The morning sky did not smile today. It was clear for all to see that the sky wanted to cry but held back out of respect for someone on the ground, on Kivotos.
In an open greenfield not far from the city, many students from other academies, predominantly Gehenna, Trinity, and Valkyrie, attend the funeral of the nameless man. GSC officials are also present, especially Rin, Momoka, and Aoi. Sensei is also present there alongside a few Schale members, including Sena, and other minor students who wished to attend the funeral. And, of course, there's Hina, staring blankly at the closed casket placed gracefully before the monumental gravestone that includes the accurate depiction of his odd mask.
Although Schale, Valkyrie, and GSC are the ones responsible for running the funeral, Trinity, a school without any involvement regarding the case, is willing to extend a hand to assist with the burial, specifically Trinity's sisterhood, then later, Gehenna officials as a whole.
Prefect Team and Pandemonium Society members stood in long formations, still wearing their formal attires and caps but placing their rifles on the ground next to their legs, holding the barrels pointing upwards. The rifles used for this occasion are Karabiners for the Prefect Team and Bolt-Action Gewehrs for Pandemonium Society. Officials from both factions wear the same attire with some modifications: Ako and Satsuki especially have to wear black dresses without any openings,
Trinity's Sisterhood members hold their beads and gesture praying hands toward the casket, with Sakurako, the magenta-eyed and silver-haired Sisterhood leader, handling the sermon of the funeral.
Valkyrie students, including Kanna, Kirino, and Fubuki, wear the same attire, except the blue coloration of their attire is darker, one could mistake it for black. Those who used either single-action or bolt-action rifles were appointed as Valkyrie's firing squad. SRT students are even present here, but since they lack the clothes or money to get appropriate clothes, they wear off their rabbit headbands and helmets for the funeral's sake.
As the sermon still continued, Hina managed to find the slightest will to look away from the casket and gazed upon the other attendees of the funeral. Hina looks at Sensei, and he gives a slight nod, then looks elsewhere. She then stops upon realizing there are other… foreign people in here: an adult woman, a girl, and a boy, to her surprise. She couldn't see the weeping woman's face, but she could see the crying children's features, and they were… similar to the Clicker's face. Jarring, yet… sorrowful.
After the sermon, it was time to greet his departure. Sensei walks towards a particular position next to one of the firing squads and shouts:
"Firing squads! At attention!"
Said formations stiffened. In perfect synchronicity, presenting their weapons at shoulder-arms.
"Ready!"
Bolts pulled and snapped into place—a round cycled in.
"Aim!"
Towards the sky.
"Fire!"
*BLAR*
A single cacophony reverberates through the city, a grim revelation for all. A haunting of what has happened.
*BLAR*
*BLAR*
A grieving silence soon followed, and the weight of the loss it carries haunted everyone, regardless of how unknown he was. Sensei soon orders the formations to a resting position, feet split apart, one hand behind them, and holds the rifles vertically by their side on the ground. Afterward, there was another silence and soon began their final goodbyes to the Clicker. All bow their heads to pray for his peaceful slumber, save for Hina, whose gaze remained fixed on the casket. Intense, colorless….
Dead within her.
One by one, they begin to leave. Some pray before him, some bow respectfully to him, some place a hand on the casket, some only nodded at the casket; all leave with an inevitable tear or sorrow. At the funeral's end, only Hina, Sensei, Kirino, Makoto, and Ako were there. Hina remains stiffened, unmoving, even when the sky begins to cry. They all gather around her, and Sensei, disturbed at how voided she looks, crouches and hugs her tightly. Ako can only place a hand on her shoulder while the others stand and observe the casket with gloom.
Far atop a building overlooking the funeral, stands a black crystalline figure, holding an umbrella to spare his suit from the humidity the sky has granted the city with. He draws a flask from his coat and pours some of the whiskey from the roof. A custom that the Clicker had told him before.
"It has been a pleasure to work with you, my dear friend," he spoke with a smile. "You may have missed a lot about Kivotos' secrets, but I do hope you found no regret in your departure."
He sips his whiskey before turning around, leaving the forlorn scene behind.
Mathematics is not particularly a subject that Hina is inclined toward. In fact, she hates the complexity of this subject as much as any other student, only that she never complains a word about it. If she's to be frank, she still wonders how Yuuka from Millennium could breeze through these complex questions.
In accordance with her modified schedule, today's schedule is normal compared to the other days. She had skipped the majority of math lessons back then, but she was brought to speed with the critical topics and lessons. But even then, it is still hard for her to concentrate. Moreover, with the fact that she's been constantly haunted by his death with no rhyme or reason. Then… there's the other thing.
She's wearing earplugs in class.
The students sitting near her are befuddled as to why she's entertained by such an oddity, but they don't dare to ask since those students are actually delinquents themselves. The only time she wears off her plugs is when the Blu-ray videos play or the robot professing as the teacher guiding them through the lesson. Hina is pretty much annoyed about the necessity of earplugs, though she appreciates the peacefulness they bring when faced with chatter, writing, and tapping.
Occasional clicking.
She shakes her head and moves on to the next question in her book, a story question, much to her silent irritation. Unfortunately, the answer it asked of her requires a formula more extensive than what was written in her notebook. She had cursed herself as she remembered one of the students mentioning a practice session of mixing Algebra and Trigonometry. She looks over her textbook again and searches for the specific formula but to no avail. Looks like she has to ask.
She opens her earplug-
*CLICK-*
Scratch that. Let's… work on other questions.
There are at least eight more questions left, each with their own difficulty. She prioritizes answering any question that is the easiest since the robot teacher said it's okay to answer them out of order. She grabs her pen and writes down the answer. Wait a second, there's no ink on the paper. She looks at her pen, and sure enough, to her abject horror, she's holding a retractable pen. With muffled dread, she bobs her head left and right and even looks into her drawer, but her capped pen is nowhere to be seen.
"Dammit! D-do I have to…?"
She stares cagily at the pen in hand and hovers her thumb over one end of the pen to press it down. However, attempting to do so only brought her halfway. No matter how much strength she poured in, she couldn't even click the pen. So much so that the students in the same row as she noticed her head was sweating and her demon wings threatened to snap.
"H-Head Prefect?" a student called nervously. "Y-you good? Hey, you hear me?"
After half a minute, she stops, and then another realization hits. Instead of pressing it directly, she uses the table instead to open up the pen. Thankfully, she didn't hear it click, but she could feel it reverberate through the pen, which caused her to feel some chill in her spine. With a hasty huff, she finally writes down her answer. Satisfied with answering three questions, she searches for the next formula in her textbook. Until she feels someone pokes her arm.
Hina wears off her ear plug and faces the delinquent student. "What is it?"
"Hey.., is this your pen?"
Hina widens her eyes slightly at the pen she's holding up. "Where did you find it?"
"It's right under my table."
"T-thanks," Hina received her pen, not realizing how stiff her arm was.
The delinquent nods before returning to her business. Hina wears her earplug again and stores her capped pen in the drawer. She soon writes down the formula in her book, but midway into her answer, she… stops. Her mind blanks out on her, and she can't remember what she was writing there.
"Be honest. Is it your first time?"
Hina shakes her head as unnoticeably as she can. That darn voice of his…. Makes it hard for her to focus, especially when her mind goes on a playback for a moment. Or is it because she lost any impetus to continue her study? Doesn't matter. She forces herself to answer, even if her answers fall short of what she expects of herself.
Tik-tak-plik-pak-tuk-tuk-tak*
Even with the earplugs, she could faintly hear her surroundings, and to be fair to her, the class is indeed loud, so much so that the assigned teacher is having a hard time quelling them down. Or could it be her ears…? She disregards that thought and focuses back on the story question-
Click*
Hiik-!
She drops her pen and holds her ears. It's so faint, yet why are her ears choked on it? She feels herself becoming more nervous as she makes sure she can't hear anything else momentarily before she gets back to work. She wants – prays for this class to be over soon, yet she has to finish her assignment first.
"The heck's up with her?" a student asked another near her table, unbeknownst to Hina.
"No idea. You see how twitchy she is all the sudden?"
"Don'tcha wanna ask her?"
"Should I? Don't think she even hears me anyway."
"What's up with those plugs, though?"
Hina thinks as hard as she can to find a solution to this question but her mind blanks out again. As much as she wants to write something, she doesn't feel like it for some reason; even forcing herself to do it doesn't help. Tired perhaps? She remains as she is and lets her eyes stray off around the class. She observes the usual chaos folding before her and the loud chatter of other students who she considers to be good students in this class. It is… so weird to see all of that with barely any noise here. Her eyes stray off to the robotic teacher, who is now walking to the loudmouth and answering their questions as best as he can-
Wait…. What?
Why is he wearing a mask?
She freezes as soon as his head turns in her direction and realizes the mask she is so eerily familiar with. Those two eyes uncannily stare at her, unblinking, as if he wants her to remember her own mistake. She can't move but only tremble at his uninvited presence. She can't even breathe properly, nor can she look away. Staring deep into those black pupils of his like there was something more within the abyss like she was a moth to a flame.
She jumps the moment she feels a shake on her shoulder. She snaps to her right to see that the delinquent student is incredibly concerned, then points at something in front of them. Hina looks forward to finding that the unamused robot teacher is now at her table. The person wearing that mask is nowhere to be found.
Hina wears off her earplugs. "E-excuse me, sir. Did you say something?"
"Did you not hear what I said about the new homework for today?"
Amongst the sounds other than clicks, she grimaces to herself. "I'm… sorry, sir. I didn't."
The robot teacher sighs. "Of course, you didn't. Maybe don't wear earplugs during class next time. Why do you wear them anyway?"
"…." Hina stared into nothingness. "My consultant told me to wear it. To block the noise I'm terrified of."
"… Is it about that clicker guy?"
"Yes…."
The few students listening can't help but wonder what terrified Hina the most.
The teacher gives an understanding nod. "Very well then. Have you done your assignment?"
"Last number left, sir."
The teacher nods approvingly. "Okay, finish that up and submit them at my desk, Head Prefect."
"Yes, teacher."
She is soon left to her own devices, and the students distract themselves with something else. By the time the bell tolls, she is the only one left in the class, and unable to finish the last question due to the distractions she's suffering from. The teacher is thankfully sympathetic enough to tell her to submit it along with the homework at a later date. Despite this leniency, however, she realizes how hopeless she is. How vain it felt when her study turned out like this.
She got called in to deal with delinquents. It's been a while since she's last deployed on the field, and it was perhaps a good change of pace in her duties. Unfortunately, she can't wear earplugs for this event or similar, and she has to bear with the sounds she will inevitably hear. She realizes minutes earlier that guns could create the sounds she didn't want to hear, but since it follows up with a gunshot a split second later, it didn't bother her much…. Except when the gun is empty.
So much for that.
And much to her consternation, it was the Hot Springs Department again, goddamn blew up a hotel at Hoffman District, causing damages to surrounding buildings and completely rendered a street useless to go through. She grimaces hard, like really hard, as her Prefect subordinate drives the car as fast as she can, changing gears, hitting the gas, and activating blinkers occasionally, which produce various kinds of sounds, some of those sounds cause her to grimace or feel sickened but still bearable when she's out of focus. She looks at her MG and pulls its bolt.
*SHRIICK-SHRACK*
That's… good. Then she cocks the M1911 pistol in her other hand.
*CLICK-CLACK*
Hina hitches her breath. This one's more bearable to hear since it sounded more… blocky or too chunky if that makes sense.
"Um, Head Prefect," the driver called. "Can I ask something?"
"Make it quick."
"I never seen you using a pistol before," she elaborated. "Did you recently buy another one?"
Hina frowns as she spares a glance. She answers anyway. "It was a gift…."
Thankfully, the driver seems to notice her discomfort. "I see. That's all, Head Prefect."
*TUNG-NING-NING*
Hina quickly draws her phone, an android with fingerprint recognition, much to her relief, and answers the call from Ako. "This is Hina. What's the situation at the battle site?"
"Not really good, Head Prefect," Ako answered. "Hot Springs have rigged most of the block with explosives, and we got considerable casualties. Kasumi and her cronies have attempted an assault to break our blockade, but Iori and Iroha managed to repel them back."
"Wait, Iroha is there?"
"I'm as surprised as you are. Apparently, she and Ibuki had a meeting with the manager there until Hot Springs blew it up. She's pretty much angry at Hot Springs right now and willing to give assistance."
"Are we expecting any Pandemonium forces?"
"No, just those two, Head Prefect."
"Got it. I'm almost at the site. Tell them to meet me at the western side of the block."
"I'll inform them immediately. Be careful, Head Prefect."
Hina hangs up the call and puts the phone away, sighing once again.
"Another day in the office, Head Prefect?" her driver asked in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"…I guess so," Hina responded.
Her car soon stops at the west side of the incident and she drops off. Among the saluting Prefect members, she manages to meet up with Iori and Iroha, the latter is still on the tank turret, trying to calm down the crying Ibuki.
"Head Prefect!" Iori respectfully addressed.
"Heya, Hina," Iroha rubbed Ibuki's sobbing head.
"Greetings," Hina nodded back. "What's wrong with Ibuki?"
"Uwaaaah!" Ibuki cried. "Ibuki was so excited to try the hotel's swimming pool! Why did they blow it up…? Ibuki doesn't know what's wrong with that hotel…."
"I know, I know," Iroha grimaced. "It's okay, Ibuki. I'm gonna make sure that they will regret blowing up that hotel for no reason for you."
Iroha then glances at Hina, who asks. "On business?"
"Was, until they ruined our day."
Hina nods, understanding her frustration, before turning to Iori. "What's the situation?"
"We got the whole block locked down," Iori explained. "We already have Panzerfaust teams guarding the north and the northeast path. The heaviest blockade is to the south; we placed machine gunners and howitzers there because of their last assault."
"How heavy was the assault?"
"Their previous forces were moderate in size, but the jerks keep tossing at us a lot of dynamites, like- a lot, and they had excavators repurposed to use with flamethrowers to attack us. Iroha happened to be around, thankfully, and we managed to repel them."
"We really need to figure out where Kasumi got those explosives later," Hina crossed her arms and shook her head. "What about this side?"
"It's the weakest security here on our part since the Hot Springs aren't watching this side," Iori glared at the path. "However, they have rigged these roads leading to the demolished hotel. Had to send at least two demolitions teams to Medical Emergency because of those traps, specifically ones underneath this street."
"…. You mean they drilled underneath this street to place bomb traps?"
"Yep, pretty much. I doubt Iroha's tank can get through here. Either Iroha has to go through the south or north; fewer traps to worry about but more shooters to deal with. But the path through north will be very tight for Iroha's tank."
"…," for once, her concentration actually blocked out all the noises. "Do you have a map of this entire site?"
Iori quickly places a map on the nearby table, and relevant officials gather to point out the enemies, positions, and situations in different areas. The reason for Kasumi to demolish that hotel? Potential natural hot spring water, in the middle of town, as if that makes sense. A moment of mulling over the map….
"I got a plan," she turned to the tanker. "Iroha, get your tank to the south side and grab any heavy unit Prefect Team you can find there. You'll be leading the invasion force."
"Okay," Iroha nodded.
"Iori, we need infiltrators to move in through this side of streets. Do we have any here?"
"Uuh…, you're not talking about the Intel Department, right?" Iori hesitated.
"No, I just need students who are agile and perceptive enough to sense where the bombs are and navigate them with utmost pace. A skeleton crew or two should be enough to throw them off during our assault. We can deal with defusing the bombs once this conflict is settled."
"I think I know some of them who can do that. I'll get to it later," Iori nodded. "What about me, Head Prefect?"
"You'll be coming with me, along with three other assaulters, to go straight to the hotel."
"Wha- but isn't that suicide, Head Prefect?" Iori asked. "Not that I doubt you, but they got this whole place rigged."
"We're not going through the streets nor the buildings."
"Eh?" Iori paused. "Where are we going?"
Hina glances back, giving a certain look that Iori doesn't like.
The mischievous petite brown-haired demon was on a happy streak as she predicted the hotel had a potential hot spring to discover, but after some time of examination, despite having the potential to build an onsen here, the water's distribution was not good. There weren't any minerals or magma rocks that could potentially grant that sweet, hot, sultry spring waters she was looking for. Meh, just a little mistake. Not much of a problem. More pressing matters at hand is that the Prefect Team is here.
As she's about to plan how to break out from this encirclement, Megu, the red-haired, well-endowed, airheaded demon, barges in with immediate concern. "Leader! Leader! Prefect Team is launching an assault from the south, and they're hitting us hard!"
"Ha! Really?" Kasumi grinned. "Have the flamethrowers halting them back?"
"Yeah, but it's no good!" Megu answered. "They're pounding our front with artillery, and our traps are set off on us instead of them! Oh, and the Prefect grunts are advancing with Pandemonium's tank! Any excavators we're about to use are destroyed!"
"Hmm…. Nnnngh!" Kasumi's face scrunched up. "It is no good."
"President Kasumi!" one of her subordinates barged in. "We've got attackers right behind our frontline, and they're causing chaos!"
"Eh?" Kasumi became perplexed. "Where did they come from?"
"From the west! We couldn't see how many they are, but they destroyed all of our explosive cache in the post office!"
"How?!" Megu was startled by the revelation. "We got that side rigged all over! There's no way they could pass that easily!"
"Gah! That is no good," Kasumi soon brightened. "No matter! I have come up with a perfect plan to escape! Tell our members to hold them back as long as they can until my drill finishes its job!"
"Yes, president!" her grunt soon left.
"Megu, do what you can and help them out!"
"Okay, Kasumi!"
"Hang on a sec, Head Prefect is not here, right?"
"Not yet."
Kasumi sighs out in relief. "Then I have nothing to worry about!"
"Do…. Do we really have to go through here, Head Prefect?"
"I did warn you won't like it."
"Yeah, but it's gonna be a pain in the ass to wash up after this."
"We've got no choice. It's like what Sensei said, sometimes we have to get dirty."
"…. He didn't teach you something weird, right?"
"…Huh?"
Contrary to the conversation, the sewers underneath the streets are walkable with the existence of platforms and small bridges to cross the dirty waters. However, that doesn't mean they don't have to suffer the occasional pungent smell the sewers offer to them. One of the Prefect assaulters leads the way with a map as the rest stays behind her in a line. Hina stows her MG for now, opting to use her pistol with how tight the sewers are for a firefight. It's an odd sight, even for Iori, but for some reason, Hina looks more intimidating with a pistol rather than her MG. She recognizes the authority her pistol carries, but there is another air about it that she hoped she was just imagining things.
It was personal. Verily so.
Back at the task at hand, their point woman informs them that they're close. In the midst of their journey, Hina's radio crackles.
"Hina. Iroha here. We've made good progress but our advance is slowed down. Looks like those Hot Springs workers are throwing all they have at us, and they're getting too close for comfort for artillery. We gonna hunker down for a while and get back at you."
Hina grimaces as she presses her radio with her other hand. "Got it, Iroha. Infil Team, status?"
"This is Infil Team 1. We're holding up at the office building and taking potshots at them. Infil Team 2 is doing recon on the alleys while they're distracted. Managed to blow their explosive storage and a few blockades along the way. Should we catch up to you at the hotel?"
"No, Team 1. I need you to keep running interference on your end until we reach the hotel. Do hit-and-run tactics. If possible, I need you to circle around to the south and hit them from behind to help Iroha and our forces advance."
"Head Prefect, Infil Team 2. Got your message. We can assist with the flanking maneuver for the assault force. Team 1, think you can cause more chaos here?"
"Not a problem. We already mapped out our ambush spots anyway. Team 2, don't forget to grab the explosives we salvaged at Gonshukku Alley on your way there."
"Roger, Team 1. Careful."
"Copy. Now- Wait…. Crap! Shimokura Megu sighted! Our spot is pelted with fire! We're drawing back out to the alleys! Head Prefect, we'll get back at you soon, over."
"Received. If you're receiving enough casualties, pull back to the west barricade, over."
"Okay! Team 1 out!"
Stowing her radio away, one of her assaulters commented. "I'm surprised our infiltrators managed to get that far."
"To be fair, though," the other assaulter commented. "Those traps look easier to avoid than to disarm. The demo teams said that the bombs they crafted violated the logic of conventional bombs, so…."
"A bit like Juri, then?" Hina suddenly interjected, to everyone's surprise.
"Well, I guess you could say that, Head Prefect."
Iori sighs. "How the hell they haven't blown themselves up if that's the case?"
The point woman glances back. "Maybe because it's magic?"
She receives various kinds of looks. Disbelief from other assaulters, skepticism from Hina, and a scowl from Iori.
"N-nevermind," the point woman flushed and looked forward. "Let's keep going."
Still halfway to go. They continue to traverse down the sewers-
*RUMBLE*
They all soon stop in their tracks.
"You guys hear that?" Iori asked.
Hina stares off to her left, past Iori. "Did that come from our left?"
"Sounds like it," the point woman looked at her map again. "Follow me."
They run behind their point woman. After a few turns and a couple of bridges, they quickly crouch down at a corner of a tunnel. Ahead, across the unfiltered waters, is a giant red vehicular drill that breached through a wall. The door on its side hissed open, revealing a Hot Springs clubber jumping out and cheering her comrades deep within the new tunnel.
"I see…," Hina grimaced, clicking the radio. "All units, this is Hina. We found their escape route. We're going straight for Kasumi, over."
"Copy, Hina," Iroha responded. "Go teach her a lesson. Ibuki gonna love to hear it."
"I'll make sure of it. Hina out," Hina turned at her enforcer. "Iori, take the first shot when you're ready."
The tanned demon girl wordlessly aims for the drill operator's head and then presses the trigger.
*Cl-BWAR*
The operator jerks forward and falls unconscious as her halo vanishes, stunning the other Hot Springs members in place.
Iori turns to the assaulters. "Hit 'em up!"
All three, armed with two STG44s and one FG42, soon open up heavy fire at their escape route. Hina fires accurate fire with only her right hand, taking down two in the process. After raking up four more casualties on Hot Springs end, the enemy soon falls back deeper into the tunnel.
"Move!" Hina ordered.
The assaulters take the point while Iori and Hina stay back as support in a Y-formation. Climbing up the slowly winding tunnel, they can hear the frantic screaming of the Hot Springs members, alarming the Prefect Team's arrival. It doesn't matter if they could alarm others because the Prefect members know for a fact that if Hina is here already, they all are screwed. A few of those clubmates came back to halt their advance but were soon gunned down by the always alert point women. A few more come around, but unable to stop Hina's team's advance.
"Taste thi- AAGH!"
Something was thrown at them prior to the HS member's knockout. When it landed at their feet….
A lit dynamite.
On adrenaline, Hina dashes forward, grabs the dynamite, and throws it behind her, deep down into the exit.
"BRACE!"
They all quickly hit the ground.
*BLUAR*
A loud rumble soon followed behind them. After the rumble stops, they slowly get up and look behind them.
Their only way back is caved in.
"…. Our only way now is forward," said the member with FG42.
"If that's the case, Iori and I will take point. We'll deal with the heavy brunt while you support us."
"Yes, Head Prefect!"
It's at this point she finally holsters her pistol and switches to her MG. Since this path doesn't branch out anywhere else, she doesn't have to worry much about her CQB performance. They march on, and by the time Iori spots more Hot Springs grunts coming their way, a serving of 'hell hath no Fury' by Hina greets them in the form of purple hailstorms. Any cover found within that tunnel, barrels, barriers, or even giant boulders, are considered null by the Head Prefect's wrath. A trail of sleeping bodies left in their wake.
Each click she heard from their weapons was replaced with constant gunfire, which was more than enough to erase her discomfort. For now, she has to see someone for a 'little talk.' That one miniature-sized annoyance.
"Hello? Helloooo~? What's going on down there?"
Weird. The radio isn't broken in the slightest, but she could've sworn she could hear a gunshot in the transmission. Then she felt the rumble coming from the very tunnel she ordered her henchwomen to dig. She remains optimistic as ever, but something about this unsettled her a little.
"Heh. They must be cheering after reaching the sewers. Now, let's see…. Where's the next perfect spot for my hide-"
*Bratatatata-*
She snaps her head forward. She can hear a faint chorus of gunfire nearby, and… it's coming from the tunnel they dig.
*Bratatatatatatatatatata*
That MG sound feels familiar. Wait a second.
"PRESIDENT! PRESIDENT!"
Kasumi turns at her club member. "What's going on? Did something happen in our escape route?"
"She's here! The Head Prefect is here! She's coming through our escape route!"
In that single sentence, her world immediately crumbles. A shadow befalls upon her face as she realizes the dark prophecy coming for her.
"UUUAAAAAAAGGGH!" Kasumi's confidence was gone in an instant. "Tell everyone to regroup back here! We gonna make a last stand!"
"Got it, boss!"
As her henchwoman left, Kasumi frantically checked her beloved pistol once more and grabbed the detonator and C4 she could find before making a run outside.
Emerging out from the tunnels, they soon met with heavy resistance. Hina shields the incoming rounds with her own wings while Iori dashes in a zig-zag onto the nearby pillar. The assaulters soon follow suit to find cover and provide suppression. The FG42 gunner, especially, manages to knock out a Hot Springs machine gunner with ease to provide an opening for Hina. Before another enemy can take over the MG, the two Prefect assaulters shoot at the railings where the MG was set up, causing it to fall from the second floor. Iori prioritizes any heavy units on sight while the assaulters continue to suppress both the second and first floors.
Hina spreads her wings open and glares at the enemies on the ground floor. Twas then she finally unleashes the purple hell.
*BRATATATATATATA*
The only thing left standing there are the riddled walls, unusable construction vehicles, and damaged cars she can't see that far. Any furniture, lighting, and other miscellaneous items vanish as her enemies fall, so much so that the pillars supporting what's left of the second floor ahead are destroyed and cause them to fall down. By the time her wrath is over, there are still more stragglers well hidden in the middle of those ruins and new reinforcements coming from the south side of the ruined hotel.
As both sides return fire, a Prefect assaulter pulls a pin. "Achtung! Stilehandgranate!"
Hina observes the grenade and finds its mark on the cover the stragglers are hiding in. "Ohcrap, ohcrap! Grena-!"
*BUARM*
Hina suppresses the south side until she runs out of ammo. She puts her MG aside and draws her pistol, firing a few shots calmly until she reaches a nearby wall for cover. The STG44 assaulters soon space themselves and swing to the south, dumping all their ammo until the Hot Springs reinforcement is pinned down and barely able to fire back. Iori gathers up all her power from her halo into her gun and fires three rounds into the makeshift cover, punching through with tremendous power that she manages to knock out two enemies and crumbles what is left of the cover.
The FG42 assaulter pulls a pin. "Flash!"
She throws the banger, and the moment it hits the doors behind the Hot Springs developers.
*BANG*
"GYAAAGH!"
"MY EYES!"
"Ouch, that was loud!"
Hina and the FG42 assaulter quickly advance, move around the cover, and shoot them point-blank before they can lift a single rifle. Confirmed that the area is clear, Hina finally gets a good look at the demolished hotel. The only thing left of the building was what remained on the second floor and a giant hole in the middle of what she assumed to be the hotel lobby. Deep in that crater, she could see numerous deformed open pipes, and the bottom of it was flooded with water. This… wearisome club just destroyed a building, found no potential of a Hot Spring, and left the site like they didn't just blow it up? Immature, and a salt to injury for the people who actually worked here.
"Hina, this is Iroha. You hear me?"
She clicks her radio. "I'm-I'm here. Status?"
"We're through. Infil Team 2 did a good job flanking them unaware and they went ahead to clear the area from traps for us. We should be there in a few minutes tops. Be advised, though, most enemies from my side are pulling out, and I got word from the north and northeast lookouts that the Hot Springs are regrouping back to the hotel. Looks like they're going to box you in."
They turn their heads towards the hotel's entrance. They could hear faint but a lot of movement.
"Infil Team 1, status?"
"Team 1 here, we're seeing a lot of Hot Springs delinquents coming your way, in a hurry too. Expect more than three dozen heading your way. We're going to try and catch up with you at the hotel and get some heat off of you."
"Understood. Standby," Hina fiddled her radio to another channel to inform something, then returned back to the original channel. "Team 1, I've given you priority to access accurate artillery fire. Make good use of it and hold them back until we arrest Kasumi."
"Yes, Head Prefect. Team 1 out."
Hina turns to her assaulters. "You three, I need you to hold the entrance until Iroha's forces arrive while Iori and I go deeper and arrest the Hot Springs president."
"Of course, Head Prefect," the FG42 gunner turned to her comrades. "You heard her, guys. Load up and set up some perimeter!"
"This is suicide…," the other assaulter commented as they left. "How are we supposed to hold back these kinds of people?"
"Come on now, we're trained for this scenario," the third assaulter replied. "I'm sure they won't mind us borrowing a dynamite or two for their trouble."
"And their guns, too," the FG42 gunner added until she couldn't hear their chatter anymore.
Hina reloads her pistol, with difficulty, then holsters it. She switches to her MG and reloads it as she and Iori take a position on each side of the doorway.
"Ready, Head Prefect?"
Hina cocks her MG, then nods at her. "Ready. Kick it."
Iori soon kicks the doors open right in the middle and then draws back. Goes in Hina, and the moment she lays eyes on the three-layered defense before her, she begins suppressing fire. She wasn't using her full potential, but her MG was enough to tear their defenses and their manpower apart. There was a reason why an MG much like Hina's is nicknamed the 'Buzzsaw' by most people.
"Iori, move in!" Hina ordered. "I'll keep them suppressed."
"Got it!" Iori quickly dashes forward, then rolls to the for a nearby cover.
Hina slightly ducks her head as bullets tear through the doorway, keeping note of where her bullets landed to guide her accuracy. Iori shoots back and forth on the second and ground floors. Hina caught seven members down whereas Iori got two on the ground floor and four on the second floor. At one point, Iori reloads her rifle and fires a round at a sniper without proper aim, sending the bullet straight through the scope and hitting her eye, definitely leaving a bruise there. The Hot Springs members grew desperate and they started throwing dynamites from the second floor.
*BLUAR-BWARM*
"Goddammit!" Iori swore, bracing away from the explosion.
"We have to push in," Hina suggested, reloading her MG. "Captain, close in towards the second floor and shut those bombers down. Keep pushing forward from there. I'll stay on the ground and catch up."
"Head Prefect," Iori called. "Can I go CQC on them?"
"Do what you must, but don't lose your surroundings."
"Got it, Head Prefect!"
"Stay put. Throwing a smoke."
Hina soon throws a smoke grenade onto the crossfire, and they continue to suppress until the smoke obscures the view of their own and the enemies. Despite the sporadic gunfire, the enemies' bullets hit nowhere as close to their positions.
"Now!"
"Assaulting the second floor!"
Iori dashes forward to the side and soon vanishes into the smoke. Hina dumps at least half of her full mag onto the smoke until she receives fire to her left. She peeks out and lo, there's an open doorway to the left. She redirects her aim at that door and fires. She immediately sees a window of opportunity and dashes for that door with her sidearm drawn in her other hand. Hugging the wall next to the door, she sees a rifle poking out the doorway. With her sidearm, left-handed, she hits the rifle's barrel downward and dashes inside, pushing and shooting a grunt four times at point-blank, and then thrice again at the Hot Springs delinquent behind her.
*CLICK*
Hina startles at such a sound and painedly grimaces. Her pistol's slide had locked back.
*ZLEB-TCHAK*
She snaps back at the bullets hitting near her, then puts her MG on the couch's backrest, and fires non-stop. After mowing down at least five in that tight, long room, she reloads his pistol, suffering a few clicks along the way, before advancing and flanking the defenses on the main hallways from there. Then, she repeats the same routine in the next rooms and defenses. But the further she sticks within those tight rooms, the more she relies on the famed M1911. In fact, during her trek in those rooms, she uses her MG as a clubbing weapon and her pistol to quickly and easily dispatch them.
*CLICK. CLICK. CLICK*
Despite her brilliant tactics in the rooms, the audible, sharp clicks of the sidearm infuriated her more and more. She panics, she abhors it, she feels sickened of it. And her combat prowess becomes more and more… restless… feral…. Like an orc hooked up on Xanax drugs. She swings her MG around much harder than she should, not that it wasn't hard to begin with. Her violence is so incomprehensible that she essentially sends many of Hot Springs grunts through walls and, in some parts, makes them look like they got run over by a speeding Humvee. Shooting with her pistol, although still consistently accurate, fires more rounds than it needs to neutralize a hostile.
By the time she clears out the last room, she kicks a Hot Springs member out and fires her last three pistol rounds at her. CLICK. The delinquent lies on the ground but still groaning and awake. It wasn't enough.
She raises her MG in the air.
"W-wait! Wait-!"
And strikes her down, one, two, three, until she falls unconscious-
*BUARM*
She immediately snaps to the explosion and realizes it's coming from outside the hotel, alongside a cacophony of gunfire and its reverberation through the ruined structure. She calms down and looks back at the unconscious delinquent and realizes… how many big bruises she just gave her, and not only on her face. She sluggishly reloads her pistol – grimaces at it – before tiredly advancing on deeper into the hotel's ruin.
"-Prefect! Head Prefect!"
She immediately aims to her right with the pistol but soon lowers it when she sees it's Iori coming over. "Captain Iori. Did you clear out the second floor?"
"Yes, I just fini-. Gah! Holy crapstorm! What happened to you?!"
"Huh?" Hina stared blankly. "What's wrong?"
"You look completely disheveled. What the hell happened back there?"
Hina looked at herself and realized how unkempt her uniform was, along with her hair beginning to mess up all over the place.
"I…. I had to clean out a lot of rooms back there," Hina hesitantly answered. "The ground floor should be clear now."
"I see…," Iori nodded but still showed visible concerns. "Iroha tried to reach for you back there, but you seemed busy. I'm sure you heard it, both her forces and Infil Teams finally reached us. They're handling the rest of them outside."
"Good, then let's end this today."
"I'll be right behind you."
They both proceed down the empty, ruined hallway until they reach a specific closed doorway before them. Hina quickly held onto Iori's hand before she could open them.
"A moment, Iori. We have to make a plan first."
"What? We can take on them, Head Prefect."
"Iori, this is Kasumi we're talking about."
"Oh. Yeah, you're right," Iori stared forward. "What do you have in mind?"
"…. Did you bring what I asked?"
Kasumi can't stop shaking her feet at her soon-to-be fated outcome. They no longer have any drills nor any bombs at their disposal, so the only thing she and her subordinates can do is to set up defensive makeshift barricades. She couldn't get hold of Megu, but knowing her, she might've made it out safely. Despite this, even in her eventual defeat, she keeps up her façade of confidence, no matter how forced it might seem.
*BRAK*
The doors break from their hinges and land just in front of the first barricade. The bane of Gehennian's order steps in, and for the first time, Kasumi feels so surprised at her appearance. The Hina she knows is orderly and elegant but deadly. This? She seems messy as if she just trudged through a forest and fought a bear before coming here. Kasumi laughs, knowing how prepared she is with a trick up her sleeve, but internally, she panics after realizing there's a certain glint in Hina's eyes that… shouldn't be there.
"HA! Sorasaki Hina!" Kasumi called with a forced grin. "What's with that unkempt look? Did my club members give you a hard time~?"
"Kasumi, stop this at once," Hina hissed with calm malice. "The Prefect Team already has this hotel surrounded. Stand down and surrender peacefully."
"Nnnnnnnnggh…," Kasumi pondered… for only ten seconds. "No! I may be scared of you, but the spirit of the Hot Springs Department never dies!"
"Don't be foolish, Kasumi," Hina shook her head. "I would rather not resort to violence to stop you, and you must take responsibility for destroying this hotel."
"Hmph! It was just getting in the way of discovering a potential Hot Springs. A shame that the waters here are a bust; waters cleaned out by the city. No matter, we can check other places downtown to dig up our very own Hot Springs!"
"Spare me your ambitions. I'm taking all of you in."
"We're ain't going down that easily! Take her out, my faithful developers!"
Hina raises her wings in time to block out the incoming bullets. Without bothering to look where she aims, she fires MG continuously from right to left and then clockwise. Kasumi screams in fright and unceremonious manner, hiding behind a crate near the top of a debris pile. Hina puts away her wing and advances slowly on these aggressors, firing accurate suppressive fire on the last five delinquents protecting Kasumi. A few bursts later, the gunfire stops, and Kasumi erratically peaks out and is terrified to meet the Head Prefect's 'stare.'
"Drop your gun, Kasumi. Don't make this worse."
Kasumi didn't do that and didn't stand up. Kasumi subtly reaches for her detonator in her oversized jacket as their gazes remain fixed.
"PRESIDENT KASUMI!"
They both looked up. The excited Megu is falling from the sky.
"What the-?"
Hina fails to register the new variable quickly, and Megu kicks her MG hard enough that it flings off her hands and makes Hina stumble back. Landing firmly, Megu spins around and fires her flamethrower at the defenseless Hina. By the time she spent all her fuel, the entrance where Hina stood was blazing wildly. Hina is no longer to be seen. Kasumi jumps out and laughs, celebrating Megu for such a grand save.
"HA HA! Well done, Megu! Not a moment too soon!" Kasumi complimented with a smug smile." "Let's gather what we can and escape from…. Huh?"
In that blaze, Kasumi could see a shadowed figure marching through with a shine reflecting on its grasp. Megu, confused at her reaction, turns around to see the same thing.
*DAR*
Kasumi flinches as Megu takes a headshot and falls down. To her horror, Hina walks out from the flames, no doubt leaving some scorch marks on her hair and uniform. Megu is still awake, groaning in pain, but Hina silences her with three shots to the head, and she falls unconscious; her halo vanishes.
"Kasumi."
In a panic, Kasumi draws her detonator.
*BOOP*
Then… nothing happens. Hina simply glares with her glowing eyes – her halo glows a radiant sharp purple.
*BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP*
"Don't even bother," Hina flatly spoke. "I already had Iori set up a jammer near your bombs. You have nowhere to run."
Hina begins her menacing approach. Pressing her detonator again to no avail, Kasumi dumps it away and draws her pistol erratically.
"UWAAAAAAHHH!"
*DOR-DOR-DOR-CLINCK*
Three rounds hit Hina's body before her gun jams, much to her complete dread. Hina continues her approach, sidearm in hand, as Kasumi unjams her gun as quickly as she can. After Kasumi unjams its barrel-
*DAR-DAR-DAR-CLICK*
Kasumi falls to the ground and Hina grunts in pain at the sound. Kasumi shrieks in fear and aims her gun at Hina, now towering over her.
*CLICK*
Oh God.
*CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK*
"Stop it…."
Kasumi gasps many times as she keeps pressing the trigger.
*CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK*
"Stop clicking the gun!"
Kasumi manages to clear her head under pressure and pulls the slide once again.
*CLICK-*
"Enough!"
Hina kicks her pistol and grasps Kasumi.
"Wait, wait, WAIT, WAIT, HEAD PREFECT-!"
*BUAK*
With her empty gun, she bashes her face. Frustration, sickness, and anger piled up on the wrong side of her head. She hits her again, again, again, again, again…. The clicking must stop….
"-na! Hina!"
Someone immediately drags her off Kasumi from behind, and then extra pairs of hands come to help restrain her uncharacteristic, raging self. Hina struggles off from her captors.
"HINA!"
She stops. Taking a few breaths in, she turns her head and sees Iori and Iroha, among two other Prefect members holding onto her. Troops of Prefect Team are in the room behind her restrainers. It is clear as day how unnerved they are to see her like this.
"Calm down, it's us," Iroha whispered.
"I-Iroha," they soon let go of Hina carefully. "S-so, it is done?"
"Yeah, we…. Oh God," Iori paled. "Head Prefect, what did you do to her?"
Hina perplexes at her inquiry, then turns to where she's…. By Kivotos' name….
Blood. There was blood on Kasumi's face. And she realizes how grotesquely swollen her face is, with blue-reddish bruises spreading… seething, all over her face. She doubts Kasumi can ever see anything for a while. Blood trickles from her broken nose and lips like veins anew. The only consolation for them is that she's still breathing.
Panting frantically, Hina looks at her own hands; blood stains them, and so is her gun. Dark and bright, yet grimy all the same. She looks back at Kasumi and her handiwork.
She couldn't describe how… abhorrent it was… that she could commit such barbarity.
She didn't know how many hours had gone by in that Medical Emergency's lobby. Iori and Iroha stand across her, and Ibuki sits next to her with discomfort evident on her face. No other sound to hear there other than footsteps, electronics, and silence. Foreboding.
Chinatsu steps out from the patient room and Hina briskly stands up.
"Chinatsu, how is Kasumi…?"
Chinatsu looks back at the door for a moment. "Not well. I'm not sure what you did to make her deserve such wrath, but she's in a coma. With how severe her head injury is… it'll take a few weeks for her to wake up. A week and a half, if she's lucky."
Hina presses her own head. Oh God….
"What have I done…?"
"…Hina, what happened back at the hotel?"
Chinatsu's question is left unanswered as Hina is lost in her own turmoil. Only after Hina sits down and keeps her head bowed can she speak.
"Clicks. Too many clicks…."
Her muttering left everyone puzzled, but there was no point pushing it. Hina looks already broken as it is.
The sight of the white tablecloth, kindly appraised with different pastries every rich individual willing to die for, is incredibly heartening. Among the usual chatter in this grand emerald-white balcony overlooking the Victorian clock tower, Hina is so focused on her own lost predilections. The cake in front of her looks rather appetizing, yet for unknown cause, she can't bring herself to feel any appetite for it. Then the sounds….
Clattering, shifting cloth, chirping, pouring…. Eyes wandering off into a non-existent void without moving a muscle. Sounds begin to faint. Recalling, remembering; bad memories on a playback loop. Clicker. Death. Blood. Helpless. Gun. Clicking. Kasumi. Kasumi. Kasumi-
"Excuse me."
Hina sits straighter, startled, turning to the ashen blonde angel of the Tea Party. "Y-yes, what is it?"
"Are you alright?" she asked back. "You've been hyperventilating for a minute there."
Hina creases her eyes in concern, then looks over to everyone at the table. Every official from both Trinity and Gehenna shows various degrees of apprehension. Seia, Mari, and Tsurugi are the ones who show genuine concern for her well-being, whereas others like Nagisa, Hasumi, and Sakurako have some caution in their gazes. Makoto, Iroha, and Ako are understandably anxious that Hina's symptoms might be kicking in again. Sena, by Makoto's insistence, also came along to accompany Hina in case things go awry. The guards from both parties also grew uncomfortable; grips on their weapons tightened on the Tea Party guards' side, hesitant glances on both Pandemonium Society and Prefect Team sides.
"…My apologies, Ms. Nagisa," Hina calmed down. "I… I've been overthinking…."
"I can tell," Nagisa then realized something was missing from Hina's person. "Where is your machine gun?"
"Left it at my office," she answered. "Brought a pistol."
"I see."
"…Should've brought earplugs…."
"I'm sorry?"
"N-nothing."
Everyone ignores what happened, to which Sakurako asks. "Head Prefect, President Makoto, what is your opinion on student exchange between our schools? We see it viable to help both Trinity and Gehenna understand the drastic differences in each other's cultures."
"…. I do not mind," Hina finally answered. "It will help our students understand what to expect and how someone should behave when studying in a completely different environment. I do understand that some students still held some… negative reservations regarding Gehenna. But as long as they follow the rules of order within Gehenna grounds, I do not have any complaints."
"I agree," Makoto nodded. "But you also need to understand that should your students ever cause any problems within our school, it is within our rights to punish those students according to Gehenna's rules, which include barring such students from attending our school again."
Hasumi narrows her eyes. "I understand the need to enforce the rules of order within your grounds, but applying such rules to our students is rather counterproductive for the exchange program. Shouldn't there be any leniency for our students to study in Gehenna, especially in circumstances where attempting to follow your culture unintentionally breaks one of your rules?"
"If you are referring to Gehenna's culture of freedom and chaos, there is a lot of misconception behind it," Ako explained. "While we do promote freedom to our students, many of those students mistake freedom as freedom of consequence or without any rules. And because many of those students interpret it that way, we have to be more stringent in enforcing our rules, lest those who are new to Gehenna will follow the wrong crowd and create a more 'unstable' environment for your students to study in."
"I can vouch for her in that regard, with how many corpses- I mean, delinquents and Prefect members I treated on a massive scale," for some reason, Sena caused Nagisa and her guards to tingle with fear. "We do not wish to hinder your students. It's that our rules are strictly necessary because we care about our students. From what I gather from Serina about your students, I'm confident they will fit well at our school, especially under the Prefect Team's recommendation."
"If you guys like to, we can provide your students some guides to adapt to Gehenna, as well as special curriculums for your students," Iroha suggested. "That should give them some leniency should they get into trouble."
"Hmm," Seia considered. "That can be arranged. Is it possible for our students to also apply as Prefect Team, especially for JTFs?"
"Yes. However, we will require that you give us their behavioral records and their conduct reports, among other things…," Hina trailed off; she snapped herself and continued. "We will also assess their abilities to see if they're fit for the Prefect Team."
"Gheeeeehhh…," Tsurugi stared off creepily, but Hina took it as a contemplation. "…Acceptable."
Sena scrutinizes Tsurugi's deranged appearance. "Vice President Hasumi, is your president suffering from low blood pressure?"
"GAAAKH?!" Tsurugi was as shocked as the guards from both sides… for a different reason.
"No, she's not," Hasumi answered. "She just… usually acts like this."
"I see. Apologies for intruding," Sena nodded. "I thought she was unhealthy."
"…I couldn't help but be curious," Mari admitted. "Why exactly the President of the Medical Emergency Club is here?"
"She is…," Makoto paused, looking over Sena and Hina. "Hina's consultant, appointed by the GSC President after the Clicker Incident."
"Is that so?" Nagisa widened her eyes. "I've been wondering for a while why she is present at our official meeting."
"Normally, she wouldn't be here, but I recommended her presence for this occasion."
Ako nods. "It's to primarily oversee the Head Prefect's well-being. In the event that something causes the Head Prefect to become… agitated, Sena will personally intervene."
"I see," Sakurako noticed the miniature Gehennian shifted uncomfortably. "That is reassuring. That reminds me, does Gehenna provide health benefits for our students as well?"
"Yes, we do provide health benefits," Sena answered. "My club is mainly responsible for providing health insurance for all students in Gehenna."
The discussion continues, with Hina listening, and then blanking out in short intervals. By the time they finish discussing about transferring Gehenna students to Trinity, the meeting is finally adjourned but the Gehennians like to stick around longer. Makoto and Iroha wander around the balcony, the former going with her usual self of idiotic scheming, while Ako and Sena talk with the Sisterhood and JTF officials. Guards from both sides try to mingle with each other, with varying difficulty. Hina is still… sitting in her chair, finally finds the will to eat the sweet cake. It's been a while since she tasted strawberry.
"Ah, I was worried you did not find the cake appetizing."
Hina jumps in her chair, calming down once realizing it is Seia talking, with Nagisa by her side.
"My apologies," Seia bowed slightly. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"I-it's fine," Hina stammered. "I finally found the appetite to eat something."
"…Is there something ails you about our previous discussion?" Nagisa asked.
"No. None," Hina confessed. "Just…. I just have no thoughts. That's all."
They then sit with her. "You look like you need some company," Nagisa commented. "I hope you don't mind."
"I'm fine with it," Hina took another spoonful. "Things are going well in Trinity, I hope?"
"Well, that's putting it lightly," Nagisa replied. "Some students still hold resentment against us, especially after that problem with Mika, but we managed to regain their trust again. Had it not been for Sensei and the Sisterhood, the internal conflict after the treaty wouldn't end."
"I understand how it feels," Hina replied. "Even our own student council is at odds with my organization for a long time."
"I can tell," Seia nodded, pouring herself a cup of tea. "It is an odd sight to see you and President Makoto being cordial with each other, but a welcoming one either."
"But I must admit," Nagisa stated. "I do have some concerns about her behavior when it comes to her… opinions about Trinity."
"Something about conquering other schools?"
Nagisa blinks. "Y-yes, something to that sort."
Hina sighs. "I wouldn't worry too much. She's a terrible schemer, and we Prefects are always the only ones who have to deal with her mess. Let her be in her own delusion."
Nagisa is caught off-guard by her answer. "Are you usually this straightforward?"
"Yes. And my honesty works wonders with you, doesn't it?"
"Of course," Seia smiled. "But we also have Sensei to thank for making the Eden Treaty happen."
Hina contemplates for a moment. "What of Arius? I haven't heard much of them after that incident."
"Ah yes, it's been a while since I mentioned them," Seia answered. "The Arius students we captured are undergoing rehabilitation by both the Sisterhood and Justice Task Force. We managed to find where their school was and we planned to annex it with Trinity for the foreseeable future. The cost of doing so is expensive, but Arius is still a part of Trinity, and the best course we can do right now is to not repeat the same sin ever again."
"I see. But rehabilitation?" Hina asked.
"The Arius students told us what their school was like," Nagisa explained. "It's… abhorrent, probably even beyond that. They experienced years of torture, manipulation, and brainwashing to serve their student council's agenda. All to sustain their hatred against us. It's… not pretty."
"…," even Hina can feel the pain in Nagisa's façade. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Thanks," Nagisa sipped her tea. On Hina's part, realizing her teacup manifested out of nowhere. "But.. enough about that. This should be the time to entertain our guests. Head Prefect, are you interested in playing chess with me?"
Hina checks her wristwatch and remembers her schedule. "I have plenty of time today."
"Good, let me get the chessboard."
Nagisa walks off, which Seia adds in. "I'm curious to see your tactical acumen in this game."
"Hm?" Hina gave her a strange look. "It's just a game."
"Perhaps. But those with an eye of an eagle can tell much of your conduct."
"Is… that so?" Hina hesitated to ask.
Nagisa comes back with the chessboard and… some sort of rectangular-sized wooden dual clock?
"What's that, Ms. Nagisa?" Hina pointed.
"Oh, this? This is the chess clock," Nagisa explained. "I invite you to play chess with me under a time limit."
Hina snaps as the eventual realization hits her. "Wait, a chess- D-do I have to click it?"
"After you made your move, yes," Nagisa noticed how uncomfortable Hina was. "Is something wrong?"
She and Seia note how Hina glances back at Sena, who happens to return a glance as well. After Sena sees the chess clock from that distance, they see Sena makes some kind of subtle excuse to her current company so she can sit near them; near Hina.
"How long is the time limit?" Hina finally asked.
"How about thirty minutes?" Nagisa suggested.
"I think I'm fine with that. Hopefully…."
"….Do you not want to play chess?"
"No, no, it would be rude of me. It's just…," Hina was about to say something but sighed instead. "F-forget it. Black or white?
"I'll be black."
"Fine by me."
They soon start the game, with Hina moving her Rook and-
*CLICK*
Hina did her best to stifle a jolt as Nagisa made her move, on the sidelines, Seia observed and assessed their gameplay. Sena sits just behind Hina, sipping her tea and conversing with Hasumi, while occasionally subtly checking over Hina.
At the start, their play was going pretty well with both players showing thoughtfulness of each other's movements and theorizing strategies each one would probably use. Seia appreciates their tactics at first. But soon, halfway into the game, they could see Nagisa got the upper hand instead, and it happened a bit easier than they liked. They both glanced at Hina. Her prowess befitting of an intelligent tactician soon spirals into something akin to a belligerent, reckless strategist. It wasn't that Hina mindlessly brute forced her pawns at black, both Tea Party officials realized that, but she was… incredibly distracted.
As for Hina, as much as she wants to end this game, she can't just stall and wait for her time to run out. She has to adhere to the integrity of sportsmanship. But the many clicks she has to bear aren't helping. She doesn't even realize that both of them notice her grimace and the erratic manner with each click. Each press on the clock brought her nothing but revulsion.
CLICK. CLICK. CLICK*
Hina is already on the edge. Seia stays quiet, but Nagisa hesitantly places her queen close to the white king.
"Check," she said before pressing the clock.
*CLICK*
"AAAAAGGGGHH!"
Hina abruptly stands up and bashes the damned chess clock to the floor. Nagisa and Seia freeze in their seats. Sena, Tsurugi, and a few Tea Party and Prefect guards immediately move to restrain, but only after Hina draws her pistol and unloads it on the chess clock.
*DAR-DAR-DAR-DAR-*
"GYAAAAAAAAAAA-!"
Covering her own face wasn't enough to deal with the embarrassment she brought onto herself. At least, Iroha confiscated her pistol for the time being. All the present Trinity officials and guards are unnerved by her unreasonable outburst and by their rights demand Makoto and other Gehennian officials what the hell just happened. Ako, Iroha, Mari, Tsurugi, and a few guards kept an incredibly close eye on Hina as Makoto and Sena tried to explain why it even happened to the others.
It's difficult, and even baffling for Nagisa and Hasumi to know Hina is scared of clicks. The guards present did not even believe it a single bit.
"What do you mean she's scared of clicks?!" Hasumi retorted in the distance. "She almost harmed Nagisa!"
"Did you not even realize she was shooting at the chess clock?" Makoto asked back with restrained nervousness.
"Calm down, Hasumi. She didn't intend to harm me," Nagisa responded calmly. "But I'll be candor. It is difficult for all of us to believe a sound so harmless could… agitate her this much."
"Unfortunately, that is the case right now," Sena responded. "We should have told you about her condition, but Hina wished to keep that information private."
"It would've been nice if we were informed in advance," Sakurako commented, out of concern and annoyance rather than anger.
"We deeply apologize for that," Makoto bowed. "But it is as President Sena said, it is within her rights."
It took a while as Hina waited, but it seemed the Trinitians finally calmed down. Seia, Nagisa, and Sakurako approach where Hina is sitting. Hina feels their steps and looks up to them. Hina can barely look at Nagisa's eyes.
"I-I'm truly sorry, Nagisa," Hina apologized. "I didn't mean to…."
"Why didn't you refuse my offer to play?" Nagisa asked softly. "Or at least tell me to not play with the chess clock?"
"…." Hina bowed her head. "It would be very rude of me to do so. I don't feel comfortable about asking you to not use the chess clock for our play, so… I acquiesced."
"…Tell me, Hina," Seia began. "Has the Clicker affected you so much to cause turmoil within you?"
"I can't even use a damn stapler or a computer. Just…," Hina trailed off, shaking her head at herself.
"You are not jesting, yes?" Sakurako asked.
"Jesting?" Hina asked, her tone almost pitched. "I really wish I was. This feels like a sick joke…."
Nagisa takes a deep breath and gracefully sits next to her. "It's alright, I've forgiven you. But I must ask that, for the time being, you need to steer clear of our school for a while."
Hina returns a blank look at her.
"I understand it is audacious of me, but-"
"No, it's okay…. I understand," Hina looked down again, and exhaled raggedly. "I… need to get my head straight anyway…."
Nagisa nods at her cooperation. They all soon snap at Makoto walking over to them, and it seems that she just finished talking with someone via phone.
"Head Prefect, how are you feeling?" Makoto asked.
"Like hammered turd," Hina responded, making everyone blink. "What is it?"
"Director Kanna just called me. She's waiting for you at Gehenna."
"She's at Gehenna?" Ako asked, continued by Iroha. "What for?"
"It's about the Clicker's possessions," Makoto answered. "Valkyrie already transported all of his stuff there. She just needs your signature to prove that his letter of will has been carried out faithfully."
"Wait, what letter of will?" Ako asked, confused. "You didn't tell me anything about that, Head Prefect."
"Oh…. Must've skipped my mind then," Hina admitted.
"He has a will for Head Prefect?" Mari curiously asked. "Why exactly did he make such a will for her?"
"According to his letter," Makoto's words turned solemn. "For staying with him until his…."
For everyone, no more words were necessary. Even Trinity officials are incredibly informed of the Clicker incident. Hina grimaces again, trying her best to not remember what happened.
"So, are you ready to head back?" Makoto continued. "Our business is done here anyway. Best to leave soon before the Trinitians here are nervous about what you did."
"…." Hina looked forward. "Ako, prepare the car for us."
"Of course."
Ako walks briskly from the room. Hina and Nagisa bow at each other.
"I thank you for your hospitality," Hina said. "And I truly apologize for what I've done."
"There is no harm, Head Prefect," Seia said, returning a bow. "I deeply wish you well for the foreseeable future."
"Head Prefect, if I may," Sakurako added in. "After this controversy boils over, you are free to come to our church should anything ail you. Mari and I are more than willing to listen to your troubles."
"…Thank you, I'll keep your offer in mind," Hina smiled weakly.
As the Gehennians are about to leave, Hina feels a hand on her shoulder. She turns to see it is Tsurugi, much to her surprise. Her usual deranged, psychotic look is replaced with one of amity, and sadness. Despite her disheveled appearance, Hina just realized how incredibly pretty she is.
"About the Clicker…," Tsurugi said. "You have my deepest condolences."
Hina widens her eyes slightly, then frowns, nodding at her understanding. "Thank you…."
With that, with their guards in tow, they finally leave Trinity.
It took a while to reach Gehenna and by the time they made it back to the Prefect's office, it's already well into the afternoon. They happen to see the Valkyrie and Prefect students transporting some items into the office. Upon entering, they see Kanna standing at Hina's desk chatting with Iori and Chinatsu, and in the middle of the room is a sorted pile of Clicker's many possessions. There was a grandfather clock, a bar cabinet, a few big and small paintings, a saxophone, a personal vintage piano, Tiffany lamps, a collection of dies, a gramophone, and memorabilia, among other things still inside these few boxes. Hina felt apprehensive enough to see how many items he had left for her, but it should be feasible to leave some of those items in this office as she saw fit.
"Okay, that's pretty a lot than I thought," – Iroha
"He… actually sent a piano?" – Ako
"Hm, so the Clicker is a man of classics." – Sena
"He has such luxuries, yet he lived in that apartment. Woah…." – Makoto
Kanna and the others turn at their arrival and immediately greet them with a good afternoon.
"How were the negotiations at Trinity?" Iori asked.
"It went pretty well and concluded," Sena answered. "Then Hina's phobia kicked in."
"Oh dear," Chinatsu grimly frowned. "What happened?"
"I played chess with Nagisa… with a chess clock," Hina blanked for a moment. "Then I shot the chess clock."
"Okay…?" Kanna blinked. "You got in trouble with Trinity?"
"We did, but they accepted our apology," Makoto answered. "It seems we have to steer clear from there for a while."
"I see," Kanna nodded, then glanced over at a Valkyrian carrying a box. "Officer, is that the last box?"
"Yes, Director! Ooof!" the student dusted off her hand. "We're all done here. We're gonna go back to the station and have the trucks locked up."
"You do that," Kanna replied. "Also, tell your guys to go to the Shanhaijing Branch within the next hour. The Plum Blossom Garden is opening a cooking contest this afternoon and they're expecting problems from the other clubs affiliated with cooking food…, especially the GRS."
"Oh, bullsh-!"
"Yes, Director! I'll get right on it!" the Valkyrie student immediately cut off and left, sparing the others bewildered by Hina's swearing.
"…I believe we should offer our help to Shanhaijing as well?" Chinatsu suggested.
Other Prefect officials turn at her, and Hina returns a slight approving nod.
"Well, let's go then," Iori brushed past them. "I wanna pay them back for what they did to my Karaage!"
Chinatsu follows suit, then Ako, the latter asks. "Karaage? Iori, what are you mumbling about?"
Sena raises an eyebrow, then turns to Hina. "Looks like I got a job to do at Shanhaijing. I'll take my leave now, Head Prefect, President Makoto."
Hina returns a nod.
"Of course," Makoto grinned. "Give them a good word about us through your conduct."
"As always."
Sena soon leaves the office. Makoto and Iroha interest themselves in the pile of items while Hina approaches Kanna, asking. "You have a paper for me to sign?"
"Here, Head Prefect," Kanna handed over the paper. "Take your time reading it."
Hina scrutinizes the document for a while. Seeing it as nothing more but a confirmation, Hina soon signs it on her table and hands it back to Kanna. "Here you go, Director."
"Thank you, Head Prefect. Also, here's the list of items the Clicker wished to transfer to you. Should you find any discrepancy with the items here, be sure to give me a call."
"I will, Director."
"…And Head Prefect," Kanna paused, gritting her teeth. "Get better for me, you hear?"
"…Yes."
Kanna pats Hina's head, much to the latter's astonishment, before Kanna walks away.
"I'll take my leave, President Makoto," Kanna announced. "I wish you a good day."
"You too, Director," Makoto responded, looking up from the items. "Safe travels."
With that, Hina approaches the two Pandemonium leaders with a list in hand, finally taking a close look over the pile. "It is… a lot."
"Yeah, it might be a pain decorating your home with all these," Iroha then smirked. "But hey, at least he gave you a piano for the trouble."
"And a saxophone," Hina deadpanned.
"Looks like he is a collector too," Makoto picked one of the memorabilia. "But I don't think I recognize this kind of collection in the whole of Kivotos."
"Not exactly our problem anyway. What matters is that he actually got some good stuff here," Iroha pocketed her hands. "But most of these feel too vintage to my liking."
"Hmm," Hina eyed the boxes and the paintings for a moment. "Makoto."
"Yes?" the mentioned dictator responded.
"I got a list from Director Kanna. About the items handed down to me here," Hina gave her the list. "Can I ask your help to see which items can be placed in other facilities than my office? I like to start sorting things here while I still have time today."
Makoto and Iroha look over the list, briefly staring at each other.
"Ja, we can do that," Makoto answered. "Do you mind if we take a picture of it?"
"Go ahead."
Iroha uses her phone to photograph the list, then they hand the list back to her. "Okay, Hina. We'll head back and see what we can do about it. Need an extra hand to sort these out?"
"Well, yes. Are there any Prefect members outside?"
Makoto goes ahead to check outside, and returns. "None. It looks like your administrator called in everyone she finds for that Shanhaijing trip."
Hina sighs in frustration.
"But no matter, I am more than willing to spare some of my minions for your troubles!" Makoto charismatically replied. "Only if you allow me to indulge with some of your possessions here!"
"Hey," Iroha sharply responded, anger laced in her tone. "You're trying to screw over her now? That's a new low."
"Do not mistake this as my acknowledgment to take ownership of her items, Iroha!" Makoto responded with her usual dictator smile. "I merely request that I get to enjoy what the Head Prefect enjoys with the items bestowed by the Clicker! She deserves to keep them more than I do!"
Makoto being Makoto, she guesses. But at the very least, she wasn't being condescending with her. "I don't mind, just as long as you don't break any of my… stuff."
"Aha, I knew you'd agree, Head Prefect!"
"Haah…. Can't believe Hina agreed with you for once," Iroha then smiled. "But hey, it's better than having to watch another drama you're plotting up."
"Now come, Iroha!" Makoto flailed her arm at the door. "We shall return to my office at once, and gather any minion we can find!"
"Sure. Can we get Satsuki and Chiaki on this one?" Iroha asked. "They got nothing else to do anyway."
"Of course, of course! Head Prefect, we'll be back soon. We'll also check if there's any place for your other items to place in."
"Thank you, Makoto," Hina appreciated honestly. "I'll be waiting."
The Pandemonium leaders soon leave. Hina circles around the pile, examining it once more before moving to her desk and pouring herself a glass of water. She drinks half of the glass, now standing near her chair. At that moment, she chooses it as the time to recount the recent things that happened in her line of duty. Unfortunately…, the more she recounts it, the more she feels frustrated about it. She grits her teeth and holds her glass tighter. The only thing she could gather from all that, from all that study and duty she did: click, click, CLICK.
*PRAANG*
She threw her glass to the wall behind her, soiling its purple color with water. Even if she smiles now, even if she's happy now, it won't be enough for her. To get rid of this sickness swelling within her. She finally sits down, inclined with sprawling all over her chair with how tired she is, mentally and physically. She puts away her pistol on the desk and grabs the special coffee mug, then realizes Ako has just left. No coffee for her for now.
She now entertains herself by taking a break for a moment, staring at the pile of possessions before her. Already had something in mind as to where to place them and what containers needed to store some items in.
For some reason or another, she can feel that in the upcoming days, it will start to get worse for her.
Unfortunately for her, she couldn't be more right about it.