Chapter 1: Special grade artifact
2nd January,2024
Creeeaaak...
a door with unlubricated hinges swung open slowly and let out an extended creak
Damn it... A figure with unclear features said internally
Tap tap tap...
The figure sneaked into the dark room on its tiptoes anxiously
Bzzz Zzz
A muted ringtone phone's voice vibrated audibly and fell off the figure's pocket. It tried to catch it but it only slipped from hand to hand before reaching for the ground with a thud
Fuck... The figure shouted to herself
The figure's features were now more clear due to light that emerged from the cellphone and projected on its shadowy face. The figure was clearly a male with no facial hair he was still youthful and he had bluish eyes and black hair. He was clearly a teenager.
He picked the phone from the floor.
[Trueman is calling...]
The cellphone's screen shown
He sighed before clicking the side volume button answering the phone.
"Hey kid did you pick it up?" A mature voice spoke through the phone's speaker.
"I was doing that before "someone" intrupted me!" The kid spoke with a furious tone while trying to maintain his voice low
"What took you so long? You should be back by now" Trueman asked with a curious tone
"I didn't take so long I just ... Had some complications" the kid said with an embarrassed surrounding voice
"Hmm...Complications?"
"You messed this up didn't you?" Trueman asked with a deadpan tone that could be indicated even without seeing him from the other side off the phone
"I didn't mess anything up" the kid rushed to deny with a panicked manner, "you know how hard it is to sneak in a school without arousing suspension" he muttered.
"I definitely don't know how "hard" it can be, I'm competent" Trueman said sarcastically
"Fuck you Leon" the kid screamed in the phone
"Later. did you get it?" Leon asked in a blunt manner
"On it" the kid said while opening a closet and taking out a vault, he pulled his necklace and suddenly it grew a blade out of nowhere as it smoothly pierced into the vault smoothly. "What the hell is a special grade artifact doing in school anyway?" He added
"I don't know, Captain said something about this school being established on top of An old monum-" Leon spoke but he got cut off by the following unexpected voice
"Aaah!" The kid let out a panicked scream
Thud. Thud. Thud
The cellphone fell from his hands and hit the table then the chair until. Eventually hitting the ground.
"Rei! Rei! What happened?! Is everything okay?!" Leon spoke anxiously through the phone in a worried manner
"Hey Leon...listen..." The kid called Rei picked up the cellphone and spoke in an awkward polite and low voiced manner. "Listen don't be mad"
"What's wrong?" Leon asked
"About the scribe..." Rei spoke with his face facing downwards and slowly tried to elaborate as he added "It is missing"
"What?" Leon asked
"It's missing" Rei repeatedly in the same tone
"What?" Leon asked again in the same clinical tone as before
"It's not here" Rei elaborated
"What?!" Leon said this time in a much serious and fierce manner
"I can't find it" Rei elaborated much further
"..."
The phone screen glowed
[Trueman
Call ended
Call duration: 1 minute and 29 second]
Leon hung up on Rei
Rei looked around anxiously before letting out a frustrated sigh.
Captain is going to be disappointed.... Rei told himself inwardly as he thought about the latter consequences
...
The next day, 3rd January, 2024
Red hood private company
Rei sat on his knees with his head low as he was surrounded by raging flames, of course that fire was a metaphor for the company members rage. He secretly wished it was actually fire at least it would have been better than this.
"You had one job!" A Refined veiled woman wearing a red hood who had the most raging aura scolded rei. "Go to school, blend in, retrieve the damn scribe, and come back" she added
"But nooo, you had to laze it off and be awkward didn't you?" she grunted as she kicked downward with her leg stammering the floor as she was held by many other red hoodesses from lashing out on Rei
"What's going on here??" A gentleman walked in wondering
"Captain!" The entire room went still and quiet and paid notice to his entrance
The gentleman called Captain was a man with slightly tanned skin black hair and red eyes, He wore a formal black suit and had a red ruby on his tie and had a small plushy doll with black wings clinging to his neck as if it was hugging it. That was the captain of the red hoods Ren Edgar.
He walked in and sat on a nearby empty chair as he took out a biscuit from the basket on the neighboring table and Gave it to the doll.
"Here you go Albedo" he said with a nurturing fatherly tone to the plushy on his right shoulder
"Ren~" the plushy seems to be sentient and melted affectionately into Captain Edgar's fatherly kindness as she picked up the biscuits with her fluffy hands and nipped on it. The biscuits vanished in 2 bites and hugged Ren's neck as she rubbed her cheek on it
Sometimes I can't believe that she is also a special grade artifact too.... Everyone in the room shared the same awkward thought
"Now mind telling me what's going on between you and miss beck?" Ren asked Rei a direct question gently as he tilted he was pouring a cup of coffee
Rei explained the story and Ren was sipping tea and nodding at the details from the beginning until...
"Someone stole the scribe before we reached it" Rei said frustrated
Cough cough cough
Ren's red eyes widened as he was taken off guard and choked on the coffee he was sipping upon hearing that part.