AN: Sorry that this chapters seems shorter compared to what I normally post, there was more I planned for this chapter but I figured that it would've made it too bloated and I really didn't want to keep you guys waiting. Don't worry, I am writing the next chapter as I post this. Thanks again for your support!

CHAPTER 13: The Dragon Breath

Eight Years Ago...

Despite what the doctors and her parents told her, the little girl just wasn't able to stay in her bed.

It wasn't that the bed was uncomfortable, quite the contrary, it was a very luxurious four poster bed with soft sheets, pillows and arranged stuff dolls.

And it also wasn't because she was bursting with restless energy either, there were many books and toys for her to entertain herself with.

In fact, anyone would say that her room had everything a princess could ask for, anything a child could ask her. And yet none of it could soothe her sorrow.

She stood by the window with her long pinkish red hair down, facing the view outside. She could see the castle walls and the splendor of her kingdom beyond it, bordered by the golden splaying sun as it begun to set towards the North Sea.

When her gaze dropped downwards, she could see the students of the Vermillion Magical Institute practicing on the courtyard down below before finally settling on her own bandaged arms and fingers.

"Stupid magic..." she muttered.

It wasn't just her arms, but also her legs and there was even a taped gauze on her cheek.

Little Stella turned from the window and outstretched one of her arms and on cue, Laevateinn materialized. It looked unbelievable how she was able to hold up a sword that was almost twice the size of her own body, it seemed like the weight of the blade accommodated her.

And yet she glared at the thing as if it was the bane of her existence.

"Stupid Device, stupid flames..." her voice quivered through grit teeth as tears welled at the corner of her eyes.

Her emotions soon reached its limit and she threw the blade to floor in anger.

"STUPID EVERYTHING!"

Laevateinn clanged on the floor, spun slightly and slid to a stop at the door which someone opened due to the commotion.

The person by the door looked at the sword on the floor with surprise before setting his sights towards her.

He was a much older man wearing a Victorian-style military dress uniform with his head bald and his beard like a fluffy white cloud. Even though his looked placid due to his sagging eyelids, Stella could tell he was looking at her with disapproval.

"Your Highness, That's enough!" he scolded.

The veteran knight came in, picked up the blade, walked and knelt in front of her to present it back.

"Please, you must NEVER mishandle your Device! It is an important part of you and MUST be handled with the utmost care!"

Stella flinched and her short burst of anger melted into guilt.

"I-I'm sorry, Master Dandalion." she said softly, scrunching her eyes shut to fight her sobs. "It's...it's just so frustrating!"

Daniel Dandalion sighed. He was aware that despite being a Blazer, she was still just a child and it was only natural for her to have outbursts like this.

"You know that I care about your feelings, Princess." he said with kindness but then looked at her seriously.

"But the King and Queen have instructed me to dissuade you from pursuing the path of the Knight should you continue to hurt yourself like this."

Stella suddenly looked up at him, eyes widened in alarm as tiny orbs of tears sprinkled from them.

"No! Please, Master! I don't wanna stop now!" she pleaded him.

She looked once again at her bandaged arms and hands as she spoke.

"I promise that I will control this power. This country is small and it needs a strong Mage Knight to protect it. So..."

She sniffed while wiping her eyes and with a shaky hand, she reached out and took the sword back from him.

"So...so I...I'll keep trying! Whatever I gotta do! Whatever it takes!" she affirmed.

Daniel couldn't help but smile warmly and ran his palm over the young girl's head. Her words were so innocent and refreshingly virtuous.

As the head of the LMN Vermillion branch and the Empire's most accomplished swordsman, he had been tasked with taking care of Stella since she was a baby and took it upon himself to mentor her. But he also loved her as his own daughter.

"My dear, it fills my heart with pride knowing that our royal family could produce someone so strong willed like you." he said.

He then released her and frowned.

"But sheer will alone isn't enough to master the Dragon Breath."

"Then what should I do, Master?" Stella asked with innocent eyes.

Dandalion regarded her with a thoughtful expression for a short moment and then his beard morphed slightly as he chuckled.

"Hohoho! It is like I always say: When in doubt, go back to the basics. You'll understand then."

"Hey! Where are you going!?"

Stella called out as Bruce abruptly turned around and walked away.

"I don't have time for any your jokes, Princess." he said with annoyance.

"I'm not joking! I really want to help!" Stella insisted as she strode to catch up to him.

Bruce then suddenly stopped and spun towards her, making her halt in the process.

"Right. If this is your way of trying to impress Ikki, don't. You're a beautiful and skilled young lady, you have nothing to prove."

The compliment caught her off-guard and it made her reel back while her face flashed red.

"D-d-don't say things like that all of a sudden!"

After exhaling a little to compose herself, Stella tried to reason with him.

"I'm...I'm not trying to impress anyone. I just want help someone the same way Ikki does."

"And I'm that someone, huh?" Bruce said, not looking convinced. "What if I don't want any help?"

Stella's brows angled down in ire before she thrusted a pointed finger towards him.

"Then I say you're full of it!" she declared.

Bruce paused and then glowered as Stella contended her point.

"We all know you have trouble with your magic, Bruce. What are you going to do? Keep using the Selection Battles to train yourself? There's no way you can keep this up, you need someone to actually teach you!"

"I already tried regular magic training in this school and even had Arisuin instruct me. None of it worked. What makes you think you could do any better?" asked Bruce.

"Because I'm not Alice." she answered with a palm to her chest. "I've been training in magic since I was a child so that makes me the best person qualified to train you."

"No thanks."

Hearing him say that so offhandedly caused the Vermillion Princess's temper to spike and she threw her fists down in outrage.

"You...you big pompous...! I'm royalty! You can't just blow me off like that!"

"I don't have to do a thing you say." he said firmly with his arms crossed.

"Yes you do!" she stubbornly argued back.

She knew that wasn't true but she was pretty much offended to the point where she just wanted to spite him in some way, to hold something over him.

"You...you owe it to me!"

That made Bruce's brows jump in surprise and he shot her a perplexed look.

"Excuse me?" he asked.

"You heard me! It's because of you, my virgin lips got tainted! So...so take responsibility!" she asserted with a stomp of her foot.

Stella froze when she realized what she just said and internally cringed with embarrassment and disbelief.

"That sounded so wrong!" she mentally exclaimed.

"I'm leaving." Bruce said with a scoff and turned to do so.

But before he could, Stella ran up in front of him and called out with open palms.

"Okay wait! Wait!"

He did but it looked like his patience was at its limit. Stella knew that he was moments away from permanently shutting the door on the whole matter and decided to try one last time to convince him.

As much as she didn't want to, she decided that she would have to set aside her pride and try approaching him with more sincerity. Hesitancy and nervousness bit into her, mostly because she didn't know him that well and that there weren't many people she got to express this to.

"Look, the truth is...I...I was just like you, Okay?" she confessed.

Seeing that she got his full attention, Stella continued to explain.

"I...I hate it when people think I'm just a prodigy because I wasn't always that way. I was born with great power but during my childhood, I just couldn't control it. I ended up burning myself so many times I lost count, there...there was a time when everyone around me thought I couldn't be a knight."

It was something she remembered when she first dueled with Ikki, there were implications in his words that he was the only one putting the effort to overcome her talent as if she never had to work hard in her life.

Of course there was now a better understanding between them but that image clung on her since she learned to control the Dragon Breath, that her previous opponents would say "I worked hard but I still couldn't beat talent."

That's why she was so fixated on helping Bruce. It was more than just proving Shizuku wrong or that she could be like Ikki but it was to shatter that image once and for all.

The red haired princess noticed the way Bruce keyed in on her words and that encouraged her to continue.

"But I didn't want to give up, I knew I had potential so I kept trying and trying for three years until I was able to master my flames. But with you, I'm sure we can shorten it. I know it sounds crazy but I...I really think this can work. Trust me on this, I might be your best shot at helping you control your power."

"No."

Stella visibly flinched. She had been irked, outraged and offended by Bruce before but this time she actually felt hurt. She literally just bared her soul to him and with that one word, he just cast her out.

"Unbelievable." she growled, shaking with fury. "You really think you know better than anyone else, don't you!?"

"That's not it." Bruce said, shaking his head.

"THEN WHAT IS!?"

The former billionaire sighed while running his fingers through his hair.

"You don't understand, Princess. My magic isn't just unstable, it's dangerous. When Arisuin tried to help, I nearly put his life in jeopardy. I'd never forgive myself if something like that happened to you."

That last sentence came out of nowhere for Stella and she froze, anger completely forgotten, cheeks reddening a bit as her heartbeat jumped. She was sure that Bruce meant what he said in a general way but that didn't stop her mind from taking it at face value.

But even though she felt touched that he was concerned for her well being, she knew that he missed one important point.

"Bruce...we're training to be Mage-knights. We'll all be putting our lives in danger at some point." she said softly.

Bruce's eyes widened at this.

"Even after the Sword Art Festival we might get summoned for dangerous missions or even defend our own counties. I could've just stayed in my castle and did nothing but I didn't want that. I need...I want to be a strong capable knight who is willing to fight for my people, not someone who hides behind them. So please, I know what I'm getting myself into."

It was something he never expected but seeing this girl now, in this new light he had never seen her in before, Bruce was starting to wonder if perhaps he had underestimated her.

Sure, she could be impulsive, stubborn and hot-headed. But behind it all...Bruce saw a valiant and noble girl who was quite mature for someone her age.

Ikki was lucky to have a girl like her in his corner, Bruce knew he would've felt the same had he been in his shoes.

"All I'm asking for is a chance." Stella said. "If it doesn't work, I won't bother you again. Honest."

Seconds ticked by with Bruce remaining silent with contemplative frown and just as Stella thought he was going to refuse again...

"Okay. I'll entertain your idea, just this once."

Stella looked at him with surprise.

"You mean it?" she asked.

Bruce nodded.

The Crimson Princess couldn't contain her smile and actually hopped on the spot with fists pumped in victory.

"Yes! You won't be sorry." she said gratefully.

Bruce wasn't so sure.

But then Stella suddenly put on serious expression with half-lid eyes and a raised finger.

"But we'll need to go over a few ground rules first."

"Oh brother..." Bruce internally groaned.

"As your teacher, I expect you to treat me with the utmost respect!" Stella spoke with a high and mighty tone. "So from now on, you will call me 'Vermillion-sensei'."

Before Bruce could open his mouth to say something, Stella quickly spoke again.

"Ugh, no. That's makes me sound like sound like an old woman." she said to herself with a grimace.

"Princess..."

"I got it! 'Master Vermillion'. No! 'Master Stella'! Yes! You will call me 'Master Stella'!"

After she made that decree, Bruce put his fists to his hips and looked at her with weary impatience.

"Is there anything else or are you done?...Master Stella?" he added that last part with mocking sarcasm.

Stella didn't seem to notice the tone and put the side of her finger to her chin, trying to think of other conditions she could place on him.

"No, that's it for now. Just meet me in the training halls at around Eight, after dinner time."

"Tonight?" Bruce asked with a blink of surprise.

The young girl's eyes slowly grew as her cheeks turned red, realizing the implication of meeting a male alone at night.

"D-don't get any ideas, Buster! This is just for training!" she asserted angrily. "So no funny business or I'll leave you as a pile of ash!"

"I'll be sure to behave." Bruce rasped as he rolled his eyes.

She didn't seem to pick up on that tone either and began to leave, walking to a jog as she still faced him with a pointed finger like she was holding him to it.

"You better! Remember, don't be late, you promised!"

"No I didn't!"

Bruce called out but it was too late, the girl had already ran off.

He heaved a sigh and checked the clock again. Luckily, he found that he didn't waste too much time and figured he could still make it to the station if he hurried.

It wasn't really nighttime but that wouldn't be an issue because the rain heavy clouds had brought darkness early to Tokyo.

The establishment was rather dingy but it also had a comforting traditional Japanese flare to it. Bathe in a soft orange light, thanks to the shogi lamps at its corners, and an air rich with tobacco fumes and alcohol breath. It was located pretty close to Shinjuku Station, accessed through a narrow alleyway at the fringes of the Kabukicho district.

It was a simple large room partitioned only by shoji screens, the largest of which had a long banquet style low table at its center. Seated at one side of the table were men of all walks of life. On the the other side, with a decorative folding screen behind them, were three intimidating men; the one in the middle had his torso bare and only wore a sarashi over his abdomen while fully displaying his intricate tattoos.

This man, the dealer, slammed a cup with two dice mouth down on a wooden board.

"Sa, hatta hatta!" he called out, urging the men before him to place their bets.

"It's gotta be Han, right?" "Han!" "Cho!" "Cho, I think?" "Ch-Cho!" "It's Han." "Make mine Han!" "Cho!"

A cacophony of wagers erupted from the Cho-Han players as the two men adjacent to the dealer raked the player's wooden tabs (or chips) to the appropriate position on the table. They all waited in anticipation for the dealer to lift the cup and reveal the dice within as well as their fates.

But before he could, someone stumbled inside the gambling hall, panting in a frantic state. So much in panic that he tripped near the Cho-Han table and ended up falling between the players and smacking himself on the table, rattling the tabs and the dice in the process.

Needless to say, the men at the table were shocked and outraged.

"Hey, what the fuck man!?" "What's wrong with you!?" "You ruined our game!" the patrons exclaimed together.

And none were more displeased than the dealer who recognized the man.

"Takigawa, you asshole!" he roared before grabbing Koshiro by the collar. "You better explain yourself for this!"

Rather than being intimidated, Koshiro grabbed the dealer by his shoulders in a desperate plea.

"H-he's after me!"

"What the hell are you talking about!? Who's after you?" the dealer asked.

"I don't know how he knows about me! I was at the station waiting for collections when-AAAHH!" Koshiro let out a panicked yelp and pointed at something behind the dealer.

The dealer and his men turned to see standing behind the printed folding screen was a long eared shadow. With a flash of a cutting streak, the folding screen fell apart revealing the shadowy silhouette with white angular eyes.

The men in the room stepped back in surprise and fear and the patrons were the first to make themselves scarce. Batman was glad, the less civilians the better.

"It's Batman!" one of the dealer's compatriots exclaimed.

The dealer gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath.

"Security! Get in here and kill that fucker!" he ordered, turning his head to the back while pointing forward.

Sure enough, the shoji screens slid open and a bunch of thugs quickly filed into the room and joined by the dealer's assistants. Batman quickly assessed their weaponry and numbers and then dismissed his Device, mentally declaring that he'd make this quick.

The first three of the thugs quickly brandished their handguns and opened fired but Batman reacted by flipping the low table up and delivering a roundhouse kick at its underside, sending it smack against them like a wide barricade.

More thugs rushed towards him, one of which had closed distance and launched a fist towards him. The Caped Crusader quickly flipped over him with his hand on the aggressor's shoulder and then kicked him hard at his back. Another to his side tried to kick at him but he caught the man's leg and gripped him by the face before slamming him viciously on the ground.

Keeping his momentum, Batman quickly bounded towards another goon and sent him to the floor with an open palm. One of the other men tried attacking him from behind but he sensed the attack and countered with a backhand strike, followed by an elbow to the abdomen and then takes advantage of his hunched state by grabbing him by the back of his collar and pant belt to then ram him into one of the shoji screens; leaving him in a mess with broken wood and torn paper.

Two of the recovering henchmen staggered back up and fished out switch blades from their pockets, both grinning and licking their chops like wild jackals. One of the charged and began wildly swinging, Batman swerved back and avoided each swing until he found an opening and used both hands to chop at the sides of his head, causing the thug to yell out in pain, and then send him on his back by roughly pulling the man's legs from the ground to finally knock him out with a sock to his face.

The other knife-wielding goon attempted to stab at him from behind as Batman remained crouched but the vigilante quickly caught the man's wrist and twisted it hard, causing him cry out in pain and drop the knife. With the goon at his mercy, Batman stood as he decked him in the face, lifted him up and then slammed him hard on the ground.

Before Batman could turn around, he yelped as he felt something hard strike and deflect of his shoulder. He wondered if it was a bullet, it traveled as fast but it seemed to big to be one. Whatever it was, if his armor plating didn't hold up it would've pierced through his shoulder.

He looked back to see none other than the Cho-Han dealer who had his palm extended as a pair of the dice was glowing, hovering and spinning rapidly in front of it.

"A Blazer." Batman concluded.

The tattooed man's special ability in question happen to be a form of psychokinesis, it was especially a useful ability for cheating and manipulating the outcome of his games.

The villainous Blazer took notice of the three handguns that had his men had dropped and with a wave of his hand, they floated up before him and began firing on its own.

Batman reacted in time and rolled away from the barrage of gunfire. Thinking fast, he fired a grappling line at one of shoji lamps and after the claw tore through the paper material and secured itself around the wooden frame, he swung lamp hard. The wooden frame collided against the side of the dealer's head, making him stagger with a grunt and losing his psychic hold over the guns.

When the tattooed man recovered, Batman was upon him. Not with his fists, but now armed with his Device that was in Phantom Form. He slashed at him mercilessly, causing the man to recoil in pain but he didn't stop there. He delivered more slashes after another, building it up into a flurry of slashes until he topped it off with a brutal spinning kick that sent the man crashing down.

The Cho-Han dealer winced, an eye closed and his teeth grit, pushing himself up as his body burned with pain as if it was sliced in ribbons. He looked around, seeing all his men down for the count after being manhandled like they were mere rag dolls, and sweated nervously. It was becoming apparent that the Rogue Blazer was more trouble than he was worth.

"Fuck this! I'm outta here!" he exclaimed and bolted towards the far side of the room through an open door.

Koshiro was left looking like he was up a creek without a paddle and in a frantic state, attempted to escape by following the dealer.

He didn't get far as Batman's sword struck the wall next to him, halting him in his tracks.

"Koshiro Takigawa, I want a word with you." the vigilante growled, stepping towards him with white eyes narrowed over his shadowy visage.

"Whoa, it looks like it's really coming down over here." came Ikki's voice over the phone.

The Training Hall echoed from the rain hammering against the skylight windows and while the room was well lit, Stella could see how pitch dark it was outside. Letting out a grunt of irritation, she paced back and forth with her phone to her ear, adjacent to a bench which had a duffle-style gym bag placed on top.

She was of course beyond PO-ed that Bruce was a no show and after half an hour of waiting, she would've just left in an angry huff when the downpour suddenly hit outside.

"Of all the damn luck!" she cursed before plopping herself on the bench with a sigh. "Guess I'm stuck here for a while."

"I could come over there with an umbrella if you'd like." Ikki suggested.

Stella blinked and her heart began thudding while her cheeks immediately went red. Her mind was already conjuring up a typical romantic scene of Ikki and her sharing an umbrella together, huddling together, bodily contact unavoidable.

Then perhaps after they return to the room, they notice the way their wet clothes cling to their skins, then maybe there'll be a power failure and the lights go out. With the pitter patter or raindrops outside and the darkness inside, they would lock eyes with each other. The hidden electricity in air unbearable, the magnetism between them irresistible. And when their lips finally meet...

"Stella? You there?"

Stella snapped out her little fantasy, feeling embarrassed as she answered.

"Oh. Y-yeah."

"Do you want me to pick you up?"

The answer was no-brainer for her. What else would any girl say when a boy they liked asked this? She'd have to be a total idiot to give any other answer.

"No. That's alright, Ikki." she said.

She felt that she'd might as well stab herself.

"Are you sure?" asked Ikki.

'I changed my mind! Come rescue me, you adorable idiot!'...

...Is what she wanted to say. But Stella had a goal in mind was committed to that goal.

She figured that maybe Bruce got held up because of the rain. The problem was that she had no way of knowing for sure, she would've just called him and asked where the hell he was but she didn't have his phone number and apparently Ikki didn't know it either despite their friendship.

Even though she wanted so badlytoto leave, she also wanted to give Bruce the benefit of the doubt.

"Yeah, I am. I could always use my Empress Dress if I want to make it through the rain anyway." she confirmed with a pained expression. "I'll be back in the dorm once I'm done here."

There was a short pause from the other line before Ikki responded.

"Okay, if you say so. Call me if you need anything."

Stella said her goodbye and disconnected. With a drawn out sigh, she leaned forward on her knees in a miffed manner.

"You better show up, Mister Wayne." she muttered angrily.

Nishi-Shinjuku is well known as a forest of towering skyscrapers usually luminous from the reflecting sunlight. But now, a charcoal murkiness settled over the district as the rain battered its surface.

On the wet pavement and road crossings, one could see a swarm of black umbrella tops sheltering commuters ranging from salary men to corporate heads to even government officials.

It was the same outside the Shinjuku police station where Itsuki Kurogane approached his waiting car that had the passenger door opened by his driver. He had just concluded a joint meeting with the police and officials from the NPA. The location was of his own convenience since the Japanese headquarters for the League of Mage-knight Nations happen to be nearby.

"Kaichou!" he heard somebody called out.

There were many people who carried that title but none whom was addressed with fear and respect as much as him. And seeing his driver look past him towards the voice only confirmed that someone was calling for him.

Itsuki turned his sharp eyes around to see Shimogamo hurriedly jogging towards him with own umbrella in hand, his shoes and pants unfortunately getting wet from the splashing water.

"Please, wait one moment!" the man urged.

The Kurogane patriarch obliged.

"Superintendent-General." Itsuki greeted in his usual cold business tone.

Shimogamo panted a little after he stopped in front of him before speaking.

"Sir, you mentioned that you have contacted the LMN French branch about enlisting a liaison for the Batman case. You're not actually considering bringing in outside assistance, are you?"

"And if I am?" asked Itsuki.

The police official flinched, it was bad enough that the pride of the police force was strained thanks to Batman constantly evading them but this was on a whole different level.

"Great. Last thing I need is some foreign delegate taking over my department and calling the shots!" Shimogamo thought with a grimace.

He wouldn't have mind if Itsuki recruited a Student-Knight from Hagun, he was good friends with Korono Shinguuji and trusted her. If he were to guess, Itsuki would probably be against the idea since his children, particularly his daughter, was competing to represent Hagun for the Sword Art Festival. And there was also the fact that the Chairman wasn't fond of the way Kurono ran things.

But still, Itsuki could always find help from the other academies. Shimogamo would've also found that acceptable as long as they kept the control of the operations within their prefecture.

"Sir, I assure you again that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police are well equipped to handle this matter."

"And yet you still haven't apprehended the Vigilante." Itsuki stated.

Shimogamo gulped.

"That's...we-well...Like I said in the meeting, it's still an ongoing process. We know that Batman is probably listening to our radio frequencies and our planned sting operations are sure to guarantee his capture. Please, give us more time."

Itsuki remained still like a stone statue, eyes still uncompromising and cold as ice.

"Lucky for you, Miss Ascarid's Black Knight is on assignment so I suppose you have time until she is free to join us." The chairman spoke. "Understand Shimogamo-san, we are a few months away from the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival."

Shimogamo understood where he was coming from, the Festival was a League sponsored event that was sure to get national coverage. It was more than just a sporting event, it was a showcase of the very best of the next generation of Blazers under the umbrella of the LMN. In a way, it was like a military parade; a propaganda practice to exhibit the might of the nation.

"And yet the media continues to obsess over this Batman, especially after the child trafficking bust. The Japanese public must be assured with strength of OUR Knights and not a Rogue Blazer playing dress-up."

The mention of the child trafficking incident brought conflicting feelings within Shimogamo. On one hand, he was frustrated that his men weren't able to capture Batman that night. But on the other hand...

"With all due respect, sir. We've been trying to crack down on the Ichinose-gumi operations for months..." he said.

This actually evoked a reaction from Itsuki. The hardened man's brows jumped in surprise before narrowing dangerously.

"Are you suggesting that we cooperate with that Rogue?" he asked, his voice seething.

Shimogamo's eyes widened when he realized his mistake.

"N-no..."

Itsuki stepped towards him in authority, prompting the police official to step back nervously.

"Good because that notion is unacceptable." Itsuki affirmed. "Put it out of your mind and never entertain it again. I don't care if he even hands the Ichinose-gumi to you gift-wrapped."

Then there was a sudden loud crash right next to them, causing all three men to jump in surprise and whirl around. The driver and Shimogamo froze with their jaws open, shocked at the sight before them.

Something heavy had fallen on top of Itsuki's car, damaging the roof and windshield. It was Koshiro, arms and legs tied up. He was still conscious with wide fearful eyes but there was a tape over his mouth.

Itsuki noticed something taped to man's chest and stepped closer to pull it off. It was a folded note and on the face of it was a marked sketch of a bat symbol.

The chairman's eyes narrowed again.

Shimogamo quickly looked up towards the roof of the police station, figuring that Koshiro was thrown from there. Despite not seeing anything, he ran back inside, trying to scramble as many officers as possible. But they would never find the vigilante on the roof because Batman had already moved much higher.

He was perched on the side of one of the tall skyscrapers with the ends of his cape dancing slightly in the wind, rendered near invisible by the darkness and rain. With his cowl lenses and directional mic, he was already aware Itsuki and Shimogamo's conversation.

"Those two really should put their man power to better use than trying to catch me." he grumbled.

He hoped the police would at least follow his note's instructions to find the gambling hall with the men he tied up for them.

Raindrops splashed and contoured over his suit and cowl as he mulled over his next plan of action. Koshiro said that the Underground Tournament with all those kidnapped Blazers was being held in downtown Ikebukuro; right now it was a condemned complex but in two days, it would alive with activity.

It was no wonder that the venue kept changing. Koshiro was too afraid to give any names, but from what Batman gathered, the attendees and invitees who would be placing their bets are of a very exclusive circle consisting of corrupt businessmen and politicians.

It was perfect, they would all be there, including the girl who brought him here, and he will bring them all down in the same night. The question was, what would be the best approach?

Charging in with his fists would be too risky, the place would be likely heavily guarded and he didn't have a clear idea about the scale of their operation so he'll need to survey from the inside. Either sneak in without being detected or an undercover job. Perhaps he could try to get himself invited?

Back in Gotham, Bruce Wayne's wealth and status would come in pretty handy in situations like this but over here, he was going to have to improvise like he had being doing with his magic.

The subject of magic reminded him about Stella and his 'appointment' with her. He was already running late.

Batman scowled and checked the police feed for any emergencies. Aside from the stir he caused in Shinjuku station, there wasn't any. Tokyo's crime rate wasn't exactly on Gotham's level but he couldn't dismiss the possibility that somewhere something might occur, he could go on patrol for the remainder of the night.

Then his eyes drifted towards the nearby metro rail, he knew that a train would be passing by any second. If he acted now, he could still make it back to Hagun Academy.

"I didn't promise her anything." he reminded himself.

A small mental battle waged in his mind. The Bat within angrily chided him for even considering going along with that girl's wishes.

It growled, conceding that indeed it was necessary for him to control his magic but he can't involve anyone else, he SHOULDN'T involve anyone else. And besides, there were more important things to do, nothing mattered but the mission.

But another more deeper side of him, the man behind the Bat, recalled not only the young girl's voice but the fiery conviction in her eyes that he found admirable.

"I was just like you."

"I hate it when people think I'm just a prodigy because I wasn't always that way."

"But I didn't want to give up, I knew I had potential so I kept trying and trying."

"I want to be a strong capable knight who is willing to fight for my people, not someone who hides behind them."

It asked him: If he was willing to give Ikki the time of day, why not her?

But Ikki was different, he argued back, he saw a boy who needed help and stepped in. With that girl, it was the other way round.

The man behind the Bat disagreed. She was asking for his help too, this was important to her as it was for him.

Bit by bit this part of him nagged and pricked at his conscience until he noticed from the corner of his eye, at the far side of the rail line, the train was approaching. In a few seconds it will pass him.

His fists tightened and his expression grew more taut as the bat within tried to reason with him angrily. But Stella's face appeared in his mind again.

"I really think this can work. Trust me on this."

"All I'm asking for is a chance."

"Please."

The train had entered his line of sights and was about to pass him. With an irritated growl, he kicked off the building and spread his cape into its glide-mode. He quickly swooped down and just managed to land on the last car, his magnetic boots holding him in place.

Now en route back to the Academy, he grit his teeth as the wind and rain stung across his body like tiny needles

"This world is really turning me soft." he grumbled to himself.

TBC