Welcome to Nyansei High

“Good morning, class. Before we begin, I have two announcements.”

The plump Persian cat with grey fur and a thick, bristling mustache turned toward the door, his tail flicking lazily from side to side.

“First, I’d like to introduce you to Mr. Armitage, your new Assistant Language Teacher.”

A low murmur rippled through the room.

Some of the human students nodded politely; several Nekos looked up with curious eyes, ears tilted forward, tails swaying in small, synchronized movements.

Hale stepped inside, folder tucked firmly under his arm, and bowed.

“Good morning, everyone, my name is Hale Armitage. I’m looking forward to teaching you.”

A few human students whispered his name under their breath.

“Heiru Āmiteeji?”

“Armitage-sensei has many years of teaching experience,” the Persian continued, “and even taught at our school before the Great Order.”

Several humans shifted uneasily at those words.

“I expect you to show him the same respect as any other teacher, regardless of his… species.”

A faint purring hum rolled through the right side of the room, a sound somewhere between amusement and mockery.

Hale forced a smile.

“And in addition,” the teacher said, gesturing toward the door, “we also have a new student today. Please welcome Sakuya Koori-san, who will be joining your class.”

Koori stepped hesitantly beside Hale.

Her uniform hung loose, the sleeves far too long, the ribbon slightly crooked.

She bowed deeply, clutching her schoolbag with both hands.

Her eyes, now a soft brown thanks to the new contact lenses, wandered curiously through the room.

“It smells like… chalk. And fear", she murmured.

A few students giggled, others exchanged puzzled looks.

“Another human?” whispered a sand-colored Singapura to her neighbor.

The Persian turned back to Hale.

“Well then, Armitage-sensei, the class is yours. I wish you the best of luck.”

With a graceful flick of his tail, he left the room.

Silence.

Dozens of eyes fixed on Hale and Koori.

For someone who had taught countless times before, Hale’s throat felt surprisingly dry. 

He cleared it.

“Uh… right then. I’ll be teaching you English conversation, so… let’s do our best together, okay?”

From the Neko side of the room, a gray tabby whispered curiously,

“A foreignya? I thought they deported all of them...”

His seatmate only shrugged.

Meanwhile, Koori still stood stiffly beside Hale, smiling brightly at the class.

“Ah… right.” Hale gave an awkward smile. “Sakuya-san, maybe you’d like to introduce yourself?”

She didn’t react, still staring straight ahead.

“What’s wrong with her?” muttered a girl with bleached-blond hair and dark tan skin.

“Uh… Sakuya-san?” Hale lowered his voice. “Koori?”

Only at the second name did she blink, as if she had forgotten she was supposed to answer to another name here.

Did she already forget? We practiced this all morning!

Koori turned to him, confused. “What is it, Hale?”

Then, realization flickered in her eyes. “Oh, right!" 

She faced the class again. “Good morning, everyone. I’ll do my best!”

Hale stared at her, speechless.

Then a wave of whispers rippled through the room.

“She called him by his first name!?”

“What’s their relationship!?”

“What kind of introduction was that!?”

Hale leaned toward her and whispered, “I told you, at school, you have to call me Sensei!”

“Oh… right, I forgot…”

He sighed and turned back to the class.

“Alright then, uh… Sakuya-san…” He deliberately emphasized the name.

“Why don’t you tell the class a little about yourself?”

Koori’s eyes widened as if she suddenly remembered everything they had rehearsed with Hiro.

“I came here from Fuji-san. I love books. And I’m really looking forward to meeting you and hearing all of your stories. I hope we can all be friends!”

She bowed deeply again.

Silence.

Several voices whispered at once, followed by soft murmuring through the rows.

For a moment, the tension in the room eased, until a Neko girl with crossed arms narrowed her eyes.

“Tch. Another human? Pretty soon this really will be a human school, nya…”

“Hey!” a boy from the other side protested. “What are you getting at?Almost all the teachers here are Nekos!”

“Yeah, because otherwise this place would be unbearable!” she snapped back.

Chairs scraped. Voices rose. Tails lashed irritably in every direction.

Hale raised his hands. “O-okay, let’s all just… calm down a little, alright?”

But then a tall Abyssinian with orange fur and golden eyes stood up, posture perfectly straight.

“Silence!” he said clearly, his voice cutting through the noise. “Arguing in front of a new teacher shames our class.”

At once, the murmurs died down. 

A few chairs shifted, then silence again.

He bowed deeply.

“My apologies, Armitage-sensei. Some of us still lack proper discipline. My name is Torao Rinji (倫司 虎尾), class representative.”

Hale blinked in surprise, then smiled faintly.

“Ah… thank you, Rinji-kun. Please, take your seat.”

Rinji nodded, curling his tail neatly around his legs.

“Of course, Sensei. Nyansei High values order, though tempers do flare at times.”

Hale exhaled and turned back to the blackboard.

“Alright then… let’s begin,” he said, taking a piece of chalk and writing 'Good morning' on the board.

But Koori was still standing motionless beside the teacher’s desk.

“Uh… Sakuya-san,” Hale whispered without turning around, “you can sit down now.”

“Yes!” she said softly, almost startled, and hurried to the only empty seat in the back row.

Her bag dropped to the floor with a dull thud as she curiously studied her classmates.

Some opened their textbooks, others picked up pens or digital notepads, while a few simply stared ahead, bored.

Beside her sat a pale human girl with messy black hair that fell in uneven strands across her face.

Her eyes looked tired, distant, as if she’d been lost in thought for hours about something only she could understand.

Her uniform was perfectly neat, the ribbon precisely tied, yet her posture carried a quiet carelessness, as though none of it really mattered.

“Hey,” she whispered, not quite looking up. “I’m Kawashima Mitsuki (川島 光月)”

Her voice was calm, a little rough, but not unfriendly.

Then she turned slightly toward Koori, and a tiny, genuine smile crossed her lips.

“If you want, I can show you the library later. You said you like books, right?”

Koori’s eyes lit up. “Yes! I love books!”

Mitsuki stifled a laugh and nodded. “Me too.”

From the front of the class, Hale glanced over his shoulder.

But when he saw the two of them whispering, he didn’t scold them.

Instead, he smiled quietly to himself.

Because he realized the loneliness he’d once seen in Koori's face had quietly vanished.