A shining Trophy, almost the size of his torso, was brought into the pitch. And under the thundering applause, Headmaster Dumbledore and Yujiro presented him with the trophy.
"You surprised me, Mr. Hunt," said Dumbledore, handing him the trophy. "I have never seen anyone fly like that."
Axel shrugged, "Really? Then, I take it my end of the deal considered fulfilled?" Asked, taking the trophy and shaking the offered hand.
Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Of course. Right, Yujiro?
Yujiro, who didn't seem to be in the best of moods right now, merely grunted, trying not to look annoyed. "Here," he said, giving him a box.
Axel's eyes widened. 'System, is this the real thing?' he asked, confirming with the system.
[Affirmative]
Axel looked at the Headmasters in surprise. He wasn't really expecting them to keep their promise so readily. Even with the contract in place. But, oh well, it makes things much easier. He was now one step closer to bringing Daphne's memories back.
"Axel, you won the match AND had the honor of receiving the trophy directly from two living legends! What would you like to say?!" Asked Travis, offering him the mic.
Axel was just about to give a perfunctory response, but something made him pause. Just a few years ago, he was just a nobody. A street thief doing petty crimes to make a living, sleeping in the back alleys, and receiving the contempt of anyone who laid eyes on him. Axel looked around. He didn't quite realize, but everything had changed. He was no longer just a small fry who would die alone in the back of an alley.
Thinking that, a genuine smile came to his always expressionless face. "I guess… it's good to be acknowledged."
That's all he said, but it was enough. His smile, which was broadcasted on the big screen, was enough to express his thoughts. Especially since few had ever seen him smile. Screams of girls came from all sides, followed by a hearty applause. There were even a few people who cried.
Axel sighed. He used to hate drawing attention to himself and being in the spotlight. In the past, he had a scarred face, tattered clothes, a weak and scrawny body. That's the reason why he started hiding himself. He came to take comfort in darkness, staying hidden from the judgmental gaze of the world. But that was no longer the case. As his powers grew, so did his confidence. Thus, he no longer minded attention.
With the trophy in hand, and the crowd's farewell, Axel left the stadium, medics already coming to check his condition halfway.
After Axel's departure, Dumbledore put his wand to his throat. "Good afternoon everyone. I hope you all enjoyed yourself," he said, getting an overwhelming affirmation from the audience.
The Headmaster smiled slightly. "I would like to congratulate team Hogwarts, for putting forward their best efforts and bringing honor to the school. But more importantly, I would commend both the teams on learning so much from each other in such a short term."
"Which brings us to the main goal of this tournament: To show just how much you improve by combining the methods of both the schools," said Yujiro.
Dumbledore nodded. "Axel Hunt was a perfect example of that. By using a Wizard's spellcasting and a ninja's agility and toughness, he was able to bring forth results that shocked us all. And this is just one of the multiple benefits that the cooperation between the schools has brought us."
"Indeed. The Trade between both Magical and Muggle sides of the countries has observed an astonishing 18% increase. The deplomatic relations between the two countries have strengthened further. The ministries of two countries have agreed to help each other on various aspects," said Yujiro , purposefully being vague on the details of cooperation.
Dumbledore spread his hands wide. "And due to these overwhelming benefits.... you will be seeing more of such exchange programs in the future!" He said, making everyone cheer.
Dumbledore nodded to himself. As he had expected, Mr. Hunt did an excellent job of getting viewers from the whole world. And the match couldn't have gone better. With this, the whole program can be called a huge success.
Inspired by the results, talks of more such exchange programs are already ongoing between the schools all around the world. The magical world is slowly coming together, as it should be, in order for his plans to succeed.
...
Sometime later. In front of the Hospital Wing—
"Will he be okay?"
"—And he still didn't give up..."
"I just hope it's nothing serious."
"But Holy Morgana! How the hell did he pull that off!"
"The way he crashed Takeshi to the ground... I'm still getting the chills."
"Look at this! He purposefully took the "Windstorm" Jutsu point blank in exchange for taking down Endo with his lightning wand AND getting blasted in Takeshi's direction. Takeshi never saw him coming!"
A huge crowd was currently gathered in front of the Hospital wing. Students pushed each other, some peaking around, some talking in hushed voices, and most of them still watching the clips of the match earlier.
All of this was because the players of both the teams were currently admitted here, including one Axel Hunt, the man of the match.
The match was just too exciting. It had gotten the students' blood boiling and adrenaline pumping. They simply couldn't sit still after watching such a great showdown. A party, a celebration was needed.
But what good would be the party without the players? And when they had heard that Axel was also injured and admitted, many rushed here for further news and many others followed. That's how the situation turned into this, where the students are just staking it out outside the Hospital wing, waiting for the team to be released so that they can celebrate.
Inside—
Axel laid in the bed of one of the private rooms. He wasn't really injured, just some minor bruises, but he had to pretend to be. The lightning did not do any damage, considering that his affinity was quite strong and he has been training under Akiko, the best teacher. So how could Takeshi's little Jutsu hurt him?
As for the Wind Jutsu of Endo, well, that one did deal some damage. The Windstorm is powerful enough to seriously injure any normal student. But Axel has been training his body and following a strict diet, all under the System's instructions for two years. Needless to say, his body is far from normal. He can shrug off jutsus like without a frown.
But still, he must pretend, He has already exposed a bit too much. It's better to let his enemies underestimate him as much as possible until he is strong enough. Which is why, Axel was now stuck in this room, waiting to be released.
But, he didn't waste his time. Having the peaceful and quiet room to himself, he began practicing Legilimency. It's been almost a year since he began training this art, and he has come to realize that Legilimency, like Occlumency, is quite diverse. People can have different types of defenses set up in their mind, and breaking through them can be quite tricky sometimes. The first thing you need is an excellent concentration.
*Knock* *Knock*
Which, was promptly broken with the abrupt knocks on his door.
"Who the fuck is it?" He asked with minor annoyance. He was already tired of telling the fangirling nurses he was alright. And he had already told them not to allow visitors.
The door opened slightly, and Martina's face peeked in through the gap. "Um, Hi… can we come in? It's me and—"
The door was opened fully by someone else, pushing Martina in, and Akiko invited herself in as she closed the door behind her.
"Figures." Muttered Axel, realizing why visitors were suddenly allowed. If these two are standing together, few people in the world can say no. "What are you guys doing here?"
Not that he didn't appreciate it, but their coming here would draw a lot of attention, and gossip. Not to mention a certain Greengrass would mind it very much.
"Well, are you alright? I heard you were injured," said Martina, she asked, magic already reaching out to diagnose his condition.
Axel rolled his eyes at her.. "I'm just pretending. Come on, Martina. You really think those kids could hurt me? After what you saw at Christmas?"
Martina sighed in relief. "Well, I had guessed as much. But I was still worried."
"Well, I'll message you as well next time," he said, putting her in the same 'slightly unstable' category as Daphne. The first thing he had done was answer Daphne's call and reassure her multiple times he was alright.
He looked at Akiko. "Don't tell me you came for the same reason."
He had trained a lot with Akiko. And that included a lot of sparring. And in those spars, Akiko had used much, much stronger Jutsus on him. There's no way this girl would be worried.
Akiko's face was still stoic as usual, but Axel could tell through minor differences that she was very happy. "I bet with my Grandfather that you would win."
"Really?" Axel had to sit up upon hearing that. "That explains why he looked like he wanted to kill me, other than the fact that I defeated his team. What did you win?"
Akiko took out a scroll. "This. And a few more things," she said. It didn't quite show on her face, but Axel could tell she was quite pleased with herself.
Axel opened the scroll. "Fuck…"
…
It was night. But someone was sneaking through the corridors under an invisibility cloak. The figure finally reached it's destination: the Room of Requirements. A door appeared, and the figure entered.
Daphne pulled off the cloak and looked around. Seeing no one, an anxious look crossed her face.
But in the moment, another figure materialized right in front of her, making her sigh in relief. It was Axel.
"How is your condition?" She asked urgently, dragging him to the couch. She tore open his t-shirt to check the place where he had been hit by the Wind spell. Only when she found nothing but old scars did she finally breathe.
Daphne put her chin on his shoulder, finally relaxing. "Please… Please don't play like that again. It was so dangerous," she whispered.
Axel sighed. Among the list of things that were considered 'dangerous' in his life, that game… it would not even make it to the list. And that list is pretty long.
"Daphne, didn't I already tell you I'm fine. Have some faith in me, will you?"
Daphne suddenly realized that she was behaving like a worried wife just now, while she was only a friend. "I… I'm sorry. I don't know why I even care so much."
Axel looked at her with some incredulity as he realized she had gotten the wrong meaning. "Are you apologizing for worrying about me? Hey, let me make it clear: I really cherish it," he said genuinely. He really did cherish the fact that there were people who cared about him. It's just that, his life is pretty dangerous, and won't stop being so any time soon. So he hated to make them worry again and again.
"As for why you care, it's because we were just that close. I'd also worry if you were in danger."
"We were?" Asked Daphne, looking doubtful. "Why would someone like you even be close to me?"
Axel chuckled, remembering the past. "Someone like me? You would be surprised to know about my condition when we first met."
"What condition?" Daphne suddenly clutched her head in pain, making Axel hold her again. "Hey, don't try to remember it."
Daphne shook her head. "But, I really want to. I… I feel this horrible emptiness without those memories."
Axel clenched his fists. "Don't worry. I'll bring them back soon. I'm working on it."
Just one ingredient left. Then he will be able to bring it back.
"Anyways, don't think too much about it. It's just one and a half years of memories. We can cover it again."
That brightened her up somewhat. "Alright. Then, tell me about our first meeting."
Axel winced. "Well, those days aren't weren't very good. Not for me at least. I was kinda crippled. Badly."
That already made her frown. "You were what?! How?!"
'Your father.'
….
In the forbidden forest, there was a strange bubble in a clearing. The bubble itself was invisible, but inside it, a completely furnished living space was present, installed with space expansion charm.
This was a space bubble, an Atlantean Technology, in which, the members of the Organization were currently staying.
The tall guy entered the bubble to find the short guy surfing through a magimirror. Both the men had taking off their disguises revealing their original appearance. They looked like ordinary humans, except they had blue tattoos, or markings all over their bodies.
"What did you find?" Asked the tall one. His name was Theron.
The short one grinned. His was Nerio. "Well, first of all, the confirmation that it really is him. No parents, lived in an orphanage, the dates match, and the face also has an uncanny resemblance. It's that traitor's son alright."
"Other than that, he's quite something. Sports star, top of the class, good at all dueling for his age, and... quite the luck with the ladies."
"That's Tristan's son alright," Said Theron laughing contemptuously. "I found something too. He's currently in the Hospital wing. Seriously injured."
"Figures. But he's still quite something, isn't he? He didn't use powerful magic but that fighting sense..." Nerio narrowed his eyes. "We can't let him live longer."
Theron was surprised. "You think he might have that power?"
Nerio shook his head. "I don't know. He couldn't have awakened it without proper training and guidance. But he does have the royal bloodline. Don't forget the troubles his mother gave us." Nerio had an angry look on his face when saying this.
Theron shivered, remember. "That bitch and that traitor. Glad they're gone. Their son definitely can't be a good news."
...
