The students were ushered up to the hall where they were seated as the freshman ceremony began.

It’s taking too long, Kuuya thought.

A whole lot of drivel talking about the hardships humanity was going through, and how curriculum was going to change a little to meet with new demands in working society. And of course, how everyone present should be grateful to be given another chance at education after a year of uncertainty in the world. There were some students who were already fast asleep. Kuuya chuckled inwardly, thinking that the world hadn’t really changed too much after all.

Soon it was time for the student representative to take the podium. A girl with long, straight hair down to her waist walked up to the stage with a good poise.

“Greetings freshmen! Today we stand here, welcoming…”

Nanami Nishihara. Principal’s daughter. Grateful to be here. Got it.

The ceremony ended, and soon we were separated based on our classes that we knew beforehand.

“Ahh finally it’s over… Augh… I’ll be off this way then.” Mei waves as she stretches her arms.

“Ou. Lunch break?”

“Mm, I heard we leave early today though, today’s just induction after all.”

“Well let’s walk back together later then?”

“Okay, I’ll go on first. I’ll drop a message.”

Kuuya watched his exhausted sibling leave with another girl, and joins a queue following the teacher holding up the 1B sign.

From then on, he was acquainted with where his classroom was and who his classmates were and where he would be seated. He gave light greetings to his desk neighbours and promised to exchange contacts with each other. The bare minimum was necessary to maintain social relationships, Kuuya thought to himself while smiling. Within his contacts, he’d even managed to score one from the girls. The day passed relatively quickly as the classes took turns to tour the school.

It was late afternoon, and the class was shortly dismissed.

“Hey Kuuya-san. The boys are planning to meet up after this for a round at the nearby arcade, you joinin’?”

“Ah… not today. I gotta leave with my older sister haha… It’s a pity.”

“Oh you have an older sister? She’s in this school too?”

“Yeah, we came here together this morning.”

“O-Oh… What class is she in? Is she pretty?”

“Oi Tamagin, you’re being bothersome right now!”

The circle of neighbors had a light round of laughter, giving off a friendly mood within the classroom.

This is high school life...

Kuuya shared some light-hearted talk around his sister, before he was let off with a promise to join them tomorrow.

As Kuuya walked out of the school gates, he received a text with the meetup location.

<Ice-cream>

“This lass…” Kuuya laughed defeatedly, as he pulled his wallet out for a bill.

As he looked around for the vendor, his eyes caught sight of one of the men in suits he noticed in the morning. He was speaking to a woman in a similar suit. Their expressions seemed tense. What’s that? They started to run off somewhere together.

…I hope nothing’s wrong again. Kuuya turns elsewhere and finds his sister already putting in work on her after-school dessert. As she noticed his approach, Mei turns to the vendor and pointed at him. Expecting this, the boy resigns himself and paid for the ice-cream.

“You don’t want one?”

“Nay. You enjoy yourself.”

“I will~” Mei licks her cone unabashedly, ignoring the sarcasm coming from her brother.

The two boarded the next bus, and enjoyed a silent trip back home.

By the time they returned, the sky was already starting to turn dark.

“Oh you kids, today was early.”

“Un, there was induction for Kuuya and the others. Proper classes only start next week.”

“Ah… well then, you kids go on up for now then and wash up. Dinner won’t be ready for a while.”

Kuuya took the small flight of stairs, entered his room and locked it.

His mind hadn’t been on the phone, but because of the guys in suits, the boy couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of anxiety.

Powers that had already been neutered by the world. He was sure that his ability:『Cloning 』had also disappeared. But…

His hand reached under his pillow. And in that instant, he could see those notifications again.

〖Your clone in another world has died!〗 

These were the first words that caught his attention.

“My clone… died? Another… world?”

As he mumured the words under his breath, a faint recollection began to rewind his memories back to that day when he first gained this ability.