~ Ayano's Pov ~
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I went back and made myself comfortable, Kotonoha coming in after then doing the same...
"Mind telling me what that little convo of yours was about?" Renji turned, asking.
I sighed, leaning back in my chair to get a bit comfortable... "It's nothing major."
Kotonoha gave me a sidelong glance but, didn't really say anything. Renji, on the other hand, scoffed at me. "Yeah, right. Kotonoha called you out of class, her mom was there, and now you're acting all casual like that wasn't weird as hell?"
I waved him off, "She just wanted to talk about something... That's all."
Renji narrowed his eyes while frowning. "Something, huh? You expect me to just let that vague answer slide...?"
I exhaled through my nose, rubbing my temple as well. "Look, it's not some crazy drama, alright? Just a personal thing. Nothing to do with school, and certainly nothing to do with you."
Renji stared at me for a moment before clicking his tongue. "Tch. Fine, keep your secrets, man."
A little after we had spoken with one another, I saw Sekai coming in, and fortunately for her, she was just in time for class, by a minute too. I waved at her, with her giving me a smile in response.
Next was surprisingly the new girl Chisaki, she was quite reserved like usual... Then finally came our teacher...
"Alright everyone, take your seats..." he said, and the chatter in the room quickly died down as everyone complied.
Once we were all settled, he cleared his throat. "This may be a bit sudden, however, we have good news. After the end of this month, Chisaki and her family are willing to accommodate us to see their land for an entire day."
The room fell silent for a moment, the unexpected announcement catching everyone off guard. Chisaki shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her gaze dropping even lower.
"Ah, that's... unexpected," Renji muttered, glancing between Chisaki and the teacher. "Is this a field trip or something?"
The teacher nodded. "Yes, more or less. It'll be a chance to experience something new, and we're all to prepare ourselves for it. You'll be given more details closer to the date, but I wanted to give you a heads-up now."
Once we were all settled, the teacher cleared his throat. "This may be a bit sudden, however, we have good news. After the end of this month, Chisaki and her family are willing to accommodate us to see their land for an entire day."
The room fell silent for a moment, the unexpected announcement catching everyone off guard. Chisaki shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her gaze dropping even lower.
"Ah, that's... unexpected," Renji said, glancing between Chisaki and the teacher. "Is this like a field trip or something?"
The teacher nodded. "Yes, more or less. It'll be a chance to experience something new, and we're all to prepare ourselves for it. You'll be given more details closer to the date, but I wanted to give you a heads-up now."
As soon as he finished speaking, a murmur of excitement spread throughout the room. Whispers turned into eager voices, and before long, the whole class was buzzing with energy.
"A field trip? To a whole new place? This sounds awesome!" someone shouted from the back.
"Yeah! Finally, a real break from the usual!" another student added, pumping their fist in the air.
"Where exactly is it? How far?" someone else asked, eager for more details.
The excitement was pretty contagious, and even I felt a little interested, despite the initial surprise... It seemed like it was rare for something like this to come up so suddenly, and the idea of a day out with the class definitely had its appeal.
I felt like I needed a break from all this too.
The teacher held up his hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright, alright. I know you're all excited, but we'll discuss the specifics later down as we draw closer to the time... For now, let's focus on the lessons at hand."
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The day went by relatively normally to be honest... Now, I think I was starting to catch on to the material, I feel like I could get into my 60's, maybe 70's now in a few subjects if I keep going at this rate, but I only have so much time to study when I have to practice martial arts.
On that note, I wanted to learn capoeira this time, since last night, I've mastered all of the martials arts I've learned so far, finally breaking through mastery with Taekkyeon with yesterday's fight.
'After that... I wonder if I should take up a weapon art? Maybe Bojutsu? No... Eskrima looks more fun.' At the moment, I still think I'll learn capoeira first and foremost. It seems like a fighting style that focuses more so on maneuverability, which I liked, but it doesn't lack in the attack department which is also a bonus for me...
'Any who, time to focus on that quest of mine.'
Since I cleaned up that last gaming cafe, I can move on to another one, but which? I got two other locations I know of not too far from here, I guess I'll just focus on the one that's farther away and work my way up closer for convenience...
I yawned, 'Well, I hope I just hope I can get some good practice in tonight as well.'
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Ayano glanced around the area for a bit, 'This one doesn't look as nearly as bad as the last cafe did... Speaking of, I should drop by there sometime with Renji and the others.'
He walked past the entrance, smelling smoke just like the last time. This time around, he didn't even see the owner anywhere...He shook his head, 'He must have given up completely.'
Still, he noticed that this café looked cleaner than the last one he had dealt with, at least on the surface. But the moment he stepped inside, the atmosphere told a completely different story.
The scent of smoke hung heavy, mixed with instant noodles and cheap cologne. The place was packed—not with customers, but with what he had expected, near drop-out high school students. Practically dozens of them lounged across booths and cluttered up the aisles, their uniforms worn loosely, or with intentional disarray.
Some even had their feet propped up on the furniture. Others crowded around screens, loudly gaming or scrolling through their phones casually...
Ayano scanned the area, keeping his movements calm, just like he had before.
Some of the kids had taken notice of him, their laughter dying down to just simple whispers here and there, and simple glances. A few even leaned in toward each other, grinning, while others were simply watching him with relatively wary eyes...
Ayano sighed, "Alright everyone, I don't have all day. Why don't you all come at me at once to save me the trouble..."
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A ripple of silence passed through the entire room...
"...Is... Is this fucker crazy?" one of the students muttered, staring wide-eyed at Ayano.
Another scoffed, half-laughing in disbelief. "The hell's he think this is, an anime?"
"He's gotta be bluffing lol."
"No way one guy walks in here and talks like that unless he's got something going for him…"
Of course, most of them didn't pay him any mind, most just laughed and carried on, but Ayano had expected this, he didn't look entirely threatening to most.
Then came the voice...
"Hey!"
Ayano turned to the where it came from...
It wasn't shouted, but it had carried weight to it. The surrounding murmurs died instantly. A boy stood up from a couch pressed against the far wall, arms relaxed but posture relatively alert. He had peach colored hair, looked casual—with a relatively slim build, a black hoodie with a white cartoon cat stitched onto the chest—but there was precision in his movements, and confidence in his tone...
'This guy... He's a fighter.' Ayano could instantly pick up on it.
Before he could assess any further, the boy continued, "Wait... Are You the one that's been making a mess of our spots?" the boy asked, taking a few steps forward. His voice was calm, oddly measured. "Heh~ One place after another. Quiet and clean too. Thought you could keep doing it without someone noticing?"
Ayano didn't respond... He didn't need to. The way he stood—solid, still—was answer enough.
The boy stopped a few feet away from him and smiled.
"They call me Cat," he said. "And I'm not like the others you've fought."
With a smooth flick of his wrist, a short metal baton extended with a metallic click. The other students began to shift back, forming a loose circle around them...
"Those guys you took out? They were just pawns. Disposable, to be honest" Cat continued, stepping into a loose stance. "But me? I've been itching to fight ya'."
Before another minute could pass, the crowed around them had grown even thicker, what's more is that for the first time, Ayano had seen a system prompt, not in his face, but over cat's head, labeled 'mini-boss'. Now Ayano understood why this person felt so different from the rest of the people he's fought before...
Still, ever since he's been getting the quests, this was the first time he's felt somewhat excited...
One of the delinquents in the crowed smiled, "This guy is absolutely fucked..."
Another overhearing asked, "Why's that?"
"Because...
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He doesn't know that our leader's a certified Eskrima user."
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END