Chapter 4

Satu and I stood in silence.

She was looking at her feet, and I was secretly examining the office. I wondered if this was Koji's alone? Or was there someone else here?

Of course there was. There, in the corner, was another desk and chair. On that desk were also writing supplies, a cluster of crystals, and a pile of stacked scrolls. Everything was so neat and restrained, it was immediately clear that the owner of this place was a person accustomed to a life of asceticism.

Satu was silent, and what was I supposed to do? Complain? Koji's gaze made me want to shut up instantly. It seemed Aska had gotten into trouble before. And no one likes a loser.

I didn't really have time to ponder the motives for Aska's behavior. If only because I had no idea what kind of person she had been. Just... bits and pieces, conversations with her friends, and now—a fight in the dining hall.

I involuntarily glanced at my keikogi. They had soiled such a nice thing. And I was still hungry, by the way. Outrageous. Who gets into a fight on an empty stomach? They wasted food and didn't even get any satisfaction. Ugh.

"A fight, Teacher," Satu finally said.

The words clearly came with difficulty, but prolonged silence was not a good sign. Even I could feel that.

"How nice of you to admit it," Koji said with a hint of irony, turning to us. "Since when, student Ikeda, has ganging up on one person become worthy of a Gozen School student?"

When he said her family name, Satu flinched as if she'd been slapped. Her eyes flashed with anger, and her lips tightened into a thin line. It seemed the temperature in the room instantly shot up by several degrees, as if the red ribbons in Satu's hair and her belt had burst into white flame.

What did Koji say that was so explosive? I could see that she wasn't truly upset about being reprimanded for bad behavior. In my opinion, she wasn't even particularly remorseful that the four of them had attacked me. The family name... something was wrong with it.

It was as if an echo rang in my head: "...the Ikeda Clan is the sky."

I frowned, trying to connect the two.

"Aska knows her fault," Satu said slowly. "And she should have known that no one would forgive the insult."

Okay, what did this girl blab about?

My calf began to itch, but I gritted my teeth. Endure. Endure and play the innocent victim; maybe it will work. Even though Satu was being scolded now, they were still looking at me with disapproval.

"You two are insulting each other quite often," Koji noted in the meantime. "It seems to be becoming a habit, don't you think?"

So, clashes were a regular thing. I needed to be on my guard. I clearly had more enemies here than friends.

"She deserves it," Satu said coldly.

"It is not for you to decide who deserves what, student Ikeda," Koji replied in a way that made me want to back away, and Satu lowered her gaze, admitting she was wrong. "In the Gozen School, everyone is equal. Trying to determine whose clan is stronger and more powerful is not only strange, but also foolish. If your clans were as you say, you wouldn't be standing before me here right now."

This time, Koji looked at me very carefully. There was a silent reproach in his dark eyes. It seemed he was a little sorry that I had been hit on the head, but he wasn't going to give me any special treatment.

"Aska, this applies to you too," his voice rang out. "Especially to you. Before you run your mouth, think with your head."

"Yes, Teacher," I found the most neutral answer.

Shouting, "What did I do?" would have been completely inappropriate right now. I couldn't explain it logically, but my intuition told me not to show off.

Koji sat at his desk and touched one of the black crystals. It flashed with a white light and then went out. What was that? Some kind of object unknown in my past?

"In an hour, you will go to clear out the storehouse," he said with a completely unreadable face. "I've notified the quartermaster; they will come for you."

Satu let out a barely audible groan.

"Not again..."

"Judging by your behavior, you can't live without the storehouse," Koji remarked. "Therefore, you will be spending time there permanently."

Satu gritted her teeth and gave me a furious look.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Yes, yes," Koji continued, "in a pair with Aska. You can't handle the crates alone there, so working together is just what you need."

"In a pair?" I echoed.

"In a pair," Koji confirmed smoothly. "At the same time, you'll learn to curb your anger and think before you act. Hard work and humility. Is that clear to both of you?"

Satu's gaze clearly read: "I'll kill you." The corner of my lips involuntarily twitched into a smile. Just try it, you little bitch. Your friends won't be there.

But Koji didn't miss it, even though he was looking through a scroll at the time.

"If you decide to start a fight for the love of all the gods. Just don't complain afterwards that you end up in the forest near a tsumi's lair."

There was something in his tone that made me believe him instantly. He would grab us both by the scruffs of our necks like kittens and throw us out. Satu understood this too, so she just nodded sullenly.

"You're dismissed," he said.

We stood in silence for a while, but then we realized we should go. I went out first; Satu followed.

"Student Ikeda," Koji's voice reached us.

We both involuntarily froze. Satu turned around.

"Yes, Teacher Koji?"

"Hand over your tessen. Immediately."

She clenched her fists so hard her knuckles turned white.

"But, Teacher..."

"Are you going to contradict me?"

Satu lowered her gaze again.

I didn't wait to see what would happen next. What I had seen was enough to understand: the tessen, the fighting fan, held special value for her.

***

"What, he just told you to hand it over?" Misaki's eyes widened, forgetting the rice she was about to put in her mouth.

I nodded. I had finally managed to get to some food, though I had to race back to my room to change and then race back here just as fast. Thank the gods... or that woman, what's her name... the Weaver, Misaki and Haruka had waited for me. They had also saved me some food. So now I was eating ravenously, almost purring with pleasure.

"He ordered her to. She was against it, but..." I continued.

"Of course she was," Haruka snorted. "That fan was passed down from her mother. Or rather... it was given as a gift before all the Ikedas..."

"What about the Ikedas?" I immediately asked, looking at my friend intently.

"A dead clan," Misaki answered. "A clan that will never return to Taiyoganori. You know that yourself."

"But Satu is from it?" I blurted out.

The girls looked at me as if I were crazy.

"Aska, you're scaring me," Haruka drawled. "Next you'll say you forgot everything."

Silence fell.

Misaki tried to catch my eye.

"Aska?" she said tensely. "You're not... it's not true that you..."

"It's true," I answered curtly, realizing I couldn't miss this opportunity to understand. "Visiting the goddess's temple made me lose part of my memories."

Somewhere in the depths of my consciousness, the Weaver's quiet laugh echoed. Of course, this was very funny. But I had no other way to figure things out. So I would have to work with what I had.

Haruka clearly didn't like my amnesia. However, after a moment's hesitation, she finally said:

"Out of the four clans of Taiyoganori, only two remain now: Ze-u and Yuichi. The Ikeda Clan was destroyed. People like Satu just survived by some strange turn of events. But the Ikeda family temple was reduced to ashes. The leaders and priests, too. All that's left are those whose fates don't matter to the empire, unless... unless they carve out a place for themselves in the sun after finishing at the schools. Satu has nowhere to go; she's basically homeless. That's why she ended up at Gozen."

I processed the information.

Two clans left, one destroyed. But I remembered the Shenghai Clan perfectly well. I wonder what my friend would say about it?

"And..." I began.

Just then, Izamu rushed into the dining hall.

"Oh, Mochi-mochi's here," Misaki mumbled.

Mochi, if I wasn't mistaken, was a Japanese rice cake. The nickname was a perfect fit for the healer. My lips automatically curved into a smile when the breathless Izamu appeared beside me.

"Aska! You can't be trusted anywhere!" he exclaimed. "Just think, she can't even eat normally! No sooner has she left than she's already gotten herself a punishment! For the love of the Weaver, how did you manage it?"

"It wasn't my fault, they came at me," I grumbled, quickly gathering the vegetables and remaining rice with my chopsticks.

"They've already checked into the infirmary," Izamu noted smugly. "But that's not an answer."

And then, with unexpected strength, he yanked me from the table without even a squeak.

Haruka and Misaki remained in their seats, watching us with wide-eyed surprise.

"Where are you dragging me?" I protested, trying to keep up with his pace, but I was doing a very poor job of it.

The round and seemingly harmless healer had an incredible strength. He simply dragged me into the corridor by the scruff of my neck like a puppy. We didn't make it to Koji's office—the teacher himself just came out of it.

"I demand an explanation," Izamu declared. "Since when have my patients been subject to punishment?"

I glanced at him. Whoa. It seemed he was one of those doctors who would give even a tsumi a hard time if it dared to harm his patients.

However, Koji also wasn't easy to intimidate. Without changing his expression, he looked first at Izamu, then at me.

"What's the problem?" he asked in a calm tone. "No one is stopping you from treating the students. Unless you've already healed her, seeing as she's so ready for conflict."

"But..." I started indignantly.

Izamu stepped on my foot with such force that I almost howled and wisely shut up. It seemed they didn't want to hear me, so... it would be wise to be silent.

"Teacher Koji, Aska's ryoku will drain all her strength if there is any serious physical exertion. I demand a postponement of the punishment," Izamu said, unperturbed.

"As far as I know, there is no threat to her life," Koji didn't back down. "And having to exert more effort will do her good. Or would you, Healer, prefer to have the emperor's watchers shorten her tongue?"

Izamu turned pale.

It seemed these watchers were not very pleasant people. Suddenly, the storehouse seemed like a very nice place, even though I had never been there before.

Koji smiled. Yes, with that smile, you could cut an enemy's throat, let alone show them that they shouldn't contradict you.

The attempt to defend me had failed.

...I stood near a wooden building that looked like a huge barn, and for some reason, I hesitated to go inside. For some reason, it felt like I shouldn't go there. It wasn't fear yet, but a persistent warning.

Was someone lurking inside?

Footsteps sounded behind me. Satu appeared in my field of vision. She was also looking at the storehouse. Her gaze was thoughtful and grim.

"I hate you, Shenghai," she said flatly. "So much you can't even imagine. Beware."

And she walked forward, approached the door, and sharply pulled it open toward herself.

"This is going to be fun," I noted philosophically and followed her.

So, Shenghai.

Let's do this, Aska Shenghai.