Chapter 11 Back in the School Life

The sun has mostly descended below the horizon, the orange luminous sheen dims down in contrast to the vivid lights of the cityscape filled by holographic screens that display all over the multitude of buildings combined with the lighting from dozens of stores and stands that lay along the city streets.

Even if her eyelids are on the verge of collapsing, Haru still was able to get a better glimpse of the spectacles of lights and displays that are emphasized even further during this time of the day. This time soft winds flew past her body, in contrast to how she arrives at high speed.

As much as she wanted to jump down and take a stroll through the city which was originally her intention coming out here in the first place, her arms barely moved an inch from Shiro’s waist and her leg was all but locked firmly on the footrest.

“So~ you’re really knocked out after that don’t you~?”

“Isn't this your first time supposed to be like this too…?”

“Well~ It’s been… a while since Shiro’s first time as a Linker~”

“A while??”

“Mh… I’ll tell you about it sometime later okay~? For now, just try not to fall off the bike~”

“Right right…”

“A while… huh? Just exactly how long since have Shiro and the others become a Linker and fight like this…” Haru thought to herself. “I guess those are questions for later… I just want to lay in bed right now…”

"Hey, Haru!! That's such an amazing performance from a first-timer like you, honestly!!” Before her consciousness can drift away and rest, a holographic screen display of Aiko emerges abruptly right in her face.

"T-thank you, Aiko-san..." Haru murmurs with what remaining strength she has left.

"Hahaha, feeling exhausted right?? have no fear it's just your body getting used to the Phantasm and the Alternium''

"That's great to hear but... I don't think my brain can take any more complicated explanation..."

"Oh, then I'll leave for now, be sure to come by the Extermination Branch alright? There's a ton of things I need to check up with you and your Phantasm"

"I sure will..."

"Alright, have a good rest and splendid work today, Haru" Aiko's holographic screen then disappears, returning Haru to a state of calm peace.

Meanwhile, at the Atomos 7th Exterimation Brach, the chaos has also finally calmed down. Aiko lets out a big grunt as she stretches out her arms, then letting her entire body sinks into the chair.

“Today is quite busy, isn’t it?” Nodoka mumbles, placing a cup of coffee beside Aiko’s keyboard before settling down her own seats.

“Mhm… two Outbreaks back to back in the same sector just like that, not to mention…” the scientist bounces back up before taking a sip of her brew.

“I’m still analyzing the B-tier Phantom that the girls fought today, still no results yet…” Nodoka places her cup down, before swiping through pages of the report on her tablet.

“Atomos… what other kinds of terror are you hiding away from this world” Aiko’s fist clutches up against the mug handle.

“Aiko…”

“Let’s just think about that later… For now, we gotta prepare to train our new recruit” she leaves her drink on the table and completely leans herself back.

“Haru, huh? It seems like you’re really interested in her” Nodoka follows suit by placing her tablet on the desk and leaning back in a similar fashion.

“Why wouldn’t I be? She’s already nailing it despite having transformed two times, hell she even pulls off an Execute Phase successfully” Aiko said, tone more upbeat than prior along with a sizable grin on her face.

“I’m not certain but maybe she might be able to handle that…”

“Wait… You mean…?!” Nodoka snaps toward Aiko so suddenly to the point where the glass was displaced.

“I-I said I’m not certain… D-don’t worry I won’t do anything dangerous until I can confirm it…” Aiko responds hastily.

Nodoka lets out a big sigh of relief. “You better be, these Linkers are still… human you know? Highschool girls just like us before in fact…”

“...I know”

After that, there wasn’t much in the way of conversation as the girls rode all the way back to school all while Haru is still unable to keep her eyes up properly. Along the way Lin separates from the group, presumably to drop off Riku at her home.

Time passes by fleetly, and before she knew it Haru felt that the bike came to a sudden halt.

“Alright~ We’re back sleepyhead~”

“Look who's talking…” Haru removes her helmet then rubs her eyes before looking up to see that she was back right in front of the school gate. The sky had already darkened slightly at that point which struck Haru instantly.

"Wait wait.. what's the time right now?!"

"Oh~ about that... you don't need to worry at all~" Shiro then hops off her bike before it automatically drives itself away.

"Huh? What do you mean? Oh, it's past 6 pm already??!" Haru's eyes open wide once again, fumbling around her already messy hair in a panic.

"Like I said don't need to worry about it~"

"What? You're saying you can come up with an excuse of how we are outside the school for more than the permitted time?!

"Well... Aiko-san already dealt with it for us~"

"EH?"

"Fufu~ Let me show you~"

Upon arriving at the lobby of the dorm, Shiro starts the lead by approaching directly the dorm supervisor who was typing away on her personal computer. The dorm supervisor immediately took notice of both of them, at this point Haru expected a hailstorm of lectures and warnings to be thrown at her but.

"Ah, You must be the student Aiko-sensei asked for help" The dorm supervisor then starts scrolling through her tablet and notices. "Let's see... first-year Furutaka Shiro and Raikou Haru, is that correct?"

"Wait... SENSEI?!" Haru recoiled back in shock at another surprising reveal.

"That's correct~" Shiro on the other hand, still replies with her signature aloof voice like this is very much normal.

"U-Uh Y-yes!"

"In that case, I've already checked your name, please continue on to your room as usual"

"Thank you, sensei~"

"T-Thank you! sensei!"

As instructed, the two continue up the very same stairs they rushed down this morning. At that point, Haru's strength recovered by a small amount which allows her to walk up without a problem. Although, the only thing that's still in her mind is diving first into her bed.

"Man... I really need some time to digest every single thing I encountered today..."

"Not your typical first day at school, am I right~?"

"Damn right it isn't..."

Upon arriving in front of their room, Shiro simply held her phone towards the door lock, and in a moment, a beep sound pops up, granting access to their room.

The two girls then took their time sorting themselves out and by the end of it, Haru was in her typical t-shirt along with a pair of sleep shorts while Shiro is the same long sleeves pajamas.

By that time, the sky has completely turn night, with a glimpse of the illuminated spectacles of the city being ever so slightly seeable from the dorm’s windows.

Haru found herself comfortably on the bed, loosening every part of her body all the while laying firm on the pillow. Shiro swiftly settles down on her desk, which is entirely taken over by her computer setup. The sounds of keys and mouse clicking at a rapid speed are the only thing sounding throughout the room.

“Hey, Shiro… ”

“Hm~?”

“How long did you guys knew each other? Like i mean Lin-senpai, Riku, Aiko-san and Nodoka-san…”

“About… 4 years ago~”

“Woah… You’ve been fighting together for that long?”

“Together yea~ but…”

“But?”

All of sudden, the sound of keyboard and mouse stops, the silence of the night chimes into the room. Shiro all but stops any movement, she stares at the monitor screen without doing anything for a brief moment.

“Maybe~ I’ll tell you about that later~”

“E-eh? C’mon, don’t put in the dark again…”

“Shiro promises~ Okay~?”

“Alright… a promise is a promise…”

Everything then goes back to normal with Shiro maneuvering her fingers across the keyboard in a proficient manner, returning the constant clicking sound that was lost for a moment.

Haru goes back to recovering her energy on the bed just like before as well.

“Speaking of that… it’s the time of year again isn’t it, Hana…?” Shiro clicks on one of her photo files that displays a picture, it depicts a young sleepy white-haired girl and a long brown-haired energetic girl standing side by side in front of their new school.

Under a beautiful shower of spring sakura petal, proudly wearing their new school uniform in front of the school’s gate. A nostalgic sight for sure.

“H-HANA!!! P-Please stay with me… Please…” a memory from the past rings inside, almost every time when Shiro sees that girl’s face.

“It really has been a while since Shiro became a Linker…”