The Hidden World

Junction, Libra

 

It currently was almost 21:00 and Yuna was hurriedly walking down the streets of the business district of Junction. She hadn’t eaten yet, despite the time, but she had an important meeting that she couldn’t afford to be late to.

 

She passed by the various restaurants and smelled the enticing aromas that wafted out from them. Her stomach started growling and her pace quickened.

 

‘I can’t eat now,’ Yuna thought to herself, ‘I’ll be late. I don’t want the captain to be mad.’

 

As she half walked and half jogged, she noticed a person the was walking in the opposite side of the street from her. It was an elf and she seemed to be observing the various sites and attractions of Junction.

 

‘She’s so pretty,’ Yuna remarked as she passed by the elf. ‘I haven’t seen her before. Must be new to Junction. Maybe a student?’

 

At last she reached her destination. She stopped outside and took a deep breathe before entering the headquarters of the Libra Investigation Agency. The scanner on the door verified her permission, analyzing her mana signature, before sliding open. The receptionist in the lobby of the building noticed Yuna’s arrival.

 

“Welcome back, cadet,” she greeted Yuna.

 

Yuna gave a nod of acknowledgment and went to an elevator. The elevator brought her up to the top floor and Yuna walked straight to the meeting room located in the right of the room. Taking another deep breathe, she knocked on the opaque glass door and waited.

 

“Come in, cadet,” a deep male voice called out from the room.

 

Yuna twisted the old fashioned door handle, and went into the meeting room. Then she stood at attention, her back straight and rigid. The inside of the place was quite dim, the outline of the captain barely visible.

 

“I’m glad you could make it on time,” the captain said. “You were cutting it pretty close.”

 

“I apologize, Captain,” Yuna replied.

 

“No need for that. You were on time Cadet Yuna. Let’s get on to the contents of this short briefing,” the captain said, waving what looked to be his hand. “Do you remember why you are enrolling into the Academy?”

 

“Yes, sir,” Yuna said. “I am there to learn what I can’t be taught here in the headquarters.”

 

“And what is your mission?” the captain prompted.

 

“To observe and report anything that is suspicious in the Academy. I am to act as an informant for the Libra Investigation Agency.”

 

“That is correct,” the captain said, his shadowy head moving up and down. “We can’t afford to let the Academy have to much autonomy. We need to know what goes on inside there and intervene when necessary.”

 

“I understand, sir,” Yuna replied.

 

“Remember, we work for the people. What we do here is for the country’s benefit,” the captain said softly. Then he shifted in his seat and sat straighter.

 

“You know your mission. But I called you to inform that there has been an addition to your assignment,” he announced. “We have recently received new information.”

 

“New information, sir?” Yuna asked.

 

“Yes, there has been word that someone interesting has recently enrolled into the Academy,” the captain said. “And the word is that this person is actually a human.”

 

“A human?” Yuna asked, her voice rising in pitch. “How is that possible?”

 

“We are not sure at this time, but most likely it was a magical anomaly in their world that brought this human to Ethros. But about your mission,” he said, changing topics. “We have added a new clause. You are to observe this human. Become friends with this person, eat with this person. Do what you need to get close to them. We need to evaluate whether or not this human may be a threat to our country.”

 

“I understand, sir. I will try to do this task to the best of my abilities,” Yuna answered formally.

 

“Good. I expect monthly reports on what is happening in that school and on the human,” the captain said.

 

“Understood.”

 

“Then you are dismissed.”

 

Yuna nodded and turned to leave the room. But as she opened the door, her stomach started to growl against her will.

 

“Are you hungry?” the captain said, his voice filled with amusement.

 

“No, I’m fine sir,” Yuma lied. Then her stomach growled even louder.

 

“I have some packaged noodles here if you want to eat them,” the captain suggested lightly.

 

She stood there torn. She didn’t want to appear weak in front of the captain but the promise of food was weakening her resolve. When her stomach began to sound like a jet engine, she gave up and went to take the noodles.

 

“Thank you, Captain,” she mumbled as she grabbed the noodles. 

---

 

After her meal, Yuna quickly went back to her dorm room in the Academy and crashed into her fluffy bed. It was late at night, past 23:00.

 

‘More things that I have to do,’ Yuna thought with a sigh.

 

She started to think about the new mission that the captain had given her. About the fact that a human would be enrolling into the school.

 

‘I’ve never seen one before. I wonder how strong they are,’ Yuna thought, curious. ‘All the textbooks say that humans are really weak.’

 

She laid there for the next hour, wondering about the human, school, and the tasks assigned to her by the captain.

 

‘I have more things to do,’ she repeated sleepily in her mind. ‘Who knew being a cadet would be so tiresome.’

 

Then she fell into a peaceful sleep.

 

The next morning, she woke up on the dot at 7:30. Like a machine, she went through her daily routine of eating breakfast, washing herself, and changing into her uniform. Looking at her smartwatch, she saw that it took her twenty minutes to do.

 

‘Alright,’ she thought with a small smile. ‘Time for the class of the day.’

 

She left her room, and walked with a small bounce in her step as she went to the Main Hall for homeroom. When she got to her class, there were a multitude of people that had already arrived. She took a seat in the middle of the class and waited for the class to start.

 

A bell rang and though it wasn’t loud, it somehow pierced through the loud chatter of the room. Someone who Yuna assumed was the homeroom teacher walked through the door, looking as if he was just talking to someone outside of the door. The man stood in front of the class and began to speak.

 

“Hello class 1-A. I am your homeroom teacher for the year. My name is Nataru Katem,” he introduced himself.

 

There were murmurs across the room. Yuna looked at the teacher with new respect. The Katem family was one of the most powerful in Libra.

 

“I would like to introduce to you a new student. Some of you may have heard about this and others may have not. But I would like to encourage you to accept this student no matter what and make this person feel welcomed.”

 

Nataru motioned with his hand to someone that stood outside of Yuna’s view and the person walked in.

 

“This is our first human student,” Nataru announced.

 

Yuna inhaled sharply when she recognized the face of the new student. It was the girl that she saved the day before.