The Devil's Lair

The Catastrophe

Timeskip: Present Day

West of Tokyo, Japan

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"Y/N, grab your food, let's go!" Boomed Sakurai's voice from the kitchen. Y/N finished buttoning his blazer, and grabbed his school bag from beside his bed, then made his way to the kitchen.

The hallway was as dark as night until the morning sun began pouring in through the enormous windows of the living room, giving the paper-white walls a radiant glow.

With Sakurai impatiently waiting out in the car, Y/N hurriedly searched for his breakfast at the counter, a single piece of toast, and silently thanked his master for the food. Two minutes had elapsed from the moment he left his bedroom, but he was falling behind on time. Locking the front door, Y/N sped to the backseats, anxious but ready for the day.

The passenger side window rolled down as Sakurai yelled for Y/N to sit up front. The vehicle, a black luxury sedan with tinted windows, belonged to their driver, Ikeda.

Y/N wasn't accustomed to the front as he would usually sit in the back. That, and there was less leg room back there.

"Where's Ikeda? I thought he was driving us?" The car began moving down the hill the house sat atop.

"I told him last night to take today off. Besides, I don't drive anywhere near as much as I used to. I miss it." He laughed to himself.

"So, that's why you're driving." Y/N commented. Regardless of who drove, he was grateful that he didn't have to walk today; especially since he was allowed to wake up later this morning.

Although, his trip to school after today would see him walk a full mile down to reach the bus stop which would then take him to the nearest train station. From there, the train traveled east and stopped at a station a few blocks from his new High School, Kuoh Academy.

Initially, Y/N was against attending a school in a different city, but the reasons for it were more than valid. Akagi Sakurai was a man of great wealth and power, but almost nobody knew of his existence. Because of his secrecy, suspicion would undoubtedly be aroused if he were to step into the limelight out of nowhere. A man who chose to hide in the shadows for business reasons may even spell assassination. For that reason alone, Sakurai had a candidate hand-picked to fill the role of the company's puppet chairman to serve as its face, while he made the decisions behind the scenes.

When asked about his school and why even his personal life was so private, Sakurai explained to the boy in so many words that there were those who wanted to see him face-down in a ditch, but he's never specified who or even given a name.

Y/N has inferred in passing possible gangs or former business partners, but the answer was still unclear. As for his education, attending a school far from home was only another layer of security for the both of them.

In a worst-case scenario, if it became known by the public that Y/N was living with Sakurai, then he would be targeted wherever he went to force Sakurai out of hiding. It's all the more reason he was curious why the man next to him was driving and not Ikeda.

As the gate to the property came into view, Y/N leaned his seat back and placed his bag between his feet.

"You never did mention just who your friend in the school system is."