It wasn't a beautiful day at Ackashic Senior High, or ASH for short, yet a warm sense of happiness filled the air.
I walked down the stairs, clutching my graduation certificate.
Making my way back to my seat, for the last time, probably forever, a strange discomfort began to settle in. I was supposed to be happy, but something felt missing.
"Hey, Saitou, you alright?" someone asked, tapping my shoulder.
I turned around, only to be greeted by empty air.
"Seriously?" someone muttered below, glancing down. There stood Naoki, his face a mix of concern and frustration.
Naoki's been my friend since as long as I can remember, he's been there like a little elf or dwarf supporting me with my problems... and that too.
"Yeah, I'm alright." I replied, even though my words felt hollow.
"Even though you're not?" He pressed, raising an eyebrow, and asking in suspicion.
"Well, you don't look like someone who's alright." Yuta, out of nowhere, added in on the interrogation.
I sighed, "Let's just talk about it later... somewhere private."
Naoki held my gaze for a moment, his brown eyes slightky covered by his messy black hair silently asking if I was sure. I nodded, and he let it drop... for now. Yuta went back to try and sleep, stifling a yawn out of boredom.
After the ceremony, Naoki, Yuta, and I pushed our way through the bustling crowd until we spotted my parents waving at us by the gate.
"Oh, son," my mom exclaimed whule rushing to hug me, "you never fail to amaze us."
"I know, Mom. I know," I replied, then turned to Naoki and Yuta with a smile. "Wanna ride with us?"
"Well, I have errands to do. Sorry." Yuta said, glancing at his watch.
"Seriously? Right after graduation?" Naoki shot back, his tone sarcastic as always.
"Yeah."
"Well, I guess you've got no choice." He's been getting busy a lot these days, although he won't tell us anything about it.
I let it go, hoping he'll tell us soon. As for me and Naoki, we rode inside the car with my parents.
After a short drive, we arrived at the restaurant owned by Naoki's parents. Of course, Naoki asked them promptly for a private table for us.
The restaurant was as neat as always, with decorative leaves hanging from the roof, as well as pots with flowers and plants that act as light to go along with the leaves.
The tables and chairs were clean and tidy without a speck of dust. We were also seperated from our parents, with them talking in a different table.
"Hey! Enough looking around, let's pick up where we left off." Naoki tapped the table, breaking me from my thoughts to capture my attention.
I clicked my tongue and sighed.
"Dude, it's just me, we've been best friends for twelve years. I'm no damn stranger to you."
"You really wanna know?"
"That's a stupid question. Of course I wanna know!" He said, his voice was a little childish, especially when yelling in a whispered tone.
I took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and finally said in one breath.
"Summer vacation is overrated, it's the same thing every single year, AND it's the sickest of the sickest vacation. Not cool sick, boring sick."
"But, don't you like training? Also stop acting like a child, were adults now." Naoki smugly said, like he isn't still seventeen.
"Well... We've been training for almost a decade, a DECADE, obviously I've grown bored of it"
Naoki paused, his expression shifting as if he was starting to think I might be right.
Then he suddenly blurted out.
"What if your training ends tomorrow."
"What?"
"I mean, what if you finally became... like what if you start again tomorrow?"
He whispered the last part like it was some big secret. I just stared at him, stunned. How the heck did that come out of his mouth? I mean, Naoki's always been a little crazy, but not this crazy
After all, there was no way the organization will assign a teenager a mission.
I pulled out my phone, pretending to look somethung up.
"What's that?" Naoki asked.
"Looking for a therapist, so you can dream out your thoughts there.
Naoki pushed my phone onto the table, the small slam carrying more frustration than force.
"Bro, it's not that deep."
I raised an eyebrow, along with a smirk.
"Just a hunch then?"
He scoffed, letting the situation go, and moved on to a different topic instead.
Meanwhile, our parents were deep in their own conversation on their own table.
"Look at them," Saitou's mother, Aiko, said proudly, her eyes soft with affection. "They act so grown up, but to me, they'll always be children." She reached for her glass of water, still smiling.
"They're still young, indeed," her husband, Hiroshi, said with a light chuckle before adding, "Same goes for you."
She gave her husband a strange look. "Stop joking around. We both know we're getting old."
Both of them laughed. A brief moment of silence settled over the table before the atmosphere turned serious again.
Ryusei, Naoki's father, restarted the conversation. "Well, I just want to say one thing, Aiko, Hiroshi... you raised Saitou very well. But out of all the high-paying jobs he could've taken, why did he choose that?"
Hiroshi froze at the question. Even his wife couldn't find an answer.
He sighed deeply before replying, his voice hesitant. "To be honest, I won't... no, I can't, answer that. We asked him ourselves, and he only ever gives the same two words every time."
Sumiko, Naoki's mother, added softly, "It's just that... after what happened in the past, it's a bit concerning."
"And about Saitou's age, he's still young, as you said. He won't be able to handle the serious pain that comes with that job."
"Look at his face," Ryusei added. "Back then, it was an innocent smile. But what happened?"
Aiko sighed, dejected. "Let's not talk about this, please. We've been trying to convince him to step away, but he doesn't want to. So please."
Both Ryusei and Sumiko nodded in agreement, and the conversation stopped.
A few hours passed, we've eaten our full, and our conversations gradually came to an end. Darkness had already settled over the skies, as if setting the stage for something dramatic. Suddenly, my mom's phone rang. She rushed to another room and answered the call..
***
"Good evening, Mr. Watanabe, Why did you call?"
"Apologies for calling at such a late hour, Mrs. Yamaguchi." The voice on the other end was calm, cold, and unnervingly soft.
"Is Saitou with you right now?"
"Yes, do you want me to go and get him?"
"That would be greatly appreciated Mrs. Yamaguchi"
Peeking out of the room, my mother waved in my direction, signalling me to follow her. I followed my mother into the next room and quietly listened in on their conversation.
And just like that, I was sure that my life was about to turn upside down again.
An old man seemingly in his 60's spoke in the phone; smooth voice but with underlying complexity. Mr. Watanabe, the prime minister of Japan, and the architect of my mercenary career.
"It's quite complicated. We need to stop Saitou's training for... confidential reasons."
"I'm his mother, and I have the right to know about this."
"I understand your concern as a parent Aiko... It's just that the Royal Family needs someone for this job."
My mother blinked twice, clearly confused by what Mr. Watanabe had just said. "Sorry, what do you mean by 'Royal Family'?"
"Forgive me for not informing you and your family sooner, but we will be taking your son to England."
"Hey, do I get a say in this? I'm the one getting shipped to England you know?"
"This is unacceptable, Isamu! You should have informed us sooner! Do you know how hard it is for a mother to be torn from her son? We almost lost him 3 years ago!"
"I apologize for the oversight. I merely wished to avoid disrupting his studies."
"He's the one studying not his parents! And how do you thin Saitou would feel if you just suddenly move him to an unfamiliar environment?"
My mother sighed, already knowing I would agree to the mission without me even having to say anything. "Forget it. But one final question, when is he scheduled to depart?"
Mr. Watanabe inhaled deeply, then slowly uttered a single word: "Tomorrow."