3rd POV
It was an awkward silence as the three people, to students and their teacher walked past the lines of reporters that were trying to get a big story out of the appearance of yet another representative contender alongside the first male pilot.
None spoke, all of them showed no emotion, making for a great picture for the news reporters of how professional they were all being. It was quite the picture, the winner of the Third Mundo Grondo, the third Brunhilde, Kaede Neroile, the supersoldier and representative contender from Germany, Laura Bodewig, and finally, the rising star of the world, the representative contender and one nicknamed the Ghost, Yn (L/n).
It would have been the perfect picture if the three would look over at any of the cameramen, but they didn't even spare a glance as they made their way back to the limousine in order to get back to the academy to have enough time to have Yn show Laura around before classes started.
None of them spoke the entire ride back, both students keeping quiet for the simple reason that there was nothing to speak about, they were both trained to be soldiers, they could be patient and quiet if they needed, but it seemed like both preferred it.
The only one that was different was Kaede, for her silence was not out of having nothing to speak about, in fact, she had many things to say to both Laura and Yn, but she couldn't even open her mouth to voice any of them, she was too lost in her own mind about what she had heard.
Laura asked Yn if he really was the monster that Chifuyu told her about...and his response...
"I...am merely a ghost. I am her ghost, her monster...Therefore, I am just a soldier."
His response was...frightening, but true. Everything he said was the truth, and it wasn't one that could easily be understood by regular people, and she doubted Laura even understood the meaning behind it. But Kaede did, all too well.
If she were to use the same thought process, both Kirin and Kuro were her ghosts, but they were not monsters, they could never be to her, they were both far too precious. And Yn? To her, he was...He was truly...
Like he said. He's just a soldier, huh?
Glancing over at him, she sighed. If it was the way he saw himself, there was nothing she could do at the moment, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt to hear.
Before she even realized it, they were entering the academy, and another profound sigh escaped her lips as she turned to her two students.
"Alright, Phantom, show her around, give her the basic layout and get her schedule and room ready before class starts."
"Understood. This way, please," Kaede started to make her way back to finalize the paperwork of Laura arriving and transferring into her class, but she was cut off as a familiar student stopped her in the halls.
"Is there something I can help you with, miss Alcott?"
Cecilia was standing right in front of her, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself by what she could tell, it seemed whatever she was going to ask made her a bit nervous.
"Yes, I have a request to make of you."
Kaede could see that Cecilia was serious about this, and all the exhaustion she had been feeling instantly disappeared. She thought it was just going to be a question, but after a few observations, she could tell that Chifuyu's student wanted a favor, something big too, but she wasn't going to say no without hearing it first.
"I can't stand having such a disgrace as the class representative any longer, it is far too shameful for Ichika to be the leader of our class. He's too unqualified and stupid to understand any responsibility or the I.S. Not to mention that the rate at which we learn about techniques and the I.S is much slower compared to other classes, Miss Orimura deliberately keeping things simple and slow so Ichika can keep up, but he's still failing. So..."
"Sorry, but I have no control over your class. If you have a problem with Ichika leading and representing your class and the way that you're being taught, you should take it up with Chifuyu-"
"I'm not asking you to change that for me. I want..."
Kaede arched an eyebrow at what she meant. If it wasn't about changing the leader of her class, she didn't know what she wanted with that she was saying, and not to be rude, but Kaede was in a bit of a rush to get her paperwork done.
"Please...allow me to transfer to your class!"
...
"...What?"
Meanwhile, Yn was showing Laura around, informing her about all fo the facilities that were around the academy campus. Being honest, with all of the stores, cafeteria, gyms, etc. There was no real reason for the students to leave the campus as everything was pretty much provided for them, there were only a few things missing, the most notable for most of the students was a clothing store.
Students were required to wear their uniforms at almost all times while in the territory of the academy. The exceptions were when students were in their personal dorms, leaving to go out into the city, exercising in the gyms, or swimming in the pools. It was for this reason that many students left to go shopping in the city, allowing them to wear the clothes they want and buy other clothes.
The talking between the two was minimal, neither seeing a reason to speak about things that were deemed unnecessary to the tour. Though it could be noted that Laura seemed to be observing him quietly, she was confused at how Yn's attention felt as if it was split, but definitely didn't look like it. Whatever he was doing, she couldn't guess what it was, but seeing how he's been hiding it so well, she assumed it was something important.
Hey...I've got a little problem. So, you know Ichika's I.S?
Yeah, what about her?
Well...how should I say...Um...dammit how do I...well you see if I try to-
He's got a crush.
CASTLE!!!
Hey, you were gonna tell us anyway, and you aren't exactly subtle about it, the only reason Crown hasn't noticed is that she's usually always working.
Our little Throne has a crush! Oh my god, that's so adorable!
I-It's not a-adorable!
YN! YN, listen to him try to deny it! Record this RIGHT NOW! YN!
If you say so.
No, Yn! This is not some kind of c-cute situation like she says!
Crown, Castle, is it supposed to be cute or not?
Yes~!
I can't argue with her.
I guess that settles it.
TRAITORS!
It was the majority since I am always neutral.
And do you seriously expect us to argue with Crown? I don't know about you, but I like my sanity.
...Fair.
"I can take my bags from here, Ghost. I shall return in a moment."
Holding up two of the bags that he had picked up without even asking at the beginning, Laura took them off his hands as she entered her new room, closing the door behind her.
Shall I try to get into contact with Ichika's I.S again?
Yes, please! I want to see this interaction, I'll need to record it too!
H-Hey, you can't do that. Yn, help me out here.
Aren't you usually the one that teases him?
...
I do not mind helping.
Ah, that's no fun...
See? He doesn't hold a grud-
I shall try to get into contact with the Byakushki whenever the opportunity arises.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
YN!!!
That's ma boy! How's it feel Throne? Isn't karma a bitch?
...Shut up. You're all bullies...
Aw, do you want me to cheer you up~?
WHAT?! NO! YN! CASTLE! HELP! DON'T LEAVE ME WITH HER!
Have fun with that. Don't worry, I'll hand over the control of speaking to either of us to Crown, she'll let you talk to either of us if you really need to.
Hehehe, don't worry, I'll be gentle~
NO! YN! CASTLE! YOU TRAITO-
Welp, we're gonna pay for that sooner or later, but it was worth it.
Was it really?
Yes.
"If I may ask, where is class one? But before that, I would like to know what is recommended for breakfast, the taste is not an important matter, but nutrition is a necessity." Laura came out a few moments after she entered her new home, finally out of her german uniform and dressed into an altered version of the academy's uniform. Yn noted how a lot of the representative contenders had altered uniforms but decided it didn't have any meaning behind it.
"Please follow me," escorting Laura to her desired destination, she asked several questions, ones to which Yn was answering out in public even if it was considered...rude.
"What is the skill level of the majority of the student body?"
She didn't even seem to be asking, it was more of a demand than a request, but she understood that Yn would not hesitate to inform her as he considered it his orders to provide information to the new student. Information was a very important factor in anything that was done, and as soldiers, it was even more valuable for them, which is why Laura wanted to know.
Gathering information could be a long and troublesome task, and asking other students wouldn't do since their information wasn't reliable as she considered them as unknown variables. The weak could only see the fellow weak as skillful, and view the strong like some uncrossable barricade. She needed the opinion of someone who was already at the top, who knew the weak from the strong because of their own skill and ranking.
"The majority are still beginners. The first years are learning to walk and float with some swordsmanship thrown in after a month or two, nothing that could be considered easy for them as it takes experience. Second years are moving onto firearms and evasive maneuvers, while the rest are continuing in classes of their choice, whether it be programming, combat, engineering, or other aspects of maintaining the I.S. I would assume that ninety percent will quit as not everyone is skilled enough to be hired by their countries to be an I.S pilot or instructor, but many don't seem to realize that yet. The smart ones have already started with everything that is not related to actually operating the I.S as researchers, programmers, and engineers will always be needed to maintain and produce more I.S' and weaponry. The only notable exceptions are representative contenders and a handful of students that have either already been previously trained, are extremely skilled, or have extremely high compatibility."
Relying on Yn for information may not agree with her pride, but Laura had no trouble with it for the moment, as it was still early in the morning, meaning that there weren't many girls roaming the halls yet. As stated previously, information was important, the higher up the latter it came from, the better, but it also came with more risk.
Information from someone as high in rank in the student body was reliable, but if he wasn't telling the truth, she'd learn the hard way. But the one reassurance she had was that he was told to show her around, to give her the tour, which included information, and by his reputation, he wouldn't disobey in this task. No information was always better than false information, that should be obvious, which is why she was relieved she was receiving it from Yn, who knew what he was talking about and would not lie to her, for now.
"Any notable fighters?"
"Cecilia Alcott, England's representative contender, can be troublesome to deal with if you allow her to go on the offensive, however, she can be countered if you allow her arrogance to build for a short amount of time, but that arrogance has been dropping as of late, so it may be a little harder to catch her off guard. China's representative contender, Lingyin Huang, is best at close-to-mid range fighting, her impact cannons being devastating at both ranges, though it does little damage to the shields, it will leave you stunned for a moment or two, allowing her to rain down several attacks onto you. Charles Dunois, Frances representative contender, current information in combat is unknown, but with the known information it is likely he relies on the Rapid Switch technique, more than likely having mastered it, and combined with the accuracy that is known, along with his acute observations, makes a deadly combo. I am unable to give any information on Kirin or Kuro, and all other representative contenders."
"That is fine. What you have provided is suitable for now."
She didn't even seem curious or concerned that Ichika wasn't on the list, because she already knew everything she needed to know about him, and her professional opinion was pretty much the same as the rest of the world. However, her personal opinion of him was much worse.
Arriving at the cafeteria. Sure, they were soon swarmed by the girls that saw them, but their shouts and screams were mainly questions about Charles, Yn's date with Tabane a day or two ago, and the new silver-haired student he was escorting, but both ate in silence. The uproar caused more and more people to arrive and gossip at the two, some even started saying how Kirin and Laura nearly matched with their eyepatch's, though Kirin's was for her right eye while Yn's and Laura's were for their left.
They soon made their way toward class one as the time for class to start drew near, but the crowd of girls still followed behind them, and the two soldiers didn't even seem to register that they were there.
"How do the students treat the I.S'?"
"They all lack the understanding of just what it is truly capable of. They believe that just because they are here, it is their duty to learn. They treat it like it is some kind of chore instead of a privilege, disrespecting the technology and A.I of the I.S, which leads to the inevitability that none shall be chosen as a trainer or representative contender. They believe just because they know how to float around that they will be hired by their respective countries and be treated like celebrities when the truth is very few of them will be hired as soldiers. Many are in for a rude awakening."
"So they see them as accessories?"
"Yes. It is shameful for them to view such extraordinary technology and people as nothing more than scraps of metal."
Laura actually glanced over at him for the first time during their entire walk, genuine curiosity bubbling up inside her from how he responded. What she was about to ask was not required as a soldier or for information gathering, it was genuine curiosity.
"People? Have you ever spoken to the core of an I.S? That is an extremely rare occurrence, one that usually leads to tragedy, or is caused by one."
It was true. Officially, the number of times humans have spoken with the cores of an I.S could be counted on both hands. The situations that allowed for it all not being pleasing. It was either when the pilot was near death's door, or fools were taking apart the core to try and find out how it works. The aftermath for the former usually being that the pilot passes away soon after reporting with their final breath, and for the latter, they brought down the wrath of Tabane Shinonono, something that caused the dismantling of the cores to be outlawed immediately as her methods of punishment were usually very creative and cruel.
"I cannot answer."
Even if he said that it was clear to Laura that he obviously did meet with the core of I.S', though it would be considered impossible to accept the fact that he alone has spoken with the core of his own countless times.
"We are here," opening the door for her, Laura walked into the classroom first, scanning the room until her eye landed on her target.
Without a single word beforehand, Yn watched as Laura walked up to Ichika, and slapped him across the cheek hard enough to make him tumble out of his chair and onto the floor, leaving everyone stunned, the gossiping girls going silent immediately, and Houki looking furious.
"What was that for?!" she yelled at the new student who had just assaulted Ichika out of nowhere, but Laura didn't even spare her a thought as she glared down at the other male pilot.
"I do not approve. I will NEVER approve, that you are her brother," she growled out. She didn't waste any time in wanting to leave, not wanting to be anywhere near the disgrace of a brother that sat on his ass on the floor, holding his cheek as he tried to comprehend what just happened.
"Ghost, please escort me to our classroom."
"Then please, follow me."
"Wait just a minute!" Houki cut in front of them, panting from having to vault over several desks and around several of her classmates to cut the two off from leaving. She could tell why Laura slapped Ichika, it seemed obvious, but there was something that was pissing her off.
"Why aren't you hitting Yn too?! Why be so biased?!"
"Hoh? Why should I care about the Ghost? He is not the brother of Mentor, both he and Mentor have said it themselves, have they not?" Laura looked and spoke as if it was the least interesting and most obvious thing in the world. "The Ghost is not her family. He has talent and skill, even his enemies can acknowledge that, and his military background, intellect, and achievements deserve respect. I have no reason to base my opinion on his former family ties and background."
It was true. While she knew she was made and trained to be a supersoldier, she couldn't deny that Yn beat her at it, he was the ideal soldier who even lacked emotions. She didn't care for his former family, for as stated before, both Chifuyu and Yn admitted that they are no longer considered family to each other, and even legally at this point. Lastly, his achievements in operations and missions were undeniable, making almost all counties all over the world want him on their side, giving him special treatment that he didn't want or even need.
"I've no reason to hate his very existence, only be cautious and respectful."
Houki trembled slightly in frustration at this being explained to her. As much as she hated to admit it, everything that was said was the truth, she honestly couldn't come up with anything that Yn wasn't better at if he actually tried.
However, Houki just never understood what Yn had gone through. Yn had always been clawing his way to survival, always struggling to gain the strength to open his eyes the next morning. She didn't know that Yn spent all of his free time from training...to train. He never stopped, always trying to get better, to get stronger, to be able to get through anything that could get in his way, she simply had no idea how he had devoted every second he could to improve.
"...Why...?" Houki whispered. "...Why is it always him...?"
Her hands clenched in anger, and she was going to act on it, but a terrible shiver ran down her spine the moment she did. Her eyes widened, her body trembled, and she became covered in a cold sweat at a chilling sensation she didn't recognize.
With shaking eyes, she stared back up at Yn, hearing about such a mind-crushing pressure he could emit from himself, merely an illusion created by the mind to try and comprehend the soldier and his intentions, but she felt nothing from him. She instantly realized this scarily deep and violent aura wasn't from him by the mere fact that she felt emotion in it.
It was something she had never experienced before, something that frightened her because she knew one wrong move could lead to her death. She started to finally piece together what was aimed at her after a moment of trying to organize the thoughts running through her frightened and chaotic state of mind.
Bloodlust.
Someone wanted to kill her, and she could feel it growing by the second. She wanted to scream, but her voice died out in her throat, she wanted to defend herself, but her arms felt heavier than lead, she wanted to run, but her legs refused to move.
"YN~!" a cheery voice was accompanied by Kirin jumping into Yn's arms, him catching her without a problem. Raised on arm at his side, the cheerful classmate sat on it and wrapped her arms around his neck as if it was second nature.
"Come on, we're going to be late for class if you keep getting into useless arguments," she whined with puffed cheeks.
"I agree. I apologize for keeping us here longer than needed, Laura," he silently bowed to the new student, who just shrugged her shoulders as she passed by an unresponsive Houki.
"It is my fault for requesting you to lead me here, think nothing of it. But I too believe we should take our leave."
"Understood. I bid everyone farewell. I hope you all have a nice day," passing by Houki as well, the girl finally fell to her knees, her legs no longer able to support her. Gasping for a breath she didn't know she was holding, she panted hard as the sound of her heartbeat was pounding in her ears like drums.
Very slowly, she turned her head to look out into the hallway where the trio was walking down, starting at the one who was practically being carried by the male pilot. As if feeling her gaze, Kirin slowly turned her to look back at her.
As the one-eyed girl smiled innocently, she held herself even closer to Yn while bringing a finger to her lips, as if telling Houki to be quiet. She understood. If she had thrown that punch, she would have been dead before it ever came close to connecting. And as if reading her thoughts, Kirin just waved and giggled, before going back to talking to Yn.
To think that Tabane-chan's little sister would even think about attacking Yn, how sad. I thought she would be smarter than that, but it doesn't matter, after all, if she actually did, I would have reason to cut her into tiny pieces~! If I did, she should thank me since it would be so much nicer than what Tabane-chan might do to her, even if she is her sister.
-Kirin
A/n: Hey guys! How's it going? You all hanging in there? It's a little tough, I know, and if you're like me, you'll have somehow found that even with more free time, you're still just as busy...somehow. I'm getting back into writing now, and I hope I'm still making my story interesting and enjoyable, I'm trying to split my time between writing, exercise and playing games with my friends, recently started LOL and CSGO, but I somehow find this is just as fun now that I have more inspiration. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Until next time. Bye!!!