Deep within the hidden research facility of Squadra Diciotto, the air felt thick and suffocating, as if even breathing inside that place came with a cost. The room was dim, filled with scattered papers, broken tools, and unfinished notes layered over each other like the thoughts of someone who refused to rest. At the center stood Reiju, his masked face tilted slightly downward as he observed the subject placed before him.
A deer was restrained on a cold metal platform.
Its body trembled weakly, eyes wide with fear as thin wires connected it to the Energy Extraction Chamber behind it. The machine gave off a low, unstable hum, its core flickering with a strange light that didn't feel natural. Reiju's gloved fingers hovered over the control panel, his movements calm and precise, completely different from his earlier frustration.
"…Let's try again," he whispered.
He pressed down.
The machine activated instantly, and the reaction was violent. Energy didn't flow out of the deer smoothly, it tore out in jagged pulses, like something ripping through its existence. The deer's body flickered, parts of it becoming transparent for a brief moment before snapping back into place.
Reiju leaned forward slightly, watching closely.
"…There it is."
The chamber struggled to stabilize the extracted energy, the glow intensifying as the system tried to contain something it clearly wasn't designed to handle. The deer's breathing became erratic, its form distorting again, this time longer, as if reality itself couldn't decide whether it should remain there or disappear.
"…Still incomplete."
Reiju adjusted the controls again, increasing the pressure.
"…Push further."
The machine roared louder, vibrating against the floor as the energy surged. For a moment, it looked like the deer was dissolving into pure light, its outline breaking apart into fragments of unstable energy. Then suddenly, the process collapsed, the light snapping back violently into nothing.
Silence followed.
The deer stopped moving.
Reiju stood there, unmoving, staring at the result without emotion.
"…Not enough."
He turned slightly, grabbing a nearby paper and writing quickly, his mind already moving forward.
"…Animal subjects cannot withstand the full extraction. Human compatibility remains necessary."
His voice was calm, but the meaning behind it was far from that.
Outside the facility, the atmosphere felt completely different, almost like a separate world.
Raizen sat under a tree, surrounded by a few children who laughed as he handed them small pieces of food. The sunlight filtered through the leaves above, casting soft shadows across his face as he smiled gently.
"Eat slowly," he said, watching one of the kids rush through their food too quickly.
The child nodded, embarrassed, while the others laughed around him.
Turbo sat nearby, leaning back comfortably as he chewed on something, observing the scene with amusement. "You really act like you belong in a different place," he said casually, shaking his head.
Raizen chuckled softly, glancing at him. "It's not that deep."
Turbo smirked. "You say that, but you're literally feeding kids while we're part of a group that experiments on people."
Raizen didn't answer right away.
Instead, he looked at the children again, his expression soft but unreadable.
"…They're just kids."
Turbo raised an eyebrow but didn't push further.
Raizen stood up slowly, brushing off his clothes before handing the last marshmallow to a quiet girl standing behind the others. She accepted it carefully, like it meant something more than just food.
"…Thank you," she said softly.
Raizen smiled. "You're welcome."
As he walked away, his eyes shifted briefly toward the facility, his expression changing for just a second before returning to calm.
Back at Reikosha Academy, the atmosphere felt lighter, but not completely at ease.
Kairo, Yura, Kimimaru, and Ishika stood near the main gate, all of them staring forward in silence as if they were expecting something. The wind moved gently through the area, but there was a strange tension in the air that none of them openly mentioned.
"…You feel that?" Kairo asked, his voice quieter than usual as he narrowed his eyes slightly.
Yura didn't look at him, but she nodded faintly. "Something's off. Not here, but somewhere."
Kimimaru rested his hand on his sword, his expression calm but focused. "Doesn't matter where. If it comes here, we deal with it."
Ishika stood slightly apart from them, arms crossed, her gaze sharp as she observed the gate. "You're all too relaxed. If something is coming, it won't be simple."
Kairo glanced at her. "You always talk like that?"
She didn't respond.
Before the moment could settle, footsteps approached from behind them.
Slow.
Quiet.
Then suddenly-
"BOO."
All four of them reacted instantly.
Kairo flinched and turned, Yura stepped back slightly, Kimimaru shifted his stance, and Ishika's eyes sharpened immediately.
Hero stood there, grinning like he just accomplished something great.
"…Got you."
There was a short pause.
Then-
They all moved.
Kairo grabbed him first, pulling him forward as Tyouro wasn't there this time to interfere, and Hero barely had time to react before Yura kicked him lightly from the side. Ishika didn't hesitate either, stepping in and hitting his shoulder cleanly, while Kimimaru simply walked up and gave him a firm, controlled strike that knocked him down completely.
Hero hit the ground.
"…You guys are insane!" he shouted, trying to sit up.
"That wasn't funny!" Kairo snapped, though he was already laughing a little.
Yura crossed her arms. "You deserved that."
Ishika looked down at him coldly. "If that was an actual enemy, you'd be dead already."
Kimimaru added quietly, "Annoying."
Hero sighed, rubbing his head as he sat up. "You're all violent for no reason."
Kairo smirked. "Don't scare us next time."
They all started walking after that, leaving Hero behind for a second before he quickly stood up and followed them, complaining under his breath. The group moved through the academy casually, the tension from earlier fading into something more normal as conversations started to flow naturally.
Kairo stretched his arms slightly as he walked. "So what now? Training again or we just walk around like this?"
Yura glanced at him. "You still need to improve. Reikou isn't something you master by being lazy."
Hero smirked. "He's always behind anyway."
Kairo looked at him immediately. "Say that again."
Hero shrugged. "You heard me."
Ishika watched them quietly before speaking. "You focus too much on arguing. Energy isn't something you brute force. It's about control and understanding."
Kairo frowned slightly. "Easy for you to say."
She looked at him directly. "Because it's true."
Kimimaru adjusted his grip on his sword as he walked. "Some abilities take time. Forcing it won't help."
Yura nodded slightly. "That's why discipline matters."
Kairo sighed but didn't argue again.
"…Still annoying though."
Hero laughed. "You'll get used to it."
They continued walking, their voices blending with the normal sounds of the academy, talking about energy, training, and random things that didn't really matter. Some students glanced at them, whispering about their recent fights, while others simply ignored them.
For a moment, everything felt normal again.
But far away
Experiments continued.
And something dangerous was slowly getting closer.
Whether they realized it or not
Their next fight wouldn't be something they could laugh about.