Author Notes:

Hi there,

This would be my fanfiction again after for some years. I am surprised that Godsword of Zero, my other fanfic is received well…in a way, but when I read that again I kinda cringed =/ Gonna tell you something though, I wrote that fanfiction WITHOUT knowing the whole story or rather I just wrote that on a whim, resulting in a huge mess, a less thought out plot and hitting a wall.

After some soulsearching and some lessons, I would like to start writing again. Initially I was thinking if I would do an OC Senran Kagura story (a brutal OC with many factions not just shinobi's or a RE:Zero X God Eater (involves a badass Subaru as one of the top ranking God Eater wielding a scythe, giving him a motif of the Grim Reaper) or a FFXV x Rakudai Kishi fanfiction ( which I would do now.) The problem on the first one is I am going to repeat my mistake on GoZ (lacks material), the second one well….I think I will gonna need more research =/

Enjoy!

Prologue

The worst snowstorm in recent memory is engulfing the town. Everybody with a radio were hearing the warning that no one should be outside and to secure everything for a bad Winter, yet a young figure could be found walking alone in the raging winds of the storm.

A young boy is walking through the forest in the biting snowstorm. His movements are getting slower as he is letting despair swallow his heart. Aimlessly he continues on, with his lifeless eyes staring at the snow covered ground.

"Useless."

"A shame in the family."

"Trash."

"Waste of space."

The whispers he remembers from his family members continue to enter his mind as he walks on, and then he stumbles and falls face first into the snow. Probably because of hunger, stress, but also the lack of will to live, he can't find it within himself to rise up. The boy continues to lie in the snow, letting himself to be buried.

"… Perhaps this would be best for me. I… I hope that in my next life, if I can wish…I…"

Everything fades to black.

He was in the backseat of a car, moving through the dark night, Lamp Posts illuminating the seemingly endless highway that stretches on and on. The boy stares blankly in front of him as he tries to organize his thoughts.

"Where am I? I… remember I was walking in the storm… what happened? Why am I here?"

"Noctis? Is there something wrong?"

The voice spoke with a gentle yet firm tone that he hasn't heard in a long time. Usually it's either an abusive or condensing tone that he would hear from other people… but this, it sounds familiar, but at the same time it isn't.

"No, nothing dad."

'Dad?'

Noctis, or rather Ikki, being surprised by the reflexive answer that he spoke, looked at the person he called Dad, and that person wasn't the father that he knew. This was a bearded man who looks older than he seems and has a regal aura that emanates from him. The man gently smiled as he patted his Son's hair.

"You have sure grown up, my Son. It has been a while since I last saw you."

Familiar memories suddenly entered Ikki's head. Memories of Noctis' journey, his friends, who he calls brothers, and his last memory: sacrificing himself to save the world from eternal night.

"Dad… Why did I live again? Just to suffer? Isn't it enough that I lost my life, my home, my friends, you… and her?" The young boy sadly asked his Father.

"…It was my wish."

"WHY!?"

"I just want you to live your life again. It hurts me that you were like an ox, raised just to be slaughtered… I wanted to atone for that."

"But what is the use of that if everyone isn't there! I am just alone…"

The older man looks away from him, before replying. "It was the painful price that has to be paid."

Noctis looked away from his father, both of them became silent as the car continued to move on the highway.

"You know Dad… I always regretted that my last words to you that day were not good enough." Noctis muttered as he broke the silence.

"…It is alright. I just wanted you to be safe, so I tried to be as detached as possible from you, lest you suspect that Nibelheim would attack that day." Regis Caelum Lucis explained to his Son. Silence reigned inside the car for a while, Noct looked away and muttered,

"Sorry..."

"...What for?"

"For ruining the kingdom, letting Ardyn cover the world in darkness for 10 years, and letting Luna die." Noctis apologized.

"I know it would be presumptuous for me to say, but it can't be helped. Even so, you managed to make things alright after your sacrifice. Right?" Regis kindly explained.

"…"

"That's why I wanted you to live again, I want you to explore the life that you had been deprived of. A sincere wish from your worthless Father who threw a huge responsibility on your young shoulders."

The boy slowly looked at his father, who was smiling gently, the same smile he wore before they departed, and then Noctis noticed something.

"Dad… Wait, why are we slowing down? "

The car slowly stopped on the side of the highway before automatically opening the door next to Noctis.

Regis released Noctis' seatbelt before resting his hand on his Son's shoulder. "I have unsealed your memories. Now everything that is rightfully yours will now be at your side. Farewell my wayward Son, I hope, when we meet again, you will tell me everything you experienced. The life you will live, the friends you will encounter, the woman you will love and cherish, the family you will make and the convictions that you will stand for." The Father slowly pushed his Son out of the car, smiling sadly as he let his Son be pulled out into the dark.

"Wait Dad! We aren't finished yet! I want to talk-"

Everything faded to black again.

Noctis, or rather his new life as Ikki, slowly rose up from the snow, then he gradually opened his eyes… which shined with a red light.

BOOM!

An explosion shook the whole forest. At the center of it Ikki was standing in a shallow crater, surrounded by 14 crystalline weapons, each with a different shape, orbiting him. He acknowledged each of the weapons of his Armiger as they passed in front of him.

The Sword of the Wise

The Axe of the Conqueror

The Bow of the Clever

The Swords of the Wanderer

The Blade of the Mystic

The Star of the Rogue

The Sword of the Tall

The Shield of the Just

The Mace of the Fierce

The Scepter of the Pious

The Trident of the Oracle

The Katana of the Warrior

and lastly the Sword of the Father.

Ikki then noticed a New Weapon in his Armiger, yet it was strangely familiar. He reached for it and it materialized in his hand. He smiled as he recognized the sword that has been always been his side.

"It's been a while partner."

The Ultima Blade, the Sword formerly known as the Engine Blade, which was given to him by his Father. He swung it a few times before slicing the air in front of him. A tree a short distance away cleanly split in half, even though the blade didn't make contact with it.

"I guess my journey starts here again."

Ikki slowly rose to the air before disappearing into the thin air, leaving only crystalline dust on the spot.

The next morning, the storm had stopped, but that wasn't the focus of the news.

Locals heard a loud explosion from deep in the forest yesterday, but they couldn't investigate due to the storm that was happening. After the weather had cleared, they searched the area and they can't believe what they saw.

A large, shallow crater was formed in the middle of the forest from the explosion and also there was crystal dust floating on the air. The particles seem only to float in the crater, baffling the locals and the research team sent there.

Even now, no one was able to figure out what happened that day.

*Years later*

Kurono Shinguuji was panting and on one knee.

This was a real surprise to her, to think that she, the "World Clock", the third most powerful Blazer in the world, was in this situation. It was supposed to be a last minute entrance exam that would be forgotten by the end of the day, but here she was, at the mercy of the examinee. She told the examinee that if he could defeat her now, she would let him enter the Academy, regardless of the circumstances and rank, no questions asked. She even offered him a handicap, that she will not use her powers, just pure close combat skill, but to her irritation this young man had the nerve to respectfully decline and asked her to come at full strength or else he will crush her without mercy.

How stupid of her to bite the bait that he dangled in front of her.

Something whizzed down at her and, acting upon instinct, she dodged sideways as a huge, intricate sword smashed into her former spot. Clicking her tongue, she shot at him, but a strange barrier stopped the bullet she fired.

This day really was unlucky for her.

The young man hauled the huge sword out of the ground and rested it on his shoulder, then asked her with a humble tone. "Well? Is that enough for me to pass?"

*a few moments ago*

Devices are the crystallization of the magic power of the Blazer and the form of the Device is determined by the Blazer's Soul. Normally only 1 or 2 forms can be manifested, but him? She counted at least 5 now. At the start of the match, intending to finish it quickly and call it a day, she took a pot shot at him with her handgun in Illusory Mode, but suddenly a shield appeared in his hand and blocked the bullet. At first, she thought the shield was his Device, but to her surprise, he threw the shield towards her and he disappeared. Following her instincts she jumped away and now a sword was being thrust behind her by him, appeared behind here. On reflex, she summoned her other handgun, and clashed it with the blade. Her balance was almost thrown off because of the weight of the strike. Using the momentum of the strike, she made distance between them and fired her pistols him, but then it happened.

He just stood there as if to receive the attacks, she almost shouted at him for being a fool to let himself get shot, but there was something that blocked her bullets. She endlessly fired, but there was something that blocked all her attacks, and eventually she was able to make out the appearance of that something.

"Weapons!?"

A Sword, a Staff, a Trident, a Shield, and a Mace were blocking her attacks in mid air, and it was seemingly automatic, forming an absolute defense that she couldn't hope to penetrate. She stopped firing from the shock that she can't do anything. The young man stood in front of her, still holding the sword that he summoned.

"I told you ma'am, if you don't take this seriously, I am going to crush you."

He let the sword he was holding to disappear and he summoned a Crossbow of all things and started to fire at her.

"TWANK"

She dodged the bolt quickly. Desperate, she closed her distance to him, dodging every shot from him. If she can't take him on at range, she will try her luck in close combat. Kurono unleashed a kick, but he was able to parry it, and she smirked.

"If I can't shoot you from afar, how about this?"

She pulled the trigger and shot him in the chest.

"Good fight, but it seem-Ack!"

He slashed at her shoulder, but what's more surprising was he wasn't dead tired from being hit by her Illusory Form Bullets!

"HOW!?"

This is getting stranger and stranger… first he has many different Devices, he can teleport and now he was able to avoid that shot point blank!? To add insult to the injury, he summoned the crossbow back and rapidly fired at her.

"Ahh!"

Then it dawned at her, he was just playing with her. He could have finished this in one single blow, from anywhere, but since she wasn't taking him seriously, he showed her the vast difference between his power and hers.

"F+ rank my ass."

She's gonna kill the bastard who said that this boy is a "F+ rank"!

*Present*

Kurono just sighed as she tried to recover, this young man seems to still be fine, and was kind enough to let her rest. If that was the case…

"You told me to get serious right? I'm going to release my Noble Art right now."

The young man looked at her, and suddenly he apologized.

"Sorry, I need to make an impression to you, so I tried this approach. I will also be serious now."

Kurono then smiled before realizing something and screamed inside her mind.

'THIS KID WASN'T SERIOUS YET!? WHAT THE F***!? ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?'

The sound of breaking glass resounded to the area and in front of her, the boy was now surrounded by weapons, floating in the air. 1,2,3 wait 14!? What more this kid could bring out!?

"Ahh, screw this! I might regret this later but lets do it one last time." Kurono then positioned herself before asking Ikki.

"Tsk. Hey kid, are you ready now?"

"Yes ma'am." Ikki responded in kind.

And then they clashed.

Nene Saikyo also didn't expect this.

The boy was cute, exactly her taste in men, polite and a nice face, but what he was doing wasn't normal.

Since she was watching from afar, she was able to get a good view of what's happening. He was able to teleport, for god's sake! Teleport! She was fast, yes, but the kid? What's the use of being fast if your opponent was at your back already by the time you move to point B? What's more his Device, scratch that Devices, 1 or 2 fine, but 5 is already out of the realm of possibility and those same weapons were able to defend the kid! And what's scarier is he can phase through attacks, which means no one could hit him no matter what they do. No wonder Kurono was at the boy's mercy, he is the worst match up ever for her, or anyone for that matter.

Reports said that he was an "F+" ranked Blazer, but to her, if she would appraise him on what she is seeing today, it would be "S+" easily. His abilities are "broken" in a sense. Also the kid knew how to use those weapons perfectly, as if he trained to all of them to absolutely mastery, which should be impossible for one so young.

"This kid…would bring us victory in the KoK."

Nene's thoughts were disturbed as she noticed her friend that was about to use her Noble Art which was so dangerous, that she was asked not to release it. She merely sighed as she thought that Kuruno was going too far now.

"Sheesh, I know you are getting cornered but-" She was cut short when suddenly the boy suddenly released a burst of light… and he was surrounded by 14 weapons floating on him.

The boy now had 14 weapons floating around him now. Is there anything in this world could match this absurdity? 14 Different Devices. Yeah, right. 'Must be a dream.' Nene started to plead in her mind, hoping at least her friend would somehow heard it.

'Kurono, please stop this! This kid is too damn unpredictable! You can't just charge at him without any-'

Goddamnit, she charged at him.

"Kurono…It was fun being friends with you."

And a huge explosion formed upon their clash, blowing Nene away.

Ikki stood in front of the unconscious Principal, trying to see if she has any grave wounds and upon inspection there were none."

Thank goodness."

This is the first time that he deployed the full Armiger, and to his surprise, it's still works well, even though he doesn't have the crystal which gives his bloodline powers. The weapons that he had in his past life were still in his possession, and what's more, the Royal Arms are complete and usable without draining his stamina excessively. He lifted her up and brought her to a nearby rock to let her recover.

He needed to do this, not for the need to brag about his power, but in order for him to not be questioned about his power level. Strangely the Armiger didn't register in the Blazer Assessment, so he would rather keep it secret. Judging from the reactions of the two evaluators, his skillset is not normal.

"Ikki Kurogane…right?"

The partner of the principal, Nene Saikyo, slowly approached him, wary because of his display. He noticed that her Devices were deployed just in case he tried to attack her.

"Yes?"

"Did you kill her?"

Upon being asked by that question, Noctis gasped and quickly explained.

"No! Why would I do that? I don't see the need to go all out on her!"

"What do you mean?"

Ikki sighed and stared at the sky, "As I recall, I said if she didn't release her full power, I would crush her, right? But I didn't say that I would respond in kind, no need for me to do that."

Nene's eyes widened, to think that he held back and was still able to defeat her friend, if that's the case, she might as well challenge-

"You will not win."

He read her intentions, and answered in kind. She about to move when suddenly multiple weapons appeared from thin air, surrounding her, stopping her movement. Ikki stared at her with a serene but firm expression as if he doesn't want to do this.

"Sorry ma'am, but it seems you are ready to attack me, so I had to do this…will you promise that you won't attack me? In exchange i will cease this."

Nene cautiously stared at the boy and then she gasped, behind Ikki, visages of 13 knights appeared, wielding the same weapons that he released in his fight. The knights silently staring at her, as if they were daring her to attack. For the first time, in many years, Nene felt something that she hadn't felt a long time: Fear.

"…Yes."

The weapons around her disappeared, and she was able to relax. Ikki then stared at the the horizon. Silence reigned for a while and then...

"You…what…no, who are you?" Nene asked.

Upon hearing that question, Ikki's expression suddenly changed, it's not from a boy but from a tired man who wants to rest from a long journey. It didn't belong to the 15 year old boy in front of her, but rather from someone who experienced trials that could break an ordinary man. After staring on the horizon he looked at her and answered her question.

"… A Lost King trying to find his place in this New World."

This is the start of the journey of the Knight King also known the Exalted One. The most powerful Blazer that walked upon this earth, the one who cannot be matched by mortal men. He who was loved by the Crimson Queen, glory upon her name, who had been at his side on his road to ascension, and led his kingdom to a new era of peace and prosperity that was unmatched.

*PROLOGUE END*

A/N again:
Well I hope you liked the story. But it would be a while before i post a new chapter, but hey its better than being half assed train wreck. I know there were still kinks especially on the construction of the sentences but I would try to improve it along the way. Constructive Criticism also good, it gives another perspective that I might have overlooked. Well I would tell you now that Ikki/Noctis here would stomp almost everyone here on the story, if he wants to he could just summon the blades behind their head and call it a day but that would be pretty boring. Rakudai Kishi's charm is that Ikki was pretty weak and just worked his ass off but here he got a "cheat" in a way. He knows it but since he couldn't just use it in a wanton way that everyone would aim for his head. Personality wise, he would be a mix of Ikki and Noctis, similar to Haruto and Rio from SeiGensou (one of the best LN'S i ever read, the WN meanwhile you will get pissed because there is a character you would extremely hate like Kouki (anyone who read LN's is famillar with this guy, he is a staple for the "guy who thinks he does not do anything wrong") just read the LN.) so his interactions with some people will be vastly different from the original story. Also, I will base some of his movements on FF Versus (sudden teleportation, Weapons as shield) which you ask me is a pretty wasted chance, damnit. As for the Kingsguard? Nah, maybe no... I want the story to focus on his lonely journey.

If you have any questions just pm me or something.

Credits to aroneden for beta reading/editing this story, Thanks man, you really helped me!

Thanks!