Author's Note: And the story moves on! S-L-O-W-L-Y though, as much as I would like to speed it up. A few light bulbs have been replaced in my head, so I just might not be running out of ink yet (As the Chinese would like to say.) Truth to be told, I've never played the game before, and that alone should entitle me forbidden to write this. All the information I gathered was from the manga, so please do bear with me on this and if it's possible, state what I've written wrongly, just in case. I thank you and apologize again.

Miss Nox: Gemity battle? That's a new term to me, but hopefully this chapter won't bore you just yet. The mood might get a little more serious later on, though. I hope my portrayal of Albel isn't too bad in this chapter…

Master and Chief and Arbiter: It is respect. I guess I must have been phrasing his actions a little wrongly, and the mood I wanted to create then was a more light-hearted one. Hmm…I thank you very much for your information and perhaps take a few examples out of it.

Sapphire Prism: I don't mean to sound like a fan, but I really like how you write your stories, so any criticism from you is welcomed. I've taken more care with the dialogue and grammar, but please do inform me of any more undesirable trends you see in my story. Regarding Maria…I've as much information I could gather from the manga, but little on the game, so I hope you'll forgive me on that. Thanks again. Oh, by the way, it's 'nitpicking'. P

Disclaimer: Don't own Star Ocean, any of its characters and Tri-Ace or whatever company involved in its creation. I'm not planning to study law so please don't give me an early tutorial about it, alright?

Chapter 3

Nel

The Field of Glory was as it was implied: A wide expanse of smooth greenery, undiluted by bald patches of sand or loam. It was disparate to that of the fields Fayt had seen in the institutes he had been from. It was, without a doubt, a testimony to why the Infidenis Academy was regarded widely as one of the best in the region.

"The real thing's not being used for our battles." Maria stopped beside Fayt, seemingly sharing the same thought about the grand turf. "At least, that's what I think. It will be pretty tedious to restore every single bit of grass when the Mageias decide to liven up the occasion with a few fireworks."

"Why bother about the little details, Maria?" Cliff had been lagging behind them doing what he did best: Ogling. "But since you're curious, I'll tell you anyway. The Field is mostly used because of its space. In truth, the real battlefield is created using advanced technology. Any kinds of terrain, enemies, and monsters can be created and made to be as real as possible. The best in technology currently-"

"Reality Alternator, a machine developed to create a fabricated reality, something which one could really experience and feel." Fayt spoke in an awed voice. He had no idea that the Academy had such advanced technology within its possession. Noticing the surprised faces of the duo before him, he raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Well...I didn't think you were that knowledgeable about such technical stuff to begin with." Fayt shrugged noncommittally.

"I get by with a little bit of reading from those tech-savvy magazines once in a while. I don't limit my hobbies to just sports and gaming, you know."

They continued to look at the broad plains, enjoying the scenery a little while more. There was still some time before the event and the four of them sat down in a shaded area to relax a little. He took his place next to Sophia, squeezing in between her and Cliff and made himself comfortable.

"Were the lessons any difficult for you?" Sophia tends to show that side of herself occasionally, especially to Fayt. It came as no surprise to him, though people who knew little of her and even less of him would mistake them for something other than childhood friends.

She was, as usual, toying with her hair, a perpetual habit of hers she had yet to get rid of since the day they met. "Most of them were alright, I suppose…"

"Symbology shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Yeah…But the Herbalogy and Runology lectures had me slightly lost somewhere, even though it was just the introductory lesson." He let out a groan, to which Sophia responded with a giggle. "What?"

"That's just so like you." Fayt could not see why people would believe that there was only sweetness and innocence in her smile right now, though only someone close to her would know what she really meant.

"Whatever." But he turned and gave her an easy smile all the same. He lazily adopted a lying position, looking up at the clouds. They always fascinated him, for some reason, ever since his childhood fantasy of being able to bounce away or sleep on the clouds was conveniently broken by his father.

Dad…The last he saw of him was perhaps three years ago, when he disappeared abruptly after informing them that he was on the brink of 'an amazing discovery'. There were times where Fayt would have been tempted to call his father an idiot and that was probably the time where he came close to doing so. He was surprised by the resigned attitude of his mother, though, especially when he thought she would be much more saddened by his disappearance.

Fayt sighed. It was the same for him as well, somehow. He could barely remember the last time he truly felt any anger towards his father for disappearing on them. Three years suddenly seemed so long ago, and the pain had long receded into the deeper caverns of his mental retreat.

He opened his eyes and was surprised to see someone he least expect bending over him, though she straightened up nonchalantly and looked somewhere off in the distance. He sat up and looked at her. The wind blew and the picture became perfect, with her pleated skirt slightly wavering in the breeze, and a few strands of her silky hair teasing her cheeks, Fayt was sure hardly anyone would deny the fact that it was a sight for most males to behold.

Then she turned around, sensing that someone was looking at her. "What?" Her customary frown was back in place and Fayt broke out of his momentary daydream, blinking rapidly.

"Oh…It's nothing, really. I was just wondering if you have any friends aside from Cliff and Mirage in this academy."

She looked at him hard and for some particular reason, Fayt never failed to flinch in her gaze, even if just a little. He did not entirely like that fact.

It was for a few more moments before her gaze softened and she turned away from him. "I don't have any." And she took a few steps away from the group. What served as a lovely portrait for Fayt now seemed a little forlorn and out of place, yet it would seem as though her solidarity was part of her personality as well, and suddenly Fayt was interested in getting to know more about her.

He felt a big hand on his shoulder. "Don't fret too much about her. She's always been like that ever since the time the both of us met her. It wouldn't make sense to worry about that side of her if she doesn't even show any concern about it herself, would it?"

"I guess so …" Fayt replied absentmindedly, shifting his gaze away from her while Sophia looked on questioningly. "It's nothing." A smile was all he needed to allay any concerns and questions she had on her mind…at least for now.

Once his curiosity was piqued, however, there was no stopping him from wishing to find out more.

---------------

"There seems to be plenty of competitors around." Fayt stated simply. The three of them had changed into their customary battle gear. It did not take long for the Field to be filled up with people, some obviously from different places other than Earth itself. He relished the idea of competition, but there was one thing that puzzled him.

"Are there always that many participants?" He asked Cliff, who was watching the crowd with great interest.

The influx of students for the last few years might be the reason, though. After all, Infidenis owns its reputation to its success." He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "But I've never seen that many people…Perhaps there might be an unofficial test like the last time…"

"Unofficial?" He was only met with a grin.

"You'll see. The only thing left is for the fourth person in our team. I'll just go on ahead and take a look."

"Hey!" Cliff was already whistling and taking off at a slow jog towards the throng. Fayt sighed. If he knew Cliff, he was probably going to ask a female to join them. "Maria…"

"…I know. We should ask around, I suppose." Without the little outburst from the Klausian, Fayt was not sure how long she would be standing there like a statue.

"But where do we start?"

"We?" Fayt looked at Sophia with a small measure of disbelief. "Are you coming along? You know you're not supposed to be on the Field once the trials start."

She stood up daintily and grinned at him. "Well, that doesn't mean I can't help right now, can I?" Looking at his skeptical expression, her cheeks puffed and she put her hands on her hips. "What? I bet I can even find this new teammate of yours before you do!"

Fayt chuckled. He just could not help teasing Sophia all over again. There would always be different reactions, depending on what topic they were talking about. "All right... I guess you can help…But we have to split up. You want to do that in a midst of older students, with no one you know?" A quick shake of the head affirmed his thoughts. "I thought so." He smiled. "Would it be too much trouble to ask you to go alone? Or…"

"I'm coming with you." She walked towards him and put a hand on her right hip. "Three pairs of eyes are better than two." A sideward glance told him that she was all itching to go.

"Oh…Let's go then." He had always thought that the bluenette preferred to do things her way and alone. "Appearances can be deceiving…"

"Yes?"

"Oh! Err, it's nothing. Let's be on our way." Fayt was relieved that he was mumbling, as images of how Cliff was 'taken care of' were still fresh in his mind. He certainly did not want an irritated Maria breathing down his neck.

Before they could even move into the thicker part of the group, though, Fayt felt a tap on his shoulder. "Excuse me, but do you happen to be participating in the trials?"

"Ah…" He turned and came face to face with a pretty girl roughly his age, with a head of smooth, dark auburn hair which reached slightly beyond the collar of her outfit. The sternness on her features almost seemed to mirror that of Maria's. Though she was nowhere near a challenge in height with Fayt, she had a noticeable height advantage over Sophia and Maria.

What really stood out, however, was the fact that there were some cryptic rune tattoos on her arms as far as her gloves allowed others to see. Her outfit served to raise a few eyebrows as well. Black and plain, it would work best with stealthy tasks, though the dull gold lining told Fayt that they were slightly more than just for assignments. Stripes of black and gray lined her scarf, which shoe wounded around her neck. Her belt seemed to be made with the purpose of practicality, however, as the number of pockets indicated while her skirt and torso left little to imagination.

"Thanks, but how did you know we were a group?"

She looked at him strangely. "Aren't there two girls behind you? If you don't have a team to start with, then it's okay." With that, she made to walk off. Fayt panicked momentarily.

"Wait!" One could see a ghost of a smirk showing on her face as she turned slightly. "Please do join us."

"I thought you'd never ask…?"

"Fayt Leingod. The one on my left is Sophia Esteed and the other would be Maria Traydor."

She nodded with a slight smile. "I'm Nel Zelphyr. I don't believe I've seen you around, though."

"That's because-"

"Not you, her." Nel's gaze was upon Sophia. "You're not a 5th year student, are you?" She turned back to Fayt with annoyance upon her features. "What's going on?"

"Well, you see…"

"So that's where you guys were!" The tall blonde who had disappeared into the thick of the crowd came running towards them. "I thought I told you to stay in one place. Where have you been? And while I'm so hard at work, you found yourself a damned harem, Fayt!"

Hard work? More like chasing skirts… Fayt resisted a strong urge to roll his eyes and chose to ignore the last comment. "She's the last team member, Cliff."

"Yeah, yeah…I know. Nel Zelphyr: Runology genius and a deft user of long daggers…and most certainly a dangerous woman." He grinned widely. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my dear. Danger's my middle name. What say we get to know each other better over a little tea after this little test of our abilities?"

Fayt resisted a strong urge to roll his eyes. Some people never change. "Let's find a place to wait till they give the cue for us to get prepared." A horn sounded as if on cue, the sound low and imposing, traveling over the field and stopping all forms of conversation among the would-be participants. "…I guess we can scrap that last sentence."

"Let's go then." Nel swept past Cliff briskly, walking towards the large podium which had materialized in the centre of the field. A sixth year stepped up to the podium called for the participants to make their final preparations. The group followed, hot on the heels of their fourth new member.

As they formed a small wedge at the back of the crowd, Fayt glanced at Sophia, who pouted slightly but complied reluctantly, walking to the small entrance of the Field. He turned back to the centre of attention, but found his mind wandering away at what could possibly await him at the Classification.

No sooner had he done so did he feel a sharp pain in his side.

"Listen…It's the important part."

"What-" A small grunt of pain escaped from his lips as his ribs faced the wrath of Maria's elbow for the second time. She glared at him, and Fayt wisely decided to wise up and listen.

"…Seeing that there's a large number of participants this year, the academy has decided that the individual Classifications would carry on till tomorrow. Of course, depending on how far a participant has advanced, they would be classed accordingly into different groups. The group Classifications will commence tomorrow as well, and there will be half a day of classes tomorrow to accommodate this."

Excited whispers broke out amongst the young throng. Hardly anyone would stay silent at the fact that classes were shortened. The announcer simply waited until silence befell the crowd before she continued.

"…Each participant will be given a small booklet, stating the rules and regulations for each of the Classes. Please look through them whilst waiting for the first trials to start. Please listen attentively to whether your name is being called or not, since this is a random selection for the students. Good luck to all the participants." The female student bowed slightly and walked off the podium-which dematerialized seconds after her exit-briskly, leaving the young participants in a cloud of excited murmuring and noise.

"Do we really need to read these?" Fayt looked at the booklet that had been passed down, flipping through the pages, each of them entailing just a short amount of time to understand. "It's not like the participants won't know about the different classes."

"Sometimes you have people like him, Fayt." Maria pointed brusquely at Cliff, who was actually eagerly sifting through the pages like a toddler who had just received a new picture book. It was all Fayt could do to suppress his laughter. He recovered, though, and looked on as the throng slowly sifted, leaving only several groups standing where they were.

"So what do we do now? It seems that there's still time before the first trials begin…" Fayt felt slightly uncomfortable with the two whom he assumed to be of the 'strong and silent type'. Cliff's constant ogling and occasional reading of his precious booklet did nothing to ease his nerves. Truth to be told, despite his confidence in his abilities with the sword, the blue-haired youth still felt nervous. There was no telling how skilled the students here were compared to those in his previous institute.

"…Are you nervous?" The fact that she was actually trying to start a conversation startled him. Maria had already taken to the soft, carpet-like grass and was seated comfortably.

"N-no, not really…"

"Ah." She looked at his clenched fists and the trickle of sweat at his brow. "I believe you." The tone was a monotonous one with a sole purpose.

"You don't sound like you do."

"….." She turned away innocently, shifting her attention to the group closest to theirs. Fayt's cheeks darkened considerably and hastily turned away, drawing his sword in the process and making a few practice swings. Cliff, having noticed the little tête-à-tête between the two of them stopped whatever he was doing and sauntered over.

"What's so interesting about him?"

Maria spun and faced him. "What do you mean?" Cliff ignored her query, however.

"He's a videogame addict, a bumbling swordsman at best and an ignorant young fellow. The best things about him are probably his videogames and basketball skills. It's a wonder that you've talked to him more than any of those who tried to woo you in the past four years."

Maria simply looked at him and said, "…You're starting to sound more like an old man the more you sprout words from your mouth."

"Wha-"

"Even your habits mirror that of an old lecher. Ogling at females passing by, gambling your Fol away on some useless things…" She smirked. "Don't fall behind the youngsters, Gramps."

"Why you-" But even before she could let him finish, the bluenette turned with a swish of her head and walked off in the opposite direction as her name was called over the P.A system. He unclenched his fist and sighed resignedly. There was no way he could really win an argument against her, and he had not done so ever since meeting the enigmatic young woman.

"Damn it…I just hate it when I lose an argument." The Klausian began to do some shadow punching, his body a stature of restlessness. "Can't they be quick with those trials?"

"Move, worm." A voice, cold enough to bring a chill to Fayt sounded behind him, and he turned around to face a tall man with spiky jet black hair, with part of his hair tied back in two long and slim ponytails. He wore an all-black ensemble, coupled with an obsidian-colored feathered cloak. There were peculiar fair streaks (A/N: Not sure about the color.) on his silky tresses and most of all, he seemed to be exuding an encompassing aura of arrogance, power and enmity.

Fayt immediately took a step back, though the other two simply straightened and stepped forward to greet the newcomer.

"Well, if it isn't Nox." Cliff grinned, though there was nothing friendly about his smile or the sound of him cracking his knuckles as though he was preparing for a fight. Nel stayed silent, but her hand had moved unconsciously to the hilt of her blade.

The man smirked in return. "It seems that you're still alive, somehow. Which hole did you wriggle out from?" Then, as though he just noticed Fayt standing there a moment ago, he turned and looked at him. "And who's this? Is he another one of your countless wriggly friends?"

"Stop it, Albel. We can do the fighting on the trials stage, if you want. This isn't the time and place for getting into petty squabbles." Nel looked evenly at the man in the eye. If the redhead felt any fear at all, she hid it very well. There was no mistaking the meaning behind her cold attitude towards Albel. Undaunted, he simply shrugged and smirked at her.

"You want me to go worm hunting, Zelphyr? That wasn't really nice. After all, I've got better things to do than picking out bait for a new fishing rod. Beside Worm Fittir and you, I don't think there's anyone here strong enough to humor me." The P.A system sounded, saving the three of them from his scathing remarks and he swept past them with a lazy grin. "Later, worms."

"Sorry about that, Fayt." Cliff scratched his head. "He must have startled you there with that attitude. He's always been like this."

"…Who is he?" Fayt asked quietly. He had never felt such an oppressive aura from anyone human before…That is, assuming that this Albel Nox was human.

"You don't even know who he is?" Nel looked at him incredulously. She did not know whether to feel impressed that the male teenager was one of the few who came out of a face-to-face encounter with Albel the Wicked without shriveled guts and weak knees, or pound him over the head for being totally ignorant of the reputation of the black-clad SwordMaster.

"You can't blame him, Nel. He is, after all, new to these area and its histories." Cliff sighed and put his hands into his pockets. "Fayt, Albel Nox hails from Airyglyph. He's the youngest person to be put in charge of its fabled Dragon Riders' task force and the youngest person to be given the title of 'SwordMaster'." He snorted. "Of course, that doesn't justify him being a cold-blooded, sadistic bastard."

Nel gave him a look, but kept silent. No one dared to stand up to Albel Nox, and even the sternest teachers spoke to him with a tone of grudging respect. Most students shunned him, many feared him, but none could deny the fact that he had the skills as well as the confidence to earn their respect.

Fayt could only listen on in slight awe. This Albel Nox seemed to be only slightly older than him. Judging from what Cliff had told him, his skills with the blade would be unfathomable. There was that ominous atmosphere around him wherever he went, but Fayt felt somewhat excited that there was someone strong here. Perhaps he could put his skills to the test against him.

"Don't even think about it." Cliff's voice seared through his thoughts like a flaming arrow flying through thin walls of straw. "You're nowhere near his level…At least since the last time I saw you wield the sword."

"That was last time," he protested. Finding his voice sounding a little too excited, he calmed down. "I've improved, Cliff, even if it meant not being able to spar with people on the same level as I am."

"He's right." Nel cut in, folding her arms across her bosom. "Even though I've never seen you in action, Fayt, I know for one that there is practically no other in this school that can match him…Unless you're talking about Instructor Adray, of course."

Fayt did not bother to ask who Adray was and simply nodded with some reluctance. He might have been over in his head about fighting someone of the caliber. While it was only a first advancement, SwordMasters had experience, skill and instinct developed over years of strenuous training. No mere Swordsman could simply step up to challenge one and expect it to be a simple test of caliber or courage. As much as he was stuck in the world of video games, Fayt knew about some parts of history entailing unfortunate accidents from some duels.

"Attention…Fayt Leingod, No.S0087, please make your way to platform 4 for your first trial duel. I repeat…"

"That's your cue." Cliff grinned widely, a hundred-and-eighty degree reversal of his disposition a few moments ago. "Hurry up and get going. Weren't you all excited about this?"

"…All right. Good luck to the both of you-"

"Wait." Fayt stopped in his tracks and turned to face the female. "Let me see what is it that makes you confident enough to wish to challenge a SwordMaster." She gave him a genuine smile since meeting them for the first time. Granted, she still thought of him as a foolhardy Swordsman sapling who has yet to understand the reality of the differences between a SwordMaster and himself, but she was in their group, whether she liked it or not, and somehow the boy with peculiar cerulean locks interested her. Not in that romantic way, but somehow he seemed to exude a charisma even he did not know of, considering the way he spoke to Cliff Fittir and the other bluenette.

"Thank you, Miss Zelphyr."

"Nel will do. Let's go then."

The first opponent Fayt faced was at least one head taller than him. A daunting figure, the teenager had a mask void of emotion on his face. His meaty right hand rested easily on the pommel of his huge two-handed sword. Fayt felt daunted. How was he going to survive long against a muscle head that towered over him, and (presumably) had greater power than him and had a blade almost as wide as his own girth?

Looking around him, Fayt examined the platform he was standing on. It was a piece of evidence that the Infidenis Academy was ahead of its game in training facilities. The Sky Sentry platforms were used by the Army to patrol the skies ages ago, when wandering monsters were still a threat to the city's peace. Older versions like those were brought to various places and modified to suit the needs of the people who had done so. In this case, it seemed that they were used for dueling purposes.

The blue haired boy scratched his head as he walked up the platform where his opponent had been awaiting him. Considering that the rules indicating that falling off the platform meant losing, this might be harder than he thought. Nevertheless, he gave his opponent a small smile as a greeting and readied himself.

A screen popped up between them as they moved into their starting positions, about more than half a dozen feet between them. Fayt almost stepped back in surprise, but held his ground when he realized that was merely an indication of the countdown before they engaged each other in the duel. He stared intently at the screen…

3…

2…

1…

Fayt's feet propelled him forward as soon as the screen faded but to his astonishment, his opponent was moving almost, if not as fast as he was. His strategy to win by speed might be put on hold this time.

Planting on foot in front of him abruptly, Fayt stopped and swiveled, changing direction at the last moment as the flat of the huge weapon swept past him narrowly. A thrust and a horizontal slash followed. Apparently his opponent must have read his game well, allowing him no time to fight back.

The other reason, of course, might be that he was angered by the fact that Fayt had yet to draw his weapon.

The blue haired Swordsman sidestepped another vicious attempt to knock him flat. Now he was beginning to wonder why he had been so afraid of his opponent. Was it his impressive figure? Was it the big sword that looked as though it could cleave the very platform they were standing on in half? Perhaps all that he had been afraid of was how strong his opponent really was.

Satisfied that his opponent was not one with the ability to observe and break his defense down slowly, Fayt drew his sword. His opponent's eyes lit up, and Fayt knew immediately that the teenager facing him was probably a simpleton, bent on using brute strength and speed to win. Still, it had been a long time since he wielded his weapon against another…

The next attack came as fast as he could think, and his reflexes took over. Tilting his sword slightly, his opponents' blade practically slid off and his thrust went completely wide. Fayt followed up with an uppercut to the jaw and slammed into his opponent, putting some distance between them. The effort he required was huge, however, as he judged his opponent to be at least one and a half times heavier than he was.

"He's pretty good, for someone against that dreadnought…" Nel mused aloud as she watched the battle. "But with that level of skill…"

"He won't even be able to touch a strand of hair on Albel Nox." Cliff continued lazily, earning him a curious look from Nel. "What? Isn't it the truth, or did you want something from me?"

Nel wondered why she had to stand beside one of what she considered to be the greatest morons in the school. Cliff could never pass off as a bully, but his reputation might as well be within that category of people with his skirt-chasing and his pranks. Despite all that, Nel was slightly glad that the blonde would not be on an opposing team against her tomorrow. To underestimate any Klausian because of how he looked or behaved would be inviting Defeat to an afternoon tea session…One that the person might never get out of.

But what are you going to do now, Fayt Leingod? Your blows would only serve to agitate Gale Stredas. Attacks like that are nothing more than a few needles pricking into his skin. What are you going to do…?

By now, Fayt's nerves were no longer frayed. He was getting into the flow of the fight, and gradually his senses became more attuned to what was happening around him. He knew there was no chance in hell that two blows like that would bring down his big opponent. His opponent was a little more than a bundle of short fuses now, and though his swings were getting bigger and wider, there was more strength and speed put into each blow.

Thanks to that, though, Fayt's strategy fitted in perfectly.

Though the timings of his swings were erratic, they were easily predictable. Fayt waited, and dashed in at the first opening he saw. The blade whizzed over his head, taking a few strands of azure hair with it. Undaunted, Fayt brought his sword up in a diagonally upward stroke. The heavy blade returned to parry the blow, but it never came. Instead, he released his grip on his weapon slightly and whirred around his opponent's blind spot. With two steps, Fayt artfully swung his blade high and connected with something hard.

His opponent fell without as much a squeak, landing heavily on the platform floor, though not as much as a trickle of blood left his veins. Fayt smiled as the screen popped up once, showing the name of the victor. It still did take more than a normal blow on the back of his neck to knock him out, though. Fayt stepped off the platform amidst a few cheers and the sound of clapping.

"You made it look like you were in some trouble." Cliff greeted him with a wide grin, happy to know that Fayt had not given in to his nerves, like many others before who had faced Gale Stredas. His friend simply raised an eyebrow at him.

"I've been a little rusty with my skills." Fayt sheathed his weapon, which was rather close to the truth. He had to admit that he was a little carried away, fighting an easier opponent…

"Too many small movements."

"What?" Fayt turned around and instantly backed away as he looked at the expressionless Gunslinger in his group. "Ah…Y-You saw that?"

"The changing of direction took too much time. Had you been a second slower, he would probably have gutted you. A blow to the gullet with the flat of the sword or the pommel would have taken him out. The swing would've taken you into two had you made a slight mistake too, and you could've simply circled him immediately instead of making a meaningless feint…" She flicked the locks back from her cheeks and eyes and one could see a hint of an upward curve on her lips."…Show-off."

"But I wasn't…Maria!" His protests fell on deaf ears as he watch Maria turn away nonchalantly and walk off. There was no mistaking the meanings before Cliff's chortling as well as Nel's sigh. Fayt silently moaned his luck. Why did she, of all people, have to come and see?

"I empathize with you, Fayt!" Cliff slapped him on the back, earning him a small gasp of surprise from the latter. "She was rather selfish, eh? Considering the point that she had a small following of male students so far, it's just fair for you to earn your own fan club-"

"Cliff."

"Yes?"

"…Shut up."

Author's Note: Sorry…Couldn't come up with a more original name. It isn't the best of endings again, but I needed an additional chapter for this part. Sorry for the rushed feeling at the end. My ligament injury's been acting up again, and I've hardly had time to spend writing, especially if I'm serving what my country calls National Service (Damn it all… ). Anyway, do leave your reviews behind. I'll try to make more time and put more effort into this…That is, if those army men and the reality of the importance of money don't kill me first. Till then, dear readers!