2 Chapter 2: The Octagon

Something felt like burning inside Seijurou's chest that seemed to emanate towards his clenched fists as Jax continued to grin at him insultingly. He did not even notice he had stopped abruptly from walking. 

Calling out his mother's alias made Seijurou want to drag Jax towards "the Octagon".

Suddenly, someone blew air into Seijurou's ear while he stood still. It made him flinch all of a sudden just before a surge of violent thoughts had a chance to take over him. It certainly brought him back to reality with all of his hair standing. 

"Ugh! What the hell?!..", Seijurou reacted as if he was blasted with ice. Jax was surprised too at that instance. 

A girl with short brown hair laughed at Seijurou's hilarious reactions after that. She was barely recognizable with her new sailor fuku uniform, but the roughness around the edges seemed to still present itself. Seijurou knew her very well.

"That was priceless..", said Taneda Chizuru, Seijurou's childhood friend, with a smug look on her face. "Come, Seijurou.. let's go to class."

"Oi, Taneda-chan! He was about to duel with me.. don't interrupt..", Jax said while Chizuru began to grab Seijurou by the arm to drag him. 

"Seijurou in a duel?..", Chizuru taunted before she laughed. "Dream on. Maybe if you find a white crow.. then it'll happen."

Frustrated that he did not get to do what he wanted with Seijurou, Jax felt his anger shake him to the core. But instead of making a scene, he just let his mouth take action. 

"Fight me instead..", responded Jax, quickly regretting it as soon as he saw Chizuru's glare. A sort of embarrassed reluctance engulfed his previously smug expression.

"Very romantic of you to challenge a girl, Jax. Satsu-chan'll definitely fall for a man like you..", teased Chizuru as Seijurou and her continued to walk toward their classroom. "Go release those pent up feelings somewhere else."

Nervous at first with the tough girl's response, Jax found himself snickering afterwards. "With pleasure.."

Chizuru shook her head and smiled awkwardly at Seijurou as they walked. "That dolt's probably going to challenge someone to a duel later. You alright? You almost lost it there.."

Seijurou just kept looking down at the floor the whole time. After a sigh, he just simply returned a faint smirk towards Chizuru. "I'm fine.."

Chizuru blushed a little when their eyes met, but she immediately shrugged it off. "Anyway.. don't listen to whatever he says. He's just a useless thug."

"All of you seem to know each other. Everything about this is news to me."

"Baka-jurou.. it's just you who don't know them."

"Really?"

"It's because you always go home right away and spend time with yourself alone. We're just sixteen.. we should be glowing."

Seijurou stared at her in confusion as they stopped in front of their classroom. "Glowing?"

"You know when someone's in love they glow."

Seijurou squinted at Chizuru moments before he laughed. "And where did you hear that from?"

"Boy's Love.."

"You really love that manga, huh?", answered Seijurou. And then, he grinned at her. "Well, you are glowing, Chizuru. Come, let's take our seats."

Chizuru's already rosy cheeks blushed as Seijurou turned away to choose a seat in the classroom. She frowned and pouted while she followed. "Baka-jurou, you really are hopeless."

Meanwhile, Jax went straight to the stadium office. There was one thing that Chizuru got right. He needed to release his pent up anger on something, or someone. But Jax was never a barbarian who would just simply lash out. 

The rules of FSG's octagon duels fit his desires perfectly. 

There were a handful of upperclassmen in the office when Jax entered. Some of them looked like they just finished morning training while some were just there to hangout. 

But the odd thing was all of them had such a presence that Jax could not believe they were just a year or two older than him. They seemed much older than their ages and more matured, or simply much more experienced than what would call an academy student. 

He thought to himself. "A year in FSG can make this much difference.."

Jax smiled deviously as he felt a storm of excitement brewing inside of him. 

"I'll pay even if you lose..", said Jax out of the blue, which caught everyone's attention. "I challenge anyone in this room in a duel after class."

All the upperclassmen stared at Jax in silence for a few moments. And then, loud laughter took over. 

"Are you serious?!..", one of them asked amidst the laughs and chuckles.

"I like this kid. He's got guts to at least make me laugh..", another one said.

"I think we'll have to decline, boy..", one of them took a slightly more serious tone. "We don't want to embarrass a first year on his first day."

"One thousand Yenis if you lose the match..", Jax replied sternly. "Double that if you win against me."

Once again, silence engulfed the room. A sense of shock suddenly went upon the upperclassmen. The smug look on their faces was replaced by skepticism the moment Jax told them the stakes. There was suddenly an intense atmosphere inside the room.

"It's either you're insanely rich or insane..", one of them said.

"Or I just really love fighting..", Jax answered. 

"What's your name, freshman?"

"Xi Jaejin."

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It was a rather uneventful morning from then on. The teachers only discussed the requirements and materials needed for each subject. Most of the morning periods consisted of academic subjects that only required studying. For Seijurou, it wasn't something out of the norm. 

But there was one period that was fight related, "Applied Magic".

Seijurou knew everything about magic on paper. After all, magical principles were tackled very early on into their elementary years as an academic subject. And he was always at the top of the class.

However, it was the application part that worried him. 

Seijurou may be extremely intelligent, but his three "vital stats", which are "health points (HP)", "stamina points (SP)" and "magic points (MP)" respectively, have always been low. This was a result of him being born with a low affinity for attacking skills in battle.

"Health and stamina can be improved with a better lifestyle..", Seijurou contemplated. "But increasing my MPs means I have to practice spells that're considered difficult for me.."

Although Seijurou knew exactly what was to be done, it was almost impossible. His magic proficiency was not even at that level to make him learn a spell difficult enough to increase his MP. 

It was just the first day, but Seijurou felt like giving up already. 

"Oi, Seijurou!", Chizuru called, which brought him back to the present. The three of them, including Satsuki, were seated on the floor of the rooftop while they had lunch. "You can't eat your food by staring at it.. use your mouth and chew."

Chizuru and Satsuki giggled sheepishly while Seijurou stared at them blankly. After that, they proceeded to eat together again. 

It was still very cold even if it was the middle of the day. Seijurou thought that snow must have been melting somewhere else since spring just began. The cool winds kept blowing onto them, which gave him a chill down the spine. 

Seijurou stared at his two friends as they ate. Realizing the freezing weather might completely take their food's heat away, the girls ate fast. It was most especially the case with Satsuki. 

"How does she eat so fast and revel at her food at the same time?!..", Seijurou thought as Satsuki giggled in between chewing, chomping, and swallowing. "And so much too.. how on earth does she not get fat? And what's up with those bright red chopsticks?"

At that moment, Seijurou just closed his bento and gave up on the thought of eating. He completely lost his appetite after observing two girls who ate more than him.

"I think I'm going to drop out of school..", muttered Seijurou, which made the girls stop eating abruptly. Satsuki almost choked.

"Not happening. Your dad's not gonna allow that, baka-jurou!..", Chizuru replied with her clear disappointment. 

"But it's no use. Everything I learned.. I can't even apply it."

"What do you mean? You're pretty good with creating stuff.."

"That's why I'll just work with oyaji in his workshop. He'll allow me to drop out if I propose that."

"No, you can't! You have to finish school."

It was beginning to get tense between the two. Satsuki stared at the both of them, looking like a confused child at first. And then, she suddenly took one of Chizuru's "karaage" with her red chopsticks and chomped on it. 

"Hey! Satsu-chan, I was saving that for last!..", Chizuru exclaimed, but Satsuki just continued to revel at what she was chewing and giggled.

"It was getting cold..", Satsuki replied cheerfully. 

Chizuru just shrugged it off and smiled after that. She just thought of and laughed at her friend's hilariously misplaced appetite.

And then, Satsuki shifted her attention to Seijurou. "It's just the first day, Erida-kun. Let's take this slowly, ayt? You can do it!"

Seijurou just stared at Satsuki for a few seconds while she flashed her childish grin at him. It was a little awkwardly silent for a moment before Chizuru interrupted. "Oi, Satsu-chan.. did you know what Jax got himself into?"

"Oh, yeah.. actually, I was gonna invite you, Chizu-chan..", Satsuki answered while she closed her bento, indicating she was finally done eating.

"Why? What's going on?..", Seijurou asked in confusion, but he immediately reverted back to his stoic self. "Not that I'm interested."

"Jax got himself in a duel with a senior later at three in the afternoon. Let's watch and see him get pummeled..", replied Chizuru gleefully while she suddenly stood up. Then, she looked at Seijurou. "Besides, I don't wanna be a third wheel to Satsu-chan and Jax when they see each other after the fight."

"Yeah, you come too! It'll be like a double date after..", Satsuki added.

"And why would I want to watch your boyfriend's duel?"

"He's not my boyfriend, Erida-kun! Meanie..", exclaimed Satsuki while she blushed and playfully pounded Seijurou with her fists. 

"Yet..", said Chizuru and laughed. "Come on, Seijurou. Let's watch for old time's sake."

"Not interested."

"Well, you can at least take notes for school while watching..", Satsuki suggested with her finger pointing upwards as if she figured something out. "I'm sure it'll help."

For some reason, Seijurou thought he was outwitted by his two friends. In the end, he found himself sitting in the middle of the two along the front row, facing the Octagon later that afternoon. 

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The octagonal stadium was already gargantuan from the outside, but nothing could have prepared the three with what they saw inside. It seemed that the size of the inside did not match what was on the outside. 

There were countless rows of seats surrounding the octagonal stage in the middle. Each row was slightly higher than the one in front extending a few storeys all the way to the top. And each seat was occupied by a loudly cheering player character (PC) as they waited for the entry of the combatants. 

"I'd say there are about a hundred thousand in attendance..", said Chizuru in awe. "This is incredible!"

"FSG had that many personnel and students?..", Seijurou asked.

"No. Outsiders came to watch too. That's another way FSG earns money.. through arena tickets..", Chizuru replied confidently. "Geez.. you really need to get out more, Seijurou."

"Jax and his opponent must be really popular for them to have this much support..", said Seijurou in astonishment, but he quickly reverted back to his blank expression. "Not that I'm interested."

"Jax is definitely popular since he's a son of a rich family from the Orient..", Satsuki interrupted. "People are curious about how foreigners fight.. but more importantly, it's been a while since FSG held a duel since it's the first day of school. People are excited. It's like the season premiere of an anime."

Still, Seijurou could not help but to be in awe because of the stadium's sheer size. He looked up to see the extent of the place. The area for the audience was roofed. However, the elevated octagon in the middle, the grassy area in between it and the front row was not. 

"The open area in the middle is about the size of a track oval..", Seijurou said expressionless like an analytic would say. "It gives off an illusion that this whole thing is bigger than its actual size."

The two girls smiled at Seijurou awkwardly after that with a drop of sweat rolling down their heads. They both thought of how much of a nerd Seijurou could be. 

Almost as synchronized as the spring wind blowing through the stadium, a man in a dark kimono stepped onto the octagonal platform. Cheers suddenly got louder that it almost became deafening for an ordinary ear. And as soon as he reached center stage, the crowd gradually silenced. 

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for waiting..", the announcer said and in an unusually low but loud voice. "It is with great honor to present to you this season's first fight."

"That voice.. such a useful magic enhancement..", pointed Seijurou out. 

Chizuru just looked at her best friend while he gestured towards his own clothes. He was referring to his presumption that the announcer's kimono had a magical enhancement engraved on it. She looked quite astonished at him on how he figured out how the voice was projected. 

"First, from the blue corner..", the announcer said while a man clad in full gray armor entered the octagon simultaneously. "A third year 'Knight Build' from FSG's 'Junior Warriors' Guild'.. with a record of forty two wins.. twenty eight by knockout.. and eight losses with two draws."

"Wow.. this guy's had fifty two fights already.. and he's a member of the Junior Warriors' Guild..", Chizuru stated in awe. "Looks like Jax bit more than what he could chew."

"Well, let's see about that..", Satsuki replied with a smirk.

And then, as the young knight stopped in the middle, the announcer made quite an animated pose to introduce him. "The Gray Tank, Sugimoto Tanjuro!"

The crowd cheered loudly after. But Seijurou remained silent and looked at the knight skeptically for a while. "Sword and board, heavy armor, huge HP.. that's a classic Knight Build."

Satsuki smiled at him as she was probably recalling some early memories with Seijurou. After that, she offered him some food she got earlier. "Here.. since you didn't eat that much during lunch period, I figured I'd get you some maki."

The gesture made Seijurou blush a little, but since he was hungry due to not eating much at lunch, he immediately took Satsuki's red chopsticks and food to eat. "Oh.. thanks, Kinjou."

"But you know, I haven't washed those chopsticks yet."

Seijurou immediately sprayed the food out of his mouth right after that. "You should've said that first!"

Satsuki just laughed out loud. "Well, I was really looking forward to seeing your priceless reaction about getting your first indirect kiss."

Slowly, Seijurou's face turned red while the two girls just kept on laughing. "I wasn't even thinking of it that way! You're unbelievable!"

Suddenly, Jax entered the Octagon carrying a large hard case prior to his introduction. Surprised, it still prompted the announcer to introduce him, however. "And from the red corner, a freshman exchange student hailing from the mysterious lands across the western sea, the Orient."

Before stepping onto the octagonal stage, Jax dropped the case and opened it, revealing a sinister looking black reaper type battleaxe. And then, he proceeded in removing his top.

All the girls in the stadium squealed and cheered at the same time as Jax revealed his muscular physique. 

"What an annoying show off..", sneered Chizuru while she looked away and blushed, but Satsuki just giggled sheepishly.

"Just a weapon and no armor? This boy must be mad..", a man from the audience said. 

Seijurou however, kept his stoic expression, implying he already knew what Jax was planning. Being very well versed in the academic side of the battlefield, Jax's fighting style was not a mystery to him.

As Jax entered the elevated platform with his enormous two handed grip type axe, the announcer continued to proceed with the introductions. "Debuting today to make a name for himself.. Jax, Xi Jaejin!"

A mixture of cheers and jeers resounded throughout the stadium since nobody knew about Jax yet. However, screams from newly assumed fangirls seemed to overwhelm the booing. 

"Alright, the rules of this duel..", the announcer continued. "First to knock your opponent out, meaning employing the 'ten percent rule' or rendering your opponent unconscious, wins. Being out of bounds is a loss.. and the time limit is fifteen minutes for this duel. The fighter with more HP in percentage by the time limit wins."

The explanation of the basic rules of a duel brought back some memories from childhood for Seijurou. It reminded him of the first time he watched a duel in a smaller arena somewhere in the countryside. "Oyaji, what's the 'ten percent rule'?..", asked his seven year old self in the memory.

"It means that a fighter has lost if his HP goes lower than a tenth of his health..", Kajiya replied to his young son, as two fighters shook each other's hands in the middle of a smaller version of the Octagon. "It prevents them from killing each other."

"Killing is absolutely prohibited in this duel..", FSG's official announcer continued, which brought Seijurou back to the present. "Now, the stakes."

Translation Notes:

Baka-jurou - wordplay combining Baka, which means stupid, idiot, or dummy in the ancient language (Japanese), and the protagonist's name, Seijurou.

Boy's Love -  also known as, Yaoi, or BL, a genre of fictional media originating in Japan that features homoerotic relationships between male characters.

Bento - a single-portion take-out or home-packed meal of Japanese origin. 

Karaage - a Japanese cooking technique in which various foods—most often chicken, but also other meat and fish—are deep fried in oil.

Kimono - a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a T-shaped, wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn with the left side wrapped over the right side, unless the wearer is deceased.

Maki - a Japanese dish consisting of sushi and raw vegetables wrapped in seaweed.