The four of us sat in a heavy, suffocating silence amidst the ruined, cratered cobblestone of Nihon Village. The only sounds left in the alleyway were the distant, ominous creaking of structurally unstable buildings and Sensei Ayashi's soft, rhythmic snoring. The embossed silver card felt unnaturally cold and heavy in my palm.
"Why did he leave this here, and who—or what—is Tenebras Superamus?" I finally asked, breaking the tension by tossing the thick cardstock onto the scorched gravel between us.
Saki immediately scoffed, her sharp, analytical mind booting up to fill the void. She crossed her arms, her glowing red eyes scanning the darkened street before settling on the card. "I think it's pretty obvious why he left it. It's a warning." She slowly shifted her gaze, calculatingly scanning each of our faces as we listened. "That fire maniac deliberately dropped it when he retreated. He has to be a part of whatever Tenebras Superamus is, and they are clearly hunting specific people. Considering how the Yamata clan tried to kill me, I'd assume I'm one of their primary targets." Her deadpan voice echoed coldly over the quiet streets, completely devoid of the panic most people would feel.
"But why?" Tsume snapped, his voice aggressive and tight. He pushed himself off the wall, his pale eyes narrowing as he channeled his lingering, post-battle terror into anger. "Why would a faction that has people like the fire maniac be after some random kid from the Academy who literally just arrived today, huh? What makes you so special?"
Saki didn't even flinch. She maintained her flawless, stoic composure, holding his glare effortlessly. "I don't know, Tsume. Maybe it's because I'm just that famous," she replied, her tone dripping with dry sarcasm before letting out a brief, humorless chuckle.
I frowned, turning my gaze fully onto Saki. My stomach tightened with suspicion; I hated to admit it, but the arrogant noble had a point. "Tsume is right. Especially when you consider how the Yamata leader reacted to you. He specifically called you a deserter right before the fighting started. Something major had to have happened before you joined our squad. Or even before you got on the boat to get to the Academy in the first place. So tell us the truth. What is it?"
Tsume let out a short, cynical laugh. "Finally, someone in this squad with a little common sense."
Ging nervously adjusted his cracked glasses as the three of us stared at Saki, the anticipation hanging heavy in the humid night air. She simply stared back, her expression a completely unreadable, blank slate.
"I... don't... know," she stated, sharply emphasizing each word with an icy finality. She broke eye contact, gesturing sharply toward our snoring teacher. "How about we worry about what to do with Sensei, and stop trying to interrogate me in the middle of a destroyed street?"
We stared at Sensei Ayashi's unconscious, snoring form, the reality of our situation finally sinking in. The adrenaline that had kept me on my feet was rapidly draining, replaced by an exhaustion so deep my very bones ached.
"Well," I sighed, wiping a mixture of sweat and soot from my forehead. "We can't just leave him here in the dirt."
Ging groaned, adjusting his cracked glasses. "Please don't tell me we have to carry him."
"I'm not touching him," Tsume announced, dusting off his pristine, albeit scorched, uniform as if he hadn't spent the last ten minutes trembling in terror. "He weighs a ton, and my clothes are already ruined."
"You losers can do that yourselves."
"You're carrying his legs, Tsume, or I'm leaving you here for the Yamata Clan to find," Saki said coldly.
Grumbling under his breath, Tsume reluctantly grabbed Sensei's ankles while Ging and I hoisted his heavy arms over our shoulders. Saki led the way, keeping a sharp eye out for any lingering threats as we hobbled our way out of the ruined, smoking streets of Nihon Village.
The trek back to the Academy was agonizingly slow. Every step sent a jolt of pain up my scraped knees, and Ayashi felt like a literal sack of boulders.
By the time the towering, iron-wrought gates of the Academy finally came into view, the moon was high in the sky. Standing beneath the glowing archway was a tall, older student wearing a tailored vest and a brass armband etched with a compass.
"First day of Academy and you guys are already having a late night training exercise," the guy noted, raising an eyebrow at our bruised, battered, and soot-covered state. "I'm a Campus Navigator. You kids look completely lost."
"You have no idea," I panted, shifting Ayashi's dead weight. "We're Middle Class, Squad Seven. We need to know where our dorm is."
"Ah, yes. I can help you."
The Navigator pulled out a thick parchment ledger, flipping through the pages with a glowing pen. "Middle Class... Squad Seven. Ah, here it is. You're in the Eastern Wing, Sector 4, Room 402. Just follow the cobblestone path past the main courtyard, take the second right, and go up the stairs." He gave Ayashi a sympathetic wince. "Get your instructor some ice. Looks like he took a nasty spill."
"Something way worse than that," Ging muttered.
We thanked him and dragged ourselves through the sprawling, quiet campus. We eventually found Room 402, unlocking the heavy oak door to reveal a surprisingly spacious suite with five separate beds, a small lounge area, and an adjoining washroom.
With a synchronized, exhausted heave, Ging, Tsume, and I dumped Sensei Ayashi face-first onto the nearest mattress. He didn't even stir, just let out a loud snore and continued sleeping peacefully.
Saki disappeared into the washroom for a moment. She returned holding a steaming, warm towel, which she surprisingly gently draped over the nasty purple bruise swelling on Sensei's right cheek.
"There," Saki muttered, wiping her hands. "That should keep the swelling down. He's lucky his skull didn't crack on the pavement."
Tsume looked at her, a smug smile on his face, "Didn't know you were a doctor."
Saki glanced at him, an even tinier smile on her face. "I am a lot of things."
Me and Ging collapsed onto our respective beds, too tired to even change out of our filthy clothes. Saki and Tsume followed behind us.
"You know what the worst part about today is?" Ging said to the ceiling, his stomach letting out a loud, hollow rumble.
"Almost getting incinerated by white fire?" I suggested dryly from the bed right next to Ging's.
"No," Ging groaned, his stomach letting out another hollow rumble. "We went all the way out to Nihon Village... and we didn't even get to eat any ramen."
I let out a tired, breathless laugh, staring blankly up at the wooden rafters. "You're right. I'm starving. Sensei owes us the biggest bowls on the entire island to make up for today. Just... not from Ramen Sensei's. I don't think I want to risk going back to Nihon Village anytime soon."
"Agreed," Ging replied. I heard the rustle of sheets as he sat up. He adjusted his cracked glasses, peering across the dimly lit room toward Tsume's bed. "Hey, Harasayuki... I never got the chance to ask you."
Tsume slowly turned his head, letting out an exhausted, irritated sigh. He wiped a soot-stained hand down his face. "What is it now?"
"What happened to your eye?" Ging asked, his voice entirely genuine but painfully blunt.
The question hung in the air, instantly suffocating the lighthearted mood. Tsume froze. The faint moonlight caught his face, revealing a sudden, intense flash of dark anger that hardened his features.
For a long, suffocating moment, he just glared silently at Ging, the muscle in his jaw ticking. Then, without saying a single word, he aggressively rolled over, pulling his heavy blanket up to his shoulders and completely turning his back on the rest of the room.
Ging sat there in stunned silence, clearly confused as to how he had struck such a massive nerve. "S-sorry, I guess," he muttered awkwardly before slowly lying back down.
Eventually, the lingering tension faded, giving way to a heavy, comfortable quiet. After the sheer terror and exhaustion of everything we had survived today, our bodies simply couldn't hold on any longer. One by one, sleep finally claimed us.