Kurumi White Lingerie
Tag: lightnovel
Tokisaki Kurumi
Art of Killing – Chapter 9 – Test
To everyone’s surprise, Monty showed up to class. All of them had received an announcement from the school, stating that Monty will resume classes. Most expected him to be a no-show and had given up. Only Kyra had a feeling that he might show up. She did talk to him yesterday about mentoring herself.
Rena noticed her smirking slightly and asked, “I know you talked to Monty yesterday. What did you entice him with anyway?”
“Not much,” Kyra responded. Rena shrugged and did not poke into matter anymore. Cree overheard them and leaned forward to add his thoughts.
“Well, whatever it was, I hope it goes better than yesterday. Be nice to actually to do school stuff.”
Shiloh laughed at Cree. He obviously did not share Cree’s opinions. In fact, Shiloh was not much of studious person. He had other personal reasons to enroll in the Academy. He figured that it was more practical than theory. However, he quickly learned from Shiloh last night that the Academy’s curriculum was much more than that. Still, he figured that he would ride on Shiloh’s coattails on the more mundane stuff.
“Kyra, I need you to hang back awhile. There’s something that you need to complete for the Academy,” said Monty.
“An assassination?” Kyra asked.
Monty was dumbfounded at her response. “What? No! You need to a physical assessment. I don’t think the Academy give out assassination work. Do they?”
“Sure, I have nothing going on anyways. Why do they need my physical assessment? How about the rest?”
Monty explained that the rest of the class had already done their assessments prior to enrolling in the Academy. Surprisingly, Kyra did not have to take an assessment but was allowed to enroll. From what she could gather, the school had a strict enrollment process. Those who wished to enter had to go through several trials and examinations. However, Kyra was made an exception. She did not know if it was because of her family status, or her father pulled some strings. Hell, it could have been both.
Kyra followed Monty to the Academy’s simulation training center. Wow, this shit’s generic. Kyra couldn’t help but scoffed at what she was looking at. Of course, a school was going to have a simulation center. Although as much as Kyra is laughing at the school, the Fukagi Manor also has a simulation center. A place which Kyra had not used in a long time ever since she went on her first job.
The school’s center was much larger than her manor’s, probably so that it could house groups of people at once. There were huge stage lights on the ceiling. These stage lights help to project images and can turn the arena into different environments. Her manor’s utilizes robots which the stage lights project onto them with different human textures, to give the simulation a more realistic feel.
“Kyra, I need you to move to the center.” A speaker crackled with Monty’s voice.
Without hesitation, Kyra moved towards the center. Within seconds, the stage lights lit up like the city during Christmas. Kyra’s eye adjusted after a while, to see herself in a forest. She was surrounded by trees. Admittedly, she was taken aback by her surroundings. The stage has an impressive sound system. She could have the leaves rustle and the branches slightly cracking as they move in the artificial wind.
Monty’s voice echoed again, “Your physical assessment will be a tad different from the rest. Since you already experienced in actual combat, this test will aim to cover the necessary points of the Academy’s pre-enrollment trials and to see your ability to adapt in a different environment that’s not urban. Your mission is to defend yourself from various enemies and survive the onslaught in 15 minutes. One more thing you are not allowed to take a hit. Good luck.”
“What?!” Kyra exclaimed.
These were an unfair set of rules. Who the hell set this up? Kyra immediately drew her sword in anticipation. She walked towards a tree and placed a hand on it. This is solid. It was almost as if it was an actual object. The tech that the school had was more advanced than her manor’s. Hers still required dummy walls for image projection.
Kyra jumped onto a branch and landed on it. The branch swayed up and down and eventually settled. This was almost too freaky. Kyra didn’t realize that technology in the world has advanced so much. To be fair, she was not the most tech savvy person in the family. If anyone, it was Asa.
Thwip
Kyra immediately jumped down as an arrow was loosened at her. She heard the arrow hit the tree as she fell. As she landed on her two feet, two assailants, equipped with swords, attacked from her front and back. Kyra went low, with a right leg sticking forward and katana pointing 45 degrees to the left, and spun in a circle. Effectively, tripping and slashing them. Their bodies fell to the ground and faded after a few seconds. It seemed that the “enemies” required one hit.
Kyra circled the shooter instead of heading towards him. She ran past the arrows that were being fired at her. Kyra was not being quiet about her movements. She figured that the A.I. always knew her location. There was no need for her to be sneaky. She closed in her target and dodged another arrow. Kyra slammed the shooter against a tree with her foot and stabbed him in the chest. A branch cracked loudly above her.
She looked up to see another enemy dropping with the intention to pierce his blade fully into her. Kyra jumped backwards and the enemy landed on one knee. He took out his sword from the ground and flipped it back. Kyra heard more rustling behind her.
She rolled her eyes. Do they just keep doing the same tactics over and over again? At this point she found this more annoying than challenging. This trial was forcing her to be on her toes. It did not matter if the forest had lots of cover. The A.I. knew where she was constantly. After some thinking, Kyra decided to screw it and head for the boundary. The boundary had to be the only place that she could face her back to and defend her front properly. Real life would not quite work out that way, but this was a simulation with limitations. It was always nice to exploit systems.
Kyra did not have any specific direction to go to, so she just headed straight in the direction she was facing, avoiding fire and melee attacks. Those that came close, she got rid of instantly. It did not matter if she strayed a bit as there was bound to be a dead end if she just kept going forward.
After what it seemed like an eternity, she finally reached the boundary. She stepped out of the forest and got a good look at her surroundings. The end area was made to look like a meadow, but it was an optical illusion. Her hand reached out and touched the sky. This was the wall of the simulation. Now, she need not worry about her back. Although, she had to be fast and agile when it came to gunfire. There was not much cover here, she had to keep in mind where the boundary is at all times.
She estimated that there was about 8 more minutes left in this cursed assessment. All she had to was survive and not be hit. Hell, it was just like real life. Unless, if you are a masochist, one would not wish to be stabbed or shot. That kind of shit hurts like all hell. Kyra planted her sword in the ground and took a knee and waited. The A.I system is probably coming up with algorithms to tackle this situation or whatever it is that an A.I. does.
Not long after, several enemies appeared with an assortment of weapons. Kyra cracked her stiff neck and smiled.
“Time to die.”
And the onslaught begun.
Pouting Mahiru Sketch
Hatless Santa Shiina Mahiru
Santa Shiina Mahiru
Art of Killing – Chapter 7 – New People New Problem
Kyra had left the dormitories and was heading towards a place known as the Shopping District for some supplies. As the name implied, it was an area for the students to buy daily necessities or leisure items. There were other districts as shown on her ID. She would have to visit them some other time as Kyra’s goal was to locate the pharmacy in the Shopping District.
Before she left, she had checked on Rena. Her temperature did not rise which was a good thing. But it appeared that she had difficulty breathing and was occasionally spitting out blood. Even with limited medical knowledge, Kyra could tell that it was nothing life threatening. However, she decided to get some medicine to ease Rena’s pain. Hence, the trip to the pharmacy.
Additionally, it was a good way to explore some of the Academy’s facilities. If possible, Kyra would like to visit the School Building later. She wanted to scout ahead and familiarize herself with the area.
It was a ten-minute walk to the Shopping District. The District had a rather antique feel to it. It had a walkway in the middle with various shops on both sides of the walkway. It was like something out from a classic movie. Kyra admitted that the place had a certain warm vibe to it. It was comforting to even stand around here.
Kyra spotted the pharmacy and went inside. There were shelves upon shelves of various kinds of medicine, ranging from tablets to fluid types. All kinds to keep one’s vitality up.
She managed to find painkillers but she still needed something else stronger for Rena. She was just about to move away from the shelf when someone bumped into her, causing Kyra to drop her painkillers. However, the other person wasn’t as lucky as she was carrying small glass bottles of medicine. They went falling and shattered into the pieces. The liquid splattered all over the floor and onto their legs.
“Well then, that’s unfortunate,” Kyra said.
“Err… I’m very sorry about that.”
“Nah. It’s my-” Kyra stopped when she got a good look at the other. She recognized her from earlier. More notably, the semi-automatic rifle she was had slung on her back. To be precise, she was the one who threw the flashbang in her face during the entrance exam.
The girl’s face paled when she too recognized Kyra.
“Eep!! I didn’t mean to bump into or blind you. I er….er….”
Kyra watched as the girl panicked and blubbered with her words.
She gave a slightly different vibe from when she was in battle previously. Although she may seem timid, she was decisive and focused during their fight.
Kyra sighed and reassured the girl, “It’s alright. I’m not mad or anything. I’m not gonna kill you over such a little thing. I will kill you only if you are my target or if you fuck with me.”
The girl shuddered at that statement. She had heard of the Fukagi Family and their exploits. They were considered to be the top assassin family in this city. She had no doubt that the Fukagi standing in front of her meant every word. Although, it may seem threatening to others but to Kyra, it was just a matter of fact.
A pharmacist came over to clean the mess up. The two grabbed what they needed and paid for their items, hastily trying to leave before they get into trouble. The girl became unsettled when she had to pay for the broken medicine as she did not have enough money to pay for everything. Seeing as it was kind of her fault, Kyra offered to pay for her. The girl then would not stop thanking Kyra.
“It’s alright. You don’t have to pay me back,” Kyra told her.
“But-but I can’t do that.”
“Really. I’m fine with it,” Kyra firmly reassured her in hopes that this will end the topic and they can move on. Unfortunately, the girl seemed really pressed to pay her back by any means.
“No. I can’t do that. At least let me-”
“Okay! How about you treat me to a bun? I saw a bakery earlier. We should head there.”
Kyra clapped her hands to snap her back to reality. Though she may have sounded a tad irritated as the girl lowered head and agreed silently.
For some reason, they sat on a bench outside after buying buns. Their weapons placed beside them. Kyra didn’t know what to say and the girl didn’t too. Silence and awkwardness between the two filled the air. Kyra just did not know what to do in this situation. Both tried to kill each other not too long ago. Now, they are sitting beside each other with a steaming char siew bun in hand.
Kyra took a whiff of the bun. The aroma from the bun was making her mouth water. Without further ado, she took a bite. Mixture of oil and the juicy meat seeped in her mouth. While it was hot, Kyra took no time in finishing her bun. In contrast, the girl took her time in chewing her steaming bun, savoring each bite. Kyra sat idly while waiting for the girl to finish.
Maybe I should tell the cooks to make this back home. Oh, I should buy some for Rena too.
“Thanks for the treat,” Kyra said as the girl had her last bite.
“Mmmm. It’s nothing.” The girl shook her head.
“So, what’s your name?”
“It’s Aimi.”
“Just Aimi?”
“Just Aimi,” The girl responded with a hint of sadness.
“Well, I’m Kyra…. Just Kyra.”
Aimi smiled at Kyra sheepishly, “You know, I wasn’t expecting a person of your stature to be in this Academy. You might make graduation harder than it already is.”
Kyra chuckled lightly, “I don’t think my reputation is that high up. Even my sister is more infamous than me.”
“Is that so….?” Aimi seemed to think about what she just said.
“Why did you come to this Academy? To me, it didn’t seem that you needed to come here. You could have done fine outside.” Kyra asked. She was curious as to why Aimi enrolled here. For Kyra, it was because of family obligations but she wanted to know about others. Kyra spoke the truth when she thought that Aimi didn’t need to come to this Academy. She personally felt that one can accomplish the same thing or more in the city. Aimi had the skills to be a good hitman or bodyguard. What the Academy offered, the city offered more in terms of violence and blood. Hence, her conclusion of one will learn more outside of the Academy. However, having said that, knowledge is still knowledge. There’s always room to learn more no matter how stuck up she was.
“Umm…. well, I guess it’s because of Ned. He wanted to come here to become stronger and I sort of followed him. But deep down, I too want to become stronger without having to rely on others.”
“Ned?”
“Oh, Ned is Boomer. The one with the grenade launcher. I actually came here to buy ointments for his burns.”
“Right. Him. I heard you two gave a lot of trouble to my friends.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“Well, it’s not me that you need to be worried about. Rena might blast holes in the two of you when she sees either of you.”
Aimi laughed softly, “Then, I had better watch my back.” She stood up and took a deep breath and let it out. She smiled at Kyra and said, “I best get back to Ned soon.”
“I hope to see you again soon.” She picked up her rifle and walked a distance away, before waving goodbye. Kyra didn’t wave back but watched her leave, not in the direction of the dormitory though. She felt that it would not be very cool of her if she did that. She too, had to hurry back to the dorm. She stood up and left the entertainment district, not before buying more char siew buns.
When she reached the dormitory’s lift lobby, she saw a person with his hands on his hips who seemed to be analyzing the mess that happened earlier in the day. Kyra’s senses told her that this was yet another annoying person. She lowered her presence and walked calmly towards the lift.
“Hey, you! Yeah, you there!” The person called out to her. Kyra immediately regretted not taking the side stairs that was not in the lift lobby. It was located at one of the ends of the building. Kyra had deemed it too far and now she was about to be stuck in another conversation.
Kyra turned around to see him, smiling at her. It was a smile that was meant to put people at ease which irked Kyra a lot. She could already tell that he had ulterior motives with her.
He offered a hand to her. “My name is Everett, the vice council president. Of course, you don’t need to introduce yourself. I already know who you are, Miss Kyra.”
Kyra could feel her veins pulsating in her forehead. She observed Everett even closely. He had a classy look to him due to the formal uniform he was wearing. He had also mentioned that he was the vice council president. Having dealt with the president earlier, Kyra really didn’t want to interact with yet council member.
“Ha ha ha. No need to be hostile. I want to be your friend,” Everett said truthfully when he noticed how Kyra was tensed up.
Your friend? What’s this idiot scheming about? Kyra had no interest making friends with him. However, having an established connection with someone on the Academy’s Council could prove useful in the future. It’s just that she would have much preferred anyone else but him. Kyra decided to play it cool and first find out what Everett wanted from her.
“And what do you want? Other than being my friend,” Kyra asked.
“What I want is simple,” Everett smiled devilishly. “I want you to join me in overthrowing the Student Council and this Academy.”
Kyra stifled her laughter and put on a poker face. “And if I refuse?”
“You won’t refuse me. For various reasons, the Student Council President has started keeping tabs on you since you first entered, even the higher ups at the Academy. You will want to work with me.”
“Well, I like to think it’s because of how annoying us Fukagis can be.”
“Yes, I can see that,” Everett gestured at the broken glass, from the fight Kyra had earlier, at his feet. “But you’ll have to be naïve to think that. There has been a lot of chatter about you. And I mean a lot.”
That was troubling to hear. However, it wasn’t surprising to say the least. She wasn’t bragging or anything but her family name holds a lot of power in the city.
“I’ll think about it. I have places to be,” Kyra decided not to give a direct answer. This required both careful thinking and planning. She could not just say yes and dragged herself into a full-blown conflict.
“Of course, no one’s stopping you. But I wish that you will reach to a satisfying answer. Even if you don’t join me, you will still be the President’s downfall. I see it in your eyes. Of how much you want to kill her. And I can’t wait to see it happen,” Everett tapped his watch. “Just a matter of time.”
Kyra’s left thumb twitched and proceeded to fiddle with her katana’s sword hilt. She found Everett to be getting on her nerves at each passing second. It was as good a time as any to leave. She didn’t want to leave Rena alone any longer. Kyra walked past Everett without saying anything.
Everett smiled and bowed, “Have a pleasant evening, princess.”
Rena was still sleeping when Kyra returned to the dormitory. She went to prepare another glass of water and laid down the medicine. Kyra gently touched her shoulder and shook her awake. Rena’s brown eyes slowly fluttered open.
“Argh…. My head hurts,” Rena closed her eyes again and pulled herself up.
“I got you some painkillers by the way.”
Rena took some and drank it down with the glass of water. Rena slammed down the glass on the table and let out a refreshing shout.
Rena looked at Kyra and asked, “So, which room do you want to take? There are two rooms. I’ll give you first dibs.”
Kyra looked at the doors of the rooms. They were beside each other. So, that meant the rooms were parallel to each other. Quite frankly, she didn’t really bother which room she got.
In the end, she took the room on the left. Kyra carried her stuff in to unpack. She had wanted to help Rena move in but she had declined, insisting that she troubled Kyra enough.
Kyra’s room was spacious. There was a work table, cupboard and obviously, a bed. It took about thirty minutes to unload everything she had. The last item she took out was a Nexmor in a jar. This particular Nexmor did not have any filament so that in the event of someone taking it, they were unable to reproduce it. One could say that the flower served as a decoration for her room or something to remind her of her home. Additionally, Kyra had seeds, that she had already kept hidden, for growth into her calling cards.
Once Kyra was done with assembling the room into her own functioning safe room, she took out all of her clothing and headed straight to bed.
Chapter 8 – Negotiation
“Morning, boys.” Rena greeted Shiloh and Cree who were already in the classroom. They were seated at the back of the class. As Kyra and Rena walked towards them, she felt most eyes staring at them, sizing them up and getting a read.
“Well, you certainly took your time. Homeroom started like ten minutes ago. You know we waited for you girls? Only until we realized that we were dumbasses for waiting.” Weirdly enough, Shiloh did not seem to be annoyed. He was just teasing as far as Kyra could tell.
“It was fine. We didn’t really tell them that we were going to wait for them. Besides, our homeroom teacher is even later than both of you are,” Cree said.
Rena simply shrugged, “I wouldn’t have cared if I was late anyway.” The table conveniently had four seats for all of them and Rena sat down beside Shiloh.
“Huh. You’re not wearing your jacket today.” Cree directed at Kyra. Kyra looked at him funny and replied, “Well yeah, I like to change up my style every now and then.” It wasn’t much of a change but Kyra liked to switch it up every now and then. She decided to wear her jacket around her waist. She wanted to make her family emblem less obvious. Obviously, she could have just opted not to wear her jacket but Kyra loved her jacket too much to just leave it. Plus, her jacket hides various weapons and utility, although, her katana was more than enough. This, she was sure of.
“Aren’t you gonna sit down?” Rena asked. Kyra was scanning the class, observing if anyone was of interest. She did spot Aimi and Boomer at the front. “Yeah.” She placed her katana on the table and sat down.
Some time had passed. Everyone had gotten restless, waiting for their homeroom teacher, especially Rena. She had dismantled and reassembled her pistols more than once now. “Man, where is our homeroom teacher?” Shiloh had an irritated look across his face. He felt that the Academy having a school-like curriculum to be a waste of time. Like most, he came here mainly just for the power of Arts.
“Yeah. It’s been about thirty minutes since the bell rang.” Cree remarked. According to the school’s schedule, the day starts with an orientation with said homeroom teacher. The room got louder and louder as everyone in the class was talking over each other. Kyra and the crew were unbothered by all the noise. They were barely speaking with each other, only making occasional remarks. Except for Kyra who had been quiet.
Kyra had her head resting on her hand and was thinking about why her family wanted her to attend the Academy. She felt like there was a catch to it. This whole time she had been pretty much left to her own devices. Kyra didn’t think that her siblings being former students were the reason behind it. There were other reasons she could think of but she did not have any concrete evidence. Before she could think about it any further, a man burst into the classroom.
Her eyes widened upon realizing who it was. The man walked over to the teacher’s table and sat right on it. “Alright. Quieten down. I did not want to be here but yet here I am. Let’s get this orientation over and done with.” There was not any doubt. It was Monty Summers, one of the world’s top master swordsman, said to have even invented several sword styles. Maybe, she will at least act interested being here. She needed to find a way to establish a connection with him.
“So ummm…. What was it again? Why the hell did I have to take this job….” Monty mumbled to himself as he pinched his nasal bridge.
“Oi! If there’s nothing to do, can’t we leave now?” Boomer shouted.
“Ned…. You can’t just shout at a teacher,” Aimi was shocked that Boomer just lashed out.
Monty, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind it and was actually considering what Boomer had to say. “You know what? Fuck it, class dismissed. All of you can leave.”
Boomer was the first to leave, along with Aimi and another two that Kyra did not recognize. Aimi apologized to Monty but he waved it aside. Soon, one by one, people started leaving.
“You guys go on ahead. I have business with him,” Kyra told the rest.
“What kind of business?” Cree asked.
“Nothing too special. I just need something from him,” Kyra smirked.
Kyra approached Monty and stood in front of him. “And what do you want?” Monty questioned. “I want you to teach me,” Kyra replied. Monty immediately chuckled out as soon as he heard.
“I don’t know if you got the hint but I am not even interested in teaching in this snobby academy,” Monty explained.
“Well, I don’t care about the school’s bullshit. What I want is what you have to offer. Your sword mastery skills and talents. I want to be your apprentice and learn everything.”
“Sorry. I don’t do apprenticeship.”
“Three hundred thousand credits every week,” Kyra rebutted. Now, she had his attention.
Monty was stunned and rightfully so, three hundred thousand credits was a lot of money and every week? She must have been some rich family’s brat to be able throw this much at him.
“Alright, I’ll bite. What’s your name, anyway?” Monty asked.
“Kyra. Kyra Fukagi,” she presented her name.
Monty’s expression changed slightly but he hid it well and returned to his poker face. Kyra, however, caught it. It might not mean much but people, in general, have different responses to her family name. For his case, it was not of shock but of realization.
Kyra and Monty moved to the cafeteria where they were each enjoying a waffle with a chocolate ice-cream scoop on it on the expense of Kyra’s wallet. She didn’t particularly mind paying for it. To her, all of this to get a living legend to train her was worth it. She could always take more jobs. Not to mention, the Academy’s in-built cafeteria had really classy desserts and drinks. How did Kyra know this? It was because Rena and her spent their morning here. It was open for all faculty and students at any time, be it before, after lessons or during lessons.
“Man, I haven’t eaten breakfast…. I will have you know that I’m not cut out for teaching,” Monty explained. “What do you even want me to teach you? How to hold a sword?”
“Why are you even here? In this Academy of all places. The legendary sword master has humbled down and decided to become a teacher against his better judgement. I believe that’s not the case?” Kyra asked mockingly.
“Ah…. Well…. I lost a bet and now I’m forced by Alkiel to be a slave in this school.” Monty scratched his head in frustration as if he just relived a really bad memory.
Monty was lying about the truth. Kyra could at least tell that much. But she was not too bothered by it. It was not much of a main concern for now. She determined that what he said was true to a certain extent. From first impressions, Alkiel seemed like a bitch from the get-go. Well to be fair, Kyra just didn’t like her. There could be more behind of what Monty said but it was not that important right now. Right now, she needed Monty to accept her being his apprentice. Whatever suspicions she had; she could deal with it in the future. She had a feeling that it might come into play.
Kyra moved in closer, almost like a whisper, said, “Other than teaching me everything you know, I need your help with something else. A new st-”
“Look, Kyra. You expect too much from me. You may think of me as some “legendary” swordsman. All I did was copy others and improve on it till it becomes something entirely new,” Monty interrupted, trying to get his point across.
Kyra stared at Monty silently. She wanted to make it clear that she was not letting him go. Monty let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. I do need any kind of loose change I can ahold of….” He mumbled.
“Okay then. I will wire you your money every Sunday, regardless if we have a training session or several or none. Think of it as a contract of sorts.”
“I admire you people being able to throw money all around the place.” Monty scoffed. “You ever had apprentices before?” Kyra asked.
Monty pondered about it before answering. “I used to have one which is why I can tell you now that I am not fit to have apprentices. But whatever. So, do you want to start now?”
Kyra thought about what he said. It can’t be that bad. Sure, one might call her behind selfish and a typical rich girl just flaunting her assets. But she needed this. For too long she had been narrow-minded. It was time to branch out. What better way than have Monty Summers be her master.
“Nah. Tomorrow is fine. I will contact you.” The two exchanged their personal contact information. Although, the school’s ID have their own contact information. Kyra much preferred to use their own lines. Who knows if the school had a record of every call made, message and email sent? Monty seemed to share the same consensus.
Monty left, not before finishing his waffle. “See you tomorrow, master.” Kyra decided to order another waffle. While waiting for it to arrive, Kyra sent a message to Asa to brag about her apprenticeship. She got an instant reply, saying that her sister didn’t give a fuck. Well, it was to be expected. But she had bragging rights this time. Kyra would like to add that Asa too was trained in swordplay in the past but slowly switched to firearms and eventually the sniper. ding Kyra looked up at her phone and saw a new message from her sister. Now, this was surprising.
Wait u said monty summers? That sword master guy?
Yea Im under his apprenticeship.
Huh interesting
Kyra closed her phone and finished the rest of her dessert. Maybe she should try out the other desserts since she was here.
————————————————————————————————————————————————
Rena wandered around the school for a while. Her friend, Kyra, was busy with something so she was alone. She could have hung out with the boys, but she barely knew them. She rather had Kyra with her. The two had explored the Academy for a bit in the morning but spent their time in the cafeteria before reluctantly heading to class. She took out her ID and looked up the school’s directory. Rena immediately put her ID down and continued wandering. Her mind could not comprehend the complexity of the school’s map, so she decided to let fate decide for her.
Somehow, she had wandered into a shooting range of sorts. She had caught a whiff of gunpowder and followed it. The students were all firing different types of weapons, from pistols to machine guns. Rena was impressed from the get-go.
“Whoa! Hey! Who are you? What do you think you are doing here, you goddamn exhibitionist?” Rena was stopped before she could take another step.
“Fuck do you mean? I’m just taking a look around. I’m new here,” Rena got visibly frustrated but calmed herself. It was her first official day in the Academy. She could not make a mockery of herself.
“Oh right. I completely forgot that there was new fresh meat today. Silly me!”
Now, she’s just asking for a bullet through her head. Rena reached for her pistol.
“Well, since you’re here, let’s see your shooting skills. I see that you carry a pair of pistols. Here’s a challenge. Beat the score and you get to be an exclusive member of the range and armory. Discount on bullets and guns and all that. What do you say?”
“Deal,” Rena accepted. This was a worthwhile investment. She may not like getting her ammunition from unknown sources. But in an environment, such as the academy, the more resources the better.
“Good. I’m Tracey, by the way, in charge of this here facility.” The woman finally introduced herself. Tracey beckoned Rena over to an empty lane. “The targets of this range are slightly different; they are made of five parts. A head, two torso parts and two limbs. You will know what I mean when you see it. Each section you take down, you earn a point. Total score is 100 points and to get premium membership, you must obtain 90 points,” explained Tracey.
Rena walked towards the stand and pulled out her pistols from her pants. Tracey signaled over to the control room to start up the lane. The first target came up and Rena immediately got a clean headshot. However, the counter still displayed zero. Rena shot again and the counter number did not go up. She smirked as she finally understood how the targets work. When Tracey meant “take down”, she really meant destroy and obliterate the targets. Now, this Rena understood very well. She aimed both pistols at the head and continuously pulled the trigger until the head was blown away from its centerpiece.
Ding The counter went up by one.
Rena unloaded her clips and went for fresh clips. As she was reloading, Rena observed the target closely. There had to be an efficient way to deal with the segmented pieces. She only had six clips left, strapped around her legs. One shot was not enough to blow through one piece. Rena could not tell what kind of material was used. It looked like it was ceramic but if that was the case, the head piece would have been broken by her shot. It was just the torso left.
She could feel Tracey ridiculing her from behind. The pressure was on her now. Rena was not going to let some wise ass make a fool out of her. She racked her brain as hard as she could. At this point, she was open to anything. Ah, screw it. What if she concentrated her shot at the center of the target? She had nothing to lose in this challenge. Rena lowered her left hand and aimed with her pistol. She took precise aim and squeezed the trigger. It was at this moment that Rena felt she released something powerful. There was more kickback than usual from her pistol. Her eyes started to burn, and time seemed to have slowed. Was it the adrenaline? she thought to herself.
Two targets were up. This time, she raised both pistols and fired simultaneously. The targets broke into pieces. Bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang The counter displayed a hundred points. Rena had gotten all the targets. She holstered her pistols back between her legs and immediately twitched. Rena always did enjoy the burning sensation of her pistols between her thighs but she had to admit it was hotter than usual. Tracey gave her a puzzled look and went on to congratulate her for getting the highest score.
“Hahahaha! You did well. Once you figured the trick and tapped into your potential, the rest is easy. You are now a member of our exclusive club,” said Tracey. Rena proceeded to hand over her ID so that Tracey could register her as a member.
“Come back some other time if you are still breathing. There’s lots of fun shit that you haven’t seen yet in the Academy’s Armory,” Tracey smiled sinisterly.
————————————————————————————————————————————————
Monty was in the break room alone. He sighed when he thought back to his interaction with Kyra. He did not think that Kyra would approach directly. He had tried to play the role of an uninterested instructor and left the class. It did not work. Was all this planned? Did they know that Kyra would be interested in him because they were both sword artists? The thing is, he read through Kyra’s file, there was not much to go on. Kyra was active a few years back but had since then been a shut-in. The report did not go into detail as to why she fell off the map. It did not help that the Fukagi Manor was a fortress and isolated. For years, maybe even centuries, various people have been trying to breach the Manor but to no avail. The Fukagis were a lack of better words, monsters.
A message came through Monty’s phone. Monty shivered with dread as he looked up his phone. An unfavorable trait, for a sword master, that he had developed lately. Nothing good came from his messages as of late. He took a deep breath before pulling out his phone. Monty knew it. They were asking about his progress with Kyra.
It appeared that you have come into contact Kyra Fukagi. However, it seems that you have strayed away from your initial duties. Although, the end result is the full potential of Kyra Fukagi, be reminded that you are no in position to make changes or demands.
Monty’s grip around his ID tightened. He did not want to be ordered around but he had no choice in the matter. One misstep could end everything.
Everything is fine I just have misgivings about being an instructor but I will help to unlock kyra’s full potential
Monty decided to reply to reassure them. All Monty can do now is play ball.
Noted. Do know that you and Kyra Fukagi are always under surveillance. Do not disappoint, Monty Summers.
Monty threw his ID across the room in a fit of rage after reading that last message. He silently swore that he will get back at whoever these people are.
Itsuka Kotori
Art of Killing – Chapter 6 – Settling In
The administrative building was a small two storey building. A relatively simple building with just a word, “ADMIN” above the entrance. The administrative building handles almost everything about the Academy.
The group walked through the automated doors. There was a waiting area at the side and the administrative desk ahead of them. It appeared that there wasn’t anyone here.
“Well, what the fuck?” Rena swore in frustration.
“Ah! Welcome…. Give me a sec… hoo…” A tiny voice came from over the desk. Kyra heard a squeak and a little girl’s popped up and another squeak and half of her body was shown.
Kyra raised an eyebrow. She did not expect someone of her stature or her age to be working at the front desk.
The little girl noticed Kyra’s look and she responded as if she read her thoughts… “You got something to say, punk? I happen to be twenty-four this year.”
Her tone had completely changed from a little girl’s to a very aggressive adult sounding voice. Now, Kyra was even more amazed.
“So, you’re a dwarf?” she teased.
“You wanna fucking die right now?”
“Sorry. Maybe you prefer being called a loli or ….an old hag?”
“Ok that’s it! I’m gonna smash your head in!”
Kyra pushed her katana out of her scabbard a few centimetres with her thumb.
“Hey! Hey! I think we are getting ahead of ourselves. We’re here because we were told to come here after the entrance exam.” Cree stopped in between them as a mediator. Rena started laughing at the situation that is unfolding before her. The little girl calmed down and reposed herself.
“Well, why didn’t you say so? I’m Lillian Groves. The Head Administrator of the Academy of Arts. Once again, I welcome you to this prestigious Academy.” Lillian sounded so refined that she was almost a different person. Now she acted formal and a proper member.
“What’s the Head Administrator doing at the front desk?” Shiloh questioned. Normally, you wouldn’t see some of high position here. Unless the person in question was a weirdo whom Lillian definitely was.
“You see, I like to know who comes and goes in this Academy. I want to know what happens here. Nothing flies past me without my knowledge. I am a curious person by nature and I’m especially interested in the new freshmen this year.”
She gestured at Rena. “A disgraced Smisson.” At Shiloh. “A lost soul.”
At Cree. “Bound to family.” And finally, at Kyra. “A…. Fukagi.”
Lillian smiled deviously as she provoked them. She wanted to see what kind of emotion they invoke. Even before Head Administrator, Lillian loved to observe intensively and she took it upon herself to understand everyone in the Academy when she became Head Administrator.
No one said anything. The tension in the air only grew as the seconds passed. Out of the blue, Lillian clapped and everyone snapped out of their trance.
“That’s enough of that. Now, I need four of you to fill in these forms. After some explanation, I will hand over to you your dormitory keys.”
Kyra took the form and glanced over it. Instead of forms, it would be more accurate to call them contracts. It wasn’t just a piece of paper. It was an A4 paperback. It was rather quite thick. The contract stated that the Academy was not liable for any damages caused on the contract holder. In the case of death, the holder is held responsible instead. It was fascinating. Everything about this contract wards the Academy of anything. They would happily provide the students the best of everything but students are not their responsibility. The rest of the contract was just particulars, blood type, acknowledgment of the rules of the Academy.
Kyra signed the contract and handed it back to Lilian. She waited for the rest to finish before continuing. “Now remember follow all the laws closely. No killing unless authorised. Even I can’t help you if you break the laws.”
Lillian leaned in. “Now…. let’s talk dorms. Do you guys want to stay together or be in separate rooms.”
“There’s no restrictions?” Cree asked.
“Nope. We believe in the freedom of our students.”
“Then I’ll take a room for myself,” Kyra said.
“I’ll bunk with Kyra,” Rena added.
“Ok! A two-bed dorm. Here’s you let keycard. Don’t lose it!” Lillian handed the keycard to Kyra. Kyra didn’t move a muscle. Rena sighed and took it.
“Maybe if you have treated me nicely. You would’ve gotten your own room. Remember this, I’m the Head Administrator. I can ruin your school life with just a few words,” Lillian stared threateningly at Kyra.
“This your work?” Kyra took out the map from her jacket and held it in front of her. Kyra theorised that this map was created by her. She noticed that Lillian’s desk had a lot of cutesy stuff. Putting two and two together, this map was created none other than the midget.
“Yes! Yes! What’s wrong? Appreciating my genius now? I’ll have you know that it took me ages to complete the design of that brochure. Truly my best master-” Lillian stopped as her face whitened.
Kyra slowly tore the brochure from top to bottom and dropped it on the floor.
Without a word, Kyra left.
————
The dormitories are in a separate area of the Academy. It was a short five min walk away from the main campus. In all honesty, dormitory was an understatement. It was more like a high-end condominium. There were many facilities that one will expect such as a pool, gym, barbecue area and so on. A truly extravagant place to live in without knowing one might die anytime.
Their belongings and bags were placed in the main lobby. Kyra and Rena went to collect and find their belongings.
“That’s rude. They laid your stuff neatly while mine was haphazardly thrown around the damn area. My bags aren’t even in the same place.”
“No thanks to Asa,” Kyra muttered.
Kyra recalled a time when Asa said that her computer parts were damaged when she went to collect her bags. She had brought with her huge bags filled with her equipment when she enrolled. Apparently, the carrier was tired of moving her bags that he either dropped or threw it. Asa was utterly furious that she sliced off the carrier’s right hand. Kyra might have to avoid anyone who’s missing a right hand.
The dormitories were split into three buildings. One for the first years and one for the second years and one for the third years. This year, the first years’ building was in the middle. When the semester year changes, Kyra’s building will be a second-year building while the third year’s will be known as the first-year building for the new students that year. This was so that the students wouldn’t have to keep moving around.
“Hey, wait up!” Cree called to them from behind.
“Thanks to you, that bitch wouldn’t calm down,” Shiloh added.
“Did she throw her arms around like a little kid?” Kyra quizzed?
“Heh, yeah she did but also wanting to smash your head in several times?” Shiloh mused at the memory of Lillian using her threatening adult voice.
Cree held up his keycard and said, “I manage to have Lillian get us a room beside yours. I think it’ll be better if we stay close together since we hardly know anyone. We did meet each other first.”
“I don’t mind but you’re not gonna spy on us or anything, are you?” Rena questioned with a pinch of suspicion.
“W-what? No, of course not.” Cree was clearly taken aback by the question.
“It’s ok, Cree boy. One day, I will teach you the wonders of peeping.”
“Ummm…. sure.”
“Oh? So, these are the new freshmen? You don’t look so tough?” An unarmed male walked over to the group.
Rena started laughing at his bald top. “What kind of hairstyle is that? That’s gotta be a joke.” Shiloh also tried to hold his laughter. The male’s hairstyle was out of this world. His head was bald except few parts that had a small bush of hair.
He did not seem to mind the laughter but Kyra sensed his hostility and questioned, “What is it to you?”
“Nothing, I swear. I just want to measure the freshmen’s strength myself!” He lunged forward with his fist.
Too fast.
Kyra barely drew her katana completely out of her scabbard. She raised her half-drawn katana to block his punch. Kyra was completely overpowered and was pushed back several meters.
Another fucking brawler!?
However, the punch attack wasn’t over yet. Kyra felt a shockwave from the fist hit her. More accurately, the shockwave was seemingly transferred from the fist to the katana to her. It concentrated at her chest and she was flung backwards into the glass windows of the lobby.
Bang bang bang
Rena fired three shots to which the brawler dodged all of it elegantly. He jumped in the air and extended a leg towards Rena. Rena fired upwards but was visibly missing her shots. His foot landed nicely and hard into Rena’s abdomen. Rena hit the ground and slid a distance with the brawler still on her. She immediately grabbed his ankle and pointed her pistol at his calf. Before she could pull the trigger, he kicked across her face. Her hand faltered as she slowly lost consciousness.
Fuck. He’s too strong. Is this all I have?
Rena had left her family because she felt undermined. Was it for naught? She thought she had become stronger even just for a bit. However, since coming here, she lost to Boomer and Aimi and was defeated by this hairless monkey.
Defeated? Lost? I’m not dead yet so I haven’t lost!
Rena snapped her hand upwards to his head and fired. The brawler tilted his body backwards. The bullet whizzed past his face, just a few centimetres away.
Bang
Rena fired with her left pistol that was at her side. Meanwhile, Cree was rushing ahead and went for a horizontal slice at chest level with his sword. The brawler was trapped in this deadlock.
He snapped forward, faster than the speed of the bullet and proceeded to twist Rena’s abdomen with his foot. Rena immediately screamed out in excruciating pain and she let go of her pistols. She tasted blood in her mouth and it was slowly foaming in her mouth. She spat it out so she wouldn’t choke in her own blood.
Cree put all his strength and speed into this one swing. The brawler brought his left arm up and block with ease. There was a tink sound. The sword did not even cut him. It was like he was using a plastic toy sword against metal.
“Cree!” Shiloh drew his knifes and sprang into action
The brawler grinned and grabbed the sword with his right arm and pulled Cree at Shiloh. They hit each other and both fell to the ground.
The fight was one sided and it was over. The brawler had won. Or so that’s what he thought. He heard a knife whooshing through the air. He brought his fist up to block the knife from stabbing his head. Unfortunately for him, the knife went through his hand. Though not fully, it still went through. His eyes widened.
Impossible. She can use-
The knife lodged in his hand was pushed further in with incredible speed and force, piercing through both his palm and finger. The blade almost reached his eye, missing a few millimetres. His eyeball began to shake and his iris shrunk. A knife dropped to the ground. That bitch swordswoman had thrown two knifes! She used the second knife to strike the first’s hilt, pushing it further in. This was interesting
“I fucking despise martial artists.” Kyra announced while leaking her killing intent.
The entire lobby became chilly and time seemed to have slowed down. The brawler was frozen in place and didn’t move a muscle but stared at Kyra as she slowly stood up from her sitting position.
I have to move before she strikes.
The brawler reached for the knife to pull it out. Kyra had already positioned for a straight lunge to slice off his head clean. The two stared into each other’s soul. Kyra lunged. The brawler took out the knife and prepared to parry the swing and punch through her face with his injured hand.
The two jumped towards each other, both with the intention of killing the other. Only difference was Kyra was out of pure anger, the other was for cleansing this world of evil.
They were almost close to striking the finishing blow when suddenly, a figure flashed in front of them and grabbed both of their arms. The brawler tried to stopped in his tracks but the momentum was too much to stop. Kyra simply didn’t care. To hell with it, she thought. She would just have to put in more strength and cut through the intruder and kill the brawler.
The figure grabbed both of their arms and spun along with Kyra and the brawler. One spin and she threw both of them in opposite directions.
“No killing unless authorised. Have you forgotten our laws, Zack?”
“I-”
“Initiated a fight that almost ended in a death match.” She interrupted the brawler, Zack, coldly without giving him a chance to explain.
She knelt before Zack and picked up one of his hair parts. “Do you want me to kill you right here, right now?”
Zack looked at her in the eye. Her eyes were as beautiful and sparkling as ever. But at the same time, they were frightening. There was a dangerous aura to them. He lowered his head, “No, President.”
“Good.” She smiled and smashed his head into the ground.
The floor, surrounding Zack’s head, cracked. A puddle of blood started forming. She left him and approached Kyra next.
“Well, well, Kyra Fukagi. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. I’m the Council President, Veinarica Diamond.”
Kyra said nothing. The throw across the room had broken several of her bones in her body and what’s worse was her right arm. The part of her arm where she had grabbed was completely bruised. The grip the woman had was iron clad. Kyra figured it would be best to shut up. If she were to provoke, she most likely would die or be in critical condition.
“Quite impressive that you managed to put a scratch on me. The way you twisted your hand with your katana and strikes down.”
Veinarica touched her left cheek and wiped away the blood bleeding from the cut.
She leaned in close and whispered, “I will be watching your progress in this Academy very closely.”
Kyra’s body unconsciously shivered. Whether it was out of fear, she did not know but Veinarica had presence that screamed to Kyra that she should not be fucked with. Veinarica straightened up her body and smiled as if reading her thoughts.
“Feel free to visit me in the Council Room. I would like to have you over for some tea.”
Veinarica pulled Zack’s non-existent hair and dragged him away along with her. Once the two left, Kyra slowly got up and gently massaged her right arm. Kyra could see the purple bruise slowly fade away. She flexed her fingers and sheathed her sword. She moved over to Rena and kicked her foot.
“You’re alive?” Kyra asked.
“…. barely. My insides hurt like a bitch…. I really don’t want to cross paths with that bald cunt.” Rena responded in pain.
“Well, I want to burn the rest of his hair off.”
Rena chuckled but ended up coughing more blood. Kyra pulled her up straight and patted her back, easing her excretion of blood.
“I think I had enough for one day. I need fucking sleep. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” Shiloh spoke out of the blue. He grabbed his bags and left.
Cree watched as Shiloh entered the elevator. He sighed and asked, “Do you two need the infirmary.”
“No.” The two girls replied in unison.
“You sure?” Cree was puzzled. The two of them were pretty banged up compared to the boys. It seemed that they really needed medical attention.
“I’m a fast healer.” Kyra replied almost instantly.
“And I’m stubborn.” Rena admitted.
“Suit yourself.”
Kyra brought Rena to her feet and stared at Cree with a hint of mischief.
“Don’t just stand there. Help us with our bags.”
Cree dropped his head in disbelief. Maybe he should have followed Shiloh.
Their apartments were on the fifth floor. Cree helped Kyra and Rena into their room. Their room was impressive for a school dormitory. Kyra should probably stop being surprised. This was a prestige academy after all. There was a small and short hallway to the living room. The living room was considerably large. It even had a plasma TV for the student’s leisure. The kitchen was at the corner of the living room on the left after the end of the hallway.
Kyra brought Rena to the sofa and laid her there.
“Hey Cree, think you can get a cup of water for Rena?” Kyra asked.
“Yeah sure.” Cree dumped the bags in the middle of the room and headed to the kitchen area.
Kyra touched Rena’s forehead. She wasn’t hot and didn’t seem to have a fever. So that was a good sign, Kyra hoped. She wasn’t knowledgeable about this kind of stuff. She never needed to
Kyra heard opening of cabinets and running water. Soon, Cree came over with a filled glass in hand.
Rena took the glass and drank it slowly. Blood from her mouth mixed into the water.
“You feeling ok?” Rena asked.
“Like shit…. I will be fine by tomorrow.” Rena closed her eyes
“I’ll see you guys tomorrow. If you need anything, we’re next door.” Cree seemed to be ready to leave.
“Try not to peep on us,” Rena smiled wryly.
Cree laughed nervously, “I don’t think anyone with a sane mind will.”
With that, Cree retired to his room.
Kyra unfastened her katana from her waist and sat on the floor by the sofa. It had been a somewhat a long day and the day wasn’t even over yet. However, despite everything, she had made new friends. It had been a while seen she made new friends. Kyra wasn’t even sure that she could count her info brokers as friends. In a sense, Kyra had been shut off from the world for a very long time hence she didn’t socialise much. She did not know how friendship worked. Does friendship occur when both parties acknowledge it or does it happen with a sense of mutual respect?
While Kyra was lost in thought, she felt a hand pressed onto her the top of her head. She looked behind at Rena whom was slowly drifting off into slumber.
“Y’know, I’m glad that I became friends with you.” The words that Rena said cleared any doubts that she had earlier.
She ruffled Kyra’s hair for a bit and dozed off. Though Rena did not see it, Kyra was flustered for a while. Soon, it was Kyra’s turn to slowly fall into slumber and the two slept away without a worry in the world.
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