'Damn that hurts…'
Clutching the side of his torso, Draven was soon made aware of how badly getting something jammed into your ribs hurt. The feeling was sickening, an uncanny sense of nausea pervading his gut with every movement.
Not to mention it hurt like hell.
A mischievous grin made its way across Atreus' face. Though his robotic demeanor made it seem almost mechanical.
"Apologies, I meant to aim for your chest."
Draven scowled
"Like hell you did! You did that on purpose, prick!"
Draven stumbled onto his feet. Though he certainly tried, his lack of experience prevented him from visualizing any of Atreus' flaws. Let alone take advantage of them, from his perspective it was like staring at an insurmountable bastion. Hopelessly attempting to cross its wall.
'Think, Draven! There's gotta be something even this guy can't do. He's a student…there's not that big of a gap, right?'
As much as he wanted to believe so, he couldn't deny the blatant difference in strength and skill between the two.
"Alright, lovebirds! How long do you plan on sitting there?!"
Atreus flinched, his once pale skin becoming just a shade brighter. Almost reflexively, he flusteredly turned toward Baron with a grim expression on his face.
"Are you suggesting that I would-!"
Before he could finish his words, a powerful grip suddenly found itself around his collar. Forcing Atreus to look Draven directly in the eyes.
'Not sure if this'll work, but gambling's what life's about, ain't it?!'
Strengthening his resolve, Draven processed his logic once more. Since his jaw had been strengthened — there was a slight possibility his skull in general had received similar enhancements.
Not allowing doubt to settle in, Draven leaned backward as he pulled Atreus toward himself. The swordsman tried to alter his grip on the grip of his sabre. Bringing it upward in an attempt to slash at his captor's wrist, but unfortunately his fate had long since been set in stone.
In one swift motion, Draven allowed all of his weight to be carried into his forehead. Hurling his cranium through the air.
The air running through his mass of hair and face limited his focus, making it so that he could only have his eyes on nothing but his target. A single, precise yet devastating blow.
At least he hoped it'd be.
Before anyone had known what happened, the two collided. The devastating crack of two skeletons ramming into one another at top speed resonated throughout the classroom. Leaving everyone who'd been observing with stunned expressions.
Both combatants stumbled backward, albeit Atreus was far more dazed than his attacker. A soft, red bump had begun to form on his forehead as his eyes struggled to center themselves. For a solid minute, he almost looked drunk.
Draven on the other hand was just clutching his forehead, a pained expression on his face.
'D-Damn it…that hurts like hell…!'
Nevertheless, the pain was worth it. Not only had he got a solid hit on the smug bastard, but now he knew for a fact that the enhancements Carnivore gave him went beyond just his jaw strength.
"Alright you two, that's enough. Good work"
Baron clapped his hands with a deadpan look in his eyes.
"Aaron, Shiya, get up there. You two patch up your injuries"
He gestured to two other students while simultaneously leading Atreus and Draven out of the ring. The way he methodically guided each student, memorized their names, and observed their mannerisms made him seem almost like a sort of machine.
As Draven and Atreus made their way out of the ring, the latter shot Draven a sharp glance.
"Don't be mistaken. That was pure luck. That lapse in my judgement will not happen again."
Draven grinned.
"I don't know man, sounds like what a sore loser would say."
Before Atreus could retort, Draven was already against the wall, far enough to make sure the swordsman's words never reached him.
Snarling, Atreus found his own spot on the opposing side of the room. Spectating the remainder of the spars that'd occur.
***
For the next few months, Draven spent time practicing combat, learning the basics of Jumper History and Fundamentals, alongside going through multiple lessons revolving around survival and information regarding the Dimensions.
Though the concept of them was fairly widespread, with even slum rats like him in the Outer District being fully aware. The actual logic behind them was different from what he knew.
For starters, rather than Dimensions simply being different 'planes' of an existing reality, it was more as if they were entirely separate alternate realities! That would explain why hid Doppleganger Ego even existed in the first place — but simultaneously implied other people had 'Dopplegangers' as well.
'I guess the main difference between us is that there might be Dimensions in which they don't exist, whereas there's not a single place I'm not present…'
Apart from that, there were also lessons regarding what to do in case you come into contact with a native of whichever dimension you may be traveling to, and some others on basic etiquette.
Most of the time Draven was fast asleep when they went in-depth with these explanations. Thus, they never managed to cement themselves in his memory. Apart from the basics of the basics, of course.
As time went by, he and Atreus frequently found themselves battling in their Battle Class. Unlike before, Snowflake seemed far more attentive and less willing to underestimate Draven. Resulting in him getting his ass handed to him more than once.
It was on one such day that he was returning to his dormitory, a lone and frankly bare room in the far back of the Boys' hall. Of course, he didn't mind the position — it gave him time to avoid the massive crowd that'd come flooding through when the bell rang.
Twisting the doorknob, he'd hoped to be greeted by his unimpressive bed. Deciding to get some rest in before the big day tomorrow…after all the next day was midterms.
In other words, his first Expedition into an alternate Dimension.
But, instead of his mediocre room. Decorated with nothing but a singular lamp he'd been gifted from the kids in the orphanage. He found himself welcomed by an entirely different presence.
"Yo."
Arrogantly lying on his bed as if it were her own was a tall, stout young woman. Deep bags dropped from beneath her pitch-black eyes, which were devoid of any other coloration.
Black hair flowed loosely onto the ground, though despite its length it was clearly apparent she hadn't taken care of it in any capacity for months. With the only sign of her having some form of hygiene being the — relatively — clean black bathrobe she'd been wearing.
Of course, the robe was significantly larger than her already absurd height, hiding any possible features that would have otherwise been exposed to the poor boy.
Draven jumped back, both surprised, confused and…a little pleased.
"W-Who the hell are you? Why are you in my room? And put some actual clothes on, slob!"
The girl blinked for a moment, wiped away some chip crumbs from her robe, then looked back at Draven.
"Didn't you get the list? I'll be part of the upcoming expedition. Your team, to be precise."
At those words, Draven nearly fell over.