On the morning I would finally enter the academy, I stood in front of my mirror as I went over my appearance. I was wearing the uniform of the hero academy, which consisted of a navy blue school jacket, a white button shirt underneath, and black pants. My black hair was combed to the side and my green eyes looked even more dazzling that fine morning.
"Not bad. It's exactly like the game." I said as I inspected my uniform.
Over the years, my appearance has gotten even more attractive. It was strange to say, but I had the punchable face of a young master. I could imagine a teenage girl sticking a picture of me above her bed and looking at it every night before she went to sleep. It was that bad.
I looked more attractive than most pop idols back home. It was the most punchable face I'd seen in a while. If it wouldn't hurt so much, I probably would've given into my long lost dream of punching a pretty boy.
It had gotten to the point where my devilishly good looks would endanger me if I ever stepped foot in the academy. With a face and a body like this, I would instantly be one of the most popular in the school.
Luckily, I had a solution. A solution that cost a small fortune to acquire, but it was well worth it.
Reaching out, I picked up a black case from my desk. Opening the small black case, there was a pair of glasses inside. I immediately took out the glasses and placed them on my face.
Immediately, a change was seen. It was as if I was Clark Kent. With just this pair of glasses, I now looked like the average teenage boy. I was neither handsome nor unattractive. The glasses made me look plain. The perfect NPC.
It was a special type of glasses I bought online. It had the ability to suppress my charm stat.
With everything equipped, I then stepped out of my room to see my mother waiting outside for me.
"My baby boy, I'm so proud of you," she cried as she wrapped her arms around me.
I returned her embrace and stroked her head tenderly. Sophia stood behind her wearing the school's uniform, which consisted of a navy blue jacket, a black bowtie, and black skirt which stopped just above her knee. She also wore black leggings underneath her skirt.
For a moment, she seemed surprised by my new appearance, but she didn't utter a word about it.
"Here, I got this for you and Sophia," my mother said, handing me a school bag and handing another to Sophia.
"It's one of those fancy dimensional bags. The space inside is as large as your room, so you don't have to worry about how many items you can carry. I know that sometimes you students go on expeditions to different planets, so make sure to carry everything you need. I heard of a student who caught a nasty sunburn once when he forgot to bring sunscreen with him to a planet where the temperature was three times ours. Also, make sure to bring a change of underwear, both of you!"
"Mom!" Sophia's face flushed when my mother mentioned underwear, and she hastily looked to my father for support.
"That's enough, darling, I think they get the point," my father said, trying to nudge my mother away from us but she wasn't having it.
Seeing this, wiped the tears from my mother's eyes and cupped her face.
"Don't worry, Mom. I'll make sure to take care of myself while I'm away. You should do the same. Sometimes you get so worked up you forget to eat. Make sure you take care of yourself."
She nodded her head, trying to hold back the tears that wouldn't stop coming. Her face was a mess with tears and snot and I was secretly hoping she wouldn't get any of it on my clothes.
After saying her goodbyes to me, she did the same to Sophia. The two had grown quite close these past years. Sophia stroked her head tenderly as she tried to console her.
"Yes, Mom, I'll take care of myself; you don't have to worry," Sophia said.
Soon, our goodbye was cut short, and it was time for us to leave. Sophia let out a deep breath the moment we stepped out of the apartment.
"Good choice not crying in front of her. It would've spurred her on more," I said.
"Yes, I know. Do you think she'll be okay?"
Though she didn't let it show, I could tell that Sophia was worried about how our mother would handle us leaving. I didn't want something like this to hold her back, so I rested my hand on her head in a comforting gesture.
"Don't worry. She'll be fine. Dad will take care of her, and you can always call her to check up."
Seeing the logic in my words, Sophia nodded her head, agreeing.
The two of us then took the sky train towards our next destination. Since it was early morning, there were quite a few people heading to work, causing it to be quite packed. In just a few minutes, though, we arrived at our destination.
After that, it took only a few minutes for us to arrive at the harbor.
"Wow, it's larger than I thought," Sophia said in amazement as she stared at the giant ship in front of us. "Are you sure this is the right one?"
"That's what the card said. This is the ship I'm certain."
Upon being accepted into the academy, Sophia and I were given a digital card. The card held the harbor we should go to, along with the ship we must board.
Stumped by the giant ship before us, we approached the guard standing outside.
He was wearing a blue military uniform. He asked to see our invitation, and upon showing him, we were allowed to enter the ship. The ship in question was a giant white cruise ship.
Immediately as we stepped on, we saw students wearing the same school uniform as us.
They seemed to be enjoying the amenities the ship provided. Beside me, Sophia seemed even more confused about what was going on.
"This is not what I expected of the top hero academy in the world. What is the point of all this?" she murmured.
A lot of the students seemed to have the same question as her. A lot of them seemed just as confused. After a while of waiting, all the students were asked to gather. In the lower deck, there was a small space that resembled an auditorium.
Sophia and I took seats adjacent to each other, and soon the space was filled with other students. At the front was a podium, and on it stood a tall man who wore glasses. The man waited until we were all settled before he began his speech.
The man wore glasses and was dressed in a business suit. If I had to guess his age, I would say he was in his late thirties. When he smiled, he had creases under his eyes.
"Welcome students! The fact that you're on this ship right now means you are all first-year students of Apex Academy. I am your principal, Mishima Grimore. It's a pleasure to gaze at the future heroes of society," the man said with a proud smile on his face.
Of course, I knew exactly who this man was even before he introduced himself. Looking at him, it felt as if a knot was tightening in my stomach.
This man in front of me was notorious for hunting down and killing demons.
"Now, I'm sure you all have questions; allow me to answer," the principal said before pressing a small device he held in his hand.
Immediately as he pressed the device, a large holographic screen popped up. The screen showed the bird's-eye view of what seemed to be an island.