(Discontinued) CORHEIM Year One Volume 1: The New Heart in Town

Chapter Dva

CHAPTER 2. WELCOME TO SURWICK

"Are you enjoy-ying your pizza, Ryoji?" Asked Akina happilyas Ryoji devoured a slice of the Sicilian Pizza from CPK. The mercenary wasn't quite sure on what the acronym meant, but nonetheless it didn't matter.
The taste of his food was quite heavenly, the spicyness of the spicy ham mixed very well with the zesty marianara sauce as well. "Hmmm! This is very good! I never had Pizza like this!!" He responded, his mouth full of food.
Akina smiled and continued to eat her Barbeque Chick Pizza. She wondered on where Ryoji came from, so she asked kindly.
"I'm wo-ondering, you neve-er mention on where you came. Can-an you tell me?"
The sudden realization drilled in Ryoji's numbskull. He reached for his backpocket and put it on the table; it was an acceptance card.
"Oh, yea, I'm a transfer student from Raven River after attending there for two months. That's why I'm here in the N.U.S.N. I wanna become the first Heart-Bonded Protector; to show society—that I am no monster, and I can save lives, protect them and all that." He answered falsely with sheer pride, the bloodied girl's eyes widened with perplexment. He could not reveal his true motives to her: he had only just met her.
"That-t's cool. I think yo-ou get along with my friend-ds at school. They're kind-kinda quirky like you." She said, slurping her strawberry lemonade before continuing.
"Quirky? Girl, I saved your life."
"So-o? To be a guy-y with long ha-hair, you're pretty different." She said, shrugging before she wince in pain. Her shoulder was somewhat dislocated, albeit she could still move it. She's still in a lot pain. You can hide it beneath the surface of your skin but your eyes show the agony you went through. You did good, Akina. Thought Ryoji, he grabbed the prism out of her pockets as well as gaining Akina's attention. "Akina, give me your hand." She listened without hesitation, Akina gave Ryoji her dirtied hand. He did not have pity for her, he just wanted to give her the Heartz Prism. All so Akina Willoby, an aspiring Kunoichi, could get all the credit.
"Here," He said while placing the prism in her hand and made her closed her own hand with a special nerve that make the hand close on itself. She brushed it off. "You know, when you-ou enter Surwick, alot of peop-people will look at you fun-unny." She addressed, which caused Ryoji to stop chewing his food.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, there is-s already a Heart-Bond in the sch-school, and she's one of the pop-popular girls." Upon finishing that statement, she looked down and then looked at the owner. She's a friendly, calm down, Ryoji. Ryoji thought, his expression was indifferent, no sparkle in his eyes when he heard he wasn't the only "Bond" in town. He knew what she was going with. The Heart-Bond is an asshole.
"Well," He affirmed while, "if there's one thing I hate the most; it's bullies."
"How-"
"Your tone," Ryoji begun his analyzation, "the way you shifted your body when you mention this girl, the way your pupils condensed themselves back to their original shape."
"Wow-ow, you're really are good." Akina marveled, she had just ate her last slice of pizza slowly.
Ryoji praised his fellow peer. "Thanks. You too, Akina. Not many people can survive beatings from the Mafia. You did really good." She blushed immensely, apparently Akina did not get that much praise from other people: Only her adopted family and close friends love her.
One of the waitresses came to give them their refills, she was a simple girl with a simple personality. A cookie-cutter or wallflower, to say the least.
As all waitresses do, they swoop in unannounced with a polite smile to get a big tip. "Hi there, can I get you-Oh god...."
Upon looking at the bloodied face of the kunoichi, she immediately got the owner of the restaurant and notified her about.
The owner of the restaurant was none other Juliet Botan, who was like an older sister to Akina. She had a fair complexion, along with black eyes and brown eyes. A basic girl, on the outside to say the least.
"What happen?" She asked, concerned while looking at Ryoji for answers. He cleared his throat and began to explain. "If you're thinking that I did it—then you're mistaken. She was assaulted by Don Sarbello's henchman, and I saved her."
"Aki," Juliet called her by her nickname, "is this true?"
She nodded normally to not raise any suspicion, all what Juliet could do is rub her head in frustration.
She couldn't afford anymore controversies to the restaurant she loved dearly. One was when she deliberately punched Blulin, the owner of Mad Pelican Coffee Shop who was also a pelagornis, for stealing one of her ideas. That idea involved some participation for the customers on what they wanted to have a new addition to the menu.
Another is when she was arrested for assaulting a police officer. As it turned out, she witnessed that he was groping one of her waitresses. A police officer, fortunately for Juliet, he had been ostracized from the police force. She always protected the weak.
She would've been a great Hero---if she wasn't expelled by Surwick. She is twenty-nine currently, so Juliet should have been there to see how Surwick failed the first time in a long time.
"Tell you what. Everything is on the house, but I want you two to leave through the kitchen. Don't let anyone other than me see your face, Akina. Okay, I will fix this..." She told the duo that they don't have to pay money for their meals. They followed her instructions then sneaked through the kitchenette, none noticed those two vanished. Juliet Botan went upstairs to see if they were safe, and they were.
Since the sun was still up in the sky, the two thought it was best that they should leave now while it was 3:58 p.m.
Their stomachs were full of delicious food, cravings were satisfied.
Their waitress, the wallflower one, came upstairs as well, concerned about the owner. "Miss Botan? What are you thinking about?"
After thinking long hard, she simply replied with a frown. She fixated on Akina, who looked pleasant with the boy. "I'm thinking---that Surwick needs to close down their doors. They're training them to be soldiers rather than heroes, they started to do that when I was there..."
"So, they need to be stopped? But how? We have some money, but not where we can sue the mighty academia of Surwick. They have an estimate worth of 103.6 Billion dollars itself. It's suicide. The Avingoni Government will destroy everything you have built." The server stated, Juliet put her hands on her hips as she always did while thinking. Finally, she turned towards her and smiled faintly while revealing her newfound plan.
"Yea, but not if there's others who agree with me that those tyrants should close down."
While Ryoji and Akina trekked onwards to Surwick, Juliet has started her grand plot to overthrow the despot of a principal.
He still hasn't changed? After all what has happened? You went into great lengths covering the horrible mistakes you caused, and you still want to raise your students like soldiers? I will let that happen ever again.....Time for Surwick to fully close its doors. It's time for you to suffer the consequences: Lino Saon.