Raijin, Rank 0 of Seidoukan Academy

Happy Birthday

Hikaru stepped into the room, the door closing behind him. He looked at his bedroom, and could notice most of the changes immediately.

Ryu had some work done to make sure it stays the same way, but… it's never going to be the same.

His eyes went to the photo standing on the table. Four students in uniform, standing before a tree, each with varying degrees of a smile. He shook his head, moving towards the shower. A few minutes later, he was out, heading towards the rebuilt Seidoukan. As he walked, he could feel various spots where mana was accumulating slowly. Good, those are working as intended. Nestor's idea was a good one.

He shivered a bit as a particularly cold wind hit him. Cold. He brought up his terminal, taking a glance at the time. He received a message at that moment.

"Hikaru, come to the office. There's something important we need to discuss."

Huh, the office?

He sighed, before activating Kanmuru. "I really should have worn a coat or something."

He disappeared, running towards his destination.

XXXXXXXXXX

He slid to a stop outside the building, spotting Nestor. "Took you some time, Hikaru. Anyway, come on. We'll talk as we go."

He was waiting with a terminal screen opened, displaying information about some students.

"I picked these students for the team. Once you go through the list as well, we can start calling them."

As they stepped into the building, Hikaru was momentarily blinded.

"Nestor?" There was some thinly-veiled irritation in his voice.

"Yes?"

"Why is this building so brightly lit? And why is it so…"

"White? You gave me free reign of decorations and whatnot, didn't you? These can be changed anyway, I splurged a bit, you see."
Suddenly, the tiles on the wall changed, starting to play a video. He recognised it, their final match in the Phoenix. "How much did this cost?"

"Ignore that. It's a… let's call it a gift."

"Uh huh." He didn't sound like he believed it.

XXXXXXXXXX

"And this is the office." The room was dark, unlike the rest of the building. As the lights switched on, he was blinded again.

"Surprise!"

A group of voices called out simultaneously. As his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he was surprised at the sight. On a table was a cake, with some decorations hung up on the walls, and a group of people he cared about around the room.

"You know, forgetting your own birthday isn't very good. What would happen if we weren't there to celebrate it?" Nestor's voice was slightly playful as he pushed him.

Today is… Today was his birthday, yet it was also the day his parents had died. Today wasn't a day of celebration. He couldn't-

It's fine to celebrate. They won't hate you for that, Hikaru. Raikou's voice filtered through his thoughts. You avenged their deaths, and you grew stronger than they ever thought you would. You started to become better. Letting go of them isn't wrong.

"You can mope around all you want for the day, but now, we celebrate."

He was surrounded by people he cared about, people who cared about him.

Your friend's right. You can mourn them later. But for now, there are people who want you to feel happy. For now, you can push your worries aside,

He just went through the motions, what he remembered from years ago. Smile and thank them, wait for the next person, repeat. It was weird, not feeling in control of what you did, as he did so for an hour.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, now that it's done, all of you scram." Nestor shooed everyone out of the room.

As everyone left, Hikaru sat in the same place, at a quite comfortable chair.

"That was exhausting, wasn't it?" Nestor settled into another chair opposite him.

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why go through this? Why go through all the effort?"

"How long are you going to stay this way, Hikaru?" Nestor's voice was cold and stern.

"..."

"How long are you going to stay like this? You chose to return, you chose to stay in the light, and you chose to lead. With those responsibilities, there are also some obligations you need to follow through. You can't simply push people away and stay in your little bubble."

"I don't-"

"I know what I saw just now, Hikaru. Don't shut your feelings out of it, don't distance yourself from everyone else."

"Why can't you leave me be?"

"You chose this, didn't you? If you want to be alone, then give up on your dreams and go live on some mountain. If you want to make your dream come true, then you can't do it alone."

His arguments were feeble, he knew that whatever Nestor was saying was true.

"You aren't alone in suffering. If you want help, you need to ask for it." Nestor stood up, walking towards the door.

"You need to lead, Hikaru. And right now, people go along with your wishes because of the power you have, not because of you. Eventually, that power alone won't be enough. If you want someone to follow you, it should be because of you, not because of your power."

XXXXXXXXXX

He sat there, contemplating the words of everyone.

He's right, Hikaru. You can't stay like this. There is no one in this world who can lead someone while he is alone. No one who can lead someone while they themselves are conflicted about what they are doing.

"I know that, Raikou."

You need to do something about it then. You are sitting here, refusing to acknowledge the problem.

"I just… I can't ignore all of the things I've done. Who would want to follow someone with blood on their hands?"

That isn't all you are, is it? Nestor follows you for something different. Sylvia sees you as someone different, not as just someone with blood on their hands. There are a lot of people who see you that way, and a lot of people who see you as something more than just a killer. You need to decide what you want to be.

Raikou went silent after that, leaving Hikaru to his thoughts.

XXXXXXXXXX

A scarf.

"I noticed that you were cold. I made this myself, I hope you like it.

Happy birthday, Hikaru-kun. - Sylvie"

It was soft, and warm.

A pendant.

"As congratulations for getting us victory in the Phoenix, I and the rest of the Student Council had this made for you, ufufu. I hope you don't mind jewelry. - Claudia"

It looked nice, but fragile. He may not wear it too much, but he still treasured it.

A Lux.

"Hikaru-sama, this was made for you on Fandorin-sama's request. No matter what path you choose, we will follow you. - Ryu"

He activated the Lux, watching it transform into a rifle. It was easy to handle. Why did Nestor have this made for me?

He opened the last box, shocked at what he saw. It was a sketch, which made him smile sadly at the detail.

"Happy birthday, Hikaru. - Nestor"

He put away all the gifts, collapsing into the chair. He received another message.

"PS: Check the drawer."

He checked the drawer immediately, finding a set of sheets. As he laid them out, he was slightly shocked. Nestor had gone through the trouble of obtaining the floor plans of all the rooms in all buildings of the rebuilt Seidoukan, and markers along the area of the whole island, and notes of various sorts. Well, he went through a lot of effort. Raikou commented, looking through his eyes.

He stayed up that night, unable to sleep with the thoughts running through his mind.

XXXXXXXXXX

Nestor deactivated the simulation, sweating slightly. My rate of creation with my left arm is still slower than my right. Remedying that should be first priority before anything else.

He received a call. Hikaru? "Yeah?"

"Nestor, can you come to the office?"

"Uh, sure. What's the matter?"

"I need your help."

"Alright."

XXXXXXXXXX

So, finally asking for help, eh?

Hikaru continued talking, outlining his plan. "So, what do you think of this?"

"Hikaru, you do know what you are asking me to do, right?"

"Yes. I'm asking you to join me in making my dream come true."

That's an oversimplification, you idiot!

"You are asking me to oppose the IEF and the world at large, "remove" some opposition, put myself, my family and friends at risk, and change the minds of people."

"In the broad sense."

"A society built on 100 years, Hikaru. Two people alone can't change it on a whim."

"I mean… I was alone then. Now it's two of us, right?"

Nestor slapped his hand over his face, before looking at him. "You…"

Hikaru shrugged, looking out of the windows.

"Is it worth it?"

"Who knows. Whether it will be worth it is something that the ones who come after us have to decide."

"*Sigh* We are going to sacrifice too much for something that we don't know would be worth it. Great."

Hikaru stayed quiet, letting Nestor think over his decision, before he answered.

"So, where do we start?"

Hikaru smiled as Nestor sat opposite him. "Well, let's look at that list you have. The security of the students is something that we need to ensure first before we make any big moves."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, let's start the meeting. Where are the others?" Hikaru arrived to find only Nestor at the table.

"Feardorcha and Ibara are busy with meetings. Toshiro is on patrol. The others are on their way."

"*Sigh* Fine, what improvements have we made?"

"Project Healer is looking good. Due to the success that we've reported, there's a good chance that the other academies might also implement it."

"That's going to be a long process. And I don't see a few academies even agreeing with it."

"Yeah. Jie Long has a problem with being too specialised in Seisenjutsu. Healing is not the norm for them."

"Eh, Xinglou can figure something out. What I'm referring to is Rewolf."

"Ah, you are referring to the unregistered ability-users? Any idea how many there are in Rewolf?"

"1 registered Regenerative, and then there's approximately 33 Dantes and 27 Stregas, all unregistered. And 9 of them are suspected to be Healers to some degree, though there are only 2 or 3 who are really useful for Project Healer, when comparing their effectiveness to the trainees we have." Another voice interrupted their conversation, a black-haired teen wearing the highschool uniform walked in, looking at a terminal screen with a list of students.

Nestor sighed as he looked at the screen. "Riley, why do you have information about Rewolf's students? Specifically information that is not public record?"

Riley shrugged, taking a seat opposite Nestor. "Anyway, Hikaru, Project Healer is proceeding as intended, at least in Seidoukan. Arlequint is going ahead with it as well, at least for the research prospects in it."

"Of course they will." Nestor muttered.

"On that matter, Arlequint is actually agreeing with us in a lot of matters. Project Healer, the Meteor Engineering and Lux development department, and they are showing particularly high interest in your plan, Hikaru."

"The special Lux invention?" He scoffed. "Of course that group of researchers wants to get ahead in a field that hasn't been researched yet."

"It's a new idea, you have to admit. We are basically creating a Lux that can emulate a Dante's ability, without the annoying sentience of an Orga Lux. Everyone wants to be the first to do that."

"Not the full ability, just a facet of the ability. If you think a Lux can emulate my Kanmuru, then that's just stupidity. Not even an Orga Lux can do that."

Nestor opened his mouth, but stopped when someone else walked in.

"Narukami-kun, Ibara-senpai asked me to tell you that he won't be able to attend the meeting today." A black-haired girl walked in, balancing a knife on a finger.

"Fine." He sighed. "Make sure that he sends his reports."

"Shiori, can you set up a meeting with Ernest?" Nestor asked the girl, pausing his conversation with Riley.

The black-haired girl nodded, making a note.

After a short pause, Hikaru sighed, bringing forth a terminal screen.

"The others can catch up later. Let's start the meeting."

He idly glanced at the date. February 29, 2066… 2 years.

He began to speak, going over the details, multiple screens appearing and disappearing as he went through multiple topics.

XXXXXXXXXX

Nestor threw a can of coffee, which Hikaru caught without looking.

"Nestor, make sure Ernest is on our side. Riley can handle Arlequint."

"Geez, don't worry too much about it. It's not such a big task. What with how hard he tries to repress his true self." Nestor smirked. "You know, I have to commend him for that. Repressing your true self from that Orga Lux, managing to hide that lust for battle and fighting strong opponents, that need to prove himself to be the strongest… hiding all of those from an Orga Lux that requires you to be as pure, fair and selfless as possible, that's worthy of respect."

"I want him to be on our side, Nestor, as an equal."

That got him a side-eyed glance from him. "Hikaru, asking for someone to equal you is impossible. I can get him on our side, but not as your equal."

He sighed. "He should join of his own accord. Not because he feels threate-"

"I don't do threats." Nestor cut him off.

"I'll leave him to you, then. Him and that school is your responsibility." He returned to his work, going over the files of various students. Nestor noticed that he had set a few aside. Hmm…. Amagiri Ayato… the one that Claudia wanted to invite. Amagiri…

"Isn't that the guy whose family you lived with when you were younger? That Amagiri kid."

"Yeah. I lived with them for a few years before I came to Asterisk. He's searching for his sister after she disappeared 5 years ago."

"You saw her, didn't you? When Amagiri Haruka was a student here, you saw her once."

"I saw her for an instant and I left immediately. She disappeared afterwards."

"Hmm, 5 years, right? That's around when I joined, and Arashi was there for a year already. You want me to look into it?" Nestor asked, deep in thought. If she was here for at least a year along with us, and she used an Orga Lux during that time, it should be in the records. If it isn't there…

"No need." Hikaru said, bringing up another screen, which held the image of a medical file. "Investigating the disappearance of Amagiri Haruka isn't a priority now. We can let the IEF handle that, and if it involves our goals in any way, we can lend our hand. But for now, we focus on our goals."

Nestor sighed, looking at the file which held the details of Amagiri Haruka. "And what of the kid? You are going to let him believe that his sister is still missing?" There was something missing. Why would Hikaru willingly allow him to believe his sister is missing?

"I won't interfere in his search for his sister. If he wants to use the Festa or whatever to search for her, so be it."

There it was. The missing piece. You… geez, such a messed up and complicated plan. "Well, I hope you know what you are doing."

Hikaru nodded, flicking through more screens. "I can handle that matter. Just focus on Ernest for now."

"Sure, sure. I'll let you know how the meeting goes."

Nestor left the room, leaving Hikaru to his thoughts, alone after a long time.

He sighed, stretching, and looked out the window. Toshiro is still training. He could see the flashes of Prana and the occasional tower of ice in the distance.

He sent a few messages to Riley, Nestor and Ibara, then settled into his chair, placing a Lux on the table.

Back to work.

As the clock struck 12, he received another message, which made him smile slightly.

"Oh, right. Forgot to tell you this. Happy birthday!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Alright, so it's been more than a year since the last update. And personally, this omake took way too long to write, partially due to me introducing new characters and slightly spoiling the future chapters in the main story.

Anyway, this story and the main chapter were supposed to be released on March 1 (Hikaru's birthday) but it got delayed and I couldn't complete it on time. Apologies for this.

I've had to deal with major issues the whole year of 2020, and college work has kept me busy during lockdown and I didn't have any ideas to write any chapter. Coming to the main story, Chapter 8 has a small sneak peek to the next arc. Chapter 9 onwards will be the Phoenix Festa arc of Hikaru and Nestor (3 years before Julis and Ayato). I don't have a solid plan of how long it will be, but I'm planning on it being at least 3-4 chapters long (15-20 pages each, probably more), with some major discoveries in regards to the motivations of multiple characters. The result will obviously be different from canon (canon had a team from Arlequint winning, here it will be Hikaru and Nestor, and subsequently others will also change in terms of opponents). For opponents, I will be using some OCs, so if anyone has any interesting ideas for OCs (abilities and names are a must, appearance details shouldn't be too specific or standing out), I'd be happy to include them and give credit.

The Festa arc also gives me the opportunity to showcase some of Hikaru's and Nestor's abilities and fighting style (it will change a lot by the finale of the story though) and also a look into their rivalries and relationships with various characters.

I don't know how long it will take for me to release the next chapter, and I apologise for that. College work is keeping me more busy than I estimated it would, and that combined with personal issues are making it hard to sit down and write quality content. I hope you guys will be there when the next chapter releases whenever it does.

Thanks for reading,

Hikaru.