Chapter 204: Chapter 204 Notice.
A light that filters through the window glass brightens a room where Soma lives in the dormitory. The morning after the incident that involved Mary, the first event that happened in the academy swiftly closed its stage. Soma, who has already freshened his body with cold water. Currently, he is putting on his uniform, as it was the time for the start of the new day.
Soma glanced toward the mirror in the closet as he fixed his collar before buttoning up his blazer. He approached the study desk where there was a piece of paper with apology words he had spent all night finishing.
For the last time, he checked his room and found no other messy things scattered. He nodded his head, satisfied, and left the room. With a dry thud the door was closed and Soma swiftly locked it, for safety purpose.
The hallway in the morning was a bit crowded with some of the seniors and other first-year students like himself, finishing their routine in the morning and preparing themselves to go to the academy.
"Good morning".
"Good morning, old man".
As usual, Soma was greeted by the listless man who was in charge of the male dorm. He is always staying inside his place, and from the rumor Soma had heard, the man was a bit reclusive and spent his days staying in his room researching some magic and stuff Soma is unaware of.
However, Soma never heard or never read the man in mention, is involved in the story so he never thinks too deeply about it.
Soma stepped his feet toward the outside world, which was brimming with vibrant color. It welcomed him and was full of energy. A slightly chill wind seeped through his skin, making his eyes jolted open awake, and the pleasant fresh oxygen he inhaled made his mind and body invigorated, ready to start the day.
Walking alone on the road, Soma arrived at the middle area.
The area was round and had a wide space, with erected black billboards, that was a bit deserted. Soma could only see some students preparing themselves to enter the academy. It was not an unusual sight as Soma is one of the morning people, and his routine was slightly faster compared with the other.
"Soma, Good morning".
A chirping melody that rang in his ear made his head turn toward the source, and he found Serafina and Lucy as one walked towards him. Soma, with a slight nod, answers them.
"Good morning".
"How cold! You should be more expressive, such as 'Good morning beautiful senior' or 'Today you are lovely as usual, senior'!".
Serafina, who as usual, acting unreasonable, approached Soma while grabbing his left hand, making his face stiffen for the first time in the morning. He was faced with a pleasant feeling that stirred his heart as a male.
[Extra Skill Puppeteer activated]
"...Sorry, but that was impossible for me".
"Eh? Why, try it once, please? I want to see Soma in frivolous mode".
"Im-pos-sible!".
"Stingy!".
Serafina, who was unpredictable as usual, began to approach Soma aggressively. Beware of her status and her nature, Soma is always wary of her, which is why he always acts curtly in front of her.
"Would you leave it, Sera. Soma is troubled".
"Eh, I can't believe Lucy is betraying me now. I have no ally in this place".
"Fufu, it's not my intention to do that".
From the side, Lucy approached Soma with a smile that made flowers bloom in the morning. She briefly cast her gaze on Soma, prompting both of them to nod in understanding. She began to handle Serafina's mischievous side, which made her happy as a friend because she had never seen her best friend smile like that.
"Good morning, Soma and seniors too".
"Fuaaa, Good morning".
A cheerful voice and a listless voice appeared from the senior back. It attracted their attention, only to find Hina, with her lively atmosphere, dragging Xiao Lian, who was weak in the morning.
"Good morning, Hina".
"Good morning, Miss Akabane".
"Hina, please hear me out".
Suddenly, Serafina slips away from Lucy's grasp. She approached Hina's side, embraced her, and buried her face on Hina's shoulder. Hina, who received the sudden treatment, stiffened her body and opened her lips.
"Sera senior?! What happened?".
"Leave it, Hina. She will just say something outrageous".
"Look at that! Hina, Soma is mean to me this morning".
"Is that so?".
Hina turned her curious gaze at Soma and opened her mouth while smiling wryly, seeing her senior act. To which Soma replied by shaking his head to the side and replied.
"I am not. Just leave her alone, okay!".
"That, you heard that!".
Soma, who was already fed up with Serafina's act, sighed in an exaggerated manner and threw his gaze to the faraway place. "I wonder why Serafina always acts like that in front of me? Haa, who knows? More importantly, there is something more troublesome I should consider from now on..".
There is one thing that is starting to bother Soma. The story unfolded too fast. The matter about Mary has finished, and from the story he read, the next event will happen shortly in another months from now on, but he couldn't be too sure about that. "It seems I need to speed up with my preparation".
"Hm?!".
Soma notices a slight vibration from his chest pocket, which attracts his attention. The same thing also happened to Hina and Xiao Lian, but Xiao Lian was still groggy and unable to bother herself with a phone.
He took out the phone from his pocket and saw an incoming message from the group he was currently entering.
"Traveling Club!".
As soon as that name appeared on his display, Soma knitted his brows as he hurriedly unlocked the phone and tapped the notification to bring him toward the messaging app.
{Good morning, everyone. Today, after finishing your lesson. Come to the club room. We have something important to discuss!!}
{Okay, Senior Kaori}
{Kay!}
{Is this regarding our club activity?!}
{Yay! Finally}
…
After the first message from Kaori appeared, the other members began to reply, and soon, the announcement was buried.
"Soma, you got it?".
"...Yeah, let's go visit the club".
"What is it, Hina. Oh? You guys enter a traveling club? Hehe, Let's go together!".
Serafina, who interjected from the side, made Soma and Hina's face stiffen. They turned their gaze toward Serafina, who showed her white teeth while holding a smartphone in her hand.
"Senior, are you a member of the traveling club?".
Hina, already free from her embrace, softly asked Serafina, who turned to her with a V-sign and smug face. On the other hand, Soma sighed for the second time as he cast his gaze upward and softly uttered.
"This is a disaster".
***
A tranquil silence filled the room; only the sound of scraping on the paper and the spirit of students who busied themselves scribbling on their notebooks broke as the chime of the bell rang across the academy and notified them of the finished lesson.
"Okay, that's it for the day. Be sure to review it at your dorm so you don't have any difficulty later; you guys can dismiss."
Teacher Lee's bold and clear voice reverberated inside class A as the students replied with a nod, and he left the room with a brief glance toward Soma's seat.
After a long, arduous time of battling his boredom, Soma packed up his necessities and stood up.
"Let's go to the club!".
"Okay".
"Mm".
Hina and Xiao Lian, who had already been briefed this noon at lunch, stood from their seats and began to leave the classroom; within the bustling activity in the hallway, Soma and the girls walked following the flow of the direction as they finally arrived at the entrance door.
The three of them stepped outside the building and were greeted by the afternoon atmosphere.
"Ya, pleased to meet you here, juniors".
A pleased and mischievous tone rang beside them, which made them turn to the side. They found Serafina in her uniform, waving her right hand and greeting them.
"Senior, Sera".
"Senior".
"...".
Hina and Xiao Lian slightly bowed their heads to greet Serafina. All eyes were directed toward their place as Serafina, with her unusual expression, greeted the first year with a warm heart. They were captivated by seeing three beauties gather around with a heartwarming aura around them.
However, Soma, who was perplexed because of Serafina's appearance here, could only sigh. Before the situation became more tense, he resumed walking to the club building, followed by the girls and Serafina behind. "I didn't think she was serious about her words earlier".
"Wait for me, Soma!".
"?!".
"I'm coming behind you".
Soma, who became the center of attention because of the beauty that gathered around him, received so many piercing glares that pricked his skin, but he didn't care about any of them as he leisurely brushed past those envious and turned to his back.
There, he could see a lively atmosphere. Hina and Xiao Lian, as usual in their banter, and Serafina watched her junior with a warm gaze while sometimes chuckling, seeing their silly banter.
Soma shrugged his shoulders and let the lively atmosphere accompany his walk until they finally arrived at the club they would enter.
After they entered the building, it was already filled with the other club members. One female senior opened her gaze in shock upon witnessing Soma's group.
"My God, Hina".
"?!".