"Oh my, it seems you've caught me at a disadvantage," Hana said, giving a small giggle. Her compliment was flattering, but she knew Relka was just trying to get on her good side. Still, it was genuinely nice that she recognized her as an actress. "You already know that much about me and I barely know anything about you." It was indiscernible whether she realized the irony of her words. She already knew more about Relka's powers than the vast majority of the school knew about hers. "I'm glad you think I'm that good, but I still have a lot to learn about mastering the stage. The drama club president is easily the best actress. But, if you really think I'm that good, I'll never deny a fan an autograph."

She laughed cheerfully and folded her hands behind her back. "I don't suppose I need anything in particular, but..." Her voice trailed off for a moment. Fortunately Relka had been vague enough to leave a hook for her favorite conversation ever. "If you do have an interest in theater, I have an idea for a big play this year, but I need to build up enough excitement to get the president to approve it. Maybe you could tell me what you'd like to see in a play this year and help spread the word about my cool idea." She transitioned seamlessly to the discussion of theater. It was almost as if that was what Relka wanted to talk about in the first place. If she had any hope of learning anything about Hana's powers, she'd have to halt Hana's theatrical reverie before it gained much more momentum.

Relka let the little ball of insanity rant for a moment about the drama club and her idea to get a play going. Relka arched an eyebrow as she listened to Hanas rant, she knew the girl was obsessed with acting, but this was almost zealot level of devotion. When she finally stopped to take a breath, Relka jumped in and began talking, before the rapid sugar rush got lost in the moment and would be impossible to stop.

"I am a person who loves to learn what she doesn't know. I keep as much as an eye on those in the top fifty as much as I can, you are in that group. As for ideas, hm, I really am a fan of Isekei animes, and American horror films. I know, the two couldn't be anymore different, but with all things in my life, the duality of the situation doesn't escape me. Though to tell the truth, I have no flare for the dramatic myself. I enjoy being behind the scenes, it is where I do my best work."

While talking she began wondering if her clones had found their target yet. She aslo had to get to the Thai student before he disappeared. She still had to convince him to meet her after school with Chinatsu and try and recruit them both to her scheme. If only she could convince Hana to drop the theater and join her. If her engines were even a little bit decent, being an unknown would give her a slight advantage moving forward.

-----------------------

Relkas clone maneuvered through the school, she knew what Chinatsu looked like, and knew she had to deliver the note. This one worked her way up, and the other went down. Between the two of them, it should be easier to find her and go back to Relka. After clearing the last floor, the clone looked around trying to think of anywjere she might of missed. Just as she was about to go back to try the bottom half with her other she noticed a stairway going to the roof.

The clone walked up the stairs and passed Chie silently. Not being able to talk was difficult for the clone, who regularly would pass notes like to secure items for the real Relka. Those she dealt with normally knew the clones were mute, but Chinatsu was new, she wouldn't know about that yet. The doppleganger made her way to the girl and with a low bow the clone presented the note asking to meet Relka after school to assist in her plan to dismantle the student council. The clone stood stock still waiting to get an answer and return back with the news.

@Tomaru @VitaVitaAR

Hana's expression shifted when Relka mentioned keeping an eye on her. She wasn't alarmed by the statement, but she somehow seemed to have a more serious expression. Her little jump in rank caused a bit of a stir around the school. Until recently, she had played the role of a weakling, avoiding fights whenever possible and letting others carry the burden of winning battle points for the club. She was an invisible stage hand, moving about the school freely with no one paying her any mind. But now, she was being watched. She had made every precaution to make sure nobody saw that fight. She swore a vow of silence with her opponent. However, she couldn't deny the possibility that information had leaked. If Relka had an eye on her, no doubt half the school did as well, and with that many eyes watching, it was only a matter of time before information leaked. However, instead of pretending she was oblivious to all of this, Hana simply nodded.

"Mmm, it does seem I've gotten a bit more attention ever since that little incident. I was doing so well keeping a low profile too. But, I suppose I had to start earning some points for the club at some point. Especially if I wanna put on an extravagant play. And if I'm being honest, I've been watching quite a few people as well. How would I deal with this ability, how would I deal with that one." She took a step back and smiled at Relka. "But, I'm glad to hear you like Isekai. What I have in mind isn't exactly like that genre, but there's definitely a whole lot of fantasy in it. Do you like dogs?" She transitioned back into the conversation of her play as if she had never even mentioned fighting. However, a part of her wondered if Relka was someone she could trust with information. It was so exhausting keeping everything a secret, and she almost hoped the girl would press for more information.

The student finished his meal as the two combatants rounded off their battle. It was common sight to see, indeed, but Mimir always found interest in gauging students who were not 'top of the food chain', so-to-speak. Something about watching them got his gears turning - provided him inspirations on how he could improve himself. He'd developed more than a few ways to enhance his own abilities in mundane ways over the years he'd attended. Not to say that the top 10-placed students don't inspire him - they do. But everyone knows everything about them, for the most part. Battles as a whole got him pumped, regardless of the participants.

He replaced his lunch kit into his hat before unnecessarily flipping it around, placing it on his head in what he thought was a cool display of dexterity - not that anybody was watching him, but he mostly did it for himself. He then proceeded to head towards the doors leading into the school, not without noticing the good sportsmanship of the Thai student. He nodded before pushing the doors open and strolling casually through the halls, as he normally did when he finished his lunch before the period was over.

On the subject of low-ranked students, Mimir thought, I should really think about joining one of these clubs they have.

He was aware that not all students who joined clubs were of the weak variety - but it was commonplace for those who were less-capable individually to band together. In his first year at Shiroyama, he'd tried multiple clubs, but none of them seemed to really fit him at the time. The only exception was possibly the Kendo club, but he held off until his second year - where he found it also wasn't great for him. It was too restricted in form.

It was his third year, now. I might as well try again..

There were a few clubs always looking for new recruits, though.

Delinquents club? ...he considered himself a prankster, but not one to go out of his way to deal out misfortune. So no.

Baseball club? He'd already considered it in his two previous years, and he know his father would probably be excited by the prospect - but it really just didn't interest him that much.

Drama club? Hmm...it could be...interesting? He'd never participated in acting, or even thought about doing so. He might have to check it out one day.

Repair club. Now that could be something worth looking into. Although he had almost zero experience, he did replace a tire on a bicycle once. That was sorta fun. He'd have to ask around. Innovating new gear to compliment his abilities sounded amazing - probably better than the system he already had in place.

He continued to stroll through the halls as these thoughts wandered through his brain, just passing time until something interesting happened, or the next round of classes started.

Chinatsu stared blankly at the note she had been handed for a few moments. It was about some kind of plan, meeting with someone she'd never even spoken to, to dismantle the student council.

Dismantle it, huh?

What did that matter?

Chinatsu wasn't here to destroy the school. If others got in her way, she'd fight them. Unquestionably. But she didn't even care about the other members of the student council, not unless they stood in her path. Her entire focus, her goal, was completely centered on that Unbreakable Student Council President. Yukimura Atsuko.

This just seemed to be a pointless distraction. Unless this person could magically fast-track her to fighting Atsuko, there was no way she was going to bother with it.

"... Whatever," she said, simply, turning to walk away. If anyone else bothered her about recruitment, her temper was going to wear quite a bit thinner.

@Cerces22

Relka allowed Hana to rant for a moment about her play once more. As she went on and on one of her clones came up and shook its head no handing back the note and melded into hear. Annoyed Relka didn't have to wait much long, the second clone appeared looking as annoyed as Relka. It raised its hands showing it delivered the note but shook its head no as well. Relka sighed in fustration but as the other her melded into her she turned back to Hana.

"I am sorry about that. Seems part of my scheme fell through, but yes it's not hard to learn about your fight. It updated in our tablets, though I don't know the actual details of the skirmish. I would be very interested in hearing about it when you want to tell me. You are a wild card, not actively trying to raise your rank so no one knows your abilities. And with someone that enjoys learning everyrhing I can about ranked individuals having that information would give me an edge."

@Tomaru

Hana watched with interest as Relka's clones returned, all three merging back into one being. Although the scene seemed very simple, Relka had given Hana quite a lot of information. The clones needed to convey information. That meant Relka couldn't see or hear through them. A good limitation to know. The clones also mimed their information, perhaps because they couldn't talk. But could they make any noise whatsoever? That might be a clue to determine if one was a clone or not, though if Hana were in her shoes, she'd remain completely silent during combat to make herself indistinguishable from the clones. But what other differences were there?

"Well, I guess it's good to hear that the person I fought hasn't spilled any information. I tried to scare them good so they wouldn't talk, but I figured it was only a matter of time before some information got out anyway." Hana thought back to that day and gave a small giggle. "You should've seen everyone's face the next time I walked into the drama club. Half of them were expecting me to look all beat up. They couldn't believe I actually won a fight and some of them swore the system glitched." She laughed some more. It was really quite heartwarming how concerned everyone was about her, but those days were over now. She couldn't play the harmless loser role anymore, and there was no use in playing a role half way.

And of course, Relka suggested that she'd like to know more about Hana's powers. "Well... you've already freely shown me one of your abilities. I suppose I could show you a little something too." She took a couple steps back and looked down the hall to make sure no one else was watching. "Where would you like to be right now? Anywhere in the world. Heck, any time in the world. I'll do my best to take us there." She smiled sweetly at Relka. She hoped the two of them never had to fight. Relka seemed like a kind girl, and Hana hoped this would help them become friends.

@Gentlemanvaultboy
Did that kid just call him middle aged?

I mean, he was grateful for the help and all, even if he was beginning to suspect he didn't actually need it, but still, that was really mean! He was pretty sure he was only, what, two years older than her? At most?

"Oi brat." He said annoyance clear in his voice as he hopped down from the table and picked up her helmet. "I'm grateful for the help, an' I'm at least hopin' ya mean well, but wouldja mind clarifyin' whatcha meant when ya called me middle-aged? 'Cause I'm only seventeen."

As he got closer, he chucked her the helmet, and bent over to grab the delinquents. He was pleasantly surprised by how light they were, slinging one over his shoulder and holding the other one under the crook of his arm.

"Also, I'm just guessin', but I'm pretty sure these guys aren't gonna be namin' 'emselves any time soon. Hell, I don' even know if they'll remember they're names for a little bit, considerin' how easily they ended up goin' down..."

Once he was sure he wouldn't be accidentally dropping them, he gave a casual wave to the onlookers before heading to the door.

"Anyway, thanks again for the help. I'm gonna go find someone who can take care of these idiots, an' maybe even keep 'em from comin' after me again."

And then he paused, before turning back to the... knight? Again, he made sure to avoid eye contact, but he was pretty sure that was the look she was going for.

"Actually, ya mentioned a 'Chie' or somethin' right?" He asked. "Wouldja be able to help me find her? Because again, it'd be nice if I could talk with her, an' maybe work out a deal to stop 'em from comin' after me. Don' wanna hurt 'em again, after all..."

Daichi sighed as Mori left to search for more people to add to their afterschool shindig. Daichi mentally reminded himself that he should probably try and keep it to a small gathering rather than a party - the Club President was usually a miser, so any charity that she offered to anyone shouldn't be abused. And he ended up telling Mori to bring as many people as he wanted...

"If he actually gets a bunch of people, the Prez is gonna kill me..."

No one really paid Daichi mind as he said that - the Repair Club only really took notice of him when they needed his AED, his IES, or when one of his friends stopped by for help with something. Not that he really minded, of course. Daichi was perfectly fine with being a Gray Man, especially in a school as crazy as this. Standing out was like being a nail, and every single student could be a potential hammer - therefore, the only smart option is to have as many hammers on your side as possible, and to blend in with everyone else.

At least, that's what Daichi told himself as he sat by himself in the clubroom. Normally he'd go and check in with his mother's office, but that was on the opposite side of the school from his next class. One of the easiest ways to start a fight was to bump into someone, and Daichi didn't want to take any potential risks that increased the odds of bumping into a high-ranker.

A few kids were standing by the window, watching a fight that was going down outside. All Daichi saw was a red cylinder, like a bat or something - he couldn't really care less. He walked out, only keeping note of where the fight was occurring in order to avoid the crowd that would form. Mori's plan to construct an announcers booth out of his AED seemed to be interesting, but in all honesty, would probably only cause the losers to start targeting him - and bailing his friend out of something like that would be pretty difficult...

Daichi paused in the empty hallway. Was Mori a friend? Or merely an acquaintance? He chose to keep walking, scoffing at himself for being so worried about that. They weren't extremely close, but the fact that Daichi was willing to help him if Mori got in trouble was enough to prove that they were at least friends, even if they weren't the closest.

Daichi's thoughts were bothered yet again as he heard the shouting of some girl. Looking through the front windows of the main building were all Daichi needed to confirm the owner of the voice - Yume Fukano. She was almost an antithesis to Daichi's stance on issues regarding the school, and while he tried to be friendly, he couldn't really consider them close friends. They shared a few classes since they were both first years, but other than knowing her name and a few of her eccentric mannerisms, Daichi didn't really know her too well. She was standing between one of the many delinquents enrolled in the school and... someone's dad? Daichi didn't really feel comfortable that there was some middle-aged man on campus, but considering Fukano was defending him, he was probably her older brother, or uncle, or something.

Daichi chose to duck below the windows and quickly crouch run until he was out of view from the conflict. The delinquents were volatile, but Daichi was fairly neutral with most of them - whenever they pressured him to make them cigarettes, they usually left him alone for a few days. He didn't want to risk ruining the symbiosis they had by being on the scene when they had the tar kicked out of them. Fukano wasn't some super martial artist, but the delinquents in this school weren't much to talk about - it was only recently that they started smarting up and forming a club to get more benefits from the school system.

This place is a hellscape - already walked by two fights, and that's better than usual...

After what felt like an eternity, Daichi finally made it to his next class. There were quite a few minutes until lunch period was over, but coming early meant that he wouldn't get slowed down in the inevitable flood of students that would come with the lunch bell. Daichi scanned over the classroom - the teacher was absent for now, and other than a few other early students, all the items in the room seemed in good condition. Daichi slid into his seat and put his blue school bag onto the floor, pulling out his needed books and the homework from last class as he did so. This class was World History, which he wasn't very exuberant about, but he didn't hate either. The teacher was nice at least, if a bit too passionate about his job - the kind of guy that would probably be a much better fit at an elementary school rather than a battle school.

Daichi pulled out his phone and played with it a bit - he didn't play any games on it since he felt mobile games were actually disgusting, unlike many of his peers, but he did enjoy chatting with people he knew on Line and exploring online message boards. It was a lot easier to stand out online when there wasn't a constant threat of someone attacking you.

Daichi wasn't really feeling it today, so he put his phone back into his pocket. The whole 'keep secrets from the Student Council' thing with Mori was really disturbing him. The Student Council were actually insane for enforcing this absurd battle system, but they were insane and crazy strong. Hiding something from them, even if it is just a personal project that they had no right being a part of, just seemed like a recipe for disaster. Normally Daichi wouldn't really care too much since he was only going to provide materials, but Mori was his friend...

Now wasn't the time to be worrying about that. Daichi had managed to survive his way to class - now he just needed to focus and get a good grade, like any normal student at any normal school. Daichi chose to use some of his remaining lunchtime to double-check his History homework, rather than just stare at a half-filled blackboard.

Yume slowly lowered her lance as it became apparent that her enemies were not going to be getting up any time soon, letting out a disappointed sigh. She hadn't even been given the opportunity to ignite the Dame of La Mancha. The opportunities for her to do battle at full strength had become so vanishingly few since the mechanics of her Inherent Engine skill had been figured out by the student body at large.

The boy in peril stepped down from his high ground, kindly returned her fallen helmet, and annoyingly reveled to her his true age she cocked her head curiously. "Truly?" She asked, plotting the helmet back on her head and standing on her tip toes to get a good look at his face as he walked past.

"Oh, my apologies." She said as he began hoisting the fallen knaves into his arms. "Has anyone ever told you that, at a glance, you have the intimidating countenance of a veteran yakuza?" She thought about that for a moment. "Which makes me question these blackguards logic in attacking you.

"But then," she said as she started trotting after him. "I'm the last person that could understand the fancies of their wicked hearts."

"Yamamoto Chie is the head of the decadent failure and destructive elements club." She explained, falling in step next to him. "She is an unpredictable person. I don't know where she spends lunch on any given day."

@Rabidporcupine

@King Cosmos

"Ichiro... I will remember that." he stated simply as he hoisted the other boy up, holding onto his wrist for a moment more as the diminutive baseball player found his legs a little out of sorts for a moment. "I go by Kasemchai Sinbimuaythai. It's a practice in my home for fighters to honor their gym by taking its name in the place of your family names."

He had made that explanation many times both inside and outside of the Motherland. Farang learning the art didn't always understand this either, so many a native Nak Muay had a habit made out of quickly enlightening those who correctly deduced that "there's no way that can actually be what their family's called".

Though, it would not be wrong to say that many considered their teams as good as family, either.

"You will want a light step for your leg, shade for your head, and ice for both. Your conditioning as an athlete should help you recover a bit quicker than most, but expect some light bruising. It tends to bother those who do not experience it regularly."

As he spoke, he gained a certain tone of authority and expertise as he guided Ichiro over to the very same tree he had been lounging under as he had eaten, shielding his eyes from the midday sun as his brain shook off the cobwebs.

"As for Farang... well, I would be the Farang to you. It is how we say 'foreigner' in Thai. You are all Farang to me as non-Thais, but I would be the proverbial Stranger in this strange land."

He folded his arms and grit his teeth at his complaining ribcage, before looking up towards those monolithic buildings again, emerald eyes piercing and searching as if he would find some superimposed Student Council President upon them. When he spoke again, it wasn't nearly as lightly as his words moments before.

"My rank is 11, since you mentioned yours earlier. I have ambitions far greater than this place, so it's not of any real consequence to me— I will do as any fighter worth a damn does and climb the ladder to the top regardless. Within this system, I am just as much a nobody as you claim to be... But that is because they don't know better. I intend to inform them."

He turned that gaze onto Ichiro, regarding him as though sizing him up despite the fact that they had just fought. The boy had spirit, no doubt about it, but how far did he let that willpower push him?

"What of you? Does it simply start and end at your team?"

Would they meet this way again?

Farang means foreigner huh? Well, that makes sense.

Ichiro allowed himself to be led over to the shade of a nearby tree, stepping lightly on his bruised leg as advised, his injuries bothering him enough that he felt relieved to be able to lean his weight against its trunk by the time he got there. His head would probably feel fine by the end of the day, assuming nothing had been rattled around too much, but his leg would likely bother him for a couple days at least.

He’d likely have to skip practise for a while.

The fact that Kasemchai was only Rank 11 came as a surprise; Ichiro had fought people ranked twice as high as that or more and they weren’t nearly as strong as the Thai student had been. Granted he had lost to them as well, but he could still notice a difference in power when he was on the receiving end of it. Well, he was a transfer student after all; his low rank was just a result of him only having started recently and not having as much time to earn points as the rest of them.

“Well, ever since the student council president changed the rules all anyone has cared about in this school is their rank and fighting; you can’t do anything without having enough power or enough points, including running a baseball team. No one on our team is all that strong, so we get pushed around a lot and we can’t earn points for equipment or anything else.” Since Kasemchai had asked Ichiro didn’t have any problems sharing his motivations with his fellow student. He was pretty sure most people had an idea of what was going on anyway, it wasn’t like he was quiet about it or that it was a big secret.

“I wasn’t really interested in fighting, but if things carried on the way they were there wasn’t going to be a team for much longer. Everyone put their points together to buy an AED so one of us could earn points for the rest of us.” Ichiro raised Slugger up to illustrate his point. “I’m the only one who could use it.”

Admittedly things hadn’t been going too well since then; he’d managed to go from Rank 0 to Rank 7 in a short enough time, but he wasn’t the best fighter and the school had a lot of people who were better than him. Plenty of people who weren’t so good either, but they weren’t worth many points and Ichiro felt bad challenging someone who couldn’t or didn’t want to fight. “What about you? Did you transfer here just so you could fight?”

@HereComesTheSnow

Relka was a bit confused by Hana's question, when and where would she likw to visit? There was to many places to count, the Louvre in Paris, Hogwarts, Destiny Islands feom Kingdom Hearts. A platheora of places popped into her head at such a simple question. But at the end of it all there was only one place she could choose.

"I am obsessed with Norse mythology, their stories about how they saw the world was beautiful. So I would like to see Valhalla, to sit at Odins dinner table, to party with Thor, and scheme with Loki. I think it would be a blast."

@Tomaru

@Gentlemanvaultboy
"Every now an' then." Daiji answered when the girl asked about people calling him scary. "A little more here than back home, but yeah, semi-regularly..."

He sighed when she wondered why they'd attack him, contemplating over whether he should even respond or not. However, he soon came to the conclusion that he might as well. She seemed to be one of those 'Justice-y' types of people, so when she heard about the many many more fights that he was inevitably going to wind up in in the future, she at least probably wouldn't assume he was picking them because he wanted to and come after him herself. After all, she seemed friendly enough, so why risk making an enemy of a potential friend.

"They picked a fight because of my eyes." He said. "I mean, not that they weren't tryin' to already, but when they managed to get a hit on me, a few of 'em ended up accidentally lookin' me straight in the eyes an' got affected by my engine. Two of 'em freaked out and ran, and the other two got really mad an' tried to kill me. So yeah, in the end it's not really their fault, so please don' be too hard on 'em if you run into 'em again when they're better."

He frowned when she mentioned not knowing where the leader of the delinquents would be right now, before an idea came up.

"Well, I might have an idea of what we can do."

@HereComesTheSnow@King Cosmos@Cerces22@Tomaru
He continued wandering until he found an area outside which seemed to have a decent amount of people and, making sure that he wasn't potentially about to look anyone in the eyes, started shouting. He did his best to keep a friendly, easygoing grin on his face, just so they'd know he had good intentions. The result, of course, was a feral-looking sneer.

"Hey! Anyone know where I can find Yamamoto Chie? I've got two of her guys here, an' I needa have a little chat with her about the situation! I'm fine to go to her or, if any of you are willin' to take a message, I can also wait for her to come to me! As long as we get this whole thing sorted out, I'm down for anythin'! Thanks for your time!"

And then he quieted down again, before turning back to Fume. Eye safety in mind, of course.

"Right! Now all we've gotta do is wait for someone to either help us find her or for her to come down here. Then we can talk it out, I'll give her her guys back, an' we can all put this mess behind us and be friends!"

Hana took a step back and her finger went to her chin. "Ooo, Valhalla. That's a good one. I've never really designed a mythic stage like that before. Let's see..." She placed a hand on a locker. "Odin's mead hall could probable work since we're already inside. Aaaand..." She scurried to the middle of the the hall. "His table could go right here. Yeah. I think this will work. Okay. Here we go." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The image of Valhalla was in her mind. The lights in the hall began to dim. The lockers melted away and turned into stone walls. The fluorescent school lights faded away, replaced by hanging torches giving off a soft light. And, in the middle of the hall, where Hannah had pointed, a table rose up from the ground. It was adorned with cooked boar and tankards of mead. Unfortunately, Hannah couldn't make the gods themselves, but a statue of Odin rose on one side of the table, and a statue of Loki appeared on the other. It looked -- and smelled -- like they were inside a mead hall.

"Well, what do you think?"Hannah said, smiling at Relka. "Pretty cool stage, huh? I can practice my abilities anywhere I want. This is the most complicated thing I've tried, though. I'm glad it worked." She sat down at the table and took a swig of mead. "It's all real, too. It's not an illusion. At least, not until it all goes away. And don't worry, it won't actually make you drunk." She giggled and down the whole tankard. "Ahhh."

@Cerces22

@King Cosmos@Rabidporcupine

"I see. The hero propping up your whole club and keeping it alive, then." The Thai held his chin between his thumb and index finger as he soaked in Ichiro's words. "So that's why you're so driven to recruit the strong. That's a heavy burden on the shoulders of one man, isn't it?" Even the tightest-knit teams in Muay Thai were much more individualistic at their core— for all the help fighters could give eachother in sparring and coaching, at the end of the day responsibility for victory was reserved for one's self. Nobody else could step into the ring for you. Though he didn't know or really need to know the finer intricacies of the game of Baseball, he did understand how different that must have seemed to someone who had his whole team to fight for, simply to prove it worthy of surviving.

"I did, yes. I'm going to use this place as a stepping stone on my way to being the best Nak Muay to ever live. That student council president of yours is going to be a scalp to collect, same as the top rankers of Lumpinee will be after her." His eyes betrayed no falsehood— as far as Kasemchai was concerned, there wasn't a single doubt to be had about his path towards destiny.

It was then that the shouting came sailing into the the air of the courtyard, addressed to the students at large.

Kasemchai's face quirked into an honestly confused frown, one he shared with Ichiro in an undertone as the large and fierce-looking man awaited his answer from the crowd.

"Yamamoto Chie?"