Ichinose Honami

"I'd already regained my freedom, too."

Honestly, what a shame. I'd almost succeeded. I'd almost escaped this world.

"Just consider it a prerequisite for gaining your freedom. If you stay there for three years, you can do whatever you want. By then, I won't bother you anymore—not even to the point of arranging your burial if you die."

"That's awful. This isn't some trick you use to fool children, is it?"

Like how wearing two hats stunts your growth, you shouldn't open an umbrella indoors, or you shouldn't go out at half past midnight. Come to think of it, people had already encountered so many lies as children. It was terrifying.

"Of course not."

If he called it a joke three years from now, I'd make sure he went down with me in a grand funeral.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why are you sending me there?"

"To help you understand the true meaning of life."

"I already told you just now that I understood that."

"That's because you still don't understand."

Ah, he'd refuted me in a single sentence. The argument I'd spent over ten minutes painstakingly thinking through had been dismissed just like that. It was truly heartbreaking.

"You don't understand the meaning of life at all. I remember you studied Maslow's hierarchy of needs, didn't you? Don't you think what you're experiencing now is a kind of ordinary feeling of 'peak experiences'—a state of self-transcendence that you've sustained or experienced repeatedly?"

"...No, I'd say the problem is the teaching method. This inhumane education system should have been rejected from the start. But it's a little too late to say that now."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with the teaching method. On the contrary, it's more convenient this way. I'm surprised this model hasn't become more widespread."

"Do you think everyone is like you? Besides, this model can only be implemented by someone with a certain amount of authority. Otherwise, if you applied for a job, your education would get you rejected right from the start."

Ah, that was true. This was a society that judged people by their academic credentials. No one had time to test how capable you really were. And I'd never attended school; I'd only studied.

After saying this, the man fell briefly silent, staring at the can of Coke in his hand as if lost in thought. I could read the subtle expressions on his face, but even so, I still had no idea what was on his mind. It was strange, yet somehow perfectly ordinary.

"...Let me ask you something. Have you ever felt pain?" After the rain had blurred the windows for who knew how long, the man looked at me with his ridiculous eyes.

What a strange question.

"As long as people are alive, they can feel pain."

"You're even more thorough at answering a different question than the rumors suggested." The man sighed, then changed tack. "You probably don't know what pain really feels like."

"You must be joking. Anyone can feel pain. Besides, I'm just an ordinary person. And please don't believe rumors you hear from other people so easily. Your subjective assumptions are making things difficult for me."

No one could defy that. Not even an ordinary person.

After hearing my answer, he gave me a mocking smile, which irritated me a little.

"Ordinary person. Ordinary person again. I've always wanted to know what you mean by 'ordinary.' Do you mean someone who has neither the wealthy lifestyle of the commercial and industrial bourgeoisie nor the power and authority of the ruling class? Or do you mean a god who can see everything that happens as predictable and ordinary, all while retaining a human body?"

I didn't respond. In truth, I didn't know how to prove myself to him.

I had no intention of wasting my energy on something so pointless.

"But you're right. You've probably experienced pain before... though those experiences have likely become images by now."

"Those things are all still in my mind."

"But you don't really consider them your memories, do you? They're just images. Even though your memories verify them, you treat them as though they were scenes in a movie. You don't have a real sense of your own existence."

"You stopped me from killing myself not long ago, which means I'm alive and well now, doesn't it?"

I tossed my empty can into the trash and answered him without a care, brushing off his verbal games. It wasn't something I needed to learn, but I'd learned it anyway. However, he didn't seem interested in continuing that discussion. Instead, he went back to the previous topic.

"People feel pain because neither their good nor their evil is pure. For someone like you, who can't feel pain, do you possess pure evil or pure good?"

"Or are you not even human?"

Beneath his casual words, I heard deep malice. He wanted to probe my past completely. It was clear he'd started to grow suspicious.

"That's a pretty harsh thing to say. I have genuine human blood flowing through my veins. If you don't believe me, I can show you—though it will hurt."

"...Are you sure?"

"Hey, hey, you're not actually going to do it, are you? It hurts." I hurriedly shifted to the side, wary of his movements.

His serious expression suddenly broke into a smile. "Of course I'm joking. How could you be a machine? I never saw you recharge during the month I had you under surveillance around the clock."

"...You kept me under surveillance around the clock for a whole month, and you never mentioned it?"

"Did you really think I'd let you know?"

"..."

Well, the truth was, I didn't care about that. There really had been five teardrop cameras back then. I'd thought he had some deeper purpose, so I'd been careful about everything I said and did. In the end, he'd only wanted to confirm the ridiculous conclusion that I wasn't human.

He set down his can of Coke, slowly pulled a cigarette from the inner pocket of his suit, and put it between his lips. I'd always been baffled by the fact that people who worked in offices wore suits all the time. At formal occasions, you had to wear a suit, even in the scorching summer. It was a custom whose origins were unclear, and supposedly it represented an employee's positive attitude. I couldn't see how.

"Luomu, listen carefully. People live in order to die, but that's also what makes life more meaningful. The meaning of life is to live, and living is meant to make you cry, make you laugh, and let you feel pain and anxiety. It's meant to let you feel happiness and warmth."

"That's what you're missing."

I couldn't quite grasp what he meant by that reply. When I came to, I realized my brow was furrowed.

"Ha—" A mocking smile appeared on his face as he looked at me with an expression that said, You don't know anything at all.

"It's too false, little Mu."

I didn't like being called little Mu. It always felt insulting. But this wasn't the time to discuss that.

"What do you mean? What are you saying is false?"

"Or perhaps 'incomplete' would be more accurate?" He shook his head. "Anyway, you'll understand someday, after spending three years there—or perhaps less than three."

"...I don't understand, but all I have to do is complete your final request, right?"

"You really don't hold back."

I had no intention of engaging in a battle over his riddles, so I asked directly.

"Where's the mission location?"

"Advanced Nurturing High School," he said with a smile.

"...You mean you want me to spend three years at a high school?"

There was no point in going to high school at this age. Besides making a bunch of friends who would lead me astray, I wouldn't learn anything else there. Was there something special about it?

"It's different. That high school isn't what you imagine." He wagged his index finger before my eyes. "Life there isn't like an ordinary high school. It'll be more interesting than you think. Don't get expelled before you've even been there for three years."

"...Just avoiding expulsion isn't enough?" I asked, voicing my final question.

"No, of course not. Simply avoiding expulsion is nowhere near enough to meet my expectations."

"What exactly are you trying to do? If you don't explain the mission clearly, it'll be difficult for me to act."

"You don't need to know what I'm trying to do. I'll set conditions for you. Just do as I say."

"This is far too much trouble. Why not just tell me your goal? I'll achieve it directly. If you keep things this vague, I can't guarantee I'll succeed."

"If I told you my goal, you'd definitely fail. Besides, even if you did fail, wouldn't that be nice? After all—"

"I've never seen you fail before."

"My failures aren't anything unusual. Everyone fails sometimes. Besides, you think too highly of me. There are countless ordinary people just like me, and countless others who are better than me."

"Haha, that's a little too modest. Tomorrow—I'll tell you the details of this mission tomorrow. But until then, you may only use the information I provide. Don't investigate that school on your own."

"Your demands are pretty strict."

"I'm looking forward to seeing what you do."

"Then I hope your request goes well. I won't see you off."

"What an impolite brat."

Chapter 2: Ichinose Honami

"Hey, your bag." He tossed me the shoulder bag he'd finished inspecting, then took a cigarette from his suit pocket and quietly lit it. He blew a mouthful of thick smoke in my face.

"The school's official website specifically says there'll be an inspection of our belongings before enrollment. Why go to all this trouble?" I calmly took the bag and held it in my hand.

"Of course I would. I don't completely trust you. I wouldn't feel at ease without inspecting it myself. Come to think of it, you haven't brought anything worthwhile this time."

"Have I ever brought anything worthwhile before?"

"You know perfectly well."

"Then can I leave now?" I didn't want to entertain his probing remark. I just wanted to get away from him as soon as possible.

"Sure... Wait, there's one thing I forgot to mention."

"What?"

"Remember how I told you about the class assignments? I got a notice not long ago saying you'd been transferred from Class D to Class B."

"...How long ago?"

"Hmm, let me think... Probably not long after the entrance exams."

"Is there any deeper meaning to this?"

"No deeper meaning. A new student was added at the last minute. That's all."

Was it really as he said? If so, why hadn't he just put me in Class B from the start? In other words, the class assignments must have been balanced in some way.

"I don't have anything else to add." The man stubbed out his cigarette and casually tossed it onto the ground, then ground it under his shoe a few times.

"You'll get fined," I said, landing a weak jab.

"I'll take care of it later. Anyway, have a safe trip."

"You should say that to yourself. This whole mess was caused by you, after all. I'm just the one carrying out the mission."

"How heartless. And I even came all the way here to see you off."

You were only here to inspect me one last time.

Humans were creatures who acted with a purpose. No matter how small an action was, it carried a deeper meaning.

I ignored his final farewell and walked straight out of my home.

Although the man wouldn't let me investigate the school myself, he had still explained a few things about it.

Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School

A national high school in Tokyo, Japan, renowned for its state-of-the-art facilities and an employment and university admission rate close to one hundred percent.

The school had a somewhat unusual system. No, perhaps it would be more accurate to say it had a system no ordinary school could implement.

[Remain at Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School continuously for three years, until graduation.]

I'd heard of boarding schools, but most of them made students stay from Monday to Friday, then go home to play on the weekends. I'd never imagined a boarding school where students couldn't contact the outside world for three years. Except in special circumstances, all outside contact was forbidden, even with family.

In other words, I'd be completely cut off from the outside world, as if I were in prison, and would have to stay there for three years. I wasn't worried about that. After all, I'd spent more than three years in a place like that before.

It was just a change of location.

In addition, the school only allowed new students to bring items permitted by its regulations.

Aside from some necessary stationery, a few unimportant books, and a set of spare uniforms required by the school, my bag held nothing else.

There was no bedding or daily necessities. If the school provided those, then that would be ideal.

I wandered over to the bus stop. It was early, and the bus I needed hadn't arrived yet. The area around me was quiet, too. Although it was spring, the street showed no signs of life.

There was no one around, but three cameras had been installed in the corners.

The blind spot should be... right here.

I pretended to be an ordinary person, impatiently waiting for the bus, pacing back and forth between the blind spot and the surveillance area. At the same time, I took two objects hidden under my tongue.

A miniature listening device and a miniature camera.

Unlike the "miniature" devices sold on the market, mine were miniature in the true sense of the word. Each was smaller than the tip of my little finger—no, smaller than a fingernail.

I wiped them clean and stuck them beneath the metal zipper of my shoulder bag. I didn't think I'd need to use them at a school, but a little preparation couldn't hurt.

Over the past year, that man had probably started to suspect my identity, which was why he'd acted the way he had just now. Still, he was only suspicious. No matter what, he'd never learn the truth. After all, the people who knew the truth...

"Ch-ch..."