Summary: In every time and place, there is always the struggle between opposing forces. The forces of darkness against the forces of light. The ones that walk the path of evil against the one that walk the path of justice. The never ending fight between the heroes that protected the innocent and villains that will take everything they want however way possible. Among one of them is Clock Sensei, a villain that put most of his time into researching various gadget and device that many villain often request from his organization instead of fighting them head on. But life as a villain is never easy. Besides avoiding the ever vigilant heroes that patrol the area of his operation, he also has to juggle his own job as his alter ego, Kumio Kani, a librarian. It is difficult, but he has to do it. After all, he has to do it if he wants to continue doing his part time job as a villainous mad scientist. Genre: Action, Comedy, School Life, Superhero/Super Sentai, Romance A/N: Just an idea I have at the moment. I will do my best to update this at least once a month or at least every two week. I usually posted my fiction in Royalroad. Some read it, but almost no one give comment or critique, which I hope I will have here. Thank you! Settings: Alternative world, story takes place mainly in Japanese-like country where heroes and villains is a common occurrence. Table of Contents Chapter 1 “The Librarian” Chapter 2 “Material Acquisition” Chapter 3 "The Principal’s Plan" Chapter 4 “Field Test” Chapter 5 "Lab Experiment - Jack" Chapter 6 "Lab Experiment - Jill and Blade"
Chapter 1 “The Librarian” “Really…” A sigh came out of the man as his sight landed on the stacks of books still inside the cardboard box nearby. “This will take…time.” Another sigh came from him again. “A lot of time…” Although clearly unwilling to do the job in front of him, he had no other choice but to do it since he was the one in charge of that. At that, he shook his head several times and then started pulling out the book one by one and placing them onto the nearby table. Each time he placed a book onto the table, he paused for a fraction of a second to read the title of each book. He noted each subject of the book in his mind as he did that before continuing onto the next one. After a while, the book box has been emptied completely and on the table stood a tower of book. He then moved the box under the table and then started his next job, sorting each one based on their subject. Unlike before, he didn’t spend any second reading the book’s title and went straight onto sorting them and placed them onto their similar group since he already memorized most of the book’s subject. The job was done much faster than he expected and he looked onto the clock. Noticing the time, the man showed a rather please expression. “Hmm…I can finish it before lunch. Great!” What followed his statement was a small laugh. “So let’s get to it!” He then pulled his notebook toward him. After swiping the fingerprint reader and unlocked it, he click an icon that made the screen displayed a window. He typed his username and password and then another different window opened up. A smile appeared on his face as he saw that. “Nice! The connection is faster than usual! Okay! So…first is this one.” He pulled one book from the stack. “This will be in–“ “I’m sorry I’m late!” “Uwah!!!” A sudden shout filled the room and that surprised him. Not only that, the one that just came into the room also opened the sliding door rather violently, making a loud noise that added more to his surprise, even to the extent of him almost dropping the book in his hand. “Kuri-san! This is a library! Be quiet!” He immediately scolded the one that surprised him while trying his best to keep his voice down. “I’m s-s-s-sorry, Kumio-sensei!” The girl immediately apologized while bowing his head to him. Her slightly messy black hair fluttered slightly as she did that. “Good grief…please remember that next time.” He let out another sigh after that and placed the book onto the table and looked at the girl in front of him. He repositioned his wireframe glasses that went out of place due to being startled by her. He then glanced at her uniform that consisted of lime green long sleeves shirt with a tag that has the name ‘Kuri Fuka’ on the arm under a navy blue vest that had some simple red trimmings on it and a dark green skirt with the same rid trimming on it. The uniform also fashioned a black tie that bear the school’s emblem on it. What caught his attention was how untidy she looks. Combined with her rather rugged breathing and messy hair, he came to a conclusion. “Kuri-san, did you ran all the way from your dorm right after waking up?” “E-E-Eh!?” A flustered voice came from her as she took a step back. “A-Ah, u-uhm, eeh…H-How…did Sensei know?” “…Really? You didn’t notice?” He let out another sigh. “Your appearance told the whole story, Kuri-san.” “My c-clothes?” She then looked down to her uniform and noticed what he was talking about. She immediately showed a dejected expression on her face. “Uuuu…” “Tidy yourself first and then you can get to work.” He then continued his work after saying that. “…Yes, Sensei.” She then turned toward the door and exited the library. Before he exited the library, he noticed that her expression was on the sad side. He shook his head. A slight guilt entered appeared inside his mind. He also felt bad for raising his voice at her without knowing the reason for her to wake up late. For all he knows, she might be very busy with important stuff the other day. Suddenly, he remembered something. A slight sliding sound came from the door and he looked at the direction of the sound. The figure of Kuri Fuka stood there with a much tidier uniform than before. She also made her hair tied up into a short ponytail. He gave a small smile at that. “Ah, now that’s much better.” He said that without sitting up from his chair near the counter. Most of the book has been moved from the table onto the counter while he kept inputting them onto the system. “Yes, Sensei.” Although her voice seemed calm, he could still noticed that she still had a tint of disappointment in her eyes. “Uhm, I will immediately start with the shelving.” “Kuri-san.” His voice stopped her from moving and she looked at him with worried eyes. “Before you do that, could you bring the folder from the back room first? I’ll have to recheck that and I’m almost done with cataloguing the new book.” “Oka–I mean, yes, Sensei!” She then moved onto the back room that was located near the window right behind the counter. The ‘back room’ itself is not exactly a room since there’s no proper wall separating it. Instead, it was just a separated area that is blocked by wide bookshelves, making a small rectangular area that is fitted with a table and some chair, secluded from the rest of the library. It is used by him, Kumio Kani , the school librarian, whenever he had to take a short break without leaving the library. Fuka went behind the bookshelves and then found the folder in question lay on top of the table. But before she grab the folder and go back to him, something caught her attention. Next to the folder is a store bought bread and a bottled water. That alone will not catch her attention. What really caught her attention is a piece of paper underneath those objects that has words written it that says “Eat it. You probably didn’t have breakfast”. Seeing that, a smile spread on her face. Together with that, she could feel her stomach telling her that she really needs those. She took the paper and then noticed that there was something else written. It was previously under the bread, making it unnoticeable. It reads “Don’t leave any crumb.” A quiet giggle came from her and then she took the bread and unwrap it. After saying her thanks for the food, she took a bite of it. The jam filling inside the bread spread on her mouth and left a sweet taste. “Uhm, strawberry. I love it~!” “Glad you like it.” At the sudden voice, Fuka turned her head onto the source of the voice and found the librarian, Kani, looking at her with a slight grin on his face. She then realized that she had showed him a rather embarrassing face as she ate. That made her face reddened. But it seemed that Kani didn’t notice that, or decided to ignore that, and walked toward her, taking the folder. “You can work after you’ve done eating. And remember.” He then pointed to the bread. “No crumb.” “Yes, Sensei!” Hearing her cheerful voice and eyes that no longer showed the negative emotion from before, Kani nodded with satisfaction and left the break room with folder in hand. “Ne, Sensei.” “Hmm? What is it, Kuri-san?” “Why are there so many books all of a sudden?” She asked him while placing the newly arrived book onto the book trolley. “I mean, usually we will have this near the new school term. But this is far from new school term.” “From what I’ve heard, it is because the school will hold a public open house or something,” answered Kani without lifting his attention from the screen of his notebook. “Eh? Public open house? I never heard that?” “It will be announced at the next general assembly.” The sound of him tapping onto the keyboard accompanied his answer to her. “The staff got the information first before the student. Don’t worry about it.” “Ehm, not exactly worried, but somehow…concern, Sensei.” “Concern?” As the word took his interest, he stopped typing and looked at his student assistant who is still shelving the book on nearby shelves. “And why is that, Kuri-san?” “I’m just…uhm…Sensei, do you remember the Principal’s motto?” “Motto, eh?” Kani tapped his chin as he tried to remember that. It didn’t take that long since the Principal’s motto is a very strange, if not a radical one. “It is to be as free as free can be yet as lawful as lawful can be, right?” “Yes. The lawful part…I think no one will really mind that. But…” “The free part, right?” Fuka gave a short nod. “Indeed that might…no, it will bring trouble.” He then let out a sigh. “Well, her motto aside, I think it will be all right in the end of the day.” “How can you be so sure, Sensei?” “Well, for starter, the fact that I could still work in here, Lieuxerr Private Academy, is a very strong fact.” A small chuckle came from him after he said that. “If the school is opposed too much and banned by the public, I will not be here. And you, Fuka Kuri, one of the school many scholarship student, will also be not here. Isn’t that one of the strongest fact?” “I suppose that’s right.” “And then there’s the fact that the school has produced quite a lot of potential student that have many achievement and also attract many excellent professor from prestigious institute around the world.” He then stopped and looked at her. “That reminds me, Kuri-san. I haven’t congratulated you for winning the prefectural Ikebana Championship. Congratulation for getting the second place, Kuri-san.” At that, he showed her a smile and gave a quiet applause. “T-Thank you, Sensei.” Once again, she got flustered. For Fuka who isn’t really accustomed to getting too much praise, a praise from him that came out of nowhere surprised her. “It’s a s-shame though. I thought I could take first place.” “Ho, then try to get it next time, Kuri-san.” He clapped his hand slowly. “Keep that mindset, work harder, and the trophy is in your hand.” “Hahaha, I will have to work much harder, Sensei.” “Then work harder you go.” He looked at her. “And also work smarter. Many people fall only inches away from their goal as they worked themselves harder than needed without a clear goal and clear method. Work harder and smarter at the same time and you will raise your chance of grasping that goal of yours much better than you expected.” “Yes, Sensei.” She turned around to face him after putting the last book. “Sensei often say great quote. Where do you get all of those?” “Hmm, some from conversation, some from experience, but most from reading.” He then tapped the book near him with his finger. “Book is a window of knowledge. The only thing you need to do is choose the right window to open and then don’t hesitate to open it. Even if you got the wrong one, there’s no such thing as a wasteful reading.” “Ah, I’ve read that quote some times ago!” She clapped her hand and then tilted her head to the side. “But…I don’t remember from where.” “Remembering the source is important, but remembering the content is much more important. If you store it in your mind,” he tapped his own head, “then you can take it out anytime you want and it will remind you the wise advice in it. That will make you–Hmm?” His explanation was stopped as he heard the school chime that signified that it is lunch break. He looked at the clock and noticed that it was indeed already time. “Oh, it is time already. I guess that’s all for today, Kuri-san.” He stood up and then took the small book near him. He flipped the page and stopped when the current date is written on top of it. He signed on it and then closed the book and then left it on the counter. “No visitor today, eh?” “Not everyone is in school today, Sensei.” Fuka came to the counter while pushing the trolley that is already emptied. She took the book and then put it into her skirt pocket. “In fact, I think the only one in school today is the one that have assignment like me or the one that is preparing for their club activity. It is, after all, just after a long weekend.” “Hmm, indeed that is correct.” He took the dark grey coat that has the same trimming as her vest and put it over his white shirt. “Then I guess I’ll buy and eat lunch at the cafeteria. I’ll put the ‘close’ sign in the mean time.” “O-Oh, what a coincidence, I am going t-to the cafeteria too.” “Hmm? That’s rare of you, Kuri-san.” He said to her as he exited the counter. “Aren’t you in the bento faction?” “Err…I…overslept today, Sensei.” She said that while averting her reddened face. “So…” “Ah, yes…” He scolded himself for forgetting about that so quickly. “Well, let’s go there together. If you don’t mind, that is.” “I-It will be my pleasure!” She suddenly shouted with so much spirit into it, only to realize that she just raised her voice inside the library. “I’m s-sorry, Sensei.” At that, Kani just let out a sigh and smile slightly at her. “Yeah, yeah.” He then pulled out a key. “Let’s just go then.” At the cafeteria, Kani sat down with a steaming kitsune udon in front of him. Unlike the usual, the cafeteria was less crowded. It was because of what Fuka mentioned, a long weekend. For the students that commute to the school every day, they will certainly be anywhere but at school. While the one that stayed at the dorm in the academy ground, they either went back home or stayed at their own dorm. Only a handful of them could be seen in the cafeteria. And among those handful students, Fuka isn’t one of them. The reason for that is because she suddenly got a call from her roommate and got asked to eat at the town’s strip mall near the school. At first, she was reluctant to go but Kani told her that she should enjoy her free time well since tomorrow they will start attending class again. Kani noticed that she showed a rather disappointed expression at that time but he didn’t know the reason for that. But it only lasted a mere fraction of a second and she immediately agreed to her friend’s invitation. She bowed to him before leaving him to eat alone in the cafeteria. As he slurped down his udon, he glanced around to look for any faces he might recognize. At first he didn’t really count on that since the chance of that is quite low. But to his surprise, he managed to find one. “Oh, Kani?” And just as he made eye contact that person, his name was called. “It is Kani! Kani!” “…Great…” He couldn’t help but frowned. There is only a single person that calls his name like that. “…I guess it is better than nothing.” “Oi, Kani!” The person in question came toward him with a tray in his hand. “As expected of the ever diligent librarian, Kani! I know that if I will meet a fellow staff member, it will be you.” “Is that supposed to mean that I have no other things to do beside here?” A rather sharp tone came out his mouth. “Oh, no, no. Not in the slightest.” Faced with a rather sharp remark, the man in question was not affected in the slightest and still wore his usual smile. “That means that you are a very dedicated person, Kani.” “…Thanks, I guess.” As usual, he felt nothing but frustration whenever he talked to him. His name is Allan Savoie. He is the Principal’s older brother. Unlike Kani that fashioned a very oriental look with his short black hair and slanted eyes, Allan showed a very western appearance. Blonde hair that was left tied in a single pigtail and a pair of dazzling green eyes, Allan couldn’t look any more different than Kani. Although he is the Principal’s older brother, he didn’t get any special treatment from her. That is evident in his rather common position in the school. Allan is the school Language and Literature Professor. Besides being responsible for the Language Research Club, he had no other role in the school. He also didn’t show a single interest of gaining a much more prestigious role in the academy. He always said that he is already content of his current job. Because of that very mind set, Allan considered Kani as one of his closest friend. Similar to him, Kani have no interest whatsoever at the academy’s politic and struggle of power. All he wanted was to work as peaceful as he could and read a variety of book, whatever the subject is. Besides that, he also felt that managing a library for a whole academy alone is already more than enough work for him. Allan views that as his sign of being a dedicated person, which earned Kani more respect from Allan. In the other hand, Kani felt slightly annoyed at Allan attitude. It wasn’t to the level of bad, but more to the degree of bluntness the guy used. His words are always delivered without being packaged enough to make it possible enough to hurt some people. What made Kani felt more annoyed at him is that how his words never contained any malice, making it much more annoying for him since that means it was just his one-sided presumption from his side. But overlooking his bluntness, Kani felt that he could be friend with him. Or at least a close acquaintance. “So what are you doing here, Kani?” Allan asked while putting condiment over his curry rice. “I thought that we can still have a day off today.” “I could ask the same to you.” Kani scoop the broth inside his bowl and then looked at him. “You certainly have no classes today and I have not heard any announcement that the teaching staff should be in the academy.” “Hahaha! Kani is as sharp as ever.” He let out a rather loud laugh as he said that. Due to the empty condition of the cafeteria, his loud voice echoed in the whole area. Although it was so loud, everyone there only spared him a short glance. The reason for that is because everyone has been very accustomed to his rather eccentric act. “I was bored at home and I was thinking that maybe I’ll see something interesting along the way here.” “…And your first choice to cure your boredom is going to the academy?” He nodded at Kani’s question. “Aren’t you the one who is dedicated there, Allan-san?” “Me? Dedicated?” Another laugh came from the blonde man. That only made Kani shook his head. “I like my off time and I was getting a bit sad that I have to get back to the pile of paperwork we have to grade. But!” He then shouted again with his finger on the air. “That also means that I can read the student’s interesting writing. Isn’t that wonderful?” “…Isn’t that what one would call dedicated?” “Huh? You said something, Kani?” “…Nothing. Gochisōsama deshita,” said Kani after putting down his chopsticks. “W-What!? You’re done?” Allan let out a surprised voice as he looked at him and also his empty bowl that has been left totally clean to the last drop of broth. “So fast!” “Even when I speak, I never stopped my hand.” A grin appeared on Kani’s face, which earned him a ‘tsk’ sound from Allan. “Well, that and also because I started earlier than you. Of course I’m going to finish sooner than you when you are still…only halfway.” “Yeah, yeah.” He then continued digging into his plate. “So what are you going to do? Back to the library? There will be no one there, you know?” “Well, I have nowhere to go. And since I have already put my attendance mark on the system. If I go in the middle of it, it wouldn’t be taken as overtime.” After saying that, he earned a rather strange look from Allan. “What is it? That is a very logical way of thinking.” “No, it’s just that I didn’t expect hearing something about that from you.” “What is that supposed to mean? I’m a normal guy that still needs his money.” “True, but…it’s just strange hearing that from you.” Allan then scooped the last portion of his curry rice. “Gochisōsama deshita!” “Well, aren’t you fast?” “You can’t eat this kind of food too long. The flavor will be lost when it gets cold.” He then got up and picked up the tray. “Before you get back, want to get a drink?” “Sure, why not.” After getting home from the academy, Kani didn’t go straight back to his home. Instead he went to take his trusty blue scooter to the electronic district near the academy. After donning his usual casual windbreaker, he put on his helmet and then drove off the academy. If it’s the usual day, he will meet a lot of student along the way and he usually waved slightly at them as he passed by them. But since the academy will only start the usual activity tomorrow, he didn’t find anyone. The distance between the academy and the electronic district is only a half hour away by foot, making it quite close to his workplace. He drove in a leisurely way, enjoying the scene of the strip mall along the way. As he drove past them, the thought of his student assistant was supposed to be nearby popped out in his mind. But since he still has his appointment for the day, he didn’t bother to look for her. Actually, even if he did have no prior appointment, he still wouldn’t do that as it might be considered strange for him to barge in on her like that without any appropriate reason. With that thing in his mind, he only hope that she could enjoy her leisure time in the fullest as he know very well that Fuka is a girl that sometimes acts to serious and really needs some time to stretch her arm before she is overwhelmed by her own work. After a few minutes of ride, he finally stopped in front of a large office building. The large sign on the front of the building depicts a picture of a big green face with a wide smile holding a cardboard box. The name of the shop ‘Cheerful Boxes’ was written in bright and bold font on top of the smiling face. There are a lot of electronics being showcased o that any pedestrian could see from the store’s front window. Sign of product promo and other great offer could be seen hanging from the store’s ceiling. Kani then droves his scooter onto the staff parking lot nearby and then went toward the building after locking the vehicle. But instead of entering through the front door, he climbed the back stair that led onto the staff only area. He opened the rather old door and then went inside the building. “G’day there, Kumio-san.” A cheerful greeting came from the security staff that sat on a nearby chair near the entrance. “Good day, Toshi-san.” Kani greeted the man back while bowing his head slightly. “Am I the first one?” “Nope,” said the middle-aged man without moving his eyes from the newspaper he was reading. “The twin already came.” “Oh, they’re early.” Kani said with a clear display of surprise. “Then they already have gone there?” “Yup.” The sound of paper being flipped came from him as he turned the pages. “It’s a slow day since it is the end of a long weekend.” Although the man named Toshi didn’t really looked to be talkative, he still chatted a lot with Kani. “Well, I’ll be going then. See you, Toshi-san.” “See ya.” After leaving the middle-aged security, Kani immediately entered a room with a sign that says ‘Staff Only’ and pair of warning symbol on it. The door closed with a slight thumping sound. Inside the room is an absolutely empty room that has only one big computer terminal and a row of lockers. He opened one of the lockers. After confirming that it is empty, he took off his windbreaker and stored it inside the locker. He also put in the helmet into it. Usually he would have a bag that he will put inside the locker too, but since it was not a school day, he didn’t bring it. After that, he walked toward the terminal. The computer terminal is a high-tech looking computer that has no input device except a single hand print device stuck on its side. The screen, which is rather big, only displayed the word ‘Welcome, please put your identification in’. After Kani put his hand onto the hand print device, the device let out a glow and it started scanning his hand. A few seconds after that, the terminal let out a small beep sound and the screen displayed a different message. The message says ‘Identification recognized’ and then blinked into ‘Transfer in progress’ a second after that. When the message disappeared, a bright light came from a small camera-like device on top of hand scanner device and started to envelop his body from head to toe. When the light has enveloped him completely, his body started to disappear until he vanished completely, leaving the room as empty as before. “…Never get used to that.” Kani said with a rather irritated tone. At the moment, he was in a small room with a single transparent holographic screen. Behind it is a metallic door that looked very different to the door he found in the ‘Staff Only’ room. Kani then walked past the screen to get to the door. When his body came out the screen, his appearance had undergone a complete change. Before he passed the screen, he was wearing his academy’s uniform that consists of a white shirt and dark blue pair of pants. After walking through the holographic screen, his outfit saw no trace of that outfit. He was wearing a heavy looking lab coat with the color of metallic grey as its main color. There was a pair of black leather gloves on his hand and leather boots on his feet. Under the lab coat one could see a cuirass made from strange material that has a lot of gear on it. Although his pants looks like a normal grey pair of pants, it made no significant effect to how strange he looks with his full face mask that has face of a big gear on it with two eye sockets. “And…I also never get used to this costume.” He let out a big sigh. As he stepped near the door, the door slid open automatically. “Good day, Clock Sensei!” “Greetings, Clock Sensei!” “Clock Sensei!” Multitude of greetings came all around him as he set foot in the hallway filled with people wearing grey suits and a grey full face mask. They all halt their step and gave him a salute as he passed through the hallway. Kani returned the salute while still keep walking toward his destination. At the end of his destination, he found a big door with a big symbol that depicts a grey smiling skull inside a beaker glass and the name ‘Crazy Brigand’ over the symbol. Like the previous door, it slid open as he approached it. As he stepped inside, he was greeted with a dark room that was illuminated with a few neon lights on the edge of the room. A variety of strange looking contraptions and equipment were scattered along the place while the same grey masked personnel were tinkering with them. Some of them turned around to give him a salute that he returned right away while some continued with their job. As he walked further inside, he found two people stood side by side facing him. Both of them are wearing an outfit that reminded one of a colonial era military officer that consists of a military jacket, a pair of grey pants, and a pair army boots that have metal plates on the upper part of it. While one has the color of red and grey, the other is blue and grey. Another difference is that the red and grey one has a long flintlock on the back while the blue and grey one has a long naginata on the back. On their head they wore similar silver clown mask with a very eerie smile on it and also a similar officer cap. “Ah, Sensei.” “You’ve come.” The two titled their head in opposite direction and greeted him with a separated sentence that made a full sentence when combined. The two let out a very androgynous voice, making it very difficult to discern their gender. Kani, or Clock Sensei, looked at them and let out a sigh. “Why are you still here? I thought you are already on site.” “But we can’t go.” “Without Sensei with us.” “…Sheesh.” He shook his head at their answer. “Well since I’m here, shall we go then? I hope you already have the coordinate of the site.” “Yes, Sensei. It is.” “Right over here. See?” The two then pulled out similar paper out of nowhere that holds the coordinates of their mission. “Good. Then Jack Shooter, Jill Slasher, we will ride out today!” “Right away!” “Clock Sensei!” The three then moved onto the device located in the center of the large room. It is a device with a circular pattern in the middle of it and a few generators around it. They stepped into the middle of it and then looked around the place. Clock Sensei waved onto the nearby grey masked personnel around the control panel and then gave him an okay sign. “For the Crazy Brigand!” “For the Crazy Brigand!” The group of grey masked personnel returned his shout and then activated the device. The device let out a small glow that enveloped the three masked people and then it let out a small exploding sound. After that, they all disappeared. With that, Kani start doing his part time job within the evil organization called The Crazy Brigand.
Just read your signature.. When my site officialy hiring will contact you.. Interesting premises so far..
Thank you! Oh, really? That would be great! Hehehe... Thank you! I will do my best to keep it interesting. I can finally upgrade my weapon!...Ehm...sorry, been playing Guns Girl. Still, thank you though! Hehehe...
Chapter 2 “Material Acquisition” “And so…I will have another assistant?” “You got it, Kani boy~!” “…This late at game?” “Why of course it should be this late of game.” She put on a sly grin as she said that to him. “Don’t worry, they will only be here on that event day.” “After that?” “Well…that will be their choice, don’t you think?” The Principal gave a wide grin as she said that. “After all, you know my motto. Live as free as free as free can be yet as lawful as lawful can be! They are to choose whatever decision they want. I will absolutely not interfere with their decision. And!” She then pointed at Kani. “I ask you to do the same.” “Relax. You know me.” Kani let out a sigh. “I’m not one who pushes people to do something they don’t want.” “Yup! I know you won’t, Kani boy~!” She smiled again. “Well, that’s that then. I’ll ask them to come to you tomorrow.” The Principal then jumped off from the counter she was sitting on, making her long blonde hair flowed slightly. “Be sure to take care of them~!” “Got it, Principal.” He leaned back onto his chair and then closed his eyes. “I know I can trust you, Kani boy~” After saying that, she exited the library. When he confirmed that she has left the library, he let out a long and heavy sigh. He started to think about the Principal’s plan. Her plan is simple. She plans to get three students from various grades to work together with him, the librarian. The reason for that is for them to learn the true experience of working with information stored in the old ways, books. She thinks that in this day and age, the number of young people reading a real life hard book has decreased drastically and that made that generation appreciate book less and less with each passing year. They relied too much on the power of digital information and internet, making them lazy and have the tendency to look for shortcut. With that as the background, she wanted to show the public that in the academy, they have the ability to plant and nurtured the true spirit of learning into their student that did not only rely on the convenient of the digital era, but also on intense searching of information through books and hard copy text while also comparing them to the information they can find in the internet. That way, the student can broaden their horizon. In his mind, the Principal’s plan, while noble, is rather far fetch and idealistic. It will be close to impossible to make the student to learn the joy of reading normal book if they have no interest at it in the beginning. Coupled with the fact that searching for information is much easier by using the net compared to looking page by page in traditional book, the task is anything but easy. “Sheesh, this is going to be so difficult.” He shook his head at that thought. “How should I do that, I wonder?” “Is Kumio-sensei in?” A voice accompanied the sound of the door being opened. “Hmm? I’m here.” As he looked at the one that just enter the library. “Hmm, Takae-sensei? What is it?” “Ah, good. I thought that I have to look around the place for you.” The woman called Takae-sensei gave him a smile. It was a charming smile that will grasp the heart of most male. Combined that with her luscious long burgundy red hair and feminine build that is cladded rather tightly under her staff uniform, almost no male in the whole academy is able to resist her charm. She is one of academy most famous female teacher, Keiko Takae. “I see. Do you need something from me?” He answered his smile without showing any change of emotion. “I need to talk with you as soon as possible.” She closed the door and then walked toward the counter. She then leaned onto the counter with one hand and looked at him with her pair of violet eyes. “With me?” “Yes.” She leaned forward and touched his shoulder. “It is quite urgent, you see.” “Urgent, is it?” Hearing him saying that, a giggle came from her. “What’s the matter, Takae-sensei?” “As expected of the Black Sage, Kumio-sensei.” She then pushed her face nearer to him. “You are immune to woman’s charm.” “I’m not immune. Just not easily swayed. It would be disastrous if I’m immune to that, don’t you think so?” “Good answer, Kumio-sensei.” She then straightened her posture. “You really live up to your name as the Black Sage.” “What is it with that Black Sage business and all?” He asked with a slight frown on his face. “Oh? I’m surprised that you don’t know.” A thin smile appeared on her face. “That’s the nickname the student gave you. The Black Sage Kumio and the White Prince Savoie” “Huh? Savoie-sensei?” “Yes, don’t you know? You two are a bit of legend.” Another giggle came from her. “But enough about that. I need you to meet me at the rooftop at lunch.” “Lunch? Can it be after school?” “It’s urgent, remember?” “I need to take care of the library.” “Ask your student assistant. Besides, it will not take long”, she leaned toward him again, “I promise.” “I’ll see what I can do. No promise, though. Since she might not co–“ “Good morning, Kumio-sensei!” A cheerful entered the place together with the sound of the door being opened. But her cheerful expression turned to a shocked one as soon as her eyes fall upon the scene between her two teachers. “I-I-I’m s-s-sorry!” She closed the door with a strong force, making a loud thump. “STOP RIGHT THERE!!” Kani’s shouted immediately. “GET BACK HERE!!” “H-H-Hai?!” After that, the door opened again, but with a slower momentum. The reddened face Fuka entered with a scared step and the closed the door behind her. She then faced the two teachers that were already took a distance from each other. “Good morning, Fuka-chan.” The one that greeted her first was the smiling female teacher, Keiko. “Why are you running away like that, hmm?” “E-Eh? I-I j-j-just t-t-t-t-thought t-t-t-that y-y-you a-a-and–“ “Takae-sensei, stop harassing my student.” “Aw, but she’s just too cute. Having all that misunderstanding and running away all flustered like that.” She giggle again, making Fuka’s already flushed face became much redder. At that, Kani could only let out a sigh. “I guess I will leave now. Remember, at lunch.” She pointed at Kani and then turned toward Fuka. “See you, Fuka-chan~” She tapped her shoulder and then exited the library. For a few seconds, the two just looked at the door until the sound of her footsteps disappeared completely. After that, Kani let out a sigh, startling Fuka. “Really, that woman.” He then turned toward his student assistant. “Kuri-san.” “H-H-Hai?!” “Don’t be easily teased by her. You should know better.” “B-But Kumio-sensei and T-Takae-sensei was–“ “As I said, you should know better. She was just teasing.” He let out another sigh. “Just get to work. We have a lot to do.” “A-Ah, K-Kumio-sensei, I’ve just saw the Principal in the hallway.” “Hmm? And?” “She tapped my shoulder and then said something like ‘Good luck with the library event’.” Hearing that, Kani shook his head again. “Err, I supposed Kumio-sensei know the event she was talking about?” “…I know.” He then started to explain the whole plan to her. Fuka listened to him closely while nodding from time to time. “…And there you have it. What do you think?” “…It will be…very difficult, Sensei.” “As expected, eh?” He leaned back onto his sit again and folded his arms. “I know that her reason is noble and wonderful. But realizing that is…another story altogether.” “Hmm…” Fuka titled her head slightly. “Then…I guess we should just do our best.” “Do our best, ha?” He tapped his chin as he heard her statement. “Like there’s any other choice.” “…Sadly, there isn’t, Sensei.” “Sheesh…what a difficult task that is.” ==================================================================== “Ah, you’re here.” Keiko said while turning her body around to face Kani that just arrived on the rooftop. “A bit late, but you’re here.” “Forgive me for that. The library is a bit more crowded than I expected.” “So you left poor Fuka-chan to service everyone alone there?” “What’s with putting it strangely like that?” He frowned at her choice of word. She, on the other hand, just kept smiling at him. “Well, no matter. As I said, this will be a short one.” She then pulled out a map and then threw it to him. Kani caught it and then opened the folder right away. His eyes twitched a bit after reading the content of the folder. “What’s this?” “That’s your order,” she said to him while walking toward him, “don’t you understand that, Clock Sensei?” Being called by his other name, Kani showed a much more serious expression. “Is this a direct order from you, Lady Gleam?” The moment Kani used that name, a smile appeared on her face. “It is, Clock Sensei.” Her tone changed a bit and contained a bit more authority in it. Just he said, Keiko Takae other persona is Lady Gleam. She is the leader of the organization Kani worked for. In other word, she has the highest position in the Crazy Brigand and his direct superior. She is the leader and also the sole owner of the Crazy Brigand, responsible for deciding major mission for the whole group. “To have the great Lady Gleam give the mission personally, there is something else behind it, I suspect.” “Sharp. As usual.” She folded her arm and looked at him straight in the eyes. “Just as you said, there is a special circumstance. No, make it two.” At that last statement, she let out a tired sigh. “What is it, if I may know?” “The first is, you might guess, is that the order has to be done today. And the second is because…ugh..” “Lady Gleam?” “That’s because everyone is taking a damn leave!!” She shouted that with all he might. “E-Eh?” “I know that is it the long weekend but why are you all taking a leave in the same time?!” She let out her frustration at that moment. Kani who was near her took a step back instinctively, clearly scared facing the furious woman. “The Attack Division! The Scout Division! The Thief Division! All of them! Argh!!!” “C-Calm down, Lady Gleam. Calm down.” “Ugh…excuse me for that.” She let out a cough to recompose herself. “Sorry to make you see that, Clock Sensei.” “I-It’s fine, really.” He tried to be as calm as possible, but his voice betrayed his own wish. They came out as a stutter. He then also let out a cough to recompose himself. “So because of that, my division will do the mission?” She nodded. “But, Lady Gleam. My division is not exactly suited for dangerous combat. We are not trained to do that.” “Don’t worry. The mission is not as difficult as you thought. In fact, I want you to do it with the minimal amount of conflict as possible.” A moment of silence swept across the place as thousands of thought swam across Kani’s mind. He weighted every possible part of the mission while also doing some simulations inside his head. Keiko just looked at him with a small smile on her face, knowing very well that he is considering the mission very seriously, making her quite pleased. After a while, he snapped his finger once and then looked at her. “…I understand.” He then gave a nod. “Then I will ask permission to use the transport vehicle and the usage of several piece of class III equipment. Is that possible?” “Granted.” She let out a sigh. “Just…don’t get them damaged…too much.” She let out a sigh again. “I don’t want another incident like what happened last time.” “Don’t worry, Lady Gleam. I know the best way of using them since I’m the one that developed them in the first place.” He then gave her a slight bow. “…I hope you are. I really hope so.” ==================================================================== “Everyone’s in position?” “Yes, Sensei. Jack in position.” “Yes, Sensei. Jill in position.” “Good. Get ready for my signal.” A single beep resounded on his ear as he disconnected the line between him and his two lieutenants. He then put on his binocular and pointed toward the road located on the far side of the hill he stood on. At the end of his view, he saw a convoy of a large truck escorted by two cars. The truck itself have the banner of a shoe advertisement on its side while the two cars the color of black as its only color. That was enough to tell anyone that the combination of the colorful truck and the two dark colored escorts is suspicious. Moreover, the street where the vehicles rode on is completely empty, making it more and more suspicious. “…Right on time.” Behind his mask, a smile decorated his face. He then tapped the earpiece embedded into his mask, producing a slight buzzing sound into his ear. “I will begin the countdown. One.” He pulled out a small metallic ball from under his coat and put it onto his opened palm. “Two.” A small beep came from the ball as he pushed a small button on the side of the ball. “Take off.” As soon as he said ‘take off’, the ball floated for a second on top of his palm. It then spun on itself very fast before launching itself onto the direction of the convoy. Seeing that, he put on his binocular and directed his view onto the direction of the convoy again. As he looked at the scene, a small object descended onto the direction of the three vehicles. He tapped the small button on the binocular and his view darkened slightly. But it was only for a second since his view became bright all of a sudden. If not for the added screen, his eyes would be blinded by the tremendously bright light. What came after that bright light was a sphere that shoots out electricity that seemingly enveloped the whole street around those three vehicles. The moment the sphere touched the vehicle, small explosion could be seen accompanied by rising smoke from the vehicle. Seconds after that, men wearing black suit came pouring out of the two escort vehicle, seemingly shouting something. “Worked like charm.” He muttered while looking at the scene. “Start the operation!” “Yes, Sensei!” “Yes, Sensei.” ==================================================================== “W-W-What’s happening?!” “An attack!!” A loud shout erupted from one of the man in suit. “Protect the truck! Don’t let any–GUAH!!!” “C-Captain!?” The man called ‘Captain’ couldn’t finish his sentence as his body suddenly collapsed on the spot with his eyes rolled onto his head. The other man in suit quickly pulled out their weapon to retaliate at whoever attacked them. “Stand your gro–GAAHHH!!!” “ARRGGHH!!!” “UUGHH!!” The same thing happened again and again. In a matter of seconds, the man in suit has been reduced to a half of their initial number. The first half has been left out cold on the street with their eyes rolled to the back of their head while the other half tried to shoot their gun randomly while taking a cover behind the car’s door. “Aw~, don’t hide.” They who heard that sudden sweet voice turned their head toward the source of the voice and found a figure holding a large naginata. Cold sweat immediately poured out of their forehead as they saw the figure that wore a set of colonial era military officer outfit and clown mask. The word ‘odd’ and ‘bizarre’ filled their head immediately. “D-Don’t move! I said–E-Eh?” One of the men that pointed his gun toward the figure was left with his mouth opened as his gun was split into two. “W-What the–GUHH!!!” The man then thrown onto the side of the truck with tremendous speed and fainted on the spot. “Fire! Fire!” What followed after that was a torrent of gunshot aimed at the naginata user. But instead of dodging it, the figure stood still right on the line of fire. A slight clank came from the naginata as the figure pulled up the weapon. Clinking sound filled the area as the naginata is swung across the air. A split second later the naginata user stomped the back end of the weapon onto the street and together with that countless amount of bullet dropped onto the ground, split in half. The men that saw that scene all looked with gaping jaw, clearly shocked at what happened. “AHAHAHAHAHA~!” A maniacal laugh resounded as the figure leaped onto the cluster of men in suit, slashing the weapon over and over again. “N-No way!?” “I-Impossible!” Shocked statement came from them as they saw their gun was cleaved in half, disarming them completely. “Run! Get away!” “Monster!” “D-Don’t get near!” “Sheesh. And they call you professional.” The figure let out a sigh after looking at the men scattered away with scared expression on their face. “Jack. Do it.” “Coming right up!” Sound of gunshot resounded again, but this time it was not from the fleeing men in suit. The table has turned and they are the one being targeted. One by one the men got hit and left out cold on the street. When the last man has hit the street and turned out cold for sure, another figure appeared holding a flintlock. Behind him also appeared several people wearing grey outfit. “Tie all of them! Inspect the car for any more guard! Don’t let a single one left!” “Hai, Jack-sama!” After that shout full of vigor, the men in gray spread out and started to inspect the escort car. The two that wore similar outfit with different color from each other approached the truck with their weapon ready. “Jack, I’ll check the truck.” “Jill, I’ll contact sensei.” The two nodded after they gave a slightly monotonous exchange. ==================================================================== “Ah, good, good.” Kani nodded several times. “After clearing everyone out, proceed to take care of the package immediately. Don’t call the transport before the coast is clear.” “Right away, Sensei.” As Jack gave his report, he looked through his binocular again. From his position, he watched as his two lieutenants and their small squad of men in gray swarmed the vehicles. The operation went smooth enough as he saw some of the men in gray tied up the fainted escorts and also took the remaining weapon stored inside the cars. Near the truck he saw Jack stood while instructing some of them to get into the truck while Jill came out of the vehicle throwing some more men in suit into the street. Seeing that the operation is close to the end, Kani couldn’t help but shivered with anticipation. The prospect of tinkering with newly developed material really excited him. Plan after plan appeared inside his mind as he couldn’t stop thinking about the limitless possibility the material can be mold into. “Ah, I want to get back right away!” He shouted to no one in particular. “Hmm?” A buzz suddenly came from his earpiece. “What is it?” “S-Sensei, we’re under attack!” “Eh?” A stupid voice came from him as he just heard a rather unexpected report. “Under attack?” “Y-Yes! We don’t know the nu–Watch out!” “J-Jack? Hello? H-Hello? Come in! Tch!” After that, the only thing that came from his earpiece is a buzzing sound. He then put on his binocular again and looked at the operation site. “…Oh no…” The moment he saw what happened, his face paled. What he saw was the scene of Jack and Jill and their crew scattered to avoid being blown to smithereens. With each passing second, a new explosion occurred near them. He also noticed that the explosion has seemingly hit one of the cars and it was burning and letting out a lot of smoke. That was dangerous for both his team and the prisoners. “T-Transport team!” While still holding onto his binocular, he shouted into his earpiece. “Get there this instance! Put up the shield at maximum! The use of cloaking screen is authorized!” “H-Hai, Sensei!” “Step on it!” “Hai!” After issuing his command, he then closed his communication line and then put his binocular into his coat. With worry for his team safety, he descended the cliff in a hurry. ==================================================================== “UWAH!!!” “KYAAA!!!” While descending the cliff, he accidentally bumped onto someone. Both he and the other party fell back on their bottom uttering ‘ow’ and ‘ouch’ at the same time. “F-F-Forgive me!” Kani said while rubbing his bottom. “I was in a hurry I didn’t see in front of me.” “T-That’s okay.” The other party said with a feminine voice. “I was also in a hurry. Please forgive me.” “O-Oh, don’t mind it. I was the one at fault.” He then stood up and then put forward his hand toward the other party, trying to offer help. “Are you okay?” “Ah, fine.” The other party took his hand while dusting her clothes. “Thank you.” “Don’t menti–AH!!!!” “E-Eh? What’s the mat–HAAAA!!!” The two shouted and pointed at each other. The reason for that is because the identity of the other party. She wore an outfit that consisted of a full body suit with the color of yellow. On her head there is a helmet that covered her whole face, leaving not a single skin of her face visible. The only thing that let her see around is the glass visor fixed onto the helmet. On her waist hung a small gun and also a knife. A symbol of star inside a circle was placed on the middle of her helmet. “S-Star Rangers?!” “Y-You’re Clock Sensei of the Crazy Brigand!?” “What are you doing here? Wait, you’re the one attacking my crew!” “You’re the one behind the burglary!” They took a step back from each other and the atmosphere became tense. The two didn’t make a single movement, trying to gauge their opponent strength. On the side of the Clock Sensei, he realized that since he is all alone, his fighting capability is too low to defeat her. Although he possessed several gadget and device, facing any of the justice enforcer like the Star Rangers still put him in a disadvantageous position. Even if it is one on one confrontation, he still feels that he will lose terribly. Without any backup, it is suicidal. On the side of the Yellow Star Ranger, she knows very well the infamous Clock Sensei. Known as the mad genius of the Crazy Brigand, many dangerously scary rumors circulated in the justice enforcer’s network. There is even a story that he is a ruthless professor that is willing to kill thousands if not millions of people just for some experiment. That made Yellow Star Ranger trembled inside her heart, fearing the worst while cursing her fate to meet an infamous villain when she was by herself. “I’m dead!” was the thought that went inside the two of them. The moment of silence continued and the tense atmosphere thickened as time went on. They keep their eyes open, ready to exploit even a moment of gap in the other party’s gap of attention. “Yellow! What are you doing there?” A sudden voice entered the place, making the two concentration broke for a moment. The moment Yellow Star Ranger realized that she has her attention diverted, she gasped, fearing that the villain in front of her will use that gap. And just as she feared, Clock Sensei realized that and quickly pulled out a pair of object. “Catch!” “W-What?” Caught by surprise, she unconsciously caught the object that was thrown onto her. It was a pair of metallic grey skull in the size of a tennis ball. “E-Eh!? W-Woah!?” The skull glowed suddenly and then cackled its teeth. In fear, she threw that onto the air. Moments later, the skull cackled on last time and it blow up, releasing a blinding light that covered the vicinity, blinding everyone and anyone nearby. Yellow Star Ranger reflexively covered her eyes. While she was still trying to block the light, she heard a mocking voice. “See you later, Star Rangers! Hahahaha!!!” A loud laugh came from the direction of the masked villain was moments ago. When she was able to finally open her eyes, the masked villain was already nowhere to be seen. “Yellow!” She turned her head toward the one that called her name. The one that called her wore similar outfit as her. The only difference is the color, which is blue. “What happened? That was one crazy explosion!” “It was Clock Sensei.” She said that with a tone full of disappointment and slightly trembling hands. “I’m sorry, I let him go.” “Don’t mind it.” The Blue Star Ranger comforted her as he put his hand on her shoulder. “We should regroup with the other. They are cornering the other.” “Understood.” ==================================================================== “Sensei! We’re in deep trouble here!” “I know, I know! It’s the Star Rangers! I’ve encountered one of them.” While running toward their location, Kani spoke onto his earpiece with a flustered tone. He was going with a tremendous speed due to the attachment put onto his boots. With that attachment of his, he can run with great speed without getting tired. “What should we do, Sensei?” “I’ve already called the transport team. They are on their way. Get ready to strap the package as fast as you can.” “That’s impossible! We are under a constant fire here!” “Jack, you can provide cover fire. Use the drone I’ve given to you. Jill can use her naginata for shield purpose.” “What!? That’s absurd!” “Do you have any other choice? I’ll throw some blinding skull to add more cover.” “Ugh, this is bad, Sensei. I don’t like it.” “Do you think I like it!?” He couldn’t help but shout at that last sentence. “I’ll make my way there. Give me 3 minutes and I’ll throw every skull I have with me. We can do it!” “Err…got it, Sensei. Jack out!” After that, a buzz came from his earpiece again. He looked toward his destination and saw that three figure wearing colored bodysuit were shooting at the direction of his crew. Knowing that he has the element of surprise, he quickly pulled out an object that has the appearance of chained skulls. He flicked the button on the biggest skull and they immediately started cackling their teeth menacingly. The moment he did that, he increased his speed and dashed toward the group of three justice enforcers. “Star Rangers!” He shouted, earning their attention as they turned to his direction. “Got a present for you! Catch!” He threw the chained skulls toward them. The Star Rangers, clearly didn’t expected that, started to shoot it with their gun. But it was too late. With a last cackle, the skull glowed with bright light before exploding and releasing a blinding light. They all screamed while covering their eyes. Kani used that to run passed them and quickly regroup with his team. He then heard a hovering sound from above him and saw a big helicopter with the symbol of their organization on the its side. The moment he saw that, a smile appeared on his face. “Everyone, strap the truck! Jack will give cover fire and Jill will give shield! Quickly!” “Hai, Sensei!” All of them gave their shout at his instruction. While the crew strapped the cable that came down from the helicopter, Jack continued to give cover fire together with the drones that hovered around him. Kani also occasionally threw blinding skull at them. Minutes passed and the Star Rangers that have regrouped started to return the attack. Flashes and explosion came from all direction and the street became a battlefield. The men in gray, although terrified for their own life, kept doing their job until the last cable is strapped onto the truck. “S-Sensei, everything is ready!” “Good! You guys hopped onto the helicopter first! Leave the rest to the three of us!” “Hai, Sensei!” The men in gray shouted in unison. They quickly fastened the remaining cables onto their belt and got pulled out one by one rapidly, leaving only Kani and his two lieutenants. “Your scheme stops here, Crazy Brigand!” A shout came from the other side of the battlefield. A figure with red bodysuit jumped with his weapon aimed at him. “Stop here or we’ll destroy you!” “Hah! Try to do it and the material will get blown with us!” Clearly knowing the risk, Kani said with a confident tone. “And then you will see it on the news! Star Rangers destroy important material! Hahaha!” “Kuh! Damn you!” Red looked at the situation and realized how correct he was. “But no matter! We will stop you!” “Hahaha! I’ll like to see you try” He then glanced back and noticed that the crew has been evacuated safely. He then took a step back carefully. “Now then, it is time for us to say good bye!” He quickly strapped one of the last three cables onto his belt. “See you later, Star Ranger!” The moment he said that, the cable started to reel him up together with Jack and Jill beside him and they already stood on the edge of the opened vehicle’s opened door, waving mockingly at them. As the helicopter started to gain distance from them with the truck strapped closely to it, the Kani’s team let out a breath of relief, seeing that their job finished without much trouble. Kani looked at the truck below him and once again felt the surge of inspiration for the possibilities of gadget and other equipment he could develop later on. But then his eyes caught onto the sight of the Star Rangers that looked toward them. “Argh! Whatever happens happens!” A shout from the side of the Star Ranger entered his ear. And he saw that one of them pulled out a large bazooka aimed at them. “W-Wait! Black! D-Don’t be hasty!” “I can at least try to blow the cable!” With that last statement, the bazooka fired its load and a rocket flew toward Kani’s direction. But since the rocket is not aimed properly, its target shifted to the helicopter. Panic erupted inside the helicopter as danger approached. “J-Jack! Shoot it down!” “E-Eh? O-Okay!” While in mid-air, Jack pulled up his flintlock quickly aimed at the rocket and shoot the incoming danger. Hail of bullets rained upon the rocket. Fortunately, one of the bullets managed to hit the rocket. Unfortunately, the bullet managed to trigger the rocket explosion mechanism. As an explosion happened, the force it produced has managed to destabilize the helicopter’s flight and it immediately leaned dangerously to its side. While the pilot tried to stabilize the vehicle, the three that was in the edge of the door felt the impact the most as they were almost thrown outside. Both Jack and Jill managed to grab the edge of the door, but unfortunately Kani was unable to grab onto anything. “W-W-Woah!?” His feet slipped and he fell out of the door. “S-Sensei!” “Grab on!” Thankfully, his hand was immediately grabbed by his two trusted lieutenants’ hand tightly. They pulled him up right away. After being pulled up, Kani dropped onto his knees while breathing roughly. “I t-t-though I was going to die!” What came after that moment of fear was anger beyond comprehension. He grabbed onto the edge of the door and then looked at the justice enforcers below. They were in the middle of reloading their weapon. “YOU IDIOTS!!! HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE!!!” After shouting his anger at them, he pulled out a pair of chained skulls from under his coat. But unlike before, the skulls color were purple metallic purple instead of grey. “EAT THIS!!!” He pushed the button and then the same cackling came before he threw the chained skulls at them. “GET US OUT OF HERE!!” “H-Hai, Sensei!” The stabilized vehicle entered the maximum speed it can get. On the ground, the Star that wore the red bodysuit looked at the falling objects. At first it was not visible for him, but as soon as he realized the identity of the thrown object, his body trembled. “G-Get the tied up guard out of there!” He screamed out instruction as he dashed onto the tied up men in suit near the two remaining cars. Fortunately they were only injured slightly, but all of them were still unconscious. The confused Star Rangers could only follow his order and then followed him shortly and bring the men in suit out of harms way. ==================================================================== “Sensei, what was that thing you threw?” “Was it a HE-Skull?” “Of course not!” He shouted at his two lieutenants’ question. “Blowing them up is too good for them.” “So what was it, Sensei?” “Yes, what was it, Sensei?” “It’s Purple Skull version 2.” Jack and Jill tilted their head to the opposite side as they heard that, saying that they don’t understand what he said. “It’s a combination of smoke bomb, tear gas, and also a little bit of an extra dose of itching powder. The itching will last about, I don’t know? A week or so? Yeah, that’s it.” “…Uwahhh….” The two let out the same response. “You’re evil, Sensei.” “Why thank you for the compliment. I’m flattered.”
You're welcome! Merry Christmas to you too. In fact, Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday to everyone! Do wait for the next chapter!
Chapter 3 “The Principal’s Plan” “Nice…Very nice! Hehehe…” A creepy laughter came from Kani’s mouth as he flipped the page shown on his notebook. The pages he was looking at were littered with plenty of number and also diagrams. One could see titles like “Pulsating Shield”, “Energy Blade V2.3”, “Micro Repeater”, and so on placed on the pages. Yes, it is the pages he got from the researchers of the Crazy Brigands. Although it was just yesterday he finished ‘acquiring’ the material, but the plan that use that material has been submitted to him. It showed how much dedication the research team has about the new material. The more he read it, the more he wants to immediately leave the academy and joins them on their work. The thrill of experimenting on something new is always present inside the mind of the Crazy Brigand top part-time mad scientist, Clock Sensei. Since he is the one responsible for developing most of the equipment, both for selling purposes and for internal use, his name is a very powerful name among the many member of the organization. Being directly supervised by the organization’s head, Lady Gleam, no wonder he is the one in charge for most of the organization research projects. That is the reason why he have the privileges of seeing the ideas the research department has suggested. As he smiled yet again, he felt nothing but excitement for the prospect of developing crazy device from the newly ‘acquired’ material the other day. All of the idea the researchers sent to him are magnificent and crazy. Not a single one of them is a disappointing. That just made him more and more excited. But seeing that he still has his responsibility in the academy, he suppressed that urge as best as he could. Remembering that, he closed the window that showed the pages from the Crazy Brigand and then opened another window to access his email. Immediately after that, he clicked on the recent most e-mail. It was from The Principal with the subject title of “Project Love-to-Read”. He couldn’t help but once again let out a sigh while shaking his head as he saw that title. As usual, The Principal has some…unique sense of naming. It is something he already understood of very much. “Good morning, Sensei!” “Hmm?” He looked at the door and found Fuka with her usual cheerful smile on her face. “Good morning, Kuri-san.” He then glanced at the clock on his notebook screen. “You’re early today.” “Well, isn’t today the day where we will meet the new library assistants?” He nodded at his question. “Yes, so?” “I want to look good in front of them.” She then gave him an energetic nod together with that answer. “First impression is everything, after all.” “Really? I guess that’s good.” He nodded several times as he pondered her answer. “Indeed what you say is correct. Good, good. As expected of an honor student.” “H- Honor student?” She couldn’t help but flushed a bit at his praise. “I-I’m n-not an h-h- honor student, S-Sensei.” “Hmm? But you are the one that received that reward last month, am I correct?” “Uhm…Y-Yes, but…” “Take pride in that.” Kani looked at her with a serious gaze. “Don’t take for granted that reward you’ve got. It is a proof that you have been careful with how you act and have put some effort in being in your best behavior.” “Uhm…O-Okay.” “Remember, Kuri-san. Being humble and polite is good and all, but we also have to know when being humble is not the best option, and also…”he suddenly stopped and looked at the girl in front of him. She has casted her eyes down with a slightly downhearted expression on her face. The moment he noticed that, he felt a pang of guilt inside his mind. He didn’t realize that he had gone into lecture mode the moment she refused to accept his praise. It was a habit of his that he felt to be quite troubling sometimes. “…S-Sensei?” Seeing him went quiet all of a sudden, she looked up and found that he just sat there while massaging his forehead. “A-Are you okay?” “…Sorry about that, Kuri-san. It seems that…I said something unnecessary. Just…forget about that.” He bowed his head to her slightly. “Sorry again.” “E-Eh? No, no , no!” She shook her head at that. “What Sensei said is true. My roommate said that from time to time too. I mean, I need to be more confident about myself.” An awkward chuckle came from her while she scratched her cheek slightly. “…Is that so?” He looked at her and let out a small sigh. Then he smiled at her. “Well, although you need to be more confident about yourself, I guess your humble and polite attitude is your trademark, Kuri-san.” Hearing that, Fuka looked at him with a slight surprised expression. “A-Ah, I’m not saying that it is bad, okay? It is a compliment. I like that part of you.” “L-L-Like?” Her cheeks flushed red again. But then she shook her head. “Y-Yes, Sensei.” She nodded several times at it. Then a smile formed on her face. “T-Thank you, Sensei.” “You’re welcome.” He then leaned his back onto his chair again. “By the way, what time will they come?” He glanced at the clock. “It is already near the time for th–“ “Kani boy~!” “…Good morning, Principal.” “Eh? Why the cold and flat response?” She titled her head to the side as she heard his greeting that lacked of any spirit. “Well, no matter~! Okay, you guys can come in.” The blonde woman then entered the library with three students following behind her. They lined up in front of the counter as she stood next to them. The group that followed her consists of one male student and two female students. From their uniform, two of them came from the high school division while the other one came from the middle school division. After realizing that The Principal managed to gather the participants for this project of hers from a varied division, Kani couldn’t help but feel that she has planned the project much better than he expected. “They are the new student assistants, I presumed?” “Yup! You got that, Kani boy~!” Once again the reply came out from her with the usual singing-like tone. “I know that I’m supposed to introduce you and all, but I have a lot that need to be done for today. For that, I leave the three of you in the capable hand of Kani boy here.” She then jumped onto the exit of the room and gave Kani a thumb up. “Good luck, Kani boy~!” And then she left the library with that last sentence. The three newly arrived students looked at that with a slightly stunned expression. Of course, Fuka also shared the same expression. Kani, on the other hand, expected that from her and just shook his head while letting out a sigh. “The Principal aside, I assumed that the three of you has been…briefed by her?” They gave a slight nod at his question. “Ah, good. Oh, let me introduce myself.” Kani stood up and then straightened up his posture. “I am Kumio Kani, the librarian in charge of the academy’s library. And that girl over there,” Kani gestured toward Fuka who stood behind them, “is my current student assistant.” “Nice to meet you.” Fuka gave a slight bow. “I am Kuri Fuka, a first year high school student.” “Oh!” A sudden shout from one of the two girls resounded. “You’re that Kuri-san! The one that has the scholarship program!” “E-Eh? Y-Yes, I am.” “The one that recently won second place in the prefectural Ikebana Championship!” She continued with her shout full of spirit. She looked at her with a face full of respect and adoration. Even her eyes seemed to be gliterring slightly. “Am I right?” “U-Uhm, y-yes, that’s me.” With a slightly shaken and surprised expression, she gave a nod together with that answer. “You seem to be a celebrity, Kuri-san.” Kani tilted his head slightly while looking at her. The other two also looked at her with a slightly interested expression visible on their face. Their sight kept shifting from the enthusiastic girl to the confused looking student assistant. “O-Oh!” Suddenly the enthusiastic girl widened her eyes. “A-Ah, f-forgive me, Senpai!” She bowed her head as she apologized. “I’m sorry for startling you like that! I’m sorry!” She bowed her head over and over again. “U-Uhm, that’s okay.” A wry smile appeared on Fuka’s face. “I’m a little startled, but quite happy that someone recognized me.” “Senpai! Thank you!” She then beamed an honest smile at her, only to stop again, realizing that she has forgotten something. “U-Uhm, forgive me, Senpai. I m-messed up the introduction.” “It’s quite all right.” The boy spoke with a rather calm voice. “Then shall we introduce ourselves then. Is that fine, Kumio-Sensei?” he asked as he looked at the librarian. “Go on.” “Thank you, Sensei.” The boy gave a disciplined bow at him. “Then let’s start with the youngest one. Nakahara-san, please go ahead.” He gestured toward the previous girl, giving her the stage. “Okay! My name is Nakahara Kazuko, a third year middle school student.” She then gave a bow toward Kani, making her short light brown hair swayed. “It is nice to meet you!” “Nice to meet you too.” Kani gave a nod to her. “Then, the girl beside her, if you please?” “Certainly, Sensei.” Unlike Kazuko, the other girl gave a much more rather graceful bow. “I am Saito Miki, a first year high school just like Kuri-san. But we are in a different class.” She then let out a smile that somehow gave her an aura of a noble class lady. Combined that with her luscious long black hair, it might not be wrong to say that the word upper-class lady is made for her. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Sensei.” “The pleasure is all mine, Saito-san.” Just like the usual Kani, he still wore his trademark calm and composed expression, clearly unaffected by her show of gracefulness. But inside he felt quite impressed by what the girl just displayed. He certainly realized that she is capable of making the other party quite speechless just by the way she carried herself. If the other party is a male, it might not be wrong that she will grasp his heart instantly. “Then you are the last.” “Yes, Sensei.” A sharp and confident reply came from the boy. Stood as the tallest among the three, he looked straight at Kani’s eyes. His eyes showed a disciplined attitude that somehow a bit weird for a boy his age. But Kani opted to stay silent and watched him first. “My name is Xu Chao. I am a transfer student that just arrived in the middle of this semester. I am a second year high school student. Looking forward to working with you.” He then gave a perfectly straight bow to him, surprising him slightly. A rather straight and disciplined way of talking and disciplined posture. An appearance that is very neat and tidy, sporting a short black hair with a small ponytail behind him and also a thin wireframe glasses placed nicely on his face. Kani somehow felt that this boy might be one that takes everything much more seriously than Fuka, making him feel that this project might be much more difficult than he expected. The bad news is he already felt that the project is difficult enough as it is. But after seeing the three new library assistants The Principal has picked for him, he couldn’t help but see the project in a much higher level of difficulty than before. “Well let’s just start.” He muttered that to himself and then let out a cough. “Okay, since the three of you has been briefed by her, this will not take long. The project’s goal is to showed that even the younger generations have not lost interest in reading hard copy material such as what you all can see on the shelves her and there,” said Kani as he pointed toward the many shelves. “The one involved in this project is, of course, the three of you, Kuri-san, and also I myself as the one in charge of teaching you all you need to know to become a library assistant.” He paused for a while, gauging their reaction. They all just watched him in silence without a single change in their expression. “Did The Principal say anything else beside that?” They looked at each other. “I…don’t think so.” Kazuko answered him while scratching the back of her head. “I don’t know whether Senpais have heard anything else, though.” “No, I’m the same as Nakahara-san.” Miki then looked at Chao. “What about you, Senpai?” “The same, I’m afraid.” “Hmm…I see.” Hearing their responses, Kani came into one very likely conclusion. “She left the whole thing to me….Great…” The last part of his sentence was said with a very hushed tone to avoid the three heard them. But Fuka seemed to notice that as she gave out a wry smile. “Okay…Hmm…let’s start with this.” Kani moved from behind the counter on to the table near the three. “Take a seat all of you. This might take some time.” “Hai, Sensei.” They all gave a reply in unison. After everyone had taken a seat, Kani looked at each one of them and simulated his plan inside his mind. Although he realized that his current plan will not be that effective, it is a good place to start. When they have passed that part of his plan, he will have to improvise. “First, let me start with this.” He put his hand on the table. “I want each and every one of you tell me what kind of book you like to read. Be it novel, light novel, manga, western literature, Japanese literature, poetry. Whatever it is, just tell me. Do you understand?” The three nodded. “Good. Let’s start with Xu-san.” “Hai, Sensei.” He gave a short nod. “I am not picky in term of reading. I’ve read history literature, poetry, western literature, novel, and engineering books. But I’ve also follow a manga or two from time to time.” “Oh, so you are a regular reader?” “I guess you can consider that, Sensei.” Hearing that, a slight relief came into his mind. As long as one of them is a regular reader, then the project will have a better chance to produce good result. “What is the last book you read and when did you read it?” “Last book is it?” He closed his eyes for a few seconds. He opened his eyes and then looked at him again. “It is ‘Modo Militis’. I haven’t really finished it since it is quite a long book.” “Ho, ‘Modo Militis’ is it?” Kani widened his eyes a bit a she heard that. This boy really has an uncommon reading preference. He couldn’t help but feel that along the course of this project, the tall boy will be the spearhead of the project. He has such a different opinion from him just by hearing his answer. “Quite an interesting book. How much have you read?” “A quarter of it, if I’m not mistaken.” He then gave him a smile. “Does Sensei also read it?” “Just finished it last month.” A sense of pride could be sense from his tone. “A complicated book that explain quite a lot in such a detailed manner.” “It is, right? I have some difficulties in understanding the term, but it is quite an enjoyable book. Many philosophical way of thinking that might not be suitable for the time of peace but is very applicable in some cases.” “Well, that is understandable, right? Since it is written at the time of war and turmoil. But, just as you said, it can be very applicable in some cases.” He gave several nods after hearing the boy’s comment. But then he stopped and realized strange gazes from around him. He looked around and saw that the other two students looked at them with such confused looks in their eyes. Even Fuka shared the same confusion in her eyes. “What’s the matter?” “Uhm, Sensei, what is…’Moodo Milisit’?” “Did you mean ‘Modo Militis?” Kazuko nodded. “The title ’Modo Militis’ can be translated directly into ‘way of the soldier’.” Chao answered in his stead. “It is a book that explains the way of life of soldier from ages to ages. It showed the struggle they faced each day that might be their last. From finding food to treating wound in the battlefield. The book tried to cover it from all aspect and then compare it to our current way of life.” “By reading that, the reader might have a different way of looking their day to day life since the problem we face is not so different from them. For example, if we are looking for something to eat, we can just buy it from the convenience store for the ready-to-eat meal or to the supermarket for ingredient we can cook. But for them, they have to rely on the supplied ration or maybe even scavenge for food themselves. If they are unfortunate enough, the might die just to look for something to eat.” A small ‘ah’ came from the other three students while Chao nodded as he heard Kani’s take on the book. “If you read it in the mindset of ‘well, that’s just their problem’ or ‘we are already past that kind of age’, then you will get nothing out it. But if you read it in a different mindset, then you can be more grateful for every grain of rice you eat or every piece of bread you have every day without risking your life too much.” The three nodded at his words. Somehow Kani could see a slight of awe in their eyes. “That’s…quite a wonderful book.” Miki said with a rather mixed expression. “But I presumed that since the main subject is the army life, it might be a bit…too harsh for me.” “I guess it is.” Chao nodded. “The depiction of the life in the book is indeed harsh. Well, it is not a book for the weak heart, I suppose.” “Well, thank you for the sharing, Xu-san.” The boy nodded. “Then let’s move to Saito-san. What kind of book do you read? What is the last book you read and also when have you read it?” “Hai, Sensei.” Once again she gave him a graceful bow. “I’m not a regular reader, but I do read novel from time to time.” “I see. Then the genre of the novel?” “I guess…uhm…” She blushed a bit. This piqued Kani’s interest a bit. “Romance…I guess…” “Romance, is it?” Kani tapped his chin as he heard that. “So I guess the last book you read is a romance novel, is it?” She gave a nod. “Then the title is?” “Last book? Uhm…I think it is ‘The Moonlit Angel’.” “O-Oh!” The two other female students let out a sudden shout, startling Kani and Miki. Chao, on the other hand, only looked at them with a curious expression. “A-Ah, sorry, Senpai. But you also read that novel too?” “Read that novel too? Do you mean Nakahara-san also read it?” “Yes!” She nods her head several times vigorously. Seeing that, Kani somehow worried that she might pop her neck bone out of place for doing that so much. “It is such a touching story. I mean, the man has to go through so much effort just to meet her.” “And she also has to put that much effort just to get away from her family to meet him.” “Ho? Kuri-san also read it?” Kani asked her as she suddenly joined Kazuko’s comment session. “Ah, yes. I’ve read it not long ago.” She scratched the back of her head as she said that. “It is not that popular, but still has quite a lot of fan. Because of that, I’m quite surprised to see someone that read it.” “Me too! I’m also happy to meet a fellow fan.” “Then we can share our opinion on that novel later then, Kuri-san and Kazuko-san.” Miki’s voice showed a sheer happiness to find, not only one, but two fellow fan who share similar choice of reading. “Ah, I forgot to say that I’ve also read book about painting since I love to paint.” “Oh, wonderful, wonderful. You might find inspiration for painting by reading romance novel.” “Finding inspiration by reading romance novel?” “Yes. I have a friend who likes to write music and also loves to read novel. She practically read any kind of novel. Be it sci-fi, horror, romance, action, historical. Anything. And because of that, the type of music she made is heavily influenced by the novel she has just read. It will be dark music after a horror novel, a fast paced music after a sci-fi one, and a soothing and melancholic music after a romance novel.” “Oh, I see, I see.” Miki nodded as she heard his explanation. “I know what you mean, Sensei. I think I will try that later.” “Do let us see it after you’ve finished making that.” “Certainly, Sensei.” She gave a bow and a smile. “Good. Then Nakahara-san, you’re next. Same question.” “Oh, I think the only thing I’ve read is manga. Shoujo manga, to be exact. The last one is probably…uhm…’Her Favorite’ series.” “Hmm, that’s good. As long as you read, that is good.” Kani said that as he leaned his back onto the chair. “Well, I guess this project might still have some hope after all.” “What is it, Sensei?” Fuka asked him after he mumbled something. “Nothing.” A shake of his head accompanied that answer. “Well, I’m quite pleased to hear that all of you like reading. And yes, I also categorized manga as a proper reading material.” He said that as he looked at Kazuko. A slight relief could be seen from her eyes. “As I’ve mentioned before, the objective of this project is to show that younger generations have not lost interest in reading hard copy material rather than just reading article in the digital format on the net. I think you’ve already shown more than enough for that. Since the novel that Kuri-san, Saito-san, and Nakahara-san read is still categorized as a printed material, that has fulfilled the criteria of hard copy material. Xu-san’s book is also printed material.” “So what now, Sensei?” Kazuko asked. “Is the project completed just like that?” “Well…you can say that. But let’s aim a bit further than, shall we? Since all of you have read some book and have a favorite kind of book, this might be an interesting thing. I want you to remember the book you’ve just read and then find a particular subject that has a correlation with it. For example, Kuri-san.” “Hai?” “In that novel the three of you read, what’s the setting of the story? I mean the age or era the story took place in.” “The age? I guess…renaissance? Since the main heroine lived in a castle while the main hero lived in a small wooden house, I guess the renaissance.” “Okay, that’s a start. Saito-san, is the story taken place in a fictional country or real country?” “If I remember the country is…fictional. A fictional European country.” “Good, good.” Kani nodded. “Then three of you will look for book with the subject of renaissance Europe. Try to look for the culture, the way the live, the kind of music they hear, and so on. Yes, Kuri-san?” He glanced at Fuka who raised her hand. “Am I included too, Sensei?” Fuka seemed to don’t quite expect herself to be included with them. “Well, it is faster to do that since you know the place where that kind of book is placed. So, yes, you are included.” “Understood, Sensei.” “Good. Then Xu-san. I guess since you said that have difficulty in understanding the term used in ‘Modo Militis’,then I suggest you look for historical book that cover the language used in that book.” “I will do that, Sensei.” “Good. Yes, Nakahara-san?” “Uhm, what’s the purpose of the task, Sensei?” “A very good question.” He then took a breath before explaining. “Most of the time, when you read something you will find it difficult to immerse yourself in the book. There are many reasons for that. One thing is that you will find that it is hard to re-life the experience since we lacked the understanding of the common sense of the ear of the story. I will take ‘Modo Militis’ for example since I’ve already read it. I can’t understand why they people at that time prefer to drink ale instead of water in the daily life. It intrigued me since we nowadays has tried to keep the alcohol we drink to the minimum.” “Isn’t that just because they like drinking it?” Kazuko asked while titling her head slightly. “No, there is a very different reason for that, Nakahara-san.” Chao fixed her glasses before continuing. “It is because the water at that time is infested. Isn’t that right, Sensei?” He then shifted his gaze to Kani who gave him a satisfied smile. “Infested? As in poisoned?” “No, Kuri-san. At least, not most of the time. But since at that age, people threw their waste product, whatever it is, into the river. And since the technology of purifying water is still non-existent at that time, the water they drink comes from the same place where they throw their waste.” “Ewww!!!” instantly after that, Kazuko let out a disgusted voice. Both Fuka and Miki frowned at after hearing that information. “Is that really true?” Kani and Chao nodded. “Ewww!! I mean…it’s…just….urgh! Just no!” “Without that knowledge, we can’t really put ourselves in the way the author wants us to. If we just stick to the common sense in our time, we will miss out a lot.” “I see.” Miki nodded as she finally got the reason for the task. “So do you think that by looking for information about the way people in renaissance live, we can understand the character’s daily life too?” “Although it will not absolutely like that, it might give you more understanding. That way, you can immerse yourself in the story much more than before. You can understand the conflict the character face from a different perspective.” “Oh, I see. I see.” Once again, Kazuko nodded several times vigorously. “I understand now.” “Good.” Hearing that, Kani also nodded, although not as quick as her. “Try to explore as much as you want. At the end of the day, let’s discuss about it. Since it is still early, there will not be many visitors. You can take your time. Do you understand?” “Understood, Sensei!” The replied in unison and then leave their seat to look for the book they can use. ===================================================================================================== “Kani, you here?” Kani immediately looked up from his screen onto the source of the voice that called his name. The moment he found who it was, a slight sigh came from his mouth. “I’m here, Allan-san.” He replied without leaving his place. “What is it?” “I’ve got something for you and your assistants,” said Allan as he smiled at him while lifting the box he had on his hand. “What’s that?” “A gift from The Principal.” He then placed the box onto the counter, right in front of Kani. “It’s her treat for all of you.” “What’s inside?” Kani opened the box that has the logo of a small brick house on it. “Hmm…cream puffs?” “Yup!” He nodded at Kani. “Enjoy the treat.” “You’re not going to join us?” “Nah, I already got my share. Besides, I still have some more work to do. See you, Kani!” He then exited the library while waving to him. Kani then looked to the clock in his notebook’s screen and found that it is near lunch time. He felt slightly amazed at how attentive The Principal. He then stood up with intention to call the others to take a break with him. But he stopped after he heard the whispering voices. “Is that The White Prince?” “The White Prince and The Black Sage really are close, right?” “Did The White Prince just bring The Black Sage his lunch?” “They really are close with each other.” “They are, right? No wonder they are famous. Hehehe~!” “It’s like seeing a married couple.” “He even called him Kani.” His eyes twitched as he heard those rumors around him. He then let out a cough and then the whispering stopped. Well, not stopped. It has quieted down slightly. He shook his head and then moved toward one of the shelves. He saw the girls huddled near it and then approached them. But then he stopped in his track. “Wow…The White Prince. It’s my first time seeing him.” “He’s cool, right? And together with The Black Sage. They really are a matching pair.” “It is, right?” Similar conversation entered his ears and he couldn’t help but let out a sigh. The moment he did that, the girls looked toward him and then let out a gasp. It seemed that they were too preoccupied with discussing him and Allan that they failed to notice him. “S-S-Sensei!” The first to react was Fuka, although with a very stuttering voice. “…Savoie-sensei just brought something for all of us.” He looked toward the two that trembled slightly at the sight of him talking with a slightly colder tone than the usual one he used with them. “Meet me at the back room. Kuri-san will tell you where it is.” “H-Hai!” The three answered in unison. The three then rushed to get away from him, only to be warned by Fuka to not make so much noise. They then walked in a very quick pace, leaving him alone. He shook his head as he look at them. Another sigh escaped his mouth. Just as he did that, he saw Chao in the corner of his eyes. He noticed Kani and the walked toward him. “Is something the matter, Sensei?” “Have a break. Savoie-sensei brought something for us.” “Hai, Sensei.” He gave a nod and then followed Kani toward the back room in silence. In Kani’s mind, he felt grateful to have at least one person that is able to know when to stay quiet. ==================================================================================================== “Clock Sensei, you’ve arrived.” “Clock Sensei, we’ve been waiting for you.” The moment he entered the usual lab inside the Crazy Brigand’s HQ, he found both of his lieutenants were waiting for him side by side. “Do you have the progress report ready?” They gave a nod in unison. As usual, he found their similar movement and neatly organized turn to speak kind of unnerving. But since they perform greatly in the field, he has no place for complain. “Let me see it.” “Yes, Sensei.” The two answered in unison and also nodded in unison. They then each gave him a clipboard full of paper. He took them and then started flipping the paper one by one. “…Huhuhu…” With each flip of the paper, the small laugh that came from Clock Sensei became louder and louder. Not only that. His body also trembled slightly. Seeing that, the grey masked personnel, the common grunts of the organization, looked at him weirdly. Some have even taken a step away from him, just in case. But his two lieutenants stood still near him without moving an inch. They kept their ready stance without saying anything either. It was a normal scene for them to see since the Clock Sensei they known always act like that whenever new research is in progress. And since the current research is a big one, it is understandable for them to expect him to act even more excited than usual. “Wonderful!” His shout came after he read the last piece of paper in the clipboard. “Wonderful! Wonderful! Very wonderful! Everyone gather up!” He then looked at the group of grunts that wore research suit in front of him and then gestured to get near him. They gathered in front of them one by one and formed a line. Both Jack and Jill also joined the line and stood in the front most row. “You’ve done magnificently well, everyone! Very good, very good!” His speech made everyone felt proud and excited. This is one of the reasons that the research division under his leadership is so solid. Their leader, Clock Sensei, is known to be one that always appreciates his subordinate’s work. He also always ready to get involved directly into the project. Getting dirty or tired is not a problem for him. As long as the project is done, he will be eager to help. He also often discusses the project with the other researcher and tried his best to hear everyone’s opinion before launching a new one. “Thank you, Clock Sensei!” Shout of gratitude resounded in the dark laboratory of the Crazy Brigand. “Yes, yes. Good work, everyone.” He nodded several times. “I’ve also noticed that some of the projects already finished their prototyping phase and also alpha test. I’m impressed. Then you all know what comes after that, right?” The researcher grunts nodded and started to murmur among themselves. But just like before, both Jack and Jill stayed silent. “It is field test time!” Right after that, chorus of excitement filled the room. In hid division, field test is always an event everyone looking forward to since it will be their time to show the result of their hard work. “For the team that has completed their prototyping phase and alpha test, packed up your gear! For the one that is still haven’t got there, don’t worry. Keep working on it and we’ll get it on the next field test. Or if you want to join us, then get yourself ready. You can also test what you want on the field. I will give you the exact time. You got that?” “Hai, Sensei!” “Good!” Kani nodded and then put his fist on the air. “For the Crazy Brigand!” “For the Crazy Brigand!” His shout was replied with a very excited one from his whole division. After that, they dispersed and then scattered to all over the laboratory, preparing for the awaited field test. Kani then gestured to his two lieutenants to follow him as he exited the room. While his team has to prepare their gear, he also has things to prepare for the awaited event. ==================================================================================================== “W-What!?” His shout echoed into the whole room. “No need to shout, Clock Sensei.” Lady Gleam said with a sigh. “Although I know very well that you can’t help to be surprised.” “Ah, not good. Not good.” He shook his head as he said that. At the moment, Kani and his two lieutenants were inside a different room than before. Unlike the dark and gloomy, the room is very bright. In the middle of the room there is a black desk with a large computer screen on top of it. The desk itself looked quite expensive and luxurious. Behind it one could see a large banner bearing the organization’s logo. “I’m sorry but I can’t really help you much, Clock Sensei.” The one sitting behind the large desk is none other than the organization’s leader, Lady Gleam. With her scarlet colored Victorian era style outfit that emphasized her feminine figure very nicely, she also wore an evening mask that covered the upper part of her face, revealing only her bright scarlet lips. She tapped her glove covered hand onto the desk as she looked at Kani. “I can only spare you the use of the transport vehicle at the moment.” “Ugh…not even the class III equipment?” She shook her head at Kani’s question. “….That is not enough.” “I’m sorry. But everyone else is already in their own mission. I can’t pull them from their current job.” “But we will bring out several sensitive piece of equipment there. We need a guard force to keep us safe since unlike the last mission, I will only bring the non-combatant grunts with us.” “Well…I can spare you some of the reserve guards, but…” “They’re not many, right?” She nodded. Kani couldn’t help but let out a sigh. “Is it not possible to postpone it?” “I have already divided it into two batches. If I postpone the first batch, the second one will be pushed away too far for our current target.” “Hmm, true, true.” Lady Gleam leaned her back onto her chair and then hummed to herself. Kani and his two lieutenants just stood there waiting for her decision. “…There’s that option…hmm…” She then closed her eyes and tapped her desk again. After a while, the tapping stopped and she leaned her body forward, startling the other three. “I have a solution.” “But…there’s a condition, right?” Hearing that, Lady Gleam smiled, which in turn made Kani let out a sigh. “Sharp as usual, Clock Sensei.” She clapped her hand several times before continuing. “Yes, there is.” “And the condition is?” “You have to trust me with it.” “…Huh?” “Yes, you can do the field test. You can use the transport vehicle and bring some of the guard with you, but that’s all. And yes, that is not enough, I understand that. But I have something else.” “And?” “I can’t tell you.” Kani immediately looked toward the ceiling while letting out a groan. “Didn’t I say that you just have to trust me?” “Do I have any choice?” “Either that or I will not permit you to do the field test.” Hearing that, Kani then folded his arm and then stood in silence. Lady Gleam is pleased to see that since it means that he is currently considering the possibility and simulating the many possibilities inside his mind. Both Jack and Jill also knew that whenever he does that, it will mean that the next thing that came out his mouth will be the decision for their next mission. After a few moments, he snapped his finger and then looked straight onto Lady Gleam’s eyes. “Understood. I will take that offer of yours, Lady Gleam.” A wide smile appeared on her face. “Very good. A very good answer, Clock Sensei.” She then clapped her hand several times. “I will promise you that it will be a good surprise.” “I really hope so.” Seeing her wide smile turned into a mischievous one, Kani let out a sigh again.
thanks again ^^ the story is great and even if its written in one post the reader isn't lost wich mean its quite open to people who rarely read (sorry if its hard to understand, english isn't my first language =P )
........ i don't know why (and won't deny that unconscious motives could be in play) but from the title at first i thought that it was a thread about @maskedcerf perverted past....... about the story looks interesting, but i'll wait for a pair of chapters more before giving a solid opinion..... (don't expect much i'm not one of those that dissects every inch of the story to give advice or a review...)