PROLOGUE 1

LOCATION: Kuoh City, Japan

Kouh was one of cities located in the northern province of Japan. The city itself was not that large, boasting a modest population of 300,000 people, but it was considered a beautiful and quiet place for families to go hiking or to have a picnic.

Yes, there were several groups of gangs prominent in the city. However, they were small enough to the point that the local police could control them. The poverty rate of the city was only 4.57% so there was also a lack of major crime in the city. All in all, Kouh City was a nice place to live in, despite its lack of size and history compared to the local tourist hotspots like Kyoto and Tokyo.

It was on a peaceful and cheerful day within Kuoh City that our story began. The sun shone its glorious bright and warm light on a Sunday while the sounds of birds chirping and children playing painted a picture of happiness in Kuoh City. It was a picture that screamed peacefulness.

Except for one young boy.

A boy with short brown hair boy was currently alone in a park. He sat quietly on a swing with a frown on his cute face while his body moved up and down from the swinging motion.

He was very sad. The emotion was plastered all over the child's face, showing it to the world while the rest of the world in turn ignored him. Despite this sadness, no one, neither children nor parents, saw this.

He was sad because today was the day that had lost he lost his best friend…his brother in all but blood who would always play with him everyday and supported him at his side. He was already missing the happy moments where they played "hero" together, with both of them trying to save each other from an imaginary villain.

Their last day had been filled with crying and hugging his friend, who had also been crying, before they had been separated by their parents. Their bond had been forced to end when his friend's father had to move to Europe because he had accepted a high paying job.

Now, the boy actually did not consider himself as someone who had a hard time to socialize with others. He was sure he could find another awesome friend like him one day… but it would not be that easy! He had been together with his friend for years! The bond he had created with him could not be replaced like it was some kind of cheep one hundred yen toy!

At that exact moment of time as the boy was reflecting about the loss of his best friend, an old man would normally appear out of nowhere and catch the boy's attention. And thus the boy would be sent on a path that would turn him into a very perverted adult who made the Devil of Lust, Asmodeus, very proud.

However, this did not happen in this universe, for there was no perverted old man to appear. But fate demanded that there had to be an old man, and thus the world provided one. For before the sad boy, there now was a strange old man.

The boy raised his head when he noticed a shadow blocking the warm light of the sun that had been giving him some comfort and saw the man. The figure before him was a huge, old man with spiky grey hair and a beard, wearing a black robe that covered a black tuxedo. The British looking gentlemen's look was completed with a gold cane that looked more like a troublesome assessor than actually useful. But what caught the boy's attention the most were his eyes. They were a deep crimson, like blood.

"Hello!young one ,why are you sulking?" The old man asked gently.

The boy was silent, simply staring at the old man.

The old man, in turn, just stared back.

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I'll take a guess... you didn't say anything because your parents told you not to talk to strangers. Am I right?"

The boy nodded silently in agreement.

"Hmm... That would be difficult..." The old man murmured to himself while rubbing his beard. After a moment of thinking, he said, "Then how about this! I will become your friend!" He declared proudly.

The elder's self-congratulating thoughts to his awesome solution were cut short when the boy replied in a flat tone. "I'm not going to be friends with a strange old man."

"What a rude boy!" The old man chided to the boy with a scowl. "Didn't your parents teach you to respect your elders?"

'Ah, he is right. Mom did tell me about that.' The brown-haired boy thought to himself. "But I don't want to be friends with you. You are too old and wrinkly!" The boy pouted slightly, making the old man laugh.

"Then don't be! How about we become acquaintances instead?"

"Acuaintanes?" The boy asked while tilting his head, not understanding the meaning.

"Acquaintances, my boy! It is something that is almost a friend but at the same time also not!" The old man explained with a grin, "How about it?"

"Okay then..." The boy replied with a nod as he found the reason good enough since it wouldn't replace the bond with his friend...

"Good! Now, boy, since we have become acquaintances, can I know why you are sad?" The old man asked with a once more gentle tone.

"My friend... He...has gone to...England..." The boy said in a low tone, his head hanging down in sadness.

"Oh, why did your friend go there?"

"His father said he has to work over there..."

The old man let out a hum while rubbing his beard once more, a thoughtful expression on his face as he stared at the boy.

"What were you guys usually doing?" He asked.

"We played "hero"!" The boy declared in proud manner instantly and the old man laughed again.

"Hero, eh? What an interesting game!" He said with glee, his face showing his amusement from what he heard.

"Hey! Don't laugh old man! Being the hero is cool!" The boy scowled before he smiled in joy, "One day I will become a real hero! And then, I will go to find Irina then ask him to become a hero too!"

"Tell me then, boy..." The old man expression was filled only with amusement, "What do you think is a hero?"

"A hero is an awesome guy who beats bad guys and always saves the world!" He answered with a big grin.

"Hoo... And what else?"

"Umm...he also saves people! He makes people around him happy! Like Superman!" The boy answered with a slight pause due to thinking about his reply.

"Make people happy, eh? Then, what about the villain?" The old man asked again.

"Well, the villain always loses! The hero always beats him after all!"

"But if the villain loses, he will be very sad. Shouldn't heroes make all people happy?"

The boy scowled at the logic, "But the villain is a bad guy! He makes people sad! If the hero beats him, then people will be happy!"

"The villain is not always a bad guy, boy. For example, Irina's father leaves with your friend and makes you sad... does he count as a bad guy?" The old man asked and the boy was taken aback. He put on a thoughtful face for a moment before slumping in defeat.

"No...Shidou-san is not a bad guy..." He murmured, "But then, what should heroes do if the villain is not a bad guy but he keeps making people sad?" He asked.

"Heroes should try to understand the villain...Why they became bad guys in a first place and then try to persuade him to stop. If the hero can't, then the decision is in the hero's hand. Whether he will he stop the bad guy or not depends on him..." The old man said with a fatherly smile and the boy seemed to process the words.

"I...think...I understand..." The boy muttered and the old man laughed.

"Good! Now boy! Since you are a good child, I have a present for you!" The old man started to rummage through his clothes before pulling out a pack of cards, "You said you want to be a hero, right?"

"Uhm!" The boy bobbed his head up and down in agreement, "I will become a hero!"

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