"You have two options Pinky. Strip, or give us everything in your pockets."
At Blackwood Academy, a student with pink hair stood in the hallway, surrounded by four other students.
This pink-haired student was Tenro. A second-year student whose life belonged to bullies.
"There's nothing in my pockets, Rishon. I swear!" Tenro pleaded with the leader of the group.
His pitiful face earned laughs from the students watching as they crossed down the hallways.
Rishon, who was a man who towered over Tenro, folded his muscular arms and glared down at the pink-haired brat.
"Well, you know what that means then. Strip."
Rishon had his three goons behind him, but they were hardly necessary. If Rishon wanted to, he could wipe the floor with Pinky in a single second.
Even though they were the same age, he must have been double his weight!
"Do you think he's going to do it?"
"Is he really going to strip?"
"It would hardly be the most embarrassing thing that he's done. Remember when they groped his ex-girlfriend in front of his face and made him watch?"
"Shit... I remember that. Even I felt bad for him."
As the students spoke about Tenro, he looked around hoping for teachers to arrive and save him.
That hope was pointless....
In the world of Esto, Blackheart Academy was known for being a school that accepted a brutal truth: Power decides everything.
For decades, the academy, and even a few others, believed that getting involved in students' conflicts would encourage weakness and weaken natural development.
After their fifth year, students would join the military, so they needed to develop these strengths from a young age.
The Black Empire demanded it...
So even if teachers were to walk by, they would simply ignore Tenro's situation.
When he was spat on, punched, robbed and abused, they would simply turn a blind eye towards it all.
Such was the way of life.
"Don't make me say it again Pinky. I swear I'll beat the shit out of you worse than I, or anyone else has before." Rishon growled.
The three students behind him started to roll up their sleeves, preparing to pound Tenro into the hallway floorboards.
With trembling arms, Tenro started to obey.
His hands reached for his shirt, and he prepared to undress...
---
On Earth...
Yohan stood atop a pile of beaten and broken students with a smile on his face.
In his hands were paper notes which he had robbed from them.
As he counted them up, his smiles grew wider.
"See, why couldn't you guys just hand over the money without hassle. You would have saved yourselves a beating."
"Urgh..." The students beneath his feet were only able to groan.
Shit. I hope I didn't kill any of them.
Satisfied with the day's deeds, Yohan leapt down from the pile of five students and headed down the street home.
He had a busy day ahead of him, after all. Not only did he have MMA practice, but he also had a few tutor classes that he needed to attend.
Being an efficient bully wasn't easy after all. To assert your dominance over others, Yohan believed that you had to overpower them both physically and mentally.
However, all plans he had for the day were wiped away when Yohan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest.
"AGH!"
It was enough to make him drop to his knees.
In an instant, he knew what it was. A heart attack. His father and grandfather had passed in the same way.
Yohan cursed to himself and tried to call for help.
He reached for his phone, only to find that it was too late. The pain took over him and eventually his vision faded away, leaving him unconscious.
On that fortunate day, Yohan died of a heart attack.
The bully of London would bully no more.
---
After dying, Yohan opened his eyes.
It was a strange feeling. After all, he was sure that he was dead.
So when he found himself standing in a school hallway, staring up at a brown haired, muscular man in front of him, he was frozen in shock.
"What are you waiting for, Pinky? Do you want me to make you kneel down and kiss my feet as well?" The brown haired boy said.
There were three more students behind the brown haired thug.
"Yeahh, make him do it. His face is pissing me the fuck off!" One of them encouraged.
Yohan could only stand there, trying to make sense of the situation.
He looked down at his body. Not only was he smaller and skinnier, but he felt much weaker too.
Pink hair flowed long from his head and down to his shoulders, and he didn't recognise anybody in the hallways around him, or even the uniform that he wore.
Which could only mean one thing.
I've been... reincarnated?
His eyes glanced back at the giant man in front of him. He had one of his shoes and socks off and was pointing down at his mangled feet.
"Go on, pinky. Kiss my feet, or get stepped on."
Yohan looked back up at the man's face. He had been called "Rishon" by one of his goons.
No memories had flooded into Yohan's brain, which frustrated him. From what he had read on the topic of reincarnation, it was described as two souls in one body.
It didn't seem like that was the case for him.
Still, even without memories, one thing was clear.
This body is pathetic. He's a victim.
If I ran into such a boy on earth, I'd break him down and rob him of everything he owns.
It sucks. It really does. Is this some sort of punishment for the life I lived on earth?
Yohan palmed his face and laughed. He couldn't help it, the irony of the situation was hilarious.
The laughter stopped when a fist crashed into his jaw, sending him sprawling to the ground.
The blow carried so much force that Yohan's vision blurred. He knew that if he tried to stand up afterwards, his legs would wobble and he might even fall unconscious.
"Next time you laugh in my face, I will break you."
Yohan looked up at the brown haired man, who now stood there with fury in his eyes.
The students surrounding were lively whilst watching the scene. They were clearly used to seeing such events take place, yet they still found it amusing.
And Yohan... He felt something building inside of him that he had never felt before.
It was a feeling so intense that he had never felt in his previous life. The concept of being beneath another man, staring up at him as he made a mockery of you in front of others.
It was a feeling that he should never have to experience.
A feeling that he would rather kill himself before having to feel again.
So with shaky legs, Yohan pushed himself to his feet.
The crowd stared at him in disbelief, and the anger on Rishon's face only seemed to grow.
Yohan widened his legs and bent his knees slightly, placing his left foot in front of the other and lifting his hands to cover his chin.
It was a fighter's stance.
"I'd like to see you try that again," Yohan spoke for the first time since reincarnating.
The crowd went silent in disbelief, and at the same time, Rishon roared and charged forward.