I'm ren and I don't know how things got this far, but I'll try to tell it from the beginning.
What you're reading now was written under the influence of coffee and even more unstable moods. Read at your own risk.
Just days before our official graduation from high school, while we were up on the school rooftop—the kind with faded tiles, a rusty railing, and a view of the empty soccer field, Kasian asked:
"Guys, what are you planning to do after graduation?"
I replied that I'd be working at my dad's company for a short while. We all went quiet, staring at each other, and then suddenly, without any warning, Eliot asked in a curious tone:
"Why don't we start our own investigation team and spend the summer solving cases?"
Kasian immediately agreed, excited as usual. But I had a different opinion.
I told them, "Are you two serious? This isn't some shounen manga! Thanks for the offer, but I'm not joining."
Eliot began pleading with me desperately, saying I was the only one they needed and asking how I could do this to my friends.
He even tried to tempt me by saying I was always there when needed… a coward, useless, but also kind. I still don't know if I should thank him or be offended—but I didn't agree.
Kasian pulled out his phone and said:
"Eliot, leave this idiot alone. He's going to miss all the fun."
Eliot looked sad, and I added to Kasian's words, "Yeah, listen to him. I'm the one who decides here."
"I like the class president… but I don't have the courage to face her."
Kasian spoke in a smug, provocative tone: "Want me to make the class president hear this voice recording of yours?"
That hit me like getting hit by lightning.
It had been Kasian's plan all along—to act innocent and pretend he was on my side, but he's a devil inside.
Eliot laughed and said, "So this was your plan from the start, Kasian? Now he has no choice but to join us."
Damn it. I didn't want to join from the beginning, but these damned bastards—I'll never forgive them.
I agreed to join, forced into it, because I had no other choice. Yes, I like the class president, but I can't tell her that now.
Eliot suggested naming the team "Phoenix," but Kasian rejected it, saying it was too cliché.
We went silent for a moment to think, and out of nowhere, Kasian suggested the name "Bakazaru."
He pronounced it with a strange accent, which made me suspicious of the name, but Eliot jumped in, showering Kasian with praise like he'd just invented electricity.
The problem isn't Eliot's praise—it's that Kasian genuinely believes he's the smartest. Not just among us, but in the entire world. Yeah, he's clearly suffering from delusions of grandeur.
We agreed to make our headquarters the abandoned library behind the school, and the date was set: the first day of summer vacation.
I didn't know that saying 'no' would turn into blackmail, a team name debate, and a summer I'd never forget.
— End of Chapter —