Survival Game, Book 1: The Fool

Act One: Chapter Two

The doorbell rang at least twice until it finally roused Ryou from sleep. It rang a third time when he finally came downstairs, groggy enough to almost miss a step and fall down like an idiot. He didn't check what time it was, but he assumed it was about 6:00 a.m. from the milky dawn light seeping through the door when he opened it. The source of the ringing stood almost dumbfounded at the sight of Ryou, his mouth slightly agape and one finger poised to ring the bell once more. "Um, ahem. Hello." The man quickly regained his composure and greeted the boy in a friendly tone. "Is Mitsuki Nakahara-san here?" He asked in uncertainty, like he had no idea the woman in question had two children and he'd gotten the wrong address instead.
"Yes, but now's not a good time." Ryou answered cautiously. He didn't like this guy. Maybe it was sleep clouding his mind that was making such a quick opinion or maybe it was the fact the man instantly asked for his mother, but Ryou knew he didn't like the newcomer. Or maybe you're so concerned with that stupid news reports that you don't trust anyone now. That was really the reason, he was sure. A week had past since the report of Satoshi Akasaki's attack and it'd already became forgotten about with the new newspapers and weekly magazines coming out the previous day. Though even now, people still worried and it seemed the latest news was more of a concern than last week's. Ryou wanted to ask what the mysterious report was but he thought it'd be better to wait until he stocked the magazine rack at work.
"Well, tell her I'll see her later. I wanted to see if she needed any help to work. Her car had some trouble yesterday and with all this crazy stuff going on, we were told it's best to start walking in pairs just in case. You're her son, right? You should be careful too. You never know what kind of creepy freaks are out there." The man went on, snapping Ryou back to reality. "Anyway, I shouldn't waste more of our times. Get to school, kid. Let your mom know I was here, okay?" He let himself out afterwards, leaving as quickly and strangely as he appeared. Ryou's opinion still hadn't changed even after the man was gone. He still didn't like him, though was never sure why. He didn't even introduce himself either...
"Who was that?" His mother's voice asked as Ryou was starting to head back upstairs. He turned to face her properly, surprised at how quickly his mother had already fixed her hair and appearance before even changing into her work clothes. Was she expecting that guy? He wondered, suddenly self-conscious at his own ruffled hair and unkept demeanor. She had to have been awake for a while to have perfectly brushed out every strand of hair carefully and apply some light makeup onto her face.
"Umm, it was some guy asking for you. He was kinda weird, average height, I think his hair was a sandy brown color? Maybe a shade of blonde?" Ryou now found it hard to describe the man he had saw only a minute ago. All he could recall was the guy's casual tone of voice and speech, as if he'd known Ryou for years. However, his vague description was enough to give her an idea of who the man was.
"That was Akihito Taguchi. He's a coworker of mine, but don't mind his attitude, he's just like that. He's a nice guy though, always inviting the others to go drinking with him and helping anyone he can." His mother explained, pressing her lips together as she recalled Taguchi's behavior. "Don't mind him. You should hurry up and get dressed for school. I'll deal with my coworker, okay?" She gave him a nudge towards the steps before heading to the kitchen. It wasn't the first time she avoided any work related questions and neither of her sons brought it up around her. The one time they did, her only response was, "I've spent so many years around illness and making medicine to treat it. I have to talk about it enough at work, I'd prefer just to spend my free time with you two and not mention it." That was the only time they ever spoke about her work and they figured it was best for all three of them to not speak of it again.

For the past week, Ryou had perfect attendance, mostly thanks to his mother's urging after finding out about the day he'd missed last Monday. He was sure she may still be upset with him over that, even after he'd told her about making a perfect score on his latest test. However, he made it up to her by attending all six days and the current day as well.
Now, it was the afternoon, when most students would stay after school for club meetings or extra studying in the library. Ryou had been offered to stay behind as well, but his job had seemed more important and he rejected the offer, much to his classmates' strange glances and the whispering that followed once he left the room. That was becoming a common thing lately in regards to Ryou. Even his teachers were beginning to suspect he was becoming a delinquent and often asked him if everything was okay and question him about his mother or his father's death, thinking his parents were the root of his "problems." Ryou would dismiss the rumors without a care. Why wouldn't he do so? He knew he wasn't doing anything wrong and he knew why the rumors began anyway.
Kamiyama High School wasn't any parent's first choice in picking out the best high schools for their children. They lacked as many clubs and extracurricular classes as most other schools and their number of juvenile delinquents were pretty high. Ryou had never really ran into such students during his time at Kamiyama High, minus one breif encounter with a freshman in the hallway. Kouji Kawakami was his name, I think... Ryou recalled the name with a shudder as he exited the school and got on his bike. It was about the beginning of the school year in early April, when Ryou accidentally ran into the boy while hurriedly leaving the library. He remembered the boy's fierce glare after Ryou quickly apologized for the accident, though he was more focused on the unsightly scar on Kawakami's face at the time. I heard he got that scar in a fight with a high school third year when he was a middle schooler. I always thought it seemed far-fetched, but... it all can't be rumors, surely? He decided not to worry much about it in the end. Not like he'd know the truth about what happened anyway.
The distance from his school to the convience store was not too far away, making it an easy access for the times he attended. That's what he liked about his job, it was in the middle of both his house and school, making it easy to go home and come back if needed. Not only that, but it was rather noticible in the way it stood out from its neighboring buildings, with an apartment building on its right and an office building on the left. It was an odd sight, truly, but the liveliness of the area brought in several customers during the afternoon, which he was also rather fond of despite the crowd.
As he entered the store and clocked in for work, he immediately sensed something different among the customers. A peculiar tension sprinkled the air, so strongly that a chill shuddered through Ryou as he passed through the aisles. He'd already returned home and changed into his work uniform before arriving, so he knew his status at the particular high school he attended had no effect towards the others. Yet why did it feel like there was a criminal or a delinquent in the store, putting everyone on high alert? Where teenagers would normally hang out near the magazine rack was eerily silent, where customers would browse in the aisles in deep thought on what to buy was completely barren, and the only voices heard was the low whispers and mutterings of the few people there, too quiet to make out a word of what they were saying. Even Ryou's superior, normally pleased to see him, had only greeted him with a curt bow and began her own work.
Ryou awkwardly began his job, deciding to stock the magazine rack first. It'd get him far away from the horrible silence and alert tempers, and hopefully give him the idea of what was going on with everyone lately. Thinking about it now, even his classmates had been acting strange and he was slowly beginning to understand why they had gossiped about him after school. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. And whatever it was had driven a wedge deep into society that made everyone suddenly live in distrust and fear. Was it the Grandmasters again? Could they not think of how to stop them after all? Ryou wondered, quickly opening up the first box of magazines and grabbing the first news related one. His questions were immediately answered by the cover's biggest headline: AX DRUG RECIEVES COUNTERMEASURES! IS IT REALLY THE RIGHT THING? It read in bold text. Ryou immediately flipped to page 40, where the article that matched the headline appeared. The first page repeated the headline, now captioning a black and white picture of a long haired woman dressed in a dress suit, speaking into a microphone to the press. Page 41 was when the actual article began, reading: "After the nearly fatal attack on a local salaryman from the group known as the "Grandmasters," the government had began planning ways to counter the drug known simply as AX, the result of at least 10 deaths in the past year. This plan has finally been decided and has already been through two test runs. Though many people originally requested action to be taken, most are unsure now with the recent press interview by Azumi Kimura. "We intend this program to be a chance for reformation," Kimura-san had told reporters. "We think, by using delinquents, we can counter the Grandmasters using their own weapon with the AX drug. The ones we choose to be in this program can use the experience to shape into a better person." When told about the considerable backlash at the thought of using high school students, Kimura-san followed up with, "It is true. We don't know if the claims of powers the AX drug gives is true, but it is the only thing we can go by. Though I understand the concerns, I think this'll be a successful program." A high school has already been chosen for the next round of participants, making this the third and final time. This final round will be official, though most locals still don't agree with its unclear morales. Despite this, Kimura-san has began searching for her next targets and states that if they are chosen, they should expect contact from her within the next few weeks. "I hope for the safety of everyone and will ensure the students' safety, no matter what risks. That shall be all for now." Kimura-san concluded. Though it is unclear rather this program is the right decision for the countermeasures, we can hope for a positive result. Other than the information we have been provided, the school and chosen participants have not been revealed. The only information is the title of this possibly fatal and dangerous program, in which they decided to call: Survival Game."