“Why do I still have to go to school even after transmigrating?!”
In front of the bus stop, Mikage Touji sighed toward the heavens.
Transmigrating was one thing, but the “System” that everyone else usually gets had abandoned him, leaving behind nothing but an admission letter.
And for some reason, Mikage Touji felt like the System was in a bit of a panic when it fled…
Gazing at the destination listed in bold black letters—Advanced Nurturing High School—Mikage Touji lowered his head in the face of reality.
He had no choice; he was a stranger in a strange land, and the little money he had wouldn’t last more than a few days.
If he didn’t go, he’d be reduced to begging.
Setting aside that “100% higher education and employment rate” which smelled suspiciously like recruitment fraud, the fact that they provided room and board was actually quite appealing.
The bus pulled into the station, and the doors opened slowly.
Mikage Touji boarded and scanned the carriage, his eyes landing on the only empty seat.
‘Not bad.’
He wouldn’t have to stand all the way to Advanced Nurturing High School; maybe he could even lean against the window and take a nap.
Immediately, he dragged his legs toward the empty seat.
Right at that moment, a red figure lightly brushed past him, carrying a faint scent of peaches.
Taking the lead by a hair, she sat down in the seat he had been longing for.
The gentle smile that had just appeared on Mikage Touji’s face froze instantly.
The girl turned to look at him and bowed slightly, her tone flat:
“According to the principle of first-come, first-served, the right to use this seat belongs to me.
If you want a seat, please look elsewhere.”
This composed tone and self-righteous attitude left Mikage Touji petrified on the spot.
He took a deep breath, suppressing the surge of irritation.
‘Don’t get angry, don’t get angry.
Mikage Touji, you are a transmigrator.
It’s just a seat.
Be magnanimous; don’t lose face for your fellow transmigrators…
But it’s actually so infuriating!’
There wasn’t technically anything wrong with her words, but that self-righteous attitude…
In two words: utterly maddening.
Fortunately, it didn’t last long.
A passenger behind the empty seat got off, and another spot opened up.
Slowly exhaling, Mikage Touji sat down and looked out the window.
The weather was perfect; the sun climbed the branches and sunlight spilled down, yet his inner world was overcast with gloom.
Because that girl’s reflection was imprinted on the window glass!
Deep blue hair, two braids placed in front of her, wearing the same burgundy Advanced Nurturing uniform as him with a pink inner lining—she was staring out the window with an expressionless face, thinking about who-knows-what…
The more Mikage Touji looked, the angrier he got.
Finally, with a whoosh, he pushed the window open and snapped his head back toward the interior of the bus.
‘I’m not looking.
The more I look, the more annoyed I get!’
As the bus proceeded, the carriage gradually became crowded.
Office workers, housewives, students also wearing the Advanced Nurturing uniform, and…
an old grandmother carrying a vegetable basket, clearly over sixty years old, swaying with the movement of the bus.
That shaky movement…
‘Grandma, at your age, you shouldn’t be coming out to buy groceries.’
Mikage Touji sighed softly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw people playing on phones, reading books, or handling documents…
everyone was doing their own thing.
If he ignored it and something happened, it would be a huge hassle.
After a moment of hesitation, he slowly stood up…
At the same time, in Mikage Touji’s field of vision, the girl stood up almost at the exact same moment.
She left her seat, her deep blue hair swaying slightly in the air, her pleated school skirt swinging as she rose…
In that instant, Mikage Touji made a decision based entirely on instinct!
With the speed of a lightning bolt, he rose, stepped, and moved his legs in one smooth motion, sitting firmly in the girl’s seat.
“Please—”
“Please come over here!”
Mikage Touji shouted first, raising his hand, his cheerful voice echoing through the carriage.
The girl turned, only to realize that in a brief flash, her seat had been snatched away, and the seat behind it was now empty.
The grandmother carrying groceries walked over, smiling and thanking them both: “Thank you, thank you…”
Mikage Touji replied happily, “You’re welcome.
Just thank this person here.”
He turned and gave a thumbs-up to the girl: “Fellow student, the right to use this seat now belongs to me.
The one behind is your spot.”
“…”
What greeted him was neither shame-filled anger nor a blushing face, but a pair of large eyes that didn’t even blink.
The girl didn’t speak; she just stared at him silently.
Mikage Touji’s thumb froze in mid-air.
In the standoff, he could clearly see his own reflection in the girl’s blue-violet pupils.
A strange atmosphere spread between the two.
At first, Mikage Touji enjoyed the thrill of revenge, but slowly, he felt something was wrong.
“…”
This gaze…
it reminded him of that old-fashioned wall clock he had taken apart as a kid, the one that went “dong-dong” every hour.
It was pure curiosity and investigation, as if she wanted to take him apart to see what was inside.
“Morishita Ai,” the girl spoke softly.
Mikage Touji was a bit confused.
“What do you mean?”
“My name is Morishita Ai.
Please tell me your name.”
“What for?
You trying to doxx me?” Mikage Touji crossed his arms in a defensive posture.
“Accept your loss gracefully.”
“Name?”
“…”
Mikage Touji really wanted to tell her that he was actually called the “Invincible Tyrannosaurus Warrior,” but he was afraid this girl would take him apart on the spot.
Not receiving a response, Morishita Ai wasn’t discouraged and continued to stare at him.
Time passed bit by bit as the bus moved forward.
Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore.
“The back,” he pointed to his original seat, “the grandmother will get off soon.
Go sit over there.”
People buying groceries generally wouldn’t go to a market too far away, especially an old lady carrying so many things.
Two stops later, the grandmother got off.
The girl named Morishita Ai sat in Mikage Touji’s original spot, resting her chin on her hand and looking out the window glass.
Mikage Touji pretended nothing had happened and pulled out his phone to browse messages, but in truth, he felt uneasy all over, as if ants were crawling on him.
Soon after, the bus arrived at the destination.
Mikage Touji silently sped up his pace toward the school grounds, but unfortunately, after only two steps, he was blocked by Morishita Ai.
“Is this really necessary?” Mikage Touji said helplessly.
“I just took your seat.”
“Please tell me your name,” Morishita Ai reiterated.
Her tone sounded completely unaffected—in fact, she seemed even more cheerful than she had been on the bus.
Mikage Touji had quite the headache.
While looking for an escape route, he tried to distract the girl.
“You answer my question first.
Depending on the situation, I’ll consider whether to tell you.”
“Come then, I have been waiting for a long time,” Morishita Ai nodded.
“Why did you try to give up your seat earlier?” Based on her behavior just now, she definitely wasn’t the type to care about the opinions of others.
“Because I felt a little happy after snatching your seat earlier, so I decided to generously give her the spoils of war.” A trace of satisfaction flashed across Morishita Ai’s face.
‘So you DID know you snatched my seat!
And yet you still told me to go away so self-righteously?’
This was the first time Mikage Touji had met a girl with such bizarre logic.
“Your name.”
“Not telling you!” Mikage Touji turned and walked away—no, he turned and ran!
He could tell; this girl was different.
She was unpredictable and gave off a strange feeling.
If he told her his name, his high school life would definitely become a huge mess.
Twenty minutes later…
Mikage Touji hummed an unknown little tune as he arrived at his classroom.
Inside the classroom, nameplates with the students’ names were placed on the brand-new desks to inform them of their assigned seats.
‘Aha, let me see, my throne—’
The pitch of the little tune dropped, grew quieter, and finally faded into nothingness…
Mikage Touji looked silently at Morishita Ai, who had her hands on her hips and was giving him a victory sign.
Mikage Touji, Class 1-A, seat in the second-to-last row by the window.
Morishita Ai, Class 1-A, seat in the last row by the window.
‘What a disaster!’