Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1: End of the Beginning

“Good morning, Nishino!”

“Good morning to you, too.”

“Good morning, Senpai!”

“Thank you, good morning.”

Akane Nishino greeted her classmates as she walked through the school entrance after being dropped off by her driver. It was another day of school and things were looking to be just as predictable and ordinary as the last. Making it to the locker room, she witnessed the same scene as the many days before of a boy standing in front of his locker, dropping his duffel bag onto the floor. She internally sighed and readied herself for what would inevitably come next.

“Good morning, Kageno.”

If someone were to even bother comparing the boy to her she would find it insulting. Unlike Akane, his grades were unremarkably below average, as was his athleticism. If there was one word she would use to describe him, it would simply be ‘mediocre’. The boy turned to look at her while he opened his locker hearing Akane’s voice. He smiled at her.

“Good morning, Nishimura.”

………

“Excuse me, Kageno.”

“What is it, Nishimura?

Akane kept her cool as the boy placed one of his pairs of shoes in his locker.

“My name…It isn’t Nishimura.”

“What?”

Akane continued smiling at him innocently while he appeared to be genuinely surprised at hearing that. Seeing that made one of her eyes twitch slightly.

“My name…It isn’t Nishimura. It’s-”

“Oh, hold on, I remember now.”

She internally made a sigh of relief. Maybe he wasn’t so hopeless after all.

“You are technically a named NPC, aren’t you?”

“‘Named’ what?”

His response almost gave her a puzzled expression, but Akane refused to show it.

“Sorry, I’m just talking to myself. I’m pretty good at remembering the names of all the important characters. But I haven’t been getting enough sleep…”

What the? Important characters? What is he even on about?

“...So I guess I got careless.”

“A careless mistake, I see.”

Akane nodded at the boy’s words while he closed his locker and picked up his bag. If this was how he chose to remember how to say her name properly she could live with it. Before he only had what, about 3 months in class sitting next to each other to remember her name?

“That’s okay, everybody makes mistakes.”

“Yeah, sorry…Nishitani.”

My name is not Nishitani, jerk!

“It’s Nishino. My name is Akane Nishino.”

She mentally facepalmed as she introduced herself once more to him, hoping she’d finally get it through that lead skull of his. He gazed at her for a few seconds after hearing that name, leading to an awkward standoff between the two that only ended when they heard the bell ring.

“Oh, well, see you later, Nishimura.”

HOW DID YOU EVEN GO BACKWARDS?! IT’S NISHINO!

As he walked away from her heading to class she finally dropped her smile revealing a scornful expression. This wasn’t even the thing she hated most about him. Despite making ‘eye contact’ with her his eyes were always just so distant, as if he was looking at something else and completely disregarding her. Not just that, but they also felt so…empty. She didn’t know how to describe it, but just the way his eyes betrayed that smile he would give to her. Walking to class her mind remained fixated on his eyes wondering just what he was really thinking. 

That was the one of two interactions between the two for the day that she would be aware of.

_________________________________________________________________________________

He’s not answering the phone.

By the time Akane left school after doing make-up work, the night had already fully set in. Walking through the streets with only the moonlight and lampposts to illuminate her surroundings wasn’t something new to her, but it had been years since she’d last done this. Ever since…She would rather not dwell on that thought.

Step

Akane’s heart dropped upon hearing what sounded like a footstep right behind her. She turned rapidly, trying to find the source, but her eyes met nothing.

Why did he not answer the phone?

Dread started to slowly build up within her, but she was able to calm herself down. Taking a deep breath she turned back around intending to pick up her pace, but instead she bumped directly into the chest of a stranger.

Huh?

She immediately stepped back, looking at the large figure in shock. The man looked down on her, further solidifying her physical inferiority.

“Akane Nishino, I presume?”

His voice felt like sandpaper to Akane’s ears. She wasted no time turning around and sprinting away from the stranger who didn’t even bother to give chase.

Why?! How?!

She made a right turn and as soon as Akane turned the corner a car pulled up in front of her, the headlights blinding her.

No, not again!

The driver’s side door opened up and another man came out who immediately lunged at her. Akane tried running back the way she came but the first man somehow was already behind her leaving her surrounded.

“NO!”

Akane was grabbed from behind and had a cloth violently shoved into her face by the second man who grabbed her by the arm in an attempt to make her stop struggling against his hold. She was starting to tear up as she thrashed around, finding it harder to stay conscious as whatever was inside the cloth was starting to take effect. 

No…Please…

Before Akane fell unconscious she looked ahead of the man standing in front of her. She thought her mind was playing tricks on her as she saw a figure standing in the distance just barely visible from a lamppost. She could have sworn he was just staring right at her while she was being abducted. Not just any random person, she vaguely made out the school uniform, the short black hair, and the…the eyes…

Akane’s last thoughts before she fell unconscious were of why Minoru Kageno was watching her abduction.

_________________________________________________________________________________

“Mmph!”

Akane woke up with a startle, disorientated by her new surroundings. From what she could tell, she was laying down on the floor of an empty warehouse right below a skylight, arms bound and with a cloth tied around her mouth. The moon was her only source of light this time around and the longer she tried observing where she was the more she was panicking. 

No no no no no not again. Not again!

Her brief moment of solitude was broken when she heard a mocking laugh coming from ahead of her. Getting into a sitting position and narrowing her eyes she could see through the darkness the same two men that abducted her. One was sitting down on a metal beam and was the source of that laughter while the other was quietly leaning against a pole. Now that he seemingly got her attention the man sitting down began to get up.

“You know you shouldn’t do that. The daughter of the head of the Nishino Zaibatsu, wandering the streets alone at night. You might get caught by some unsavory characters.”

The other man turned his head toward Akane after his partner finished. His neutral and factual tone contrasted the other man’s mockful and aggressive one.

“Just stay there. Do not try anything. We already sent the ransom note. As soon as we get our money, you’re free to go.”

“Or that’s the cover story anyways. Seems your dad made a lot of enemies.”

Hearing that made Akane shift uncomfortably as she now thought the men wanted more than just money from her. The memories of what happened once before started to come back and she started breathing heavily against her gag.

“Hey, shut it.”

“Huh? You shut it, outsider. You think you can talk down to me?”

“I said stop talking, you outdated gangster cliché.”

She witnessed the two men going back and forth for a while, neither side better than the other. After a few minutes of petty squabbling followed by more time of silence eventually the man who was laughing at Akane started approaching her with a frustrated expression.

“This is so annoying. I finally caught my lucky break, and now it’s all ruined.”

His face started to shift to a disgusting smile. Her body shook as she tried moving away from him the best she could in her bindings.

“Why don’t you make me feel better? Gimme a little fan service.”

Her eyes started to tear up as one of her worst fears seemed to be coming true. Her shivering became more pronounced.

“I’ll start with that pretty little mouth of yours.”

He went to grab at her face but she jerked her head back violently as he touched her, surprising him. That initial shock however quickly turned to anger as he became more aggressive.

“Don’t you DARE fight me!”

Before Akane realized it she was slapped across the face by the man making her cry out in pain. Her chin was lifted up by the man and he forced her to look at him.

“This should be familiar to you. It’s your second time being kidnapped, after all.”

Akane’s eyes widened further as she looked at his eyes. More memories of the previous event started to run through her head making her shaking worse. She was finding it harder to breathe as he continued.

“That last guy was a stalker right? I’ll give you much better memories than him.”

Akane reached her breaking point. She began screaming as loud as she could against her gag but it was no use. All it came out as were desperate whimpers and pleas that went unheard, at least as far as the two men were concerned.

“Stop struggling! Nobody is coming!”

Before those words could really be registered by Akane, the situation was interrupted by footsteps suddenly being heard on the rooftop. The man who was just about to begin undressing her let go and stood up looking suspiciously above their heads. The skylight that once simply showed the moon shining in the night sky was now covered by a lone figure standing over it, holding a duffel bag.

“What?! I mean, who’s there?!

The figure simply dropped the bag by the skylight. Akane sat up from her former apprehensive position to get a better look. As she thought she was going to get more clarity, a loud crash was heard as the mysterious stranger broke through the skylight sending shards of broken glass down towards her. Akane flinched and jerked her head down to avoid any of the broken glass getting on her face.

When she heard the final pieces of glass fall, and the dust cleared from the dramatic entrance, she looked back and saw the stranger facing the man just about to defile her. He wore plain black pants and a long sleeved shirt with a matching ski mask. His calm stance differed from the criminal’s worried and angry one.

“Who the hell do you think you are?!”

“Me? I’m just a Stylish Ruffian Slayer.”

Stylish Ruffian Slayer?

Ignoring that odd introduction for the time being, his voice was also calm, much like the other man before that told that pervert to shut up. But to Akane there was more to it than that. He sounded…confident.

“Stylish…Ruffian Slayer…”

After that brief moment of being stunned he reached towards the back of his waistband.

“Don’t get cute with us, damnit!”

Before he could even point the handgun he just drew towards the Stylish Ruffian Slayer, the masked man flung a piece of broken glass at the man’s hand using a speed that Akane could barely make out. It had the precision of a throwing knife, lodging itself into the back of the man’s hand. As the kidnapper cried out in pain, He quickly followed up on it ,rushing towards the man and grabbing him by the waist with momentum that he was not ready to counter and threw him violently into the ground.

“Too much pointless movement. Your guard is way down.”

The man groaned in pain as he was effortlessly outdone by the Ruffian Slayer. He didn’t even have a chance to recover as his face was stomped on by Akane’s savior, bringing him out of commission. 

“I see…It looks like you have some idea of what you’re doing, Stylish Ruffian Slayer.”

The second man, who had just been watching the entire scene amusedly, got the newcomer’s attention. Turning to face the next abductor, he was greeted by the barrel of a gun, which the criminal promptly dropped on the ground.

“You know, I’ve been incredibly bored since I was booted from the army. Doing these little easy kidnappings, partnering with an utter amateur. This country is too fucking peaceful.”

Akane watched on in both fear and growing intrigue of the coming fight, but also she worried for her savior. The man he beat previously was around his size and not as well built, but this other man was trouble. He stood a full head taller than the Ruffian Slayer and despite being covered he was noticeably muscular beneath it all.

“I see…I’ve always wanted to fight a soldier…”

“I welcome the challenge, Stylish Ruffian Slayer!”

The criminal drew his own knife and proceeded to lunge at him, forcing the hero to go on the defensive, dodging all of his strikes with great success until one of the slashes made contact. It grazed the hand of the Ruffian Slayer, forcing him to distance himself from the fight. Akane watched as the man laughed to himself as he looked at his knife, now slick with a slight amount of blood along the edge, which he licked up with demented joy.

“I can never go back now that I know…How good this feels!”

The man rushed at the Stylish Ruffian Slayer once more. Before his knife could even make contact with his face, the masked man swiftly drew a crowbar. Akane watches the sudden block in utter awe, eyes wide as her savior begins applying more pressure against her abductor. The larger man stumbled back in surprise as their weapons locked, not expecting such a counter. With how loud the fight was becoming, Akane wasn’t able to hear their conversation as well as before, only being able to make out something her savior said about crowbars and their utility. Pulling out a second crowbar from seemingly nowhere, the two began clashing, steel against steel. Akane remained almost transfixed by the fighting she was witnessing, almost discarding the fear from her current predicament. Even though it was a pretty close fight, the Stylish Ruffian Slayer had the advantage. He had managed to disarm the criminal, leaving the burly man to continue the fight with his fists.

I’ve never seen crowbars used in such a way. He is wielding them like tonfas…

Akane flinched when the Ruffian Slayer blocked a particularly hard kick from his opponent, forcing him to kneel on the floor in an attempt to recover.

“All I have to do is protect my head from your strikes and I’ll be fine, but if I land just one hit on you, you’re done for.”

The man laughed loudly to himself again and Akane looked over at her savior in concern. Because of the mask, she wasn’t able to read his expression well, but she could see the worry in his eyes.

“You make a good point. At my current level, former military is still a bit challenging for me. That’s the truth.”

Hearing that made the man’s smile grow wider, the words stroking his ego. At least, that was until he continued.

“That just means I have to get more serious.”

The man’s smile broke off, quickly morphing into confusion as the Stylish Ruffian Slayer got off the ground.

What is he going to do now? Will he really win this?

Both of Akane’s questions were answered in no time, her hero tossing one of his crowbars forward towards the man, before grabbing it out of the air, holding it in a more conventional grip. His opponent raised his hands to protect his face just like before, but now the results were different- the Stylish Ruffian Slayer slammed the crowbar into the back of his opponent’s left hand using the heel of its ‘L’. A loud crack rang throughout the warehouse. 

For the first time in the entire fight, the man cried out in agony. He made a desperate  final attempt to counter, but instead ended up getting smacked across the face by the back of the Ruffian Slayert’s hand, sending him reeling back a couple steps. Akane looked on in a mixture of relief and horror at the sudden shift in tides of the fight. The look of fear on the criminal’s face as he clutched his broken hand only heightened those feelings.

“You beat up bikers with a crowbar?! You’re the Balaclava Berserker?!”

Balaclava Berserker? Does he have other names?

Akane tried piecing information together from what she could make out as the two fought, now her savior being in the obvious advantage.

“They recently started wearing helmets, so it wouldn’t kill them if I hit them in the head. And…the solution I found to that problem…”

The wounded kidnapper backed away in horror before his eyes caught on the gun his partner dropped a while ago. Throwing any pride he seemingly had before out the window he jumped towards it. Just as his opponent wanted.

“...was to stop using crowbars as tonfas…”

The Ruffian Slayer sprinted at him as he reached for the gun. Just as his fingers grazed the edge of the pistol, one of the Stylish Ruffian Slayer’s crowbars struck the ground next to it, forcing him to retract his hand.

“...Because using them as a club…”

Using the abductor’s hesitation against him, he hooked the end of the crowbar around that hand and brought it up, forcing the man to face him.

“...Is far more effective!”

The once seemingly formidable man was now reduced to simply prey. He stood no chance against this monster…  A crowbar slammed into his shin, producing a sickening crack that made Akane look away in horror. The strike made him fall to his knees, screaming once more in agony. Akane flinched and closed her eyes as she began to hear more and more sounds of the crowbar meeting flesh only being outheard by the man’s screams for mercy.

Akane lost track of how many times she heard the now probably barely alive man be hit and was almost considering taking a look for herself when she heard the beating cease. When she opened her eyes, she was greeted by her ‘savior’ crouched in front of her holding a switchblade towards her mouth. Her face paled at the sudden closeness.

“Don’t move”

How did I not even hear him approach me?! Was he even trying to save me?!

The new fears sprouting in her head about this stranger’s motivations were quickly cut short when a sudden swift motion of the blade left Akane’s gag falling away from her face. Another slash and the bindings fell with it.

Akane was left momentarily dazed at her sudden liberation and she couldn’t stop herself from just looking at him still in fear and surprise. She shakily rose from her sitting position maintaining what eye contact she could. Being underneath the broken skylight gave her a better look of him and she was able to clearly see his black eyes staring sharply into her through the holes of his balaclava. Without a visible expression, she was left to judge from just his eyes- she thought he was looking at her in a mixture of pity and…disappointment?

No, that can’t be right. Why does he-

“Be more careful next time, alright?”

The masked man’s sudden words broke Akane’s thought process as he moved past her and towards the exit of the warehouse. She remained in the same position for a few seconds, lost in her own feelings about what had just happened to her.

“...H-Hold on, wait.”

The girl turned her head back to look at where her savior had gone, but was met with silence. 

He was already gone.

Who…What?

Akane rubbed her eyes in disbelief. When she lowered her hands, nothing changed. The girl was left alone and distraught in a warehouse, with the two unconscious bodies of her kidnappers.

I didn’t even get the chance to say thank you… Kageno…

_________________________________________________________________________________

I got cut…

Minoru made it to the front steps of his house around the reasonably early time of just past 12am, thinking over the past couple hours on repeat while walking. It didn’t actually take a lot of time to get home whatsoever, so he purposefully made sure to take the longest route possible to get back at a time where his parents were already asleep.

I got cut…

As he unlocked and opened the front door his mind continued to be plagued by his fight with that former soldier in the warehouse, the same scene playing over and over again.

I got cut…

Closing the door behind him gently he put down his duffel bag, which he had still been carrying, and his neutral face immediately turned to one of frustration. He covered his face in his hands in shame and groaned into them.

I GOT CUT!

Years he trained his technique, years he has been honing himself physically, years he’s been improving his reflexes, but despite it all he still got a small cut from that man’s knife during their fight!

“I could have done better than that. How did I screw that up so badly?”

His optimistic side tried to cheer him up by saying that it was his first fight against former military, but it did little when facing the legion of dissenting thoughts.

I got cut, it doesn’t matter if it was a small one. He was able to land a hit on me and actually put some pressure on me before I beat him.

He shook his head in annoyance. This was an insult to himself. He could not tolerate that screw up of a performance! Even though he was able to help Nishino, he portrayed himself as someone who is vulnerable to physical harm!

And that ending! I should have just cut her bindings and left without saying another word. Why did I give her the chance to look at me for that long? Why did I-

“Minoru?”

Before Minoru could rip more into his faults during tonight’s fight, he flinched as the voice of a woman who happened to be watching him interrupted his thoughts. She was still standing by the front door from the living room couch.

“Mom? You’re here? And you’re…”

He looked over at her and saw her clearly concerned and exhausted face. She must have been waiting for him this entire time. The frustration that was on his face melted away and a more melancholic and guiltful look took its place.

“What took you so long? This is the latest you’ve ever made it home.”

She got up from the couch and Minoru couldn’t help but lower his head and look at the floor. He didn’t expect her to actually stay up that long to wait for him. She did this other times before, but he would just come home at a later time the next time around and so far just past 12am was the perfect time.

“I-I sort of got caught up in stuff. Just lost track of time I guess…”

He scratched the back of his head awkwardly while still avoiding eye contact. He really did not want to be speaking to her now, he knows how this will end.

“Are you okay?”

“Eh?”

“I asked if you were okay.”

She spoke softly to him which only served to hurt him more. In his mind he knew and she knew he didn’t deserve this kindness.

“Yes. I was practicing the piano in school. I sort of, well not sort of. I really lost track of time. I promise not to make that mistake ag-”

Before he could continue any more with covering up his activities he felt the arms of his mother wrap around his shoulders and pull him gently to a hug. The act alone made his body shake a bit as her warmth and comfort made him realize how tired he also is.

“You don’t have to lie to me, Minoru. I know how tired you have been lately. All I ask is for you to please be careful.”

Hearing his mother’s understanding made his head drop again in even more shame. He didn’t reciprocate the hug as his mind was occupied with his own thoughts.

She doesn’t know…She forgave me when she didn’t know…

“It’s…been hard for us all, even now. Some days it just feels like she-”

“I'm so sorry for keeping you up.”

Minoru quickly interrupted his mother before he finished not wanting to hear what his mother was going to say next. He’s heard it plenty of times already and it didn’t make things any less painful.

“It’s alright, Minoru.”

His mother didn’t seem to be upset at the interruption, his redirection was a success. She let out a content sigh as if hearing his apology made staying up this long worth it. She let go of her son soon after and saw Minoru still looking at the ground.

“Minoru, look at me.”

He obeyed his mother and turned his head up to finally face her properly, seeing her face showing nothing but worry and also happiness that he was back safely. It didn’t help his mind at all.

“I won’t stop you from doing whatever it is you’re doing anymore. We both know your father and I wouldn’t be able to anyways. You were always the most stubborn one.”

Minoru bit his tongue to avoid countering that. She wasn’t wrong, but hearing that just made him feel even worse.

“Just remember, we love you and don’t want to see yourself getting even more hurt.”

…I don’t deserve any of you…

“Your dinner is in the kitchen, just heat it up okay? Goodnight, Minoru.”

Without another word his mother turned around and started walking away to go to sleep. After she was out view Minoru started to shake again slightly as he was picking at the interaction the two just had.

I keep on disappointing them, and they still forgive me…

He sighed, trying to compose himself. After taking a few deep breaths he decided to drop his stuff off at his room before going to eat. Picking up his bag and making his way over to his bedroom he saw the room next to his have its door left slightly open.

Her room…

He didn’t bother questioning the reasoning and made it to his room putting his bag away.

As he exited he passed by the room again.

“Minoru?”

He flinched at the sound and turned towards the door still slightly ajar. The whisper was just barely audible, if he had taken just another step he wouldn’t have heard it.

What does she want from me?

Minoru went over to the door and peered through the other side only being met by complete darkness. He considered whether or not he should go inside and see what she wanted.

It might be important. What if she nee-

Right before he could finish forming that thought he decided to just ignore her voice and continued on his way to the kitchen. Now that that was all over with he could focus on more important matters, mainly on what happened to Akane.

He was sure she wouldn’t be upset about the way he was ignoring her tonight in the morning, after all, this wasn’t the first time he let her down.

_________________________________________________________________________________

“Good morning, Nishino!”

“Good morning to you, too.”

“Good morning, Senpai!”

“Thank you, good morning.”

Akane Nishino greeted her classmates as she walked through the school entrance after being dropped off by her driver. It was another day of school, and things were looking to be just as predictable and ordinary as the last. Making it to the locker room, she witnessed the same scene as the many days before of a boy standing in front of his locker, dropping his duffel bag onto the floor. She let out a sigh, but on the inside she could barely hold back her smile as she looked at her savior. If he wanted to keep this identity a secret, the least she could do for him was let it stay that way.

“Good morning, Kageno.”

Minoru turned to Akane as he opened his locker, giving the same smile as he did the day before.

“Good morning, Nishino.”

“That is not my na-…Eh?”

Akane blinks in confusion and her black eyes look at him with a puzzled expression.

He…He said my name correctly.

Minoru continued putting his things away while looking at Akane and she could see other small differences with his appearance. His once dull black eyes looked directly at her, clearly no longer so distant, and his smile seemed a bit more genuine.

“Huh?”

“O-Oh it’s nothing!”

Akane blushed and let out an awkward laugh at his response. Her fake smile which she would have everyday now became real for a moment.

Kageno is like me. Living his daily life behind a mask for the sake of others.

“Alright then, goodbye.”

Minoru abruptly responded as he closed his locker and picked up his duffel bag starting to head upstairs to class leaving Akane alone to watch him go up.

Looking back on that day later Akane sighed in disappointment and sorrow. She was never able to get closer to him after that incident. She was sure they would have had many other things in common even if not so obvious on the outside, but it all was cut short.

After all, she didn’t expect her hero to get killed that same day.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: Uncertain Steps

I… I don’t remember how it started. As far back as I can remember, it’s what I always wanted to be. Like how everybody dreams of being a hero when they’re a kid. That’s what I wanted to be. 

But what made me different from the other kids is that this desire wasn’t just a temporary phase. It kept burning inside me, deep, deep into my heart. That flame never died, didn’t even flicker out for a moment. It kept me driving forward relentlessly, mastering every skill I needed to be stronger.

I experimented with being on both sides of the conflict. While growing up, the playground was an excellent place to hold such tests. How Should I go about fulfilling my passion? I’ve played the role of the outspoken hero who denounced and protected all from evil, and the villain who had no good justification for the sins he committed on the innocent, but none of them felt right to me. I wouldn’t be satisfied with my life by being either of the two. There was another path I had to take.

At school I was obnoxiously average- never conspicuous, utterly harmless, Background Character A. But behind that mask of mediocrity, I devoted everything to my training. Even after everyone else around me began growing up, forgetting their dreams of heroism and power. It felt… jarring, initially, spending so much of my time by myself, but it was a small price to pay. Especially when there was one to help insp-...

…

…

…

I kept going, knowing that inevitably, there would come a time where I would be forced to face the reality of my humanity. None of these skills would matter in the end. I could master all forms of martial arts, but I would never come close to the overwhelming power you see in all those stories. The best I will ever be able to do is beat a couple of loosely organized delinquents. However, if, for example, I ever found myself on the opposite side of a firing squad, that would be the end of my life… Well, maybe if I truly did become the greatest martial artist in the world, I may be able to take on a few of them before I succumb to their superior firepower, but that’s besides the point. So what if I did? What if a nuclear missile fell from the sky? No, no matter how much I tone my muscles, sharpen my skills, and hone my mind, the only option there would be for me is to vaporize with my surroundings. That is the tragedy of being human…

Ha, I almost find it a bit pathetic. Worrying about such scenarios, when it was a truck that ended my life…

“MAGIC!”

Smack

“MAGIC!”

Smack

Minoru Kageno did not relent as he shouted the same thing in almost a sort of delirium, slamming his face into a large boulder within the forest between every shout. It was midnight once again, which to him, meant training time. After the horrific failure that took place during his latest show as the Stylish Ruffian Slayer, it was apparent he wasn’t pushing himself hard enough.

“MAGIC!”

Smack

That was not all, besides trying to redeem himself from his subpar performance, Minoru was undergoing this ‘training’ for another important reason.

“MAGIC!”

Smack

Magic, of course! That will be the path to unstoppable power, magic! While he has no regrets about the physical conditioning he has put himself through over these past couple years, he is ashamed that he could not come to such a simple conclusion sooner. If he had started this earlier, he likely would have been closer to awakening magical abilities. 

“MAGIC!”

Smack

Magic is what would take him to the next level. It’s what would destroy the inevitable stagnation that will come once he fully realizes his physical potential. Hell, it might even help him with dealing with he-...

…

…

…

“MAGIC!”

Smack

Books and the internet were his only sources for trying to uncover the mysteries of this mystical power. It was a slow and painful process of trial and error, looking over mythologies from around the world, more recent and ‘credible’ sources, and even those tales he listened to growing up. No stone was left unturned by Minoru as he relentlessly pursued this forbidden knowledge.

“MAGIC!”

Smack

The longer the process went on, the more Minoru began to question the legitimacy of this method, like the many others he did before this. Of course that doesn’t mean he would stop after doing this until his body drops. If there is one thing he can be certain about at the very least, it’s his determination. 

“MAGIC!”

Smack

I wonder how Nishino is handling herself after last night… If I had made myself known just a minute later, he would have already started doing things to her.

Minoru’s abnormal pain tolerance was allowing him the clarity to properly think on things, despite the blood now dripping down his face from his strikes against himself.

It was far from the first time I have taken action against the criminals roaming the night... I’ve faced bikers, thugs, gangsters, ruffians, whatever other names they’ve been given- I’ve fought them all. For training purposes, of course. This should have been no different and yet…I lingered on, I wasn’t careful enough with my moves, and I paid the price…

“MAGIC!”

Smack

My parents also picked up on my actions. They said they wouldn’t ask what I am doing anymore, so long as I’m safe… I really lowered their expectations of me that much, huh..?

The thought of Minoru’s parents growing more distant from him made him pause, just as he was about to smash his crimson-coated forehead into the stone once more.

“Just remember, we love you and don’t want to see yourself getting even more hurt.”

Mother… Father…

…

“MAGIC!”

Smack

Minoru continued his mixture of training and punishment, the passage of time slipping from his mind. He tried to rid his mind of anything that wasn’t the magic he was searching for. Eventually, he reached his limit. Feeling an excruciatingly painful throb in his head, he was forced to back away from the boulder he was using, now clutching his battered skull.

It’s not working! It’s not working! This is also a dead end!

Minoru didn’t feel anything particularly different about himself, not counting the brain damage he likely just gave himself. His mind couldn’t help but wander off once more, feeding into his despair.

None of these things are working, it’s all just a bunch of crap! I mean to be completely honest, I should have expected smacking my head against a boulder while completely nude isn’t exactly the greatest method for anything really, but regardless! I need to find the true way! My dreams depend on it! My life depends on it!

I need to make sure that it wasn’t for nothing! That she-!

…

…

…

Minoru ran at a random direction as far and fast his legs could take him in his delirious state. He wasn’t completely aware of his surroundings, his exhaustion and thoughts distorting his perception of the once peaceful forest where he has trained diligently for years. Nothing was right for him anymore. He was cracking from the frustration and self imposed humiliation. All that work he put in, and then some, just to be at the same point he was years ago when just thinking about trying to awaken magic.

Am I a failure?

Just as he found himself reaching rock bottom, something caught his eye. Two orbs of white light, shining through the greenery ahead of Minoru. They moved quickly, seemingly going to pass by him if he didn’t move to intercept them.

Orbs… Magic?! Is that magic?!

At this point rationality had already been thrown out the window as he fully indulged in this optimism. The hope for success after years of failure was intoxicating.

“MAGIC!”

Minoru wasted no time and jumped through the bushes, welcoming the glow with open arms. He had become so fixated on the glow of the light that he failed to register the sounds of a roaring engine and a horn honking at him in a desperate attempt to gain his attention. By the time he finally realized, it was too late for him.

… Magic?

CRUSH

A rather pathetic end indeed. Can’t believe that’s how I end up losing my life… What will my parents say when they find my body?

… My parents…

I disregarded all of their justified worries about me. No matter how angry they would get with me, how disappointed, how ashamed, they still wanted me to be safe…

I am a failure of a son… among other things…

I threw away the last thing I could possibly give for this dream, my own life, and it still wasn’t enough…

… Something must really be wrong with me, because despite it all, I still wish above all else to continue this path.

“Congratulations! It’s a boy!”

“A boy?! You heard that dear?! We have a son!”

“Claire will be overjoyed to hear she has a younger brother!”

Eh?

Minoru was not prepared for the sudden yells and words of excitement that assaulted his ears as he opened his eyes to a completely new environment. He felt his heart drop. He wasn’t where he was just a few moments earlier. Darting his eyes around he was unable to see much due to the two large faces of a man and woman looking down on him as he stared up at what looked like a ceiling. 

What’s happening to me?

Trying his best to move around, Minoru found himself completely immobile. Minoru was wrapped within a warm cloth and being held closely by a pair of arms, leaving only his head exposed.

“Claire, come here! Say hi to your new brother!”

Claire? Brother?

Minoru decided to cease his struggle, as he was unable to do anything in his current position. Focusing on his surroundings more, he saw he was being held by the woman who was looking down on him while she was laying down in a large bed. Her exhausted face was accompanied by a smile of pure joy as she looked into his eyes, making him feel uncomfortable.

Taking a look at the man now, Minoru saw he shared the same expression as the lady holding him in her arms. The man was beaming at him as if his value was greater than gold.

He concluded that he must have been in some sort of bedroom, but he hadn’t completely acknowledged the fact of what was obviously going on now.

“Claire?! Come on, you have to see him! He’s adorable!”

Minoru couldn’t help but mentally flinch as he heard that name being repeated. He tried looking to his side, and was successful this time. But what he witnessed didn’t feel much like a reward.

Standing by the doorway to the room were two other women who seemed to be dressed in the attire of maids, but it was the one who stood frozen between the two that caught his attention the most. The child’s height was only as tall as the two women’s knees. She stared at Minoru with her big red eyes, showing nothing but absolute wonder from what she was seeing.

He can’t deny the truth any longer after seeing that. Simply put, Minoru Kageno has been reborn.

What… Why… Why is this happening to me?

Minoru looked back up at his parents with what he assumed was a bewildered expression which they seemed to notice. The woman holding him, who he assumed was his ‘mother’, commented on it.

“Huh, he doesn’t seem to cry. That’s a little odd.”

His ‘father’ turned his head to look at her, also a little concerned.

“I’m sure that’s also normal. We can’t expect him to be exactly like Claire can we?”

“I guess you have a point.”

The man looked down at him again with his previously concerned expression completely fading away as the joy he had previously came back.

“Welcome to the world… Cid Kagenou.”

Cid Kagenou… Kagenou…

Nobody in the room was expecting the seemingly quiet baby to start loudly crying after hearing those words from his father.

“Cid! Come on, go faster!”

“Claire, please be more gentle with your brother!”

“Don’t go too far ahead of us, ok?! Stop when you reach the clearing!”

The peaceful quietness that once enveloped the forest just beyond their mansion was interrupted the moment the Kagenou family entered. The parents, after being begged by their 6 year old daughter for days, have finally succumbed to her demands to bring her and their 4 year old son on a walk together. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to do it, it was more of them just being worried about what Claire may do in her excitement of taking him around. And it seems their fear might hold some merit with the way his hand was being pulled by her as she ran ahead of their parents.

Unknown to the three, the boy who was practically being dragged by his older sister was completely disconnected from what was happening as he was lost in his own thoughts. 

4 years, 4 years since I was brought into this new world. I’ve been unable to do much due to my fa-... their almost 24/7 supervision, and even if they were not, I am unable to move around a lot due to my body’s current state.

After the initial shock from realizing I have been reborn here, I felt some sort of 6th sense awakening in me. Everywhere around me, even in the air, I could feel some sort of ‘energy’ present. It was only after I heard one of the servants bring it up, that I realized it was magic. I have been reincarnated into a world that contains magic as a common part of life.

Even if it wasn’t the way I was intending, I’m not complaining. This has been something I have been trying for for years. If I knew death was the solution to this issue back on Earth, I would have done this long ago… I wonder what my parents would thi-

Despite making this miraculous milestone, I still have a long way to go to wield it. I can feel it, but I have no understanding yet on how I can start learning how to use it. This world, despite speaking the same as back home, has another form of writing I have not been taught yet. My si-... Claire hasn’t been taught anything yet either. Right now all we are are just two innocent children meant to do nothing but enjoy their childhood while it lasts.

“Cid!”

Minoru’s thoughts were broken when he heard Claire shouting his name. Before he could realize what she was warning him about, his foot got caught by an exposed tree root, making him fall down violently and bringing down Claire with him. Fortunately for the two they did not fall down head first, but that didn’t stop them from crying out in pain at their sudden stop. Their parents were already running towards them.

“Cid! Claire, are you alright?!”

“Claire, what did I say?!”

The two were sitting up by the time their parents reached them. Cid had fallen down on his side from trying to catch himself with Claire while she had fallen on her elbow from being pulled back by her brother. Cid was relatively fine, but for Claire she now had a noticeable scrape with the skin being slightly peeled. Their father helped the two get up, making sure Cid didn’t get hurt from getting his foot caught on that root while their mother inspected Claire’s wound. She let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh thank goodness, it’s just some minor peeling. There’s no bleeding.”

“Claire, you must be more careful with your brother. You got yourself and Cid hurt.”

Cid, who was still being inspected by his father, watched as Claire looked down at the ground in shame after hearing the words of their father. She turned to him, giving a remorseful expression. He found it confusing how he wasn’t being considered the one responsible since he wasn’t the one paying attention and pulled her down with him to catch himself.

“I-I’m… sorry… little brother…”

The words came out in a slight stutter and her eyes seemed to grow more moist. Again, before he realized what was happening, she took a quick step forward and pulled him into a hug, patting his head.

… I’m not sure I will ever get used to this…

After a few moments of the sudden intimacy she let him go and continued on ahead of her family once more, this time without grabbing onto her brother.

“Cid, you don’t have to be scared. You can go on ahead, just be careful.”

Hearing his mo-... her words, he decided to listen. He began going ahead of the two as well, following Claire to the clearing that they were about to reach.

This would be far from the only time Minoru hurt his new sister with his actions.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY CID!!!”

Minoru was completely unprepared for what would happen when Claire woke him up from his uncontrolled nap in the evening and told him that he had to come to the dining room of the mansion for something important. He let her lead his now 6 year old self along the halls of the mansion. When he reached the dining area, he was greeted by the loud announcement coming from his parents, their servants, and Claire from behind.

They threw me a… surprise party?

This wasn’t the first time that he has ever had a surprise party, but this was the first time that he ever got one from… them.

His… ‘mother’ was holding a large cake with 6 small candles laid throughout the top. Seeing that he was now here, she placed it on the center of the dining table while his ‘father’ had begun to approach him. When he reached the birthday boy, he placed his hand on Cid’s head and playfully ruffled his hair.

“6 years old already, you’re already on your way to becoming a man!”

“Father, he’s not even touched a sword yet!”

Seems that they’re still none the wiser to my activities! Yes!

Cid looked on at their shenanigans with an ecstatic expression which wasn’t so far off from how Minoru actually felt. His happiness didn’t come from this surprise however, it was Claire’s rebuttal to her father’s words.

“He’ll get around to it one day, Claire. For now you should focus on your own training.”

Cid’s mom chimed in as she made it to the others. She got on her knee and brought him into a hug.

“Happy birthday dear, I hope you enjoy this day. It was actually your sister that recommended we do this for you.”

“Mother!”

Turning his head to Claire after she blurted that out, her face went red from embarrassment and she looked away from Cid. He couldn’t help but grin.

Even though they’re not my true family… It’s sort of nice being able to experience this again…

The servants were bringing more food to the table. It seemed his fam-… they were planning on a more extravagant dinner too. 

“Thank you, sister.”

I should at the very least show that I’m thankful for this…

Cid went over to Claire and hugged her using as much cuteness his child form could give. Their parents gushed at the sight of their two children being appreciative towards each other. 

Why does this feel so familiar?

While hugging Claire, Minoru felt an unexplainable nostalgia washing over him. He didn’t know why, or what could he have done before that would make this happen.

No, it’s not the party that’s doing this. It has to be something else… Someo-

“Psst, Cid.”

Minoru’s thoughts were interrupted when Claire whispered into his ear, just enough to where he could hear her but their parents could not.

“I know father and mother told you before that you’re too young to start your dark knight training now, but I’ve seen the way you look at the swords sometimes. I don’t think it will hurt if you got at least a little bit of experience before your training officially starts.”

Cid’s eyes widened after hearing the proposition from Claire. After all his time going out to secretly train, he considered her to be the transparent and honest one.

“We’ll also get to spend more time together too. Are you in?”

I should say no. If I really do start it earlier with her then that would mean I would have to be stronger and more competent with the sword once I begin to fight as Cid Kagenou. It’ll make things messier in the long run, not to mention the time I would lose in training if sessions also happened at nig-

“Yes, thank you sister.”

Cid’s face became one of shock from his counterintuitive and impulsive response to Claire’s offer. Why was this happening to him?

“Wonderful, we can begin as soon as possible then.”

Claire let go of her brother and beamed at him as if it was her birthday they were celebrating. Seeing her happy despite his emotional distancing of this new ‘family’ because of something he said, it gave him a feeling of… he can’t identify it.

Why can’t I remember?

Minoru tried his hardest to think back on his days ho-… on Earth. Something was missing now, and it bothered him to no end. Despite it being 6 years since he has been brought here, he was already feeling himself forgetting things that he once considered memorable.

… I’m never gonna see them again, am I?

Whether he’ll accept the truth or not, he has to at least do a better job at pretending to be Cid Kagenou.

12am, it’s time!

Minoru wasted no time as he happily got up from his messy bed that he never bothers to clean unless told to. It has become a tradition at this point ever since he has been officially given his own sword after 8 years of being here. Waiting in bed until exactly midnight after everybody else is asleep to go train in the woods.

“Goodbye Cid Kagenou.”

Minoru lightly snickered to himself while he grabbed his sheathed sword which was unceremoniously propped up by his nightstand. Ever since he grew old enough to the point where he was expected to talk frequently, he has to put an even greater effort on his performance of ‘Cid Kagenou’, the incompetent boy whose deeds have and never will come close to the heir of the family name. But at night, he gets to finally unwind and be himself without the expectations of his fam-... them to worry about.

If I am able to reach that speed milestone I’ve been aiming for all week, I can go bandit hunting earlier than I usually do!

He changed into his daytime attire with a speed no child should have and went over to the window of his room. Right as he was about to open it and leap out, something caught his ear.

Is… Is that… a piano?

It was faint, so faint that if he were just breathing a little louder he wouldn’t hear it. He looked away from the window and at the door out of his room. It seemed to be coming from within the mansion.

Despite the power he had, Minoru couldn’t help but feel unnerved at the sound of it playing. He approached the door, placing his hand on the knob. He stopped himself right as he was going to open it.

Why… does this feel familiar?

Minoru’s happy expression faded and confusion took its place.

I can hear the notes from here better now. Whoever is playing seems to have some idea of what to do, but their execution is poor. Ha, it almost sounds like-

…

…

…

Minoru turned open the door and gently pushed it open, revealing the darkened hallway that was on the other side. Taking a step forward and closing the door behind him, he felt the poor attempt at music echoing gently through the large hall. Despite the quality, it held a certain charm to it, enough so that it made his baggy eyes droop slightly. A yawn escaped him but he was able to compose himself before it got too out of hand.

“Since when did we even have a piano here?”

Minoru walked towards the source of the music, thankful that his nighttime activities have become something he’s become so adjusted to that his eyes have grown used to very dark settings. Looking at the end of the hall, his calm demeanor was challenged when he thought he saw someone turning the corner of the hallway just as he was able to see it. 

Is that… a girl?

He gripped his sword tighter, considering whether or not he should take his sword out of its scabbard. The sudden panic that arose within him however was squashed as quickly as it grew when he realized the ridiculousness of the situation.

“... Nope, it’s nothing...”

Minoru sighed in relief as he made it to the end of the hallway. It was just past midnight at this point, only he was awake at this time. He shouldn't let his head play tricks on him like that.

His short-lived victory ended when he turned the corner and saw the same figure for a split second descending the staircase he was just about to walk down. The boy jumped back and almost dropped his sword at the sight, resisting his desire to yelp.

It’s nothing… It’s nothing.

This time Minoru closed his eyes and took a deep breath to regain his bearing. The sounds of the piano grew louder, helping to keep him grounded to the task at hand.

She is messing up in the same part when she repeats the sequence…

Not explaining to himself why he thought the one responsible for this was a girl, he started his descent down the stairs. The darkness seemed to only grow worse for him as he made it to the bottom. He had no idea why he found himself so powerless in this situation, and it frustrated him enough to want to get to the bottom of it.

He was now on the brink of finding the source, walking through the final hall he thought he needed to reach, he heard the piano clearly. He picked up every note being played, and every mistake that she was making. Before he knew it, his mind forgot the building dread he was feeling and became lost in an unknown nostalgia, smiling dreamily at the song.

She is certainly dedicated to playing at this time. I wonder what drove her to suddenly start doing it. Maybe my performance inspired her… I’m happy I could have such an effect.

Minoru made it to the doorway to the family room, the place where the music was coming from. She was doing well for someone with limited experience, and he wants her to continue, but it’s late. The two of them should be in bed at this point, and he doesn’t want to incur the wrath of their parents on him.

Crossing the doorway, Minoru’s brief fantasy crashed horrifically when he looked into the dimly lit room and saw the one responsible for the late night disturbance. A girl seemingly around his age, was sitting down on the piano bench, and playing with the unrefined style of a beginner. Even though her bright black eyes weren't looking at him, he could still see the expression on her face, happy and careless…

No… that’s…

That’s… Why is she…

She’s… She’s…

No…

NONONONONONONONO -

“Cid, what are you doing here?”

Minoru’s thoughts were interrupted when he heard Claire calling out to him. Snapping back into reality, he saw Claire sitting down on the piano bench with her hands resting on the keys. She had stopped her practice when she heard the sound of something loudly dropping which made her flinch in surprise. Turning to look at the source she saw her younger brother looking at her with a panicked expression, his sword laid down beside him. He hadn’t realized he dropped his sword while in his momentary delusion.

“S-Sister, I… I…”

Cid couldn’t string a sentence together and started to shake slightly which Claire caught. Her deep red eyes looked at him with concern as she got up and started to walk towards him on the other side of the room. Of course, he was likely woken up by the sounds of her playing and went to investigate, he even brought his sword with him. The thought of making her little brother feel unsafe made Claire ashamed of herself.

“Oh, I woke you up while you were sleeping. I’m sorry for making you have to come all the way down here.”

Cid stopped trying to respond and just blankly nodded at Claire’s words. She smiled at him while ruffling his hair.

“Father gifted me this piano a while ago. I’m not able to practice as much as I want to during the day with my schedule and all that, so I settled with playing at night. I sounded bad didn’t I?”

Claire didn’t care to notice the vacant stare of her brother as he listened, nodding along when he felt appropriate. In his mind, Minoru was trying to answer a few questions in his head. Like how didn’t he notice there was a grand piano in the family room, what did he see before, and most importantly…

Why… Did she… 

Sound… Like…

“Hey, why don’t I teach you how to play it, huh? It’ll be fun. I may not know much myself, but you can play here with me and we can try to go through it together. We can spend more time together too.”

Claire smiled warmly at her little brother when she finished her proposition, hoping he would accept.

“How does that sound to you, little brother?”

Cid stood motionless. He had no clue what to say, or how to feel. His flimsy attempt at maintaining his persona was under the threat of breaking as his thoughts were swirling in confusion and pain he could not identify the source of. 

“... Cid?”

“... I… would… love to… sister…”

Cid let out an extensive yawn as he finished. Going to turn around and head back to bed, he had lost all motivation to do any training for tonight. His exhaustion had finally caught up with him thanks to this encounter.

“Great, we’ll start tomorrow then. Sweet dreams, Cid.”

As the two headed back to their respective bedrooms, Minoru wondered if that final sentence from Claire was another way this world mocked him.

“Remember, just take a deep breath and calm down when you feel yourself losing your concentration.”

“Yes sister.”

“Cid, what did I say about dismissing advice? It’s good to remind yourself of this.”

“Yes sister.”

“Are you ignoring my words again, Cid?”

“Yes sister.”

Before Claire could rebut her 10 year old brother on his lack of respect once more, the boy began another attempt on the grand piano. For the last hour the two siblings were taking turns on the song they were practicing. Claire had already shown her improvement on this specific piece while Cid seemed to be stuck in an endless plateau. It’s between the first 10 seconds and a whole minute at most where he plays beautifully, but it’s after that where everything goes wrong. She remembers the order of how he messes up.

“Cid, make sure to avoid tensing up. You’re doing great so far.”

Meanwhile, as Claire stood beside him as he tried to keep her brother grounded, Minoru was fighting a losing battle with himself as he tried to keep himself composed in the midst of this emotionally challenging situation. He was doing much better than before, but that didn’t mean a lot when he couldn’t even play for more than a minute without freaking out.

I have been in this world for around a decade, and everything has been going well.

Claire noticed her brother's shoulders tensing up past the 10 second mark. It was already starting.

“Cid, relax your shoulders. You’re still doing well.”

The slimesuit has been improved. Nothing the bandits do can hurt me anymore, no matter how hard they strike, it’s completely nullified.

15 seconds in, Cid’s body began to slightly shake as he played. Claire took notice.

“Cid, you have no reason to shake, you’re still going strong.”

My swordsmanship has yet to become perfect, but it’s still improving, as is my speed, strength, and magical ability.

20 seconds in, Cid’s left foot began to lightly tap against the ground. Accompanied by the shaking, she knew his notes would eventually get off. Claire tried reaching out to her brother again.

“Cid, you need to calm down. Take a deep breath.”

I’m getting there. Step by step, day by day. I’m getting closer to reaching the power I need to see my dream realized…

30 seconds into his performance, he closed his eyes and his fingers were starting to shake as he played. He’s about to mess up.

“Cid, I believe in you. Keep going.”

I have gotten closer here than I have ever gotten back ho-... back on Earth…

33 seconds, he missed one note.

“...”

Do they still think about me? Do they even know what happened to me? I doubt it…

37 seconds, he missed another note. Claire’s words were barely making it to Cid’s ears.

“Cid…”

Did they host a funeral for me? Would anyone other than my parents have been there? I know I didn’t leave any impression on anyone in school that wasn’t of complete mediocrity or dislike…

40 seconds, he missed multiple notes in a row before he was back on track. Claire came closer to his side getting ready to intervene, but she hesitated for a moment, deciding to give him a chance to save this performance.

It shouldn’t matter anymore what they think anyways. They’re gone. I’m gone. We’re never gonna see each other again… I’m…

… Content…

45 seconds, his mistakes only became more frequent. He showed no sign of calming down or even attempting to. He was losing it.

“Cid, do you hear me?”

I have given nothing to them but indifference and defiance. I didn’t keep my promises with either of them. And all they wanted was my happiness and safety…

47 seconds, his screwup had gone on for a full 2 seconds now.

How much sleep did my mom lose waiting for me to come home?

49 seconds, he did not stop with his botching of what was supposed to be a nice piano piece.

How much money did my dad give to me for my training, which I rarely even thanked him for?

50 seconds. Every second felt increasingly longer in Minoru’s descending thoughts.

How many times did I let them down with my lack of any social life, my grades, anything that wasn’t the piano?

53 seconds, this was beyond any salvation. He had to stop, but he couldn’t bring himself to.

The piano… The piano that I can’t even play right anymore…

55 seconds, Claire saw his closed eyes quivering alongside his face.

I… I failed them… I failed my parents to achieve something I can’t even show them…

I treated their love as a tool… I took them for granted…

I didn’t tell them what I was really doing… What I really wanted… To be an eminence in shadows…

1 full minute, to call this a performance would be an insult if it was not sarcastically.

I didn’t tell them the truth…

And now I can barely remember their faces right…

1 minute and 5 seconds and he hasn't stopped himself yet. Claire has seen enough, at the very least he hit a new record.

I was a horrible son to them, and now… nothing has changed…

I can’t even call them my own after a decade of receiving nothing but kindness from them.

And Claire… I’m failing her… Just like…

Just…

Like…

“Even if this still scares you, just remember that I’ll be here with you through it all.”

…

“CID!”

Minoru’s descent was halted when he felt a hand firmly grabbing onto his left shoulder. Harshly flinching at the touch. He stood up in a panic looking at the one responsible. Claire looked at him with nothing but concern, which only made him feel worse.

“Cid, are you alright? You… you looked so scared, a-and you were breathing so quickly, I-I don’t know what’s happening with you.”

Please… Stop being so nice to me…

“... Claire?”

“Y-Yes?”

Cid’s face went blank as he mentally prepared himself for what to say without messing it up. Claire was disturbed to see such a shift in her brother’s expression.

“I… I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to continue doing this. This isn’t good for us. I’m… I’m going to bed…”

Cid, without waiting for a response, turned away from her and hastily walked out of the family room, leaving the eldest child of the Kagenou family alone still standing by the piano. She didn’t know what to do, but look on in shock and hurt from his response. He sounded so… defeated.

“Cid…”

Claire couldn’t help but succumb to her own grief of failing to help her little brother with whatever was burdening him. When she thought he wouldn’t hear her, the tears fell freely, and the sobs came soon after.

When Cid made it back to his room, he yawned again as he thought back to what just happened. As much as he hated to admit it, Minoru Kageno was still alive, no matter how much it hurt the Kagenou family.

AN: Should have finished this earlier, but I hit an unnecessarily long roadblock with one of the scenes. Chapters release when I finish so I’ll say sorry ahead of time for the lack of scheduling. Appreciate the support. Also my editor is Asian so that’s pretty cool.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3: Somniphobia

“I forgot to say this, but that was a lovely performance yesterday, Minoru.”

“...”

"You… seem to put more effort into the piano more than anything else in school. You showed me your grades, and you’re on the brink of failing. Why are you letting that happen?”

“...”

“... Are you even listening to me?”

“...”

“MINORU!”

Minoru’s unattentive mind was suddenly interrupted when the girl walking beside him had enough and flicked his cheek, making him flinch in surprise.

“Gah! Yeah, yeah I am!”

“Then look like it damnit!”

He’s only been walking with her to school for a week at this point, but he already felt used to Akane being by his side as they went through their respective days. And when he says being by his side, he means her chatting for the both of them while he nods along and puts the bare minimum into responses until she notices, in which case he’ll try a little harder for a few minutes before repeating his neglect.

“You know, you’re the one that insists on walking to school together. I remember where you live, you’re really going out of your way to make this happen.”

“I-!”

Akane’s anger comes to a sudden halt and her face goes red at the response. He could almost see the steam coming from her ears, she must know that Minoru has a point.

“Hmph!”

She turned her head to look away from him, focusing on the street they were walking down. Ever since the ‘incident’, Akane had seemed to make a complete flip in her behavior towards Minoru. The fake smiles that were obviously betrayed by her eyes full of contempt were now replaced by smiles of genuine happiness, and eyes showing nothing but goodwill. If that wasn’t enough, she also started to engage more in conversation with him before, during, and after class. Not to mention her watching him practice the piano afterschool. To put it simply, Akane Nishino has developed an interest in him, and he has no clue why or how to deal with it.

Turning another corner, the two were almost at school, where they would be greeted by the same people waving and yelling out for her while ignoring Minoru. At first he was worried about the consequences of being around a main character this frequently, as doing that would be a pretty good way to lose his background character privileges. Fortunately, however, it seemed nobody cared much about this change in dynamic, with the exception of some dirty looks he noticed coming from some of the other boys.

“Minoru, I have a question if you don’t mind me asking.”

“Sure, go ahead.”

He noticed Akane turning her head to look at him again, showing a little curiosity.

“Why don’t you speak with anyone in school? You only speak when spoken to or asked a question. I’ve never seen you actually hold a conversation with any other person in the building. Besides… well… me…”

Minoru resisted the urge to laugh at the question.

Yeah, I only talk to you because you’re special. It’s totally not because you’re the only one that tries to back me into a corner where I have to hold a conversation with you before I have the chance to excuse myself, you goddamn main character!

“I don’t see any reason to.”

“Is… Is that it?”

“Did you want an elaborate answer?”

“I mean, I guess. You don’t seem to have any friends. You just come to school, do what you’re told, practice the piano, and then leave. You don’t have any connection to anyone.”

“… Am I supposed to?”

…

Minoru faced her directly after responding, shifting from his usual uncaring expression to one of complete vacancy. Akane seemed to notice the change and immediately broke eye contact, facing the ground and closing her eyes.

“Oh… I’m sorry, I didn’t think that was a touchy subj-”

“It’s alright.”

The school entrance was in sight. It’s almost time for a repeat of the same albeit slightly modified mundane day.

“… Oh right, one more thing. The weather should still be nice afterschool. So do you want to go to the cemetery when we get out?”

Minoru’s soured mood turned into confusion at the sudden random question. This wasn’t the first time she asked this from him, but she would say something like the park, or going somewhere to eat. The worst it ever got was her asking to come over to his house. No way he would ever willingly bring a main character to his parents.

“Did… Did you just say cemetery?”

“Yes, the cemetery.”

Looking back at the girl, Akane was smiling at him again as if nothing was wrong. Her black eyes glittered beautifully, but all it did to Minoru was give him even more questions.

“Why would you want to go there, especially with me?”

Akane’s expression didn’t change as she happily responded.

“Don’t act like you have no idea. Don’t you remember?”

“No. I really do have no idea. I don’t remem-”

… Remember…

…

…

…

He wasn’t speaking to Akane Nishino. 

“CID! WAKE UP!”

The youngest of the Kagenou family had no time to recover from his latest dream, as he felt his body being roughly shaken by his shoulders in bed. Opening his eyes in a frenzied panic, he yelped in shock at the sudden contact he was feeling. He automatically brought his hands up to grab the arms of the one holding him, trying to pry them off him, but immediately ceased struggling when he saw the culprit who also stopped as soon as she heard him.

“Claire?!”

“Cid!”

The two siblings were locked in an awkward position, with Claire standing over his bed and still grabbing onto his shoulders, while Cid, who was now sitting up, gripping her wrists. Claire looked at him in a mixture of panic and worry, contrasting Cid’s surprise. After the initial shock wore off, they calmed down. Cid returned to his trademark deadpan look, but Claire was still a little jumpy.

“Why are you here?”

“Isn’t it obvious?! It’s already way past morning! We were supposed to be sparring already! Mom and dad want to see your progress today, so it’s even more important!”

Cid just nodded along at her words, not really paying much attention to what she was saying. The dream was still lingering in his head, taking priority.

“Oh. Right…”

“Cid, are you even listening to me?! Come on! Get up!”

Claire let go of her little brother and backed away from his side. The urgency in her voice wasn’t being acknowledged as Cid took his sweet time, slowly getting off the bed. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, stretching his arms.

“I’ll be ready in a few minutes, just let me get dressed.”

Claire was noticeably displeased by the lack of care shown in Cid's voice and on his face . She resisted the urge to yell at him even further.

“Just… meet us by the usual spot where we do it, okay? And don’t take too long.”

Claire turned around after giving him one last look of urgency, walking out of the room, and closing the door behind her.

“At least she closed it this time.”

Cid yawned again while he went over to get himself changed for the day. Finishing in only a few seconds, he went to his mirror to take a look at his face. It has become another thing he does as a part of his morning routine. Before he goes out of his room to start his day as Cid Kagenou, Minoru takes a look at himself.

Twelve years. I think it’s safe to say that after being here for this long, it isn’t just the last name that’s similar.

Reincarnation is a concept he is very familiar with, a lot of things he read back… on Earth had it. However, coming into this, he didn’t expect his body to be the exact same as some of the other stories he got into. He just looks like a younger version of himself if he had access to much more formal clothing.

What are they gonna tell me this time?

Ever since he’s been swinging a sword, at least as far as his ‘parents’ knew, they’ve been keeping a closer eye on him, monitoring his progression. He thought that after already having the prodigy that is Claire, they would be content with letting their son fade into the background of their bloodline, but he was wrong. They were trying to see if they struck gold a second time, and so far, they’ve found no success.

I’ve been trying to show them nothing but mediocrity for a few years now, and they still don’t seem to get the message yet.

It wasn’t just being average with the sword, he has been trying to portray Cid with nothing but meekness and weakness. He listens to whatever he is told to do, and tries his very best to show how utterly average the boy is.

Well, maybe if I did a better job during some moments, they wouldn’t be so concerned with me.

Even though he tried putting on this performance of mediocrity, there were times where he did things that were even lower than the expectations he’s already set. Cid’s vacant stare at him in the mirror was proof.

Just another spar Cid. Lose badly, whine about how you’re not nearly as strong as her, come back inside, and get ready for tonight.

Sleep was something Minoru always considered as an activity that should be kept to a minimum, or not done at all, if possible. He has already trained himself to last for several days so far without it. However, when it is time to rest, he is unable to resist. It’s become an unwilling pattern, where around once a week, when he goes back to bed after training for the night and pretends to sleep, he actually ends up succumbing to it.

He rubs his eyes again, clicking his tongue in annoyance when he sees that he’s still unable to get rid of the bags that he has under them. He’s been commented on for having them before, but the most they ever did in regards to addressing it was asking him to take a nap or if he’s been having nightmares.

Nightmares…

He wasn’t sure if what happened could be classified as a nightmare, but Akane’s question left Minoru confused. He really had no idea what she was talking about, or even why he was dreaming about someone he barely interacted with.

Taking a deep breath, he gave himself one last look in the mirror, before walking away from it. Grabbing his sword that he keeps by his bedside, he left his room, making sure to close the door behind him.

He took his time making it outside. When he saw his ‘family’ waiting for him in the sparring area, he readied himself for another humiliating defeat. It’s not that Minoru doesn’t like doing it, in fact he does. He just doesn’t like their persistence in making Cid be as strong as his sis-… as Claire.

“Cid! You’re late again! Come on, hurry up!”

The way they were treating him now compared to back when he was younger were as similar as day and night. He had been getting used to the unconditional kindness and empathy of his ‘parents’. So when they actually began to make him train more with Claire, and watch his development with a much more critical eye, he was a little blindsided by the transition. Whether or not he prefers this change, he doesn’t know.

He sped up his pace a bit. Once he reached them, he was able to properly see their faces. Mr. and Mrs. Kagenou, who were standing together a fair bit away from their two children, both looked at Cid with a small smile, but he didn’t have to be an expert to see the minor frustration in their eyes for coming late. The utter lack of enthusiasm Cid had on his face probably contributed to that negative feeling too. Claire was watching him with a neutral expression, paying extra attention to his eyes.

She’s gonna chastise me after she beats me, I just know it.

“Cid, let’s not waste any more time. Get ready.”

Claire backed away a few steps from him, and drew her sword. She focused herself, which still confused Minoru.

For someone leagues above Cid, she still concentrates.

Drawing his own sword, Claire immediately made the first move. Lunging at him with a slash aimed for his left side.

Clang

Minoru was already very used to Claire’s sudden attacks when they sparred, but Cid still wasn’t. He barely had enough time to raise his sword up to block her.

“Don’t stay still, move!”

Their mother tried giving him advice, but her words fell on deaf ears. Claire backstepped, quickly reengaging her brother. She raised her blade above her head, bringing it down to his head. 

Clang

He just barely blocked again, buckling from her force. He knew she was holding back, but this power was still more than enough to handle for someone as weak as Cid.

Claire began a pattern of backstepping, striking, and being blocked, and repeating again once she felt Cid had recovered from the previous one. He remained rooted to the same spot, much to everyone’s dismay.

The combat in this world, compared to Earth, is very unsophisticated. If I just used a sliver of what I know on her…

“Don’t stand in the same place. You need to move Cid.”

Claire spoke quietly, semi-encouragingly, contradicting the serious expression she was still holding. 

I need to show some improvement…

When Claire went on the offensive again, Cid just barely sidestepped her blade, going for a counter. Claire easily recovered fast enough to parry the blow, sending Cid back a few steps.

“That’s it, keep going.”

He wasn’t sure if Claire’s encouragement was quiet so their parents wouldn’t hear, or so that she didn’t come off as too harsh. Either way, it wasn’t helping.

Claire attacked her brother again, expecting Cid to have learned by now how to utilize more movement. Much to her disappointment, he remained where he was, focusing on blocking her onslaught.

Just end it already…

Cid’s face, despite the physical exertion he was imitating, remained blank throughout the entire fight. His blocking was still unrefined, barely holding his own.

To call him a dark knight in training would be an insult to every other trainee.

After continuing this stagnant game in an attempt to push him out of his plateau, Claire had enough. Minoru sensed the change in intent, and welcomed it wholeheartedly. She struck him again, this time with much more power than Cid would be able to handle. He blocked it just as Claire was expecting, but the force violently knocked him off his feet, sending him and his sword flying back from where he stood. Cid’s calm visage broke as he yelled from going airborne so suddenly. Fortunately for him, the river nearby was able to catch him, preventing the landing from being too harsh.

“Cid!”

He sank into the water, splashing around frantically. Claire was briefly worried about him not being able to properly float back up after receiving a hit like that, but her fears were cast aside when after a few seconds of struggling, her brother's head popped out of the water, looking frustrated.

“Sister! You’re too strong! How do you expect me to fight against that?!

Cid shouted from where he was, loud enough for everyone to hear. Their parents just sighed in disappointment, while Claire’s face remained neutral. He has not shown any real improvement in defensive, let alone offensive capabilities.

After he got himself out of the river, shaking himself like a dog to dry himself as much as he could, he sheathed his sword and started to walk back over to Claire. He saw their parents approach her and begin speaking, but was too far away to actually hear them.

They’re likely questioning her again. Not for her final attack, but for why she didn’t push me harder earlier.

His face became blank again, wondering about what they were actually thinking. He knew it didn’t matter, but he still found himself caring.

“Cid, are you alright?”

Claire approached him first, smiling to get his spirits up.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m used to landing in the water like that now.”

Cid’s response made Claire’s smile waver slightly. This wasn’t the first time she’s ended a fight like that, or the first time that river broke his fall.

“Right… Well, you did a better job today compared to last time. I’m proud of you.”

That isn’t saying much…

He looked behind Claire, seeing how his parents were looking. They were still smiling, but the disappointment in their eyes was even more apparent now.

“Really? Mother, father, do you agree?”

Cid deadpanned at them, seeing if they would actually be honest for once.

“Of course dear, you’re doing better by the day.”

“Just stick to your training. Even if it doesn’t feel like it, you’ll notice the results one day.”

And they’re still liars…

Cid just nodded at their words. They were technically right, but not in the way they were trying to imply, so it was still a lie in his book.

“Thank you.”

Cid thanked the three quietly, not wanting them to hear and start to feel guilty over their lies.

“Cid, could you go back inside and get yourself properly washed? We’ll follow you soon, there are just some things we need to take care of.”

Not wanting to extend this conversation, he simply nodded at the words of his mother and started heading back.

“I… I don’t know what we’re gonna do with him.”

Cid’s ear twitched upon hearing that. He resisted the urge to turn around.

What are they trying to say about me?

Minoru was thankful for his heightened senses. Even if they were still a work in progress, he was still able to hear things from a longer distance than normal. This allowed him to accidentally overhear what is being said about him now by his father.

“Don’t speak like that, father. He has the potential, I know it.”

“You’ve been saying that for years now, and he’s still nowhere near as good as you when you just started off.”

“Hey, don’t just dismiss all of the work he’s put in. Even if he isn’t nearly as good as his sister, he’s still far better than he was in the beginning, when he could barely even lift a sword… But yeah, he hasn’t been making any tangible progress in awhile.”

Finally! They’re starting to have doubts in my potential!

Minoru sighed in relief after hearing their words. Even though Claire still had her hopes for Cid, the hope of their parents were starting to actually wane.

“How can you say that about him? He’s trying his best.”

“Is he? He always has that same dull expression with him. I’m not sure he’s even trying.”

“Father, he’s always been like that, you know that already.”

“And it’s concerning. He barely shows emotion, and when he does, it’s for when he’s crying, or when he’s happy, which is starting to happen less and less.”

The father sighed, clearly concerned. Their mother picked up where he left off.

“Claire, there’s something you should know. We’ve been thinking…”

“Thinking? Thinking about what?”

“Well… We’re not sure it would be the best decision for Cid to attend the academy with you…”

Cid stopped dead in his tracks after hearing those words coming from her. His curiosity was quickly replaced with horror.

The Midgar Academy for Dark Knights? No no no! I need to go there! That’s my ticket out of here! There’s just three years left until I’m old enough to attend! What do you mean it wouldn’t be the best decision?!

Cid bit his tongue in frustration. Ever since he heard years ago about how Claire would be sent there once she’s fifteen, and how he’ll go once he reaches the same age, he’s been looking forward to getting older for another reason besides being able to realize his true potential.

It’s located in the capital, which opens up so many more opportunities for me when it comes to being a shadow broker. I can’t let them ruin this!

“Mother, why are the two of you saying this? You expect him to just stay here alone with the servants to keep him company?”

“Claire, you need to think rationally. He barely keeps himself clean, he skips breakfast, lunch, and dinner constantly. Have you seen his eyes? We’ve tried telling him to rest, but he doesn’t listen. He can’t take care of himself without us being there. This is for the best.”

…

“I-I… Yeah, you have a point there. But he still has 3 years left. He has time to grow.”

“He has made very little progress in regards to you. He will be an embarrassment to us all if he goes and can barely hold his own against anyone.”

Are you forgetting her talent?! It’s not a good idea to use her power as a reference for everyone else, ‘dad’!

“Just give him some time, please. I-I’ll train him more. I’ll make him stronger. Please mother, father, give him another chance.”

…Why is she still defending me?

“You only have one year left here before you have to go to the capital yourself. He doesn’t have time.”

“No, one year would be more than enough time. I beg you, please have some more faith in him.”

Minoru could hear Claire’s voice wavering as she tried to give Cid one last shot in proving himself. Minoru was completely content with Cid being a mediocre dark knight in training. But he didn’t know that Cid’s parents would be this adamant against it now.

“… If you’re still insistent on it, we won’t stop you. But he needs to show noticeable improvement, or else he won’t be attending.”

“Thank you father, I promise you that I’ll make him strong!

Claire raised her voice in the end in relief at the confirmation that they’re willing to change their mind.

No matter what they thought, she still had hope in me…

Minoru felt an odd sense of deja vu, but chose to ignore it.

Anyways, I’ll need to focus on realistically improving Cid’s capabilities in less than a year… Yeah, I can do that.

He wasn’t intending for this sudden change in the script, but adaptability is something he prides himself in excelling at.

I’ll show them that despite his mediocrity, Cid Kagenou is still good enough to not be a complete embarrassment!

I’ll give him a cool ass redemption arc! Well, as cool as a background character could get anyways!

… I’ll make them proud of me this time…

As Cid continued back to the mansion, he rubbed his eyes again, wondering why he was tearing up.

“ HAHAHAHHAHAHA! ”

SLASH

“He’s slaughtering us! Be carefu-!”

SLASH

“How the fuck is this bastard doing th-?!”

SLASH

“ I see business is booming, my lovely bandits! ”

Before the aforementioned bandits could even understand how it was happening, three of them were already dead. Only six remained as they watched their accomplices in front being completely bisected by a mysterious force coming from the unknown entity standing a couple of meters ahead of them.

“ So please do me a favor and just hand me all of your valuables! ”

The seemingly unarmed figure stood, covered in a coat of black. Despite their noticeably shorter stature compared to the group of men as well as their childish voice, they radiated danger.

“Don’t get cocky with us, kid!”

One of the bandits took a step forward, raising his flintlock pistol. He shot at the entity, hoping to land a direct hit. His hopes were quickly crushed when they proceeded to casually contort their body with unmatched speed, dodging the lead projectile.

“Does the word ‘please’ mean nothing to you? I asked for your money.”

They took a single step forward, raising their hand gently. Before the bandits could counter, a tendril of dark slime shot out of the child’s index finger, quickly reaching the bandit that tried to shoot at him, decapitating him where he stood.

Five left…

“Wha-!”

“What the fuck is that thing?!”

The tendril retracted to the child’s hand, engulfing it.

“ The wonders of slime. Beautiful, isn’t it? ”

The bandits tried backing away, but whatever this monster in the form of a boy that was mocking them was, they weren't having it. The slime shot out of his hand again, this time as multiple tendrils, immediately stabbing through their chests, destroying their hearts.

“ Wow, this was way more fun than I thought it would be. Useful too. ”

Wait, that was four. The last one should be behind me right abou-

Clash

-now.

The last remaining bandit attempted to strike him down from behind while he was distracted by the others ahead. The man’s blade was easily blocked by the boy, whose slime turned itself into a sword. He didn’t even bother to look behind him as he spoke to the bandit directly.

“ Alright, you seem strong enough. I’d say you can survive about two minutes, granted you really put some effort into it. ”

The boy slightly turned his head, enough to make eye contact with the appalled bandit. The man was able to see slightly into the boy’s hood, but all he saw was a maniacal red eye staring back at him.

“ So please hang in there, would you? ”

“Don’t mock me boy!”

The sole survivor broke the lock between the two, going to thrust his blade into his opponent’s back. The boy swiftly spun around, raising his own sword, blocking the attack with the flat of the blade.

“Don’t get so confident now! I might not look the part, but I’m a Bushunryu master!”

The bandit pushed forward, following up from his attack with a wide slash towards the child’s chest. This time, it proved successful. The boy fell back from where he stood, blood flying from where he was struck. 

The bandit had won.

“ Just kidding. ”

What the bandit had thought was blood changed color, becoming the black slime that the child was using the entire time. 

“W-What?!”

Before the man could recover from his opponent’s deception, the slime rushed to him, changing into multiple bladed tendrils. The last thing he saw before his body burst into a bloody mess was the boy’s face, staring him down with a demoniac smile.

Was he even really a boy?

“Damnit, you didn’t even last a minute.”

Now that the area was completely cleared of any bandits, the boy lowered his voice. Even though Minoru knew that due to his current age, he can’t really alter his voice as well as he used to back ho-… way back, it doesn’t hurt to still try. Right now in this form, he found it fitting to sound like a sadistic and inhuman maniac.

This slime bodysuit really does work wonders. Couldn’t be more happy with it.

It’s still a work in progress, but at its current state it’s already satisfactory. It’s still beyond him why nobody else to his knowledge has experimented on the uses of slime like he has. The benefits of having armor, while there’s no sacrifice to mobility. There was no need for compromise anymore.

“Alright then, now where’s that loot?”

Taking a look around the abandoned village he was in, he saw the strung up corpses of the caravan members that the bandits recently ambushed before he interfered. It was kind of sad, they were likely just passing through here when they were attacked.

“My dear merchants, I have avenged you! So I hope you don’t mind me repurposing these funds!”

He stepped over a bandit’s head, playfully kicking it like a ball while approaching the untouched crates left behind. Breaking open the tops of them, he was delighted to see an assortment of goods, ranging from artwork, to food and straight up money.

“Do not worry, I will make sure to make good use of this.”

Minoru continued to rummage through the supplies, trying to find anything else of value, or just cool.

“Hey, what’s this?”

He noticed a particular painting in one of the crates. Taking it out, he saw what it was of. A portrait of what looked like a family of four. The mother and father stood side by side while their son and young daughter were in front. The boy was holding the girl up in front of him like a cat, making for a comical family portrait. Seeing it made Minoru turn his head in confusion.

Huh? What would something like this be doing here? Why does it look so…

…

…

…

He continued searching around for anything else, when he heard the sounds of something being shook accompanied by groans behind him. Turning around, he saw the source, coming from an overturned carriage. Approaching it, he saw some sort of cage, being partially covered by a tarp, preventing him from completely seeing what was inside.

Huh? Were they transporting animals? Slaves?

Swiftly removing the covering, he was greeted to neither of his predictions. He was met with a glob of disgusting and monstrous sludge. It twitched inside of its confinement, gnashing teeth that it shouldn’t have, and staring right at him with its singular large blue eye.

“Ugh, so they were transporting possessed.”

The possessed in response let out a crackle of red energy.

Wait a second, I’ve felt that before…

“A magical overload?”

Minoru grinned when he came to a realization.

“Yeah, I can use this.”

Placing his hand onto the blob, he shot up his own magical energy inside of it, seeing what would happen. To his delight, it swelled significantly while crackling his own purple energy, destroying its cage and even the carriage it was inside, before quickly shrinking back to its original size.

PERFECT! I can use this blob for magical experiments without risks of harming my own body!

Minoru happily grabbed the blob, carrying it to one of the abandoned homes, and carelessly tossed it inside. What are the odds of it somehow getting out by tomorrow night anyways? It’s probably negligible.

He knew he was running out of time, he’d have to make it back to his room fairly soon. Dawn was quickly approaching and he didn’t know what sort of schedule Claire would start making for Cid to improve his skills.

Playfully bidding farewell to his new lab-rat, the boy started to walk back home, when he remembered something.

“Oh, right.”

He made it back to the crate where he found the family portrait, giving it another look.

…

When he made it back to the comfort of his room, waiting for the start of the morning, he hoped that family wouldn’t mind him destroying one of their paintings.

“Maintain your guard, especially when on the offensive!”

Clang

“You can hit harder than that! Don’t hold back just because it’s me!”

Clang

“Cid!”

Clang

After the final strike, the youngest of the Kagenou family was once again sent flying back from where he was struck. Unfortunately for this instance, the river wasn’t there to catch him. Cid rolled violently against the grass, stopping after a few meters. Claire, upon hearing her brother cry out in pain from the harsh impact, immediately sheathed her blade, stepping over his own sword as she rushed to Cid’s side.

“Cid?! Are you okay?! I didn’t mean to strike you that hard! I-I-!”

“I’m fine.”

Cid weakly muttered to her as she got on her knees, rolling his body so he could look up at her. Much to Claire’s relief, there didn’t appear to be any cuts from his tumbling. Just a minor scrape on his cheek and specks of dirt around his face.

“No, you’re not!”

Claire sat her brother up, licking her thumb before rubbing it on on the wound, wiping the blood off.

“Are you alright? Does it hurt?”

“… I’m fine.”

Watching her brother’s reaction, Claire saw that he didn’t seem bothered by her treatment, despite his discouragement of her actions. Cid blankly stared ahead of him, not focusing on any particular thing, while Claire continued to wipe the blood and dirt off of his face. After she cleaned him up to a satisfactory degree, she got up, holding her hand out for him to grab.

“Let’s take a small break for now. We’ll continue when I’m sure you’ve recovered.”

Cid to Claire’s surprise shook his head, responding quietly to her.

“I don’t want to get up. I’d rather do it here.”

“… Okay?”

Claire was confused by her brother’s request, but accepted it. She went down once again, sitting back to back with him.

“… Claire, I have a question.”

“Mhm? What is it?”

“Why have you been training me more intensely this past month? I thought I was doing well.”

Claire’s face deadpanned at Cid’s question. She wanted to be honest with him, but she didn’t know how he would react if he learned that he might not even be able to leave for the academy when he’s of age. Well… there is at least one part she could be truthful about, even though it pains her to think that it’s also a partial lie…

“You… You already know that this will be our last year together, at least until you’re old enough to attend the academy with me. But by the time you make it, I will likely be too busy with other things to pay as much attention to you as I do now.”

“So… you’re saying you just want to spend as much time as possible refining my swordsmanship before you have to go? Is that all?”

“… Yes, that’s all there is to it, little brother.”

“Mm.”

The two Kagenous sat in silence for a few minutes, letting themselves relax and observe their surroundings. During this time, a question started to form in Claire’s head, but it took her even longer for her to build up the courage to ask.

“Cid… Why do you never smile like you used to?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean like… you… you just don’t look as happy as you used to be just a couple years ago. You look… sad.”

“I do?”

“Mmhmm, I don’t think it’s a good look for you.”

“…”

Claire felt her brother’s shoulders tensing up behind her.

“Well… it’s not really something I have control over I think. It just sort of happened.”

“‘Sort of happened’? How does that work?”

“I don’t know…”

Cid’s voice remained partially monotone, but she was able to pick up hints of confusion in it as well.

“Well… in that case, can you promise me something?”

“Huh? What do you want me to promise?”

Cid and Claire turned their heads, facing each other with the corners of their eyes.

“I know that you don’t really want to spend as much time with me as you used to, and that’s fine with me. Although I do admit I’m a little hurt by it.”

“Please don’t try to guilt trip me…”

Cid surprisingly chimed in with a little humor, making her snicker.

“Heh, well, even though sometimes I’ve pushed you harder than necessary, it was all so that you could be stronger. Happier.”

She paused for a moment. Her thoughts were trailing off as she tried to get to what she was trying to say.

“All I want for you is to be happy. And right now I’m just worried that you might not be…”

“… Where are you going with this?”

Her face flushed as she tried saying the last part. She didn’t really know how to properly put in words what she wanted.

“Can you… promise me that you’ll be happier? I-It doesn’t have to be now, obviously. But I just want you to try and be happier more often. Not look as cliff-faced as you usually do.”

“…”

She moved her head more so he could have a better look of her face as she spoke.

“You have a pretty smile… I think it… it would be nice if more people got to see it… Don’t you think so too?”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Cid’s extended period of silence started to bring worry to Claire. She likely said too much. She knew this was a bad idea. She should have kept qui-

“Okay, I promise.”

Her brother’s voice interrupted her thoughts, making her flinch from its suddenness. His face remained as vacant as before, but his voice sounded a bit more genuine.

“I’ll try my best, sister.”

Hearing that last part made Claire give her own smile. Ever since that night where he left her alone after failing once again to play that piano piece, their relationship had become more strained and distant. But now, she finally felt like she was getting somewhere with him, getting him more out of his invulnerable shell.

“Wonderful, I’m happy to hear that.”

Claire got up from the grass, brushing herself off.

“Now, I think that was a long enough break. Let’s go again, and this time use my advice.”

She held her hand out for him to pick himself up, and this time he grabbed it.

Maybe she isn’t as bad of a big sister as she thought she was after all.

Another dead end…

Minoru sighed as he took his hands off of the monstrous blob, cutting off the mana he was just feeding into it.

“You know, I have to say I’m surprised you’re still alive after everything I’ve done. You’re a good test subject.”

The boy gently patted it while smiling. He’s only had it for a month at this point, running any experiments he could imagine for the sake of improving his own capabilities. But he’s already grown somewhat attached to the ugly monstrosity. When Claire wasn’t dragging Cid out of his room for training, he was back in the abandoned village where he left it, trying to see how he could contain its magical overload.

Claire asked me to make a weird promise this morning. I’m still not sure how I’m supposed to do it. ‘Being happier’. I mean I can definitely smile more, but with the way I’ve been portraying Cid, I can’t just start doing that overnight.

Minoru frowned, he was dealing with conflicting thoughts and ideas on how to continue Cid’s development, none of them seeming better than the other.

“Hey, what do you think I should do?”

Yes, he talked about his thoughts and ideas with the possessed. That’s perfectly normal.

The creature just simply made a pained groan in response, continuing to squirm on the ground.

This is dumb. I should just worry about this when I make it back. There’s other things to do right now.

“Sorry again for the pain buddy.”

He put his hand back on the blob, trying once more to contain its magical overload. He went on for a couple more minutes, mostly expecting another failure. Until something happened that Minoru was not anticipating.

After successfully containing its magical overload, the hideous blob transformed into a girl.

Oh shit!

“How could something that decomposed revert to its original form?”

He was fortunately able to catch her as she fell forward, unconscious. Now came another issue he wasn’t expecting, she was completely naked.

Uh oh. This won’t look good if she woke up naked to some random boy holding her.

He quickly and gently laid her body down on the floor, taking a step back. Using some of his slime, he fabricated a cloak to wrap around her entire body, covering her modestly.

“That’s a little better. Now who even is she?”

He crouched down in front of the sleeping girl, taking a better look at her. She seemed about the same age as Cid physically, sporting long blonde hair and long pointed ears.

So she’s an elf then…

Before Minoru could find anything else to take note of, she started to shift around on the floor, groaning. She’s waking up!

How am I going to explain to her about what happe-… Oh… Oh!

Minoru could barely contain his smile as he moved back, sitting on a crate behind him as he got into position.

He had a wonderful idea.

Just be cool! Stay focused!

This is going to be my first performance! I cannot afford to fail!

My first act as…

He couldn’t contain his smile anymore, he cleared his throat as he got himself ready.

… the Eminence in Shadow…

The elf woke up in a daze, finding herself on a floor completely unfamiliar to her. She was about to get up, when a voice interrupted her.

“I see you’re finally awake.”

She jolted up, getting on her knees. 

“What?! I’m cured?!”

She tried looking at her hands, but she was wrapped in a dark cloak with only her head sticking out. Regardless, she could feel them. Her body was back to her original form.

“How could this be?! I don’t under-”

“I broke through the curse that was consuming your body. You’re free now.”

She stopped trying to look at her body, paying attention to the one speaking in front of her. The boy sat on top of a wooden crate, looking down on her. He had a soft smile as he spoke to her.

“Y-You? You did this? What curse did I have?”

“…”

The elf’s face turned in confusion as she saw the boy’s face pale momentarily, before returning to normal and continuing.

“Yes, the curse… It’s, well… a terrible curse that was cast on you and all other descendants of heroes.”

The girl looked even more perplexed at his explanation, making his smile grow. He turned his body away from her, grabbing something behind him and showing it to her. It was a book.

“I understand you’re confused. But at some point during your life before you must have heard about it. The fairy tales recorded in the scriptures. The three heroes who defeated the demon known as Diablos, and saved the entire world from damnation.”

“I-I-”

“That story isn't just a story. It’s true.”

“Eh?!”

“Not only that. With the demon’s dying breath, he cursed them all. That’s why you became that blob of rotting flesh and teeth.”

He put the book down. The boy dropped his smile, looking at the girl more seriously.

“But someone, they twisted the truth, and they convinced the world that you’re a group to be scorned instead of helped. Slandering you with the term ‘possessed’.

The elf gasped in horror. Why are they doing this to her and so many other children?

“And the one responsible for all of this… The mastermind… Uhh…”

His face twitched, he quickly shaked his head at her.

“No… No, it’s too soon to give the name. If I did tell you, I’d only be putting you in danger. It’s not my right to bring you into thi-”

“I don’t care!”

“Huh?”

The girl interrupted him with a face full of determination, slightly surprising the boy.

“Who did this to me? I want them stopped.”

“O-Oh, I see… Well in that case, I have no choice…”

Her savior turned his black eyes away from her, looking at something behind her. She was too occupied with her question however to care about that.

“It was the work of the Cult of Diablos. A group of radical zealots who wish to resurrect him.”

Hearing that made her grit her teeth in anger. Retribution will be a lot harder than she was initially anticipating.

“They don’t operate publicly. They work in the shadows. I have made it my sole purpose to remain in the shadows with them. And put an end to their hideous schemes… Yeah that sounds cool.”

She didn’t hear that last part, but before she could put any thought into it, a beautiful purple energy started emanating around him, making her halt. She was transfixed by the glow that reached the entire room, swirling around him, making him look greater than just a young boy.

“… Yes, I am a Sty-… My name is Shadow. He who lurks in the dark to hunt the shadows. ”

As he spoke, she saw a dark slime enveloping his body. When it was done, he was no longer in the simple and formal clothing of the boy. Now he was covered in marvelous dark attire, with gold and purple detailing.

“S-Shadow…”

She remained mesmerized by the boy ahead of her.

“ My path is far from an easy one, but this is my duty. ”

He got off of the crate, taking a step forward to the elf. His hood covered most of his face, but she could see that behind it, there was a shining red eye that looked into her very being.

“ Child of a hero… Do you truly wish to walk this path? ”

The elf faltered momentarily, looking down in sadness.

“When… When I was struck by that curse, I lost everything, everyone. The only thing left for me was to rot away until someone gave me the mercy of death. But you… you saved me.”

She looked back up at Shadow, eyes filled with resolve.

“If you will allow me, I will give you my life. I wish to walk this path with you, punishing the ones responsible for this with death.”

She swore his eyes grew brighter from her declaration. Shadow extended his hand out towards her to grab. She took it without hesitation, picking herself up so they could stand face to face.

“ We will be facing the very kingdoms we walk in. The cult has members everywhere, even at the very top. There will be many others who are unknowingly helping with their ambitions, blind to the truth. ”

“It doesn’t matter to me. I cannot give quarter to anyone that stands in our way of justice.”

“Err, yeah! That’s the spirit!”

She continued to hold his hand, taking gradual steps closer to him.

“We need to find the other descendants, and let them know the truth too, expand our cause, strengthen our base of operations progressively. We will also need to start raising funds too, and-”

“ Calm down .”

Shadow interrupted her, speaking assertively.

“ We must take this one step at a time. First, our name.  

He let go of the girl’s hand, turning around and walking away.

“ Our organization. It shall be known as …”

He stopped right as he was about to leave the house, turning back to look at her.

“… Shadow Garden … As for you, you must discard your old identity. From now on, your name is … Alpha …”

Shadow smiled again, seemingly satisfied about the name he gave to the girl.

The two of them didn’t know yet just how much those new identities would mean to them.

Clang

“Focus.”

Clang

“Don’t be scared.”

Clang

The Kagenou prodigy continued to quietly encourage her brother’s performance as they sparred once more in the afternoon. Their parents were watching, determining the extent of their son’s improvement. It was the last week before Claire was due to leave for the capital. The last time they would see her for quite awhile. This was her final chance to redeem her brother in the eyes of their parents.

Cid sidestepped her next strike, thrusting his sword towards her stomach, which she parried, sending the boy back. Sweat was starting to run down his face from how much he was exerting himself just to be able to stay in the fight. His face was no longer blank, showing obvious concentration.

“Come on, you’re doing well so far Cid!”

Their mother cheered Cid on from the side. He barely acknowledged her praise as he blocked another one of Claire’s blows. He took a few steps back, trying to gain some distance to regain his bearings.

I think this is the best place to leave Cid off. Two and a half full minutes of ‘fighting’. They better be happy with this.

Claire wouldn’t give him this chance to recover. She lunged fiercely at him, breaking some of the ground beneath her feet from the sheer force. She was finally going to put some actual force behind this attack.

He had just enough time to raise his sword up, minimizing as much damage as Cid possibly could, but it wasn’t enough. To everyone’s horror, Claire broke through her brother’s blade, still pushing forward. Before she could stop herself, the tip of her blade met his cheek, or at least, that’s how it would have been if Minoru didn’t use his inhuman reflexes. He shifted his head slightly, making the long slash towards his cheek only skin deep. Cid tumbled backwards, crying in pain from the sting.

“Cid! I’m so sorry!”

Claire’s eyes widened in shock at the effects of what she had done. She pushed him too far. She made it to his side as quickly as she hurt him, wiping the blood that was dripping out of him with his shirt’s collar.

“Cid, are you okay?!”

Their parents made it to his side, calling for servants to come with medical supplies.

“H-Hey, it’s only skin deep! I’m fine!”

Cid squirmed in Claire’s hold as she continued to wipe his cheek. Not listening to his words. 

“Sister, I’m fine!”

He spoke more assertively, his face turning more frustrated at her persistence. It faded away however when he heard other voices joining in.

“Cid, that was wonderful!”

“Good job, Cid!”

He looked over to his ‘parents’, registering what he just heard from them. He tried reading their faces, determining their honesty.

Are they… telling the truth now?

The boy sighed in great relief, much to everybody’s confusion. He didn’t pay attention to the words of anyone else as he thought to himself

Finally, Cid should finally be redeemed in their eyes! This was the most I could do while keeping him weak. All I can really do now is wait and see what they think… please work…

“Cid, are you feeling better?”

Claire let go of his now red stained shirt, looking at his face. Looking blankly back at her, she also seemed to be smiling slightly.

Cid slowly picked himself up, looking around his surroundings. He knew something was off. He quickly found the source of that feeling in the distance, staring at him behind some trees. The seven heads immediately retracted back behind their cover as soon as they saw him looking back at them.

What did I tell them about getting too close to here…

“Are you okay, Cid?”

Minoru was interrupted midthought when Claire questioned him, getting up too. There were two servants already coming with the medical supplies that were requested.

“Yeah… Yeah, I’m fine.”

Cid looked back at Claire, giving a small yet reassuring smile. Even though it wasn’t much, he could see from her face how much that meant to the fam… to the family.

Now, while they tend to this ‘wound’, Minoru can think about another important matter. How can he better keep Cid Kagenou and Shadow separate from each other?

“C-Claire, how could she…”

“They must have been strong. Even if she was taken by surprise, she should have defended herself well.”

“Are you trying to say a powerful group of people kidnapped our daughter?”

“N-No, but-”

“Then shut up! We’re not giving up on her that easily, are we?!”

Cid watched from outside of Claire’s now messed up bedroom as Mr and Mrs Kagenou were essentially arguing with each other, searching everywhere inside along with some of their servants. Today was supposed to be the day that she left for the academy, but when he woke up to hearing confused and angry shouting outside of his room, Minoru didn’t even waste any time looking at the mirror.

“What if something happens to her?! What if something bad already happened to her?!”

“You think I’m not worried about that too?!”

The boy took a deep breath, before turning to walk away from the scene with another maid following behind him. Minoru never saw them being that aggressive with each other. It was obvious to anyone that they were both stressed out.

Please be safe…

He adjusted his tie and scratched the back of his neck, catching the maid’s attention.

“Are you worried about her, Lord Shadow?”

“Hm? No Beta, I’m just thinking.”

The head of the brown haired maid became engulfed in black slime, before going back inside of her uniform, revealing her true identity, a silver haired elf.

“Oh, right. Do you know where Alpha currently is?”

“Yes, she’s currently looking for clues on Miss Claire’s whereabouts.”

“Her speed is admirable. Does she know if my… if she’s still alive?”

Shadow turned his head back to look at Beta directly, waiting for the big answer.

PleasePleasePleasePleasePlea-

“From what we know, most likely, yes.”

…

“… Anything else?”

Beta nodded.

“The kidnapper, as expected, seems to be with the Cult of Diablos. We suspect he’s a high-ranking officer.”

Not this bullshit from them again… Well, it was me that put that idea in their hea-

“Lord Shadow, you look frustrated. Are you alright?”

“Yes, as I said, I’m thinking.”

The two went inside an unoccupied room, Beta closing the door behind her to avoid any eavesdropping.

“Anyways, continue. Why did they take Claire?”

“Mhm, we believe they are under the suspicion that Miss Claire is a descendant of one of the heroes.”

“So if they’re right, that would mean the Kagenou bloodline also stems from heroes…”

Shadow looked out of a window, thinking about the ‘information’ Beta was giving. Minoru was almost impressed by how good Alpha and these other girls she’s brought into this ‘organization’ are at twisting what is very likely a simple abduction of a Baron’s daughter for ransom into, well, this. 

Rescuing someone who was kidnapped. I’ve never done this before…

“Lord Shadow, come here.”

Looking back at Beta, she laid down a map of their territory on a table. Different marks spread throughout certain areas along with some sort of paperwork on the side.

“We’ve determined the locations of their hideouts. Miss Claire is very likely being held in one of them, but we haven’t been able to narrow it down to any one of them.”

Shadow’s eyes widened upon hearing the last part.

No no no, damnit! I can’t hit up all of those spots at once. If they’re communicating between spots and I don’t hit the right one first, they’ll likely move her somewhere else.

“Are you absolutely certain there is not a single clue about which place may be the right spot?”

“Yes, Lord Shadow.”

…

Shadow moved from the window toward the table, standing opposite from Beta’s side. He took a closer look at the map, desperately looking for anything that stuck out. Claire had to still be close. He can still turn this around.

He materialized a dagger out of his slime, playing around with it as he continued to look. He knew in the back of his mind he wasn’t getting anywhere, but he couldn’t help himself. Minoru couldn’t help himself.

“So long as you’re here, I know I’m safe from anything!”

…

…

…

Shadow stabbed the map at a random point, looking down with a blank expression. He couldn’t do anything.

Fine… At the very least, I gave them enough training to hold their own too. We could split up, but how would we be able to coordina-

“It can’t be?! All those cryptograms were actually a bluff?!”

… Eh?

Shadow looked back up at Beta, waiting for her to continue.

“There’s nothing where you pointed, Lord Shadow. But, if we compare it with this account we also have…”

The elf continued looking back and forth between the spot Shadow’s knife is currently lodged in and some of the papers she had on the table.

“… It… It’s all coming together! Lord Shadow! There must be another hideout in the spot you indicated! Miss Claire has to be held there!”

… What did I just do?

Shadow blinked at Beta, seemingly dazed by her announcement. Before she could really focus on his surprise, it became blank again as if he wasn’t surprised.

“I knew it. No way they would keep her somewhere that isn’t nearly as concealed. They wouldn’t want to take any chances.”

“Incredible! You somehow looked through all this information, and saw through their deception in an instant!”

Shadow looked back out the window. He wanted to thank Beta for this act, but now is not the right time. Claire was actually in danger.

“Contact all of the Shadows, we’re going to rescue her immediately.”

“Yes, Lord Shadow!”

Despite the confidence Shadow was radiating on the outside, deep down, Cid and Minoru were begging for Beta’s conclusion to be correct.

“For someone of your age, I admire your persistence against those chains. But you’re not getting out of them anytime soon. So I would recommend you stop struggling, for your own sake.”

The man’s request for the prisoner’s cooperation was unmet as she thrashed against the bindings keeping her to the wall. The two were inside of a small cell within the underground complex, facing each other. The man looked down on her as she sat up against the wall, continuing what looked like a hopeless struggle.

“I’m not speaking to you as a captor, but as someone who had a daughter. I really do not want to use violence against you… Claire Kagenou…”

He rested one of his hands on the pendant he was wearing, gently holding it. Once again, the girl did not listen, making the older man sigh in disappointment.

CRASH

He swiftly kicked at her resting head, but instead of landing a solid blow on the girl, she moved her head to the side with a speed that betrayed her age, making him leave a sizable hole in the wall.

“You can still dodge an attack while locked in magic-sealing chains. It  seems you’re more than just stubborn after all.”

“… I learned a long time ago that how much magic you use is nowhere near as important as how you use it…”

Claire finally stopped struggling, looking up at the man as she spoke.

“Your father must have been an excellent teach-”

“Ha! Are you kidding?! My brother taught me that lesson.”

“Your brother? Just to be clear, Cid Kagenou taught you?”

The man turned his head in confusion. From what he knew of the boy, he wasn’t even considered as a possible threat in the event their abduction went wrong.

“Who else is my brother? Yes, he teaches me many things. Everytime we fight, I always win, yet I end up being the one that learns the most from it. That’s why I think he has greater potential than even me.”

She smiles up tauntingly at him, but her attempt at aggravating him even further did not succeed.

“When you were still suffering from possession, he was the one that cured you, yes?”

“Tsk, not this nonsense again. No, that is not what happened, I haven’t even been cured at all.”

“You say this, yet you no longer show any signs.”

He got closer to her, examining her face for any signs of lying.

“You seem to be telling the truth. But even if you think you’re being honest, what you said about your brother is interesting… If your presumptions even hold a shred of truth, then it might be worth looking more into that boy.”

As soon as he finished that last word, her demeanor changed completely. Claire’s smile dropped, eyes narrowing, as she began thrashing her arms against the chains again. She stared at him with pure hatred.

“DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH HIM!”

Much to his surprise, he heard the chains start to crack. Just a few moments later, she broke one of the chains off the wall, swinging it violently towards his head. He barely was able to duck in time, taking a step back to gain some distance.

“IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO MY BROTHER, I’LL-…”

Claire broke the second chain holding her other arm, completely freeing herself at the cost of mutilating her wrists. She took a step forward towards the man, lost in an anger she didn’t even know she had.

“… I’LL KILL YOU, YOUR FRIENDS, EVERYONE YOU CARE ABOUT! EVEN YOUR DAUGH-”

Before the enraged daughter of the Kagenou family could finish the last part of her threatening, the man had enough, slamming his fist directly into her face, sending the girl flying back to the wall.

“You damn bitch…”

He rubbed the hand he used on her as she lay crumpled on the ground. She looked up at the ceiling, blood running down her face, twitching from the damage she sustained from both herself and the man.

“It doesn’t matter. We’ll know for sure if you’re compatible once we analyze the blood…”

“Viscount Grease!”

The man turned his head when he heard another voice coming from outside the cell. He saw one of his subordinates, clearly looking startled.

“What do you want?”

“Intruders sir! They’ve already killed over half of our men!”

“What?!”

Grease fully turned around after hearing the news, looking unsettled himself.

“T-They came out of nowhere, like shadows! They’re slaughtering everyone that stands in their way, and they’re heading towards your location!”

“How many are there?!”

“Seven! We don’t stand a chance against them!”

The older man frowned at his statement, looking at the knight with suspicion as he rushed outside of the cell, running down the hall with him

“Impossible, some of you are strong enough to be a part of the Royal Guard.”

“It doesn’t matter! We’re no match for them!”

Just as the young knight finished, his head rolled off of his shoulders, blood splattering on Grease and the floor as the rest of the body fell on the ground.

“What the?!”

He looked into the next room at the end of the hall. His eyes twitched in disgust as he saw the bodies of some of the other knights, mutilated and mangled in varying degrees of cruelty. That wasn’t the only thing Grease saw; standing behind the corpses were seven young girls, dressed in black bodysuits with gold detailing.

“You…”

Grease wasted no time drawing his sword, shouting at the group as he prepared himself for a sudden attack. The seven stood side by side, watching him with scorn.

“Who are you all?!”

The one in the center took a step forward ahead of the rest. From what he saw, she appeared to be an elf with blonde hair and blue eyes.

“We are Shadow Garden.”

As she finished, another girl chimed in.

“It is our sole purpose in life to bring an end to the Cult of Diablos.”

“We know everything that you’ve kept hidden. The plan to resurrect Diablos, the descendants of the heroes, the demonic possessions infecting them, even your corruption of this world.”

Grease’s eyes widen at their declaration.

“Impossible! How could you even know our name?! Where did you learn?!”

He cries out at the girls in anger as he lunges at the one in the middle, who seemed to be their leader.

Clang

The elf doesn’t even flinch as she blocks him with a simple flick of a sword she did not have a moment prior. Grease continues on the offensive, but none of his strikes meet their mark. The other girls encircle the two as she dodge and block all of his attacks, not looking pressed at all.

Slash

After parrying his last stab, it was her turn to attack. She slashes at him just once across the front of his torso, leaving a wide gash. He staggers back in shock.

“Damnit, how did you-?!”

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend on having you killed just yet. Not until we extract all the information we can from you.”

The blonde elf spoke calmly, as if she were in complete control of the situation, and the fact that she really was frustrated Grease to no end.

He digs his free hand into his coat’s pocket, pulling out a small glass bottle filled with what looked like small capsules. Popping the cork, he quickly drops one into his mouth, crunching.

The girls’ expressions remain firmly stoic as the man’s cut rapidly seals itself, even as red energy begins crackling around him. His left eye glows an ominous red as he begins yelling manically, the boost he gave himself granting him confidence. He charges towards the leader again in blind anger, but is parried just as easily as before.

“An interesting trick, but such things will not work on us.”

She speaks coldly, completely unfazed, sending the viscount over the edge. He stabs his sword into the ground in his rage. It cracks beneath his feet, making her move back in anticipation for what would come next. Just as they expected, the ground gives way, creating a crater that dropped him down into the darkness beneath.

“I’ll follow him down.”

The silver haired elf crouches next to the sizable hole, trying to determine the depth.

“There is no need.”

Alpha smiles as she looks down the pit, already knowing her opponent’s fate.

“He’s headed straight for him .”

The other girls smile with her upon realizing why he said he would be splitting up from them. He had anticipated the viscount fleeing from them. By coming in from the opposite direction, they could corner him.

Their leader truly is a genius.

Speaking of their leader, he is currently wandering around, having lost himself in a deeper section of the underground complex, donned in his Shadow attire. He frantically looked around for any place that could be used to hold prisoners.

I should not have killed all those bandits who were in my way! At least one of them would have told me where they are keeping her… or if they are even keeping her here…

Minoru sighed in frustration. He was glad that none of the girls were around to see this break in character, it’s hard to keep up an act when there’s someone actually at stake like this.

His hopes for another enemy encounter to interrogate were answered when he made a turn in the hall he was walking in. The moment he turned the corner, he saw at the end of the hallway a secret passageway opening up from the right. Just a few seconds later, a man who looked older than the other bandits he killed on the way here hastily came out from it. He appeared to have been greatly injured- one of his eyes was gone, a nasty cut lay across his torso, and there were disgusting grayish lines scattered across his body. The man stops dead in his tracks upon seeing him, leading to an awkward standoff between the two that lasts longer than either would care to admit.

“Y-You… You knew I was going to be here, didn’t you?!”

…What?

“It doesn’t matter, I’m strong enough to take on one of you!”

Before Shadow could even get a word in response, Grease lunges at him with a speed far greater than the other bandits had displayed. Even though he wasn’t expecting such abilities from what looked like just a higher tier bandit, it didn’t faze him one bit. Shadow easily blocks the man’s thrust, using the very tip of his blade to bring Grease to a halt.

“Hey, I know you want to beat me and all, but I’m really trying to find someone, and I’m in a rush. Is Claire Kagenou here? If she is and you tell me where to find her, I’ll give you a painless death.”

The boy’s utter disregard of Grease’s attack coupled with his nonchalant voice as he questioned him further fueled his rage. He put more power into his attack, making Shadow do the same. The sheer force made the ground beneath them rupture, sending chunks of it flying upwards.

“I’m trying to be polite with you. I really need to know. Is Claire Kagenou here? Is she alive?”

Shadow broke the bladelock between the two, moving forward. He stepped right in front of Grease, holding his dark blade against the viscount’s throat before he could react.

“W-Why does it matter? What does it mean to yo-?”

“It means everything.”

The hooded boy continued calmly talking to Grease, but the man could tell that behind that collected tone of his, he was holding something back.

“…Yes, she’s here, but that doesn’t mean you’ll just be taking her and running out.”

“Are you kidding? With a weak lunge like that, I could walk out.”

As soon as Grease said that Claire was here and basically implied she was at least still alive, a huge weight was lifted off of Minoru’s shoulders, and his calm tone turning into one of complete confidence reflected that.

“Since you’ve brought me the relief of knowing she’s here, I will repay you by giving a masterclass on how to properly use magic while fighting.”

Grease swings his sword at the boy’s neck in anger, trying to land a hit, but Shadow easily dodges, simply taking a step back. The man was not disheartened, continuing his onslaught of attacks as Shadow began his lesson.

“Lesson One, concentrate a minimum amount of your magical energy into your feet for a burst of speed.”

Just as Grease thought he was going to finally land a strike on the boy, Shadow moved faster than the viscount could’ve even anticipated, suddenly appearing behind him.

“Lesson Two, once you have the proper distance between you and your opponent, speed and strength are no longer necessary.”

As Grease swiftly brings his blade down on Shadow again, the boy redirects the blade, using just his hand to smoothly bring the oncoming strike to the side, shocking the man even further.

“You can even skip out on using magic altogether.”

Shadow raises his blade, lunging towards the viscount. Now he was going to be on the offensive.

“ Lesson Three, I’m only just getting started. ”

Minoru may have been a bit overenthusiastic about it, but he didn’t care. Shadow stabs his sword into the viscount’s chest, but he isn't done just yet. He continues to slash at the man across his torso, creating even larger openings than his previous opponent.

Grease never felt this overpowered in his adult life before. That elf girl from before may have been in control, but this boy was on a completely different level from her. It’s as if he knew absolutely everything he was going to do before he would even know what to do. He felt like he was a child again, facing his instructor for the very first time. He was so hopelessly outmatched that a small part of him considered throwing away his pride and just giving up.

“I… I don’t care how powerful you are…”

The viscount got on his knee, helping to support himself with his sword. He was coughing up blood as he struggled to stay conscious despite his new injuries.

“…Because… in the end… the darkness of the world and its truth will always be stronger! Nobody ever wins!”

…

Shadow couldn’t help but smile at the man’s words. He made sure his hood was pulled back just enough so he could see it through the darkness.

“You still smile?! You think this is a game, child?!”

“… No, all you’re telling me is that I just have to dive deeper. As deep as I can go.”

The boy’s right eye began to glow purple as he finished, sending the viscount to an even greater fury.

“I’M BEING SERIOUS, YOU FOOL!”

Grease reaches into his coat once more, taking out the small bottle. This time he saw no point conserving them, taking all of the remaining capsules into his mouth. The results were instant, the red magical energy envelops not only his entire body but his surroundings as well. The force kicks up a massive amount of dust and debris in the air. By the time it dissipated, Shadow was met by a monster instead of a man.

“LET ME TEACH YOU NOW! ABOUT THE DARKNESS OF THIS WORLD!”

The man, if he could still even be considered a man, stood more than thrice his original size, having all but his pants, boots, and pendant destroyed from the sudden growth. In place of his right arm was a huge disgusting blade. He swings wildly at Shadow, disregarding any class he had left.

“WE’RE ALL WEAK! WE’RE ALL WORTHLESS! WE’RE ALL PAWNS! THAT IS THE TRUTH!

The boy continued to step and jump away from Grease’s animalistic attacks. Despite the drastic boost in power his opponent gained, Shadow was still calmly avoiding everything thrown at him.

“THE POWER YOU HOLD WON’T MATTER IN THE END! YOUR FAMILY CAN STILL BE TAKEN FROM YOU!”

…

“…Disgusting…”

Shadow slaps the monster’s blade up into the air, giving him enough time to make a counterattack. He materializes his sword once more, his own purple energy emanating profusely around him, trumping over what was once a man.

“THIS MAGICAL ENERGY! IT’S ENORMOUS! HOW COULD ONE BOY DO THIS?!”

Grease’s final question remained unanswered as what he said earlier soured Minoru’s mind. Shadow readied himself to end the battle, if something this lopsided could even be considered a battle.

“…Don’t you dare remind me of them…”

SLASH

Shadow slashes his blade across the entirety of the former viscount. As his own magic was used,a bright spectacle of purple light cut through the beast, bringing the man back to reality. It was now that he realized just to what extent he was outdone by this boy. He was outclassed in every possible aspect there was in combat.

As the viscount lay on the ground, dying from his wounds, he grasps his pendant again, recalling how and why he went down his path to begin with.

“…Millia…”

He utters her name softly. He wasn’t able to combat the darkness, even for his own daughter. But this boy, this boy he doesn’t even know the name of… maybe he has a chance…

After everything, he wasn’t expecting to die with a smile on his face. But just the thought of those seven girls and that boy, having the chance at giving the cult what it was long overdue. He couldn’t help himself.

Viscount Grease’s final seconds were filled with nothing but hope.

…

Shadow looked down at the restored body of his opponent, who sprawled out, face down on the ground. He had overheard the man’s last word, and saw his now human arm still clutching onto his pendant. He debated over whether or not he should check for what was inside the pendant, his curious side winning the fight. He bent down beside the corpse, gently removing the pendant from the neck. Taking a closer look at it, he opened it up, revealing the contents inside.

…

He knew bandits were scum, but looking at the small image of the man when he was younger, standing beside a young girl that was very likely his daughter that was kept inside, Minoru felt like he committed something horrible.

“…”

Without a word, Shadow closed it, before gently placing it in the bandit’s other hand. He silently ran off towards where the man had come from. He wasn’t sure if there were any other bandits left inside, but he didn’t want to take any chances.

Just as that bandit had reminded him, he couldn’t save Minoru’s family. But at the very least, he could save Cid’s.

“Bye hon! We hope you have fun!”

“Make us proud, Claire!”

“Good luck, sister!”

Today is the day… again…

Cid blankly stared ahead as he stood besides his pa… his parents as they, alongside some of their servants, watched Claire walk off towards the carriage, ready to start the next chapter of her life in the capital, attending The Midgar Academy for Dark Knights. Even though her departure is already over four days behind, she didn’t let it dissuade her. Claire smiled at all of them as she waved goodbye.

After ‘Shadow’ found Claire in her cell shortly after killing that oddly strong bandit, the other seven quickly caught up to him. He insisted that he would be the one to take her home, asking them to scour the area in search for ‘more information in regards to the cult’s activities’, and once they were done, destroy the underground complex. He was worried about her waking up in the middle of the journey back, but fortunately she remained unconscious. Seeing the blood on Claire’s face, he was upset that he wasn’t able to make it there sooner. Minoru wasn’t sure to what extent she got hurt, but any amount was too much for him.

Ha, the way I’m sounding now. It’s almost like I’m the olde-

…

…

…

When the two made it back to their home, it was evening, and the investigation was still ongoing. Since there was no rational way to explain how Claire just suddenly woke up and found herself back home, he just decided to disregard the questions she would be asked. He snuck inside, placing her down right in the center of the main room, where someone would inevitably pass by, and declare her return. After that was taken care of, all that was left was to sneak into his room, revert to Cid Kagenou, and get ready to play as the weak younger brother to the prodigy of the Kagenou family again. 

He didn’t want to admit he was just a tiny bit happy about her staying for the remainder of that day, and then the following few days to recover from the injuries she sustained.

“Cid, don’t you have anything else you want to say to your sister?”

The boy felt his shoulder being patted, turning to look at his mother. She looked down at him, smiling.

“We won’t be seeing her again for quite awhile. Now is your last chance to say something to her. I recommend you run to her quickly, before she goes inside.”

Minoru contemplated over whether or not he should listen to her words. He didn’t know what to think, or even what to say… Oh… he has one thing he can say.

“Sister, wait!”

Claire turned around in surprise, but it quickly turned to delight as she saw her little brother running towards her. Once he made it to her, he immediately pulled her into a hug.

“… Thank you for giving me all of that training over the years. I’ll try not to let it go to waste.”

Claire’s face grew even happier at his words, reciprocating the hug.

“I would hope so. You put in a lot of work to make it to where you are now.”

Cid nodded at her words, agreeing.

“Also… thank you for watching over me. It’s gonna be a lot more different here now that you’ll be gone most of the time…”

Claire’s smile wavered slightly upon hearing that. She wasn’t expecting Cid to suddenly just start saying these things, especially as she was just about to leave. An idea came into the girl’s mind that made her blush slightly. She was a little embarrassed about saying it, but she was hoping it would help ease him with her departure. She leaned closer to him, bringing her lips next to his ear. She only wanted him to hear this.

“Just think about it like this. Even though we won’t be together physically for a while. Just remember, little brother, no matter what…”

Claire hugged him a little bit tighter, gently stroking his hair.

“…I’ll always be by your side.”

…

…

…

Claire let go of him, giving him one last smile, before turning back around and stepping inside the carriage, closing the door behind her. Cid just stared at the carriage with his vacant expression as the horse began to move.

Nobody left from where they were standing until they could no longer see the girl off in the distance.

…

The servants watching began to return to their previous duties, while Mr. and Mrs. Kagenou went back inside the mansion. As Cid walked towards the training yard, which now felt different without Claire around, Minoru wondered whether or not he should continue the positive character development he’s been making for Cid… Ha, who is he kidding? He has much more important things to focus on now, and with her being gone, it’ll be even easier to get his work done without interference.

Besides, Cid, much like Minoru, is already too far gone.

AN: Yeah yeah I know Cid discovered Alpha at 10 and not 12. I just thought that for what I am trying to do, having all the Shades being found within a later year would be more fitting for my plans along with some other changes. Hope you enjoyed it. God knows when the next chapter will be out, the fact that these chapters were two weeks apart was a miracle. My editor is still Asian.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3.5: Neverending Battle

I won’t… I won’t… I won’t…

Within the forest outside of the Kagenou estate, a young boy lay on the ground, staring up at the night sky. His breathing is labored, and his eyes repeatedly shutting slowly before shooting back open.

The limits of Cid’s body have finally caught up to him again. Minoru wasn’t even done training when it occurred. One second, he’s standing without any issue, and the next, he collapses, unable to recover.

I won’t… I… won’t…

It’s a pattern that the boy has willingly fallen into. Fighting the needs of his new body until he loses. If he had it his way, he would no longer sleep, as it’s a complete waste of time. There are other things that should be done, especially at night.

I… won’t… I… won’t…

Cid’s eyes begin to shut again, but this time he can’t open them. He is already beginning to lose it.

I… won’t… do it…

He desperately tries to move, but finds little success in his attempt. It’s as if his entire body really is just shutting down after being routinely deprived of its needs. Regardless of the neglect, he can’t let himself lose so easily, not when he knows what happens when he loses to this.

I… won’t…

Before his eyes fully close, he takes a glance at the sky, taking note of the moon shining down on him. Despite the resistance he is putting up against himself, he still finds the time to admire the sight. Being underneath the moonlight of a quiet night, the unmatched serenity is intoxicating.

He really doesn’t want to sleep.

I… can’t…

Minoru’s last thought before succumbing to exhaustion is another promise to not let this loss happen again.

AN: Sorry for not getting a new chapter out in three weeks. Busy with other things. I'll try and have it out by next week or a little after if possible. Thanks for the support you've been giving since I've started.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4: Farewell From The Garden

2 years left…

It wasn’t the first time he repeated that reminder in his head, far from it. But Minoru- and by extension Cid- couldn’t help but continue to replay it in his head. It hasn’t even been a full month since Claire went off to the academy, leaving her younger brother alone with no one but his parents and servants to keep him company until he also comes of age. Ever since she left, things have been much more quiet at the manor, specifically for Cid.

Why… Why can’t I stop caring…

He continues to swing his sword at nothing, practicing his stance. Even though Cid’s parents now deemed his skill level adequate enough not to bring shame to the family once he leaves too, he didn’t want to start slacking now, in the event they change their mind by thinking that he’s stopped taking his training seriously. The sun is already setting; Cid’s day is soon coming to an end.

I think that’s enough practicing today, for Cid anyways.

The boy sheathes his blade and lets out a yawn. Minoru is tired, but he can’t afford to go to sleep tonight. Not when he now has other priorities besides his Shadow training.

I said I would be back with them by sunset. Guess I got carried away with the mob practicing. I’ll just have to let my-… his parents know that he’s going to bed early, leave the decoy under the covers again, and head out to the village.

Minoru smiles in anticipation as he begins to walk back to the manor. It has only been a little more than 1 year since he met Alpha, with the others following soon after, yet he found himself growing more and more attached to them. Though this happiness was rooted in Shadow's new 'organization', uneasiness quickly settled in alongside it due to the foundation the group was formed on.

It’s not so bad when I only go after bandits. Even if they think they’re cultists, we’re still doing the right thing…

He never forgets the fact that they follow him because of a lie, the fact that Shadow himself is a lie. It’s a miracle to him that they haven’t come to the conclusion that Shadow Garden really is just an unofficial bandit extermination group consisting of children yet.

Deceiving a bunch of young girls into serving me like I’m their master... Okay, phrasing it that way sounds bad, but that wasn’t all I did. I gave them a second chance, a home, training, knowledge, and each other…

Minoru rationalized with himself over his actions once more, trying to come up with another good point that makes himself look less bad in his own mind, but came up short. There really is no way of going around this, even though some good came from it.

He sighs as he continues on his way back. It won’t do good to continue dwelling on these thoughts. What’s done is done. He needs to get his head back into the game, literally.

“Lord Shadow?”

He wouldn’t get much farther in his walk, as Cid was interrupted by the cold and professional voice of Shadow Garden’s second in command coming from behind him.

Her…

The boy turned around to face her, making sure to stand straight and not show any surprise. Cid would have gotten scared from being suddenly spoken to, but Shadow would never.

Looking behind the elf, he notices that she isn’t the only one there. Standing behind her are the six other Shades, watching him silently. He observes their faces to determine what they may want. Beta, Gamma, and Epsilon are the most obvious with how they are feeling, having a shared look of sadness. Their eyes were moist, indicating they must have been crying earlier. That immediately set off alarms in Minoru’s head.

“Yes, Alpha?”

Shadow continues to observe the girls, reading them. Delta and Eta both share a blank face. The fact that Delta could be brought to such a state now didn’t help with his growing concerns.

What happened…

“We need to talk…”

Alpha’s cold tone breaks his thoughts, he looks back at her, also noting Zeta. They both are more similar to each other than they think, and this is just further proof. They simply look at Shadow like they normally do, refusing to show how they’re feeling. Regardless of their continued composure, it didn’t ease Minoru’s nerves.

“Talk? Talk about what?”

Shadow turns his attention to just Alpha, letting his features settle into a more serious expression. He specifically made it a rule for them not to come close to the Kagenou Estate unless he said so. The fact that they’re breaking it once more either means that whatever they have to say is so important that they couldn’t wait until tonight, or-

“We… We recently learned some disturbing information…”

…they learned the truth…

Shadow’s breath hitches, gritting his teeth at Alpha’s response. The girls don’t seem to take note of it, Alpha remaining stoic. The boy frowns at them, trying to recover his composure.

“Don’t keep me waiting. What is it?”

His voice came out more frustrated than Minoru was intending, but there was no taking it back. His mind was racing with what possible information they could have learned. 

“The grasp of the Cult of Diablos, it’s greater than we initially anticipated. You said they are controlling things from the shadows, and you are right. But it’s far greater than just that. They’re everywhere, and we’re far too behind in everything to put up a good fight now…”

…What?

Shadow blinks, and Minoru’s face briefly breaks through, revealing his confusion. Fortunately, he was able to shove it back inside before it got too out of hand.

“That’s all you have to say? The cult is too powerful to take on now?”

Alpha shakes her head at him, continuing.

“No, Lord Shadow. It’s just… things are worse than we thought. We need to take immediate action if we are to have any success in their destruction in the future.”

The future?

“… So what is it that you’re asking me for?”

Alpha closes her eyes after hearing his words, and the other girls seem to shift a little uncomfortably.

“We are not asking you for anything. It’s just that… we need to do more besides just destroying every base of theirs we find. We need to prepare for war… And we can’t do that by just staying here…”

…

“So you’re all leaving me?”

Shadow’s mouth moves faster than Minoru’s head. Alpha flinches at the response, her own blank mask starting to waver too.

“We all decided that it would be in our best interest to spread out. Building up our forces, raising more fundings for our operations…”

“…”

“… We need to leave…”

…

The tension in the air is potent enough that Minoru can practically see as he stares back at Alpha. She opens her eyes to look at him again. Now that she is done with what she had to say, it’s become all too clear to him.

They learned the truth, and now they’re using my own lies to justify them leaving for greener pastures… I can’t even be mad at them for that…

Shadow blankly stares at the girls. For a second, it looks like he is about to take a step forward, but he stops himself. He locks eyes again with Alpha, remaining silent, mind lost in a sea of thoughts and questions.

I should have seen this coming… This game could have only gone on for so long…

Time slows down as he feels himself getting lost in all the memories he shared with them. From the day he saved them, to the theatrics he performed in front of them. The training he gave them, the lessons he taught, and the comfort he would give when they needed it-

…

Despite everything he’s done, nothing has changed. He’s still a horrible caretaker.

“Beta, I heard you calling my name. Did you need something?”

“Yes…”

Her faint response from the other side of the door was enough permission for the boy to come in. Shadow entered the room, closing the door behind him. It wasn’t exactly a spacious room, or a comfortable one like he had back in his own manor, but it was adequate for serving as a bedroom for the newest member of ‘Shadow Garden’.

“Are you okay? Did you have another nightmare?”

Shadow approached the young elf, who was still under the covers of her bed, only her small head peeking out as she saw her savior coming. She nodded at his words, still nervous about his presence. Grabbing the chair in her room, he placed it by her bedside, sitting down.

“So, what was it this time?”

The girl doesn’t respond for a few moments, before beginning to move, sitting up in her bed. She grabs her pillow, hugging it tightly as she meets his gaze.

“It… It was the same as before. The bad men that we killed, they came back from the ground. And I-I tried to stop them again using what you taught me, but nothing worked. T-They kept on moving, and none of us could stop them…!”

Her voice began to quiver.

“T-They grabbed me, a-and I couldn’t do anything. They… They… Th-”

“That’s enough, Beta.”

The boy brings his hand up towards her, gesturing for the elf to stop herself. She listens immediately, ending her explanation, but is unable to stop herself from shaking in fear, dread preventing her from getting her mind off the dream.

“I’ll understand if you don’t want to sleep alone again tonight. I can ask Alpha to-”

“N-No, I-I want y-you here.”

Despite the anxiety that is clearly radiating from her, she is still bold enough to let go of her pillow and grab his arm the moment he was about to stand up, making him stop midway.

“Hm?”

“I-I… just want you to stay.”

Shadow’s face remains neutral as he looks down at the girl, who is still clearly unnerved.

“… Are you sure?”

He moves to sit back down, gently removing Beta’s hand so she could lean back in her bed again. She nods again at his words.

“Okay… In that case, how about I tell you another story?”

The elf’s eyes seem to light up in the dark at his offer, and that was enough of an answer to his question. She brings her pillow back to rest her head on it, ready to hear another one of his tales.

He scooches his chair to get closer to her bed, and clears his throat, preparing himself. He has a feeling that she’ll like this specific story and heroine a little more than the others he’s spoken of. 

I’m glad that she appreciates this. Even though it’s not creative on my part at all, she still loves them…

“Alright then. This story is going to be a little different than the ones I talked about before. Not as lighthearted as some of the others, but I think you’ll enjoy it nonetheless…”

Shadow began his next tale, putting on his storyteller act once more, to Beta’s excitement. He spoke of another boy, one who found himself suddenly taken to another world. It was not the first time he told a story that started off this way, but she didn’t seem to care. He continued, speaking of how the boy’s first day in the new world was one full of excitement and eagerness. Of how he quickly got himself into a sticky situation with a group of thugs and was about to get robbed of his belongings. Of how he thought he was going to lose one of the only remaining ties he had back to his world, and how he was saved. And his savior? A beautiful half elf, with silver hair as elegant as the finest silks, and a voice that chimed like silver bells.

He wouldn’t make it that far, not even to the part where things really started to take a turn, when he was interrupted by soft snoring coming from the bed. Shadow couldn’t help but smile, seeing her sleeping face, no longer burdened with the fear that initially awoke her. He breaks character when a large yawn escapes, momentarily revealing Minoru’s exhaustion.

I guess she’s not the only one having trouble sleeping…

Shadow leaned back on the chair, still watching Beta sleep. He debated over whether or not he should stay like this for the rest of the night, to make sure he’s there for her in case she has a nightmare, or quietly go back out and get back to training.

He doesn’t realize how long he was having this dilemma until a ray of sunshine comes through the window, the chirping of birds joining soon after.

Did I just waste another night over this… again?

Minoru quietly gets up from his chair, making it out of Beta’s room without disturbing her. He never thought something like this would happen in his time here. Before Alpha, he was fine with soloing all of this. But now that these two are here, and have believed every word he’s said, there is no going back for any of them.

… This is all for the better… It has to be…

As he made his way back to the Kagenou Estate to begin another day as Cid, he promised himself that this would never happen again.

Looking back on it now, it was only further proof that he’s terrible at keeping those.

CRASH

“OW!”

Uhoh…

Shadow couldn’t help but look away as the girl face-planted on the ground after running for a few steps.

Again.

“WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING?!”

It was honestly more impressive than pitiful to him how this dark haired elf was capable of being this naturally clumsy. During his acts as Cid, he likes to play up some clumsiness and have it be an issue he has yet to and will never overcome. But for Gamma, her genuine lack of dexterity is completely merciless to her. Just walking for more than a few minutes is enough to bring the both of them on edge for which step will be her last before her streak ends once again.

Why can’t she just… No. No point letting it frustrate me.

Figuring she had brooded on the ground for long enough, Shadow approached the girl. Making it to her, he knelt down to roll her over so she could look up at him. To Minoru’s surprise, instead of the usual sight of a pout alongside her bloody nose, the newest member of Shadow Garden looked at her master with something different.

“I… I…”

Gamma’s lips tremble as she looks at her master. Her nose is bleeding again, but her accompanying expression is far more devastating.

“L-Lord S-S-Shadow…”

Looking at him, the girl is on the verge of breaking down in sobs. He lets his blank expression remain as she tries her hardest to recompose herself.

This isn’t good. What do I-… What would Shadow do?

After a brief struggle over what to say next, he settles on an attempt to comfort, reaching his hand out to her shoulder.

“… I’m sorry for pushing you so far, Gam-”

“NO!”

Shadow almost flinches from her unexpected outburst towards his concern. Before he could respond, she sits up to face him, tears running down her cheeks.

“Lord Shadow, I'm… I-I’m… I’M USELESS!”

Gamma chokes out her last sentence before she breaks into sobs, covering her face with her hands, unable to look at her master any longer.

“I-I can’t do this! I’m not capable of e-ever doing this! I can’t help you with anything, L-Lord Shadow! A-Anything!

The elf starts to slowly lower her hands and curls into a ball, no longer caring about decency. Her voice radiated hopelessness as she started to quiver. She tries to speak in between her sobs.

“M-Maybe… Maybe you… s-shouldn’t have saved me at all…”

…

…

…

Before she could follow up with her words, Shadow moves closer to Gamma faster than she could notice. He embraces her from the front, keeping a firm grip on her. She jolts from the sudden contact, not sure how to react other than to continue shaking.

“L-Lord S-Shadow?! Why a-are you doi-“

“You are not useless. I don’t ever want you to think something so absurd about yourself again.”

Gamma feels herself tensing up as she hears those words from him. Her master’s presence and tone feels completely different now. It is like he became a different person all of a sudden.

“You’re still a valuable addition to us, no matter how new.”

His words are comforting. His embrace is warm.

“Please… don’t think so lowly of yourself because of your flaws… I know there is more to you than just this.”

She is still crying as he finishes, but she is able to calm herself down. Her breathing steadies, and she’s able to properly react.

“T-Thank you…”

Gamma hugs her master back, grateful that he had saved her again.

When Minoru feels her reciprocating his hug, he internally sighs in relief.

I shouldn’t have pushed her so hard. I’ll look for other things she can learn. This training can be put on hold.

He remembers Gamma staying glued to his side for the rest of that night. It was a little bit difficult to get her to stay with the others as he had to go back to his room to be Cid in the morning, but he found it sort of endearing.

He didn’t deserve any of this.

“My lord, I think you’ll want to see this!”

“Epsilon, calm down.”

“Forgive me, but I really think that you will like this!”

“What are you even trying to show me?”

“Just wait and see, Lord Shadow!”

Normally, an Eminence in Shadows would not allow themselves to be grabbed by the hand and dragged around by anyone at all. However in this case, Shadow was taken by surprise when the most recent addition to Shadow Garden came to him the moment he got back to the village.

Hopefully whoever comes after me won’t have to deal with such inconveniences…

Minoru does not have enough to continue grumbling to himself as she leads him to one of the houses that was being used for storage. The boy looks at her with a puzzled expression as she opens the door and gestures for him to go inside first.

Did she find something valuable? Even more money?

The prospect of another haul of valuable goods quickly takes over his mind, letting him enter without any hesitation.

Perfect! Maybe it was for the better for things to turn out this way! You’ve really outdone yourself in the short time you’ve been here, Epsilon!

Unfortunately, his prediction of treasure proved to be wrong. Instead, placed at the center of the room was an all too familiar sight.

…

…

…

“My lord?”

“...”

“... Lord Shadow?”

“...”

“Lord Shadow? Hello?”

Epsilon enters the house after another unsuccessful attempt at getting a response. She is immediately greeted by Shadow's back facing her as he stares at her ‘present’.

“...”

The elf slowly approaches her master, careful not to be loud. Maybe this is how he expresses his awe. That must be the reason… It has to be the reason.

“Epsilon?”

The girl freezes in place when she hears her master calling for her. His voice which used to feel so smooth and assuring now sounded more… terrified.

“Y-Yes, Lord Shadow?”

Epsilon watches the boy lower his face, eyes cast down at the ground instead of her ‘gift’. She notices worriedly that his shoulders are tense, his posture stiff, and his breathing noticeably more erratic.

“…Leave…”

She is barely able to hear her master as his command comes out breathlessly.

“W-What?”

“Leave.”

Shadow repeated himself, not shouting or even raising his voice. Regardless, the command made Epsilon flinch in horror. She’s never seen this side of her master before, heard him sound so… hurt.

“Y-Yes!”

The girl wasted no time, turning on her heel and practically running out of the house.. Making it out, she decides to just quietly walk back to the others, already making it up in her mind to not tell Alpha of what just transpired. She isn’t hurt by the rejection of what she thought was a nice present for him. All she has now are questions about his reaction, and a new burning interest in her gift.

“…What happened to you… Lord Shadow…”

…

Now that he is left alone with Epsilon’s ‘gift’, Minoru is finally able to focus on the immediate threat. He slowly brings his head back to face it, desperately trying to regain his composure.

After more than a couple deep breaths, he is able to succeed. But it isn’t enough for him. He feels a burning sensation in his gut, leaving him still breathless. Confused. Lost.

Finding no point in staying there, he leaves the house, making sure not to visibly display any distress.

Why… Why can’t I remember…

Epsilon means well, she really does. But there’s no way he can stand being this close to a piano again. One is already painful enough.

“You gullible mutt!”

“I’m not gullible!”

“You’d believe me if I said the word ‘gullible’ was on the ground!”

“Ooh, ooh! Really?!”

“NO!”

What are they doing this time?

Though he couldn’t even see them yet, Shadow could hear the commotion ahead as he made his way to the ‘abandoned’ village. 

“Wah! You lied to me. There’s no word on the ground.”

I don’t even think Zeta was trying to trick you, Delta.

He sighs to himself as he gets closer to the village, knowing it is only a matter of time before the two pick up his scent.

“No one is trying to lie to you! You’re just too easy!”

“I AM NOT EASY! I AM HARD!”

Heh.

Shadow is not able to enjoy their antics for much longer as he enters the village. The petty argument between the two Beastkin is suddenly silenced the moment he takes a step inside.

3… 2-

“THE BOSS IS HERE!”

Couldn’t even count to 1.

Just a few seconds later, he spots a blur of black rapidly approaching him from the front. He doesn’t bother resisting as Delta pounces on him, wrapping him in the tightest hug she could muster.

“BOSS! YOU’RE BACK! DELTA MISSED YOU!”

It hasn’t even been a full day since I last saw you.

Shadow smiles at the girl, silently patting her head as she continues to embrace him. Even though she is much more clingy in comparison to the other girls, he finds it oddly charming. In fact, it even reminded Minoru of-

…

…

…

“Lord Shadow?”

He almost forgets Delta isn’t alone. Looking ahead of her, he sees Zeta approaching them, looking slightly annoyed by her wolf counterpart’s behavior.

“Are you okay, Zeta?”

“Yes, I was just talking with Delta.”

That’s what you call ‘talking’?

“Boss! Boss! Can we go hunting?! Delta wants to hunt!

The girl interrupts Shadow as he is about to respond to Zeta. He gently pries the girl off of him, now looking back at Delta.

“We can go hunting soon, but I need to speak with Zeta for a bit. Don’t forget that she’s our newest member, Delta.”

Zeta’s face seems to brighten at the words of her master. Delta pouts at him before backing away.

“Fine! But don’t take too long! I want to spend time with Boss too!”

Delta turns to walk away, but spots a deer running past a tree up ahead. She doesn’t waste any of her time, charging  away from the two and towards her prey with a speed that betrays her appearance. 

“… I hope that you’re not having any troubles with the others. I’m sure you already know how very capable they are.”

Zeta nods.

“Yes, I don’t really have much issue with any of them. They’re really nice. They welcomed me without a second thought.”

Shadow resists the urge to let out his own smile at that.

They’re already becoming good friends.

“Good. I’m sorry that I am only able to comfortably stay here during the night. I still must keep up appearances. Once you become more adept at manipulating slime, you will be able to disguise yourself as a servant in my mansion.”

“Actually, that’s something I wanted to show you.”

Before he is able to question her on what she means, Zeta backs away from her master. In just a few moments, black slime starts to envelop her, covering her entire body. Minoru doesn’t bother to hide his surprise.

After a few more moments, the slime dissipates, and in Zeta’s place, there is a completely different person standing before Shadow. 

Those features… She copied the appearance of one of the servants. But when did she even get close enough to do that?

“Is this satisfactory, Lord Shadow?”

He nods without hesitation. Regardless of her methods, he is impressed with how skilled she is despite how recently she has joined Shadow Garden.

“You can begin doing it tomorrow if you wish, so long as you’re able to maintain it, and you don’t let the real one see you.”

Zeta nods again, before returning to her real self. As she approaches Shadow, she notices something.

“Lord Shadow, are you okay?”

“Yes. Why do you ask?”

“Your left eye, it’s bleeding.”

…

“I need to go hunting with Delta. Thank you for showing me your progress.”

“Lord Shadow, wa-“

Zeta is not even able to take a step towards her master when he abruptly withdraws from the area, leaving her alone and confused.

“… What’s wrong with you?”

She cannot understand why, but she suddenly feels like something is very wrong with her new master.

“Zzzzzzz…”

Finally, she’s asleep.

Shadow gently lifts the girl’s head from the couch, slowly placing a pillow below, before laying it back down, careful not to disturb her.

For someone that likes to sleep all the time, she is somehow hard to put to rest…

After dealing with putting Beta to bed for months, he thought he had the method completely down for these sorts of things. But nope, this latest addition to their team had the worst sleeping pattern he has ever witnessed.

… I’m not any better than her though, am I?

The boy slowly backs away from the couch, still looking at Eta as she peacefully sleeps.

What is preventing her from sleeping and staying awake properly? There has to be some sort of problem… Dreams?

Minoru’s face turned blank at the thought of the possible reason.

Nightmares?

“Is… something… wrong… Lord… Shadow?”

The boy had become so lost in thought that he did not notice  that Eta was now awake and staring back at him as he watched her. He nearly flinches at her interruption, but is able to keep himself from showing his surprise.

“Hmm? No, Eta. Go back to sleep.”

He dismisses her concerns and turns to leave her alone.

“Wait…”

Shadow is only able to walk a few steps away when she speaks up again. He turns around to look at the girl, now sitting up on the couch.

Her eyes are droopy, as if staying awake was taking a lot of her effort…

“Can… you… give me… more… of your… wisdom?”

So that’s what’s keeping you up, huh?

“Oh, you want to learn more? We’ve already gone over a good amount today. I don’t want you to overload yourself with information.”

Eta slowly shakes her head at him. She is still obviously tired, but she won’t budge.

Like looking in a mirror… Actually, that gives me an idea-

“… Okay then, we can keep on going. But you must go to sleep soon. I’ll talk to you about one more thing, and then call it a night.”

Eta gently nods her head, accepting her master’s terms. Shadow internally smiles at her reaction, going back to the couch and sitting beside her.

“Alright then. Are you familiar with the idea of a bomb?”

CLASH

CLASH

CLASH

“I’m still not done yet!”

“Then prove it. Show me your will.”

Alpha jumps back after narrowly parrying her opponent’s sword again, regaining her footing. Beads of sweat run down her face as she plans how to go on the offensive again. His defense is as great as his offense, which means that there is no opening for her to exploit-

“You’re thinking too much.”

Before she realizes what happens, it is too late. She suddenly hears the boy’s voice behind her. She barely has enough time to turn around and block Shadow’s strike again. The force from the sudden clash sends her stumbling back, disoriented.

“Your guard is down.”

This time, Alpha is not fast enough to recover. The moment the last word comes from his mouth, he has already gotten behind her again. She feels her feet being swept from behind, and before the elf knows it, she has fallen to the ground.

“Tsk!”

She tries to get up, but before she can even move her head, her master is on top of her, just barely pressing the tip of his blade against her neck. She feels powerless as she looks up at him, shocked once more by another sudden loss.

“...”

“…”

Shadow doesn’t say anything as his blade dematerializes, opening his hand up for her to take. Alpha accepts the offer with no hesitation, getting up to face him.

“I’m… I’m sorry for such an awful display of swordsmanship…”

Alpha can’t help but lower her head in shame as she finishes, unable to look at him in the… at where his eyes should be.

“I know we are running short on time. Every day is important, but still… I know I can do better than this. Please. Please give me another chan-“

“Enough.”

Alpha would be unable to finish her plea for a rematch as Shadow’s calm voice interrupts her. He gently places his hand on her shoulder, making her tense up.

“Alpha, look at me.”

She obeys without a second thought, bringing her face back up to meet his gaze. She expects to look at the dark void once more, but is surprised to see something else. 

“You’re doing just fine.”

To her delight, her master’s face is now visible. He carries a warm smile as he pats her shoulder.

“Yes, time is always of the essence. But proficiency takes time. Your skills are increasing at an excellent rate.”

Hearing his praise makes her look back down, hoping that having only the moonlight to illuminate the sky will help her hide her blush. Not seeming to mind, he continues.

“Great power takes years to acquire. That’s how it should be. Something earned through time and effort.”

Alpha raises her head to look at him again.

“Is there no way to expedite the process? Make it faster?”

Her master shakes his head.

“Unearned power will take you nowhere. It’s used by the impatient and cowardly. There’s no need to think about such things.”

The elf nods at Shadow’s words. Her face turns more serious as she asks one final question.

“Do you think… I… I can ever be your equal?”

The mood of the conversation seems to change immediately as Shadow falls silent. She feels the wind stop blowing, leaving the two in complete silence. Alpha senses a shift in her master as he looks back at her with a blank expression, not answering her question.

The elf, feeling like she has asked something wrong,tries to correct herself, but he beats her to it.

“That depends on how much work you wish to put into it.”

Shadow’s answer is simple, but it speaks volumes to his subordinate’s mind. Just the sheer possibility of being able to stand by his side… in more ways than one…

“Thank you, Lord Shadow.”

She bows her head slightly to him. Taking a few steps back, the girl materializes her sword once more, getting into her fighting stance.

“Let us continue then, until I can no longer stand.”

Shadow’s face becomes covered once more as he materializes his own blade, getting himself ‘ready’ for their next round.

She still does not know how proud she made him that night.

Beta, the first one to join us after Alpha. Happy to listen to whatever story I would tell her, not just because she liked them, but because it was me that told them. I’ll miss her…

Gamma, our third Shade. She could never get rid of her clumsiness no matter how much we trained her, but that didn’t matter to me. She had her mind, and it’s sharper than any blade I can create. I’ll miss her…

Delta, the fourth. Not the latest member, but acts like the youngest. A bright ball of energy that could never be dimmed. She was always the most eager to play with me. I’ll miss her…

Epsilon, the fifth to join. She had a hard time at first given her past, but we were able to help her move through it. She may not have been the kindest one, but she cared for us all the same. She even made… that ‘thing’ easier to stand. I hope she’ll grow on her skills with it like-…

…

…

…

…I’ll miss her…

Zeta, the sixth, and more similar to Alpha than she likes to admit. She excels in anything she tries. She wasn’t the most social, preferring to spend time with just me. But I could tell she still loved them all. Who wouldn’t? I’ll miss her…

Eta, the last member of Shadow Garden. Her curiosity could never be satiated, no matter how much knowledge I fed her. She knows almost practically everything I know about technology. She may be more slow-paced, and always tired, but I don’t care. I’ll miss her…

Alpha, the genesis of Shadow Garden. Always professional, serious, caring, and understanding. Shadow’s closest confidant. The older sister of everyone else. The reason that they’re here. I’ll miss her…

I’ve only spent a little more than a year with them, but I feel like we’ve known each other for far longer…

They’re a part of me that I’ll never get back. I saved them, but what did I do to them? I lied to them. I stole what remaining childhood and innocence they could have had. I turned them into killers…

I shouldn’t stop this. I’ve wasted enough of their life already here…

…I’ll miss you all…

…I’ll miss you… Alpha…

“Lord Shadow, did you hear what I said? We’re not finished.”

“Huh?!”

Shadow flinches harshly when Alpha’s words reach his ears, taking a step back from them. The girls look at him, now seemingly more confused than sad.

“Lord Shadow, are you okay?”

Alpha takes a step towards Shadow, concerned about her savior’s actions.

“Please… speak to me…”

Alpha continues to move closer. Shadow remains rooted to the ground, unable to back away.

“…”

Before she is able to close the distance, Shadow moves his hand out in front of him, stopping her from getting any closer.

“L-Lord Shadow. Why are you doi-“

“Go… Just… Just go…”

“Lord Shadow, wait! We’re not finished!”

“I heard all you said. I get it. Now go.”

“WAIT!”

Shadow visibly flinches when he hears Alpha yelling out. That’s something she has never done to him.

Maybe it should be expected now that she knows the truth…

“What? What is there left to say?”

His expression contorts with frustration as his former subordinate gently grabs his arm, lowering it back down.

“I said, we were not finished. We are leaving, but we will remain in contact with you, and still want your input on our decisions.”

…Huh?

Looking back at the other Shades, they seemed to also be looking at him with worried expressions.

“One of us will still remain with you. And we will rotate that position with our own set schedule.”

…

“That’s the full announcement, Lord Shadow.”

…

…

…

“Oh… I see…”

The Shades see their master look back at them with a neutral expression, seemingly unbothered by their reactions, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

“In that case, there’s no time to waste… Go…”

Minoru is barely able to utter the last word without stuttering and ruining that already pathetic excuse of larping.

The girls all turned to leave, with Alpha being last. Even though he was able to recover his act, there’s no way he can scrub their memories of that major screw-up.

“… Goodbye for now… Lord Shadow…”

She gives him one last smile, before she turns to follow the others.

Minoru doesn’t dare leave where he stands. He watches the seven as far as his eyes would allow, until they disappear beyond the trees.

So… That’s it…

Despite what Alpha said, he’s not fooled. He knows they found the truth, and at the end decided to lay pity on him and give one last performance.

Credit where it’s due, she made it very convincing. I almost believed her.

The boy lets out a sigh, looking up at the sky. The moon has already begun to rise, replacing the nearly completely set sun.

I’m already late to ‘bed’…

Without another word, he begins his walk back to the mansion. He has the next two years with almost no friends, so he has that to look forward to.

At least I can now devote all of my time into training and gaining more power again.

Gaining more power. As Minoru likes to say, without power, he is nothing.

AN: Damn, I was not expecting to be late for this by more than 5 months considering its size(sorry for not a whole lot in regards to Delta). I’m sorry for keeping you waiting if you were actually looking forward to this. Now that all this setup is over, the actual fun and suffering for Minoru can begin. 

I already have outlines for the next few chapters, but considering how long they’re gonna be, probably much longer than chapter 3, I’m considering making mini-chapters in-between each one that provide some content both relevant and irrelevant to the main story. Maybe gag ones too. Not too sure if that is something you would want though, so let me know if it’s a thing I should do.

Thank you for all the support you’ve been giving, and that what I’m writing is actually being considered entertaining to you. I don’t know when the next chapter will be finished, so until next time.

My editor really carried this chapter fr.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4.5: 30 Days Left

“You are technically a named NPC, aren’t you?”

…

“Sorry, I’m just talking to myself. I’m pretty good at remembering the names of all the important characters. But I haven’t been getting enough sleep…”

…

“Don’t move.”

…

“Be more careful next time, alright?”

…

Akane doesn’t bother trying to go back to sleep after she wakes up yet again. Sitting up on her bed, she looks at the clock, trying to see the time through the darkness of her room.

It’s just past two…

The girl sighs to herself. Getting up from bed, she heads towards her mirror.

Another dream, and it was the same one…

Making it to the mirror, Akane takes a look at herself. Despite the lack of proper lighting, she is able to have a clear look of her face. 

… What’s wrong with me…

For as long as she can remember, she’s been called beautiful by everyone around her. Her flowing dark hair, her piercing black eyes, her perfect smile. That’s a part of the reason why she became an actress. But in these past few days, all of that has become irrelevant to her. Her eyes have become bloodshot, her hair hasn’t been properly maintained, and her smile has become even more fake than it was before.

… You saved me, and you…

Ever since that morning when she didn’t see him there, like she always had. She knew something was wrong.

… Why did you…

Could there have been something she could have done? Could she have prevented this? If she followed him after school even if just for a conversation, would things have gone differently? Could she have figured out that something else was wrong with him? She doesn’t know, and that doubt has been haunting her mind.

He saved her life, and this is how she repays him? 

… Why did you kill yourself, Minoru Kageno?

AN: This was what I meant by making more kinds of mini-chapters. But after doing this, I think I will do more revolving around Akane in between actual chapters. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 4.75: Waiting

“He’s coming this week, isn’t he?”

“Yes, my parents already gave me the letter. I’ll be at that train station to pick him up. He doesn’t know that though, so it’ll be a nice surprise.”

“That’s very kind of you, it’s been almost a full year since you last saw him, no?”

“It has. I remember the look on his face when I had to leave him again. He was so… disappointed…”

It’s not a common sight for a princess of a kingdom to have such casual conversations with some backwater nobility. But somehow, Iris Midgar and Claire Kagenou are able to make it work. The two often find themselves sitting in the former’s office just like right now, talking about their days, lives, and most importantly of all, their younger siblings.

“Mm. I’m glad that he’ll be closer to you. Maybe now you won’t talk so much about him.”

“I do not do that!”

The woman turns away at the princess’s words, her face almost glowing red. Iris smiles at her friend’s antics.

“You say that, but you’ve told me so much about your brother, I’m concerned that I know him better than I know you.”

Claire pouts at her words, not being able to rebut what even she knows as the truth. After a few moments of silence, Iris coughs, getting her attention again.

“That reminds me, one of the things you said about him…”

Her smile goes away for a more serious expression. Claire notices it, doing the same.

“Do… Do you really think that Cid will surpass you?”

The woman doesn’t hesitate to nod at her words.

“Of course. I know from some of the things I’ve said, he has his issues. But I know that deep down, he has the potential.”

A smile forms on Claire’s face as she continues.

“He may not show it when he first comes here, or in his first year. But give him time. I trained him the best I could until I left to come here myself, and I saw. Maybe my father didn’t, but I did.”

“You don’t have to worry. I’m convinced. It’s just… odd to think about. I’ve sparred enough times with you to know how strong you are, and you’re only seventeen. So for you to say-”

“I know it’s a little hard to believe, but I truly do know that he has what it takes…”

Claire trails off as she looks up at the ceiling, her smile growing ever wider. Someone would have to be completely blind to not see how much the heir of the Kagenou name cared about her brother. Iris looks down at her desk, contemplating her words. On one hand, she’s happy to see the love her friend holds for her family, but on the other hand…

I wish… I wish I could say the same for Alexia…

The princess sighs. Her relationship with her sister hasn’t been the greatest these past few years, and she can’t help but blame herself for it. Does she lack faith in her own sister’s abilities? She wants to say she doesn’t, but hearing Claire’s relentless praise towards her own brother, she can’t help but feel a twinge of envy.

I shouldn’t let this upset me. I need to believe in her more too…

“Hey, why don’t you come meet him? It doesn’t have to be right away of course. Maybe a bit after classes start up again. I know you’ll especially be busy, but maybe by seeing him, you’ll understand where I’m coming from. Also I know he would be happy to have the opportunity to speak with someone like you.

Iris looks back at Claire after accidentally letting her mind wander. She isn’t sure how to respond to such an offer. She has already been told how it isn’t a good look on her to spend time with such low ranking nobility, which she obviously disregarded. But getting even closer…

I don’t want to give anyone looking from the outside any sort of ideas…

“… I appreciate the offer, Claire. But as you said, let’s leave that for later. Things are a little unpredictable now.”

She smiles off any concern she has, which seems to work.

“Oh, alright then. Regardless, I’m glad that you’re considering it. Just you wait.”

Claire smiles back at Iris, leaning back on her chair.

Yeah… All I have to do… is just wait…

The two women continue to talk for the next hour, but this time, Iris tries to steer the conversation away from either of their siblings for once.

AN: I’m busy with school starting back up but I still wanted to make something. I don’t know when chapter 5 is coming, but I promise that it’ll be done at some point. Thank you for all of the support.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5: Another Boy Meets Another Girl

“Good luck! Actually, you won’t even need luck, will you, Cid?!

“You’ll do great! We know you will!”

Ever since he picked up a sword, at least as far as his parents were aware, MinoruCid purposefully made sure to be outwardly unremarkable with his abilities. Unlike their prodigy of a daughter, he seemed to be worse than her in every aspect. Strength, speed, dexterity, magic, and even determination. It was all done to keep Cid irrelevant, keep him with low expectations and attention. Even when he ‘improved’, all that meant was him just going from painfully mediocre to average.

“WE LOVE YOU!”

…

That’s why when it was time for Cid to leave for the academy, he was surprised that his parents were just as self-assured with his abilities as with Claire. At least, that’s how it felt like considering their enthusiasm.

I’m ashamed to admit that I may have failed in my attempt to portray myself as an utterly incompetent mob… Well, maybe I got some things right…

Cid frowns, starting to get up from his seat in the train cart, but pauses midway.

Wait, suddenly getting up from your seat to clear your head after trying to self reflect? That’s definitely major protagonist energy right there!

Sighing to himself, the boy sits back down, looking at his window. Despite the great view of the land, that’s not his main focus. After scooching closer to it, he is able to see his reflection.

… But…

… I can’t just stay like this…

The boy lets out a big yawn, much to his dismay. He knew he was going to sleep at some point on the train, especially with how quiet this cart has been for awhile. He was still a ways off from reaching the capital, and he already felt the exhaustion starting to set in now that he wasn’t busy. He can’t allow himself to sleep now.

Cid remains seated, going back and forth with himself over whether or not he should stay or just get up, even if walking to one end of the cart and back repeatedly looked stupid at best or like something a main character would do at worst.

He was so wrapped up in his own head that he didn’t notice that the train had been continuously slowing down for a while until it fully stopped in its tracks. 

… Wait…

Stopping himself from what he was doing, he looked outside his window. Cid is filled with confusion as outside of the train was nothing but the vast plains they were just riding through.

We’re still in the middle of nowhere. Why did the conductor stop?

Due to the irregularity of the situation, he finally relents to getting up, looking around at any of the other passengers to see how they were reacting. What he saw only left him even more bewildered.

Is… Is everyone asleep?

He goes over to the closest person, nudging their shoulder. He’s able to confirm from the faint sounds of breathing that they were actually unconscious.

…

Cid moves from one end of his cart to the other, trying to wake them up with increasing fervor as he continues.

What’s going on? What happened to the train?

The conductor said nothing about a sudden stoppage. If they did, I definitely would have heard it, right?

Going to the front of the cart to open the door to the next one and find out more, he suddenly pauses, hearing voices from the cart ahead of him.

“This cart is clear! Moving on to the next one!”

“Alright! Don’t take too long this time! We don’t know how much longer this will last!”

“Then we’ll just kill ‘em if they wake up!”

He takes a few steps back when he hears footsteps approaching from the other cart. A few seconds later, the door is opened, revealing one of the culprits. The man spots him immediately, taking a step back, and drawing a sword with no hesitation.

“What the? Hey! Why are you still awake?!”

Cid looks at him with a neutral expression, still trying to determine what was happening. He was able to piece some things together, but not come up with an answer yet.

“Hey, I heard you yelling! What’s going on-!”

Another pair of footsteps is heard behind the first man.

“One of the passengers got up!”

A second man makes it to his side, also holding his own blade.

“Makes no sense. Gas was supposed to knock out all of ‘em.”

They’re both wearing scarves and bandannas, covering their mouth and nose…

“Tsk, don’t matter. You. Hand over all your valuables and leave. Don’t listen to us, and you aren’t leaving this train alive.”

Threatening me with death if I don’t hand over all of my money…

… Is this…

… Is… this…

“Did you hear what I just said?! Why are you smiling?!”

A TRAIN ROBBERY?!

“HEY! Are you even paying attention-“

Bandit number two approaches. But before he could even raise his own sword at the boy-

Slash

“FUCK!”

The first bandit moves back in horror after a tendril of slime launches itself from the boy towards his ally, cleanly cutting his head off. His body falls forward, plopping down on the ground unceremoniously, the head landing on the lap of one of the passengers.

So cool! And the use of some sort of scentless gas to knock everyone but them out! Incredible! If Eta didn’t try drugging me so many times, they would have gotten me too!

“Listen, ordinarily since I’m trying to be in mob-mode here I would just comply, beg for my life, maybe even break down into sobs for a bit. But you guys sort of caught me off guard.”

The man turns away from his friend’s corpse, looking back at Cid. What he finds is a boy staring at him in complete amazement, disturbing him to his core.

“W-W-W-”

“I have to admit, a plan like this is amazing. One minute everyone is alright, and in the next they’re all asleep. If I wasn’t here, you would have been able to run everyone’s pockets without them ever knowing it was you.”

The boy starts walking towards the bandit. He isn’t even able to call out for his friends to come over and assist. What could they do? This boy is immune to their gas and somehow decapitated one of their own without even moving his body.

“I really appreciate you guys making this trip entertaining. I was sort of having a hard time here, so this distraction is perfect.”

“…”

A dark blade materializes in the boy’s hand as he continues. By the time he reached the still frozen bandit, the man already accepted his fate.

“However, I really want to get out of this train as soon as possible, and this delay is only making things worse. Regardless of that…”

The boy raises his sword, still keeping eye contact. He deserves this.

“… Thank you.”

“…”

Slash

This is a fun world.

Clang

Clang

Claire stays on the offensive with her opponent, trying to look for an opening. She succeeds in her goal when she sees him stagger momentarily from her latest attack.

“I got you now!”

The girl lunges, aiming to land a blow on the man’s chest.

I got him!

Smack

The trainee isn’t able to celebrate her presumed victory as she feels something hard suddenly driving into her forehead. Her body falls to the ground, only saved from further damage by the grass that the two were sparring on.

“Ow! How did you even do that?! I had you!”

She sits up, rubbing where she was hit profusely. Claire didn’t expect him to suddenly strike her with the pommel of his blade like that. She’s still on the ground when the man approaches her, sheathing his sword and picking hers up.

“You got too greedy with your attacks again. Don’t get me wrong, your performance was still very impressive, but you still have to remember some things.”

He reaches his other hand out for Claire to take.

“Not everyone will be overwhelmed by your power and speed. If they’re able to figure out how you fight, they’ll be able to counter you quickly, just like I did.”

“… Yeah… You’re right…”

She stops rubbing her forehead after a few more seconds. Taking his hand, she picks herself up, giving him a small smile.

“Thank you, Zenon…”

For most of Claire’s life, she has almost always been a winner in regards to combat. She surpassed her father within only a few years of training. She always won against the children of the other nobles she sparred with before leaving for the academy. And her younger brother was… well… very familiar with the ground thanks to her.

It won’t be for long anyways…

It would be a lie to say that she didn’t have a bit of an ego when she first arrived at the academy. She expected things to remain the same as they were back home. And while it was true for the majority of students she fought with, the moment she tried sparring with Zenon during her first year, that pride was shattered along with her previous sword.

“Are you okay, Claire?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah.”

She’s still not exactly sure how she was able to convince Zenon Griffey of all instructors to help her even further hone her swordsmanship when the two had free time, but it’s been a very beneficial arrangement for her.

“Good. It’s probably best that we wrap things up for now. He’s coming later today, isn’t he?”

The mention of him makes Claire involuntarily smile. Nodding at Zenon, she takes her sword back.

“Yes. He’s starting his first year soon. I’m just gonna take him around, show him some of my new favorite places, and test him on the progress he has made since I left. You know, catch up together.”

“That’s nice. I hope you won’t give him too hard of a time. If you’re right about what you say, then he might end up becoming one of my students this year.”

Claire’s eyes widen in surprise as she sheathes her sword. She somehow overlooked the possibility that Cid would end up in his class. When she first got here, it only took just under a month before she was put under Zenon’s instruction due to being already very skilled among her peers.

Can… Can he do the same too?

Claire shakes her head at Zenon.

“I’m sure he’s more than capable of getting into your class. Just… he may not be as quick to get there as I was. Like I said, give him some time to adjust to things here. When the time comes, I know that he’ll impress you, probably more than I have.”

The man raises an eyebrow at the girl’s words.

“That’s saying a lot, Claire. I’ve seen your progress over these two years. I’d be surprised if he ends up being close to your level, let alone above it in one year.

Before Claire is able to rebut his statement, he pats her shoulder.

“But you’ve shown yourself to be worthy of trust. I look forward to meeting him, whether or not he becomes one of my own.”

Her eyes widened again upon hearing his words. She looks away from the instructor, trying but failing to hide her red face.

“T-Thank you, Mr. Grif-“

“Hey, what did I say? It’s okay to call me Zenon when we’re alone.”

“R-Right… Zenon.”

The two wave each other goodbye before parting. As Claire makes it back to her dorm, a single thought persists in her mind.

I hope you’ll enjoy this place as much as I have, Cid…

Almost there! Finally!

Cid is barely able to contain his excitement when they get past the city walls, with it only getting greater the closer he gets to the station. Thankfully, the delay that the bandits caused wasn’t too long. By the time Cid had tossed the last body in a ditch, everyone was starting to wake up. 

This trip has been incredibly dull, well, other than what the bandits did. Their reactions when they saw blood in the carts was also entertaining.

He smiles at the recollection. He already got to cross off a train hijacking on his list before he even arrived in the capital. If this wasn’t good foreshadowing for what’s to come in the future, he wouldn’t know what is.

Looking out the window again, he sees some places that he vaguely remembers passing by during his previous visits with-

Claire…

His smile drops at the reminder. He had almost completely forgotten about her.

Damnit. Having her around will make my plans harder…

Back before they learned the truth she left for the academy, for her last year she had set up a whole routine for him to follow. Waking up at this time, brushing his teeth, eating, training, reading about swordplay, training, eating, training, training, and if he was sometimes lucky, ‘sleeping’. Did he forget to mention training?

She should be nowhere near as overbearing as she was back then. I’ve gotten ‘better’…

Cid sighs to himself as he feels the train beginning to slow down, having reached the station. Hopefully Claire will be too busy with schoolwork and whatever other duties she has to bother him like she used to.

Coming to a full stop, the passengers start getting up. Cid doesn’t want to wait any longer, getting out as quickly as a mob can.

Regardless of her, this should be a good fresh start. I can’t see this going wrong. Not at all.

Making it out of the station and into the streets, all he has to do now is make it to his new dorm and he finally gets to properly relax. 

“Cid?!”

The boy’s ear twitches when he hears his name being called from behind, deadpanning at the voice.

… Not… at… all…

And… done.

Putting his comb down, the boy looks at himself in the mirror, checking his work.

Hmm… too neat…

Bringing a hand to his hair, he ruffles it a bit, trying to correct himself.

… Wait, now it looks too messy.

Comb comb comb

Too neat.

Ruffle ruffle ruffle

Too messy.

Comb comb comb

Too neat.

Ruffle ruffle ruffle.

Too messy.

Comb comb comb

Ruffle ruffle ruffle

Comb comb comb

Ruffle ruffle ruffle

Comb ruffle comb ruffle comb ruffle comb ruffle comb ruff-

Okay, it should be good enough.

Putting his comb down one final time, Cid gives himself one last inspection. His uniform wasn’t completely pristine or sloppy. His hair wasn’t on point or looked like he just rolled out of bed. His face still had eyebags seemed about the same as yesterday.

… Wait, aren’t I already late?

He pries his eyes off the mirror, checking the clock next to his bed. Sure enough, he was already 10 minutes past when he was “supposed” to be walking out of his room.

Cid doesn’t bother stalling his day any longer. Giving himself one last look over in the mirror, he grabs his bag and heads towards the door.

It isn’t even fully open when he suddenly feels it being pushed from the other side. Already knowing what’s gonna happen, Cid moves back for them. 

“Cid, finally!”

“Come on, we have to go!”

The two boys stumble into the room, locking their eyes with him once they see that he’s there.

“What’s taking you so long, Cid?! The train is about to leave!”

“Yeah. We don’t want to leave you!”

…

“R-Right! Of course! No more time to waste! Let’s go!”

Cid nervously smiles as he runs past them, sharing their sense of urgency. They close the door behind him, closely following.

It was a close call, barely making it to the station. They were able to squeeze into a crowded cart right before the doors had fully shut. Fortunately, one of the poles to hold on to still had enough room for the three of them to stay together. The boys let out a collective sigh of relief. Another brush with lateness that has ended in their favor once again.

“Cid, you really have to start waking up earlier. We can’t keep doing this.”

The tallest of the boys looks down at Cid with a concerned expression.

“Is something wrong?”

Cid shakes his head, looking down in embarrassment.

“N-No Skel. Not at all.”

“Then why does this keep happening? Are you that heavy of a sleeper?”

…

“Not at all, Po.”

“… Okay.”

The two feel a slight shift in tone coming from their friend, but it isn’t enough for them to comment on. They decide on dropping the conversation and leaving it for later. Cid brings his head back up, looking at them as they start speaking to each other about something else.

It’s been a few months since I’ve begun attending the academy. Things have been going relatively smoothly. I have been able to blend in nicely as just another ordinary student, making two equally irrelevant friends, Skel Etal, and Po Tato, two perfectly normal names.

Fortunately for me, my sister is too busy with her own schedule to focus on me like she used to. Other than the occasional day off where she likes to drag me around the capital or test me, we mostly never see each other throughout the day, and if we do, it’s never long enough for her to do anything with me.

…

… This is paradise…

“Hey, Cid, you’re spacing out again. Hello?”

Cid hears Skel snapping his fingers at him, interrupting his thoughts.

“O-Oh. What is it?”

“Did you not hear us? We were talking about the bet. Are you still… you know… gonna go through with it?”

“… I d-don’t have much choice, do I?”

“You still do. If it really comes down to it, we’ll do damage control for you.”

“N-No, please. I don’t want you guys getting any unnecessary attention for m-my sake.”

Po frowns at Cid’s response to Skel.

“Do you think we care about that? No, we don’t. It’s not completely your fault that you got the lowest score on the practical.”

“Po, he fell asleep standing while being evaluated. We’re lucky he even got a C.”

“That could happen to anyone.”

“…”

Cid deadpans at the two as they start going back and forth with each other again with energy that shouldn’t be expected in the morning.

Maybe I really should lay off on making myself appear so timid with them. They don’t even think I can handle this bet.

The bet in question was made among his classmates for fun at first, but somewhere down the line, the occasional joke turned into a legitimate risk. The conditions were rather simple. Whoever scored the lowest among the group of students on mana evaluation would have the pleasure of being forced to ‘confess their love’ to Princess Alexia Midgar. It just so happened that the one who ended up earning that position on the chopping block was-

“Cid, we’re here.”

“Come on, let’s go.”

Cid refocuses on his surroundings when he hears his friends, seeing them walking out of the now open train along with everyone else. 

“Oh, right!”

The three boys walk together into the campus with everyone else.

Good mobs. All we have to do is make it through class, and at the end of the day, I can finally put all this practice to good work.

Losing the bet wasn’t a bad thing in Cid’s mind. 

Confessing to a main heroine and suffering from her brutal rejection… At last, I can finally scratch that off the list!

When it comes to maintaining his status as a mob character, the boy has certain scenarios he wishes to go through, this being one of the most anticipated for him. So for this situation to just fall onto his lap the way it did… 

“… Cid, I just realized something.”

Both Skel and Po stop walking. Cid continues for a few more steps before he notices, turning his head back.

“O-Oh? What is it, Po?”

“… You don’t have your sword with you…”

…

“W-What?! Again?!”

The boy’s face turns red as he looks down to his side, ‘noticing’ their observation. Honestly, he is surprised that it took them this long to realize it. Especially after it happened a couple of times already.

There are benefits to displaying this incompetence…

Cid hears loud sighs coming from behind, turning back to face his friends. The two were probably going to start lecturing him again. But-

“… Oh…”

“Hm? Is something wrong, guys?”

He sees how Skel and Po start to frown slightly, looking ahead of Cid.

“Cid, you’re really not gonna confess to Princess Alexia, right?”

“Y-Yeah. Cid, are you sure you want to go through with that?”

“Is something wrong? W-Why are you asking again?”

The boy turns his head quizzically at the two. Skel points a finger over Cid’s shoulder.

“If you want to see why we still have a problem with this, take a look over there.”

Turning back around, Cid sees what the two were referring to. In the distance, it looks like another guy is already living out his fantasy, as he knelt in front of Princess Alexia, with a semi-large crowd gathered around them.

Doing it at this time of day? Does he have no patience? Everyone knows this is an end of the day sort of event.

Cid blankly watches as the princess seems to be smiling at the other boy speaking. When he seems to be done, he extends his hands out to her, holding a bouquet.

Damn! I should have brought flowers with me too! That would make my confession even more NPC-like!

That sudden thought completely derails Cid’s attention as he starts thinking about how he just ruined his own plan by overlooking something so simple. The boy slumps his shoulders in defeat, continuing to walk. He doesn’t even bother watching the guy getting politely rejected yet still running away in tears.

“Cid, we can’t guarantee that there won’t be a crowd. Don’t get me wrong, we’ll try to make sure there isn’t one. But still…”

“I… I’m sorry, Cid. But I really don’t think you should do this. Put honor aside, this won’t do you well. You’re just gonna embarrass yourself.”

Oh, right.

“D-Don’t w-worry. I can do this. I-I can definitely do this…”

Cid puts on a determined face, nodding to them.

“I already k-know where and when to do it. I… would appreciate it if y-you could help me.”

Po still looks slightly displeased, but Skel seems to stop frowning in exchange for a small smile at his friend’s response.

“… I’ve never seen you this adamant on doing something that you’re normally so uncomfortable with…”

Cid’s face turns slightly red from Skel’s words.

“W-Well, what are you trying to say with that?”

“Hm? Nothing. It’s just…”

Skel’s smile grows wider, looking more sincere than even Cid could expect from the situation.

“… I’m so glad that you’re trying to work on your confidence and social skills. Even if this particular method isn’t the best.”

…

“O-Oh…”

The three continue to walk in silence, with Cid still walking ahead of them. He watches as the crowd ahead begins to disperse, leaving Princess Alexia to walk off by herself.

Regardless of what I’m missing, I’ll still make this work. This is something I can’t afford to fail again. Last time around I-

…

…

What did I-

Thinking about Skel’s words, the determination that was present on his face goes away and he returns to his trademark deadpan stare. 

Skel is still taking my side when it inconveniences him, and even though Po is still a little upset, I doubt he wouldn’t help too…

Cid turns his head to look at the two ‘mobs’ behind him. They were also irrelevant background characters. So why were they so unconditionally helpful to him?

… It’s not like it’ll last long anyways…

The boy sighs, turning his head back forward. He’s doing this to get closer to becoming an Eminence in Shadows, nothing more.

Besides, it’s only a matter of time before he ends up all alone again.

“This was a mistake. We have to get him out of there.”

“Now you want him to back out? The moment he’s already in front of her? It’s too late to save him now.”

Skel and Po speak in hushed voices, making sure not to move around too much in the shrub they are hiding in.

“What are we supposed to do? Watch him kill himself in embarrassment?”

“I mean… That’s all we can do now.”

“...”

Skel doesn’t bother to respond, letting out a sigh in defeat. Po has a point, but still…

“Look, he’s starting.”

The time has finally come for Cid to put his mob confession skills to the test. Despite the dread and shakiness the boy was exhibiting from his body as he stood only a meter away from Princess Alexia in the courtyard, his soul burned with determination to do this right. This is it. This will be his new magnum opus of mob acting.

“P-P-P-P-Princess A-A-Alexis!”

Call the girl by the wrong name in the introduction to show just how utterly nervous you are. Make sure to incorporate stuttering during the whole process.

“Y-Yes?”

The princess looks at the boy in a mixture of confusion and concern.

“I-I-I-I-!”

Feign breathlessness and strain in your voice as if this was a moment you’ve been rehearsing, but now are completely failing to execute.

“I-I L-L-LOVE Y-Y-Y-YOU! I-I-I T-T-THINK!”

Don’t tell the girl you never interacted with before until now that you like her. Use the word love to catch her even more off guard. Tack on an “I think” to show how you are having a hard time finding the words to say.

“…”

Turning her head, the princess looks even more concerned with now added surprise. She tries meeting his eyes, yet they remain wandering, looking everywhere but her.

Don’t look at her for more than a moment to showcase how utterly terrified you are of her guaranteed rejection.

“P-P-PLEASE! M-M-M…”

Cut off the first attempt as you start shaking harder. Bow your body until it is at a full ninety degree angle. I cannot stress this enough. Extend your left arm outward, as she is likely right handed. This will force her to have to likely use her non-dominant hand, adding an extra layer of inconvenience if she were to even think of saying yes.

“M-M-MARRY ME!?”

Look dead at the target’s eyes, now maintaining as much eye contact as possible. This sudden proposal coupled with you now facing her will make her more uncomfortable than before. Breathlessly exclaim the last word as if you have just finished a monumental task, but still accent it like it is a question.

“…”

At last, it is complete…

Skel and Po look on at the two, mouths agape and eyes wide open, looking even more mortified than they ever thought possible from what was just supposed to be a confession. How could such levels of second-hand embarrassment even exist? Thank the heavens that there are no other witnesses.

Cid continues to sweat a waterfall while looking on at Princess Alexia, not daring to look away for a moment. He remains bowed, arm reaching out for her, seemingly begging for her to take. On the inside however, the boy wanted to explode in triumph, revelling at her expression.

PERFECT! ABSOLUTELY PERFECT! I NAILED IT! TEN OUT OF TEN! THIS IS MOB ACTING! NO, EVEN DEEPER THAN THAT! THIS IS WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MOB! I THINK I’M GONNA CRY! HOW WONDERFUL! WAIT, I CANNOT CELEBRATE JUST YET! THERE IS STILL THE REJECTION! NOW I MUST GET READY FOR-

“…Of course.”

…

Cid feels his hand being taken by the princess, holding it gently.

“I accept.”

…

The boy is in too much of a shock to deny the sudden hug she wraps him in, resting her head on his shoulder. He can’t for the love of him get the look of utter confusion out of his face. Standing helpless as she continues to wrap him in affection, he tries looking over at where Skel and Po were hiding. Yet when he sees them, he is only met with two pale white mobs looking at him as if they witnessed a murder. It seems he isn’t the only one who is mostly paralyzed in bewilderment.

Wha-… Wha-… What?

“I’m so glad that you came to me. I’ll be in your care from now on. Till death do us part, right?”

…

… No…

… No… This can’t be real…

… This is just a nightmare dream. A really really REALLY bad dream…

… But how… Why… 

Why can’t Cid do anything right WHEN WAS I CAPABLE OF BEING A ROM COM PROTAGONIST?!

“It’s gotten that bad, huh?”

“Y-Yes. They keep staring at me. It feels as if no matter where I am here, there’s always just someone… watching me…”

“You don’t have to continue. We understand.”

“I’m sorry for letting you do this, Cid.”

Skel moves his head around, observing their surroundings. Nobody seems to be watching them as they sit in the middle of the cafeteria, but it doesn’t hurt to check. Especially considering the subject they are going to talk about. They still have no clue how the news was able to spread. They thought they kept the confession contained.

“N-No, please. Don’t blame yourselves. N-No one could have expected it. I d-didn’t expect it at all.”

Cid rests his head on his arms, slumping his body as he watches the two eating from across the table. If he didn’t look so bummed out, they would have commented on how it felt like there was a literal rain cloud over his head.

“Yeah, but still… And the fact that those same ones who expected a brutal rejection to be the ones most upset about it. Honestly, it pisses me off.”

“Same here. We've even gotten some comments from others for being associated with you. The things people do when they’re jealous…”

The cloud rains harder.

“N-No, Cid! Don’t worry, we don’t blame you for this. As you said, no one could have expected this outcome.”

“I know…”

Cid lets out a long yawn sigh, getting his head off the table. Unlike all the times before where he was just faking his disappointment, there is no need to pretend anymore.

“W-Well… how have things been with her, Cid? I saw that she tries to spend time with you when you two are free.”

…

At least Skel remembers not to say her name out loud.

“S-She just asks me to w-walk around with her. And… while we’re out, she… she has us hold hands.”

Under normal circumstances, hearing someone speak so nervously and worried about something like that would lead to being laughed out of the room. However, for the two, they know just how anxious Cid really is.

“I see… We’ll have to get digging. Or at least try to. Find the real reason she’s doing this. No offense, Cid. But…”

Skel’s face softens up, looking at Cid with sympathy.

“… You’re not exactly the type of guy I think any princess would be after.”

“None taken.”

Po stops eating, chiming in.

“I don’t know. Her response seemed really genuine to me, Skel. And from what Cid has said, she hasn’t been doing anything suspicious either. Maybe she just has a type, and Cid happens to fit it.”

“…”

Skel takes another look at Cid, before looking back at Po

“Are you sure?”

“Of course. Don’t assume that all royals have the same taste. If there’s anything good I can take away from this, there’s hope for my own chances of one day hitting on a girl and it actually working”

Po raises his voice, seeming more confident than usual.

Sometimes I forget how they speak like I’m not here.

“… Anyways, back to what's important.”

Skel looks back at Cid.

“Cid, you really don’t plan on staying with her, right? That entire confession was fake. Whether or not she has some sort of ulterior motive with accepting it, I don’t think she would appreciate it if she learned how you were put up to this.

“I-I know. B-But I d-don’t think I can t-tell her that I c-changed my mind.”

He looks down at the table again, unable to maintain eye contact with either of the two.

“Why not? Is it because she’s been nice? Or are you still having a hard time saying ‘no’ to people?”

Cid audibly gulps, his face turning slightly red.

“… I’ll take that as meaning the latter…”

Skel sighs, before continuing.

“Cid, I get that you’re between a rock and a hard place now. But in a situation like this, only you’ll be able to get yourself out of it. Trust me, I would love to help you with this, but right now I have no idea how we could do this with you.”

Cid starts to slowly nod.

“O-Okay. I-It’s just… How can I?”

Don’t they understand how mobs can’t fix an issue like this ordinarily?! They never find themselves in this situation!

“… You’ll have to learn to start saying ‘no’. That’s all that really comes to mind. And start doing it quickly. Before you end up doing other things you don’t want to do with her.”

“Y-Yeah, g-got it…”

Oh, wait. I can do something else with what Skel said.

“W-Wait, what ‘o-other things’ are you t-talking about?”

Po raises an eyebrow at Cid’s response.

“… Seriously?”

“H-Huh?”

“Cid, do you really have no idea what that means?”

“… I-I’m not sure, n-now that you put it like that.”

“…”

The two boys deadpan at their friend.

“W-What? I-Is something wrong?”

“… I… I don’t even know how to… Let’s just say that plenty of other guys would consider themselves to be very lucky in your shoes, Cid.”

“Lucky about what?”

The three boys are so focused on themselves, that they don’t notice she is standing next to them until her voice suddenly chimes in.

…

“P-P-Princess Alexia?”

Po responds first, trying and failing to hide his shock. Skel isn’t faring any better, but Cid seems to be unfazed by her, remaining neutral.

“I’m sorry. Was I interrupting something important?”

She looks at the three innocently, seemingly ashamed that she bothered them.

“N-No! No you didn’t! We’re fine!”

The sudden commotion coming from the table alongside Alexia’s presence alerts most of the nearby students about what was happening. It didn’t take long for their heads to be pointed at the four.

“O-Okay then. Are you alright, Ciddy?”

No! Don’t say that name in public!

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Alexia moves to sit down next to Cid, getting so close can feel her hair pressing against his side.

“C-Cid, did she just call you-“

“Yes. Ciddy. Isn’t that such a cute nickname for him?”

Skel and Po’s blood run cold from Alexia’s words. She speaks so kindly and affectionately. But…

Cid turns to face Alexia, not reciprocating her bubbliness.

“Why did you come here?”

“Oh. I just wanted to eat with you. Is that okay with you, Ciddy?”

Every time she says that ‘name’, Cid feels the death stares all around him growing stronger. Skel and Po becoming increasingly uncomfortable doesn’t help the situation either.

“Stuck between a rock and hard place”, my ass! They’re both hard places!

“… Yes, it is…”

The princess’s smile widens, bringing her arm around his neck, nuzzling his cheek.

“Thank you so much~”

I think someone is actually going to try and kill me.

Cid doesn’t resist any of her gestures, remaining still. He continues to stare at his two fellow mobs, who look just as stressed as he was on the inside.

I need to do something… 

After what feels like minutes of uncomfortable silence, a servant arrives at the table, pushing a cart of food that is way too good for any of their statuses, not counting Alexia.

“Ah, now it’s here.”

The courses are brought in front of the princess. Once everything is laid out, Cid can’t help but look away everyone with the exception of Cid and Alexia look stunned at the large variety of high quality dishes that filled the table. Even Skel and Po have to move their own meals further to the edge to accommodate.

“I can never finish these sorts of meals by myself. That’s why I like sharing them with others. Please, feel free to take some, Ciddy. Even your friends can have some.”

“R-Really? T-Thank you, Princess Alexia.”

Skel doesn’t hesitate to accept the offer, taking as much as his shame would allow. Po is hesitant at first, but follows shortly after.

I didn’t know food was all it took to break the ice for you guys…

“Look at them. Lucky bastards…”

“It’s not fair. What does that pathetic kid have that we don’t?”

“That guy needs to return to the womb…”

“Did I leave my sword back in my room again?”

Cid glances around at the other students watching him, hearing their hushed voices. He knows he’s not in any real danger, but for his character right now, he feels like someone on the verge of death, as vultures circle overhead, waiting for him to give in. 

“Are you okay, Ciddy? Don’t worry about anything. Just eat up.”

Alexia holds out a piece of chicken with her fork for him to bite.

… I have an idea…

“T-Thank you for the food, Alexandria.”

Cid hears his two friends along with a couple of people watching start choking on their food the moment the name leaves his mouth. He also notices the princess’s once impenetrable smile wavering ever so slightly.

“Haha, Cid, good joke. You know my name is Alexia.”

Good, it’s working .

He doesn’t stop there. Grabbing Alexia’s fork, he forces it into his mouth himself. It tastes stale The spectators only grow more unnerved by the display, some opting to just turn away and forget about the four sitting together.

Their reactions don’t matter. Princess Alexia…

Watching her face intently, he sees her demeanor once again showing cracks.

Come on, say something about this. Say that you want to leave…

“R-Right. Sorry, Alexis.”

“…”

Did I embarrass you yet?

“… If I’m remembering correctly, you chose the Royal Bushin Style as your practical elective in the afternoon, right?”

How is she still so unbothered?!

“Yes, I did.”

“Wonderful. I did the same.”

Alexia sets her fork down, clasping her hands together. 

“We’ll be able to train together.”

“No we can’t. I’m still at beginner level.”

With that response, the princess pauses, giving him room to think.

She won’t let up. Why can’t she leave me alone?

“Hmm… I can send in a recommendation for the expert class where I’m at. I know the instructor well, so I know he’ll be more than happy to let you in.”

… No…

“Also, if you don’t believe you’re ready for it. From what I heard from him, your sister got in that class during her first year too. I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

…

… Just… Say… No…

“… Okay…”

Cid can only meekly nod at his ‘girlfriend’s’ words, resigning himself to her decision.

“Wonderful. Just give me a day or two. I’ll let you know when you’re in.”

Skel and Po look on as their friend sits helplessly, feeling more powerless than they ever felt before. Cid’s eyes look glazed, like he was deep in thought. A common occurrence to the boys. But this time, something seemed off.

… I… need… to… fix… this…

“You know, this reminds me of something.”

Cid deadpans at the actress princess, no longer seeming bothered by the audience.

“Huh? What do you mean? Remind you of what?”

Alexia turns her head in curiosity, waiting for him to continue. The boy just sighs in response.

“I… I don’t want to walk home with you… Not anymore…”

What did he just say?

“W-What? Cid, what are you talking about?”

The boy yawns, wiping his eyes. He just wants to go to bed has to end this conversation quickly.

“Just… let me focus, please. Today has been weirder than I thought it would be. It’s getting harder to blend in as one of them.”

Alexia’s smile starts to slowly fade away as she hears him speak more and more. By now, only a few people are watching, unsure of what to think. They will never understand

“C-Cid, you’re worrying me. Are you okay?”

“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be, Aka-“

…

…

…

“I… I forgot something. I’ll be right back.”

Cid quietly gets up from the table, now looking unfazed by the stares coming from those watching. Turning from the three, he walks out of the cafeteria, keeping his head low. Skel and Po decide against following, knowing what he meant.

“… Goodbye, Cid…”

Alexia watches him until he’s out of sight. Her smile slowly returns. Skel looks over at her, and for a moment, he feels as if her eyes were just a little more strained, and her smile just a little more drawn.

“Why do you all look so tense? Is something wrong?”

The girl looked at the two boys, but judging from how loud she spoke, she was addressing the people around them too. Despite the clear sincerity they felt coming from her, nobody could help but remain on edge as they started to look away from the three, trying to return to what they were doing before.

“No. Not at all…”

Po is the only one who bothers responding to Alexia. Skel returns to eating, looking down at the table. 

“Hey, I’m sorry if I’m giving off a bad feeling. Don’t be so stressed. I know it was an accident. Ciddy is not particularly the best when it comes to being the center of attention. In fact, I find that really cute.”

Her tone remains cheerful, continuing to smile.

“Well, like I said before, I can’t finish all of this by myself. Feel free to take some, just make sure to leave some for Cid when he returns, okay?”

With that final attempt to negate some of the dead air in the room, the princess starts to eat with the mobs. Once Alexia had her fill, she looks over to where Cid was sitting before. After a few seconds of mindless watching, she notices something.

Why didn’t Cid have any food when she got here?

Hmm… a little bit more on the left… Wait, now it looks too neat. Just gotta mess it up a bit like this and… Damn, I made it too messy again.

Letting out a sigh, Cid brings the comb down, inspecting his work once more in the mirror.

Maybe that is why she said yes. She thought I looked too clean for a background character. Or maybe it was too messy. You never know what some of these characters are into.

He moves his head around, carefully looking over as much of his face as possible no matter how much it made him sick , trying to find something of note. Something that would get a princess’s attention, however minor it seems.

I have done the exact opposite of everything I’ve read and watched in those stories. If anything, she should have been pissed with me for wasting her time. I’m no more than a piece of shit she wouldn’t even step on by accident.

It has only been five days since Princess Alexia accepted his “feelings” and things have already gone south for him. It’s not exactly possible to stay in the background of an environment when you have one of if not the most popular girl there clinging on to your arm while trying to go about your day. The affection she would give him in public didn’t help either. Hugging him, ruffling his hair, holding his hand as they walked, it was all too much. It’s like she somehow knew he wanted as little attention as possible and decided to personally mess up his life.

I just don’t understand! How could she have said yes?! I’m… No point getting too worked up about it. The solution is simple. I’ll just have to break up with her, reputation be damned.

Reputation…

Great, now he has another thing to worry about. Would that move end up giving Cid even more attention? As far as he knows in this world, it’s not exactly common to see the personification of a mid guy be the one to dump the literal princess, much less get any attention from one. The backlash that move could cause would likely end up making his remaining time in the academy be far too eventful for his tastes.

… I’m trapped…

He brings the comb up to his hair again, continuing the routine. He’ll have to continue playing along as the submissive and socially anxious mess with her. At least until an opportunity presents itself to… correct this. 

Taking his eyes off the mirror for a few seconds, he looks at the time.

20 minutes late… 

He can’t let paradise be further ruined.

“There’s no need to worry, Cid.”

Cid’s heart nearly drops with his comb as a gentle voice whispers lovingly into his ear. His eyes freeze on the clock, not daring to look back.

“You can still fix this.”

She’s so soft Recognizing her voice, Cid slowly starts to relax his body, no longer surprised about the sudden intrusion.

“You will fix this.”

“…”

She’s… She’s right…

There’s still hope to make things right. He just has to stay calm and keep his head straight.

Looking over his shoulder in the mirror, he can’t help but smile with the girl standing behind him.

… Thank you, Akane…

AN: Yeah yeah, I know that I’m really late with this chapter. Only one real chapter release during most of season 2’s cycle? That’s horrible time management on my part. In all honesty, it’s my own fault for procrastinating when I had the time to write. I can’t promise you that this lack of scheduling will get any better, but I can promise that I will continue to be writing. If anything, now that the real stuff can actually start, I’ll be more motivated to write. Thank you all for the support, until next time.

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Chapter Text

Chapter 5.5: 28 Days Left

I shouldn’t have stayed up last night. I feel awful…

The girl can’t help but yawn once again, trying to stay awake. Resting her elbows on the desk, Akane is surprised by how it feels just as soft as her bed. All she would have to do is just bring her head further and further down and then she can enjoy the sweet comfort of-

“Ms. Nishino?”

“E-Eh?!”

She snaps to attention, sitting straight and looking at the woman who called on her.

“… Are you okay? This has been the third time you-“

“Yes. Yes I am. Don’t worry.”

Akane hastily nods at the teacher. Trying to stay cool, she grabs her pen again. 

Considering the number of classmates that are still looking at her after the instructor carried on with the lesson, it is clear that she is failing.

Come on. Don’t you have better things to do…

Sighing to herself, Akane tries to get her mind back on whatever her teacher is saying.

It doesn’t take long for her attention to start wavering again. Turning her head to her left side again, she’s met with the source of her exhaustion.

His desk is still empty…

He can’t really be dead, can he? What are the odds that he really did die? How could he have died? It was quite literally two days after he saved her life. A day after he finally got her name right. 

… Am I the only one that’s noticing this?

It’s been one week since the incident. One week since Akane Nishino had a decent night’s sleep. One week since Minoru Kageno-

Akane takes a glance at the other students, observing their behavior. They seem to be doing what they were ‘supposed’ to be doing, actually paying attention to the lesson. Under most circumstances, she’d be right there with them, but this…

No one said anything after he stopped showing up to class. Even when the news came out, the atmosphere didn’t even sour for a day. Everything is going along as if nothing happened…

How can these people not care one bit about him? He sat with them for two years. Even if I barely saw him talk during that time, how could they still…

…

… Don’t they care about why he’s dead?

“Ms. Nishino? You’re getting distracted again.”

Akane immediately turns her head back to the teacher, seeing her look mildly annoyed.

“R-Right. Forgive me.”

The girl feels herself being scrutinized by the woman’s eyes. This time however, her initial embarrassment is replaced with a hidden resentment.

If only you cared as much about your own students’ lives as their attention.

“…Do… you need to go to the nurse?”

…

“… Yes…”

Akane can’t bother with this lesson, not today. She’ll just ask a classmate for the notes later. Getting up from her desk, she doesn’t waste any time in leaving, ignoring the odd looks coming from the others.

Minoru must have never bothered trying to have a relationship with these people for another reason besides wanting to stay irrelevant.

AN: Normally these will be a lot longer, but I don’t want to give too much away rn, so the lengths of these in between chapters will increase over time. Next chapter is shaping up faster than I thought so maybe it won’t be another two month wait. Until then, see ya.

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Chapter Text

Chapter 6: Take A Load Off, At Least For Awhile

“Now, before we begin. I would like to introduce you all to the newest member of our class.”

She actually did it…

“Everyone, this is Cid Kagenou!”

The boy tries moving behind the instructor as he speaks, not liking all of the eyes on him, but is stopped when he puts his hand on Cid’s shoulder. He can already hear the whispers coming from the others after hearing his name.

“Wait, that’s Cid Kagenou?”

“Did he just say ‘Kagenou’?”

“Isn’t that her brother?”

“His sister is so hot…”

Oh right, there was another reason as to why I didn’t want to come here.

Cid stays silent as he hears the chattering. Turning to his instructor, he gives a look of concern.

Top of the line facilities, discipline that can be felt in the air if I ignore the comments I just heard. Nope, not for this mob.

“I-Is it still too late to go back to the beginner class, Mr. Griffey? I-I can already tell I won’t fit here.”

Zenon seems to be frowning at the class when he hears the boy. Looking back at him, he gives a bright smile.

“It’ll be fine, Cid. I’ll make sure you adjust properly.”

He scratches his neck awkwardly before continuing.

“Also, you coming here was a royal order. So there’s not much I could do about you leaving here regardless. My apologies…”

Royal orders for this sort of bullshit is allowed?

“…Anyways, there is no point in crying over spilled milk. You’ll be alright.”

The man squeezes his shoulder in reassurance, before returning his gaze to the class.

“I expect everyone here to get along with him, as well as showing how we operate here. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Mr. Griffey!”

Damn. Even the students speak in unison.

“Okay then. Everyone, get into pairs. We’re going to do some stretching before continuing. Today is just a sparring day.” 

Cid leaves the teacher’s side, going back to the other students. He sees Alexia standing among them, waving her hands to get his attention.

“Ciddy, come on! We’re together!”

You really love calling me that, don’t you?

Swallowing some of the pride he still has left, the boy walks to the princess, trying to ignore the looks of envy and pity from the others.

The boy’s mind is on autopilot for most of the session, mindlessly stretching with her.

“Wow, I feel a lot better than before. Where did you learn to stretch like this, Ciddy?”

… That’s… That’s actually a good question…

“M-My sister taught me. I’m not sure where she got it from, though.”

Cid hides his confusion, turning his attention to Zenon, who is watching them from a distance.

“Oh, really? She never used such stretches when with us. She just follows the usual routine we do.”

“W-Wait, what do you mean when she’s with you?”

“Huh? Don’t you know? Your sister helps teach this cla-“

THUD

“I’M SORRY FOR BEING LATE!”

The class seems to flinch at the sound of a door violently flinging open. Cid resists the urge to grimace when he hears that all too familiar voice.

“CID?! ARE YOU HERE?!”

Zenon turns towards the direction of the sound, now looking unamused.

“Claire, what did I say about shouting so loud?! And yes, he’s here!”

“R-Right! Sorry!”

… You’ve got to be kidding me…

Her footsteps are rapid. Making no attempt at maintaining the atmosphere of professionalism as she makes it into the main room. The second she spots her brother among the students, it feels like time freezes for both of them.

Please… Don’t do anything too rash. Not in front of everyone…

Surprisingly, as if reading his mind, the girl seems to calm down after seeing him. Making her way to everyone, instead of going to Cid, she goes over to Zenon, standing by his side, sporting the largest grin he’s ever seen on her.

“Y-You’re not kidding…”

Alexia nods.

“Mhm. Of course not.”

Damnit! I should have paid more attention when she was talking about what she was doing!

After another minute of mindlessly stretching and trying to ignore his sister’s intense gaze, everything seems to return to how it was before.

“Alright, that’s enough. Everyone, begin spacing out. Get ready to start sparring with your partner. Nothing too intense right now. We’re just doing the basics.”

“Yes, finally. Come on, Ciddy. I want to see how you fight.”

It’s almost like you want my sister to know your name for me too…

The two move away from the others, drawing their swords. Fight her Cid could almost see them cleanly shimmering in the light. 

This is too much main character energy for me. I need to flunk this fight. Maybe then she’ll see even more of my weakness and leave me herself…

They get into position. The boy’s hands quiver slightly as he faces the princess, who stands completely still, not showing a hint of nervousness. How could she? In her mind, despite all of her kindness, she has no reason to believe that he is even an equal to her. 

… Wait…

Cid turns his head around momentarily to see if Claire was still looking. Sure enough, her eyes never left him, and it seems that she notices, bringing her hand up to wave at him.

…

… Maybe it wouldn’t hurt if I show some level of skill…

“On my go! 3… 2… 1… Begin!”

CLANG

The sounds of metal clashing with metal ring throughout the building. Alexia is on the offensive first, bringing her sword down to him. He notices how slow she is compared to everyone else fighting.

Understandable… 

CLANG

Cid blocks her strike, before going for a weak stab at her chest. She seems to be surprised by the sudden counter, speeding up her movements. The two continuously exchange blows with each other, never landing a proper hit.

She does everything by the books. No excess movement or personality to it.

CLANG

Her moves are clearly polished. As if she’s done these tens of thousands of times before. Actually, scratch that. She has done exactly that. She’s honed this form step by step.

CLANG

… The way she fights… It reminds me so much of…

CLANG

… Me…

CLANG

“You fight better than I expected, Ciddy. Are you sure you’re supposed to be in the beginner class?”

“I-I’m sure.”

“…”

CLANG

Her next attack has more force than all of her previous strikes. Knowing what she is intending, he loosens the grip on his sword, letting it get knocked out of his hands. It flies in the air for a brief moment, before falling to the ground and clattering for all to hear.

“Tsk.”

Alexia’s neutral expression falters, showing a moment of frustration, before returning to normal.

“You fight well… But that form… That form…”

The princess shakes her head, facing the floor. Cid turns his head in confusion, going to approach her, but is stopped when she continues.

“…Why… Why-“

“Hey, is everything alright?”

The conversation is broken when Claire suddenly appears before the couple. Picking up the fallen sword, she looks at the two quizzically.

“Y-Yes, sister. Princess Alexia is just a little tired.

“Oh? In that case, maybe it’s best if we cut it short for her. You can go to Mr. Griffey and say you need to be excused early. I’ll stay with Cid-“

“No, I’m fine.”

Alexia interrupts Claire, looking at Cid again. 

“We can continue, right, Ciddy?”

Of course you had to call me that in front of her!

“Y-Yes, of course. But are you sure you’re okay? You n-never know if-“

“Yes, I am.”

When did she start interrupting people?

“…Okay then. In that case, I’ll just watch you two and make sure everything is okay.”

Claire moves back, giving the two space to continue. Cid stops keeping track of time, mindlessly repeating the cycle of basic blocks and countering.

“It’s time to start finishing up, everyone! We’re leaving soon!”

Finally…

Cid blocks the girl’s attack one more time. Backing away, the two sheath their blades, giving each other a bow.

“Geez, just kiss already.”

You’re still here, Claire?!

Ignoring her words, he goes to leave. There really is no point loitering around here. Especially with those two around.

“Wait, you’re leaving already, Ciddy?”

I’m having a harder time remembering a day where I didn’t hear that name…

“Hold on, Cid!”

The boy hears footsteps coming from behind him. It doesn’t take long for her to put her hand on his shoulder.

“Do you want to come with me to speak to Mr. Griffey? There’s other things we have to cover with you to understand more about how we are here.”

… Do I have to?

Seeing no point in delaying the inevitable, Cid internally sighs, meekly nodding his head. Claire smiles at him, ruffing his hair.

“Come on.”

Looking around, it seems that most people have either already left or are on their way to leave. Alexia stays behind, watching them with a look of… worry?

Zenon sees the siblings approaching, flashing another smile at them. 

“Hey, Cid. Staying behind too?”

“Yes he is. I want him to know more about what’s going on here. He’ll be growing very familiar with this place in the future.”

…

“Hah, your faith in him is admirable as always.”

Zenon looks over to Cid.

“Was your first day here alright? Sorry if it sounds weird, but I was watching you while you were stretching and sparring with Princess Alexia. You looked very… disappointed.”

I wasn’t intending to come across like that. You’re messing with my mob skills, Alexia!

“R-Really? I didn’t mean to look like I didn’t like this place. I-I’m just used to the beginner class. It’s n-nowhere near as pristine and orderly as here.”

“Ah. In that case, I’m glad that you like it.”

There seems to be an awkward tension between the three that’s definitely not Claire’s fault.

“So, what did you think of his skill with the Royal Bushin Style?”

The man raises an eyebrow at the girl. He’s probably also wondering if she does the speaking for him.

“Well… for a novice, he has already shown a level of skill that surpasses a fair amount of the other first years. Despite how this style has gotten a lot of criticism over the years, I’m glad that he along with the other youths still wish to practice it.”

Well, there goes my ability to come across as completely average among the others.

“Of course, there is always room for improvement. I assume that you’ll make sure that it happens?”

“Absolutely, Mr. Griffey.”

Claire turns to the boy, smiling.

“You heard that Cid? Me and Mr. Griffey are gonna make sure that you’ll get even stronger. Isn’t that nice?”

…

“Hey, Ciddy!”

For once, hearing that name brings the boy a sense of relief. Turning his face towards the princess, he sees her approaching them.

“Is everything okay? I was going to ask if I could speak to Mr. Griffey.”

“Y-You need to talk with him? Oh, I’m s-sorry, Princess Alexia.”

Cid goes to walk away again tugging on his sister’s arm to follow. He doesn’t want her to fill Zenon’s mind with even more garbage about him and his ‘potential’.

“Are you okay, Cid? Don’t you want to continue speaking with him after she’s done?”

“It’s f-fine. This can be done another time. Let’s go do something together.”

Even without looking at her, he can feel Claire’s eyes light up like an inferno upon hearing those words. She takes Cid’s hand, now being the one leading them outside.

“So… this is your plan, Princess Alexia? You do know this won’t do you any good, right? 

… What?

Cid’s ears twitch. It looks like his heightened sense of hearing is picking up the conversation between Zenon and Alexia.

“If anything, I’m disappointed that you would resort to using such an easily intimidated boy to bend to your will.”

“Disappointed? Disappointed enough to give up on me?”

“…I’m afraid not. You won’t be able to run away from marriage like this. When will you learn that?”

…

…

…Did he just say-

“There’s nothing to learn. It’s you who is insistent on it. Until you relent, I’ll do as I please with whoever I want.”

“That is just childish. This is behavior unfitting for your status.

“I am just a child myself. I have no idea what you mean, talking about these grown-up issues.”

“…And you have no care for what will come to him from this attention?”

“…”

“…Just as I thought…”

…

Huh… So, this is the real Princess Alexia? Desperately using those beneath her status to get herself out of what sounds like an arranged marriage? And with that guy no less? That’s a surprise.

…

…

No… This will not stand. I will not allow this…

“Huh, are you okay, Cid? You’re gripping my hand tighter.”

…

She won’t continue to use Cid like this. Minoru He won’t let her.

“You know, this is the first time you asked me to meet you somewhere, Cid.”

“R-Right. It is…”

Come on, Cid can do this. This isn’t breaking character. Quick and painless, just like a… like a what?

The couple are sitting at the fountain in the school’s courtyard. Classes have already ended for the day. In the boy’s mind, this is the perfect time to have such a confrontation.

“L-Listen. We need to h-have a talk.”

“A talk? About what?”

“…”

Now or never…

“I… learned the truth…”

“…”

“H-Hey, did you hear what I said? I-I learned the tr-“

“What ‘truth’ are you talking about?”

The princess looks at him with a sense of confusion, but it’s not enough to fool him. It will never fool him again.

“I think you know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Cid looks at the girl, unamused by her face. The two remain silent for a while, before Alexia lets out a sigh, her face now becoming as humorless as his.

There it is…

“So, what gave it away?”

She stands up, turning her body so she doesn’t have to face him. Is she actually capable of feeling shame?

“I-I’d rather not say. But either way, that’s not the issue. I know what you’re doing. Why you’ve been doing this”

“Mm, I do get what you’re saying. I know what we did and why.”

“W-What? What do you m-mean ‘we’?”

Cid gets up too, but Alexia beats him to the punch. She turns her head back so half of it faces him. He sees her red eye radiating nothing but smugness and unkindness.

Huh, that’s odd.

Mentally shaking his head, Cid stares back at the princess, trying not to frown too much. He’s supposed to be scared, not upset.

“After your friends stuffed themselves like pigs with all the food I offered, they were in no position to get away from any questions I had. It was rather easy to get the truth out of them. I didn’t even have to threaten the three of you. Well… not that much.”

Threaten?! Even back then she knew something was up?!

“When did you become the villain?”

“Huh?”

Right, get back on track.

“H-How? H-How did you know?”

“Because no one who is in love would treat someone like you do!”

The girl turns to fully face him, shouting. She grits her teeth, pointing an accusatory finger at him.

“You think I was born yesterday?! You weren’t fooling anyone with that performance! The only thing you accomplished there was show that you’re a bad actor!”

…

…

…Bad… Actor?

…

…

“Hey, did you hear me? Say something!”

“…”

“…Cid?”

“…”

“Are you just going to approach me without saying anything? 

“…”

“…Do you think you can scare me? I’m not falling for that…”

“…”

“D-Don’t give me that look, Cid! What do you think you’re doing-“

Swish

Maybe it’s because of her status. Maybe it’s because of her initial impressions. But she let her guard down too much around him. The princess isn’t able to draw her sword fast enough when he brings his blade to her neck.

“…C-Cid…”

The hostility present in the girl’s eyes starts to fade with fear taking its place. She’s never seen the boy move with such fluidity before. When could this boy have the gall to do something like this?

“I think you already know what I’m after.”

Cid speaks nonchalantly, staring at her. Seeing his now vacant face up close only makes things worse.

“…Y-You want out… don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“A-Are you really willing to k-kill me over this?”

“Yes.”

“…”

“So, what’s it going to be? I will be free from you either way.”

He looks at her expectantly, keeping the sword only a hair away from contact.

“I thought the royalty were usually nice. Well, sometimes. There’s some exceptions. Kings, queens, princes, princesses, royal candidates. But usually they’re kind to others.”

“H-Huh?”

Wait, I’m the only one that gets the trope!

“C-Cid, what are you talking about?”

“…Look… you’re right. We have both been lying to each other this entire time. I may be in the wrong for lying to you, but you are no better for bringing all of this attention onto me for your sake. It’d be better for us to end things here and move on. Just tell anyone who digs into it that you’re the one that left me. I’ll go back to being irrelevant, and you could find some other way to get Mr. Griffey off your back.”

He slowly starts to bring the blade down, continuing to lock eyes with her.

“…Deal?”

“…”

Now that she’s no longer concerned about her head being separated from her body, Alexia faces the ground, remaining silent.

“…Y… Y-Yeah… We have a deal…”

“Thank you, Princess Alexia.”

If it wasn’t for his better sense of hearing, Cid wouldn’t have been able to pick up the confirmation she barely whispered out. Nodding in affirmation, the boy sheaths his sword, starting to walk away from her.

… Well, that went horribly. I didn’t mean to overreact the way I did. But the audacity of her to criticize my acting skills? Does she have no idea what sort of situation she placed a mob in? They’re not supposed to be-

“W-Wait!”

Huh?

He isn’t even able to walk more than a couple of steps when he hears Alexia calling out for him. Turning to look back at her, Cid sees the girl on her knees, still looking down.

“…P-Please… C-Cid…”

He stops walking, observing her behavior.

It’s not everyday you see a protagonist in such a state. Or is she the antagonist? From everything I’ve seen and heard about Mr. Griffey, he’s also a good candidate for an important character.

“…I-I can’t d-do this alone. Y-You’re the o-only person t-that can help…”

Is she crying?

“…Really?”

The girl meekly nods.

“I n-need you. Not e-even my sister could help with t-this…”

…

…

…

“…P-Please, I’ll m-make it worth your while if you a-agree to continue this…”

As she finishes saying it, Cid notices a glint from one of her pockets. A familiar shimmer that he’s seen countless times before.

… How much money does she personally have at her disposal?

“In what way?”

“…I-I don’t know what you want. I can o-offer zen-”

“I’m in. See you tomorrow.”

Alexia isn’t even able to give out the proposition in full when Cid starts walking off again, giving her a thumbs up. Her face now turning completely dumbfounded, watching him as he leaves. That’s all it took for him to agree after what just happened these past few minutes? Some zeni? Regardless, a deal is made.

… Why am I starting to think that I made a bad decision?

Cid sighs. There’s no point thinking too deeply on this. What’s the worst that could happen if he just puts on the same act for another week or two?

… Everything will be okay…

Everything is going to be okay.

“And that’s what you two agreed on? No… This isn’t good. Not one bit.”

“I know. It’s mainly my fault. I was already clear to put this behind me, even though I accidentally showed some of my power while doing so. But then I just saw the money and…”

“Oh Cid…”

Cid looks back at the book he was reading, not wanting to continue this conversation. He came with Akane to relax, not to strategize. Then again, a fountain isn’t exactly the greatest place to sit on.

“Hey, we’re not done yet, Cid. Look at me.”

The boy feels his cheek being poked, but doesn’t let it distract him. He turns another page.

“Cid…”

It doesn’t take long for him to hear the girl sitting beside him to move even closer than she already was, pressing against his side.

Would it kill you to let me read in peace?

“It’s… It’s not fair. You don’t deserve to be in a situation like this. You just wanted to mind your own business and got dragged into royal politics. If you didn’t do what you did to her, she would have likely just ordered you around. Treat you like her own personal dog.”

“That’s oddly specific.”

He feels the girl resting her head on his shoulder. She’s so warm Sometimes, it feels like Akane doesn’t care about how she’s perceived in public.

… Maybe that’s what it would take to fix this. Stop caring about what they think for a moment. Background characters can still have a second of attention, right? If that’s what must be done to stop getting it. Of course, in this case, I’m willingly getting into this for money, but this could be a good lesson for the future.

Cid takes his eyes off his book for a moment to look at the girl, seeing her looking ahead inattentively. He didn’t notice that she had brought a hand to his thigh.

Doing this while sitting in the middle of this place?! There’s children in this park, freak!

… Wait-

“Regardless, I don’t want you to go through this alone.”

Akane yawns sighs to herself, before continuing.

“Don’t you want to be free of this as soon as possible? We can think of something together. It won’t be easy of course, but two heads are better than one, no?”

“There’s no need for that. She said she’ll come up with something. I just have to keep pretending until then.”

“Well, do you have any ideas anyways?”

…

“It’s a nice day outside, just enjoy yourself.”

Cid feels Akane’s head getting off his shoulder. 

Finally-

Right after that, she brings her hand up to his book, covering where he was reading.

I shouldn’t have thought that.

“Cid, look at me.”

…

The boy turns his head, seeing Akane’s concerned face.

“You can try and push me away from this, but it won’t stop me. I’ll still help you. I’ll still want to help you.”

…

He looks back at his book, patiently waiting for her to let go. After wasting what feels like a couple of minutes, Akane relents, ending the stand-off. 

“Akane?”

“…What?”

Cid looks at her again. Much to her surprise, he gives her a small smile, momentarily breaking the neutral face he had the entire time.

“Thank you.”

He goes right back to reading after speaking, not bothering to look at how her face turns into a tomato.

“R-Right, of course! I just w-want to help you! That’s what f-friends are for! Yup! Definitely!”

… Friends…

…

Why can’t Alexia be more like her?

Knock knock knock

“Hey, Ir-… Princess Iris! It’s me, Claire! We need to talk!”

“…”

After a few seconds of shuffling and footsteps from the other side, she hears the door being unlocked.

“Come in.”

Claire doesn’t wait a second longer after getting her answer. Opening the door, she’s met face to face with the crown princess.

Or should I start thinking of her as my future sister-in-law? Wait, I shouldn’t be thinking that far right now! One step at a time!

“…Claire, are you okay? Your face seems a bit red-“

“I’m okay!”

Iris steps away, letting the flustered girl inside. Shutting the door behind her, the two make their way to sit down in their usual spots.

“S-So, how has everything been?”

“Mm, things have gotten better. Paperwork is starting to die down, and the Knights Order is still running smoothly. What about you?”

Claire feels a bead of sweat forming on her forehead as she tries not to immediately say what’s on her mind.

“I-It’s been fine. Mr. Griffey has said that I’ve been a good assistant. Training with him has gotten more intense these past few days though. W-We’ve talked about it before, b-but I think he wants me to participate in this year’s Bushin Festival.”

“Really? That’s wonderful.”

The princess’s eyes flicker away from Claire for a moment, before returning to her.

Oh, right. If that’s the case, we’ll also be fighting if I make it to the end…

“N-Not only that. But C-Cid…”

At the mention of the boy’s name, Iris’s smile starts to waver. Claire’s breath hitches.

Damnit! Does she already know?!

“Hm? What about Cid?”

“O-O-Oh, right!”

Nervously laughing at her blunder, she tries keeping a somewhat straight face.

“C-Cid has been moved to the expert level class for Royal Bushin fencing.”

“Oh, I already know that.”

HUH?

“H-H-How?”

The crown princess sighs, bringing her hands up to her chin.

“I’m… sure you already heard of what’s happened between your brother and my sister, correct?”

CRAP!

“M-M-M-M-M… Maybe?”

What if she isn’t happy about it?! This is going to affect how she looks at me too, isn’t it?!

“…Claire?”

“…Yes?”

Much to the backwater noble’s surprise, Iris starts laughing at her.

“Why are you so nervous? Haha! Are you really that worried for Cid?! Alexia doesn’t bite!”

The crown Princess continues to laugh, starting to lightly bang the table with her fists as she tries recomposing herself. Claire’s face only grows redder. This was all funny to her?

“W-Wait, you’re not upset about this?”

“Of course not. Why would I be?”

Iris tries answering formally, but is still sporting a large grin from her laughing fit.

“Well, I-I thought that you wouldn’t like that your sister would want to be with someone from my family. I already told you about us, the Kagenous. Our dad is just some random Baron. Compared to your family, we’re noth-“

“Don’t continue what you’re about to say, Claire. You’re wrong.”

The girl seems shocked by the princess’s interruption. She looks at Iris more carefully.

“W-What do you mean by that? Are you sure?”

Iris continues smiling at her, seemingly unbothered by the doubt.

“I’ve seen the way you’ve behaved, both in and out of professional settings. The way you carry yourself, help others, and train. Despite your status, you’ve done exceptionally well, and may very well make your name known here. And from everything you’ve said about your brother, he is shaping up to be like you.”

Iris lowers her gaze to the desk, speaking more seriously.

“Alexia has said some good things about him too. For reasons I can’t say, them being together will cause issues down the road, but if that’s her decision, I’m fine with that. He seems to be a nice kid.”

… Is that so, Cid? You’ve really left that good of an impression on Princess Alexia?

“Claire, you’re smiling too. What are you thinking about?”

Snapping out of her thoughts, she leans back on her chair.

“Well… all I can really think about is… I’m so proud of him.”

Upon hearing that, Iris’s smile wavers, but Claire doesn’t seem to notice.

“I… see…”

After a small moment of silence, Iris raises her head again, looking at Claire.

“With that out of the way, what else would you like to talk about?”

The two friends continue their chat, occasionally delving back into the subject of their younger siblings. Claire’s smile remains the entire time. How could it not? 

Her brother deserves this attention.

“Next up, Cid Kageno and Alexia Midgar!”

“COME ON, CID! I DON’T CARE IF SHE’S A PRINCESS OR YOUR GIRLFRIEND! KICK HER A-“

“Claire, watch your language! And what did I say about showing bias?!”

“O-Oh, right!”

The class is gathered in a large circle in the center of the room, watching as the next two students move into the space. Cid watches Alexia move to the opposite side, turning to face him.

“On my go, you two will begin. Remember, no magic. These are spars using purely form and strength. If you are disarmed, or your opponent draws blood, it’s an immediate loss. Please REFRAIN from applying more force than necessary.”

They draw their swords, Cid not really paying much attention to Mr. Griffey’s words. He knows that the last part isn’t intended for him.

As far as everyone knows, she’s been doing this for far longer. I’ll need to lose at an appropriate time.

Standing only a few meters from the boy, her eyes are fixed on him, not paying attention to anything else around them. Cid turns his head, looking at Claire who is standing beside the instructor.

But I’ll still have to put up a fight, won’t I?

His sister sees him watching her. She smiles, giving Cid a thumbs up.

The princess will not make Cid look like a total doormat.

“3… 2… 1… Begin!”

Alexia is the first to move, swiftly lunging and slashing at the boy’s chest.

CLASH

Barely able to defend himself from the sudden attack, Cid locks blades with the princess, watching as she pushes against him.

Her face… Why does she look so focused?

He isn’t able to observe her for long. Quickly getting tired of it, Alexia disengages, before going for a stab at his chest.

Why is she being so aggressive? This isn’t normal.

Sidestepping the attack, she doesn’t give Cid time to counter.

CLASH

Slashing at my face? Are you trying to hurt me?!

This didn’t feel like the other spars they had before, which were more like an equal exchange of blows rather than one being on the offensive while the other is barely able to keep up. 

This isn’t good. Cid can’t reasonably handle all of this. But this fight can’t end quickly either…

Claire watches her brother being pushed around the makeshift arena, trying his hardest to find an opening in his opponent’s onslaught without getting hit. Her throat goes dry as one particular clash sends him stumbling back.

The boy is left defenseless from the sudden imbalance. The princess shows no mercy, immediately jumping to exploit it.

“Cid!”

Damnit. This won’t make any sense to them, but for ruining this arrangement, she has this coming!

SLASH

Claire has to mentally restrain herself from leaving Zenon’s side and jumping to Cid’s aid. Her brother falls to the ground with a loud thud, fortunately catching himself with his hands. He looks up at Alexia, who has her sword resting against his neck in a similar way he did while he was trying to solve the problem negotiating with her.

Cid brings a hand up to his cheek, rubbing where she cut him. He has no clue what happened for her to suddenly start straying from the script. 

“That’s enough! No more, Alexia!”

Mr. Griffey shouts louder than usual, getting Alexia’s attention. She starts backing away, following the instructions.

“Wait, what does Princess Alexia have on her cheek?”

One of the students comments on the girl, leading to the others to look at her face. Once they realize what they were talking about, they all start gasping and stare at her in confusion.

“Huh? What are you all talking about?”

The instructor approaches the two, also confused. The winner of the fight was obvious, no?

Once he gets close enough to her, he sees it.

“…Princess Alexia… your left cheek…”

Cautiously bringing her free hand to her cheek, she tries finding what they’re so worked up over.

“I don’t understand. What are you all concerned abo-“

She feels something damp getting on her fingers, making her go pale. Bringing it into view, she almost drops her sword in shock.

“Wha-a…”

Cid starts getting up, walking closer to the two.

“H-Hey, is something wrong?”

The princess’s eyes darted to the boy, looking at him in utter bewilderment.

“H-How did you-“

“O-Oh, how did that happen?”

Cid looks at Mr. Griffey, feigning confusion.

“Mr. G-Griffey, I don’t know what I did. What happens now? If we’re both bleeding, do we both lose?”

“Uhh…”

The teacher seems to be blindsided by the question, not being sure how to respond or even what to do.

“…I… I think both of you… both of you somehow cut each other at the same time when she got up close to you that final time. At least, that’s when I saw her cut you…”

Even he doesn’t seem confident with that answer. Shaking his head, he puts on a stern expression.

“Regardless, with the way I set the rules. This is technically a draw.”

“Technically? I had him on the ground.”

“After you two drew blood.”

“…”

Claire approaches from behind Cid, touching his shoulder.

“I… Cid, Princess Alexia, you two should go tend to those cuts. Is that okay, Mr. Griffey?”

Looking over at Zenon, she tries telling him with her face to please let them go and forget about whatever just happened.

“It’s fine. You two can go.”

With all of them getting out of the center, Mr. Griffey calls for the next pair of students to come.

“…Hey.”

Cid turns his head to the Princess as they walk off.

“W-What?”

“…I’m sorry for being so aggressive during that spar. I don’t know what came over me. It was like I… I legitimately wanted to fight you, even if it was without the assistance of magic.”

What’s that supposed to mean?

“I-It’s fine. You ended up getting yourself c-cut too, so let’s just call it even.”

“…Right…”

As horrible of an idea that was to do that, he doesn’t regret it. How is he supposed to? Since when was Alexia the one in control?

“Can you explain to me again why you’re following me back to my dorm?”

“Is there a problem?”

“No. I’m okay with any of your stalkers finding out where I live.”

“Tsk.”

Alexia tightens her grip on his hand as they continue walking together, coming dangerously close to what he once thought was his one place where he didn’t have to deal with her.

“It’s all about perceptions, Ciddy. What else do couples do? They go to each other’s homes.”

“So does that mean you can take me-“

“No.”

The two walk in silence for most of the time, just observing the looks of those around them as they see the princess holding hands with him. He’s fortunate that due to being the evening there’s less people walking around.

I think I’m starting to get too casual with the way I speak to her. Most of the timidness I’m supposed to have is gone at this point. Can I just say it’s character development on Cid’s part? Being less afraid to say something to her since we’re no longer hiding secrets from each other? Wait, scratch that. As far as she knows, we’re not hiding secrets from each other. Hold on, are background characters even supposed to have any development?

“G-Get away from me!”

Cid isn’t able to continue his train of thought when they hear a little girl shouting from an alleyway. Just a few moments later, they see the source of the noise running out of it, heading towards the pair.

“S-Someone! Please! Help me!”

Huh?

Alexia lets go of his hand, startled by the sudden interruption. The black haired child makes it to them, hiding behind the two. Cid can feel her quivering as she holds onto their sleeves.

“T-The bad men are coming. P-Please. D-Don’t let them take me…”

Again. Huh?

“Cid, look.”

Alexia whispers to him, still looking ahead. The boy is confused at her behavior, but he sees why a few seconds later, when three knights walk out of the same alleyway the girl ran from. He can feel her grip on him becoming even tighter. 

“I-I-It’s t-t-t-them…”

She’s barely able to choke out the words as she presses herself more into the two, only making it more obvious that she was behind them.

“Hey, come back! We just want to help you!”

Great. She probably stole something and doesn’t want to face the consequences…

“T-They’re l-l-lying. T-T-They want to h-h-hurt me…”

…

“Cid, I think she’s telling the truth.”

Alexia continues facing the knights, who eventually see the three in the distance.

“Then what are we supposed to do? Can’t you handle this on your own?”

“I think so. Hold on…”

The knights cautiously approach them, much to Cid’s confusion. Which side is he supposed to be taking now?

“Hey, you tw-… Princess Alexia? What are you doing here? That child behind you, we’ve been looking for her. Her parents have reported her missing and we have been assigned to bring her back.”

Oh, that makes things easier. We can let her go, Ale-

“I-I d-don’t have any p-parents.”

…

Her voice is barely a whisper, coming out so quietly that Cid worries Alexia didn’t hear her. He gives a side eye look to the princess, trying to non-verbally tell her to stop stalling and use her status on them already.

“Oh, is that so?”

Without missing a beat, his ‘girlfriend’ puts on her warm mask again, smiling at the knights as they make it to them.

“Well, I’ll see to it that she makes it back to them. You are all dismissed.”

She reaches her hand back, gently stroking the girl’s hair. Whatever she is trying to do, it seems to be working as the child’s shaking starts to cease.

“…I’m afraid we can’t do that, Princess Alexia.”

“…Huh?”

Did I say that out loud?

The knight that was speaking for the three shakes his head, looking at her with concern. Maybe it’s just because of what the child had said, but they started to feel less genuine by the second.

“We must bring her back ourselves. There’s no need for you to worry about such small matters.”

Alexia is momentarily startled by the disobedience, accidentally revealing a quick frown before returning to her smile.

“I-I see…”

You’re folding already?!

Cid isn’t able to do much, can he? What’s a background character even able to do in a situation like this? He never ran this scenario in his head before. Usually, mobs and even an Eminence in Shadows aren’t involved in child abduction, well, if this even is one. Why should he be trusting what that kid has to say again?

Damnit. I have to wing this.

“There really is no need to do that, sir. She’s already with her family.”

“…What did you just say?”

Frowning at the knights, he brings his hand to the child’s arm, gently moving her to his side for the three to see. The girl is reluctant  to be exposed, but eventually allows herself to be revealed.

Please understand what I’m trying to do…

“I have no clue what the three of you tried doing to my little sister to make her suddenly start behaving this way. But if you don’t get out of here and forget about all of this, I’m sure Princess Alexia will have no problem ruining your lives and reputations.”

…

Glaring at the men, Alexia finally gets the memo and starts doing the same. 

“He’s right, all I need are your names. And if you don’t tell me, I will find another way.”

“Tsk, damnit…”

Cid hears one of the men cursing under his breath, taking a step back. They mask their frustration with neutral expressions.

One knight mutters something unintelligible before he turns around, walking off. The other two join him, leaving the mob and princess alone with the child.

“…”

Alexia’s shoulders slump, sighing in relief. Cid turns to look at her, visibly upset.

“Why did you freeze up like that? Aren’t you technically their boss? You could have solved this problem yourself.”

His ‘girlfriend’ shakes her head.

“That’s not how it works. I still have authority over them, but it has its limits. And in a case like this, whether or not they were telling the truth, it’s a coin flip over whether or not an order from me is required to be followed.”

She lowers her gaze, looking at the ground.

“I’m sorry…”

So shoving me into a class way above Cid’s skill is allowed, but telling some knights to back off isn’t?! Is this supposed to be a main character!? Where’s the conviction!?

“H-H-Hey…”

Cid’s attention is interrupted when he feels his sleeve being tugged at again. Looking down at the child who’s been silent this entire time, she still appears to be nervous.

“Hm?”

“T-T-Thank you. B-Both of you.”

She still clings on to Cid’s sleeve so adorably , looking back and forth between him and Alexia.

“W-W-What will h-happen to m-me now? A-Am I in trouble?”

“…”

Cid remains silent, continuing to look down at the child.

Huh… The thing I told those knights… Why does it feel so-

“Of course not. There’s no need to worry.”

The princess chimes in as she gets closer, bringing her hand to the young girl’s head, ruffling it gently.

“As the Second Princess of Midgar, I apologize for that intolerable behavior. I’ll find out who they are later and make sure there will be justice. For now, let’s get you back home.”

The child’s face brightens at the declaration. Opening up her arms as wide as she can, she tries hugging the two at the same time, with less than successful results.

“T-Thank you so much!”

Alexia lets out a smile, continuing to pat the girl’s head. Cid remains completely still, looking like he is deep in thought.

So, you are capable of being empathetic. I would have preferred if you exercised it in the beginning of our arrangement, but better late than never…

…Still… Why do you make me so disgusted?

The girl stops the hug, looking back and forth between the two for what’s going to happen next.

“…Ciddy, you can head home. I’ll take care of her and make sure she goes to the authorities. Well, ‘trusted’ authorities.”

He weakly nods at her words. Not wanting to waste more time and risking another non-background character moment, he begins leaving.

“Thank you so much, mister! I know those bad guys will be punished! It’s just like what my friend says!”

Huh?

Cid turns his head, seeing the girl looking back at him with a toothy grin.

“If you are good, good people will come to help you. And if you are bad, then good people will come and stop you, and put you somewhere where you can’t do more bad.”

… Huh?

Alexia gives an odd look at the sudden lesson coming from the child, but quickly brushes it off, not seeing a point in dwelling too much on it.

“Really? In that case, make sure to keep being good.”

Not being sure what else to say other than that, he turns back around and walks off, leaving the two alone.

Cid unwillingly replays the words in his head all the way home. It’s a very innocent, childish way of viewing the world, as expected from a literal child.

… I guess it isn’t completely wrong. We were there out of pure coincidence, and got her out of that situation… 

He shakes his head. They may have helped her, but there’s still a flaw in that lesson.

He is not a good person.

“Goodbye, Ciddy~”

“Yeah.”

“Is that really all you’re gonna say?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Yeah.”

Cid doesn’t bother looking at the princess getting off the train, just weakly waving at her as she exits.

Today has been even more mind numbing than usual. I’ve gotten good at mindlessly playing my role as Alexia’s boy toy friend, but sometimes, she makes it too bothersome. I’m glad that I’m being paid to do this. At this point, if I wasn’t, I would have just followed her home, wait until nightfall, and then-

…

…

…

Hey, it’s a fly.

The rest of the ride to his stop is rather boring, especially since there’s nobody else in the cart. Getting off, he begins another uneventful walk back to his dorm.

Closing in two weeks since the deal. She hasn’t said anything yet about a plan to deal with Mr. Griffey. I’m just grateful that people are more concerned about the fact that Alexia herself has a ‘boyfriend’ rather than who he is.

At the very least, Cid’s background character status isn’t in complete shambles. He’ll salvage what’s left once this issue is resolved.

As far as I know, Cid has no more things to do for today. Once I make it back, I can start training. At least today won’t be completely unproduct-

“One week.”

The boy is so engrossed in his mind that he doesn’t notice the cloaked figure walking past him suddenly gripping onto his shoulder and whispering into his ear, before quickly letting go.

Wait, that voice!

“Alpha-“

Swiftly turning his head back to see her again, he’s only greeted to the same empty street he was walking in.

“…Huh?”

What? When did she start roleplaying an information relay like that? Usually it’s those encrypted letters of gibberish…

Great. Her being here is another thing to add onto the pile of circumstances. At the very least, whatever larping session she has planned will be a good distraction from this whole situation.

Is this another pity bone? Has everything else she did for me not enough already?

“Cid!”

The boy can’t help but grumble as he hears his sister’s voice in the distance again. Turning to see her approaching him, he gives a reserved wave.

Making it to her brother’s side, Claire looks at him questionably.

“What are you doing out here at this time? I thought I’d find you in your dorm.”

Cid shakes his head.

“I was out with Princess Alexia again. I’m heading back now.”

“Oh…”

Claire seems to be… concerned? Yeah, that sounds right.

“…Well, I was looking for you anyway. This just makes things easier.”

She reaches out to him, holding a letter. 

“Here. I have mail for you.”

Cid is hesitant to take it. Looking at it, the boy is able to make out what it says on the outside.

To Claire Kagenou

From-

“Oh…”

He hesitates for a few seconds, before taking the letter out her hands.

“Why are mom and dad sending you letters meant for me?”

“What do you think?”

Claire looks at him with slight agitation, as if he asked her a dumb question.

“I think you already know the answer to that. Come on, Cid. It’s not that hard to respond to them. I got annoyed by their constant letters during my first year too, but I still took it upon myself to always send one back. Even if they asked questions I… didn’t like…”

She seems to mumble out the last part. Cid doesn’t bother questioning it.

“It’ll be okay. I’ll help you with this. I’m gonna send them another letter saying that I’ve been the one receiving your mail instead for whatever reason. That way, they won’t be upset with you, and you can write back to them like nothing is wrong. Sounds good?”

“…Okay…”

His sister seems to be displeased by his lack of enthusiasm, sighing.

“You’re starting to worry me, little brother. The things that have been happening this past we-“

Ÿ̴̢͈͙̰̜͔́̊́̋̔̀̑ͅã̵̪͙͓̱̮̠̃w̸͉̻͈̪̖̍̏̅̈̈́͌̇͗́̓͗̂͝ͅn̷̰̭͔̘͍̔̓ sigh

“…Cid, can I ask you a question?”

Her voice turns scarily calm. Looking right beneath his eyes, she sees them. Those disgusting things tarnishing her brother’s face. How didn’t she notice them before?

“…W-What is it?”

“When was the last time you slept?”

“Last ni-“

“Lies.”

“The night befo-“

“Lies.”

“Three days-“

“Lies!”

Claire raises her voice at him, thankful that there’s nobody around to watch. Despite being slightly shorter than her little brother, she somehow is able to make her presence feel much taller.

“I don’t want to hear any excuses or justification from you about this. You’re going to bed immediately.”

She speaks more harshly than intended but that’s not her main concern. Just as Cid tries to get another word in, she moves forward, taking him by the hand, leading him back to his dorm herself.

“Cid… Mom talked about this. Dad talked about this. I talked about this. I thought we moved past this. This isn’t normal. You need to take care of yourself. You start neglecting rest now, what’s next? You’re going to go back to everything else? Gonna go back to skipping-“

Cid stops paying attention to her words at that point. He’s dealt with her yapping long enough to get the general idea of what she’s saying without actually hearing it.

I should have just b-lined it to my room as quickly as possible. Or at least paid more attention to my surroundings. But that gets harder the more I’m ti-

…

…Yeah…

Before he knows it, he’s already outside of his dorm room. Claire is still holding his hand, leading him inside.

“-Just imagine how Princess Alexia would react if she learned about this? Do you really want to give your future wife so much unnecessary concern? It won’t last, I can assure you.”

… Has she been talking the entire time?

“Cid? Cid? If you tell me you’ve been ignoring me the entire time again…”

Click

Claire unlocks the door to his room. She must have taken his keys while he wasn’t paying attention.

Bringing him inside, she shuts the door behind him, locking it. While that’s completely normal to do, he can’t help but think it’s less about keeping other people out.

“Sit down.”

Her voice no longer has any of the frustration present from before, but is still assertive. The boy silently nods, going to his one chair.

“…”

The two don’t speak for a while. Instead, Claire stares at him as she’s sitting on his bed, while he tries looking anywhere but where she’s seated.

I haven’t done this song and dance in a while. Cid should still be nervous around her with this, right? I’ll have to do this for however long it takes before she starts talking again.

“…Cid…”

Sure enough, his sister is the one that initiates it. 

“I’m sorry for snapping at you earlier. It was very unbecoming of me. I should already have gotten rid of that behavior a long time ago…”

She looks down in shame as she speaks. Cid uses this as a chance to start looking back at her.

“…I-It’s okay. We can’t always do the right thing, right? Don’t worry. Besides, I’m used to it already.”

Claire’s face briefly becomes hurt at the last part, making him internally smack his forehead.

I need to choose my words more carefully.

“…I forgive you, sister. That’s all I’m trying to say…”

She weakly nods her head, before looking back up at him.

“…Why… Why did you start doing this again?”

Would now be a bad time to say that I never stopped this to begin with?

“…”

“…Is it because of Princess Alexia?”

“…”

Cid isn’t sure how to respond to his sister. A simple yes or no wouldn’t suffice for her. He knows that.

“Cid, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong. What is causing this?”

She speaks more softly, reaching over to gently grab his shoulder.

“…It… It’s nothing, really. I’m j-just being negligent again. Getting caught up with all the extra work along with being put in that e-expert level class. I guess I just let myself go a bit. I-I… umm… I’m sorry for making you worried again, sister…”

“…”

That’s the best I can come up with. Usually, the first part works and she doesn’t question it any further. The rest I added should make it more believable.

“…Have you told Princess Alexia about any of this?”

“…No.”

“I figured…”

She lets go of him, sitting straight.

“I… I don’t want to repeat myself again, but I can’t help it. What you’re doing, Cid… It’s not sustainable. You know that better than me. I remember the way you-“

The rest of that is not important.

“-And now that you have someone who actually loves you for who you are, which I’m very thankful for, I don’t want you to drive them away.”

The boy can only stare at her with a blank expression, hoping that his eyes aren’t too hollow.

That’s really what she sees Alexia as? All loving?

“She… She does love you, yeah? She has to. Not to discourage you, but what other reason would there be for her to want to be with you?”

To have an accomplice to aid her in not marrying the perfect guy, and also have someone be her emotional punching bag.

“T-There isn’t one. S-She really does love me. At l-least, that’s what she said.”

Claire nods at her brother’s response, giving him a small smile after hearing him stutter.

“Why say it like that? Do you have doubts? Don’t think you’re worthy of someone like her?”

How am I even supposed to answer that?

“I… I don’t know, to be completely honest…”

“…Oh…”

The girl furrows her eyebrows, contemplating his words. Honestly, he’s doing the same. Improv for scenes like this are just not something he’s good at.

“…Let’s come back to that later. For now, I have other things I’m concerned about. First of all, how’s she been treating you? I don’t mean like in public, I’ve heard plenty enough. I mean like when it’s just the two of you.”

…

“S-She’s really sweet. That n-never changes. She’s a-always kind to me. When we have free time, she sometimes shows me some of her f-favorite places here.”

I think I stuttered too much with that one .

Claire’s smile grows at his words. He said the correct thing.

“That’s wonderful to hear. I’m glad that you have someone that treats you so well.”

…

“R-Right…”

Cid ends up losing track of time as the two continue to talk. Claire continues to gently press him on how Alexia treats him, if he’s been treating her well too, and whatever other sappy things she brings up. He just gives her whatever answer would make her happy. Fortunately, even after the two have started to grow apart for the past two years, he still knew how to tell her what she wanted to hear.

The disguised interrogation continues to go along smoothly until-

“…I think I bothered you enough Cid. Like I said before, you need to go to bed.”

Claire gets up from his bed, moving away to give him some space.

“Y-You don’t have to go yet. I still want to talk to y-“

“There’s always tomorrow, Cid. Come on.”

“…”

Getting up from his chair, he remembers something.

“You know, I h-have to change. I would appreciate it if-“

“The moment I let you out of my sight, you will sneak out the window again. I will not leave until I start hearing you snore.”

She completely disregards Cid’s want for privacy to change. Sighing to himself, he starts removing some of his clothing in front of his big sister. If it wasn’t for how tired disappointed he was, he’d make a comment on how that sounds.

Leaving himself in just his dress shirt and pants, he climbs into bed, pulling his blanket over him. He turns over to look at Claire, who’s still watching him.

“I meant what I said about not leaving until you snore.”

Why do you have to be like this?

Closing his eyes, he feels himself losing growing increasingly uncomfortable. It doesn’t take long for him to turn away from her, faking snores to the best of his ability.

Come on. How long must you hear this until you’re satisfied?

“I’ve seen you sleep for too long to be fooled by that excuse of a performance.”

Are you kidding me?!

He hears Claire sighing. Opening his eyes and facing her, he sees that she’s beginning to remove her boots.

“W-What are you doing?”

“What does it look like? I’m staying for tonight.”

Cid’s blood runs cold at the declaration. He feels his plans for tonight being dashed against the stones.

“W-What? W-Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious? You’re definitely not going to sleep by yourself if those pathetic attempts at faking it are anything to go by.

The boy grumbles, watching Claire take off her blazer. 

Wait… Don’t tell me she’s gonna-

“I guess I’ll just have to take a page from the past for this one. You remember the times you had nightmares when you were little, right? And when you had trouble sleeping before I came here? 

… Is she really going to do this again?

“…Yes…”

“Good, then you know that you’re leaving me no other choice but to do this.”

She’s still in most of her clothes when she gets into bed with Cid. Laying beside him, she wraps her arms around her brother, pulling him into a semi-tight hug.

…

“There. Is that better, Cid?”

The boy squirms in his sister’s hold, trying to distance himself from her with strength reasonable for his character.

“Come on, I know you don’t want to fight this. Just relax. Think of all the nice memories.”

You’re bringing back too many memories.

Eventually, Cid stops struggling, resigning himself to his fate. Tonight will be devoid of any real productivity it seems.

“…Do you want me to hum too? It’s been so long since we’ve done this, I think I’ve forgotten most of the melodies.”

Cid’s face remains blank, resting his head next to her chest.

“…It’s fine, this is enough…”

“Alright then.”

The two remain silent, but Cid can tell that she isn’t trying to sleep either.

“…Sister?”

“Hm?”

Why do I want to ask this question?

“…Aren't we too old to keep doing this?”

Cid hears his sister gently laugh at his words.

“What? What’s funny?”

There’s a brief moment in silence before Claire gives a proper response.

“…You will never be too old for my help, Cid…”

“…”

“Sleep well, little brother~”

With those final words, she hugs him tighter, turning her head to nuzzle his hair, before going back.

…

He isn’t sure how to describe the sensation. The way she softly breathes. How warm she is alongside his blanket, making him forget the discomfort of sleeping in his uniform. The way she hugs him, enveloping him in her presence, protecting comforting him.

… I…