Volume 1 - CH 1.5

[Breaking News] United Nation Forces bombed ■■ holdout, killing 150 people

Wednesday, July 7, before dawn, Japan time. UN forces carried out an airstrike against the said extremist holdout. An estimation of 150 people died in the attack, the leader, ■■■■ ■■■■, was also presumed dead.

The casualties also included a group of civilians, but miraculously, all 34 students who were being held hostage have been extracted safely.

The attack had significantly weakened ■■  extremists greatly. The Heavens Council was believed to be involved in the incident and an official statement will be out shortly.

Year ■■■■, month ■■■■■■, ■■ th. ■■:■■ (■■■■ channel)

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“‘Vitamin for The Day’… ‘Soy Milk Latte’… ‘Chia Seed’…Hmm”

“How long are you gonna be here?”

“Ah, s-sorry! Just a bit more, be there in a sec!”

I reminded her, “You’ve been here for almost ten minutes…” 

Even though I was grumbling, I was struggling to keep myself  from laughing in the inside. Normally, I would hate wasting time like this, but I enjoyed it if it was with Hiyori. Deep down, I was just gloating about having a girlfriend.

It was a week after we went out. During the week, it had become our routine for us to leave school together. If we had time, then we would sometimes stroll the Onomichi station area. Like today, we were buying some drinks to enjoy at the beach afterwards.

“Umm… what’s yours, Miharu-kun?”

“Coffee. I can’t get bored of it, so it became my go-to choice.”

“Hmm, is that so? If you have a usual, choosing would be faster… Coffee’s very Miharu-kun like too… Ah, what should I have～”

“Even so, what are you even worrying about? There’s not much of a difference between these beverages, won’t anything do?”

“Eh! That’s not true!” Her expression might as well be screaming, “unbelievable!”. “See, this would be what I drink when I talk with you… I want something that tastes good and puts me in a pleasant mood. If I choose the wrong one, I’d be all iffy…”

“Appreciate your concern. But on the contrary, if you got a bad one, that could be the topic for the conversation instead, no?”

“Huh! Right! That’s it! B-but… that would leave me with even more choices…?!” Looking even more flustered, she turned her attention back to the shelf, then to the maniac’s drinks. “Then, what should I have…? Miso drink…Carbonated Coffee…?”

Ah, she’s even worse than before…

“Take your time… I’ll wait.” Seeing no other choice, I let her be, no need to get worked up. 

But just waiting would be unproductive… Might just as well check the manga section, the new issue might be out already.

Then, from the cashier,

“S-sir! Is there anything?!” A shout disrupted the calm of the dingy convenience store.

What could it be, a complaint? I turned my head and saw an elderly man standing in front of the cash register.

“R-real knife?! Wha-what are you trying to do?!”

“Sh-shut up! Give me the money and nobody gets hurt!!”

A shiver ran down my spine.

By quick assessment, the clerk, a man in his thirties, was facing an old man, perhaps fifty. The old man looked pale and haggard. In his hand, he held a kitchen knife, the tip towards the clerk.

For a moment, my mind was in denial.

A youtuber or some over-the-top surprise filming, like a variety show or TV drama. Someone must have laughed while watching this… No one would have robbed a store in broad daylight, right?

But a glance at the clerk changed everything.

The man with the knife was trembling, the clerk had pure terror on his face. This was real– a real convenience store robbery.

My heart raced. My body burned hot, sweat poured out of every pore of my body.

The gray-haired man lifted a knapsack on the cashier. “G-get to it! Get it in the bag!” But his hand was shaking so hard it fell off.

I took a step back and thought. He wasn’t hiding his face with anything. The knife was worn from daily use, obviously not one specifically for this robbery. He had never robbed before.

To begin with, Onomichi was a quiet, peaceful country town with a crime rate of practically zero. It wouldn’t be bold at all to claim that the perpetrator had no choice but to commit this robbery out of financial hardship. Crime was just that out of place here in Onomichi.

Nonetheless, the clerk must have been terrified. The younger man drew the cash register open and began to draw out money.

“You have money at the back too, don’t you?! We’re not finished here!”

Color drained from his face. “Y-yes!”

I half prayed for the clerk to do as he said. This was a sloppy robbery, the culprit would be caught soon enough anyway, better come out safe.

In the meantime, I will just hide with Hiyori. He won’t come here, the door to the storage of the store was the other way around. This was an unorganized crime, no one will get hurt if no one does anything silly—

Just when I thought so, my brain stumbled on the worst case scenario.

And what if the culprit came this way and found us…

My back soaked with perspiration.

I needed to save her, then. I was her boyfriend. With an airhead like her… I had to see her through, no matter the cost…

I gripped my school bag tight, feeling the tension rising in me.

Then–

“…?!”

Hiyori briskly walked toward the cashier. With her usual somewhat fluffy, seemingly out-of-this-world gait, she walked toward the cash register.

“H-hey! What are you thinking!?” I screamed a whisper. “Come back!”

What is she even doing?! Didn’t she notice the robbery? She was going to continue shopping like nothing happened? Are you in a daze or something?!

“I’ll be fine” She looked back at me and smiled. “I’ll Request and clear this up…”

Request…

Then I remembered what she was capable of. 

If she Requested, then things might end on a better note..!

“Wait here, Korohashi-kun.”

But, could Request be used in a situation like this? What if she failed?

I couldn’t move, even though the anxiety was eating me out. It was as if I was held by metal wire, I couldn’t even breathe.

“Um…” she began calmly. “Drop the weapon imme–”

“Who are you?!!” the robber’s voice drowned out Hiyori’s Request.

“Please, stop–”

“–D-don’t lecture me! What do you understand?! Shut up!!” The tip of the trembling knife turned to her. 

“Put the knife down—”

“Shut! Your! Trap!!” The man walked up to her hastily and held her from the back. “E-enough…! You’re my hostage!”

The edge of the knife was fixed perilously at her throat.

A numb sensation ran through my head

That’s no good— one move and she will—

“Hey, clerk there! Make it quick… if you don’t want her to get hurt!

“R-right away!”

Something— anything to help her. How do I—

“Tch…!”

I was frozen to the spot, even my fingers refused to twitch.

Why? Why did I have to freeze now, of all time?

“Goddamn, you’re slow!” The old man yelled in frustration before snatching the bag and staggered toward the exit. “Youre comin’ with me!”

Ah, he’s getting away…

Did he have a car parked? What would he do to Hiyori after?

“Hiyori!” I stood up from my hiding spot and followed them

“Stay where you are!!” He pointed the knife at me, then back at Hiyori. “G-get any closer! And I’ll kill her!!”

I stopped in my tracks.

I can’t… Chasing them would be counterproductive.

The two of them slowly pull away, through the automatic door and to a weather worned car. The man fumbled his pockets for the key but dropped the blade instead.

“Damnit!” He bends down.

“Listen.” Seizing the opportunity, Hiyori Requested, “Throw away the knife.”

She did it. She Requested in time.

“R-right” The man threw away the knife just as he got his hand on it.

She didn’t look pretubed by being held hostage in the slightest. She continued her request nonchalantly, “Let’s stop doing this. Release me, please, then go with the police quietly.”

“Understood.” He released his grip on her and she sprung away from him. The man muttered somberly, “Right… yes. Sealing isn’t good…”

All the tension melted from his body, as if he had completely forgotten about the robbery. The Request was in full effect.

Learn more

It took me a few more moments to register– it was all right now. Hiyori is safe.

“H-Hiyori!” I found my voice again. I flexed my frozen limbs before rushing toward her.

The sky outside was already setting, a complex marble of blue and orange. Mukaishima began to glow with pinpricks of household lights, Seto Inland Sea glinted in the reflections of the dots. 

Against this backdrop, Hiyori gave me a soft smile.

I wanted to touch her— to take her hand and confirm her presence.

I was so happy that I couldn’t help but smile. I didn’t like smiling, smiles don’t fit well on my face. But for once, I didn’t want to hide it, not from her.

Hiyori must have been scared. It must have been terrifying being caught like that.

That was why I wanted to pick her up with the biggest smile I could muster. I wanted to reassure her, even if only a little…

–Bang 

Followed by a squishy sound. 

And a spray of red…

Then a heavy thud.

The culprit lay on the ground.

“Huh?”

What once was the culprit’s head exploded to bits of red, pink, and yellow, like a smashed fruit. That said, red dominated all other colors.

Next to him, Hiyori…

My girlfriend raised her eyebrows and looked down at the culprit with pity.

“I thought I was on time…”

I don’t understand.

What was happening?

The usual scenery, a familiar girl, in the Onomichi salty breeze.

And yet… What the hell is this?

It didn’t feel real at all, as if I was watching a movie or playing a video game. Even the grotesque state of the robber’s body before my eyes I still felt devoid of any emotion. My brain had refused this was real.

It got even wilder from here.

A chapony of engines surround the area. I looked up, the parking lot was now filled with a dozen of black cars. Black vans, to be precise, of the exact same model and color.

People in black riot police-like outfits sprang from the vans and scattered around the perimeter. Some of them rushed to the corpse and pulled it away, leaving a trail of red. Others call off the gathering neighbors who began to gather.

One of them, a frail-looking elderly man in a suit, fell beside Hiyori.

“Why did you shoot?” Hiyori asked the man hoarsely, “I got the Request in time, you don’t need to kill him…”

It felt like an argument they were used to having, and yet, somewhere, business-like. Hiyori touched her cheek, and her hand came back red. She wiped, brain, blood, whatever that was.

“Better be cautious, miss.” He replied tartly, “Please keep in mind how much your life is worth… “

Hiyori fell silent, a silent agreement passed between them. The man politely wiped her cheek with a handkerchief then continued.

“We will require a few Requests from you. The prefectural police, hospital, as well as witnesses. It would be about covering up and erasing memories, if you would.”

She sighed tiredly. “Yeah, okay.” She glanced at me. “And what if my boyfriend gets to keep his memory?

“Anything you say, miss. My objections won’t matter much if you Request of me.”

“If I may, then.” 

She smiled wistfully and she strode. She stopped a few paces before me and said, “Sorry. This must be a bit hard to take in all of the sudden.”

I saw an overlapping image of that day she confessed to me.

However, as that was just as I expected, what happened this time around was a complete shock.

“W-what was that? Tell me, what’s happening…?”

She gave me a wry smile and said, “You know, in the beginning, I only asked for small favors. A little selfishness here and there, Requesting for forgiveness once in a while… but then I saw the terrible things on TV and thought, what can I do to help? That was probably the most exact beginning.” 

Now that I look, her clothes were splattered with blood in various places, like a deliberate design, a red decorative paint on a denim.

“It didn’t take long after that. From people around me to notorious criminals, from criminals to politicians, from Japanese to foreigners…The scale of operation grew, so did the number of people backing us. The organization got bigger, we got request from the Ministry, UN, to NGO–”

“–Wha- wait!” I exclaimed.

Coincidentally, I said the same line as when I did the impersonation she Requested.

“What are you talking about? I… I have no idea. Ministry? Organization? Hiyori… what? What are you…?”

“Oh, right… sorry.” She chose her words for a moment. “Have you heard about ‘The Heavens Council’? We are doing a democratization as of late…”

“Yes, but…”

An organization that I could not deny my admiration and respect for, even though their way of doing things wasn’t exactly what I wanted.

And then, Hiyori–

She smiled wryly. 

“People here are members of The Heavens Council–”

“—and I’m its founder and leader–”

“—This is our secret, ‘kay?”

[End of chapter 1]