It came from the far end of the cafeteria. It was one boy, but he carried with him the spite of all the students there. Before long, like a forest fire crackling its way through a bush, the laughter spread all through the ranks. Before Zavier knew it, the whole cafeteria had erupted into a violent fit of hysteric laughter. What he said wasn't funny. So why were they laughing? But Zavier wasn't too naive to know that it was because they didn't believe him.
It was as simple as that. He probably sounded ridiculous in their mind. Of course he was going to claim he had gotten in on merit. What else was he going to say? They were a little disappointed that he could actually speak properly. For they were all expecting something extremely entertaining. But at the end of the day, he had given them something to laugh about. And for that, they were grateful. The wave of laughter was like a scourge on Zavier's ears. But it soon died a natural death, and the douchebag picked it up from there.
"Come on boy, surely you can do better than that! If you're going to lie, at least make it worth our while. We are not all idiots like you."
He paused, baiting Zavier into a reply so he could finish him with his next rhetoric cudgel he had lined up. But Zavier didn't take the bait. Instead, he chose to keep mum. But the student continued either way.
"I saw your results Zavier. We all did, at least most of us anyway. How exactly did you get a recommendation with those terrible grades? I know for sure that you're not the best your school has to offer..."
His words lingered on, daring Zavier to defend himself. Zavier was quiet for a bit. He hadn't considered that part. They were willing to go as far as checking his results? Damn, these are some really bitter people. Zavier now realized again that he was dealing with a clever bunch. And they were all out for his head. He had to thread carefully. In this case, his best best was the truth. So, he answered patiently;
"Indeed, I suffered academically in the past. That is without debate. But recently, I had an epiphantic moment. And consequently, I was able to unlock great power. But unfortunately, this power did not give me the ability to turn back the hands of time to undo the damage of the past."
The boy ambushed Zavier even more recklessly. It truly seemed like he had made it his life's purpose to rubbish him in the presence of everyone. He clapped his hands mockingly.
"That was a mighty fine speech mister Adam, might fine indeed. Kudos to whoever wrote that for you. But riddle me this, if you indeed recently came into a great power as you say you did, tell me..."
He hesitated a bit, and then changed gears; "No, tell everyone here why you refused to fight today? Is it because you were afraid? Or was it because you didn't want anyone to find out you're a fraud. A weakling, a feeble creature who's strength lies only in his family's fortune."
This guy really was an attack dog. It seemed like Zavier had hurt him deeply in his past life or something. The way and manner with which he kept digging into Zavier was just uncanny. Zavier was now beginning to lose his patience. He was trying to be the bigger person here, and yet, at every given point, it seemed like he getting clowned. He was losing his composure, and his voice reflected it;
"I didn't fight today because it was a tactical decision that was given out by my teacher! It wasn't my call!" He snapped.
Even as he said it, he realized just how weak and desperate he sounded. He had lost all credibility in the eyes of these folk. So even when he told the truth, it felt like he was telling a lie. This time around, it wasn't just Zavier's accuser that engaged him, the whole cafeteria doubled down on him with a staggering momentum.
It dawned on Zavier that all of this was pointless. Clearly, nothing would change their minds. Superfluous explanations on their ears was like pouring water against a wall. It was pointless, he could see that now. The only way they would be shifted from their ruggedness was if they were to witness firsthand just how powerful he was. But that was would be best demonstrated in the construct of a battlefield.
Having established that there really was no point of explaining, he held Shiranui's hand and pulled her away intending to leave this mess all behind them. But the high school student moved quickly. He sensed that he had Zavier by the balls now, and he wasn't willing to let him go until he had thoroughly humiliated Zavier. He rushed quickly to block the exit. Staring Zavier down, he challenged him in a provocative tone;
"You're not going anywhere mister. Not until you show us this mysterious strong power of yours."
Shiranui stepped in, she was the only obstacle between the douchebag and Zavier, and she could no longer hold back her anger. Shiranui knew Zavier was more powerful than anyone of them in this role cafeteria. She had sized up this cosmic sized douchebag and knew that he was nothing close to Zavier in skill and in decency. If Zavier was going to keep giving him a free pass, she wouldn't. In a very brash tone, she accosted him;
"What do you think you're doing you asshole? Do you really think you're qualified to challenge Zavier Adam?"
The high school student chuckled lightly. He ignored her and targeted Zavier with his next jab;
"I see, so this is your great power huh? Hiding behind your woman and pretending you're a big deal?! You're such a fucking joke!"
The people all around him roared in laughter. If Zavier hadn't been the center of the joke, perhaps he would have laughed too. The joke was a timely one, and it had landed squarely on Zavier's only defense (his great power). Apparently, they all found it amusing. And it seemed like they were enjoying the way their leader was handling the decimation of Zavier's ego.
Every material has its elastic limit, and every body has their own breaking point. Zavier had reached his. If anyone of the dunces had paid attention enough, they would have noticed that the empathy and restraint that had been lodged in Zavier's eyes, had completely disappeared in an instant. In their place was a dead cold gaze instead. It was all over. Zavier had done his best to hold back.
But it truly seemed that this obnoxious high school student and his goons had been marked out by fate for destruction. Zavier knew he was really going to enjoy having to deal with them. He was going to show them how weak they were when compared to him. He was going to teach them a lesson so great, that they would always quiver whenever they heard his name or tried to bully someone else. Yes, Zavier would be the divine hand that would set them in line.
He hated having to do this. Episodes of face punching and of grown folks acting out weren't his thing at all. He had read so many boring face-punching, masculine- brawling based novels in his previous life on Earth. He had always found them to be a little bit of a cliché. And yet, here he was, in a real life situation that was about to bring out the beast in him. He understood why men felt the need to indulge their base instincts in this manner.
Shaking with uncontrollable rage, Zavier stepped forward towards the high school student, ready to obliterate his jaw completely, and make it impossible for him to ever smile so condescendingly again. He clenched his fists, and began to harness as much mana as possible. Like a steam locomotive engine, he began to build up energy. But Zavier didn't get to descend on the douchebag high schooler.
At the last moment, a familiar figure stepped in from out of no where. And like ice on a raging flame, she diffused the tension with just her presence. It was none other than the respectable Mabel. Everyone saw her and responded to her undeniable authority. Suddenly, they were all on their best behavior.
"Somebody better explain to me what in heaven's name is going on here!"
Much like everything else she normally did, Mabel's sudden appearance wasn't an accident. Prior to this very moment, Mabel had a hunch that something was amiss. She had excellent intuition, and her instincts were always spot on. So, prompted by a nagging feeling, she decided to take a walk through the park, and boom, it led her straight to the where the action was; the cafeteria. On getting there, she decided to get a snack for herself.
It seemed like it was her subconscious that had been trying to get her to eat something after a very long day. Mabel was a natural hard worker. She didn't become the person she was by simply being a slouch. She could go hours, sometimes a whole day without even as much as a snack. Today in particular was one of those days. As one of the chief organizers of such a prominent event, she had to be up and doing for at least eighteen to twenty hours each day. And consequently, she was denied the bliss of free time.
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