"Wait, what's he doing over THERE?!" Quinn asked, before turning to Vorden. "Are they targeting him?!?"
Vorden shrugged his shoulders.
"Who knows?" Vorden replied. "When we got to the canteen, Peter just looked at me and said 'I'm going to go hang out with some new friends I made the other day'. I asked him if he needed help, and he said not to worry."
During Vorden's explanation, Tsukuru had a dark expression on his face.
He just knew that this had to somehow be connected to Mono dragging Peter out of their room yesterday.
The three watched as Peter hung out with the other boys.
It seemed like they were getting along just fine.
He wasn't being asked to grab food or carry their things like the other low-Levels among the group.
"Well, maybe we should keep an eye on them for now." Quinn replied. "It doesn't seem like he's in trouble, but we could always ask him later."
Quinn's words made Tsukuru grit his teeth.
He suddenly deeply resented the fact that he could only have one Summon active at a time.
Because even if he did summon his Harpie to keep an eye on Peter, it would just dismiss itself the second he summoned his Haunted Knight for its scheduled fight against Erin in the assembly hall after breakfast.
Just then though, the three of them were broken from their musings by the sound of another tray slamming down on their table.
Instantly, they all turned to the source of the sound.
When Tsukuru saw who it was, his eyes widened in surprise…and slight worry, as he glanced over at Vorden.
He quickly glanced over at Vorden, using his System's "Scanner" function to make sure Raten hadn't suddenly wrestled control away from Vorden.
He didn't want a repeat of yesterday, as Layla had been the one to slam the tray down.
"Mind if I join you?" She asked, her eyes zeroing in on Vorden, yesterday's events still fresh in her mind.
Tsukuru and Vorden exchanged looks.
Although Tsukuru's stern look with narrowed eyes seemed to scream at Vorden to "not do anything STUPID".
They then both turned to Layla.
"Of course not." Vorden strained, as his smile appeared far too forced.
This earned him a harsh elbow from Tsukuru, but seeing how Vorden was built like a truck, he didn't even feel it.
Quinn glanced between Vorden and Layla, as the two stared at each other.
He could literally feel the tension and the heat between them.
Vorden let out a nervous laugh.
"It's been a while." Vorden replied, holding out his hand in greeting. "I haven't seen you since the placement test. I don't think we've been properly introduced. My name's Vorden."
Layla glanced over at Tsukuru, who had his left hand up to his temple, as if in a state of great embarrassment.
Using his other hand, he waved his hand towards Layla, signalling her to "just go along with it".
Layla's gaze then snapped back to Vorden.
Her eyes narrowed.
"You're crazy if you think I'm just going to shake your hand." Layla replied. "Especially not after that stunt you pulled yesterday." Layla then glanced over at Quinn. "Can you seriously not see that this guy is crazy?"
Instantly, there was a change in Vorden.
He lowered his hand, and his whole body began to tremble.
"Dont…call…me…crazy." He gritted his teeth, slowly saying each word.
Quinn let out a nervous laugh.
He felt like if he didn't intervene, these two would start a fight in the middle of the canteen.
"Hey, hey." He replied, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Let's all just calm down."
Layla snapped her head towards him.
"Do you not remember what I told you yesterday?!" She snapped. "This crazy boy attacked me yesterday! He's dangerous, Quinn! Leave him!"
At those words, Tsukuru's eyes widened, and he felt his heart race.
He knew that Sil wouldn't like that statement one bit.
Still trembling, Vorden clenched his fists so tight that his skin was turning white.
"I…said…'don't…call…me…crazy'." He replied, still slowly saying each word.
Tsukuru and Quinn both looked at Vorden in concern.
It looked like he was ready to snap at any moment.
Tsukuru let out a deep sigh.
"And I told YOU yesterday that he wasn't crazy." He replied, his hand resting under his cheek in a look of boredom.
Layla and even Vorden snapped their heads to look over at him.
Layla grit her teeth in anger.
Vorden looked from Quinn to Layla.
Suddenly, he stood up.
Both of them turned to him, surprised.
"I'll…I'll just leave you two alone for now." He replied, before turning to Quinn. "Quinn, if you need anything, just…let me know."
As Vorden began walking away, Tsukuru glanced at his retreating body, as he moved to another empty table.
He then glanced back at Quinn and Layla.
He let out a sigh.
"I'm gonna go and try to…calm him down." He replied, before standing up.
Quinn and Layla watched, as he moved to the table Vorden was now sitting in, the two of them now alone at the table.
Layla turned to Quinn.
"This is exactly what I'm talking about!" Layla replied. "The man is unstable! He may have protected you a few times, and he may not have hurt you yet, but somebody like that could hurt you at any time!"
Deep down, Quinn knew that Layla was right.
He'd seen Vorden lash out before, and this didn't seem like it'd be the last time, either.
But for some reason, Quinn wasn't afraid of Vorden, like he was with other people.
Despite all of Vorden's acts of aggression, Quinn had never felt like they were aimed at him.
Meanwhile, at the other table, Tsukuru watched as Vorden took in deep breaths.
Tsukuru looked down at Vorden's clenched hands, and could see blood dripping down.
Apparently, he had clenched his hands so tightly that his nails had cut into his own skin.
Unknown to Tsukuru, within the dark space of Vorden's psyche, Vorden and Raten were in a heated argument.
"Why did you get in my way?!" Raten yelled. "We could have taught that bitch a lesson!"
Vorden, still sitting in the chair, narrowed his eyes.
"What did I tell you?!" Vorden shot back. "It's because of you that we're in this mess, to begin with! It's your fault that Tsukuru has to run damage control! What the HELL were you thinking, attacking her like that?! What did he say?! 'Wait and See'! Don't you think if she was a threat, Tsukuru would have done something by now?!"
Raten grit his teeth, and let out a low growl.
"Fine, have it your way!" Raten snarled, as he turned and began to stomp away.
After a few steps, he stopped.
"But understand this. If you keep suppressing us, the Little One's anger will only build. The more he thinks that Quinn is trying to get away, the angrier he will get. And once he resumes control, there will be nothing either you or me can do about it!"
Vorden's face hardened.
"I won't let it get to that point." He said sharply, before looking down. "I'm sorry for getting you involved in this, Quinn. You were just unlucky that the Little One chose you."
Back in the real world, Vorden stopped shaking.
Tsukuru looked up at him.
"Your little council meeting over?" He asked, a slight smirk on his face as he continued to eat.
Vorden narrowed his eyes.
"This isn't a laughing matter." He replied.
Instantly, Tsukuru's face hardened as well.
"No, it isn't." He agreed. The sudden tonal shift honestly stunned Vorden. "Layla doesn't know it, but she just said what was probably the worst possible thing she could have said."
It was then that a group of two people entered the canteen.
One was a dark-skinned man with a military cut wearing a military outfit.
He had bulging biceps the size of thighs.
To his left was a shorter man with brown hair wearing casual clothes.
The shorter man had bags under his eyes, which momentarily made Tsukuru think of Logan.
Additionally, both men had symbols on their uniforms denoting them as Generals.
"Never seen those two before." Tsukuru muttered.
Hearing his words, Vorden turned around in his seat to see the newcomers.
His eyes narrowed at them.
"Me neither." He muttered.
A second later, the larger man spoke up.
"ATTENTION!" He bellowed, his voice echoing throughout the canteen. "All first-year students are to make their way to the assembly hall for a special demonstration!"
It was then that the smaller man spoke up.
His voice was noticeably more casual and nonchalant than the larger man's.
"But before that, would the students Erin Heyley and Hikiko Tsukuru please follow us?"