Chapter 3: Secret Whispers

"Did you meet him?" asks a mysterious voice. "Well, if you mean 'meet' in the proper sense — no, but I did see him in a strange sort of way," replies the voice of a young man. Both figures stand facing each other in a dark room, but the poor lighting makes it impossible to make out their faces.

"And? Did you notice anything unusual about him?" the first mysterious person asks in a serious tone. After this question, silence settles for a moment. The second person considers how best to phrase their answer.

"Well, I can't say with complete certainty," he finally begins. "But I sensed something like a strange aura around him — something like an 'evil' aura, to be precise. I'm not sure how else to describe it."

"That's more than enough. Just as I suspected... I just hope things don't spiral out of control from here," the first person interrupts, their tone thoughtful but deeply serious. Silence falls again for a moment. Both look at each other. About ten seconds pass before they continue: "I want you to keep observing him — to make sure everything stays under control."

"I figured you'd say that. Which is why I've already made a few preparations to stay as close to him as possible, so I can keep an eye on things," the second person replies with a sly smile.

"This is not a game — I hope you understand that. This could get quite dangerous, so cut the jokes," the first person says, their patience beginning to wear thin.

"Alright, fine. But by now you should know me well enough to know that I always complete my missions with perfection," the second person replies, serious now.

"Well, perhaps you're right. I suppose I was just thinking about the worst-case scenario," the first person concedes. The two of them hold each other's gaze for a moment longer, until the second person decides to head for the exit.

"I think things are clear enough now. I'll make sure nothing goes wrong, and I'll keep you posted." He leaves the building, a faint smile on his face as he thinks through his next steps: This guy... I just hope things go smoothly with him. His silhouette slowly fades into the dark expanse of the night.

— But let's fast-forward a little. Today's date is March 15, 2021 —

After a long but restless night, Yoru wakes up. "Wait — it's already 1:26 PM? How did I sleep that long?" he grumbles, staring at his phone. This is another one of Yoru's traits: with no job to get up for, he has no internal clock to rely on. There are days he sleeps far longer than he realizes.

"Well, most of the day is already gone again — and, no surprise, I have absolutely no idea what to do with myself today."

He gets up, takes a long hot shower, puts on fresh clothes, and finally eats his breakfast — or rather, in this case, his lunch. That's Yoru's daily routine. While he's eating, he runs into his mother in the living room, and a question immediately springs to mind: "Where were you yesterday?"

His mother looks at him, confused. "I told you I wouldn't be back until late."

Yoru is more than puzzled. "No — I don't think you did."

"Yes, I did. I even asked if you wanted me to bring you anything, but you just ignored me and walked out," she says. "Anyway, I have to get going — I have an appointment, like I told you last week. Call me if anything comes up."

They say their goodbyes, his mother gets in the car and drives off. Yoru stands there, lost in thought. "What did she mean? I never saw her yesterday. How could she have told me?" But then his thoughts drift in another direction. "Well... maybe she's just misremembering. I don't know."

Once he's done eating, Yoru puts his dishes in the sink and heads upstairs to his room. "Another day, another question: what am I supposed to do now?" He sits down on his bed and glances around the room — until his eyes land on the piece of paper Sero gave him yesterday. "Right... that thing's still here..."

He picks up the small slip of paper and slowly uncrumples it, his thoughts beginning to circle. "Hm — I was actually going to throw this away, but maybe I really should..."

>> Just leave it alone. You'll never find any friends. << - the familiar, sinister voice cuts in.

-- Chapter 3 end --

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