I do not own Infinite Stratos nor do I own Rurouni Kenshin. All rights respectively go to Izuru Yumizuru, the author who created Infinite Stratos, and Nobuhiro Watsuki, the author of Rurouni Kenshin.
(Insert OP: A Cruel Angel's Thesis by Yoko Takahashi)
Zankoku na tenshi no you ni (After a drop of water hits the black screen, it brightens up to a red sky with clouds and stars as it shows the IS Academy symbol)
Shounen yo, shinwa ni nare... (Camera pans upwards as it shows the schematics of an Infinite Stratos before it shows its heart, the IS Core and then everything tuns white)
(Title of the show appears as Infinite Stratos)
Aoi kaze ga ima mune no doa wo tataitemo (Raiden is shown fully clothed and carrying the Sakabatō on his left hip)
Watashi dake wo tada mitsumete (As he watches the waters surrounding the IS Academy Island, the shadowy silhouettes of Akane Fujimoto and Miram Walker appear at the side of the screen going up and down respectively)
Hohoenderu Anata (As the silhouettes fade away, Raiden gives a small smile as if content with something of his life)
Sotto Fureru mono (A shadowy hand is shown pointing to the ground before an IS blueprint of Akatsubaki appears)
Motomeru koto ni muchuu de, (And then Houki is shown next as her image looks up at the sky)
Unmei sae mada shiranai itaike na hitomi (Houki's shadowy image sits on the ground with her arms around her knees as if crying before she looks up while Raiden is in the background and then Houki's image is replaced with that of Tabane, staring out of a window and her eyes blinking twice)
Dakedo itsuka kizuku deshou Sono senaka ni wa (Raiden is seen in his IS, looking upwards as he prepares himself for a fight, embracing his persona of Hitokiri Kingslayer. Four brief images of Hiko Seijuro XVIII, Akane Fujimoto, Miriam Walker, and Chifuyu Orimura are shown in order)
Haruka mirai mezasu tame no hane ga aru koto... (Raiden cannot contain the darkness he kept within himself any longer as Hitokiri Kingslayer emerges and the background is shrouded in flames of Kyoto)
Zankoku na tenshi no tēze (Ichika duels with Raiden, clashing his blade, Yukihira Nigata, against Raiden's Sakabatō, fighting on even ground)
Madobe kara yagate tobitatsu (Raiden and Ichika break away as Rin comes in to assist the latter against the former with her Souten Gagetsu. Brief images of the various cast of IS, including students of the Academy, Liu King-Sang and members of the Righteousness Union, and members of FEISAR, are shown in quick timeframes)
Hotobashiru atsui patosu de (Laura was next as she unleashes her cables at Hitokiri Kingslayer, but he dodges in the air and attempts to cut her down but is blocked by Charlotte's shield)
Omoide wo uragiru nara (Raiden backs away as Cecilia unleashes heavy firing onto Raiden, making him move and slice down her BIT drones. Brief images of the various cast of IS, mainly the main antagonists are shown in quick timeframes, in order of Udo Hina, Squall Meusel, Autumn, Madoka Orimura, and the shadowy form of the Dark Lady)
Kono sora wo daite kagayaku (Raiden in his IS takes a Battojutsu stance and charges forward as executes a Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu attack)
Shounen yo, shinwa ni nare (As Raiden comes in and slices at the camera, everything flashes white as the title of the story, Infinite Stratos Hitokiri Kingslayer, comes up on screen)
Classes began as normal at the IS Academy. From the looks of everyone, it seemed as if everything was normal as can be. And no thanks to Chifuyu Orimura who managed to cover up the fight Raiden had with the Triad, Liu King-sang. She kept the latter's existence as an IS pilot hidden and erased all security footage of the fight taking place that night.
That was only three days ago. Since then, she has heard no word on the Triad nor any other crime groups, the Righteousness Union included, making a move. What really concerned her though, when she was interrogating Liu, was who hired him to make such a drastic move on Raiden in exchange for $90k. Unfortunately, Liu obligated not to tell her, saying it was classified but it was just his way of saying "mind your own business."
For now, she will put it on the side and focus back on the present. No one need to know the truth. Not yet.
The girls within the class were already socializing amongst themselves as normal.
"Hey, did you hear the rumor?"
"What? Regarding the IS from that day?"
"That one was an out-of-control experimental unit."
"Not that. Apparently, if you win this month's single matches, you can have a date with Orimura-kun or Hataru-sama."
"Really? Are you serious?"
"I can't believe that's coming true."
Houki and Cecilia were just socializing but they noticed the excitement amongst the classes.
"What is everyone talking about?" asked Cecilia.
"I'm not so sure either," Houki shrugged it off. Though truth be told she was trying to hide away her own shock of the news.
The three gossipers from last night, Honne Nohotoke included, stood there with a perplexed look on their face.
"Looks like the story was spread incorrectly."
Two of them looked over to Honne and asked worriedly, "You didn't make things up again, didn't you?"
Honne could only rub her head in confusion. "Uhh…I don't think so?"
"Good morning," Ichika said as he entered the door alongside Raiden.
"Huh. I wonder what they're all excited about?" wondered Raiden loudly.
"Nothing!" said the whole class.
"Oro?"
Doors opened up to reveal both Orimura-sensei and Yamada-sensei, signifying that class has begun.
"Take your seats. We're starting homeroom," said Chifuyu as she entered into the door.
As soon as everyone was seated, Yamada-sensei took over the reins for today.
"We have a transfer student today," Yamada-sensei announced. The door to the class opened and everyone looked to see a young man of blonde hair and purple eyes. He looked charming and pretty to the naked eye as all of the girls suddenly and silently gawked.
As soon as the boy got up front, it looked as if sparkles and shine radiated from the boy. "I'm Charles Dunois. I'm from France. Nice to meet you all."
"A boy?" asked one girl.
The whole class erupted, much to the surprise of Charles.
"A boy! A third boy!"
"He's in our class, too!"
"A cute boy! The type you want to protect, too!"
"Quite down, all of you!" spoke Chifuyu as everyone complied to command. Shen then continued, "We will be having a joint practical training with Class 2 in the arena. Orimura. Hataru."
Both the boys' attention was met to Chifuyu's call.
"You will be looking after Dunois. Dismissed!"
Charles walked up to the two boys in front of him and said "You're the two male IS pilots? Nice to meet you. I'm—"
"Ichika, I would advise that we get moving, that we do," informed Raiden.
"Right back at you," acknowledged the Orimura. "Save introductions for later, Charles. We need to get moving now. The girls will start changing soon."
Ichika grabs Charles' hand out of nowhere while Raiden leads the way over to the locker room. Charles could only gasp in surprise, if not blush a little. As soon as they left, the girls could only look at how cute that was.
"We need to change at the arena locker room. We have to do this every time there is a practical, so get used to it fast," said Ichika.
"O-Okay," said Charles.
Ichika then notices Charles fidgeting a little and asks in concern, "Why are you fidgeting? Need to use the restroom?"
"N-No," said an embarrassed Charles.
The trio could only be stopped by a group of girls who saw spotted them in the hallway. This was going to get ugly fast.
"There's the transfer student!"
"He's with Orimura-kun, too! And Hataru-sama!
"Wh-What's going on?" asked Charles.
"Oro?" asked Raiden as he looked behind.
"There he is. Everyone gather up!" cried one of the fangirls.
"Look, Orimura-kun and the transfer student are holding hands."
"Orimura-kun's blue hair is nice, Hataru-sama's silver hair is magnificent, but blonde hair is fantastic."
"Let's go. This way!" said Ichika as he guided the two boys when they made a sharp right turn.
"They're getting away. We need to chase them."
"Wait! At least let me get a photo of you three!" said Kaoruko Mayuzumi of the Newspaper Club as she appeared with a camera. But the three boys kept on running at full speed over to the locker room, much to the disappointment of the crowd.
"Why is everyone making such a big fuss about us?" asked Charles.
"We're the only boys to pilot an IS, that we are," said Raiden. Technically that is not true considering Liu, but that was irrelevant for the moment.
"Oh, right,"
"Just keep running!" said Ichika.
By the time the three boys make it to the locker room, they were panting so much.
"Looks like we managed to lose them," said Ichika.
"For now, that we did," said Raiden.
"I'm sorry for troubling you all on the first day," said an apologetic Charles.
"Don't worry about it," said Ichika. "In fact, it's good that you're here. Being the only two guys in this school is tough."
"Is that so?" asked Charles.
"I hope we get along," said Ichika with a nonchalant smile. "My name's Orimura Ichika. Just call me by my first name.
"Raiden. Raiden Hataru. Call me by my first name as well, Charles-dono," said Raiden as he took off his shirt.
"Y-Yeah," said Charles. "Nice to meet you two. You can call me Charles, too."
"Not to make you panic but we're running out of time. We'll be late, that we will," advised Raiden which made Ichika panic and change quickly. But Charles only turned around and held her head to her face in embarrassment.
"You'll be late if you don't change fast. Our homeroom teacher is strict on time, that she is."
"O-Okay. I'll get changed," said Charles. "But…could you two look away?"
"Well, I don't have a hobby of staring at others as they get changed," said Ichika.
Raiden could sense that Charles was getting more nervous and said, "Ichika, it looks like Charles-dono is probably nervous about changing. Can you give him some room to breathe?"
Ichika complied yet he heard Charles put on the IS suit and saw that he was already changed fast. Both the boys looked surprised.
"You changed fast. You have a trick for that or something?" asked Ichika.
Charles waved in denial, "N-no. Not really." He tried to laugh it off, but it really wasn't working.
"It's hard to wear this since your naked underneath. You can get stuck in these," said Ichika.
Charles could only blush at Ichika's first comment as the boy looked on with an oblivious look. Then he took a notice at the special suit Charles was wearing.
"That suit looks unique," Ichika commented.
"It's an original model made by Dunois Corporations." said Charles.
"Dunois Corporations?" asked Raiden. "A family business of sorts?"
"My father is the CEO," explained Charles. "It's the largest IS-related company in France."
"Huh. The CEO'S son. No wonder," said Ichika.
"No wonder what?" asked Charles.
"It's how you hold yourself. Like this aura showing your good upbringing. It makes sense now."
Charles could only look slightly down. The boys caught onto this, but Ichika gave a perplexed look while Raiden thought of it to be serious.
Once the class assembles at the arena with Class 2, everyone gets assembled like they were in boot camp, all facing forward to receive their instructions from Chifuyu.
"First, we'll be watching a practical battle that involves close range and shooting," Chifuyu said.
As it's a combined practical between class 1 and class 2, there's double the number of people as per usual, and even the replies sound a lot louder.
"Today, I would like to let everyone see a real battle, and there just so happen to be lively girls here present-Huang! Alcott!"
While the class backed away, Chifuyu will make up some random sense to deal with them, and that's even more irritating. But then again, Chifuyu mostly uses physical attacks.
"Since you two have personal suits, you can start battle immediately. Get out here."
"Why me?" asked Rin.
"It's definitely Ichika's fault, so why..." Cecilia wanted to know why.
"You two better buck up-and show that guy what you two are made of!"
Seems Chifuyu whispered something to them, which skyrocketed their motivation and pride and put a smile on their faces.
"This is the stage for me, the representative candidate for England, Cecilia Alcott!" declared Cecilia.
"That's right. It's a great chance to show everyone the difference in ability as a personal IS pilot!" Rin said.
"Then who's my opponent? I'm alright even if it's against Rin-san."
"Fufu, that's my line. I'll slaughter you."
"No need to rush, you idiots," Chifuyu reprimanded. "Your opponent will be—On its way right now."
High up in the skies above, there seemed to be an IS in the skies. And it was coming down fast. And out of control.
"AHHH-! PL-PLEASE GET OUT OF THE WAY~!" cried a despairing Yamada-sensei.
Everyone all backs away, except for a certain dense blockhead who just stood there confused. Just as Ichika wanted to turn to look at the source of the voice, it was almost too late.
*BOOM*
One crash later and the dust reveals something rather disturbing. It was Yamada-sensei in a standard issue Rafale Revive Basic IS. And Ichika was right on top of her.
Ichika then looks to see that his right hand latched on to Yamada-sensei's right breast. He unconsciously gave it a few squeezes of it, getting a moan from the teacher.
"Umm… Orimura-kun…" A bashful Yamada-sensei called out to him.
"UWAAH!" He cries.
"Yes, there does appear to be a little bit of a problem here," Yamada-sensei puts her hand on her cheek. "You see if this progresses, Orimura-sensei will be my sister-in-law and…"
Ichika quickly backs off in apologies before three distinct lasers whizz past by his face. He turns to see Cecilia with a smile and a cross pop vein on her head.
"What a shame. I miss…"
Ichika could then feel a dark presence lurking behind him. Rin summons up her scimitars, attaches them together, and throws it at the clueless boy.
"Ichika, you idiot!"
Ichika merely closes his eyes and covers himself with his hands before hearing some gunshots by Yamada-sensei who manages to knock out the scimitar with her rifle, to the shock of the class. Even Raiden couldn't help but be impressed by that.
Chifuyu then turned to the class and continued her lecture.
"Though Yamada-sensei doesn't look like it, she was a former representative candidate, so shooting and flying like what she just did isn't much."
"Well, that was ages ago," Yamada-sensei admitted rather bashfully, turning around and standing up, placing her rifle into the weapon box on her shoulder, and then using both hands to adjust her glasses. "And I never got past being a representative candidate..."
Chifuyu then asks the other two IS pilots, "How long are you brats going to space out? Get on with the program."
"Wha? Erm, 2 vs 1 is..." said a stuttered Cecilia.
"No, this is too..." agreed Rin.
"Relax, if it's you two, you'll definitely lose," Chifuyu said casually.
Maybe they felt unhappy after hearing that they would lose, as Cecilia and Rin's wills started to burn, especially Cecilia, since it's important for her to beat her opponent at least once, so her killing intent and power have risen.
"Then, let's start!" Cecilia and Rin shouted out as they flew. Seeing this, Yamada-sensei flies up as well.
"I won't hold back!"
"I wasn't serious back then anyways!"
"H-Here I come!" Yamada-sensei said.
Yamada-sensei's talking was normal, but her eyes are now as cool and sharp as they were before. Cecilia and Rin launched a preemptive attack, but Yamada-sensei easily dodged them.
"Dunois, give a commentary on the IS Yamada-sensei's using," Chifuyu requested.
"O-Okay," Charles continued to watch the battle in the sky as he explained with a reliable voice. "The IS Yamada-sensei's using is a Raphael Revive from Dunois Enterprise. It's a machine developed at the end of the 2nd generation phase, but the specifications rival that of the early 3rd generation machines. In terms of deployed mass production IS models, it was the last to be sold, but has the 3rd largest user-base in the world. Only 7 countries are permitted to create it, and 12 countries use it as a standard IS. Most notably, because of the controls it can allow pilots to fit what they want. By changing the equipment, it can be configured for all types of combat, including close ranged combat, sniping and defending types, so there are many partnering companies working on it."
Engrossed in Charles's explanation, Ichika forgot to look at how the battle is right now. He turned back to look at the battle, and found that Yamada-sensei's shots were luring Cecilia and Rin to collide together.
Yamada-sensei then launches a rocket at them, and once the explosion occurs, two figures crash onto the ground in a puff of smoke just like that.
"Ku, uu...to think that I actually..." Cecilia groans.
"Ah, you...she predicted so much of your evasive maneuvers, it's so silly..." Rin also exclaimed.
"Is-Isn't it the same for you, Rin-san? We failed because you made too many meaningless mixed tactics and Impact Cannon attacks!"
"That's my line! Why did you release your BITs immediately? The power was depleted so fast!"
"Ggggrrr...!"
"Kkkkkkk...!"
In the end, both of them continued to glare at each other until the girls of class one and class two started to chuckle. Chifuyu breaks up the fight easily as her shadow overwhelms their forms.
"Okay now, everyone should understand the ability of the teachers now. From now onwards, please show some respect to the staff members. Especially you two!"
Chifuyu claps twice to divert everyone's attention to her.
"The ones with personal frames are Orimura, Alcott, Dunois, Hataru, and Fan. Then, we'll be dividing the class into groups of 8. Personal machine users will act as leaders, got that? Split up now."
The instant Chifuyu finished, the two classes of girls rushed over to Charles, Ichika, and Raiden.
"Orimura-kun, let's work hard together!" One girl asked a surprised Ichika.
"Teach me what I don't know~, Hataru-sama," Another said to Raiden, which made him response with an "Oro."
"Dunois-kun, please show me your piloting skills."
"Hey, hey, can I join in too? Let me join you too!"
The reaction's a lot stronger than what they expected, and Charles and Ichika did not know how to respond as we could only stand about. As for Raiden, well…he was a different story.
Either because she couldn't stand this situation or because she's angry that she didn't foresee this, Chifuyu pressed onto her forehead with her fingers, feeling really bothered.
"These idiots…" Then she bellows, "EVERYONE SORT OUT ACCORDING TO SEATING ARRANGEMENTS! GROUP LEADER ORDER WILL BE AS DESCRIBED. IF YOU DON'T GET SORTED INTO GROUPS FAST, YOU PEOPLE WILL CARRY IS MACHINES AND RUN AROUND THE FIELD 100 TIMES!"
The girls who were surrounding the boys like ants all moved quickly and managed to get into their groups within 2 minutes.
"I should have done this from the beginning," Chifuyu mutters to herself. "Really, they're a bunch of idiots."
"...That's great. I'm in the same group as Orimura-kun! I'm really grateful for my own surname..."
"...Sigh-, it's Cecilia...she just lost so badly..."
"...I'll be in your care, Rin-san. Please tell me more about Orimura-kun..."
"...Dunois-kun! You can ask me about anything you don't know! Also, I'm still single!"
"…Yaay! I get to be in Hataru-sama's group!"
Raiden sensed that Houki was part of his group. And he had only one response to that. "Oro?"
But then the girls also replied, "Oro?"
"Then, please listen up," Yamada-sensei gets the group's attention. "Each group is to take one training suit. There are 3 Uchigane and 2 Revives, so each group, please decide on the type of frame you like the most. It's first comes first served. "Every leader is to assist each group member in putting on the suit. As everyone needs to use it, we removed the optimizing and personalizing modes. Anyway, before lunch today, everyone please practice on the initializing."
The girls in Raiden's group took the opportunity to surround him, eager to be taught by him. Besides, since Raiden was the group leader, he can't just treat like them dirt for 24 hours. Things have gotten a lot complicated. Once an Uchigane was required, it was on standby ready for someone to pilot it. But Raiden aligned the girls, including Houki who was in his group of all people, in rows before he began to teach.
Houki pretended to look calm while each girl took turns practicing their walking and flying with the Uchigane. Some of them managed to trip or fly out of control. A few were still doing it and one was being told to start over again and again.
However, that was irrelevant as Houki's heart was
That being said, in actuality, even if that other girl tramples down on Ichika, that wouldn't interest her. That's because Houki herself is still ambiguous about her own feelings, especially for Raiden, so even if others are to ask her 'what do you want to do then', she isn't clear about what she wants. That's how the human heart is. To be honest, thanks to kendo training, Houki's still rather confident of her own figure. Even though she feels burdened by her own breasts, it's good that they can become part of her charm. Unfortunately—
'He hasn't noticed it when he was with me that day when I transferred rooms…did he?'
However, it's not that Raiden didn't notice it. Houki just felt that if he showed that he was really troubled by it, Houki would be bothered, but it didn't seem like he was bothered by her breasts, or by any girls' breasts for that matter. It's also a characteristic of human nature to not be so straightforward. In fact…
'M-Maybe…he likes big breasts?'
While Houki was pondering, the practical training seemed like it was a success, and the second girl finished activating the IS and walking.
Houki was up next yet as she looked at the Uchigane, she asked in slight annoyance, "How do I get up?"
"Oh, that's a common accident," Yamada-sensei said. "Hataru-kun, can you deploy your IS and help Shinonono-san mount it?"
"Oro?" Raiden was a little conflicted. "If you say so, Yamada-sensei."
Having a shocked look, Houki wanted to back away, but she knows that she has even more reason not to panic. Maybe it's due to the pride of practicing kendo, as Houki's expression remains unchanged while she steps forward.
"Houki-dono, get on my left side and wrap your arms around my neck," said Raiden.
Houki could only blush, but she did as command. The girls could only pout and want to have a turn next.
'O-Okay...that, that's right. It's over if I drop. I have no choice but to grab onto Raiden.'
After saying that in her head, Houki timidly reaches out and slings her arms around Raiden on his left side. As the IS suit is a skintight design, once her fingers touch Raiden's skin, Houki's heart start to pound faster.
'It, it's like I just touched him directly-KYA! WHAT AM I THINKING!?'
Raiden stares at Houki with an incredulous look while she continues to shake her head violently, bringing her up near to the Uchigane's cockpit. Raiden could only give a warm smile if not a bit of a chuckle.
Anyway, Houki, who was so happy that she wanted to laugh out and is trying her best to hold her emotions back. Perhaps it's due to that strong emotion of holding back that her face's looking twice as serious as usual.
Raiden wraps his right arm around her legs to hold her up, and it looks like it's happening in slow motion. As he ascends, Houki's heart starts to beat faster, and her body temperature begins to increase.
'Who in the world carries someone so suddenly like that!? Is, is he trying to scare me...speaking of which, it feels like he's so well-trained...'
Being mindful, she looks up at Raiden's face, who simply keeps looking forward and makes Houki get lost in her thoughts for a bit. But at that moment, Raiden seem to notice it as he looks around.
"What's wrong?" asked Raiden.
"No-Nothing! Nothing at all!"
As their faces are even closer than what she thought, Houki frantically looks away. What she was mindful about just now has been all forgotten. Right now, she's more bothered by Raiden. The body warmth of those strong arm muscles, and the breathing and heartbeat of hers that she worries about showing to him if they get too close-those are feelings of expectations and anxiety.
"Houki-dono," Raiden called out.
"Wh-What?" asked Houki.
"If you don't sit in onto the IS, we can't continue with the practical class, that we cannot. Do you think if I should bring you closer in?"
"No, no! If you bring me closer in, even I can't remain calm-"
"Oro? What did you say?"
"No-Nothing! An-Anyway, I'm okay!"
Like what Houki said, she pushes her hand away from Raiden and quickly sits inside the Uchigane.
"Raiden."
"Hm? What is it?"
"We-Well you see, do you have plans for lunch today?"
Though she's acting calm, her voice's obviously a bit louder than usual.
"Well, I was planning to eat with Charles and Ichika, that I was. But nothing beyond that, there is not."
"Oh, really?"
Seemingly looking like she just randomly asked, Houki's expression immediately lit up, but only for a few seconds as she reverts back to her cool expression.
"If, if that's the case, how about we have lunch together once in a while? Just us."
"Oro? You sure?" He asked which she nods. "Then let's meet on the roof this afternoon, that we should."
Houki's heart lightened up she activates the Uchigane before making it walk. This process isn't draggy, and it feels like some kendo movement. However, while Houki looks like a samurai who's trained before, she's actually overwhelmed with joy. She hid her feelings though, so of course Raiden doesn't know. However, a more accurate reason would be because she's feeling so happy that 'it doesn't matter even if she gives the other girls a little welfare'. The question is; what other girls have Raiden's attention?
'Ever since that day, when he saved me, I never had a chance to talk to Raiden properly. I have to do whatever it takes to thank him back!'
To be honest, she does have a secret plan.
Anyway, having gained an advantage over the other girls or so she thinks, Houki's mood is as great as ever. Or is it?
ON THE ROOFTOP…
"Is it me or does this happen on a daily basis?" asked Charles.
"It happens every so often, that it does," said Raiden as he took a bite of his onigiri.
During lunchtime, the gang was assembled on the roof. Three girls stared cross-eyed with each other, and electricity sparked right in the middle of their gazes.
Normally speaking, a high school's roof access will be sealed off due to many reasons, but the IS Academy has no such rules—on the garden that's decorated beautifully, as the seasonal flowers bloom, the stone cold floor makes people think that they're in Europe. As all the round tables have chairs, on a bright sunny afternoon like this, there would normally be many girls waiting around here to talk.
"Didn't I tell you that I want to come up here to eat since the weather's good?" Houki sternly asked Raiden, like she was mad. "Were you lying to me?"
"No, I wasn't" Raiden denied. "If anything, look towards Ichika."
"Since we're having lunch, the more the merrier, isn't it? Besides, Charles just transferred in, so he doesn't even know where to eat," explained Ichika, which made Houki hung her head low.
She looks like she wants to say something as she clenches her fist. She's holding some home-made bento that's wrapped into a cloth on her lap. As the IS Academy is a boarding school, it seems like they open the kitchen early for the students who want to prepare their own meals.
And then, Houki looks like she just made a bento today, and even had a share for Raiden! A share she wanted to share with him alone.
"Here, Ichika. This is for you." After saying that, Rin throws the container to Ichika.
He opens up and gets a nostalgic smell. "Wow, it's sweet and sour pork!"
"Yup, I made it this morning! Didn't you say that you wanted to eat it?"
"Ahem—Ichika-san. For some reason, I woke up earlier as well, so I prepared some things as well. If you like, please try some." Cecilia opens her basket. There's a stack of neatly arranged sandwiches. She then handed two sandwiches over to the two boys.
"Ichika, try one for me. You two, Raiden."
Ichika and Raiden both took a bite and their reactions were dramatically different. Ichika had literally froze as the taste of it was just disgusting. He was about ready to spit it out but then again, real men don't spit out their food, even if it is disgusting.
Raiden, though he had a slight bit of shock on his face, continued eating the sandwich. While he acknowledged that this was perhaps one of the worst sandwiches in the world to be tasted, he has eaten worse things before.
"Cecilia-dono, have you ever cooked before?" asked Raiden while continuing to eat the disgusting sandwich.
"Well, I followed the picture in the cookbook and made it exactly as it was, with a personal touch to it." answered Cecilia.
"I think there needs to be a reassessment there, that there is," said Raiden.
Either way, Rin did personally prepare some Sweet & Sour Pork for Ichika, and if possible, he really doesn't want to say that it tastes bad. Besides, it is really grateful for the intention. Besides, since Ichika had to cook his own food before he entered the IS Academy, he was already grateful that someone can cook for him. Ahh, it would be great if Chifuyu had the same thoughts. Then again, he has heard of rumors being Raiden a great chef as well. Maybe he could cook for him.
Raiden could only drink his tea and think to himself why Ichika was up here with the rest of the people. He did make a plan just to eat lunch with Houki alone without bringing anything but that was scrapped immediately. Though Rin and Cecilia came along with Ichika, he had no reason to not refuse to have more people together, right? Since they're both representative candidates, Ichika sure thought they should be able to chat happily about it.
The gang continues to eat lunch as they talk. Rin and Ichika were eating sweet and sour pork, Charles is eating bread that he bought, Raiden was drinking tea and having onigiri, and it seems like Cecilia bought her own share. This means that the sandwiches were meant to be eaten by her and her alone.
In the midst of all these, Houki, who's sitting beside Raiden, hasn't moved her chopsticks at all, or should Raiden say, hasn't even opened the cloth that's wrapped around the bento as she remains silent.
"Houki-dono? What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?" asked Raiden.
"That's not it..." She denied.
Houki silently passed the bento over, and Raiden only responded with an Oro. Opening the bento, Raiden saw many dishes with balanced nutrition-including salted grilled salmon, deep-fried chicken, chili fried konjac burdock, spinach and sesame salad.
"Oro? It looks so beautifully made, that it does," Raiden praised. "As expected of Houki-dono."
"I, I just had other reasons," Houki said. "I spent time on it so that I could eat it myself anyway."
"Even so, I'm happy, that I am. Thank you, Houki-dono," Raiden smile which startled the girl before she heavily blushed and found comfort in it.
Even though she looks like she doesn't mind, Houki still looks rather happy as she opens her bento.
"Oro? No fried chicken?" asked Raiden.
"That, that's because, huh..."
For some reason, her eyes seem to waver.
"Here. Let me give you a piece," Raiden puts a piece of fried chicken into Houki's bento, which surprised the girl and made her blush.
"Huh? W-What are you doing? I-I'm on a diet! That's why there's a missing dish. I-"
Raiden merely gave a reassuring smile before a chuckle came along. After all, he couldn't help but chuckle at Houki's cute blush, only for it to grow deeper.
But she soon clears her throat and gets in a serious tone. "Ahem! That's enough nonsense. Let's hurry up and eat! Lunchtime's not long enough for us to continue talking like this."
Raiden stuffs a piece of fried chicken into his mouth. He then turned to Houki and commented,
"Wow, it's delicious, that it is! You'd make a great cook, that you would."
Houki could immediately blushes and stutters at those thoughts now swirling around her head. As it's a bento, it will naturally go cold if left for a long time. Even so, the fried chicken Houki made was still delicious-the skin was crispy, not soggy at all, and Raiden didn't know if she knew that the food would get cold, as there's still the juiciness of the meat in his mouth when he bit it.
"Grated ginger, soy sauce, and...Oro, what's that? I definitely tasted it before, that I have."
"It's garlic," Houki said bashfully. "I mixed in a bit of pepper before frying and then added some grated radish to improve the taste."
Raiden then asked, "Houki-dono, is it really okay for you not to eat it?"
"...I ate all the failures myself, so..."
"Oro?"
"Ah, ahhh? No, it's nothing, nothing at all...anyway, I'm glad that you find it good."
Just now, her words did sound somewhat inaudible. Why did Houki try to cover her volume? Is she saying something that's meant to be left just as it is?
"Here."
Then, Raiden cut the fried chicken till it's large enough to feed a girl and grab it with his chopsticks. Of course, he placed his left hand underneath to prevent it from dropping despite the sling he was wearing.
"Wh-What?"
"Open wide."
"No, it's not, that, but…"
For some reason, Houki's stuttering. Her normally razor sharp personality seem to have disappeared out of nowhere, and right now, Houki's just showing a puzzled look as she looks at her bento and Raiden's chopsticks.
"Come on, Houki-dono. Open up," Raiden calmly asked with a casual smile.
"No, it's not, that...yeah, erm...ahem."
Just when Raiden found her smile extremely mysterious, she suddenly clears her throat and frowns. She opened as Raiden gently put the piece of fried chicken into her mouth before taking out the chopsticks.
"Oh, could this be considered what they call 'here, say ah`n' that couples do in Japan?" Charles asked. "You two are really on such good terms with each other."
The moment Charles finished saying, his face shows a smile that's easy to understand-that smile definitely belongs to an outstanding blond rich prince. However, once the prince finished, Rin and Cecilia immediately become an immortal tiger and a war goddess respectively.
"Wh-Who said so? How can you say that they're friendly!?"
"That, that's right! I request the right to correct that!"
Both of them continue to pester at Charles, but even in such a situation, his smile still hasn't disappeared.
"Hm, then how about this? Everyone, let's exchange food! If everyone feeds each other, there should be no problems, right?" asked Ichika.
"Hm? Oh, I'm okay," Houki felt dejected.
"I, I guess. Since Ichika said that it's alright, I can go along with you people," Rin said.
"I wasn't intending on taking part in such a crude eating etiquette, but since today's a normal day and we're in Japan, I supposed this should be called 'going along'," Cecilia muttered.
Thus, it seems like everyone's participating.
"Then, I'm starting now!"
After Rin said that, she quickly snatched the piece of fried chicken off of Ichika's chopsticks.
"Hey, return it now!"
"Um, hm...o! I-It-It's good, it sure is decent."
"Ho, I can do it if I follow the customs."
Even though her fried chicken got taken away, Houki's still looking rather carefree, and Rin looks like she's fighting for something.
"Sorry, Houki-dono, but the only piece of chicken left is the one I ate," said Raiden.
"Is, is that so?"
"Yeah. I'm not sure if you want to eat what a guy bit before, right? But if that's the case, I have nothing to give you now, since our other dishes are all the same."
"-It's okay even if it's bitten..."
Raiden got silenced for a bit before he broke it. "Ororo? Houki-dono?"
"Eve-Even if you...took a bite out of it, I don't mind."
Raiden then smiled and, grabbing the piece of chicken with his chopsticks, said, "Okay. Open, please."
"Ah, ahh-umph..."
Seeing her face, Ichika finds that maybe she's somewhat embarrassed? Then again, he doesn't know how girls can blush over him since most of the time they hide it.
"It, it's good..." said an embarrassed Houki.
"Is that so?" asked Raiden.
"Though I'm not referring to that...but, it's good."
It was then that she started to faintly swoon over to Raiden which he caught and allowed her head to rest on his shoulder, to the shock of everyone but Charles.
"Here, Ichika! Have some of my sweet and sour pork. Hurry up and eat it!"
"Ichika-san! Please have some sandwiches! I'll give you all of it!"
Rin and Cecilia immediately squeezed over. What's going on!?
""HERE!""
Both of them squeezed their food over to him, and they seemed to have giving a similar 'here, ah-' action.
"Hold, hold on a minute. I have sweet and sour pork here, and it's weird to have it go along with sandwiches, so I think I'll have it-"
"NO EXCUSES!" Both girls cried.
Ichika sighs heavily, wondering why guys cannot lift their heads in front of girls. At any rate, he starts from Rin's sweet and sour pork.
"Hm, it's nice...but Rin, why's your food warm?" He asks after taking a bite.
"I used a microwave to heat it up when I bought rice," She answered as she casually eats her own sweet and sour pork while also drinking the packaged oolong tea that she bought.
"But, really, I feel similar to that. Like a growing bird."
Good thing there's no other students on the roof other than them-speaking of which, if there were other people around, they definitely wouldn't do this. Besides, it's really embarrassing to be fed like this when they're so old. Maybe not to Raiden though considering his laid back personality. But Houki doesn't look like she minds either. Perhaps it's just a guy's thing or it's just Raiden?
"R-Raiden, is there anything you like to eat?" Houki suddenly asked such a thing to the blind boy. "Let me feed you something, okay?"
"But, Houki-dono, if you gave your share to me, wouldn't you have none left?" He asked.
"Mu...you're right..."
"Then again, I could always share my dish with you, that I would," said Raiden, making the girl blush immensely.
"Speaking of which, everyone, hurry up and finish eating!" Ichika reminded. "We don't want to run after eating, since Charles, Raiden, and I still have to head to the changing room at the arena."
Though the hangar's closer to the arena, they remembered they can use the changing room of the first arena, and the hangar's at the 4th arena, so in the end, they have to run twice. So if they end up spending too much time eating, they have to run quite some distance after that. Ichika wanted to be spared me the agony but Raiden, having been an exercise person both in the morning and in the afternoon, didn't seem to mind.
"Hm, Ichika? Don't tell me you take off your IS suit after a practical?" asked Rin.
"What? Can't I?"
"Half of the girls keep them on, you know? It's really troublesome."
"If that's the case."
Not just Rin, even Houki, Cecilia, and even Raiden of all people are wearing it? Ichika can't really tell with their clothes on. Ichika really felt that the girls and Raiden have it easy. His IS suit will wrap his ankles, so he really doesn't want to have another pair of pants over it. It'll feel stiff...He doesn't think that will happen, but it'll be hot.
"Di-Didn't I tell you not to continue staring at a girl's body like that!? You pervert!" yelled Rin.
"Huh? No, I don't mean that-"
"Who, who cares about what you mean, that's not gentlemanly at all!" cried Cecilia.
"I was just observing-"
"Wh-What's with you saying that you're 'observing' a girl's body? That's inconsiderate!"
Speaking of which, why is Ichika ganged up by them while Raiden, Charles, and Houki are simply watching on the sidelines without worry at all?
"What's wrong, Ichika?" asked Charles. who's sitting opposite of the two girls. Of course, Charles didn't lecture him. Even when he was staring at him, he's not angry at him. He's even concerned about him.
"It's great to have guys."
From today onwards, he has two strong partners of the same gender: Charles and Raiden!
"Is, is that so? I don't know what you mean, but it's great that Ichika feels that it's alright."
Maybe he's just shy, as Charles just sounded really stiff.
"...What's good about having guys..."
"...How unhealthy..."
"...An idiot who hasn't even realized what's going on..."
The three girls seem to mutter softly. Ichika didn't know what was going on, but guesses it's best not to ask. After that, for some reason, he got blank white eyes from this trio of girls. Why's that? He really doesn't understand how girls think.
Class 1 was met in the classroom once again to introduce yet another transfer student.
"U-Ummm… I have another exciting announcement to make. W-We have another friend joining our class."
The students immediately whispered in confusion to one another about this new student. Already they had Charles come in yesterday, and now another one? This day either gets more interesting or stranger by the day.
"P-Please be quiet, everyone! Her introduction hasn't started yet," Yamada-sensei hushes the class, even though she was thinking along the same lines for the students.
The new student soon enters into the classroom and turns to face the class. She was of German blood and had silver platinum hair. But the most significant feature was her eyepatch covering her left eye while the other one showed a color of a ruby. For a very brief moment, they caught on each other's gaze and were unmoved by their presence. They then turned away from each other.
"Introduce yourself," ordered Chifuyu to the girl.
"I'm Laura Bodewig. That is all you need to know."
Silence came to fill the room. Yamada-sensei then asked "U-Um…Is that all…?"
Laura ignores the question and merely came over to Raiden's desk. She glares at him in contempt and says,
"You…"
Raiden could only observe back in suspicion, obviously noting that the one-eyed German girl's aura was very dangerous. And directed at him. He grips tight to his sword, anticipating her next move as he could sense a killing intent from her.
*BANG*
Then, in a split second faster than any eye could see, a loud bang was heard, and the entire class became shocked. Laura drew out her knife and tried to stab at Raiden's head, but Raiden blocked it with his Sakabatō that he pulled out halfway just in time.
Yamada-sensei was stunned, moving in to intervene. "Y-Young lady, what are you—"
But Yamada-sensei was halted by none other than Chifuyu, realizing that with blades drawn, it would be too dangerous for someone to intervene now. The Brunhilde was giving a stern look to Yamada-sensei to stand down while simultaneously eyeing on the tense situation. Not only because of two students with blades drawn but also that with Ichika in front of Raiden, she prays he does not do anything stupid to try to diffuse the situation.
Laura looks intently with hate at Raiden, clicking her tongue that her attack was blocked in time by the blind male. She could easily strike again but she was not stupid enough to pull another stunt, especially with so many girls traumatized by her actions of pulling a knife on another student with such a killing intent.
She does however take note of the weapon he had. A Sakabatō, a katana whose sharp edge was on the wrong side. Laura didn't know whether to mock her opponent for having such a weapon or if Raiden flipped his sword to use the blunt end instead.
Not wanting to cause another commotion, Laura sheaths her knife and distastefully says,
"Hitokiri Kingslayer! I will never forgive you for what you've done."
Laura then takes her leave to her seat, leaving her target alone as he sheathes his sword away.
Houki however could not stand by to that as she gets up to confront the German. "That's quite rude of you to try to kill someone like that, transfer student! Apologize now and-"
"Wait, Houki-dono," Raiden stops her in her tracks. "It's not worth it, that it is not."
"But Raiden, she—"
"It's alright, that it is," Raiden reassures her. "Don't make this any worse than it already is."
Houki was stubborn but she knew in her heart that Raiden was right. With Chifuyu standing right there, it wouldn't be smart to create more havoc in front of her. She relaxes herself and backs down, to Raiden's relief.
"Sparing someone?" asked a scoffing Laura. "How unusual of you, Hitokiri Kingslayer. Shouldn't you draw your sword and kill her if she will get in your way, like you always do?"
Raiden calmly turns around and responds, "You can continue calling me that if you wish, Laura-dono, but know that I do not take that path anymore. I have changed, that I have."
Again, Laura scoffs as she prepares to draw her knife out again. "Really, now? That doesn't make up for all the lives you took. Including my friends. Perhaps I should kill you here and now then to put their ghosts to rest…"
"ENOUGH!" Chifuyu intervenes in a loud voice before reverting to her normal one. "You should be careful about the things you do in front of me. To your seats, all of you."
Everyone soon takes their seats as class finally begins, but the atmosphere was very moody, and everyone could not focus, clearly keeping their eyes on Laura and Raiden. The upcoming days were either going to be interesting or very traumatizing.
One thing though was certain for both the German and the blind man: blood will spill.
So we get introduced to the show's most popular girl of the series in disguise as a boy. Unlike last time where Raiden figured out who she was, I am making him completely clueless due to the fact that she is not part of his harem. Raiden will and have no harem. Sure there is competition between one or two girls but he will always first and foremost be paired up with Houki.
Speaking of Houki, the interaction between her and Raiden will be similar to Kaoru Kamiya and Himura Kenshin, the star lovers of Rurouni Kenshin. At the same time, I am trying to maintain Houki's tsundere attitude before she eventually grows more comfortable around Raiden which is not easy. On one hand, she is grateful for Raiden to protect her. But on the other hand, she questions her own heart regarding Ichika, her childhood friend. I do hope I play this out as best I can, especially since she is the one paired up with him.
And now we end with another transfer, our very lovely German girl. And now she has a bone to pick with Raiden. A rather nasty one, calling him Hitokiri Kingslayer. What history lies between the two that earned the wrath of the German girl? Find out next chapter.
A lot of people may wonder if I am simply copying from the original story. The truth is that while I am, there is a lot of editing work, especially on lines revolving around Raiden. One of my good friends mentioned that I needed to fix my tones and tenses and that's what I want to do with this story. I want to make it better not just in terms of characters and story telling, but also in grammar and punctuation. If I miss anything, because I do tend to type fast to the point I rush and misspell a lot of things, let me know in the future.
Like, favorite, follow, and review at your leisure. If you have any questions, please feel free to PM me.