Room 101

"You should take the academy train shuttle that leads to zone III. There you will find your dorm room. The number is 101." Cara had said to Ace upon completion of his registration.

He gave her a little bow, ready to leave, but her next words pulled him to a stop.

"And also, find yourself some friends who will be in your guild." She said to him, "Four teammates are good, but five is a better number." As if she was trying to cheer up his spirit, Cara gave him a mild smile that felt weak and forced for some reason.

"Thanks." Ace simply replied. "And Kaito… when do I get to see him?"

"Soon!" Was all she said.

***

Standing in front of a giant metal door, Ace took a deep breath as he recalled Cara saying those words to him. In that moment, he felt as if he was about to open the gates that led to the underworld or perhaps, these doors would turn his life around— forever.

The continuous collective chattering of students continued to drown him in a murky pool of blood, but his presence was rather not felt or noticed since he had come into the academy.

He had only spoken to Cara and he hoped things would stay like this till he found Anya. He wasn't there to make friends or acquaintances and laying low while he carried out this tedious quest he had bestowed on himself was his sole goal.

Twisting the door knobs a little, the doors gave a slight creak the same way a branch of a tree snaps when it falls sick. And then, with a forced push, the doors roared alive, sending a shrill sound through the empty dorm that was covered with both dust, forgotten relics and of course— fist sized spiders with their numerous houses.

The room was molded with high ceilings that could accommodate giant beasts for taming— perhaps, a dragon. Its large, arched windows that let in plenty of natural lights that bathed the whole dorm with a harsh glow housed mini homes created by these giant spiders. 

On the farthest side of the room were shelves filled with ancient tomes and scrolls containing knowledge about beasts and magic. Each piece of furniture present in the room was covered with white clothings to protect them from dust and ruins as it seemed the room was long abandoned.

"Better than my wrecked home in the ninth district." He muttered to himself with a small scoff. 

His bag landed on the floor while he walked towards a covered frame and unsheathed its cloak. Under the clock was an olden piano with fragile keys that could turn to dust at the sound of its shrill tune. His fingers instinctively traced lines on its frames as a bitter sweet memory crept into his mind.

"Anya used to play the piano too." He said, his chest tightening as he pictured his twin sister seated behind the crest, gracefully playing away with a huge smile on her face.

He muffled a trembling sigh, his finger stopping on an etched mark that was on the piano. A shallow frown settled on his brows as he bent towards the eerie mark to take a proper look at what it was, but suddenly a voice began to whirl in the hallway, pulling his attention away from the piano at once.

Curious to find out what was in the hallway, Ace walked back to the door, pushing the right sided gate open and stepping out immediately as if he had heard his name, but to his surprise, it was a high tech holographic mascot starting its shift.

With a friendly wave and a cheerful voice, it called out, "Lunchtime, everyone! Come and feast!" 

Maybe it was because he heard the word feast, his stomach suddenly let out a low groan, reminding him he had not eaten any food all day.

"The student union representative needs to do better." A girl with white bob haircut complained, rolling her eyes lazily as she walked out of the dorm that was opposite Ace's.

'Girls are allowed to come here?' Ace thought to himself, his mind derailing to the disastrous possibilities.

Noticing Ace's attention fixed on her, the girl who's name was Nia glared intensely at him, the gum she was chewing making atrocious sounds adding a spicy sauce to the intensity of the eye contact they shared.

"What are you looking at, dimwit?" She questioned arrogantly, her hurled up fist cackling with lightening before turning away.

***

After walking some laps behind some students who he thought were going his way which were true. Ace finally arrived at the academy's cafeteria and without delay, he found an empty seat after getting served and he began to devour his meal like a hungry wolf.

And just like when he arrived, everyone was busy minding their business. His presence was like cotton tossed into a well full of snow.

As he wolfed down his meal, he noticed footsteps approaching him and soon, they were standing beside him, breaking his attention away from his meal with a silly tut.

"Wonder why this balloon is adding more weight instead of training?"  

Standing before him was a girl who had big, sparkling eyes that shine with curiosity and warmth. Her hair, a soft pastel pink, styled in two playful pigtails adorned with cute, oversized bows that match her uniform. 

Her cheeks were slightly flushed, giving her an adorable, cheerful appearance, making Ace wonder who the hell she was.

"Hey!" Her petite voice greeted ambily.

"Huh?"

"Are you a first year student?"

"Who's asking?" Ace questioned, gently putting his spoon back to the table.

"You don't have to be uptight. You don't have any friends, right? If you want, I will spend the rest of my life hanging out with you. My name is Six. What's yours?" She declared, stretching out her hand for a shake while her cheeks puffed up with a bright pink hue.

For a minute, Ace stared at her dauntlessly, seemingly losing his ability to speak for a minute as his mouth hung a little in surprise and when he snapped out of it, he picked up his food tray, ready to leave before muttering a word which Six heard clearly.

"Chip!"

After fitting his tray in the return station, he was confronted by Six before he could walk out of the building.

"That's no word a gentleman should say to a lady." She protested, shaking her head with her arms folded against her chest.

"I didn't ask for your opinion."

"I—"

"The young masters are having a duel at the center line!" 

A kid who just rushed into the restaurant announced to the whole congregation, collecting their attention to himself at once and after he made the announcement the second time, all the students in the cafeteria began to rush out in haste.

The announcement of a duel creating the hottest news of the day which was quick to spread to the entire corner of the whole academy.

The keywords on the hashtags; Young master, duel. A rare but blissful phenomenon.

"Wanna watch this duel with me?" Six asked, a sinister grin settling on her lips with a brow raised.