At Zvrost Station, the loudspeakers crackled out announcements no one was listening to.
A tide of students swarmed the platforms, their hair neatly parted, their uniforms fussed over to look "proper," dragging suitcases, familiars, sealed weapons in cases — and, above all, their dreams of greatness.
Some had come from the most remote corners of Europe and beyond, adorned with medals of honor and bright-eyed ambition.
And then… there was Dante.
Two massive suitcases weighed down his arms : one was his, the other belonged to Ginny — currently sleeping in tattoo form on his shoulder… and completely useless.
— "That lazy damn demon…" He muttered under his breath, strolling through the station with casual defiance.
All he needed was a jazz soundtrack playing behind him, and he'd look like the intro to some effortlessly cool TV show.
His goal ? Find a bench. Not too close to others, not too far from the platform. Nothing too clean — clean benches attracted rich kids.
He wanted something in the sweet spot — the perfect place to wait for the Genesis convoy, the special train arranged for "modest" students.
Meaning, those too broke for a plane ticket or teleportation portal.
The irony ? Dante could easily afford a first-class flight straight to Almeris.
But the train… kept him out of the spotlight.
And, honestly, the people on it were way more entertaining. Like that kid over there.
A little further down, tucked in the corner of the station, a bespectacled boy looked utterly, hopelessly lost.
He was spinning in circles with a suitcase three times his size, sweating buckets, staring at the signs like they were written in demonic language.
---
[Shigeo — POV]
My travel bag weighed a ton, and I couldn't shake the feeling that every security guard was eyeing me like I was trouble.
It wasn't paranoia. I was Tensukaijin, after all — a foreigner from a war-torn country. People noticed.
I forced a smile. Grandpa always said kindness opened all doors.
Then this tall, lean guy with a smile more threatening than friendly came up to me. He offered to help, picked up my bag like it was nothing, and said he'd show me the "right way."
Being the idiot I was, I followed him.
Three minutes later, I was pinned against the wall of a filthy public restroom by three built dudes with predator eyes.
— "Alright, empty your pockets."
— "Nice watch, man. Silver ? Hand it over."
I tried to protest. Big mistake.
They beat me until I could barely breathe.
I lost my glasses. My bag, my hoodie and my dignity.
There I was — down to my underwear, lying in a puddle of shame and snot, wondering if I was going to die in a public toilet.
And then… like some twisted answer to a desperate prayer, the door exploded open.
One kick. That's all it took.
The man who entered looked like he walked out of a dream. Long coat, messy hair, eyes empty but piercing.
An angel ? A hero ?
…Nope.
Just a guy who really had to pee.
He ignored me completely, stepped up to the nearest urinal, and started doing his business like nothing was wrong.
The thugs blinked.
— "Hey! You messing with us, asshole ?" one of them barked, clearly offended someone would disrespect his "territory."
He laid a hand on the man's shoulder.
The man turned his head slowly.
That look. Goddamn, that look.
Cold indifference. Pure exhaustion. Like this whole thing didn't even rank on the scale of "things worth giving a shit about."
The thug stepped back — too late. In one swift move, the man drove a kick straight into his stomach, sending him flying into the wall.
The others charged. Bad call.
They went down fast. And then — even more absurdly — they dropped to their knees.
— "Please man… we're sorry!"
— "Strip. Everything." he said, barely above a whisper.
They obeyed.
And in a moment both pitiful and wildly satisfying, they bolted out of the restroom, weeping, wearing nothing but fear.
The guy turned to me and held out a hand.
— "Arise."
I took it.
— "T-thank you… You saved me… I'm Shigeo Natsuki. And you are—?"
He shrugged.
— "Dante. No need to make a big deal out of it."
He pointed at the watches and jewelry scattered across the floor.
— "You can keep that junk if you want."
— "Uh… shouldn't we maybe hand it over to lost and found ?"
A beat of silence. Then, a faint smile.
— "Smart kid. Not completely hopeless."
I followed him out, floating on a cloud.
Behind us, the would-be muggers were being tackled by station police, screaming about injustice.
I chuckled.
— "By the way, I'm headed to Genesis. You too ?"
— "Yeah."
— "Awesome! Um… would you wanna be cabin partners on the train ?"
He raised an eyebrow.
— "Sure. Just don't snore."
I barely held in a squeal.
It was official : I had a badass friend. A polite demon with killer instincts.
And me ?
I was the excitable sidekick.
And for now… I was totally fine with that.