The world is a perfect, flat line.

  No one goes hungry. No one fights. There are no wars because there are no countries—only Sectors, all tucked neatly under the thumb of the Seven Supreme Kings. They don't just rule; they provide. Every week, a van from the Kings’ Workers drops off "Essentials" at our door. Food, clothes, whatever we need. We don’t have shops. We don’t have businesses. There’s no such thing as "earning" anything here.

  Most people love it. They think it's a good life. They don’t mind that they don’t remember their parents, or that their "family" is just three other kids assigned to the same house. They smile because they are full.

  But I’ve noticed something. The people who stop smiling, the ones who start asking where the food actually comes from... they just disappear.

  "Raizen Yukinari!"

  A sharp crack echoed through the room as a piece of chalk hit the board next to my ear. I didn't jump; I just slowly turned my head.

  Miss Fuyuki was staring at me, her face a mask of practiced calm. "Daydreaming again? You’ll fail history, Raizen. And in this world, failure is the only thing we don't provide for."

  "I was just thinking," I said, my voice sounding dry.

  "Think about the curriculum," she snapped.

  I looked back at my desk. Why? There are no jobs to get. No promotions to win. We’re all at the top and the bottom at the same time. We study for ten years just to be told we’re "citizens." It felt like being a bird in a cage, being taught how to fly in circles.

  Shit, I rubbed my eyes. Why are these thoughts crawling in my head today?

  The walk home felt like walking through a cemetery. The streets were too clean.

  I was walking with Kaito and Yuna when the air suddenly felt like lead. I turned to say something, but Yuna wasn't there.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  "YUNA?" Kaito’s voice was a jagged blade, cutting through the silence of the street.

  We found her in an alleyway. Two older guys—likely low-level sector workers—had her pinned against the brick. They were laughing, their hands gripping her wrists tight enough to leave marks.

  Seeing them touch her didn't just make me angry. It felt like something in my chest was literally tearing open. A heat rushed to my head, a pressure so violent I couldn't breathe.

  Stop it, I screamed in my mind. I’ll kill you.

  My vision blurred. My heart gave one massive, sickening thud, and my knees hit the dirt. I collapsed, the world turning black. The last thing I saw was a blur of motion. Kaito. He moved faster than any human should, a sharp crack of bone on bone echoing through the alley as he dropped both men before they could even scream.

  Before I could even stand up, the Kings’ Workers were already there. They didn't ask us anything. They just grabbed the two men, threw them into a black van, and drove away.

  The "Peace" was restored. Just like that.

  That night, the four of us sat in our shared living room. Souta was shaking, his tea cold in his hands. Yuna was rubbing her wrists, staring at the floor.

  My head was still ringing. And then, a voice—cold, vibrating, and deep—spoke directly into my brain.

  “I’m with you. I’ll never let you be defeated.”

  I bolted upright. "Who's there?"

  The others stared at me.

  "Hey guys," I said, my heart hammering. "Don't you think we should know the truth? Our real birthdays? Where the supplies come from? The King must know something. Let's find out."

  Souta stood up, his face white as a sheet. "No. We don't need to know. You know what happens to people who look for answers, Raizen. We’ll be gone forever."

  Yuna looked at me, her eyes wet. "Raizen, please. Just... drop it and go to sleep."

  I looked at them. They weren't curious. They were terrified. I sighed and leaned back. "Fine. Forget it."

  But I didn't sleep. I lay in bed, watching the moon crawl across the sky. When the sun finally hit the floor, I stood up to get ready for school. Kaito was already there, leaning against my door. He looked like he’d been waiting for hours.

  "Last night," Kaito whispered, his eyes locked on mine. "You said you wanted the recipe. You said you wanted to know why this world is the way it is."

  I nodded slowly.

  Kaito stepped closer, his voice barely audible. "We aren't going to the Kings' offices. And we aren't looking at the supplies."

  He pointed a finger at my forehead.

  "That thing you heard. That voice. We ask it. If there’s a secret to this world, it’s locked inside your head, Raizen. And we’re going to break it open."

  To be continued...