I grabbed my phone out of my pocket. "I'll go check out the dorms first, I guess," I said as I started walking. A couple of seconds later, my shoulder collided with someone.
I slowly turned around. "My bad—" I started, then froze. It was Kagetsu, wearing his white uniform, dragging a black suitcase behind him. The bandages on his hands were now gone and his hands were healed.
"Is it already over?" he asked, his tired, confused expression making me chuckle.
I shook my head. "It just ended," I replied.
Kagetsu scratched his head. "Uhh… so what do we do now?"
"We explore the school. I was gonna head to our dorms—wanna come?" I asked.
"Hmm," he said sleepily, giving a nod.
A few minutes later, we arrived at the dorm building. Inside, some students lounged on comfortable couches, while others waited for the elevator in the main lobby.
My eyes widened. "How rich can they be?" I whispered.
Kagetsu turned to me. "I mean, they are the number one school in the country," he said.
"Let's go to your dorm first," he added.
After a ride on the elevator—which felt longer than it should because my dorm was on a high floor—we arrived. Unlike a typical apartment, the higher floors had lower numbers, which felt strange.
Finally, we reached "Room 15". I pulled out the key from my pocket, inserted it into the doorknob, and twisted. The door creaked open.
The room surprised us immediately. Not huge, but spacious enough. It had a big closet, a bed, a desk near the bed, and a fully equipped bathroom with soap, shampoo, and other essentials.
Kagetsu's eyes lit up. "Dang, we all get huge dorms?" He said with a smile that illuminated his face.
But his smile quickly faded when we got to his dorm. Located in the basement, the walls and floors were dirty, covered in mold. I was almost certain I saw a family of rats scurrying about. The room itself was tiny—just enough for a bed and a small desk. For showers or bathroom use, he had to rely on the public facilities.
A thin stream of tears rolled down his face. "This gotta be favoritism," he muttered.
I clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, buddy. It couldn't get any worse than this," I teased.
Suddenly, we heard a doorknob twist. Someone was coming out of the room next to Kagetsu's. I recognized him—Kiaro Yuuma, the handsome guy with light blue hair who had qualified alongside Kagetsu. His door number showed "Room 15th," just one below Kagetsu.
"So we're neighbors," Yuuma said, his cheerful expression quickly shifting to annoyance.
Kagetsu's eyes narrowed. "It couldn't get worse, huh? Well… it just did," he muttered through gritted teeth.
"Don't look too happy now," Kagetsu added.
"Don't worry, I'm not," Yuuma replied.
Kagetsu shook his head. "Are you still mad about what I said during the Finalist round? Come on, man—get over it," he said.
Yuuma's face darkened. "First, you insulted my whole bloodline, then you beat me up and forced me to team up with you, or else you'd eliminate me," he said.
Kagetsu shook his head again. "Ever heard the saying, 'Let the past be the past'?"
"I can't even deal with this right now. I have more important things to do," Yuuma snapped, closing his dorm and walking away.
I crossed my arms. "Dang… you guys got beef?"
Kagetsu threw his luggage into the room and locked it. "It's not even that. He's just mad I beat him up after he was rambling about how strong he was and how no one could give him a worthy challenge," he explained.
Curious, I asked, "How did he get eliminated, then, if he's so strong?"
Kagetsu sighed. "He slept during the exam. I know… he's a bum," he replied.
I checked my phone. "Well, I think it's almost time to get to class," I said.
I turned to him. "Oh yeah, I forgot—what classroom did you get?"
Kagetsu thought for a moment. "Second division," he said.
I turned my head, excitement bubbling up. "We're in the same class!"
We dabbed each other up.
"Hell yeah!" We shouted simultaneously.