I see a narrow, shadowy tunnel. I can see a woman standing there.
I take a good look at her face, and before I know it, I start sprinting towards her. I expected her to wait for me or walk toward me, but instead, she gives me a familiar warm and gentle smile and starts walking away.
"No! Mom! – Don't go!!!" I can feel the tunnel slowly closing in on me. "Don't leave me! Please!!!" Everything around me has vanished into darkness—I can't see anything. It's so dark. So horribly dark.
"BEEP! BEEP!" – I gasp and open my eyes. I stretch out my arm and slam the snooze button on my alarm. I rub my eyes and sit up for a good minute or two. Then, as usual, I hop out of my bed and pull open the curtains. Then, I head to the bathroom to brush my teeth and change my clothes.
After I'm done, I step out of the bathroom and grab my hairbrush. Then, I look into the tall dainty-looking standing mirror beside the couch. I Move my bangs away frow my eyes and look at my right eye, a moonlit white, then I look at my left eye, which is as pitch black as my hair is. –I sigh and move my longs bangs back into place, perfectly covering both eyes, -not to mention half my face.
After I pop on my shoes, I head for the door leading out of my apartment, then the picture frame next to the door with mother's face catches my eye. "Today's the day I take the entrance exam. Wish me luck."
I step out the door and rush my way down the stairs instead of going through the elevator so I can catch the next bus.
I was able to catch the bus, but when I got on, I could feel everyone's intense stares directed at me, including the bus driver's. I must look crazy to them. But I don't blame them, someone with long bangs covering their face like that? -Having all black hair like mine, it's pretty suspicious.
But even so, I wish I could just get off already.
The bus finally jerks to a stop. I stand up right away and hop out of the bus. When I do, I see a huge building in front of me. Written across it are the letters "D.H.A" Under it it says;
"Devil Hunter Academy."
A lot of people think D.H.A stands for Devil Hunter Academy, but it really stands for "Devil Hunter Association"
Its pretty much everyone's dreams since they were a kid to become a devil hunter, but only a handful are accepted every three years. -Yep. That's right. The entrance exam only happens every three years, and it's not easy to get in, there's one big written exam, and one big physical exam, but sometimes there are two physical exams from what I've heard.
Before I can even start walking toward the building, a boy rushes right past me on his scooter, I stumble, hitting the ground hard, my skin scraping against the concrete.
He turns his back at me and yells, "hey! Watch where you're going!" —He freezes. "Wait…A black eye? You're heading to the academy?" He scoffs. "What kind of freak are you?"
I hope no one heard that. But at least he was only able to see my left eye. I never liked the attention to be honest, good or bad either way.
I realize I'm still on the ground, sitting there looking like a weirdo. – "Hey! Are you alright?" I look up, and to my surprise, I see a boy with silvery light blue hair kneel down in front of me. He looks around my age, his eyes are blue like the sea, and his voice is so gentle. "O-oh yeah, I'm good."
He's so pretty...
"Oh, uh, -thanks! – You're heading to the academy for the entrance exam, right? Well, I'll see you there!" He scurries off before I can even say anything.
Oh my god. That was so embarrassing. – I didn't even get to thank him. No one's ever helped me like that before...I wonder who he was. – I should focus now. I'm well aware that it's going to be hard to get into the academy.The entrance exam is not going to be easy,and there'll be a lot of people who will despise me and come to hate me.
I start walking toward the building. Once I reach the huge glass door, I pause and take a deep breath. I push open the door and step inside.
Whoa. It's huge. There are a ton of kids around my age everywhere.
I see a sign that reads, "Entrance Examinees: Head to the Auditorium, This Way."
I follow the direction the sign points in. I find myself walking in a hallway, and I stop at a door that reads "Auditorium." I take another deep breath and push the door open.
It's a lot bigger than I expected. I thought the entrance was huge, – but this? My old schools never had an auditorium like this.
A lot of kids are already seated. I start scanning the place for an empty seat. I find one in the upper left corner of the room. I hurry up the little stairs, hoping nobody notices me. Once I sit down, I let out a sigh and take a look at the watch sitting on my wrist. It's not a smartwatch like everyone else's, just a plain old mechanical watch.
To be honest, I don't remember my real family or any of my memories before I was five years old.
I only remember waking up on a hospital bed and a middle-aged-looking woman asking if I was okay. She told me she had found me lying unconscious on the beach. – Though I was a stranger to her, she raised me like her own daughter, and I wasn't her daughter, but she was like a real mother to me. Her name was "Yua Amano." She gave me the name "Rin Amano." Since I didn't remember my birthday either, she decided we would celebrate my birthday on the same day as hers.
This watch was the first gift and last gift that she gave me.
I notice a middle-aged man who looks about in his 30s appear on the stage. He looks tired and exhausted, like he's always working overtime. But at the same time, I can tell that he's confident, and he's a lot stronger and sharper than he looks.
"Hello, examinees. I'm Professor Daizen, and I'll be your instructor for the entrance exam."
He looks through some papers he's holding, then says, "You know what? Forget attendance, it's too much of a hassle. If you're here, you're here, and if you're not, you're not."
So much for that. At least now he won't call on me in front of everyone.
"There are two parts to this exam. The first is the written exam, and the second is the physical exam. We will know if you cheat on the written exam, – and I think you guys know what happens when you're caught. – You cannot retake the exam next year if you cheat in any way. Go to the room right across from this, and take a seat. The exam sheets are already there."
Seriously? Another room? Oh well, let's do this.
I wait for most of the other kids to go so I can go without anyone looking at my face. When I was exiting the room, I felt someone's eyes on me. For some reason, it sent a chill down my spine.
I take a seat in the exam room, and I see the instructor appear again. "There are 60 questions in total. You have one hour. Start."