Kabanata 62
When the parents learned that the Academy had an update about their children's status, all of them went to the Academy. However, what they witnessed was Keenan kneeling on the floor and having red marks on his face.
The parents immediately realized what it meant. The weak ones started crying on the floor, they couldn't contain their tears. They knew the possibility that their children were dead but they still believe that hope would happen.
However, when they saw the dog tags in Keenan's hands, they knew that hope was not there for them. Keenan remain kneeling while some parents kept asking him questions and grabbing his clothes. The hallway was in distress, some people looked around and realized that people lost their lives and their loved ones were mourning.
Keenan accepted every beating they gave, the hysterical ones were blaming him. Saying that "why are you the only one who survived?" "What did you do when your teammates were dying?". Keenan didn't answer since he knew that nothing would change. Instead, he steel his resolve and accepted every punch and slap.
The security came and tried to stop the commotion. However, the parents were too angry and acted rough. Keenan just looked at the ground, he faced tougher things than this. Although he couldn't deny the fact that his chest was aching so much.
While he was looking at the floor, he realized that a person stopped in front of him. Keenan looked up and his eyes widened, he thought he won't cry but it seemed like he was wrong. His eyes became blurry and it was hard to see, his chest was so tight and he couldn't breathe.
There was only one person that he couldn't face, he was afraid to face her. Suzy, Carson's sister, was staring at Keenan with an unknown expression.
"I'm sorry…"
Keenan couldn't look directly into her eyes, he put his head on the floor and cried. His voice resounded and the feeling that he was holding back resurfaced.
"I'm sorry, I can't protect him… I can't protect them. I was not there when they need me."
He bawled and scrapped his head against the floor, he even slammed his head a few times.
Suzy held her tears and kneeled, she put her hand on Keenan and he trembled, possibly afraid of her reaction. Suzy sniffed and saw Carson's dog tag. She took it held it tightly.
"Thank you… Thank you for bringing him(dog tag). I know that you suffered too. I'm sorry."
Suzy covered her face and sobbed. Truth be told, she wanted to scream and hurt Keenan but she knew that the person who was hurt the most was him. He was the only one who survived, it was the hardest thing for him. Suzy knew that Netherworld was not a paradise, it was filled with monsters. She was sure that Keenan fought those monsters just to survive and bring back the dog tags.
Keenan further cried when he heard Suzy's acceptance. He looked pathetic. He thought he could hold his emotions because of his past life. It seemed that he was wrong.
Every Nightbreaker has two dog tags. One for them to wear and one for the Academy to keep, the reserved dog tag was there in case the Nightbreaker died and the body could not be found. That was the second dog tag is.
However, the first dog tag is much heavy and important. The dog tag was there when the Nightbreaker died and experienced his hardship. The dog tag that Keenan brought back was much more important than the dog tags that were in the Academy. The scratch on the dog tag represents braveness and suffering. That's why Keenan brought them since it represents his teammates' hardship.
...…
...
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Since Keenan's team already pass the exam and they only need to return, they could graduate now. The
Academy said that Keenan could graduate after two months. However, Keenan decided to talk to the principal.
Since he lost his Handler, it would be a waste to graduate. It would be hard for him to find a Handler outside the Academy. The principal understood what he said.
Since he knew that Keenan suffered, he decided to give him a special status. He didn't have to take any lessons anymore since he was going to graduate anyway. Instead, the principal gave him time to find another Handler within two months.
Keenan thanked him. He was thankful that the principal was a good person and give him a privilege. Perhaps he felt responsible too. The principal was the one who talked to them about the dangers of the Netherworld. Keenan could see that the principal had a history with the Netherworld. Perhaps he lost someone too, so he could relate to Keenan and the parents who lost their children.
After two days of rest, Keenan return to school as if nothing happened. However, the whispers of the students and their gazes were quite suffocating. It was fortunate that Keenan won't break with this type of audience. If they didn't have part of his heart, these people were nothing. Their opinions were nothing.
He heard that some people talked about him ditching his teammates and running away. He didn't react to them, they didn't know the truth anyway.
Amidst the gossip, some people were impressed that he survived that kind of ordeal. The students knew the Netherworld, they experienced it first hand. They were surprised that Keenan survived despite being Class-B.
Keenan just shrugged it off. Some people tried to talk to him but he didn't want any of their pity.
Keenan could say that his life as a student ended. He was only there to find another Handler.
He was actually anxious about it. He didn't know if there was a student who has a strong resonance with him. On top of that, he was just a mediocre Katana and he already reached his limitations. No one would partner with a person like, he had a history of losing his teammates, that's another cross too.
Keenan sighed and continue walking ahead. Nothing would happen if he stop his feet from moving.
Arc 1
Kabanata Arc.
[Okay, so we finished Arc 1. So what do you think? Does the synopsis give justice to the story? Lol!
Anyway, the second Arc will be about Keenan and his Handler, they will try to strengthen their relationship. So far, I'm in the middle of writing it and I'm still not finished with the Arc so I don't know what to expect.]
[If you're interested, you can visit my Patreon to read ahead.]