"Alright, let's set things straight. I'm started off about few months back, if that's cool."

4/9 – Saturday

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving in Shibuya shortly."An announcement rang out on the train intercom. "This is the last stop for this line. Please transfer here for all subway lines. The doors to your left will open."

When Akira opened his eyes as he woke up and yawned when a blinding light made him squint. He looked out at the window to see the sunny sky and the city's peaceful scenery from his seat. He had fallen asleep on the train heading to Shibuya, Tokyo.

"Right… It was just a dream," Akira muttered, but then he looked down sadly as flooded memories of his past life came back to him in his mind. "From back then…"

Well, I'm sure that you all know already, but at the end of this month, he will be transferring to another school.

Please! Help!

Damn brat… I'll sue!

Everything's going to be OK.

Akira looked down. In his mind were the voices of a teacher from his old school, a woman pleaded for help, an angry man suing him, and even his parents sadly bidding him farewell.

It turns out that a false accusation had just been leveled against him, forcing poor Akira to transfer and leave his old hometown.

But it was all in the past, and all Akira can do now is accept it and move on.

Just then, Akira overheard two girls talking – gossiping, for that matter.

"Are you for real? A mental shutdown?" One girl exclaimed.

"It's the truth!" Another replied.

"To a person, though? That has to be a joke! You love all that occult stuff, don't you?"

Akira rolled his eyes and sighed as he looked down once again. He thought he heard about a mental shutdown before, but he did know about one thing – his new life was about to begin in the bustling streets of Shibuya.

Akira's long train ride to Tokyo has finally finished.

As the train came around a bend, Akira gazed out the window again at the most epic yet beautiful sight in the distance: Shibuya. He watched each building of the city pass by. Then, he got up from his seat and grabbed his bag as the intercom announced they are approaching Shibuya shortly.

Akira left the train and made it to Shibuya Station as he looked to see a large number of people rushing by, walking down the sidewalk, or simply hanging out at several spots.

"So, this is Shibuya, huh?" Akira said. "Some long trip I took. I wonder how many hours I was out cold. It feels like I'm in another world."

Akira pulled out his cellphone to check any messages while figuring out which way to go by navigating the area and searching for the designated spot to meet his new guardian.

But to his surprise and confusion, however, an unusual icon appeared on it. It was red, bearing a black symbol resembling an eye with a star inside.

When did this app get into my phone? I don't remember downloading it, Akira thought as he tapped the blown-up icon, thinking it may be a virus. But then, he looked up as he became aware of a sudden change to the world around him.

Time stopped as everything started to slow down to a complete stop – people, vehicles, birds flying, even the electronics stopped, as if it had ceased to function.

"Hello?! Anybody?!" Akira called out as he looked around, hoping to find someone experiencing this unexpected phenomenon or an unexplained anomaly.

Just then, Akira suddenly turned around and found something quite bizarre: A massive dark blue fire of crimson flames in the middle of the street slowly forming to what seemed to be a figure with wings on its back. Then, it developed into what appeared to be a face – his face, with a devilish grin, glasses discarded, and golden eyes that looked like he was ready to take on the world.

And just like that, time began to move again.

As soon as Akira blinked, the giant, blue flame was gone, unnoticed by everyone. He didn't quite understand what had just happened.

A moment later, before heading to his destination, Akira sat down near Hachiko's statue to catch a breather as he then deleted the strange red app. It was the weirdest thing that came to his mind when he first arrived.

Was that me in that pillar of fire? Akira thought. And why did time freeze? What's going on here?

But Akira shook his head and continued forward.

As Akira made it to a residential area of Yongen-Jaya and arrived at a café in a back alley, he went inside to see a few customers watching TV and a grown older manager with glasses and a beard looking at his newspaper, doing crossword puzzles while taking a seat.

"A public transit bus drove down an opposing lane with its customers still in it!" A tabloid show host said on TV. "The citizens can't live in peace if this keeps up."

"There's been a string of those rampage accidents, you know," An older customer said to the manager. "I just hope none of them happen around here."

"It's none of my concern," the manager replied.

"Haha, we'll see you next time."

As the two customers leave, the manager noticed Akira already. "So, you're Akira?"

"Uh, yes, that's right," Akira nodded. "You're Sakura-san, right?"

"…Uh-huh. That's right. I'm Sojiro Sakura. I'll be looking after you! I'm the manager at Café Leblanc, so in other words, you'll be in my custody over the next year."

Sojiro chuckled a bit as he looked at Akira. "I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you're the one, huh? Have you been told? A customer of mine and your parents know each other. Well, that about sums it up, not that it matters anyway…"

"I'll indulge," Akira replied.

"Follow me," Sojiro urged Akira to follow him to a rather large attic upstairs. Once there, however, Akira looked around to see the attic looking a bit messy.

"This is your room," Sojiro said to Akira. "I'll at least give you some sheets for your bed. You look like you wanna say something."

"It looks so cluttered," Akira replied.

"That'll be up to you to clean up the rest," Sojiro said. "I'll be leaving after I lock up each day. You'll be alone at night, but don't do anything funny or stupid. I'll throw you out if you cause any trouble." He then sighed as he added, "And I know it's only a year and all, but you stuck here because of what happened and even your parents… that's something."

"Yeah," Akira usually nodded. "Uh, sir? About my case…"

"Save it. I already know the gist of your situation," Sojiro said as he rolled his eyes. "But to think your parents got rid of you for being a pain in the ass. But still, I am in the restaurant business, you know, so behave yourself for the year. You're about to be transferred to Shujin Academy."

"Shujin Academy?" Akira repeated.

"That's where you'll be attending," Sojiro answered. "We'll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there. There's rarely a place that'll accept someone like you, you know." He then pointed to a vast box behind him. "By the way, your 'luggage' arrived earlier."

Sojiro left the attic as he sighed, "What a waste of my Sunday…"

Akira opened the cardboard box that was sent from his hometown. It was full of clothes and daily necessities so that he'll be able to change into more comfortable clothes.

Akira then started to clean up the whole attic for a while from start to finish.

A few moments later, as day turned to night, Akira changed into his pajamas and lay down on the bed when something was on his mind. "To think I couldn't just let it go. Arrest… Trial… Record… I can't believe what happened after that."

Damn brat…I'll sue.

Akira turned around by the sound of a man's voice echoing in his mind, but he can't believe anything after that arrest. "But still, I couldn't just let it go… That day… I had to go home early…"

Akira held his head as he groaned and muttered to himself, "My head is aching so bad that everything's spinning. This must be what it's like to see your own life flash before you at the end…!"

Akira let his mind drifted back to his hometown neighborhood from that night. If he remembers right, he was about to walk home early that night when he heard the sound of arguing in the distance.

"Just get in the car!"

"Stop it!"

Akira got closer and saw a drunk, bald man bothering a woman, or instead forcing himself on her, standing on the sidewalk while struggling to keep the woman on hold.

"You think you're worth causing me trouble? Huh?"

"I-I'll call the police!" The woman resisted.

"Heh, call them if you want! The police are my bitches. They're not going to take you seriously."

"No… Stop…!"

"Hey!" Akira shouted. "You heard her. Stop!"

The drunk man suddenly noticed Akira. "…What're you looking at? Get out of my face! This isn't a show. Get lost, kid!"

Before Akira could do anything, he heard a police siren.

"See? This is all because you're so damn slow!" The drunk man taunted, then he ordered the woman. "Get in the car! Incompetent fools like you just need to shut their mouths and follow where I steer this country!"

Sighing in dismay and frustration, Akira turned away, trying to forget that memory.

"Arrgghhhh… It wasn't supposed to be like this," Akira groaned, not quite sure how he remembered that night. "But what a letdown."

Akira sighed as he was about to get some sleep when his phone rang. Hoping it was a message from his parents, he pulled out his cellphone in relief, but his smile faded when he finds an unfamiliar red app on it – the same weird app from before.

"I thought I deleted it…Wait, didn't I delete that?" Akira muttered while his eyes became heavy, drifting him to a peaceful sleep.

Akira slowly opened his eyes as he heard rattling chains. He looked around at his surroundings, only to see that he was in a dark and damp prison cell room in vibrant blue.

"Wh-what the—!? Where am I!?" Akira asked with shocking eyes as he got up. Then he noticed his hands are cuffed in chains. His pajamas had also changed into a set of black-and-white striped prison clothes, and his right leg is chained to an iron ball to stop him from doing any movement as he stammered in utter confusion and panicked. "Why am I dressed like this!? When did I— Aaaaaahhhh, what's with this!?"

Akira had no clue about this velvet-colored nightmare when he heard a chuckle from someone watching him. He turned to where that laughter came from, only to be greeted by a young girl as he walked up toward her but then stopped to see another young girl standing right beside her.

The two girls stood before Akira. Both had one yellow eye and an eyepatch over another, wearing blue warden clothes. They even had different silver-hair styles – one had her hair up in buns, and the other had her hair down in a braid. They stepped aside to introduce Akira to yet another person sitting behind a long desk.

The older man with a bizarre face, seated before a surprised Akira, greeted him with a smiling expression. "Trickster… Allow me to bid you welcome to my Velvet Room."

"Trickster!? Velvet Room!?" Akira repeated as he looked around to see a series of prison cells in a circular blue room while the strange man sat in the middle.

"So, you've come to, Inmate," The girl in buns spoke in an overbearing voice.

"The you in reality is currently fast asleep," The other girl in a braid said to Akira in a calm voice. "You are only experiencing this as a dream."

"You're in the presence of our master! Stand up straight!" The first girl barked.

"Master?" Akira repeated as he looked up to see the bizarre man before him.

"Welcome. I am delighted to make your acquaintance," The strange man said, welcoming Akira. "This place exists on the line between dreams and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a 'contract' may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well."

Contract…? Akira repeated as he recalled having another dream from before. I thought that voice sounded familiar but is this what he meant by 'contract'?

"Now then… Why don't you introduce yourself?" Igor asked.

"Akira Kurusu," Akira answered.

Igor nodded. "Very well. I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well."

"Important matters?" Akira repeated.

"Still, I must admit this is a surprise…," Igor said as he looked around the entirety of the Velvet Room. "The state of this room reflects the state of the occupant's heart. Quite telling to think that a prison would reveal itself to you as such." He then looked back at Akira. "Therefore, you must be shackled by something far greater. Whether you see yourself as a prisoner of society, you truly are a prisoner of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you. But continue down the path you're on, and you will surely meet with that very ruin."

"Ruin!?" Akira repeated.

"I speak of the end to everything," Igor answered. "However, there is a means to oppose such a fate you will receive. You must be 'rehabilitated.' Rehabilitated toward freedom… That is your only means to avoid ruin. Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?"

"Ruin? Distortion of the world?" Akira repeated the mention of those words.

Akira had a similar dream about it before, but could it have something to do about the night of his arrest? He pondered for a moment, but then it suddenly hit him – he was asked to reform society in his dream.

Akira turned to Igor with an answer. "I'd rather avoid ruin."

"Excellent. I expect as much," Igor chuckled. "Now, allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation."

But just then, Igor gestured to the two girls in front of Akira. "Ah, pardon me, for I have neglected not to be introducing the others. To your right is Caroline, and to your left is Justine. They serve as wardens here, so I hope you'll get along."

"Hmph, try and struggle as hard as you like," Caroline spoke up to Akira.

"The duty of wardens is to protect inmates," Justine added. "We are also your collaborators. ...That is, if you remain obedient."

"I shall explain the roles of these two on another occasion," Igor said. "Now then, it seems the night is waning… it is almost time."

"Thanks for the warning, but I think I'll be just fine," Akira said but then paused for a moment. "Wait, what're you talking about?"
"Take your time to come to understand this place slowly," Igor reassured Akira. "We will surely meet again, eventually..."

Just then, a grating sound of alarming bells rang, surprising Akira.

"Time's up!" Caroline ordered Akira. "Now hurry up and go back to sleep."

"Wait! I still need to—" Akira pleaded in desperation, gripping the bars. Suddenly, his eyes felt heavy once again when everything around him fades to black as he went fast asleep.

4/10 – Sunday

Akira suddenly woke up to see a warm morning outside. From the window of the attic above Leblanc, he could see that it is broad daylight in Yongen-Jaya.

What a strange dream, Akira thought. But what was all that, anyway? About ruin and rehabilitation and the distortion of the world! What does it all mean? And why me?

As Akira hopped off his bed to stretch himself, he can't stop thinking about that odd dream as he took off his pajamas and got dressed in his school uniform.

That dream seemed so natural. I can still feel the shackles around me, Akira thought once more, but he shook his head. I don't even know what's going on either.

"Looks like you're up," Sojiro spoke up as he walked up to Akira. "Well then, let's go introduce ourselves properly to the staff about your transfer. The school you're attending is in the Aoyama district. It'll cost you a bit to ride the train there, and the route transfers are a pain. I'll drive you there, but just for today."

"OK," Akira nodded.

"Sheesh… Men aren't usually allowed in my passenger seat," Sojiro muttered to himself as he turned to Akira. "Oh, and do me a favor and behave yourself, all right? Don't get me wrong-I just don't care what happens to you. Just don't cause me any trouble."

The following morning, Akira and Sojiro were already at the principal's office inside Shujin Academy, meeting its principal, Kobayakawa, and a female homeroom teacher, Sadayo Kawakami.

"I heard some interesting things about you, but this school does not look upon grade-grubbers like you," Principal Kobayakawa said to Akira. "And just because you're transferred here does not mean you'll be getting any special treatment!"

Akira sighed. "Why am I not surprised?"

"So, to reiterate, just so we're clear, you will be expelled if you cause any more problems," The principal said to Akira harshly. "Honestly, I hesitated to accept someone like you, but there were some circumstances on our side. In my opinion, you're nothing but a liability, and we still had our circumstances to consider. You might've done a lot of things in your hometown, but you WILL behave yourself here. Whatever you might've gotten away with back then, those days are over."

"Understood," Akira answered, nodding.

"If you're thrown out of our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind," The principal added as he introduced Ms. Kawakami. "This is the teacher in charge of your class."

"I'm Sadayo Kawakami," Ms. Kawakami spoke up, neutrally introducing herself as she then put something on the table for him, "Here's your student ID."

Akira took it and also a little red book as well. "Thanks, I suppose."

"Be sure to read the school rules on the book," Kawakami added. "Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. And, by chance you cause any problems, I won't be able to protect you at all." She then turned to the principal. "...That IS your promise, yes, Principal Kobayakawa?"

"Of course. He is responsible for all his actions," Principal Kobayakawa replied.

"But really though, why me? There should have been better candidates."

"It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one that had an opening."

"Um, if you're done explaining things, mind if we get going?" Sojiro interrupted. "I got a store to get back to."

"Sakura-san, please keep a close eye on Kurusu-kun," Principal Kobayakwa warned Sojiro. "Don't let him cause any trouble outside..."

"Sure, I'll be sure to talk about the situation he's in."

"Come to the faculty office when you arrive at school tomorrow," Ms. Kawakami said to Akira. "I'll show you to your classroom."

Akira nodded as a couple of paperwork regarding the transfer was already signed.

After they left Shujin Academy, Akira and Sojiro headed back to Leblanc.

"They even treat you like a nuisance over here, too," Sojiro said to Akira. "It turns out your past follows you wherever you go. As if it'll treat you like you don't belong anywhere."

"That I can manage," Akira replied.

Sojiro sighed. "I never thought you would be enrolled at a different one. Not like anyone will be sympathetic to you. A lot happened before you arrived. Come on, let's go home."

"Why does everyone keep getting on my case?" Akira asked.

"Well, everyone is giving you the cold shoulder, right? That's what having a certain record does to you. Anyway, you'll be taking the train starting tomorrow. You think you can manage?"

"It'll be tough," Akira answered, slowly seeing that Shujin Academy might successfully rehabilitate him, like in the dream of the Velvet Room.

Meanwhile, afternoon at the school courtyard, Kawakami and a jersey-wearing gym teacher were already conversing.

"What a troublesome situation." The gym teacher said to Kawakami.

"I can't believe they pushed someone with a record on me," Kawakami replied. "A male teacher would be better suited for this..."

"Why in the world was someone like that admitted here?"

"Who knows? It was the principal's decision," Kawakami answered. "I was told that it's for the school's reputation."

"I would've thought that my volleyball team has contributed more than enough to cover that."

"That's certainly true."

"Be careful, OK?" The gym teacher warned Kawakami. "Then again, if anything were to happen, I'd kick out a student like that right away."

"I keep wishing that he'd just end up not coming to school," Kawakami said as she looked away. "Still, that isn't something I should be saying as a teacher..."

"Well, I should be returning to practice."

"Oh, right. The tournament's coming up, isn't it?" Kawakami remembered.

"Hehe, having such high expectations placed on you by others is quite a problem in itself," The gym teacher said. "We'll have to work hard to make up for the track team too."

As the gym teacher left, Kawakami muttered to herself, "Why'd it have to be my class?"

That evening, a terrible subway incident occurred on the same day as news regarding it was shown on TV. It was one of those recent psychotic breakdown incidents that became an uproar of the general public.

It even caught the attention of an individual public prosecutor and her superior once they watched the news feed on TV at the Special Investigations Unit (SIU, for short).

"That was direct footage from the accident," A female newscaster announced as the image of the subway accident was shown. "According to the police, the engineer's life was not in danger, despite his injuries. After questioning, even he could not explain his high speed when approaching the station. No further comments were made. Police are still looking for a plausible motive."

"It's less of an operating accident and more of a crime of the company and the government," The SIU Director said, watching the news. "Site inspectors reported all of this six months ago - the deterioration of the tracks and the ATC. It seems the railway company and the Ministry of Transport both turned a blind eye to the truth. There's no way they could hide. This would go all the way up to the top."

"Now on to our main story…," The newscaster continued. "With this derailment accident, as well as other recent incidents of unknown motives, the concern is spreading among the general public. Just what could be causing such a drastic change so suddenly at these people?"

"Everything's linked - that's what you're thinking, correct? Ah well," The SIU Director then turned to the female prosecutor. "Are you free? You and I haven't gone for a drink in a while."

"Thank you, sir, but I have another meeting to attend," The prosecutor said to her superior as she bowed. "I must be going."

As the prosecutor left, the SIU Director closed his eyes as he leaned back in his chair.

Walking downstairs, the prosecutor met up with a young, brunette 17-year-old detective teenage boy in the middle.

"Did you ask for me? Is it a case?" The boy asked with a smile.

"Not quite," The prosecutor answered. "But I want your opinion on something."

"Sure. Your judgment is quite often correct, though. Can we discuss this over sushi, perhaps? You are making a student work late after all."

"Conveyor belt only."

The boy sighed in dismay with a frowning disappointment on his face.

At the same time as night had fallen, Akira and Sojiro returned to Leblanc.

"Damn, to think there'd be much traffic… What a waste of time," Sojiro sighed in dismay. "I wasn't able to open the cafe today…" Then he turned to Akira. "...Whatever. Just head upstairs. There's something I need to give you."

"OK," Akira nodded.

A moment later, as Akira got dressed in pajamas in the attic, Sojiro arrived with a black notebook in his hand.

"It's a diary. Make sure you keep it up to date," Sojiro reminded Akira. "You may be under some circumstances, but there are no special limitations on what you do in particular. Besides following the law, that is. However, I'm obligated to report on you, which is why I have you record your daily activities."

Akira nodded. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me just yet," Sojiro said. "I'll lock up, so do whatever you want for the rest of the night. But don't just mess up my store. You got school tomorrow. You better head off to bed, all right?"

Akira nodded, "…Understood."

"Oh, and I might have forgotten the flip the sign to CLOSED. It's too much of a hassle for me to go back, so you flip the sign for me."

"OK, got it," Akira answered. "By the way, you called the public phone?"

"Sorry. I make it a habit not to save guys' numbers on my cell phone. I'm leaving you in charge of the door sign."

As Sojiro left, Akira flipped the door sign to CLOSED and went back to the attic.

"I need to take a train to school…," Akira muttered as he checked on his phone. "Yongen-Jaya… Aoyama Ichome… Transfer… More news about that subway accident. It sounds like a lot of people were hurt. I bet it'll affect the timetables for tomorrow too..."

Just then, the red and black app appeared on Akira's phone again.

"I thought I deleted it," Akira groaned. "I should reboot my phone, just in case…"

Putting down his cellphone, Akira's eyelids started to get heavy as he drifted back to sleep – this time, no dreams of the Velvet Room either.

4/11 – Monday

The next day, Akira managed to wake up early and ate his breakfast in the form of curry. Then, he went out to the train station that leads to the Aoyama district, where Shujin Academy is. Finding himself hiding under an awning of the store from getting wet by the rain outside, Akira checked his phone once more to check the time. However, he sighed as the red app from before was still here as it filled up half the phone's screen.

"This again…?" Akira muttered. "I just rebooted it last night, and it's still back on."

Just then, a hooded figure hurried under the same awning as Akira. Taking off its hood, it revealed to be a young woman about the same age as Akira, with platinum blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes. She was wearing a modified, black Shujin blazer uniform over her white hoodie that reaches down her skirt.

The young woman suddenly noticed Akira, who stared back at her, but she didn't seem to mind when she smiled at him, then looked back at the raining scenery, as did Akira.

Just then, a silver car drove up and parked right in front of them as its driver, the gym teacher Kawakami talked to yesterday, looked at the young girl.

"Good morning!" The gym teacher greeted her. "You want me to give you a ride to school? You're going to be late."

"Um, sure. Thank you," The girl said as she got in the silver car to fasten her seatbelt.

"You need a lift too?" The gym teacher asked Akira when he looked at him.

"Oh, er… Nah, I'm good," Akira insisted as he then noticed the young girl's depressed expression at the short moment.

Akira watched the car drove off. What am I doing? He thought. I already know where I am, let alone where I'm going. Why did I say no? What's wrong with me today?

Just then, Akira thought he heard footsteps coming. He turned around to see another person about the same age as him running by. It was a vulgar boy, wearing the same Shujin blazer uniform as Akira and the young girl over his yellow shirt while his belt suspenders hanged loosely.

The vulgar boy was chasing after the gym teacher's silver car. Still, it was too late as the vehicle departed farther away. He looked at the car as he seemed pretty irritated. "Dammit… Screw that pervy teacher."

"…Pervy teacher?" Akira repeated quietly, unaware that the app chimed in response. When he looked back at the app on his phone, he tried to exit it out of it, not realizing that the vulgar boy looked back at him irritably.

Akira closed his eyes and sighed in dismay because the app did not exit out on its own. However, when he opened his eyes, he noticed a bit of the vulgar boy's blonde hair on his phone's reflection. He looked up and was startled to see that the vulgar boy was standing there while giving him a fierce look in his brown eyes.

"…What do you want?" The vulgar boy asked Akira as he called out to him. "You plannin' on rattin' me out to Kamoshida?"

Akira shook his head but then asked, "Who?"

"Huh? In that car just now. It was Kamoshida."

Akira looked back at the gym teacher in the silver car earlier as he thought, Oh, I guess he meant that driver who gave that cute girl a ride.

"He does whatever the hell he wants," The vulgar boy continued. "He's way too into high school girls. He gives them rides in his car, calls them in for some 'private counseling.' Who does he think he is – the king of a castle? Don't you agree?"

"Well, I wouldn't say that…," Akira replied, not catching the boy's sarcasm. "But the king of a castle? Which castle?"

"Uh, it's just a saying…" The vulgar boy said, but then he looked at Akira in confusion. "Wait. You really don't know Kamoshida? Are you for real? You're from Shujin, right?"

"I think so…," Akira solemnly said. "Don't you go to Shujin, too?"

"What? No other high schools got a uniform like that," The vulgar boy pointed at Akira's black blazer as he then noticed the number 2 button on the collar. "A second-year, huh? We're the same grade then. Never seen you before, though."

The vulgar boy pondered for a bit, and then it hit him. "Oh, are you a transfer student?"

Akira nodded, "Yep."

"Then no wonder you don't know him," The vulgar boy scoffed as he then turned and urged Akira to follow him. "This rain ain't too bad. We better hurry up, or we'll be late."

"You're a very shrewd guy," Akira said to the vulgar boy. "OK, you lead the way, Mr…. Uh, I didn't get your name."

"Ryuji," The vulgar boy introduced his name. "Ryuji Sakamoto."

Suddenly, as the two were about to step forward to Shujin, they felt a sudden pulse on their heads with sharp pain and dizziness.

"What…was that?" Akira blinked as he recovered from whatever just happened when the pain in his head slipped away. "I feel lightheaded all of a sudden."

"Uuugh, my head hurts…," Ryuji groaned as he recovered. "Dammit… I wanna go home…"

? – The interrogation room

"…There was a terrible subway accident that day," Sae said to Akira after hearing the first half of his story. "You remember it, don't you?"

"I did," Akira answered.

"I assume you know of the uproar that the public calls the 'psychotic breakdown incidents.'"

"I might."

Sae crossed her arms. "You say that like it's none of your business. It was all over the news, and one of the victims included a teacher at your school. I've no doubt you heard about it. On that day, were you still an 'ordinary' student?"

"What do you mean?" Akira asked.

"…Let me change the question," Sae said, changing the subject. "You transferred to Shujin Academy, correct?"

Akira nodded.

"An ordinary prep school that could be found in any city…," Sae continued. "That's what it should've been. What happened around that time? Tell me everything – truthfully."

"OK," Akira said as he continued with the story…