The final bell rang. Takumi packed his bag and headed toward the door when Noelle's voice called after him.
"You left your eraser."
Heat rose in his face. Embarrassing. He took it wordlessly and slipped away to the washroom before leaving the school grounds.
On his way home, he spotted Shido and his gang—four underlings at his side—surrounding Noelle. They tossed her things on the ground, mocking her as she tried to resist.
Takumi paused. Just for two seconds. Then he kept walking.
A familiar voice cut through the air behind him.
"Aren't you going to save her? She's from your school. The way you paused there, she must be from your class too."
Takumi's jaw tightened. He turned, irritation flashing in his eyes. "Oh yeah? Then why don't you go save her?"
Andrei, the one who had spoken, grinned lazily. "You know how I am. I don't want to kill them."
"You could save her without fighting," Takumi snapped.
"That's ironic, coming from you," Andrei chuckled.
"Noelle!" she screamed, her voice cracking. Shido raised his fist, aiming straight for her face.
In that instant, Takumi sprinted forward. Time slowed—the sound of his shoes pounding the ground, the rush of air as he leapt, and the sharp crack as his foot landed squarely on Shido's face.
The bully collapsed with a grunt. Takumi's eyes met Noelle's midair—frozen in that suspended second, her breath caught in disbelief.
Then, chaos. Shido's gang charged, but it was one-sided. Takumi's kickboxing mixed with something darker—forbidden techniques—made every move sharp, merciless, final.
When it was over, Takumi brushed dust from his uniform. He turned to Noelle.
"Need not thank me. It's not like I did this because I wanted to. I just had some scores to settle with him."
Her eyes narrowed. "I wasn't going to thank you. I could've handled them myself, but I don't fight on Thursdays."
"…It's Wednesday."
"...Never mind. Are you mocking me?"
"Man… how arrogant can you get? Ungrateful woman."
"Hmph. I'm leaving. Don't forget to search for your eraser—you dropped it again. I was going to tell you, but your filthy attitude ruined it."
"Huh? Do you think I'd look for a mere eraser at this moment?"
Still, as he picked up his bag, his eyes fell on the eraser. He clicked his tongue, bent down, and pocketed it.
"Tch."