Ill Informed

Izumi might have been impressed with the speed in which Alice came to defend her. If it were for the fact that the students who had boobytrapped the door seemed far too used to the fuss. All of the new occupants looked like they were kinda bored despite the pink haired demon yelling at them.

"So anybody who didn't bet that the honor student would not get hit and leave without playing turned in your money." A slightly familiar voice called. Her eyes turned to see a boy with dark hair and maroon eyes holding up his hand as the throngs of students grumbled as they held out bills to him. She thought for a second she had recognized him, but from where?

He looked up to see her looking and waved at her. "Hey, looks like we ended up in the same class."

The boy! He had sat in front of her in the auditorium. "Yeah. I never caught your name by the way."

"It's Andro Jazz." He grinned. "You were the first to take zero damage by the way."

"That's not really surprising. I don't think anyone could make it through all that without a scratch."

"True." The boy gave a little cough like laugh. "There was a guy who took full damage though."

"Full damage?" She wasn't sure if she even wanted to know what that meant. She grimaced if she took zero damage she hated to think what someone who took full damage looked like.

"Of course." A loud, obnoxious yet dreadfully familiar voice called through the crowded room. Izumi turned away from Jazz to see the very same yellow head lummox from the other day rising from his seat, weapons still impaled in his pale skin. "Only a coward would dodge a challenge."

Somehow she felt like he was indirectly calling her a coward. Perhaps to goad her into a fight, though the insinuation did not bother her much. She was sure in the fact that when push came to shove she would be ready. It did take courage to fling your fists around. At least not in her opinion and hers was the one that mattered.

However, as she stared at his body that was riddled with weapons she couldn't help the next words out of her mouth. "No, that tracks." She wasn't really surprised, especially seeing him at the entrance ceremony. He seemed to be hot headed and prone to diving head first at things. She nodded her head and turned back to talk to the maroon eyed boy.

"Hey, you. Izumi Suzuki!" He called for her attention, slightly offended that she had cut off his conversation with her. "I heard that you have bested our class representative and you even challenged me. Though that fight was interrupted. "The menace grimaced at the thought. "I thought it best to warn you that I will be the one to ascend to the highest level of Yodh and take the throne as demon king."

She looked at him. Opera had sat aside some time each night for her to learn a little about the culture of the underworld and its strange ways. Ranking was one of the first things he had taught her, but not a demon king. Which she should have expected as there were noble families so a king must be present. She would have to ask the cat demon about it more later. She simply stared at him with unimpressed eyes. "Okay, so why are you telling me?"

"I have determined the shortest path to reach my goal is to defeat every high ranking demon in this school and then conquer the crowns." He leaned down over the small blue haired woman. "You have bested our student representative with ease. He who was ranked and deemed the strongest of us first years. That puts you at the top. The one I need to best and the one who until that moment will be my rival." The demon's sharp claw was so close to her nose she could almost feel it touching her. She didn't like the feeling as her skin tingled as if it were touched.

She opened her mouth to say something when arms gently wrapped around her pulling her back and away from the towering demon. "That is enough Sabnock." Alice's voice vibrated against her ear and she glanced up seeing the fiery demon looking at the other male with nothing short of pure disdain.

"Do you have a problem, Asmodeus? You were ranked top of the class but were felled by an unknown demon in a fight you started. You have lost your place as my rival for making yourself a servant to him…"

"Her." Asmodeus cut him off. "My Mistress is Lady Izumi and you would do well to remember to address her properly." The venom in his words was enough to make her shiver. Especially since he had been the same way with her when they first met. She found it strange how fast he could change his tune. She pondered for a long time why he was less mad at her after she hurt him but wrote it off as a demon thing since neither Opera nor Grandpa had said anything. "And I am not her servant. I am her packmate."

The classroom became so quiet that someone could hear a pin drop. Then all at once the students started talking but not about her status with the pink haired demon. No, they were all too interested in her gender. All of them were asking questions.

They crowded around her asking more questions than she could keep up with. Why did she wore the male uniform? Why she didn't correct anyone? Was she mad that people were misgendering her? Her head spun slightly. She had never had so many people so personally interested in her and it was alarming. Yet she enjoyed it just a bit.

"Be silent." A deep but dreadfully familiar voice echoed through the classroom making each student make settle for a brief moment. She felt a stiffness engulfing her spine. Of all the rotten luck for her to have, of course it would be the teacher she had the least favor with who would be her home room teacher. Displeasure curled around her guts as she leveled pointedly looked at anywhere other than the ferocious demon.

For Kalego's part, he was equally unenthused to be the head teacher of this class. He was an excellent teacher and deserved to have gifted students to impart his knowledge on. As it were he doubted that even a fourth of these students would be able to soak up even a drop of education with their hyperactive and thoughtless actions and their less than stellar behavior. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was planned and orchestrated to get him to watch over the chairman's grandchild. Werther Opera was aware of her significance or they were plotting something deeper the guard dog did not know but he would not fall for some petty plan. He would be impartial and unbiased towards her.

He glanced in her direction only to find that she was looking off to the side with a bored look on her face. He gritted his teeth and sneered at the class. "Let's go. Today's class has begun."

Apparently the first day was a race according to Alice. She wasn't a bad runner nor was she particularly grand at it. She however was fairly confident she would not be the slowest. Kalego escorted the students to a room that was just a little further down the hall. It was only decorated with nothing but four blank walls. He ushered them in and closed the door. And then he opened it again only this time bright light spilled through the door. It was nothing like the dreary and barely corridor that had been just outside the door. She looked out the door in amazement.

The demon world was ki9nda amazing. It was alive in a way that not even the human world was. Everything was so strange and grotesque but also weirdly appealing. She stepped out of the doorway to find that the room had not moved, only the door frame did. She circled the doorframe and found that while you could see the room from the front, you could only see the expanse of cliff through the back.

"Lady Izu, have you never gone through a shifter before?" She knew that it was Alice asking her the question by the formal nickname he was addressing her as but she found herself turning her questioning eyes to him anyways. He beamed as she begged for more information through her eyes. Though it was strange, shifters, or the shifting frame, were easily obtained/crafted through low level magic. Someone from such a wealthy family as her should have quite a few. Though if he thought about it the Avernus clan was quite…eccentric. "These doors are called Shifting frames, they close in one place and open in another to allow quick access to the desired location. Though once the door is closed it will disappear from the destination and return to its original setting."

She stared in wonder at the door, little sparkles in her eyes the only thing that gave away her feelings. This would be an excellent way to travel to school. But she also wouldn't be able to return without leaving the door open all day, so she supposed it wasn't feasible or safe to leave it lying around. Too bad.

"Alright Cretins line up." Kalego's voice broke through the babble and soured the girl's mood. It was a bit petty but she was beginning to dislike his voice no matter how attractive it sounded as it had nothing good to say. She didn't know what her heart was thinking when it skipped a beat at the familiar ceremony. "The previous familiar test and this will be graded together and give you your rank. You must reach the flag planet at the other end of the valley to complete the race. Be wary of the demon birds, they are territorial this time of year. Also do to circumstances, you must use Saezuri Valley."

"WHAT?!" Sabnock shouted outraged. "Why can we not use Kanakiri Valley? Only true demons use that path."

"Well, the Guardian of the Valley has been in a foul mood for some reason. Thus it is now a restricted area until it calms down." The demon sighed knowing the explanation would not tame all the demons. "To go there is to court death."

"I will not accept this." The large demon shouted in beg gestures before gesturing to himself with his thumb. " I will conquer Kanakiri Valley no matter what."

"Then you will die." The teacher had no reaction to the blonde's fury. "Now everyone, prepare to start." Every demon around her extended pitchblack wings from their backs and a cold shiver went down her back. She was missing something as her eyes roved over the side of the cliff they were standing on.

There weren't any stairs…

"If everyone is ready…" Kalego's voice never sounded so ominous as she realized what kind of race this was.

"I have been woefully ill informed." She whispered under her breath, her heart picking up speed. Forget last place if this was a course designed for flying she would be lucky to finish it today.

"Then Begin!" His voice echoed as each of the 12 demons around her zoomed off.

Opera looked out the window, a bad feeling weighing them down. They had forgotten something important, but for the life of them they could not figure it out as they handed another of the packets of paperwork to the depressed head demon. Lady Izumi should be making even more allies today. It was the first day so it should be rather easy.

It only consisted of the flying test…

The red orbs widened as the packets in their hands dropped to the floor in the demon's shock.

"Calm." The chairdemon said in a voice not cheerful but full of authority. He ran a finger in circles on the desk. "It's handled."

Handled? What had he done to handle it?

"Izumi will make it exactly where she needs to be." He chuckled softly. Then he held a hand out for the next packet with a childlike look on his face. "Don't you trust me, Opera?"

They did, or rather they had no other option but to trust the chair demon.

"What are you doing?" The harsh voice spoke behind her as she stared out at the sheer drop off.

"Sir, I think there has been a…" She had no time to finish the sentence as a boot planted itself firmly in her back.

"Just go already." He huffed, annoyed. He had no time nor did he have the patience to deal with demons who had a problem with height. And she would be fine after all, it was only flying. Even baby demons could fly.

Though he couldn't see it, Izumi's face slipped into shock as the ground beneath her feet disappeared and wind whipped around her face. A scream didn't even leave her lips so great was her disbelief. He had pushed her, no, kicked her from the cliff. She was falling.