Stellar Reincarnation: The Irregular of Asterisk Ch.2: The Irregular Transfer Student and the Red-Haired Witch

Morning light spilled across the white walls of Seidoukan Academy. Kamishiro Yuuma came to a stop in front of the First School Building. The scenery was the same as yesterday, but today he wore a uniform. The white Seidoukan uniform Claudia had arranged for him still didn't feel like it belonged on his body. The red lotus crest on his chest caught the morning sun and gleamed. "...This is nerve-wracking." He muttered it under his breath and stepped inside. The corridors were wide, the ceilings high. The architecture had a retro feel, like steam engines fused with glass, and photographs of past Phoenix Festa champions lined the walls. Every student he passed stared at him openly. The transfer student who'd dueled Toudou Kirin, the ranked Number One, at the school gates yesterday. The rumor had apparently spread across the entire academy already. Yuuma kept his eyes down and walked quickly. First-year Class 3, high school division. He took a deep breath in front of the classroom door. "I don't know a thing, but I've got no choice but to do this." He gave himself that quiet pep talk and opened the door. The air in the room froze for a single instant. Thirty-some students' eyes stabbed into him all at once. "Hey, it's the transfer student everyone's talking about." "Is it true he fought Toudou?" "He walked away from her without even a weapon—how is he alive?" Whispers flew, deliberately loud enough to hear. Yuuma ignored them and stood before the podium. "I'm Kamishiro Yuuma. I'll be in your care starting today. Um... nice to meet you all." He bowed. The homeroom teacher pointed to an empty seat. "Kamishiro, your seat's over there. Far back row, by the window." "Thank you." Yuuma headed for the window side of the room. Halfway there, he noticed. In the seat by the window sat a girl with hair like a burning flame. Her long crimson hair was tied high in a ponytail, and her jade-clear blue eyes looked straight ahead. On the back of her left hand was a crest shaped like a flame. Her ramrod posture set her apart from everyone else in the room—the air around her was simply different. Yuuma sat down in the seat beside her. The girl glanced at him. Her eyes held a flicker of curiosity and wariness. But she said nothing. Yuuma couldn't say anything either. The classroom's atmosphere stayed heavy and taut. First period began. The subject was the fundamental theory of the Starpulse—the mechanics of the supernatural energy that manifested under the influence of Starpulse meteorites, and the methods of mental focus used to control it. Yuuma took notes desperately. But most of it went over his head. Having never undergone basic training as a Starpulse holder, the textbook content felt like tales from some distant world. The students around him understood it all as a matter of course. Pale blue light from the lake surface streamed through the classroom windows. Mirror Lake. The Rikka Central Lake. Yuuma gazed absently at the shadow of the Outer Districts floating beyond the water. That's where I collapsed. With no memory of anything. —The Starpulse's law. Twenty-nine days until collapse. That voice echoed through his head. Yuuma touched the black bangle on his right wrist. The cool feel of metal. The patterns engraved on its surface glowed faintly pale blue. What is this bangle? Who am I? I'll find out everything here. That was his decision. Lunch break came. Yuuma left the classroom and walked the halls. He still didn't know where the cafeteria or the school store was. For now, he figured he'd just wander and get a feel for the building. "Hey, you." A voice came from behind. He turned. The red-haired girl stood there. The one who'd been sitting next to him. "Where do you belong?" Her tone was blunt. "Uh... belong? You mean at the academy? I just transferred in today—first-year Class 3, high school division." "Hah? That's not what I asked. Your weapon. Your Lux. Are you seriously walking around this academy empty-handed?" She sounded exasperated. "Weapon... I don't have one. Wait, do you actually need weapons at this school?" She heaved a deep sigh. "You really don't know anything, do you? Seidoukan is an academy for fighting in the Festa. Everyone carries their own Lux. Walking around without a weapon is the same as standing on a battlefield unarmed." "I see... Thanks for telling me." When Yuuma thanked her honestly, she looked slightly thrown off. "...I wasn't telling you anything. I just stated the obvious." She said that, then glanced at his right wrist. "What's that bangle? It doesn't look like a Lux." Yuuma nearly hid his hand on reflex. But hiding it wouldn't help. "I don't know either. It was on me when I came to, and it won't come off. Its name is... apparently 'Irregular.'" In that instant, her expression changed. Her jade eyes narrowed sharply. "...Irregular." She took half a step back. "Don't come near me with that." "Huh?" Yuuma was baffled. "Why? Do you know something about it?" She didn't answer. Her blue eyes fixed on the patterns engraved on the bangle's surface. For just a moment, a golden light mixed into her gaze. "...You really don't know what that thing is?" "I don't. That's why I'm going to find out." She was silent for a while. Then she turned her face away. "...Fine. Then investigate on your own. It has nothing to do with me." She walked off at a brisk pace. Yuuma watched her back recede. Rejected. He didn't know why. But her reaction made one thing certain—this bangle was no mere ornament. Yuuma clenched his right fist around it. After school, Yuuma returned to the dorm. The special scholarship dormitory stood on academy grounds. His room was private, furnished with a desk, a bed, and a closet. Through the window, the pale blue surface of Mirror Lake was visible. Yuuma sat down on the bed. He was exhausted. The stares in the classroom. Yulis's rejection. The mystery of the bangle. Everything was still guesswork. Then came a knock at the door. "It's open." The door swung open and a boy walked in. Light brown hair combed carelessly, a friendly grin. A rather noticeable scar on his left cheek. Tall, and wearing his Seidoukan uniform sloppily. "Yo. I'm Yabuki Eishirou. Your roommate starting today." Roommate. Yuuma blinked. "Wait, this isn't a single room?" "Scholarship students get doubles. Anyway, let's get along." Yabuki strolled in and tossed his bag onto the empty bed. "Still, so you're the rumored Irregular kid. The whole academy's in an uproar that you stopped Toudou Kirin's slash bare-handed." "Stopped it bare-handed... more like the bangle moved on its own. I don't really get it either." Yabuki peered at Yuuma's right wrist with interest. "Huh. So this is the 'Irregular.' That bangle's got my attention." He pulled an info terminal from his pocket and tapped at it. "Hey, Yuuma. How much do you know about this academy's rules?" "Almost nothing. Even the transfer paperwork was all handled by the student council president." "Then I'll fill you in. Info that's floating around online is free. But info from my own routes costs you a cafeteria side dish." He grinned. "Information's about money. Friendship's a separate stomach." Yuuma tilted his head. "So you're... an information broker?" "Something like that. I'm in the newspaper club—I collect intel from all over the academy. Rumors off the net, I'll tell you for free. But dangerous stuff, like the inner workings of the Executive Committee—that'll cost you a large Starpulse yakisoba at least." "Starpulse yakisoba... the cafeteria specialty?" "Yep. The pride of Prometheus Hall. Three hundred fifty lucks. Cheap, right?" Yuuma thought for a moment, then asked. "Then just tell me what's free—about this academy, the Festa, and the Executive Committee too." Yabuki nodded, "Mm." "Sure. Let's start with the basics." He set the terminal on the desk and pulled up a map of the campus. "Seidoukan Academy is one of the six academies in Rikka. About twelve thousand students. Its defining trait is a relaxed culture that respects student autonomy. The student council handles most of the academy's administration, and the ranking system is managed by the council too." "Ranking system?" "It's a strength ranking of the students. Official ranking matches happen once a month, and wins and losses decide your position. The top seventy-two make it into the registry called the Named Book, and the top twelve are called the Twelve Leaders. Get into the rankings and you're guaranteed scholarship treatment." Yabuki glanced at Yuuma's bangle. "You transferred in as a scholarship student. And the rumor is you drew against Toudou Kirin, the ranked Number One. No wonder the whole academy's watching." "Drew... well, that was more like—" "Doesn't matter what actually happened. What matters is how everyone else sees it." His voice turned a shade more serious. "Listen, Yuuma. The Executive Committee is seriously after that bangle." Something tightened in Yuuma's chest. "...The Executive Committee runs the Festa, right? Why would they want my bangle?" "The Executive Committee is a massive organization that effectively controls Rikka. They've got police authority and private soldiers. On the surface they're just the Festa's operating body, but behind the scenes they monitor the Starpulse's law. And that Committee has designated your bangle as a 'retrieval target.'" Retrieval target. A chill ran down Yuuma's spine. That night in the Outer Districts—the man in white gloves. The words he'd murmured. —Retrieval target confirmed. "...I know. I met a man in white gloves in the Outer Districts. He called me a retrieval target." Yabuki's eyes narrowed slightly. "Madias Mesa. Head of the Executive Committee's enforcement division. If he's moving, they're serious." "Madias Mesa..." "The supreme authority with plenipotentiary power over the Committee—a former Phoenix Festa champion from Seidoukan. A cold-blooded man. He'll use any means to get what he wants. He sees your bangle as a danger factor that could upset the world's balance." Yuuma touched the bangle on his wrist. "Upset the world's balance... this bangle?" "Who knows. Even I don't know what that bangle really is. But one thing's certain—the Committee is dead serious about retrieving it." Yabuki tapped the terminal and brought up a document. "This is part of an internal Committee document. I got it through my own routes." The screen showed the Committee's crest and what looked like a report. And there it was, written plainly. —Irregular holder, Kamishiro Yuuma. Priority surveillance target. Yuuma was speechless. His own name, on an official document. "...That's my name." "Yeah. You're already under the Committee's watch. Their eyes reach inside the academy too. Be careful." Yabuki's tone lightened again. "Well, this one's a freebie. Next time, order me a large Starpulse yakisoba." Yuuma looked him straight in the eye. "Thanks for telling me. You really helped." Yabuki looked a little surprised. "...Getting thanked throws off my rhythm. I'm just selling information." "Even so, it was information I needed. I'm grateful." Yabuki let out a soft laugh. "You're an interesting guy." Dusk was approaching. Yuuma had come to the rooftop of the First School Building. From up there, he could see the streets of the Seidoukan district and the pale blue surface of Mirror Lake all at once. The lake glittered in the setting sun, a strange blend of silver and gold. The wind blew, stirring Yuuma's black hair. He looked down at the bangle on his right wrist. The patterns engraved on its black surface glowed faintly in the twilight. "...Just who am I?" He muttered it, but no answer came. The memory of a traffic accident. A road at night. Blinding headlights. Impact. That was all that remained, hazy and vague. But everything before that was gone

What is Novelia?

Stellar Reincarnation: The Irregular of Asterisk Episode 2: The Irregular Transfer Student and the Red-Haired Witch