Let me tell you something: there are few things in life more terrifying than hearing your name over the school intercom.
Except maybe hearing it while you're still soggy from an indoor sprinkler accident, with lab chemicals possibly clinging to your eyebrows.
"Chiku Ahay. Please report to the principal's office. Immediately."
I swear, time slowed down.
The whole class turned and stared at me. Even Rakesh, who had just put an entire eraser in his mouth on a dare, paused mid-chew.
My inner monologue screamed: THEY KNOW. THEY KNOW EVERYTHING.
But I stood up, tried to walk like an innocent civilian, and totally didn't trip over my own shoelace in the process.
---
The hallway felt different now. Every fluorescent light hummed louder. Every step echoed like it was narrating my downfall.
By the time I reached the principal's door — a large, polished, wood-paneled beast of a thing with a brass nameplate that read "JUNTA TOWAZAKI, PRINCIPAL" — I was sweating more than a contestant on a cooking show holding raw chicken.
I knocked. The door creaked open like it was legally required to be dramatic.
Inside was an office that screamed "I drink black coffee and don't believe in joy."
There were no decorations. Just towering bookshelves filled with rules, regulations, and probably ancient curses. A single bonsai tree sat on the desk, looking smug.
Behind the desk sat Junta Towazaki — a man with the posture of a battleship, the jawline of a chiseled statue, and eyes that could probably detect lies on a molecular level.
He wore a crisp grey suit, a red tie, and an expression that hadn't changed since the Meiji era.
"Chiku Ahay," he said, his voice deep enough to cause minor earthquakes. "Sit."
I sat.
Immediately. Like a well-trained puppy. My knees made a sound that might've been betrayal.
"You were found in the chemistry lab," he said, not looking at any notes. "During lunch."
I nodded. "Y-Yes, sir."
"During a fire alarm."
"Um, also yes."
"With Tanishka Rao. Who is currently being questioned by the science department and two very confused firefighters."
I was silent.
Principal Towazaki leaned forward. His bonsai tree cast a suspicious shadow across his face, like it was in on the interrogation.
"Explain."
I panicked. Completely.
"I think she's in the underworld."
He blinked.
I blinked.
Even the bonsai tree seemed to blink.
"I mean, like, a villain! Not like… Hades. I didn't mean hell. I meant, um, crime… syndicate?"
There was a silence so intense I could hear my future collapsing.
Finally, Principal Towazaki spoke. "Are you feeling well, Chiku?"
"Define well," I said, laughing nervously.
"Do I need to contact your parents?"
"No! They already think I joined a cult when I started talking to myself last week. I can't go through that again!"
His eyebrow twitched. "You also triggered the school fire alarm."
"That was an accident! There was an explosion! Small! Mostly green!"
He sighed. The man who had probably survived budget meetings and student protests was visibly tired.
After a long pause, he finally said, "Chiku Ahay… you're either part of something extremely dangerous... or extremely stupid."
I nodded solemnly. "Can it be both?"
A beat.
Then, miraculously, he wrote something down, stamped a paper, and handed it to me.
"Detention. One week. After school. Report to Mr. Tanaka's classroom."
I stared at the paper. I couldn't even argue. I mean, sure, I had technically uncovered an underworld villain, but also? I'd flooded a lab and possibly invented mustard gas.
As I stood to leave, he added: "Also, please stop accusing top students of criminal activity without evidence. This is a school, not an anime."
I bowed slightly. "Yes, Principal Towazaki."
I left his office with a soggy soul, a week of detention, and exactly 99 villains to go.
---
Quest Update:
Villains Eliminated: 1/100
Reputation: Shaky
Punishment Level: Medium
Chance of Survival: Debatable