Thud!
Haruto suddenly bumped into a tall figure. Before he could react, a fist came crashing toward his face.
BAM!
The punch sent Haruto crashing to the floor, his vision spinning. Warm blood trickled from the corner of his lip.
Darkness pressed at the edges of his sight.
Scene 1
The tall boy cracked his knuckles, looming over him. "Watch where you're going, brat. Do you even know who you're standing in front of?"
Yui gasped and rushed to Haruto's side, grabbing his arm and helping him up with trembling hands. "P-Please, Haruto! Let's run! These guys are dangerous—they won't spare us!"
Leaning casually against the wall, another boy spun a card smoothly on his index finger, his expression calm yet unnerving. A faint smile tugged at his lips. "Daigo Ranmaru… bullying kids again, are you?"
Haruto wiped the blood from his mouth, glaring weakly. "W-Who the hell are you people?"
Daigo smirked, towering forward. "Seems you're blind. You're standing outside Class 2, so we—"
Another voice interrupted with unsettling calm. "Not us… you're from Class 2. I'm from Class 4." The card-spinner tilted his head slightly, that calm smile carrying a quiet, sinister air.
Two more figures stepped out of the classroom. One was a red-haired boy in an undershirt, lean but already showing lines of muscle despite his youth. The other was older, black-haired, and utterly silent—his face heavy with a brooding, almost suffocating fury.
The redhead grinned broadly. "What's with the noise? Something happen, Daigo?"
Daigo's wicked grin widened. "Tetsuya, go put the teachers to sleep. I'll handle these two."
"Sure thing!" Tetsuya replied cheerfully, sprinting off as though it were a fun errand.
Yui yanked Haruto behind her, her small frame shielding him as Daigo slowly rolled up his sleeves, taking heavy, deliberate steps toward them.
"Y-Y-You can't do this!" Yui stammered, fear and fragile determination mixing in her trembling voice. She thrust both hands forward, ready to use magic. "If you try, I'll tell Sensei!"
Daigo cracked his fingers with a laugh. "So you're planning to use magic? In the Academy? That's forbidden! If you—"
CRACK!!
A brutal punch smashed into Daigo's face. His head whipped sideways as blood sprayed from his mouth. He crumpled to the floor, twitching, his face a mangled mess.
Yui gasped, both hands flying up to cover her mouth, her entire body trembling. Haruto froze, stunned.
The silent black-haired boy—Shuya—stood over Daigo, his bloodied fist clenched tight. His voice was deep, cold, and laced with suppressed rage. "Enough noise. Can't you shut up?"
The card-spinner finally glanced up from his tricks, calm and eerie. "Shuya, don't be so messy in front of the kids. They're already terrified."
Haruto tried to step forward, but Yui grabbed his shirt, stopping him. His chest tightened as fear and anger tangled inside him. His voice shook as he growled, "What kind of monster… what kind of beast are you…?"
Shuya stepped forward, massive fist swinging straight toward Haruto's skull. Haruto barely dodged; the punch slammed into the floor with a deafening crack, shattering it.
Fear surged through him. I… I don't want to use magic. I don't want to hurt anyone again. How am I supposed to fight a beast like this!?
Another punch came, fast and merciless, aiming to crush his head against the wall. Haruto's body froze—only his eyes moved as the fist filled his vision.
Thud-thud-thud! Footsteps rushed from behind.
Just as Shuya's knuckles brushed Haruto's skin, a devastating kick slammed into Shuya's side. The impact exploded like a cannon blast, launching him across the hallway and slamming him into the ground.
Haruto and Yui's eyes widened in shock.
The card-spinner slid a card into his pocket, his lips curling faintly. "How shameful, Shuya. Knocked down by a little girl?"
From the shadows, a figure stepped forward. Reina emerged, her sharp eyes gleaming with resolve.
"You're not strong," she said, her tone cutting through the tension. "You've only weighed down your fists with magic. Without it… your body is nothing but paper."
Yui's lips parted in a trembling whisper, her eyes softening with relief. "M-Miss Reina…?"
Shuya grunted, forcing himself up, rage flickering beneath his stoic expression. "K-Kairen… who is this girl?"
Kairen finally turned, that mysterious smile still etched calmly on his face. "Reina Akatsumi… So you're that girl whose name sits at the top of the Academy's Point Rankings, aren't you?"
Reina stepped forward to stand beside Haruto. "You two are from Class 4, right? Then why are you bullying Class 1 students?"
"Shut your mouth, brat!" Shuya barked, his heavy voice laced with fury. "How dare you lay a hand on me!?" He lunged forward, fist drawn back for another strike—
—but Kairen's hand gripped his shirt, halting him.
"Step back, Shuya. Don't you know who she is?" Kairen's tone was calm, but the air around him thickened with menace.
Shuya snarled, though his face remained eerily composed. "So what if she's ranked high in the Points system? It means nothing."
Kairen released him with a slow shake of his head. "She's Aratoshi's daughter. If you so much as scratch her, his wrath won't just take our lives—it will shake the entire Kingdom." He turned away, voice still even. "Leaving now is the only safe option for us."
Together, Kairen and Shuya dragged Daigo's battered body and left.
Haruto blinked in shock, turning to Reina. "W-Wait, is it true? Your father's really that strong?"
Reina scoffed. "Idiot! It's not like that. My father would never do such a thing. He's retired now, a hunter no longer… though he refuses to accept it."
She started walking. "Anyway, you never told me what class you're in, Haruto. Are you in Class 1 with Yui?" She glanced back. "Haruto, Yui—come on!"
Haruto followed, still rubbing his lip. "I didn't even know. I just walked into Class 1 and sat down. Einzuro Sensei didn't tell me my class. And—" He suddenly stopped, realization dawning. His face darkened, and he pointed at Reina accusingly. "Wait a second! You told me to come early to the Academy, but none of you showed up! You left me all alone in this headache of a place!"
Yui watched them in surprise, her thoughts racing. Are Haruto and Miss Reina… actually friends? Is Haruto also Sensei Einzuro's student? If Sensei chose him, then there must be something truly special about him…
Reina froze, stepping back slightly as Haruto leaned forward, scolding. She raised both hands defensively with a nervous laugh. "Eheheh… sorry, sorry, my bad! I forgot to tell you I'm always late. I'm used to coming after everyone."
Haruto snapped, "So you sleep late too, huh!?"
Reina pouted faintly. "No! I wake up even before sunrise."
"Then why do you still show up late?" Haruto demanded.
Reina folded her arms, glancing away with a soft expression. "Idiot… everyone has their personal life. I come late because I train every morning. That kick's strength you saw earlier? That wasn't magic—it was my own, built from training."
Curious, Yui hesitantly poked Reina's arm with her finger. Boing!Boing!Boing!
Her eyes widened as she thought, Her muscles are still soft, but even so, there's real strength underneath. She's developing them. She really is strong…!
Reina's eyes shifted sideways, catching her. "What are you doing?"
Yui panicked, hands flailing. "N-N-Nothing! I-I was just checking!"
Haruto laughed. "So you're that respected around here? How popular are you?"
Reina closed her eyes with a small smile. "Hmph! I'm in the Academy's top rankings. I earned those points with hard work—so of course, my name's known."
"Points?" Haruto asked, puzzled. "What do you mean?"
Reina explained patiently. "The Academy isn't just about magic. To become Hunters, we have to improve ourselves. There's a Point System. When we do good deeds, we earn points. When we misbehave, we lose them."
"Good deeds?" Haruto tilted his head.
"Keeping your uniform clean, following teachers' orders, helping others, coming to class on time, paying attention, behaving well with everyone… little things like that."
Haruto's eyes lit up. "And how do you earn more points!?"
Reina smiled faintly, walking as she spoke. "For more points, you go on small missions. Like repairing villages damaged by attacks, or helping farmers with their work. If you want bigger points… you'll need real missions. After Class 4, students go with mentors in groups to face Demons—or complete more dangerous assignments."
"Hmph!" Haruto puffed his chest out. "These small missions are child's play. I'll take down King Yamara himself!"
Reina chuckled softly. "Hmhmhm~ Haruto, you really are an idiot. But it's that very thinking… that will make you a Hunter someday."
The three of them continued walking together, laughing and chatting as they left the hallway behind.
Scene 2
Once they were gone, footsteps echoed back into the blood-stained hall. Tetsuya returned, his red hair bouncing as he skidded to a stop. His grin faltered. "Eh? Huh?? Did all this happen while I was gone?" He groaned. "Man, they always send me away at the wrong time!"
His eyes fell on the floor, spotting a card lying there. Picking it up, he flipped it over. A small note was scrawled on its back:
"Tetsuya, clean this up if you've returned. After that, meet us in Class 4."
Tetsuya's shoulders slumped, his face comically deflating into a defeated look. "Seriously!? They always dump the dirty work on me. Never themselves, always me…"