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"Such a dull kid," Hiratsuka Shizuka said helplessly as she looked at Asher's completely indifferent expression, one that showed not a trace of respect for his teacher.
Still, she didn't take it to heart.
As a great and noble educator of the people, she had seen plenty of rebellious teenagers like him.
Soon enough, they reached the classroom door.
Asher looked up.
The sign read: Class 2-B.
"Alright. Take a moment to prepare yourself. No need to be nervous," Hiratsuka said as she turned back.
Asher nodded, saying nothing.
Hiratsuka then stepped into the classroom.
The instant she entered, the noisy class fell silent.
It had to be said, Hiratsuka Shizuka commanded serious authority here. Otherwise, she wouldn't have earned the nickname "Iron-Fist."
To her students, she was the kind of teacher whose word was absolute.
"Ahem…"
Standing at the podium, Hiratsuka cleared her throat and spoke.
"Everyone, you've probably already heard."
"Our class will be welcoming a transfer student."
"He'll be coming in shortly. I expect you all to give him a warm round of applause."
As soon as she finished speaking, the previously silent classroom exploded with chatter.
"Whoa! I heard ages ago that we were getting a transfer student!"
"So we finally get to see what they look like!"
"Do you think it's a boy or a girl?"
"Please let it be a girl. A cute one!"
"No way, it's definitely a guy!"
"If it's a handsome guy, that works too!"
The students immediately split into factions over the transfer student's gender.
After all, who wouldn't want their new classmate to match their personal tastes? Even just looking at them would feel nicer.
"Alright, that's enough. Quiet down!"
Hiratsuka's mouth twitched as she looked at the chaos below, but she wasn't angry.
She'd been their homeroom teacher for over a year. She knew these brats inside and out.
Once she spoke up, the students naturally didn't dare keep fooling around. They all craned their necks, eyes fixed on her.
Satisfied, Hiratsuka nodded.
Then she turned her head and looked toward the classroom door.
"Okay. Asher, you can come in now."
Hearing her voice, Asher, who was waiting outside, took a deep breath and stepped into the classroom.
Even though he had lived two lifetimes, standing under so many eyes still made him feel a little stiff.
Fortunately, he stayed calm. Nothing showed on his face.
The moment he entered, the class got a clear look at him.
Instantly, cries of surprise broke out.
The girls sounded thrilled.
The boys, on the other hand, sounded devastated.
"Whoa!"
"That's the transfer student? He's so handsome!"
"And that long hair! It's got so much personality!"
"Tall and handsome. Totally my type!"
"Mom, I'm in love!"
…
"Tch. So he's handsome. Big deal."
"Yeah, it's not like the world stops turning."
"I have long hair too! Why aren't you screaming for me?"
"When a handsome guy grows his hair out, it's stylish. When you do it, it's just cringe."
"Truth bomb."
"You're just jealous he's better-looking than you."
"So what if I am?!"
"Damn it, it was already wolves fighting over scraps, and now this guy shows up. How are we supposed to survive?"
"I can already see my future girlfriend drifting further and further away…"
"What? You think you were ever getting a girlfriend? Aren't your five fingers enough for you?"
"Get lost, you jerk!"
…
Hiratsuka Shizuka looked at the scene with a complicated expression.
She knew exactly what these kids were like, but she hadn't expected Asher's appearance to cause this much of a stir.
Was he really that handsome?
With that question in mind, she turned her gaze to Asher and examined him more closely.
Cough… alright, yeah. He actually is pretty good-looking…
As she was sizing him up, Asher happened to look over and met her gaze.
He didn't know why she was staring at him so intently, but he still offered a polite smile.
"…!"
Hiratsuka froze.
She'd just been thinking that he was handsome, and that smile hit her head-on.
When she snapped back to her senses, she realized how inappropriate her staring had been.
To ease the awkwardness that only she felt, Hiratsuka coughed lightly, her cheeks faintly red, and quickly turned her head away to face the class.
"Alright, everyone. Settle down."
"Asher, go ahead and introduce yourself."
"Yes, Hiratsuka-sensei."
Asher nodded, then stepped up to the podium and looked out at his new classmates.
"Hello, everyone. My name is Asher."
"Nice to meet you. Please take care of me."
"I hope that over the next two years, we can all get along and have a pleasant time here."
It was nothing more than a simple self-introduction.
But with Asher's natural bonus of being ridiculously good-looking, it still triggered screams from a large portion of the girls in the class.
The scene left the other boys overflowing with envy. You could practically see the jealousy about to burst out of their faces.
Once Asher finished introducing himself, Hiratsuka Shizuka smoothly took back control of the classroom.
Her sharp gaze swept across the room before settling on an empty seat by the window in the back row.
"Asher, go ahead and sit over there," she said, pointing at it.
"If you have any issues with seating later on, you can talk to me about it."
Asher, of course, had no objections.
After all, there was an unwritten rule in the anime world.
Back row, window seat. The king's homeland.
Asher felt that a seat by the window in the back perfectly matched his status.
"I don't have any complaints, Hiratsuka-sensei," he replied politely.
With that, he walked down from the podium and took his seat.
After that brief disturbance, there was still half a class left. Hiratsuka Shizuka continued with the lesson she hadn't finished earlier.
However, just as she picked up the textbook, she seemed to remember something. She looked up and spoke to Asher.
"Oh right, Asher. You just transferred here, so you haven't had a chance to pick up your textbooks yet."
"For this class, just share with the student in front of you for now. After class, I'll take you to the library."
"You don't mind, do you, Akizuki?"
"....."