Chapter 19 — “Hero”

Chapter 19 — “Hero”

“As expected from the top agency. Your work brings peace to Japan yet again.” The hero of the world pours himself a drink. A light brown beverage flows down from an expensive looking bottle. It can be determined the price tag for such luxury from the tinted glass. More than whatever the three of them could afford in a single month.

What is more mesmerising though, is the interior design of the office they are in. Floors made of marble could work as a giant mirror. Tables made of ebony wood without a hint of a cut or joint, glowing from the overhead’s light. A five metres shelf, with display of antique collections, libraries of books, medals and a small, metallic safe.

“Would you like some too, Lemon-san?” The raspy voice interrupts Lemon’s adoration to such office.

“The people in Kuzumi Agency don’t drink much, Yamamoto-sama.”

“Keeping your body in the top condition as always, don’t you? As expected from the top talent,” Katsuo takes a sip from his glass, enjoying every flavour and aftertaste of the drink.

Actually, it’s more of a financial problem rather than that.

“A sip wouldn’t hurt, no?” Katsuo pours to the second glass on the table, passing it to the other end, “After all, today is a celebration.”

Lemon watches the glass. He can see hint of frosts all over the classic round glass. Ice wouldn’t be necessary to keep the drink cold. After all, ice might degrade its purity. It is the peak form of alcoholic beverage, both in quality and value.

“…I don’t drink hard liquor.”

In truth, Lemon has been restraining himself from tasting such luxury.

“Too bad… I should taught myself some mixology. Then, I could pour the drink befitting the hero,”

The other reason of his restrain, would be questions that still remain in his head. And feelings he couldn’t ignore. Bad ones.

“…Yamamoto-sama, apologise for being so blunt, but I still don’t understand why you summon me to your office — especially at such crucial time like these,”

Katsuo stirs his drink on the table, smelling the hint of cinnamon in the drink before sipping it again.

“Noah of The Ark. What was his last status?” Asked Katsuo.

“Currently, he’s being transported away by the Kuzumi Agency — Lime and Bitter.”

“And Todachi’s responsible for the hunt of Cham of The Ark, while the biggest threat has been successfully taken out. I don’t see any reason for you not to enjoy yourself once for a while. ” Katsuo studies at the stiff Lemon, “In my humble opinion, with years of experiences — work is always vital, but a good break is also crucial. Otherwise your mind will start to deteriorate, and your guts will betray you.” Katsuo pushes the drink to the edge of the table, “Drink it.”

Lemon observes the glass as water starts to form at the exterior of the glasses. The watchful eyes of his bigger boss has never left as well. With a sigh, he approached the luxurious table and takes the frosting glass. The cold seeps to Lemon’s fingers, but not cold enough as he’s able to hold it with his bare hand. He brings it closer to his chest — observing the frost turns into water, sliding down on his finger as his body heat gets higher.

“…Why didn’t you invite the leader of the Kuzumi Agency, Yamamoto-sama?” Lemon pressed Katsuo again.

A moment of silence seeps to the room, as the old man keeps on studying the boy and his glass. He let out a longer breath, grabbing his glass.

“Come stand next to me, Lemon-san.”

Katsuo turn his back on Lemon who complies to his request. In front of them is a window — higher and wider than any window Lemon has ever seen. In fact, the whole thing in front of him is but a seamless window, showing the city of Tokyo from one of — if not the tallest skyscraper in the city. The lights of the city gives its the reputation it deserves — the sleepless city, glamouring in its rich culture. Lemon admires the glamorous scenery, to the point he almost forgot to be in the presence of the most impactful person of the decade.

“What do you see?” Asked Katsuo

“The city of Tokyo.” Lemon answered short.

“And what do you seen in it?”

“Its people, I guess.”

“And what do you see in its people?”

“I don’t know…” Lemon sucks dry air as he realised his nonchalant answer. He glances toward Katsuo, seeing his reaction. Katsuo’s gaze hasn’t change — his eyes still reflects the city’s landscape.

“For me, I see the bright future. Stories. Hope. Life… Things that is irreplaceable. Souls that worth protecting. Souls that worth saving.” The reflection on his eyes tells a deep story, and the short silence makes the world recalls it.

“…What do you see in me, Lemon-san?” Again, Katsuo posed another question.

“In you?”

“I don’t mind a brutally honest answer,” he snickered.

“Well… I guess you are some sort of a hero. The hero that saves million, if not billions of people.” Lemon thread very carefully on his comment.

“Is that so?” The reflection in his eyes disappear as he recalls a distant memory. “What did I exactly do for this world?”

“For God’s sake, this guy just wanna gloat,” Such intrusive thought kept hidden within Lemon’s mind, as he gave his lukewarm answer, “…You built the SCF to be the organisation that protect humanity, and singlehandedly stop the third Ordained One’s ascension.”

There’s another beat of silence, before Katsuo inquired again “What do you know about the third ascension?”

This time, Lemon recalled his own memories as well, “…Fifteen years ago, a sudden intense heat wave produced by the third OO strikes Yokohama around midnight. At least 2 million life sustained injuries, with a confirmed death toll of 1.5 million.”

Lemon remembers it all too well. The grey snows, the burning temperature, the shriek and shout of terror. It was, after all, the end and the beginning of his life, “It was…a personal tragedy. And I couldn’t thank more to the one who brought a stop to it.”

“I see…” Katsuo sips another one. Now there are less than half in his glass. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“That’s alright. It’s a good reminder for what I’ve been fighting for. What I’m fighting for. To make sure that no Ordained One shall —”

As he tried to declare his belief, Lime’s face pops in his mind, reminding him of the contradicting life he’s been living. He held his glass tighter, as the dilemma comes back to haunt him. A deafening silence haunts the office room again.

“…Do you know the third OO name?” Katsuo asked out of blue.

“They never disclose their actual name to the public, no.”

Katsuo gulps a bigger shot. A warmth climbs to his now redder face “…Her name is Shiori. Yamamoto Shiori.”

A chill climbs on Lemon’s back. He dares not to look at Katsuo’s face, nor to squeak any comment on that regards. He can feel cold sweats start to wet his back, and his throat getting dry. A simple ‘oh’ is what could left Lemon’s mouth.

“I was a simple, small politician, and she was a simple wife. A simple mother to a child. All she was able to do was to reheat leftover miso soup we bought at our closest convenience store. That’s all. Those were the simple days. The good days. We were fighting for our cause. For those who have power. For those who have no power. For humans. Shiori, being a powered herself, is all for the better tomorrow. For a solution that benefit both sides. She sometimes reprimanded me if I was being too strict to the powered, and praised me for my work to the unpowered. I was happy. Happy that I work a good job for everyone. Happy, that my family was happy.”

The frost in Katsuo glass is now but liquids, dripping down from his hand. His lips tremble, recounting the painful memory,

“…Between a year or two after the second OO ascension, a group of powered rogue kidnapped our daughter. They said to come alone to the outskirt of Yokohama. They said they were dissatisfied with the current policy trends — favouring the weak. And so we did. To no one surprise, we got ambushed by the pricks. It was a long night, and a long beatdown. But they brought us to see our kid. We found our daughter. In a metal bucket. I can still remember the stench of my own flesh and blood. It was the first time I puked in my entire life. Then, in another second —”

Katsuo stopped, gulping the rest of his drink in one go, slamming it on the ebony table. He then approaches to the shelf of his office — toward the metallic shelf.

“I remember the aftermath. The devastation. It was… — no words can describe it. Shiori’s face as well. The terror in her face. Of her…unintentional actions. I understand her. But I understand the world even better now. It was wrong of me to find a middle ground. To think we will, at some point, reach an understanding for each other. As human to human. An impossibility. We are two very different species. And I know, from that moment — there are no half-measures.”

Katsuo finds himself staring on the cold safe — seeing his own face by the reflection on it. He takes a deeper breath, regaining his cool.

“There are two solution to neutralise the OO. The surefire weapon. One, is the solution the SCF has developed for the past decades, and the second one, is the one I used to slay the third OO. And that is —“

“Yamamoto-sama, if I may—“

Katsuo stopped his talk, glancing toward the yellow-haired boy.

“I-I don’t understand all of this. What’s with the sudden story? Why tell it to me, of all people?”

“…I think you figured it out already, boy.” Katsuo’s voice got lower — as if he’s growling to Lemon, “All of this, to equip you. To keep your eyes aligned with the vision. To give you the courage and strength to do the right thing. To guide you, so you can give your all to the cause you’ve been fighting for. All for you, to be the next —“