Starlight Dream

Chapter 48

"Well, well. Look who's walked into the wrong neighborhood?" A freckled teen with a pompadour said.

"Oh dear, is the little girl lost?" Another thug said, getting into Arisu's face.

Despite the four punks surrounding her, each with a weapon in easy reach, Arisu kept her usual steely eyes as she glared at them. She had to admire their guts. She'd made high schoolers wet themselves with that glower.

"It's a free street, dumbass. Step aside."

"Some mouth for a little brat." The largest said, leaning closer to her face. "This daughter of a worthless drunk needs to learn some manners! You're talking to the Guardian of Koiwa No. 4 Junior High!"

This comment made Arisu's right eye twitch, the only emotion revealed on her face. Nothing earned her ire more than insulting her father. She might have spared them an ass-kicking if it wasn't for that comment.

"Gah!" The leader howled in pain as he received a sudden knee to the gut, blowing the wind from his lungs.

"Boss!" His gang responded by pulling out their weapons, butter knives, chains, wooden kendo swords and other instruments of death. This only earned a slight smile from Arisu. She'd enjoy this.

"You'll regret this, brat!" The leader gasped, hulled away on the shoulders of his buddies. Arisu watched with disdain as the Koiwa No. 4 Junior High students limped away. Serves them right for trying to encroach on the territory of Daini Kameido Junior. As a Guardian herself, called the Kameido Queen by some, she couldn't allow such a blatant challenge to go unchallenged.

But such was Arisu's life in her short twelve years, in a world where only the strongest survived. Frankly, Arisu thought she'd let them off lightly. After finally lighting her cigarette with her favorite lighter, she walked to school.

She was late, of course, but nobody cared. The homeroom was rowdy as usual, with students laughing and carousing, instead of doing any schoolwork, the home teacher was nowhere in sight, too scared of the delinquents in his class. But such was Daini Kameido Junior High School, the shithole home to the worst kids in Koto. The adults had long since given up trying to save them.

"Hey, Arisu!" But one student was studying, her vibrant pink hair swishing as she lifted from her book as Arisu took her desk.

"Hey, Hinata," Arisu waved to her cousin, the only girl who didn't deserve to go to this shithole of a school. Unlike the rest of them, she actually had some brains. Not that she wasn't a delinquent herself; her dyed pink hair was evidence of that. "You're hurt! Your cheek is bleeding."

It was true, crimson dripping onto her dark blue sailor suit. Thanks to its color, however, the stain won't be noticeable. "Some idiot pulled a knife on me." Arisu gave a genuine smile. Besides her pops, Hinata was the only person who gave a crap about her. "Only a scratch. No big deal."

Hinata frowned but otherwise said nothing. She knew her cousin's propensity for getting into fights. It didn't stop her from worrying about her.

After a school day in which nothing was learned, she joined Hinata as they walked home. As usual, Arisu smoked as she walked. It was a habit Hinata hated but tolerated for her cousin's sake.

"You need to check it out. It's super fun," Hinata said. "The new arcade has this shooting game I'm sure you'd like."

"Not today. I got Guardian business day. Some Ariake Junior jumped Matsuyama the other day, and I need to pay them a visit." Even if she thought the guy was a class-act moron, Arisu protected her own.

"Okay." Hinata sagged, disappointed.

Before Arisu turned to leave, her cousin stopped her. "Is this all you want for your life, Arisu?"