Chapter 1.
20 years ago, in a distant land.
"He can't have gotten far! Spread out and bring me his head!" a man says, frustrated, pacing around by a campfire in the forest
"But Mr Vino…. He broke his limiter… He's even more powerful now; he already took out several of our men. It's been hours…" a man responds exhaustingly
Mr Vino screams in agony for a brief moment before calming down. "Screw this, let the rat think he's free… we will just have to start over again… Where's the rookie? Beretta?"
"In his tent, sir." One of the soldiers say, bowing his head
"Our search here is finished; tell him to teleport us back…"
*Present time*
It's 7 am on a hot summer day in Chile; the alarm rings on and on
"*Incoherent mumbles*"
The door busts open
"Today is the day, son; you're finally graduating. Get your lazy ass up," He says, smiling proudly as he opens up the curtains
I mumble and turn around in my bed, still sleeping
"Just 5 more minutes, Dad..."
My dad looks at me before jumping and elbow dropping me, telling me to get up again
"Alright, alright... geez... what's for breakfast?" I ask as I get out of bed, putting on my baggy jeans and white T-shirt.
"The usual, come on," My dad says excitedly
After the morning drags on, I freshen up and eat the breakfast calmly; later on my father drives me to school
"I've waited for this day, son; now you can finally apply for Sangre De Reyes. Aren't you happy?" He says while driving
"Whatever, Dad, I'm only doing it for you," I say nonchalantly as I stare out the window; my father looks at me worriedly.
As we pull up in front of the school, my dad hugs me
"I'm so proud of you, son; you're strong. My dad tenses up; a tear falls from his eyes
"I would never lie to you, Saint. Never... I always tell the truth."
I look at my father with wide eyes and confusion; unsure of what to say, I just hug him back
"I won't let you down." With that, I head inside to the ceremony for my class's graduation
As I enter, I get greeted by my teachers, friends, and classmates. The ceremony passes by in a flash as we all have fun before we say our goodbyes. As I'm walking towards the exit of the school, Ana pokes my back. I get scared and startled
"Ana! You scared me... creep."
Ana chuckles lightly. Ana and I were always close. We have been friends since childhood, and we were basically born at the same time.
"So what are you gonna do now?" Ana asks as she steps and walks with me by my side; I look at the ground
"I'm gonna apply for Sangre De Reye's entrance exam." I say softly, and almost in a sad like tone
"What!? Really? Wowww... I can't say I'm surprised though; you were always the talented one In our class... and with your (Mana) already awakened, I'm sure you'd do great." Ana says with a innocent and happy smile plastered on her face
"I'm not sure, Ana... I've heard some crazy stories about that place..." I say hesitantly and awkwardly
"Anyway, what are your plans?" I ask, trying to lighten up the conversation
"I'm glad you asked," Ana says sarcastically. "I'm staying here and taking over the family business. I'm not strong like you, and I'm not really interested in fighting and such... but I'll cheer you on from the sidelines... I'll always be here for you." Ana says kindly, but there's a hint of sadness in her eyes... almost like she doesn't want me to leave deep down. It's only natural; I myself can't see a world without Ana. She has always been by my side.
As we arrive outside Ana's house, we stand there for a minute awkwardly before I speak up again.
"Thank you, Ana, I'll be sure to visit you and Sant-" I get cut off and Ana hugs me tightly
"Take care of yourself, please." Ana says, with a shaky voice,
"Y-yeah, of course." I respond startled by Ana's sudden hug; Ana pulls off me and wipes her tears from her cheek
"What was that for, idiot?" I ask playfully; Ana laughs with me before she runs inside, leaving me outside alone. As I walk back home, I see the usual people throwing trash and rotten food at my house; the crowd spots me
"Make sure to hit his son too! Crazy bastard" One of them says, I quickly get inside before anything nasty can hit me
"Dad? You home?" I ask casually as I take my jacket and shoes off
My dad returns from the backyard, all sweaty. It seems like he was training
"There you are, took longer than expected. Change into your training fit and step outside; I have a quick test for you." He says as he takes a sip of water
"Whatever," I say, unbothered
As I step outside, my father hands me the application letter
"Sign this, and then we'll spar." My father says firmly as he looks at me in a serious manner
I sigh and take the pen and fill out the application form. "I'm not fighting you; you're too strong for me anyway." I say as I return the application form and walk away nonchalantly
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The next morning, my father wakes me up at 6am
"Get up; they are here. It's time for you to leave." My father says in a soft voice, despite shaking my shoulder
"Already? I just graduated yesterday!" I say in an annoyed voice, "I don't get no vacation?" I ask as I get up groggily
As I walk downstairs I see 2 men in white pastel suits
"Is this him?" One of them asks my father; the other one shakes his head
"Of course it's him... who else would it be, jackass?"
I step up to them as my father introduces us
"Saint, these are Beretta and Brugger. They are instructors from Sangre De Reyes's grounds. They are here to escort you to the school."
"Pleasure to meet you, sir. I've heard great things about you. And if you're as strong as your father here... you'll fit in in no time." Beretta says to me reassuringly,
"Yeah... thanks..."
Suddenly Brugger lunges at me, throwing a punch with massive speed that I barely manage to dodge. I fall down to the floor on my ass looking panicked
"Heh, nothing special if you couldn't see that coming." Brugger says confidently
Beretta punches Brugger in the back of the head
"My apologies, this is Brugger's first day at the job. He can't help himself." Beretta holds out a hand for me to get up
I get up and glance at my father, annoyed
"So when do we leave?" I ask calmly
"Whenever you're ready. With our abilities we can teleport us back in an instant" Beretta says professionally
I sigh, "Let's go then."
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As we arrive, we arrive in the principal's office. The principal is looking out the window at the schoolyard
"Saint, I presume?" he says nonchalantly
"Yeah..." I say, slightly startled that I just got teleported here. Beretta and Brugger leave swiftly after teleporting me
"My name is Oshoku; I'm the principal of Sangre De Reyes. You do know where you are, yes?" Oshoku says as he turns around
"Yes. I'm at the centre of the earth. I'm familiar with the school."
Oshoku seems unfazed by my answer; he pulls out a piece of paper
"Write down your application form," He says in a cold and distant tone
"What? But I already did..." I respond, confused
"Do it." Oshoku says firmly
I take seat infront of him and start filling it out; as I finish, I hand it to him
"Again." Oshoku says, without even looking at my application form
"The fuck? You didn't even look at it-" I get interrupted by some immense pressure; the sheer pressure from Oshoku makes me shake and pushes me back
"F-fine," I respond nervously, as I keep rewriting the application form for what seems like an hour. Oshoku finally turns around and takes it
"You pass," Oshoku says nonchalantly. "Take this ID and head to your first class; don't be late now."
I glance at the ID and see my next class starts in 2 minutes. I get up and run out of his office. As I step out of his office into the corridor, I hear some fuss to the left of me. I approach carefully and see a crowd of people.
"Is that all you got? You're a dork." The voice in the middle of the crowd says tauntingly
I hear another voice through the crowd "Ooh ooh, I BET you can't land one hit on Plaster, Beyce," He says while laughing
The crowd disperses as I see a guy flying through the corridor; he crashes in a distant wall, I go and check if he's okay
"Hey, what was that about... are you okay?" I ask as I offer my hand out
"I'm good, thanks. Is this your first day too?" He asks as he dusts his clothes off
"Yeah, I'm looking for classroom B22." I say hesitantly, checking my ID
"That's right where I just came flying from... I also go here; it's my first day today!" He says with a bright smile
"I'm Beyce, by the way, and you are?" I shake his hand. "I'm Saint."
The guy that send Beyce flying steps up to us
"Hm? And who are you supposed to be?" He says arrogantly with his hands in his pocket
(Saint's inner monologue: This guy is strong... better not cause no trouble.)
"This is my first day too; I don't want no trouble."
"No trouble? You're radiating Mana right now." Plaster takes his hands out and cracks his knuckles
Suddenly another guy steps in and stops Plaster
"That's enough bro, come on. The teacher is right there..." Plaster shakes his head and turns around nonchalantly; the guy that stopped him turns to us
"I'm Ari. I haven't met you yet. You're in our class?"
"Yeah..." I respond nervously