Even though Kai only had the matter of the Soul Thief to settle left, he knew he couldn't do so in the span of time that he had left in the academy. As long as the Soul Thief was in the academy, then Kai could at least keep a marker on him so it was best to not get him out before then. On the other hand, allowing the Soul Thief to roam freely in the academy's halls was also bad. He needed the academy to remain strong for the upcoming war.
With everything else settled, Kai began making plans almost every minute of the day. He kept on searching for what the Soul Thief might be doing at the academy because, from his memories, the Soul Thief hadn't interfered with any matters here. Being hunted by Kai must've made him resort to these measures.
"Kenji-"
"Sorry Anne, I can't talk right now."
Right after the first class ended, Kai rushed out of the room to consult with the guardian who he was exchanging information with almost every day. The buffer time between this class and the next was about fifteen minutes so Kai had to hurry.
Once Kai finished talking with the guardian and went over to class, he focused on his notes rather than the actual lesson, he also didn't realize that he sat away from Anne. If Kai were to see her right now, he'd notice that Anne was actually glaring at him but with his entire vision narrowed to the notebook, her glare was for naught.
After the second lesson is the break for food before the last lesson of the day. Intent on asking him to eat with her, Anne approached Kai but just as she invited him...
"Sorry, go on ahead, I have to go do something."
She was shot down immediately. Anne was dumbstruck, to say the least. He had always stuck with her even if she tried to get rid of him yet he actually refused when she actually invited him.
Fine, if you're going to be like that, then I'll ignore you too!
Anne mentally told Kai whose back was the only thing she could see as he sped through the halls.
"Rose."
"Kenji!"
A smile bloomed on Amelia's face as she saw Kai arrive.
"Sorry, did you wait long?"
"No, not at all, let's go."
Hooking her arm with Kai's, they walked away.
A distance away, there was a figure who looked like she had just lost her soul. Anne was walking towards the cafeteria and heard Kai's voice by the side but by the time she got there, she only saw her linking arms with him.
Isn't she that other transfer student?!
Anne silently followed behind them. Kai and Amelia met up with each other on the way to meet the others who were already at their meeting point. It was to deal with the Soul Thief and the tournament, he needed all of them to be on the same page. Although he could give his thoughts to others, he couldn't read the thoughts of others or make them transmit their thoughts to someone else.
Since Kai was planning on meeting the others, he wanted to make sure nobody would eavesdrop on them, that's why he kept Soul Call active the moment he left the room.
"We're going to hide at the next corner."
Amelia didn't respond at all and continued walking. Once they reached the corner and turned, Anne sped up as to not lose them but once she passed it, the figures of Amelia and Kai couldn't be seen.
"Eh?"
Anne looked around. It was a straight hallway without any classrooms so they couldn't have gone into one.
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"Got it?"
Date, Iori, Kazuki, and Kei nodded their heads. Yoko mostly didn't care about the discussion and showed no response.
"But, isn't that risky?"
Iori asked Kai.
"We don't have any other choice. He's taken a public identity, one wrong move and we'd be enemies with the kingdom on a political side. The angel that Erina fought is definitely related to him as well."
He didn't tell them what he thought about that angel but it seemed like Erina, Amelia, and Sachiko already had an idea. An angel was a being subservient to a God, they wouldn't carelessly betray their own Gods. That leaves two possibilities: one, the Soul Thief was working for a God and two, the angel is a corpse revived by the Soul Thief by using a soul he held.
Both choices were quite frightening to think about. If it was the former then that meant they couldn't carelessly deal with him, Kai wasn't at the level of a God, it isn't an exaggeration to say that a God can destroy him with just one look but if it's the latter, then that meant the Soul Thief's research had succeeded and it isn't just any ordinary one he revived, it was an angel.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Since he already succeeded and on something as strong as an angel, then that meant he could convert humans easily. Thinking about the possible victims, Kai grit his teeth.
Could his goal in the academy be to find a suiting soul or an empty body to put a chosen soul in? Either way, it was bad news.
Dealing with him early would prevent that but more problems would happen in the future. He had to take care of the Soul Thief in secret and soon. That's why he contacted everyone today, to inform them about the plan about the Soul Thief. Right after the tournament, when the blind swordsman is defeated then they'd be able to deal with the Soul Thief's matters a lot more easily.
Still, it won't do me harm to leave Anne a message about the Soul Thief though he had to do it on his last day.
Thinking about all this, Kai went into the tinier details about his plan with everyone before wrapping it up.
"Yoko, can you come with me for a bit?"
Right before everyone started to go their separate ways, Kai invited Yoko. Erina and Amelia didn't seem to mind as they went on ahead.
"Nn."
Only making noise in response, she really likes to save as many words as possible.
Kai thought so while leading her towards the field.
"You want to practice? I don't mind but class is going to begin soon, are you fine with skipping?"
"Yeah, I just have to talk with you for a bit. I thought it would be best to do so while fighting."
"You know me well."
Yoko smiled while taking a wooden sword from the racks and handing Kai another.
"Ready, start!"
She hadn't even taken her position or a stance before attacking Kai. Of course, he already expected she'd do this so he wasn't flustered in the least and blocked each and every one of Yoko's strikes.
"I decided to tell you first, not Erina or Amelia but you need to promise me that unless I give you permission, you aren't allowed to speak a word of it to anyone."
Kai spoke while doing a thrust at Yoko's shoulder.
"I don't mind but why?"
Yoko stepped to the side and hit Kai's sword from the bottom to off his balance.
"It's because you're from this world and right now, I'm sure that I can trust you completely."
Kai did a flip to avoid Yoko's counter and then charged out once more. Yoko didn't talk and just kept on attacking, blocking, attacking, countering until Kai spoke.
"First, something that both Erina and Amelia know, I'm not from this world."
"Not from this world?"
Yoko asked while blocking another attack.
"I was born in a different world, died there, and woke up here as a baby."
Kai took half a step forward to decrease the distance between them and strengthen his attack but Yoko slid his sword off of hers and attacked with her elbow.
Kai caught her elbow with his free hand.
"You don't seem too surprised."
"I've had suspicions of you being from another world ever since I read about the heroes."
Arata and the others were one thing as they didn't know Kai when he was a kid but Yoko did. She knew how strange he acted at times and the words he spoke that didn't exist here.
"Is that what you wanted to tell me?"
Yoko said in disappointment.
"No, it's something else. You just needed to know about that before this."
Kai managed to point his sword at Yoko's neck. Both of them separated and took a different stance.
"Yoko, if I told you that in a little more than two years, this world and everything in it will be in chaos, would you believe me?"
Yoko neither moved nor talked but Kai waited.
"Yes."
"I see."
A smile crept up on Kai's face before quickly vanishing. He pointed his sword forward.
"Ready, start!"
Both of them vanished from place. Flash Step was being used to its fullest. They were fighting at a speed leagues above from before. Each and every attack they used was accompanied by the power of instantaneous speed. Angles impossible to be blocked were blocked by making use of that speed.
This was a level of skill nobody in the academy had.
"I knew it. You're really a genius."
"I won't hesitate even if you praise me."
Though Yoko said that, her face was evidently smug.
She had hidden her power from everyone and could actually use Flash Step to this level. Although she wasn't anywhere near Kai's level, she was definitely the most proficient among the friends he knows.
They were on the academy grounds but the place they picked was far removed from the academy's regular spots so there was no worry for someone seeing them.
For hours, if one were to listen in from afar, they'd hear the sounds of wooden swords hitting each other over and over at insane speeds. Neither of them got tired, in fact, they went even faster than when they had first started. During that time, Kai revealed many of his secrets to her while Yoko listened intently.
The secrets he told her were things that even Erina and Amelia didn't know.
By the end of it, Yoko collapsed by a tree on Kai's shoulder who was right beside her.
"Hey... this is probably the first time you opened up to me like this, isn't it?"
Yoko slightly laughed.
"I guess so. I always thought to myself that revealing all of this would bring disaster but who would be the one to bring it?"
Even when they were children, Kai kept a lot of secrets to himself.
"I'm glad... Akane would be glad too..."
Yoko's eyes were about half-closed at that point and she leaned on Kai's shoulder even more.
"...It's okay for me to aim for your heart next, isn't it...?"
At Yoko's muttering, Kai's eyes widened but before he could ask her, she had already fallen asleep. Thinking that he'd at least let her rest, Kai closed his eyes.
On that day, Kai finally slept for the first time in weeks.
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When Kai woke up the next day, Yoko was already gone but there was a water container and some wrapped food beside him. It looked like she had tried to wake him up but gave up and left him provisions instead.
Looking at the sun, it was probably about noon.
Kai was about to get up but a blanket fell off of him.
"..."
Kai smiled. For the first time in weeks, he finally laid some of the worries in his heart to rest. He had told Yoko about Emi and what he had seen thinking that she'd hate him for letting Emi die but instead, she looked relieved. Although she never told him why she was relieved, it wasn't because of Emi's death, it was probably because she accepted her brother.
'If she can accept him, then why can't I?'
That was most likely what was going through Yoko's mind at the time but unless she told him, he'd never really know.
Kai stood up, ate the food Yoko left, cleaned his uniform and then headed back for the third class of the day. When he arrived there though, Anne had dragged him out to the hallway.
"Anne, what is it?"
Anne's eyes were swimming all over the place but she seemed to have made a decision as she looked into Kai's eyes. She took out the roses hidden behind her back, the ones that Kai gave her.
Ah, I have an insanely bad premonition—
"Satou Kenji, I like you too! I'll go out with you!"
Before Kai could even finish his thoughts, Anne shouted.
And just like that, the rest of Kai's week was doomed to become chaotic.
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Day XX Month 05 Year XX
Kenji didn't try to talk to me or get close to me all day, I also saw him with that other girl during the break, could it be that he's tired of me?! What should I do?! He also didn't give me a rose, does that mean he's done?! If only I accepted his confession earlier!
No, I've decided, I'm going to confess tomorrow. Satou Kenji, I like you!
-Anne
Anne's journal became a diary.