3 Step On Me

Masaru Hayashi was just your average guy. With his black hair and black eyes, alongside his so-so face, he didn't stand out at all. Hailing from a normal family in a relatively small Eastern Kingdom known as, Yume, he promised him and his family he'd make something of himself as soon as they knew of his enrollment in Neu Academy. Though it was only two weeks into his first year at the Academy, Masaru couldn't help but begin to question his perception of himself as an, "Ordinary Guy."

"I want her to step on me," one of his friends said, staring at Hayden. She was quite tall for a woman, taller than nearly every boy. She must've had nice long legs, Masaru figured.

It only took him a few seconds to process everything that happened. He covered his face with his hands, flushing in embarrassment.

'Am I a pervert?' he asked himself. After all, to his friend's words, he instantly began thinking about her long legs. Masaru's parents always said to him that the type of crowd he hung around told a lot about himself.

So...

Was Masaru Hayashi just an ordinary pervert?

*****

"Hahaha! Suck my dick Sword Saint!" Hayden stuck out her tongue and flipped her off as she laughed at The Sword Saint's long face. She had lost to her in a duel, again. Her irritating actions only made each loss worse to experience.

"Yeah! Suck her dick Sword Saint!" Artoria's eyes couldn't help but twitch at Hayden's fanclub echoing what she said.

Honestly, she couldn't understand what they liked about the white haired girl. She was so vulgar, and had poor sportsmanship. Though her skill was undeniable...

Artoria sighed quietly to herself as she went to sit down next to her sister. She began to watch the other students be called up to spar.

She could only be thankful tomorrow was a Magic day instead of a Physical day. Though she did dread the day after where she would be put against that vulgar woman again.

*****

In Neu Academy, the curriculum was including towards all talents. For Combat students, their was Magic and Physical days, which switched everyday. Magic days focused on, well, Magic Theory, Magic Control, and other subjects which students chose before the beginning of the school year. On Physical days, the curriculum was spars, physique training, theory, and other subjects.

Hayden did his best to ace everything. He read up on Magic theory, refreshed his rusty swordsmanship, practiced Magic Control, and everything else diligently. He was The Best Student, so the teachers didn't mind his bad attitude towards his classmates, and he was planning to keep it that way.

'The Best Student Title increases learning speed and stat growth by fifty percent.' It was mouth wateringly good.

'It sucks I have to wait until midterms to get it though...' he sighed. In the game you couldn't get it until the end of the first year, as the game started right after midterms. And the conditions to keep it were pretty hard when you had to juggle the dating sim aspect of it.

'I should visit the dungeon under the Academy soon.' The dungeon was a main plot point in the game's story, and only Masaru could enter it with those he choses to bring. The teen mistakenly stumbles upon it after being down because he did terribly on the midterms. The plot of the game ensues.

'I need to get to floor 25, slay that slippery bastard, Nidhogg, and get the Yggdrasil branch.' It was a legendary item. The best item he had currently was unique. So it was the first legendary of many, he supposed.

"H-Here!"

"Hm?" Hayden was interrupted from his musings as a red haired teen approached him, letter in hand. Grease, and gravy, lathered his face as he was in the midst of eating drumsticks, and mashed potatoes with gravy.

"What's this?" Hayden asked as he grabbed the envelope with his mess covered hand. The red haired boy winced upon seeing that, but after realizing his question, scurried away with a red face as though furious.

Hayden blinked. 'That's weird, I don't remember him...' He remembered all the people he was an asshole towards, a precautionary measure of sorts. Of course, that didn't really help when he was an asshole towards everyone, but he digresses. Opening the letter he read it.

"Meet behind the boys dormitory after school, signed, Ned. Do you know who this guy is Kea?" He looked up at questioned his friend after reading the letter aloud. The taciturn girl shook her head.

"What could he want?" His messy hand rubbed his chin, getting his face even messier.

*****

"What could he want?" Kea didn't know if her friend was purposely this clueless, or just actually oblivious. Even SHE knew what the guy was going to do.

Looking at Hayden's group of admirers who all high-fived the red haired boy, Ned, she sighed. They probaby goaded the poor boy into doing it, a sacrifice, she guessed.

"Do you think he's gonna fight me? One of Astoria's or Artoria's admirers who's angry at me for insulting them or something?" she inquired.

"..." Kea just stared at her. How could someone be so far off the mark, and yet so close too?

"Oh boy, can't wait to make him eat dirt," Hayden rubbed her hands together as she smiled evilly. Kea couldn't help but pray for the poor boy in her heart.

"Hey, wanna come watch?"

"Sure!" Despite praying for him, it's not like she was going to give up a good show.

*****

The rumors spread like wildfire. No, faster than a wildfire. It was a school wide event for the first years, Hayden The Calamity Slayer would be getting confessed to behind the boy's dormitory.

Masaru, fortunately, managed to be one of the few to get a front row seat. One of his friends, Stephen, was one of the people who instilled the baseless confidence into Ned to get him to try his luck.

He felt bad for Ned, but also thankful to know that he was definitely going to get rejected. After all, he was pining for that Haydussy* too.

Ned arrived, walking with his chest puffed out, his hair standing at attention like a roosters comb as he strutted proudly. Masaru couldn't imagine what Stephen would have had to say to get him to be so confident, especially in front of an entire stadium amounts of people.

It was a little over thirty minutes after Ned arrived, when everyone was getting restless, that Hayden arrived.

The crowd split like Moses parting the red sea, Kea followed closely behind Hayden as the girl walked as though she owned the place. And in all honesty, in Masaru's opinion, she may as well have owned it. With her strength, it's not like anyone could refuse. He doubted even The Headmaster could have defeated The Calamitous Dragon.

That made him question why she even came here, no doubt others had the same questions. He guessed she wanted to have fun, after all, she was only fifteen and yet stronger than practically all adults. What must that feel like? Lonely, he assumed. That encouraged him to try even harder to get to her level of strength, so that she didn't have to be alone.

But his thoughts soon came to a halt, as Hayden stood in front of Ned who's previous confidence retracted totally. His head sinking into his shoulders as though he were a tortoise.

Even the most confident people could be meek in front of the person they love, Masaru realized. Even if that confidence was fake and artificial, Ned still believed he actually had a chance.

It was both sad and amusing.

"What do you want?" Hayden asked with a devilish smirk, as straightforward as always. She stood with her left arm on her hip, the other hanging loosely by her side. Kea was to her right, standing back, observing the crowd with tension, loyally as though she was Hayden's Knight. Masaru doubted she even needed Kea to protect her.

"... I, uh... I... Hayden I..." Hayden's face became questioning as she meaningfully stared at the red head to spit it out.

"HAYDEN I LOVE YOU!" He shouted, bowing his body and head. Hayden's face turned blank, as though she was shocked.

"What...?" Masaru barely heard the girl mutter.

"I love you Hayden!" Ned stated more confidently.

"So... wait, let me get this straight," Hayden had a hand on her forehead, as if having a headache.

"You gave me a letter in the cafeteria, just to confess to me? This isn't some sort of challenge?"

'Challenge?' Masaru thought. Maybe that was why Hayden was so shocked, that all she got was challenges. What a sad life of constant struggle. But this realization only firmed his heart.

"Y-Yes!" Ned stuttered.

"Hahaha!" Hayden suddenly laughed, throwing back her head.

"What... is this some sort fucking Japanese romance anime?" She wondered to herself aloud, still laughing. Masaru didn't know what Japanese meant, but he knew what an anime was.

"You think you're some sort of harem Protagonist little guy?" Hayden mockingly said, grabbing Ned by the hair and shaking his head back and forth. The red haired boy couldn't even do anything to resist, she was too strong.

"Look at your damn hair kid, who the hell wants a person with bright orange hair? You wanna be fucking peeled little guy? I'll peel you! Haha!" Hayden laughed sadistically, her smirk widening into a full-blown grin.

Eventually, Ned's hair had no more give, and he stumbled back into the wall as it teared from his head. Hayden looked at the hair clump in her hand as if it were a curious creature. She opened her hand and shook it, letting the hair drift away into the wind.

Hayden took a few steps forward as Ned looked on in shame, and terror. "Seriously, what you thinking man? You really think someone was just gonna come along and pop your cherry like how you pop those pimples on your face?"

"Like, seriously. I know people say to shoot your shot, but you really shouldn't of shooted in the first place. You couldn't even touch my basket quickshot, with how short and round you are... you really are a orange, huh?" Somehow grinning even wider, Hayden turned to address everyone watching.

"Everyone, this little guy's name is now Orange! Call or refer to him as anything else, and I'll fucking kick your ass! Alright?!" Ned, no, Orange looked on in terror at the crowd. But everybody turned their heads away from him.

"Alright." Clapping his hands together, Hayden returned to Orange.

"Now where were we? Right. This is the part where I kick your ass." It seemed Orange thought it couldn't get any worse, but now that it was, his face blanched.

Hayden kicked Orange in the stomach, the coughing up spit as he slightly rose into the air.

"That's for wasting my time!"

Hayden's foot then... Masaru couldn't help but hunch his shoulders and turn away as he heard a shriek of pain. The sound of a dog whining as it was castrated echoed throughout the place.

"That's for thinking I even swing that way!"

Another kick.

"That's for trying to fly too high Icarus!" Masaru didn't even know what that meant.

Another kick.

"That's for confidence despite having absolutely NOTHING to be confident about!"

Another kick.

"That's for being disgusting."

Another kick.

"That's for... well, no reason actually!"

Another kick.

"That's because I feel like it!" Masaru couldn't be the only one dumbfounded as Hayden just said shit to have an excuse to beat the poor kid.

The beating lasted thirty minutes.

"Phew... " Dusting her hands, Hayden wiped the sweat off her brow.

"Thanks Orange, I needed the stress relief. You're a good friend," Hayden uttered as she patted the bloody kid.

Masaru couldn't help but wonder if that's how friends were made from where Hayden was born. If that was the case, well...

Maybe being stepped on wasn't so bad.

'Crap. Maybe they're really affecting me...' Masaru swore he wasn't a masochist before meeting Stephen and Jack.

*****

*****

1. [A/N: I fucking hate myself for Haydussy. God, I am such an immature child.]

2. Yeah. As you can see, Hayden's an absolute asshole.

3. I don't really know where I'm going with this story, I'm just having fun with it.