Later that day, Kenji made his way to Café Desroches.
The place sat tucked into a corner near the industrial district, a small and unassuming spot surrounded by glass towers and sprawling storefronts. Quaint, simple, human, in a sea of steel and concrete. That alone made it stand out. A small taste of home, even if it was a corporate imitation of one.
If he remembered right, the café was part of a chain owned by Baudouin Co., a French entertainment conglomerate with its hands in everything from pop idols to rocket ships. They sent people to the moon and produced chart-topping garbage with equal enthusiasm.
'I'll never understand them,' Kenji thought with a sigh. 'Didn't I apply there once?'
He looked up at the clock above the window. The hands pointed to 5:45, fifteen minutes before the others were supposed to arrive. He couldn't read much, but time was something he'd learned to recognize.
Dressed in his usual white hoodie beneath a jacket, jeans, and worn sneakers, Kenji leaned against the wall beside the café window. The hum of passing cars mixed with the faint aroma of roasted coffee beans. For now, he waited, quiet, restless, and a little uncertain about the company he was about to keep.
Eventually, a pair of striking green eyes caught his attention. Octavia stepped through the door dressed in an outfit that balanced elegance and ease. A neatly pressed blouse paired with a long skirt that brushed her knees, high-heeled boots, and a slim headband set with tiny emeralds that gleamed against her black hair. Every part of her looked deliberate and composed, the kind of poise you'd expect from nobility.
Like one of those nobles from the manhwa I used to read, Kenji thought.
She stopped when their eyes met. For a moment, she simply stared, then sighed.
Kenji frowned. "What's with the sigh?"
"Nothing," Octavia said, waving a hand dismissively. "Just wondering why I even bothered coming."
After seeing me? he thought wryly. Does she realize what that sounds like?
She shook her head, then looked him over. "Kenji, right? This is the first time we've actually had a chance to talk."
Well, if you didn't count the time they almost died. Or technically did die.
"Guess so," he said with a nod.
"Color me surprised. I didn't expect you to be punctual," she remarked, tone light but teasing.
Kenji blinked.
Did she think that little of him? Contrary to appearances, he was usually on time. When he told Erhardt he could reach the facility in thirty minutes, he hadn't been exaggerating.
"Maybe you shouldn't be so quick to judge, Octopus," he shot back with a grin. "I was here before you, after all."
Octavia huffed and rolled her eyes. "You pick that up from the madman in the lab coat? Octopus, Octopus, really? Try to be more original with your insults, Kenshit."
Kenji raised a brow, then laughed. "Not the prim and proper princess you're pretending to be, huh?"
She smiled back, eyes gleaming.
"When you're weak, appear strong. When you're strong, appear weak. And when you dress like a lady," her grin widened, "confuse your enemies by acting like anything but."
She walked over and sat beside him, a quiet huff slipping from her lips. Octavia's green eyes shimmered with an ease that hadn't been there before, as if their little bout of banter had lifted some invisible weight from her shoulders. To his surprise, she wasn't the type to bristle at teasing. If anything, she seemed to find his foul-mouthed casualness… refreshing.
"That man, Grimmel," she began, gaze fixed forward. "Do you think he has it out for us?"
Kenji blinked, turning to her. "Is that a serious question? Or am I supposed to snort and say something like, 'just means he's taking us seriously, in particular'?"
Octavia exhaled sharply through her nose, something between a huff and a laugh.
"Both. You saw how he tried to kill me. And I have a feeling he would've done the same to you. I'm no coordinator, but isn't it unwise to murder new recruits just to expose their secrets?"
Kenji chuckled, the sound dry and humorless. "Yeah, well… they seem to have a thing for killing potential recruits. My brother didn't even hesitate before snapping my neck."
The words slipped out before he could stop them. He winced, hand brushing the back of his neck—smooth, intact, as if nothing had ever happened. He called it mercy. And maybe it was. It had been quick, cleaner than what the others endured.
Still, the thought crept up his spine like ice.
Did I really have to die to escape that illusion?
"Siblings," Octavia huffed, her tone laced with too much familiarity. "I love them, but they can be a handful. Though, I've yet to deal with one of them actually killing me…" Her voice trailed into a whisper, soft but unmistakably real.
Kenji raised a brow. 'Yet?'
"You say that like you're expecting one of your siblings to try," he said, half-joking, though the curiosity in his tone betrayed him. Especially after what Grimmel mentioned about Krähenlied. There was more to her family than she let on.
"You'd be surprised," Octavia replied evenly. "You and I both have our secrets, Kenji. I won't pry into yours, so do me the same courtesy."
Her voice carried a chill that left no room for misunderstanding. It wasn't a threat, but a boundary—firm, measured, and well-practiced. Kenji lifted his hands slightly in mock surrender, nodding.
"Fair enough. Wasn't trying to dig, really. Just wanted to know what your siblings are like, that's all."
Octavia's expression softened, if only a little.
"No, it's fine. They're just a sensitive subject. Comes with the territory of having four brothers and being the only girl among them." She straightened, brushing a strand of hair from her face as she spoke, her composure returning piece by piece until she was once again the image of grace and restraint.
"I only have one, and he's already a bit of a hassle," Kenji said.
Octavia laughed, a soft, amused sound. "I wouldn't be too sure about that. With a sibling like you, I'd rip my hair out."
Kenji snorted, crossing his arms with mock offense. The look on his face wasn't truly annoyed, just the casual, exaggerated kind that made the exchange more playful than serious.
"If I had a sibling like you, I'd jump off a cliff," he shot back. "Especially with how much of an academic tryhard you are."
"What? Because I answered Erhardt's question?" Octavia countered, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes. "Jealous that I'm more intellectually read than you, Ken?"
Kenji rolled his eyes with a faint grin. "Please. I'm sure if I memorized enough Wikipedia articles, I'd be on your level too."
"For the last time," Octavia huffed, her composure slipping as a flush of real irritation touched her cheeks, "I did not read anything online!"
Kenji only chuckled, low and amused, clearly satisfied with the reaction he'd drawn out of her.
The door chimed open again, drawing both Kenji and Octavia's attention. A familiar pair stepped through, one all energy and charm, the other calm, casual, and composed.
Aiden wore a white sweater and black slacks, a gold chain glinting around his neck. A pair of sunglasses perched on his nose made him look absolutely ridiculous, especially considering it was well past sunset.
Beside him, Yeon Su-Mi was the opposite. She wore a cropped tank top that showed a sliver of her midriff beneath an oversized black jacket that draped over her shoulders like a robe. Stylish, bold, and, Kenji reluctantly admitted, dangerously eye-catching. He forced himself to look away before his gaze lingered too long.
'Still the same immature idiot.' He grumbled to himself.
"Ken! Octi! You're both here!" Aiden's familiar voice broke through the café's calm.
Whatever knightly theatrics he'd pulled earlier were gone, replaced by his usual easygoing charm. Kenji still wasn't sure if that earlier performance had been part of his ability, some strange side effect, or just proof that Aiden de Châteaunoir was naturally and irredeemably insane.
Aiden raised a fist toward him in greeting.
Kenji blinked, momentarily stunned.
'A fist bump? For me?'
Stars practically shone in his eyes as he met the gesture with an eager grin, bumping Aiden's fist like it was a sacred rite.
"What's with the shades?" Kenji finally asked, brow raised. "It's past sunset. You blind or something?"
Aiden blinked, then slid the sunglasses off with a theatrical flourish. His bright blue eyes caught the café light, unnervingly flawless, like he'd stepped straight out of a perfume ad.
Why do these people all look like they fell out of a damn angel catalog? Kenji thought, acutely aware of his own tired eyes and permanent eyebags.
Still, he mused, calling himself a knight fits.
"No, no, that's what you don't get, Ken." Aiden grinned wider, all teeth and confidence. "The shades boost my cool factor by, like, twenty percent. Minimum."
'Still,' he mused, 'calling himself a knight fits.'
"No, no, that's what you don't get, Ken." Aiden's grin widened, all teeth and confidence. "The shades boost my cool factor by, like… twenty percent. Minimum."
He tossed the glasses to Kenji. "Here! Try them on. You'll look badass."
Kenji hesitated, then shrugged and slipped them on. The world dimmed immediately. He blinked, adjusting to the tint before muttering, deadpan:
"I'd rather be able to look than just look badass, Aids."
Aiden gawked, speechless.
Yeon nearly choked trying to hold back a laugh. She covered her mouth, shoulders trembling before letting out a muffled, "Pff— oh my god, Ken, you didn't just—"
Even Octavia, composed as ever, failed to hide the faint curl of amusement tugging at her lips. She shook her head, arms crossed. "Well, he's not wrong. At least someone here values function over fashion."
Aiden placed a hand over his chest, as if wounded. "You wound me, both of you. Don't you know? Looking good is the first step to victory."
Octavia rolled her eyes. "In what world?"
"In every world that matters," Aiden countered dramatically. "When I walk into battle, I want the enemy to know— 'Damn, that man's going to kill me, but he's going to look amazing doing it.'"
Kenji snorted, tossing the shades back to him. "I think they'd just say, 'Damn, that idiot's wearing sunglasses in the dark.'"
That earned a full laugh from Yeon and a quiet, reluctant smile from Octavia, one she quickly tried to hide.
"Hey!" Aiden protested, a faint flush coloring his cheeks. "Just imagine it, though. Big siege, we're scaling the walls. I leap down with a massive sword, shades on, cape fluttering in the wind. I land in perfect form and hold my blade out, saying—"
Kenji cut him off with mock grandeur.
"Hear ye, hear ye! Tis I! An idiot standing upon a wall! Fear mine eyes, for I cannot see past five fucking feet before me!"
Yeon completely lost it. Her laughter echoed through the café, sharp and uncontrollable. Even Octavia, usually the picture of composure, buried her face in her hands to stifle a giggle that slipped through anyway.
"Ah, you damned whippersnapper!" Aiden hissed, but there was no real bite to it. With a grin, he lunged forward, catching Kenji in a headlock and grinding his knuckles into the boy's hair. "When did you get so damn mouthy, huh?!"
Kenji squirmed and laughed, trying to shove him off. "Maybe when I stopped taking you seriously, sir knight!"
"Dear knave! Know your place, little rat!" Aiden bellowed with mock grandeur, his hand clutching an invisible sword as if proclaiming victory. The act didn't last long, his serious face broke into laughter as he sank into the seat across from Kenji.
He stretched out, looking oddly content for someone who'd nearly been killed earlier that day. Aiden leaned back, a small, genuine smile tugging at his lips. "We should do this more often," he said, voice softer now, almost wistful.
Yeon chuckled as she slid into the chair beside him, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "We should," she agreed, resting one arm along the back of her seat. "You know what else we should do? Get some coffee. I'm running on fumes here."
Octavia rolled her eyes but smiled all the same. "Coffee at this hour? You'll be awake till dawn."
"That's the point," Yeon shot back with a smirk.
Kenji leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Now that's the first smart thing anyone's said all day."
Laughter rippled through the table. An easy and unguarded laugh. For the first time since they were initiated into the Choir, there were no blades drawn, no orders barked, no expectations, no threats of dissection, no tests.
Just warmth, noise, and the quiet comfort of being alive.
Kenji felt at ease, and looking back at it, he'd remember this moment warmly...
After all, it would be the last time he'd feel this way before he died.
[ Message Received: Mission Notice ]
[ Case 1: The Bells Toll over Briar Hollow ]