The sun was still in its early rise when Ann woke up, rubbing her eyes lazily. She sat on the edge of the bed and ran her fingers through her short purple hair.
She muttered in a sleepy voice:
"Yoooh… a new day…"
She stood up slowly and headed to the bathroom attached to her room. She washed her face, grabbed her toothbrush, and began brushing half-awake, half-asleep, she almost dozed off standing up.
A few minutes later, she left the bathroom, yawning every five seconds… then opened her room door. The moment she stepped into the hallway, she froze. Her eyes widened at the sight in front of her.
"W-… what?"
Ann stared at the scene like she was witnessing a ridiculous nightmare. Akio and Mabushi were literally sleeping inside the pool. Akio floated on his back, one arm hanging out of the water, and his mouth is wide open as he snored, his hair plastered to his face in the most humiliating way possible.
Mabushi, on the other hand, was knocked out on the pool's edge, half his body inside the water, the other half on the tiles, still gripping a dumbbell in his right hand as if it had joined him in his dream. His head dipped into the water every few seconds before bouncing back up.
Ann's eyebrows shot to the highest point possible. She slapped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming in laughter. She looked left and right to make sure she was really awake… then focused on Mabushi and that dumbbell.
Suddenly… he moved. He lifted the dumbbell slightly while still asleep. Then, in a heavy nasal voice, he mumbled:
"One… two… three… gotta do it… a thousand times…"
He lifted the dumbbell again, his head dropped into the water with a bloop, then rose back up, still lifting in his sleep.
Ann whispered in disbelief:
"You… you're dreaming that you're training?! Even in your sleep?!"
Then she turned to Akio. His situation was even worse…
He spoke while snoring:
"I'll… I'll get stronger… I'll surpass… everyone… I'm… I'm the next… shogun…"
Half his face dipped underwater for a moment, making his voice distort:
"I'm… the sho…guu… blblblbl…"
Ann exploded into laughter in loud voice, uncontrollable laughter that bent her forward and forced her hand onto her stomach.
"Noooooooo… noooooo, this is too much… way too much!!!"
Her laughter echoed through the halls… reaching the farthest room in the wing. Ken flung his door open aggressively, his red hair messy, his eyes half-closed in pure irritation.
"Who… who laughs like that at dawn…?"
Silvara stepped out of her room at the same time, walking calmly but with tired eyes. They exchanged a blank, expressionless look that said: Something stupid is happening.
They walked towards the noise without a word. When they reached the pool, they stopped. Ken looked right: Akio is floating like a corpse, mumbling "I'm the shogun… blblblbl…" He looked left: Mabushi is half-drowned, half-airborne, lifting a dumbbell.
Then he looked at Silvara. Silvara looked at him. One look was enough.
(What a stupid morning.)
Ken moved first. He leaned down, grabbed Akio by his hair, and lifted him out of the water like he was picking up a fish. Silvara grabbed Mabushi by the back of his head too, and lifted him with ease despite his weight.
They stepped forward… and boom!
They smashed Akio's head into Mabushi's in the middle of the pool, sending water splashing everywhere.
Both screamed at once:
"Aaaah!! My head!!"
Akio jolted awake:
"What?! Who hit me?!"
Mabushi clutched his dumbbell:
"Where am I?! How many reps did I do?!"
Ann stood at the edge of the pool, crying from laughter again. Mabushi's expression shrank in pure rage, veins gathering on his forehead as he lifted the dumbbell like he was about to use it as a weapon. He jumped out of the water in one move, water dripping down his muscles, staring straight at Silvara.
"You… you're the one who did this!!!"
He tightened his grip, raising the dumbbell back as if preparing a punch that could break a wall. Silvara didn't move. She only stared back, calm and cold. Ken lit a cigarette, completely unbothered.
Akio immediately latched onto Mabushi's raised arm like a panicked cat, hanging from him.
"Mabushiiii!! Stop!! We don't want to lose a teammate on day one!!!"
Mabushi tried to yank his arm free:
"Let go of me, you failure!! I'll return that hit twice!!!"
Akio clung tighter, feet off the ground, dangling:
"Nooooo!! If you hit Silvara, she'll kill all of us!!"
Silvara spoke with a calm smile:
"I won't kill anyone. I'll just make Mabushi sleep for a week."
Mabushi twitched:
"A week?! See?! I need to hit her first!!!"
Akio swung helplessly from his arm:
"Nooooo!! If you hit her, you'll sleep forever!!! And that's not on the schedule!!!"
Ken released a slow exhale of cigarette smoke, his last fragment of patience was escaping. He turned away and walked toward the living area. He sat with obvious boredom, leaned forward slightly, rested his elbow on his knee, tapped his cigarette above the ashtray, watched the ashes fall, then took another quiet drag.
Silvara followed and sat beside him. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
Her voice was low but carried a quiet warmth:
"Seems that your day started… exhausting."
Ken didn't turn his head, but his eyes shifted slightly toward her.
She continued:
"I know this kind of day. When the world is louder than your mind can handle. But I'm here… so you don't have to handle their chaos alone."
Ken parted his lips slightly… he was about to answer… but a sharp knock echoed at the door. Ann snapped her head toward it and rushed forward, hurriedly fixing her hair before opening it. A tall man stood there, wearing the official black Arkan uniform. Broad shoulders, serious features.
He said formally:
"Members of Yukaji Ken's team… prepare yourselves immediately."
Ann froze.
"Why?"
He answered firmly:
"The Grand president of the organization wants you in his office at once. Not the exam director… but the founder of Arkan himself."
Mabushi's breathing quickened. Akio's eyebrows shot up.
"The founder… himself?!"
The man continued:
"He will give you your first official mission."
He closed his notebook, and bowed slightly:
"You have twenty minutes to get ready. I will wait outside."
He shut the door behind him. The team erupted into instant panic and excitement.
Ann screamed:
"Oh my god!! The founder himself wants to see us?!"
She bolted to her room, shouting as she ran:
"Twenty minutes?! That's not enough to choose a hair tie!!!"
She slammed her door and dashed between closet and mirror.
"Dress? No… too much. Pants? No… too formal… Ah!! Ninja outfit! Yes! Simple and neat!"
She put on her usual black attire, tied her hair simply, glanced at the mirror for half a second, then shook her head.
"I'm gonna die of stress."
Akio tore his closet open and shouted:
"Where's the golden kimono?! I need it now!!"
He finally found the blue-trimmed golden kimono, shiny and luxurious. He threw it on, flipped the collar dramatically, and pointed at his reflection with pride.
"Yes… this is worthy of meeting the founder!"
He tied his belt while dancing from excitement.
Mabushi shook water from his hair and said:
"I need something I can fight in immediately."
He opened his closet and pulled out a short-sleeved modern kimono, half traditional, half martial arts gear. Stylish and practical.
He tightened his belt and said:
"Ready… with full strength."
Silvara stood in front of her mirror, a faint smile on her lips.
"First impressions must last."
She picked a very short dark-green dress, sleeveless, showing her legs completely. She strapped two sharp guards onto her elbows, put a ribbon on her head, and applied a touch of blush.
Ken opened his closet. His eyes passed over several outfits… then stopped at one.
"This will do well."
He put on a tight black sleeveless shirt showing his shoulders and arms, added a thin leather belt for flair, wore black athletic pants, fingerless gloves, and a simple metal bracelet.
The first four stepped out of their rooms almost at the same time, pausing in the hallway as they stared at each other in brief surprise.
Silvara was the last to emerge. As soon as she stepped out with quiet confidence, Mabushi froze. His expression went stiff, then he folded his arms.
In a dry critical tone, he said:
"This is… too much. We're meeting the founder, we're not going to a party."
Silvara raised one eyebrow.
"And is there a rule against wearing what suits me?"
He replied immediately:
"No. But what you're wearing isn't fit for a mission. Clothes that short will restrict your movement, and you'll attract attention for no reason."
Silvara smiled calmly, and said with a deep composed voice:
"Critique noted. But I know exactly how to fight… and what I can wear while doing it. I won't wear anything uncomfortable."
Mabushi's jaw tightened. His gaze dropped briefly before lifting again. He didn't want to look… but he couldn't ignore it either. His cheeks flushed faintly. He turned his face away quickly.
"As you wish."
He grabbed the outer door handle firmly and exhaled sharply to steady himself.
Ken walked ahead and said:
"Let's go."
Everyone followed him in heavy silence, leaving the wing behind as they headed toward their long-awaited meeting with the founder.