The Hidden World

For the next hour, Yuki wandered the streets of Junction. He saw many wonders. Water fountains with floating spouts that spewed water in impossible patterns. A multitude of magical creatures, some resembling squirrels, others cats, and others unrecognizable. They mingled with the various beings that lived in the city. Yuki saw these beings holding objects that displayed screens, called vehicles, and transform into everyday appliances.

 

On his tour, he found a wide street market filled with stalls that sold things ranging from food, weapons, gadgets, and other things that Yuki didn’t recognize. There was a multitude of people milling about as they browsed the products offered to them. This place seemed odd to Yuki. He would have thought that a world as advanced as this one wouldn’t need to sell things on the streets. But maybe it was the culture.

 

Yuki strolled through the market to find anything that caught his eye. Not that he had any money to buy them. As he walked, food stalls took his attention and he realized that he was beginning to get hungry.

 

‘I should probably go to the academy right now,’ Yuki thought. ‘They should have some food for the students.’

 

He looked around, trying to find a person to ask for directions to the school that Medina told him about. As he did this, he noticed the odd stares and glances the people around him were giving. Yuki quickly looked for someone so that he could escape the attention and his eyes landed on a man that seemed to be nonthreatening. He walked hurriedly toward this person.

 

“Hello, excuse me,” Yuki began.

 

The man turned toward Yuki and his eyes narrowed for a moment before a wide smile appeared on his face.

 

“I may I help you?” he asked in a cheerful voice.

 

“I would like to know where the school is. I want to enroll there,” Yuki asked lightly, his eyes focusing intently on the man’s face.

 

“The school, eh?” the man replied, scratching his chin. “It’s quite a long ways from here. I’ll tell you a shortcut.”

 

The man started pointing to an alleyway that cut in between two tall glass buildings.

 

“If you go through there, it will lead to a street. Turn right on that street and go straight for a while,” the man instructed. “It will lead you right to the school. You’ll recognize it when you get there.”

 

“Thank you,” Yuki replied with a big smile of his own.

 

‘I’ll check it out, but I doubt this guy is telling the truth,’ Yuki thought as he walked toward the direction the man pointed too. ‘But who knows, maybe he was telling the truth.’

 

He went to the alleyway and peeked into it. It was darker than the rest of the city, the light of the crystals not quite reaching. And Yuki could see that there was no street down it.

 

‘I knew it,’ Yuki thought before turning around. But as he turned he noticed the bodies of three people closing in on him.

 

‘Ah. This is bad,’ Yuki remarked.

 

The three men were within arms reach and surrounded his exit on all sides. The man that gave Yuki instructions was not part of them but they were most likely called by him. And now they came closer, forcing Yuki to back up into the alleyway.

 

“What do you want?” Yuki asked quietly.

 

“Anything that’s on you, girly,” one of the men replied, an elf.

 

Yuki didn’t bother correcting them.

 

“I don’t have anything,” Yuki said. “I just came to Junction today and have no money.”

 

“Oh, really?” a beastkin replied, arching his eyebrow. “But I can see a chain for a mighty fine necklace around your neck.”

 

Yuki’s face betrayed no reaction.

 

“Just hand that over and we’ll be on our merry way,” the third man, a dwarf, said.

 

Yuki’s hand went to the stone hidden underneath his shirt.

 

“No,” Yuki answered flatly.

 

“Don’t force us girl,” the elf warned. “We don’t want to fight you for it.”

 

Irritation flared briefly but disappeared as quickly as it came. The small reaction surprised Yuki, it seemed that somehow the events on Earth had affected him more deeply than he had thought.

 

‘I wonder what happened,’ Yuki thought.

 

The three thugs took Yuki’s lack of a reply as a provocation.

 

“Just hand it over,” the dwarf ordered.

 

Yuki only stared at them with bored eyes. His hands started to curl slightly and his legs tensed.

 

“Ah, whatever. We gave you a chance,” the beastkin said and he raised his fist.

 

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing!”

 

A girl’s voice rang out and echoed through the alleyway. Yuki looked past the three muggers and saw the outline of a fairly tall girl.

 

‘An elf?’ Yuki wondered.

 

The three men turned around to look at the girl and their mouths opened into a snarl that froze on their faces.

 

“Crap, she’s probably a student,” the elf whispered to the others. He turned around to Yuki. “Ah, sorry about that.”

 

Then he turned and left, his partners following him. To Yuki, the speed at which they left was more of a run than a walk.

 

“Are you okay?” the voice of the girl asked Yuki.

 

He turned his head to her and saw her looking at him with worried eyes.

 

“Yes, thank you,” Yuki replied.

 

“It was nothing,” the girl said, waving her hand. “Just be careful around here. It’s a nice city but a girl like you shouldn’t be alone unless you’re a student.”

 

Yuki was about to correct her but gave up. If people were going to assume that he was a girl, he’ll just let them be. They’ll find out eventually.

 

“I understand,” Yuki said out loud. “Speaking of student, I would like to enroll. I came here to do that. Those men attempted to attack me after I was given directions by a man to the school.”

 

“Oh, you want to be a mage? Or a swordswoman?” she asked, her expression brightening.

 

Yuki paused then gave a slight nod.

 

“Great! I can show the way really easily. The Academy is impossible to miss,” she said. Then she pointed down the street market. “Just go down that direction until you reach an intersection. Go right and when you get to a large grassy field, you should be able to see the Academy. I would go with you but if you’re enrolling you should be plenty strong.”

 

“Thank you,” Yuki replied. He turned away from the girl and began to walk in the direction of her instructions.

 

“Good luck! I hope you pass the tests!” she hollered at him as he walked. “I just enrolled there too so maybe we’ll see each other in class!”

 

Yuki paused and turned his head to look at the back of the girl as she strolled away.

 

‘There are tests?’

---

 

Following the girl’s instructions, Yuki soon found himself before a large grassy field. A rectangular block was placed on the field and announced to Yuki that he had arrived to the school in large engraved lettering that read “ACADEMY OF MAGIC AND THE ARTS”.

 

‘She was right, I can’t miss it,’ Yuki remarked as he stared at the building that was called the Academy.

 

To call the building amazing was an understatement. It was a building that wasn’t particularly large. In the shape of a castle, the building stood out among the surrounding structures of glass and metal. The building seemed to shimmer, the walls a kaleidoscope of colors. The grassy field that surrounded it was filled with flowers of all the colors of the rainbow and there were a multitude of trees scattered around with a river that weaved between them.

 

Yuki walked up to the entrance, a doorway that double his height. But before he could knock, a person appeared from nowhere beside him.

 

“How may I help you?” an elven woman asked, her tone that of an attendant.

 

“I would like to enroll in the Academy,” Yuki replied calmly.

 

The woman took a long look at Yuki with a critical eye before flashing a practiced smile.

 

“Is that so? Then follow me,” she said. Then she turned around and began to walk toward the doors. They swung open easily, contrasting from their gigantic bodies. “We will need to conduct a few simple tests before you can be registered.”

 

Yuki nodded and followed her in, the doors slamming shut without a sound as he passed them.