Aster Academy Chronicles: The Supreme Ten

JIAN

"So I'll be expecting you at the Welcome Party next week. Have a nice weekend, everyone," Sir Ace said before leaving. You might wonder why no one stood up—well, that's what spoiled brats do! Though, to be fair, I respect teachers more than anyone.

"I have news! The Supreme 10 are in the cafeteria!" my classmate exclaimed.

"Which cafeteria?" someone asked.

"Where else? The school cafeteria!" another replied, smacking the first speaker on the head.

"Idiot! We have four cafeterias! With so many students, there's no way we'd only have one! Think, friend!"

"You're right. Let's go!" I shook my head. True enough, we do have four cafeterias, one for each division. Currently, I'm in the Special Division.

Here's the scoop on our divisions:

Real Division: This is where the children of professional doctors, lawyers, and the like attend.

Upper Division: This is for the kids of owners of popular restaurants or boutiques.

Royalty Division: This is where the children of kings, queens, dukes, nobles, and counts study. And I'm not kidding! They are actually foreigners! I've already mentioned that this is an international school, so...

Lastly, Special Division: This is for the children of major companies, corporations, or groups worldwide.

"Hey! Daydreaming?" Mira's voice snapped me back to reality.

"You startled me!" I scolded her. She really did surprise me—I almost had a heart attack!

"We've been here for a while, but you weren't paying attention!" Mira complained. Jonathan nodded in agreement. These two could be really annoying. I used to enjoy a life without close friends, but unfortunately, these two were like dogs, always following me. And in the two months we've been together, we've become quite close.

"We hurried over here. The Special Division is so far away!" Mira whined. Her mouth never stopped running!

By the way, we're not in the same division. What a pity! They're in the Upper Division. The Salvadors and Mirales own a five-star hotel and a three-star restaurant across the country!

"Where should we eat? Here or at our cafeteria?" Mira asked, and Jonathan smacked her on the head.

I laughed. Mira's face when she's angry is epic! "Why did you hit me?!" she shouted.

"Are you stupid? We're already in the Special Division, and you want to go back to eat there?!" Jonathan had a point. Mira was really funny.

"I was just asking! Maybe Jian feels like eating there," she said, scratching her head.

"LOL!" Jonathan said, incredulous. These two were truly amusing. They were definitely cousins.

"Stop it, you two! Let's go! I heard the food is really good today!" I said, pulling them along. We took the elevator. Fancy, right? The students here are so extravagant!

We reached the eighth floor, where the cafeteria was. The usual cleanliness of the school was evident. We're very strict about cleanliness here! We decided to order our food.

Once we got our food, we looked for a place to sit. Thank goodness there were still some vacant seats. When we entered, I was surprised by how many students were there.

I scanned the room, and to my surprise, I spotted the Supreme 10 at a nearby table. My classmates weren't exaggerating. No wonder the cafeteria was so crowded.

"Hey!" Mira called again. I gave her a questioning look. "You're spacing out again. What are you thinking about?"

"H-Huh? Nothing... hehe. Just because I'm spacing out doesn't mean I'm thinking about something," I said with a shrug, then continued eating.

"Do you know, Jian, I got a nosebleed from the royalties visiting us. They were assigned to teach us etiquette. They speak well, but they mostly use their languages. And the prince from Greece is so handsome!" Mira squealed.

"Tss," Jonathan scoffed. "Just admit you're jealous!"

"And why would I be jealous, huh?" Mira shot back. These two always argued. There wasn't a moment when they didn't bicker!

"You kept staring at the duchess' necklace!" Jonathan said, munching on his food. I called him Nath. His full name was way too long.

"Was the necklace pretty, Nath?" I asked, and he nodded. "Why would you be jealous, Mira? You could buy one yourself."

"No way! It's different! It's emerald with a crown inside. It's like a palace heirloom!" She pouted. She clearly wanted it badly.

"Find something else. We can't get that heirloom! It's tough having that as your birthday gift," Nath complained. I blinked in surprise.

"Birthday? Whose?"

"Hers. Her birthday is this Sunday. Aunt and Uncle already asked permission for us to leave to celebrate it," Nath explained, and I nodded. So it was Mira's birthday.

"You're coming, right?" Mira asked, her eyes sparkling. I laughed.

"Sorry... you know I need my parents' permission to leave. And I'm sure they won't allow it," I said sadly. "But don't worry, we'll celebrate when you get back," I reassured her.

"Too bad, I wanted to introduce you. But there's nothing I can do. I look forward to our celebration," she said, and I nodded.

"By the way, when are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning, we'll be picked up," she replied, and I nodded again.

After we finished eating, I headed back to the dorm. I typed the password, and the door opened. I went straight to my room and lay down. I was exhausted this week, tired of waking up early. All I wanted to do was sleep.

And so, I closed my eyes. Time to sleep!