Inside the Chiba Branch cafeteria, Joseph and Rojin were enjoying their meal.
"This Nero pasta isn't bad at all."
Joseph twisted the black noodles around his fork, then sent them into his mouth.
After swallowing, he picked up his glass of tequila and took a sip.
Mm, familiar taste.
"You're not drinking?"
"No, I'm still a student."
Rojin waved his hand, refusing the offer.
He had never been good with alcohol — even beer wasn't something he could drink much of.
"Oh, right, I remember minors aren't allowed to drink in Japan."
Joseph clapped his hands as he recalled.
He disliked Japan, but since his daughter married here, he had done some research.
On a side note, he disliked Japan precisely because his daughter married into it.
"By the way, aren't the institute members usually busy?"
Joseph casually asked, ink-black squid ink still staining his lips.
In his view, going to school was troublesome — controlled by teachers, little freedom.
Even though future Joseph thought school was important, the Joseph of now still hated it.
"Usually, yes, but I'm a special case."
Rojin could guess what Joseph meant.
If you had to attend school, your free time was limited.
There was always the risk of school schedules conflicting with agency missions.
"The institute usually doesn't let middle school or high school kids take missions. Not many join at all."
"I'm only still attending school to put some people at ease."
"In a while, I won't be going much anymore."
If not required, Rojin wouldn't bother with school at all.
The institute was full of brilliant people — far more interesting than school.
Once the time came, he would just let the site director help him smooth things over.
"You really do whatever you want, huh."
"I don't think you're qualified to say that. I'm a model student."
If Rojin was considered a truant, Joseph wasn't even compatible with the word "student."
Though thanks to Erina's teaching Joseph had excellent grades — especially in history — he was still a quintessential American delinquent.
School?
Never heard of it.
If he wasn't skipping class, he was on his way to skip class.
In that sense, they shared similar views.
"All right, all right. Then, model student, you should go home and do your homework."
"Nighttime is when adults have their fun."
Joseph teased.
Rolling his eyes, Rojin didn't respond and simply sped up his eating.
Model student Rojin decided silence was best.
"By the way, why did you join the Humanity Protection Agency?"
Joseph drained his wineglass and looked at Rojin curiously.
If Joseph had joined because he had no choice, then what about Rojin?
Did he get too excited after gaining power, experiment too loudly, and get caught?
So he was forced in too?
Understandable — young people were like that.
Many Stand users used their abilities for personal gain.
"It's a bit different from what you're thinking."
Recalling the past, Rojin explained:
"After I gained my power, I didn't show it publicly. I only tested it when alone."
"If I hadn't encountered something dangerous, I wouldn't have transformed."
Truthfully, very few people gained power and instantly developed the resolve to protect others.
When Rojin first received his transformation device, his first thought wasn't 'I'll save the world.'
It was, 'I need to stay hidden so no one finds out.'
He didn't dare gamble that every camera around him would conveniently malfunction.
Transforming openly on the street and not being caught — only protagonists could pull that off.
And there was also a more realistic issue: in the shadows, you could be a hero saving the world.
Criminals would fear you.
But in the light, you still had to worry about paying rent.
You might even miss important exams because you were too busy fighting crime — and end up failing to get into university.
Being a superhero used to mean just beating up bad guys.
Now there was so much more to consider.
The clash between reality and ideals had become sharp.
Some people said you could earn a little side income while fighting crime…
But there were two problems.
First, this kind of action already counted as robbing thieves.
In the end, it wasn't fundamentally different from those people.
The only difference was the choice of targets.
Second, how much money could you expect containment objects to have?
But once Rojin was discovered by the research institute, this no longer mattered.
The salary issued by the institute was already enough.
"I see."
Nodding, Joseph showed he understood.
After eating the last bite of noodles on his plate, Joseph casually wiped his mouth and said:
"So what's your plan next?"
"I'm going back to do my homework."
"I was just making a joke, you know."
Joseph looked at Rojin helplessly.
It was just a casual joke, that's all.
"I, however, was serious."
Rojin stared with dead-fish eyes.
He really did intend to go back and do his homework.
Someone had clearly angered Hiratsuka today, because the homework she assigned was a lot more than usual.
"…Fine."
Scratching his head, Joseph suddenly felt something strange.
That crimson figure had left a deep impression on him.
And now, this guy was actually going home to obediently write homework.
How should he put it?
It was… kind of funny?
"Pfft."
"You already laughed."
Rojin ignored Joseph's inexplicable laughter.
He was heading home to do homework.
He definitely did not want to face an angry Hiratsuka.
"See you, Rojin."
"See you."
Still leaning on the chair, Joseph lazily waved without getting up.
Rojin didn't mind. Carrying his small backpack, he left.
When he got home, the door next to him opened.
"Ah, good evening, Rojin-senpai."
A girl with dark-purple hair stepped out holding a trash bag.
Her expression clearly showed she was extremely unwilling to come out at night to take the trash.
But she had lost a bet because of her good-for-nothing dad.
Tomoya lived to the left of Rojin's apartment.
The right side was this girl's home.
"Good evening, Muku."
Nahirisago Muku, age 14, attending Sobu High's affiliated middle school.
Her grades were excellent, probably thanks to a detective father and a gentle but strict mother.
If nothing unexpected happened, she would also go on to attend Sobu High.
Though by then, Rojin would already be in college.