A Stranger

It was the day when Jaden was supposed to officially become a CREDHOS, and he was filled with doubt. He couldn't see himself as one. Unlike everyone else, it wasn't an honor for him.

'I think I should have left when I had the chance. I'm really not cut out to be a hero.' he thought to himself.

Jaden had always sought the logic behind everything, but he couldn't find any logic in sacrificing oneself so that someone else could live happily.

He admired heroes and their courage and heroism, but he saw no reason for himself to play the hero.

"Still lost in your complex thoughts, genius?" It was Kenzo's voice that snapped him out of his reverie.

"Ah... hey, Ken!"

"You don't look too good, Jaden, even after that great speech." Kenzo said with a big smile and great enthusiasm.

"Tell me, Ken." However, Jaden wanted to clear his doubts. Maybe he was the only one who had truly understood Robert's speech.

Kenzo immediately put on a very serious expression, which surprised Jaden a bit because it was very rare to see him look this serious outside of battles.

'I must look much more pensive and serious than I realize right now.' Jaden thought.

Kenzo probably put on that serious face after noticing that Jaden looked a bit too serious.

"Did you really listen to what Robert said?" Jaden asked.

"Of course."

"And do you like it? Do you enjoy playing the hero? Dying for others, strangers?"

"Hey, genius, what is life to you?" Kenzo responded to his question with another question. Jaden didn't have time to lecture him, so he just chose to answer normally.

"I have a very long and complex definition of life... Actually, I don't have one. All I have are several unanswered questions when I try to define it. Life according to religions, according to science, according to individuals. Why this, why that, how? When?"

"Haha, as expected of a genius! But in reality, it must be really boring to be a genius. I understand why you don't have enough time for fighting." Kenzo said before returning to his serious look and saying.

"Jaden, I can't do anything else but fight. There's nothing that makes me happier than a good fight, and there's nothing I hate more than seeing others suffer."

...

...

"Haha, it's too strange. My passion is about causing others to suffer, but I hate seeing others suffer. And if I hate seeing people suffer, it's because I love seeing them happy, full of life."

"I don't have the exceptional IQ you have, nor any position to eradicate the suffering I see. All I have is my talent for fighting." Kenzo said, clenching his fist and looking at it.

"Hey, Ken, what you're saying is getting too wise; it's becoming weird." Jaden tried to lighten the mood.

"Haha, listen, genius, it's a riddle." Kenzo responded, not giving Jaden a chance to say anything else.

"I'm strong, quite strong, and I hate to see people suffer, so I fight for them. Who am I?"

"Spider-Man."

"What's Spaï de main?"

"Hahaha! It's a super old movie that Dad likes. I think if you saw it, you'd be a fan." Jaden replied.

The world had changed significantly, and some things like movies and music had evolved, but there were still people keeping certain things alive.

"For your riddle, it's a hero." Jaden answered Kenzo's obvious riddle.

"Exactly. Not everyone is as strong as I am. Why? Don't you think that because of this blessing, I'm obligated to help the weaker ones? And if I die, it means I wasn't up to what was given to me. So yes, I like playing the hero because..."

"I am a hero!" Kenzo shouted, although there was some noise; his voice was a bit too loud.

"Hey, don't say it so loudly; you might attract attention. It's embarrassing." Jaden looked around.

"What are you talking about? Being a hero is super cool." but Kenzo didn't share the same view. He added, his voice loud, proud, and confused that Jaden found it embarrassing to be a hero.

"Okay, okay." Jaden hurriedly replied to get him to stop his performance, but all eyes were already on them.

"Calm down, hero, I haven't finished my speech yet." Robert pulled him a bit out of his embarrassing position, but Jaden still had the embarrassment of his life, unlike his friend, who had a big smile.

"Good! Moving on." Robert said after regaining everyone's attention.

"However, another person will take over from here." After these words, a beautiful face rose.

She had blue hair, her beautiful eyes of the same color were full of charm, and her figure was simply majestic.

She wore the red CREDHOS uniform, as well as a crescent-shaped pendant.

"Hello, everyone! I'm Charlotte Korea, and I'll be your guide from today." Charlotte said in an enchanting voice.

"A guide? Why?" But just before he could dive into too much thought, Charlotte continued.

"As you know, before creating your own team, you'll be required to acquire knowledge from a team that has several years of experience."

"I know, and I think it's a shitty rule." someone in the crowd of aspirant CREDHOS replied.

'Huh? Who is he?' Jaden was amazed. Who could say such things in the presence of all these powerful CREDHOS?

"I haven't trained all this time to be babysat." he added.

'Ouch, I think he hit hard there...'

"And then there's that rich kid next to me who's in this room without any training, as if money really buys everything."

'Huh? He's looking at me.' Jaden was surprised by this remark, so that's how he's really seen, a rich kid? But why is it a problem to come from a wealthy family? He was being blamed for something he couldn't change; it was illogical to hate someone because of their lineage.

Strangely, everyone's eyes were on Jaden, and they all seemed to share the same opinion as the young man emitting an aura of anger, with thick furrowed brows and eyes dark and sparkling with irritation. His build suggested he was ready to fight at any moment, and his uniform was rather worn and casual. He had slight acne marks and scars on his pale skin.

For the first time, Jaden felt left out, the feeling was so toxic that he wanted to disappear. His face had lost color, and he felt like his heart had sped up.

'What's happening to me, what is this sensation?' He was in shock, his reaction was astonishing even to himself.

He had always been quite self-assured, so why this sudden stress? Why had a simple sentence put him in this state?

"Ahem, ahem." Charlotte drew attention to herself after this 'normal' tension between colleagues, pulling Jaden out of his pensive and stressed state.

"Whether you want it or not, that's the rule. Either you submit or you go home." Charlotte replied before adding with a smile that wasn't very warm.

"Don't think you're indispensable to the CREDHOS, Tony Kingsley. Not only will this attitude attract a lot of enemies, it may also lead to your downfall."

"Tsk..." That was all Tony said, he knew there were limits despite his temperament.

Charlotte then said before placing a tablet in front of her.

"Your data has been analyzed, the selectors have made their choices, and as you know, you can be selected by more than one team, and if that's the case, you'll choose your team."

Already knowing his team, Jaden wondered why Rei and Rush had asked him to come here, to meet these aspirants to get acquainted with them?

'But it's probably a lost cause, these guys hate me without even knowing me.' he decided it was better for him to leave.

"Hey, Ken! We have nothing more to do here, right?" Jaden asked his teammate, who apparently was somewhere else.

"Robert called me a hero, I'm really a hero." Kenzo said after Jaden's question.

"Are you still on that page, Ken?" Jaden shook his head exasperatedly before raising his voice.

"Are you still on that page, Ken?"

Pah, pah, pah...

That was the sound of Jaden slapping Kenzo on the shoulders to wake him up from his dream, which was probably as simple as the one he was having.

"Wake up, Ken." However, right after that, Charlotte's voice rang out.

"Tony Kingsley."

"So he's the first one to be called, how many teams will want him."