CHAPTER 9: THE EXTEMPORANEOUS PLAN

The phantom clown troupe's meeting commences, Seiki breaks the news of their friend Eon's passing. He only offered the brief explanation," he states that before they were able to defeat the legendary spirit, it cast a curse spell that permanently seals Eon's abilities. Eon decided to confront the opponent head-on with all of his escape techniques being sealed. At that moment it became clear to Seiki that Eon had already accepted his fate."The sheer quantity of the enemies are overpowering them, he tried his hardest to help Eon but it wasn't enough. "In the end, he clearly states that he doesn't care if he abandons someone—the goal is the only thing that is important.". Kagetsu responds that he remains as cold as ever. Then Seiki alters the narrative by praising Kagetsu and Toshi for defeating the mythical northern deity, they all rejoice and applaud their achievement, quickly altering the mood of the meeting. Seiki then ask Hibi when will she make his move. Hibi then states that she is still preparing to launch a full scale attack on the Shiva kingdom in addition to her original goal for eliminate the young hero. After a moment of astonishment for everyone, Toshi asks Hibi if she is capable of taking on a powerful kingdom all by herself. Hibi then retorts that she has an army ready to aid her, therefore she is not alone. Toshi inquires once more about her companion, causing Hibi to become furious as she feels like she is being interrogated. Toshi then explains that he is interested in participating in the full-scale battle because he finds it thrilling. Hibi, who is irritated, allows Toshi to participate in the upcoming full-scale war. Seiki then starts to get anxious since he can't handle Hibi and Toshi at the same time. Since Hibi mentions having an army with him when she attacks, it's logical to presume that her companion is also a powerful individual. After rejecting their notion of working alongside one another, Seiki gives Toshi the task of finding a substitute for Eon to become their fifth member. Toshi, however, informs Seiki that he wants some action and that it could wait. Seiki simply consented to their idea at that point in order to avoid creating any suspicions. The meeting is ended and everyone goes separate ways. But before Seiki could leave, Kagetsu stops him to ask for a small favor. Kagetsu informs Seiki that there is an issue with Toshi as he usually does not accept additional stressful tasks after finishing his current assignment. Furthermore, Toshi does not have the kind of personality that would desire to hang out with Hibi. Kagetsu mentioned that during their mission to eliminate Zahora, he behaves as if he is in a hurry to complete the task. When I inquired about the reason for his impatience towards the assignment, he became angry for the first time and we ended up having an unexpected altercation. After that, Seiki assures Kagetsu that he would keep an eye on Toshi and that he will let him know the outcome of his investigation. Following their separation, Seiki hid its aura. In the hopes of finding Toshi he decided to control some small creatures in the forest and gives them the order to instantly disperse over the area. Seiki can easily create a puppet that functions as a surveillance camera since he can mentally communicate with his puppet. Fortunately, one of his puppets finds Toshi, who is hiding outside the Shiva kingdom's entrance gate. Seiki realizes he is wearing a familiar crescent when he puts on his new clothes. He soon finds out that the crescent is the same as their professor's uniform. Toshi takes off his makeup and immediately vanishes. Seiki didn't even catch a glimpse of Toshi's face, but he does recall what he was wearing—a traditional martial arts uniform, a white "gi." He then heads for the academy, where he remembers right away that it's interschool fest day. The only issue is that his class was given five days off because of the incident that happened in the dungeon. He then remembers Silvia and sets out to find her, thinking that going with her to the interschool festival will alleviate any suspicions about him. He eventually finds Silvia, he gives her a quick hug and expresses gratitude for her consoling him the night before. Silvia blushes then and inquires about Seiki's mental health. Seiki then explains that he is having trouble sleeping, which is why he chose to watch the interschool festival with his few "remaining" friends. Silvia briefly experience sadness before encouraging Seiki and taking him to the coliseum to witness the upcoming battle between the Shiva Heroes Academy and the Azura Heroes Academy. On their way to the coliseum, they run next to Alfred, and they immediately invite him to watch the next game with them. As soon as Alfred gives his approval they make straight for the coliseum. They find an excellent location shortly after the match starts. The first match is then introduced. In the opening battle, young prodigy Keil from Shiva Heroes Academy will face off against "Leo," the representative from Azura Heroes Academy. (Leo is clad in spartan armor and wielding a lion head shield). Seiki observes that Alfred hasn't questioned him about the dungeon event, then, he later believes that the incident has not yet been made public. Later on, he notices a person wearing a martial arts outfit in Keil's corner who bears a resemblance to Toshi. He then asks about the man wearing a white "gi" from Silvia. Silvia replies, saying that Professor Zig is one of the professors at the academy, as well as Keil's acting father and naster. Seiki was surprised and quickly understood the situation. Toshi's unusual actions were motivated by his worry about Hibi's assignment to eliminate his beloved student. That's the reason why he's eager to complete their task immediately, in order to accompany his student and protect him. When Seiki asks her how long Master Zig has been teaching at the academy, she responds that it has been between four and five years. Seiki really has to make sure that his assumption is right, since if it is, there's a potential that they could team up and eliminate Hibi and there's also a chance that they could get along and Seiki won't bother killing him if he poses no threat to him. Seiki politely excuses himself from Silvia and Alfred immediately and then plans to get master Zig's attention. However, he encounters a slight problem: there are numerous students gathered around the area where the teachers are located. He can't just go up to master Zig and ask him a casual question in public, so he comes up with another idea. He summons forth a squirrel from the forest to deliver a letter to master Zig. The message indicates that they need to meet in the restroom because only Seiki can provide him the necessary assistance and is aware of his true identity. Zig stands up at that point and heads toward the comfort room. To begin with, they start by exchanging greetings in a respectful manner and are pleased to see each other in their natural state without makeup. Seiki then asks Zig why he is protecting the kid, to which he responds by asking how certain he is that he is protecting the young hero. Seiki replies that the information is evident from his facial expression, especially now that he has removed his makeup. Zig is dissatisfied with this answer and insists that Seiki clarifies who informed him about his nephew Keil. Seiki wasn't prepared for this, but he just did what he believed to be his best and that is "lying". He then responds in a calm manner, saying that he has been watching every member the entire time and that he has come to the conclusion that some of them are simply heartless killers. And for some, it's just a way to keep the person they cherish safe. Seiki continues by saying that, like Zig, he has someone he wishes to protect. But she's long gone now, and he only told him that kind of thing to make them feel connected to each other—even if it wasn't true. When Zig asks Seiki if he can stop Hibi from rampaging, he tells him that protecting his nephew is the best thing he can do and that he'll just let Zig handle the fighting. Zig explains to Seiki how he can have trust in a leader that is so cunning and heartless. He responds, "I'm not a heartless person; the world just beats me up so bad that being cold is just my only option in order to fight back." He then brazenly declares that he will soon be leaving the group as leader, but Toshi reminds him, that no one is permitted to leave the group because leaving would only result in death. Seiki then responds that death is inevitable since he fears it will merely restrict their own self to feel as though they are truly alive, as opposed to merely surviving. When he still doesn't seem convinced, Toshi asks him why he would be willing to assist him. He then responds that he needs assistance from someone in order to break the chain, and he asks Zig if he is satisfied with their current situation—that is, being chained to a loop of killing people for a little window of freedom. Then he extends an invitation to shake hands with Zig, who, although unsure, just accepts his offer. Seiki then devises a scheme. He gives Zig the task of escorting Hibi as far away from the kingdom as he can, and he will lead Hibi's companion to the imperial commander. Lastly, he will ensure Keil's safety prior to helping Zig with taking care of Hibi. After their short conversation, they each proceed in separate directions. 

In the opening bout, young prodigy Keil faces off against Leo the lone Spartan. Keil charges at his opponent right away, drawing his sword, and uses the ability boost spells "increase agility" and "valorous heart" to give himself an advantage. He then tries to cut his opponent with his Excalibur, but Leo's lion shield deflects it right away. He then launches an attack with his spear, striking Keil in the left cheek. Keil steps back a little, but Leo charges at him and throws a spear that bursts into flames. Keil is lucky to avoid being struck, but Leo still manages to land a powerful blow that strikes Keil in the left rib. Though Keil was still feeling the pain from Leo's power, all of a sudden, Leo struck him with his shield, launching Seiki almost outside the arena. (Firstly, the match ends when one of the players renders the other incapable of fighting and forces the other player to leave the arena. A holy barrier that prevents death within the arena was cast by the two empires' expert mages and is located outside of it). Returning to the fight, Seiki is able to stay upright as he nearly steps outside the arena. He then uses his ultimate skill, "limit breaker," to move quickly in the direction of his opponent and manage to run behind him. Then Keil hits his opponent in the back, but Leo anticipated it and hurled his spear in Keil's direction right away. They each deal severe damage to their opponent; whereas Keil collapses and is in excruciating pain from his left rib, Leo holds his ground and doesn't exhibit any signs of pain. Then, as Leo charges at his opponent, Keil deflects his blow, and a flashback occurs. Keil witnessed three bandits drag his mother. After tying up his mother and raping her in front of Keil, a sword broke through the window and reached Keil's hands. He succeeds in standing up, and fury fills his eyes.