The bell rang, signaling lunch time. Most of the students got into their respective groups to discuss their plans, while others made their way to the cafeteria.

A brunette looked up from her sketches when another chair was dragged to her table. She found her friend taking a seat, staring into the distance. A single word was written on his face.

'Where'.

"Have you tried calling him?" She suggested.

"Yeah, no one picked up. Probably misplaced his phone again." He sighed. "Seriously, he's your brother, Hannah."

"Doesn't mean everything about us is the same."

"Oh, that point's been made more than clear already." He rolled his eyes. "I kind of wished the dorms are merged so you can be the one to deal with his... everything."

"He's just a kid, Niko-kun."

"First, he's only a year younger than us. Second, what did I tell you about using that nickname?"

"Don't know. What did you tell me?" Hannah's innocent smile made him sigh a second time.

"Nikolai! Help your cousin out, would you?" A Russian woman wearing a very distinct scarf called from the door. She had quite a lot of books in hand.

And so, he sighed a third time. "Coming..." He gave his friend one last look. "You should go find him before the next class."

"That shouldn't be too hard."

~~~~~

After asking the whereabouts of Houjou Muraku from the next class, Hannah headed up for the rooftop. Her brother wasn't a strong player, but if there's one thing about him that stood out among the rest, it's the strong admiration he held for that boy. Not that she didn't understood why. With the amount of silver credits he earned in such a short time and how he was considered almost unbeatable, there's not a single person in the school that didn't respect him. But still,

I swear, he hung out with him once and suddenly he's stuck to him like glue...

Just a day or two before, Muraku came into her class, asking if he could borrow her brother for a while. Seeing how their platoon had no missions that day, she didn't see any reason to refuse. Besides, despite being the youngest in their platoon, her brother was still their captain. Status wise, she had no authority to tell him no. But seeing how he kept disappearing when their platoon needs to discuss things, she was starting to wish she did.

Looking up from the foot of the steps, she caught sight of blue under grey disappearing into the light. Found you!

She quickened her pace and made it to the top, stopping only once to facepalm when she heard her brother loudly announcing their platoon's mission for the day. Heading out the widely open door, at which she had to sigh at, she spotted the brunette she was looking for with the 6th platoon.

"Wataru." A boy with long black hair, Houjou Muraku, stopped him from gushing further.

The brunette immediately stood up straight. "Yes!"

"Rossius has lost much of its former strength." He stated. "We are here to take that power back. I'm counting on you to help. Carry your missions out with vigor."

"Understood."

"And, one more thing. Don't forget to be wary of Bandit."

"Okay!" He relaxed into a smile. "Just like the headmaster said this morning, if I see someone from Bandit, I'll do all I can to make them become LOST!"

Earlier that day there was an assembly regarding the state of the school. It's a well-known fact that an unauthorized group had been causing havoc on their battlefield for the longest time. The name 'Bandit' was given to them by the students. They'd appear out of nowhere, creating noise, and eliminating anyone they lay eyes on. In the assembly, the headmaster, Josephine Daimon, ordered them to cease any missions they held if they appear, and focus on getting rid of them. The only thing strange about the announcement is how late it came. It wasn't like the students weren't already doing that.

And it didn't need to be mentioned that causing them to 'Break Over' would do more harm than good. There was an incident ages ago where a member of Jenock became LOST when they tried to retrieve the defeated Bandit LBX. It had a self-destruct function that will make sure no one could find out who they are. Making them become LOST, in other words, destroying their units, was their only option.

Knowing all this, she could only sigh at her brother's behavior. "Your enthusiasm's great and all, but how do you expect to do that when you keep missing out on our strategy meetings?"

"Ah!" The boy jumped. "N-Nee-chan! What are you... Oh no, I forgot again!" He turned back to the other group and bowed. "Excuse me!" He ran past his sister and ran down the steps.

With another sigh, the brunette turned to the four. "Sorry about him... again."

Muraku gave her a smile. "You're taking good care of him."

She replied with a shrug. "Any older sibling would do this much at least."

"That's true. Send Nikolai my regards."

"And our sympathy. Can't imagine what rooming with the kid must be like."

"Kageto!" Mikhail warned.

"It's alright. I know he can be a handful sometimes." She turned to their platoon leader. "Which is why I should also thank you for putting up with him."

"He's one of the few people who haven't been dragged down by this war. I have my own respect for him."

"If he heard that, he'd be sticking to you like glue and the sixth platoon would have an extra member." She sighed. "I should be heading back. Excuse me." She bowed before leaving to find her teammates again.

~~~~~

"It is now the scheduled time. The Second World will now activate. War Time will begin in 20 seconds. All players, prepare for battle."

As Nikolai and Wataru hurried into their pods and readied their LBXs, Hannah sat in the seat of the mechanics, preparing the craft carrier. When both LBXs climbed in, the countdown began.

"5... 4... 3... 2... 1... War Time, begin."

~~~~~

That night, in Rossius' dorm...

"I didn't think that Bandit would actually show up..." Wataru said dejectedly, unable to make eye contact with his idol. "Everyone started getting LOST one after another... it was my first time in a battle like that."

"We were on the edge of our seats too!" Vanessa commented.

"I hate to be honest, but I seriously thought you'd be the first to go." Kageto sneered.

"But you fought back without even hesitating." Mikhail stated. "That's an impressive feat."

"Thank you very much..." though he said this, the younger boy still looked unsure.

"That much is good."

"Huh?" Lifting his head up, he found his idol looking at him straight into the eye. "Don't forget that feeling."

It took a second to understand what he meant. They lost the fight. The feeling is unpleasant. He didn't want to feel this way again. The only way to make sure of that, is to win. "Yes!"