me a little happy.
"Are you sure?"
Reina asked, looking worried.
"Yeah, I don't mind."
I replied in a gentle tone.
Reina's face turned into a smile when she heard that.
"Okay. Then, let's do our best from now on, Yuuto."
Reina said to me with a smile.
Her face was so bright it was dazzling.
"Hey, did you forget about me?"
Day, who was probably annoyed that he was being ignored, put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer, joining our conversation.
"Hey, can I call you Yuuto too?"
Day asked if he could call me by the nickname.
I didn't mind, and I wanted to be closer to him, so there was no reason to say no.
"Yeah, you can. And let's all do our best from now on."
I gave Day permission to call me by my nickname and told Reina and Day that we should all do our best.
Reina and Day laughed at my words.
I smiled and laughed with them.
A lot happened, but all three of us passed the exam and would be going to the academy together.
I was getting excited about my academy life.
What kind of things are waiting for me?
After that, we split up and went back to our rooms.
I saw a large box in front of my room.
What's this? I thought. I noticed a name on the box.
TO YUTO SHINDO
It seemed the box was for me. I carried it into my room.
I didn't know what was inside, but it was heavier than I expected, and it was hard to carry it into my room.
I didn't know who sent it or what was inside. After I put the box in my room, I slowly opened it and checked the contents.
Inside the box were black clothes, a few books, and a letter on top.
Whose letter is this?
I took the letter and saw the sender's name. I was surprised.
The name was.
Selitia Pazele.
The person who helped me when I came to this world and invited me to the magic academy.
I immediately read the letter she gave me.
Most of the letter was in katakana, so it was hard to read, but the gist was this:
Congratulations on passing the exam, Yuto.
Since I'm a member of the academy, I was able to find out that you passed early and get you the things you'll need for the academy right away.
I have sent you the academy uniform and a set of textbooks. Please use them.
It's a short period of one year, but please make a lot of friends and enjoy your academy life.
However, if you would like to stay in this world a little longer, I don't mind you staying.
If you're interested, please send me a letter.
I wish you a fulfilling academy life.
I have a little favor to ask of you.
The number of transferred people is increasing, and I am a little tired, so would you be willing to help me?
I will take it as a thank you for all the help I have given you.
I look forward to seeing your answer.
I skipped some parts, but that was the gist of the letter.
After reading the letter, I took out the textbooks from the box.
There were many books for each subject, but they were all in katakana, and my head started to hurt, so I put them back in the box.
After I put the textbooks away, I took out the uniform from the box.
The uniform was black with yellow and red lines in several places.
I was excited to try it on, so I changed into the uniform.
The uniform was a perfect fit.
Was it because they took my measurements at the clothing store on my first day here?
I prefer white over black, though.
I thought, looking at myself in the mirror.
Wearing the uniform made me feel like I was actually going to enter the academy.
The entrance ceremony is in a few days. I should get ready for it.