New Professor

A Normal Morning… or So He Thought

Hikari groggily opened his eyes as the alarm clock blared beside him. He groaned, reaching over to slap the snooze button before rubbing his face.

Another day of college. Another long day of lectures.

And now, another day of dealing with Teshii living under the same roof.

With a sigh, he forced himself out of bed, grabbed his phone, and checked the time. 7:45 AM. He was already running late.

As he stepped out of his room and into the kitchen, he was surprised to find Teshii wasn't there. Usually, the guy would be lounging around, cracking jokes, or bothering him about training.

Hikaru turned to his mother, who was casually preparing breakfast.

"Hey, Mom, where's Teshii?"

Sayaka glanced up with a small smile. "Oh, he left early. Said he had some errands to run."

Hikaru frowned. "Errands? What kind of errands?"

Sayaka shrugged. "Didn't say. Just said he'd be back later."

Hikaru narrowed his eyes. Something about this didn't sit right with him. Teshii didn't seem like the early morning errand type.

Still, he had no choice but to let it go for now. He grabbed a piece of toast from the counter and hurried to get ready for class.

A Warning from Satoshi

On his way to campus, Hikaru got a message from Satoshi.

Satoshi: Don't mention the Order of the Elements to anyone. And definitely don't tell anyone about the Element of Light.

Hikaru read the message twice, his stomach tightening.

 Hikaru: You think someone's watching me?

Satoshi's reply came almost immediately.

 Satoshi: Always assume someone is.

Hikaru exhaled sharply. Great.

With that unsettling thought in mind, he put his phone away and continued walking.

Lunch with Hikari and Mei

By the time lunch rolled around, Hikaru was sitting in the cafeteria, poking at his food absentmindedly. His mind was still occupied with thoughts about Teshii's whereabouts and Satoshi's cryptic warning.

"Oi, Hikaru!"

Hikaru's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

She strode over to his table with a confident grin, followed closely by Mei Tomita, her best friend and volleyball teammate. Mei was shorter than Hikari, with chestnut brown hair tied in a ponytail and deep brown eyes that sparkled whenever she was around Hikaru.

Mostly because–unfortunately for him–Mei had a huge, very obvious crush on him.

"Hey, Hikaru~" Mei greeted sweetly, sliding into the seat across from him.

Hikaru blinked. "Uk… hey, Mei."

Hikari plopped down next to him and immediately stole one his fries. "So, where's your annoying houseguest?"

Hikaru sighed. "No idea. He left early this morning."

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "That's weird. He doesn't seem like the responsible errands kind of guy."

Hikaru shrugged. "Yeah, tell me about it."

Mei tilted her head. "Wait… are you talking about that guy from yesterday? Teshii?"

Hikari smirked. "Yup. My dear brother's new best friend."

Hikaru groaned. "Stop saying that."

Mei giggled. "I thought he was funny."

Hikari leaned in with a knowing grin. "You also thought Hikaru was funny, and look how that turned out."

Mei's face immediately turned bright red. "H-Hikari!!"

Hikaru sighed, already regretting sitting with them.

A Shocking Surprise

After lunch, Hikaru made his way to his Psychology lecture. He wasn't exactly look forward to it–his professor had been absent, and rumour had it that the university had brought in a replacement.

As he stepped into the lecture hall, he took his usual seat near the back and glanced at the front of the room.

The new professor hadn't arrived yet.

Students murmured among themselves, wondering what kind of instructor they were about to get. Hikaru leaned back in his chair, pulling out his notebook.

Then, the door swung open.

A familiar voice rang out–

"Alright, class! Let's get this over with, yeah?"

Hikaru's blood ran cold.

No.

No way.

Slowly, he lifted his head–

And standing at the front of the class, grinning like an absolute menace, was Teshii.

Hikaru nearly choked on air.

Teshii, now wearing a button-up shirt and loosely tied tie, stood before the room with zero professionalism. He casually tossed a marker in the air and caught it while scanning the class.

"Name's Professor Teshii," he announced with a smirk. "But, honestly? I don't care what you call me. Just don't sleep in my class. That's my job."

Hikaru's entire body went stiff.

This had to be a joke.

A prank.

A nightmare.

He quickly leaned over to the student next to him. "Hey, are you seeing this?"

The student blinked. "Yeah? What's the big deal? The school brought in a replacement, right?"

Hikaru stared at Teshii, who was currently drawing a stick figure on the whiteboard.

This wasn't happening.

This couldn't be happening.

Hikaru buried his face in his hands.

He was never going to survive this semester.

The Shrouded Figure

Elsewhere, far from campus, a figure stood within a swirling mist, watching the city through unseen eyes.

Tendrils of smoke curled around them, distorting their form. Their presence was eerie, unnatural–almost like they didn't belong to this world.

"The Element of Light has awakened," the figure murmured.

Their voice echoed unnaturally, like a whisper from the void itself.

"…Then it's time to begin."