April 11th: Monday

Time: Early Morning

Location: Watanabe Residence

"Kyo! Breakfast's ready!" A woman in her mid-thirties called for the boy to grab his breakfast before school. She placed the plate of Omurice onto the table before moving over to the couch to grab her umbrella but when she turned around, she saw that the plate had disappeared. This again…

She looked back to the couch, where a boy dressed in his Shujin Academy uniform with dark brown hair styled in a thin wild mess was currently digging into the plate of omelet rice. Bits of egg and rice fell onto his red t-shirt, with a large silver star and the words 'Star-Dust' below it, underneath his open jacket which he only brushed off onto the cushions.

She sighed, "Don't eat on the couch! Jeez, you have to at least warn me when you're gonna do that."

"Do what?" He tilted his head in confusion, unaware of what had upset her. Well, besides eating on the couch.

"Just… Just be good at school, alright?" She ruffled his hair as she walked towards the door but before she walked out, she looked over to her nephew with a smile. "Love you. Oh! And say hi to Mako-chan for me!"

"Bye, Aunt Ayaka." Kyotaro Watanabe waved goodbye with a purse of his lips as she walked out the door to her job down at the station, she wasn't a cop no… she was an administrative assistant, which was just a fancier word for secretary with a higher pay. She thought to be a cop was a pain in the ass with the crimes they had to deal with. But being a secretary to a bunch of cops also seemed like a pain in the ass.

Well, enough of that. Kyotaro needed to get ready at the worst place ever! He jumped over to the sink and dropped his plate into the water that held several others, he moved over to the table where he left his umbrella and bag last night and scurried out the door.

Shujin was in Aoyama-Itchome so he had to walk over to the train station to get there‒ welp, nothing like a bit of circulation going before school. Plus, the station wasn't too far away from his house. Of course, it was in the rain so that sucked but… no, it just sucked. But, at least he could catch up on all the latest and meaningless gossip from his fellow Shujin slaves around Yongen-Jaya. It was just pointless stuff like dating and boys or girls or whatever, it was mind-numbing but it was fun to see what people his age were talking about.

"Hey, it's Watanabe…" A boy from Shujin scoffed a few feet away.

"Ugh, that guy? What a weirdo…" His friend rolled his eyes.

"Seriously… That guy has no restraint like that one time he replaced all the basketballs with balloons made of some sort of jello."

"How is that even possible! I saw him fill Sakamoto's shoe locker with cockroaches! Well, at least it was him of all people."

"I guess it was funny at first but now it's just… annoying."

Hm, guess that was what they were talking about. Him… That's not a very nice thing for them to do. But he should probably inform them he was in earshot of their conversation.

"Sure am I, and I'm a weirdo with ears!" He called out the two trying to talk behind his back, the two male students quicking their pace as if running out of his sight will make him forget about their shit-talking of him. Besides, he hasn't done anything like that in a while. The last thing he did was the cockroaches, they were fake of course.

As for his victim? That was an accident, he was trying to fill Makoto Nijima's locker but he got the numbers wrong. Sakamoto was pissed… He kinda felt bad for the poor guy, he got his leg broken after his fight with Kamoshida then a few days later he had to deal with that. He probably still hasn't forgiven him, probably because Kyotaro has been avoiding him like the plague since.

So there was really nothing to do at Shujin, his little hobby had been retired and now he was just left with a prison that had nothing for him to do. He could talk to his friends… HAH! Yeah, he didn't have any‒ er… not any he could talk to or had the time of day to spend time with him. People saw him as more of an annoying little kid that you wanted nothing to do with than as a peer, maybe it was justified but people didn't even get angry at him anymore. They just… ignored him.

"Well, nothing I can do about that." He said softly, his lips twisting into a smile as he made his way to the train station.

April 11th: Monday

Early Morning

Location: Cafe Leblanc

"Hm, it looks like I'm ready for school…" Akira Kurusu mused as he straightened his jacket, the boy scratched his disheveled hair as he began reminiscing on his situation.

Getting arrested for doing the right thing, his expulsion from Minamoto High School, his friends back in Nikko isolating themselves from him, and the faces of his parents when they learned he was charged with assault. He tried explaining himself, to say how he was in right for trying to save that woman from that drunkard. But that didn't matter… What did was that he was charged with a crime, as if he should have let that man have his way with that woman. But based on how she testified against him, maybe it would have been for the best if he was never there in the first place. At least he would have still had his life back home…

"What's done is done, Akira… Let it go." He rationalized to himself with a sigh as he grabbed his bag from the desk across his bed and walked down the stairs to meet with Sakura-san.

The man was apparently a friend of his parents and agreed to take care of him until his probation was over at Shujin Academy, some preparatory school in Tokyo that was the only place that would take him. Reasons for such an elitist school would accept him were unknown, but he figured that it was probably a reputation thing. "Reforming" a "Delinquent" would help boost their image. Whatever was the reason, he was now a Shujin student.

He stepped into the Cafe with his hands in his pockets and greeted Sakura-san, the man stood behind the bar with a plate of curry and water laid out. He raised a brow to Akira, "Oh, so you're actually going to school?"

Damn… What a subtle insult, Mr. Sakura. Akira bit his tongue from making a comment to the man's attitude, he seemed like he wasn't a fan of him already so he shouldn't be doing anything that could actually piss the man off. After all, he was stuck here for a year and he shouldn't be biting the hand that feeds him. Speaking off feed, was this for him?

"Here, just finish it before customers start coming in." Sakura-san pushed the plate towards him, much to the confusion of Akira.

"Curry for breakfast?" He asked as he took his seat, he looked at Sakura-san who was looking at him expectantly.

"What's wrong, you don't like curry?" The man seemed almost like he was judging Akira for not digging in.

"No, I just wasn't expecting something spicy before school." Akira shrugged before taking a hefty spoonful, it wasn't like he wasn't fond of curry. Who didn't like curry?

But damn… This was really good. Its flavors were complex with an intense savor and a bold spiciness. The plate was cleaned out before he could even breathe. He looked to Sakura-san with a small smile of satisfaction after taking a sip of water, "That was delicious…"

"Thanks." The man rubbed his neck at how fast Akira cleaned the plate, a short pause lasted between them for he coughed into his fist. "...Hurry to school. You might get lost along the way so either, don't do that or be quick about it."

With a nod, Akira sat up from his chair and was about to head out the door before Sakura-san asked of him, "Oh, flip that sign outside to OPEN for me. Would you, country boy?"

"Right, I'll do that. Old man." Akira attempted to jab him in jest with a snap of his fingers.

"What was that?"

"Uh‒ N-nothing! I'll flip that sign for you, Sakura-san! Okay, bye now!"

TAKE YOUR TIME

PI! PI! PI! PI! Kyotaro pulled his phone out from his pocket as he held his umbrella tighter, a small grin forming on his face seeing who decided to text him. Though it was strange that she was the one to give him a quick message before school.

[Makoto N.] Good morning, Kyo.

[Kyo W.] Mmhm, am I in trouble? (ㆆ_ㆆ)

[Makoto N.] No, I just wanted to say good morning. Is that so wrong?

….

[Makoto N.] And I wanted to make sure you didn't pull any stunts this year.

[Makoto N.] We may be in different years but that doesn't mean I'll let you go around Shujin with your pranks.

[Kyo W.] Aw, come on! You know I don't do that stuff anymore!

[Makoto N.] The last time you said that, you filled the bathroom toilets with foam…

[Kyo W.] Well, now I'm serious

[Kyo W.] Besides, I cleaned it up! I always clean up my messes!

[Makoto N.] Right, but I just needed to make sure. As student council president, it's my job to look after the school.

[Kyo W.] My, my! How responsible for you, Miss Prez! Do you have a meeting with the emperor next? (¬‿¬)

[Makoto N.] Don't tease me like that!

[Kyo W.] Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Oh and almost forget, Ayaka says hi.

[Makoto N.] Right, tell her I said hello back. And don't be late for school, I'll be waiting for you outside the front.

[Kyo W.] Why?

[Makoto N.] I thought it would be nice to head to class together, even if you are a second-year. It's been a while since we've actually done something together.

[Kyo W.] Sure, and taking a few steps into school will be sufficient?

[Makoto N.] Kyotaro…

[Kyo W.] Got it! Ok, walking together will be fine! Bye!

[Makoto N.] Good, see you at school.

He slipped his phone back into his pocket with his grin still on his face. Makoto Nijima, they knew each other through their guardians. His aunt was a friend of her late father and her older sister Sae, who she helped become a prosecutor as he role at the police station. Thus, the two met when he first moved here from Nikko to live with Ayaka. They weren't… on best terms at first, as most of their interactions were awkward to say the least.

But she was now honestly someone who he could consider a friend, however she was a year above him and was always with the student council. And now she was president, so the chances that they would have time to hang out were slim.

But he should probably focus his sight on what was in front of him, the loud voice of some guy complaining. Kyotaro walked over two males his age in Shujin Academy uniforms, one familiar and the other unfamiliar…

It was the bleach blonde Sakamoto and some other guy in a Shujin uniform with glasses and unkempt black hair. Sakamoto-kun seemed to have been the first to take notice of him as he began slowly walking towards him.

"Watanabe… " Oh crap, that didn't sound quite friendly. And he was proven right when Sakamoto grabbed him by the collar to look at him with an intense glare. "I haven't seen you around since that little prank you pulled, you little twerp!"

"Hey now, Sakamoto-san…" Kyotaro stammered yet kept an unwavering smile as Sakamoto tightened his grip. "Are we really gonna get so riled up for something over the past but I am really sorry about putting a few cockroaches‒"

"A few? You filled my shoe locker with those things!"

"They were fake…"

"Oh, like that matters! You son of a‒ Ngh!" A flash of purple had filled their eyes before a piercing pain had shot through their heads, causing Sakamoto to loosen his grip on Kyotaro's collar. The headache lasted less than a second yet stung like hell, it was like a nonfatal bullet passing through their brains.

Kyotaro backpedaled in his lightheaded daze, the boy fumbling into the unfamiliar student that was with Sakamoto. He looked over to the student with a shaky bow of his head in apology, to which he gave a small upwards twitch of his lips at his nod.

"Urgh… My head… What was… Urgh, whatever. I guess we should be heading to school." Sakamoto looked over to the two of them, though he did give Kyotaro a sideways glance. He began walking to an alleyway and motioned for the two of them to follow.

"So… You got a name?" Kyotaro asked the stranger with a small smile with his eyes shut, he offered him a spot under his umbrella which the black-haired teen took without any hesitation.

"Yeah, Akira Kurusu." Kurusu-san returned Kyotaro's smile with his own.

"Cool, the name's Kyotaro Watanabe."

"My name is Ryuji Sakamoto…" Sakamoto-Kun told the black-haired student in glasses. Huh, so that meant they weren't friends or anything? They just met? "Word of warning, Kurusu. Don't get involved with Watanabe, you don't know what he'll do when your guard is down."

"Ouch! Damn, Sakamoto. You are so harsh‒" He cut himself off once the two of them stepped over a puddle, it wasn't the puddle itself that felt weird but when they crossed over it. It seemed like the atmosphere changed, it seemed warmer and his skin felt like it had a jolt of energy ripple over it.

He looked at Kurusu-san, who seemed to have felt the same thing as he did judging based on the look on his face. The two shared uncertain looks as to what had happened before Sakamoto's voice brought them back to reality. He sounded quite shocked to see what was on the other side of the alley.

And for good reason, they expected to see the prison known as Shujin Academy but what they got was some sort of castle! And the sky shined down on it in a purple cascade of light, breaking away a large mass of dark clouds as if the large medieval was placed underneath a spotlight.

"Are we in the right place?" Akira asked Ryuji with a raise of his brow, the bleach blonde's head turned to the alleyway to check if he had led the three through the right one.

"It should be… this alleyway is where I always get to school through." Ryuji rubbed the back of his head as his eyes glanced back and forth between the alleyway and the castle.

"Maybe they remodeled the school? Trying to fit with some sort of theme or something?" Kyotaro suggested though it seemed to be more in jest based on the way he spoke, Ryuji scoffing at what he said.

"Yeah, right… Who in their mind does shit like that?" Kyotaro shrugged at Sakamoto's rebuttal before turning around to the alleyway.

"I think I'll head back… If I don't find Shujin, then I'll just head home." He rubbed the back of his head before beginning his walk back out to the alley. But before he could walk out this whole scene, he was stopped by Ryuji.

"No, this is Shujin. Look!" He pointed to the large engraved plaque sign nearby the gate that readout Shujin, Kyotaro's eyes widened at the reveal. He looked at the two incredulously.

"So, what do we do? Is this really Shujin or… something?" Kyotaro asked in a voice barely above a whisper, Ryuji walked in front of the two and shrugged.

"Well, we won't know if we don't see for ourselves." He began an unsteady pace to the drawbridge of the castle with Kurusu and Kyotaro in tow, uncertain about the situation but allowing Ryuji to take the lead on this.

But once they did make it past the entrance, they still saw no school. Just a castle, with large chandeliers and ornamental candles lighting up the large room and velvet red carpets laid out onto the checkered floor. Kyotaro looked over to Ryuji and questioned him in slight jest, "So, where did you lead us to Sakamoto? How are we to explain this to the school, if we ever find it?"

"Oh, shut up Watanabe! This is where Shujin should be, the gate said 'Shujin'!" Ryuji insisted though it seemed that he only did it because Kyotaro was back talking to him. He glanced over the interior of the place and looked at the two with uncertainty, "Right?"

"Yeah, it did." Akira reaffirmed as his eyes scanned the place, he tried to rationalize what all of this was. "Maybe it is a remodeling thing, it's the only explanation that makes a lick of sense."

Before Sakamoto could open his mouth to respond to Kurusu-san, the sounds of metal clanking and rocking across the floor could be heard and grew closer to where they were. They turned their heads to see a large body in armor and a blue mask march over to them, nearly knocking them out of their socks with his odd costume.

"Holy shit! Who the heck are you?" Ryuji asked the large figure, unbeknownst to him the knight was slowly raising his sword as he continued talking. "Geez, you freaked me out! So what's with all of this? Did Shujin make some sort of event or something?"

"Sakamoto... " Kyotaro tried to get the blonde's attention, but he was too busy with the knight no longer raising his sword but he still didn't look friendly as he blankly stared at Ryuji.

"Man, your costume is impressive…" He tapped the large figure's armor, still not realizing what was going on. But he did realize something about the knight once he touched it. "Wait… Is your armor real? H-Hey, come on. Say something!"

"Sakamoto, look!" At Kyotaro's demand, Ryuji noticed the two other knights that stood beside the one that first appeared in front of them. They lurched forward with the weapons raised, all three teens taking a large step back in surprise. Kyotaro recommended with a stammering voice and shaken smile that contrasted his pulsating heart, "Guys… Let's book it!"

The two nodded and began to rush for the entrance however two other knights lunged forward and knocked both Ryuji and Kyotaro to the ground, holding them to the ground with the front of their shields while they prevented Akira from running with their swords to his neck. Ryuji cursed as they continued to apply pressure to his back, "Gah! Y-You're gonna break my bones dammit! The hell are you‒ Aagh!"

"Ngh!" Kyotaro felt more force from the shield against his back, causing his vision to go dark as soon as one of the guards called for them to be taken away.