𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐎 || 𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬 !

𝐭𝐰𝐨 || 𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐭

"Hi hi, Kuro-kunnn~" Kenzo grabbed a chair next to him and rested his elbows on the table. "How's it going?"

Kuro's eye twitched, then continued eating. "It's been alright, I guess," He said after he swallowed another bite. "'Course, it wasn't the same without you and your u-" He stopped too late.

Kenzo decided not to pay attention to that, instead waving his hand dismissively and grinning. "You flatter me. But know that I'm here again, KING's gonna make a comeback."

Kuro looked genuinely surprised, so much that he set his fork down. "What— how? It's just you now."

"Don't worry, I've got it all figured out!" he clapped his hands together. "I know the Student Council doesn't allow solo units, but KING isn't exactly regarded as solo... I mean, Chi-kun's," He flinched slightly as he said that. "information is still in the documents. I can simply say that he's on... leave."

Kuro grumbled, leaning back on his chair and crossing his arms. "It won't be long before they change that info, though. The Council has gotten a lot more harsher and on top of things when you were gone."

Kenzo merely hummed, playing with the corner of the napkin. "I've been thinking about this for nearly six months, Kuro. I think I'll be fine."

The dual-haired male stared at him, but shrugged. "M'kay. Whatever you say so, I guess."

A sudden loud sound slightly shook the cafeteria, much to Kenzo's surprise, and Kuro sighed. "Is that...?"

"Totally!" Subaru's voice echoed through the Garden Terrace, signaling that he was back. "No wonder nobody is here!"

Footsteps faded out of the place, and Kuro gestured to them. "You go along with them. I'll be with you soon."

Kenzo gave him a look. "Don't tell me you're participating in it?"

The member of AKATSUKI gave him a smug grin. "Alright, I won't."

---

This is pretty crowded for such a low rank.

Kenzo had joined with his cousin and her friends again, arriving at the source of the noise. A mass of Yumenosaki students crowded around a small stage, cheering loudly.

"'Sup, yo!" A first-year student stood on the stage with a microphone in his hand. A Kuro lookalike? Kenzo thought.

"Competition belongs to a man's world!" The kid punched a fist towards the crowd. "In backstage the blood's boiling, and our competitors are ready to throw down! Are you ready to watch two guys in the battle of wills?!"

The commentator squeaked something inaudible before introducing himself. "I'm Nagumo Tetora, host for the DreFes match! I'm also a first-year in the Karate Club! Yeah, boy! I love weight training, I love eating Kalbi, and my dream for the future is to become the manliest man, of all time!!"

The future 'Manliest Man' flinched back when a water bottle was thrown at him, and Kenzo held back a snort.

"Wow," Makoto breathed out. "You got to be kidding me. It feels like this DreFes is turning into a riot."

"DreFes?"

Kenzo turned to his cousin. "Short for Dream Idol Festival. Like, two years or so ago it became a mandatory part of Yumenosaki's Idol Course. Basically they're pop-up competitions between units to see who has better idol skills."

"They work as tests, like traditional schools," Hokuto continued. "If you win, your rank goes up. You get rewards, and the school treats you better."

"It teaches us how to handle competition, and inspires students to work harder," Makoto interjected.