“Arter, what do you think?”

“I like it, I think…”

“What do you mean by ‘you think’?”

“Well, you look good in anything, Lyne. It’s hard to tell if it’s the dress or if it’s you.”

There stood a poor, naive boy next to a girl of a similar age. The two were a so-called couple, consisting of a human and a beastkin.

The girl had a distinct pair of animal ears attached to her head. To match with her ears, she had a fluffy tail protruding out from her back as well, swaying every so often in a show of affection. Her hair and fur were colored a brilliant, almost golden hue of orange. As if to compliment her golden fur, she had a pair of silver-colored eyes. She wore a newly bought dress to please the boy, seemingly successful in doing so.

The human had short blonde hair, blue eyes, and wore a plain outfit for this day. Though he would normally carry a sword with him, he left it behind as per the girl’s request. This was a day for sightseeing, not for fighting. Instead, the boy carried a harp with him, attached to his side.

The couple walked together along a town, visiting around while interlocking hands. They eventually stopped at a town square, bustling with activity.

“Arter, why don’t you play that one tune?”

“Which one?”

“Which one do you think? That tune.”

“Oh, well, I’ve played it so many times that I thought you would get sick of it.”

“I’d never get sick of it. Not as long as you’re with me.”

The girl wrapped her arms around the boy, coiling her tail around him as well.

“Um, if you insist. You’ll need to let go of me first though.”

As the girl released her grasp, the boy grabbed his harp. He strummed a few notes beforehand to make sure that everything was in order. And with that, he began to play that tune. The tune that he knew so well from his past, and the one that the girl now knew very well too. 

As if that were a cue, the world around the boy began to crumble apart and melt away as he strummed the instrument. Figures surrounding him began to fade into nothingness, buildings phased out of existence. As he continued playing, the environment around him continued to fall apart. However, neither the boy, nor the girl, nor anybody else in the scene seemed to notice this. Shadows creeped up from the edges of the venue, engulfing everything around the boy. By the time the short tune was about to end, only he and the girl stood within the empty abyss, gazing at each other.

“Lyne, I ͝͏l̕҉҉o̕҉̸̢v͏̵̨͠e̶̢̕͞ you.”

One word in the boy’s sentence was blocked from hearing, sealed away.

“Arter, I-"

The girl never finished her sentence, for she too had been engulfed by the darkness.

As for the boy, Arter, he was someone I knew very well.

After all, he was none other than me.

 

"Wake up, Riku. I don’t need to babysit you."

I open my eyes to the sound of a scruffy male voice. As I regain my consciousness, I look at the features of the man. He had a somewhat tall and lean physique, dark brown hair that’s starting to gray, and quite noticeable bags under his eyes. He looks to be around his early forties.

The man pulled out a cigarette and a lighter hidden within his pockets.

“You were really sweating there. You had a nightmare or something? I didn’t even know you could get those.”

A nightmare. I guess I could call it that. Still, I wonder why I had such visions. It’s been a very, very long time since I was involved in such matters, and I had hoped that I would have forgotten it all by now.

The man placed the cigarette into his mouth and lit it. Normally, smoking is prohibited within the proximity of children, but he already knew that I didn’t care. I only know this man by the name of Mr. Watanabe. I’m unsure about what his first name is.

“I’m only human, you know.”

The man blew out some smoke while chuckling for a brief moment. 

“Barely, you’re like some super-freak of a human. Seriously, for a five year old, you seem more like an adult than a kid in my eyes.”

The man only spoke those words in jest, a sort of mockery. If only he knew how true those words were.

“I’ll be six in a couple of months though.”

It's been a few years since that incident at the library. The fire I started had made its way to the news being reported as a mystery. Around thirty dead bodies were found under the burning rubble, their blackened bodies too disfigured to recognize. However, the town was soon able to figure out who those bodies belonged to, as thirty residents happened to suddenly disappear at around the same time. The town held a memorial day for the victims, unaware of the dubious cult those bodies were a part of.

As for me, the police noticed the basket I was in during the next morning. They tried to track my original parents, but since I never had any official documents in the first place, they couldn't find anyone. Even if they somehow managed to trace me back to Haruka and Yuma, they're already dead. As a result, I was sent to an orphanage in town, the only known information being the name written on the basket, Riku. Since they couldn’t find my family, they assigned a new last name to me, Sano. In other words, I’m known to this world by the name of Riku Sano.

Watanabe stared out the window of my dorm while exhaling the carcinogenic fumes of his cigarette.

“You slept too late, most of breakfast has already been taken by some older kids.”

I stared at Watanabe with a look of distaste.

“And you’re implying that being earlier would make a difference?”

Watanabe chuckled to himself once more before going back to focusing on his cigarette.

“I guess not.”

Most kids in the orphanage seem to stay away from Watanabe for whatever reason. Most likely due to his blunt attitude, rough demeanor, and the smell of tobacco coming from his clothes, giving the impression that he doesn’t care about anyone. However, I’d argue that Watanabe is the most caring of the staff, though that doesn’t mean too much in all honesty.

The orphanage itself is pretty much in the gutter. Insufficient funding means overcrowded rooms, understaffed and underpaid workers, and a lack of available resources. As a result, there’s a hierarchy established by the kids. Though I say hierarchy, it’s more like the older kids getting access to most of the resources, such as food and washrooms, while leaving scraps to the younger ones. There’s a bunch of bullying going around as well, mostly by the older kids. All the while, the staff are often indifferent to the various incidents that arise. Many of them just turn a blind eye and act like the injustices don’t exist. Pretty ironic, considering that the name of this orphanage is “Justice Orphanage”.

“Well then, I’m heading to breakfast.”

As I’m about to head out the door, Watanabe grabs me by the shoulder, halting my stride.

“Wait, you just got those clothes washed, right? Change into the ones you already wore a few days ago.”

This is why I consider Watanabe the most caring of the staff. If it was any other staff member, they wouldn’t bother saying that.

“Alright then.”

I retreat back into my room and grab a set of clothes from a bin of dirty shirts, pants, and the like that need washing. When I turn back, I find that Watanabe already left, leaving his cigarette in the trash bin. I change into the well-worn attire before resuming my walk towards the orphanage’s cafeteria.

As I reach the cafeteria, a group of older children, around twelve to fourteen years old, crowd around the dining table inside. One stares at me in the eye before walking up to me.

“Hey look, it’s little runt Sano.”

Oh right, Japan tends to focus on people’s last names. I guess that actually means I’m known as Sano Riku here.

The kid eyes me for a brief second before continuing to speak.

“Buzz off, we’re occupying the cafeteria already.”

I take a peek at the dining table behind him, finding that there’s not much food left. A few morsels of bean sprouts, a nearly empty pot of miso soup, and some bowls of rice left. Meanwhile, a pile of emptied bowls and cups lay near the group of kids.

“I’m just here to eat.”

The kid makes a scornful laugh at me, as if I said something funny to him.

“Yeah, and we are too. We were here first, so go away.”

Unfazed by his laugh, I respond to the older kid.

“And what if I don’t?”

The kid curls his hand into a fist, brandishing it in front of my face.

“Then we’ll just have to ‘convince’ you to give up, just like we did with the others.”

With food being limited, the older kids tend to form packs so that they can coerce the younger ones into giving up their meals. Most of the young kids flee away in fear, but there are some who would rather put up a fight. Of course, it doesn’t go well for them in almost all cases.

I point towards the direction behind the older kid while speaking.

“What about him?”

The kid turns around, trying to find the supposed person I pointed to. However, nobody else was in the cafeteria other than his fellow companions. Not passing up the chance, I lift my foot and give him a kick right between the legs as his focus is away from me.

“Aaaaugh!”

The kid immediately falls to the floor, wincing while clutching the affected area. His teammates immediately take notice and run up to the scene to surround me.

“You just made a big mistake, brat.”

“You’ve got some nerve to kick our friend here.”

“You better hope that-”

While they’re still in the midst of their spiel, I immediately slip through between two people, escaping the encirclement. Since all of them rushed up to me, nobody was left to guard the now-unoccupied dining table.

I dash my way towards the table, snatching up a pair of chopsticks and two bowls of rice, one in each hand. After grabbing what I need, I run out the door. Stunned by my speedy work, the group stands motionless for a few moments before chasing after me.

“Get back here!”

I run through the hallways of the orphanage, turning corners frequently to try and shake them off. As I keep sprinting, the figures behind me get smaller and smaller. Eventually, their voices fade into the distance as well, no longer audible.

By the time I confirm that they lost me, I’m standing within the orphanage’s garden, hiding behind a group of overgrown shrubs. I look back at my hands to find the two bowls of rice still intact. Though, I suppose I shouldn’t be that surprised by that. The rice here is so hard and dry that each bowl is like one solid block of rice that needs to be broken apart with your chopsticks before eating.

As I’m about to eat, I hear the distinct noises of crying. Judging from the sobbing, it seems that it’s a girl crying, a younger one to be exact. I initially attempt to ignore her, trying to eat my rice in peace, but I find myself getting more irritated by her high-pitched wails. As her crying continues, I eventually reach the limit of my patience and search for the source of the voice. After a bit of walking, I find a girl near a broken water fountain.

Evidently, the girl had recently been a victim of violence. Her brown hair was roughed up and disheveled. She had bruises on her arms and face. Her amber-colored eyes had turned red from all the crying. The outfit she wore was caked with dirt as well. She sat on the ground as she covered her eyes and sobbed.

“Would you mind not crying? I’m trying to eat here.”

The girl immediately looked up and stared right at me, or rather at the two bowls I carried.

“You...have food?”

“Just rice, but it’s better than nothing.”

The girl kept shifting her gaze between the bowls and my face. She seemed ready to say something before I spoke first.

“Let me guess, those kids in the cafeteria didn’t let you grab anything?”

“Y, you could tell?”

“Well, it’s quite obvious that you didn’t eat. ”

The girl trembled while clenching her fists.

“Liars, all of them. Liars.”

The girl suddenly began crying again.

Ugh.

Hoping to stop that racket, I present a bowl of rice to her.

“Will you stop crying if I give this to you?”

The girl was stunned for a few seconds before realizing that I’m offering breakfast to her. 

“You mean...you’re giving this to me?”

“As long as you shut up, yes.”

The girl’s face immediately brightens as she grabs the bowl and the pair of chopsticks I was holding.

“Hey, I was still using those.”

Not listening to my complaint, the girl scarfs down the bowl of rice. Noticing her inattention, I finish the rest of my own bowl while chopstick-less.

After a bit of waiting, the girl finishes and finally turns her attention back to me.

“Thank you, um...what’s your name?”

“Sano Riku.”

“Thank you, Sano! I’m Ueda Koko, five years old.”

The girl, going by the name of Koko, sets down the bowl and chopsticks. Now that she’s finished, I continue to speak with her.

“Care to elaborate on what you meant back then?”
“E, elabor-what?”

“...Explain what you meant by ‘liars’.”

Koko stares at the floor for a few seconds before responding in a feeble voice.

“They promised me yesterday that if I gave them my dinner, they would let me eat a bigger breakfast with them today. *sob* But they didn’t let me in. I tried to tell them about the promise they made, but they pushed me to the ground and kicked me. When I kept screaming, they kept kicking harder. *sniff*”

Well, that’s not surprising.

“That tends to happen a lot here. Take it as a lesson and try not to be so gullible next time.”

Koko suddenly clenched her teeth.

“It’s not fair. Why do the older kids get to take everything from others? Why do they act so mean? Why are they so uncaring?”

“That’s just how humans are.”

Koko looked at me with confusion.

“Humans are...supposed to be like that?”

“Yeah. It’s just that they’re usually good at hiding it.”

She ponders for a bit before responding.

“Then...I will change that.”
“Change what?”

“That evil part of humans. I will be someone who can make good appear in the world!”

Oh boy, looks like I’m dealing with another one of those wannabe heroes.

“Keep dreaming, Ueda.”

“Thank you, Sano.”

“I didn't mean that as a compliment.”

As I converse with Koko, I suddenly hear a voice nearby.

“He can’t be far! Keep searching!”

She suddenly panics and looks at me.

“W, who’s that?”

“Some guys who are looking for me. If you don’t want to get into any trouble, you should leave right now.”

“But-”

“Leave, I’ll be fine.”

Koko seems a bit reluctant at first, but eventually gives in and scurries away, disappearing behind a shrub.

This is exactly why Watanabe told me to change into some unwashed clothes. He was telling me to wear something that I wouldn’t mind getting dirty.

 

After a minute or two, a group of older kids appear, the same group from the cafeteria. However, this time, there are more people than before. It seems that they brought extra people to help.

The group surround me once more, this time making sure not to leave any gaps where I could potentially escape through. The older kid I kicked earlier points furiously at me.

“There you are!”

He then looks at two other people.

“You two, restrain him!”

His buddies comply and grab my arms from behind. Despite the disadvantageous situation, I keep the same straight face and speak my mind.

“Took you guys long enough.”

The older kid then approaches and stares right at me.

“Where’s the stuff you stole?”

Not threatened by his attitude, I bluntly reply to his question.
“It was never solely yours in the first place, and it’s already gone.”

The kid’s face reddens in anger. He makes a fist, driving it straight into my gut. I wince in reaction, feeling a lingering pain around my stomach.

“That one’s for stealing our breakfast!”

The kid once again readies his fist, this time ramming straight it into my temple. My vision goes white for ten or so seconds before returning to me.

“That one’s for running off!”

By the time I regain my sight, the kid’s in a position ready to kick me. He’s clearly aiming at the lower-half of my body.

“And...this one’s for what you did to me back at the cafeteria!”

“S, stop!”

He’s just about ready to swing his foot before a voice halts everything. I figure lunges out of a shrub, walking up to the group with quivered legs. That figure is...Ueda Koko, carrying a stick. I ask Koko the question on my mind.

“Ueda, what are you doing here?”

“I’m here to s-save you!”

“And why do you need to do that?”

“B-because I just said that I will be someone who can make good appear in the world! I can’t do that if I don’t start with what’s in front of me!”

Huh, that’s surprisingly heroic. Perhaps she’s on the upper end for a wannabe, or maybe...

“I remember you. You’re that other brat, and if you’re here to interfere, then it looks like we’ve got two punching bags for this morning.”

Koko’s obviously frightened by her bullies, but nonetheless stands her ground and doesn’t back down. She dashes towards the group, swinging her stick wildly. With her reckless technique, she’s not doing very much. Though to be honest, her random swinging isn’t too bad for someone who’s only just begun their first weapon fight. It’s still awful, but I’ve seen much worse.

Though the kids are initially unsure of how to approach Koko, it doesn’t take long for her to be stopped. One of the older kids grabs a hold of her stick and forcefully pulls it away from her.

“H-hey! No fair!”

Another kid shoves her onto the ground and clamps his foot onto her, holding her in place. The two restraining me do the same thing to me, forcing me onto the ground with her.

“You two are in for a world of hurt.”

I leave one last remark.

“Make it quick then, I’ve got other things to do.”

Needless to say, we both got beat up pretty badly.