Black Solstice-Chapter 5: Solstice Academy [4]

’Well... that was definitely something.’

After the opening ceremony ended, I followed the other students as instructed, blending into the crowd moving toward their designated classrooms.

Somewhere along the way, I lost sight of the girl who introduced herself as Seraphis.

Yes, that was the name of the self-proclamied vampire.

Seraphis.

It was a cute unique name. She must be loved at home.

’Looks like we’re in different classes... can’t be helped.’

Even so, an unexpected feeling tugged at me. It was a small, inexplicable disappointment.

This wasn’t love. Definitely not love.

So why did it feel like I actually... enjoyed her company?

Well, excluding the part where she sank her teeth into my neck without warning and had the personality of a chaotic stray cat, she did give off a kind of soft, gentle aura.

...Actually, now that I thought about it, that softness might have been an illusion.

No matter how nice she seemed, it was impossible to ignore the fact:

She was a total weirdo.

The kind of person any sane individual would avoid with all their strength.

I should probably do the same.

After all, I had no desire to get my blood sucked again by a horny vampire.

A vampire, huh?

Her words from earlier drifted back into my mind.

My expression tightened into a deep frown.

’A world for demons and the like. What a load of crap.’

Truth be told, a part of me wanted to believe her. Really, I did.

But I just couldn’t.

If what she said was true, then I should’ve already seen grotesque, monstrous things lurking around or creatures straight out of nightmares.

That’s what you expect when someone says "demon world."

Yet everyone here looked... human. Perfectly normal, perfectly ordinary human students.

There’s a saying: seeing is believing.

Which meant until I saw an actual demon with my own two eyes, there was no way I could swallow that insane story at face value.

Still, it felt like Seraphis wasn’t lying either.

...What a peculiar situation.

Letting out a sigh, I continued with my steady stride and eventually entered a vast classroom along with the other students who were eagerly looking for the perfect sitting position.

’Now where should I sit? Which one? Which one? Oh, would that one do?’

I scanned the room like a predator searching for prey, except in this case, the prey was a chair that didn’t radiate "future social disaster."

Front row?

Absolutely not. That was for honor students, tryhards, and main characters of school life manga.

Back row?

Tempting... but also suspicious. That was prime territory for delinquents, and lonely people who stared out the window pretending the wind was narrating their tragic backstory.

Middle seats?

Yes, definitely. That was the Switzerland of classroom seating!

I made my move.

Just as I stepped toward a perfectly ordinary-looking seat three rows from the back—

"...?"

Someone slid into it.

A tall guy with dropped into the chair with the confidence of someone who’d won a battle I didn’t know we were fighting.

"...Seriously?"

He didn’t even look at me.

’Tsk. This bastard... whatever, let’s find another seat.’

I turned to the next available seat.

Taken.

And the next.

Taken.

And the next—

A girl sitting there glared at me with the intensity of a feral wolf protecting its young.

"Nope," I muttered under my breath, stepping away before she decided to bite me too.

Eventually, after what felt like navigating a minefield of territorial classmates, I found a desk by the window.

I slid into it.

The chair creaked slightly. The sunlight hit the desk at a comfortable angle. Outside, mist curled along the desolate terrain. It was strange, but pretty.

’See? Normal. Everything looks normal.’

I rested my elbow on the table, trying to settle my nerves.

Students kept entering normally and the place slowly became more noisy and noisy. Everyone was energetic.

This was the reality of school regardless of college or high school.

Upon arrival, everyone wanted to talk. To laugh. To form circles, alliances, friend groups, whatever.

Humans were predictable like that.

I, on the other hand, was perfectly content with minding my business and pretending the rest of the world didn’t exist.

I stared out the window.

Mist still drifted lazily across the barren ground outside, as if the world beyond the academy was stuck between dream and waking. For a moment, the fog thickened as though something massive was passing through it.

My fingers tapped the desk.

"It’s just the weather."

There was nothing supernatural. There was nothing strange. There was absolutely nothing that validated Seraphis’s insane claims.

’Hm, this is definitely a normal academy.’

As that thought crossed my mind, I couldn’t help but smile at Sera’s attempts to drag me into her delusional world.

Click–!

Just then, the door slid open with a sharp clack, and the classroom instantly fell silent.

A tall figure stepped inside.

Narrowing my eyes, I took in the sight of the woman who was, presumably, our lecturer. She wore a white lab coat draped over a pastel-pink sweater, the color perfectly matching her straight, silky pink hair. It framed her face and flowed neatly down her back, reaching her waist. She was undeniably beautiful, but that wasn’t what seized my attention.

It was her eyes — bright, slit-pupiled yellow, like a predatory cat’s.

I had never seen anything like them before.

And if that wasn’t enough, two soft cat ears perched atop her head, twitching subtly as she scanned the room.

’Cosplay...? Seriously? I didn’t think this academy allowed this level of freedom.’

Even as the thought crossed my mind, it felt laughably delusional.

The teacher cleared her throat, her ears giving a small flick, and then proceeded to speak.

"Oh? Is this everyone for this branch? Fewer than I expected... but that’s fine. I’m not very good with long speeches, so let’s skip the theatrics and move straight to introductions."

She placed a hand on her hip, smiling with disarming warmth.

"I’m Kat Fleming. I work as the school doctor, but I also teach, so some of you will be taking my classes. The rest will probably only see me when you’re injured or feeling unwell. Though I suppose none of you want to be visiting the infirmary if you can help it, right?"

Her smile was sweet enough to be comforting... until her next words sank in.

"However, this academy tends to get a lot of serious injuries. You’ll learn this on your own soon enough, but Solstice Academy is far more adventurous than most schools. It’s full of strange and dangerous things designed to support your mysticism studies and help you develop your demonic abilities. That said, don’t neglect your regular academics either. They’re essential if you ever plan to coexist peacefully with humans in the Human Domain."

Her cat ears twitched again, and she clasped her hands lightly in front of her.

"I’m sure all of you will feel the urge to go off exploring and chasing excitement, but try not to be reckless. Healing complicated injuries is a huge headache, so please... avoid unnecessary fights!"

Kat Fleming let out a gentle sigh then added finally:

"And that’s all for now. Welcome to Solstice Academy. I hope your time here will be... enlightening."