A new year at Nine Petal Academy means a new crop of students, including a boy who can't control his magic, a thief, an angel, and even a suit of armor? Adela, Lei, and their friends are tasked with welcoming the new class of first years and helping...
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"Hey, Huo! Lady Koukyuu!" a girl in a black suit yelled, waving at us as we arrived at the station. Her long, shiny, cyan hair waved as a train rushed past her and came to a stop. We had stopped in Xiaomi, a tiny town near the border with Tora.
Koukyuu? So that's her name—a pretty name for a beautiful lady.
"Hey," Huoyin said, running over to her.
"W-who is the p-pretty girl?" I asked, pointing at her. Was she Huoyin's girlfriend? How did a guy with a sucky attitude even get a girl before me?
"She's Lidia, and don't worry, she's not Huoyin's girlfriend. Trust me, I asked already," Nate said, laughing.
I gasped as Lidia boarded the train with Huo. "W-wait, s-she's coming with us?"
Koukyuu nodded. "Yes."
"W-why didn't wasn't she in the car like Au?"
Lidia laughed as she stood by the opened doors as we drew closer. "That's because I didn't want to get in that car again. At least not with the instructor as the driver."
"I should've stayed with you," Huo said from within the train.
Couldn't blame either of them.
Lady Koukyuu sighed as we got in. "How rude."
I glanced around at the train's nice-looking crimson seats. Their arrangement was similar to the seats in a subway rather than most trains. Based on their appearance, this had to be the first class cart. It had been years since I'd last sat in first class. Nine Petal had to be quite wealthy if it could buy such expensive seats for kids who weren't even students yet.
Aurelius sat on his knees on one of the seats and peered out of the window as the train began to move.
I quickly sat down next to him. "Anything interesting?" I asked.
"This whole place is interesting," he said even as we passed through a tunnel.
I laughed. He sounded like a little kid. It reminded me of the first time I boarded this train. Mom was still alive back then, and Dad was bearable. After her death, he became colder.
Sis told me not to judge him too harshly, but how couldn't I? He kicked us out of the house had always called us useless and inept. Neither of us could reach even a sliver of the expectations he had for us.
"You okay?" Nate asked, staring at me from across the aisle.
I scratched my head. "Yeah, just feeling a little nostalgic is all."
Nate chuckled. "I see. Assume they're family related?"
"How did you know?"
Nate glanced outside of his window. "I have the same look in my eyes whenever I think of my family."
