With Students Like These
May 19, 2025 at 1:51 PM
"What did you think of Trinity, Sensei? Did it live up to what you were expecting?" Arona asked, an expectant smile on her face.
"I'm honestly not sure what I was expecting, but it was quite lovely. Even if I was only able to meet with a few students, they all seemed like wonderful people." Ja'vassa hummed, his eyes darting back and forth between the map on the screen and the road ahead of him. "If Trinity was as pleasant as it was, I can only expect good things from Gehenna as well."
A pleased chuckle escaped Arona as she looked towards him. "It is one of Kivotos' biggest academies, after all. The students there can be a bit rowdy, but I think you'll like them. When you arrive, you'll want to see if you can't arrange a meeting with the Pandemonium Society; they're Gehenna's Student Council. I'd also suggest meeting with the Prefect Team; they're one of the most powerful organizations in all of Kivotos."
Taking several mental notes, Ja'vassa nodded as he continued to wander down the street. Though he was still a bit lost, the directions Arona was giving him seemed to be helping him quite a bit. "The way the schools of this land are structured is quite... fascinating. There were numerous small guilds and groups across Skyrim, but everything here seems to have actual stability and structure."
Arona beamed with pride as she listened to him. "I'm glad to hear you think so highly of Kivotos, Sensei." She hummed, a cheerful smile growing wider.
The two continued to cheerfully converse amongst each other as Ja'vassa continued to walk down the road. The morning slowly turned to noon and it was about time for him to think about finding something for lunch. The food at Trinity was pleasant, so perhaps the food across Gehenna would be just as nice; but he didn't have a clue where he'd find a tavern in the city.
As Ja'vassa's eyes scanned the city, his attention was no longer on the road in front of him. Unfortunately, his momentary distraction caused him to unexpectedly bump into another wanderer. The moment their bodies connected, he snapped back into reality and looked towards the student he accidentally knocked to the ground.
"Oh! My apologies, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." An apologetic smile crossed his face as he reached a hand out to help her back up. "Are you alright? I hope I didn't hurt you."
Tentatively, the purple-haired girl looked towards him with an unsure expression, but she reached out and took his hand. "I-It's okay... I'm easy to overlook." She replied softly, quickly averting her gaze from him. As she returned to her feet, a few other students had stepped out of the alley.
"Haruka! There you are." A taller, red-haired girl said; releasing a sigh of relief. Her relieved expression turned to confusion as she glanced towards Ja'vassa. "You're even conversing with a stranger, that's a bit of a surprise."
Unable to form a response, Haruka awkwardly fidgeted with her hands, her gaze firmly on the ground.
Ja'vassa turned to the other students, giving a slight bow towards them. "Good afternoon. I'm Ja'vassa with the SCHALE Federal Investigation Club. I... wasn't paying the most attention when I bumped into your friend here. My apologies for any disturbance."
The short white-haired girl spoke up next, a playful smirk crossing her face. "I was wondering when we'd meet that Sensei everyone's talking about. It seems Haruka makes new friends everywhere she goes." She giggled softly, glancing towards the redhead. "Well? Aren't you going to introduce us to Sensei, Boss?"
Shooting a quick glare to her companion, the older student stammered slightly. "I-I was getting to that, Chief Mutsuki!" She snapped. Clearing her throat, a confident grin quickly appeared on her face. "I am Aru, the leader of Problem Solver 68! You've already met our entry level employee; Haruka, and with me is my department head; Kayoko, and the Chief of Operations; Mutsuki. It's nice to meet you, Sensei."
Taking in the information given to him, Ja'vassa nodded slightly. "I see... so, I take it you're an investigation club of sorts as well?"
Quickly shaking her head, Aru's confident smile widened. "Not quite. We're hard-boiled outlaws. If you've got the dime, we'll do the crime, and you'll get perfect results every time." She explained, crossing her arms slightly.
"I see. Mercenaries, then. You've certainly got an air of strength and expertise around you." Ja'vassa chuckled softly, a light smile appearing on his face. "I remember my days as a mercenary for hire... there's good money to be made if you know who to talk to."
Kayoko sighed softly, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be many willing to hire us..."
Aru huffed; her cheeks reddening slightly at Kayoko's comment. "They'll come! Just... just because our last mission had a few screw ups doesn't mean people won't be needing our services in the future."
The boss' words caused Mutsuki to giggle softly, taking pleasure in the flustered state of her leader. "How can you be so sure, Aru? We haven't received a call in days." She teased.
The teasing tone caused Aru's cheeks to turn a deeper shade of red; almost the same color as her hair at this point. "I-I... they'll call for us, I know they will! Let me worry about it, alright? Besides, we're not here to talk business, we're here to find some food, remember?" She reminded her; quivering slightly as she stood.
The mention of food caused Ja'vassa's stomach to rumble slightly. "Ah, now I remember what I was doing before I knocked over Haruka." He mused, sheepishly laughing at himself. "I could use some lunch before arriving at Gehenna; if you girls know any places nearby, I'd be glad to treat you to something."
Aru's previously embarrassed expression turned to one of surprise and gratitude. "You would do that, Sensei? Well... if you're offering, it'd be rude of us to turn you down. We were on our way to a nearby ramen shop for lunch ourselves."
Mutsuki's playful smirk grew slightly as she listened to them. "So much for that hard-boiled outlaw talk, Aru. Seems the mention of being treated melted all that away, eh?"
The playful remarks caused Ja'vassa to chuckle, looking towards Mutsuki for a moment. "Oh, come now. Even the most ruthless and heartless criminals fold at the mention of food.. and food is always better when it's free, eh?"
Without a word, Aru huffed and began to lead them towards the local ramen shop as planned. While Haruka and Kayoko were largely quiet, they'd listen to Ja'vassa as he conversed with Mutsuki and Aru; discussing what his plans were at Gehenna, where he was from, along with small talk about the weather and the food they planned to sample. Once they finally arrived at the shop, they were quickly ushered over to an empty table and given the menus. Much like in the Trinity cafeteria, there was much on the menu that was completely unfamiliar to Ja'vassa.
He was no stranger to enjoying fresh noodles and soup, but so many of the ingredients seemed foreign. Loads of options to choose from, all kinds of drinks and sweets, it was almost overwhelming to him. His ears flattened against his head as he tried to figure out what to order. Picking up on the slight discomfort, Haruka glanced towards him with a mixture of confusion and concern.
"Is everything alright, Sensei? You seem a little uncomfortable..." She asked quietly, leaning towards him slightly.
"Oh, everything's fine. It's just a little difficult to choose something. I've never seen a menu so large before.. there wasn't anything like this back home." Ja'vassa admitted, rubbing the back of his neck slightly.
"Really? What did you eat back home?" Mutsuki asked, her usual teasing smirk replaced with a genuinely curious expression.
"Venison, goat, and beef were staples of mine.. we routinely went out and hunted them. But, I do enjoy chicken and fish, too." Ja'vassa explained, setting the menu down for a moment. "So many of these ingredients are practically unheard of back home."
Mutsuki nodded, her signature grin returning. "I suppose today, you'll be able to expand your horizons a bit, then. I'd suggest the hot chicken soup, if you enjoy things with a bit of a kick to it."
Never one to turn down something spicy, Ja'vassa nodded at her suggestion. "That sounds lovely.. it was difficult getting anything with much spice in it back home."
After placing their orders, the group conversed amongst themselves for a little while. Aru seemed to have questions on her mind; setting her cup to the side, she'd speak up. "Sensei, you mentioned that you were a mercenary for hire at one point. What was it like for you? Was that before you came to Kivotos?"
Ja'vassa nodded, a somewhat nostalgic expression appearing on his face. "I suppose I technically still am one. Mercenary work was always plentiful in Skyrim and for those with courage and strength, it was one of the most profitable career choices you could make. Most of the jobs I took up in my youth involved dealing with bandits and criminals causing trouble for the local villages."
Aru's eyes glittered with a newfound admiration as she listened to his tale. "Sounds like you were quite the heroic figure, Sensei. Do you have any advice for the younger bounty hunters like us?"
His expression fell slightly as he'd answer once more. "I am no hero, Aru, don't make that mistake." Ja'vassa said quietly, shaking off the somewhat somber look on his face. "Always do your research on your employers and the folks they send you after; remain true to yourself and your allies, and you'll come out on top. Confidence is great, but be careful not to underestimate your opponents and be sure not to overestimate your own skills. When you've finally come face to face with who you were hunting; show no mercy and no hesitation. Any sign of weakness, any sign of uncertainty will almost certainly get you and your companions into a deadly situation."
Though Aru was slightly confused about his initial statement, she shook it off and soaked in the advice given to her. Confidence wasn't something she lacked, but she frequently underestimated her foes and it's gotten her into trouble more than a few times. "Thank you, Sensei..." She whispered, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
"What were some of the most interesting missions you took on, Sensei?" Mutsuki asked, leaning over the table slightly.
"Most of the missions I took were pretty simple. I'd be hired to track down some criminals causing trouble, take them out, and collect payment. Though, there was the occasional mission that was more than that; one of them was tracking down a miner that had gone missing. I was able to track him down to some old ruins nearby; that wasn't too unusual, lots of people got lost in them, but the miner seemed to have gotten himself into a bit of trouble. The old ruins were infested with Falmer.. I'm not sure how he managed to survive when he was armed with nothing but an old pickaxe." Ja'vassa explained, crossing his arms slightly as he leaned back in his seat.
"...Falmer? What are those? I've never heard of anything like that." Kayoko mused, her usual stoic expression replaced with a glittering curiosity in her eyes.
"Disgusting bastards, those ones. The twisted, devolved forms of the once proud and prosperous snow elves. Savage and violent, they'll stop at nothing to rip their unfortunate victims to shreds. There are few things I loathe more than them." Ja'vassa grunted slightly, shuddering a bit as he spoke.
"Elves? It's almost like you come from a fantasy world, Sensei. The more you talk about your home, the more it sounds like something right out of the Senior Tales." Mutsuki giggled softly, though she was genuinely interested in listening to him. "I assume you were successful in getting the miner back home, right?"
Ja'vassa nodded in confirmation. "Of course. After wiping out the Falmer within the ruins, after making sure the miner was safe, I escorted him back towards a nearby settlement. Afterwards, I returned to the ruins to see if I couldn't find anything else."
Kayoko raised an eyebrow as she listened. "You went back to the ruins, despite knowing that more of those Falmer could've been there? Isn't that a bit of a reckless decision?" She asked.
A knowing grin crossed his face. "Of course I knew there'd be risks involved, but you won't learn anything by playing it safe all the time. Skyrim was a harsh mistress, just wandering the roads was a risk in and of itself. In order to become stronger and wiser, one must be willing to take chances, even if it leads to danger." Ja'vassa stated, his smile never fading away.
Though she knew Ja'vassa was right, Kayoko sighed; pinching the bridge of her nose. "Still, it doesn't seem wise to throw yourself into danger like that, Sensei." She reminded him.
"Is it any wiser to throw yourself into danger as a mercenary for hire, Kayoko? In order to move forward in life, you have to take these risks. You won't get anywhere if you let your fear and worries control you." Ja'vassa responded, an almost teasing tone in his voice.
She wanted nothing more than to argue with that statement, but she ultimately knew she couldn't. He was right; bounty hunting was a dangerous profession and even if Kayoko was a professional at it, there was little room for her to criticize him when she was routinely throwing herself into dangerous situations.
Their conversation continued on throughout their meal; with the students asking various questions and answering just as many as they had asked. Despite the unexpected meeting, there was a certain sense of camaraderie budding between them. As they finished eating and set their empty dishes to the side, they stood up and exited the building together; briefly facing each other with warm smiles as they prepared to go their separate ways.
"It was a pleasure meeting with you today, Problem Solver 68. If I have any issues going forward, I'll be sure to contact you." Ja'vassa stated, holding a hand out for Aru to shake. "Though, perhaps next time we meet, we'll share another meal like this; it was enjoyable."
Aru smiled softly, reaching out to firmly shake the outstretched hand. "I agree, it was fun, Sensei. I'll be glad to offer our services whenever you need them, so long as you're able to meet our price, of course."
Mutsuki's playful smirk quickly returned. "I'm sure she'll be glad to accept payment in ramen or cash, so I wouldn't worry too much, Sensei. Either way, I hope we get to meet again soon."
Aru rolled her eyes at her companion's tease, but didn't argue with it. "Don't be a stranger, Sensei. Our office is always open to you."
As her and Ja'vassa's hands separated, they'd give each a final nod of acknowledgement before finally separating for the day. There was still plenty of daylight left, so he had some hopes that he'd make it to Gehenna to meet with the Student Council before it had gotten too late. With how pleasant his encounter with Problem Solver 68 had gone, he could only assume the rest of the academy would be just as enjoyable to meet with.
