"I… I really want to know! What will my future be like?"
Joey's eyes widened, fixed intently on the slowly departing Kozuno, as if burning his figure into memory.
Yuto stood by, watching Joey's entranced expression, and suddenly felt like his whole vibe had shifted. The carefree, rough-edged Joey now looked almost neurotic, unsettling to behold.
"Yuto! Let's go ask about our future together!"
Joey suddenly turned, his face filled with anticipation, leaning so close Yuto could feel his breath.
Regardless, Yuto shook his head firmly, without a second thought. "No. I'm not going."
"Huh? Why not?" Joey was shocked by the refusal.
"That kind of thing is obviously a scam." Yuto sighed. "Think about it—who can really predict the future? It's just a trick to con people out of money."
Joey opened his mouth to argue, then abruptly, Tristan cut in first.
"Yuto's right! We can't let Kozuno deceive people like this! As a Beautification Committee member, I can't stand by! Let's go!"
Tristan seized Yuto's arm. Joey caught on instantly, grabbing the other. Together, they dragged Yuto along.
You wanted to go too, huh, Tristan? At least Joey's honest about it.
Oh well. Fine. A fortune or two won't kill anyone.
"You eat first, Téa! We'll be right back!"
The three arrived at Kozuno's classroom. Pushing the door open, what should have been students casually eating lunch was instead a bizarre sight.
Girls lined up in a long queue stretching from the door all the way to the cleaning corner. At the end of the line, seated among stored tools, was the cloaked Kozuno. A few thoroughly brainwashed girls stood by, waiting devoutly for his orders.
At the front was a particularly large girl, her build rivaling Zangief's. She anxiously asked, "Lord Kozuno, they say beauties die young… will I die early?"
Yuto's mouth twitched. Beauties die young? That doesn't apply to you…
Even Kozuno looked speechless for a moment, but he quickly recovered and intoned, "I see it… I see it…"
The surrounding girls leaned forward, breath held.
Finally, Kozuno pronounced: "You will live a long life."
The bulky girl squealed, covering her face in delight. As she turned, Yuto caught sight of her face—thankful he hadn't eaten lunch yet.
"Wonderful!" She waddled out of the classroom.
"Applause for Lord Kozuno!" the ringleader commanded, and the girls clapped obediently.
Then the floor trembled. An earthquake! Luckily, just a small one, common in Japan.
Immediately, the girls swarmed Kozuno. "Lord Kozuno, are you okay?" "Are you hurt?"
As if such a tremor could cause harm…
Kozuno shook his head, then pulled a slip of paper from his cloak, handing it to the ringleader. "I foresaw this… I wrote it this morning."
She held it up: [There will be an earthquake today.]
"Amazing!"
"As expected of Lord Kozuno!"
"Applause again!"
Even Joey and Tristan were moved. Joey gripped Yuto's arm tightly, Tristan no longer caring about Kozuno turning the cleaning corner into his stage.
"He really does have powers!"
"Of course! I never doubted him for a second!"
"...Sigh." Yuto exhaled heavily, utterly disappointed. He knew it for what it was—a carefully planned scam.
"This isn't real. Just watch."
He strode forward, ignoring the line of girls and the desk before Kozuno. "I can't watch this anymore. Sorry, Kozuno."
His voice was resolute. He lunged forward and yanked Kozuno's cloak away. The fabric flew like a gust of wind, scattering slips of paper hidden within.
Hundreds of "prophecies" rained down like snow, fluttering all across the classroom.
"With stuff like this pre-written, you can 'predict' anything you want! He's a fraud!"
Yuto's voice rang with anger and contempt.
Kozuno's face went pale, sweat dripping down. "Y-you! These are just spares!" His voice trembled—he was rattled.
Some of the girls began to wake up, confusion dawning on their faces as they stared at the papers. But a few diehards remained.
"How dare you! Your negative energy burdens Lord Kozuno! Step back!"
Yuto only shook his head. There was no reasoning with blind worship.
"Joey, Tristan, you see? He's a fake. Let's go. We still haven't eaten."
"Never thought someone could scam people like this…"
"I-I suspected him from the start!"
Here they go again…
Back in class, Yuto ate his lunch.
"Yuto, on Sunday, want to go to the amusement park?" Téa asked shyly.
"Domino Amusement Park has opened water attractions. Let's go together."
"Yeah, sounds great!"
No hesitation—Yuto agreed immediately. A weekend alone with Téa? Much better than tagging along with Joey and Tristan to the arcade.
...
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