Chapter 22– Reluctant Teammate Number 2

"You don't say? Well, feel free to tell us," Sen tried to conceal his suspicion as well as he could. Even Brittney couldn't get the slightest bit of information about the challenges, so how in the world did she manage to get her hands on it? Sen pondered. 

"Well, ya see, I found out that all the challenges will involve a group of at least six people on each team," Hono explained.

"Interesting…" he murmured to himself. "So they're going by teams? That helps us quite a bit if that's the case. We almost have a complete group of six. Now we just need to find one more person."

If she's telling us the truth…

"Well, we don't have enough time to find another person!" Hana growled.

"I think that's the point. They want us to pick partners from the people we have no relation to. Not too sure why, though," Hyo presumed.

That's not good, we can't put another person in our group. That would be too much to look over. But from what she's saying, it almost sounds like it's mandatory. So better safe than sorry, he thought.

If they did presumably need to have another person join their team, he would have to make sure his quote-on-quote secret doesn't spill out. He could possibly find someone similar to Hono, who seemed too innocent to be malicious toward them, but that was asking for a lot. Besides, he couldn't watch over another person now.

"So it looks like we won't have a choice then," he grimaced. Kaiyo patted him on the back, trying her best to reassure his doubts.

Sen was sure Kaiyo misunderstood his expression. He wasn't worried. It was more or less confusing, which he reluctantly had to admit was quite fun. 

"Well, a good thing is we are one step ahead of everyone else, so I suggest we should start to scout around," Kaiyo suggested. 

Sen gave a nod. "That sounds like a good idea. Let's meet back here once the academy opens."

Sen signaled his sister to keep an eye on Hono in case she decided to betray them and run away. Stalking off from the group, Sen vigilantly observed the big crowd of people. Actually, saying it was a crowd was an understatement. This was the most people he had ever seen in one place.

The more he scrutinized the different people, the more he noticed a lot were on the younger side. And when he meant 'younger side,' he meant people his age. He just expected there would be more people in the older range, maybe in their early twenties.

Most older people give up on becoming a knight because it is physically taxing for them. So, that explains why the abundance of youth seemed so prominent.

Now, someone who would join our team, huh? He couldn't just flat-out ask someone to join. That would be too odd. He also couldn't judge someone based on their physical appearance alone. Like the old saying went, "Don't judge a book by its cover," sort of deal.

Well, I guess I can only snoop around and see what other people are talking about. That would give him at least a gauge of how the person acted. The good thing was that many were talking with their friends or strangers to pass the time, so Sen took this opportunity to listen in.

"Tsk, this academy is a joke. Aren't they supposed to set a good example?" a contestant snorted.

"Tell me about it. If I have to wait another five minutes, I'm going to leave."

The two contestants who complained brashly were instantly marked off his imaginary list. People who complain would get nothing done in the long run.

I'm looking for someone that would benefit us, not just as a placeholder. They can be dumb for all I care, but they need to contribute, he asserted. The more he walked around, the more it was abundantly clear it would be harder to find someone suitable.

Maybe his standards were too high, but the glares people gave Sen when he briefly stared at them told him more than enough about their personalities. Not to mention, it was hard to even focus on one person when there were a thousand people huddled together.

Lost in thought, Sen lost his spatial awareness and ended up bumping into someone–

"Oops, my apologies, friend," the stranger spoke in a friendly, icy tone that made Sen's whole body shiver. He only caught a glimpse of his blood-red eyes and long obsidian hair before he attempted to walk away, leaving Sen staring at his back.

He clutched his fists without thinking and tensed up. His body felt like he was a threat, but the stranger merely continued walking past him before he disappeared into the crowd.

I've never reacted like that when looking at someone before. Something tells me to stay away from him. Sen couldn't help but realize the thudding of his heart pounding in his chest. He took a few breaths to calm himself down.

All he said was, "Oops, my apologies, friend," so why did my whole body tense up? I really should go to a doctor and see if I'm schizophrenic. This is getting out of hand. Sen decided not to take too much notice of that weird encounter and continued searching for possible candidates for a teammate.

Sadly, after long minutes of surveying people around him and keenly listening to their conversations, his quest wasn't successful. His proactive mind wasn't allowing him to trust a single individual. Letting out a sigh inwardly, he decided to leave the decision up to the rest of the team.

"Preoccupied with a single leaf, you won't see the tree. Preoccupied with a single tree, you'll miss the entire forest." A renowned quote reminded him of his current state of mind.

Thinking of hundreds of possibilities and probabilities wasn't always helpful. He wished he could be like other teens his age, so blunt and careless with their actions. At least he had people to do that job for him. Speaking of that, I guess it's a good time to try out my ear device.

"Any luck?" Sen talked as he tapped his earpiece. Once he tapped the earpiece, his voice should automatically transfer to all his friends. It didn't take long before he heard a voice respond to him from the device.

"No luck so far. Lots of them, well, how do I put it, look unreliable."

Hana was the first to respond. Sen wasn't even disappointed. He wasn't expecting much out of her anyway. Hana was a hard woman to approach.

"Uh... I did meet a lot of people, just not in the way I would like," Kaiyo said apprehensively through the device. Judging from her clearly flustered voice, it was apparent she was getting hit on by other male contestants.

Which, again, wasn't so surprising. The difference between his sister and Kaiyo was their mannerisms and personalities. Kaiyo had a more soft and reserved personality, while Hana, on the other hand, remained hot-blooded and bold. Most men preferred easily influenced and weaker women, subconsciously, so that explained why Kaiyo was more preyed upon by other men. Regardless, however, the lust of men still remained a mystery to Sen.

"I'm not sure where to start or who to trust," Sen could hear Hyo frowning over the phone.

I guess even the social birds are having trouble. Must I do everything myself? This isn't my expertise. I don't want to talk with people. They always give me this weird look when I don't put on a big smile and greet them like some kind of waiter; it sure is tiresome.

"Alright," Sen let out a sigh, "I'll try to–"

"Welcome everyone to the Knight Academy!" Sen's voice was cut off as he heard a deafening announcement from the main academy. A wave of excitement erupted from the crowd of participants.

"It looks like they're finally starting," Sen whispered into his device. "We need to regroup as quickly as we can."

"Copy that," they all said in unison.

Sen ran along the crowd's outskirts to ensure he wasn't spotted running suspiciously. The crowd itself extended to around a couple of blocks in length. However, even behind the surplus of thousands of people, he could see the entrance of the main academy's doors due to it being built tall. Not long after, he spotted his friends running assertively in the distance.

"Looks like we're going to have to pick a random person," Hana frowned while looking at the Grand Academy entrance.

"It can't be helped," Sen shook his head. Although he was worried about the danger of letting someone new join, it could be beneficial by making them appear less suspicious from an outsider's perspective.

"Welcome Young Knights!" The announcer's voice rang above them. Everyone started to cheer again in enthusiasm, eager after waiting for hours. Even though the announcer was pretty far away, Sen spotted him on top of the hundreds of stairs that broadly led up to the entrance of the academy. Thousands of people waited beneath, waiting for instructions.

"I thank you for gathering today…" The announcer cleared his throat, speaking into a voice amplifier device.

"I must warn you, though, some of you- well, most of you, won't make it into this academy. Not to mention, some of you shouldn't even be here…"

Sen's heart stopped dead. No… the announcer couldn't be talking about me. There's no way they already found out. His friends widened their eyes in disbelief.

"Of course, I mean you!" The announcer looked at the bottom of the crowd. "You, there!" He pointed at the front of the crowd. "You're too young to become a Knight. You must be at least sixteen years of age."

Sen sighed in relief. He wasn't talking about me; he was talking about a kid. But wait, how did a kid sneak in here?

"But I want to become a Knight!" a young kid puffed. "It's not fair that you guys can become Knights, and I can't cuz I'm not old enough!" the kid sobbed.

"Oh, for the love of marry-" The announcer sighed. "Master Kenji, please don't let me repeat myself!" The announcer scolded.

Master? Is this child some royalty or something? Sen wondered.

"I didn't want to resort to this, Kenji, but I guess I will have to return you to where you belong… Guards, you know what to do…" The announcer nodded his head at the security that surrounded the child.

"NOO! Let me go! I'll have you all fired!" Kenji exclaimed. Sen couldn't quite see how the child looked from such a large distance, but he guessed he was no older than nine or ten, judging from the short stature the guard carried away.

"AHEM," The announcer cleared his throat. "Sorry for the delay. That was the owner's son of this academy. Now, where was I?"

The owner's son? And he's loose in such a dangerous environment. Tsk, who's watching him? Someone's getting fired. It seemed even well-off people couldn't manage things properly.

"AH yes, now I remember. I was saying that some of you might not enter this academy. As I said, this will be very difficult. Only the most talented will pass, so without further ado, I would like to announce there will be FIVE challenges that you need to pass in order to be accepted into the academy," he went on.

"The first challenge will start inside the academy, which brings me to my next point. There must be a group of at least SIX people, so I will give you a few minutes to pick out your partners. If you don't pick, you will automatically get disqualified!" The announcer declared. "Your time starts now!"

Gasps of shock and confusion rippled through the crowd at his announcement.

"This doesn't make sense!"

"I don't want to pick partners I don't know!"

"How does this even have anything to do with becoming a Knight?" angry remarks arose from the crowd.

"If you don't want to have partners, you can leave…" The announcer shot everyone a cold stare. After his statement, the complaints of the contestants disappeared. 

"Well, I guess we need to pick someone. It doesn't matter who it is at this point," Hyo pointed out. Narrowing his eyes, he surveyed the crowd. Some people had already started forming groups and murmured quietly to themselves, likely introducing themselves or planning what the following challenges might entail.

Let's try this one last time, I guess. I hope it isn't some weirdo. Sen separated from his team and started searching yet again.

"HEY! Someone let me join your party!" A furious voice caught Sen's attention.

"HEY YOU! LET ME JOIN YOUR PARTY!" Someone demanded. Sen caught sight of a person who appeared to be around his age, maybe a little older. He had unique, scarlet red hair with white strips running straight down. What is he? A red-haired emo or something?

"Hey you!" the boy shouted. Sen saw him pointing directly at him. "Let me join your party, goddammit!"

Sen blinked, staring straight at the boy's face. Maybe if I ignore him and pretend I didn't hear a word, he'll leave me alone…

Sen cleared his throat and slowly shifted his gaze away, turning around and walking away with a blank expression. I am most definitely not going to let that redhead join—

"NO YOU DON'T! Don't you dare walk away from me!" The redhead ran in front of Sen, blocking him from going any further.

"I'm sorry, but I already have a full party…" Sen lied.

"SUCK MY BALLS! No, you don't!" he growled at Sen. I really don't want this guy in my party.

"I'm not looking for another hot-blooded person in my team. I already have one…" Sen was, of course, referring to his sister.

"Listen, I don't give a flying horse shit if you do! I'm very strong, so you should be delighted that I'm even suggesting it!" he remarked with an irritated tone.

"Let me guess, your Super Sense is Touch?" Sen barely managed to hold back a sigh.

"WHAT! No…" He paused. "Fine… yes, I do have Touch, but it's still powerful!" he snapped back.

"I would've never guessed," he sighed inwardly.

People with Touch have bad tempers, and even other senses are known to influence a person's emotions. Since I don't have a Super Sense at all, that could explain why my emotions and thoughts are far different from others.

"Well, I bet your Super Sense is dumb! You probably have a weak one like Taste!" he cackled.

Huh… the irony.

"My Sense is hearing, one of the most useful and strongest," Sen lied.

I just need to stick with the plan, he convinced himself. It's not like anyone would lie about that.

"Humph, I didn't ask."

"Yeah, you did…" Sen blankly stared, unamused.

"NO I DIDN'T!"

"Pretty sure you did…" Sen shrugged.

"YA KNOW WHAT? YOU ANNOY ME VERY MUCH!" the red-haired emo exclaimed.

"I get that a lot," Sen huffed. "I guess my high sense of maturity gets to people."

Even Sen was capable of conjuring up a good joke sometimes.

"IF I COULD, I WOULD smack you right across the face!" he bellowed inches from Sen's face.

"Wow, never knew people with Touch were so similar," Sen said satirically. "You should date my sister. You would be a match made in heaven." Sen wasn't joking this time. He actually meant it. Expecting a rude remark from the stranger, Sen was concerned when he just looked at him with a narrowed eye.

"Depends. Is your sister hot?" A grin crossed his face.

"No, not at all. She's quite ugly, actually," Sen blinked. Shit, he's actually considering it.

"Ya knows what? You're funny. I like you," the red-haired emo chuckled as he put his arm around Sen.

"I can't relate," Sen said uncomfortably.

"Young Knights, your time is up! If you haven't found a partner, you must leave immediately." Sen heard the announcer's voice. Oh great. Glancing desperately around to find another partner for his party, Sen reluctantly came to a realization that almost everyone had formed groups of six individuals while he was busy.

Well… I'm screwed…

Sighing, Sen realized what the only logical option was. After heavy consideration and reviewing every possible choice he could think of, he exhaled.

"Well, guess I'm not becoming a Knight anymore," Back to the drawing board, I suppose.

"HEY! DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE ME!" the stranger cried out as he attempted to leave again. "Come on! If we don't stick together now, neither of us will become Knights!"

Obviously, Sen wasn't planning on giving up that easily. He thought that would at least fool him.

"Listen, I'll be good in your team! I swear that I won't start trouble. I-I'll follow your every word like a dog," he promised. Sen wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

Well, I did want someone who wouldn't interfere, plus he says he'll do exactly what I want. But how do I know if he's telling the truth? There's only one way to test it out–

"Sit," Sen ordered him.

…

"WHAT? NO, I DIDN'T MEAN LITERALL–"

"Sit…"

He just stared at Sen with a frozen expression, contemplating what he should do. Finally, he let out a defeated sigh.

"Woof woof…" he crouched on the floor, utterly humiliated. Sen let out a murmur of intrigue. Hmm, well, I certainly didn't think he would do it. I guess that's pretty impressive. He could be pretty useful to me.

"Fine… make sure you hurry up," Sen brusquely turned around and started walking in the direction of his team.

"AYYYY, THAT'S MY MAN – uh… what's your name?"

"Sen."

"Alright then, I guess it's my time to introduce myself. My name is Baru!" He puffed his chest out. "My goal is to be a Diamond rank Knight!"

That's quite an ambitious goal, Sen thought. Knowing there are only a handful of Knights that rank, I doubt he will achieve such a big position. Not to mention, they're in charge of the academies around the world. He just doesn't seem the type to handle that mantle.

"I hope you and I can work together to achieve our goals!" Baru said enthusiastically.

"Likewise…" Sen responded in a flat tone. "I think it's time to introduce you to the rest of the team. We don't have that much time left."