(A few minutes before Serena meets with Stathis.)
(Stathis point of view)
Before I can pass through the university entrance, I run into a group of bullies from my school days, led by their leader, Vangelis Zikos.
Vangelis is the son of the mayor of Argyropetra and the leader of the group of bullies that was responsible for most of the school's illegal activities during my school days, from bullying weaker students to vandalizing school property.
In appearance, he is tall with a fit body, tanned skin, short black hair and black eyes.
After he "greets" me, I return the greeting with hesitation.
"H-Hi… it's nice to see you. I-If you'll excuse me… I should get going."
After saying that, I start to head inside the university, but before I can take a step, someone blocks my way.
The one blocking my way is Jimmy Pavloudis, Vangelis Zikos's right-hand man.
Jimmy is the son of the president of the municipal council and a fiercely loyal follower of Vangelis. Unlike his co-worker, who has ambitions of his own, Jimmy has none. He exists only to carry out orders. While Vangelis is skilled in both verbal and physical bullying, Jimmy specializes in physical bullying.
In appearance, he is tall, with long brown hair, black eyes, tanned skin, and a stocky body, ideal for martial artists.
When I see him, he speaks to me in a murderous tone.
"The boss isn't finished with you yet."
As soon as he says this, he kicks me hard in the stomach, without hesitation.
The kick is so strong that it sends me a few meters back, making me lose my balance and fall to the ground.
Still reeling from the shock, pain, and nausea, I force the words out of my mouth with great effort.
"W-what do you w-want?"
"To make your life a living hell, as usual, faty"
The one who answers my question is Vangelis's left-hand man, George Kavourtzis
He is the son of the deputy mayor of finance. Unlike Jimmy, George does not follow Vangelis out of blind loyalty. He has ambitions of his own, and the only reason he remains at Vangelis's side is because of his father's political position.
In appearance, he has average height, short brown-blonde hair, brown eyes, tanned skin and toned body, without anything special.
While Jimmy specializes in physical bullying, George is an expert in verbal cruelty. He is also a tactical genius and a master at gathering information. Back in school, he seemed to know everything about everyone, from the janitors to the principal and he used that knowledge to target the next victim and keep the teachers and school officials under control.
"Exactly, besides, didn't you miss us during the holidays?"
After George Kavourtzis finishes speaking, Vangelis Zikos is the next to address me.
When he asks that question, a thought crosses my mind.
'Honestly, the only thing I missed was not seeing you.'
As I think about this, frustration creeps onto my face. Vangelis Zikos notices and responds with a sinister smile.
"Obviously, you probably missed us. From the look on your face, it's clear you're starting to gain some courage. Jimmy, remind him of the 'rules', but keep it as short and clean as possible."
"Leave it to me, boss."
When I hear this, cold sweat runs down my back, but before I can react, a second kick crashes into my stomach.
"Gahh!!"
When he starts kicking me again, I collapse to the ground once more. The shock and pain are so overwhelming that I can't even hear the gang's laughter or see the expressions on their faces.
The worst part is that some of the professors here don't even bother to stop it. In fact, there are even a few professors who actively support the group of bullies.
While I'm being punched relentlessly, I see one of them laughing.
____________________________________
After several minutes of relentless blows, the kicks and punches finally stop.
Hoping it's finally over, I open my eyes hesitantly, only to see Jimmy smiling down at me, wearing the grin of a crazed murderer, and he says to me.
"You think I'm finished? No,on the contrary, I've just started."
And he starts to kick me harder than before.
"Gahh!!."
The kick is so powerful that it sends me flying several meters away from the entrance, nearly making me lose my balance as I fall backward.
As I fall backward, I don't notice the person behind me until it's too late,I'm already about to fall straight on top of them.
"L-Look out!!"
"Hmm?, whaa?!"
I try to shout a warning for them to move, but it's already too late.
"guaah!!."
Everything happens so fast that I don't even have time to warn the person I'm about to crash into, or see who it is.
A moment later, I come to my senses and realize that the person I crashed into is a girl.
How do I know that? Because when I open my eyes, the first thing I see is a pair of long legs… and black panties just above them.
Stunned and embarrassed by what I see, I try to move away immediately to apologize, but as I push myself up, my hands accidentally squeeze something soft.
'....'
The thing under my hands isn't unpleasant to the touch. It's soft, very soft, so without thinking, I squeeze it a few times, trying to figure out what it is.
"guaah"
As I grab this soft thing, a piercing female scream comes directly to my ears and at the same moment a kick lands on my face, sending me a few inches back, but because of this I lose my balance again.
The kick stings, but it's nothing compared to Jimmy's relentless punches and kicks. I suspect the person who kicked me was just trying to get away from me, not actually hurt me.
As I think this, I look at the girl who kicked me. She appears to be about my age, with long black hair as dark as the night and silver eyes that seem to hold the glow of the moon. She is wearing a dark blue summer dress that reflects the color of the sea. Together, it creates the image of a serene summer night, with a full moon shining over the ocean.
As I process the scene, I notice she's sitting on the ground, clutching her chest, which is clearly emphasized by her dress. Her glare is murderous, and her face is bright red from neck to forehead.
At first, I assumed she was angry simply because I had collided with her. But now, seeing her expression, I realize the truth: she's furious because I saw what I wasn't supposed to and touched what I had no right to.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, I rack my brain for a way to get out of it without making things worse and then I finally speak to her.
"H-hi… I-I'm really sorry about this… incident. My name is Stathis…"
"You pervert! Stay away from me!!!"
As I stammer an apology, she interrupts me, shouting, and rushes into the campus, with tears streaming down her face.
"Well, it's clear… you've officially earned the title of 'fat pervert,' isn't that right, fat Karslidis?!"
"hahahahahahahahaha"
Sitting there in shock, I watch as Vangelis and his group approach, laughing and mocking me.
As his words hit the air, my anger flares to its peak. For years, he and his gang have mocked, insulted, and bullied me. All this time, I held back, knowing that if I fought back, it wouldn't just be me in trouble, Aunt Effie would suffer too.
But today's incident is the final straw. Being blamed for something they clearly caused is the worst thing that could happen to me.
As I clench my fist, I prepare to strike Vangelis.
"What on earth is going on here?!"
Suddenly, a mature female voice cuts through, halting my momentum.
____________________________________
What nobody notices, not even Stathis himself, is that at the peak of his anger and just before he's about to hit Vangelis, his fists are glowing with a faint, multicolored aura. It's too weak for anyone else to see, yet even at this state, this power it's enough to seriously injure Vangelis.
But it will take Stathis some time to discover this power and the true potential behind it.