AN: Because who needs sleep lol. The theme for prologue was: NO REST FOR THE WEARY after all o/

Muuu~~ It's all because you guys keep praising me! *Accusing tone*

btw

Totally blew me away.

So Epic, so Ferocious!

Credits to http://peterprime.deviantart.com/

Mods: Add a vicious tail, smaller scales, green eyes, no wings, and legs with just one knee joint ;P

And here is your chapter: Enjoy!

PS. Hope you guys won't get confused with the POV changes xD

PS.2. Forgot to mention it, ch 11 was ProofRead by Miaowdom, I made a bit of changes and it should look perfect now! Thank you Miao-san!!

PS.3. This chapter was also ProofRead by Miaowdom and nf_zeta! *clap, clap*

***

[Place: Inside Marc's soul, Throne Room]

Lily was crouching in the corner in a gloomy mood. Her hand was lifelessly tracing the golden symbols that were carved in the floor. She was a perfect actress, and that not only meant that she could hide all of her emotions, it also meant that she was able to easily express all of her feelings. When she was around those she trusted the most, there was no need to hide them at all.

[--Calla--: Lily? What's wrong?]

[--Lily--: There are so many cool hero phrases.. Like: "I'll protect her with my life!" or "I'll guard her forever." Why did it have to be "Today, you all die."? *sob sob*]

Guilt pierced through Marc.

[--Calla--: ... But that was totally m'lord-like...]

***

As far as she could remember, Celina Za was always under the shadow of her older brother. He was also a gentle brother that always spoiled her, thus she didn't hate him at all. It was also thanks to him that their household escaped poverty. The White Tiger. -> He was hardworking and showed great talent in leadership and even obtained the Swordsman title at the age of 18.

Praise was always directed towards him, but she didn't mind. True, she was a little jealous, but that was all. It was also thanks to him that she was accepted into the Athena's Institute.

The day her psychic ability of Mind appeared she felt totally down. The 'obsolete' ability. However her brother praised it and strongly encouraged her.

An Ace, one of the Strongest Trio Swordsmen of Lower Division of Mars' Academy. He was like a shining star that she looked up to on the night sky.

So she didn't give up and she tried her hardest. If it was in any other place she might have been ignored, but in Athena's Institute her project was accepted. A way to utilize her Mind ability to control bots. It sounded ridiculous but Headmistress-sensei smiled warmly and provided her with chance and funds. From the others' perspective it was a simple waste of funds, but Claire-sama laughed it off as she said that she liked to waste credits (currency).

Four years. It was a four years of fruitless labor, in a normal school her project would have already been scrapped a long time ago, but she was continuously receiving the funds, for bots, for Energy Crystals... And after four years she finally made a breakthrough. Her very first Controlled Bot was made as she turned 14. Thanks to the much higher speed and efficiency of her bot from that time onwards, she was thus called a genius engineer...

And she then realized that genius was just a word... As she looked around she realized that in the Institute there were many UHigh sub-races but only a few of them were now hailed as geniuses, and all of them in fact were simply hard working individuals... It was hard work that produced results, talent was just a bit of help!

This year, a new existence joined Athena. Her name was Mersa. Another so called genius. Celina saw a lot of those. At first hailed as geniuses, then quickly forgotten. There was also a case of the boy that came with her. There was an uproar because not only he was a male but also a Neo-Aris called powerless. At first Celina was a bit of sympathetic towards him...

At the day of their arrival her attitude changed. She saw him as he arrived and his arrogance as he walked... He was just leeching off the girl! And she hated types like that. In fact there are a lot of those in classes C and D. They just went with 'Soldier' and lazily spend their days doing nothing.

Mersa's M-Armor was assigned to her.

When Celina saw her on the practice field she realized that the little girl will be what they really called genius. Abundance of talent, incredible motivation, and all the hard work she poured in with her small body... However Celina pitied her, because it was all for that useless boy.

Later that day she met him.

A rumored 'powerless' came to try her Controlled Bot. Many did, and all of them failed. Even other Mind Psychics gave up, because the amount of hard work that is needed to learn the controls of the Bots is simply mountain-like. With indignant look she let him have a try...

Of course he'll fail...

He didn't...

...

...

'Genius'? What is a genius? What is talent?

From that day onwards, during every morning practice Celina couldn't help but glance at the boy that stood there with a relaxed and passive expression. She also had to revise her opinion about him. She heard that rather than just enjoying the benefits that he was granted thanks to the White Wolf Princess, he decided to start Engineering and Alchemy...

What is aptitude?

Celina's aptitude wasn't bad, she was Mid, but for example she knew that Low aptitude was quite limiting in Engineering. One needs to provide nano-photons for bots to repair and script crystals. Once again she started pitying the boy...

That led to offering him help.

She was shocked. A genuine genius. It took her only one afternoon to understand that. At first she was teaching him about things, but half way through the role was completely reversed. He even introduced several short-cuts that she never heard of...

What is a genius?

It's just the amount of work, and the amount he did every day when he was with her in fact scared her. She spent just an hour with him, but in that time he helped her with thousands of tasks without asking for a thing in return...

In the morning he had a relaxed, passive and carefree face, then in the evening he had that hardworking, focused expression... She found that gap... cute... Awww...

...

...

Celina was the first one to see Vorst move.

Vorst had been standing outside with a difficult, strained face. She recognized Renves, and when she saw him assaulting Mersa she felt incredibly sorry for the 'powerless'... As she turned her head to look at him she saw him make his move.

FAST!

So incredibly fast!

Her gaze followed him as he arrived in the nick of time to blow Renves away...

Wow... Wasn't he supposed to be weak?

...

...

...

On one side was her idol brother with over 500 others, on the other side was a boy that she was working with for the past several weeks. Both of them were quite similar to each other... Vorst was not only incredibly hardworking, but also very gentle. Everyday without fail, he would reserve time to spend with his Wolf Princess.

Somehow, although it was her dear brother that he was fighting with... right now she wanted the Golden M-Armor to win... For the hardworking Vorst to win... Although she admitted that she was envious of Mersa, she still wished for that boy to win... Because she didn't want him to lose... What was this feeling?

Her small mouth was still wide open when he engaged with his opponents. Was that really Vorst? *doki, doki*

***

At first for Mersa, Vorst was similar to a little brother that she wanted to protect.

With his childish episodes.

With his childish outbursts.

With his childish dreams.

...

Everything changed with those green eyes...

That day when she first saw them they radiated incredible seriousness.

For the first time Vorst made a true mature face... Her soul stirred.

He nearly died for her...

With the tears she threw herself at him.

Then she felt his embrace...

Somehow she felt incredibly secure in his arms. In these arms of the so called 'powerless'.

As she looked upon those green eyes that this time radiated gentleness she felt the need to protect this moment. To protect him. A pure resolve was born... She felt that her body was filled with willpower.

...

She will lose.

And with this he will also lose.

What happened that day... Would it happen in the future? Would she be able to win when she needs to? No. Not with her current power. She needed more.

She needed way more strength. More. More.

She closed her eyes. Red bear... Next time we meet... I'll crush you.

...

BAM.

...

That was the end...

She opened her eyes and found an armor before her.

That ever familiar armor...

That day that armor also appeared before her at the last second...

That day...

No! But she already swore to herself...

Did nothing change since that day?

...

Another M-Armor charged at him.

Move. Move. MOVE.

Why won't you move!

...

Vor-chan won? That M-Armor was blown away..

Summon? Did Vor-chan have a summon? Is that Vor-chan? Who is that lizard? Where are you Vor-chan?

[Vorst: Wait here.]

That's Vor-chan's voice. There is no way she would be mistaken... Vor-chan is in that M-Armor? What's going on Vor-chan?

But somehow that voice... It felt reassuring...

Wow. That was finished in a flash. The Red Bear that could defeat senpais was defeated so quickly! But is that really Vor-chan? Because Vor-chan was supposed to be weak...

Then Vorst's white bot suddenly arrived and took her away from him...

What? Why? Vor-chan? I want to be next to you!

[Vorst(white bot): It's gonna take a while. Wait for me.]

At that moment, Vorst's face appeared in her imagination. His crystal clear green eyes were full of that arrogant confidence and with a smirk he said 'Humph. Small fries like these I can take on anytime, so wait for a bit.' and he petted her head...

That's right... That's Vor-chan.

I believe in you Vor-chan.

***

[Place: Special lounge]

[Claire: ... To think that a second monster would be born...]

No one else could utter a word looking at the logs... It completely defied common sense.

[Claire: Doesn't this remind you of the old times Mist?]

[Mistglan: ...]

Mistglan in the past also solo'ed caves, that's how he was noticed by a passing Claire. He is what they call a talent that appears once in a zillion. One a universe. A complete genius that was born purely for battle. He was created to fight, and in terms of battle talent he was comparable to Calla, and that definitely certified his strength. An Inhuman reaction speed, accuracy, power, speed, even pain threshold. He could easily overdrive his body to break through limits, one after another.

[Claire: Though Vorst is probably an even bigger monster...]

[Mistglan: Right... That punch was powerful... Most probably empowered with 'Runes'...]

'Runes'... A Power that was even rarer than any type of Psychics. Through special nano-photon arrangements they empower the user granting a desired (or not) effect. It all depended on arrangement, movements, and all sort of other things. Only the gifted could actually see and recognize patterns... In this world they were called Witches... That's right, all of them female... Vorst... What are you?!

[Claire: ... That too... but what I really meant is how easily he deals with girls.]

[Mistglan: ...]

[Dermea: ... "Poor Mistglan-sensei. That must have hurt."]

Then on the screen, Vorst moved. He charged against 500 opponents.

[Mistglan: Hex Shield...]

He whispered, but the place was already so quiet that everyone clearly heard that. Claire and Dermea nodded.

[Dermea: It's Circle Tier skill. But that's just because it's difficult, it's not limited to a big photon pool... though it'll be thin, but it's true that no HST guns will be able to break through that...]

Shields are different from a Barrier. The Barrier was the lifeline of the Mechanical Machines, it is the main frame that is charged with nano-photons. Once the opponent destroyed that armor, the rest is cut through easily. Shields were what pilots deployed consciously to absorb additional damage.

Then it came to melee. White flash, black sweep... Black and white dance. White and black whirlwind... But by no means it merged into grey, both of them were completely distinct, as if the two were water and oil.

[Claire: ... He's...]

[Mistglan: ...]

[Claire: ... He's enjoying it.]

The Headmistress was definitely right. As expected from a person whose Insight Marc acknowledged. The playful personality of Marc was completely exposed in this battle. That was the difference between him and Mist. Consecutive strikes. Side-steps. Lightning fast counters. Feints. Everything in completely fluid motions. With no regular pace. Consecutive bursts, then for several seconds he would stay in one place. Then flash somewhere else...

That was the difference between him and Calla. Black Angel would fight with straightforward attitude with all her power, while facing a difficult opponent she would tirelessly exchange blows until he made a mistake. Marc on the other hand would actively try to make his opponent trip. He would purposely show a small opening for an instant... lure... trap... and utterly CRUSH.

One was a Fighter, the other was a Predator, Beast, Hunter.

[Claire: He's perfect.]

A lot of scratches appeared on Marc's M-Armor, even several deep ones. But every single of them was exchanged for opponent's life. The number of opponents were dropping at horrifying speed. And as their numbers dropped, the openings he showed decreased as well...

[Mistglan: No HST is capable of beating him. Right now the only ones that can match him are Lower Circle Tiers...]

[Claire: Mist, I've decided on your promotion.]

Liger showed a wry smile... On the screen the Golden Dragon already finished off half of the M-Armors, dozens started running away. With Celina's permission several team leaders decided to back away from the battle... They were retreating from a 1v500 battle!

[Claire: Fufu, I promised you after all. The HST A Class seems good enough right?]

Mistglan brought his hand to silently facepalm himself...

Every single teacher in Special lounge sympathized with him, even the current HST A Class teacher, but they all wisely decided to keep quiet...

***

As Celina Nec went down Vorst turned around, with several strides he arrived before Mersa. With his M-Armor scratched all over he looked even more imposing than before.

[--Lily--: Maaaarc. Remove the armor now.]

Lily's mood finally recovered, and he didn't want to ruin it again so he did as she requested.

Click. Click. Clang. With a bit of mechanical noise the Golden M-Armor dissipated into thin air. In it's place there was a black haired 11 years old boy in a military pilot suit (he had to store his normal Armor to wear the other one). With a clear gaze he looked at the White Wolf Princess that was still inside her Mechanical Armor.

[Vorst: Mer-chan.]

With a click a hatch was opened in the White M-Armor torso and a small girl rushed from it to embrace the boy.

[Mersa: Vor-chan!]

It was the sight of a princess welcoming her knight that just returned from a successful campaign.

[--Lily--: Fufu~~ Hehe~]

[--Calla--: *Nods approvingly* Good job Lily.]

[--Lily--: This scene was perfect.]

Two women in his soul high-fived each other. For them the fact that Marc bested his opponents was a given from the start, no biggie.

***

Mersa's photon pool was empty, that's why she had to open the hatch manually. Therefore Vorst rushed the Mars' Academy Base alone. No one opposed his plan.

[Vorst: I'll be back, wait for me.]

There was no uncertainty in his voice. With a last hug and a nod, he equipped his Golden Dragon and made his way towards the enemy base...

***

[Claire: This is Athena's Victory.]

The Headmistress declared as Marc entered the innermost place inside of Mars' base. After the 1v500, winning in a 1v200 didn't surprise anyone. More like everyone was too tired to be surprised.

[Dermea: He's a boy, he should start attending Mars.]

[Claire: We already promised to let him stay in Athena, but if you think you can convince him otherwise then go ahead.]

With that her head pointed at the White Wolf Princess. Dermea knew it was a losing case...

Mistglan sympathetically put his hand on Dermeas shoulder, they were both victims here. Then Liger left following the Elf.

***

[Time: Same day, at night.]

The Wolf girl that night was again embracing the Neo-Aris (no one dared to call him powerless now).

[Mersa: Vor-chan...]

[Vorst: Yes Mer-chan.]

[Mersa: Vor-chan... You won't go away right?]

[Vorst: No. Of course not.]

[Mersa: Even if... Even if I'll be too weak to be with you?]

[Vorst: Hm?]

Boy turned around to face her. His emerald eyes were looking at her warmly.

[Vorst: Mer-chan... Mer-chan will never be too weak to be with me. No matter how weak you will be. But I know Mer-chan has potential so...]

He leaned over and offered her a smooch on her lips.

[Vorst: That's a charm. I know my Mer-chan will become truly strong.]

The Wolf Princess blushed all the way to her ears. Repeatedly nodding she hid her face in his chest - her resolve rekindled.

[--Calla--: Smooth talker.]

[--Lily--: Smooth talks even little girls~]

[--Marc--: ...]