Cardfight!! Vanguard: Generations Volume 2 [Zyriot War]

Chapter 3: Quiet Foosteps

Tuesday morning.

The start of my day was terrible. I forgot that my uniform had been ruined yesterday when D Class assaulted me, but I didn't get a chance to wash it since I stayed at Nora and Katsumi's house all night helping them sort out their decks.

Unfortunately, most of my time spent there was re-teaching Katsumi the fundamentals, as she was really unfamiliar with the game. Her deck was such a shamble, it made Nora's deck seem like tier 1 in comparison. She didn't even use Mecha Trainer as a starter, she used Cheer Girl, Franny.

And her reasoning was even worse...

"Katsumi-san, why don't you use Mecha Trainer over Franny? Trainer can let you draw a card when you ride it. Franny's skill only works when she's on rear-guard."

"But Takanori-san, I don't want my starter to be an ugly robot! I want it to be a cute cheerleader instead!"

I'm still cringing from that interaction. In any case, I had to scrounge around for a replacement uniform. Luckily, I remembered that we were given summer uniforms, because Yukina was wearing one yesterday. Since I didn't have a spare set of the regular uniform, I had no choice but to wear it.

It honestly felt kind of weird seeing myself like this for the first time. For a little bit, I thought I looked kind of cool, but quickly realised I was delusional. Can't have your ego popped if you pop it yourself.

Though, by wearing this uniform, I was making myself stand out involuntarily... well, there was nothing I could do about it. At least I wouldn't be the only one wearing it. The riajuu were also beginning to wear their summer uniforms, so this could become trendy.

I wonder, am I starting my riajuu phase? Before, I considered myself a loner, but ever since yesterday, I realised that I've become fairly close with a few of my classmates, like Yukina, Tadokoro, Nora and Katsumi. It's like I had something to look forward to today... almost, if the war didn't exist.

When I entered class, things didn't get better. Since I was a bit late getting to school, the class had already become rowdy. At the doorway, I was stopped by Yamaguchi, who was grinning at me eerily.

"Everyone, Takanori had the balls to show his face at school!"

With an obnoxious tone, Yamaguchi shouted across the class to let them know I was here. I knew he was trying to annoy me, so I shrugged it off, but the rest of the class stared daggers at me.

What gives? The atmosphere became sour the moment I walked into the class.

"How'd it feel getting beat up by D Class?"

Yamaguchi openly taunted me. I ignored him, but he pushed me into class by slapping my back. It was an unnecessary gesture, but alright. Everyone's steely glares worsened as I step foot inside.

"Let's give a giant round of applause for this living piece of garbage! Congrats on becoming the most hated person in school!"

Yamaguchi mockingly clapped for me. Slowly, a few people started to join in, including Matsushita and Sakigamiya. This prompted the everyone else to follow their lead, feeding into the spiteful round of applause.

"What's going on?"

Not taking Yamaguchi's harassment anymore, I turned to face him. The difference in our height was obvious, as Yamaguchi's beady eyes looked down on me.

"Who the hell gave you a right to speak after what you did in D Class?"

"Huh?"

Yamaguchi's stupid-looking grin widened. I genuinely had no idea what he was going on about.