Chapter Text
Her entire life, Ichika was nothing special.
Her grades were mediocre. Her guitar skills could be better. Her drawings? Eh...
Through her middle school life she only had her Kamioshi, Hatsune Miku. Her entire room was Miku themed, she had several cosplays of her and all games on her PC were Miku related. She was a loner, yes, but at least she had her Miku...
So imagine her surprise when she received a letter from the Hope's Peak Academy itself!
"We have the pleasure to invite you to the Academy, under the title of..." Ichika squinted her eyes to read the text better. It sounded too absurd to be true. "..."The Ultimate Merch Collector"..?!"
Yeah, it must be a joke. In her class, she was never called by her name(she was too uninteresting for anyone to remember her), instead, everyone called her "The Miku Girl". The letter is most obviously a joke from her classmates who thought she's too stupid to not realize it.
...Then why does it have the official signature and the academy's logo?!
Those weren't easily accessible to everyone. To see these, you had to actually do the effort of visiting the site, going into the "recruits" menu and... yeah, this wasn't a joke. Ichika was actually being invited into THE Hope's Peak Academy!
The school they say you're automatically destined for success after graduating...
Ichika'a future wasn't too bright, to be honest. Despite her passion for music, she would most probably give up on her hobbies because of how average she was and become a hikikomori. Now that she was a recruit... she actually had a chance for a succesful, bright future!
She couldn't contain herself. She had to tell her mother!
She called the contact "mum". Nothing answered.
Ah. Right.
Well, it seems like once again she'll have to bear the burden of her joy on her own.
Ichika looked at the letter again. The first of September, that was when the school year's beginning was scheduled. That was when she was supposed to show up at Hope's Peak...
Oh, she'll arrive there alright. Even though the school is on the other side of the city, she'll get there on time, one way or another!
~~~~
A week later. The 1st of September. The beginning of the first semester of the school year.
Ichika stood in front of the gates to school. It was 8 am, an hour before the event was actually scheduled, but the girl was so nervous she woke up at 5 am and couldn't go back to sleep. She brushed her hair and teeth, took a quick shower and wore her best clothes, trying to make herself look as presentable as humanly possible. In her backpack, there were two pens and two notebooks(in case someone else forgot or she lost the first one), her phone with headphones and a charger(a necessity), some snacks(limited edition blue taiyaki from a recent Miku collaboration) and an emotional support Miku plushie. Everything in its place, everything on time!
As she was about to take a step closer, her head suddenly felt heavy... What was happening...? She couldn't even ask herself before she collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.
...
"Oh my... is she okay...?" Spoke a gentle tone.
"Where did she come from...?!" A more panicked voice shouted.
"She looks dead." A stoic male voice could be heard.
"She's breathing. Can't you see the rise and fall of her chest?" Another calm voice, yet this time it belonged to a girl.
Ichika opened her eyes groggily. The artificial light in the room she found herself in was sharp and blinding, or perhaps it was the fact she was positioned right under the light, in the middle of the room. She looked around weakly to see three girls and a guy.
One of the girls, the one who spoke first and the tallest one, had blue eyes and hazel hair tied into a stylish side-ponytail. The other girl (the one who spoke second it seems)was blonde with pink tips with pigtails on both sides of her head.
The guy was the only person she could see whoose stance was straight. He was ginger with earrings and an oversized hoodie. Definitely some kind of gangster... Ichika thought to herself as she finally looked at the girl who stood the closest to her.
She had a strap across her chest, suggesting she’s carrying something on her back – probably an instrument. She couldn't really tell her height because she was crouching in front of her, and now that the Ultimate Merch Collector thought about it, she wasn't even sure if that was a girl at all. Short, grey hair and a very androgynous form made it hard to tell and Ichika was too sheepish to ask.
Could they be the other students invited to the Academy?
"Where.... am I?" Ichika spoke, sitting up weakly. The ginger gangster-looking guy scoffed and walked away, seemingly bored as he chewed on something that looked like a lolipop.
"Oh, you woke up." The grey-haired person looked Ichika up and down and extended their hand to Ichika to help her get up. "Hinomori Shiho, the Ultimate Bassist. You really got knocked out good, huh?" The person introduced herself.
Shiho is a girl's name... so the person was a girl after all, Ichika thought to herself as she accepted the Bassist's hand.
"Y-yeah, it seems so... My name is Ichika. Ichika Hoshino."
Shiho raised an eyebrow.
"And your Ultimate?"
Ah, right. Her Ultimate Talent... Ichika completely forgot about that! She was no longer any ordinary student. Here, she had something she was the best at. She still wasn't used to being someone of importance.
"I'm the «Ultimate Merch Collector»... A-at least that's what the letter from the Hope's Peak Academy said?" Ichika answered nervously. She couldn't stop herself from fidgeting with her sleeves, how could she not when someone as ordinary as her talked to someone who might be the coolest person in the country?
"Oh... So you're one of those otakus? But not the creepy kind?" Shiho eyed Ichika in suspicion.
"N-no! Of course not!" The girl denied quickly.
"Ah. I see. Well, you already met me..." Shiho then gestured to the two girls who stood by her side. She pointed to the blonde girl. "This is..."
"Tenma Saki! The Ultimate Hair Stylist☆" The girl interrupted before Shiho could introduce her. "We saw you laying there with Honami and just couldn't leave you like that!"
Ichika just grew more confused and lost. So many titles, so many names...
"H-Honami...?" The Merch Collector looked at the only girl who was not yet introduced, the hazel-haired one.
"Yes, that's me." The tall girl's voice was so soft and soothing that Ichika instantly felt at ease. "The Ultimate Housekeeper, Mochizuki Honami."
"I-I see..." Ichika weakly straightened her pose. "Nice to meet you, Shiho, Saki and Honami... and who was the guy?"
Three girls' faces suddenly hardened. Shiho, seemingly the leader of their freshly-formed group spoke first. Ichika could tell by her tone that she was irritated.
"The ginger guy? We don't know. He refuses to introduce himself, insisting it's «none of our bussiness»." She sighed annoyedly. "But we heard one of the girls call him «Akito»."
"He was so mean to us for no reason!" Saki piped up with outrage that could match a mime's who was not paid after his performance. "And not only us, that girl that he appeared with? Yeah, he was so dismissive towards her for no literal reason!"
"From what I heard they must be sibilings, not dating... But why are they so mean to each other? I have a little brother and I don't argue with him at all..." Honami questioned.
"Of course I'm his sister." The four girls jumped as they heard an unknown voice. They turned around to see the same girl standing there. She wore a stylish, pink blouse with exposed shoulders and a black skirt with dark tights. "It's not like any girl would ever want him anyway... Shinonome Ena, the Ultimate Artist, and older sister to that bum Akito."
"Always glad to meet a supportive sister." Shiho said sarcastically.
"So we were right... his name really is Akito." Honami confirmed all of the girls' suspicions. After that, everyone introduced themselves to Ena.
Ichika finally took a good look at the room everyone was in. Around 20 students(from her calculations, and she was never good at math) were in the hall - 4 boys and 16 girls(including herself, Shiho, Honami, Saki and Ena), if her eyes didn't deceive her. Shiho must have noticed her analyzing the room, because she took a step closer to her.
"You can go and talk to everyone if you'd like."
"M-me? Ah, n-no... I'm not exactly the social type..."
"Then I can go with you. Let's see if anyone knows more than us." Shiho looked her directly in the eyes and Ichika could feel her knees turning into jelly. "Let me come with you. I insist."
"I-I mean... If that's what you really want..." Ichika gave up protesting. How could she when a beauty such as the Ultimate Bassist spoke to her so softly?
And so, the two girls went on a tour around the room, leaving Honami, Saki and Ena chatting about outfit styling.
~~~~~~
"HA?! Who are my eyes graced with?!"
Ichika flinched slightly, Shiho stood unshaken by her side. Apparently approaching one of the 4 guys first wasn't a good idea at all...
"I am Tenma Tsukasa! The Ultimate Actor and the World's Future STAR!!" The blonde shouted proudly.
"W-wait... Tenma? Are you Saki Tenma's brother, perhaps...?" Ichika asked sheepishly. Tsukasa's eyes lit up.
"YES, exactly! You're just as sharp as you look, miss.... uh.." He went silent for a second, looking for a name in his memory. ...what is your name?! You two never properly introduced yourself, you know!!"
"Because you yelled over us." Shiho said in a deadpan manner.
"Well, it would be absolutely prepostreous of a future star like me to not introduce myself first! What are your names?!"
"I-I'm Ichika, the Ultimate Merch Collector... and this is Shiho, the Ultimate Bassist."
"The... Wait..." Tsukasa's eyes went widen. It looked almost comical. "The ULTIMATE MERCH COLLECTOR?!"
"H-huh...?" Ichika asked, confused. "Yes...?"
"So your special talent is collecting merchandise?! That's awesome!" The Ultimate Actor leaned slightly closer, putting his hands on Ichika's arms. "One day, when I reach the skies with my acting genius, I'll give you all merchandise of me for FREE!!" He spoke proudly.
"T-thank you...?"
Shiho cleared her throat to get both Ultimates' attention.
"She's grateful, but... we'll be leaving. We still have the entire class to meet."
"AH! Forgive me my forgetfulness!" Tsukasa immediately let go of Ichika and dusted her off. "Go, meet others! Have fun!!"
"We surely will." Shiho seemed annoyed as she took Ichika's hand in hers and led her away."
Ichika was too flustered to protest.
~~~~
To keep up will all the new names and titles she learnt, Ichika decided to make a list in one of her notebooks that she brought with herself. So far she talked with almost all students (considering she had 18 out of 19 people written down, not including herself).
Here's what she had so far:
Saki Tenma - The Ultimate Hair Stylist
Honami Mochizuki - The Ultimate Housekeeper
Shiho Hinomori - The Ultimate Bassist
Minori Hanasato - The Ultimate Lucky Student
Haruka Kiritani - The Ultimate Pop Sensation
Airi Momoi - The Ultimate Influencer
Shizuku Hinomori - The Ultimate Archer
Kohane Azusawa - The Ultimate Photographer
An Shiraishi - The Ultimate Street Performer
Akito Shinonome - The Ultimate Rapper
Toya Aoyagi - The Ultimate Classical Musician
Tsukasa Tenma - The Ultimate Actor
Emu Otori - The Ultimate Princess
Nene Kusanagi - The Ultimate Gamer
Rui Kamishiro - The Ultimate Inventor
Mafuyu Asahina - The Ultimate Lyricist
Ena Shinonome - The Ultimate Artist
Mizuki Akiyama - The Ultimate Fashion Designer
All of the students were very different from what she was used to... Mizuki's flashiness, Mafuyu's gloom,
Rui's eccentric way of wording, Emu's enthusiasm...
She felt like she has seen it all. And through all the awkward introductions, Shiho was always by her side, anchoring her to reality with her stoicism. Ichika couldn't be more grateful.
There was one more girl to approach...
With her long, silver hair, she looked like straight out of a dream. She wore an adidas jersey and shorts that clung to her thin form. She looked almost malnourished as she sat on the floor, leaning against the wall. And as pale as the moon itself...
Ichika couldn't help but find her familiar somehow.
She decided to approach the girl.
"E-excuse me?" Ichika knelt in front of the silver-haired rapunzel lookalike to get on her level. "My name is Ichika, Hoshino Ichika... The Ultimate Merch Collector. And you are...?"
The girl slowly moved her head to look at Ichika, as if just noticing her.
"Oh... hello..." Her voice was so quiet Ichika had to lean closer to hear it through the bustle of the room. "Didn't see you here... I'm Yoisaki Kanade, The Ultimate Composer... And who is the person next to you?"
"My name is Hinomori Shiho." The girl said shortly. "The Ultimate Bassist."
"Nice to meet you, Shiho and Ichika..." Kanade opened her mouth to say something else, but then...
BING BONG BING BONG!!!!
"All students are asked to head to the main hall to begin the school year!"
Every single head turned towards the speaker. Ichika felt a shiver run down her spine.
So this was it. The beginning of the end.