The young boy sat on a chair at the back of a classroom in a prestigious high school in Tokyo, the capital of the Great Asian Empire: His Majesty Ryu's Military Academy. He had dark circles under his eyes and a shaved head, just like all the other boys. Their uniforms weren't that different from those of normal high schoolers, except that girls and boys dressed identically: a military camouflage-patterned shirt, paired with a purple tie (Emperor Ryu's favorite color), and greenish-black trousers.
The young boy was a sixteen-year-old with a rather timid disposition. Whenever someone came to speak to him, he would start to stutter and stare at his interlocutor's shoes out of sheer awkwardness.
He spent his days in class staring out the window, which overlooked a military hangar used by the seniors.
As he was writing down the teacher's lesson in his notebook, his pen began to leak.
"Shit..."
In His Majesty Ryu's Military Academy, all students were required to be neat, well-groomed, maintain impeccable hygiene, and exhibit exemplary behavior. When a student had a leaking pen that, moreover, stained their clothes or school supplies, they were deemed an "unfit student." For the young boy, this situation was therefore terrifying.
(What am I going to do? The teacher hasn't noticed me yet...)
He rummaged through his bag to find a tissue. Nothing. Maybe in his pencil case? Nothing.
His pupils dilated in fear, heavy drops of sweat broke out on his skin, and his breathing became completely erratic.
"Here, Neigishi."
The girl sitting in front of him had turned around and was holding out a tissue.
"Thank you..." he replied in a low voice that betrayed his shyness.
In return, the girl offered him a smile.
After receiving the tissue, Neigishi calmed down and began to wipe up the ink, which, fortunately, had only spilled on the desk.
But as he wiped the stain, he noticed something was written on the fabric. He unfolded it and read the sentence in his head:
("Meet me after school at the academy gates.")
Neigishi's cheeks turned bright red. He started to think that the girl sitting in front of him might have a crush on him. It was the first time he had ever considered the possibility of appealing to someone outside his own family.
For the rest of the day, Neigishi's thoughts converged on a single obsession: "Is she in love with me?"
The final bell finally rang. The girl who sat in front of him had already left with another group of girls. Neigishi's heart began to race. Thump. Thump.
However, being the one in charge of classroom cleanup that day, he first had to complete his chores. It took him a little over thirty-five minutes. Over time, he had become more efficient, reducing his task from an hour to a solid half-hour.
It was finally time for him to leave the room and go meet her. Walking down the hallways, Neigishi, true to his habit, kept his eyes glued to the floor out of fear of others' gazes. A thousand questions tumbled through his mind:
"Is my fly zipped up?" "Do I look too nerdy?" "Do I smell good?"
By obsessing over these anxieties, his heart rate accelerated even more. Then, he finally arrived at the school gates.
A single student was waiting for him. She wore a black ponytail, the mandatory hairstyle imposed on all girls at the academy. Upon seeing Neigishi, a smile lit up her face.
"Ah, you're finally here! I was about to leave."
Her smile instantly vanished, giving way to a pout.
"Sorry..." Neigishi replied in a voice so faint it betrayed all his discomfort, his eyes stubbornly fixed on the girl's shoes.
"Why are you so afraid to speak?"
It was the dreaded question. His entire life, Neigishi had struggled to communicate. It was an ordeal, even with his own family.
"Well..." he stammered, his voice trembling and almost pitiful.
"It's fine... sorry, it wasn't my intention to rush you. But you could at least look me in the eyes, you know."
"I can't... I'm too scared."
For Neigishi, raising his head was an insurmountable task. As soon as he tried to force his neck to straighten up, the same memory would overwhelm him. The smell of their old apartment. The dull thud of the blows. And above all, his father's eyes.
When he had intervened to protect his mother, he had met his father's gaze. He had expected to find regret there, but he had seen nothing but pure, visceral hatred.
"Damn brat, son of a bitch!"
The burn of the slap still echoed on his cheek. Then the slamming door, taking his mother away and leaving him alone in the living room. He had never heard from them again in the ten years since, raised in silence by his maternal grandparents.
No, he preferred to stare at this girl's regulation shoes. At least the shoes didn't hate him.
Suddenly, the girl lifted Neigishi's head with her left hand. They were now face to face... looking right into each other's eyes.
Embarrassed, Neigishi closed his eyes and tried to lower his head again, but the girl's hand prevented him from doing so. He could only squeeze his eyes shut out of embarrassment. Embarrassment from looking a girl in the eyes, but also from his trauma.
"Look at me... Reon Neigishi," the girl insisted.
Neigishi didn't seem to obey the girl's demand, so to force him to look at her, she pulled her body closer to his. Pressing her chest against Neigishi's torso. The soft sensation of her breasts made Neigishi's eyes snap open in surprise. His gaze immediately darted toward the girl's chest.
"If you want me to step back, look at me and listen to me... you know very well that if we get caught, we could be in serious trouble."
Neigishi had no choice but to look at her; he was trapped. If they were seen, he could be reported, because dating was forbidden by the academy. If Neigishi and the girl were caught, he could be permanently expelled.
So, Neigishi agreed to look her in the eyes... and he showed a great deal of patience with the situation.
A girl's breasts were pressed against his chest, yet he managed to keep his composure and remain calm.
"Good. Neigishi, I'm going to ask you a question. Answer me."
"Okay."
"Do you want to truly participate in the World War Game?"