[h3]Hayato[/h3]
Hayato ordered a regular cheeseburger for himself, and picked an out of the way table to bring their orders too. As they ate, Hazel asked him who he had been so adamant about finding before. Pausing to swallow, Hayato leaned back in his chair with a sigh.

"My brother, Rikuto. About four years ago, he was a senior S-rank here. He could have easily made SS or SSS if he'd wanted." Hayato looked down at his plate. "But he disappeared in Excaledvol. From what I heard, it was an exploration mission, something to do with ancient ruins." He turned his head, looking somberly out the window at the rays of the soon-to-be setting sun. "I was never able to find out much more. Some of that stuff is kept hush hush because they don't want people here on earth to panic at the prospect that there may be civilization over there." To imagine that there could be another intelligent lifeform, something beyond the Exbeasts, capable of putting the magic and resources of Excaledvol to as great and skillful a use as humans had used their own technology, was indeed a scary prospect in many ways.

Hayato looked at his sword, leaning against the table. It was a plain katana, made from manufactured steel infused with magic here at the academy. Compared to a sword of yesteryears, it could cut through tank armor if the person using it had enough strength and skill. 

Rikuto had used one of their family's traditionally made swords.

"I spent all of last year ignoring Special Assignments and classwork and focused on training and sparring. To be honest," he looked over at Hazel. "You're only the third person to ever beat me. I suppose part of it is that higher ranks have better things to do than sit around here..." He looked down at his clenched fists and forced his hands to relax. "But I still need to be stronger, to find Rikuto. Being out in Excaledvol for real made me realize that. So, thanks, Hazel. Since you beat me, I've got even more motivation to keep going."

[Hayato Spent 10 AC!]
[h2]Fire Rat Extermination[/h2]
Taeion's projectiles flew true, and the rats, though swift, had few options up there on the chains. Below them was a long drop into the sea with sheer concrete walls, and above them the large ship, still too far away to provide cover.

The shuriken pierced one Fire Rat, carrying it off the chain and across the large room, landing with a clatter and death rattling squeal on one side of the concrete floor, just shy of falling into the drink. The other rat, struck hard by the rock, wasn't dead--but as it fell, flailing, into the water below, a great sizzle of steam went up. Afterwards, its corpse floated up to the surface--hitting the water from high up, combined with the impact from the rock, had probably broken its back or something equally fatal.

With his mission complete, Taeion would be able to use the Sprite to warp back to school and take his long awaited rest.

[hider=Victory! Loot!]
[list]
[*]Fire Rat's Fur x2 - Hide that can't be burned but can be tanned into somewhat durable leather. In larger amounts it could make protective gear.
[*]Fire Rat's Fang x2 - A sharp, but small tooth imbued with Fire magic. Low Level. In larger amounts, makes good material for crafting/improving Fire aligned items, or adding Fire attributes to non-Fire items. Conflicts with Water and Nature elements. Synchronizes with Wind and Lightning elements. Neutral to other elements.[/list]

Taeion gained 50 EXP! Really close to another level![/hider]