Early in the morning, ‘Kiana’ awoke in her own large house.
The drowsiness had yet to fade as her body, following muscle memory, rolled out of bed.
She fumbled with her feet, searching for her slippers, and swayed unsteadily towards the washbasin.
Splash~ The cold water on her face made her shiver slightly.
Her mind was instantly pulled from its daze, and she became wide awake.
And then she saw the girl in the mirror—a face both strange and familiar.
She froze for a moment, and then it dawned on her.
“Oh, right.
That’s me…” It had to be said, humans were an incredibly adaptable species.
Kiana had initially thought it would be incredibly difficult to accept her current appearance.
But after a full day to process everything, she didn’t seem to be having any kind of mental breakdown.
However, she knew that the real test for her was only just beginning.
Because today was the first day of school at Senba Academy.
According to the identity Li Mu had prepared for her, she would be enrolling as Kiana.
The moment she thought about entering the school and facing the scrutiny of faces both familiar and strange in this body, a wave of pressure washed over her.
But backing down was not an option.
Last night, Li Mu had sent her some information detailing the Honkai disasters that the future held.
After seeing it, all she could do was pray that such an ending would never befall her and those she cared about.
Thinking of this, thinking of the promise Li Mu had given her, Kiana clenched her fists at her reflection in the mirror.
A resolute smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
Courage welled up from her heart.
She was no longer afraid.
She wanted to protect everything.
She had to…
“I must become a god!” —o— Senba Academy.
First Year, Class B.
As class time approached, the room was already buzzing with excitement.
But none of it had anything to do with the purple-haired figure wearing glasses in the seat by the window in the back row.
The students naturally formed their own small groups, but no one interacted with her.
She was like a person excluded from the world.
Mei.
Her name was well-known throughout Senba Academy.
Ever since she had enrolled, the number one spot in the grade-level exams had never belonged to anyone else.
She was like an insurmountable mountain, as unreachable as Everest, crushing the dignity of any challenger who dared to call themselves a top student or academic god.
Over time, no one had the courage to challenge the genius who stood at the pinnacle of Senba Academy anymore.
But geniuses have always been lonely.
Few people could carry on a conversation with someone who casually dropped Poincaré’s conjecture and Goldbach’s conjecture, and who spent her free time writing papers that made old professors beat their chests in frustration.
So when such an almost inhuman genius truly appeared among them, how were ordinary people supposed to interact with her?
The ancient sages had already provided the answer: “Respect the spirits and gods, but keep them at a distance.” And so, Mei, who was seen as a god, was consciously ignored by everyone.
However, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for Mei herself.
She didn’t have to deal with complicated interpersonal relationships, which allowed her to pull her limited energy away from such complexities and focus on more meaningful things.
That’s how it should have been.
Until today.
Under the curious gazes of the students, the homeroom teacher led in a girl they had never seen before.
She had white hair and blue eyes, and a cool, aloof aura.
She wore the standard Senba Academy girls’ uniform, clutching her books tightly as she followed behind the teacher.
For some reason, her cool expression seemed to hold a hint of unease.
This contradictory trait only added to her mysterious charm.
This was, of course, Kiana, who had been sent to Senba Academy by Li Mu.
In an instant, the previously quiet classroom grew noisy again.
The teacher coughed lightly a few times, signaling for the students to quiet down, before introducing the newcomer.
“This is Kiana, a student from Austria.
From now on, she will be a part of our little group.” “I hope you will all show the spirit of friendship we have here at Senba Academy and make sure Kiana feels welcome.” After speaking, the teacher turned to Kiana beside her and said gently, “Kiana, there are still plenty of empty seats in the classroom.
Go ahead and choose one.” “Yes, teacher.” Kiana walked down from the platform, holding her books.
At the same time, every girl with an empty seat next to her looked on with anticipation.
In the end, Kiana walked over to the purple-haired girl with glasses by the window.
“Excuse me, may I sit here?” Mei, lost in her own world, was pulled back by the voice.
She looked up and saw Kiana calling out to her.
She noticed the girl staring at her, waiting for a reply.
Only then did Mei realize this unfamiliar girl was speaking to her.
Mei didn’t say anything, merely giving a slight nod.
And so, Kiana placed her books on the desk and sat down, a hint of joy in her eyes.
Everyone, including the teacher and the other students, looked surprised at her choice of seat, but no one said anything more.
This legendary student, Mei, did indeed attract those who were curious about her.
But soon enough, those people would be driven away by her inhuman aura.
They presumed this new student would be no different.
—o— Time flew by, and the school day came to a smooth end.
Kiana awkwardly turned down a number of girls who called her “Big Sis” and tried to get closer, and she practically fled the classroom.
She hadn’t forgotten her mission: to protect this student, Mei, at Senba Academy, as per Li Mu’s instructions.
According to Li Mu, this Mei possessed immense talent and would be a great asset in the future fight against the Honkai.
Of course, she also had her own small, selfish reason.
She wanted to become friends with Mei.
Only by becoming close friends could she better protect her.
This was what Kiana thought, and this was what she did.
She had always been a person of action.
So, as Mei was leaving the school grounds after class, Kiana chased after her and called out directly: “Mei, please be my friend!” Mei, who had been engrossed in the notebook in her hands, heard the voice and stopped.
She turned around to see the white-haired girl who had just become her deskmate rushing towards her.
“Mei, please be my friend!” Mei sized up Kiana before her, then coldly pushed up her glasses.
A glint of light reflected off the lenses.
“Sorry, I’m not interested.” Her life had already hit rock bottom, and it was taking everything she had just to get by.
She had no energy left to manage so-called interpersonal relationships.
If it weren’t for the generous scholarship, she wouldn’t even be coming to school at all.
After speaking, Mei turned to leave, not intending to pay any more attention to this strange new student.
But the moment she took a step, she felt a weight on her wrist.
As her body leaned forward, the momentum pulled her wrist sharply forward.
Thump!
Mei looked down and saw that the white-haired girl had been yanked by the momentum when she grabbed her, causing her to fall to her knees on the ground.
Seeing her brazenly grab her wrist, Mei couldn’t help but frown.
No matter how you looked at it, this was far too rude.
In her mind, Mei’s evaluation of this white-haired girl dropped a level.
Kiana was also stunned to find herself kneeling on the ground.
But since it had already happened, and she had already embarrassed herself, she might as well go all in.
She tightened her grip on Mei’s wrist, her voice filled with pleading.
“Mei, I’m begging you, please be my friend!
This is really important to me.” Looking at this pushy white-haired girl before her, Mei fell silent for a moment before questioning her, “Do you know me?
Do you know what I’m like on the inside?
Do you have any idea what kind of person I am?” Kiana blinked and answered honestly, “No, but we can become friends first and then get to know each other.” Mei took a deep breath.
“Listen, I’m not interested in making friends right now.” “I have very important things I need to deal with.
I don’t have time to waste energy on something like making friends.” Kiana still didn’t let go.
“You can tell me about your difficulties.
I can help.” Hearing Kiana’s words, a spark of anger ignited in Mei’s heart.
She tensed her arm, slowly pulling her wrist free.
At the same time, she looked coldly at Kiana.
“You have no idea what I’m facing.” Mei pulled her arm free, her words stabbing into Kiana’s chest like daggers.
“Your easy promises, offered like some kind of charity…
how very…
high and mighty of you!” Watching Mei’s retreating back, Kiana felt incredibly wronged.
She genuinely wanted to be friends with her.
She had no idea why the other girl had reacted so defensively.
—o— After leaving Senba Academy, Mei didn’t go straight home.
Instead, she went to a nearby convenience store and picked out a few discounted bento boxes.
By the time she got home, the sky was already growing dark.
She inserted the key into the lock.
The mechanical cylinder clicked, and she turned the handle to open the door.
Immediately, the stench of alcohol mixed with the smell of something organic fermenting assaulted her, making Mei wrinkle her nose.
Fortunately, she had gotten used to it over this period of time.
After waiting for the smell in the room to dissipate a little, Mei stepped inside.
“I’m home.” As always, there was no reply.
The other living person in this room, her father, Ryoma, was currently passed out on the sofa, snoring loudly.
Several empty liquor bottles lay on the table, and there was some disgusting vomit on the floor.
Mei, her face impassive, opened the window to let the air circulate again.
Then, she cleared the bottles from the table, cleaned up the vomit from the floor, and finally brought out a bucket and mop to wash the floor again.
Only after all this was done did she take out the bento boxes.
She placed one on the table near her father.
She placed the other in front of herself, preparing to eat.
As it turned out, life’s hardships were the best teacher.
Before all this, Mei had never imagined she could handle housework so efficiently.
But just as Mei was about to eat, a ringing sound came from the sofa—it was her father’s phone.
After a moment’s hesitation, Mei picked up the phone and answered.
An unfamiliar voice came from the earpiece.
The person on the other end sounded quite polite.
“Mr.
Ryoma, your debt is due in a few days.” “We hope you will be able to repay it on time.
Please don’t make things difficult for us.” —o—