Part 3 — The Value of a Kurei
Professor Hoshino's announcement resonated more than expected:
"Each of you will receive 100,000 Kurei this month. Use it wisely."
One hundred thousand. A generous amount, enough for most to let their guard down.
While some applauded and others murmured with excitement, I could only think of the obvious:
no one gives something like this away without an ulterior motive.
That afternoon, Kaori and I walked through Kurohana Inner City.
A modern complex, full of shops, cafes, and even a small movie theater.
It looked like a normal city, except for one detail:
there was no real money. Only Kurei.
"I guess they want us to learn how to manage ourselves like adults," Kaori commented, looking at the prices in a bakery window. "But this is... too elaborate for a school."
"It's not an educational exercise," I replied without looking up from the digital menu. "It's an experiment."
Kaori looked at me with slight confusion, but didn't ask any more questions.
She had good instincts: she knew when not to insist.
Inside, the students were spending without restraint.
Desserts, coffee, new clothes... the euphoria of easy money blinded them.
I saw Miyu Fujikawa at a table, surrounded by people. She was laughing, manipulating conversations with ease.
Further away, Renji Morimoto was gathering a group, proposing to create a "cooperation network."
"Exchange favors," he said. In other words: social control.
Kaori approached the counter.
"Two coffees?" she asked.
I nodded. I wasn't hungry, but agreeing was a way to maintain a minimum of harmony between us.
While we waited, an argument caught my attention.
A dark-haired boy—Daichi Kuroda—was arguing with the cashier.
Apparently, he had spent almost all of his balance without realizing it.
"This is absurd!" he protested. "Yesterday I had 100,000! How did it run out so fast?"
The employee simply replied calmly:
"Your transactions are recorded, Mr. Kuroda. The system is automatic."
Kaori frowned.
"It hasn't even been twenty-four hours since they gave it to us..."
"Exactly," I said quietly. "And already someone is in debt."
I took a sip of coffee.
The taste was artificial, too perfect. Like everything else in that place.
Every smile, every rule, every "freedom" had a purpose.
And I just needed time to understand what it was.
Kaori looked at me out of the corner of her eye.
"You knew this would happen, didn't you?"
"No," I lied. "I just guessed."
Because yes, I had seen it coming.
And if my intuition was right, Kurei's system wouldn't just measure our finances.
It would measure our morals, our alliances, and what we were willing to sacrifice.
As we returned to the dormitory, I saw several classmates buying useless things.
Designer clothes, decorations, expensive food.
Their faces showed satisfaction... and naive confidence.
It wouldn't last long.
And deep down, I admit, part of me wanted to see how quickly that illusion would crumble.