~ Ayano's Pov ~
.
.
.
PING!!!
----------------------------------------------------
SIDE QUEST: Stop Yoichi Yamamura, and his gang!
REWARD: 1 bronze key
-----------------------------------------------------
The system turned this situation into a quest? Now I know I can't just ignore it...
'Crap...'
I rose up, but since I'm absolutely exhausted, I took longer than I thought I would to even properly stand, but before I could fully get up, someone from the corner of my eye stood, it was, Katsura.
"Umm... You can't just come in here like this, you need to leave. Class will start soon."
Yoichi Yamamura barely spared Katsura a glance, his usual cocky smirk never wavering. His gang stood behind him, arms crossed, looking as if they owned the place.
"And who's gonna make me, huh?" Yoichi scoffed, stepping further into the classroom. His eyes flicked between Ayano and Katsura, before locking onto Ayano with a predatory grin. "Besides, I ain't done talking to Keiji yet."
I groaned internally. Of all the times for the system to throw a quest at me, it just had to be when I was running on fumes.
Katsura, though clearly nervous, didn't back down. "It doesn't matter. You can't just barge in here looking for trouble," she insisted, her voice steady despite the situation.
Yoichi clicked his tongue, clearly unimpressed. "Tch. Since when did Keiji get people standing up for him? Thought you were a loner, man." His eyes flicked back to me, filled with that same annoying smugness.
I exhaled, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "Look, Yoichi, I'm not in the mood for whatever this is. Take your goons and get lost before a teacher shows up."
Yoichi grinned wider. "Oh? You worried about the teachers, Keiji?"
I narrowed my eyes, "No, I just don't feel like wasting energy on someone who isn't worth it."
The gang behind him stirred, some murmuring amongst themselves at the insult, but Yoichi just laughed it off. "Damn, talking big for someone who looks like they just crawled out of a grave."
"Yeah, and yet, I still look better than you," I shot back, getting irritated at what was happening. This guy was hella bold to try something like this.
His grin dropped for just a second before he rolled his shoulders, taking another step forward. "Big words. Guess I should remind you, and this class of who they're dealing with."
Before he could do anything else, Renji finally stood up from his seat, cracking his knuckles. "Hey, Yoichi, do me a favor and take your tough-guy act somewhere else, yeah? No one's impressed."
The classroom looked at the both us like we were some kind of fools, but, I could tell they had respected us for standing up for ourselves as well...
Yoichi's smirk turned into a sneer as he turned to Renji. "Oh? And what are you gonna do about it?"
I sighed again. I was too damn exhausted for this. But with the quest hanging over my head, I knew I couldn't just ignore it.
"Yoichi," I called, drawing his attention back to me. I exhaled, forcing my body to wake up just a little bit more. "You wanna fight me so bad? Fine."
His eyes lit up at the challenge. "Oh? Finally growing a damn spine?"
I stretched my arms, cracking my neck. "Something like that..." I'm not bitchy enough to ignore a fight, much less one like this. Before these damn quest started, I was a grown ass man on the inside. I won't let someone just do this and just get away with it either...
I could see Katsura looking at me, clearly worried, and it irked me... but I gave her a slight nod... Renji, on the other hand, also looked a bit concerned, "What the hell man?" He whispered to me, but I gave him a nod as well to show I would be ok...
For some reason, I could tell... I don't think I'll lose to guys like these.
Yoichi's grin returned in full force. "Alright, Keiji-san. You better not back out now."
'I wasn't planning to.'
Even though I was exhausted, even though my body protested every movement—I had no choice in the matter either.
The system had given me a quest. And now, I had to finish it.
I walked down to all three of them, reaching the same floor level as they were...
Now being on the same floor as him, I think I know what I'll do instead, "How about you throw the first punch, big guy? Or..." I pointed towards his crotch, "That height of yours doesn't translate to there being any bigger?"
"Wh-WHAT!!!"
If he was pissed before, he was furious now, "YOU SON OF A BITCH!!!" He practically launched himself at me, just like I had wanted, now he was clearly showing signs of throwing a straight punch, seeing it coming from a mile away, I sidestepped it, while grabbing his wrists.
All that learning I did yesterday was paying off in spades... To think that the passive would grant me such a massive increase in skill, despite it saying 'slight.' If this was slight, what does the system consider 'massive'?
'No time to think about that now...
With another swift motion, I twisted his arm, using his own momentum against him. His body lurched forward, throwing him completely off balance, and before he could even process what was happening, I quickly hooked my foot behind his leg and yanked it. I realized that all the techniques I learned last night were practically flowing out of me like damn water...
THUD!!
I heard a, "Argh!" as soon as Yoichi hit the floor, another sharp grunt escaped his lips as the air rushed out of his lungs. Plus, his little so-called 'gang' stood frozen for a few seconds, clearly not expecting their so-called leader to be floored so easily. Thankfully, this guys had absolutely zero ground game.
I exhaled, using a little more strength in my shoulders. "Damn, that was easier than I thought."
Yoichi groaned, already trying to scramble back up, but I didn't give him the chance. Before he could even raise his head, I shifted my weight and dropped my knee lightly onto his chest—not hard enough to hurt, but just enough to let him know that I could if I wanted to.
He gritted his teeth, glaring up at me with pure rage. "You—"
I cut him off, pressing down just a little more. "Listen, I'm exhausted, I barely got any sleep, and I really don't have the patience for this right now. So do yourself a favor, take your little gang, and walk out of here while you still can. Or..." I leaned in slightly, lowering my voice so only he could hear me, "I can keep going like this, and make sure you don't get up for the rest of the day."
I could see his face twisting with anger at me, but he wasn't stupid. I showed enough for him to know that if he tries anything else, he'd just end up being humiliated even further.
I slowly stood up, slowly taking my weight off his chest, and took a step back. "So? What's it gonna be?"
...
...
...
A few seconds passed, I could see Yoichi clenching his jaw, but instead of answering me, he shoved himself up, dusted off his uniform, and glared daggers at me. "This isn't over, Keiji." he spat before turning to his gang. "Let's go!"
One of them hesitated. "But, Y-Yoichi—"
"I said let's go DAMN IT!!!" His voice was sharp, leaving no room for argument.
With that, his lackeys quickly fell in line with em', 'Of course they would do...', following him right out of the classroom. I watched them all leave, making sure they were gone before letting out a long exhale...
"Damn, I'm wasted..." I mumbled that one to myself. Though, I wonder if that kind of win counted towards his little puss-boy gang too?
PING!!!
'I guess I got my answer to that one.'
A small weight settled in my pocket. I resisted the urge to check it immediately—since now it clearly wasn't the time.
Instead, I rolled my shoulders, feeling the strain starting to settle in. My muscles were screaming at me for moving around this much on so little rest...
Katsura finally spoke up, her voice sounding slightly uncertain, yet thankful as wel... "That was... impressive. But, are you okay?" When she asked me that, I felt this damn heart of mine flutter again, this time, I could tell just how pretty she really was, and how great she smelled...
'Focus dude...' I snapped to myself. The sheer effect this girl had on this body wasn't normal, at all...
But, I had to play it cool. I rubbed my temples a little, "Ah, yeah, don't worry, I'll live."
Renji, on the other hand, was grinning like a complete idiot. "Dude, that was amazing! You just played that guy like a damn fiddle!"
I snorted. "Yeah, well, now I get to deal with the consequences later. That guy's got an ego the size of a damn truck, if not bigger—he's not just gonna let this go."
Renji shrugged. "Eh? C'mon man, let future Keiji worry about that. Right now, you should be celebrating. You just established yourself as someone not to mess with."
I wasn't entirely sure about that, but before I could say anything, the door slammed open again. Still, he was partially right, people were already starting to look at me differently...
All three of us turned—ready for round two if needed—only to see our teacher walking in, looking completely unimpressed...
"Alright, everyone, take your seats," he said, adjusting his glasses. "I don't care what just happened—unless someone is bleeding or unconscious, I expect silence and attention."
I dragged myself back to my seat, exhaling. Renji leaned over, whispering, "Dude, you sure you're okay?"
I waved him off. "Yeah man. Just, uh... A bit, tired." Tired, and now with a whole new set of problems coming my way... I guess, that just means more quests, right?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
END