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<10/21/1962 – 23:09 | Route 96, Junon, Sprawn Valley>

The night grew louder as the passing winds tumbled into the side fences while picking up speed. It wasn't as easy as it was before keeping the drumfire alive, but Vanoss supplied them with plenty of bio-fuel material and short logs. Despite the adversity that Danton faced minutes ago, his exhaustion ceased halfway with the cool-down, and now he had a new dilemma in front of him.

Kite just asked Danton if he would join the Trujima Gang, but Danton couldn't decide whether he should or shouldn't, since the question wasn't expected, nor was this entire experience on Route 96. Danton planned to make it into Monoc Port tonight. Instead, he was still talking with the people in this gang, and despite the earlier hostile introduction, everyone was suddenly so nice.

"I still don't get why you would head in that direction if your skill level is as high as it is." Kite was simply pointing out the flaw in Danton's pattern, since he knew already that he was going to Monoc Port. "Everyone knows that most of the rookies and lower level Leray wielders hang out in the Gulop Region. Junon is where all the action is."

"Heading to Gulop is on my agenda, but not for the purpose of fighting weaklings. I guess I wanted to sight-see a little bit."

Mainne wanted to giggle slightly, on count of Danton's expression appearing to be so much different than before. He was acting all shy and uncertain of himself right now, all after establishing that tough demeanor. Kite was strangely being nice to him, which isn't usual in many situations. Then again, neither is it normal to have random challengers join the gang, but Danton did pass a benchmark test in his eyes.

Danton held himself together against the winds around him growing colder by the speed of the wind and the sound echoing over everything else. "What about you four? What is the Trujima Gang all about? You're just a hit squad?"

"We're more than a hit squad." Kite hadn't heard of the term in a while. Leray hit squads are what other wielders call groups of teams that work and train together to achieve a common goal, while specifying territory to dominate and patrol. "But I wanted to ask you, what is your goal?"

Danton wasn't surprised with the question, but it still took him long to answer. The situation with magic is actually complicated. He had been trained for so long on how to battle like an expert and how to execute some powerful skills. But in the end, what is it all for? Every Leray wielder has a specific goal. Some become Leray agents, while others become gradyents. Some become teachers while a select few become elites, or perhaps the champion of magic. Battling is supposed to be fun, but without a clear endgame in mind, that fun isn't so visible.

Danton had to take a long time to decide on a goal for himself. Even now does it feel strange, to fight for an ultimate power without a reason to use it. Living up to the name of his past father is apparently reason enough. He aimed for the absolute top of the chain, and though his quest was cut short by unfortunate circumstance, that only left the quest in Danton's capable hands. So the goal here is simple, despite how long it may actually take. Given the fact that he was just defeated in battle by this man in front of him calling himself the lead member of a gang, there was obviously a long way to go. Danton cleared his throat and gave Kite his simple answer. "My goal is to one day be in charge of Sprawn Valley. I want to challenge the champion of Leray magic and win."

Everyone else gave a noticeable expression of surprise, but Kite accepted that reply willingly. "Aiming for champion isn't an uncommon goal I hear these days. It's actually quite ambitious."

"Don't you have one similar enough?"

Danton's question to Kite was expected. After all, Kite knew he and his team weren't ready yet for such a big fight. The route gradyent would still kick him down with every attempt, so more training was just a passing necessity. "I guess it hasn't really been decided formally. Getting to be the strongest bunch of wielders is on the list right now, but that too would inevitably lead to us challenging the champion someday."

"I see..." Danton took a moment to analyze this gang. Most hit squads are usually in it just for the money. With control over a specific section of land, they easily target those just below their level in fights, and end up winning loads of credits, though Kite didn't mention that part. Is he really aiming to become as strong as ever? With similar goals in mind, it would actually make sense to join Trujima and just barrel towards Eldora Tower to wipe out the champion. But with this many people on the team— "I guess I'll join Trujima then."

"That's the spirit," Kite added while resting his arm on Danton's shoulder. "Well for now, you're in the back of the pack until we get you some special training and you prove yourself to be better than the other three here."

"I guess my earlier victory wouldn't determine that?"

"Not likely. You are strong, but still new. So there are a few things to learn first."

Danton figured that forgetting about Monoc Port for now should be acceptable. Training with a few new partners might actually be the best possible way of challenging the top of the chain anyway. "When should we train? I don't suppose you expect us to try it tonight with how exhausted—"

"Of course not," Kite finished. "I'm not a ridiculous person. I'm just stronger than you is all."

Don't trip over your own ego! Danton knew Kite would still be like this deep down. Kite really wants to be number one... But that's a good thing in this situation. If his goal suddenly becomes challenging the champion, winning won't come with difficulty for Kite. His confidence is also his own motivation. "Then we shall train tomorrow."

"Of course," Kite agreed. "My team will show off some of their skills to the wielders passing by, and that will give you something to learn. It also helps us get to know each other better. Might as well catch some rest tonight. I'll set up the tent."

Here's another surprise. "You live out here?" Danton figured they just set up the drumfire to establish a temporary base before heading into a hotel. Apparently, this method of living is much cheaper.

Kite lifted his index finger in a gesture to lecture the inexperienced newbie. "Now-now, a powerful gang like us can't afford to give up our best spot on Route 96. Besides, we have plenty of extra supplies and food to last us for a week. Vanoss usually handles the resupply operation to ensure we don't lose this spot to another gang."

He makes this sound like some secret organization operating like the military... Whatever. Sleeping in a tent will have to do for now. "Fair enough." Danton prepared to help everyone with the tent, but noticed that all eyes were on him, except for Kite's. They probably aren't as shy as they are curious of his skill or his motive. It's as if they all wanted to interrogate him to find out why Danton would be interested in joining a gang in the first place. The reason isn't important. The end result will speak for itself.

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<10/22/1962 – 09:12 | Route 96, Junon, Sprawn Valley>

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Chapter Theme Shift: 百鬼夜行 ~ Tutti Sound

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In the following morning that the gang slept through, Danton was formally introduced to the team members of the Trujima Gang, but not with a traditional handshake or a nice gesture. Today, everyone began with warm-up battles on Route 96. Any random person traveling from Monoc Port or Lennith City was challenged on the spot. Kite put more of the pressure on his team than himself or on Danton. The result was having Mainne, Gleeon, and Vanoss discuss their battle tactics in the middle of fighting their random challengers.

Just by observing could Danton and Kite see which battle tactics and styles each person went with most commonly. Gleeon demonstrated his skills first. Because of all the noise that the heavy battle caused on top of the Siriean dome cutting the sound level in half through the shield, Kite explained what he already knew about the man to Danton while watching the battle unfold.

"Gleeon is basically our brawn when battling in the field. Sure, he is really strong and has a high tolerance to pain from those piercing attacks, but his real strategy involves spells that invoke support auras such as Dampen Field and Armor of Darkness."

Danton understood immediately where that would play to the guy's strengths. "So he defends himself mainly with impressive support spells?"

"That, and anti-support spells. Gleeon's most popular strategy involves aura spells that sabotage the enemy with harmful auras, most of which can be a gamble to use in the field."

Danton didn't realize there were that many anti-support auras out there in the first place. He watched as Gleeon, who was already having an easy time with his opponent invoke one of the spells in example. But without an explanation for what the spell was, Danton wouldn't figure it out on his own.

"Kafire!" Gleeon cast the anti-support aura, causing a dark green radiance of light to surround the body of his opponent. Initially, the man in front of him panicked slightly since he too didn't know what that spell was about, but the result soon made itself clear when he tried to attack Gleeon with magic from a distance.

Danton watched and waited while a simple jade color glyphring was aimed at Gleeon, but the amount of time it took to unleash the soon to be Lightning Strike was beyond normal. It suddenly gave Gleeon sure warning about an imminent Lightning Strike spell, and he made the attempt to dispel the skill by spawning a twister of his own. Wind elemental magic can easily disrupt electrical elemental magic, so the choice was a good one. On top of that, Gleeon's MP levels were still in the high range.

Luckily for Danton, Kite was ready to automatically explain what was happening, since Kafire is another rare spell that few know about, particularly because it is hard to learn, even harder to strategize with. "Kafire isn't easy to learn, but when used, it creates an aura around the target which sabotages their ability to invoke magical spells with a speedy ejection. Suddenly, using something like Lightning Strike would cause the glyphring in use to require three times the focus and the time needed to successfully fire the payload. Trying to invoke an area attack would likely make that time more than a minute."

"Wow!" Danton couldn't believe he could have been faced with this earlier. Why did Gleeon hold back then? Maybe there is some sort of drawback to the ability? "What's the downside?"

Of course there would be one. Rare spells often have small drawbacks. "The Kafire aura around the same target allows their MP to be saved when used. The amount needed for any spell is therefore cut into a third. So even if their spell fails to work, their MP won't suffer as badly."

So that's why Gleeon held back. Against an unknown and potentially tough target, using abilities with moderate drawbacks would be out of the question.

Kite continued to educate Danton while Gleeon made short work of his target using other heavy attack spells from a distance. "Gleeon joined the team on the same day Mainne did, despite the both of them being strangers to each other. But the specifics never mattered to me. I simply decided to form a team in order to dominate territory. It is the easiest way to make a living."

As usual, Danton thought. But it does seem fair. It's not against the law or the rules to team up into groups and battle people individually in order to increase the odds of success per fight. In fact, the shared training can turn each individual of an entire team into an elite fighter compared to solo training, and of course, it enables them the option to have multi-battles, in which one group challenges the other under a single Siriean dome. Real teamwork then becomes paramount in the determinant of the victor.

"Gleeon taught me that aside from raw power in magical spells, every single person often leaves an opening for specific attack angles or specific spells that can be used against them with ease. For example, did you know that someone who is speedy and moves around quickly, as good as they are at close combat is five times more likely to rush in and charge at their targets without as much of a plan of attack? They're impatient and don't think things through often enough to win against someone who is more prepared and thorough. Or how about the panic principle? When you present your opponent with a situation unknown to them, no matter how insignificant the danger is against them, they will panic and make twice as many mistakes in the meantime trying to dispel what they don't understand."

It's incredible that Gleeon knows these things, but it's also strange how Kite is so analytical about the tactics of his teammates. He really pays this much attention to everyone? What was that nonsense then yesterday about Mainne using a different strategy? "Where does that leave Mainne?"

"Well let's wait for her battle next. It looks like Gleeon will have this wrapped up in the next few seconds." Kite wasn't off about his prediction either. In just another moment, Gleeon won the match via knockout, winning himself a small collection of credits that he and the other bet on. The route here was becoming hot with battles erupting everywhere in visual sight, distant as they were. Now that he was done, it was Mainne's turn to show off more of her skills for training. She already battled twice moments ago, but her fights were so easy that a rookie could have the same victorious result. Perhaps with a better challenger things will become clearer.

Kite had to wait though before another potential warrior came near them. In the meantime, Danton shook Gleeon and Mainne's hand.

"I guess you could say my specialty is speed and special evasion therapy." Mainne made the simplification as easy as ever for Danton.

Danton already knew this from their match last night, but did Kite really learn how to move from Mainne? Their styles weren't exactly the same. Mainne is speedy, but those metal wrist pads that extend to cover the tops of her entire hands were incredibly useful too. Using those to block requires an unwavering amount of coordination and focus. So who gave her those? "Your metal pads were a show before me, but what was all of that ice and wind attacks you threw at me last time? I get the feeling you don't normally invoke those spells."

Mainne knew that Kite was just as curious to hear this as Danton was despite his silence. Mainne was beginning to test new strategies, one which involved the principle: Instead of moving around quickly, prevent the target from moving quickly. Using a combination of ice and wind attacks to make the opponent too cold to want to move seems to do the trick best, since the chilling cold of those attacks is long lasting in Leray battles. It isn't as easy to adjust to. "Just some experiments with cold spells. My speed would be faster in comparison if the target were slower."

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

"I dare say it almost cost you the battle the first time you tried it."

How can he still think that? Danton said nothing, but even he knew the truth. Mainne nearly had him beaten before their rematch halfway into their battle. Mainne's cold spells gave Danton a chilling sensation he was never used to before. It's a similar sensation if he were to walk outside in the wind at ten degrees with shorts and a T-shirt. The cold becomes debilitating. Maybe Mainne should just decide to specialize in cold spells. She might win more often that way with less effort.

By the time the next battle began with Mainne and somebody else random, Gleeon took his break beside Kite, who then explained to Danton what her background was like. "There isn't much to learn about Mainne Gelica. You already know about her tactics. I just wonder how far they will take her."

Danton felt the dilemma become more intense. How could this blockhead realize the full potential of Gleeon but not Mainne? The last time Danton tried to explain Mainne's initial strategy to Kite, he just wouldn't begin to hear it.

"Graduated at Lennith Academy, second best to her class I hear. But as for the reason she likes to fight the way she does, we don't ask, and she won't tell."

"That's stupid." Danton raised his own eyes upon realizing that some of his thoughts were slipping out of his mouth. Wonder how much offense Kite would take from that. It's too late now. Might as well elaborate. "You're a team, but you don't try to figure out what happens in your lives?"

Kite glared Danton in the eyes with an aggravated expression. "People's personal lives are off limits if they say so. Mainne is an excellent fighter, but that's all that matters here."

That couldn't be further from the truth. Danton however didn't know what to say to argue any further. If Mainne is a totally unknown person, then how could she even be called a team member, or a friend? We know nothing about her!

"Gleeon has told me much more about himself, not that there is much to say, aside from the stories that sound more like jokes than anecdotes, but that's what he wanted to share, so that's how it is."

The sudden manly roaring sound from the side distracted Danton and Kite to that location, where Vanoss was also in a separate Siriean dome having his own battle with his long saber. Vanoss's current strategy was much like the last time Danton fought with him.

"And Vanoss. He prefers to fight with a sword, holding back on magic unless it be absolutely necessary. Right now, he can get away with it. The bonus side to that strategy is that he further refines his sword skills the less often he relies on magic. I recall him giving you quite a run for your money for a long period of the match."

"His skills resemble your own. Vanoss must have picked it up directly from you."

"Still so sharp," Kite credited. "Vanoss is a newer addition to the team, and in the beginning showed me such little potential with magic. But when I dueled him, I was impressed with his speed. He's actually faster up close than Mainne is. But with speed, skill is also a requirement. Against my better judgment, I decided to personally train him with a sword. It actually turned out to be the right call. In just a few weeks, the results were better than expected."

Vanoss is impressive. So Kite's specialty is knowledge of MP conservation, and that of impressive swordsmanship, and he passed this tactic down to Vanoss. They share the same skill on different levels. Kite is more aggressive though. There might still be a way to overcome him.

"You overcoming all three of them proved me wrong about your own skill level. But to think you were confident enough to actually challenge me to a duel for official leadership? That's something else. Something you're not telling me?"

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Chapter Theme Shift: Burning Night ~ Crysis 2 OST

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"I was bored. Honestly, if it weren't for what we talked about last night and this morning, after defeating you, I would have most likely quit the gang and gave up the title to someone else instead."

"So then you don't want to run the Trujima Gang?" Kite pressured. "You only wanted to test your own skills after realizing how repetitive the people on this road were?"

Danton eyed Kite before nodding. That description of this past week was spot on. Danton knew that an actual hit squad with a well-established leader would defiantly have a high-powered strength or magical level. But to think they were this strong... Yet even they failed in their last attempt to defeat the official gradyent of this road.

Shortly after the victory of Vanoss and Mainne, the entire team regrouped together, huddling close to Kite while the conversation continued on. Danton had to shake Vanoss's hand too, but his gesture didn't match his earlier personality at all.

"You put up a fair fight last night. I wish I could be good enough right now to rematch you and win."

It's like Vanoss is much more laid back than Kite. They're nearly total opposites, and Vanoss is really just a nice guy interested in battles. "You'll get your chance someday," Danton promised.

"But that's enough about us," Kite exclaimed. "I would like to hear your story." Danton's fighting style wasn't worth asking about, because there wasn't really a way of understanding it. Last night, Danton didn't stick to any particular strategy. In fact, that might be why Gleeon lost to him so easily. Can't exploit a weakness if you aren't creating one in the first place. Danton was holding back and waiting for a weakness to exploit for himself. When against Mainne, he went all out with his close combat skills. He's a skilled swordsman too, and somehow manages with such a short blade. It's like there is no strategy there. He just decides on things at random!

Danton soon realized the flaw in that question. All he would have to do to keep anyone from learning anything about him is claim that information to be too personal to share, like Mainne did. Either way, Mainne, Vanoss, and Gleeon were also eagerly listening for the same story. Might as well just get it over with and share the truth. Kite might feel sorry for asking about this afterwards. "Well I started at a young age just off of Lennith City."

"So you went to Lennith Academy too?"

Since Vanoss was the one asking, nobody bothered to warn him that he was interrupting. Danton answered the question and continued with his shortened life story. "Actually no. During the early stages of my training, my family was hit with some kind of illness called cancer, particularly on my dad. My mother was fine physically, but after he died, she just became distant." Danton held no flex in his voice, since he was so used to this fact by now, but he could see the instant regret of their curiosity on everyone's face. He continued talking in order to avoid any of the emotional response they might have. "My dad was only able to help out for a short time, so one of the local gradyents there personally trained me instead of the school. Our family was poor around that time, so it worked out for the best having a gradyent teach me how to fight for free." It was probably out of sympathy since that guy was friends with Danton's father.

"I can't believe your dad died from cancer. That's horrible!" Mainne reacted as many expected her to, but she had no idea Danton was walking around by himself with such a burden!

Then Kite reacted with the key knowledge he was searching for. "So a registered gradyent actually trained you?" That's where his strength is. Danton is simply highly skilled, and probably learned a lot of powerful magical spells starting at such a younger age. His tactic is - simply being good at fighting, even without being officially educated on spells.

It figures Kite would show little remorse about his family, but Danton actually didn't mind this. It's tiring having people act like Mainne every time he has to explain this. "Actually he's a retired gradyent. We're still on good terms when I go back home, but I've started my own little adventure weeks ago in this direction."

"So you didn't go to school? How did you get a license then?"

Gleeon nodded in disappointment that Vanoss easily forgot about the simplicity of the registration system. "It's obvious Vanoss. He took his post-class test to receive whatever level license he qualified for. If you have money to take such a test, you can bypass an entire course. Having Danton train with a registered or retired gradyent would make such training legal in the first place." It's actually interesting. He became this powerful without ever stepping foot in school. Somehow, it seems like the disconnect from his own family might have toughened him up more than he'd expect.

"Well in any case," Kite projected, "I'm sorry to hear about your father's passing. I'm impressed that you've come this far suffering through such tragedies."

Danton felt less validation hearing that from Kite, but he didn't question it on the off chance that Kite isn't as much of an ambitious idiot as he previously thought. "Thanks."

"There is one thing I should ask however, that is regarding your so-called journey."

"What's that?" Danton had the same puzzled look as the others did.

Kite delivered the question, wondering just how tough his own opponent would be. "If you've come this far on Route 96, and you've been practicing around here for several weeks, that must mean that at some point in time, you've faced off against Leray gradyent Belzer. Mind if I ask the result?"

"Sure." Danton knew this question was coming too. Kite really just wants to win every battle and stay on top. Aiming for the top should be his only goal. If Kite lost to gradyent Belzer, surely would he require as much information on him as possible for tricks and tips. "I didn't defeat him."

Naturally, everyone except Kite was mildly shocked to hear that, but Vanoss felt less surprised too despite the expression he gave a second ago. Belzer is a powerful fighter. If he's more powerful than Kite, than surely Danton won't be able to defeat him either. Still, what is Danton doing on this side of the road then? Gradyents don't allow wielders to pass unless they win those battles, with a few exceptions. "That guy just gets on my nerves!"

"I take it you lot didn't have much luck against him either?" Danton already knew that Trujima lost against Belzer too, but it was a little amusing to put Kite in the spotlight with any matches he loses. He could see his temper and pride mangling together in his body language.

Kite replied after a tough exhale. "Belzer is a tough gradyent. We're planning to rematch the guy sometime this week."

What? This is the first news Mainne has heard about this, and it doesn't look like Vanoss or Gleeon heard of this plan either. Why does Kite care so much about looking cool in front of other people? He won't win just because he wants to.

"Okay. Why not try it now then?"

"What?" Kite couldn't hold back anymore. Danton sure can be annoying sometimes. Who does he think he is? He already lost to Belzer!

"I'm talking about rematching Belzer," Danton clarified. This time, he wasn't teasing Kite around. If they're really going to try and become the champion, might as well act like it and drill down towards Eldora City, starting now. Besides, Belzer really is annoying. Danton was still haunted by the humiliating defeat from before. Surely, Kite must feel the same way. "Let's go do it tonight."

"Tonight?!" Kite repeated. "What's gotten into you kid? You're not ready to take on that much of a challenge."

"Then you take him on."

"Pardon?" That's out of the question, boy!

Danton delivered the logic he saw before him. "Belzer is still a gradyent, and if the leader of a gang wins the battle, the entire team is allowed through should we specify this before the battle." This is true for most gradyents. They'll assume an entire team is as strong as its leader. This would be one of the many exceptions noted before.

Vanoss pointed out an interesting fact before Kite could even reply. "Why bother? It didn't stop you from getting past him somehow."

Danton didn't mind hiding the fact of how he got here. "I snuck around him. So what? I wanted to see Monoc Port last night, so I made my chance going through undetected."

"Couldn't we just do that then? You know, in the other direction?" Kite offered.

How amusing. Even Kite doesn't want to fight Belzer. Yet he is supposedly more powerful than Danton himself? Does he think he's getting off that easy? "That would defeat the whole purpose of having a battle." With Kite's attention on him again, Brash elaborated why he wanted to take Belzer down a notch. "Didn't we just decide that our goal was to challenge the championship?"

"And you seem to think we're ready for that now?" Gleeon interrupted.

Kite put his hands up to gesture Danton to stop talking. "Hold on. Hold on. That was your goal. Not our goal."

"What is our goal?" Mainne needed to know since she assumed Danton's goal was the same as Kite's.

Kite however made this as simple as it could be. "Our goal is to become the strongest gang in all of Sprawn Valley. However, there can only be one champion. The act itself of us all challenging the same champion would separate our group."

"Not if we all make it past the first few stages."

"What is he talking about?" Kite looked to his teammates to discover if Danton possibly planned something behind his back, but everyone else was just as clueless.

Danton again tried to reiterate his plan of action by including everyone. "Strongest gang? Just take over for the official elites then." In an instant, everyone's eyes and expressions sharpened into a state of understanding. "There are five of us here, the perfect amount of people which could fit into that tower's hierarchy. One of us becomes champion, and the rest of us becomes official elite members. Even if you're not champion, being an elite is practically the same as being the strongest support member of a gang. You simply change your home from this tent over to Eldora Tower."

Only silence endured Danton's elaborate explanation of his goal. It wasn't without total ambition, and it involved everyone in the group. Kite sure as hell didn't expect this... Five people? Wait a second! This was Danton's plan all along! If he joins Trujima, that would give him the perfect excuse to use the rest of the gang as support for drilling all the way down to Eldora and challenging the championships. Having teammates simply speeds up that time, but he isn't in charge of that decision. What makes him think that rushing in right now is the best idea for—

"Not too bad for a newbie. For once, I actually like the plan," Mainne replied.

Kite didn't expect this either. Danton's rash impatience shouldn't be impressionable on anybody, and he had to move quickly to stop this. "Don't be an idiot! Taking over the champion's chambers is a nice idea, but we're nowhere near ready for that. We would need years of training before that would even become feasible."

"Okay," Danton accepted. "And who do you propose we train with? Everyone else on this route is only as useful as target practice. You want to get better at fighting? Then we need to target those we haven't beaten yet. Now is never a bad time to start."

"What the hell has gotten into you man?" Kite finally stopped caring whether his aggravation was noticeable or not. This tactic isn't going to work. "Did you forget about the rules we established last night? You're not the leader of the Trujima Gang, and that means you don't make the call on when or who we fight."

"Then forget about a group decision," Danton tested. "I'll go back there and fight him on my own. Seems to be simple. You don't want to fight him for whatever reason." Kite should have plenty of money saved to retry that battle too, so funding isn't an excuse.

"You aren't allowed to go off on your own either."

"Interesting, since I hear your own teammates do it all the time." Danton knew Kite would have to agree to this idea sooner or later. Danton might as well just quit Trujima, but it would only leave a bad impression on him. Care to change your mind before you blow it with everyone else?

"Well they aren't supposed to. As leader of Trujima, I say we need more official practice before we show Belzer who is boss. You won't get anywhere by fighting a losing battle."

"I'll learn more about the battle whether I win or lose. That's life!"

"And whose dumb advice did that come out of?"

"Guys!" Gleeon knew it was no use calming down these airheads. Kite has a temper worse than Danton, so a fight like this was bound to happen sooner or later.

"Just stop arguing about it!" Mainne's interjection went totally ignored while the two babbled on about which one of them was right.

But then Danton added a small fact that soon made Kite regret the rhetorical question he asked him. "My parents. That's who gave me the advice..." Finally, there was peace and quiet. Brash couldn't hold Kite responsible for making a mistake in his own judgment, but if he can't realize that trying and failing is better than not trying, this interesting truce will never work. Becoming a Leray master will be much harder, and would demand a lot more work. "My parents taught me, that everyone involved in a Leray battle learns something. Even when you lose, you realize your own mistakes and learn how to prevent repeating them the next time. I won't put it lightly. Belzer flattened me like a pancake. So I might lose again if I challenge him tonight, but I know I'll last longer than before. I'll last long enough to figure out how to win and then finally take him out. Or, you could try it yourself. Man up a little and show us more of what you can do."

Kite however wasn't budging with that pathetic attempt to call him out. "Whatever Brash. If you leave right now to go challenge Belzer, it will only show me that you have too much to learn to be in our group, mostly by taking things into your own hands so early."

You made your own bed Kite. "Then I'll simply just quit this gang. I can't see it going anywhere."

Immediately, Mainne protested to the idea. "No... Danton, don't just—"

"Let him go," Kite decided. "If he thinks that having such high confidence is all it takes to win his battles, let him learn the mistakes by himself. I'm not carrying teammates who can't respect a little discipline." Danton didn't seem to move much from his statement. Is there any regret right now in that man's thick skull of his?

The others had concerning expressions, but everyone allowed Kite's words to sink in further and further, all until Mainne decided this was far enough. "Then I'll quit too." Mainne's reaction had the entire team turning in surprise. Kite is being a total jerk. What have we all been doing in all this time? Training, training, and more training. Ever since Mainne joined Trujima, she and the rest of the team have all stayed very close to Route 96, never going anywhere else. "What Danton is saying makes more sense anyway. I didn't sign up to stand here all year and twiddle my thumbs."

"Mainne!" Kite wasn't getting through to her. What sparked this rebellion all the sudden?

"I just wanted to have fun with magic. Even if it is crazy, challenging the championship even knowing I can't win is far more fun than freezing my ass out here in the middle of nowhere."

Though his reaction was also delayed, Vanoss tensed all of his muscles, and drew his sword pointed to the ground. "Damn it all."

"What are you doing Vanoss?"

Vanoss held the sword out further, as an offering towards Kite. The blade technically belonged to him after all. "I don't want to disband Trujima... But after everything you've taught me, I can't just let my skills go to waste. After everything your new friend just said, we really are just wasting our talent standing out here every month, aren't we? Sorry Kite, but we just can't stay here on this route forever."

"This is insane!" Damn him! Kite finally realized it after all that time. Asking Danton his life story was the same as activating a time bomb! By admitting openly that his parents died, and aligning their advice with his lifelong goal, Danton just made himself the most likable member of the entire gang, and he knew that it would. Look at the way he's grinning in disguise. You just wanted to shift the position of power to yourself by popularity instead of skill level, didn't you Danton? Someone as crafty as this must know of things even he could benefit to learn.

"I'll at least give you a minute to decide," Vanoss offered. "But if you can't at least go along with our goal to become the new elites of Eldora Tower, then I'll hand this blade back to you, and I'll join Brash Danton instead. Otherwise, I still want you to be the leader in all other decisions."

How loyal. Danton figured Vanoss might have a difficult time disrespecting the man who trained him, but this is the right move. Kite is holding all of them back to maintain a status quo, and it's a disgraceful sight to experience.

"Alright! Fine!" Kite didn't care, but his sudden change in mind wiped the stone expression clean off Danton's face. "Keep the sword. Mainne? Chill off. We're going to rematch Belzer. And after that, we'll slowly make our way towards Eldora Tower to participate in the championships."

"Are you sure?" Gleeon didn't know whether his own question was an attempt to solidify Kite's claim, or to see if he really was okay with sacrificing his own personal principle for the sake of being in charge of their group. All things considered, Gleeon wasn't on board with leaving with the newbie. As flaws as Kite is, he of all people understands that everybody needs more discipline, something Danton wouldn't know anything about.

How did this happen? Danton was sure that Kite was the kind of person unwilling to show any weakness in front of other people. No way would he actually give up his pride in leading a gang just for the sake of the people close to him... Or maybe he isn't such a bad person after all.

"Yes, I'm sure. I might have underestimated Brash in more ways than one. Who knows? Even if I still think this is a bad idea, maybe I'll end up learning something from him."

Mainne was speechless. Having Kite change his mind is one thing, but even after defeating Danton in a battle, for Kite to accept the remote possibility that he would possibly learn something from the guy he seems to dislike the most, that's certainly far from normal. How did Kite agree to this? If he is still the leader, what is he in charge of now that we're following Danton's lead?

"And we can rematch Belzer tonight?" Danton established.

"Tell you what kid. I'll let you take a swing at him first. If I notice an opening from Belzer during your defeat, I'll be sure to pass the memo." Danton must want to be in charge of Trujima, and he'll get to do that regardless of who is stronger with magic, unless Kite plays against him correctly. This must be some kind of challenge! Danton must be trying to show Kite that he is stronger in other ways than Leray magic. We'll see who's really better at keeping a herd.

Maybe Kite will see this as some kind of challenge. Doesn't feel like it though. Danton didn't let the thought bother him. If he could really make friends with all four of them, how bad could he really be? The same could be said for Kite, since the others are still willing to follow his lead on other unrelated decisions. Still, Danton couldn't get the butterflies out of his stomach. He just announced to the gang and to himself to challenge gradyent Belzer again. He did manage to learn a few things in the time afterwards, but the last battle with him was a far stretch. Maybe tonight will be different.