Mushi Uta:Volume 7 Chapter 1

1.00 Akatsuki Part 1

The beings that possessed adolescent boys and girl and devoured their dreams to grow—Mushi.

Although at first there were only limited sightings, these grew with time.

This meant that Mushi, or rather the Mushitsuki possessed by them, have experienced an explosive growth. Mushitsuki stirred up trouble for the populace at every opportunity, so people gradually started fearing them.

It is said that in the initial stages, the military had been employed in order to restrain the increasing numbers of Mushitsuki.

However, normal soldiers had difficulties against the wide range of Mushitsuki abilities. Also, since the military's movements caused unrest in the public, they weren't suited to the purpose of concealing Mushi.

Finally, a certain method had been suggested, then employed.

Fighting fire with fire—

By training the captured Mushitsuki, they would be able to stealthily capture the Mushitsuki blending in with the populace.

A government agency was formed to capture, train, and at times isolate and research Mushitsuki. On the surface their actions would never come to light, and behind the scenes they managed everything related to Mushi.

The Special Environmental Preservation Bureau.

Called the SEPB for short, this organization was deployed throughout the entire country and managed to acquire many Mushitsuki subordinates. Due to the work of the SEPB, the current public awareness of Mushi was able to preserve the delicate balance between truth and fiction.

Why was there a need to conceal Mushi that even led to that organization being formed?

The reason for that wasn't revealed even to the SEPB members.

"—'A town where Mushi disappear', huh?"

Special Environmental Preservation Bureau, East Central Branch.

A faint, sweet fragrance drifted through the conference room located inside the building. It probably came from the flower vase near the wall.

"Sounds like the title of some B-grade horror movie."

The size of the conference room was about that of the classroom of his previous high school. It had a square table and a chair made of some unknown material.

The room was dreary and the only things that could be called furnishing were just about the plain file cabinet, the projector placed in the further end of the room and its slides. That was why the vase at the front was so conspicuous.

His face reflected on the polished wall behind the vase.

"…So, what does that have to do with me?"

Seeing his face, he thought he looked like a ghost.

During these last months he grew taller and his body became fitter, perhaps owing to his training. His long hair was parted for convenience, but that still irritated him upon seeing it.  He still hadn't gotten used to the dark coat that darkened his expression so much.

If his past friends were to see him now, would they be able to recognize him as Ogata Akatsuki?

He'd already lost all of his friends that he could laugh along with. —And that very reality caused Akatsuki to smile less and less.

"Umm, the truth is that the North Central Branch—oh! That vase? Someone from the West Central Branch brought it when they were helping with the repairs here. Creation abilities are really amazing, aren't they? This place'd been completely trashed by Harukiyo but they've managed to fix it all up perfectly. The interior's also a work of art—well, I'm glad Nene-san's restored all of this, but maybe we should've left this to a specialist?"

While Akatsuki stood at the door, the woman sitting on a chair on the other side of the room spoke happily.

She was wearing a business suit, but one button was put into the wrong hole. She didn't look like an adult in her early twenties due to her bed hair and not wearing any makeup.

She was Akatsuki's boss, Goroumaru Touko. She served as the Acting Branch Director, and the fact that she held the most authority within the East Central Branch here seemed like a bad joke. Although the original Branch Director Haji Keigo had retired due to his grievous injuries, it still seemed impossible.

"The person herself apparently said 'Art is inorganic! Plants are philosophy! Die, humans!'  She's just handsome enough to fall in love with—well, but she's a girl."

"Stop there, Acting Branch Director. He's getting angry."

The one who stopped Touko from talking was a middle-aged man sitting on a chair in the corner, smoking a cigarette. Although he was wearing a fancy suit, his face looked unattractive while he played with his white-mottled hair. Position-wise he was Touko's subordinate, but he never spoke politely to her.

The incompetent Acting Branch Director and her detached Assistant Branch Director. It was his first time to be summoned while they were both present. Akatsuki hoped he wasn't called here just to get annoyed.

A calm voice rose from immediately next to Akatsuki.

"Can we return to the matter at hand, Acting Branch Director?"

He could feel the warmth in his hand.

The girl clad in the same coat as Akatsuki, Haji Senri, wore a serious expression. Her long, blue hair shone as it reflected the light. Her slightly drooping eyes were gazing at empty air even as she spoke to Touko.

Due to her congenital blindness, Senri lost all her sense of sight. She was one of Akatsuki's friends and had become a member of the East Central Branch this year. In addition to being a Mushitsuki, she was also the younger sister of the previous Branch Director.

"Let's leave, Senri. This is probably not a big deal."

He had no idea what the matter was, but had no intention of watching his boss's comedy routine.

Akatsuki came to the East Central Branch in order to protect Senri. He hadn't the slightest of intentions to either grow used to or become friends with the SEPB that used Mushitsuki to capture other Mushitsuki.

He prioritized protecting the lone survivor, Senri—

That was his tacit agreement with his dead friends.

And there was another reason.

Akatsuki had yet to fulfill the other objective he'd joined the East Central Branch for.

"Senri?"

Senri made no move. She looked up to his face and shook her head. He furrowed his brows.

"Uh, I'm sorry. Right, that's not what I wanted to talk about."

Touko cleared her throat, finally recalling what she wanted to say.

"Akatsuki-san. Do you understand the situation in the East Central Branch?"

"Who knows? I am not really interested."

He replied immediately. Whatever happened to the SEPB or to the East Central Branch he belonged to was of no interest to him. He was simply going to follow orders.

"A few days ago, Chiharu-san and Ubuki-san have vanished."

Akatsuki made no response. Neither of them had anything to do with him.

"Since there were signs they had contacted someone from the outside, it appears that Chiharu-san had already intended to join up with someone. I believe that Ubuki-san has followed her voluntarily."

"I said I was not interested."

Even while responding in an apathetic manner, he still felt dubious. The two people Touko spoke of were important. And yet they have slipped through all security and vanished.

Had someone let them escape on purpose…?

Thinking so might have been reasonable, but he still didn't care either way.

"I'd sent Kabuto out on a search mission, but since he was unable to find anything in these few days I gave up and recalled him. Since Ubuki-san's involved, it's better to assume that they have gone beyond our jurisdiction. —Oh, so is that another one of my mistake as Branch Director? Will I get another salary cut?"

"I was on leave until yesterday so it has nothing to do with me. Bear the responsibility by yourself, miss Acting Branch Director."

"Ugh, you only treat me like your superior when it suits you… Oh, and the intelligence unit's also a bit of a mess. Maimai-san took a lot of independent actions. You see, it's because she really admires Wanko—err, Asagi. The person from the West Central Branch I mentioned before was also apparently her disciple… I found out something bad."

"What exactly do you mean by something bad? Is this about the Instructor?"

Senri bent forward, curious.

Central Headquarters Special Class Rank 3 member Asagi, Shishidou Inuko. This girl had the bizarre appearance of wearing a raincoat and brandishing a hockey stick, but she unexpectedly showed up in the East Central Branch a few times that winter.

Inuko, as part of her special mission of educating combatants, made Senri go through training when she lacked real battle experience. And just like when she had appeared, she also vanished suddenly.

Akatsuki recalled that before she vanished, Inuko had seen him while he was with Senri and ridiculed him.

—You sure look like a newbie. Seeing your face makes me depressed.

Rolling a lollipop inside her mouth, she laughed at the person higher in rank than her.

—The Acting Branch Director also asked me to look after you, but nope. I only teach "warriors", not avengers. Do wash your face and turn a new leaf.

I didn't want it, either, he thought. He'd heard that this raincoat girl had once fought alongside that guy. He wanted no lessons from someone like her.

Ignoring Akatsuki who was opposed to this, Senri had grown unbelievably strong. She developed new abilities one after another as if losing all restraints. Although her personality was twisted, the raincoat girl's teaching skills were apparently the real deal.

"Rather than bad maybe it's horrible… the ones that produced the candies that served as Wanko-san's lifeline are the West Central Branch. But apparently the production was put to a stop. The one to issue this order was the Vice-Director—"

Senri's hand that was held within Akatsuki's tensed.

"The Vice-Director—"

A red light burned inside the room.

As Senri widened her unseeing eyes, red sparks flew around. The table, the chairs, and the flowers in the vase were all covered by insect-like sparks.

"So the Instructor died because of Central Headquarters…?!"

Although she'd gotten stronger, her awareness of her abilities was still rather new. She couldn't fully control her Mushi yet.

"C-calm down, Senri-san! Hot, it's hot! Ah, even my suit…!"

"The direct cause of death was wounds caused by battle. According to the report it was a result of her fighting Shinpu. Even so, the process that led there…"

Branch Director Assistant Ishimaki spoke calmly while nimbly avoiding the sparks.

He heard that Shishidou Inuko had reported about finding Shinpu and was subsequently killed in action. Shinpu was one of the original Prototype Mushi that gave birth to all Mushitsuki.

"Senri, calm down."

When Akatsuki whispered to her Senri was taken aback. The red sparks around vanished.

"A-anyway, Maimai-san's gotten angry because of that… We managed to somehow calm her down for now, but it's only a matter of time until the other disciples find out. I mean, we've also asked Wanko-san for help now and again, but she really was someone great. Seems like her death has plenty of effects, tahaha."

"You sure have it easy."

In contrast to Touko's amicable laugh, Akatsuki directed a derisive smile at her.

"Even if one Mushitsuki dies—no, no matter how many people die, you can laugh it away in a safe place."

"I don't think that's the proper way of speaking to a superior, Kaguya-kun. You'll get demoted."

"Could you please not refer to me using that name? I'm Ogata Akatsuki."

"Adults really are horrible. How annoying; when all sorts of things happen and children younger than us die we can't even cry. Tahaha."

While scratching her bed hair, Touko wore a pitiful smile.

"I can't even bring up memories of Wanko-san just because I can't allow myself to cry in front of my subordinates. I've talked about a lot with her, and she can hold her liquor, too. Oh, that's against the law, isn't it. Oops, can't think about that. Tahaha."

Midway through her speech Touko's ears reddened. She pretended to fix her glasses and her bangs covered her face.

"Haji-senpai sure is amazing. I was supposed to be prepared for this but losing a single person makes me want to run away…"

"Even if you reminiscence about people who're gone nothing will advance. You're the one pulling the East Central Branch together. You can't show your weakness to your subordinates. And it's not like our branch lost its manpower."

Receiving Ishimaki's admonishment, Touko mumbled "R-right" and straightened her back.

Even seeing Touko hold back her tears, Akatsuki felt nothing.

It didn't matter at all.

No matter what happened around him, it had nothing to do with him. He had no interest in any changes.

"Sorry for disrupting the conversation again. Umm, so, on that note, Akatsuki-san."

Raising her face, Touko went back to herself and smiled amicably.

"You will go to the North Central Branch."

"…!"

Akatsuki's expression froze. He couldn't immediately grasp the meaning of Touko's words.

"Apparently there have been strange phenomena occurring in the area under the North Central Branch's jurisdiction. Oh, do you know about them? They're very disciplined, have plenty of strong members and their mission completion rate is high. That's amazing when thinking about the large area under their care."

"They're the Central Headquarters' lapdogs. In contrast to our Branch of rebels and South's shut-ins, they're living the good life. They're similar in essence to West who are simply happy creating anything."

"How blunt… A-anyway, a reinforcement request came from North Central Branch. It looks like the branch's higher-ranked members unfortunately have their hands full, so they want more Ranked members. Since you're a Blaze Class Rank 2 I believe you fit their requirements to a tee."

"Is that mission about the 'town where Mushi disappear' you've mentioned earlier?"

Akatsuki glanced at Senri in surprise. She hadn't seemed surprised at this sudden order.

"Exactly. Umm, actually, rather than Mushi disappearing, it's more like aren't any Mushitsuki in the first place, or that there's some cause—"

"W-wait a minute!"

Akatsuki finally wrung out his voice.

"Why are you making us go help the North Central Branch or whatever? And of all times, during this period—"

"'Us'? Tahaha, it's rare for you to mishear things like that, Akatsuki-san. Didn't I say that you're going there? You're going alone, Akatsuki-san."

Having Touko laugh at him made him snap.

"D-don't joke with me! You're leaving Senri to someone and sending me to the North Central Branch by myself? I will obviously not obey such an order!"

"Hah, so it's no good?"

"You told me to come to the East Central Branch to protect Senri—hadn't you invited me here for that?! I won't let you say you forgot! And now you're telling me to go to the North Central Branch? Don't screw with me!"

"Akatsuki-kun."

Senri pulled the infuriated Akatsuki's hand.

"I asked this of the Acting Branch Director. I asked her if she could give you missions from the outside."

"Wha—"

I don't understand anything anymore. He grabbed Senri's shoulders, still confused.

"You know I'm here in place of Iori-kun or Azu, right? I can't be separated from you, Senri. So why—"

"Please calm down, Akatsuki-san."

I am calm!

He wanted to shout this, but shut his mouth.

Although she smiled friendlily until now, Touko now looked at him with a sad expression.

Taken aback and looking at Senri, his friend also bit her lower lip forlornly. As for Ishimaki, he simply lit up his next cigarette with an exasperated expression.

Akatsuki couldn't understand why they were all looking at him like that. He felt as if he was being subjected to some malicious prank.

"You don't understand even after our conversation just now? Really, can't you feel it?"

Touko said in a calm tone.

"Are you talking about Chiharu-san running away and about Maimai and the other disciples? Other than it being your carelessness, what else is there to feel—"

"The next major battle is approaching."

"…!"

"What made Chiharu-san move was probably a new force other than the Central Headquarters or Mushibane. It's probably one of the few others organizations, lurking in the shadows or perhaps waiting patiently for the right time to come… I do not know."

Touko stuck out her fist toward the silent Akatsuki. She lifted up her pointing finger and then her middle one.

"Mushibane's movements also changed a few weeks ago. They returned to their activities of protecting wild Mushitsuki as if all their hatred for the SEPB was gone. Even when we found and attacked them there was no reply. Even when they had victims among their allies. There is only one explanation—they probably have a new leader."

Touko kept lifting her fingers.

"Wanko-san's disciples will also begin to move. They were only taught one thing—to fight. Those who inherited that will are going to rise to the stage of battle. Even the South Central Branch, despite being shut-in like we've just said, appears to be on the movie. Also, even Harukiyo's group's starting to act gradually more exposed."

After spreading all five fingers, she once again clenched them into a tight fist.

"Central Headquarters are gathering power in preparation for inducing something. The other branches, Mushibane, other groups like the ones who are moving Chiharu-san, and Harukiyo will all be striking from the sides. And in the end, where will Central Headquarters receive that decisive blow?"

"…"

"Anywhere's fine. This is simply an opportunity."

Touko brought her clenched fist to her chest. As if she was keeping it from swinging down with sheer force of will.

"But the ones who'll finish up this fight are us, the East Central Branch. This duty alone we will never hand to anyone else…!"

Senri nodded strongly next to Akatsuki. As for Ishimaki, he merely shrugged with a complex expression.

"…What about Kakkou?"

A low mutter escaped Akatsuki's mouth. He glared at Touko and then asserted.

"I don't care what anyone else does right now. Where is he right now and what is he doing? It isn't far-fetched to think he'd already recovered from the wounds he suffered against Oogui. Even so, never mind his whereabouts, I haven't heard anything about him!"

He raised his voice without noticing. He now dumped out the true reason for his smoldering rage.

In the battle against Oogui, one of the Original Three who birthed Mushitsuki, the boy called Kakkou was wounded grievously. The major secret that spilled out of his mouth during the fight would surely spread to the entire Special Environmental Preservation Bureau.

The reason for Akatsuki to stay in the East Central Branch other than Senri.

That was Kakkou's existence.

That Mushitsuki had taken a life that was dear to him as much as Senri's. —And so Akatsuki kept living and serving the SEPB just so that he could take his revenge.

"We've been talking about something completely different but he's the only thing you can think about, huh…"

Touko lowered her fist, her expression clouding over. Akatsuki gritted his teeth.

"Isn't that strange?! If the next fight's about to start, isn't Kakkou going to fight as well? There's no way that demon wouldn't! Is he trying to kill someone right now? Where's Kakkou!"

"Akatsuki-kun…"

Senri clung to his arm with teary eyes.

"Please… Stop already…"

"Senri! You're being deceived, Senri! Wake up already!"

"You are the one who needs to wake up, Akatsuki-san."

Speaking in this harsh tone was Touko.

"Do you still not understand? Now that everyone's heading toward the next fight, you're the only one still being bound by the past."

"I don't give a fuck about the next fight! I—"

"It's been that way ever since your battle with Oogui at Shiou City. Your desire for revenge against Kakkou burns even brighter."

His heart skipped a beat. He wanted to deny it, but his throat suddenly clamped down.

"You found out the truth that Kakkou-san is trying to end all fighting. And when you saw this, you wondered whether or not he had killed Mushibane's previous leader, Lady Bird—Tachibana Rina-san."

"…!"

"Oogui can use the abilities of all Minion Type Mushitsuki she'd given birth to—did you wonder why Haji-senpai alone, as the biggest supporter, kept this fact close to his chest? I have obviously asked Kakkou about it. I inquired him if he didn't think that the best method to simply defeat Oogui would be to make all the powerful Mushitsuki, including Lady, fight amongst themselves and destroy each other."

Touko smiled. It wasn't her usual amicable smile, but a complex smile like that of someone taking care of a problem child.

"'I just have to become the strongest Mushitsuki'—that was his answer."

Akatsuki gulped.

Taking on Oogui was the same as fighting against all Minion Types at the same time. And he still intended on winning by himself despite knowing this?

How foolish.

Yet Kakkou was deadly serious. That was why he was the strongest and able to survive this long.

It was as though the other Mushitsuki had all been looking at the wrong thing—is what he thought.

"Tahaha… we can say that Kakkou-san's the only one looking at the right enemy. Yet letting him fight all alone makes me a bit angry. He never easily shows his true heart to anyone, and he's apparently the type of guy to hold more secrets the closer he is to you. I wonder if all Fusion Type Mushitsuki are like that?"

Fixing her glasses, the unreliable boss wore her amicable smile again.

"It isn't that Kakkou got called a demon because he liked it. He simply fought and fought to protect his promise with a certain girl. —Yet he ended up with too many burdens along the way. If he'd revealed the secret it was possible that even Lady Bird and all other Mushitsuki would become his enemies. Yet he didn't do so…"

Akatsuki couldn't argue against Touko's words.

"Also, Lady's death was sad. He probably hesitated until the very final moment. And his hesitation caused Lady's Mushi to reach Maturation. Because he felt this way, he announced that he'd killed her. —Although that's the source of his strength, I don't want to think about this anymore…"

"You've probably realized this after fighting Oogui, right? Yet you couldn't accept it, instead fanning the flames of revenge inside your heart."

Ishimaki moved the cigarette in his mouth with an insolent expression.

"Can you not accept Lady's death unless it's someone's fault? Even Mushibane that you belonged to already got over her death and started something new. We don't need such half-hearted combatants at the East Central Branch."

Touko, Ishimaki and Senri all looked at Akatsuki.

"This is an order. Ogata Akatsuki-san—East Central Branch Blaze Class Rank 2 member, Kaguya. Please head out to the North Central Branch. You will receive further details about your mission on site."

"Since this is another branch's mission, we won't be seriously involved. Get your head cooled off on the countryside."

Both of his superiors spoke while leaving him no choice.

"…"

Senri looked like she wanted to say something, but stayed silent. She silently let go of Akatsuki's hand.

He clenched his fist that was now floating in air.

Akatsuki couldn't say anything.

1.01 Akatsuki Part 2

The town was located near the capital.

However, since it was surrounded by the mountains and sea, it had a small population.

There was no traffic network. Even the train had only simple iron rails, and no one drove in the highway. Although the ocean was nearby there wasn't a lot of area to swim in, and there was no port for large boats.

With a car it was possible to reach Akamaki City, for example, in two hours. This countryside near the capital was a forgotten town.

Directly in front of the small station was a shopping district. On the rusted billboard in front of the station was a map of the town. The locations of exhibition halls, museums and schools were roughly written on it.

The tower visible from afar was a radio tower that could also receive satellite signals. According to the data, it had been abandoned due to the problem of maintenance fees. There were apparently also talks about moving it to the neighboring town.

The bus setting out from the station was almost completely deserted.

The only passenger was Ogata Akatsuki who'd just come from Ouka City. Carrying a large sports bag, he sat in a double seat on the fifth row to the right.

"…"

This was nothing like Houzawa Town where he'd lived together with his friends Senri, Endou Iori and Sunakozaka Azu. It was much more rural, but the sense of time not passing by was the same.

Thinking of it, he realized that he'd completely forgotten the name of the town.

Oh well—

He tried recalling it but soon gave up. He was simply staying there temporarily for his mission anyway. Once he returned to Ouka City he'd never think about it again.

An administrative-like announcement chimed in the bus. But since no one boarded the bus and Akatsuki hadn't pressed the stop button, the bus kept driving through the shopping district.

The man driving called out to him, "You awake, man? We'll be leaving town soon," he asked him.

"Oh… sorry, please take me to the park."

When Akatsuki replied the driver nodded while saying, "Oh, I see. How rare." Apparently not many people used that natural park. Akatsuki resumed looking out of the window.

When he gazed absently at the townscape, his own face was reflected on the dusty glass window.

His complexion was better than when he'd been handed this mission back at his branch. The uniform of the local school he needed to go to in order not to stand out fit him perfectly so there were no discrepancies.

During these last couple of weeks where he did nothing but prepare to leave Ouka City, he thought of everything he could think of. He thought hard about what his boss had told him and of Senri's sad expression.

Just thinking wouldn't do any good. He couldn't understand their true meaning.

However, these last few weeks… since Senri hadn't come to see him even once, he felt lonely. He was also tired of worrying about that.

Let's stop thinking for now—

After betraying the Mushitsuki resistance group Mushibane, he joined the Special Environmental Preservation Bureau in order to protect Senri.

Now that even Senri had no need for him, Akatsuki had nothing left.

Even his reasons for fighting Kakkou were becoming vague.

And he had no reason in the first place to join the fights ahead, whatever they were.

Or perhaps Akatsuki was already—more than half-retired from the battles of Mushitsuki.

"Hmm—"

A mischievous voice appeared from nearby.

Busy with his thoughts, Akatsuki thought that perhaps this was another passenger speaking on their phone and so ignored it.

"Has your dream come true yet?"

It was the voice of a girl making fun of him. Hidden beneath her malicious tone was a beautiful voice that never left his memory. It was a terribly nostalgic voice—

"…!"

He came back to his senses with a start.

The bus was as empty as always. No other passengers have boarded ever since they passed the shopping district.

Glancing around the empty bus, Akatsuki sighed. It was probably his imagination. —No, since he could hear it so clearly, it was probably an auditory illusion.

He felt as if he'd heard the voice of the girl with whom he discussed dreams on a bus just like this one.

—What a nice dream.

The girl who smiled while hearing about Akatsuki's dream of "not wanting to fight" was no longer in this world.

Thinking about it, perhaps it was since then that Akatsuki had plunged himself into battle.

Why had he started fighting?

If he hadn't tagged along with the girl perhaps he'd have fulfilled his dream long ago. He would be able to live by himself without fighting with anyone.

What had he thought of, that day, as he reached a resolution in opposition to his dream?

Looking at the entrance of the approaching park, Akatsuki lightly shook his head.

He should reach a conclusion only once he came back to Ouka City. If Senri didn't need him even once he returned to the East Central Branch, he could just retire from battle there.

Fortunately, he received permission that he could take it easy during his stay in the town. He'd probably heard the illusion because he was thinking about it too much.

He would simply spend boring days in the countryside for a few weeks.

By the time he left this town, the fatigue of his heart should be healed.

"Thank you very much."

Paying the bus fare, he thanked the driver and got off.

The entrance to the natural park was so crude that he wouldn't find it without the signboard. He only suddenly noticed a grassy road that led inside.

Lowering the sports bag from his back, he walked the road surrounded by trees.

"…?"

While he proceeded straight ahead, Akatsuki knit his brows.

At a certain point the forest was destroyed. The trees around were collapsed and cracks ran through the asphalt.

He reached a small pond. As he thought, the place had been destroyed unnaturally and fallen leaves were scattered around. He thought it could be the scene of a direct typhoon hit, but the damage was much too constrained.

"Are these traces of battle…?"

Approaching the fences, he peeked into the pond. He could see koi fish swimming inside the surface filled with floating algae.

—I've said this before, but the North Central Branch is very stubborn about something.

He recalled the words of Branch Director Assistant Ishimaki from just before he'd left Ouka City.

—They use a certain method to ensure such a high mission completion rate. In exchange for helping other branches in troubles that they judge to be comparably safe, they get help from them in missions that seem dangerous in the area under their jurisdiction. As a result, even if there any casualties it's the other branches that suffer. Moreover, they even complain that they'd gotten incompetent members and use the fruits of the victims' investigation to safely complete the mission.

His superior Ishimaki spent his days disparaging other people. Akatsuki's only impression of him was that of a foolish middle manager, but what he said was true.

—Rather than obsessing over loss and profit, they trained their sense of smell regarding danger. Since it's probably like that in your case as well, don't go along with them too much. You're only deployed there for a limited time, so you can just pretend to investigate. "I couldn't find out anything, I'm sorry"—just finish it like this. The one who'll get scolded is Goroumaru-kun anyway.

Incidentally, while talking of this Goroumaru Touko had also been present. She laughed while saying, "That's how it is. My specialty is getting scolded." How could he put it… wasn't the most uncertain part of the East Central Branch their superiors?

Although the North Central Branch viewed it as dangerous, it was a mission he didn't need to get involved too deeply with.

How vague and half-hearted.

For Akatsuki who was in the same position, this was the perfect job.

"Yo, I'm Orion, seventeen years old! Nice to meetcha!"

"Gah!"

Someone suddenly pushed his back. When he turned around in surprise, he saw a girl saluting him.

She was slender and wore a white shirt and necktie that seemed unfitting for the current early spring. She wore spats underneath her short skirt, as well as leather boots and gloves. Perhaps having bleached her hair, the ponytail swaying on her neck was tea-colored. Her eyes which probably looked cute while fully open were half-closed arrogantly.

"North Central Branch, Blaze Class Rank 6 member! My most attractive feature is my curves; aren't they impressive? I'm the angel of the monitor squad, seducing boys with just a sexy look! Since I LOVE the 10-yen chocolate loaded with additives they sell in front of the station, if you ever treat me to one I'll make it really worth your time~~"

The random and hectic girl hugged herself and blew a kiss at him. Her strange way of speaking was extremely annoying.

"I mean something for adults, meow!"

Even as she winked to him, Akatsuki could do nothing but stare in blank amazement.

Standing frozen without knowing what to say, the girl who introduced herself as Orion made a small jump. She once again bowed at Akatsuki.

"Yo, I'm Orion, seventeen years old! Nice to meetcha! North Central Branch—"

"I-I got it! I got it, you don't need to repeat yourself. I am the East Central Branch's Blaze Class Rank 2 member Ogata Akatsuki. I came here by request of your—"

"If you heard me you shoulda said so."

Orion grinned. She stuck her hand in the pocket of her skirt, pulling out objects and hurling them at Akatsuki one after another.

"C'mon, let's go. Lodging expenses! The dormitory key! Material data! Student handbook of the school you'll blend into! A swimsuit picture of me so ya won't get lonely at night! It's a premium!"

"Uwa, uwawa. T-that's too much—wait, isn't a taking photos of yourself a breach of the rules…? Ah, is this the student handbook?"

"Whoopsy daisy. That chocolate's a mistake, so gimme. Got everything? Then let's go!"

Wrapping everything up in her personal pace, Orion returned to the road.

"Please wait a minute! I would like to investigate this area a bit more. I heard that this was where they found the first Fallen in the successive incidents—"

"Wow, you just came here and you're a workaholic already, meow? We're already done investigating so it's a waste of time~~"

Spreading her arms and wobbling like a jellyfish, Orion walked away. Whether she was ridiculing him or not, she was acting far too suspicious.

Although pissed off at her acting so unprofessionally, Akatsuki followed after the girl.

"Since I waited for three hours at the station I wanted to kill some time. I heard that North Central Branch members are all excellent… can't say I'm pleased at the welcome I'm receiving, though."

"You're wrong, mister elite Blaze Class Rank 2 meow. How impressive~~"

"…Could you please stop speaking like this? I feel like I'm being made fun of."

Finally catching up to her, he spoke without hiding his displeasure. Orion grinned.

"In this countryside, even if you act all stiff nothing good'll come out of it, meow. The most important thing is to have fun! Also, I'm just a small fry at North Central, y'know? If you let me get to ya it's your loss, meow."

"Have you not gone too far with that suffix…?"

"There weren't any victims, so ya can just kill some time and go home. Are all elites like this?"

Akatsuki could do nothing but stay silent. She'd seen right through him.

"Rather than that, you should sink yourself in the rural atmosphere, meow! Fresh air! Blue sky! Your kindly neighbors! Everything's completely different from the city! Allow them to heal your heart!"

Orion wagged her finger around. She felt no anxiousness toward the mission or anything. With his shoulders sagging a bit, perhaps he really was irritated just like the girl thought.

"That being said, if we don't call the branch they'll get angry at me~~"

Orion once again shook her arms. A completely meaningless action.

"As you can see, nothing major happens in this town. Yet lately strange things started happening. You probably know, but the North Central Branch has members with the ability to sense the existence of Mushi. When they ended patrolling the town by chance, they felt Oogui around. —Well, this part happens a lot."

"So you can speak normally…"

"Meow! Naturally, there should have been some Mushitsuki created by Oogui. Yet by the time the member arrived at the scene, never mind Oogui herself, no Mushitsuki was there. And this repeated several times. When they sensed Oogui and headed there, there was nothing. Even though she appeared so much, it looked like not even a single Mushitsuki had been created. There were also no reports of people with Fallen-like symptoms appearing in hospitals. It was the first time that the North Central Branch had seen something like that, so we were really confused."

"A town where Mushitsuki disappear"—

This was the target of the investigation mission handed to Akatsuki, meaning the strange phenomenon of this town.

Since Oogui appeared, it was strange for Mushitsuki to not appear. Even so, there weren't any new Mushitsuki reported at all.

"Since there weren't any victims, we just monitored the situation at first. I've also been in this town for a few years for my monitoring mission, but nothing like this ever happened. Since nothing happened with the investigation, we wanted to drop the state of alert, but—"

"The first Fallen had been found in this park."

Akatsuki continued for her. Orion sighed and dropped her shoulders.

"Meow. Although this was the same phenomenon, a Fallen appeared just this time. What this meant was that—most likely, there were still Mushitsuki being created. Then where have they gone to? And if they were created, the numbers were incredible. If such a large number of Mushitsuki all vanish at once it would become a huge incident. It is a mystery, meow."

"So that means that another sensor was lying in wait and they took some measures before your branch arrived, or something?"

"Our sensor has a wide range, but no mobility at all~~ So there's always a time lag until we dispatch the members there… but according to them, after they feel what seems to be Oogui, a reaction like that of a Mushi appears and then instantly disappears, so it's a bit tricky. Even if there was a Mushitsuki like Asagi who could both sense Mushi and move quickly, they wouldn't have been able to take care of them that quickly~~"

It was indeed so. It was doubtful that Mushitsuki had even been created this far. If a just-born Mushitsuki went on a rampage, they wouldn't be able to avoid combat.

"…This mission really doesn't fit me."

Akatsuki groaned to himself.

Although he was powerful as a Mushitsuki, he was able to employ most of his power on the battlefield. Meaning he was like a tactical weapon. He had no abilities relevant to infiltrating or monitoring.

After her training with Asagi (aka Shishidou Inuko), Senri had started awakening to her sensing powers. She could have excellently performed this mission, but Akatsuki knew fully well the East Central Branch couldn't afford to let go of their one and only sensor.

"But the fact there are almost no victims is the same, meow. Since not even the North Central Branch really wants to do it, there's no way the East would~~!"

For some reason Orion waved her finger energetically again. Akatsuki sighed.

His superiors dispatched him here for a breather. He knew he shouldn't be thinking about poking his head into other branches' affairs.

"Oh boy. Looks like it's going to be a really boring mission…"

"If you're bored why don'tcha play with meow? I'll show you around town. There's this cool art gallery right out of town meow. It's about to close and it's not open on weekdays, but I'm a regular customer~~"

"I'd like for you to stop talking like that, though."

Sunlight fell on Akatsuki's wry smile.

They exited the forest road.

A Hornet motorcycle was parked nearby. It was a standard, two-wheeled type.

"You're the one who seems to be working too hard~~"

"Huh?"

"You're cute when you smile, meow."

Grinning, Orion threw a half-helmet at him. Akatsuki grabbed it and then stared.

"Where are we going? The North Central Branch?"

"Our main office's way too far, meow. We're heading to your new school~~ We might make it in time for afternoon classes, meow."

"I more or less figured it out when you handed me that student handbook earlier, but… do I have to transfer to that school?"

"If you go around this small town with another school uniform you'll actually stand out more, meow. After finishing all the paperwork and greeting and all that you can decide if you want to come to school~~"

Wearing the helmet, Akatsuki sat behind Orion.

"You can take advantage of the ride and 'accidentally' touch me in all sorts of places, meow."

"I-I will not touch you."

Before finishing this exchange, the motorbike sounded its motor engines and launched ahead.

When he realized there was nothing he could do, all his anxiousness was gone.

There were no other people on the road enclosed by rusty guardrails except some old person walking by from time to time. Even the regular bus stops were empty. In front of the station and shopping district he could see the radio tower that was visible from afar. Even further behind it towered the green mountains.

They stopped at a stoplight in an empty crossroads. Stopping even when there were no other cars was out of a sense of obligation.

"It's a nice town."

The Hornet's engine noises mixed with Akatsuki's mutter. He simply said it, not even sure if this was how he truly felt or if he was just being polite.

Nevertheless Orion looked happy. She turned back to Akatsuki, smiling.

"Meow! It's a peaceful and quiet town after all. I look like this, but even I once fought in the capital as a combatant, meow. But I came here for a mission and it was love at first sight! Ever since applying to be moved here, I haven't fought even once. Peace is the best, meow. C'mon, give me a touch. Since I don't get enough exercise I'm getting quite chubby around here~~ Look at all that flab, meow."

"G-green! The light's green!"

Riding pleasantly on the empty roads, they reached the school in no time.

At a glance it was obviously an old, run-of-the-mill school. Its fences were rusted and the net in the sports ground was in tatters.

"I'm gonna catch up on some sleep at the art gallery~~" announced Orion and left. She was apparently enrolled in this school, but it seemed that she didn't take it seriously. And if only customers like her came there, it was no wonder that that gallery was on the brink of closing down.

Left with no choice he entered the school building alone, changed into slippers he found nearby and headed to the staff room.

It was apparently still lunch break, so he crossed paths with several students. After walking idly around the school, he soon found his destination. When he informed the teachers on lunch break that the transfer student was here, they soon called a teacher for him.

The woman, apparently his supervising teacher, told him that "I will introduce you during the afternoon classes, so go to class first." Heading to his class, he entered the classroom, where his classmates were chatting.

There seemed to be only one vacant seat, so he went to sit there. As he looked for a place to put down his bag, the students all focused their gazes on him.

"My name's Ogata. Nice to meet you."

Smiling, he introduced himself to no-one in particular. He didn't know whether or not he would even attend school starting tomorrow, but it was best to stay sociable.

He wondered if he could use a locker; all the lockers in the back of the class looked like they were in use.

Oh well, he gave up and turned ahead again.

Sparkling lens gazed at Akatsuki.

"His name is Ogata Akatsuki. He is the transfer student who infiltrated our class today."

A forced narrative tone echoed in the classroom. The expressions of the classmates that looked at him with curiosity turned to pity at once.

"At a glance he appears a kind, handsome young man. Yet it is obviously naught but a mask meant to ensnare his prey."

"…Umm…"

Having no idea how to reply to that, Akatsuki wore a strained smile.

A digital camera was aimed at him. Since it had an LCD screen it was obviously some new model.

Holding the camera was a person sitting quietly in front of the desk. She was a girl with short, tied hair and a cute baby face. On the shoulder of the school uniform covering her petite figure she carried a large bag with a logo stating "TRUTH!" printed on it.

"I don't know who you are, but taking pictures of me is a bit of a problem… or more like, I feel embarrassed."

He could only think of such tepid excuses. As a member of the SEPB, he was fundamentally forbidden to leave behind any footage or pictures.

"Everyone was probably deceived by his good looks. Yet only the eyes of Haemori Ako—imbibed with the strong spirit of a true journalist—can discern the truth."

He was completely ignored. The girl apparently named Haemori Ako kept talking.

"He is undoubtedly an agent dispatched from a secret organization in order to hide something."

"Eh?"

He unconsciously gasped in surprise.

Akatsuki heard that no one except Orion knew his true identity.

Was there some exception? Or had his identity leaked through some other way than through the SEPB? Either way, he couldn't allow her to speak like that in public.

"Secret organization… umm, what are you talking about? Speaking about something like this so suddenly…"

"Ogata Akatsuki feigns ignorance. Yet I will pressure him. Do you deny the fact you are a member of a secret organization?"

"Never mind me denying or whatever, there's no secret organization… umm, are you from this class?"

"Trying to pull the wool over my eyes is meaningless. The True Journalist's eyes cannot be deceived. If you still deny, then I will show you the proof."

Still holding her camera, she slid a piece of paper on the desk.

Akatsuki raised an eyebrow. The slip of paper had "Journalism Club registration form" written on it.

"Proof…?"

"If you have nothing to do with a secret organization, then you should be able to fight alongside me in order to get the truth out. Now, if you want to prove you are a mere civilian, write your name there."

Holding the camera, Ako's expression was deadly serious.

"If I don't get club members until the deadline it'll close down…" she added with a mumble.

Akatsuki was getting more and more confused.

Was she simply lying to secure club members? But if she wanted to lie she could've done way better than that. Perhaps she had known about Akatsuki's identity and was trying to threaten him…?

"If you don't sign, it means you're part of the organization. And if so, I will reveal the hidden truth in the name of justice right here and now. Even if you have some dangerous weapons inside that bag of yours—"

"A-are ghost members fine, too?"

He wanted to avoid his bag falling under suspicion. Since he couldn't drop by his lodgings yet, he hid the mission documents and his personal equipment there. No matter what club it was, if joining it shut her up, it was a cheap price to pay.

Hearing Akatsuki's words, Ako nodded with a still-serious expression. She drew out a pen from her breast pocket.

"If so, then well…"

He signed the registration form with the pen he received.

"Sorry for doubting you. Starting tomorrow you will work for the journalism club. For now we will have a meeting at our club room after class, so please come there."

"Eh? No, what I meant was that I'd sign if I didn't actually have to—"

"Welcome to our town."

Still holding the camera, Ako rose up. She was apparently from a different class. She left the classroom and suddenly turned around.

"You can't run away though."

After leaving these words behind, the girl left as Akatsuki stared at her in shock.

Among the clamoring classmates, two girls stepped in front of Akatsuki.

"We've seen Haemori-san say the same thing to every new student. All of them turned her down, though."

"Huhhh? The same thing… she'd said that to everyone?"

"Sorry for not coming earlier. But most of our school isn't like that."

That lame support actually felt like another blow.

"Accepting such an invitation… aren't you a bit too kind, Ogata-kun?"

As they laughed among themselves, it took everything Akatsuki had in order for him to return a strained smile.

1.02 Akatsuki Part 3

After class, he went along with Haemori Ako, who came to get him, only on a whim.

Even if he returned to the place of residence prepared for him he had nothing to do. He had actually been ordered to not get involved with the investigation of the mysterious phenomena in town. If he closed himself in a room he would just end up thinking of unanswerable things again.

On their way to the club room, the girl Haemori Ako introduced herself simply.

She was a second-year student just like Akatsuki, serving as the president for the new club. As the self-proclaimed "True Journalist", she had apparently brought to light countless hidden truths.

Yet this impression came from the girl herself. Akatsuki's classmates were kind to this ignorant transfer student, so they told him that "you'd better not get involved". Anyway, it was hard calling Haemori Ako a normal student.

"…"

Ako brought him along to the journalism club room. Perhaps some warehouse originally, its entrance was a door located on the bottom of the stairs.

Yet they couldn't even reach the door. They stood side to side motionless.

"Umm…"

Akatsuki checked the face of the girl standing next to him.

Still holding the camera, Ako filmed the paper pasted onto the door with a serious expression.

On top of the paper stating "Journalism Club – Main Office" was a different piece of paper.

"Entrance forbidden to everyone involved (especially the journalism club!)"—signed by the student council.

An awkward silence befell the two, with the students going home passing by them one after another.

"…"

She was probably heartbroken. Ako wordlessly hung her head. Still holding the camera, she bit on her lower lips. Seeing that her eyes were moist, Akatsuki was startled.

"I-Isn't this some sort of mistake?"

He hurriedly tried to comfort her.

"The club's only going to be disbanded starting two weeks from now, right? So it's weird they already did this."

"…"

"I know, let's go speak to the student council! Okay? Let's go?"

He was weak against crying girls. He couldn't endure it even if it wasn't his fault.

"'Kay."

Ako recovered surprisingly fast. She turned her camera toward Akatsuki to hide her reddening eyes and spoke seriously.

"You've been deceived, club member Ogata. I wasn't depressed just now. It was simply acting in order to fool the enemy monitoring us. Acting is always required in my pursuit of the truth."

"O-Oh, I see… you've had me completely fooled."

"Also, even if it's our club room, it's really nothing special. I always carry what I need in my bag."

Easily asserting this, she turned on her heels. Akatsuki smiled wryly but followed her.

"So that's how it is. If so then it's not really—"

"But there're the videos and pictures I've taken recently. I filmed a really cute doggy on the riverbank lately. —I wanted to show it to my new club member."

Akatsuki was a bit surprised and stopped in place.

"Oh, I'd like to see it. I love dogs."

Smiling, he walked next to Ako.

This somewhat odd girl was not a bad person at all. She was hard to read due to always wearing a serious expression, but now that he knew why she'd been depressed just now he could understand.

Although they were filming inside the school, none of the teachers seemed to stop them. Even the students they went by all looked past Ako as if used to it. Akatsuki could feel that everyone was watching him much more curiously.

He ended up going with Ako, whom he barely knew, but didn't feel bad at all.

He never thought that he'd blend into the student lifestyle ever again. Akatsuki had no advantageous abilities for infiltrating. Actually, even in Ouka city he was only sent to Mushi-capturing missions; he normally didn't attend his designated school.

He was aware that he'd lost his daily life. Yet spending all of his days in training and battle had perhaps fatigued him more than he thought.

"It's a nice school."

The facility was much worse when compared to the city, but the students were all lively. Just by walking around the school Akatsuki felt as if he was just a normal high schooler.

"Yup."

Still pointing her camera ahead, Ako nodded.

"I also like this school. Of course, this town as well."

"I see."

A natural smile rose to Akatsuki's face. —How long had it been since he smiled like this?

"By the way, Haemori-san."

"You can call me Ako."

"Hmm, so call me Akatsuki too. Anyway, how many people are in the journalism club? How many people do we need to prevent the club from closing down?"

"The amount of people needed to ensure the continuation of the club is five. Since we doubled the number of members as of today, overcoming the danger is but a matter of time."

"Doubled?"

"Until yesterday it was only me, so double that is two people."

Saying this sadly, Ako stopped in place. They came in front of the third year classroom.

"I see… Wait, what? You were the only one?"

Sending a sideway glance at the surprised Akatsuki, Ako opened the classroom's door. Not acting like she noticed the gaze from the remaining students inside, she entered it.

When one person among a group of people chatting, a girl with long hair, saw Ako, she raised an eyebrow.

"Haemori-san? Do you need anything?"

"I propose an interview of the student council by the journalism club. I would like for you to give an official answer about closing up the journalism club without any prior announcement."

Apparently this upperclassman was the president of the student council. Only now did Akatsuki realize Ako went to do just as he had suggested.

"Wait, can you please not film us? My friends have nothing to do with this."

"Filming within the school is a right of the journalism club acknowledged by the school. Also, this is a record of the official opinion of the student council, so don't get me wrong."

"Geez… And who's that? I've never seen him."

"The new member of the journalism club."

Looking at Akatsuki, the student council president muttered "No way…" and became speechless. Seemed like a mere new member caused her unthinkable shock.

"He just transferred to school today. And I took him to the club room just now… but there's still some time until the club closes down, so I wondered what was happening."

"Transfer student?"

"My sincere feelings about journalism shook the heart of justice lying inside him."

Ako spoke super seriously. Although he couldn't quite agree with this introduction, Akatsuki said nothing. He couldn't believe that not long ago he thought that she knew he belonged to a secret organization.

"We would like to report being oppressed by the student council. Seizing the club room even when the date has not yet passed is a major rule infraction."

"About that, since another club managed to gather five people we started preparing it for them. Even if you call it a rule infraction… since, until now, you haven't managed to get even a single person, wasn't it obvious your club will close down? If you manage to get five people I'll give it back to you."

"That is only the student council's estimation. My journalism club—"

"Say, this is a school. There are plenty students besides you. Could you please not be so selfish?"

The student council president sighed.

"Even if you call it your club room, aren't you just using it to store stuff? Do you know how hard it was to carry away all those photographs and suspicious disks?"

Ako gulped.

"No way… Did you just throw them—"

"We wouldn't go so far as to do that. Since there wasn't any place for all that, we put it in the warehouse behind school. Please retrieve them later. They might be a little messy though."

Hearing these words, Ako sank into silence. She wanted to say something but cast her gaze down in resignation.

Akatsuki recalled Ako as she was when she'd said she wanted to show him the dog picture.

"Isn't that a bit cruel?"

"You be silent. You just came here today, right? Hadn't you just joined because Haemori-san told you to?"

"That doesn't have anything to do with it. It is exactly because there are so many students that you need to follow your own decisions. Changing the rules when the people involved are not present, isn't that cowardice?"

Receiving an attack from an unthinkable person, the student council president scowled.

"Do you not know what sort of place the journalism club is?"

"I'm telling you that it doesn't matter. Or did you purposely clean up the room because you don't like the journalism club—"

"That's enough, club member Akatsuki. It's useless speaking to her."

Ako stopped Akatsuki. At some point she'd risen up again and started filming the student council president with emotionless eyes.

But—Ako shook her head when Akatsuki wanted to argue.

"She's simply being controlled."

"…Wha?"

Akatsuki and the student council president both emitted a stupid-sounding voice at the same time.

"I have noticed a shadow trying to sabotage our journalism club from a while ago. The prez in front of us is but a fake that has replaced her at some point."

The classroom sank into silence.

Not only Akatsuki and the student council president, even the other student's lines of sight focused on her.

"The once-righteous student council president is gone. The one here is but a scoundrel blinded by greed. She's probably trying to obstruct the justice of our journalism club."

After this imposing announcement, Akatsuki looked at the president.

Finally she responded, "I just had a cold and was sick for a while, please don't be so creepy…" and held her temples. To Akatsuki's eyes she looked like a plain, normal human.

"So? You understand now, right?"

Perhaps really enduring a headache, the president spoke to him with a grave expression.

"It's the sort of club that only talks of such nonsense all year round. You should also cut your ties with this girl. If not, you'll end up without any friends just like her."

Hearing this whisper, Akatsuki sank into a complex state of mind. By desperately jumping to Ako's protection he felt a weird sense of shame welling up inside.

"There's no point in staying here, club member Akatsuki. We will do only what we must as journalists."

Asserting this, Ako left the classroom.

"W-wait a minute! Ako…!"

He leapt to the corridor in pursuit. Perhaps having some other destination in mind, Ako walked briskly while facing ahead.

"Speaking of enemies or the president being replaced or whatever, what's this all about…?"

"Yes… I believe the time has come to discuss that with you."

After Akatsuki asked this timidly, Ako stopped in place. She turned her digital camera at him with a meek expression.

"The truth is this town is being targeted by a great evil. No one has yet to notice, but the True Journalist cannot be deceived."

"Evil? The one related to the president?"

"People like her are simply affected by it. It's something different from small fry like her. I named that existence the Demon Lord. It is extremely cunning and dangerous. Although I am competent, I wasn't able to ascertain their identity yet. However, there is no doubt that even now the Demon Lord is scheming to threaten our peace."

"Demon Lord…? What does that actually mean? Have you managed to find some evidence or—"

"Unfortunately, I was unable to acquire any decisive evidence. I do not even know if they are an individual or a group. I was trying to tail them, but…"

"No evidence… meaning, this is only your intuition?"

Ako amended, "No, it is the keen sense of smell possessed by the True Journalist."

Akatsuki dropped his shoulders and sighed. He thought that he might be able to grasp some clue about the abnormal happenings in this town.

But he was apparently wrong. Whether a fan of the occult or a conspiracy theorist, Ako was merely drunk on her own imagination.

At first he thought the existence of the SEPB had been revealed, and now he thought he might be able to acquire new clues—Akatsuki was tired at his habit to overthink things. He felt like he was being overly manipulated by this weird girl.

"Anyway, club member Akatsuki. Seems like the seeds of loyalty for our cause were quick to sprout within you."

"Eh?"

"I've recorded your courage of standing up to the student council prez."

Recalling that, he blushed. Now that he thought OF how much he covered for Ako, he again experienced a complex feeling.

While he was at Moira High School, he protested in front of the students many times. In order to allow the blind Senri to participate in school activities, he preached the entire school along with Iori and Azu.

"Thank you."

Akatsuki instantly widened his eyes.

He couldn't see it well due to the camera, but it looked like Ako was smiling. It was his first time seeing her smile.

"Next is this classroom. The circumstances being what they are, we need to meet up with our fan representative."

Before Akatsuki could speak, Ako turned the camera around. The face of the girl opening up the door of the class returned being serious as it was before.

"Satou-senpai."

When Ako called out this name, several students turned around.

"Oh, I'm talking about the third Satou-senpai."

"Ako-chan?" a voice called out from the end of the class. A girl sitting in the very edge of a group of a few girls approached.

"Third?"

"There are three people called Satou in this class. The third one by seating number is plain and is a bit unnoticeable, so we have to call her that. Her classmates probably don't even remember her private name."

It was a cruel thing to say about an upperclassman.

Yet he could also somewhat understand it once the girl came to them.

"What is it, Ako-chan? …Ah! Did a special issue come out?"

She was tall and had a good figure, but she wore her school uniform strictly according to the rules unlike girls this age. Never mind her long skirt, but she didn't even wear any accessories such as piercing or bracelets. Her black-rimmed glasses were hidden by her hair, so her face couldn't be seen clearly.

I see, she really is plain. I can't see anything distinctive other than her height and the mole on her mouth.

"W-what?"

"The Third Satou" suddenly blushed. Wondering what happened, Akatsuki noticed that her eyes concealed by glasses and bangs looked at none other than him.

"W-who is that?"

She was probably unaccustomed to interacting with boys. Akatsuki lowered his head with a "Hello".

"The newest member of the journalism club, Ogata Akatsuki. If you like him I allow you to rent him from time to time."

"Rent? Eh? I-I don't really…"

"'Twas a joke. This is Satou Youko-senpai. The fan representative of our club's publication 'Monthly AKO'."

Focusing the camera on both of them, Ako introduced them to one another. It was his first time hearing about Monthly AKO.

"Satou-senpai, I actually came to apologize today."

"Apologize?"

"I think of taking a break with this month's Monthly AKO. Our club's belongings have been confiscated due to a wicked conspiracy."

"Eeh? Then did that Demon Lord you wrote about in the last issue and his army of darkness caught up to you? Just when it was the time to strike back!"

"Yup. But fret not, this doesn't mean we have yielded to evil. We shall pretend to be weakened, and attack the Demon Lord when they lower their guard. I will never hurt you, my dear reader Satou-senpai."

"Oh, i-it's fine! I'll support you, Ako-chan!"

Looking at an upperclassman getting pumped up and clenching her fists, Akatsuki realized something.

This girl had the same hobby as Ako. Satou Youko happily absorbed Ako's flurry of conspiracy talk. Seeing them both, he could more or less imagine the contents of Monthly AKO.

"Now then, we shall part for a while. The next time we meet will probably signal the moment to unveil the identity of the Demon Lord."

"Do your best, Ako-chan!"

Ako left the classroom looking satisfied.

Akatsuki tried following her, but someone pulled on his sleeve. Turning around, he could see Youko timidly gazing at his face. Her cheeks were slightly red and she whispered.

"U-umm, Ogata-kun, was it?"

"Yes."

"Ako-chan's a bit strange at times, but can you treat her well?"

When Akatsuki returned her gaze, Youko averted her eyes abashedly. But perhaps still worried for Ako, she muttered in a subdued voice.

"She's not a bad kid. I-I can guarantee it!"

He looked at Ako's back. She apparently hadn't noticed that Akatsuki wasn't following her. "Now then, club member Akatsuki. We'll become increasingly busier from now on. First of all we need to invite new members—" she muttered.

"P-Please?"

Youko forced a smile while asking him.

Akatsuki regretted the fact that he'd thought of this upperclassman as plain. Youko apparently looked out for her underclassmen and was kind.

"Of course."

He'd already realized Ako was not a bad person. She simply was more conceited than most people, or more like, she had an active imagination. Since he'd gotten involved with Mushitsuki, many of them oddballs, he was confident he was less prejudiced than the average person.

"I will do what I can."

He smiled at Youko.

Akatsuki wasn't going to stay in school for long, but he thought of trying to help with whatever he could. At the very least, hanging out with Ako would mean less time spent on unnecessary thinking.

"…"

Youko stared absently at Akatsuki's face, silent. Not only her cheeks but even her ears reddened.

"Is something the matter?"

"N-no! I-I'm fine! Thank you… I knew at a glance you're a kind person so I knew you'd say that."

"Is that so? I think it's normal."

"No. I can tell…"

Youko's gaze looked at Akatsuki from the gaps in her bangs.

Her eyes were clear and beautiful. It was a pity for them to be hidden by her glasses and hair. They were black like obsidian and deep like the deepest ocean that could swallow you. He ended up staring at them without meaning to.

"You look kind, and… strong, too. Not in a physical sense. It's like you wouldn't lose to anyone if it was for the sake of some great goal—"

He grew curious in the movements of her lips forming these words. Her red tongue appearing from time to time between her teeth was alluring. He could sniff a pleasant scent from somewhere, so was Youko wearing perfume?

"Youko-senpai… why don't you wear contacts?"

Before realizing it he spoke on his own. Youko rounded her eyes.

"Huh?"

"Ah—"

He held his mouth. Akatsuki's cheeks flushed. What was he saying?

"I-I'm sorry! Having you say my name all of sudden, it's… it's nothing, don't mind it!"

"Ah, uh… No, it's completely fine! I'm the one who should apologize! Umm, sorry for speaking strangely all of a sudden!"

"Club member Akatsuki."

The lens of a digital camera suddenly cutting from the side caused Akatsuki and Youko to startle away.

"I was sure you were following me. What are you scheming with Satou-senpai?"

Since the petite Ako was filming the taller pair, she had to look upwards. They looked at the ceiling to hide their blushing faces.

"I-It's nothing, Ako! Come on, let's go! We need to gather members, right?"

"Why are you avoiding the camera, member Akatsuki?"

"D-do your best! Akatsuki…kun, as well."

"There's nobody there though? Where are you looking while saying that, Satou-senpai?"

Akatsuki pushed on Ako's shoulders, pushing her through the corridor by force.

As he glanced behind him, Youko waved at him with her face red all the way up to her ears.

1.03 Akatsuki Part 4

The bell indicating the end of afternoon classes rang.

Putting his textbooks aside, Akatsuki immediately rose from his seat.

"Come eat with me, Ogata."

A male student offered him, but he turned him down with a "Sorry". Bringing out the food he'd bought at school from his bag, he left his seat.

"I'm eating at another class."

"Oh, the journalism club. So you really are going with that."

The student looked shocked. When the topic turned to Haemori Ako, every student spoke harshly. But Akatsuki didn't mind it anymore.

He exited the class, walking briskly toward Ako's class. But on the way there a voice called to him.

"A-Akatsuki-kun."

He turned in surprise, seeing someone unexpected standing there.

It was the third year Satou Youko. He was just about to pass right by her. Since she was as tall as Akatsuki despite being a girl, it took a certain kind of talent to still have such a thin presence.

"Ah, umm… since our self-study lesson was over quickly… I brought something I thought of giving to Ako-chan. We can eat it together, if you'd like?"

She timidly held out wrapped puddings. There were two of them.

"Whoa, thank you so much. Ako will probably be delighted, too."

Seeing Akatsuki received it happily, Satou Youko slightly bowed. He was barely able to see that she was smiling happily. He had this sort of experience many times when he'd enrolled at Moira High School. But even if Akatsuki was the one to receive it, it would end up a war against Iori and Azu afterward.

But now he could eat at leisure without fighting.

The pair that tried stealing from him despite Senri's protests was no longer there—

"Oh… do you hate pudding perhaps? Like, you don't like sweet stuff?"

He had apparently looked down to his hands while reminiscing.

"No, I like it so I'm happy. It looks delicious."

He shook his head with a smile, and Youko mumbled "thank goodness", relived. But soon she seemed like she wanted to ask something, fidgeting.

"Umm… is it fine to ask… if you got any members for the club…?"

"Uh—"

It has been a week since Akatsuki enrolled in the school.

Ever since the day after talking to the student council president, Akatsuki and Ako worked on inviting students to their club.

More precisely, Akatsuki would shout at new students to stop them, and then Ako would speak to them about the club's activities. Until now they were refused 100% of the time, probably due to the students being unable to accept Ako's zealous recruitment (the story about the Demon Lord and the evil organization).

But as days passed he felt that there was something amiss. There were also students who ran away simply when seeing Ako after Akatsuki stopped them. Leaving before hearing what they wanted was rather odd.

"We still haven't found any…"

"Oh…"

Youko's shoulders dropped as if it was her own blunder. Since she'd already belonged to another club, she apparently couldn't join the new club. She spoke of it previously and seemed truly regretful.

"Oh, have you gotten used to school yet, Akatsuki-kun?"

Changing the subject, Youko raised her head. As she did, her beautiful eyes became visible.

"I believe I've grown used to my class—"

Unconsciously looking back at his senior's face, he noticed something. Today Youko was wearing a pink lip balm. Although it was just her lips, since she never wore any sort of decoration or makeup it was rare for her.

There was also a sweet smell again. Perhaps it was his imagination, but Youko's lips suddenly seemed wet. Did the scent come from her lips? But then again, every time he met with her—

"Oh… t-that?"

She probably noticed his gaze. She puckered her mouth and cast down her glance.

"I-I just thought of trying to put that on, but it looks bad right? It's definitely weird."

"No way! It looks great!"

Blurting this out without thinking, he felt the gazes of the students walking around.

Ending at that point, the blushing Akatsuki and Youko sank into silence.

He groaned inside his heart.

Strange. Being with Youko-senpai makes my chest feel hot—

His pulse quickening like that didn't feel bad at all. It actually felt good, so he felt confused when he came back to his senses.

"Err, so then, I'll be going to meet up with Ako…"

"R-right. Good luck with the recruiting!"

Clenching both her fists, Youko turned her back to him.

As she did he noticed a grinning girl ahead in the corridor. Wearing her uniform as slovenly as always, it was Orion. She walked toward him with some girls who seemed to be her friends.

"Ah, to be young, meow. I smell something indecent happening here~~"

Just before passing by, she wriggled her arms in that pose and whispered that.

He obviously ignored her.

He had contacted Orion, the monitor from the North Central Branch, at school from time to time. Yet there was almost no progress with the investigation about the town's strange phenomena. The small town was as peaceful as ever.

By the time he reached Ako's class, close to ten minutes have passed since lunch break.

Peeking into the class, he could see the students eating in groups inside.

Yet only Ako was left out from the circles of conversation.

The seat near the window. Without adjoining her desk to anyone, she ate her packed lunch there in silence.

"…"

Since she wore a serious face most of the time, her emotions were often hard to read.

Even so, she looked lonely to Akatsuki. He lightly bit his lips and entered the classroom.

"Sorry for coming late."

He called to Ako and approached her seat. Borrowing a chair from nearby, he put his own lunch and pudding on the desk.

"You're slacking off, club member Akatsuki. Since we can't use our club room this is our planning room. We cannot waste even a second."

Raising the camera she'd put firmly on the desk, she pointed it at Akatsuki.

"I met Youko-senpai around here. And she gave me this. She apparently made it during home economics class. —Won't you have trouble eating while holding that camera? Come on, leave it be."

Akatsuki grabbed the camera and placed it back down. Ako reached to the pudding.

"Pudding? Looks good."

"She was worried about our recruiting. Also she wore lip balm. How unusual for her."

"Hmm."

When Ako didn't hold her camera she looked pretty normal. However, she appeared to have some sort of withdrawal symptoms, so when she didn't hold the camera she spoke only little.

After finishing the pudding, Ako once again took the camera as expected. Growing tired of filming Akatsuki who was still eating, she turned it toward the sports ground outside the window.

There was the danger of her journalism club closing down.

And she had no friends.

Even so, Ako had once told Akatsuki.

—I also like this school. Of course, this town as well.

She spoke with no hesitation. She apparently had her own emotional attachment to it.

"What are you filming, Ako?"

"Humans."

"…"

"Not just humans. Normal citizens."

While wondering aren't they just humans? he put aside the lunch box he'd just finished. Looking up to see Ako, he saw she wore a serious expression.

Ako suddenly lowered her camera. Tilting it with flowing movements, she took out the memory card. She switched it with another memory card brought out from her bag.

Restarting the camera, he thought she would turn it toward the sports ground again, but instead she directed it at him.

"Ogata Akatsuki-san, do you have anyone special?"

She asked with a formal tone. The surprise Akatsuki stopped with his hand holding the spoon just before piercing the pudding.

"Eh?"

"I'm interviewing you."

Ako smiled a bit mischievously. It was his first time to see that sort of expression on her.

Having a camera pointed at him, Akatsuki fixed his posture. He no longer minded the regulation about not leaving any photo evidence.

Someone special to him.

Hearing these words, several faces floated to his mind. Endou Iori and Sunakozaka Azu were also special friends.

Yet the most important of all were probably just two girls.

"I had, once. I have another one right now, too."

He smiled while talking.

"How was that person from your past?"

The interviewer was Haemori Ako. The self-styled True Journalist.

The one being interviewed was Ogata Akatsuki. The Mushitsuki boy who pretended being a normal student, while being the agent of a secret government agency.

With the afternoon chatter as background music, he could hear laughter rising from the playground.

Not a bad setting at all—

"She was beautiful. I'm sure everyone thought so. She was also very strong and wanted to save many people."

Ako's camera's lenses sparkled as they reflected the sunlight. Akatsuki narrowed his eyes.

"But she's gone."

He had fully believed that someone as beautiful and strong as her saved plenty of Mushitsuki.

But every time he remembered her, there was a certain doubt.

In the end, did she have a person who would save her?

He couldn't do anything. He had learned of her death in a faraway land, and just shed tears. He regretted that fact even now.

Even a mere second.

Even a split second before her death.

Had she been to meet anyone in this life—who would be able to save her, who was as strong as her?

"Well then—"

Since Akatsuki could talk no longer, Ako's went to her next question.

"How's the person who's still there?"

Along with the death of the person he believed in, he felt as if the whole world betrayed him.

These emotions haven't changed. In the battles involving Mushi until now, and those that would continue in the future, she had to keep living.

Left behind, Akatsuki didn't know what to believe.

Her death left a grievous wound in his heart.

"That girl was born blind—"

But there was someone who cried in place of him.

Haji Senri.

—I can't smile when you're crying, Akatsuki-kun.

Senri took half of Akatsuki's pain. Although his heart was supposed to have died, she received the pain from him.

Only due to that Akatsuki managed to keep living.

Losing half of his heart, walking without balance—he barely advanced.

"She's my benefactor. She's very kind and she comes to save people who can't even voice their distress. She's the only survivor among the people who've saved me."

Survivor.

It was exactly so.

Up until his dying breath, his friend Iori tried protecting Senri. His real ability was probably controlling multiple Mushi. His real power—awoken only at the very last moment—was perhaps more suitable to protect Senri than Akatsuki's.

Since he'd been saved by Senri, he would save her now.

Among the friends who vowed so, Akatsuki ended up the only one to survive by chance.

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"G-girlfriend?! It isn't like that…"

His face suddenly heated up. In order to hide his agitation, he stuck his spoon inside the pudding and stirred it.

Senri was just a friend he had to protect.

However, it wasn't like he hadn't thought about advancing their relationship. If their relationship took just one step forward—it would probably only come when there was no longer any need to fight. Imagining the future of who knows how many years away, he ended up smiling.

"I-it's just that, I thought we can't keep everything the way it was anymore. I really wanted to protect her, risking my life for it… no, I just reached that conclusion. The feelings of both sides are important in these things, right? It's not that I don't have a chance. W-we always hold hands, after all… well, that's also because she can't see, but if she hated me she wouldn't do it, right? So that means she prefers me to—"

Ako removed the camera from Akatsuki who smirked while playing with his pudding.

"And… cut. Man, you're such a creep…"

"Eh? What? I'm a creep?"

Ignoring the shocked Akatsuki, Ako turned her camera toward the sports ground and narrated the video. She verbally recorded information such as today's date and the place of filming.

"This was the interview of Ogata Akatsuki, a secret agent dispatched from a secret organization."

"…Are you still going with that story?"

"And I was the interviewer—"

Ako's disinterested tone was flat. Her narration was emotionless and machinelike yet strong while it was being recorded by her small camera.

"Chronicler."

Akatsuki raised an eyebrow. He thought that her title was supposed to be the True Journalist.

"You don't use your name?"

"My name is unneeded in both past and future. The only thing that will remain after my time as the True Journalist will be the 'truth' I have recorded."

So this was how Ako was. After explaining, she switched out the memory card with practiced movements.

"I managed to film a good video. Thanks."

"Hmm, is that really fine though?"

"Yup. I managed to drag out your true self. That's my power."

The nodding Ako looked satisfied.

Akatsuki smiled wryly. It had been a while since he'd confronted his feelings. He also felt somewhat refreshed.

"Also, lunch break is almost over. Where will we recruit after school today? Should we go to the main entrance or to the parking lot?"

"Let's stop recruiting."

"…Eh?"

"It was our mistake to try recruiting by mouth. We are the journalism club. The only thing spurring people into action was always the truth."

He had a bad feeling about this. Ako didn't say anything concrete yet, but when she was drunk on herself he couldn't imagine what she'd say next.

"Let's expose the Demon Lord."

The lens of Ako's camera captured Akatsuki's strained smile.

"Once people know that the journalism club saved the town by revealing the truth, we'll have more members than we can count."

Above the frozen Akatsuki's head, the chime announcing the end of lunch break echoed.

After school, Akatsuki and Ako walked through the merchant district, still in their uniforms.

Ako obviously had her digital camera and a bag with her equipment hanging from her shoulder. On the other hand, Akatsuki's bag had his SEPB equipment inside it. He had a front but he came to town for a mission. He had the duty to always be ready for battle.

They crossed through the merchant district, where many shops were lined up. Western clothes shop, grocery, bars and shoe stores, food, karaoke, supermarket and the like all saw the traffic of the townspeople. There were many students hanging around after school other than Akatsuki and Ako.

"The town is as peaceful as always today. Yet none of the smiling citizens have yet to notice the conspiracy of the Demon Lord lurking nearby."

Ako was the same as always—she was filming the surroundings with her digital camera. At times passersby noticed it and smiled.

She was speaking of such dangerous things, but even that Ako was part of the peaceful landscape. Perhaps feeling a bit hungry, she started filming a yakitori stand with a serious expression.

"Say, Ako. You said we're going to expose the Demon Lord but what does that mean, exactly?"

"A good question, member Akatsuki. The Demon Lord might be cunning and shrewd, yet even they cannot hide their tracks completely. I had caught their traces with the help of the journalism club's information network. We are going to investigate that now."

"Traces?"

"I've never been afraid of investigating by myself. We need to approach carefully, since making the Demon Lord be cautious would spell trouble."

Pointing the camera at Akatsuki, Ako spoke seriously.

"There are no shortcuts. The destruction of the journalism club would mean the defeat of justice. Even if our club is disbanded, the True Journalist will never rest before completing her mission."

"Even if we're disbanded… it's too early to give up. If we keep this up—"

"—This is my punishment, member Akatsuki."

Akatsuki raised an eyebrow.

"Your punishment?"

"I had once made a mistake in my road as a journalist. As a result, my fellow journalism club members left and I was left alone. It was all due to my inexperienced actions."

He recalled how uncomfortable he felt while recruiting. Some students ran away just by seeing Ako.

She probably didn't want to talk of the details. Since she spoke calmly with a slightly strained face, Akatsuki realized there were things she hadn't told him.

He should try asking Orion about that. Rotten as she was, she was still a monitor. She should know all about the school she was infiltrating.

"And so I vowed to never mistake my path again. It was then that Haemori Ako, the genius possessing the talent of the True Journalist, knew that she had to unveil the hidden truth. And the one standing in my way is none other than the Demon Lord."

But this path's also a bit… he thought but decided to not voice it out loud.

"I cannot fight against the Demon lord. Yet the only one who can reveal this conspiracy is the journalist of a lifetime, this super miraculous beauty Haemori… Ako…"

Her tone dropped in the middle of her introduction. She searched inside her bag frantically, but it ended with her mumbling I forgot my replacement card at home… sadly.

"Is this also part of the Demon Lord's evil plot…?"

She hung her head and tears started sparkling in her eyes. Perhaps so being used to film, she became timid once she couldn't do so.

"W-wait a minute! I'll be right back!"

Akatsuki stepped inside a print shop nearby. Since there were no clerks, he raised his voice to the back of the shop. An elderly woman came out.

"Oh, I'm sorry. My son is asleep so he told me to watch the shop," she said while coming to the front.

He knew the kind of memory card Ako's camera was using. He bought it and returned to her.

"Here, a replacement card."

Ako looked up Akatsuki's face.

"Our club funds are gone…"

"Don't mind it. I had a little surplus money this month."

It wasn't a lie. Since the North Central Branch paid him generously, he had plenty of money.

"So cheer up. You're a genius, right? You can't get depressed so easily!"

Ako nodded. She hurriedly replaced the memory card she received.

"As expected from my club member. You will definitely help me defeat the Demon lord."

"…You sure are quick at recovering as always."

"I'm the kind of person that thrives on compliments."

They resumed the journalism club activity.

While telling Akatsuki about the shopping district, Ako kept filming. Perhaps she was thanking him by showing him around town. They didn't speak about the Demon Lord much.

"So… we're at the station."

"We're taking the bus from here."

They boarded an old-looking bus. They sat at the very back.

The bus soon set out. It was apparently a different bus from the one Akatsuki had used when he'd first come there.

"Where are we going?"

"To an art gallery. I've managed to grasp some information about the Demon Lord's traces there. Something about people meeting their identical twin there."

Akatsuki raised an eyebrow.

"An identical twin…? I heard about it. Doppelganger or whatever?"

"There are plenty of other rumors in this town. Meeting people who are dead, flying in the sky with a sudden gale, and a place that grants your wishes at night... Since these cannot happen in reality they are the evidence that the Demon Lord infiltrated this town."

"Aren't these just ordinary urban legends…"

In the end, no matter the town there were always rumors about strange phenomena. She probably wanted to publish her findings to try and draw in new members.

Even so, a rumor is only one kind of information. He decided to try asking Orion about it later. She's probably ridicule him with a "you're such a scardey-cat elite-san, meow" or something, though.

Thinking about it, hadn't she said her favorite place was an art gallery?

As he was thinking about this, Ako who was filming outside the window suddenly spoke.

"By the way, member Akatsuki, what do you think about Mushitsuki?"

"…Eh?"

He reflexively turned toward her.

"This is a different rumor than the one in the art gallery. Don't you know of the tacit silent about Mushi in this country?"

"Yeah, I've heard the rumors. —But that's definitely fake. I've never seen any Mushi."

He simply evaded the question with a fake smile. He couldn't let her know about him being a Mushitsuki, not to mention the existence of the SEPB who were hiding this fact.

He couldn't read her emotions from her serious profile as she was filming the scenery. He needed to first ascertain why she started talking about Mushitsuki.

"Why this all of a sudden?"

"Although people speak of them from time to time, the existence of Mushi is never revealed. Why's that? Because there is an organization hiding this? I do not think so."

Akatsuki felt relieved. All this time he'd been wondering if the secret organization she was always talking about was referring to the SEPB.

"Because I already know fully well that there's such an organization."

His ephemeral relief vanished without a trace.

"People are unable to accept the truth because those who know have problems with it too. Since 'Mushitsuki are scary', people don't want to know about them."

"…"

"It's impossible to hide all information. They're approaching their limits of hiding the existence of Mushi. Even though the time for Mushitsuki to assume a new form is approaching, the world will never accept it."

"Eh? Aren't you exaggerating?"

Even while smiling, Akatsuki was panicking on the inside.

Ako's unfounded sense of duty—if she directed it at the imaginary Demon Lord it was fine. But if it was for Mushi, the organization would monitor her.

"Also, you shouldn't talk too much about Mushi and Mushitsuki and all that. There are people who get scared by that. Didn't you hear the rumor that talking about Mushi would get you caught by suspicious people?"

"I told you I already know about that organization. I spoke to you about it because it's you. You wouldn't tattle on me, right?"

Having the camera pointed at him, he smiled wryly. He was happy for Ako to trust him, but there was another reason he couldn't talk about Mushi.

"Also, those who are scared will definitely hide the truth. In order to reveal the truth, we first have to get rid of fear. If you reveal it while still gripped by fear, it will cease being the truth. Warped information would lead humankind to destruction."

"Getting rid of fear… that's impossible."

"Why?"

"I mean, Mushitsuki are scary."

Although he was pretending to have the average opinion, some part of him really felt so.

Mushi possessed terrifying powers. Wielding this strength, any Mushitsuki would eventually cause battle and hurt each other. Akatsuki was scared of Mushitsuki who couldn't stop fighting. Obviously, Akatsuki was also scared of himself.

"This isn't rational. If something's scary then it is."

Ako didn't reply. She simply filmed Akatsuki intently.

"Oh, could it be that—"

Akatsuki sighed in relief and asked Ako.

"Is the Demon Lord you're always talking about a Mushitsuki?"

"What're you saying?"

"I mean, thinking of some enemy… the Demon Lord's traces, if someone saw a Mushitsuki or—"

"The Demon Lord is the Demon Lord. It is much scarier than Mushitsuki. Because it wants to plant unshakable fear inside people's hearts."

Their conversation returned to the occult once again. Akatsuki couldn't understand Ako at all.

However, even if it was her, she did have some reservations about speaking about Mushitsuki. Knowing just this made him a lot calmer.

Finally the bus arrived at their stop.

Immediately next to where they got off the bus there was an art gallery. Akatsuki had imagined some sort of artistically designed building, but it was such a simple structure that at glance he might've thought it was a library. On the front was a sign announcing that the place was closing in a few months' time.

"You can't film inside," said the receptionist.

"…"

"A-Ako, hold on! Even if you can't film you can gather information, right? You're a genius after all!"

After being completely rejected, Akatsuki desperately supported her. Ako bitterly returned to camera to her bag.

Apparently entry was free due to the upcoming closure. They entered the art gallery.

First there was a large hall. There were large scenery paintings there, probably drawn by elementary schoolers.

"We seem to be the only ones in."

"There's nothing of note here after all."

Bluntly asserting this, Ako took a small metallic switch from her bag. She started operating something and moved it closer to her mouth.

"Our journalism club has finally taken step into what we believe to be one of the Demon Lord's strongholds. From here on is uncharted territory; we must resolve ourselves to this forbidden land."

It was a voice recorder. Although her digital camera had been sealed, she had been adequately prepared.

The second floor was separated into multiple blocks. The front of the elevator was a corridor, and they could see several entrances to rooms. The furthest was the emergency staircase.

They first went around the first floor.

In a room with covered windows were famous paintings they learned about even in school. "Painters of the world", a nearby billboard said.

Another room was a space full of painters they'd never heard of. It was an exhibition of watercolor paintings depicting sea creatures. "This is apparently a popular painter from the capital," Ako told him when asked.

The other blocks had no sense of unity. There was a place with unidentified carvings, and a room stuffed so full of art pieces it could be mistaken for a mere warehouse. They were apparently cleaning up before the closing of the place.

They saw nothing suspicious on the first floor. The only thing that remained was the administrative offices, but they didn't really think any rumors would gather around a place only the staff could enter.

"There's nothing strange here. What was the rumor here again?"

"Meeting someone completely identical to you was the gist of it. But I wasn't able to speak with any eyewitness directly so I cannot confirm this."

That's how rumors were. This dubious information had probably been exaggerated. Wary of his surroundings for now, Akatsuki sighed.

Deciding to go up to the second floor, they went through the corridor toward the stairs. Yet coming closer, they noticed that the stairs connecting to the second floor were blocked by a rope.

"So we can't use that? Should we use the elevator?"

"Yup."

Returning to the hall, they stood in front of the elevator. When they pressed the button they suddenly noticed a paper stuck to the door.

"Oh? 'In preparation for the closure, going up the second floor is forbidden'… the date being yesterday means it was possible a short while ago? Oh, maybe that stuffed room from earlier contains everything from the second floor."

"Someone's coming."

Just like Ako said, the second floor button turned off, and the first floor button lit up.

The elevator door opened in front of Akatsuki and Ako.

Boarding it was a middle-aged man. He was wearing a uniform, so he probably worked here. When he saw them both, he spoke sullenly.

"You're not allowed up the second floor. There's nothing there anyway."

"If there's nothing there then what were you doing?"

Ako asked suddenly. Pointing the voice recorder at him without allowing him to refuse, the middle-aged worker mumbled a Hmm? and furrowed his brows.

"W-wait a minute, Ako. You can't just ask that all of a sudden."

"Uh… it's my bad longtime habit."

Ako cleared her throat, and asked the person exiting the elevator again.

"I am very sorry. We are the journalism club from a nearby high school. We would like to gather some data, so can you lend us a bit of your time?"

"Data? If you want the manager he's in the office."

"Data about the strange phenomenon in this gallery as of late. About there being someone you meet who looks like an identical twin… it's possible that someone on the scene would know more about it than the manager."

"An identical…? Oh, you're talking about that middle schooler business?"

"Could you tell us more details?"

"Well, it's a bit… A middle schooler came running down the second floor in a hurry and clung to me. He said he was up there, followed by a dog or something I couldn't understand, and then looked at the mirror—"

The worker pointed at the mirror on the other side of the elevator.

"He shrieked like a girl and collapsed on the spot. Well, I investigated it, comforted the boy and got up to the second floor with him."

"You got up there, and…?"

"He just had a blank stare on his face like nothing happened. Apparently his girlfriend was sleeping on the couch, so he took her and headed back. They were apparently sleeping. He probably just imagined the entire thing."

"Is that it? Wasn't there anything else suspicious?"

"Well, not really. —That sofa really was comfy. There were even kids who came here just to sleep. There was someone just earlier who came here to sleep, so I threw her out. We have customers like that so I have to keep watch."

"How did she look? Please tell me in detail."

Ako seemed excited to find new clues. Yet Akatsuki intuitively recalled a certain person and cut between the two.

"C-could that person possibly be… a girl wearing her uniform slovenly? Her hair's about this long and she has curls. Did she talk strangely?"

"I think that's her. 'Sorry for the trouble, meow,' she said and got out."

I knew it, Akatsuki thought and held his head.

"Is she an acquaintance of yours, member Akatsuki?"

"Unfortunately, somewhat. I think she's unrelated. …Probably."

After that, they didn't hear anything that seemed too important from the worker. Leaving besides the duo thanking him, the man went toward the offices.

Ako wordlessly watched the worker leave. The moment she could no longer see his uniform, she pressed the elevator button. Akatsuki didn't even feel like stopping her.

"He just told us it's forbidden…"

"Looks like we'll need to gather some data from your acquaintance later, too."

The door opened. Seeing Ako board the elevator, Akatsuki had to follow her.

The elevator soon reached the second floor.

Slipping through the open door, they exited to a gloomy corridor.

The now-silent second floor was now completely empty except for them. As far as they could see there were no decorations anywhere; the air was chilly in the corridor without even any ornamental plants.

There was a wide space ahead of the corridor. They walked there.

It was a rest corner. In front of an unplugged vending machine there were several couches.

"So the aforementioned couple slept here."

Ako sat down on the sofa.

"Weren't they just half-asleep? After the boy saw himself and ran to the first floor, they shrieked when they saw the mirror… and he was taken back to the second floor he just acted like nothing happened? It's way too inconsistent. Oh, wasn't there also something about a dog?"

"…"

Ako sank into silence, thinking of something. He waited for her next words for a while, but she remained silent with her eyes closed. Was she trying to copy the couple?

"I'll go look inside for a bit."

He said, leaving her behind and going through the corridor.

Just like the worker had said, there were only very few art pieces around. Probably almost everything had been carried down to the first floor.

"Hmm?"

Akatsuki found something in a room's corner.

It was a Doberman statue. The statue of the dog barking at the sky was on a stand, lacking its hind legs.

"A dog…"

He only took notice of it due to recalling the worker's story. Otherwise he would have just passed by it.

He tried touching it, but it was simple, cold stone. There was nothing strange about it.

"If such a thing started moving it would cause an uproar."

He sighed and exited the room.

While he tried returning to the rest corner where Ako was, Akatsuki felt dizzy.

"…Oh?"

He stumbled, leaning against the wall.

His body suddenly became sluggish, and his limbs grew heavier. He couldn't proceed any further, as if he was sinking into a deep swamp.

He felt sleepy.

A violent drowsiness assaulted Akatsuki.

"What… is this…?"

Desperately keeping his heavy eyelids open, he raised his face. He was shocked.

Shining particles seeped out of the ceiling. The gloomy corridor was wrapped in a faint glow.

It wasn't his vision being distorted due to sleepiness. The white, shining powder kept pouring without stop, and the denser it became, the sleepier Akatsuki felt.

"I'm being… attacked…!"

Akatsuki's expression changed.

He'd lowered his guard since there was no one around. Even if it was a stupid rumor, it was a place with one of the strange phenomena he came to town to investigate. He couldn't slack off for a second.

He ended up defenselessly receiving a preemptive strike—that was the only possible conclusion.

Even if he searched for the enemy now, he couldn't attack back.

"Ako…!"

He had to take the unrelated citizen and evacuate. Akatsuki had no other choice right now.

Still stumbling, he aimed for the rest corner.

Beyond the corridor that turned into a sea of light he could see Ako sitting on the sofa. She seemed unhurt. Since she dropped her recorder to the floor, she'd probably fallen asleep.

"Ugh—"

His vision shook. The almost irresistible sense of dizziness made his legs lose their power.

Falling down to his knees, Akatsuki's eyelids slowly closed.

"A…ko…"

His own mutter sounded distant. He could hear his own body collapsing.

He gritted his teeth.

He forcibly opened his closed eyes.

"—Ako!"

His body suddenly became lighter.

Akatsuki used this momentum to rise up, stepping ahead.

However—

"…Eh…?"

In front of him was another collapsed boy.

The boy with a hand reaching ahead, still collapsed.

And it was none other than—

"It's me…?"

The one collapsed was without a doubt Ogata Akatsuki, himself.

The light that surrounded the area had disappeared at some point.

He unconsciously took a step back.

He felt his knees fold and he landed down on something spot. Apparently having moved at some point, he now had the rest corner sofa behind him.

"A-Ako…!"

Looking around him reflexively, he noticed a certain fact. The sofa he was sitting on was the very same sofa Ako had been sitting on—and his legs were strangely thin.

A bad feeling rose to his mind and caused a chill.

Rising from the sofa, Akatsuki put a hand against the vending machine.

"There's no way…"

The drink showcase reflected the face of a girl.

It was Haemori Ako.

"I turned into—"

About to fall into panic, he clenched his teeth.

The training Akatsuki had received from the hated SEPB allowed him to preserve his rationality even in the face of an emergency. No matter when, the most important thing was to first grasp the situation.

Akatsuki had switched with Ako. He first had to accept that.

"'Meeting your identical twin', huh…"

Turning around, he saw himself lying on the floor.

"So this means that 'people exchange their bodies' here—"

If this was truly a spiritual phenomenon, it had to be the ability of a Mushitsuki. Meaning the chances the enemy was hiding somewhere nearby was high.

Approaching his fallen body, he steadied his breathing.

Akatsuki on the floor was breathing calmly. Since Akatsuki's consciousness had entered Ako, then most likely Ako had entered his own collapsed body.

"If this is a Mushitsuki ability then it's probably a mental control type, or perhaps an illusion-showing mental pollution type… If this is an illusion, I should be able to bring out my Mushi—"

Akatsuki focused and tried bringing out his Mushi.

Yet nothing happened.

Was it because Ako was not a Mushitsuki or had his Mushi been sealed by some other method? Regardless, this meant that right now Akatsuki was a normal civilian.

While he tried racking his brains for some countermeasure, he saw something white glowing in his vision.

The light grains that enveloped Akatsuki earlier were being poured from the room ahead.

As the light vanished, he could hear from within the sound of something hard creaking.

"So you turn into someone else and then a 'dog' comes out…"

Looking ahead, he scowled. He cursed his own unwillingness to run out of here immediately.

Crawling ahead was a white statue.

Exposing its fangs as if alive, it was a Doberman with only an upper body.

1.04 Akatsuki Part 5

Howling, the Doberman statue grew steadily closer. Since it had no hind legs, it had to drag the stand attached to its hips.

Its exposed canines and starved eyes didn't look statue-like at all. Unlike how it seemed when Akatsuki touched it before, its body moved like a living being.

"Is it… a trap?"

Now that a clear enemy appeared he actually calmed down. Akatsuki in the form of Ako reached toward his previous body on the floor. Opening his bag, he retrieved his equipment.

A grey jacket supplied by the North Central Branch. They apparently regulated the equipment for all members in their jurisdiction.

Since it was made for Akatsuki's size, it was too big for Ako's body. He wore the jacket with the belt over her uniform, and equipped the visor to hide his face. He didn't know how the ability that switched bodies worked, but he couldn't allow Ako's body to be injured.

"This dog came from a different ability than us switching bodies. I heard that West Central Branch has many people with object-controlling abilities but… anyway, now I know—"

While Akatsuki showed no signs of running, the Doberman kicked the ground.

"This means that at the very least, two Mushitsuki are hiding somewhere and attacking us."

Although it only had its forelegs, the statue's leaping power was fearsome. It closed the distance between them in a leap, trying to bite into Akatsuki's thin neck.

"Ouch…!"

Although it looked living, it still felt like stone. A dull pain ran through his thin wrist.

The Doberman yelped and fell to the floor. Yet it simply shook its head and readied to attack Akatsuki again as if nothing happened.

"I can't really use much power with Ako's body…"

Clicking his tongue, he took out gloves and military pants from his bag. He wore the gloves on both hands and hung the pants from his shoulders.

Never mind his fighting techniques; with Ako's thin arms and weight, he wouldn't be able to inflict any damage.

As the dog attacked again he brought out his hand wrapped in cloth.

"Kh…!"

As expected, the dog bit his arm. Since the SEPB equipment had great durability, there was no way its fangs would pierce through it.

He held his ground to not collapse and smashed the dog's head biting his arm against the wall.

The Doberman yelped. The impact released its jaws from his arm. The cloth caught by the dog's fangs also fell to the floor along with him.

"Doesn't look like it'll ever end… no, a long drawn-out battle would be disadvantageous."

Apparently made of something quite hard, the damage to the dog was minimal. Only one ear was missing. It moved its neck and howled toward Akatsuki again.

Meanwhile, Akatsuki was panting. Ako apparently lacked exercise.

"Where's the enemy hiding…? I couldn't feel anyone hiding while scouring the room. If they’re attacking with the dog then why haven't I been attacked when I'd seen it the first time? I wasn't on my guard, so it could've attacked me from behind. What would do they if Ako was someone stronger than me—"

While evading the dog's assault with a back step, he mumbled to himself.

"Then why was that middle schooler caught in the same phenomenon able to get away without getting hurt? Wouldn't a complete amateur attacked by this dog be…?"

He then realized. While thinking about this, he had a certain conjecture.

"A civilian with no battle training wouldn't try to fight in the first place…! He went from the second floor to the first to call for help. Does that mean none of the abilities work on the first floor?"

But that was unrealistic.

"But what's the difference between the first and second floors? Wouldn't the Mushi pursue him at this short of a distance?"

Perhaps learning that Akatsuki would dodge attacks to his upper body, the Doberman's fangs changed their aim to his legs. If the girl's legs beneath the skirt received an attack it would be over for him.

"…!"

He had no time to hesitate. He already had no stamina to spare. Evading the dog with a split hair difference, he rushed toward the elevator.

The Doberman pursued Akatsuki's back.

Fortunately, the elevator was still at the second floor. When he pounded the button the doors opened.

"Ha!"

Akatsuki launched a back kick toward the dog attacking just as he boarded. Turning a somersault and rolling on the floor leaving the dog behind, the elevator's doors closed.

"Hah… Hah…"

Exhausted, he sat down inside the elevator. It soon reached the first floor and the door opened.

The mirror that appeared in the front reflected Ako breathing heavily. He also ended up seeing the underwear under her skirt and blushed.

"If the dog attacked me right now… it would be bad."

He pressed the second floor button with shaking fingers. The door closed again and the elevator rose.

Akatsuki's body, collapsed on the second floor, was defenseless. He couldn't even ascertain if Ako's consciousness was inside it.

An electronic noise announced the arrival on the second floor. Akatsuki wrung out his power to stand up.

Readying himself, the door opened.

There were no signs of any attack by the wary dog. Running into the corridor, he found his body.

"Uh…"

Just as he felt relief, he was assaulted by violent dizziness.

His vision flickered and all strength left his body.

He couldn't resist this time. —According to the worker, the student that was lively when returned to the second floor suddenly had a "blank stare". Did it not mean his consciousness was returning to his original body?

"But that's almost as if—"

He could feel his own body collapse.

When he next opened his eyelids, he could feel the coldness of the floor on his cheeks.

"—This place itself was embedded with the ability of a Mushitsuki."

Slowly raising his body, he returned to his familiar height of vision. Checking his long limbs, he confirmed he returned to his original body.

Looking to the corridor, he could see Ako collapsed near the elevator's entrance. The North Central Branch equipment didn't fit her at all.

His prediction was right on the mark. The body switching ability had been absolved. Or perhaps they'd just reverted back again.

"But is that possible? Leaving only the ability behind when there's no Mushi here… And two different abilities at that… I've never heard of anything like that."

He turned toward the sofa. According to the worker, the middle schooler involved in the previous incident had fallen asleep on it.

"So is this ability triggered by falling asleep on the couch? Then the trigger for the dog should be—"

He couldn't see the Doberman statue around.

Akatsuki narrowed his eyes.

A small insect crawling from his hair began growing like an inflating balloon.

It became an abnormal monster and clung to Akatsuki's back. The yellowish-brown mayfly was now about as large as Akatsuki himself. Its long tail split into two was swaying as if it was a living being itself.

It was Akatsuki's Mushi, Hien.

"I knew it. It activates once it feels a Mushi ability nearby."

A white glow poured out from the room ahead. Waiting for a while, he could see the familiar white Doberman. The reason it hadn't appeared when Akatsuki went back to normal wasn't because the same ability had been activated, but because the ability had been absolved.

The white Doberman assaulted Akatsuki.

"Meaning this is a single trap. —No, I'm not sure this is a trap. Perhaps we were simply caught up in a mechanism that activated by chance."

Akatsuki moved no muscle. The mayfly clinging to his back shot a black sphere from the hole opened up in its abdomen.

Drawing an arc in the air, the black sphere hit the Doberman directly. White light illuminated the floor.

"But this means that something's really happening in town…"

The statue's remnants—its head and its left leg—rolled on the floor. The remaining right foot rattled on the floor, but soon stopped moving.

Gathering his fallen equipment and bag, he approached Ako. Removing the jacket and the visor from her, he hid them in his bag. Akatsuki shrank his Mushi and it vanished in his hair.

"Looks like I'll need to ask Orion about this. Had she suggested this gallery by chance, or was she setting a trap for me…? I need to be prepared for battle just in case."

Carrying Ako, he went down the elevator to the first floor.

Heading directly for the exit, he passed through the reception desk. "Looks like she'd fallen asleep," he said to the receptionist with a smile.

"Was her personality also an attempt to lower my guard for the trap? Even so she was really overdoing—"

As soon as he exited the gallery, Akatsuki widened his eyes.

He saw a familiar Hornet parked in the nearby alley. Standing in front of the motorcycle was the girl Akatsuki had thought of just now.

"Orion…!"

Shit—

He groaned in his heart. By carrying Ako he was in a great disadvantage. Perhaps she'd come there to attack him by surprise after thinking this would happen.

Yet although Akatsuki was tense, Orion was speechless. Never mind her overly bright way of speaking, she didn't even take any visible movements.

"…?"

Something was strange. Still cautious, Akatsuki approached the girl, and was shocked.

He noticed that her eyes, slightly lowered to the ground, were clouded, like those of a doll. Her frozen expression hadn't even the slightest trace of any emotion in it.

"B-but why—"

Akatsuki scowled.

When a Mushitsuki had their Mushi killed, the feedback would make them lose their mind. They would respond to external orders, but they turned into an emotionless living dead.

"Why did you turn into a Fallen…?"

The unspeaking Orion's eyes were dyed by the orange of the setting sun.

1.05 Ako Part 1

The True Journalist, Haemori Ako.

She had received her talent from her skillful photographer grandfather.

He apparently wandered around battlefields from a young age, acting as a war journalist. He took pictures and videos of the incidents caused by civil wars, guerilla resistances and terrorist attacks.

Yet Ako was the most curious about when her grandfather had stepped away from battlefields. With an antique-like analogue camera in his hand, he would photograph anything as long as there was a request for it.

Her grandfather never spoke to Ako about his time on the battlefield. Taking her to take pictures of nature and animals, he only talked about how valuable peace was.

Borrowing her grandfather's camera, she took many pictures. He would always praise her. Since Ako was the kind of person to thrive with compliments, she increasingly fell in love with the idea of leaving some sort of chronicle behind.

It happened when Ako became a middle school student.

Her grandfather, along with his partner camera, returned to a battlefield and never came back.

War addiction. Ambition. Thrill-seeker. Looking for a place to die. —Thus the people around branded her grandfather. But Ako had asked her grandfather for the real reason.

—While I'm in this country, I forget what peace is. I even almost forget the truth about all the lives so needlessly lost behind this peace.

After saying so with a smile, her grandpa returned to the battlefield.

What was the "truth" that her peace-loving grandfather sought after?

Ako was pursuing it even now.

"I knew I wasn't crazy."

The following morning after parting from Akatsuki at the art gallery, Ako came to a certain warehouse at the back of the school.

The wooden shack the size of half a classroom at most was packed full of materials and trash. Apart for items such as a rusted bicycle or P.E. equipment that were there for who knows how long, there was a mountain of dusty cardboard boxes.

These were all things carried out of the journalism club room. It was the all materials they'd once gathered, with Ako's personal belongings mixed in with them.

Inside the warehouse where the morning sunlight poured in, Ako spread a large paper on a mat.

It was the town's map.

With her camera in her left hand, she took a close-up photo of the art gallery on the map.

"The art gallery has also fallen to the hands of the Demon Lord."

She scribbled an X with a red pen in her right hand.

Yesterday, Ako had fallen asleep inside the art gallery. When she'd woken up she'd been carried by Akatsuki, and while laughing he told her they'd been driven out of the art gallery due to it being past closing time.

After that, Akatsuki parted from her as if nothing happened.

Yet Ako realized.

Something had happened at the art gallery back then.

Because Ako hadn't been sleeping due to growing tired of walking. As proof, although she'd tried replicating the actions of the middle school couple, and wasn't tired at all, she'd fallen asleep on the sofa. It was to make the Demon Lord and his army of darkness lower their guard.

She also had proof that something had happened there. Yet since it was something only Ako knew of, she had to seal it. Truly a pity.

"The journalism club has taken one step further toward defeating the Demon Lord."

Adding narration to her video, she folded the map.

Just as she turned around in order to return to class, she stumbled on a box at her feet. Since her camera was about to bump into the wall, she curled her body to protect it.

"Ouch…"

Covering for the camera and scratching her head, she looked down the collapsed box.

It was a box full of Ako's belongings. A bundle of photos scattered from the file that flew to the ground.

Gasping, Ako hurriedly sat down. While covering the photos as if to hide them, she looked at the open entrance.

"What I have done was a careless mistake. If I'm found by the secret organization again I'm probably a goner."

Confirming that the figure she was scared of—a woman clad in a dark coat—wasn't there, she felt relieved. Putting down her camera, she hid the photos inside the file again.

These photos that Ako hurriedly grabbed depicted something that wasn't human.

They were monsters with various sizes and shapes. Civilians seeing them would think they were CG or special effects, but those who saw it would know it to be extremely valuable photo.

Finishing cleaning up, Ako left the warehouse with her camera in hand.

As she entered the school and went toward the shoe lockers, the school's morning scenery entered her eyes. Showered in the petals of the cherry trees planted near the school, she could feel the smiles of new students.

It was a truly nice scene.

"This town is peaceful today as well."

A natural smile rose to her face. Stopping there for a while, she let her camera linger on the scenery in front of her eyes.

The camera saw the new students chatting among themselves. Several were smiling bashfully.

Yet someone pulled on the sleeves of the new students. "It's that Demon Lord girl that senpai told us about…" they whispered. Ako twitched.

"If you're interested in the Demon Lord, do come to our—"

Before she finished saying this, the new students left quickly.

"…"

She didn't call out to them.

She knew perfectly well how other people looked at her.

And so she couldn't give up so easily.

"Club member Akatsuki is probably already at school."

Entering school, she headed to Akatsuki's class.

Would he be surprised if Ako revealed she knew something happened at the art gallery? If he were, he would probably praise her as a genius.

Ako was the kind of person to thrive with compliments.

Just like her grandfather once praised anything and everything she filmed, Ogata Akatsuki probably also noticed her talent. Ako wouldn't be able to hide her talent.

She reached his classroom and peeked inside.

Ignoring the first bell, she didn't see her excellent journalism club member anywhere.

"If you're here for Ogata-kun, he's not here."

She turned the camera toward the voice. Two girls looked at Ako.

"Did he take the day off?"

"Dunno."

The eyes of the two girls who bluntly answered turned severe. Ignoring someone else who tried stopping them, they spoke resolutely.

"Say, Haemori-san. Why are you deceiving new students into joining your club?"

"I do not deceive them. There really is a Demon Lord."

"This stupid Demon Lord thing is just your—"

She started, but sank into silence. Seeing Ako intently filming her, she hung her head as if suddenly coming to her senses.

"I-I'm sorry. Don't take my pictures."

The girl who apologized and lowered her head was, without any doubt, scared.

"…"

Ako could feel her heart throbbing in pain.

Every time she saw this expression, she recalled her crimes from the past.

The next thing she knew, the LCD screen was reflecting the floor.

"…Club member Akatsuki is a friend."

Mumbling this, she left the classroom.

Noticing she was still filming the floor, Ako raised the lenses. Doing this was a shame as a journalist.

Seeing the students passing the corridors while smiling, she felt a bit better.

Perhaps due to inheriting her grandfather's love for peace, Ako also loved it. The countryside high school was as peaceful as ever today.

Many things happened until now.

She also made mistakes at times.

But right now Ako was at peace.

No matter how hated she was, the fact that Ako loved peace remained unchanged.

"Once club member Akatsuki comes to school we have to fetch our material as fast as possible."

Finishing charging up her mood, Ako walked through the corridor in high spirits.

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