About a week after my admittance to GEN Academy, I received a uniform and information booklet in the mail, with an attached letter that had all the necessary information. They even kindly sent me a digital version through email too.

On the letter were thorough instructions on what to do on April 1st, the day of our entrance ceremony. We were to go to the docks by 7am, and to wear the gifted uniform. With my uniform was a red tie, which meant I was in the nation Drachma Red.

As we'd be living on the island the school was on during the duration of our semesters, it was highly advised for us to bring some luggage. Since I didn't want to carry around a lot of stuff with me, I packed the bare necessities to get me through the first month at the very least.

After all, GEN Academy is the academy city on water. The island was similar to a small city, with facilities such as shopping malls and cafes at our disposal. Even though one might think to bring money to purchase items on school grounds, it was firmly stated in the letter that we couldn't bring any money with us. I wonder why.

On the night before the entrance ceremony, I was double-checking the list of required items that was on the email. One of them was a Vanguard deck. I glanced at the deck of cards on my table, and exhaled. I opened one of my drawers and took a deck-box from it, tossing it into my suitcase. I cleaned up the cards on the table and chucked them into my drawer, stashing it away and locking it.

I went to sleep, anticipating tomorrow.

April 1st.

I arrived at the docks with only a few minutes to spare. I decided to go walk there by myself and spare mom the trouble, as she had to drop off my little sister to middle school the same time I left the house.

As I stared out towards the vast ocean, I took a deep breath. The salty scent of the seawater tickled my nose, and the early spring breeze was really refreshing. It made me feel like I was starting something truly amazing.

Thankfully, I wasn't being treated differently to everyone else. After that strange entrance exam, part of me wondered if I'd get alienated once more from my future peers. Now learning that wasn't the case, my heart was at ease, and I felt like every other student present.

I walked down the side stairs to the lower level of the docks, where there was a mass of students collectively waiting, with what seemed to be some GEN faculty on patrol. I blended into the crowd of people, feeling contempt at thennormalcy. I held my suitcase closely to me as I wandered around. On the upper level of the docks were crowds of parents seeing their children off.

I wish mom was here to say some words of good luck to me. Even though she cheered me on during breakfast, I feel like I would've felt happier if she said those words here.

From the sea of faces around me, I could roughly make out Mikazuchi-sensei standing at the front, lined up with other faculty members. The adults looked incredibly smart and business-like. Were they our future teachers?

It seems the beginning of cliques and groups were forming, as similar people were bunched up together and conversing. As I didn't know anyone from my middle school who was also coming to GEN, I had no friends among the crowd. So, I decided to hang around at the back with the other straggler kids and check my phone for the time.

6:53am. As I leaned against the wall, part of me felt a bit claustrophobic as I was being sandwiched between it and the other students. I slumped my shoulders, considering how I was going to make friends. While social situations were not my forte, I feel like I should at least try here where it's socially acceptable to talk to other people.

After all, one of the golden rules was that it was only acceptable to make new friends during the first three days of high school. After that, you've got to stick to your clique no matter what. As my head wracked with ideas on how to get friends, I heard an angelic voice from behind me.

"Yuu-kun?"

I turned around. While one of my options was to play the silent cool type, that idea was tossed out of the window the moment I laid my eyes on the girl in front of me.

"Yukina-san? You're going to GEN Academy too?"

Kazuraba Yukina. We went to middle school together, and had the same classes. We became good friends during our time there.

She waved at me with a bright smile. I took a peek at her tie - it was red. I fist-pumped as we were also in the same nation. Somehow, the god of luck was on my side again, redeeming himself after my overwhelming failure during the entrance exam. At least knowing one person here made me feel more comfortable.

"Yes, I got an invitation too. I'm really happy to know I'm not alone!"

"Me too. I was really worried I was the only one from our middle school."

"To think we'd meet again so soon after the spring break. Well, how have you been?"

"It's been so-so. Choosing what to pack was difficult."

"That's quite the suitcase."

"Talk about yourself. What's with that tiny bag?"

Yukina only had a normal schoolbag slung around her shoulder. She laughed lightly, and nodded.

"If I need anything, I'll just purchase it at school."

"Seems kind of risky."

"I don't need that many things. Besides, I think this school is making us act like adults. You're going to have to buy things eventually."

I had to agree. This was another positive to the school, since it made you feel like you've finally matured and become an adult. Plus, you got away from your parents. Many people would be ecstatic over that latter prospect. Me included.

Just as my heart settled down, it got startled once more by the sound of a large horn. I turned to the source, and my eyes locked onto a massive cruise ship parked just outside the docks.

Everyone fell silent.

This luxury cruise ship... what's it doing here?

Then a huge uproar came from the students on the docks. The crackle of a megaphone brought us back to silence, and a man stepped onto a raised podium.

It was none other than the Headmaster himself. Satsubatsu Kirigaya-sama.

"Welcome, first years. It's a pleasure meeting the future leaders of Japan."

Headmaster Satsubatsu-sama's voice was deep and rich. It had a commanding tone that stole everyone's attention.

"As you all know, GEN Academy is an academy city on water. As such, we had to arrange transport to the island."

The students began murmuring. Headmaster Satsubatsu-sama smirked.

"You will all be boarding this cruise ship to get there!"

It took us a few seconds to comprehend the situation. Then, we all broke into wild, chaotic cheering. We were all smiling like idiots, throwing our hands into the air and screaming over how brilliant this school was. The students began talking to one another excitedly.

I turned my head to look at Yukina. She was staring in awe, eyes shining. Meanwhile, I got caught up in it all and began screaming with everyone else, even though I usually wasn't like that. It's probably because I've never been on a cruise ship, and this academy is giving me the chance to for free. I felt extremely blessed.

As the Headmaster resumed his talk, the students fell back into silence. It'd be a bad idea to get on the Headmaster's bad side on the first day, especially since this treat of a transport was standing in front of our eyes.

"I'm very glad to see all of you so excited over this cruise ship. For those who are a bit more sceptical, may I talk to you directly? I know that this seems overkill, but please remember that we must accommodate one hundred and twenty five of you along with a handful of faculty on our journey. Not to mention, we'd like to treat you all after going through that hellish entrance exam. After reviewing our data, this year's group had seriously impressed us. It'd be wrong to not reward such bright young minds."

The Headmaster was a gracious man. He dispelled the worries and sceptics with his confidence and praised us thoroughly for our achievements. I felt proud of myself, even if it was just lip service in the end.

"Now that the hard part is over, you can all relax as you've secured a spot for the upcoming school year. However, be prepared for anything. There will be tribulations, there will hardships, but for now, let's have a good time. It should be celebrated that you first years will go on to become Japan's elite. Please don't hold back, and enjoy this cruise ship to your heart's content!"

Concluding that speech, everyone erupted into a loud droning of noise again.

Despite the strange entrance exam I received, it seemed that that GEN Academy truly did want to reward us for what we managed to achieve.

We watched as the doors of the cruise ship opened up, and the faculty began guiding us inside in a single file line. I stood close to Yukina as she was the only person I knew there. What I liked about her was that we understood the silence between each other. We didn't have to talk to have a good time. We had a mutual understanding that our personal space could do the talking for us.

At the entrance of the cruise ship, two people took my luggage and marked it with a ticket. I was given a ticket with the same number as my luggage, and was admitted inside the luxurious cruise ship.

The atmosphere inside was insane. Somehow, it was even more rowdy and livelier than before, with lots of students running around and checking out the facilities on board. You'd imagine we were all mature adults entering a new stage of our lives, yet we all acted like children. This is what they call youthful spirit, huh?

The time was exactly 7am when everyone got on board. As some students ran out to the open area above to wave goodbye to their parents one last time, I was stuck figuring out what I wanted to do, even after checking the map.

The cruise ship departed, and a new chapter of everyone's lives began.