PROGRESS
AU:
Halloween
1st
record
2nd
record
3rd
record
4th
record
1st Record: School Days
Clad in black gakuran, the students attend Tenshoutei's Entrance Ceremony which would mark the start of their school life. With much hustle and bustle at the school gates, the actual assembly was dreary in comparison; but ultimately served its purpose of introducing the staff and student council. Led to their classroom, 1-S, the students each gave a self-introduction to become formally acquainted with their classmates.
The students proceed with their daily school lives in peace.
An out-of-season Sports Festival is suddenly announced and the class is split into teams of Red vs White. Both teams duke it out for points in activities, such as the Bread Eating race, 4-Legged race, Borrowing Race, Cavalry Battle, Tug-of-War and Cheering. In the end, White was victorious and the losing team was faced with punishment: a humiliating dance and running laps in kigurumi and a week's worth of cleaning the school's toilets & hallways. However, class 1-S collectively earned the most points out of the entire school, so everyone's a winner!
2nd Record
2.1 Disturbance
Class 1-S investigated the rumours regarding the Seven Mysteries of Tenshoutei Gakuen after noticing classmates and other students in the school had gone missing. The rumours were as follows:
日
SUNDAY
CLOCK TOWER
...Have you heard?
The sound of the school bell rings on Sundays - isn't it strange?
Everyone knows there are no classes on Sundays…
Shh! Listen!
DING...DING...DONG...DONG...
You heard it, right? That bell never fails to chime four times a day.
Always at 6 in the morning & evening, and 12 at midday & midnight.
DING...DING...DONG...DONG...
If you stop any one of these chimes, the remaining time you have left of your life will be stolen...
Shh! Listen!
…...
You heard that one too, right? Hehe, of course you couldn't. Your scream hasn't rung out yet.
You're waiting for a chime that will never come, for you who ceased it out of madness must replace it with your own voice.
2.2 Divulgence
After investigating the rumours, it was reported that strange noises could be heard from behind the old school building. Upon a student's request, and since they had already come this far, they decided to check it out at dusk.
It was revealed that the source of the strange sounds were from a [ Jikininki ] youkai feasting on humans and animals. The majority of 1-S students stayed to fight while a minority retreated to find help. The students faced devastating defeat, barely escaping with their lives. Fortunately, the retreated team returned in time with their homeroom teacher and upperclassman- both who had mysterious abilities to vanquish the youkai.
3 days later, they awoke under the school nurse's care with more questions than answers. After covering up the incident as a "bear attack", the upperclassman who had come to their rescue pushed for a class meeting.
During this meeting, their homeroom teacher confessed that they knew about the existence of youkai all along, and that Class 1-S was formed with the purpose of exterminating them. Further explanation regarding their situation and the school's mysteries were disclosed, none of which eased the students' worries. With heavy responsibilities on their shoulders, the students now must make a choice: to defend the school and their world...or resign themselves to their doomed fate.
2.3 Awakening
While the students mulled over such a heavy decision, new students transferred into the class and received the same briefing regarding youkai and their special abilities. In order to help them adapt to their new environment, as well as allow the distressed students to rehabilitate, the staff and upperclassman arranged a three-day trip to the hot springs. Through some trials and tribulations such as an impromptu Cooking Contest, a far-too-realistic Test of Courage and other activities, the students of Class 1-S lived out their youth during this short trip. Well-rested and rejuvenated, the students must now prepare themselves to work hard in hopes of unleashing their spiritual power to summon a sword that can vanquish youkai.
And thus, the training arc begins...
Getting a sword was never going to be easy. Split into 3 smaller groups (Himawarigumi, Sakuragumi, Sumiregumi), the students went under strict tutelage of their homeroom teacher, upperclassman and school nurse (who was unaware of the existence of youkai). Faced with mental & physical training, overcoming one's weaknesses, and one too many bear encounters, the students of Class 1-S were taught the importance of patience, courage and teamwork. A month of grueling, seemingly never-ending training later, their tutors deemed them ready; sending the class out on a mission to vanquish lesser youkai reportedly spotted in town. With nothing but a bokken in hand and their lives on the line, the students witnessed each of their classmates successfully summon a blade. But not without casualties. For every youkai slain, a student went down with - 5 for 5. Thankfully, the rest managed to pull through in the end; but they now realised that, despite having a sword in hand, they still had lots more to work on.
3rd Record
3.1 Change
A month later, the students of 1-S have grown used to wielding their swords while they were sent on continuous night patrols to exorcise youkai. It has become evident that the number of youkai appearances have been increasing as of late, thus their homeroom teacher and upperclassman came to the decision to teach the students the next advancement of their abilities.
Class 1-S gathered in front of Tenshoutei's Library, where unnatural happenings were said to have occurred in. A strange mix of rumours regarding the library had been circulating around, but the most common one was regarding the appearance of a poltergeist. The homeroom teacher deduced that it was likely a youkai of higher grade and had already sealed off the entrance, assuring normal students would not be able to enter the grounds. Inside, the student council president and the class found the library to appear ordinary at first - however, after further investigation, it soon revealed its true colours and morphed into an endless maze of books. The floor expanded like a trampoline, the paintings on the walls spilled out, the shelves towered above, and bloodshot eyeballs had blinked open onto the walls. The youkai had made the library into its own domain and revealed itself before the students.
They fought against the powerful youkai and its summoned minions, and finally won after a long battle. However, what came next was a surprise to all of them.
The youkai spoke.
It uttered its last words, begging to be given peace. Not only were the students shocked, but their upperclassman who had fought many more youkai than them was even moreso. Not once had he ever heard the youkai attempt to communicate with humankind. Unnerved and unsettled, the students left the now-restored library with heavy hearts and mixed feelings.
[ The Author of the Spine Labyrinth, Hitobashira ]
As they piled out, they sensed some residue youkai energy and followed its trail, only to find a broken memorial stone. The upperclassman deduced that the Hitobashira was part of a sacrificial ritual; where, in the past, a person was buried alive for the sake of appealing to the spirits of the land that Tenshoutei was built upon.
With more questions than answers, the students were left to ponder on various thoughts such as:
1. Are youkai capable of speech and communication with humans?
Or was this an exception, due to it being a powerful, higher grade youkai? Perhaps its dwelling contributed to its knowledge.
2. Did someone break the memorial stone on purpose? If so, who would do such a thing...?
❖
The next day, the students are advised to carry out their daily activities in pairs to look out for any suspicious activity in case the perpetrator is among them.
Meanwhile, their teacher and senior introduce them to two new powers: Shinken & Elemental Affinity. Class 1-S learned that they can gain more strength by attaining shinken「真剣」, their sword's true form. Upon releasing their sword's true form, the wielder will unlock dormant power stored within, which corresponds to one's elemental affinity. Will they be capable of achieving such power?
While the students were left to their individual training, mysterious flyers were littered around the school that threatened to reveal "the truth of Tenshoutei" at the cafeteria. Class 1-S was told to investigate this so-called "truth", and to their surprise, a student - who referred to himself as the occult club president - had spouted frighteningly accurate rumours regarding the Seven Mysteries, while claiming monsters existed.
"I can PROVE it!! Come to the old school's rooftop tonight and you'll see monsters and ghosts are real!!!"
A handful of curious students heeded his words and met at the promised place that night. Little did they know that this decision would change their lives forever.
As they reached the rooftop with uncertainty, youkai suddenly appeared and attacked them. In an attempt to flee, they headed to the door - only to find it had been locked and barricaded by the terrified occult club president. Unable to escape, the old structure's floor collapsed as the unfortunate fell and were separated. Just as the they thought it was the end for them, Class 1-S managed to arrive on the scene in the nick of time to save them.
No longer able to keep the youkai and swords hidden from the witnesses, the homeroom teacher calls for them to transfer to Class 1-S to begin immediate training with their sudden rise in spiritual pressure. Now under the experienced students' mentorship, the new transfer students are to receive guidance on how to join the ranks.
After a bonding event hosted by the school nurse, Class 1-S all get to know each other's personalities on varying levels, for better or worse. Training then begins; with a focus on teamwork & honing sensory skills, building up muscle and their control over spiritual pressure, the mentors train the newer students well. Having great success in summoning their swords, Class 1-S now must look inwards to find the answer to shinken which lies deep within themselves. With much struggle that ultimately leads to success, the young swordsmen are able to acknowledge their weaknesses, their resolves strengthened with the new power they are rewarded by.
3.2 Tainted
Rumours of strange occurrences and aggro students resulted in another investigation lead by Class 1-S. They found out their school nurse, Shin, had gone missing, and mob students have been attacking others. Just as their investigations concluded, the class found themselves battling against a tainted occult club president; somehow he had gained unknown powers of darkness and corrupted other students with it to make them aggro. Class 1-S managed to put a stop to him by defeating him in battle, but they soon discovered that the source of corruption came from somewhere else entirely. The student council president rushed to the scene to inform them of Shin's whereabouts...only to find him already dead. The discovery of his corpse was a huge shock to the class, especially to those who were close with the caring school nurse.
The homeroom teacher of Class 1-S made a sudden announcement that the school would be going into lockdown to prevent an infectious disease from spreading. No students nor staff members of Tenshoutei were permitted to leave or enter school grounds. Though of course, this was just a cover-up for the tainted infections.
The prevention measures proved necessary as half of Class 1-S soon fell victim to the corruption. Unable to control their powers, they turned against their allies, and the infighting caused chaos within school grounds. It was an anxious time of not knowing who would be corrupted next, and whether they could save their classmates.
As if matters couldn't get any worse, the student council president and Class 1-S found out that Shin had faked his death and was actually a giant scorpion youkai all along. He revealed that he was the one who broke the memorial stone, and not only had he been weakening the school's protective barrier from the inside, but he had also been feeding on the children that were 'spirited away' for the last three years.
[ The Vessel of Scorpion, Shin]
Shin was also responsible for tainting the occult club president and the students of 1-S. His betrayal came as a shocking revelation to the class and their senior which shook them to their core. Both sides fought with everything they had, and after the grueling battle had finally come to an end, Shin revealed the potential of a higher power above him. A creature resembling a koi fish devoured his eyeball before escaping, leaving the students confused with more questions than answers as his body disintegrated into dust. A private funeral service was held on school grounds for the school nurse.
Trudging through a dark and dreary corridor that seems to go on forever, the students don't last half a minute before they start to feel weak and pass out. Awaking in the 2nd floor hallway, Class 1-S find that they've made it back to school safely without timeslipping like the mysterious student had. The student council president gives them the day off to rest and conducts his own research in the meantime.
Later, it is revealed that the dark corridor is brimming with toxic miasma that is lethal to their souls, and the only means of crossing is by attaining the trust and acknowledgement of a new existence: a toujin 「刀神」. Toujin are sacred spirits which manifest from the wielders' swords. Their cooperation is crucial for protecting their masters' souls to pass through the corridor, as the toujin are essentially sacrificing themselves to shield their master. This explains how their senior was able to safely get the fallen students out of the corridor, as he then introduces his own toujin to the class, and they both inform them that the reason why their swords have been acting up is because they are trying to communicate with their owners. The students are left with the mission to meet their toujins, and gain their trust in order to proceed through the corridor.
The students encounter their toujins in various ways, some are open, some more difficult, but when it is time to attempt the corridor once again, only half of class 1-S were able to gain their sword spirits' acknowledgement. The other half bade farewell to their classmates as they entered the torii's portal once more...and they were never heard from again.
For they had made it to the end of the corridor, and found a shoji door awaiting them. Through the smoke that flowed out upon opening, a [ One-horned Oni ] greeted the party, a parasol twirling in her hand.
"Welcome to the Hidden Realm!"
4th Record
4.1 Unfamiliar Welcome
A student mysteriously appears out of nowhere in the school hallway, who is found and questioned by students of 1-S. It is discovered that the student was one of those who were spirited away 3 years ago...only he hadn't aged. He spoke of a strange place of infinite blue with no way to tell how much time passes in it. While Class 1-S began investigating this matter, their swords suddenly started to act up; the students experienced a variety of symptoms like nightmares, brittle blades, swords appearing at random - it was different for everyone. Nevertheless, they were still functional.
After connecting the dots, the student council president met up with Class 1-S in the school hallway to revisit the Wednesday rumour. Hearing the sound of waves and letting it carry them off, a clear high note sounds. They then find themselves in the Mugenzora: Unlimited Sky - also known as "The Boundary". A single torii gate sits in the center, glass-like water ripples across the floor...it was just as the student had described: a place untouched by time. Relishing in the calming atmosphere, the peace only lasts a moment before something swirls at the gate, a dark portal appearing before them. Class 1-S debate over proceeding through it or not and while the class is split at first, they all eventually enter the gateway.
BG: 剣が君