The entire class focused their attention on three lucky winners. Some of the gazes were envious, some sparkled in admiration, and some were, at best, inscrutable.
However, it seemed Miss Akihiko didn't notice any of these heated gazes and cheerily congratulated the three lucky winners.
However, before she even started, she was cut short by the expressions they had on their faces.
Miyuki looked like she'd seen a ghost, Jae-sung's brow was intensely furrowed and Tsukiko was using Jae-sung as a support to stop herself from falling down due to a dizzy spell.
"Should I congratulate them or mourn with them...", thought Miss Akihiko.
"Are you all okay?", she asked.
Of course they weren't okay!
This was the same Yuganda Yume clan that possibly sent monsters to "take care of them" not long ago. Now they had to go there?? This was literally just walking into the belly of a beast!
Hours later, the school bell rang, and the "lucky" trio could be seen trio trudging their way out the main gates of the school that just might end them.
Their expressions looked less depressing, but they still couldn't fully recover from the shock of it all, especially Miyuki and Tsukiko, they could pass off as hungry ghosts that've been roaming the earth for centuries!
Jae-sung was the first to speak.
"I find this all to be a little too convenient", he said in a low deep voice.
Miyuki was the first to back up this statement by saying, "I agree! It seems like they really want to finish us off."
Finally, Tsukiko spoke.
"That's true, but why how come you're involved in this?". she asked, referring to Jae-sung.
Jae-sung was a little confused by her question, so was Miyuki.
"What do you mean?", he asked.
If you really were paying attention to the story, some of you would've noticed that Jae-sung wasn't in any way tied to the attempted attack on Miyuki and Tsukiko. He wasn't anywhere near the school premises after all. That being said, Tsukiko and Jae-sung have both been targeted at the same time with Miyuki being the only new addition to the Target Squadron. There wasn't any real reason to attack her in the first place, she had no idea about the text messages, monster, nothing. So why was she also attacked? Unless the person who sent him those text messages, was also the same as the one that attacked them.
These two instances now became linked by a thread that could not be cut.
Tsukiko explained this to them. Miyuki looked a bit shaken and Jae-sung furrowed his brows so hard that his entire forehead had wrinkles and creases.
Tsukiko had more to say but instead fell silent and looked around in a cautious but not obvious way.
Abruptly, she changed the topic.
"So, whose place are we having the end of the session party?", she asked with a forced smile.
Jae-sung immediately understood what she was getting at.
They were being watched, very closely too.
Jae-sung nudged a befuddled Miyuki and after a minute of furious glares, she finally caught on.
She put on a smile identical to Tsukiko's and suggested, "How about we go to Jae-sung's? His house would be perfect!"
With that they all got into the Kim family's car that had appeared out of nowhere at some point during or after their conversation and headed towards the Japan based Kim family estate.
Apart from the pleasantries exchanged between them and Mr. Watanabe, nothing but the sound of tires against asphalt could be heard. The Kim family's car was secure, but a topic like this could only be discussed at the estate.
It seemed Mr. Watanabe silently understood that they needed to get where they were going, and they needed to do it quickly.
In almost no time at all, they reached the estate. Miyuki and Tsukiko got out first while Jae-sung stayed behind a bit before finally getting off himself.
"I already told Mr. Watanabe to not tell my mom. If she knew about this, we'll never hear the end of it", said Jae-sung.
Tsukiko imagined the beautiful Mrs. Kim yelling her head off at the three of them and got goosebumps.
Miyuki sighed resignedly at this.
"That's aunty Kim for you", she said.
It seemed they'd both been at the mercy of Boss Lady Kim, she wasn't always angry, but you mustn't invoke her wrath.
Anyhow, the Unlucky Trinity made their way inside. Jae-sung had suggested them staying at the estate for two nights and they both agreed to do so, after making sure Miyuki's family and Hirano were okay with it of course.
The summer program, dubbed the "YYEP" by Miyuki, was in fact starting in five days, they needed all the time they could get to prepare and discuss their next plan of action. It couldn't be all that easy to accuse the Yuganda Yume family when they were in their home you know. This is a family that's gifted in eavesdropping for crying out loud! There were some who've said that even the insects are strictly monitored. They had to find a way to converse without alerting any family members--or authorities!
Luckily, Jae-sung [read: the idea man] had already thought up a plan. And that plan was called Spiritual Telepathy, popularly referred to as Telepathy by Psychic and Superhero enthusiasts alike.
The trio went to Jae-sung's room which if I may add, was extremely stylish and well-furnished and most importantly, clean! Which isn't normal amongst most adolescent males, but I do not mean that in a way that's offensive...I think.
Jae-sung told Tsukiko to make herself comfortable, Miyuki didn't need to be told though as she'd already face dived into one of the blue bean bags. Tsukiko wasn't as comfortable as Miyuki was. Somehow, the shyness of being in someone else's personal space got to her and she'd only politely sat down on the white beanbag next to Miyuki.
Soon, Jae-sung stepped into the room with scroll of some sort. It looked especially ancient with its yellowing pages and fading ink, but not faded enough to become illegible. Instead, it enhanced its mystery effect.
Tsukiko, whose legs were getting achy, stood up quickly. Her prior feelings of bashfulness were now completely gone.
She always loved examining old, ancient artifacts and materials. Some may attribute this to her family having a very well-maintained ancestry line, while others might argue back and say it was her parents and brother that made her this way. All in all, the Kurosawa family ate history for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Jae-sung, who after getting over the mild surprise gotten from Tsukiko's enthusiasm, opened the scroll slowly and revealed more of the aged ink and surprisingly even more aged text. It looked to be in some kind of Latin Japanese which Tsukiko later learned was exactly just that.
"An ancestor of mine made this during an era of...innovation", he said, trying to word it in the best way possible.
Tsukiko knew he was talking about the "Souzo teki na" Era otherwise known as the Creative Era. A time were people kept changing laws and norms at the drop of a hat. It was all the rage back then and anybody who was anybody changed things up at least 5 times an hour.
It seemed Jae-sung was only the slightest bit embarrassed. Not because he didn't appreciate it, mostly because he just couldn't understand the need to mix up Japanese and Latin and frankly, neither do I. But hey, it happened so it must be said.
Tsukiko and Jae-sung were now joined by Miyuki. They both peered over his shoulder and focused on the boldest text they could see.
"Spiritual Bonding Ceremonial Rite"