Early the next morning, the pale gold of dawn slowly pushed away the darkness. Sunlight stretched across the academy grounds, spilling through the long corridor where Rich strolled lazily, hands in his pockets, expression unreadable as always.
His footsteps echoed lightly as he approached the Headmistress Liora's office. He knocked once—sharp, uninterested.
"Enter," her calm voice replied.
Rich pushed the door open, slipped inside, and closed it behind him without a word. Liora sat behind her desk, composed as ever, her eyes lifting to meet his.
"You called for me," Rich said, his tone sluggish, as if waking from a long nap.
"Yes." She clasped her hands together, hesitating slightly before continuing. "There is something I have to tell you. Your student, Chris, used the class transfer privilege… the one granted to the Sovereignties."
Rich blinked once. "So… what does that have to do with me?" he asked, finishing with a lazy yawn.
Liora's eyes narrowed. "Don't you care that one of your strongest cards has been taken from you?"
For a moment, silence. Then Rich simply smiled—small, faint, unreadable—and turned to walk out of her office without another word.
"I can never tell what that guy is thinking…" Liora murmured, rubbing her forehead as the door closed behind him.
⸻
Later That Morning
About thirty minutes into homeroom, the class door slid open and Rich strolled in, hopping casually onto the teacher's table as if it were a seat reserved only for him.
"I don't have anything to teach today," he announced, stretching his arms. "So let me just tell you why I came. The Shadow King is available. Anyone who wants to challenge it can go ahead."
The room rippled with tension.
Ard raised his hand. "Does that mean you're going to tell us his weakness?"
"Yeah, but…" Rich shrugged lazily. "Experience is the best teacher. You already fought him once, so use what you learned."
"So—does that mean class is over?" Dawson asked, his tone full of hope.
"Yes. You can leave if you want."
Chairs scraped as some students shifted, but Raya stood quietly and walked toward Kira, who sat beside the window, chin resting on his hand, gaze lost in the clouds.
Just as Raya opened her mouth to speak, Dice's voice cut sharply through the air.
"I've noticed Chris is absent today. Is something wrong?" Dice asked with fake concern dripping from every word.
"Chris… who's that again?" Rich replied, deadpan.
"The flame guy," Sage added.
"Oh. That kid. I heard he transferred to the Sovereignties—"
BANG!
Korran slammed his fist onto his desk, face twisting. Rich immediately stopped talking and fixed his gaze on him.
"Wait—does that mean he used their class transfer ticket—"
In an instant, Rich vanished.
Before anyone could blink, he reappeared sitting on Korran's desk, staring down at him with cold, emotionless eyes.
"The next time you interrupt me," Rich said, aura leaking from him like a crushing wave, "you will regret it."
Korran's throat tightened. "O-okay…"
"You're leaking your aura," Kira commented softly, still looking out of the window.
Rich blinked, calmed his energy, and reappeared at the front as if nothing had happened.
"How did he move so fast… I didn't even notice," Lina thought, stunned.
"Homeroom is over," Rich said simply—then vanished.
⸻
A Quiet Request
The room fell quiet again. Kira remained still, gaze drifting across the sky outside.
"You wanted to say something," he murmured without looking away.
"Yeah…" Raya pulled out the chair beside him and sat. Her voice softened. "I know this is kind of selfish… but can you help me bring Chris back to the class?"
Kira finally blinked. "So this is what you want… in return for that day?"
"Y-yes." She lowered her gaze. "Can you do it?"
Kira exhaled slowly, his eyes finally turning to meet hers—calm, steady, unreadable.
"I can try my best. But I can't promise I'll bring him back. Is that okay?"
"Yes," she said, nodding quickly. "As long as someone does something. So… will you do it?"
A faint smirk touched Kira's lips. "Yes. I promised you, didn't I?"
Her smile bloomed softly.
Kira stood, gathering his things, and walked out of the classroom without another word.
Raya watched him leave, her heart tightening with unease.
"What is he planning to do…?" she wondered.
The moment Kira stepped out of the classroom, a heavy silence settled over the Crimson Class. No one dared to move. No one dared to speak.
It stayed that way… until Dice leaned back in his chair, kicked his feet onto the desk, and broke the stillness with his usual carefree tone.
"Now that Chris isn't around anymore… who's gonna be our class rep?" he asked playfully, as if the room wasn't suffocating with tension.
Sennya looked up slowly, disbelief written all over her face.
"Is this something you have to bring up right now?"
Dice shrugged. "Well, someone had to say it. It was going to happen sooner or later."
Sennya rubbed her temples, already exhausted.
"Leave me out of this," she muttered before standing and walking out of the classroom without another word.
Dice blinked.
"…What's up with her?" he wondered to himself.
Marin finally spoke, her calm voice cutting gently through the air.
"If we're doing this, then I appoint Lina."
All eyes turned to her.
Lina flinched.
"I—I'm sorry. But I don't think I can do it," she said, her voice small and fragile.
Marin's eyes softened. "Ever since the last test, you haven't been yourself. Did something happen?"
"No. Nothing happened. I'm fine."
She forced a smile—one everyone instantly recognized as fake—and quickly left the room.
The atmosphere shifted again.
"Did Kira do something?" Korran asked, cracking his knuckles with a grin. "Just tell me and I'll put him in his place."
"No… I'm really fine," Lina repeated faintly.
Rhea crossed her arms. "Even if he did do something, it's not like you could beat him anyway."
"As if you'd know," Sage mumbled under his breath—but loud enough for the whole class to hear.
Rhea turned sharply. "What do you—"
"Haven't you guys ever wondered," Dawson cut in, "why Kira is so strong even though he barely trains?"
The class froze.
Ard nodded slowly. "Now that you mention it… he also knew exactly where Leo's fragments were. Without that, we wouldn't have passed the exam."
Raya stepped forward, arms folded defensively.
"We shouldn't dig into his life. If he wants to tell us, he will."
Rhea narrowed her eyes. "When did you start caring?"
Raya blinked. "Caring…? What do you mean?"
Rhea looked away. "…Nothing."
Ard leaned against a desk, smirking.
"And what do you think Kira told Leo? Because I doubt Leo would've helped us just because we asked."
The class murmured in confusion.
But then—
BANG!
The classroom door slammed open and Dice came running in, panting heavily, his face pale with panic.
Dawson frowned. "Why are you breathing like that? What happened?"
Dice tried to speak but could barely get the words out.
"It's… Kira… he… he—"
Lina cut him off sharply.
"Wait. When did you leave the class in the first place?"
Dice pointed at himself lazily while still catching his breath.
"One of my cards was following Kira. Think of it like a clone. I was still here… but also there."
Raya grabbed his shoulders. "Then what happened to Kira?"
Her voice trembled with worry.
If something happened to him… how am I supposed to bring Chris back alone…?
Dice's clone swallowed hard.
"He… challenged the Sovereignty Class."
The classroom fell into complete silence.