63 Chapter 9: A Fortunate Surprise
[15th December, 16.41]
[Kurushima Pov]
"Kaoru, I'm here," Hiyori said, winking at me.
"Oh...? I'm the one that's suddenly late now, huh...?"
Well, I also just got eleven minutes ago off from the student council, so it's inclined to that, rather. Although we were supposed to meet-up at fifty, more precise.
She's clearly since a couple of minutes here. Knowing this, I felt somehow the urge to smile.
"You're not late... I'm just too early here..." she says, looking at my smile, suddenly.
"You're right, I suppose."
I felt Hiyori looking at me, slightly embarrassed.
"Kaoru, whenever the two of us meet up, you're there before me. It's the first time I've arrived sooner than you, today here."
"Must be a simple coincidence."
I tried on playing it off, but she looked at my face, with a simple pout.
"You don't want to admit it...? That you're always trying to be soon there?"
I tried on looking towards the side, but her gaze never left my body.
"Kaoru..."
"Hm?"
"Can I... hug you...?"
"Of course. But you don't have to ask, Hiyori."
She nodded, slightly.
Feeling the oncoming hug from her, I felt how I was smiling, once again. Around here, I'm becoming more and more humanly.
Something I thought I had lost...
--
"Kaoru, remember, be always kind to other's."
I did a small nod, reading my book further, not paying much attention to Mother.
"You know, you should try on socializing more. If it's not Kyo or Kaori, you rarely speak to other children."
"Because... the things they do are plain and boring. I'd rather read my book further in peace, instead of playing around."
Smiling at me, knowing she could not convince me, she looked at my book.
"Oh...? What book are you reading?"
"Book I: from 'The Republic', by Plato."
My Mother slightly smiled. "You're interested in these kinds of things so suddenly. Why is that?" she asked me, teasingly.
"I'm not sure... truthfully... I just felt like I wanted to read something else besides books from the Mystery Genre now..."
"How many mystery books did you read, until now, then, Kaoru?"
"9.359 Mystery Books, I think..."
"My, my, you surpassed my record already..."
"It's because you're always working, Mother. I'm used to reading them alone in the Kindergarten or after the Kindergarten, when either Kaori or Kyo are not at home."
"You love them really much, don't you, Kaoru?"
"Of course... I do..." Feeling embarrassed, I turned myself to the side.
"My son is so embarrassed. How cute!"
My Mother moved towards me, engulfing me in her arms.
"Oka-san... Please don't treat me like a child..."
"Oh? But you're, my cute, sweet, little angel. I really love it, that you're after me, than your father. Especially, when it comes to our taste in food."
I felt myself agreeing with Mother.
Neither Father, Kyo, or Kaori, liked in particular the breakfast we would eat. Instead, they'd sit completely opposite at us, staring at us in disbelief.
Mother and I would always eat for breakfast a bowl of rice, a miso soup, salted salmon, Tamayoyaki, and a bowl of Blanched Broccoli with Sesame Oil for breakfast.
Kaori and Kyo, they came after Father.
"Me too!" I agreed, with a hint of embarrassment.
"Oh, you're such a sweet angel, Kaoru, when you're embarrassed. Should I quit working...? I can't see your expressions like these, too often..."
"You shouldn't joke like that, Oka-san. I'm already fine if you spend each day with us, when you're home. You should help, those who need you, currently, rather."
"Ah... Kaoru, my kind boy, you're simply too cute. I really like that your eyes are inherited from me. Almost everything else is inherited from your father..."
"No one of you three have my hair color, too..." she muttered, sadly.
"Oka-san, can you let me go...?"
"Sure, my little angel."
As I took the book in my hands again, I felt Oka-san staring at me.
"Oka-san...? Is something wrong...?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.
"Kaoru, have you already finished reading the 'Divine Comedy'?" she looked at me, curiously.
I nodded my head, simply. She looked at me shocked for a moment, until looking at me with a smile. I looked at her, curiously, because something in the book has taken a great interest in me.
"Mother... Is love really such a beautiful thing as it's descripted here...?"
I began to quote something from the Divine Comedy. "Love, which dost soar so high, doth wing with thy noble pinions my soul. Do you feel like that, with Father? Feeling as if wings would grow, and you could fly to the sky?"
She looked at me, for a moment in thought, until smiling. "You could say our love transcends earthly boundaries like Dante says, Kaoru. You'll find that, too, one day."
"And when that happens, please introduce her to me, Kaoru," Mother smiled at me, with a kind and gentle smile.
"Love...? I'm not ready for such an intimate thing, Oka-san."
"Ah, my kind boy, you're too pure for this world!"
I felt myself once again getting engulfed by her hug, completely being embarrassed. She released me a couple of seconds later, looking at me with a curious gaze.
"Kaoru, soon it's your seventh birthday, is there something you'd like really in particular?"
"Uhm... not really... I just want to spend time with you, Father, Aoki, Kaori, and Kyo. I don't need anything more than that, Oka-san."
I looked up at her, embarrassed, seeing her smiling. I felt her warm embrace of a hug, once again.
But this time, I comfortably accepted it, with a smile.
--
I can't believe it's already more than 9 years ago when I had this conversation with her...
And still...
I have not much achieved anything yet...
I gathered tremendous resources outside, for the oncoming battle... but I have yet to find out the exact truth behind the incident...
Mother...
Just remembering your warm embrace, makes me feel very comfortable. Or is it... because of Hiyori's hug currently that makes me feel comfortable in this situation...
I suppose it does...
'There's no greater grief than to remember days of joy when misery is at hand', huh...? It's a quote from Dante Alighieri in the Divine Comedy...
Although I suppose currently, right now, I'm not in Misery, am I...?
Yes... I'm feeling extraordinary happy, currently.
Hiyori gave me something I lost...
Even if it's just for a period of my life, I'm fine with it.
My path...
It's something I cannot involve anyone else into, at any costs.
Not her, and not Aoki any longer.
Next year...
It should be time when the legal age should be changed to 18...
I poured many of my resources into this matter, secretively, since early 2014...
And it'll also be the year I'm leaving this school...
Kanzaki and Sakayanagi...
I won't need much to expel them...
But if Chairman Sakayanagi is truly unaware... I'll have to confront Kanzaki's Father...
I'll save him from his desperation if it has to be the case, then...
Although I was the one who put his class into their misery in the first place...
In that case... I suppose... I'd have to stay longer...
I want to be with her... as long as possible...
So I'm continuing this relationship, despite knowing it'll fail, ultimately because of me...
I'm sorry, Hiyori...
But bringing you into my whole mess... is something I don't want you to experience...
I want to be together with you, but I know I can't...
Besides... Once I'm done with everything, I suppose, there'll be no redemption for me, anymore...
'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here, huh?'
These words are according to Dante inscribed at the gates of Hell...
As for what this quote is about, it serves as a poignant reminder of the consequences of one's actions and the irreversible nature of damnation, urging oneself to reflect upon the choices they make in life.
Strangely, since recently, I'm reminiscing myself more and more about the Divine Comedy, very often...
Why would I not...?
It emphasizes the importance of making moral choices and developing virtues in life.
Although I am not religious by any means nor believe in the concept of the purgatory for the afterlife...
The concept of heaven or hell, I never believed it. The Divine Comedy, is simply a detailed depiction of the Christian afterlife.
An Atheist like myself does not believe in these kinds of things...
No... I'm not an Atheist...
I do actively practice Shinto and Nichiren Buddhism.
But like many people in Japan, I do simply follow these rituals and traditions without believing in the deities. If I were to deny this, it's as if denying I'm Japanese...
(A/N: Deities as in Deities, like the Kami's.)
It's a cultural heritage deeply in-rooted within almost everyone in Japan.
Visiting temples, attending ceremonies, paying your ancestors respect, paying respect to the deities, visiting on new year temples and writing what you wish on the Taoism...
Growing in Kyoto, Japan's ancestral city, festivals, ceremonies, traditions, it was something we did very often, and I had fun in partaking, very much...
I suppose I'm more inclined to be agnostic, rather...
(Agnostic: One who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god.)
But well, why do I think about this now so suddenly?
I have so many moral dilemmas, whenever I reminisce myself about the 'Divine Comedy', the book that is considered to be the greatest literary piece.
I read it as a child... and I wondered if everything was accurately said.
Somehow, it is...
A decent amount of quotes from it reflect the current state of my life, as painful as it's to admit.
Although, when I'm with her, I can see that I was able to obtain the 'paradise' Dante talks about very often, my luck, my happiness, after all...
And yet, I'm planning on abandoning it in the end...
'The path to paradise begins in hell'.
I suppose there's no quote for such a thing like my situation, is there....?
Hah...
Was falling in love... a mistake... after all...?
No... I don't think so...
It's going to be perhaps... my last real happy memories... I suppose, before I'm going continuing my self-destructive path further.
"Kaoru... is something wrong...? You're not hugging me back..."
"Ah, I'm sorry, I was just lost inside my thoughts."
Saying that, I embraced her too, in a hug.
"What did you think about...?" she looked up at me, asking me this question, curiously.
"I just thought you looked very cute in this moment, Hiyori."
Blushingly, she looked down at the ground.
"Kaoru... what should we do in Christmas...?"
Christmas...
Am I even allowed to be together with her, at that period of time...?
The 18th December...
It's going to be both the day when I'm finally going to know the truth, and at the very same the day I'm going to become a full Monster...
A Monster, huh...?
The thing I was so afraid of from becoming...
It's so close from happening...
Redemption...
It won't be possible, once I'm overstepping 'that'...
I won't excuse my actions because of my age...
But in the end, I'm still going unpunished, because I don't plan to reveal myself, nor will I reap the consequences for it, ever...
Going into the minds of everyone like that, it's not part of my plan...
My parents, my siblings, they shouldn't be known like that.
Instead...
I want society to know the painful reminder of how someone like me, will do the actions he does in the future, despite the plenty of achievement and changes he made on an early age...
Only then... will they truly mourn the loss and remember them, for a long time...
What a moral dilemma...
My life is already completely planned out from the very beginning, ever since the day they died....
The only variable in all of this, is the girl hugging me, Hiyori Shiina...
Despite knowing this from the bottom of my heart, I confessed to her...
Deep down, I suppose, I just wanted to get a reminder how life could be, if I decided to take another path...
That I could be happy, enjoy it...
But that's no path for me...
Chairman Sakayanagi...
I'll confirm if you're as kind as you make others to believe... or if you're someone who has hidden himself in disguise, all along...
Although I know the answer already, deep down...
Someone like you, a former politician, a former congressman, more precisely, should know definitely about a project like this...
A hidden one, that I could not find out about until now...
I've always been sure of this...
But without a confirmation, I'd not do such a thing as expelling Kanzaki, no matter how much I loathe his Father for the act... of using their death as a means to buy large tremendous amounts of stocks...
More than 16 Million Shares, which is in equivalence 1.2% of the stocks...
Him being all involved in the incident, alongside Amasawa, who bought even larger amount of shares, 4.3%... makes naturally much sense...
Hah...
No matter what, I'm not coming to a conclusion yet of whom the perpetrator is.
While Naoe, the general secretary of the citizien's party might seem like the most likely suspect, the person referred to as "Him" is the one I'm believing it is.
Kanzaki, Amasawa, Naoe, Sakayanagi, they're clearly all very much involved, but that person, is the one who did it, after my reason of suspicion.
And these people, who were aware of it, alongside you, my dear Chairman, kept quiet... when I was desperately in search after the truth...
I really did try my best on doing it at the righteous way...
I confronted the police... but it did not go as expected.
Contrary, it was the opposite...
Weeks later, during early August... when the lawsuit against the car company happened, they admitted fault, and immediately, without much, I was compensated with 100 Billion Yen...
No further investigations were made...
The case was solved... it was a car malfunction...
Despite various attempts—completely ignored...
A couple of days later... the global world crisis happened in early August, too... and I had my focus largely on there...
I could not look much into that matter about the incident, nor what the Judge, or Police knew, either...
The conglomerate of my family... it was in the process of breaking down...
Bad news after bad news happened, over and over again...
The constant worry that something goes wrong constantly haunted my mind, whenever I even tried to sleep.
The stress that was building inside me... it was something a child should never have...
But that stress... it was something I released through various kinds of martial art training at home...
If I did not do that... I might have gone insane...
But at the same time... I had to learn as much as possible... so I could find a way to get past these hurdles...
I could not bring myself to entrust their legacy at the hands of other's... so I studied so various kinds of study courses relating towards Business... and helped it, myself, indirectly, various of times...
Certainly... that was the worst period in my life, until now...
Two and a half years in constant stress until I could finally sigh in relief once, when new year happened, 2010...
Three Months Later... I hired Private Investigators...
I had high hopes, because I was still following my Mother's advice, of being always righteous...
But not days later, when they found something in the blackmarket, they died...
Apparently it was a gas pipe leak, and the case fell down, immediately...
Hah...
What a disastrous kind of life I have led until now, huh...?
And still...
The feelings of guilt have yet to disappear from that time...
But for their sake... I have to keep going forward...
I can't forget about it, simply...
Everything precious was taken away from me, and those who are responsible are still evading their punishment since such a long period of time...
Chairman Sakayanagi...
My Father and you should have very many occasions of meeting up...
Although my father was new as a politician, you two, as member's from the same fraction, that of Kijima-san's, had many occasions of meeting up, until you became the Chairman of this School, in January 2007...
When he got to know the truth, presumably a few weeks before their deaths, he found your affiliation with that very own project, Father wanted to tell the public...
Just what is it...?
I need answers to my question, and in 3 Days, I'll finally get them...
That you scrupulously looked over this matter and had the audacity to smile at me, at that time...
That smile will soon turn into the opposite...
My resolve... it's steeled, since long...
Love...
It won't prevent me...
I continued to walk with Hiyori, towards the dormitories, holding hands. Since we were near the Chairman's Office, I wondered what he'd be doing, right now...
It's precisely because the office is near to the Student Council, that I'm so near to him...
Today is Tuesday and the day I'll confront him is in 3 Days, Friday...
It aligns itself quite well with some of my plans...
I can't believe that it's just a simple matter of 3 days...
Feeling both shaken and excited, I looked at my girlfriend with a bright smile, not focusing myself much on the surroundings aside from her.
"Kurushima Kaoru..."
With visible confusion on my face, I looked at her. "Hiyori, did you hear someone saying my name, too...?"
"No, I did not," she says, shaking her head.
"I see..."
Am I hallucinating right now...?
I looked quickly at the opposite direction again, seeing how a brown-haired guy entered the back row of a black car, but all I could see was just the back of his head.
"Is something wrong, Kaoru...?"
"No... it's nothing, Hiyori. Should we go eat something...? At a Sukiyaki Restaurant, perhaps...?"
She nodded. "Fine by me."
Smiling slightly, I saw the black car soon passing right next to us by.
I slightly looked curiously at the car window, but it was a black window.
"Black Window..." I murmured with a depressing tone.
"Hm?" she looked at me, tilting her head in confusion to the side.
"Nothing, don't worry..."
The car in which they died... it used to have black windows, too...
Ever since then... I hate seeing car's with black windows...
I always keep thinking of the potential images of how Father, Mother, Kaori and Kyo must have been in pain...
As the car began to explode...
I hope... it wasn't too painful...
Your ashes...
They're in our families tomb...
I buried them...
But I do wonder... Who will bury my ashes...?
I suppose... no one...
--
[Third Person Pov]
As the brown-haired man entered the car, his driver, who was also one of his bodyguards, slowly turned the motor on, driving the car to his next destination, of meeting several sponsors for the White Room.
Normally, he'd have several more Bodyguards accompanying him, but it was only one allowed, even with his big influence.
His elbow was on the car's power window, looking outside, seeing how the white haired boy with red eyes stared at the black-leaned car window for a split of a moment.
"Kurushima Kaoru, huh...?"
"Professor Ayanokoji, has that boy gained your interest?"
His bodyguard could not help but ask this question.
It was not often that such an influential figure like the Professor would memorize a name from someone. Especially, that of a child.
Even if it was someone from a very wealthy family, the Professor only remembered those who were worthy to be remembered in his opinion.
"My interest...?" he looked curiously, thinking for a few seconds.
"Indeed, he really did. More than enough..."
"He must be special then, if you're even remembering his name."
"Special...? That term does not describe that boy very well."
The Professor said, with a refuting tone.
"He's similar to Kiyotaka, a once in a century talent..."
"Do you know how he was described when he was younger...?"
The bodyguard was unable to answer that question, since he did not much care about these kinds of things. He was alongside being a bodyguard also a martial art instructor in the White Room, for the children.
"No... I'm afraid I have no idea, Professor Ayanokoji..."
"It's something not widely known in the public, in fact, it's more something only the upperclass is well-aware of..."
"Although... it has been a very long, when this was lastly discussed..."
"Kurushima Kaoru, the boy with a talent higher than anyone else in Japan..."
"... However, after that happened, these rumors have been becoming very quiet. Even the title, he once held, is not even applicable to him, in their opinion..."
"Title...?"
"... The Lazy Prodigy..."
"That's the nickname the upperclass decided to give to him, once."
"Prodigy...?!"
"Indeed, it might come surprising, but a child who was able to gain the black belt within the age of five deserves this kind of title, does he not...?"
"Even if the martial art is Judo, where the black belt displays one of being an 'advanced beginner' than a far-to-be expert in it."
"Although unlike many other children who achieve black belts early on, who do martial arts since the very young age of three to four, he did it, just for three months long."
"After that, it was the last thing one has heard about him. Rumors spread, his potential just skyrockets sooner than anyone's else..."
"But my own speculation is, he was afraid, of growing up with the potential feud of jealously from his younger sister or younger brother potentially, so he stopped, before going too far."
"Despite being a child, he must have been very conscious of various kinds of things..."
"But nothing much was known afterward..."
'Although... there was one other thing, he did, early on, in secret. An Intelligence Test, when he was younger...'
'The results were shocking, to say, at least...'
'He's a prodigy, without a doubt...'
"Even though among the White Room it's usual to get a black belt from an early age, children outside, like Ryuji Kanzaki, or Kurushima Kaoru are rare, getting it, without this sole education we provide..."
"Kanzaki... That name feels familiar..."
"It's a name of one of our sponsors. The father of that boy is the founder and CEO of Kanzaki Engineering, a company that has been growing quite much lately."
"Professor... you're more interested in this Kurushima boy than I thought..."
The Professor agreed silently with him, stopping with this small, idle little chat.
It amused him until now, but this was enough.
Although his gaze still looked fully concentrated, deep in simple thought.
'For Japan's future...'
'To ensure it, these two will be necessarily...'
'If either Kiyotaka or I become the Prime Minister like I plan, and Kurushima leads Japan's economics, supporting us with his means, we won't fall down behind the other countries in the future...'
'The one who controls Kurushima might win the battle in the end...'
'The boy that prevented his conglomerate's downfall, is also someone quite deeply in-rooted at the blackmarket already...'
'He certainly has achieved much for such a young age already...'
'But...'
'Like Kiyotaka, he'll be soon completely under my control...'
"Because..."
"Next year..."
"Three White Room Students will be sent to this school..."
"Including your little dear precious sister, too..."
--
A/N: And this concludes the chapter.
Tell me what you think about this huge plot twist of Kurushima's sister being alive.
It was several times implied, when her birthday was once specified, and also in the recent SS Chapter from Kurushima, too.
Did any of you catch onto it...?
It was when he says "The true culprits behind our suffering," and "Goodbye, Hiyori, and you, too."
How do you feel about this and how will this change him and the plot in Y2?
Please tell me your thoughts and predictions.
It was something I planned, quite long, actually.
Now I was finally able to reveal this...
Aside from that, how did you like the political aspect of this chapter...?
If you could share your thoughts, it'd be very greatly appreciated.
Essentially, what do you think is going to happen in the next chapter?
Make some predictions.
It'll be the chapter where Kurushima will confront Chairman Sakayanagi...
We're finally there...
The long awaited chapter...
I really need some opinions on how everyone thinks about Chairman Sakayanagi...
It will be very helpful for me.
Aside from that, how did you like the chapter overall?
I'd love to hear your opinions.
Publishing this in the night, so when I wake up, I want to see some comments.
Anyway, that's all.
PS: If we go by the modern definition "The Divine Comedy", one of the greatest world pieces of literature could be regarded as a fanfic.
Although it's anachronistic to that time, so saying it's one is not accurate. There was no such thing as intellectual property or copyright laws around that period of time, so you cannot precisely say it's one.
That's all with that irrelevant information about this. Dunno why I'm saying this...
Anyhow, good night. I'm sleeping now.
