My brother is a girl, and I don't mean that in the sense of "Oh my brother acts feminine, or wow... He is such a baby". I mean that in the very real and dictionary definition. My brother is actually a girl.
Women are the strongest in this world; they are superior to almost all men in every way. Their strength is almost unmatched by almost all men, and they also have a higher amplitude to magic and a higher mana pool. With both those things in mind, if you were to pluck a girl and a boy out of a crowd and tell them to engage in combat. The girl would almost always plow her counterpart into the ground. However, there are a select few men who are different. These men all have one thing in common, and that one thing is that they are descendants of the order of the nine. Each pyramid has a tip, and in that case, the point of this pyramid is the Ninth order, the middle is the girls, and the bottom is any guy who isn't a descendant from one of the orders. The ninth order is nine separate families that have pure bloodlines and only birth boys who are the rightful heir to their families' order. The boys of the ninth order not only can stand head-to-head with almost all girls, but they also almost always triumph. They are royalty and are almost known all around the nation. A family from any of the Ninth order has never given birth to a girl; only boys have descended and taken up the throne. That was until my sis- Brother was born. My name is Shio Katsumi, and this is my story.
Amazing. So strong. I clapped my hands and smiled as I approached Aki. Aki Katsumi is my younger sis- brother. They were a year younger than I, but they had already far surpassed me in strength and speed. The only thing they didn't pass me on was magic. But I was quite a prodigy in that subject. I was known to be the second-best magician in all Perixal, the only one rumored to be better was the father and head of the 2nd order. Ever since the day Aki was born, I have envied her. Not only is she one of the strongest people I've ever met, but she is also forced to conceal who she really is and pretend to be someone she wasn't. It was never a choice. Thankfully, being royalty, she was able to avoid certain things like changing in public, which helped hide her identity, but nevertheless. I always envied her dedication to hiding the truth, even though it wasn't her choice. Grinning from ear to ear, she looked over at me as she stopped her training. "Thanks, big brother. I hope someday to have a title like you; the Dark Mage of the Second order just sounds so cool!" She let out with excitement. I know soon she will pass me and become stronger than ever imaginable. "You are already on the student council and extremely popular, what more do you need?" I teased. Holstering her weapons, she began to laugh. Aki had two weapons she preferred. She used a moon-shaped sickle and a bow staff. When I asked her why she spent all her time using multiple weapons instead of just mastering one so she could focus more on magic, she just grinned and told me not to worry. Seriously, this girl. Sometimes there's no reasoning with her. Being as soft-spoken as she was, she sure was hardheaded. Tossing her an Ice-cold melon soda, she caught it with both her hands, and her eyes lit up. She immediately downed the beverage and let out a gratifying sound. "Ahhhhh, So good." As she shook her rear end so slightly, almost like a dog who was excited to get pet. I will never let anyone hurt her. As long as I live... I promise to protect you, Aki. I thought to myself, looking at my happy little sis- brother.
You would think by now I would've gotten used to calling her my brother, but I figured since she must be fake around everyone else. The least I can do is let her be as real as she wants to be around me. Despite living a fake life, she didn't hide many of her feminine features. Other than the clothes she wore to school (which were the male's uniform), she didn't actively try to hide it. She had long hair and went around town. She wore baggy clothes with a hood as part of her combat suit, and around the estate, if no one was around, she dressed like what I'm assuming any other normal girl would. Despite all of that, no one knew her secret besides our family. Our father was very strict about keeping it a secret. He said that if someone found out a girl was born in the Order, there would be an uproar and consequences, that the whole order would come crashing down. I wasn't a very political person, and neither was Aki, but despite that, we heard our father's warning and kept it secret for her and our family's safety. I would do anything to protect my sister from harm.
Watching her stand there staring into the bottle of her empty melon soda, trying to get every last drop out of it, I see her begin to reach for her weapons again. "AKI, we're going to be late for school! No more practice. We need to go!" I barked at her hastily. A pouty and angry face gazed back at me. Letting out a sigh, I dangled a bag, "I packed your lunch, it has Onigiri." Instantly, she perks up and runs over with enthusiasm, "Ok! Let's go!" She grabs my arm and starts pulling me towards the school. This girl and food, I tell you, that's all it takes, I guess. Even though our estate was far away from the school, we always walked. It was nice to walk to school; we'd pass through town, which we usually wouldn't spend much time in, due to the fact that we were hiding such a big secret. Despite that, it was a beautiful town full of tons of supplies and goodies. Whenever I couldn't find Aki, I knew I could always find her in the cafe here, drinking melon soda and eating treats. "Shio, can we stop by the cafe?" Her eyes lit up thinking about the diabetes she so desperately wanted to get. "No," I responded hastily. She shot me a distasteful look. This was our morning routine, and usually at some point during the school day, you could count on her running off and hiding here, claiming that she was in the student council room. I can't really blame her, though; I didn't like being at school either, and I get to be myself. I couldn't imagine doing what she does.
As we arrived at the gates to our school, she clung onto the elbow of my jacket. I looked over to her and smiled, "Let's do our best today, shall we?" She let go of my jacket with her fingers and patted herself down. Letting out a sigh, she agreed. Walking through the gates, people started to walk up to us. "Hi Shio, hi Aki." "Oh my gosh, they are both so cute." Suddenly, a girl walks up and stops the crowd's side conversation and stops in front of Aki. She was bright red, clutching onto some sort of box. She was bright red and almost looked like she was going to pass out; it was kind of cute. "H-h-h-h-HERE!" They blurted out, extending the box forward to Aki, "For you!" Nobody said anything for a moment, and silence filled the courtyard. Aki reached out and accepted the box, infectiously smiling. "Thank you". Relieved, the girl seemed to be okay with the response and took off, running through the crowd like a tomato. Glancing over at Aki, who was already popping the chocolates into her mouth while humming and smiling. "I think those chocolates had more meaning to them than just a snack," I murmured to her. Tilting her head, she looked at me with a puzzled look. It was almost like I was speaking a foreign language to her. Letting out a sigh, we continued forward. This happened more often than you would think. Not only were girls in love with Aki, but it also seemed like everyone was enchanted by her beauty. She was by far the most popular girl in school. On our way to our first class, 3 more girls would have half confessed their love for her while she thought they were just giving her tasty snacks... Seriously, you've got to be kidding me. As a guy, it's beyond insulting that girls were more into my little sister than me, or rather, anyone in the school. Oh well.
"Today, we will be learning how to cast miracle spells on someone rather than yourself. It is a little bit tricky and harder to do since you must conjure something outside of your own body, so we will need to partner up," Our Professor Mavis announced to the class. "Also, for the sake of teaching purposes, I want all of the 3rd and 4th years to partner up with a 1st or a 2nd year, and as a rule, none of the Nine are able to partner up with each other." Snickering, I looked over at Aki, who let out a sigh. Oh well, I guess it can't be helped. *Slapping my face* Ok, now's my time to make a move. I looked over and saw Kaori waving off her friends as they went to look for partners for the lesson.
Despite Kaori being in the 4th year and I being in the 2nd year, we were only 1 year apart. At the end of each year, the students at the top of their class in both magic and combat undergo a test to judge their worth. Depending on how they do on the exam, it will determine what class they will be in the following year. Theoretically, you could do 1 year of schooling and graduate; it's unheard of, and it never happened, but it is possible. Kaori was a 2nd year when I was a 1st, and we both placed first in our classes. Although I fell under the magic umbrella and she was under the combat umbrella, I opted out of acceleration as I wanted to be in school with Aki to protect her secret and watch over my sister. However, she did so well on the test that she skipped the 3rd year and went straight to 4th. So, she was not only one of the strongest girls at this school, but she was also by far the most popular. That is, of course, if you don't count my sister, who, I guess, is technically winning in both boy and girl standings despite being a first-year.
I can do this, I can do this, easy as pie. As I hyped myself up, I felt an arm fall onto my shoulder. Glancing over to see who it could be, I saw it was Yuun, one of my best friends. "So, are we going to do this or what?" he asked with a smirk. Stammering to find my words. "Actually, I was thinking about maybe asking Kaori". Instantly, I was hit with reality, hearing Yuun burst out. "HAHAHAHAHA. You have absolutely no chance with Kaori. She is way out of your league, dude, she's a 4th year, the student council president, and she's probably the strongest person in this school, excluding the order. All you have going for you is that you're in the order. If anyone has a chance with her, it's your brother Aki." Rolling my eyes, I let out a sigh and agreed to partner with him. Of course, he would think my younger sister is more attractive than I; she is a girl after all, and the secretary of the student council. As we partnered up, I saw Kaori walk over to Aki and ask if they wanted to partner up together. Defeated, I let out a sigh of despair as Yuun began to bellow with laughter. Letting my anger get the best of me, I slammed my heel into his toes. Letting out a yelp and jumping up, grabbing his foot, rubbing it with intent, I smiled at him with malice.