The wind whistled across the cafeteria rooftop. There was more than enough room between the huge skylights that illuminated the dining hall below for the duelists and a few spectators. However, most of the onlookers chose to watch from the far side of the glass expanses.

  Standing slightly behind Mitsue were James, Suki, Kana and Harue. Standing next to Shion was her sister, Kanon, who glared at James as if this was all his fault. In between the two parties stood the Vice President of the Student Council, Shibasaki Asako.

  She was wearing the black jacket of the Student Council, unbuttoned, and with her hands jammed deep in her pockets. She had brown hair and brown eyes, and she had a Bluetooth headset.

  “We normally only get three or four of these a year, so to get one on the first day of term is pretty special,” she said. “Let’s get it started. Are the belligerents here?”

  “Yeah,” Shion said loudly.

  “Yes,” Mitsue said calmly.

  “So this is to be hand-to-hand only. No weapons, no tools, no poisons. No animal companions.” Asako looked at Mitsue. “State your prize. If you win, what do you get from Shion-san?”

  “All I want is for her to stop harassing my friends,” Mitsue stated.

  “You’re not including yourself in that?” Asako asked.

  “I can take care of myself,” Mitsue said.

  “Fair enough,” Asako said, shrugging. “If it becomes relevant, you’ll need to submit a list to the Student Council for enforcement.”

  She turned to face his opponent. “Shion-san. Is that condition acceptable to you?”

  “No…” Shion said. “That’s not how this works! If he wins—which he won’t—then I become his girlfriend, and when I win, he’ll become my boyfriend!”

  “Those are the same thing,” Asako noted. “And a little beyond what we normally allow for duels, but… Kageya-san, are you fine with her half of the stakes?”

  “That’s not relevant,” Mitsue said. “I’m going to win.”

  Asako rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you’re super tough. Humour me.”

  “I don’t object, in principle, but I am a little unsure of how it would work, Mitsue confessed. “A Council-enforced relationship? How long would you enforce it for?”

  “For life, of course!” Asako said. After a beat, she chuckles. “Nah, that’d be insane. Let’s say… three months.”

  She turned back to Shion, who was talking with her sister. Kanon had her arm around Shion’s neck and was holding Shion close to whisper in her ear. Kanon was speaking quietly, while Shion was still speaking normally. So the conversation everyone could hear was a little one-sided.

  “Ow! That hurts!”

  “That’s why I stabbed him! Then he sent the dream monster!”

  “Of course, I took it that way! What else could that mean?”

  Kanon broke from the huddle and pointed at Mitsue. “You! Kageya-san! Do you like my sister?”

  “Ah, well… she’s very attractive and all… anyone would be glad to—”

  “Stop waffling! Yes or no!”

  Mitsue took a deep breath. “No,” he said.

  Kanon sighed. “You’re an idiot,” she said over her shoulder to Shion.

  “No, I’m not! You’re the one who doesn’t understand my emotions!”

  Kanon sighed again. “Duel’s off,” she said. “Sorry for wasting everyone’s time.” She started dragging Shion off, over her protests.

  “Hey, wait, I’m not done yet! I haven't gotten a boyfriend yet!”

  “Ah, Ozu-san, what about the bullying?” Asako called out.

  “I’ll talk to her about it!” Kanon yelled as she left the rooftop.

  Asako watched her go. “Wow. The paperwork on this one is going to be annoying.”

  “So is that it? We don’t get a fight after all?” Harue asked. “Maybe we could start one up with the people here.” She looked around speculatively.

  “Sanctioned duels have to be scheduled at least one day in advance,” Asako said sternly. “Mr St. John, could I have a word with you after everyone disperses?”

  “Me?” James asked, startled. He stayed where he was as the other students started to leave. Some of them expressed the same disappointment as Harue had; others just looked confused.

  Kana left immediately, frowning with displeasure. Mitsue and Suki stood with James. Harue also stuck around, looking at Asako speculatively.

  Asako made a shooing gesture at Harue. Harue rolled her eyes.

  “Fine, I’ve got stuff to do tonight, anyway,” she said and flounced off.

  “Am I in some sort of trouble?” James asked.

  “Not at all,” Asako said. “You seem to be integrating well with the other students. Applying to join the PMC is a sign of a mature and centred student, someone who wants to contribute to the community that they find themselves a part of.”

  “Thanks, I guess,” James said awkwardly.

  Asako smiled. “Thanks to the… particular details of your enrollment, you are probably not aware of the kind of school Aramara Academy is.”

  James gestured at the spot where Shion and Kanon had stood. “This sort of thing, you mean? The crazy? I’m becoming aware.”

  “No, no, Mr St. John.” Asako smiled. “Not that aspect. Aramara Academy is, first and foremost, a school for the very rich.”

  “The rich are paying to have their kids bullied by… whatever Shion is?” James asked skeptically.

  Asako shook her head. “The rich pay obscene amounts of money to give their children the opportunity to connect with those who will go on to be movers and shakers… behind the scenes. Prophesied heroes, dimensional travellers, that sort of thing. Those funds allow us to subsidise places for people like you and your friends.”

  “My parents paid good money for me to come here,” James said defensively.

  “Nowhere near enough, I’m afraid. Which brings us, eventually, to my point. Those rich parents don’t like hearing stories about Aramara Academy.”

  “They don’t? But, I mean, if the crazy is the point…”

  “Oh, they understand that events will occur,” Asako explained. “And that there is a small, rigorously minimised risk that something will happen to their child. Stories, though, they make it hard to explain.”

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “Explain what?”

  “As far as most of the world knows, Aramara Academy is simply a very prestigious school. Those few who know better often keep this a secret. Possibly from their families, certainly from their accountants. The stranger the news is from the island, the harder it becomes to justify keeping their children here.”

  James sighed as realisation struck him. “This is about the helicopter story,” he said.

  “Any story, really, but the helicopter one is the current concern. We can keep the Media Club quiet, of course, but it’s better to close these things off at the source. Before they cause any problems.”

  “I was just talking to the editor today! You’re already getting on my back about this?”

  “I try to keep on top of things,” Asako said smugly. “Speaking of which, your friend Kuzahana-san got into a little bit of trouble today.”

  “Did she?” James asked sourly. He didn’t want to condone Harue’s prank, but he wasn’t in the mood to sell her out either. “The way she tells it, she was framed by someone doing exactly what she wanted to do.”

  “How convenient for her,” Asako said dryly. “Fortunately, such minor disturbances aren’t a concern for the Student Council. The PMC will handle it as they see fit. However…”

  She paused and looked at James speculatively.

  “Kuzahana-san is not the first kitsune to attend here. Indeed, she is not the only one here currently.”

  “Her aunt is the school nurse,” James pointed out.

  Asako nodded. “True. My point was, we are very familiar with the disruptive nature of her kind.”

  “Disruptive is one way of putting it,” James agreed.

  “Her kind need to be handled with care,” Asako said. “There are ways of forcibly restraining or disciplining them, but they are difficult and less than effective.”

  “I’m not sure what you’re getting at,” James said suspiciously.

  “They see punishment quite differently from humans,” Asako explained. “If one commits an offence and is then punished for it, that squares up the debt that an offender owes, and they are free to offend once more.”

  “That’s not… how it works, though?” James said.

  “It is a difficult view to get a handle on,” Asako said. “It mainly applies to crimes that a kitsune commits for fun, not when they have personal goals at stake.”

  “So you’re saying that punishment makes them commit more crimes?”

  “Basically. What the records of the Student Council indicate, though, is that a better way of deterring a kitsune from crimes is to punish her friends.”

  “Wait, what? You’re talking about punishing us for what Harue does? That’s not fair!”

  “Quite. It seems the perceived unfairness of it is what causes the kitsune to act with more restraint.”

  “You can’t do this!” James protested.

  “I’m not talking about doing anything. I did mention that Kuzahana-san’s current misdemeanours are too mild to warrant any response. Do feel free to mention this policy to Kuzahana-san the next time you see her, though.”

  “Just what kind of tyrants are you?” James challenged. “Even in Japan, I thought student councils were mostly a play government, only in charge of things like student clubs. Why does it seem like you run the show here?”

  “We do have that honour,” Asako said with a smile. “The school administration primarily concerns itself with more important matters, so we students were asked to take over some of the more onerous tasks of administration.”

  “So you know… about Professor Toei and the Black Dragons.”

  “We know enough. Professor Toei and his friends in the military seem to be handling it well. The administration needs to focus on the bigger picture.”

  James goggled at her. “Bigger than an ancient dragon god coming from another world to destroy humanity?”

  Asako hesitated. “Yes. It’s part of the picture, certainly, but as I said, it’s being taken care of.”

  “How is the destruction of humanity not all of the picture?” James exclaimed.

  “You have to understand, these sorts of events are not as rare as you might think,” Asako said calmly. “Yours is only one of three ongoing this year.”

  “What?”

  “For the last two years, I’ve been helping Midoriko see off a different extra-dimensional invasion,” Asako informed him. “Meanwhile, Mitsuru-kun and his friends have been fighting against a liminal invader that—well, I shouldn’t say any more. Just talking about it can give it a foothold in your mind.”

  “I don’t believe it—three invasions?”

  “At this time. This is not an unusual year.”

  James looked at his friends. “Did you know about this?”

  They shook their heads.

  “Not about the invasions,” Mitsue said. “That the school administration is powerful, I knew that. It makes sense that they would be concerned with such matters.”

  “I’ve heard rumours,” Suki said. “I know that the Black Dragons aren’t just concerned with this. Their influence is widespread, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re involved with more than one plot.”

  “Don’t worry too much about it,” Asako said. “Focus on your own tasks. If everyone does their share, then the greater problem will take care of itself.”

  “I have a concern that I would like addressed,” Suki said.

  “We normally take requests during office hours, but…” Asako shrugged. “I guess I can hear you out.”

  “Thank you. The music teacher… the influence he’s having on people. Is that sort of behaviour not unacceptable for an educator?”

  “Since you’re friends with Kuzahana-san, I assume you know who he is?”

  “We know what Harue told us,” James said. “I’m still not sure that I believe it.”

  “Then, all I can say is that this is perfectly normal. It’s natural for Gods to inspire devotion. It’s what they do.”

  “That can’t be all there is to it,” Suki insisted. “Harue told us about his sexual appetite. With all these impressionable young girls under his care, you can’t think to—”

  “Let me assure you, Hatakiyama-sensei’s conduct has been nothing less than exemplary. The incident of the music club—it has to be said that mistakes were made there, but they were not made by Hatakiyama-sensei.”

  “What happened at the music club?” James asked.

  “I can’t talk about it. Suffice it to say that it will be a few more years before we can restart the club. We need to wait until all the current students have graduated.”

  “So there have already been incidents, and you still think it’s fine?” Suki pressed.

  “We’ve learned from our errors last year. This is the first time we’ve had a God on campus, and we weren’t fully prepared.”

  “But why even take the risk?”

  “Two reasons. First of all, the instruction that Hatakiyama-sensei provides is well beyond first-rate. The students he selects for special instruction—”

  “He has special students?” Suki asked. Her voice got a little shrill. “You can’t possibly think—”

  “As I said, his behaviour has been exemplary,” Asako said firmly. “Even with only one year’s instruction, the special students are well on the way to being world-class musicians. We’re all eager to see what kind of music three years of instruction can produce.”

  “He’s not the god of music, though, right?” James asked. “He’s a war god.”

  Asako shrugged. “Who am I to say what a god can or cannot do?” she said.

  “What is the second reason?” Mitsue asked.

  “Ah, well. Powerful as the administration is, they are only mortal. If a god wants to take up teaching here, we are hardly in a position to stop him.”

  When James came down for breakfast the next morning, Harue was already there, reading from a manila folder while she ate some fried tofu.

  “It’s too early for homework, isn’t it?” he asked. He went to sit down, but Mitsue held him back.

  “Perhaps, James, we should reconsider sitting with Harue. Suki isn’t down yet, and we could all find different tables.”

  Harue looked up. “Oh? Are you mad at me for something?” she asked mildly.

  “No, it’s just that—” James started.

  “The Student Council as much as told us that we would be punished for any infractions you commit.”

  Harue frowned. “That doesn’t seem very fair. Don’t worry though, I’m on my very best behaviour!”

  “That hardly fills me with confidence,” Mitsue muttered.

  “Anyway, Suki is going to be sitting here. We’re having a meeting of the Provisional Idol Club! All the members are going to be here!”

  “All of the members?” Mitsue asked.

  “Mhmn, a whole bunch of pretty girls,” Harue said. “I can introduce you.”

  “Maybe we can sit here after all,” Mitsue said.

  “So is that something for the club, then?” James asked as he sat down.

  “No,” Harue said. “This is the police report that I picked up last night.”

  Mitsue choked on his miso soup. “You stole a police report?”

  “I didn’t steal it,” Harue said, scornfully. “I made a copy and took that.”

  “This is your best behaviour?” Mitsue asked. “Why would you do such a thing?”

  “That stuff the other day, about the shrine being sealed,” Harue said. “And how Midoriko’s uncle was in charge. It made me suspicious, so I thought I’d look into how her parents died.”

  Mitsue looked like he was about to start a rant, but he paused. “You think there was foul play?”

  “I dunno, it just seemed suspicious,” Harue said. “So I thought I’d look into it.”

  “Have you found anything?” James asked.

  “No, but I’m not the only one who was suspicious,” Harue said.

  “How do you know that?” Mitsue asked.

  “Check out how thick this thing is,” Harue said. “All this for a traffic accident? Someone suspected something. They checked every aspect of this thing. Mechanical reports on all the cars involved, background checks on the family of the other driver. Credit checks, Criminal history checks, association checks… nothing.”

  “So there’s nothing to be found, then,” James said.

  “Hmm. Maybe. You know what isn’t here?”

  “What?”

  “Anything about Midoriko’s uncle. She’s in here, and her brother is mentioned. Nothing about the uncle.”

  “He is a priest,” Mitsue said. “Maybe he was above suspicion.”

  “Maybe, but not above mine,” Harue said. “You want to look at it?”

  She held the file out to both of them.

  “No thanks,” Mitsue said. “I’d prefer not to be in possession of the proceeds of a crime.”

  “So why isn’t Kana here?” James asked, trying to change the subject. “It’s not like her to be late for a meal.”

  “She’s still in our room,” Harue said. “Learning that you need to use shampoo when you get blood in your hair.”

  Both boys looked at Harue accusingly.

  “Not human blood!” Harue said brightly. “Ah! Here she comes now!”