Author's Notes : I'm going to try and improve my chapters to make it better compared to the original from here on out. It's not exactly awesome material, but I'll improve with time I suppose. At the very least, you should see an increase in quantity.

This is late, but I finally got a damn name for the school Hishoji attends. Not that it really matters...(You'll find out why soon enough~!)

Oh, and my exams are approaching soon, so as usual I'm taking a 1 month break to study. (And maybe another additional week or so for gaming :3)

The canteen was bustling with activity in every corner as the students of Minazushi High spoke amongst themselves excitedly with much zest. Topics of conversation were being thrown around randomly, ranging from the latest gaming product out in the market to the laments of students whose electronic devices had been caught in the sudden downpour. The most prominent and reoccurring topic was one about the sighting of two large monstrous beings at the field, one shining a bright golden and the other a cool electric blue.

The students sitting nearest to the windows had spotted the two beasts first, their attention having been drawn to them by the roars emitted from their mouths moments before they engaged in combat. Some thought they were dreaming in board daylight, and pinched or slapped themselves before they were convinced that what their eyes showed them was real. The ones that were undoubtedly the most excited at the sightings however, were the ones who had played the Monster Hunter series before. They knew exactly what the monsters standing before each other in the field were called, and tried their best to spread the news around the school.

Many found their words unbelievable of course, but those who had been sitting closest to the windows listened to the topic with great interest. For even if they didn't believe, it was a fact that they had seen something out on the field, and playing along with the theory about monsters came naturally. What else could be used to describe the giant beasts they had seen?

The rain had started to fall almost immediately after the students had spotted the monsters, and this caused the students with overactive imaginations to start saying that the whole thing was just a vast conspiracy. But it couldn't have been further from the truth; the rain had been there for the purpose of forcing the students away from the field to prevent any of them from getting hurt in the clash between the two creatures, and to block off whatever vision they had of the field at the same time.

None of the students knew this, and naturally more and more farfetched theories begun to spring up, each more absurd than the last. Between the excited students and the rain, no one noticed three students returning to the school from the field, the upper portion of their bodies impossibly dry despite being in the torrential rain for a period of time. The only evidence that they had even been in the field at all was their wet shoes, which had soaked in the rainwater on the ground as it slowly increased in quantity due to the downpour. Tiny puddles were left behind them as they walked, but the commotion in the canteen was such that no one pointed out the three's shoes at all as they mingled amongst the students.

What was even weirder, if one looked closely enough, was the fact that the single male in the group was wearing gloves that had mismatched colors. The two females carrying their bags would not have been as suspicious, although one would probably find themselves wondering why they were carrying their bags out in the heavy rain in the first place. The shorter of the two females placed her bag onto the floor the instant the group reentered the school, putting on a disgusted expression as she tugged at her wet socks.

"Ugh," Ayumi still couldn't get the water out of her shoes, which had unquestionably been ruined after the battle with Sparkwolf. The white shine they once possessed was now smeared with the brown of mud and dirt, and to make it worse, an odd squelching sounded every time she took a step forward. "This feels all icky and weird. Can't wait to change out of them."

"Hey, what happened to Volt?" Hishoji wasn't as concerned with his shoes as much as he was concerned with the hunter. When they had made their way back to school through the field, there had been no sight of Volt anywhere. "Did you two make sure he was alright or something?"

He's alive. I sensed him leaving before the battle with the Jinouga was over. Kuroi answered Hishoji's question, even though it wasn't directed at him in the first place.

"We left him with a bottle of golden water or something. I think Mark called it a 'Max Potion'. I guess it did its job of healing him, and he left before we were finished with that wolf," Elizabeth replied, not knowing that Hishoji's question had already been answered. She turned her blue eyes towards the canteen, where students ranging from the juniors to the seniors were all in animated discussion over what had truly happened in the field. "What's with all the hubbub?"

One of the students with tousled black hair and a crazed look inside his eyes was running around, his untucked uniform flapping in the wind behind him as he moved. Hishoji quickly recognized the student as Edmund, the rumor-gatherer in his class. He could easily tell with one look that Edmund had stumbled upon yet another rumor, for it was the only time he would get this pumped up. The next words out of the latter's mouth as he confronted a group of students confirmed Hishoji's suspicions. "Holy shit, how did you guys not see the monsters?"

"Hey Hishoji, isn't he from your class?" Ayumi whispered, not wanting to draw the attention of the batty looking Edmund as he continued his ramblings about monsters in the field. His voice was loud enough to be easily heard even amid the sound made by the other students.

"Uh huh," Hishoji nodded, then hollered at the student, "Oi, Edmund! The hell you doing?"

The student known as Edmund turned as he was addressed by his name, mouth half open in the middle of explaining the rumor about the monsters. Making eye contact with the one who had called him, Edmund turned back to the expectant students before him and apologized, then approached Hishoji with a sheepish look on his face.

"Uh, just spreading the news around. The class went into total chaos moments after you left for the toilet. You have no idea what you missed, I swear, there were these two huge-" He stopped speaking and blinked at Hishoji, the excitement in his eyes replaced by confusion as he noticed the two girls standing beside the latter. "Wait, I thought you were at the toilet, what are you doing on the first floor with Elizabeth and...who is this?"

"Oh, sorry, forgot you didn't know my sister. This is Ayumi. Ayumi, this is Edmund," Hishoji let out a sigh of relief. He thought Edmund had saw the wet shoes he was wearing, and was going to accuse him of being out in the field during the rain. With the introduction, Hishoji had bought himself enough time to think up a suitable response, and decided to go with what was partially the truth. "I'm actually here with them because I thought I saw something in the field earlier, and wanted to get a closer look."

"I knew others saw them too!" Edmund let out a cry of exhilaration as the shine returned to his eyes. "Come on, we should go tell everyone. At least with one eyewitness, it'll be easier for them to believe me."

Hishoji smiled, glad that Edmund had bought his story. Politely refusing the latter's offer, Hishoji started to make his way back to class, Elizabeth and Ayumi trailing along after him. Edmund was persistent, and followed the three all the way up the stairs, asking the two girls to help him spread the news as well. They rejected of course; neither of the girls was in any mood to run around school screaming their heads off. As the three was nearing the end of their patience with him, the sound of a bell ringing reverberated throughout the school and its corridors, the signal that an announcement was about to be made.

"All students, please proceed to the hall immediately."

"Aw, shucks." Edmund frowned at the thought that he wouldn't be able to run around freely for much longer. He started towards the hall while screaming about the monsters again, completely forgetting about Hishoji's group. The group was naturally glad to watch him go, for this meant that they wouldn't have to tolerate his voice pestering them again.

"Weird guy," Ayumi commented. "Really quite a nuisance."

"Hey, don't badmouth him behind his back," Hishoji still considered Edmund a good friend, even if the latter could get annoying at times when he was caught up in his rumors. "His rumors sometimes have truth in them. Edmund's just a little...ecstatic, that's all."

"I wouldn't exactly call that ecstatic," Elizabeth grinned. "More like obsessed with getting people to believe him. Anyway, we should head to the hall."

Roughly ten minutes later, every student in Minazushi High was packed inside the school hall as their principal addressed them with a hint of nervousness in his voice. The figure of authority known as Principal Kun was trying his best to appear normal, but his constant sweating and shifty eyes were more than enough for the students to tell that something was wrong. As he waited for the students to settle down, Principal Kun took out a striped handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the sweat off his forehead, then forcefully stuffed it back into his pocket only to take it out another ten seconds later to use it again.

There was good reason for the principal to be this nervous. When the bell to signal the start of lessons had sounded earlier in the morning, Principal Kun had decided to take a leisurely stroll around the school, beginning from his office and ending with the field. How he regretted making that decision now.

Everything had been normal when Principal Kun left his office to begin the stroll. He had walked slowly outside the school's classrooms, taking in the scene of students listening to their teachers, attentively or otherwise. On any other day he would have chided them for not paying attention to the lesson, but at that particular moment he was feeling quite elated, for Minazushi High had been in the local newspaper for being one of the top schools in Yarino City.

Closing his eyes to the sleeping students, Principal Kun had then set his sights on the school canteen, passing by the walls adorned with art portraits designed by the best students in the school. He had taken a moment to admire the works, each a delicate piece of work, with splashes of paint here and there to form pictures of all forms. It was while he was in the middle of appreciating the artworks that he had heard the jarring sound of the monsters' roars.

His first thought was that it had been some student playing a sick joke of some sort, playing some form of loud musical instrument to disrupt the serenity of the school early in the morning. The sound had originated from the field, and Principal Kun had rushed towards it without hesitation, already beginning to think up some kind of punishment for the unlucky student. The canteen had been empty as the principal passed it en route to the field; most, if not all of the students were in their classrooms. The field should have been empty as well, for sports lessons were not due to start until an hour later. But it wasn't, and that was the problem.

The field had been occupied, but not by another human being. Two huge, grand beasts that towered above the principal were facing each other off, and for a moment Principal Kun had found himself lost in his thoughts. His mind had drifted back to the newspaper he read earlier in the morning, where there had been an article about monster sightings around the city. He had dismissed it as hogwash then, but there was hardly another fitting explanation for what he was seeing. The weather took a change for the worse just then, and in a few moments the rain blocked off his sight of the creatures. But the principal had known by then what he had seen.

He hasn't smiled since then, and Principal Kun was certainly not about to smile any time soon. He could try to explain to his colleagues what he had seen, but more likely than not they would just laugh him off. Worse still, the parents of the students in the school would probably think him demented for seeing 'monsters', things that were not supposed to exist in the first place. What could he do then, but feign ignorance?

"Right then, onto the topic on hand," The principal cleared his throat, causing hundreds of eyes belonging to the students to focus on him."I'm aware that students have been running rampant around the school yelling out rubbish about monsters being sighted. Let me remind you that monsters are about as real as this ghost you all have been claiming to see around the school compounds. They absolutely do not exist!"

He had added the part about the ghost in just for the heck of it. There had been claims about a mysterious robed figure hanging around the school, and whenever anyone spotted it, the figure would just fade away as though it never existed. The principal had no idea whether the monsters were related to the robed figure, but he simply shook his balding head, then continued, "However, while we may dismiss one or two claims, I have to admit that the large number of reports is beginning to make me concerned for all of your well-beings. That is why I have decided to get someone from the police force to settle this entire matter of the ghost in the compound and the monsters, to prove to everyone once and for all that they are nothing but figments of your overactive imagination!"

Principal Kun left the stage hurriedly after saying that, leaving another teacher to take charge of the mic. He had already dialed the police minutes after spotting the monsters, and had been told that they would send someone to handle the case. His colleagues can say he was overreacting all they want; they weren't at the field with him in the morning. The police would be able to take care of the monsters. After all, the last thing the principal wanted was to be face-to-face with one of the beasts he had spotted in the morning.

Much to the surprise and joy of Hishoji, the teacher who had taken over the mic told the students to head straight home after being dismissed from the hall, explaining that the police would coming in to investigate and that they wouldn't like any disruptions.

"Sweet, early dismissal," Hishoji muttered to himself, just as his cellphone received a message from Ayumi reminding him of the work they had to do at Dean's after school. He let out a groan immediately after that, the happiness disappearing just as quickly as it had came. "Damn, she sure knows how to kill my mood."

"So! The wolf returns with nothing in tow. Why am I not surprised?" Alatreon glared at Sparkwolf, who returned the glare with a scowl.

"Wasn't expecting those humans to interfere," Sparkwolf looked away after a few moments, not wanting to maintain eye contact with the Glittering Black Dragon any longer. "Besides, I lost a horn too, so it's not like I got away unharmed."

"You know what, forget it. Screw that Rajang. You see that wall over there?" Alatreon turned his head in the direction of a nearby stone wall.

"What about it?"

"I am THIS close to making your other horn, nay, YOUR ENTIRE HEAD a permanent decoration on it."

Sparkwolf yelped as multiple icicles erupted out of the ground in front of him, stopping mere centimeters short from his face. The expression on the Jinouga's face was torn between fear and anger as he looked at the Elder Dragon before him once again.

"And what makes it worse is that you left evidence of your attack everywhere on that field. Do you want the whole city to know of our existence?"

"It's not like the whole of Minegarde didn't know about us back when we were in the game so...why not?" Sparkwolf retreated slowly from the icicles in front of him.

"BECAUSE I SAID SO!" More icicles formed behind Sparkwolf, blocking his escape path. "I intend for the vessels of the Trio to pay for helping them as well. We must not leave behind any evidence that we exist, so that they will eventually be driven mad, unable to tell anyone about us. Then their vessels will start to blame the Fatalis for being there in the first place, creating internal strife within their ranks."

"What the heck, you're talking about the Trio as if they had a whole arsenal of monsters at their command."

"They don't, but it never hurts to be cautious, especially around something like a Fatalis," The Elder Dragon then cocked his head to one side, a hint of madness dancing in his eyes as a smile slowly spread over his face. "I've already dispatched someone to deal with the scorch marks of your attack on the field. Shouldn't be too hard for someone like him. Or was it a 'her'? Well, probably an 'it'. Now then, that brings back the big question. Since you failed to kill the trio, what shall I do with you?"

The rain had stopped after the students were dismissed, and the students who had forgotten their umbrellas said silent prayers. If only they knew the unnatural phenomenon was caused by a single girl and an Elder Dragon hiding inside her cellphone...

"Uh, so why are you following us again?" Hishoji asked Elizabeth as the two of them arrived at the school gate, where Ayumi was waiting for them. "You do know we're going off to work right?"

"Yeah, but I was thinking if I should go look for Volt, since he'll probably need a new set of armor and weapon. And since he's probably at your house, I might as well follow you guys."

"Eh, whatever," Hishoji shrugged as the trio left the school and walked along the pavement. "But if you're coming with us you should help out too."

"I know what you're thinking, Hishoji," Ayumi playfully hit Hishoji on his shoulder, "Don't agree to help, Elizabeth. He'll dump his entire workload on you and slack off whenever possible."

"Tch, am I that easy to read?" Hishoji sighed.

A man dressed in a black suit and overcoat walked past the trio, bumping into Hishoji as he passed them. Hishoji staggered a little as the man's arm hit him; he didn't anticipate the strength coming from the arms hidden underneath the overcoat. The man turned to give him a disapproving stare, and Hishoji felt sure that if looks could kill, he would have died long ago to the man glaring at him. The man's gaze never left the trio until he turned the corner towards Minazushi High.

"Huh? What was that about?" Hishoji scratched his head.

"Dunno, but it's the second weird guy I've seen today, down to the clothes," Ayumi noted the direction the man was headed in. "Wasn't he heading towards our school?"

"Might be that police force thingy Principal Kun got to investigate our school," Elizabeth reminded them. "It doesn't really concern us anyway, so let's just go."

"Ah, you must be from the police force," Principal Kun addressed the man in black as he stepped in the school gate. After a moment, the principal looked out the gate, half expecting to see a car filled with other similarly dressed men as the one that had just entered the school. Seeing none, the principal turned back to the man to address his concern. "Hmm, did they only send you?"

Principal Kun made a mental note to double check with the police if they had sent the correct man for the job. The man's cropped back black hair, with his high nose and piercing black eyes complemented the black suit and overcoat that he was wearing. He didn't look like he was from the police though, if anything, it was more like he was a secret government agent from the FBI sent to investigate aliens.

"The police are currently shorthanded. There has been a breakout of viral diseases, and it has reduced the amount of men we have drastically," The man's voice was sharp, he spoke as if him being in the school was a complete waste of time. "But that is beside the point. My name is Ikio. You do not need to introduce yourself. I have already obtained information about your situation through the police. Now, Mr Kun, let's get down to business."

"Wait, through the police?" Principal Kun looked at Ikio, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "I thought you were the police."

"I am. But I came from an external division. To be precise, I came from several other divisions. You can say I've pretty much worked in every squad the police had at least once in my life."

"Are you serious?" The principal was finding it hard to believe, and anyone else in his place would too. Ikio didn't look like he was past thirty, and if Principal Kun had to make a rough guess, he would have said twenty-eight. Claiming that he worked in every squad the police had probably meant that he was so bad at the job that they kicked him out to another division the moment they had the chance.

"I can tell what you're thinking from the look on your face. Don't worry, I'm good at what I do. Perhaps a little too good, which is why every division wants me to be part of them so badly that I had to switch constantly," Ikio addressed the principal's concerns even without the latter speaking about them. "I even have some experience in the supernatural. There was this division I joined once called SITS – Supernatural Investigation and Termination Squad. I was in for a day, then I quit. It was a complete joke of a division which had only one other person who did nothing but sit in her office all day slacking off."

Ikio chuckled a little, as if he had just said a joke. Seeing that the principal didn't seem to find what he had just said funny, Ikio quickly straightened his own face and continued, "People like her kind irk me. There was no point in being the police if you aren't enforcing the law at all. But I digress; what I'm trying to get across is that I can easily handle whatever you are going to throw at me."

"Yes...well, you're never going to believe me. But at least having someone on the case eases some of the burden on my shoulders," Principal Kun led Ikio to the field where the students had reported sightings of the monsters. Now that the rain had stopped, the water was draining out fast. "So the students were saying something about monsters in the field. I...well, keep it quiet, but I think I saw them as well."

"Is that so?" Ikio raised an intrigued eyebrow, then focused his attention to the field. "And exactly how would you describe these 'monsters'?"

"For one thing, they were huge. Easily four to six meters in height. One of them was yellowish-black in color, and I think the other was blue. They were standing in the middle of the field- over there." He pointed to the rough location of where the two beasts had been standing.

"Alright, that will be enough for now. Middle of the field, it is. Leave me to my own devices for now, I'll call you should I need it." Ikio was already stepping into the muddy field without much regard for the grime, heading for the area which the principal had pointed at.

"Ah-right, okay. I'll tell the security guard to let you out through the front gate when you need to leave." Principal Kun excused himself, returning to his office with a significantly lighter heart than before.

"Yes, you do that," Ikio muttered, looking at the remaining rainwater on the floor reflecting the bright rays of the afternoon sun. There was a conspicuous black area which could only be seen when one approached the middle of the field, the mark left behind by the Jinouga when it had attacked Volt. "That looks like a good place to start."

On the corner of the field, at the toilet which the Dromes had used as a hiding place in the morning, a hooded figure and a Kut Ku on the roof of the tiny building watched as Ikio approached the middle of the field slowly, scrutinizing every little detail.

"How troublesome, having to fix the damage caused by monsters everywhere," The hooded figure raised an arm and waved at the field, causing the ground that was blackened by Sparkwolf's attack to seemingly fade away. "Do me a favor, dear, and check if it's done."

The Kut Ku squawked. "You're starting to creep me the hell out with that attitude of yours. Seriously Mirage, stop randomly adding 'dear' to every sentence you say. You aren't human, and no matter how much you try to act like one, you'll never be one."

"But I am!" The figure pulled the hood backwards, revealing a beautiful face with purple eyes, a straight nose, full lips and long silky hair that matched the colors of her(?) eyes. Mirage smiled. "See?"

"You're not fooling anyone, man. You know I know about your powers. And besides, I can read your thoughts." The Kut Ku let out another shrill cry.

"Well, it was worth a shot anyway," Mirage twirled a strand of her(?) hair around her(?) fingers as she(?) watched Ikio move closer to the middle of the field. The detective had come to a standstill in front of the spot which was blackened ground less than ten seconds ago. Mirage had been watching him with great curiosity since he first entered the field. "So, Mr Detective, how will you react to this, I wonder?"

Ikio looked at the ground in front of him. It was like something out of a science fiction show: the ground that was originally blackened had faded away, taking on the same brownish floor of the muddy field in front of his eyes. It was as though the black spot had been made of chalk, and something invisible was using a duster to rub it away. The detective couldn't make heads or tails of what had happened, but marks on the floor definitely did not just disappear like that.

For a moment he considered whether he had just been the target of supernatural activity. Then he laughed at the fact that he had thought about considering it in the first place. Ikio didn't believe in the supernatural. For him, everything could easily be explained by solid evidence, or science.

But try as he could, Ikio simply could not come up with a reason as to why the floor had suddenly underwent such a drastic change. He frowned and looked around the field once more. The entire area was muddy, and any other evidence would no doubt have been washed away long before he got here. He would have to be faster next time.

As he turned towards the exit, Ikio felt the hair between his shoulder blades beginning to stand on their ends. This was a feeling not unfamiliar to him, for he had felt it more than enough throughout the entire course of his career. It was the unmistakeable feeling of someone watching him. Turning back, Ikio directed his piercing gaze towards the toilet at the end of the field, the only possible area for someone to hide in.

Something was there, he was sure of it.

"Eh? Ehhhh? Is he staring at us? He's staring at us, right?" The Kut Ku began to get jumpy. "Do something, Mirage!"

"Impossible, he can't see us. My power is at its strongest when it affects me, so even if he knows the truth, there is no way for him to break this illusion," Mirage folded her(?) arms. "But that man...I think he's onto something. Come on dear, make yourself useful for once and read his thoughts."

"Ooh, I forgot I can do that," The Kut Ku closed his eyes and concentrated as his ear unfolded and the runes on them lit themselves up one by one. After a few seconds, the ear closed and took its place behind the Kut Ku's neck once more. "Yeah, he can't see us, but he knows he's being watched. Anyway, he has no intention of investigating the field once more, so we should just leave him be."

"Humph. Too bad, I thought he would pose a challenge for my powers for once. Well, let's go dear." Mirage slid off the rooftop, waiting for the Kut Ku to follow.

"Man, seriously, stop 'dear'-ing me," The Bird Wyvern landed at the area beside Mirage, and then took flight as she(?) hopped onto his back. "Someday I'm going to think up a word to annoy you with."

"Good luck with that, chicken." A spark of anger flashed in the Kut Ku's eyes; Mirage's taunt had hit a raw nerve. The anger was quickly dismissed however, and the pair started on their journey back in silence.

The feeling passed, but Ikio kept his eyes on the toilet. He hadn't seen anyone exit or enter the building at all, but it didn't hurt to be sure. As he got within three feet of the toilet, Ikio's sharp eyes noticed something on the floor. Squatting down to take a closer look, Ikio tilted his head sideways in confusion.

Fresh footprints. One pair of human feet, small and delicate, probably a female's. The other...Ikio almost kissed the mud the way he brought his head closer and closer to the floor to try and make out what manner of a creature the footprint belonged to. It didn't look human in the least, that Ikio was sure of. Three long toes, at least twice as long as the human pair of feet beside it, each ending with a deep indent into the mud.

"Claws?" Ikio could hardly believe what he was seeing. Then, remembering the reason he was approaching the toilet in the first place, Ikio drew his revolver out of his holster and slowly advanced into the building. A quick check revealed the place to be deserted, and Ikio found himself sweating more than he had thought he would.

Replacing the gun back into its holster, Ikio considered what the principal had said, seriously this time. He had been skeptical of the principal earlier, but had done a good job of hiding it. But the footprints had proved that the principal hasn't been lying. He hasn't seen anyone near the toilet, and yet the footprints had been fresh. Something had been standing at that spot in front of the toilet, something not human.

But even if there really were monsters out there, Ikio wasn't about to give up on the case. He had believed himself able to handle anything, and he still did. There hasn't been a case in which the detective had not been able to solve since he started his career, and Ikio was not about to let this be the first. Monsters or no monsters, he was sure of one thing.

"This case is just beginning."