AN: Sorry for the long wait and the long chapter. Not much action this time but the next chapters will make up for it. Besides, there's quite a big revelation in the end and well,...I hope you guys like it.
CHAPTER 07: First Impressions
The female Student-Knight clutched her sword as she spun on the spot, slowly and tensely in the middle of her deciduous surroundings. Sweat dripped down the side of her face as her eyes darted from side to side as she kept up her guard. But nothing could prepare her for the bolt that pierced her leg followed by another that hit her shoulder. She cried out in pain and stumbled forward and then swerved her head to locate her attacker but no matter how much she tried, she couldn't see him. She wasn't given the chance to recover as she was sniped again and again. This wasn't a match between two contenders, it was more like one player at a shooting gallery.
Ikki frowned and then rewound the footage displayed on his room's TV and replayed it.
"I'm back, Ikki" came a voice at the door.
He turned towards the door and smiled seeing who it is.
"Stella, congratulations. I saw the results."
Despite her ordeal yesterday, Stella managed to convince the Committee to schedule her match today as opposed to later. Her scheduled opponent was an upperclassmen named Takeshi Momotani who equips himself with a heavy armor-type Device, said to have blown countless opponents off the ring. Ikki guessed that she was too fired up wait any longer, she was really a go-getter and not someone who gets discouraged easily; it was another quality of hers he found attractive.
"Yeah well, it wasn't much of a win. My opponent threw the fight right at the beginning. I had so much pent up energy, I had to later burn it off at the gym." Stella sighed warily in disappointment.
Ikki couldn't help but chuckle, he didn't expect anything less from her.
"I'm only disappointed that I didn't get to see your match." he said.
Stella looked sideways, a blush forming on her cheeks, and muttered while twiddling her fingers.
"You and me both."
"Hmm?"
"Nu-Nothing!" she spluttered as her blush spread. "S-So, what are you watching?"
Looking towards the TV, she took notice of the footage of the poor girl student being bombarded by glowing bolts shot from various angles. She frowned at such a sickening display.
"Oh, this. You've been watching this all day, haven't you?"
"Yeah." Ikki nodded. "I want to see what his timing's like."
"That's Area Invisible, his Noble Art, right?"
Ikki nodded again.
"Uh huh. An illusionary camouflage that grants the user absolute stealth, a feature of his Device Oborosuki."
"Attacking his enemy from complete concealment. How slimy! I don't like the way he fights." she spat with disdain.
Ikki glanced towards her with a knowing smile.
"Neither do I but I also wouldn't be so quick to judge. Both the ways of Samurais and Ninjas have their merits."
"What do you mean?" asked Stella.
"Take Alice for instance, he claims he's at a disadvantage when it comes to direct combat but he makes up for it in speed and tactics."
Like Stella, Arisuin also elected to have his match scheduled today. His was held in the fifteenth training arena right after Stella's and had defeated a second year E-Rank opponent in record time. Shizuku was indeed proud to have him as a roommate.
"Even Batman could also be considered as another example." Ikki further explained.
"Yeah but Batman isn't a coward like this Kirihara guy." Stella scoffed.
The appearance of the Caped Crusader was quite the popular topic around the Academy. By now, everyone had already seen or heard about the police press conference on the news and were aware of his true name and the surprising fact that he was a Blazer. Shizuku could hardly believe it since she didn't sense any magic from him that evening and had assumed that he must've been very good concealing his magic like her.
Ikki particularly remembered when Stella was vocally outraged over the fact that the police were on the hunt for Batman when in her eyes he never did anything wrong.
"He, um..." Ikki glanced downwards with a small rueful smile. "...Seemed to have left quite the impression on you."
Stella blinked.
"What? No! You got the wrong idea!" she frantically waved her hands in denial as her cheeks slightly tinged and then scratched her hair sheepishly. "I just think he's kinda cool, that's all."
"I see."
She then leaned down with a grin and playfully poked at his cheeks.
"Why? Are you jealous?" she asked teasingly.
"Erm, N-no! nothing like that."
Ikki cleared his throat and tried to return to the original topic at hand, hoping she wouldn't notice his own tinged face.
"In any case, Kirihara's methods are certainly effective. He didn't take a scratch in his fights last year."
"I don't get it. If he was Hagun's representative and didn't make to the finals then he must have lost, right?"
"In the second round. But that's only because he didn't show up."
"Huh?"
"Kirihara avoids opponents who can deal wide-range attacks. His Area Invisible is ineffective against those. To be honest, he was lucky to be selected. There was someone else in the running who would've easy defeated him but that someone left Hagun for some reason."
Ikki then turned to Stella with a confident smirk.
"And frankly speaking: If it were you fighting him, you'd easily win."
She returned the smile but then her expression turned somber.
"But he's gonna be a tough one for you."
Ikki nodded as his brow furrowed. Although his skills with the sword were beyond excellent, his fighting style centered around short range melee combat, not accustomed to long range attacks and his magic lacked any capability of wide-range attacks. And then there was his Noble Art, his one trump card, Ittou Shura. This ability taps into all his mana reserves and boosts his physical capabilities beyond his limits, granting him the power to overcome the toughest opponents. But it has one fatal flaw: it can only be used once a day and lasts only for a minute due to the amount of strain it puts on his body. All Kirihara would need to do is hide and maintain distance. It would be useless against him.
"That's right. He's the worst possible match up for me. But don't worry, I think know a way to beat him."
The boy's eyes narrowed in determination.
"I will win." he stated.
But Stella could hear that there was something wrong with the way he sounded. There was no trace of the confidence or the cool-headness that she had previously heard in his voice. It was sounded so dull and unsure. Nagi had even confided to her after in his match that he felt something was bothering Ikki and she was starting to believe him and worry.
"Are you alright, Ikki?" she asked.
Ikki let out a breath, turned the TV off and stood.
"I'm fine. I'll be back in a minute, I'm just going to go get some air."
He walked toward the front door and then paused while looking back at her.
"Oh, by the way: Alice dropped by earlier with a package for you. Said that he already messaged you about it."
"What?" Stella asked with a blink and fished her phone out. "How come I didn't notice?"
"Anyway, he left it on your bed. So you can check it out in the meantime."
And with that he left. Stella now found herself alone in the room with her brows knit in worry. She wondered what was on Ikki's mind and what he wasn't telling her.
She sighed. It was almost a week since they first met, when he walked in on her. It was funny that an event she made an uproar over was now looked back on so fondly. She wasn't really his girlfriend or lover; she was technically just his "servant" due to her losing to him in their mock battle but there seemed to be unspoken feelings and an attraction between them. She wished the two of them would take the next step but despite the connection they shared, neither of them have been able to progress in their relationship.
One of the reasons was obvious to her: she was a princess. If the media found out about that she was in a relationship with an F-rank foreigner, it would create a huge scandal.
She banished her thoughts when she realized that she had her phone screen on without reading Alice's message yet. After a few taps, she brought it to her screen:
Just wanted to let you know that although I love Shizuku like a sister, I'm totally rooting for you! So I'm bringing a little something to your room to help you cheer Ikki up. Good luck! ~ love, Alice.
It was that followed by a string of winking and kissy kaomojis. Stella nervously sweated reading the text, she really liked the feminine boy but the role he had taken as her 'encouraging gal-pal' was going take a while for her to get accustomed to.
"Something to cheer Ikki up? What did he mean?" she wondered.
Like Ikki said, there was brown package left on the bottom bunk and so she approached and tentatively ripped it open. What she saw made her quickly close the package and her face flush deep red with wide eyes.
"My-my goodness! Alice, what were you thinking!?" she gasped.
Inside was what she could only describe as the laciest, sexiest lingerie set she has ever seen. It became pretty obvious what Alice meant by "cheering Ikki up" and she couldn't believe what the feminine boy was implying.
Even though there was no one in the room, she quickly glanced around in paranoia and then slowly reopened the package. The color of her face matched her hair as sweat dripped down the side of it, yet her lips curled upwards into a shaky smile.
Ikki did say he would be back shortly...and it's not like she'd be showing anything he hadn't already seen before.
She could already hear the voices of her father, mother and sister, as if their spirits materialized behind her with outraged expressions. "Don't even think about it!" they would scold and lecture about how this was unbecoming of a princess. But in her mind, a naughty devil cackled evilly and planned a little surprise for Ikki Kurogane.
Bruce was told by Yuuri that Shinguuji would be along shortly but he soon found his own restlessness getting the better of him and decided to leave the room and go look for her himself. Fortunately, he didn't need to look for long.
"Ah, There you are." Kurono called out.
Bruce turned towards the voice and saw her approach him with a few items in hand.
"Well, you're all set. Here's your Student-Knight ID and an Academy issued smart phone."
Bruce took the aforementioned items from her and first examined the smart phone. It didn't look cheap and was definitely state-of-the-art, he'd never heard of schools freely handing out high end phones like these to students but apparently that's what Hagun did. A thought occurred to him that he could later root it and interface it with the software in his suit, potentially aiding him in his investigation while keeping his cover. Kurono may have told him to lay low but he wasn't ready to make any promises.
As for the ID, it was pretty straightforward. It displayed his photo, information and his Rank, under which was hexagon shaped radar chart that showed his current stats.
"I went ahead and created an email account for you, so keep an eye on it for any notifications related to school work. Don't loose either of them, they're your lifeblood here and also..."
Kurono trailed off when she noticed Bruce scowling intensely at his ID card, she had to stifle a laugh because of how comical he looked.
"Something wrong?" she asked.
With a glare, he flipped his card towards her and pointed to a certain section.
"It says here I'm age seventeen."
"So?"
Bruce walked up to her and got in her face.
"Do I look like a seventeen year old to you!?" he growled.
She stayed silent for a moment with an impassive expression before responding.
"You're big for your age."
"This isn't funny, Shinguuji!" Bruce exclaimed.
"And I'm not trying to be. I just didn't want the other kids to treat you any differently. It'll give you a chance to get along and befriend your fellow students"
With fists to her hips, she sighed in exasperation and looked him over in disbelief.
"Honestly, I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this. I'd love the chance to relive my youth and school days."
"Don't lump me in with you! I'm just here to get a license, not socialize."
"Well deal with it! Social interaction is good for a Blazer's development." She asserted and then pulled out a room key from her pocket. "Now if you're done, I have your dorm key here but first there's something you-"
To her surprise, he flicked the key off her in a rather abrupt and curt manner.
"I'm not a child. I can check into a room on my own." he stated brusquely and walked off without another word, leaving Kurono with wide eyes that followed after him.
After collecting the large suitcase that Shinguuji provided him, Bruce made his way outside and towards the dorm building which wasn't hard to find.
Luckily for him, the dormitory guard allowed him in the building when he gave him his name. It seemed that Shinguuji had informed them about his arrival well in advance.
A tiny voice of guilt began to prick at him, questioning if he had been too harsh with her but his pride and emotional coldness would have none of it. In fact, he was still fuming even by the time he ascended the staircase.
It was bad enough that he felt so awkward being a school student but now he had to pretend to be a teenager? He may be young, college young, but he didn't look THAT young. Nor does he know anything about being a teenager. Sure, he was aware of plenty of cases where detectives from the GCPD had gone undercover in public schools as teens but he doubted that he was capable of fitting in.
That tiny voice of reason began to question if he was just overreacting. "Who said anything about fitting in?" it asked. All he had to do keep to himself, learn whatever he needed to and leave as soon as he acquired his license. He was sure there was no need to interact with any of the students like Shinguuji expected him to.
It was at that moment when he was just turning at the corner that something bumped into him. The impact made him only stagger back slightly but it caused him to drop his key and suitcase. The "something" on the other hand, had been knocked down on his bottom with an uttered "oof". Bruce recovered from his stagger, approached and leaned towards the fallen boy.
"Hey, you alright?" he asked.
Ikki rubbed his head with closed eyes, a little disoriented from the fall and a bit embarrassed. Whoever he bumped into had a much heavier frame than him and he was ill-prepared to stop himself from loosing his balance.
"Yeah, I'm-"
Ikki paused when he saw the person in front of him. He immediately recognized him.
"That guy from the food court?"
Bruce offered an outstretched hand which the boy took and helped him off the floor.
"I didn't mean to knock you down like that, you should be more careful." Bruce said.
The boy scratched his unstylish dark hair sheepishly.
"Sorry. I guess I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."
That was when Ikki noticed Bruce's attire, the unmistakable white and black uniform like his own.
"You're a student." he observed.
Ikki honestly couldn't believe it at first, Bruce was pretty tall; about six feet two with broad shoulders. While there were students in Hagun with broad muscular frames, this one had more angular features and an "air of maturity" he didn't see with the others. He looked like an upperclassman but Ikki was sure he's never seen him before.
"Is this your first year?" Ikki asked. "I don't recall seeing you at the assembly."
Bruce kept his cool, he remembered his cover story that Kurono discussed with him but figured that giving too many details would appear suspicious. Best to give as little information as possible.
"Yes and no. I'm actually a transfer student but this will be my first year here in Hagun."
"You're from abroad?"
He nodded.
"Pretty much. What about you? This your first year too?" Bruce asked in an attempt keep the conversation from being one-sided.
Ikki chuckled, it was good natured with a hint of nervousness.
"I'd have to say 'Yes and no' myself. I'm repeating."
"I see." Bruce uttered plainly.
There was a brief moment of silence. In fact, Bruce wasn't sure what he could say to that. "Better luck this year"? That didn't sound right. It was strange, In the adult world with stuffy corporates and glitterati he had no problem maintaining a conversation. But apparently not here, with his 'fellow teen student'. Then again, it's not like he was looking for idle chit chat anyway and figured now was a good time as any to end it.
"Anyway, I was..." Bruce gestured towards the external corridor and dorm doors. "Just on my way to my room."
"You need any help?" Ikki offered.
"No, that's okay. I really should go get settled in, so..."
Bruce trailed off hoping that the young boy would get the message. Luckily, Ikki did.
"Oh. Well, don't mind me then."
Ikki then bent and picked up his own dorm key, which apparently he dropped, before walking towards the staircase.
"See you around." he turned and waved with a friendly smile before leaving.
After waiting for the sound of the boy's footsteps to completely fade, Bruce picked up his suitcase and key. At that point he realized that in his rush, he didn't bother to check his dorm number.
"Number 405..." he read when he flipped the key tag.
After two flights of stairs, Bruce found the door at the end of the corridor and during his approach, he remarked to himself that the dorms seem to resemble residential apartments more than something a regular school would normally provide. It made him wonder how much funding does Hagun actually get.
"Hmm, that's odd. There are two name plaques here."
Bruce noticed when he stopped in front of the door but immediately brushed it off assuming that the staff probably neglected to remove them. In his heated haste, he didn't bother to read the name plaques as he inserted and turned the room key; it was something he would later regret.
"Oh. Welcome back, Ikki." Stella said softly with a blush gracing her cheeks and her fingers interlocked in bashfulness. "I didn't expect you'd be back so soo-"
Her voice instantly froze as she turned towards the door and her body followed suit after flinching. Her expression was aghast and her whole face turned an even deeper shade of red. All she was wearing was a two piece lingerie; pink and black, lacey with a few frills, ribbons and cut-out points to show as much flesh and cleavage as possible yet hide all the 'private bits'. Obviously designed to entice the opposite sex.
Bruce in turn, found himself still as a statue with wide eyes and his lips pressed into a thin line as the door remained held open.
"It's that princess again!" his mind ran in frantic confusion. "What is she doing here!? What on earth is she wearing!? And now that I'm noticing, Why is her bust so big!? Seriously, what kind of protein are these kids taking to make themselves look so-"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
Kurono Shinguuji leaned back on her armchair with her head casually resting against her fist that was propped up by the armrest. She knew she should be furious but honestly, she was trying her best not to laugh at the scene before her and managed to hold it back with a smug smile.
In front of her was Bruce who had his arms crossed and his eyes appeared to be closed with patience, but it was obviously forced patience. She could hear his aggravated growling suppressed in his throat and see his his brows knit, as well as the distinctive palm print on his cheek. And standing next to him fuming, was a certain red headed princess. Needless to say, both of them were looking irate.
"Well, well." Kurono drawled in an amused way. "I just leave you for just five minutes and already I find you here in my office, Wayne."
"Director, This is unacceptable!" Stella complained.
Bruce finally opened his eyes, they were sharpened into a glare and his expression hardened.
"I concur, Shinguuji. I've agreed to your ridiculous arrangements and have jumped through every hoop put before me..."
Stella spun towards Bruce, appalled that a student would speak to a person of authority in such a fashion.
"Hey! That's the director you're speaking to! Show some respect!" she exclaimed.
Bruce ignored her and continued to talk while sliding his room key across Kurono's desk.
"...but THIS is where I draw the line! I don't know what kind of game you're playing..."
"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Stella tried to interject but Bruce once again ignored her.
"...but I'm not interested in being shacked up with some horny teenager!"
Stella reeled back with wide eyes, unable to believe his audacity.
"Horny tee..." she repeated him and trailed off in disbelief before exploding with outrage.
"JUST WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, YOU SELF-RIGHTEOUS PRICK!? YOU'RE THE ONE WHO BARGED IN STARING AT ME LIKE SOME PERV!"
Bruce only acknowledged her with an annoyed sideways glance.
"I told you already, I just wanted to check into my dorm. And girls your age shouldn't be cavorting around wearing undergarments like that anyway." he stated tersely.
Stella seethed on the spot. The nerve of this guy! 'Girls her age'? 'Cavorting'? To her, he was acting like some condescending stuck up fuddy-duddy. As she about fire back at him, Kurono's office door creaked open and someone stepped in and caught the attention of the three people in the room.
"I'm sorry to bother you, Director. I..."
Ikki trailed off and stiffened in his tracks when he saw both Stella and that transfer student he met a couple of minutes ago standing in front of Shinguuji's desk. He looked back and forth between them in confusion, wondering why both of them were here.
"Stella? What's going on?" he asked warily.
Stella quickly spun towards Ikki while giving Bruce an accusing point of her finger.
"Ikki! Thank goodness you're here! This pervert just walked in on me while I was indecent!"
"For the last time, I was just looking for my dorm." Bruce growled through grit teeth, his patience beginning to thin.
Ikki balked, not just at the situation but also because the whole scenario was almost a repeat of when he first met Stella and he couldn't believe that it happened again.
"Wh-Wha!? Again!?" he blurted without thinking.
And unfortunately, Bruce took it the wrong way.
"Again?" Bruce repeated in disbelief before swerving toward Stella. "Is this some kind of regular thing for you!?"
"Of course not, you jerk!" she fired back. "And the only one in this room acting like a total sicko is you!"
"Enough! Both of you!" Kurono asserted with authority, grabbing the attention of all three Student-Knights. She may have a playful attitude but even she had her limits.
With a strict look, she then held out the key that Bruce slid towards her.
"Mister Wayne, I should be the one asking you about playing games because I know for a fact that this ISN'T the key I gave you."
"Stop fooling around, if it isn't then how do you explain-"
"AH!"
Bruce and Stella turned towards Ikki, hearing his exclamation. The boy's jaw was dropped and his eyes widened as if everything in his mind clicked into place and he just realized something awful.
"I...I'm so sorry!" he said suddenly and bowed.
"Whu? What you apologizing for!?" Stella asked in surprise.
Ikki looked towards Bruce as he spoke, his face flustered with guilt.
"W-when we met at the dorm building...I...I must've grabbed the wrong key!"
Bruce blinked and swiveled both his head and a pointed finger between Kurono and Ikki in disbelief.
"You mean this is...? And you actually...?"
A wave of embarrassment hit both males. In the case of Ikki, it was because he had inadvertently caused such an incident; he had been so unfocused because of his upcoming match with Kirihara that he had been constantly making little mistakes and was feeling ashamed that it led to this. As for Bruce, he was mentally berating himself.
"How could I not notice something so obvious!? I'm supposed to be a detective for god's sake!"
With a sly gaze directed at Bruce, Kurono lounged back on her chair with smug satisfaction as she chuckled.
"Fufufu. It seems what we have here is a simple misunderstanding. Of course you would know that if you didn't storm off and jump to conclusions like a moody SEVENTEEN YEAR OLD."
She emphasized that last part in a condescending manner that didn't go unnoticed by Bruce and he clenched his jaw and choked in response. She was obviously enjoying his predicament and it seemed that this was her way of getting back at him for his earlier behavior. He didn't appreciate being put down but as much as he didn't want to, a small part inside him admits that he probably deserved it.
"Now then...'young man'..." she continued in a patronizing tone. "I believe you owe the Princess an apology."
With a reluctant breath released, Bruce turned fully towards the young red haired girl and gave light bow.
"Forgive me, Your Highness. I didn't mean to cause you distress."
Stella crossed her arms and regarded him with a hostile snooty expression. Despite his words, she felt that he wasn't being genuine and didn't want to let him off the hook.
"I'll think about it...after you grovel and cut off your own-"
"Miss Vermilion...!" Kurono warned.
Stella huffed and turned from him while shooting him a sideways glare.
"Apology accepted. Whatever." she mumbled begrudgingly.
Kurono smirked in approval.
"Now that's that out of way, let me introduce you all. Kurogane, Miss Vermilion, this is our newest student Bruce Wayne. He's a bit of a late arrival so help him get up to speed."
Bruce took a thoughtful look at Ikki. The name Kurogane stuck out to him, it was the same name as the LMN Japan Branch Chief: Itsuki Kurogane. Now that he noticed, there was very strong resemblance between the two, could there be a familial relation? He made a mental note to keep an eye out for him just in case.
"Wayne, that's Ikki Kurogane and I'm sure you're already, erm, familiar with Princess Stella Vermilion." she said so as she gestured towards the two other students in order.
Stella only scowled and stuck her tongue out at him in scorn, making him roll his eyes at the childish display. Kurono then directly addressed Ikki.
"Kurogane, since you've been here the longest between the three of you, I'd like you show Mister Wayne around the academy."
Ikki smiled and nodded.
"Of course, Director. Right this way, Wayne-san." he gestured towards the door, indicating Bruce to follow him.
Without a word, Bruce walked towards him, trailed behind by Stella who continued to sulk. But just before the three of them exited the office, Kurono called out.
"One more thing, Kurogane. I've just received word from the Selection Battle committee, your match is scheduled for the day after tomorrow."
"Oh." Ikki responded, his voice was lacking his usual energy and emotion. "Thank you, Director. I'll prepare myself till then."
Stella again noticed the unusual shift in his personality and she looked on helplessly in worry but in the next moment, it seemed that Ikki returned to normal and left her little reason to question him about it.
After the three Student-Knights were alone in the hallway, Ikki addressed Bruce again.
"Again, I'm really sorry about the whole thing, Wayne-san. I hope this doesn't leave you with a bad impression."
Bruce sported a weary expression but he was eager to put the event behind him and move on.
"Forget it, what's done is done. She said you were going to give a tour?"
"That's right. But I'll warn you, the academy is pretty huge so it might be exhausting to cover every ground. But if there's anything in particular you'd like to know about, please let me know."
After nodding in affirmative, Bruce began to walk side by side with Ikki while Stella followed behind, still fuming in silence. Bruce could feel the stabs from the daggers she shot from her eyes and he wished that the red haired girl would just get over it. This train of thought made him curious about something.
"By the way Kurogane," he prepared to ask in a low voice after clearing his throat. "Correct me if I'm wrong but you and Princess Vermilion are roomates, right?"
"Yeah."
Bruce knew that the Academy was co-ed but the idea of a boy and girl sharing a room together was so unusual to him. And judging from his encounter with Stella, he figured that whatever was going on between them seemed far from platonic. Did he really want to know?
"And just so we're clear, you're male. A STRAIGHT male?"
Ikki looked at Bruce weirdly.
"Errm, yes? Last I checked?"
"And the Director is...alright with your um,...accommodation?"
"It was her idea."
"You know what? Forget I asked."
Bruce finished the conversation abruptly, it was enough for him to decide that he didn't want know any further. One thing that seemed apparent to him was that Shinguuji certainly had an unorthodox way of running things around here. As they continued to walk, Ikki patted his sides awkwardly before asking his own question.
"So...are you really seventeen?"
"I'm big for my age." Bruce muttered sardonically.
Bruce found that Ikki was right about what he said, Hagun Academy was pretty huge. There were more than one school building, an auditorium, gyms and a track field for physical training and there was a cafeteria as well as a mini-mart to allow students to either buy or cook their own meal.
Throughout, Bruce asked small simple questions about the facilities and Ikki answered the best he could. Bruce admitted to himself that academy was well designed and aesthetically pleasing with its fountains and greenery. It inspired him enough to consider, once he got back to his own world, commissioning a project to build a similar academy. Gotham needed more educational facilities, especially for less privileged children.
One thing that Ikki and Stella noticed was there were times during the tour when Bruce would stray away from both of them and intensely look around their surroundings, seemingly lost in thought.
What they didn't know was that he was studying the placement of the security cameras and potential exit routes in the event when he'd need slip out undetected.
"Not much tall structures to use as grappling points aside from the trees and a few lampposts." he mulled to himself.
"But there's a nearby rail bridge that's connected to the rest of the city. It's unfortunate that I don't have the Batmobile but I could use the boost feature of my Grapnel gun to get around quickly."
The two other Mage-Knights in training watched him from a distance, Stella in particular with an annoyed expression.
"There he goes brooding again. Seriously, what's this guy's deal!?" she ranted.
"Maybe it's a hobby of his." Ikki said with a shrug.
Stella balked and turned towards Ikki while gesturing at Bruce.
"What kind of a hobby is that supposed to be!?"
Ikki took one look at Bruce and could see see the transfer student casting a critical eye at not only the building in front of him but also the road around them. Honestly, Ikki had no idea what he could say about that and blurted the first thing that came to his mind.
"Land Inspection?"
Stella shook her head.
"Why are you sympathizing with him after what he did, Ikki?"
She then pouted with a slight blush while twiddling her index fingers as she spoke in a small voice.
"I mean...I thought you would...defend my honor or something."
The F-rank Blazer sighed. He would've, by the heavens he would've had someone violated her space with malicious intent. But to him, Bruce didn't seem to mean any ill intentions. It looked more like he was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.
"I know how you feel, Stella. But it wasn't entirely his fault and he's new here, the least we could do is try to be welcoming."
Stella sniffed with indignation and turned back towards Bruce with narrowed eyes.
"Well, I don't like his attitude! I mean, look at him. He's so serious and scowly, doesn't he ever smile?"
"Onii-sama!"
Before the boy could say anything, a sweet voice rang out that caught both their attentions and Ikki then suddenly felt a light impact on his side and a pair of arms wrap around his waist. Looking down, he found that it was Shizuku who had bounded from an approaching Nagi when she saw him.
"Shi-Shizuku!?" he gasped.
"Onii-sama, My debut match is scheduled for tomorrow. You'll come and watch me, right?"
"Err..."
Shizuku didn't give him the chance to finish and clutched his hand like a security blanket. Her jade eyes shimmered with dramatic emotion as she mewled like a spoilt kitten.
"It's my first match and I need all the moral support I can get. With my precious Onii-sama there cheering me on...it would mean the world to me."
"I-"
Stella at this point interjected cooly with a matter-of-fact, complacent tone.
"Ikki has no time to see your match, he'll be too busy preparing for his own."
Shizuku switched her gaze away from her brother and towards her rival as her face contorted as if a fly buzzed in her ear."
"Oh, you." she said with clenched annoyance. "Well what do you know? You're just his lowly servant. Of course he'll come. The love and bond between brother and sister is something too great and pure for a loudmouth cave woman like you to comprehend. Let me show you."
As Shizuku spoke with devilish grin, she trailed her fingers down his shirt before unexpectedly sliding them underneath it and started sensually caressing his bare torso.
"ACK! S-Sh-Shizuku, What are you doing!? We're in public!" Ikki exclaimed as his body went rigid.
But she wasn't done. Pushing both her arms under his shirt, she used her soft fingers to tickle him at his ribs and around his belly button. The effects were felt immediately as his nerves turned wavy and tiny spasms radiated all over him, causing him to break down laughing. The Worst One was unfortunately at his sister's mercy.
"YOU LITTLE PARASITE! GET OFF HIM!" yelled an enraged Stella.
But Shizuku continued her actions while smiling like an imp.
"What's wrong? This is perfectly normal skinship between siblings who love each other. Onii-sama and I used to always tickle eachother as children." she said with evil innocence.
"B-but tha-haha-that was diff-hahaha!" Ikki sputtered before succumbing again to the tickling.
Stella spun towards Nagi who had already joined them by then and was observing with an amused smile.
"Alice! Talk some sense into her!"
"Sorry dear but I'm afraid once Shizuku starts something, there's little that could be done to stop her." Nagi chuckled with a shrug.
Knowing that there was no way out, Ikki gasped out his surrender.
"Hahaha! Okay! Okay! I'll come watch! Just sto-hahaha!"
This made Shizuku finally cease and hugged her brother tightly.
"I knew you wouldn't say no." she chirped happily.
Poor Ikki sweated out of embarrassment but he felt a little glad that at least he made his sister happy. Stella on the other hand was far from happy.
"It's not fair!" she internally cried. "Ikki never came to my match, why is he being so partial towards Shizuku!?"
Meanwhile Bruce stood a short distance away, observing them with an astonished expression and his jaw slightly agape. He looked like he had been scandalized on the spot. "Is this how teenagers normally behave?" he wondered. And that Shizuku girl, the one who apparently was Kurogane's sister, her behavior obviously wasn't something he'd call "sibling love".
Bruce isn't a type of person who would condone incest but on the other hand, he also felt that it was their lives and frankly none of his business.
When Shizuku opened her eyes and noticed the unrecognizable person in student uniform, she slowly loosened her grip with a curious look.
"Hmm? Who is this?"
Startled and embarrassed, Ikki immediately pulled away and turned towards Bruce.
"Ah! I'm sorry Wayne-san! I forgot about you for a moment!"
"How do you forget someone who's standing nearby?" Bruce thought with annoyance.
Ikki cleared his throat and attempted to make introductions with a gesture of his hand.
"Guys, this is Bruce Wayne. He's a new transfer student here. Wayne-san, this is my sister Shizuku and..."
He trailed off when without warning, Nagi strolled right up to Bruce with a wide smile of intrigue. This in turn made the older male take a step back in a wary manner, not liking his personal space suddenly intruded upon.
"You look awfully familiar. Have we met before?" Nagi asked, looking Bruce over with a finger against his chin.
"I doubt it." Bruce stated guardedly.
The tall lavender haired boy made a sound between a chuckle and a hum.
"I wouldn't. Such a handsome face like that would be hard to forget. But anyway, I'm Nagi Arisuin but you can call me Alice."
"If you say so."
"How cute! He's so reserved!" Nagi squeed with gleaming eyes. "There's no need to be shy, Brucie. Mind if I call you Brucie?"
"Yes."
"Brucie it is then!"
"I mean 'Yes, I mind'!"
"Oops, too late! Once I have a pet name associated with someone, it's hard for me to stop. One of my lovable quirks." the tall boy tittered innocently.
Bruce narrowed his eyes in suspicion. There was something about this boy that he found unsettling and it had nothing to do with his behavior. He didn't really know what it was aside from a strange vibe but he decided to keep an eye out for him as well.
He wasn't the only one with suspicious eyes. Stella noticed that Shizuku now seemed to be hiding behind Ikki, clutching on to his sleeves and peeking out tensely like a nervous child. This sudden shift from her usual prim attitude was a little surprising for her.
"Hey Ikki, what's going on with Shizuku?" she asked.
Ikki couldn't resist the urge to chuckle. Seeing his cute little sister like that made him nostalgic of the time when they were young.
"Actually, Shizuku's always been shy like this as a kid."
"I'm not shy!" Shizuku protested and then spoke in a small voice. "I just don't like strangers, that's all."
While it was a different side of Shizuku from what Stella usually sees, the younger Kurogane still held on to Ikki like he was her favorite toy. This made Stella dismiss the subject and address her with a frown and fists at her hips.
"Well anyway, I think you've clung on him long enou-"
"FINALLY! I FOUND YOU!"
The loud voice came right beside Stella which startled her to the point of stumbling a foot away and almost trip. The source of the voice was a certain bespectacled peach-blonde girl, the same girl who was secretly observing Bruce's mock battle. Stella recognized her immediately.
"Ahh! Kagami!? Where did you come from!?"
Kagami didn't respond. Her gaze, obscured by the specular lenses, was fixed on one particular person among the group and swung a dramatic point of her finger towards him.
"YOU THERE!"
Bruce looked perplexed at the young girl pointing towards him, wondering who is this person what kind of ridiculous hijinks was being thrown at him this time. Nagi quickly moved out of the way when he saw the young girl charge towards them, dust kicking out like she was a one-girl-stampede. Bruce put his guard and his arm up in case he needed to defend himself but to his surprise, she grabbed his hand and shook it vigorously like she was using his arm as a whip.
"It's honor to finally meet you, Wayne-senpai! The way you won that bout against Saikyou-sensei was amazing! I've never seen anything like it!" Kagami gushed excitedly.
"Senpai?"
Bruce didn't have a chance to think of it further because Kagami's words immediately caught Ikki's attention, making the boy approach them with astonished eyes.
"Did I hear right? You defeated Nene Saikyou? The Yaksha Princess?"
The thought of it intrigued as well as excited Ikki. He enjoyed facing strong opponents and pushing his skills to its limits, a person who defeated Saikyou was surely a strong fighter. But Bruce was quick to downplay his match, not liking the attention.
"She's exaggerating. It was a handicap match and I just got lucky." Bruce said before yanking his hand from Kagami and turning his attention towards her.
"Who are you and how do know about me?" he asked with suspicion.
"Oh excuse me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Kagami Kusakabe, I'm with the school's Newspaper Club."
Kagami continued to speak while wagging a finger in a know-it-all manner.
"And yes, I know all about your mock battle. Just like I know that you're seventeen years old, Rank-D and that you had a little incident with Stella-chan. How scandalous! I can see the headlines already..."
She emphasize the imaginary headline by wiping the air with her open palm.
"Temptress Princess strikes again! Could she be aiming for a reverse harem!?"
The short girl's impromptu title at first made Stella recoil before provoking her enough to march towards them in agitation.
"What's with that headline!? And I'm NOT aiming for anything!" the fiery princess barked.
Kagami raised her palms up in surrender while chuckling nervously.
"Ehehehe...Easy, Stella-chan. A little click-bait never hurt anyone."
"I'm pretty sure the term 'click-bait' doesn't apply to wall newspapers." Ikki muttered.
Bruce internally breathed a sigh of relief, it seemed that the girl didn't know all that much about him after all. Still, he affirmed himself to act natural while pretending to remain ignorant.
"So basically you've been spying on us this whole time?" Bruce asked in an accusing tone.
"I call it 'covert investigative observation'. But yeah, basically." she replied.
Nagi spoke up at this point, daintily placing his fingers against his mouth in a cheeky fashion.
"Still, such sleuthing means you must've heard all kinds of things about everyone here. I'd love to swap stories with you! Mind if I call you Kagamin?"
"Suuuure!" Kagami responded with an evil grin as she joined Nagi.
Both Ikki and Stella sweated at the sight of the two 'girls' joining hands and snickering sinisterly as a dark aura surrounded them.
"I was afraid of what would happen if the two of them met." said Ikki nervously.
"Listen..." Bruce began to speak which grabbed everyone's attention.
"As much as it's been nice meeting you all, it's about time I get my things unpacked. Perhaps we can talk some other time."
And with that, he turned to leave but he only made it a few steps before he felt his arm held back and something soft, or rather two soft things, press against it with a titillating squish. He froze on the spot and looked back to see that Kagami had seized his arm tightly against her chest to the point where it was sandwiched between her sizable breasts.
"Don't go!" she said. "I made it my job to know everything about every student in the academy but I don't know much about you! You're an enigma waiting to be solved. I was hoping you and I could sit down for an interview."
Kagami pressed herself even further while swaying her butt in a coy manner, the fleshy trap his arm was caught in squished and made jelly-like sounds.
"Please Senpai, won't you oblige a cute budding young journalist?" she cooed.
The words "cute" and "budding" echoed in his mind and it frantically calculated and laid the facts before him: He's a twenty three year old adult and she's a minor! Immediately, alarm bells starting ringing in his moral center and he could almost imagine a disappointed Jim Gordon next to him with a pair of handcuffs.
"Y-your chest is...! Let go of me!"
Bruce tried to desperately to shake her off but she adamantly held on with a vice grip. The remaining four teens looked on with awkward expressions.
"Is this her tactic for every person she wants to interview?" Ikki thought, remembering the time when she did the same thing to him.
"Please, please! Just a few questions, Wayne-senpai!" Kagami continued to plead unapologetically. "Tell me about yourself and where are you from. I'm sure there's an interesting story about why you're such a late arrival."
The older man gritted his teeth tried to pull himself out of her grip but she wasn't letting go and her proximity was making him more and more uncomfortable until finally he had enough and relented.
"Five questions. I'll answer five questions and that's it! Now get off!" he demanded.
The bespectacled girl at last released him and then pumped her fist in victory before readying her pen and notepad in anticipation. Her persistence made Bruce shake his head in annoyance but he felt that he should've expected his schoolmates to be curious and figured that he should just give them the most basic information he can think of.
"To answer your first question, there's not much to tell. I'm a transfer student from the U.S and the only reason I arrived so late is because of complications with my documents."
Bruce paused when he noticed that the five teens looked at him with surprise and a little apprehension. He had a good idea what the reason was.
"I...understand that there might be some political tensions between our countries. I hope that won't be a problem." he said carefully.
Kagami tapped her pen against her chin for a few seconds before speaking.
"I wouldn't say it's a problem. This is a time of peace after all."
Nagi smiled at her response.
"Well said, Kagamin! We're not politicians, just citizens of the world who want to live in harmony. It shouldn't matter where Brucie comes from."
"That's fine but why come here?"
Everyone turned to the person who asked this, who surprisingly was Stella. The red-haired girl had her arms crossed and looked towards Bruce with scrutiny.
"I'm a princess but I'll admit, I don't know much about the Union or how things are done in America but why come to League territory when it would be easier studying there?"
Bruce nodded. From what he understood, the Union operates a little differently compared to the Mage-Knight System. For instance, Blazers in the U.S are known as 'Psychics' and the most elite of them are part of some supernatural powers unit called PSYON, led by man named Abraham Carter: the strongest of the Union.
Regardless, he had a feeling someone might ask him something like that and so prepared an answer.
"Fair point and the reason is simple, I have difficulty controlling my magic. I wasn't able to find the help I needed there and I heard that Hagun was among the best in the world and so I came here. Going through the Mage-Knight system isn't an issue for me."
He then noticed Kagami furiously writing in her notepad.
"That's two questions and counting, by the way." he stated to her.
"Aw c'mon. That's not fair, Wayne-senpai. Stella-chan asked that, not me!" Kagami whined with a pout.
But a stern look from Bruce was all Kagami needed to know that he was having none of it and so she whimpered in defeat and then thought about her next question.
"What's your opinion on the Batman?" she finally asked.
"The who?" Bruce responded, expertly feigning ignorance.
"Batman. Y'know? Costumed vigilante Blazer? Beats up the bad guys and vanishes without a trace? Everyone's talking about him."
"Never heard of him but a guy like that sounds like someone who either has way too much time on his hands or few screws loose."
Stella rolled her eyes and blew an irritated breath through her teeth.
"Of course you'd say something like that,...jerk." she mumbled quietly.
Her words and behavior didn't go unnoticed by Bruce but he didn't show any reaction.
"Let's get back to you..." Kagami continued to question. "What are your abilities?"
"Shadow and smoke manipulation...I think."
Kagami blinked at this.
"You think?"
"Like I said, I have difficulty controlling my magic and don't know the full range of my abilities or any Noble Arts."
The sound of a soft voice clearing its throat caught Bruce's attention. Surprisingly, it belonged to Shizuku who till now hadn't spoken.
"W-well, Alice happens to be a shadow user. I suppose he could help you with that." she spoke while forcing her nose up in a proud and dignified manner as she gestured towards her roommate.
Nagi grinned and nudged his shoulder against Bruce's with a wink.
"Indeed. It looks we're going to spending quite some time together."
"Terrific." Bruce rasped in weary sarcasm.
"Can we see your Device?" asked Kagami.
Bruce paused and glanced over the five teens who were looking at him with expectation. He was hesitant at first but then thought that it wouldn't hurt to just show them. And so he stepped back, outstretched his palm and sure enough, it materialized within his grasp.
"That's it, huh?" commented Ikki with interest.
"It's so...plain looking." Stella said, sounding unimpressed.
But despite how unremarkable the sword looked, Kagami looked on with awe and immediately started snapping shots with her camera, Bruce swerving his face away from the flashes. He figured that either Kagami's enthusiasm made her easily impressed or that she was seeing something no one else did.
"Sugoi...what's it called?"
"What's what called?" Bruce asked.
"Your Device. What do you call it?"
"Dunno, never named it."
At first there was a moment of silence until suddenly all five teenagers jumped back in surprise.
"WHA!? YOU DIDN'T GIVE IT A NAME!?" Kagami spluttered.
Bruce blinked and looked at them curiously, wondering why were they making a big deal out of this. It was similar to how Yuuri and Nene reacted about him not being Ranked. Was there something he was missing?
"Is it really necessary? It's just a weapon."
This remark made them look even more surprised. Ikki then cleared his throat and spoke up.
"I don't think you understand, Wayne-san. Anything can be a weapon. A twig you find on the ground can be a weapon or even a small rock. But a Device...that's part of who YOU are." he explained.
Now that Bruce thought about it, It was constantly said that Blazers, Psychics or whatever they call themselves manifest their Devices using a portion of their own souls. Perhaps there was an unspoken deeper connection between Devices and their wielders. Or maybe it was just a Blazer thing and it was unusual for Device to not be named. It made him question about the true nature of the sword.
"Maybe I haven't yet decided on a name. I'll let you know when I do."
Besides, what was he supposed to called it? The 'Bat-Sword'!?
After she jotted down her last note Kagami made a sound of disappointment, everyone figured it was probably due to the quick conclusion of her little interview.
"Well, I guess that about covers it...for now." she bleated with a pout. "But I gotta say Wayne-senpai, I've written profiles on a lot of interesting individuals but you..."
She looked at Bruce with a sense of wonder and enchantment as her cheeks became red.
"You're like this big box of mysteries, a puzzle that I'm aching to crack. I can't help but feel drawn towards you."
Bruce didn't react but Ikki and Stella were stunned on the spot, wondering what the reporter girl was implying. Soon after that, Kagami grinned as her eyes became obscured by the light off her glasses and she clenched her fists like she was fired up.
"Hehehe, I'm so excited! I'll give you your space today but mark my words Senpai, I'm gonna find out everything I can about you! Just you wait!"
And on that note, she raced out of sight with a cloud of dust trailing after her. Bruce remained still, looking flabbergasted while Ikki walked and joined him to the side without a word
"Good luck." Ikki said, lightly patting him on the back in sympathy.
Bruce could only utter a tired grunt.
By the time he was summoned back to Kurono's office later in the day, he had finally accomplished his seemingly near impossible task of getting settled in. And then after that there were a few classes Bruce attended and introductions were made, all of which made him feel as out of place as ever. But he persevered and managed to keep to himself while earning few odd looks every now and then.
"So I take it you find your dorm comfortable enough?" Kurono asked.
As she spoke, Bruce took the moment to look around her office, particularly at the various trophies and picture frames that were aligned along the top of a shelf. Kurono didn't seem to mind his somewhat distant behavior.
"Comfortable enough." Bruce confirmed with a nod. "I know that these rooms are intended for two people but please, no roommates. I'd rather have my privacy."
Kurono snickered with amusement.
"I can't change every rule for you, Wayne. But you're in luck. Until we have any more adult fugitives passing themselves off as students, that room is all yours."
He nodded in thanks and went back to looking at the trophies. With all subjects of small-talk exhausted, Kurono took a breath and prepared to get to the reason behind his summoning.
"Anyway, I called you because I wanted to offer another proposal. As you might know, every year all the seven major Chivalry schools select candidates to participate in the Seven Star Sword Art Festival. This year, we're organizing our own series of Selection Battles to allow every student a fair chance to compete. While the Selection Battles are already underway, it's not too late for you to-"
"Not interested." Bruce abruptly cut her off.
She was caught slightly off-guard but didn't let it deter her.
"Don't be so quick to decide. Think about it, it's an excellent opportunity for you to showcase your skills and being part of the festival is a huge honor."
Bruce turned towards her and his eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Is this the real reason why you brought me here? So I can win some competition for you?"
Kurono's expression turned livid, feeling offended that he'd suggest such a thing.
"Now you're being ridiculous! It's nothing like that! I'm only suggesting it because I believe the most effective way for you to discover your abilities is to put yourself in an actual combat scenario. The Selection Battles would give you the perfect chance for this."
Bruce approach her desk, his eyes remained narrowed as he asked one question in mind.
"Are these battles mandatory for me to graduate?"
Hagun's Director was still for a second before responding in a slight defeated voice.
"No. It's completely optional."
"Then you know my answer. My decision stands."
Kurono sighed but nodded.
"I see. Well, that's unfortunate but I won't force you. But let me know if you're reconsidering."
He stood in front of a dorm door like he did in the morning, only now thankfully it was his own room. Despite being positively sure he was at the correct door and had the correct key, he couldn't help but feel a little hesitant; almost fearful that once he opens that door, he was going to get thrown into another embarrassing situation. After shaking off his senseless thought he opened the door but before he could enter, a voice called to him.
"Oh hello, Wayne-san. Is this where you'll be staying?"
To his right was Ikki who had just exited his own dorm and waved at him with a small friendly smile.
"Um. Yes, I-"
But before Bruce could say anything, Stella emerged behind Ikki and her jaw dropped in shock and outrage.
"You gotta be kidding me! The pervert is staying right next door!?" she exclaimed in disbelief.
Indeed he was. In fact it surprised him as well that he would be staying at number 404. It was either a strange coincidence or Shinguuji made this kind of arrangement on purpose. But he couldn't be sure.
Without warning, Stella marched passed Ikki and right up to Bruce with a murderous expression and a threatening finger.
"You better not be planning anything funny, you jerk! Or I'm gonna burn a hole right through you!"
The older student paused for a second and then the edge of his mouth curled upwards slightly while he gave a flippant chuckle.
"Still not over that, huh? Look Princess, you can think of me however you want but I'm not interested in you or whatever it is you and your boyfriend do behind closed doors."
Both Stella and Ikki blushed at that last remark, Stella more so. What he was implying made her flustered and she had a hard time figuring out what to say.
"H-h-he's not my boyfriend! I mean...we're just...t-t-there's nothing going on be-"
Bruce simply rolled his eyes.
"Whatever. It's been a long day and I'm not in the mood. From now on, don't bother me unless it's school related."
With no more words, Bruce promptly entered his dorm and shut the door. Because Ikki was behind Stella, from his point of view it looked like Stella was just standing there silently. He briefly wondered if she was hurt from what Wayne said.
But then he notices her fingers twitching, slowly and then crazily. Her elbows raised and her shoulders dipped and he could hear the gnashing of her teeth and her fiery aura beginning to ignite, like she was transforming into a wild animal. He was starting to get nervous, it was looking like she was having a total meltdown!
"GGgghnnnnnnnnnnnn...!"
"Err, Stella? Are you okay?" asked Ikki, a little frightened.
And the next he knew, Laevateinn appeared in Stella's hand. He reacted quickly in panic because he knew she was going get into serious trouble if she did anything reckless! And so he grabbed her free arm's elbow and pulled her back hard as she swung her weapon like a mad woman while ranting out loudly.
"STUPID OVERGROWN ARROGANT PERVERTED JEEERK!"
Unaware of the scene Stella was making outside, Bruce took a moment to survey his own room. It was like a small apartment with a desk next to a bunk bed, an attached kitchen and an attached bathroom. The only things he could complain about was the gaudy wallpaper and that the bed was a little small for him but as he told Kurono, it was comfortable enough. It wasn't like the rooms in Wayne Manor or the Cave but for now it was a place to rest.
His face grew serious as he drew the curtains, bathing the room in darkness save for the desk lamp. He had already managed to fashion a hiding spot for his armor and tools when he moved in earlier and so he retrieved his utility belt, cowl and gauntlets. First he worked on his earlier idea of integrating the suit software with the phone. Breaking through the phone's security was child's play with the Cryptographic Sequencer and by the time he was done, not only has the suit's internal tracking system been updated with a detailed map of Tokyo but it was also tuned into every police and emergency radio signal. If there was trouble, his phone will alert him about it.
He knew he was no Lucius Fox but he was satisfied what he was able to pull off. A few steps forward and soon he'll have eyes all over this city.
Next, he emptied all the contents of his utility belt to do a simple inventory check. While he had most of his investigation tools, he was lacking a bit in the arsenal department; Just a few batarangs and single smoke bomb. He suppose he could improvise and make more batarangs but on the other hand, he now has a new weapon in his arsenal: his very own Device.
He remembered what Ikki said to him regarding Devices and it got him thinking. Was the sword really a Device? How did something that was supposedly created from a person's soul wind up in Gotham where it was handled by many people? Why did it give him these abilities? And more importantly, can he get rid of them?
Bruce dismissed the subject. He felt that trying to figure out the sword's origin was irrelevant to this case. Instead, he focused on answering one simple question.
His initial goal was to find the purple-haired girl who stole the sword in the first place, Does his current situation change anything? Answer: Yes, it did.
"I now have what they want." he murmured in realization.
That meant they must be looking for him, especially now that he was all over the news. However, despite this revelation, it didn't mean that he should give up his search. Besides, they don't know about his arrangement in Hagun and wouldn't know to look for him here. He needed to be out there reeling his end of the line while they reeled there's, it was only a matter of time when he would clash with the girl again or whoever she was working for and he would be ready this time.
"I know you told me to lay low, Director..." Bruce whispered. "But it looks like Batman is going to have to make a few more appearances."
He then turned off the console on his gauntlet and began to clean up the clutter on his desk.
"Not tonight, though." he sighed.
He'd already listened to the police scanner to know that there wasn't much going on so for now he'll rest up and prepare for his new life as a Student-Knight tomorrow.
The dream began as it always did. He was eight years old but at the mansion grounds this time, trudging slowly forward side by side with Alfred who urged him along with a gentle hand. Behind him were a gathering of faceless people carrying one black casket behind another. The cloud cover seemed to rob the color from his surroundings, save for the brown autumn leaves that continued to fall and remain fallen. He remembered that this was after the funeral proceedings when they were about to lay his parents to rest.
The boy took a slight glance behind him towards the people following him and carrying the caskets, they indeed had no faces and all he could remember of their voices were garbled. The young boy knew why, it's because none of them cared.
There was no sincerity behind their eulogies, their condolences or their crocodile tears. After all, Thomas and Martha were never popular with their respective families when they first got married. It was only when their fortunes skyrocketed when people acknowledged them but it was only for their money. No one in this so-called family loved them, not like he did.
But he didn't deserve that love. He was the one who led them into that alley, he was the one who insisted that they go to that theater. No, he didn't deserve it because he was too powerless to do anything.
He scrunched his face as tears began to flow, images of that fateful night flowed through the boy's mind until he couldn't take it anymore. Young Bruce tore away from Alfred and ran, he heard the older British call out to him but he continued to sprint through the woods as his tears drops scattered in the wind.
Planks of wood broke under his accidental footfalls and he found himself falling into a previously boarded cavern. He crash and tumbled until he landed flat against the cave floor. The little boy sniffed in pain as he slowly pushed himself up, his suit torn and skin with cuts and bruises. The hole above him provided the only source of light which illuminated some of the stalagmites that looked like rocky jagged teeth. Everything else was a dark abyss but within that abyss he could hear tiny squeaks, scratchings and movement; he didn't know what it was but it sounded unholy.
And then all of a sudden they bursted out before him, a swarm of hundred webbed-winged creatures. The boy yelped in fright and shielded himself with his arms as the hurricane of bats swept through him and brought with them a gale that almost knocked him over.
He had this dream before but there was something different from the script this time. The swarm circled around him before unexpectedly converging high above, the streams of bats mixed and melded until they formed a gigantic monstrosity that fell in front of young Bruce. It was a bat-like creature, black like it was formed from shadows with its eyes and maw glowing bright like fire.
The boy screamed in fright and ran as the giant bat let out a thunderous screech and gave chase, crawling its way towards him with its claw at the anterior of its folded wings. Young Bruce panted as he worked his legs, he could still hear the thing gaining on him.
As he covered more ground, the terrain of the cave floor became more rocky and soon it was rocky enough to trip the boy and send him on his stomach. Young Bruce quickly twisted himself and crawled backwards, his eyes were wide in terror as the monster advanced towards him. His movement paused when something landed behind him with a heavy thud and a wide shadow covered over him.
The bat stopped in its tracks and squatted guardedly while letting out an enraged hiss towards the interloper. Young Bruce tentatively looked behind him to see that towering over him was another shadowy monster, but this one was in the form of a raven. Its angry eyes and the inside of its beak were also glowing like its counterpart, to whom it challenged with an earth-shaking caw.
The boy ducked his head as the bat flew and attacked the raven head on. The colossal beasts tussled, beating their wings as well as clawing at each other like they were two aviary predators fighting over their prey. Young Bruce attempted to use this moment to his advantage and escape but the raven spotted him and broke away from its opponent to fly after him, Bruce struggled to put some distance behind him but the monster bird gained on him easily and was about to use its sharp talons to pluck him off the ground.
But it was the bat that did so instead, after ramming itself against the raven and then seizing Bruce by his shoulders. The eight year old was carried high up into a ceiling-less void but was dropped when the raven rammed into its foe and quickly grabbing him by his arm with its talons. The bat recovered quickly and then seized the boy's other arm.
Bruce screamed in agony as the two flying beasts were engaged in a tug of war with him in the center. If they kept this up, he was sure that they were going to rip him in two. Trying to free himself, he managed to slip his arms from the sleeves of his coat jacket but as a result, he was now plummeting from fifty feet in the air!
The two creatures discarded his jacket and dive bombed after him. Despite the bat's efforts, it was the raven who held the advantage this time and was fast enough to reach the boy and snatch him first. Bruce felt the strong winds rush through him as the monstrous bird continued to swoop down, his heart hammered wildly as he expected the raven to dash him against the ground. But suddenly the bird spread its wings and slowed its descent towards what Bruce thought was a burning inferno. It was just when it pulled up above the flames when it released its quarry, sending the eight year old boy tumbling and rolling over a cobblestone path.
Young Bruce winced when he came to a stop. The remains of his funeral wear was torn in places and his exposed skin was bruised and scraped but he was otherwise fine. He pushed himself to his knees, flinching at the heat around him and observed his surroundings.
It looked like he was in in the middle of a large medieval-style town that was in flames but what really caught the boy's attention was what was in front of him. The cobble road he was on lead to a town square, the center of which was a statue monument depicting a man, a woman and a little girl. It was at the base of that statue where she stood with her back turned to him, a woman wearing an intricate red dress with long glistening dark blue hair that flowed along the flying glowing embers.
"Who...who's there?" the boy managed to croak out.
The woman glanced back, her eyes were obscured and her midnight tresses continued to undulate in the wind. Her attire was fully visible when she turned towards him, she had a voluptuous figure and the cloth that framed her wasn't just a dress, it had an armor chest plate over a corset and a slit in the skirt to allow free movement of her legs which were adorned with leather high boots. She looked like she came from royalty but it was what was in her hand that caught his attention. It was a certain unremarkable looking sword, Branwen.
A sudden squall hit him from above and he was pushed down on the ground again. It seemed that the monstrous raven returned and was now holding him down with one foot while the woman began to slowly approach him, her blade gripped with malicious intent. It was as if he had been prepped for execution. The fearful boy still couldn't see her face, her hair hid it like a reaper's cloak and he wouldn't be able to see anything further because as she approached, everything around him began to distort and fragment.
Batman's eyes popped open with a start. He was himself again, standing in the batsuit and he felt like his memories and mental faculties were jump-started. But when he tried to recall...whatever it was he just experienced as eight-year-old Bruce, he had trouble piecing it together.
"What in God's name was all that about?" he grunted as he rubbed his head through his cowl. "And where am I now?"
Indeed, he was in an unknown location. There was a dense cloud of dust permeating the area but he could make out that he was inside a large concrete structure. Sunlight shone through a rectangular opening in an otherwise dome roof and there were metal railing that held floodlights, two large LCD screens and what he guessed was a retractable roof. All of which were badly damaged and sparking.
Nearby, the veil of dust began to clear and he could make out that the area he was in was surrounded by a circular wall, above which were climbing rows of seats. From the overall structure, he guessed that he was inside some kind of ruined stadium or arena.
But as the dust finally cleared, he was greeted with a gruesome sight, one that made him stagger back in horror.
"WHA-WHAT THE HELL IS ALL THIS!?"
The seats were indeed occupied, not by spectators but dead bodies slumped with open cuts that bled into the other rows. As more dust cleared, more bodies were revealed dotting the rows like a gallery of death. The Caped Crusader felt his heart turn to lead and the atmosphere thicken as he turned to surveyed his surroundings. He had seen his fair share of murder but this was genocide! Batman's attention was drawn downwards when his boot bumped into something thick and fabric-like, closer inspection revealed that it was the remains of a hanging banner which was probably torn off from the ceiling.
The banner had five five kanji characters etched vertically, it spelled 'Shichisei Kenbusai'.
"The Sword Art Festival...but that event isn't until later this year!"
Batman's eyes drifted away from the fallen banner towards a nearby raised platform. It was a white concrete ring area and there were two bodies at the center laying across each other. Batman tensely inhaled as he jumped on the platform and ran towards the two prone figures whom he immediately recognized.
"Kurogane! Princess Vermillion!"
He slowed as he neared them and his throat tightened at the sight. The otherwise white area around them had been completely drenched in blood and both of them had an arm stretched towards each other like dying lovers.
Kneeling down at Stella, he then carefully turned her over while cradling her head in his arm. Her eyes and mouth were open but whatever fire that he had previously seen in her had been completely snuffed out. Ikki's eyes were closed unlike hers but there were no signs of peace on his face.
Batman's blood boiled, his teeth was grit tightly in fury as he stood, he knew this couldn't have been a natural disaster and he wanted to yell out demanding who was responsible for this!
"...he-..."
As if to answer him, a faint sound came from outside the ring near the arena wall where the veil of dust hasn't settled yet. He looked toward the sound, the area was obscured but he could make out a silhouette. There was a person but unlike the others he was standing up, he was alive!
The Dark Knight at first rushed towards him but then slowed to a stop as he neared the edge of the ring. His white eyes narrowed in suspicion as he could make out more details while the dust cleared. Decked in a long coat, this person had his back towards him and was facing the wall while his shoulders were lightly heaving with convulsions. Was he sobbing?
"...heh..."
Batman's eyes widened as he stepped back with his jaw dropped in horror.
"No...NO! How is this possible!?"
"...heh...heh..."
The tenacious dust cloud did not fully dispel but it was visible enough to discern more of the person's features as he turned slightly toward him. Particularly his colors.
His coat was a shade of purple, his skin pale white, his hair was unmistakably green and on his face was a ghastly wide smile accompanied by a pair of wild eyes.
"...heh...heh,heh!heh!heh!heh!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!"
Bruce gasped and shot up, his head nearly hitting the bottom of the top bunk. His upper body was moist with sweat and he panted for a while before settling to sit at the bed's edge. After a few steady breaths, he composed his thoughts in the comfort of the room's darkness. "Was it really him?" was the first question that came to his mind, followed by countless others.
He raised a palm to run his fingers through his hair but at that moment he realized that his other palm was clutching something.
He looked down and sure enough, saw himself grasping a handle that had a golden cross-guard separating it from a long blade that glinted with the moonlight.
Kurono nodded and then hung up the phone, floating in front on her were translucent holographic screens displaying a certain list of students which just moments ago had a new name added. There were a few formalities that had to be taken care of but they were all light work for her.
"It's done." she confirmed. "All you'll need to do now is meet with the Selection Battle committee and sign a digital form of consent. After that, you'll be notified by email about your next match and who your opponent will be. The match format itself is straightforward: they are one-on-one duels, no time limit and surrender is an option."
She then leaned forward to her desk with her elbows on top and her fingers interwoven while she frowned and spoke in a cautionary note.
"But keep in mind unlike mock battles, Devices will not be in Phantom Form. While we'll have medical personnel on standby, participants including yourself WILL be physically endangered. I'm sure with your experience, you can handle it but I just want you to understand what you're getting yourself into."
"I understand, Director." Bruce said with a gracious nod. "And...I appreciate the concern, honestly."
With nothing left to be said, he turned and was about to leave the office through the door.
"Wayne..." Kurono called out softly. "I gotta ask, what made you change your mind?"
Bruce stopped in his tracks and contemplated his answer. What could he possibly tell her? Would she even believe him? He couldn't even believe it himself and yet it felt so real. Even if he did take whatever he saw last night at face value, he was certain there were other courses of action he could take.
His free hand that was at his hip clenched, he knew the reason behind his decision. It's because he couldn't take any chances, not with HIM involved! Whether it was real or not, even if it impeded his current mission, he was going to damn well make sure what he saw would NEVER happen.
And so, he responded the only way he could.
"Just a feeling."
TBC