Intro

April

The bus on the way to the high school.

I sat at the backseat of a bus that was headed towards my destination. I had been reading a novel that was quite interesting. It was about a young man, who was trying to form a group to rebel against a meritocracy. His goal was to create equality amongst all men.

I believed it was a very foolish and pointless endeavor. If I could have met with said protagonist I would have asked him a few simple questions.

Did he believe all human beings were truly equal? This fight for equality he had embarked on, how sure was he that he wouldnt just create a new meritocracy to replace the former.

From what I had read, I knew very well he would have replied along the lines, "Heaven does not create one person above or below the other" as he had quoted several times in his amusing speeches.

What amused me was the fact that this young man did not know the full quote. It went on to say "We're actually equal at birth, but then gaps appear."

I saw it, like saying a student who excelled in academics was equal to a student who performed poorly. No matter how much he would want to refuse, this fact was going to remain.

Yes, it was true that we were responsible for our actions but, at the end of the day the truth was that concept referred to as "equality" was false. It was like a magic trick. An illusion meant to deceive us into believing in something that didnt exist.

But there would remain those who wished to refute the truth.

I myself was an example of this. A child born and bred in the white room. One of the chosen to become a stepping stone for future greatness was always praised and respected.

Until I met him. The one we the children of the white room referred to as God. Soon my life became an existence beneath his. I wasnt given the special treatment I used to be given, even though I was above the other students. I was ranked 2nd, but even with that, I still wasnt considered excellent enough.

"Um... Excuse me sir. Would you be willing to give up your seat?"

This caused me to shift my attention from my novel.

I could see a young, well-built, blond-haired man sitting in a priority seat. He wore the same school uniform as I did so I guessed he was also a freshman like myself. An old woman stood next to him and next to her stood what seemed to be a civil servant.

"You there, can't you see the old woman having trouble?"

The civil servant questioned. It seemed like she wanted to let the old woman sit there. She had acquired the attention of every single member sitting in the bus.

"Dont ask me such a silly question, madam."

I did not expect such a response from a high schooler but judging from the way he carried himself, I could tell he was a prideful character. He wore a smug grin on his face and crossed his legs.

"Why should I give up my seat when theres absolutely no benefit in it for me?"

"Isn't it natural to hand over the priority seat to the elderly?"

"Now that is just being stupid. A priority seat is still a seat, is it not? There is no legal obligation for me to move. Whether or not I move should be decided by me. Would you ever give up your seat because I am young man?"

Sensing hesitation coming from the woman, he continued.

"Hahahaha. That is a very stupid way of thinking. It is true that I am a healthy young man. It is also true that standing would not inconvenience me. However, doing so will consume more physical strength and I do not want to do such a wasteful thing. Or are you saying I should be more proactive?"

I had never before seen such a rude character. This was quite the amusing spectacle. And to be honest, I agreed with his mentality.

"What? What kind of attitude is that to your superiors?"

"Superior? It's obvious that both you and the old woman have lived longer than I however, that 'superior' could also refer to height. Also, I have an issue with you. Sure this gap referred to as age exists, even so, that's quite the rude and impertinent attitude you've got."

"Wha...! You're a high school student, right? Listen to what the adults tell you!"

"Its fine, it's fine...."

It seemed like the old woman had judged that this was going nowhere and decided to stop to save face. The civil servant on the other hand was heated up. She continued insulting the young man and looked like she was going to go ballistic.

I returned my gaze to my novel, deeming that conversation pointless.

After a while, another voice spoke up.

"Um.... I also think that the lady is right."

This time it was a girl wearing the same school uniform I wore.

"This time it's a pretty girl, apparently I have luck with women today."

From his response, I could tell where this was headed. There was going to be a repeat of events, so I immediately lost interest.

Isn't he afraid that his social standing at school is at risk?

In everywhere there was such a thing referred to as a hierarchy of people. Said concept was especially true for high school. Your standing in this hierarchy determined how much influence you had. Usually it would be in everybody's interest to be at the top of this pyramid of sorts.

From the number of students present, I could say rumours of this event would surely spread through the school. Although I was uncertain about the effects it would have on his social standing. Some delinquents actually stood very high in this hierarchy.

Anyway, this affected me in absolutely no way so I paid no attention.

"Social contribution? I see, that's an interesting way to put it. Unfortunately I have no interest in contributing to society. I only think about my own own satisfaction. Oh, and also, we are in a bus with many other seats yet, you decide to ask me of all people, to give up my seat, yet you cant appeal to the others who are watching us silently to give up their seats for this elderly woman? If someone truly cared for the elderly, I think that 'priority seat here, priority seat there' would be a trivial concern."

Truly an amusing character but, judging from the attitude just displayed, I decided to stay away from him. I did not want to have to be dealing with such a difficult person during my stay at the school.

The civil servant and the old woman stood there with bitter smiles on their faces.

But the girl proceeded to appeal to the general public.

"Everyone. Please listen to me for at least a little bit. Can anyone give their seat for the old woman? Anyone?"

How it was possible to have so much compassion, courage, and determination in those few words, was beyond me. I couldn't tell if they were genuine intentions or they had an ulterior motive, such as raising her social standing, backing them up.

If the latter, then I was impressed and if the former I was even more impressed.

I considered the option of raising my hand to let the old woman sit but I figured it was a pointless ordeal. I fully agreed with what the young man said although I dont think I could have been as bluntly honest as he was. At least not as of now.

So I brushed aside the topic and scanned through the crowd, interested in what the general public would do. I saw quite a few who pretended to not have been paying attention or some having hesitant looks. There were a few who showed no interest in the matter at all.

Then my eyes settled on a man some distance away, with brown hair. It reminded me of him . Sadly there was no way it could have been him. He was probably at his parents' place, getting ready to go back to the white room which would be restarted very soon.

A woman offered her seat to the elderly woman. She clearly couldn't handle the guilt she felt.

"Thank you!"

The girl lowered her a head with a full smile on her face, then she pushed through the crowd, guiding the old woman to the seat.

Seeing that the incident was over, I returned to my novel.

Soon after, the bus arrived at my destination.

I sat at the backseat so it took a while for me to get off the bus, since I had to wait for the boys and girls to get off.

The Advanced Nurturing High School.

A school created by the Japanese government to nurture young individuals to support the future. I was ordered to attend this school starting from today.

When I got off the bus, I saw two students talking to each other. One was a dark haired beauty and the other was the brown haired guy I had seen originally.

As I passed by I took a glance at his face and was shocked.

This was not possible. Why was he here? I couldn't see the reason for which the scientists from the white room would send him of all subjects to this place. Was there some sort of experiment they were conducting that I was unaware of? I was certain I had been told the details of this mission. It seemed they had kept this confidential from me.

I continued walking, trying to make sure he didnt notice the fact that I had looked at him.

He was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. The greatest product of the white room. Amongst us the children, he was referred to as God. The ultimate goal. Our only mission was to surpass him. Most students had already given up on such a goal. They decided to aim for second best.

This was because each time we were given a test, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was used as a high bar. We were supposed to try our utmost best to reach that high bar and if possible, surpass it.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and I have never met. I was certain he didnt even know my face, that was if the scientists hadn't informed him of me, which I highly doubted. But I had seen his face, just once.

Both of us were from the same generation. The 4th generation. There had been 20 generations so far but, our 4th generation was the only to create a success. Before the discovery of Ayanokoji I was sure I was the best white room student. My grades were always excellent and I was highly adept when it came to the physical aspects of our training.

Then suddenly after a while, the name Ayanokoji started to spread through the White Room.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, was supposedly the smartest student in the white room. The absolute best. Some of the other students soon went so far as to call him 'God'

Then there was me, who thought I was impressive. Soon I started receiving comments like

"Ayanokoji performed far better than this."

"Try harder next time or else you wont be able to catch up to him"

"Why cant you all be more like Ayanokoji."

It was suffocating. Being compared to an existence that I didnt even know was real.

It seemed like the scientists caught on to this because, one day, they called me. I was then sent to a different section of the white room. The whole interior was white, no different from my regular rooms but, it was strangely exciting to be out of where I was usually cooped up.

Then there, behind a one way see through glass, sitting behind a desk, was the existence known as Ayanokoji. I saw him breezing through a test paper like it was nothing. I saw the other students there, struggling to continue on. It wasnt that they were dumb. No. Far from it.

I knew the sort of questions we were given. Some were so hard, students broke down and werent able to finish the tests. I had had some trouble in the past myself but nothing too difficult, yet he sat and scribbled down the answers with an expressionless face.

It was then that I knew why they boasted of this person so much. It was then that I knew of how incompetent I was compared to him.

But, unlike the other students, I wasnt stupid enough to let this get to me. I was going to improve myself. I was going to make a name for myself and bury that being called Ayanokoji. That was my goal ever since seeing him.

Now, my goal had been presented to me. I was going to best him in this school and prove once and for all, that I am the superior student.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. Prepare yourself for defeat. It will be a trick that even you won't see coming. As if by magic, you'll be gone without a trace.

I then walk towards the assembly hall, amused by the turn of events.