I could understand the reasoning behind Saya sending someone to pick me up, but it was still a new experience. A somewhat scary and embarrassing one.

Less than five minutes after Saya had replied someone knocked on my door, asked me if I’m me, checked if I’m me with a scanner, checked me for anything suspicious, and then told me “Follow.” And the best thing? They did it in the middle of the hallway where the whole goddamn dorm could see.

I suppose this was inevitable. Now everyone knows I live here.

The person was also a male who was easily a head taller than me with wide shoulders, and he wore a formal black suit with tinted aviator glasses. There was no insignia or other evidence of their identity. This could’ve been none other than some highly presentable thug about to take me to a bar, treat me to lunch, spike my drink, fuck me in my boy pussy and then leave me to die through a completely inconspicuous case of overdose.

But I complied anyway. I mean, stuff like that happens to other people, but not me. I like to think I’m pretty lucky the majority of the time except for when something bad happens.

Regardless of how unlikely such an event was, I still let out a sigh of relief once I got out of the car that took me into the “inner district”, a term I hadn’t heard before. Yes, I felt relieved to be free-er of the scary suited man, but mostly the ride made me feel nauseous and dizzy. This was the first time I’d been in a car for almost a week now, so I wasn’t used to travelling in such a way. Damn motion sickness.

I took a couple of slow steady breaths as my body grounded itself, and a second before my attention returned to my surroundings, a neutral voice called out to me.

“Ryu.”

My eyes looked forward and found none other than Akina dressed in a clean maid uniform. The dress lacked any girly frills or other stand-out additions. So, along with the minimal but well placed white accents here and there, it gave off a very professional image.

I wonder if she’ll follow any order?

Inevitably, fantasies rushed to the forefront of my mind and I forced them back. I see nothing wrong with fantasies, on their own they do no harm, but when the subject of them is literally right in front of me? That’s just plain weird.

“Hey,” I said.

Akina turned around and started walking. “Follow.”

I took a couple quick steps to catch up to Akina, and she led me into a building with a couple of heavily tinted black windows. Inside I found an impeccably clean modish cafe; however...

Why is it empty?

All of the dozen or so square tables were surrounded by empty seats. Akina maneuvered around them until she was standing beside a larger rectangular table in the centre of the room, and she rose her arm slightly towards it.

“Take a seat. Hime-sama will be here shortly.”

I walked up and pulled a seat out from under the table, making sure not to drag it against the floor too much, and took a seat. Once I’d sat down, Akina sat down with her back straight in the seat beside me.

Smart, putting the table between me and her mistresses, oh, wait a second...

“You know, when you say hime-sama, are you refering to Saya or Kana?” I said.

“Don’t speak Hime-sama’s name.”

And I thought we were on good terms by now...

“Whose name?”

“Hime-sama’s obviously! You should show her respect for allowing you to be in her presence.”

Fiercely loyal, but also a little daft.

“I still have no idea who you’re talking about.”

Akina’s head snapped in my direction, her face concealed by a veil of darkness. Her fingernails scraped against the sides of her wooden chair, and the screeching of nails on a chalkboard filled my ears. This is all figuratively speaking and none of it actually happened, but the glint in her eyes did make me shiver.

“Hime-sama doesn’t understand but I do. I know what you’re after and I won’t let you take it.”

I smirked.

That ain’t your decision to-

Footsteps touched my ears, and Akina immediately jumped out of her seat, silently, and spun around. I stayed seated, opting to turn my body to look behind me.

From the same entrance we’d come through, Saya and Akina strolled in side by side. They were dressed similarly to the last time I’d seen them, albeit, it struck me even more how radiant they were, as this time they were the one’s approaching me.

Saya’s eyes found mine while she walked. Her scorching red irises blazing against my ashen gray as we observed each other, the world around us frozen for a split second before our eyes moved on. She looked forward, at Akina I would guess, and my eyes travelled south, inspecting the rest of her figure. I first found her neck, the base of it wrapped in the collar of her pure white dress shirt, and, going lower, I followed the buttons down her chest until I encountered her red cardigan at the border to her breasts, closed together with charcoal black buttons.

Saya drew closer, no more than six or seven steps away. Her long straightened blonde hair shaking slightly with each step forward, and hurriedly my eyes swept over the rest of her. Short light brown culotte shorts with a white lace trim, and long white legs leading into black knee socks…

Holy shit. Thank you, god whom I do not believe in, for giving me this opportunity! I promise to not waste it!

I made sure to save the model of this goddess in my mind as motivation. I wasn’t one-hundred percent sure what Akina thought I was after, but now I knew, for sure, what I wanted.

And then Akina slapped me.

Oh yeah, she knows.

I rubbed my now sizzling cheek and looked down at Akina. It’s a little weird having to look down at my attacker, but that wasn’t important. The palm speeding towards my face was though.

“Akina!” Shouted Saya, snatching Akina’s wrist just before her hand impacted my cheek.

Instantly, Akina’s hand limpened. Not wanting to fight against her Hime-sama…

Wait, I still don’t know who her ‘Hime-sama’ is.

“He was staring at you,” said Akina, returning her hand to her side while Saya did the same

“You’re aware of the fact I don’t like excuses. Apologise to Ryu.”

Akina turned towards me and bowed until the top of her body was perpendicular to the bottom.

Wow, no hesitation. Guess she is the type to follow any order.

Saya looked at me again, her red eyes lukewarm. “I’m sorry for Akina’s behaviour, and it may sound silly for me to say this again, but she isn’t normally like this.”

My eyes flicked to Akina for a moment, catching the disgruntled look on her face. A stark contrast to the quiet maid I’d taken her to be. The memory of Kana teasing me also popped into my mind. Conclusion: people are unpredictable.

“It’s fine.”

Saya gave me a quick nod before moving to sit down opposite me. Kana had already taken her seat, so once Saya was seated Akina sat down beside me.

A stream of footsteps flowed into my ears as a dozen chefs dressed in white carried in platters of food.

“Wow.”

I heard a giggle and looked to the source to find Kana smiling.

“I’ve never seen so much food before,” I said, explaining my reaction.

Kana spoke quickly, eager to talk. “You’re a commoner so I understand, but your reactions are still refreshing. So much more honest than-”

“Kana don’t be rude. Ryu is our guest,” said Saya, interrupting her sister.

“I’m pretty relaxed so it’s alright.” I stopped speaking to watch as the chef's began to lay their platters on the table, the scent snaking through the air. “So is this normal for you?”

“No. Our usual meals are far more modest,” said Saya.

While Saya spoke the last of the platters were laid down, along with white plates and silverware that actually sparkled under the light.

I picked up my fork, but stopped as I looked around the table. Three dazzling young ladies and a table stocked to the brim with food, a situation I could only imagine… I put down my fork and pinched my left arm. Nope. Not a dream.

I spoke up. “So… why are you doing all this for me? Like, I’m happy that you’re being so nice to me, but, it’s just… we barely know each other.”

I focused on Saya, and then Kana, waiting.

Kana’s lips moved. “You’re the only person who’s ever approached us.”

“What?” My reaction was instant, with my eyebrows coming together.

“She’s correct,” said Saya, confusing me even more.

“I don’t get it,” I said, my eyes bouncing left and right.

Kana sighed. “I mean, us, as in, like, you didn’t come to us because we were princesses, but because you really did want to get to know us. I could feel it so I know it’s true.”

I gave myself five or six seconds to comprehend what had just been said.

“Oh… that’s hard to believe but I guess I’ll believe you.”

Saya spoke up. “I can understand you having doubts, but it truly was very refreshing to have you approach us. Most people who do only do so to increase their favorability with our mother.”

I got a little lost at the end of Saya’s statement but still got the general idea. “I’m not as pure as I look you know.”

“We know, but at least you’re honest about it,” said Kana, reaching out to grab a piece of toast. “Girls either hate us or worship us, and the only guys who approach us are complete fakes.”

“It’s somewhat pitying, as all it leaves us with is you,” said Saya.

“Huh?” I exclaimed, my head snapping towards Saya.

Akina snickered and Saya spoke again.

“It was a joke Ryu. We’re happy to see you again.”

“Oh… I see.” I let out a short laugh.

The table went quiet then, as everyone sought out bits and pieces from the dozen platters before us. There was no way we would finish this all, but it all looked so delectable… so I grabbed a little bit of everything. Greed is good.

At some point while we ate, I decided to speak.

“So what school did you guys get into?”

Saya stopped her fork in midair, a piece of chocolate cake stuck to it, “All three of us attend Red Academy.” Her hand then continued to move, putting the cake into her mouth.

My gaze shifted towards my own plate which had another four things I still needed to try on it. “Wow! That’s really impressive.”

Immediately after I finished speaking Akina spoke up, having made sure not to interrupt me lest Saya berate her again. “It’s only natural that Hime-sama would attend Red Academy, she’s a prodigy.”

“Oh,” I looked at Saya while she was still chewing. “Well you do seem like a pretty hard worker to me.”

Saya’s chewing slowed down and she stared at me.

“Like, you speak really formally and-”

“What about me?” said Kana, her voice full of energy.

I’m not gonna regret this am I?

“You’re very energetic.”

“Really?” said Kana.

“I don’t know, it’s just an observation,” I said.

“Uh-huh… so I’m just energetic,” mumbled Kana.

Saya finished eating and decided to throw me her opinion. “I respect your honesty Ryu.”

“Thanks.”

“If you’re curious, I do think you’re a very observant person. Though you may need to work on considering the repercussions of what you say.”

I already am…

“And Kana isn’t actually bothered, she’s simply playing with you.”

“I kinda got that idea from last time,” I said.

Saya nodded her head a few times, “mhm.”

I just proved her point didn’t I?

“What school do you attend?” said Saya.

“I’m pretty sure you could find out without asking me,” I said.

Kana jumped in. “We already know you attend Green Academy, but she was just asking to be polite.”

“Mhm…” I mimicked Saya’s response from earlier without realising, causing her eyebrows to bunch together for a moment.

Saya continued. “Well, you don’t seem to be attending any regular classes since you’re the sole student of Miss Hopson. Would you know why?”

It would’ve been interesting to know how Saya was acquiring all this information.

“She doesn’t like to be called that.”

“Hmm?”

“She prefers to be called Livia.”

“Okay.” Saya’s eyes bounced around the room for a moment, trying to figure out where that had come from. “Well why is she tutoring you?”

“I don’t know,” I said, looking down at my plate. Three to go.

Everyone else had pretty much finished eating at this point, so now they were looking for something else to occupy themselves with. Kana, bored, had her head propped up by the cheek, resting on one of her fists, and, well, Akina was simply sitting silent, back straight.

Probably awaiting an opportunity to redeem herself with Hime-sama.

And Saya was occupying herself with conversation, though it was beginning to feel closer to an interrogation with all the questions I was being asked. Perhaps this is how they gathered all their information?

“You’re rather lucky to have her as a mentor, especially considering her credentials. Have you considered she may be looking at you as a potential apprentice?”

I snorted, rudely. “That makes zero sense. Why would you try find an apprentice in Green Academy? Just go to red or something.”

“Your logic is sound, but I suppose you’re still new to this society. Almost all the students in the higher ranks are being tutored by mentors like Miss Hopson.”

“And did any of them start from Green Academy?”

“They are generally scouted from Orange and very rarely Yellow Acade-”

“So no one from Green Academy?”

“Correct, but Miss Hopson is a bit of an anomaly.”

“Mhm,” I exclaimed, while slowly munching on a brownie. I could definitely agree with that.

“She choose to ignore the many offers given to her upon graduation and enter her own independent research, which, while surprising, is understandable. Though, only this year she began visiting various academies and accepted a position as your tutor. Many would guess she’s given up on her research or perhaps wants a change in lifestyle.”

“You memorized all of that?” I said.

Saya opened her mouth-

“Of course she has.” Kana didn’t even try to hide the boredom from her voice. “She never forgets anything.”

“I can believe that,” I said.

“You should’ve seen her as a kid-”

Saya’s head swung left to glare at her sister. “Kana-”

“Every time someone asked a question she’d recite something from some book she’d been reading.”

“I no longer do such a thing.”

“Anyway are we done here? I’m bored,” said Kana.

“Don’t be impolite, Ryu is still eating,” said Saya.

I took another look at my plate. Two left. A slice of some deep red tart and mud cake. An interesting choice for lunch, and also a nonliteral middle finger to my goal of getting fit.

“It’s fine. I’m pretty much done plus I still got some work to catch up on.”

Saya and Akina stared at me.

“Livia gives me all my coursework as homework.”

“So what is she teaching you?” said Kana,

“Magic.”

Kana leaned forward with her elbows on the table, and her eyes lined up with mine. “Really? What do you know?”

“She hasn’t really taught me how to use magic, but I can melt stuff.”

“That makes no sense, she hasn’t taught you but she has?”

“She’s teaching me how to control my magic.”

“Ahh…” said Saya, causing my eyes to jump to her.

“What?” I said.

“You might be a natural, which could explain why she’s taken an interest in you,” said Saya.

“Ahh…” Kana copied her sister’s reaction. “That makes sense.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said.

“Can you make my plate float?” said Saya.

“No I cannot make your plate float.”

“Why?”

I stared at Saya.

Seriously?

“I have no idea how to make a plate float.”

“Do you know why magic is called magic?” said Saya, going in another seemingly unrelated direction.

“It doesn’t matter, you’re going to tell me anyway.”

“It’s because it doesn’t consistently follow any rules. Even for the same task, some people can perform them with nothing other than a thought, whilst others may never be able to perform them at all.”

“I see.” What Saya was saying barely made any sense to me at the moment.

“So how did you melt something?”

“I thought about adding heat energy until it melted, and then it did.”

Kana sighed, probably bored again, and a little annoyed that her sister had stolen the conversation from her.

“I would wager that you created those rules for yourself as a way of making sense of this all,” said Saya, taking a short breath. “It’s a normal and logical approach. We are afterall used to things working in one way. However, I know for sure that I could melt this plate without any such requirements.”

“You just said we can have different requirements didn’t you? Maybe it’s that.”

“I didn’t mean it like that. Perhaps a better example would that be some tasks can be performed with nothing but a thought whilst others can require a precisely calculated magic formula. I believe your tutor will cover this for you in greater detail, so it’s okay if you don’t understand right now.”

“Zzz,” mumbled Kana, her head now resting on the table.

My eyes snapped to Kana. “Okay! I get it.”

“Oh?” Saya was a little taken aback by my voice. “That’s good.”

I looked at Saya for a moment. “No I was talking to Kana.” My eyes returned to Kana. “I get that you’re bored, and I’m pretty much done and I got work to do, so I guess we can end this and meet again some other time?”

Kana’s head shot up, “YES! LET’S GO!”

Akina stood up and waited beside the table, taking that as an order.

Wait, so is Kana her Hime-sama?

A little mexican girl popped up in my head and said “why not both?”

Of course! It’s both of them.

Akina whipped out her phone and tapped the screen a couple times. “I’ve notified the guards that we will be leaving,” said Akina.

Or perhaps she’s just eager to get me away from her Hime-sama?

Kana practically kicked her chair back as she stood up and rushed to the door. “It was nice seeing you Ryu.”

If Saya was mad she certainly knew how to hide it, as she only sighed and stood up.

“I’m sorry about Kana.”

“It’s fine.”

How many times have I said that now? I really need to expand my vocabulary.

Saya must’ve realised as well.

“I would like to hope you saying that is not due to me being a princess. Your honesty is what caught our interest after all.”

“I actually don’t mind.”

Saya opened her mouth but said nothing and closed it again, choosing to give me a quick curtsy first.

“Enjoy the rest of your weekend. The first test is in two weeks and I’m confidant that Miss Hopson is no underachiever, so good luck.”

Saya headed for the door with Akina following behind, and it was only when I heard the door close behind them that I thought…

Crap. I forgot to say goodbye. So much for having good manners Ryu.