Something was ringing in my ear.It was a very unpleasant sound.

    A grating noise that forced me to wake up.

    But there was also a sense of nostalgia, as if it had been a long time since I last heard it.

    When was the last time I heard this sound every day?

    With that dim thought in mind, I woke up in my bed.

    I looked up at a ceiling I didn’t recognize... No, I did recognize it.

    It had been a long time since I last looked up at this ceiling.

    I sat up and looked around the room.

    There was a laptop on a small table, a TV hanging on the wall, and a cheap wardrobe at the edge of the room.

    Yeah, it’s definitely my room.

    No, it’s not familiar enough to call it “my room.” I rented this room… that’s right, it must have been a week ago.

    I looked above the bed and saw my phone, which kept setting off the alarm.

    I picked it up and turned off the alarm. Looks like I still remember how to do it.

    “Haaa, I never thought I’d be back.”

    I spoke aloud as I stood up.

    My voice sounded young. That’s right, I’m about to enter my first year in the job market, I believe.

    “It was just a long dream… or maybe not.”

    The tracksuit I wore as pajamas was too tight.

    When I took off the top, I saw my ripped abs. The muscles in my arms and shoulders were like steel. Actually, they could be as strong as steel.

    “It feels like I’ve returned to my world with my powers still intact.”

    When I imagined a magic circle, a small flame appeared in my palm. It seemed I could use magic as it is.

    Suddenly, I noticed an envelope on the table. My “Intuition” skill reacted, so I unfolded the document inside and looked at it.

    “Meiran Academy… a private integrated school… new staff visit day… Oh, don’t tell me it’s today?!”

    I checked the date display on my phone and compared it against the date and time on the document to make sure my memory was correct.

    I opened the wardrobe, and there hung a brand new suit. I’d completely forgotten how to tie a tie...

    Oh, I can just look it up on my phone. What a convenient world we live in.

    I put on my suit, packed my belongings in my bag, and left the apartment.

    About a kilometer away from the residential area, there was a small hill. Halfway up the hill, I could see a building that looked like a school. From what I remembered, that was the school I was assigned to: Meiran Private Academy.

    After graduating from the Faculty of Education, I took the recruitment exam for a local public school and failed miserably. But I managed to get hired at this school through the help of a senior colleague.

    But why did I want to become a teacher? I didn’t have anything else I wanted to do, so I thought, why not become a teacher? Something like that.

    Well, even the hero thing, I was forced to do it, but I did well, so it should be fine. Just spare me that hellish training.

    While I was thinking about that, I started to climb the hill.

    A paved slope, girls in blazers walking or biking up it.

    Students of the school I guess. It should be spring break now, but many students must be busy with their club activities.

    Some of them greeted me, even though they were not used to seeing me. It’s a peaceful scene. I realized that I really had returned. S?a?ch* Th? N0v?lFire(.)n?t website on G??gl? to access chapters of n?vels early and in the highest quality.

    But as I walked along, I felt a strange sense of discomfort.

    Magic Detection… no problem.

    Malice Detection… nothing.

    Trap Detection… none.

    The strange feeling, which had gone undetected even with the use of detection skills, became more apparent when I arrived at the school gates.

    The only students walking on the school grounds were girls. I hurriedly took out my smartphone and checked.

    “Meiran Academy is an integrated elementary, junior high, and high school and the only all-girls’ school in the prefecture!”

    This is super important information. Why don’t I remember that? I’m sure I researched the school in preparation for the interview, right? Maybe I forgot to research it before I came to this school?

    …stupid me. *

    “And that’s the general outline of how education is conducted at our school. It’s quite different from the school you were at, isn’t it?”

    The three newly hired teachers, including myself, were first shown to the principal’s office.

    There, we were told about the school, but to be honest, I could hardly take in what she had to say because she was a beautiful woman in her 30s who could easily have been mistaken for an actress.

    After all, for a long time, I had no luck with women at all. I realized that my resistance to women had disappeared to a dangerous level.

    “Yes, it feels very different from the school I went to. I am especially envious of the interaction between the elementary and upper secondary schools. I went to a small school myself in elementary and middle school.”

    The person who replied to the principal was a woman sitting next to me. She was also a new teacher – I believe her name was Harutori Shirane.

    She had chestnut hair that hung down to her shoulders and was a bright, beautiful woman with well-defined features.

    “Yes. There are nearly 1500 students in the entire school, so it may be surprising at first. Interactions between grades and departments are a very effective activity for both the older and younger students. I think young teachers especially have a lot of opportunities to get involved.”

    The principal smiled at me. With her wavy semi-long hair swinging about, she really did look like an actress.

    While I was staring blankly, a handsome young man, also a new teacher sitting across from me, raised his hand slightly.—I believe his name was Matsunami Shinji.

    “I thought it was wonderful that the school was built on top of a small hill. The school I went to was in the city and had a small schoolyard, so we had to move to a remote place to play soccer.”

    “After all, it’s a school the students will attend for 12 years, so I heard they wanted a location that would be a memorable place for them. Besides, being in an elevated location can be convenient in many ways. It may be a little difficult for the students to get to school, though.”

    “hehehe,” the principal laughed, and the three new teachers, including myself, laughed as well.

    Oh, now that I look closely, aside from me, this room is filled with beautiful people. It’s funny, I had the impression that Japan didn’t have as many beautiful people as "that world."

    Anyway, since the other two had already expressed their impressions of the place, I think I have to say something too, or else the conversation will never end, right?

    Damn it, I don’t remember anything the principal said.

    "Ah, well, I also... I thought it looked very peaceful. I’ve been in a bad environment for a long time."

    What am I saying? My colleague Shirane-san is looking at me with a blank stare, and Matsunami-kun is smiling out of the corner of his mouth.

    The only saving grace was that the principal looked at me in a strangely kind way.

    “Yes, as Mr. Aiba said, it is a very peaceful school. Everyone is very serious. I would like to ask the teachers to support this peaceful, harmonious division, and I look forward to working with you.”

    On that day, I listened to the head of each department (apparently called school affairs divisions at this school), attended a meeting for the subject I would be in charge of (called a “subject meeting”), and finally attended a meeting for the second-year high school students to whom I would be assigned (called a “grade meeting”).

    I felt like my brain was about to explode after taking in so much at once, but I guess this is normal for working adults.

    I’m sure I could put my experience from that world to good use, but since this was my first day back, I’ll just have to accept it as it is.

    Anyway, Miss Shirane and Mr. Matsunami were assigned to the middle school and elementary school, respectively.

    However, I was surprised at the size of Meiran Academy’s school building, not only in terms of the size of the school and its grounds but also in terms of its cleanliness and well-equipped facilities.

    It felt like I was in a completely different world from the local public school I attended so long ago.

    If I could have learned at a place like this, I might have done a little better... but that''s not possible anymore. I’ve grown a lot since being thrown into that less civilized world.

    With these thoughts in mind, I headed back to my apartment carrying a bag heavy with textbooks and reference books.