Beyond M-Eclipse: Easy Mode LIVE

———Lynda———

“Oh! I haven’t seen you in a while. Mister Munsz.” I said somewhat cheekily.

“And you still say my name so weirdly, couldn’t you say it normally?” He exasperatedly said.

“It’s a weird name, of course I’m saying it like that.” I replied with a grin. “You still look as plain as always, by the way.”

“...Right.” He responded, sounding rather dull.

“Guess saying Teacher Munsz would’ve been more appropriate though, aren’t you back as a teacher there?” I pointed out. It’s kinda jarring seeing all the same faces on the site. It’s like no one ever left.

My parents were a bit annoyed that they basically need to pay a second time to get into the ‘same school’, but it’s a very small amount in comparison thanks to the discount, so it’s just mildly annoying.

“Yeah. Was one hell of a shock.” He said while scratching his cheek. “I honestly thought I lost my job for a good while.”

“That’s a scary thought.” I replied. It’s probably even more shocking for the teachers considering that it is their livelihood. It’s their job and how they pay their rent.

“It’s rather overwhelming, even.” He remarked.

“Haaa…” I let out a sign as I sat down on the park bench.

It’s been rather quiet these past few months. A long break from working at a school is certainly welcomed, but it does mean I have nowhere to work right now.

There hasn’t been any messages to any of the school staff, no emails, no nothing. Just radio silence.

Why did the school get replaced by that structure? What’s going to happen to my job? All the things I set up for the students? It all went bye-bye in a flash.

“Fancy seeing you here.” Suddenly a familiar voice rings in my eyes. I look towards the direction of the sound and see a woman with purple hair and orange eyes walking up to me.

“Mana? What’s up?” I said, still feeling a bit sleepy, waking up on the wrong side of bed and all that.

“Is that really how you should talk to your boss?” She teasingly said. What boss? And also, shouldn’t she be the most devastated by this news I just thought about? No one has heard anything about her for a while. Thought she was moping around after her school get got.

“...Boss?” That’s the part that makes the least sense. She’s not a principal or anything anymore, just like I’m not a math teacher anymore.

“Ah. I guess I haven’t said anything about it so far. I have been quite busy until recently.” She said before looking up in the sky, as if pondering on something important. “Scratch that. I am still busy, I’m just taking it slow right now. Paperworks is not fun.”

“Have you been… Getting a new job somewhere?” I asked, wondering where the conversation is heading.

“Nope. Still have my old job.” She flatly said. “Should I cut to the chase then?”

“...What’s going on?” I asked, starting to feel uneasy. It’s a gut feeling… No, it’s not even that. Just from what she said and how she said it, there’s some underlying reasoning behind her approaching me, and it’s rather scary, or at least it feels that way to me.

“Need you to prepare for next semester is what I’m saying. I’ll send the details to you and your colleagues in a few hours. This is just a heads-up.” She said before walking off. Well that was rather cryptic…

…So she gets a job as a school principal again and wants the crew back together… But which school is she talking about?

…I guess I’ll check my email later, whatever it could be.

“‘Head to the Grand SK Institute… You know what that place is…’ Huh?” I repeated what the message said.

Am I supposed to know where that is? That’s not a name I am familiar with, maybe I should-

*Ring* *Ring*

Someone is calling me now? Oh! It’s-

*Beep*

“Something coming up, Scien?” I asked once I picked up the phone.

“” She suddenly screamed in my ear, freaking the hell out.

“Geez. Lower your voice a bit.” I said, exasperated at her reaction. “So what are you talking about?”

“” She said incredulously.

“Oh, did you get that one too? You know what it meant?” I asked. Maybe that’s why she’s freaking out and I’m not.

“” She asked, sounding even more baffled. “”

“S-Seriously? How did you know that?” I asked, starting to feel overwhelmed with information already.

“” She suddenly scolded me. “”

*Beep*

She hung up on me quickly, probably getting her stuff before rushing towards the location.

I’m not really sure if this is a prank or what, but it does have an air of mystery to it.

If nothing else, at least I have a clue of where to go, so there’s that.

…Right. I kinda forget how massive this place is. I avoided the area just in case anything fishy might happen, so I only ever saw it from a distance. It’s like a giant castle… skyscraper…

Anyway, hopefully nothing goes wrong as I enter the front gate… Just walking past it already felt like a massive accomplishment, despite how mundane the act actually is.

I walked down the path before me and approached the building in the center. This should be where they’re expecting us, I think.

…Guess I just walked right in? I don’t really know the specific place we’re meeting at, it’s not exactly said in the mail.

“” A synthetic feminine voice can be heard once I stepped inside the building. Guess I just walk straight? There’s a clear path forward.

…Oh. I’m seeing some people in this… Very fancy-looking lobby. It’s more like a hotel than a school if you ask me. There’s even a reception desk and a few elevators behind it. Also an area with tables and chairs for people to wait and relax, where a few familiar faces can be seen.

“Yo! Good to see you come!” Wana said with that ridiculous tracksuit of hers. Why does she wear that on almost every occasion?

“Just a few left at this point.” Mana said, as she looked around. Seems like everyone gets the same message.

“So what’s really going on here?” Scien said, sounding rather impatient.

“Relax, I’ll explain the most I can after everyone arrives.” Mana calmly replied.

There’s a sense of tension in the air, even as we sat around, not really doing anything or having a reason to believe any foul play is afoot. Everyone here knows each other, no one here has a history of anything malicious, be it towards each other, or others outside the school.

I guess both Mana and Wana are rather close-lipped about their history, but it’s not like they have criminal records, so their hands seem clean enough. Also, they are pretty friendly and helpful, so that’s even less reason to suspect anything, even in this odd circumstance we found ourselves in.

And yet, the fact that we’re even here definitely raised some alarms in our head. Something felt off. This is a place full of mysteries, no definitive answer as to why it exists. Why does it replace where we work? Who is the perpetrator? There is a lot to answer, and no clue at all.

*Zoom*

…Where are we now?

“Alright, everyone. Let’s all sit down and relax.” Mana said as she sat at the head of the table… What is this scene? This looks like a fancy dinner party more than anything.

How did a simple pad in the ground even transport us all to a completely different place? Seems to defy more or less everything.

Of course, before I think about it further, I choose to find a place to sit. It would be rude to keep the host waiting.

“Hmm… Alright then. Guess we can get down to business, but first…” Mana said, trailing off as a few human-like robots walked over with a tray of food for each of us… Hold on, is this an actual dinner party? “It’s on the house, of course.”

“So what’s actually going on? Surely you can tell us that right now.” Scien said before stuffing her face full of pasta. “Bwyh dhe whey, eni refil?”

“Sure. You can ask for more.” Mana nonchalantly replied. “Anyway. The reason I called all of us here is very simple. In a few months this place will open up for the usual school stuff, so I’m bringing us all here to do a very simple announcement. You all still have your jobs.”

“...That’s nice and all, but what the hell does that all entail?” Mrkis asked, looking quite serious.

“It’s just business as usual. You guys teach while I organize, though I suppose that is simply not enough to satiate your curiosity.” Mana said, keeping a poker face that doesn’t show signs of worry.

“I think you should at least explain what the hell happened to this place, first of all.” Elis asked, also sounding quite apprehensive. “And why are you still the head honcho? Did you organize all of this yourself?”

“Haha…” She laughed nervously, quickly losing the facade. “Well… I’ll keep it real with all of you, since you stuck with this school of mine for a long while. I think it’s time for a history lesson, so listen as you eat. Oh, and raise your hand to call the androids, they’ll know.”

I guess I’ll eat as I listen then. There’s a wide array of food in small portions. From pasta to rice to soup and so on.

“So here’s the thing with my position as the principal. As some of you may know, I wasn’t the original owner of the school. It was a pretty run-down and very typical school before I barged in and changed some things, for the better I hope.” She said as she subtly glanced at all of us. “Now I didn’t get in and replaced the old head with persuasion alone. There was a backend dealing that needed the help of a third party. This person not only helped me get my position, but also funded some of the more drastic changes I made to the school, improving on the overall experience for the kids.”

“Sounds kinda… suspicious, ain’t it?” Scien said, having finished her portion already as she waved at an android. “Another set, please.”

“You would be justified in thinking that way.” Mana replied.

“I guess you put the blame for such a sudden and drastic shift on this third party?” Elis said, putting her assumption out there.

“I wouldn’t call it ‘blaming’...” She replied, clearly finding the choice of words too harsh. “Here are the three things I can say about this third party. One is that it is someone I fully trust. Two, they are well-versed in magic long before the public became aware of it. Thirdly, they are responsible for the change to the school, but I gave them the permission to do it, and I was looking to renovate it further anyway.”

“Wait… They already know about magic? How?” Elis further asked. She’s being quite inquisitive.

“Magic has always existed since time immemorial. People simply lost access to it, or rather, they no longer know how to.” …That’s quite a revelation. Then she has also known about it, and might be able to use it, long before this point and time.

“Interesting… How did all the records on its functions were lost then?” Elis asked. Is her historian brain acting up? I feel like it is.

“It’s not something I have a full knowledge of, I’m afraid.” Mana replied. “But what is more important is this. Are you guys in?”

That question holds a lot of weight…

>>> Present Time

“So Miss Mana orchestrated the whole thing by herself?” I asked, since he’s not giving me any clarification on that. Ultimately all he told me is that she offers everyone the job at a dinner party.

“It’s not something I am privy to, and it would be rude to confide everything she said.” He said. Well that’s a damn shame isn’t it? “She wants everything to be a surprise.”

“Ain’t that just lovely…” I replied, feeling slightly irritated. Of course he’s not going to spill the beans, there’s many reasons for that, but that’s not gonna stop me from feeling left out. It already felt like there’s a lot going on and nothing to go off on.

Just looks to me like I just need to wait until the school opens. It won’t take long, but a wait is still a wait.