Unseen: Memories of The Future

Now then, time to head home and get some sleep before school.

I pull out my phone and type a quick message to Kuno:

"I'll trust you with the investigation. Message me when you've got something."

They shouldn't get any leads on him for at least a couple of days. That's all the time I need. While my men are working, I'll plan my next steps and keep up appearances with the others. The last thing I need is to draw unnecessary attention to myself.

I head home, collapse onto my bed, and let exhaustion take over.

BEEP.

My alarm clock blares through the silence, dragging me out of my sleep. I groan, rubbing the sleep from my eyes before forcing myself up. Another day of playing the part of an ordinary student.

After getting ready, I make my way to the bus stop, where the others are already waiting.

Mika spots me first, flashing his usual smug grin.

"Lookin' better today, Nachar! What's up? Got yourself a girlfriend?" His tone is dripping with mockery.

Suzume chimes in almost immediately, smirking. "Yeah, who's the lucky girl?"

Before I can even react, Sarah cuts in with a teasing grin.

"Lucky? Suzume, you got something you wanna confess?"

Suzume's face flushes red. "Oh, shut up!" she huffs, and the group bursts into laughter.

Zai, standing off to the side, chuckles before turning to me. "So, who's this mystery girl they're talking about?"

I sigh. "No one. That idiot Mika made it up."

Zai smirks knowingly. "Yeah, figured as much. Classic Mika."

"Mika, you idiot! Now everyone believes you!" I shoot him a glare, but it only makes them laugh harder.

Suzume shakes her head, still smiling. "Anyway, let's head to school before we're late."

The school day passes in a blur—lectures, assignments, meaningless chatter. None of it matters. It's just another role I play.

On my way home, Suzume catches up to me.

"Hey, mind if we walk together?"

I nod. This is perfect. Our relationship was starting to weaken. If I want to keep up my cover, I need to maintain my connections.

"So, Suzume, how've you been lately?"

She shrugs. "I've been good. Just busy with school and work, y'know."

"Good to hear. It's been a while since we really talked like this."

She looks at me with a small smile. "Yeah. How about you?"

"I'm good. Finally feeling healthy again and catching up on all the schoolwork I missed."

"That's great! If you need help, I could tutor you."

I nod. "Yeah, I'll let you know."

She hesitates for a moment before asking, "So… I've been meaning to ask. Who's this girl Mika was talking about?"

I roll my eyes. "No one. He just made it up."

Suzume laughs. "Figured as much. Oh, by the way, how's Sako? I miss that little guy."

"He's doing great. Focused on his schoolwork and hanging out with his friends a lot."

She smiles. "That's good to hear. Glad he's doing alright."

We walk in comfortable silence for a moment before she suddenly brings up something unexpected.

"So, Nachar… have you heard about what this Justic3 person has been doing?"

My heart nearly skips a beat, but I keep my expression neutral.

"The thing that's been killing all those criminals and tagging its name?"

She nods. "Yeah. Do you think it's a monster? I mean, it's impossible for just one guy to kill so many people and get away with it."

If only she knew… If only she realized the man walking beside her is the one terrorizing the scum of this world. I wonder—what would she think of me then?

"Maybe," I answer casually. "It really is crazy how one 'thing' can take out so many people and cause such chaos in such a short amount of time."

Suzume's eyes light up with curiosity. "Yeah! It really is! Maybe you and I should look into it… isn't it interesting?"

This isn't good. Suzume, why do you always have to stick your nose into things that don't involve you?

"Yeah, we could," I say carefully. "But what do you think we'd do if we ever got a lead on him?"

She shrugs. "I don't know… I haven't thought that far. But we could give whatever we find to the police."

"Good idea… We should really sit down and discuss this sometime."

Suzume beams. "Yeah! I'd love to!"

This could actually work in my favor. If I drag this out long enough, I can make one of my men believe he's the real Justic3… and have Suzume investigate him instead of the ones I've already set up.

Suzume stops at the entrance to her alleyway. "Alright, this is my stop. See you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, see ya."

I continue home, my mind replaying our conversation.

The warm water from the shower runs down my face, but it does nothing to wash away the thoughts creeping into my mind.

Ten men. Ten lives. All rewritten. All programmed to die.

"What have I become?" I mutter under my breath.

But… those men were criminals. They were sentenced to death by their own sins. Now, they're simply paying the price for their crimes.

Sacrifices for the greater good.

Justice, rightly served.

I step out of the shower and dry off before heading to my room.

PZZT.

My phone vibrates.

It's Kuno. "Boss, everything's ready. You just tell us when to start."

I type back quickly. "We'll wait a couple of days, then we'll start the killings. We can't be hasty, or we'll lose in no time."

"Got it."

"Great. Gather the killing teams and inform them that everything's ready. Tell them to stay put for now—I'll give the order when it's time."

"Consider it done."

"Perfect."

I exhale. A long day, but everything is going according to plan.

Time to get some sleep.