First Day at Dracore Academy
My first day transferring into Dracore Academy. Naturally, there was no uniform waiting for me.
To be exact, it was because a male uniform hadn't even been manufactured yet.
It made sense. This place had always been a training institution for women only, and until now there had never been a single male pilot.
Thanks to that, I walked toward the classroom still wearing the shirt and black pants I'd put on that morning.
As I did, I felt the eyes of the female students lining the corridor turn toward me one by one.
Glancing eyes, whispering lips. Their reactions were, of course, completely foreign to me.
This is less like being a transfer student and more like I've become a monkey on display at the zoo.
Still, one small mercy was that—perhaps because of the nature of this world—even the nameless students passing by possessed uncommon beauty.
Because of that, being stared at by them wasn't entirely unpleasant. When a beautiful person gazes at you intently, it stirs your pulse more than it offends.
Come to think of it, the administrative staff member I'd met earlier had been quite the beauty herself.
The strangely refined atmosphere.
The unfamiliar backdrop in which I was the only male.
Inside it, I savored a curious blend of tension and pleasant alienation while mentally organizing everything I knew about this place's systems.
The academy operated on a four-year system. Four years until graduation. By the second year, most students had gained enough skill to be deployed in actual combat and would sometimes carry out missions as active pilots.
However, because piloting a Dracore placed enormous strain on the body, most considered retirement within a few years of graduation.
In that sense, this was a pilot training school designed to cultivate young girls and cycle in new generations the moment they reached their physical limits.
That was the true essence of this institution.
Which is exactly why I'm receiving so much attention.
The only male. The only exception.
The weight of expectation created by that fact pressed rather heavily on my shoulders.
From what I could see, a great deal was being asked of me.
The research institute, the academy—perhaps even the entire nation—seemed to be hanging on the single thread of my potential.
No matter how outstanding a female pilot they produced, women retired within a few years due to physical toll. The hope was that a resilient male might prove different.
But honestly, I simply wanted to pilot a Dracore.
Whether I could actually deliver the results everyone was hoping for… even I couldn't say for sure.
Class 1-A.
I drew in a long breath and placed my hand on the doorknob.
A mixture of anticipation and pressure, curiosity and anxiety, flowed through my fingertips.
Carefully, I opened the classroom door.
"Is it true? There's really a boy transferring to the academy?"
"Yeah, yeah! I just came from the administrative office!"
"Kyaa! It's like something out of a drama!"
"....."
Yuzuki nearly let her expression crumple at the excited voices of her classmates swirling around her.
But she barely managed to keep her smile in place and straightened her posture.
Inside, however, she still felt deeply uncomfortable.
...How did it come to this?
It was the same question she'd repeated countless times that morning while coming to the academy with her brother.
"Yuzuki! Is it true? Your older brother is really transferring in?"
"I heard he's really handsome~? With a family like yours, everyone must be good-looking!"
Suddenly besieged by her chattering classmates, Yuzuki gave a gentle nod and carefully modulated her tone.
"...Ah. Yes, he's a good person. A little clumsy at times, but sincere, kind… and reliable."
It was the gentle, refined way of speaking she'd learned to use here.
At the academy, Yuzuki was the quiet and graceful young lady.
Polished speech, soft smiles, impeccable posture.
Right now, she was thoroughly performing the ideal version of herself that the school expected.
"Then… does that mean we might get to Couple with your brother too?"
"I guess it's possible… but why would you want to? With my brother of all people…"
Just as Yuzuki was inwardly panicking at her classmate's hopeful voice, the girl continued with sparkling, innocent eyes.
"Why not? I'm curious! What does it feel like with a boy? It might be… even more stimulating, right?"
The girl beside her tilted her head.
"But can you even Couple with a man? I thought our whole system was designed around female physiology?"
"That's why her brother was allowed to transfer in the first place. Wow… it's really fascinating."
"Kyaaak, I want to try it at least once~! It sounds so dangerous and exciting!"
In the blink of an eye, the entire class buzzed with curiosity about the unknown possibility of Coupling with a male.
The illusion that the academy was a sanctuary for proper young ladies had already shattered.
In reality, most of them were girls who had just graduated high school and become adults. Because the opposite sex had been completely excluded from their daily lives, their curiosity only grew stronger, unrestrained.
"Oh, right—Yuzuki, have you ever Coupled with your brother?"
"Th-that's…"
She had mentally prepared herself, but the moment the question flew at her, Yuzuki's eyes wavered.
Feeling every gaze in the room converge on her, she faltered.
"...Well, how should I put it… um…"
Her face still wore a smile, but a faint flush had risen to her cheeks.
Her eyes drifted slightly away, and her voice grew extremely cautious.
She forced a gentle laugh and tried to brush it off.
"It was just… an experiment. It wasn't anything special."
But her vague answer only fueled her friends' curiosity even more.
"Aww, what's with that tone~! It totally sounds like something happened!"
"Right, right! Your face is all red~!"
"What was it like?! How does Coupling with a guy feel?"
Yuzuki turned her head to escape the barrage of questions, swallowing yet another sigh.
What it felt like to Couple with a man?
...How am I supposed to explain that?
Coupling with her brother wasn't simply a matter of sensory feedback.
It was a terrifyingly deep connection. An experience where instinct and self-awareness blended together as one. An incomprehensible immersion that made her feel as if she had surrendered all control to him in a single instant.
How could she possibly reveal that in front of these innocent faces?
The intense mental communion she had felt in that moment was difficult to explain to anyone, in more ways than one.
And it was exactly then—
Creak—
The classroom door opened.
The lively chatter that had filled the space around Yuzuki instantly fell silent.
Everyone turned their heads at once.
At the end of those gazes stood a male student in casual clothes.
He looked slightly flustered, yet quickly composed himself and lifted his eyes.
He's here… Brother.
Yuzuki murmured inwardly and hurriedly smoothed out her expression. In that brief moment, a strange tension rippled through the classroom.
.....
I thought I'd grown used to the girls' stares on my way here. But the moment I actually stepped inside, the feeling was completely different.
The instant I opened the door, the wave of eyes on me nearly made me take an involuntary step backward.
Through the quiet that had settled over the room, dozens of gazes pierced straight into me.
I swept my eyes across the classroom as calmly as I could manage and soon spotted a familiar face among them.
Yuzuki.
She had been surrounded by her friends, but when the door opened she turned her gaze toward me.
Our eyes met naturally as we stared at each other.
I hesitated.
Should I just greet her normally…?
Was it fine to act like we knew each other? I was still debating internally when Yuzuki suddenly rose from her seat.
She approached me as if gently dissolving the tension in the air around us, then spoke in a clear, distinct voice.
"As you all know, this is my older brother. He'll be in our class starting today, so please take good care of him."
Then she took my hand—which was still frozen near the doorway—and added,
"Don't be awkward. Come in."
With those words, the atmosphere inside the classroom shifted subtly.
Tension, curiosity, interest, and a kind of unspoken expectation blended together, changing the weight of every gaze.
I gave an awkward nod and took a step inside.
After pausing for a moment, unsure where to go, I unconsciously moved toward where Yuzuki was standing.
She kept her eyes on me, naturally turning her body within the circle of her friends to welcome me.
Then, with a faint smile, she said,
"Brother, the seat next to me would be best."
A small wave of stifled reactions rippled through the room.
Giggling breaths, whispered exchanges of glances. Comments about how nice it must be to take classes together and look like such a close brother and sister...
I had no idea how the people around us perceived my relationship with my little sister, but I smiled awkwardly and nodded. It didn't seem wise to shatter their fantasies.
Even after I sat down beside her, the gathered stares refused to disperse.
If anything, they only grew denser.
Eyes sparkling as if observing a creature they'd never seen before in this world.
I fidgeted with a button on my shirt and quietly swallowed.
Perhaps sensing my discomfort, someone suddenly raised their hand and spoke first.
"Um… you're Nakamura-kun, right?"
I looked up. A girl with a refreshing short bob haircut asked with sparkling eyes.
"What made you decide to pilot a Dracore? Everyone says it's really too much for a man, don't they?"
Another voice immediately piled on.
"Have you actually tried controlling one? Did it really move?"
"By any chance… would you be willing to Couple with me later?"
The questions poured out in an instant.
Their faces were bright and cheerful, but their eyes were honest. Pure, unfiltered curiosity. There was no malice or wariness in them. Strangely, that only made it more intimidating.
Being bombarded with expectation and interest by all these young, beautiful faces at once.
Honestly, it wasn't unpleasant. But this wasn't the "flower garden" I'd imagined.
That had been nothing but a rosy fantasy. What stood before me now was...
Like stepping into a cage full of carnivorous pets.
I forced a smile and rolled my shoulders. I hadn't expected things to start like this.
I was still struggling to figure out how to handle the situation when—
Tap—
Yuzuki quietly struck her desk with her palm. It wasn't loud, but the force behind it brought silence to the entire classroom.
She rose from her seat with a gentle smile.
"Everyone, calm down. You're making my brother uncomfortable."
Her voice was clear and refined. She neatly adjusted the hem of her skirt with her fingertips, wearing the elegant expression of a perfect young lady.
"I know you have a lot of questions… but class is about to start, so shouldn't we prepare? The instructor will be here soon."
Light laughter and disappointed sighs leaked out from among the girls.
Still, thanks to her, the mood gradually settled, and the stares directed at me began to scatter.
I glanced at Yuzuki.
...She really lives a double life.
At home she was always frowning and speaking bluntly, yet here she acted like the very picture of a graceful, refined young lady.
I'd heard people describe her as "quiet" and "reliable" on the way here and thought they were exaggerating… but they weren't.
Her speech, her gestures, even the angle at which she tilted her head—every movement was calculated for elegance.
For a moment I was dumbfounded, and at the same time strangely impressed. Just how many layers of masks did this girl wear?
Perhaps sensing my gaze, Yuzuki sat back down and secretly pinched my thigh.
"Don't look at me like that… I didn't want to show you this side of me either."
Her voice carried both sulkiness and embarrassment at the same time.
Yes. This was the Yuzuki I knew.