Chapter 4: The academy
879 Words
The first day of school arrived beneath a sky of clear blue.
Cherry blossoms drifted through the air as hundreds of students gathered before the enormous gates of **Tokugawa Academy**.
Luxury cars lined the entrance.
Some students arrived with personal chauffeurs.
Others were accompanied by influential parents dressed in expensive suits.
Children of politicians.
Corporate heirs.
Olympiad champions.
National athletes.
Every student carried an air of confidence.
After all, this was Tokugawa Academy.
Only the best belonged here.
Among the crowd walked a single boy carrying an ordinary black backpack.
His clothes were neat but simple.
His long black hair was tied into a ponytail that reached the middle of his back.
His ocean-blue eyes quietly observed everything around him.
He neither looked nervous nor excited.
He simply walked forward.
As though he had seen countless beginnings before.
Because, in a way...
He had.
The campus stretched farther than most universities.
There were indoor swimming facilities, research laboratories, sports complexes, libraries larger than public museums, music halls, martial arts dojos, and gardens that looked centuries old.
Students whispered excitedly.
Many stared in amazement.
Shiro simply smiled.
"Someone spent a fortune building this place."
His business instincts couldn't help estimating the value of every building he saw.
He quickly stopped himself.
"Old habits."
The opening ceremony filled the grand auditorium.
Nearly two thousand students sat in silence.
The principal, an elderly man with silver hair, stepped onto the stage.
His voice echoed throughout the hall.
"Tokugawa Academy does not exist to create successful people."
"It exists to create exceptional people."
The audience erupted into applause.
Shiro clapped politely.
He had heard speeches like this during corporate seminars.
The words were different.
The meaning was the same.
Opportunity favored those willing to seize it.
After the ceremony, students were directed toward their classrooms.
Class 1-A.
The class reserved for those who achieved the highest entrance scores.
As Shiro entered, conversations immediately slowed.
Girls glanced toward him.
Boys sized him up.
He ignored both.
His chosen seat was beside the window near the back.
The same place he always preferred.
A place where he could quietly observe the world.
Sunlight poured across his desk.
Outside, petals floated through the wind.
For a moment...
He simply enjoyed the view.
The classroom door suddenly opened.
A teacher entered carrying a stack of papers.
She appeared to be in her late twenties with short black hair and sharp eyes.
Without saying a word, she wrote her name across the board.
**Ayame Kanzaki**
She turned toward the class.
"I dislike wasting time."
Several students straightened immediately.
"My class has one rule."
"If you have talent, prove it."
"If you don't, work harder."
She placed the papers on her desk.
"I have taught here for twelve years."
"In that time, only one student has ever achieved a perfect entrance examination."
The room fell silent.
Curiosity spread across every face.
She slowly picked up a sheet.
"This year..."
"It happened again."
The classroom exploded into whispers.
"No way..."
"A perfect score?"
"Impossible."
She adjusted her glasses before looking toward the back row.
"Shiro Shiki."
The room turned as one.
Dozens of eyes landed on him.
Shiro slowly stood.
"...Yes?"
The teacher stared at him for several seconds.
Then nodded.
"You earned full marks in every subject."
"Mathematics."
"Science."
"History."
"Literature."
"English."
"Every answer."
The whispers grew louder.
One boy looked horrified.
A girl covered her mouth.
Someone muttered,
"He's a monster."
Shiro scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"I studied."
The classroom became even quieter.
One student whispered,
"He's joking...right?"
Even Ayame almost smiled.
Almost.
"Sit down."
He obeyed.
The attention quickly became exhausting.
He had no desire to stand out.
Unfortunately...
That possibility had already disappeared.
Lunch break arrived.
Groups immediately formed.
Students introduced themselves.
Numbers were exchanged.
Plans for after-school clubs filled the classroom.
Shiro quietly walked outside carrying his lunch.
His feet naturally led him upward.
Past empty hallways.
Past locked classrooms.
Until he reached the rooftop.
The wind greeted him.
The city stretched endlessly before him.
He sat against the fence and opened his lunch.
Rice.
Eggs.
Grilled fish.
Simple.
Healthy.
Peaceful.
He smiled.
"This is nice."
No meetings.
No deadlines.
No endless overtime.
Just silence.
He had dreamed of this more than once during his first life.
A normal school lunch.
He never thought he would actually experience it.
---
As the afternoon classes ended, students flooded toward clubs and dormitories.
Shiro instead walked home.
His small house waited only fifteen minutes away.
He unlocked the front door and entered quietly.
The scent of fresh tea lingered in the air.
Books lined the walls.
His desk remained covered with notes about economics and mathematics.
The room felt warm.
Safe.
His own.
He looked around for several moments before sitting on the wooden floor.
Then he quietly whispered to the empty house.
"I made it."
Not as Shiro Akuma.
Not as the lonely orphan Shiro Shiki.
But as someone carrying both lives forward.
Outside, the evening sun painted the sky gold.
Inside, a boy who had already lived once closed his eyes with a peaceful smile.
Tomorrow would bring new friends.
New rivals.
New memories.
And perhaps...
The beginning of the happiness both of his lives had searched for.
**End of Chapter 4**
- Writer
