Three Days Later
Chiba Academy, Elementary Division, Fourth Grade
Shiraha sat in the back row by the window, idly admiring the scenery outside. October in the Far East wasn't too cold yet.
It had been three days since they'd returned. Uncle Ryoma cared, but the awkwardness of an old man kept him from saying too much. Every time he opened his mouth, the words stalled, then he'd end up asking about Shiraha instead, circling around to Mei's matters through indirect questions.
As for school, Shiraha had gotten his wish and ended up in the same class as Mei.
Regrettably, there was no promising seedling named Yuna among their classmates.
The window beside him was wide open. Elysia sat lazily on the sill, one leg dangling inside the classroom, swinging idly. She held an illusory little notebook in her hands, looking as if she were... earnestly taking notes?
Shiraha glanced over. The notebook held only a single rough sketch of a figure.
The bell rang. Within a minute, the class had splintered into several tight clusters, leaving only a scattered handful of students still slumped over their desks.
Mei... still hadn't blended in with everyone.
As for Shiraha, the weird kid who talked to thin air, forget it. If Mei hadn't flipped one troublemaker flat on his back with a single over-the-shoulder throw, Shiraha would most likely be facing isolation and bullying in the Far East by now.
"Shiraha! Let's make a club!"
Mei walked over and sat down in the empty seat in front of him, hands planted on his desk, her violet eyes sparkling.
She had no desire to blend in with the others. Having witnessed Honkai, having seen the blood, the red and the white splattered across the snow, she felt she was no longer like ordinary children.
Three days had passed. Mei felt ready to take on the world again.
"A club?"
Elysia's interest was piqued. "Like in the movies? The kind that chops its way from Causeway Bay all the way to the pier?"
"It's obviously not that, Elysia-nee."
Shiraha refuted her as if no one else were there.
Mei was already used to this. She rapped her knuckles on the desk, pulling Shiraha's attention back.
Shiraha refocused. "Does the elementary division even allow clubs?"
"They should." Mei straightened up, her words coming a little faster than usual, like she'd been rehearsing this pitch for the entire class period. "After all, Chiba Academy covers elementary, middle, and high school. We could totally create a club that lasts for years, all the way until we graduate. A legendary club that leaves behind campus myths!"
She was brimming with confidence. After all, her father was Ryoma Raiden, the local tyrant of Nagazora, the single largest investor in the Academy City on the city's outskirts.
Her dad was on the school board!
Shiraha mulled it over for a moment, then put on that obedient, well-behaved smile again. "Yeah. I'll definitely support you, Mei-nee."
Perfect timing. With a club, even if Yuna wasn't in the same class, he'd have a way to pull her into his faction later.
As for why he was so fixated on Yuna... Honkai was a world that ran on talent. At the very least, Yuna visibly had decent Honkai adaptability. These were the future pillars of Anti-Entropy!
He naturally had to think ahead for his Anti-Entropy.
"Great! I'll go talk to the teacher right now."
Both children brimmed with bright visions of the future.
Until a few minutes later, when Mei returned clutching the club registration form, her little face clouded with frustration.
"Ugh... they said no!"
Even as the school board member's daughter, the little princess of the Raiden family, she still needed a bare minimum of three people to create a club. And at least one of them had to be an upperclassman or a faculty advisor.
They look down on fourth graders!
"This was definitely arranged by Uncle Ryoma."
Not that Ryoma had gone out of his way to make things difficult for them. He probably just didn't want Mei and Shiraha throwing their weight around too much at school.
"So what do we do now?"
Mei hugged the registration form, deep in thought.
Shiraha displayed remarkable initiative. "We go hand out flyers to the upper grades."
If this weren't the world of Honkai, perhaps this would have been the start of a youth anime spanning five or six seasons and fifty or sixty episodes. Unfortunately, the main theme here would always be Honkai.
Mei fell back into internal conflict. This sort of thing was a little too extroverted for her.
But she'd been the one to suggest it in the first place. After mulling it over, she agreed.
"By the way, what should we name our club, Mei-nee?"
Mei already had an answer prepared. "Far East Honkai Anti-Entropy Youth Training Camp!"
Shiraha: ....
"Isn't that... a little too high-profile, Mei-nee?"
Just recently, Welt had given both children a talk about confidentiality matters.
Besides, the Far East wasn't entirely Anti-Entropy's turf. It was just that Schicksal's grip here was relatively loose due to Shenzhou's unique geographical position.
Mei was clearly the type of leader who could take good advice from her subordinate... Mei told herself this in her head. Then she nodded.
"Right. Then we'll call it the Hokushin Ittō-ryū Youth Training Camp."
Mei did know Hokushin Ittō-ryū. She wasn't exactly proficient yet, but her father would put on a Homu mask, convinced his disguise was flawless and come teach her swordsmanship.
Still pretty flashy... but definitely better than the previous name.
"After school, we'll run over to the middle and high school divisions and hand out flyers! Someone's bound to be willing to help us."
Shiraha was confident. Worst-case scenario, they'd just throw money at the problem. Mei-nee had plenty of that.
"Mm."
Mei nodded her little head. And just like that, the matter was hastily decided.
The Go-Home Club wasn't bad either, but having an actual club meant that when Kiana eventually wandered her way to the Far East, they'd at least have their own little base of operations.
Shiraha planned to work hard over the next few years and make his Anti-Entropy even greater!
Elysia simply watched in silence as the two little ones discussed their club plans. She'd never attended school herself and didn't fully grasp how clubs worked. But seeing the two of them so passionate about it, the corner of her own lips curved gently upward.
Mei was distracted all afternoon, sneaking glances at her watch throughout class. The moment the dismissal bell rang, the still-fairly-chuunibyou Mei launched herself forward like a spring.
"Wait, wait Mei-nee, I haven't packed my things yet!"
"No homework today. No need to pack."
Shiraha found himself dragged along by the taller Mei, but he quickly matched her running pace.
The elementary division let out a bit earlier. While waiting for the high school division to dismiss, Mei had already spoken with a teacher and set up a small folding table. One of its legs was a little wobbly... Mei wedged a small pebble under it, and it was much better.
By the time everything was ready, there were still a full twelve minutes until the high school division let out.
But the club had already recruited someone.
"A club?"
A voice tinged with obvious confusion rang out. Shiraha looked up. A tall-looking young woman stood before them, her hood pulled up to cover half her face, headphones on. She had the full look of a delinquent student.
The Raven quietly ended her transmission. First contact was turning out to be far simpler than she'd imagined.
"That's right! Hokushin Ittō-ryū Youth Training Camp!"
Shiraha answered with enthusiasm.
"I just transferred here. Haven't really made any friends yet... Can I join too?" The young woman's voice was unhurried, her gaze sweeping over the two of them.
Shiraha studied her from head to toe. Hood covering half her face. Looked like she was wearing headphones. A textbook delinquent. A delinquent like you can't make friends?
But Mei was already nodding enthusiastically!
"Of course you can, Senpai. And for future club activities, it's totally fine even if you can't make it."
The prime objective right now was to get the club officially established. Then they'd slowly scout suitable new members. And finally... kick out all the deadweight old-timers who contributed nothing to the club's development!
Shiraha mentally cycled through these Bilibili school-of-management tactics as he fiddled with the ballpoint pen in his hand. "What's your name, Senpai?"
The young woman paused, then answered softly. "Natasha Cioara."
Shiraha's fingers froze.
Who?