[X] Victor Crowne
[X] A thin, black-haired girl, sitting so straight she looks like she's been bolted to a ruler. She expects to be an accountant. (She's lying. Badly)
[X] ALL OF THE HEROES. ALL OF THEM.
You've never liked your name, you must admit. It's impressive enough, and certainly apt. But nonetheless, it grates on you. It seems to imply that you've been chosen to rule, that you are fated to be the King. That irks you. A king does not rule because of fate, or justice, or righteousness, or any other of a thousand concepts. A King rules because he is strong, because he has power, and because he owns his power-has earned it instead of having it handed to him. Not like all those do-gooders out there who claim to have the power to determine morality simply because something else decided to give them a leg up over their fellow man. The martial artists you can respect - they've earned their power, they fought for it and bled for it. The Kaleidoscope trio you'll reserve judgement on, seeing as they have mentioned that they had to train for their power to the authorities. The rest of them? Don't deserve the power they've been handed.
You sigh, and refocus back on class. The teacher has finished lecturing about the necessary responsibilities of students to uphold the prestigious standards of this respected establishment and has moved on to the topic of the necessary responsibilities of students to uphold the prestigious reputation of this respected establishment. You pay just enough attention to the teacher to catch any important topics she might mention. There aren't many. You take note of the fact that apparently the Class Representative Elections will be held soon, which might be an amusing diversion. She also keeps warning students that if their academic performance is unsatisfactory, they may be shifted into a lower class, which you should probably be careful about. The remainder of her speech is meaningless drivel which does nothing but grate on your ears.
It's boring. You're bored. Why do other people love the sound of their own voices so much? You sigh. Isn't there something more interesting to do? Why couldn't you have picked another school where people would have the decency to talk less and would instead- Oh, she's stopped talking.
Having finished her sermon, she promptly informs the class that the math teacher will arrive in five minutes and leaves. Naturally, the entire room breaks into chaos, with children doing childish things with each other that you, of course, are too mature for. Instead, you decide to start looking to establish a powerbase in this school. A King must have servants, after all. And where better to start than with your erstwhile neighbor? With your incredible charisma and mastery of social skills, you'll have her eating out of your hand in no time at all.
You smile warmly and turn to your neighbor.
"So, what did you think of our teacher's speech? Not very interesting, was it?"
Mutely, she glares at you. You can practically feel her disdain.
Undaunted, you continue. "I can see the need to remind students of all the minutiae of school life they may have forgotten over the school year, but a 45 minute lecture on the virtues of upholding the reputation of a school they've already been fighting tooth and claw to stay in? A little much, don't you think?"
Her murderous glare intensifies. Happily, you note that her perfect posture has been abandoned in favor of allowing her to glare at you more intently.
A little bit more, you silently muse to yourself. "Of course, maybe they just want to make a point to all the students? Remind them that no matter how far they've managed to come, they can still be reduced to the ranks of the masses? Motivate them, by showing them the consequences of failure? I'll admit, it seems like a sloppy style of rule to me, but that's not for me to judge, I supppose?"
Her glare is now so incandescently furious that you feel as though you might burst into flame at any moment. If looks could kill, not only would you be dead, every single person remotely related to you would be dead, as would the majority of their past lives and possibly their future ones as well. One more push, you think silently.
"Ah, but where are my manners? I have been remiss in not introducing myself! My name is, as you are undoubtedly aware, Victor Crowne! And you are?"
"Nakadai Kaho.
Go away." she all but
snarls through gritted teeth. If words could kill... well, you get the idea. Her glare has also managed to grow even more intense, and even less amicable. You have to admit you're impressed, for more reasons than one.
The sheer level of hatred she's emitting is astounding. Why, if you didn't know better, you might almost call her expression...
Wrathful. But of course, it would be absurd for a middle schooler to be even aware of their Sin, let alone channeling it. You'd call it impossible, but, well...you yourself are the living disproof. Nonetheless, she has the potential. Perhaps, through proper education and hard work... you've been wishing for a subject for a while now, haven't you?
Then the teacher enters, and all thoughts of potential future leadership (and potential future minions) are replaced with an intense and emphatic loathing for all things remotely related to Japanese literature. Is it so hard to just use a proper phonemic alphabet instead of this stupid syllable-based logography they use?
Three hours and much pain later, you are very ready to be done with all this. Is a cover identity with actual schooling really necessary? Intellectally drained, though looking as dapper as ever in your uniform, you glide confidently to the cafeteria to collect your lunch. You wait magnificently in line, collect your food from the server with grace and elegance, exquisitely select a location to sit and eat in, and ingest your first bite of lunch with dignity and decorum.
You spend the next ten seconds choking and trying to get the horrendous taste of the abomination they claim is food out of your mouth. How much, exactly, are you paying to attend this place again? Fortunately, the classroom is empty. You're really quite glad no one saw the way you reacted to that, even if your reaction was justified.
As you sit there, staring at the thing that is supposed to be your food, three of your classmates enter the classroom, and, surprisingly, make a beeline for you. You don't think you remember any of their names, and you're certain you haven't interacted with them before, so why are they approaching you now? Perhaps they've come to swear eternal loyalty to the future God-King of the Universe?
"Aw, does the poor new boy not like his food?" the tallest one taunts.
Or, they could also be utter morons with a deathwish. That's also possible.
"Poor boy," the second continues. "Maybe 'e misses 'is mama's cooking?"
You stare more incredulously. Did they rehearse this?
"Here, we'll take care of that for you, alright? Just give us your lunch money every day, and we, your kind and gracious seniors, will ensure that you are well taken care of." The third continues.
Desperately, you resist the urge to facepalm.
What kind of morons... you muse to yourself.
How do you resolve this situation? (This will have a significant impact on Victor's future approach to conflict.)
[] Ignore them. They're not worth your time. There are far better, more interesting things you could be doing. If they were worthy of your attention, you'd give it to them. They're not, so you wont.
[] Use violence. You're all middle schoolers, true. But only one of the four middle schoolers in this room is combat trained, has supernatural powers, and actually gets regular exercise. Besides, if they try to complain, no one is going to believe that the new cloudcuckoolander student with the innocent smile intentionally picked a fight with three ruffians.
[] Use diplomacy. You've got better things to do with your time, and surely they can think of other things they can do that won't involve them getting suspended or expelled?
[] Leave. If you stay here, they're going to keep annoying you until you snap or do something unwise. Better to remove yourself from the situation before you act in a manner that might jeopardize your cover.
[] Comply with their demands. Haha, no. Not happening. (Locked by Pride)
[] Write-in
After that moment of unpleasantness is resolved, the remainder of your school day continues mostly as normal. Mathematics is just as easy for you as it always has been. Science, too, is apparently universal. Planck's constant is in fact constant, regardless of whether you're in America or in Japan. You just wish that you were lectured at less. Every single class in this place takes the form of a lecture. Every. Single. Class. It irks you so much.
Finally, the day ends. All of your classmates, including dear Kaho, scramble to stuff all of their belongings into their bags and get out of this torture room. You, of course, calmly place your possessions in the bag. Scrambling is for peasants. Having neatly packed your items away, you stand- and stop.
After 3:00, when school ends, students in Japan are expected to attend either a club or a cram school, though neither is mandatory. You've just spent seven hours learning. You're done with school. But these clubs sound interesting. Should you check one out? Or should you do something else with your free time?
And then it hits you.
You have Free Time.
No master, yelling at you to do work. Or clean the compound. Or do her paperwork. Or rewrite Parmenides' proof of existence.
You.
Have.
Free.
Time.
You have three slots of time to fill. Pick three activities from the following list.
[] Check out a club. Maybe they have something interesting for you to learn. (Max 1)
-[] Which Club? Write-in.
[] Scout the area. You have maps of the area, of course, but it's always better to have personal knowledge of the locale. (Max 1)
[] Do some more research on the local heroes. You're sure you can find out more about them in their home country.
-[] Go out and talk to people at some reasonably social location. There's no way that can go wrong.
--[] Which group?
-[] Check the internet. People are always discussing information on the internet. It might even be useful information.
--[] Which group?
-[] Try to get in touch with one of the local hero groups, see if you can contact them.
--[]
Why?
[] Try to figure out what's up with the local forces of darkness. Your dossiers on them are woefully incomplete.
-[] Spend several frustrating hours negotiating with someone back at the Enclave for information. Hopefully they have something.
-[] Go explore shady and possibly illegal locations. You're almost certain to find something there. It might be mundane, though.
-[] Search the city for locations with higher densities of Sin. Maybe you'll find something supernatural.
-[] Search the city for locations with lower densities of Sin. Maybe you'll find something interesting.
[] Practice more with your powers. You have
so many ideas now that you're out from under your master's thumb.
[] Hit the books. Get a head start on your studies. You're ahead of the curve for now, but that might change in the future.
[] Hit the books. Start looking through the books your master had you bring. You've read most of them, but there might be something new.
[] Start unpacking your other gear. See if you've been allotted any useful equipment.
[] Do some research on the local cosmogony and theology of Japan. There's a lot you didn't have the time to research.
[] See about socializing with your classmates - especially Miss Nakadai Kaho.
[] Write-in
[Contact Acquired!]
[Nakadai Kaho: Always Angry, All the Time]
QM: This update was supposed to be ~900 words. I don't even know. Rest assured, no matter which method of conflict resolution you choose, there will be no lasting in-story effects from this incident. Also, Diligent is sparing you a lot of work in the background. As always, feel free to ask questions.