We quickly arrived in front of a classroom labeled Classroom A-3.
The principal stopped before the classroom door and turned toward me.
"This is your assigned class, Mr. Shido. Please give me two minutes to inform the class teacher of your arrival. After that, I'll call you in, alright?"
I lazily nodded in response.
The principal opened the classroom door and stepped inside.
Three seconds later—
The sharp sound of chairs scraping against the floor echoed down the hallway, followed by a perfectly synchronized chorus:
"Welcome, dear Principal!"
…Yeah.
For some weird reason i suddenly had a bad feeling about this.
After that, I heard the sounds of chairs sliding as everyone sat back down. I continued waiting outside.
About a minute later, the classroom door opened. The principal stepped out, glanced at me, and said casually, "You may go in and introduce yourself now. I'll be heading out."
I raised an eyebrow at him, but he continued as if he hadn't noticed.
"Just enjoy your school life for now, Mr. Urazaki."
He smiled—but it wasn't a warm smile. It was the kind worn by someone expecting something interesting to unfold. Like he was already anticipating trouble.
I smiled back.
"Thank you, Mr. Principal."
At that, he turned around and walked away.
I took a quiet breath. My naturally already drooped eyelashes drooped further, my expression returning to its usual lazy calm.
Then I heard the teacher's voice—a man's voice—calling out from inside.
"Transfer student, you may come in."
I placed my hand on the classroom door and pushed it open.
Stepping inside, I walked straight toward the teacher, who stood on a small podium and a large black chalkboard behind of him. Once I reached him, I turned to face the class.
And that's when I saw it.
There were thirty-four students in this classroom.
Each one looked different—varied hair colors, distinct eye shades, unique features—but there was one thing they all shared.
Their Battle-spirit's.
It was heavy. Dense. Almost tangible.
That surprised me.
It also made me want to grin again.
…But I made sure not to.
My expression stayed relaxed, eyes half-lidded, looking as casual as ever.
The teacher gestured slightly. "Please introduce yourself."
I lowered my hand slowly and spoke.
"My name is Shido Urazaki, of the Urazaki family. I'm nineteen years old."
I paused for half a second.
"Oh—and I'm currently engaged."
The moment the words "I'm currently engaged" left my mouth—
Silence.
Not the awkward kind.
The heavy kind.
For a full second, no one spoke. Then—
"…Engaged?"
"Did he just say engaged?"
"Only now…?"
"Is he joking?"
"…Wait, look at his face."
"Why is he so calm…?"
"Is he really nineteen…?"
Several girls froze mid-breath, eyes lingering a second too long. A few tried to hide it, quickly looking away—only to sneak another glance moments later.
"He's… kinda dangerous-looking," one whispered, cheeks faintly red.
"No, he's just lazy-hot," another muttered back.
A girl near the window rested her chin on her hand, staring openly now. "So unfair…"
On the other hand—
The guys were not amused.
"Tch. Another handsome guy," someone clicked their tongue.
"Like we needed more competition, especially with Akuma already!"
"Engaged my ass," a boy muttered under his breath. "Probably lying."
A sharp pulse of irritation rippled through the male side of the classroom. A few leaned back in their chairs, arms crossed, eyes narrowing—not with fear, but rivalry.
Then—
One presence stood out.
Near the opposite side of the room near the 2nd class window sat a boy with sharp features, clean posture, and an effortless confidence.
Near the opposite side of the room, close to the second classroom window, sat a boy with sharp features, clean posture, and an effortless confidence.
The guy I was talking about had a striking figure, whom I estimated to be around 175 cm tall. He stood by the classroom window, the sun's rays hitting him directly and drawing every eye in the room.
His most immediate feature was his hair—an untamed mass of lavender curls that framed a face of sharp, almost severe beauty. A pair of icy blue eyes, cold and discerning, swept over me briefly, missing nothing. He moved slightly, carrying himself with a cool, collected grace.
He wore the same uniform as me, except without the tie and vast. A faint, almost imperceptible smirk played on his lips as he paused, the air around him suddenly charged with unspoken tension. His looks were refined—different from mine, but unmistakably on the same level.
Our eyes met.
Just for a second.
He smiled.
Not mocking.
Not friendly.
More like… recognition.
"Oh?" he seemed to say without words.
I broke eye contact first.
The teacher cleared his throat again, louder this time.
"Enough. This is a classroom, not a theater."
He pointed toward the rows. "Fourth row in the front. Take the seat infront of Yugao."
I nodded once and walked.
A few students leaned backwards into their chairs. Others stared outright. Some scoffed quietly, clearly not believing my earlier introduction. I could feel a sharp shift in the atmosphere—jealousy, curiosity, disbelief, and faint hostility mixing together.
A boy with brown hair in the back cracked his knuckles, his Battle-spirit flaring just a little before he pulled it back under control.
Fueled with his jealousy.
But did i give a fuck? Hell nooo!
As I walked, the whispers followed me like a low tide.
"He walks like he owns the place…"
"Why does he look so relaxed?"
"Those droopy-eyelashes and half-lidded eyes look is unfair…"
I stopped at the assigned desk and pulled the chair back.
The girl behind of me did not react.
No stiffening.
No glance.
No shift in breathing.
She simply continued facing forward, pen resting lightly between her fingers.
But then--
A pause.
The girl at the back of me suddenly stiffened—just slightly as if shocked by something.
Her presence shifted.
---
…the girl behind shido sensed it.
Not shido's Battle-spirit. Not his ability.
But instead something off.
Something she couldn't quite understand.
"…Interesting," the girl whispered to herself.
I sat down.
For just a brief moment, I felt it—something faint, like a thin veil brushing against my senses. Not hostility. Not curiosity.
Distance.
Deliberate distance.
I took out a book from my bag, opened it calmly, resting my cheek against my right hand , eyes lowering to the page as if nothing mattered more.
The teacher turned back to the board.
"Now, as I was explaining—"
Chalk scratched against blackboard.
The classroom slowly settled.
But beneath the surface—
Glances lingered.
I kept reading.
Lazy and silently.
Waiting.
But deep down—
I knew.
Things had already started moving.
And class had only just begun.
Well, like I promised you guys, let me explain to you exactly what I did during that week and what I discovered within it. But guys, I'm telling you now—it's a hella long explanation.
Flashback—One week ago.Urazaki Manor;
After leaving Dina and vlaneth to talk over i headed for one of the Urazaki manor's inner training halls. Why? Simple i wanted to test something I've been wanting to verify.
About two-minutes later i was standing in one of the inner training halls of the Urazaki Manor—an enormous circular room made of dark stone, its walls engraved with runic patterns meant to supposedly suppress abilities.
And yet, that was exactly why I was there.
Well, do you guys remember when I was talking to myself, saying that I felt like there were two types of energies inside of me? And then, during the trial against Renji, those two different energies—with different colors—connected together and created the golden energy coat around me?
Well, that was the visual manifestation of my ability, "Golden Verdict." And now, I'm about to explain to you guys why I felt that there was another energy source inside of me.
Now, standing in a slightly crouched sitting position, with my hands clenched tightly together, I pulled my arms slightly backward, close to my chest. My eyes were closed as I focused on those energies. I stayed crouched like that for two whole minutes, and as I continued to focus, I felt them once again.
A smile crept across my face as I knew it—because I had finally verified it. I mean, it's true. Just like you guys mentioned, the ability I was gifted by God is Golden Verdict, an ability fueled by my very own will.
So then, what exactly—where exactly—did this adaptability factor come from in such an ability?
Well, adaptability is actually due to Shido, not me—the previous Shido of this body.
Well, actually, not long ago—maybe about a month before I entered this body, since I only entered it yesterday—something interesting happened to Shido that allowed him to gain an ability, an awakened ability.
It happened when I was talking to Vlaneth, when those weird memories of those strange women wearing strange clothes surfaced again—memories I still can't clearly remember right now for some unknown reason. Along with them, another memory appeared.
I kept my cool because I didn't want my expression to change. I knew that if I let it, my face would have shown both shock and anger. And you'll understand in a bit why I was so angry.
About a month ago, Shido was bullied once again by renji and his usual group. Feeling terrible, he decided to leave the Urazaki Manor and go out to release some of that stress. While walking, he coincidentally met a shady-looking person, someone wearing clothes that covered their face completely. Their voice was hard to distinguish—neither clearly male nor female.
At first, Shido was scared. But then the person said something that made him feel both suspicious and hopeful.
They told Shido that they worked for an organization and that they had been looking for him. They knew he wasn't born with an ability. At that time, Shido didn't know that there were three ways to gain an ability aside from being born with one: the body, the mind, and the soul.
The person told Shido they could help him awaken an ability—but there was a condition. Shido would not remember anything that happened during the experimentation. Only after it was over would he know whether he had gained an ability or not. The chances of survival were extremely low: 90% death, 10% survival. And the odds dropped even further if the process involved the soul.
Naturally, Shido was confused. He didn't want to take that chance. The person told him to take his time, then handed him a card and told him to call using it secretly, without anyone knowing. After that, the person disappeared like smoke.
Shido kept the card and went home.
Two days later, after being continuously bullied again and feeling even more worthless, Shido snapped. He called the person and accepted the deal. He went to the park—and after that, he remembered nothing. He didn't know if he had been taken somewhere. He didn't remember the experimentation at all.
All he knew was that he had awakened.
Of course, since the original Shido had no memory of what happened, there was no way for me to suddenly know either. But what mattered was the result.
Shido discovered that he had gained an ability called Adaptability.
This ability allowed him to adapt to anything that tried to kill him or harm him, turning that experience into strength. Shido was happy—at first. But later, he discovered something terrifying.
He had been unlucky. The awakening had involved the third method: the soul. His soul had been fractured badly—so badly that he only had about a month left to live.
Shido trained desperately, trying to get used to Adaptability, but he never fully understood how it worked. He didn't have enough time to grow strong.
That was a month ago.
Yesterday, the original Shido's soul became so weak that he finally died. And by either a miracle—or God's will—I entered his body. The soul was still there, and when my soul entered, it merged with Shido's fractured soul, completely absorbing his ability.
That fusion caused Golden Verdict and Adaptability to become a single ability.
Now you understand where the adaptability effect came from. It isn't two separate abilities anymore—it's one.
And it isn't strange. My soul adapted to Shido's soul, effectively inheriting everything he had. I did wonder whether I should change the name of my ability from Golden Verdict to something else—something that better represents what it truly is—but I'll think about that later.
For now, I need to get used to this adaptability.
As an otaku, you already know how broken this ability can be. If the original Shido had known about anime, he would've realized just how overpowered it was. But he never had the time—or the knowledge—to truly understand it, let alone push it to its limits.