Ch. 2 Mrs. Bunny

I'm going! " I shouted from the hallway as I opened the door.

 I was wearing the school uniform and had my hair tied up again. I held my bag over my shoulder along with my bokken for Kendo practice.

 My father peeked out of the kitchen as he waved goodbye.

 " Have a good day of son!!"

 " I will." I replied as I closed the door behind me.

 " Brother wait - ugh!" I ignored my sister, who I closed the door on.

 I kept walking as my little sister opened the door and ran out to catch up to me. 

" Huff! Huff! I said wait, damn it!" She caught up as she tried to catch her breath.

" You are out of shape." I spoke as I pulled her up from the collar before she fell.

" I Huff! Know! Huff!" she admitted.

" Sigh. So, how was the game?" I asked

" Oh! It was amazing!! You should see new character Carol who..."

I listen to her describe the game, its characters and the plot.

We acted like normal, as last night didn't happen.

As it was early, there were fewer people outside.

I observed the cars driving by and the people who crossed the street.

The only thing that stood out were the men wearing makeup and skirts.

I ignored this as I have gotten used to it, but it was still an odd sight.

Sister kept talking as I listened as we boarded the train.

"But then she died!! How unexpected that was!" she shouted, gaining the attention from the rest of the people on the train.

I frowned a little before looking at my sister.

" You should keep it down.."

" Oh, sorry, I forgot, ehe." She replied.

" Bzt! Good morning, Otiria Empire!!" I looked at the hologram that was shown in front of most people.

" The west is uneasy because of goblin overpopulation. Opposing negotiations with the Empire is the stance taken by the Queen of monsters. The kingdom of Vrouzzuterra has been in a couple of skirmishes with the western border."

I perked my ears as I listen to the news.

'The first conflict should be drawing near.' I thought to myself.

The Kendo championship is being held in Otiria's Royal capital and fighters like Ai Tachibana and Cain Stryker are gaining recognition, so we expect the news to spread. "

"The match everyone has been waiting for at least three years and might finally face each other in the finals. I'm excited to see these two in action." 

"In other news, the west kingdom of Asteria is the first Kendo match of this season!" The news anchor was surprised as he continued speaking.

' So they are having the championship at the royal capital and the first match in Asteria' I didn't listen to the news anymore as I went into deep thought, but was interrupted as my sister shook me.

" Brother, you're a star!! You're going to the finals this time!! I know it!!" my sister shouted in an excited face as she continued to shake me.

The man and women looked at me as they heard the news.

The news didn't show a picture of me, but what my sister said must've given them the idea I was the one the news was talking about.

Luckily, the train stopped as I pulled my sister out before we could get swarmed.

" Wah!!" she exclaimed.

" Come on." I said as I dragged her away from the crowd of people.

As I dragged my sister through the crowd, I thought of the announcement.

' Finally! I if I can win this, I could be in the big leagues, I could get Paragon Academys attention, and it will make that easier for them to accept me into their school. I just need to have a high-grade affinity.'

I stopped dragging my sister as she held her wrist and glared at me.

" That hurts!" She shouted.

" Shouldn't have been so weak." I replied before walking again.

 She glared at me before following.

Before I continued, I heard a shout from across the street.

" Cain!!" A boy was waving at me as she ran across the road, ignoring the cars.

The cars didn't hit her as she caught up to me.

"An Ye-Won." I said her name as she approached me.

" That's me!! It's been a long time!" She spoke with a smile.

" We work at the same place, dumbass." I replied, as she chuckled.

" Ugh! Are you still cross-dressing?" My sister spoke as she hid behind me.

Ye-Won lowered her face with a dark smile on her face.

" And you're still short." She replied as she smoothly dodged a punch.

" Woah! Easy there, Cain, you could hit someone." She chuckled with her arms up.

" Easy on, my sister. She's sensitive." I replied. 

" Yeah! Wait, what?" My sister looked at me, but I ignored her.

" Hmm? I'll think about it." An Ye-Won replied as. We both walked towards the school as my little sister followed us from behind.

" So? Did you tell your parents?" An Ye-Won looked at me.

I instantly knew what she was talking about as I replied without looking at her.

" Mother freaked out, and dad is concerned." I replied.

" Not surprising." Am Ye-Won lowered the head before she looked up and held the back of her head with her hands.

" I decided I'm going to Paragon with you." She said with a rare serious face.

I looked at her with wide eyes.

" Are you sure?"

" Yeah, besides, I gotta keep my promise from our childhood." She smiled.

" Thanks. It'll be great to have someone I know with me." I smiled as well.

We continued walking as we saw more students with the school uniforms we were wearing.

Ye-Won looked around, observing the young girls.

" Aren't you dating Jessica? why are you looking at the freshman like that?" I commented on An Ye-Won observing the girl freshman from the distance.

" Ahh, she found out I wasn't a boy." She replied as she wiped her drool.

" Sigh, like I said, you shouldn't keep it a secret for a long time in a relationship." I spoke.

Ye-Won looked at the boys wearing skirts and looking at my pants.

" You know I have never seen you wear skirts like ever." She pointed out.

" Brother doesn't buy any as well." My little sister chimed in.

" They look stupid, that's all." I replied.

An Ye-Won held her chin up with her finger.

" That can't do. How can you find a girl if you don't dress the part." She said as she nodded, agreeing with herself.

" I don't need a girlfriend. Besides, with my charm, it won't be hard to get one."

" Tsk. Damn it, let's switch faces!!" An Ye-Won pounced as she started pulling my face once I turned my face towards her.

" Ugh! Get off, you damn cross-dressing freak!!" I shouted as I pushed An Ye-Won off.

" Give it to me, you bastard!! I want a girlfriend!!" An Ye-Won Shouted.

" Tsk, stop it!!" I struggled to get An Ye-Won off as she was about to put me in a chokehold.

I wrapped my arms under her arm as I tripped her. But as she fell, she took me with her.

* Thud! *

Sister watched us with a deadpanned face.

" I wish I wasn't here." She muttered before walking off towards school.

Me and Ye-Won tried to get up, but we tried to keep the other one down.

* Thwack! *

In Ye-Wons attempt to bring me to the ground, she accidentally punched me.

" Shit." She spoke as she saw the heavy aura surround me.

I slowly turned my head towards her as I glared at her before punching her.

* Thwack! *

We kept fighting, but stopped when we heard the bell. We both looked at each other before trying to get one last hit.

* Thwack! *

Ye-Won tried to counter but failed as I kicked her to the ground before running off toward the school.

" Get back here, you bastard," Ye-Won shouted from behind as she chased after me.

" Last one will have to pay for snacks!!" I shouted.

Ye-Won started speeding up, but I proved to be faster. I paused the school gates and ran into the schools Auditorium.

Spotting the door ahead, I sped up as Ye-Won was still behind me.

Slowing down as I grabbed the door handle, Ye-Won crashed into.me as the door opened.

* Bam! *

" Gah! " Ye-Won exclaimed as we both hit the floor.

We both looked up to see everyone staring at us, including the teachers.

I wouldn't be surprised that the boys would have something to gossip about now,

especially at how they would try to match my charm with makeup.

I stood up and did a little bow with my right hand on my chest.

" I am sorry for the inconvenience." I kicked Ye-Won.

" Oh! I'm terribly sorry! Ehe!" she apologized with a salute.

I pulled her arm down as I noticed the student council president look at us with a stern face.

Ye-won noticed this as well as she looked away from the president's stoic face as the light reflected from her glasses so we could barely see her sharp eyes.

" Ahem! Ye-Won, please be seated, and Cain, will you come to the stage?" The president spoke into the microphone.

Ye-Won snickered before running off before I could do anything.

I did as the president instructed and walked up to the stage in front of everyone's eyes.

As I got to the stage, I saw the teachers and the rest of the student council were sitting on the left side. I was about to head there but was stopped by the president as she gestured towards her.

Sighing, I walked over and stood next to her as she gestured towards me.

" For those that don't know, this is Cain Stryker, he is the vice-president and our honor student. He is also the captain of the Kendo team, and as I'm sure you all heard, I will be participating in the final championship, whether they win or lose all the other tournaments that will be coming up." She spoke with a stoic face as she stopped talking as the students clapped.

She glared at the students, who all stopped clapping except one.

" Ye-won, I think the president is getting angry." A boy next to Ye-Won tried to warn her.

Slowly, Ye-Won stopped clapping and started sweating bullets as she sunk in her seat as the president glared down on her.

I pulled my collar a little as I felt the heat coming from the president.

' Seems she unlocked her mana early as well.' I noted as I took a small step back.

The president realized she flared her mana as she quickly calmed down.

The students in the front row also felt the heat as sweat covered their body as they tried to cool themselves down.

" Ahem, sorry about that, but now on to the next agenda...."

I took this as my cue to leave, but before I could even take a step, the president handed me a stack of paper.

" Take this to the freshman." She stated before turning towards the rest of the student council.

I saw that the rest of the student council will also hand out papers to other classes.

I sighed before walking off stage and walked towards the upper right seats where the freshman sat.

As I approached the freshman class, they kept their eye on me as I passed the paper.

" Hey." I called out as I handed a paper in front of the student.

" Huh? Oh! uh! Th..Thank You!!" He shouted before closing his mouth in embarrassment.

I chuckled.

" You're welcome." I replied before handing the rest out.

After finishing the task, I got back on stage and stood by the president as she began to speak.

" As you all can see, on your paper that has been handed out to you will look like this."

The president gestured toward the hologram that opened up behind us.

" I'm sure the upper classes have learned this before, but let me refresh your memory."

She then continued to explain the rules and the stuff I didn't bother listening to as I looked at Ye-Won making stupid faces.

I used everything I had to not smile.

The small boy next to Ye-Won tried to stop her but couldn't as she kept making faces to grab my attention.

The small boy looked at me with a face of helplessness as he looked at me for help.

I turned my head away as I couldn't help but let out a small smile.

Ye-won noticed this and celebrated as she raised both her arms in victory.

The small boy tried to get her arms down but was unsuccessful, as he was too weak for Ye-Won.

" Now, onto the last agenda. " The president spoke as the lights turned back on as she eyed, who quickly put her arms down.

" The class of 4063 will be participating, checking their affinity and unlocking their mana if they have not already." She looked at the senior class, who got a little excited about the coming of age ceremony.

Then she looked at me as I kept a straight face as I stared ahead.

She then focused back on the audience and started speaking to the class's representative.

" Representing class 1 is Alwyn Brown ."

A cheerful wood elf ran up the stage as everyone clapped. She stood awfully close to me as I tried to step away, but she followed with another step.

Sighing as this happened all the time, I just left it and tried to ignore her glances.

" Representing Class 2 is Rika Sugawara."

A girl with brown bunny ears covered her eyes as she shyly walked up the stage as she stood behind me and the president.

" G.. Good morning." She muttered as the president nodded, and I smiled, which caused her to the body to stiff. Before she could fall, Kaori caught her.

The president continued.

" Class 3 is represented by Cain Stryker." The president furrowed her brows as she looked at me.

" It seems you're in first place again." She commented.

I replied with a shrug, which annoyed the president.

" Sigh, now that should be all for today. Everyone could head to their homerooms, which is on the hologram behind me. The room number would be sent to your holos."

Everyone checked their hologram watches as they saw their room number and classes.

I watched as everyone walked out of the auditorium in an orderly fashion. 

" So I'm guessing you're going to participate in the Kendo Championship this year?" The president looked at me. 

" Yes, I'm going to face against Tachibana in the finals." I replied.

The president nodded as she fixed her glasses.

" You should be careful. Tachibana is known as the daughter of the fastest swords woman, especially as the heir of the Tachibana clan from the east kingdom of Shinryu." 

I nodded in understanding as I already knew this stuff. 

" Not only that, but she is by far the most talented Swords woman after her mother. The Shinryu style is the deadliest sword technique in the Empire -" 

Before she could continue, I stopped her. 

" I understand. Thank you for reminding me, but I have already done my research. I'm happy you're trying to watch my back." I smiled as the president had a grumpy face. 

" Hmmm," the president pouted. 

I chuckled nervously before changing the subject. 

" So am I going to be the teacher's assistant again this year?"

" Ahem! Yes, you are, as you're already ahead. In your school credits, the school board has allowed you to skip classes or help teachers around the school." The president explained as she handed me a new school I.D. 

I took the I.D. and looked at my picture alone with the rest of the information on it. 

" Cool." I commented as I flipped the card to look at the back. 

The president nodded.

" Well, you should head to Mrs. Bunny's class, as she needs your assistance." She looked at the old teacher who made her way towards her. 

Mrs. Bunny had brown, gray hair along with her bunny ears that drooped. She walked with a cane as she looked at me with a gentle smile. 

" It is great to see you once more, Cain." She spoke as she gave me a hug. 

I returned one as well as I looked at her cane sadly.

" You're using a cane now?" I asked with concern.

" Sigh. Looks like time has caught up to me. But I now have this." She smiled as she revealed the hidden blade in her cane. 

" Oh! How much did it cost?" I asked as I slid my finger across the dark blade.

" It cost me a 25,000 rubles." She showed off her blade as I watched in amazement. 

" Damn, that's a really cool blade. Did they use a black crimson ore?" I pointed out the red hue the blade reflected from the light. 

Mrs. Bunny had a smirk as she noddnodded.

" Yup, provided by my daughter, apparently I got 50% off by using a rare ore." She spoke as I admired the craftsmanship.

" Ahem, class is about to start." The president spoke as she pointed at the hologram timer. 

" Right. Let's go, Mrs. Bunny. What do you need help with?" Me and Mrs. Bunny walked off the stage as we talked. 

" Just some paperwork, that's all." She replied. 

I nodded as we walked out of the auditorium. 

" So are you ready for the tournaments?" Mrs. Bunny spoke. 

" Yeah, though im worried about the finals." I replied. 

Mrs. Bunny nodded in understanding as she looked at me. 

" If I could, why don't you let me train you." She suggested. 

I was surprised. 

" Train me? Why?" I asked. 

" To be honest Cain. I had never thought you would make it this far, but seeing your determination changed that." She held the end of her cane on my forehead. 

" I can tell your destined for a greater future, all I'm giving you is a little push in life." She explained before walking again. 

" Thank you, truly." I said as I followed her. 

" Don't thank me yet. Thank me when you reach the top. I want to see the look on my daughters face when they realized I taught a big shot." We both chuckled as we walked towards Mrs. Bunny's classroom.