Chương 1: The Emperor, The Myth, The Legend
When I found myself in the seat of the bus, honestly, I was confused. What made me more confused was why no one was batting an eye at my presence, as I had arrived in this place all of a sudden.
Moreover, should I not have already died? I remember that the Zero Requiem was the last stage and gift I presented for my sister, a world where peace had been achieved. It was not only a gift but also the payment for my own sins.
In the past, I always saw everyone as a chess piece and pawn in my own grand design. However, along the way, I learned empathy. I learned what compassion meant, but at a great cost. I lost Euphemia, I lost Shirley, and I lost many other things along the way. I changed the world, yet I also know I changed nothing. The grand vision I envisioned for my close ones was stupidly destroyed by my own hand.
Despite achieving the peace I wished for, I couldn't help but feel a great sense of loss when I saw there were no Euphemia and Shirley in the picture.
As idealistic as I was, I knew that peace would never last forever, but it would last long enough for my sister to live and enjoy it. I always envisioned the peaceful life I experienced at Ashford Academy for the world. It was the world I envisioned, yet I knew better; it was the most difficult to achieve. Yet, I did it, and now, I can find my own inner peace watching how my plan unfolds.
My musing is interrupted by a blonde-haired man arguing with a beige-haired girl over a seat meant for a grandma. The man argued that he was elite and above society, and the seat should be reserved for a young man like him who is more useful to society and its betterment than a grandma who is less useful. The beige-haired girl kept using moral and emotional blackmail on the man, saying the grandma was old and needed the seat more than he did, and pleaded that he should hand over his seat to the grandma.
This argument was delivered back and forth, with neither of them backing down.
Despite the kindness the girl showed for the grandma, I could see at a glance that she was not truly kind but a hypocrite. Truly kind people never use moral or emotional blackmail when convincing or helping others. They would never argue with someone who is unwilling; instead, they would ask someone who is willing to reserve their seat for the grandma instead of using dark tactics like moral blackmail and making others feel bad.
Real kindness? It's not about emotional blackmail or making someone feel like crap. It's about genuine care, not some twisted power play.
This farce was enough for me to see the girl's character at a glance.
If it were other people, they would hand over their seat to the grandma after being lectured by the girl, but not the blonde-haired man arguing with her. He could see through her character, knowing she didn't mean to help the grandma but was using him as a stepping stone to create an impression of her character to the masses. I could see that the blonde-haired man used an arrogant and dismissive argument not because he wanted to act mean, but because he hated being used and became aggressive.
As an arrogant strategist myself, I understood his feeling. I am the same when it comes to being morally and emotionally blackmailed by others. I hated being used as a stepping stone for others and occasionally acted aggressively when necessary.
No one likes being used as a stepping stone, especially not by someone who uses the moral high ground as their weapon.
However, I knew better that I needed allies. I needed informants. I was clueless about where I was, and undoubtedly, the beige-haired girl was a convenient piece in my grand design to seek information subtly.
Thus, with that, I stood up from my seat and offered it to the grandma without hesitation.
"Thank you, young man." The grandma offered her gratitude.
I nodded at the grandma's gratitude and moved myself into a comfortable position, waiting for the beige-haired girl to approach me. I knew she would, and undoubtedly she would become my informant and probably something more...
Who knows?
As much as I had discovered her hypocritical nature, I was not someone who delved into the shortcomings of others as long as they were useful for my grand design. Perhaps that shortcoming would become useful in the future. For now, I wanted the information about where the hell I was.
After all, a true strategist uses every piece on the board, even the slightly tarnished ones.
"Ah, thank you, your name?" The beige-haired girl smiled brightly at the grandma having her seat, well, outwardly, who knows what was inside her mind? I didn't care.
"Lelouch Lamperouge." I introduced myself calmly.
"Kushida Kikyou, and thank you, Lelouch-san, thank you for offering your seat to the grandma." She offered her gratitude cheerfully.
"If you ask them nicely at private, others will offer their seat. It's not difficult, really. I was just one step ahead of others, that's all." I grinned, subtly reminding her not to delve too much into the blonde-haired guy, who was shown to be egotistic in character. Instead, she should move to another seat occupied by someone less selfish and egoistic. They would surely be willing to offer the seat in exchange for her favor.
Sure, she did ask others to move their seat for the grandma, but not personally like she did with the blonde-haired guy. In public, the effect is weak compared to privately asking someone.
"Hahaha, what a beautiful piece of advice, Lelouch." The blonde-haired man who eavesdropped on our conversation laughed. His laughter was not only praise for me but a subtle mockery of the beige-haired girl for not recognizing that she should move to someone who is weaker in character, someone not immune to emotional or moral blackmail. There are many of them out there. Instead, she targeted someone that shouldn't be easily messed with for her own agenda. Everyone could see that the blonde-haired man had a face and physical appearance that screamed danger, yet Kushida targeted him for the grandma's seat.
I don't know whether she was really dumb or a genius. I'm not sure yet. We will see in the future.
Probably used to acting as a good girl and angel, the girl still smiled.
"I was taught, thank you, Lelouch-san. I will try better next time."
"Of course, Kushida-san, you were just helping the grandma, after all." I smirked.
"Speaking of which, by our uniforms, we will be in the same school in the future. I was curious, Kushida-san, what do you expect from this school, and why did you choose this school among others?"
Rather than asking a dumb question about which school we attended or playing amnesia, I subtly asked her purpose in choosing this school. This way, I would know the basic information about the school and not make a fool of myself due to a lack of information.
Sure, my question was not wrong, as Kushida began to leak out information about the school. Her purpose was because the school offered a 100% employment rate at any company and was known as an elite school built by the government, so the authenticity could be guaranteed.
Too good to be true, if you ask me.
Advanced Nurturing High School, that's the school I will attend in the future.
"Let's be friends, Lelouch-san." Kushida then expressed her ideal to become best friends with all her classmates in the school.
The level of hypocrisy was indeed very high.
I mused.
"Of course, Kushida-san, let's be friends." I smirked as I shook her hand.
To be precise, let's be my pawn, Kushida.
You indeed have the potential to be a great spy.
I'm looking forward to our beautiful beginning and future.
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