| Niki and Kisa Fushimi were the parents of Fushimi Saruhiko; however, neither of them showed even a single feeling of unconditional love for their son. The first time Niki saw him, she complained that he looked like an “ugly little monkey.” Thus, Niki chose to call him “Saru” (さる = monkey). | During his childhood, Saruhiko was terrorized by his father, while his mother spent most of her time absent due to work. However, when he did see her, she showed no interest, suggesting that her absence wasn’t solely because she was busy. | There are significant moments in Saruhiko's life; one of them occurred when Niki made him feel amazed for the first time. Niki was incredibly intelligent, no doubt about it. So, when Saruhiko was developing, old enough to be aware but unable to understand that his life wasn’t his fault, Niki revealed his intelligence to him through a Rubik's cube—something so simple yet so amazing for a child who knew nothing of the world beyond his father. Then, Niki shattered this Rubik's cube in front of Saruhiko, laughing to belittle him. It was the first time he felt derealized—when his own father betrayed him. | Although it might seem insignificant, a child acts only on instinct, and for Niki and everyone else, Saruhiko’s instinct was to completely shut down. | Saruhiko also had another moment in his life linked to Niki. Saruhiko was working on an ant farm when Niki set it on fire in front of him. All his work discarded like that, as if none of the lives he’d nurtured were worth anything, as if Niki held Saruhiko’s entire world in his hands and could destroy the small world Saruhiko had created. | All his effort being thrown away like that, as if the created lives had no value, as if Niki possessed Saruhiko’s whole world in his hands and could annihilate the little world conceived by Saruhiko—this is an important concept: a small world just for him, where he could feel safe. | From this point on, the story can begin without further context. | Here starts the unrevised draft. Yata Misaki was a boy with a few friends, but his spontaneous, lively, and even aggressive personality caused complications. In short, his friends left him—a typical school fight: boys piling on each other and throwing punches. By chance, Saruhiko was at the scene before the fight broke out, and he ended up getting dragged into it. | Misaki hoped to befriend Saruhiko; after all, they fought the same boys and ended up lying side by side on the grass, with bruises and even a broken pair of glasses. But Saruhiko wasn’t interested in that. He had never had friends and was fine being alone; he certainly didn’t care about some random boy who, whether it was his fault or not, got him involved in a fight. | It was common for both of them to skip class—perhaps by chance again—but they ended up meeting in the bathroom while they isolated themselves from the world. A bright light and sounds that seemed like a video game caught Misaki's attention. He decided to climb onto the toilet and check what was happening in the next stall—Saruhiko was there, barely caring that he was being watched. Misaki asked to enter Saruhiko’s stall and see what he was doing. Saruhiko reluctantly agreed. | It was amazing how smart Saruhiko was—creating a game by himself at that age wasn’t common. Misaki was amazed by what he saw on the screen, and, strangely, Saruhiko enjoyed that attention, even if just a little. | Days went by like that; Misaki was someone as radiant as the sun, and Saruhiko didn’t mind being illuminated by him—only by him. | Consequently, their friendship kept growing. Misaki even went to Saruhiko’s house, hiding from Niki, and Saruhiko often went to Misaki’s house—after all, Niki wasn’t capable of showing him even the slightest affection. | The first time Misaki went to Saruhiko’s house was interesting because they weren’t that close yet, even though they were already friends. Saruhiko hadn’t gone to school, and it wasn’t like him to skip. His friend decided to ask his cousin, who attended the same school, for his address. | “You can go in just by opening the door—they never lock it.” | That’s what she said. Strange. The Fushimi family was extremely rich, with the mother owning a prestigious company. Weren’t they afraid of being robbed? Of some killer getting in? Saruhiko himself answered Misaki’s questions bluntly—he said he wished someone would come in and kill him. | Saruhiko’s suicidal tendencies were obvious, but he made them sound like they didn’t matter, so people ended up acting like they didn’t. It’s a kind of passive suicidality—he wouldn’t cut himself or take pills to die, but he also wouldn’t mind being killed in any way at any time. In fact, he longed for his life to just end without warning so he wouldn’t have to keep living in this world. It’s not something that gets much attention. Sometimes, even when someone explicitly says they want to commit suicide, people don’t take it seriously. | For Saruhiko, that was normal. He never talked about his feelings, never had a way to express himself, never even cared about how he felt—after all, he was taught to act like that. How could a child be anything other than what was imposed on them? With no support or contact with the outside world. | But at least, with Misaki, he could laugh—he could even burst out laughing, think about a future with him, and enjoy life in ways he barely imagined were possible. That was something wonderful—but it could also be a problem. Would it last forever? How can someone live basing all their feelings on just one person? That can’t work. | At some point, Misaki and Saruhiko started living together. They dropped out of school and decided to join Homra, a gang led by the Red King, Mikoto. He was truly what people consider a king in this world—a being with powers beyond human comprehension. He could create fire, shape it, and even grant that power to his allies, along with a mark on their skin that represented their acceptance into Homra. |
