Operation Strix went… a little bit awry. Something about a space hotel, an infiltration, an explosion, hundreds of deaths and the death of Twilight.
At least, that's what WISE would have you believe.
It's not all lies. There was, in fact a space hotel, and there was, in fact, an infiltration, and there was even an explosion, but hundreds of deaths? The death of Twilight?
In reality, everyone on the space station had been safely and securely transported to another planet. To everyone in Westalis and Ostania, this world was entirely unknown. The space race had come and gone, and with it, interstellar technology capable of exploring galaxies.
But where'd they end up? Well, the place might be a bit more familiar to some of you readers.
Modern-day Japan.
Mission 1: TransferA pink-haired girl with hair accessories that seemingly defied the laws of physics- no, not Fujiwara, the short one- stood at the entrance to the gates of Shuchiin academy.
Damn, I hate mondays.
I wonder what's for lunch?
I hope I'm not already late…
Anya had learned to tune out most people's thoughts. It was easier with more people, the same way it's easy to tune out a lot of people talking, but after being raised Twilight himself, she learned that not everything someone has to say is necessarily interesting.
"I should probably get to class now, shouldn't I?"
So she did.
###
"Hello, class, today we have a new transfer student. Would you like to introduce yourself?"
Anya took a quick bow, answering with a wide smile on her face.
"I'm Anya Forger! I hope that we can all get along well as a class."
There was a small smattering of applause as Anya walked to her seat.
That girl's pretty cute.
She's cute, huh?
She looks cute, doesn't she?
Anya raised an eyebrow at these thoughts before a smug smile appeared on her face.
Fufufu… I'm already getting well-liked by the class! That's good. At least this'll be the last school transfer for a while-
Isn't that the new member of the Shijo family? He looks really dreamy~
Anya, ignoring the second part of this thought, turned to look at where this thought came from before looking at the front of the class. Her jaw dropped when she heard the boy at the front say…
"My name is Damian Shijo. I look forward to being a member of the class!"
Anya stared at Damian's serious expression for a few moments before…
"Sy-on boy!"
…
What's that girl doing?
Sy-on boy? What does that mean?
Anya ignored the other thoughts in the room, instead, straightening herself as high as she could and giving him a wide smile.
"It's good to see you again, Sy-on boy!"
"Eh? What do you-"
Damian's eyes went wide and his jaws dropped as he looked at Anya's hair cones.
…
"F-Forger? Is that really you?"
Who are these people?
Wait, they know each other?
I thought that the student council secretary was the only one with pink hair, but now there're 2 of them?
The teacher cleared her throat, catching everyone's attention.
"If you don't mind, class is starting now, so…"
"Yes, ma'am!" x22
###
It's really weird how even in a place where we're supposed to be learning, everyone's minds are so empty-
Is this the right time?
Anya looked to her right where she saw Damian instantly flick his head towards the board.
…
She didn't see me, right?
I totally saw that.
Anya looked back towards the board with her trademarked "I'm bored" face before she felt a tap on the shoulder. She turned to the right to see Damian staring at the floor between them.
Is there something interesting on the floor he wants to show me?
Anya looked down as well to find out that the floor was, indeed, made out of floor.
"So, uh, Forger…"
Anya looked at Damian's face which appeared to be going a little red.
Eh? Why is he blushing? Is staring at the floor that embarrassing? Wait, but that can't be right, I stare at the floor all the time so that's not-
"Thank you, Forger."
The 2 of them were now right next to each other, their noses almost touching. Damian pulled back immediately while Anya pulled back when she saw Damian do so.
Sy-on boy's being really weird… It's been something like 5 years, but he really hasn't changed that much, has he?
"Is this about the spaceship?"
Damian jolted upright for a moment before allowing his body to relax.
"Y-yeah. I'd be dead or worse now, so… thanks for that."
Anya raised her eyebrows before giving Damian a quick smile.
"I know, right? I totally saved your life back there~"
"Hey, don't get too smug about it…"
"I literally saved your life and the lives of hundreds of people, so I'd think that I deserve to gloat a little, right?"
That's a story for another day.
"Yeah… I guess so…"
*silence*
Hm. Maybe people do change after all. Besides, this is great! I was wondering what dad was briefing me on, but I think I get it now! If Sy-on boy's a Shijo, then infiltrating the Shijo Family and taking down the Shinomiyas'll be a piece of cake, won't it?
This girl was a Spy-In-Training. Having trained her body from a young age, this girl could easily level buildings and stop moving trains. Combine that with top-of-the-line training from Twilight himself and telepathy and this girl may just be truly unstoppable.
Plus, they'll probably give me loads of peanuts if I get close to them!
So long as she overcomes some… personal setbacks.
Anya now wore a proud grin.
Plus, this time'll be different! Dad's giving me actual spy training and I've learned a lot about psychology, so I'm sure I'll do a lot better!
She pumped her fists down in front of her with starry eyes, fully energized for the class ahead of her!
###
I'm bored… x21
…
Anya peeked over at Damian who seemed to be furiously writing down notes and nodding along with what the teacher said before going back to staring at the ceiling.
How can someone be that studious? Geez~ Maybe I should start paying attention too. Dad said that I might need good grades to get close with the Shijos-
Cute.
Anya raised an eyebrow and turned to her right before seeing Damian facing the front.
…
Crap! This was the second time she caught me, right? Dammit, this definitely isn't good… Alright, stay calm! It's not like she actually saw you or anything!
"Were you staring at me, Sy-on boy?"
Ack!
Damian cleared his throat and turned to look down at Anya.
"No, I didn't. Why would I do something like that?"
He turned back to the front of the class, leaving Anya to her thoughts.
Dang, he's a really good liar. I'm even doubting whether I heard his thoughts correctly-
She believed me, right?
-yeah, I definitely heard right. So why would he lie about that? Could it be that Sy-on boy…
Suddenly, a look of realization washed over Anya's face as she turned to Damian with her mouth slightly open.
Is an assassin?!
She began furiously clawing at her head in confusion.
Did he figure me out already? Am I that bad of a spy? I'm so sorry, Father~ Wait! It's not hopeless! He might not've figured me out yet! Alright, so why else would he lie to me?
Her mind went back to a memory of a conversation that she had with Loid the day before.
"I know that I can tell when someone's lying, but why would anyone do that?"
"Oh, that? If someone lies to you, then it might be because they want you to think of them a certain way. It could also because they want something from you which is the easiest to get through lying."
I see! So what do I have that Sy-on boy can only get through lying?
…
Anya put her head on her desk.
I can't think of anything… Why is it so hard to come up with a reason why he might lie-
Damn, her hair looks really good, doesn't it? Her horn things always confused me a little, but they look really good on her… The school uniform's also really pretty…
Anya continued listening to his thoughts for a few moments before…
3, 2, 1, now!
She looked up with the speed only achievable by being the daughter of a Garden assassin only to see…
I definitely felt his gaze, but aren't his reflexes way too quick?
"Why are you staring at me, Sy-on boy?"
Gak!
…
"N-no…"
…
Less convincing this time, Sy-on boy.
"A-anyways, why would you care?"
Damian looked up with a determined expression only to be met with…
"W-well, you're making me a little uncomfortable, so…"
Anya fidgeted on the spot a little while her cheeks went a little pink.
I feel like you're plotting something.
…
"A-ah! I see! W-well, in that case, uh, well…"
Damian looked away, his face turning completely red and his mind going completely blank.
She… felt like that, huh? W-well, I guess it's only natural with how I look…
Anya stared at him with a blank expression before shaking her head a little.
I should start paying attention to class more often.
And thus, another misunderstanding was born.
