Martial Arts Worlds

With the sun's rays flying over the Sirkus Middle School, birds flew and sang their sweet melodies.

At this moment, in the third floor of the school building.

"Welcome to the—"

Katherina, whose gold hair fell down her shoulders, turned silent as a young man, who towered over her, appeared on the front steps of the classroom.

She couldn't finish off her greeting as she was taken aback by the sight of him and stared at him in awe.

'It looks like I am in the right place. Maybe this Neal kid is working in the maid cafe?'

Kiernan looked around the maid cafe and saw the students, who saw him, stare towards him in shock.

"Are there any available seats?"

He asked.

"Uhm… Yes, one table just became available!"

Katherina nervously led him to the table in the corner of the classroom, and when he got seated, she moved her hair out of her face and smiled.

"W-what may I get you?"

Kiernan looked at the menu on the table and said,

"I'll have the special of the festival, please."

Katherina wrote it down in the order book, and before she could take the order to the kitchen, she heard the young man ask.

"And I am looking for someone. Neal Yoxall, have you seen him?"

"Hmm?"

Katherina turned back to the young man with a blush on her cheeks, tried to remember the name, and with a frown on her face, she shook her head.

"I don't recall anyone with that name, really. I think there is a person with the name Neal… Noel or something, but I haven't seen him around."

She said, and then took the order to the kitchen.

'How come even his own classmates don't know him? How invisible can you be, Neal Yoxall?'

Kiernan rubbed his forehead as if a headache was brewing inside his head.

In the separate room, in the steamy kitchen, Katherina gave the order to the blushing male students and then walked back to the door, gazing at Kiernan.

"Who is he?"

A nearby female student whispered to her friend.

"A high school student, but I don't think there is anyone… like him in this entire city. He might be from some neighboring city."

Her friend said while feeling the heat of his piercing gaze, and felt her heart pound against her chest like a drum.

"I think he was looking for someone."

Katherina suddenly said to the two gossiping girls and saw them turn their surprised looks towards her.

While they were pretty in their own right, they weren't a match for Katherina and weren't really friends with her either.

"Who?"

They asked.

"Neal Yoxall. Have you seen him anywhere?"

Katherina asked.

"Who?"

The two girls looked at her with confusion and had never heard about a person with that particular name.

"Maybe he is in the wrong place then…"

Katherina shrugged her shoulders, saw that the food was ready, and took it straight to Kiernan without any delay.

"Here's your food~"

She said with a bashful smile and put the plate right in front of him on the table.

"Thank you."

With a fork in hand, he started eating through the food, which didn't really taste anything special, but it was still satisfying after a long walk he had to take.

She smiled at the simple 'thank you' and then turned back, but then saw Travis and his laughing friends return back to the maid cafe.

She wasn't sure what they were laughing about, but it must've been something funny.

"Yo, Kat."

Travis smiled at her and, seated around the last empty table with his friends, told her to come join them.

"I am still working, as you can see."

Katherina said with a wry smile and showed them the order book.

"What may you guys get? I must remind you that if you don't plan on ordering, you can't stay here and take up space."

"Of course… hmm, I'll just get a rice omelette."

She wrote it down and headed to the kitchen.

"Yo, Travis, don't take this the wrong way, but why do you bother with that shrimp Neal? You know for a fact that Kat won't waste a single moment of time on him."

"Yeah, Travis. Kat is completely in love with you, and Neal is just some bacteria who doesn't even dare to talk to her. A waste of time, it feels like."

Sitting close to them, Kiernan's ears perked up at the mention of Neal, and he looked over his shoulders at the three boys.

'Bullies, check. I might've found a reason why no one has seen Neal recently.'

"I am not worried about him, but he is a good punching bag to release some pent-up energy. If I were worried about other guys talking to her, I would have to beat up the entire school."

Travis said with a chuckle and crossed his legs in an arrogant manner.

"Sorry, guys, but I happened to hear your little conversation. You guys beat up some kid?"

Kiernan leaned over his chair and looked at the three boys with a small smile on his face.

"Hmm?"

Travis turned around with a frown, and his previous confidence started to shake as he looked into Kiernan's gray, powerful eyes.

It felt like he was in front of someone that shouldn't be messed with. It was his survival instincts telling him so!

"W-who are you?"

A friend of his asked.

"Nobody important, but you guys beat someone up. I see you three are proper tough guys. I wouldn't mess with you if I were him, haha."

"Haha… yeah."

Travis nervously chuckled while his friends stayed silent.

Something was wrong about the young man, but the three boys couldn't quite understand what it was about. The air around him seemed to almost vibrate with an unspoken threat.

"It was a nice talk. Let's do it again sometime."

Kiernan stood up, patted Travis, and left the maid cafe with a smile disappearing from his face. The heavy pressure of his aura disappeared within him.

For some reason, the maid cafe's customers were able to breathe normally again. It felt like there was something suffocating them just a second away.

…

With his head hanging low, as if his head was about to fall off his shoulders, Neal made his way down the corridor, wiping the blood off his nose.

No one around him paid any attention to him even though it was clear that he had been roughed up pretty badly.

The tears threatened to fall from his eyes, and he didn't want to stay in the school anymore. He just wanted to go home where he could be safe.

At that moment, since he wasn't looking properly ahead but only at people's feet, he walked straight into someone.

"Ah…"

Neal's eyes shook, and he immediately apologized.

"I-I am sorry!"

Those walking by looked at him with a frown before continuing on their way.

"What's your name?"

A deep voice asked, which honestly frightened Neal, as he believed that he was going to get beaten up again.

"N-Neal…"

At that moment, the person touched him on the shoulder, forcibly turned him around, and pushed him on the back.

"Well then, Neal. Should we go talk somewhere private?"

Kiernan said and slipped his hands inside his pockets.

"Oh… okay…"

Neal bit his lips, and tears began to well up in his eyes.