"Sir. The house was empty. Yamikuro Asaki has escaped." Jacinto said, kneeling before his leader.
The leader squinted his eyes.
Silence was between them.
"Damn it!" He suddenly yelled, standing up. He wasn't able to capture Yamikuro.
"The others have gone on a city-wide search... But there's also-"
Jacinto was cut off by his leader.
He walked up to the window and slightly pulled the curtain open.
"Be quiet."
They were at least 10 floors up with a wide view over the city.
After some more silence, the leader spoke.
"Can you hear it?"
Jacinto slightly shook his head. "I don't hear anything, sir."
"I can hear the sound of a death knell. It's slowly getting louder and louder."
Jacinto raised an eyebrow. A slight chill ran down his spine.
"A death knell?"
The leader let out a sigh, closing the curtain.
Darkness filled the room.
"A death for someone close to Asaki is coming. I'll make certain of it, in doing so, he will come for me himself."
A smirk appeared on Jacinto's face. "Anyone specific in mind?"
The leader sat down, the chair creaking slightly.
"Whoever he cares for. I wouldn't be surprised if he knew the truth about me and escaped because of it. The faster we deal with it, the better."
Jacinto nodded in response. "I'll let the others know, sir."
###
The birds chirped outside, and Yamikuro inhaled the air that breezed in from the open window.
The sun shone brightly into the room.
Throwing on his school uniform, he quickly stepped into the corridor.
It was quiet.
Too quiet for a school morning like this.
Something had to be wrong.
He stepped into the lounge, confused and concerned.
But that's when he spotted Angel sitting on the couch, mindlessly going through channels.
Yamikuro coughed to clear his throat.
"Where is everyone?"
Angel was caught off guard and turned around as if he had seen a ghost.
"Oh, it's you, Yamikuro."
"Why are you up this early?" He asked, stretching one arm over the back of the couch.
Yamikuro blinked. He wasn't early, as a matter of fact, he was on time to leave for school.
"I'm not early, school starts soon."
Angel's expression shifted. His eyebrows scrunched, his mouth was slightly open, and he squinted one eye like Yamikuro had said something unthinkable.
"You do know that there's no school for the rest of the week... Right?"
Yamikuro stared at him.
"It's Wednesday, though?"
Angel tilted his head, holding back a laugh.
"They must've mentioned it at school, multiple times even. Has Kaminari really affected you this much already? Back when he first joined, he also forgot... Back to back for two years."
Yamikuro sat down next to him, a disappointed sigh escaping his lips.
Angel turned towards the TV.
"Well, in case there's a festival later today. A fireworks one, where everyone gathers in memory of a hero."
But before Yamikuro could reply, the bathroom door creaked open.
Cedar stepped out, steam rising from his shoulders, his somewhat trained body wrapped in a robe.
"You're up early."
"Yamikuro didn't know school was canceled," Angel said with a smirk.
Cedar raised an eyebrow. "No one told you?"
Yamikuro shook his head.
But curiosity got the best of him when he questioned the fact why both of them were up at 7:45 AM.
"Why are you two up this early anyway?"
Cedar shrugged, sitting down on one of the couches.
"We come from a family of business, and I guess we've just been used to getting up early."
"Our parents own one of the biggest businesses here," Angel added.
Footsteps creaked again, heavier this time.
Rye came down the stairs, his eyes completely closed, hair a complete disaster. He wore an oversized T-shirt and nothing else except for underwear.
He wandered into the kitchen without saying a word and grabbed a box of juice, chugging it down.
However, in the girls' dorm, an hour later.
Four girls sat on the couches.
Deia knitted what appeared to be a scarf.
Isabella brushed her hair.
Sitting with them were girls, a year older than they.
One of them, called Rose, had light pink hair tied up into two loose buns, sipping juice through a straw.
Next to her sat Ivy. Her long green hair was tied into a thick braid down her back. Taller than everyone else in the room, legs crossed.
"You two are coming to the festival, right?" Isabella asked.
"Hmph. Of course we are," Rose said, flipping her bangs with fake confidence.
"You think I'd miss something like that? No way. Noooo way."
Ivy smiled faintly. "We already picked our outfits."
Isabella nodded in response.
"So did we, although I had to help Deia out."
Deia remained quiet, focused on knitting.
"Should we join Angel and the others?" Ivy asked, smiling.
Rose finished sipping the juice and jumped up from the couch.
"Sure, I guess." She said cockily, but deep down she was excited to go.
Isabella stopped them.
"Wait. Give me some time, I need to get ready."
Back in the boys' dorm, at 1 PM.
Kaminari woke up. His eyes were half-closed, his stomach rumbling.
There was a bagel on top of the kitchen shelf, and Kaminari grabbed it.
While chewing on it, he sat down near everyone.
Before anyone could start a conversation, the door pushed open.
A figure walked in.
It was Kazuhiko, holding something in his hand. A purple and blue tunic outfit with black pants.
"Hello, everyone." He did a slight nod.
He then reached out the outfit, "Here, for you, Yamikuro. I figured you wouldn't have anything to wear."
Yamikuro's eyes lit up. Kazuhiko just brought him the outfit necessary for the festival, without having to ask.
"Thank you!" He said, rushing over to Kazuhiko.
As the door was kept open, the noises from outside crept in.
The Hideout buzzed with activity. Decorations were going up. The smell of food cooked from different stalls floated in through the windows. Laughter echoed across the courtyard.
Kazuhiko smiled.
"Don't thank me yet. Try them on, I wasn't actually sure what your size was."
Yamikuro grabbed the stuff, rushing to the nearest bathroom.
He quickly changed into the outfit and walked out.
They fit him perfectly.
"These colors suit you well," Kazuhiko noted.
Angel stretched, letting out a sigh.
"I guess we should go and change into our outfits as well."
As everyone left to go upstairs, knocks came from the other side of the entrance door.
Kazuhiko opened the door.
Isabella, Deia, Ivy, Mai, and Rose stood there.
They came in and were surprised by the lack of people. It was just Yamikuro standing there with Kazuhiko.
But not too long after, the others joined the company downstairs.
Each of them wore outstandingly colored outfits.
Kaminari wore yellow, Cedar wore black, Angel wore white, Rye wore orange and red, and Kazuhiko wore brown.
The girls had similarly dressed up, each in different colors.
Isabella wore just red, Deia wore grey, Rose wore pink, Ivy wore green, and Mai wore purple.
They spent the next few hours chatting, waiting for the sun to lower.
They talked about each other's outfits, plans, and whatnot.
"Are we ready to go?" Kazuhiko asked, knowing they were.
Everyone nodded, and they headed out.
The streets glowed in warm lantern light, and soft music filled the air.
Food stalls stretched along every path, and the sound of children laughing echoed in the distance.
The group split up just near the main festival area.
"We'll meet when the fireworks start," Kazuhiko said, holding Mai's hand.
"Got it!" Rose waved, dragging Ivy and Angel along with her.
Yamikuro, Isabella, Rye, and Deia stuck together.
They wandered through the stalls, trying different foods, laughing under the fading sky.
Kaminari stayed with Cedar, they had some promise to fulfill. Something they hadn't talked much about.
Kazuhiko turned to Mai and said quietly, "Can't wait to see our child grow up."
She smiled, resting her hand gently over her stomach.
"Yeah."
As Yamikuro passed one particular stand, after having walked around with the others for about an hour now, an old man waved him over.
"I can tell you haven't been around for long. Try this, for free."
Yamikuro stopped, gazing at the man with an eyebrow raised.
"What's that?"
"Fish from the far lands, rare to find."
Yamikuro didn't really want to take it at first, but it seemed like the fish sold well.
And it was a festival after all.
"Alright," He said, grabbing it.
While chewing on it slowly, the man leaned forward.
"You know, there's a statue nearby. Hero of the past. They say he stopped the war with nothing but his words. He was weak, barely held up with his comrades in war, yet he walked up to Lucian with a plea."
Yamikuro blinked. "Huh?"
"Words, not power," the man continued. "He walked out of Lucian's tent, and word went around that Lucian shed a tear."
Yamikuro wasn't sure if he heard that right. Lucian, the man who cold-heartedly killed Resonants... Shed a tear?
"Lucian?"
The man just smiled.
Isabella came up beside him, holding a drink in each hand. She looked at Yamikuro curiously.
"What's wrong?"
He shook his head.
"Nothing."
But his eyes wandered around, and a statue stood tall. The man who ended the war with just words.
The face was too far to inspect, but something about it seemed... off.
A nameless hero with nothing left behind but his appearance.
Yamikuro couldn't believe that someone who ended the war wouldn't try and get fame from it.
What's the point of being a hero if no one knew who he was?
"Something about the statue?" Isabella asked, still curious.
Yamikuro's eyes fell to the ground. He didn't want to make a scene from just an odd feeling he had.
"Nah, I was just thinking about this hero."
Isabella shrugged.
"If you say so."
Deia broke the awkwardness with her quiet voice.
"H-hey, isn't it time..."
Yamikuro smiled, trying to be kind with her.
"I think we should meet up with the others."
But one of them was missing.
"...Rye?"
He looked at the rooftops, where he stood.
"Hey! We're going to meet with the others!"
Rye just stood there, looking over the area, his eyes squinted, almost like he spotted something.
When he heard Yamikuro call out for him, he closed his eyes for a few seconds, his face completely serious.
He suddenly appeared next to Yamikuro with a smile.
"Let's go."