Chapter 55
Tuesday, February 07, 2023.
Today's exams separate boys and girls, for reasons we don't yet know. The girls started much earlier, so here I am, walking alone to school, a rather strange sensation, since I was always accompanied. A hundred meters from the school, I meet Jojo, walking slowly.
"Hello Jojo, how are you..." He turns to me and really seems to be at the bottom of his lungs. "What's the trouble? Did something happen?"
"Ahh, hello Senji... Sorry I'm a bit sad today... but I don't feel like tiring you out with this..."
"You've already said too much, so tell me."
"...Thank you. Yesterday...yesterday Danny died."
"Your... dog died? Oh, my deepest condolences. But may I ask how?"
"He burned alive in the incinerator..."
"What?! But how is it possible... Wait, don't tell me it was Dio who..."
"No, at least there's no proof and nobody's seen him. Besides, it's not the first time Danny's been found in the incinerator, curious as he was... but this time was one too many..."
"Ouch, Ouchhhh... I've been cursed lately." We turn to see Jonouchi and Yugi. "Oh, hi Jonathan, Senji, how are you?" Jonouchi greets us.
"Hello to you both! Oh, you don't look so good, Jonathan... Did something bad happen?" Yugi asks.
"Well... my dog died yesterday."
"Ah shit... Sorry buddy, you have my full support." Reassures Jonouchi.
"Likewise!" Said Yugi.
"Thanks, guys." Jojo finds a slight smile.
"But you were talking about misfortune Jonouchi, is it related to the bandage on your face?" I ask, pointing to my cheek.
"Ah that," He touches his bandage. "I got surrounded by hooligans yesterday and only took one hit. But the four assholes, I smashed them! It really took the edge off!"
"Urps! Four at a time?!" Yugi is surprised.
"I still could have dodged that punch! Grr..."
"One hit against four hooligans? That's very impressive!" Jojo exclaims.
Suddenly, while we're chatting, a power pole falls close to us, giving us a fright.
"Sorry!" We look up to see a worker on his equipment, watching us. "Are you okay?"
"I'm really cursed!" Jonouchi shouts.
"Tell me, do you know Kokurano from class C?" Matsuda asks.
"Yes. There's a lot of talk about him right now, people say he has psychic powers." Says Shiria as she brushes back her hair.
"Whaaaaat? A guy with psychic powers?!" Jonouchi repeats.
"Yes, I hear he's in class C. They say he predicts the future and it works well." Explains Anzu.
"Personally, I don't care about that, I already see my future perfectly, right Senji?" Shiria turns to me, making a V with her fingers.
"Yeah, likewise, don't need a guy like him for that." I say, getting ready to go eat.
"Hmpf! Do as you like, but I want to know!" Jonouchi exclaims, clearly interested. "Yugi, let's go! Anzu!"
"Uh... But I..." Yugi is carried away against his will.
"Wait!" Same for Anzu.
"And there they go... Are we going to eat?" Shiria asks me.
"Let's go, I'm starving."
Shortly before exams resume, our three friends return, all with different expressions on their faces.
"So these predictions, what does it say?" Shiria asks.
"He told me I'd soon find the man of my life! I'm so happy!" Anzu says happily.
"He did confirm that I am cursed..." Jonouchi sighs.
"He... he spoke about countless words that fall from the sky... I don't know what to make of it..." Yugi looks confused.
"What I found weird though, was this fascination everyone had for him, especially the girls." Says Jonouchi.
"By the way, I heard a curious rumor in the canteen. He started to make news after a prediction, he predicted the house of a student in his class would burn down. The student was saved, but he's still in hospital." Tells Anzu.
"It's really these kinds of powers that are the most terrifying!" Jonouchi panics.
"Yeah... I don't believe what he told me, it's too far-fetched." Said Yugi.
(…)
"You seem doubtful."
(As Yugi says, this prediction thing is a bit over the top.)
"Not really. It's true that in general, this kind of power is reserved for the deity. But it can happen that a simple human can have it."
(I'll be keeping a close eye on it, nonetheless...)
It's the end of exams, I head for the library, and at Kimi's request, I pick up the book she wants. Wandering between the large shelves to find the right book, I see Yugi handing over a book.
"Oh Senji, are you looking for a book?" He notices me.
"Yes, for a friend, and you?" I look at the book in his hands. "I've never seen you read this book...?"
"Oh yeah, I found it on the floor, so I thought I'd bring it back... Huh?!"
"Yugi?"
Suddenly, we hear a loud noise coming from behind us, like something heavy falling.
"Countless words!" Yugi realizes.
(Of course!)
I turn around, turn on my magic circuits and conjure up Rho Ais, protecting us from the large shelves falling domino style, along with all the books.
When all is quiet, a bright light appears behind me and Yugi stands up.
"Countless words, I just had time to understand..." Yugi's voice changed.
"...Yes, things are clear, this guy manages to trigger the events he predicts, he's dangerous." I say, slightly breathless from all the weight I'm holding back.
"Let me help you..." Yugi approaches but stops. "But then? Anzu! She's in danger! Damn it, I've got to help you first, it'll be easier with a member of the Maken-ki..."
"Don't worry about me, just take my phone and send a help message with the coordinates on the Maken-ki group, they'll understand, I'll explain the rest, so just go ahead!"
Without answering, he nods, takes my phone and does as I ask, before handing it back and heading for the exit.
"Is everything all right? I heard voices coming from there. Don't tell me you're under the books! What's that light?"
"It's all right, don't come any closer it's still unstable, help should be here any minute!" I call out to the person who must be the library manager.
"Senji!" I hear Uruchi's voice.
"This way! It's pretty heavy!"
"What the...? Wow! What the hell!" Yan Min approaches me.
"You've found yourself in a bit of a pickle, haven't you?" Kodama said, using her spirits to clear the books around me.
"We'll ask him afterwards, let's help him get out of the way." Haruko with Yan Min's help, raises the shelves.
After several long minutes, I'm finally free, breathing more easily.
"What happened?" Furan asks.
"Sorry but I don't have time to explain, the person who did this is probably going after someone else now." I get up and start running.
"Hey wait for us!" Uruchi calls, following me with the others.
I head for my classroom, and just as I thought, it's right here. As I enter, I see a guy lying on the floor, wearing a long cape, with lots of memos underneath, and Yugi, holding a sleeping Anzu.
"Ah Senji, glad to see you're doing well." Yugi says to me.
"Yugi, did you manage to stop him in time?" I ask.
"Not really, he put Anzu to sleep with chloroform, so I made him play a little game and he lost." He explains.
"I see, you got him at his own game, well done." I walk over to inspect the fake psychic.
"If I understand correctly, this famous medium is in fact a fraud who also wrote down his predictions? It's pathetic." Said Kodama.
"And what's more, he came after you - why?" Furan asks.
Yugi explains the "predictions" he has made about them.
"I see, so he himself triggers the events he predicted." Understands Furan.
"But then that story about the fire I heard, did he cause it?" Yan Min realises.
"We'll know more when he wakes up. Senji-chan we'll take it from here, so take Yugi and Anzu to the infirmary, Aki-sensei take your statements and your report."
"Okay." I turn to Yugi holding Anzu." Help me get her on my back."
With that done, we head for the infirmary, with Yugi still undergoing the personality change.
"With all this, he'll be unmasked." I'm thinking out loud.
"Yes, no more glory at school! Hehehe. Thanks again by the way Senji, you really are amazing."
"...I don't know if I can ask this but... who are you?"
"Ha ha, you'll soon find out, maybe..." Then a bright light emerges from his puzzle. "Phew! What an adventure! Why are you looking at me like that? There's something on my face." Yugi returned, just like that.
"No, nothing."
Wednesday, February 08, 2023.
Today is the most important test of the week. The practical test, we don't know how it's going to go, but all we know is that it's the biggest coefficient since the beginning. It's 8 o'clock in the morning, and it's freezing cold. I'm on my own, as everyone prefers to go off on their own to stay focused, that's how high the stakes are.
"Screw you, freak!" I turn to see Bakugo behind me.
"Bakugo-san." I look at him, indifferent.
"Don't get in my way, or do you want me to kill you?"
"Hello to you too, let's do our best..." He doesn't even listen to me, passing by and continuing on his way.
(We haven't changed in all this time...)
I stop when I see a bunch of keys on the floor. I pick it up and look around to see if anyone is looking for it. And indeed, a girl with shimmering shoulder-length hair and big hazel eyes. She has two long locks on either side of her round face and a bobbed haircut at the back. She looks around in panic.
I approach her and hand her the bunch of keys, under her surprised gaze.
"Hello, isn't this yours by any chance? I found them on the ground."
"Oh yes! Those are my keys, thank you very much!" She takes them back, breathing a sigh of relief. "I'm so nervous I forgot to put them away and they fell out of my pocket, how silly of me!"
"Don't worry, these things happen."
"That's for sure! And on that note, good luck!" She said as she headed for the entrance.
I watch her leave, before looking at the other students enter, their faces drawn by nervousness.
(Nervous huh...)
"Welcome everyone to my live show! Make some noiiiiiise!"
A great silence, no one says or does anything. The person trying to set the mood is at the lectern, introducing and explaining today's exams. Present Mic, a professional hero and apparently also an English teacher. He's a tall, thin man with long blond hair, which he has combed up into a huge tuft at the back of his head, and a small brown moustache. His eyes are hidden behind sunglasses.
"I got chills down my spine, too, dear listeners! All right, students, I'll tell you how it's going to be! Are you ready?!" He continues, and the amphitheater goes silent as a grave.
(Present mic... I can't see her, but I imagine Inaho must be flinching in her chair, she listens to his radio every day.)
I slump onto the table, resting my elbow, raising my hand to rest my cheek on it, feeling boredom coming on fast.
"Now pay attention dear listeners! We're going to put your courage to the test with a ten-minute trial in our replica of a city district! You can take whatever you like with you! Everyone will gather at the designated resemblance point after the presentation, ok folks?" Explains Present mic.
"They don't intend to let friends or comrades cooperate together do they?" Bakugo asks from beside me.
"Go figure, they gave us a serial number for the exam but it looks like the real gathering points are elsewhere..." I yawn.
"It's probably planned, so I won't be able to crush you." He said.
"..." I don't answer, returning my attention to the explanation.
"We've littered the battlefield with 'bad guys'. And they'll appear in three different varieties, according to a point scale based on difficulty! Use each of your abilities to eliminate as many bad guys as you can. Your goal, dear listeners, is to get a high score!"
"If it's just defeating enemies, it's going to be easy for you."
(It's true that I was expecting more, but Rias and Akeno warned us that the exam itself isn't difficult, it's just the competition, and there's a lot of us...)
"And don't even think about directly attacking the other students or doing any anti-hero low blows, because it's against the rules, capisce?"
"Excuse me, may I ask a question?" A student stands up, raising his hand. "In the flyer, it clearly states that there are four types of villains!" He says, pointing to the sheet on our tables. "This kind of mistake is the height of embarrassment for a national academy of Kuoh's caliber! If we're sitting here today, it's because we need guidance on the path to becoming model heroes!"
(He should have read the sheet better instead of making a nuisance of himself.)
He has short dark-blue ankles and wears rectangular glasses. His eyes are also slightly rectangular, as is his jaw.
"Besides, what's the matter with you? Yeah, you, the kid slumped over his desk!" He points at me.
"...?" I look at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Can't you behave properly for such an important exam?! If you think this is going to be a piece of cake, then you can leave already!" He said with a dark look in his eyes.
"...You'd better mind your own business and pay a bit more attention to what he's saying, since he hasn't finished." I reply, rising before slumping back into my seat, crossing my arms.
"What did you say?" He asks, not understanding.
"Okay, ooook. Thanks for the transition, I appreciate candidate 7111! The fourth type of villain you meet is worth zero points! Let's call them 'arena traps'! Have any of you ever played 'Super Mario Bros.'? I guess it's pretty retro... Remember those things that tried to run you over?! The Thwomp? There's something like that in every zone! The 'thing' about them is that they go wild when it's crowded!"
"I see... It looks like one of those dungeon traps you just have to dodge and get past..." Comments one student.
"It's really starting to look like a video game." Says another.
"I sincerely thank you! I apologize for my rudeness!" He bows and sits down quickly.
"Well, that's it for me! As a certain 'Hero' by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte once said, a true hero never stops overcoming life's ups and downs' ! Do you remember the precepts Minori-sensei gave? Mental Beauty Physical ! Now it's time for the highlight of the show! Plus Ultra ! And I wish you all the best for this exam!"
After a short bus ride, we arrive in front of a wall so big that it goes on for a long way on either side, with a large city behind it.
"It's absurd how big it is..." I think out loud, warming up.
"It could very well be a real city! How many replicas like this exist on campus?!" Wonders one student.
I look at the other students, who seem much more relaxed than before. Then my gaze shifts to Tohsaka, warming up a little further away. Shortly before getting on the bus, she sent me a message, asking me to go and see her before the test starts.
"I see what you're up to. You plan to measure this girl's attention span."
Just as I'm heading towards her, the voice of the guy with glasses from earlier calls out to me, but I ignore it, continuing on my way.
"Who exactly are you my friend?" But he forces me to stop, putting his hand on my shoulder. "You didn't come here to get in the way of your comrades, did you?"
"...As I told you earlier, mind your own business." I push his hand away. "And I'm not the friend of someone who randomly calls out and judges people, now if you don't mind, I'm needed."
Without waiting for an answer from him, I continued on my way to Tohsaka, who was watching the scene.
"Hello Emiya-kun. I see that bespectacled fellow has decided to fixate on you."
"I don't know what's wrong with him but I don't care, so why did you want to see me?"
"Right to the point as always. So I'm not going to beat around the bush too, let's cooperate."
"..." I look at her, trying to decide if this is a good solution. "Okay, let's do this."
"Oh really? I'm delighted, don't think I don't, but I expected more concern from you."
"Kakashi-sensei keeps reminding us when we're on a mission with my team. Shinobi and heroes alike often have to work as a team on their missions, so team spirit is important. I find it hard to believe that we'll be penalized for working together."
"I think so too, nothing is specified on the sheet and nothing was said too. So, do you have a plan?"
"Well..." I turn to the other participants. "I bet they'll just go for broke and look for as many points as possible, even if it means all of them staying packed. So the plan is to run, take a street and get as far away as possible to be as clear as possible."
"I've been thinking the same thing, it's perfect. I'm counting on you partner." She said with a smile.
"Yes, likewise."
"Hey, Senji-kun!" I turn to see Sakura and Sasuke coming. "Mind if we join you?"
"Sakura couldn't help but overhear your conversation and found it interesting, personally I'm just tagging along" Sasuke explained.
I turn to Rin, who has a friendly smile on her face.
"Of course, the more the merrier." She says.
"There shouldn't be too many of us either." Sasuke said.
"Does this mean I can't join you?" It was Kiba's turn to approach.
"Oh hello Kiba-kun, no you're welcome, it's reassuring to have a second swordsman with us." Said Tohsaka.
"Let's do our best, Senji-san." He said.
"That goes without saying." I nod.
Meanwhile, other people are taking their cue from us, creating teams here and there. Others tried to join us, but as none of us knew them, we declined. Until a group we do know approached us, made up of Uruchi, Usui, Kai, Youta and Inaho.
"Senji-sama! May we join you?" Inaho asks with a big smile.
"Are there five of you?" Sasuke asked. "That's perfect as we'll be exactly ten."
"Yes, that's what I thought too. So that makes Uruchi-san, Youta-kun and me at the back. Kai-kun, Sakura-san and Usui-kun in the middle. That leaves Sasuke-kun, Kiba-kun, Inaho-san and Emiya-kun at the front. Sound good?" Tohsaka explains the plan of action.
We all nod, then explain the plan to those who haven't heard it. That done, there's only a few seconds left before the start of the test, so we approach the big door, staying behind the gathered students.
"Here we go!" Present Mic's voice can be heard from a tower in the distance.
"Huh?"
"Um?"
But nobody understands because the door is still closed.
"What's the big deal? There's no countdown to a real battle! Run! Ruuuuuun!" He exclaims. "Consider the test has begun!"
Hearing this, someone pushes open the door, allowing the students to enter the city. We wait for everyone to pass through before taking our turn, with Kiba and I in front, looking for a street to separate ourselves from the rest.
"By the way, don't forget kid, you've got a very good build now, but it's not enough, which is normal given your young age. And take the time to master this new power." All Might tells me.
Just as I'm thinking about his words, a robot emerges from the wall in front of us.
"One point!" I exclaim, projecting a sword.
"Target acquired! Murder!" An artificial voice comes out of the robot.
"Here we go! Let's get it out of the way and..." Tohsaka prepares to fight.
But out of nowhere, a laser pierces the robot, destroying it instantly.
"Art of seduction!" We turn to the voice to see where the shot is coming from, from a blond boy with a huge belt on his stomach. "Thank you for your help! Good luck with the rest!" He said as he sped off.
" We should have guessed that some would try to steal the target from others!" Sakura clenches her fists in rage.
"Should we keep running straight or try to get through an alley?" Inaho asks.
Looking off into the distance, we can see a large number of students rampaging over a large number of robots, leaving no chance for the slowest.
"The problem is that other people had the same idea as us." I look down a certain street, to see robots already out of action.
"Um, look over there, that street doesn't look like it's been borrowed and it seems like there's some over there." Youta points to an open alleyway, where numerous robots can be seen wandering further on.
"Oh that's a nice catch Youta-san, let's go!" Kai goes first.
Arriving close to the robots, his arm turns to metal and strikes one, piercing it. I arrive to help him, sword in hand, slicing off the robot's head, disabling it.
"Cooperate as much as possible to neutralize robots! Avoid destroying them all at once!" Tohsaka shouts to make herself heard.
"Roger!" We all nod.
Youta raises his hand to three robots racing towards us, lifts them up, before smashing them to the ground, destroying their legs and wheels.
"Telekinesis Huh? That's cool Youta-san!" Said Usui as he passed us by.
He comes dangerously close to the robots and while clumsily dodging their attacks, he touches them, then comes back to us and throws rocks.
"Be careful! Robot rain!" He alerts us.
Suddenly, the rocks are replaced by robots, hurtling straight towards us. The first to react is Sasuke, spitting a huge fireball to destroy them. Then Tohsaka finishes them off with her magic shots.
"What have you done?" I ask Usui.
"Hehe... That's my power, I can swap the place of things I touch!"
"Let us know sooner next time!" Uruchi snaps.
She uses her arrows of light to meticulously strike robots, rendering their arms or legs useless.
Sakura runs and hits the robots with a kunai surrounded by this golden aura, slicing them up like butter. Sasuke quickly followed, finishing off all the robots behind her.
Usui continues to send us robots, saving us a lot of time. Kiba and I slice them up as soon as they arrive, or Youta smashes them straight into the ground, and Inaho arrives with energy-infused fists to destroy them.
Reaching my fourth boost, I pounced on the last robot present and tore his head off with both hands.
"Phew! Good work everyone! Let's move on to the next neighborhood quickly! We've got just under four minutes left!" Tohsaka beckons us to follow.
"I think about it, but they've never told us how many enemies there are." Says Inaho.
"Yeah, with a time limit and vast battlefield, there's nothing like it to show our determination and make the most of everything we've got." Youta exclaims, beginning to get tired.
"As noted on the sheet, they're going to grade us on five points. Insight, the ability to analyze the situation quickly and effectively. Agility, the ability to make dynamic entries without ever being late. Judgment, the ability to face any obstacle calmly and coolly. And of course, pure fighting ability." Explains Uruchi.
"And I imagine it's thanks to the many drones overhead that they can score us." I say, looking up to see a large number of drones, probably one for each student.
"Look out, here come some more! Here we go again!" Tohsaka calls out.
We eliminate robots at high speed, much better coordinated than before. But without realizing it, we got closer to the large group of students in the center of town, hearing them fighting in the next street.
"Damn! We got close to them without meaning to, so what do we do? Do we still try to turn back despite the short time left?" Sasuke asks.
"Hmmm. No, our best bet would be to..." Sakura doesn't have time to finish before an earthquake is felt.
"What's this? Look!" Kai points further.
Many buildings collapse and screams can be heard on the other side. Hearing this, I head for it, not waiting for my comrades.
"Senji-sama, wait for us!" I hear Inaho in the distance but ignore her.
When I get there, I see that it's general panic, everyone's running away from something. I turn to see what's scaring them, and there's a huge robot as big as the buildings, ravaging everything in its path.
"That's crazy..." I mumble.
"He's probably the famous zero-point villain." Said Kai.
I turn to see my comrades who have joined me, all of them speechless.
"Are you kidding me?!" Youta and Usui exclaim.
"If that's the robot, there's no point in staying here..." Kiba pauses, widening his eyes. "Look out, it's attacking!"
The robot throws out its mechanical arm, smashing it into the street, creating a mighty cloud of smoke and debris. I put my arm forward and switched on my magic circuits, but it was too late: everything was coming at full speed.
"Don't take cover behind the buildings, it's too dangerous, stay behind Emiya-kun!" Tohsaka lands next to me and throws a green gem, which as it shatters on the ground creates a large green shield. "Keep going Emiya-kun, mine won't hold."
I pick up where I left off, charging my magic circuits, and conjure up a four-petal shield, big enough to cover us all. The green shield shatters when a concrete block hits it, but Rho Aias holds firm.
After a few seconds, everything calmed down, the debris stopped falling and the dust slowly settled. I make the shield disappear and protect my mouth and nose.
"Let's not stay here, we must have less than two minutes left, let's hurry." Sakura said, rising to her feet.
Everyone gets up and just as we're about to leave, I see her, trapped by the rubble, the girl to whom I've given the keys. The robot approaches, but there's nothing she can do.
"The hero didn't warn you, but using his power is really dangerous, your body won't handle it." As time stands still around me, Ddraig appears, as if stopping me.
(But I have to go save her! You see everyone's running away! Can't you think of something else to do? And how dangerous is it?)
"...It will destroy your body."
(...Hah, so what, it's not the first time, and it won't be the last.)
"...Very well, you've reached the maximum boost you can do, 8, that should be enough to protect you." Ddraig disappears, time returning to normal.
[Explosion] Without hesitation, I gather all the power I have, my magical cuircuits light up, I suck in as much energy as I can and suddenly, I feel as if all my muscles are exceeding their limits, glowing with a pale light.
"Emiya-kun? What are you doing? Don't tell me you're going up against that thing!" Tohsaka tries to stop me but it's too late.
I leap up, destroying the concrete beneath my feet, flying straight towards the robot's head, I throw my left fist back, the Sacred Gear shining brightly, I clench my fist, causing my sleeve to rip open, and on impact, I launch it, hitting the robot's head full force.
The blow was so strong that the front of the robot was completely destroyed, imploding from the inside.
"Fuuuu..." I let out a sigh of pain, seeing my hand damaged by the impact.