Fourteenth Spell: The Clans of Mahoutokoro
Haru eventually found the stairs again and ascended them. But when he opened the door to his right, he found an empty classroom with low ebony wood tables, cushions for seats, and a mahogany desk that had a paper backdrop. So he had to retrace his steps while making sure the walls didn't move again, and found the Student Dining Hall up another flight of stairs in a room to his left.
The Student Dining Hall was a wide rectangular space with wooden poles supporting the crossbeam ceiling overhead and four long tables where students wearing different-colored kimonos sat crosslegged. At the end of each table sat a flag with a painted crest. One showed a blue dragon with a green background, another depicted a white tiger against a gray background, then a third showed a red songbird against an orange background, and the fourth was a black tortoise against a gold background. Down the center of these four tables stood a bunch of students wearing pink kimonos like him. He noticed Rui and Hikari among them, and realized these were the First-Year Secondary Students.
"Glad you could join us, Haru Ryuji," said a woman at the head of the line of students. She had medium-length dark hair and wore a dark-gray robe. "If you had been another moment late, I would have expelled you."
"What took you so long?" Hikari demanded. "The Initiation Ceremony was stalled because of you, Ryuji!"
"I got lost," Haru said exasperatedly.
A boy with medium black hair tied into a ponytail glanced back at Haru. "Did the walls change on you?"
"Yes, they did," Haru answered.
The boy with the ponytail upturned his nose. "You should've looked at a more detailed map of Mahoutokoro in the foyer."
"How should I know where that is? I just got here!"
"It's right inside the entrance to the school from the landing platform. Since you clearly didn't see it, I guess you're not very observant."
"All right, Maki, that's enough!" the woman in the dark-gray robe said. "It's time for us to begin the Initiation Ceremony."
"My apologies, Shō-Sensei," the boy with the ponytail said, though he didn't sound sincere.
Recognizing the names 'Shō' and 'Maki,' Haru realized the woman in the dark-gray robe was the Necromancy teacher Sayuri Shō that Higa told him about and the boy with the ponytail was Ryosei Maki's son Daizō.
"Now that you have all successfully graduated from the Primary School of Mahoutokoro, minus the Osozaki, you'll now be moving into the Secondary School of Mahoutokoro," Shō stated.
While the First-Year Secondary Students cheered, Haru found Shō's remark about him being an Osozaki as dismissive in tone.
"But before you join your fellow classmates here in the dining hall, you must be sorted into your Clans," Shō continued. "They are: Suzaku, Byakko, Genbu, and Seiryu. In case you need a reminder of what these Clans represent, I shall recite their descriptions."
Closing her eyes, Shō took a deep breath and recited a series of haikus:
Suzaku is bright,
like the sun in summertime,
and most elegant.
Byakko strikes fast
while the leaves fall in autumn.
A fine protector!
Genbu goes to sleep
during the long winter months.
So wise and gentle.
Seiryu is great,
like the rainfall in springtime.
How nobly splendid!
"Like the days of the Samurai, your Clan will serve as your family away from home," Shō continued after opening her eyes. "Your triumphs will earn you points toward your final grade. Any rule-breaking will not only result in lost points, but your robes will start to turn white as a reflection of your actions. When the school year ends, the Clan with the most points will earn the Clan Sword."
"What's the Clan Sword?" Haru asked, causing everyone to stare at him like he was an idiot.
"It's the sword that was passed down from Princess Iyo, the Founder of Mahoutokoro," Daizō said. "Didn't you read anything about this school before coming here?"
"No, I didn't!" Haru snapped.
"Enough!" Shō repeated. "If you two annoy me again, you'll both be sent to detention."
So Daizō and Haru said nothing back.
"So on that note, let's get the sorting over with." Then Shō stepped back and hit a large gong with a wooden mallet.
A spot suddenly opened beneath the floor and a podium rose with a large bronze mirror placed on it.
"The Subemitō Mirror," Hikari realized. "It's one of the three Sacred Treasures."
Haru was tempted to ask Hikari what exactly the Sacred Treasures were, but he didn't want to get in any more trouble so he stayed quiet.
"Yes, this is the Subemitō Mirror," Shō confirmed. "It has the power to show a person's true nature, which is why it's effective for sorting students into the Clans they belong to. So I will call your name and you will look into the mirror. An image will be projected above it and you'll sit at the table which matches your chosen Clan."
From the fold of her robe, Shō produced a medium-sized scroll and unrolled it.
"Boin, Sumi," Shō announced.
Next to Hikari, a girl with wavy brunette hair moved to the front. She nervously stood before the mirror and looked. There was a flash of light, and from the mirror appeared a shining image shaped like a songbird.
"Suzaku!" Shō announced.
The table with the songbird flag clapped politely as Sumi went to them.
"Fumito, Seita."
A boy with close-cut hair yawned as he stepped forward. Looking into the mirror, he closed his eyes while an image of a tortoise appeared over him.
"Genbu!"
This time, the table with the tortoise flag clapped slowly while Seita shuffled over.
Shō said a few more names before announcing, "Genma, Hikari."
Hikari smiled confidently and made her way up to the mirror. She didn't flinch as the mirror shone the image of the Suzaku songbird.
"I knew it!" Hikari exclaimed.
While Shō glared at her irritably, Hikari made her way over to the Suzaku table and joined her friend Sumi.
"All right," Shō remarked. Many more names later, she said, "Maki, Daizō."
Immediately the boy with the ponytail walked up to the mirror. But just before he got the chance to look at it, the mirror flashed an image of a dragon.
"Seiryu!" declared Shō.
Now the table with the dragon flag clapped proudly as Daizō joined them.
To be continued…