Dark gray locks, sharp, on-point eyes, and a black jacket gave the high school senior a dignified air. Twiddling his thumb on his phone, he looked past the messages that were in his inbox.

- You should have come with us, Reijy. Everyone had so much fun!

- You've been holed up there for two weeks already. Are you sure you're okay? Why haven't you been replying to the student council and the others?

- Ehh? Are you sure? I'm starting to think that he's not as bad as you say. Maybe you're the one who needs to relax.

- Hmmm... Let me ask Senpai about it.

- Ahh, okay. I'll be careful! ;)

All of them were addressed "Akane Fujiwara."

All of them had the "replied" icon ticked, but the same cannot be said of the assorted messages that were dumped aside. On the side, various names of various senders with the tag "Fuyusato Academy" were attached to messages that did not even have the "opened" icon ticked. Instead, they were left to rot in their lonesome.

Putting his phone to sleep, Reijy Ishida bowed to a passerby.

"Good luck today!"

"Same. Thanks for the good work!" he replied with a bow as he went on his way, fixing his jacket by the collar in the process.

With each echo of his footsteps, he briefly ran his brain through the talking points for today. He had been doing this for as far back as he can remember, but today's company meeting would be far different.

That knowledge filled him with anticipation.

He found himself reaching into the pocket of the jacket before finding his finger hooked on a certain object. Taking his hand out, he gleamed at the traditional lantern charm with a good luck message inscription.

A memorabilia from her, just like many that came before it.

Like the many instances from as early as the childhood days, it was a hand-me-down from that girl.

The girl, Akane Fujiwara, relished in those. She never failed to join the festivities, and she always seemed to come out of those with new experiences that she was more than willing to share.

On the other hand, he always found himself too busy for those events.

What value does a party or a festival have if it will not have any merit to one's self-improvement? He will not get new connections for the conglomerate there. Neither will he pick up something to further his position in the company hierarchy.

Even if he did not encounter that person, he will just end up being like that guy, wasting time on needless ventures while losing sight of what was really important.

Finding his way to the end of the hall, Reijy Ishida placed his face near a scanner.

After confirming his identity, the machine let out several beeps before a set of doors opened.

This was a place that Reijy can practically call a second home. The much colder temperatures greeted the second Ishida son just as he stepped into the room.

Without a second to waste, he paid little heed to the people gathered and seated in an orderly fashion.

He did not need to focus much on the whole gallery of talking gray suits.

His business today was not with these people. That had already passed weeks ago.

Instead, he kept his eye on his father, Yoshihiro Ishida. Head of the Ishida Conglomerate and the one who would be making the biggest announcement for today's stockholder meeting.

Without losing eye contact with his father, he spun a chair around before seating in his usual spot: Two seats to the left of the head of the Ishida Conglomerate. Meanwhile, two seats to the right of the patriarch was his older brother, Yuichiro.

His only real rival, with the youngest of the three siblings being a mere elementary student.

"You're a few seconds away from being late, Reijy," sternly scolded his father. "You kept everyone waiting."

"My apologies."

Turning his attention to the group of people in suits, the Ishida patriarch hummed in approval. Pressure and anxiety accompanied the dead silence that he eventually broke.

"Now that everyone's here, let's begin our quarterly stockholder meetings. Why don't we start with those affiliated with Reijy here?"

To ordinary people, the resulting meeting and briefing would be a slog, a drain.

Reijy knew he was above those types of people. He had his sights at the truly important things. The future, the glory that will be his, and the process that will take him there.

The last month may not have gone anywhere near where he would have liked, but with these people primed to make their cases and proposals, the decision at his father's hands, the most important one to be made after this meeting, should be no issue.

Time flew by like it was nothing.

As each representative made his case, Reijy found his mood improving even more. Deals with tech corps, a new agreement with Imperial Tracks management, a new promotion with half of the athletic companies to further the Ishida Conglomerate's hold.

Can anyone even compete with that?

No.

No one, not even Yuichiro.

In comparison, his brother's brokered deals were half of his in number, and the terms were not nearly as impressive.

Each case made by each representative impressed Reijy more and more, and he knew that part of it had to do with being proud of himself. It was he who managed to negotiate everything and spin terms to favor the company.

Silence fell over the room when the final representative for the brothers finished.

Reijy felt none of the anxiety that the rest of the people in the room looked like they had. Reclining on his chair, he only smiled at his brother. His expression remained so even as his father stood up and made his closing remarks.

He maintained his upbeat tone all the way to his formal closing speech, and he happily helped dismiss the representatives with some parting remarks.

When the last representative had left, all that remained in the room were the head of the family and the two siblings.

"Pretty amazing, huh?" started Reijy.

"All according to expectations. I feel that you would make an amazing leader of a chain of companies like what we have someday."

"So, what's it going to be?"

"It's an easy decision to make. It should come as no surprise to you, Reijy, as to who the successor will be."

Grabbing a document he had stashed away and fixating his signature on it, Yoshihiro Ishida scribbled a second name beneath his. He kept writing without any sign of deliberation.

His mind was clear, and his hastily-made decision was firm and decisive.

"Yuichiro Ishida!" called the father, letting both brothers see the name on the document.

Reijy's jaws flung open as he heard a brief shout of celebration across the table.

"Wha-?"

If there was a way to experience having your heart stabbed in a non-literal way, this would be it. An outpouring of emotions would have been proper, but all Reijy felt was turmoil.

He felt sick to the stomach, and as his hand tingled, his head hurt. Despite all that, he tried to keep the air of composure, managing only a glare to the extremely happy sibling of his.

After all the hard work that he did, it was all for naught.

Nothing.

What did he do wrong? Did he say something wrong? Was there any incompetence? Statistically speaking, he had blown his brother out of the water.

He got more deals, he performed better than his brother ever did in school, and he was the one who went the extra mile in making amends for the gaffe at the Chronodome.

"Father, I think you're mistaken!" finally exploded Reijy. "What did Yuichiro have over me to deserve his spot?!"

"I have concluded that he is more fit to lead the company and carry on with my vision of the Ishida Conglomerate."

"Father, I demand further explanation!"

"What is there to explain, Reijy? You may have all those achievements to flaunt, but they're all over the place! You're trying too hard, and it shows. Whereas all of Yuichiro's representatives have a very visible theme that align with my vision for the conglomerate."

Reijy felt his teeth and his body shaking as he tried to hold himself back. The once hopeful outlook that he had were crushed, replaced by the unfamiliar feeling of shock.

What was even more painful is the fact that he knew why his father chose his older brother. Did it have anything to do with business?

Not at all.

Yuichiro had always taken his father's harsh words with his tail between his legs, never speaking up, never pushing the limits of what his position can entail. Ultimately, his brother was the ultimate puppet to the image and philosophy his father had for the company and their life as a family.

It was a pathetic showing that disgusted Reijy.

"But isn't it about time that we move into more ventures? Father, you have to understand," he feigned calmness in spite of all those thoughts.

"You're the one misunderstanding, Reijy. That is your weakness. Instead of trying to hold everything, we should strive for perfection in what we have. Maximizing the tools you have is better than being a master of none."

"But you can just take a look at how quickly the conglomerate is expanding! You took control of a sizable chunk of the city's research and development, had ties to the army and the government, had stakes in athletics... What else? I know your personal lawyers and assistants aren't there for show!"

"Enough of this insolence, Reijy!"

"If you're dead set on handing over the keys to Yuichiro, then I'm done with this meeting!"

"You get back here and give some respect to our father!" Yuichiro snapped back, interrupting Reijy's interruption.

Reijy heard nothing but background noise as he picked up his jacket and walked away. Another of his father's lectures would come in a few seconds, but he did not give a damn about it anymore.

To his surprise, none of that came even after the doors to the meeting room shut behind him.

It seemed that his father had opted to let him pass. Carrying a confused and incomprehensible whirlwind of emotions, he looked around the hallway.

Greeting him outside was a person he half-expected to see.

Wearing a poker face and having his hands crossed over his chest, the longcoat-wearing individual seemed to be lying in wait. It was an individual that he only had a passing knowledge about. Regardless, he knew what this silver-haired person's role was.

His father's personal legal adviser and assistant. Guren Izaya.

"Is that betrayal I see in those eyes?"

The comment took Reijy aback. But it was not enough to completely shake him.

"Congratulations, genius. Now, if you would leave me alone. I have more pressing matters to attend to."

Without giving the person a second look, he hurriedly paced past the silver-haired man.

There could still be a way to salvage the situation, and he sure as hell won't waste any more time on this man.