Meanwhile, in class, Rex sat leaning back with both hands stuffed into the pockets of the hoodie he wore over his uniform, his hood pulled up. He was nodding off as the instructor went through body-enhancement magic—like "Strengthen Arm" for fighting and "Feet" for moving fast—followed by "Protect," which creates an aura shield to guard the entire body. "Hoaam," Rex yawned, patting his mouth.
"Huh... boring. I already learned this stuff back in Arendel... turns out it's exactly the same. Lame that there's been no updates in two years, but it's better than being at home. I was getting so sick of staying inside and not seeing the sun," Rex thought to himself.
He patiently sat through the lesson, just listening and refusing whenever he was asked to practice, until the bell rang for break. After the instructor—who looked more like a soldier than a teacher—left the room, Rex grabbed his bag to eat his lunch, but he couldn't find it when he reached inside.
"Wait... crap... I forgot to make and bring my lunch, didn't I? Alright... guess I'll hit the cafeteria," Rex said, standing up.
But when he reached for his back pocket, he found it empty. He turned around and realized he'd forgotten his wallet, too. He sat back down, pulled back his hood, and stared into space.
"It's been way too long since I left the house... I totally forgot to bring my wallet... aaah... annoying... I'll just drink some tap water," Rex said, standing up again.
He walked to the restroom at the end of the hall and drank his fill from the tap. As he walked back toward his classroom through the corridor, plenty of female academy students turned to look at him as they passed. Their faces were full of questions: "Who is that? I've never seen him... he'd definitely make a good boyfriend, or at least a friend. I wonder what grade he's in."
Of course, Rex didn't care; he acted completely indifferent and pulled his hood back up. When he got back to class, he was shocked to see a convenience store plastic bag filled with food and his own wallet sitting on his desk.
"Huh... where did this come from?" Rex asked, confused.
He pulled out the food—a burrito, a hot dog, and a bonus pudding. There was a note on top of the burrito wrapper:
"Make sure you eat this... Rose,"
"Hmm? How did she know I didn't bring any food? And when did she send this? Whatever... who cares," Rex said as he sat back down.
Then he grabbed his wallet from the bag to put it in his pocket, and a card fell out of the wallet's fold onto the desk. He picked it up and read it:
"Be careful when you go out, don't leave things behind... Ruby,"
"Huh," by reflex, Rex glanced at the empty seat next to him that had been vacant all morning. He looked back at the burrito in his hand, then back at Ruby's empty chair. Suddenly, he felt a shiver run down his spine.
"Wait... this is weird. How did Ruby know I didn't bring my wallet?" Rex muttered, thinking hard.
Then Rex remembered that before the magic lesson, there had been firearms training at the shooting range—something that had bored him to death since it reminded him of his old training days back in the Order. That was the only time he had left the classroom with his classmates, leaving his bag behind.
"Did they come here earlier during target practice? No, that's impossible... how would they? Besides, before I went to the bathroom... it felt like none of this was here... this is really weird and a little creepy. If Ruby actually came here, why didn't she just come in, say she was late, and hand the wallet directly to me," Rex muttered in his heart.
Suddenly, "thump," someone patted Rex on the back, making him flinch slightly since he was lost in thought and hadn't noticed anyone approach. He turned to see a handsome young man with short-cropped blond hair and a muscular build, smiling broadly at him.
"It's you... you scared the hell out of me, Hank," Rex said.
"Surprised to see you actually showed up, man. Usually you're never here; your chair is as empty as a ghost's," Hank replied as he sat in Ruby's vacant seat next to Rex.
"I just felt like coming in, got bored at home," Rex muttered shortly.
Rex went back to thinking hard, wondering to himself. Hank, seeing his friend stunned and silent, spoke up.
"Why are you spacing out?" Hank asked, observing Rex.
"Nothing. Have you eaten yet? I have way too much here," Rex said, splitting his burrito in half and handing part of it to Hank.
"Actually, I haven't. Perfect timing, thanks bro," Hank replied, taking the burrito.
They ate in peace for a moment, but suddenly Hank started looking left and right as if searching for something, his expression turning serious.
"What is it?" Rex asked.
"I don't know... I feel like someone is watching me, and they seem pissed... oh yeah... where's Ruby? Usually she never misses class and is always at your place, right?" Hank said.
"She's around... weird for you to be looking for her. Don't you two usually fight all the time?" Rex said.
"Well... when you have an enemy, if you don't fight for a day, you kind of miss it, you know?" Hank replied casually while eating.
"Haha... you've got a point," Rex replied.
They fell silent again, finishing their food, while Rex kept brooding until his curiosity finally hit its limit.
"I'm gonna head home after I eat... I don't feel so good," Rex lied, though he was actually dying to see if those two girls had left his apartment yet—and if they were still there, he was going to demand some answers.
"Man... you barely show up, and now you're already leaving? You're losing it," Hank said.
"That's how it is. You know I'm the forever-student around here," Rex joked.
"Yep... that's true. Well, if you want to head out, I'm not gonna stop you," Hank joked back.
"You don't have the right to stop me anyway," Rex replied with a relaxed joke while he's eating.
After he finished his meal, Rex immediately packed his bag, said goodbye to Hank, and walked out of the classroom. He walked down the hallway, but suddenly he felt like someone was following him. He turned around but didn't see anyone he recognized. There were plenty of people in the hall, but they were just walking in the same direction or passing by; no one looked like they were specifically tailing him.
"Huh... maybe it's just my imagination," Rex thought to himself.
He walked out of the school building and headed toward the gate. Just as he stepped through, "beep... beep... beep," the city alarms and sirens began to wail. Rex stood still for a moment, looking up at the sky, as an announcement blared through the air.
"Emergency. A black dragon is flying toward the city. All residents are advised to go to the shelters. Do not panic and please follow the officers in an orderly fashion."
"Huff," Rex let out a sigh, his face looking annoyed and tired, as if some sudden nuisance had just ruined his day. He turned his head to look left and right, and after making sure no one was around, he pulled up his hood and put on a mask to cover his mouth.
Then, "boom," Rex rocketed off, flying at high speed toward the edge of the city. He tore across the dome covering the city like a comet, his entire body shrouded in a grayish-white aura that created a blur and a tail as he flew. He then dove toward the city exit, racing through the tunnel to reach the outskirts.
Once outside, he spotted a giant black dragon in the distance, flying toward the city from the north.
"I'm only helping because I don't want to go to a shelter and I want to keep my life comfortable... I hate being cramped in a shelter with bunch of annoying people. Remember that—I'm not doing this to save the world... don't get the wrong idea," Rex muttered in his heart as he looked at the dragon ahead.
He spread his arms slightly and made a slashing motion. Suddenly, the greyish-white energy enveloped both his arms, forming two blades that looked like giant sabers. He accelerated, closing the gap with the dragon that was also charging toward him.
"Groaaaa..."
Before the dragon could even finish its roar or stop flying, Rex had already zipped over its body. He spun in the air, slashing his twin blades in rapid succession. The dragon's head and half of its body were sliced clean off. Whether it realized it or not, its head and body were suddenly severed. The massive, butchered remains of the dragon fell instantly along with its head. Rex then shot back toward the city like a comet.
"Done... time to go home and interrogate those two girls," Rex muttered to himself, because he was honestly more curious about the food that appeared out of nowhere than he was about fighting a dragon.
Meanwhile, his two stalkers standing in front of the school gate were stunned, their jaws dropping as they stared together at Ruby's smartphone. They watched the dot rocket from outside the city back toward the city at such high speed that it looked like a glitch on the map.
"Huh... what the hell is this... this dot... is it Rex?" both of them muttered inside their heads.s.