chapter2 · 016-ep16

Episode 16: The Awakener Development Program: The Day Arrives

The day came.

The Awakener Development Program.

Finally.

It couldn't have been that long since the assembly where they announced the date, and yet at times like this, the waiting crawls.

Next Monday.

When they said that, my reaction was whoa, that's basically now.

And on the calendar alone, it really was basically now.

But when you're the one waiting, it's a different story.

Classes drag.

Breaks drag.

Even the stretch from getting home after school to going to bed feels absurdly long.

I mean, everything is exactly as always.

And still, waiting makes it long. That's just how this goes.

So — at last, the day itself.

The venue wasn't the school.

Apparently a public facility, the kind that also hosts disaster drills and municipal workshops.

I'd at least heard the name, but it was my first time coming.

Big.

That was my first impression.

No, not "big" like a dome.

It's just — the air was clearly different from a school gym or meeting room.

Just standing in front of the entrance, the place was already telling you: today is not a school event.

Plus, way more people than I expected.

The participation confirmation sheet handed out after the assembly had options like Join, Don't Join, Observe.

Some decided on the spot; others, naturally, held off.

Get told to decide on joining an apparently state-run system out of nowhere, and there's no way everyone's answering "Yes, understood" just like that.

So today, it wasn't only would-be participants — observe-only people were allowed to come too.

Hence the crowd.

And not just students.

Uniformed high schoolers and probable college students were around, obviously, but mixed in were plainclothes types who read as working adults.

Some looked in their twenties; thirty-something and forty-something faces were there too.

I spoke to the guy next to me.

"So it is scary after all?"

It was Sōsuke.

When I asked,

"S-scary? That part hasn't changed,"

Sōsuke hunched his shoulders a little.

"But they said here they'd teach you how to handle your power — and self-defense for people who don't want to fight."

"Ah."

"So... staying clueless felt like it'd actually be scarier, somehow."

Hearing him out that far, I came around a little.

"Yeah, fair."

"Right?"

"'Not knowing anything is the scariest thing' — that, I definitely get."

In fact, even I, that first time entering a dungeon, was not thrilled about charging in with zero information.

I mean — yes, I did push things pretty hard for achievements, that's on record.

But that's that.

"You, on the other hand, were suuuper looking forward to this, Ren-kun."

Sōsuke said it with a squinty, reproachful stare.

"I won't deny it."

"See."

"But it's not like I came here wanting to fight."

"Really?"

"Probably."

"'Probably,' he says."

At that, some of the tension left Sōsuke's shoulders.

He was still nervous, sure, but talking to someone seemed to have taken the edge off a bit.

"You're here early, Himura-kun."

A voice from behind.

I turned.

It was Mibu Iroha.

"M-Mibu-san!?"

Sōsuke was genuinely startled.

Fair, though.

Seeing her at school and having her walk up and speak to you at a place like this hit a little differently.

Mibu didn't seem to pay Sōsuke's reaction any mind, and came over.

"You're joining too, Mibu-san..."

When Sōsuke managed that, still a bit stiff, Mibu nodded shortly.

"Of course."

Well, obviously.

If Mibu hadn't shown up, that would've been the stranger.

And so, by happenstance, the three of us headed in together.

Inside the facility, the air was different again.

There was a reception desk.

Desks in rows.

Directional signs.

Adults checking names, handing out materials.

A schoolteacher or two was around, but the people at the center of it all were clearly from outside the school.

Clothes ranged from suits to more practical, move-around-friendly workwear.

That this truly was not an extension of school — the realization hit me fresh, right on schedule.

We took the materials and headed for the hall we'd been pointed to.

A wide, spread-out space.

Podium and screen up front.

Chairs in rows, with participants and observers seated in slightly separate sections.

And beyond that, another door.

Sōsuke, Mibu, and I sat around the middle of the venue.

"This is more serious than I expected..."

Beside me, Sōsuke looked around and said it quietly.

"Yeah."

I agreed.

No, really.

I'd figured day one would have more of a school-extension kind of vibe, but it's nothing like that.

This is a place built for the purpose, properly.

Presently, several adults lined up at the front.

One of them stepped forward.

A dark navy suit, nearly black.

Tall.

Sharp-featured.

Hair cropped and neat — and just by standing there, he changed the air somehow.

He wasn't shouting.

Wasn't glaring, either.

But the moment he stood at the front, the hall went noticeably quieter.

"Whoa," went my brain.

No — it actually made it out of my mouth.

Big build, and plainly scary-looking.

And there's zero chance he isn't strong as an Awakener.

"Kujō Masaomi-san."

Mibu whispered from beside me.

"Huh."

"He used to be with the National Police Agency. I've heard he has field experience with SAT and special-forces-type units."

"Seriously?"

"Now he's at the center of the national Gate response. Supposedly the highest Level in Japan at the moment."

"Wait, for real?"

Don't drop that so casually.

So that guy really is as strong as he looks, huh.

I faced forward again.

Kujō Masaomi swept the hall once with his eyes, then opened his mouth.

"Let's begin."

His voice carried.

Hard rather than soft.

Is this what field people are like?

"About this Awakener Development Program: we're starting with a pilot in the Kanto region. Going forward, it will spread to Kansai and other areas in turn. Consider today the first session of that."

The hall went quiet.

"The goal is simple. People who've Awakened grasping their own abilities. Having the necessary knowledge. Building enough of a foundation to protect yourself and those around you when it counts."

He kept going.

"This is not a gathering for people who just want to fight. Don't get that wrong."

I could feel a little of the tension leave Sōsuke's shoulders.

"Flip it around: having power and knowing nothing is more dangerous. This program is an entry point for that, too."

His tone was blunt.

But what he was saying was pretty sound.

"One more thing: participation is not mandatory."

There, Kujō looked out over the hall.

"If you observe and then go home, that's perfectly fine. 'It was too awkward to refuse here' or 'I got swept along by the mood' — that kind of thing becomes trouble later. So I'm telling you now: if you don't want to, you can leave."

He really commits to saying it.

But honestly, that earned points with me.

The clearer they are about it, the easier it is for us participants to plan around.

"For students, balancing with classes is the premise. Same for working adults. I know you all have lives. Work within reason. And what we're doing today is, first, getting the overall picture."

There, Kujō looked out over the whole hall once.

"Going forward, those who rank high within this program will be granted permissions, step by step."

For an instant, the hall held still.

"Entry into dungeons. Accompanying expeditions. Talk of actual field work like that will be coming up too."

The air shivered with a buzz.

"Expeditions...?"

"For real?"

"So if you rank up, you can just... dive?"

"I mean, scary, though..."

Small voices leaked out all over.

I was leaning forward a little myself.

Hey, hey.

Drop the important stuff earlier, man.

That's a pretty huge reason to join, no?

Entry into dungeons.

Accompanying expeditions.

In short: rank high here, and I can dive again.

Through the official route, even.

I can raise my Level and unlock achievements.

Those two alone were more than appeal enough for me.

No wonder everyone around was buzzing.

The working-adult types had jobs and positions to weigh; for the students, the road ahead was coming into view.

I see.

No wonder the hall's air changed.

"However — not just anyone gets to go. Power alone isn't enough. We also assess judgment, aptitude, and cooperativeness."

That one line changed the texture of the buzz.

Floaty expectations got tugged partway back to earth.

"This is the entry point for that."

Kujō turned his gaze to the door at the back of the hall.

"In the room beyond that door are staff who can confirm an Awakener's Status."

The hall stirred.

Of course it did.

Even I leaned forward a little at that.

"You'll go in, in turn. Knowing where your Level currently sits among Awakeners — learning that first matters. No need to brace like it's an ordeal. But this isn't playtime, either."

The delivery was, again, a little scary.

But including the scary part, something about it landed as weirdly convincing.

"So there are people who can read your Level..."

Sōsuke's face stiffened a bit again.

"Well — go in and you'll find out."

That was Mibu's reply to him.

Come on.

She could at least tell us the details, I thought — but our turn was coming soon anyway.

With events like this, checking with your own eyes is far more fun.

That's what it means to be a hardcore gamer — not that I could say it to the anxious-looking Sōsuke.

Each of us holding our own feelings,

we waited for the moment we'd head for that door.