Chapter 2: Honest Deception【P3】

Masaki

Shin huffs, hanging over the back of a bench. “Unlike you two, who are content to waste time listening to a boring speech, some of us want to find our rooms and just collapse. If we don’t hurry, some random roommate is going to steal the bed by the window!”

“Which means we need to move,” Daiki adds, shifting his bag over his shoulder. “Let’s just start by heading in this direction. Our dormitories should be somewhere over there.”

“Fill us in later!” Shin calls back as the two of them start marching away. “Make sure to listen closely to the big boss.”

“Yeah, yeah. Bye-bye.” I offer a loose wave, my eyes already tracing the perfect masonry of the nearest roofline.

Sora steps up to my side, nudging my shoulder. “We should get moving too.”

We steer through the gathering mass of students, following the flow inward to secure a better spot near the stage. The arriving crowd packs into a tight semicircle around the platform that sits just to the right of the fountain.

“Remind me to measure the diameter of that Beauty’s basin,” I whisper with a crooked grin.

The background festival music stops, plunging the crowd into a quiet punctuated only by the distant hum of the market stalls.

A boy steps up to the microphone behind the lectern.

“My, my… look at you all. So many fresh faces.” He spreads his arms wide like a rising phoenix. “Please, do come closer. Do not let the stage intimidate you, I tamed it just for you.”

Nobody budges. No one speaks.

He taps the microphone rhythmically, combating the silence. “Hasumi—the Student President, at your service.”

A deliberate pause leaves the title hovering in the air while he visibly savors the sound of it.

“I know you must all be eager to find your dormitories and rest after such an exhausting journey, but bear with me for just a moment—you will find it well worth your time.”

“This academy functions a bit differently than what you may be used to. Here, we—”

He checks himself with a performative glance at the sky, smoothly reorienting his words.

“—the students decide on daily matters. An unprecedented level of autonomy, woven directly into the foundation of this campus.”

His flat hand sweeps out, mapping the sea of students in one fluid motion.

“But if you keep expecting your phones to have all the answers, prepare for a little disappointment. The intricate realities of this place simply cannot be contained in such a shallow medium.”

Just like that, his welcoming cadence freezes over as he raises a fist in front of him.

“So listen closely. The school’s authority is anchored by three tiers called Cores.”

The index finger rises from his fist. “The foundation—Core One: National Law.”

A second finger rises beside it. “Core Two: Academy Law.”

His eyes sweep the audience, locking with mine for a fraction of a second—I freeze, returning the calculating look.

“And finally, Core Three—District Law, governed by the student council departments. And thus, ultimately—”

A third finger rises to complete the triplet.

“—me.”

The chilling act thaws just as quickly as it came, giving way to a playful smirk. “Make sure you fall in line nicely.”

He lingers, letting the silence stretch as if expecting a collective shudder. But the crowd misses its cue, offering nothing but a wall of dead stares.

As the morning shifts toward noon, a creeping layer of shadow settles across the platform. High on the hill behind the stage, the academy building looms over the courtyard. Its crest and the national flag hang in the heat, while the structure itself seems to command the elements themselves, dimming the shine of the festive decorations on the stage.

“He really loves the sound of his own voice, huh?” Sora whispers.

Hasumi treats our cold silence as if it were written directly into his script, letting out a delighted chuckle.

“Every Saturday, you will vote on newly submitted student initiatives—” He raises a placating fist. “—and before you ask, yes, participation is mandatory.”

A collective groan ripples through the crowd as the mass begins to stir.

Hasumi’s eyes widen with a smile. “Yes! Beautiful! Drink it in you—”

The clock tower strikes the hour with a deep chime, cutting him off just as the central fountain shifts, launching a pillar of water upward.

“My, look at the hour flow by. And here I thought we were just getting started.” He lets out a light sigh. “So many questions left unanswered. No matter. The experienced students at town hall are always happy to assist—such tireless workers.”

“On behalf of the Student Council, let me offer you one final, truly warm welcome.”

He falls back into line, stepping next to his silent council before dropping into a flawlessly practiced bow.

A paper-thin applause follows as the figures on stage turn to march off in formation, leaving the platform bare. Festive music returns to scrub away the silence as the crowd breaks apart.

“Well, that’s our cue to leave,” Sora says, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. I follow, hoisting my heavy bag off the ground and over both shoulders.

Before I can take a step toward the avenue, a sudden blur strikes from my flank.

A hooded figure slams full-force into Sora, yanking the strap to rip the bag right off her shoulder. I instinctively lunge forward, but the runner barrels straight through me with a shove.

Staggering backward, I crash into Sora, knocking her flat onto the pavement.

“Don’t worry about me, just go!” she barks, sitting up to clutch her shoulder.

I hesitate for a heartbeat, then spin on my heel.

“Hey! Stop him!” I roar down the street, the volume tearing through my throat as I throw my whole weight into a sprint.

The crowd offers nothing but a wall of confused stares. The thief is already widening the gap, escaping toward an avenue.

Farther down the road, a student rockets into view from the left. Spotting the runner’s trajectory, he moves with a powerful stride, cutting diagonally across the plaza to intercept the thief’s path.

Behind him, another student struggles to keep up, failing to match his pace.

“G-get him, Jiro!” the trailing boy wheezes, clutching his side. “I—I’m... right... right behind you!”

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Discover what happens next in: Chapter 3: Unsafe Protection【P1】

Written by Limited_Infinity. Extras, official publishing platforms and updates are publicly available only on the Patreon page “_Limited_Infinity_”

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