Back at the festival, the boys continue to sit in silence. Surata takes in what Koroki said. Koroki slightly showed his vulnerability to Surata for the first time. So, this is the first situation like this. Koroki never showed his weakness to Surata.
Naturally, neither boy knows how to move on from this conversation. The awkward tension around the boys slowly fades into the air. Yorui, sensing the atmosphere becoming docile, walks towards them to break the ice.
"Hey, sorry. I'm back. What did I miss?" Yorui tiredly asks, acting like she never overheard their conversation.
"Oh, nothing much. How are you feeling, Yorui?" Surata asks.
"I'm fine now. But I'm never eating that again!"
Yorui's interruption was enough for the boys to move on and enjoy their free time for a little longer. Time flies by as the sun falls towards the horizon.
His subconscious brings him back into reality. Surata realizes he has forgotten something important. "We should probably go deliver that letter before it closes."
"Aww, I forgot about that." Yorui whines, not wanting to leave. The day is nearly ending, but they still have lots of energy. They have been there for hours, but it only feels like a few minutes for Yorui.
"Yea', you still have the letter, Surata?" Koroki asks.
Surata reaches into his pockets and shows the folded letter. "It should be here. Yeah, it's right here."
The kids prepare to leave the festival, enjoying it to the fullest. This is a once-a-year festival, but their newly made memories will last a lifetime. The kids start heading towards the post office while the sun still rests in the sky.
___
Fifteen minutes away from the lively festival grounds, they continue their stroll on the sidewalk. Given how much time they spent at the festival, the office will close in about 20 minutes due to office hours.
The group walks in silence, trying to recover mentally from the festival. Yorui breaks the peaceful silence by sharing her thoughts out loud about how much fun she had today. "That was so fun! I still can't believe that Koroki is afraid of heights. That was too funny. Hehe."
"Shut up. I never said I was afraid of heights."
"Wanna go again next year?"
"Hell no!"
Yorui cracks up at the embarrassed Koroki, teasing him. As they converse, Surata lets out a wide grin. Happy about his current situation with Yorui joining them, he can't help but think back to what Koroki said moments ago: (Do you think... I'm heartless?)
"What did he mean by that? I don't think he's heartless, but then again... I don't really know Koroki as well as I thought. He never told me anything about his past. Does father know anything? If he did, why would he let a monster like the Heartless Demon stay with us for all these years?"
Surata begins to have doubts about Koroki and Ishio. There's no way Ishio would have known that, right? If he did, then Koroki would have never stayed with us. It doesn't make sense. With his head clogged up with doubt, he gradually clears his mind.
"Maybe the old Koroki was heartless, but… I don't think the current Koroki is heartless. I've lived with him for a while, and yeah, he was a pain in my ass for a while, but I'm glad he was with me."
Surata looks to his side, softly gazing at Koroki. Koroki senses Surata's eyes staring at him for an uncomfortable amount of time.
"Why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?"
"No, nothing."
Yorui sneakily giggles, "Probably the embarrassment on your face from the rollercoasters."
"Shut up, Yorui!"
Surata's grin widens as his gaze softens. "He kinda' reminds me of a brother I never had... So, I won't ask him about his past. I'll wait until he's ready to tell me. Whenever that happens, I will be glad to listen."
___
In the nick of time, with a few minutes to spare, they arrive at the corner of the office. The post office looks awfully quiet. It's still open, yet there are no customers nearby. Typically, the post office isn't that busy, so this is understandable. But it just feels off. The steel curtains haven't dropped yet, so they still have time before they close.
Seeming how much time is left, the kids head straight inside, with Surata taking lead. The small office building is a mixed-use property. The owner lives in the apartment above the office. They enter the office and look around.
Most of the lights in the building are turned off. The centered light behind the counter is the only light lit. Guess they are almost closing. Behind the counter are boxes hugging the wall, filled with mail. But there is no presence of anybody working.
"Hello?!" Surata shouts. "Is anyone still here?!"
The office silently responds to Surata.
"Maybe they're closing right now," Yorui suggests, sensing the quiet atmosphere.
Surata recalls the time, "We should have some time left. Hello?!"
Behind the counter, the staff door opens. "I heard you the first time!" An older man enters the room, rubbing his head with a thin layer of hair. "You came at the wrong time, you brats! I was just getting ready to close."
The kids can hear the crankiness of the older man's attitude. He probably is just getting ready to go to bed. Or watch his favorite TV show, which airs a new episode right after his shift. Or does any other activities older men do at night.
"Sorry for coming so late. Do you have time to take this letter?" Surata politely asks.
"Yeah, I do. Give it here."
Surata hands the older man the letter. The man angrily grabs it from Surata's hand and tosses it into a filled box.
"Now, scram so I can close down." The man says with a raspy voice.
"Alright, we'll leave. Thank-"
Before Surata can finish his sentence, his body is stuck. He can't move his body with all his strength. It feels as if his shadow is freezing him in place. But the lights are almost all turned off, so his shadow is hiding in the darkness of the room. His hands become cuffed by a hand. He worryingly turns his head over to Yorui and Koroki.
The older man quickly scurries away from the scene. Yorui and Koroki are also unable to move, their arms locked.
"What is happening?!" Yorui asks.
Stepping into the light, behind them are unknown people preventing them from moving: a young female, an enormous man, and a lean man. Are they enemies? They have never seen these faces before, so they have no idea. But, since they are restraining them for no reason, they are enemies.
The kids attempt to struggle. Their efforts are paying off, as the current threats smack their lips in annoyance.
"Stop moving!" The buff man and the female drop Surata and Yorui to the floor.
"Stop moving!"
Koroki, still left standing, continues to struggle, showing the most promising as the lean man struggles to hold Koroki down. He overcomes the man, dropping him to the ground.
Finally free, Koroki makes a quick plan to rescue the others.
"That's enough." Another man catches Koroki off guard. Koroki's neck forcefully lifts. His neck connects with a sharp blade. If he so much is to gulp, his neck will be cut. This time, this guy's aura feels almost incomparable with the last guy.
Koroki begins to feel the presence of more people behind him, entering the main entrance.
"Now, now, this is a surprise to have you cornered like this." A light voice pierces the room, emerging from the shadows. "Are you sure this is him, Kaen?"
"Yes, Mikado. This is him."
An enormous, dangerous aura floods the room. The kids stare at Mikado behind them as he calmly walks towards them. His comfortable, baggy outfit makes him seem spoiled. The seer sound of Mikado's footsteps echoes in the room. Mikado approaches the kids, his sharp eyes staring at them one by one.
"Ishio Aoi's son. Majuro's daughter. And you..." Mikado cockily walks up to Koroki. "Heartless Demon!"
That hit a nerve in Koroki. He stares at Mikado angrily, his blood boiling. Like a lion trapped in a cage, he instinctually activates his Noye. His eyes begin glowing pink, releasing his boiling aura.
"Woah. It's not the reaction I was expecting, but I'll take it. I like that face you have on." Mikado gets closer, taunting Koroki. "That's a nice face you're making… Koroki."
The kids' eyes widen as they are stunned by the name Mikado just said. Koroki's Noye deactivated out of shock.
Many people do not know his identity. Since living with Surata, he has practically been invisible in the country. The only people who at least know Koroki's name are members of the Noye school. And to say it so casually is a completely different discussion.
"Do I know you?" Koroki asks in annoyance.
"That's a good question that I don't have the answer to, unfortunately," Mikado says. Since we're asking questions, let me ask you a question, Koroki. How would you like to be remembered... when you die?"
"What do you want from us?"
"It's an interesting question I just thought of. But don't worry. I'm not killing you here. I just wanted to see your face in person." Mikado cockily smiles as his face levels with Koroki.
"What do you want?" Koroki nonchalantly asks.
"The death of me is the death of you."
"Huh?"
Mikado begins to stroll away from the kids. "Ha, just a quote I read in a book."
The other men let go of the kids, following Mikado. "Anyways, it was nice seeing you, Koroki. This won't be the last time we see each other. Just remember... I will always be watching you." Mikado casually waves goodbye as he leaves the office.
"Um... when did you become so philosophical, Mikado?" says one of Mikado's goons.
"I'm not. I've just been reading some books recently."
The group wanders into the distance, leaving the scene like nothing happened. The kids struggle to recover from the incident, feeling helpless in that situation.
"Who were they?" Yorui cautiously asks.
"No idea. You, Koroki?"
"Not a clue. But whoever they are, they aren't weak," he exclaims with determination.
___
The day after the altercation, Surata and Koroki head back to school.
The class is rowdy, as usual, right before class. There is a couple of minutes before class starts. Surata sits in his chair, socializing with friends. Koroki, on the other hand, slouches in his seat, almost daydreaming.
While dazing out, a student aggressively approaches Koroki. "Look at this, punk. Mr. Cool guy."
Koroki mentally comes back to class and notices someone talking to him. So far, everyone that has interacted with Koroki isn't normal. Nurse Hapi. Latro. They weren't weird, but definitely not Koroki's definition of "normal", at least not to him. Maybe this kid can be different.
A male student stands in front at Koroki's desk, annoyingly staring at him. His hands are tucked in his pants pockets while leaning back, chin up, trying to look tough. His spikey blonde hair matches his appearance that screams delinquent.
"Who are you again?"
"Tch... The name's Kishiya. Don't get too cocky. You managed to beat almost everyone during the sparring session the other day. But not me. If I was there, I would've put you in your place. I'm stronger than anyone in this class, or even the school; remember that." Kishiya angrily strolls away, hands in his pocket.
During that spar session, Koroki didn't see anyone resembling Kishiya, so he was probably absent that day.
Koroki sighs, watching Kishiya walk away. The confrontation leaves him confused. "Aren't you the cocky one?"
It isn't long until class starts. Before Ms. Shirai starts the class, she has an announcement to make.
"Alright, class, we have another new student coming in starting today."
Huh?! The class's excitement piques. They gossip with one another, excited for the new addition.
"Another one?"
"I wonder if it's a girl this time. Hope she's pretty."
"It's probably a boy."
While the students try to control their excitement, some students are uninterested in them, waiting for the class to start.
The door slowly slides open. The new student enters, hesitantly scanning the room filled with unfamiliar faces. The other students notice the new arrival, and their expressions slowly light up with curiosity and excitement. The new student takes a deep breath and steps forward, feeling welcomed by the warm reception.
Their gorgeous complexion and wavy jade-green hair shine throughout the classroom. The student faces the crowd, takes another deep breath, and introduces herself: "Hello everyone! My name is Yorui. Nice to meet you."
The students happily welcome Yorui to the class. Meanwhile, Surata and Koroki are flabbergasted seeing Yorui in their class.
"Eek. Why is she here?"
"Is this Deja vu?"
Yorui scans the room, trying to find an open seat, and notices the boys. "Sura. Koroki. Hi guys!"
The entire class immediately turns their attention to the boys. The other boys angrily stare at the two boys as if they have become enemies of them. The boys feel embarrassed and overwhelmed by the jealousy radiating from their classmates. They both put their heads down, ignoring Yorui, wanting this feeling of discomfort to pass. Yorui quickly finds a seat in front of the boys.
"Why are you here, Yorui?" Surata whispers, not trying to disrupt the class.
Yorui turns her head, leaning back. "Oh, because I got bored being alone at home. Ishio told me to go to school with you guys. I didn't think I would be in the same class as you guys tho'."
"Oh, ok. Isn't this school hard to get into? How are these two able to be here? Eh… whatever."
___