Yuan Meihui

'Not again. Why do I keep attracting more dangerous girls? This should be illegal at this point.'

Hiryu thought about returning home since his body was sore after using Sword Aura. Being a 15-year-old, his body hadn't developed enough to bear the recoil of that strong technique. Yet, another person wanted to spar with him in this condition.

'Fighting virtually did mitigate the recoil, though. If I were to use it once in real life, I wouldn't be able to stand up this quickly.'

"You're Yuan Meihui, right?"

"Meihui is enough."

"Meihui-senpai, I would love to spar with you, but I'm quite sore after that battle. I wouldn't be able to exert my full power, is that okay with you?"

"How about we meet at the same time tomorrow after you recuperate?"

She seemed different from the rest. Considering that she was a second-year and had developed her signature Pulse, maybe that explained how Meihui had overwhelming energy rampaging inside her.

"I'll take up on that offer. See you tomorrow," Hiryu bowed to Meihui and left the room.

He went to check up on Shikimi in another room, who was lying lifelessly on the metal ground.

"Are you okay? You seem devastated," Hiryu sat down next to Shikimi.

"Showing pity now? I don't need it. Go away, punk."

"Not partner but punk now?"

"That match didn't count. Sword Aura was too much for anyone to handle. Why did your dumbass use it against me?" Shikimi stared at the silver ceiling. She felt angry but satisfied to find a capable partner.

"You're my first partner, so I wanted to show what I'm capable of."

Shikimi turned to look at Hiryu. She thought that he had a surprisingly cute face, but she waved that thought immediately and stood up, "Next time, make sure to pull out your best card because I ain't letting you win any more than this."

"That is my best card," Hiryu scratched his head. "By the way, which floor do you live in?"

"Fifth. I live in 510."

"So class 1-C occupies the fourth and fifth floors."

"1-A occupies second and third. 1-D lives on the top floors."

"How do you know about this?"

"If you really have eyes, it ain't that hard to figure out. Just look at the people and which class they're in."

"I don't have free time to care about that. I'd rather get the information I want from someone else. Less work."

Shikimi looked at Hiryu with judging eyes. "I guess you're the lazy type. Well, I'mma go home. We're running it back tomorrow, yeah?"

"I don't know about that. Somebody already reserved a spot for tomorrow."

Shikimi stopped in her tracks on her way out and asked, "Who?"

"A girl named Yuan Meihui. To think she would want to spar with me after seeing that. She's interesting."

Suddenly, Shikimi's expression turned dark as if she saw a ghost, "D-Did I hear that right?"

"What?" Hiryu tilted his head. It seemed he was oblivious to the situation. He certainly didn't imagine Shikimi to be the type to stutter. 

"Yuan Meihui? That disgustingly powerful prodigy?" Shikimi raised her voice.

"Prodigy? What're you talking about? Who's she?" Hiryu was once again embarrassed that he showed a lack of knowledge.

"You really are clueless. Find that out yourself. I ain't your informant," Shikimi sighed in frustration and quickly left the room.

'Tch. He got Meihui's attention, this brat.' Her nose flared up as she walked outside.

Shikimi recalled the moment when she met Meihui in the academy's cafeteria. Shikimi approached Meihui and provoked her into a spar, but Meihui didn't even bat an eye and told Shikimi to stop nagging her. Shikimi's rage would explode every time she remembered those empty eyes and cold expressions of hers.

With the loss and that annoying thought, Shikimi went home kicking all the rocks she saw on the ground. She even threw a couple of punches, scaring the students walking by.

'Just who is this Yuan Meihui person?' Hiryu tried hard to recall if there was such a person, but he came back empty-handed. 'Let's go home first and find information about her.'

As soon as Hiryu left the battle room, he was greeted by the beautiful girls waiting for him. Any boy would feel ecstatic and thank the Gods that made their life to be so incredibly lucky.

'Oh, I forgot about them.' Hiryu was still baffled as to why there wasn't a single guy who wanted to be his friend. He wanted a best friend just like all the main characters in movies who had a best friend or a trusted sidekick.

'I guess Saki is cool too.' Saki was beyond cool. He just couldn't accept that fact.

Speaking of the devil, Saki immediately sprinted towards Hiryu and gave him a warm embrace, "Hiryu-kun! You did it!"

"Of course. This battle has been decided from the beginning."

"Fufu~ The look on her face when she saw Sword Aura was so funny. Serves her right!" Saki had learned that smug look from Shikimi and was showing it shamelessly.

Hiryu put his arm around Saki's neck and hugged her back before forcefully releasing from her clutch, 'Why is she so strong?'

He finally got out of her bear hug and said, "Anything useful, Hiyori?"

"Yes. I'll give you the details tomorrow." Hiyori was still taking notes from the battle. It seemed like she had now fully invested in Hiryu's growth.

"Also, have you analyzed any second-year by any chance?" Hiryu asked with a darkened expression.

"I haven't since there's no need for that yet. Did something happen?" Hiyori stopped the notetaking and looked at Hiryu with curious eyes.

"Well, a senior named Yuan Meihui said she wanted to spar with me tomorrow."

Nobody moved after Hiryu said that. The silence was louder than the students talking. 

"Don't tell me she's dangerous like Otogi said," Hiryu looked disgruntled since every time he mentioned the name, he got the same pessimistic reaction from almost everyone.

"Yuan Meihui…" Yui spoke up, "She's ranked second in our academy. Not just in second-year ranking, but the whole academy.

"Whaaaatttt?" Saki's mouth formed a perfect 'O'.

"W-what? You're kidding," Hiryu stuttered for the first time in a while.

"I wish… She's considered the best martial artist in the academy. Repulsors see her potential to keep that title in the future as well," Yui looked worried for Hiryu, but she had to keep her calm.

"Haha," Hiryu laughed sarcastically. 'What did I do to deserve this? I just wanted a peaceful start to make friends.'

Hiryu loved fighting, but this was too much. He just started school for the first time, so he planned to relax and enjoy the normal school life first before going into rigorous training. However, all hopes of that happening seemed bleak.

"D-don't worry. I'll come up with a plan soon enough. Let's go back first," Hiyori hurriedly tried to brighten up the moon, even though she knew that Meihui wasn't an opponent Hiryu could deal with yet.

A fighter must know their limits and not get too cocky. Hiryu knew Meihui wasn't even someone he could make a scratch, but he was eager to see the famed "queen" of the hill and what her abilities were.

Hiryu's lips didn't form a smile, but his eyes told a different story. The gray eyes that looked dead suddenly shimmered a red hue. Hiryu was prepared for tomorrow.