"You filthy humans! How dare you disturb my slumber!"
Shinwoo closed his eyes as he ran, all the while cursing his life choices. He should have listened to his father and gone into martial arts, but no! He had to become a ghost hunter and enroll in the most prestigious academy for ghost hunting: Ye Ran.
"I just need to take a picture!" Shinwoo yelped. At the last second, he jumped into an abandoned living room right as the infuriated Noble ghost barreled through the floors.
"No pictures!" the ghost roared.
"Just one?" Shinwoo pleaded. He ducked out of the way just as the ghost shot out an energy blast. "Please! I need a picture if I am to gradua-yaaahh!" Shinwoo's screams were cut off as he was pushed through the window. Glass shattered all around him as he fell down.
"No human's toy shall dare capture the great Rael Kertia! Mwuahaha!" the ghost leered down at him. "Stay out!"
"Gladly," Shinwoo muttered as he picked himself up. "I might just become a ghost before I can even graduate."
"Trouble with your bonded?" a bored voice asked.
Shinwoo whirled around to scowl at the tall lone man leaning against a pillar. "I don't want that guy as my bonded!" he whined. "Can't we go to some other haunted mansion and get someone else? Someone who won't try to kill me and call me names?"
M21 shrugged. "There are no more haunted mansions in this area. Graduation is next week, and you need to catch a ghost in order to apply for graduation. If not," he pushed himself off the pillar and looked at Shinwoo with disinterest. "You will repeat this semester."
Shinwoo shuddered at the thought. Glancing back at the mansion where the feisty blond Noble was living, he swallowed.
Hm, to graduate, or possibly perish? Which one to choose from?
He looked back at M21. "Sensei, please-"
"Don't call me sensei."
"You're my teacher!" he exclaimed. "And teachers help their students succeed, right? You don't want to be the one teacher in the entire school whose protege did not pass, right?"
"This will get you nowhere." But Shinwoo saw the hesitancy in M21's eyes. Hope filled him. Maybe, if he pushed M21 just a bit more, then he could find another haunted mansion or a cemetery and try his luck there.
He pouted. "This one's really mean, sir. He even called me names."
M21 raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "Really?"
Shinwoo nodded. "And he's over dramatic. Something about 'the great Rael Kertia not being kidnapped by human toys' or that junk."
Interest sparked in M21's grey eyes. "He said his name was Kertia?"
Shinwoo paused. "Uh, yeah. I think so." He frowned when M21 took out his cell-phone. "What are you doing?"
"Requesting backup," M21 replied.
M21 watched, unimpressed, at the scene before him. Shinwoo, his protegee, was gleefully chatting with a group of students. Despite the fact that a haunted mansion loomed a few feet away, none of the students seemed fazed by it.
"Stop scowling. It's unclassy."
M21 huffed in response. "I'm not scowling."
"Then stop making that face."
"This is my face."
"Then there's something wrong with it."
M21 sighed, closing his eyes as he tried to ward off a headache. "Regis, what is it?"
The Noble ghost hovered before him. "Your grumpy attitude was disturbing my nap."
M21 pinched the bridge of his nose. How is it that he could have landed himself with the most prickly bond spirit ever as his bonded? "I am not grumpy," he muttered.
"Sure you are," Regis said. "You want Shinwoo to succeed so that he can graduate and leave you with free time." The Noble frowned. "How hard could it be to catch one Noble?"
"It's not that easy," M21 stated. He glanced at Regis. "You hardly made it easy for me." He nodded in Shinwoo's direction. "Besides, the spirit he is trying to catch is Rael Kertia."
Regis went still. "Oh."
M21 nodded. "Exactly. That's why I decided to bring in Tao." No sooner had the words left his mouth than did he feel strong arms wrap around his shoulders.
"That's me!" an excited voice exclaimed. Tao released M21 and eyed the mansion with interest. "So! You need my help with catching the young Kertia member?" He cracked his knuckles. "I'm glad to help, but shouldn't you have tried calling Takeo?"
"If Takeo came with Seira, then we might have had an angry Kertia spirit rampaging out of the mansion," M21 said. Regis could only nod in agreement. "I figured you would be the best for the situation given your expertise and backup."
Tao chuckled and M21 and Regis took a step back when they noticed the wicked glee in Tao's eyes. "Oh, a hunt you say." He rubbed his hands together. "I haven't experienced a hunt in a long time."
"Remember," M21 warned. "You have to let Shinwoo catch him. You're only to assist him and make sure he does not get hurt." He paused. "Or killed."
"Couldn't he still qualify to graduate if he dies and turns himself in as his spirit project?" Regis questioned.
"Boss got rid of that crack after the Aris fiasco," M21 muttered.
"And isn't it your job to make sure he doesn't die since you are his teacher and mentor?" Tao asked.
"Isn't it your job as a responsible teacher and mentor to guard your students?" M21 retorted. He gestured to the three students still chatting with Shinwoo. "Why did you bring them along?"
Tao shrugged. "Well, I couldn't just leave them waiting at the train station." He clapped his hands. "Okay. Enough chit-chat," he declared. "Han Shinwoo!"
The red-head looked up with bright eyes. "Yes sir!" he exclaimed, standing at attention. "Ready for orders!"
Apparently pleased with the formalities, Tao laughed. "Let us go and catch you a bondspirit!"
"Take care," M21 said to the retreating duo.
"Be responsible," Regis muttered just as Tao sauntered into the mansion without a care in the world.
Shinwoo crept forward, wincing as the floor creaked at his weight. With bated breath, he leaned against the wall. Fumbling with his shirt pocket, he pulled out a mirror and moved it to peak around the corner of the hall.
The mirror shattered the moment it exposed itself on the other side. Shinwoo could only stare, jaw slacked and eyes wide as he held the handle, the only thing remaining from the mirror. He just realized that the shattered glass on the floor could have been the remains of his head.
"I said no pictures!" the ghost screamed, charging towards him.
"I'm sorry!" Shinwoo shrieked, scrambling up. "I just want to graduate!" Whipping out his Noble Catcher, he aimed at the ghost. "Just one pic!"
The Noble sneered. "Filthy toy." Its ghostly hands shimmered red and shot at Shinwoo before he could even snap a picture.
Shinwoo ran down the halls at full speed. He was going so fast that he did not even realize that when he rounded the corner, he had come to a dead end. Turning around to go the other way, he quickly realized that the Noble was waiting for him.
Maybe he should just turn himself in as a ghost project after all.
The Noble advanced towards him. "You have been such a pain in the-"
"Yo ho! Please do not harm the student. If he dies, M21 will be so displeased with me."
The Noble looked around with wide eyes while Shinwoo gaped. Was this...Tao's voice...over an intercom? Where did he get that? And when did he have the time to install them?
"Who are you?" the Noble demanded.
"Who am I? Good question. You've never heard of me, so I should introduce myself. I am NO.1"
"That's not even a name!"
"That's exactly what my bondspirit said when I first proposed the idea. You two are certainly related. But enough chit-chat. My dear bonded, will you please deal with your unruly brother?"
The floor between Shinwoo and the Noble shimmered a red aura, and the form of a Noble emerged. Shinwoo felt his heart drop at the sight when he realized there were now two Nobles. Rael stared at the new arrival, slack-jawed.
The Noble nodded. "Yes Tao."
Rael sputtered. "B-brother?"
"Sorry Rael," the Noble said before stepping aside. "But Shinwoo needs to graduate."
Graduate? Shinwoo blinked. Oh yeah! He needed to take a picture of Rael! Without a moment of hesitation, he snapped a picture of the stupefied Rael. The smaller Noble realized what happened just as the light flashed. "No!" he wailed before vanishing from sight.
Shinwoo stared at the spot where Rael had vanished, breathless. He looked at the other remaining Noble. "Um, thanks."
The Noble merely nodded, adjusting his mask. "You are welcome."
"Great job Rajak!" Tao exclaimed over the intercom. "M21 was wise to call us!"
The ride back to the school was awkward. Well, awkward for Shinwoo. Rael, his now displeased and unwilling bondspirit, was glaring at him with malicious intent. M21 did not seem to care that his protege was getting the stink-eye from a Noble, while Tao prattled on to his own bondspirit and Regis.
"Of course, if Takeo had been here, we could have possibly wrapped this up a bit quicker," Tao stated.
"Were you even near Shinwoo when he was being attacked by Rael?" M21 interrupted with a huff.
Tao blinked. "Well, no. That's why I used the intercoms. No need to needlessly risk my life! Besides, you told me to let Shinwoo catch Rael."
"I also told you to keep him safe," M21 sighed.
"He's your protege, not mine. Besides, he had Rajak with him, so he was as safe as could be." He leaned back. "That is why you called me, wasn't it? You knew Rael would be caught off guard at the sight of his brother, so you called me!" He smirked as M21 remained silent. "I'm right, aren't I?"
"I want to know!" Rael explode, "how you filthy humans managed to capture my brother and make him your bondspirit!" He pointed at Tao with an accusing finger. "You, mushroom head, speak!"
Shinwoo leaned forward curiously. "Yeah. And how is it that you guys," he nodded at Rajak and Rael, "are brothers."
"We share the same mother and father," Rajak simply said.
Shinwoo blinked. "Uh, I mean, how is it that you Nobles are brothers in the sense of...how did you die and get separated?"
Regis tsked. "Shinwoo, you would never ask a bondspirit how they perished. It's too soon in the bonding process." He glared at the red-head. "Didn't you read the textbook?"
Shinwoo chose not to answer that and instead turned to look at the Kertia brothers apologetically. "I am sorry."
"You are forgiven," Rajak said, while Rael huffed, "insensitive!"
"But I am also curious," Shinwoo said, this time, turning to look at Tao. "How did you catch Rajak?"
Rael scowled. "You must have used some dirty trick. My brother is the fastest in the land!"
Tao smirked. "Oh he is! I couldn't have a better bondspirit!" He clapped his hands. "As for your question, it took great timing and planning to-"
"It was an accident," M21 answered instead. He ignored Tao's embarrassed sputtering and continued on. "Takeo, Tao and I were hunting for our first bondspirits. We had three weeks left till graduation. While I already had my bondspirit, I chose to accompany my companions. Takeo had been tracking Rajak for weeks. Tao seemed more interested in photographing the birds. One thing led to another, and Rajak was fleeing from Takeo and just so happened to leap in front of Tao's camera right as he took a picture of a bird."
Tao smirked. "Got a bondspirit and won bird bingo all in one day. Best day of my life."
Shinwoo's eyes were wide. "And what about Takeo?"
M21 and Tao both looked at Rajak who seemed immensely pleased with himself. Shinwoo suddenly had a very uneasy feeling. Even Rael looked weary.
"I gave him directions to the nearest cemetery," Rajak said. "There were many wisps waiting to be caught."
M21 scoffed. "Yeah, except it wasn't a wisp waiting for him, but the goddess of death herself."
"It was not my fault he awoke Seira," Rajak answered.
Rael stuttered. "Seira?"
Rajak ignored his brother. "Besides, he caught her, didn't he?"
"And almost lost his life," Tao said with a careless shrug. "Ah, finals are always so brutal. But I've never seen a more devoted bondspirit than Seira. Almost makes me wish I could trade." He teasingly nudged Rajak. "If only you could cook."
"I am your bondspirit, not your cook."
Shinwoo cast a glance at Rael, only to receive a glare. "I am not learning to cook," Rael hissed.
But Shinwoo just smiled. "That's fine," he said as he bounced in his seat. Immense relief filled him. He had passed the exam and survived as well! What a victory! And now he could graduate!
Noticing Shinwoo's excitement and guessing the meaning behind it, Regis nudged M21. "Hey, doesn't that mean that you have to fill out some graduation form for him and prepare your speech in honor of your protege at the ceremony?"
M21 groaned. "Great. Paperwork," he muttered.
Raizel gazed out the window. With a sigh, he stepped back and tried to focus on the chess match in front of him.
Sensing his bondspirit's anxiety, Frankenstein smiled. "Shinwoo and the others will be back. I had just received a call from M21. Shinwoo has found his bondspirit."
Raizel smiled, relieved for his friend. "Good." He moved his pawn and sat back, watching Frankenstein's next move.
"The kid's got a good head on his shoulders," Muzaka commented. Lounging on the couch nearby, he watched the match with bored interest. "And M21 is with him. I'm not surprised that he succeeded." Muzaka cocked his head at Raizel. "Will you be attending the graduation ceremony?"
Raizel nodded. Despite not being able to graduate, Raizel had attended classes ever since Frankenstein had founded the school. It never ceased to dumbfound Muzaka, or please Frankenstein, that Raizel continued to go to school despite being taught the same thing over and over again. But both Muzaka and Frankenstein knew that Raizel was there to experience a life he had been denied for so long. Sitting in a classroom with his friends was never a bore for him.
"It is hard to believe that this school is over fifty years old," Frankenstein commented.
Muzaka snorted. "Yeah. I thought it would only last ten." He snatched a cookie from a nearby platter. "But I'm impressed." He grinned at Frankenstein. "I also can't believe that you look good for someone who's over fifty years old."
Frankenstein rolled his eyes at Muzaka's blunt statements, but Raizel merely smiled. As he continued on with the game, he could only hope that the school and the life he was now living would last for another fifty long years.
A/N: This is just a little something to close off this story. :)
