[MORNING – SCHOOL GATE]
The sun was shining. Birds were singing.
Noah Sato was depressed.
He stood in front of the school vending machine, staring at the reflection of his own misery.
"It didn't fit," he mumbled.
Lilly walked up behind him, looking like she hadn't slept in a week. She was scanning the perimeter, checking the rooftops, her hand hovering near her pocket.
"Noah," she whispered urgently. "Is it secure?"
Noah sighed. "Yeah. It's in my pocket."
He pulled out the Gold Medallion.
It was heavy. Ancient. Engraved with a serpent eating a wolf. It pulsed with a faint, ominous aura.
"I tried to use it at the convenience store this morning," Noah complained. "The machine spat it out. And the cashier looked at me like I was crazy."
Lilly stared at the object. Her blood ran cold.
That's the Serpent Seal, she thought. The legendary command token of the Western Syndicates. It hasn't been seen in twenty years.
"You... showed it to a cashier?" Lilly asked weakly.
"Yeah. He wouldn't take it. Said they don't accept 'foreign currency'." Noah scoffed. "Rude."
(The cashier had actually fainted behind the counter after recognizing the mark of the Death Lord, but Noah had left before he hit the floor.)
"Put it away," Lilly hissed, grabbing his arm. "Someone might see."
"Good!" Noah said. "maybe someone will trade me for a soda."
[CLASSROOM 3B]
Ms. Mai was teaching history.
Or she was trying to.
Her eyes kept drifting to Noah's desk.
He was fidgeting. He kept reaching into his pocket, pulling out a golden object, flipping it over his knuckles, and putting it back.
Clink. Clink. Clink.
Ms. Mai stopped writing on the board.
She knew that sound. It wasn't loose change. It was solid gold.
He retrieved the payout, she realized. The Unknown Variable paid him off.
She walked down the aisle.
"Sato," she said.
Noah looked up, guilty. He quickly covered the coin with his hand.
"Sorry, Ms. Mai. I wasn't playing."
"Open your hand," she ordered.
The class held its breath.
Noah hesitated. If she takes it, I lose my fifty bucks.
He slowly opened his hand.
The Gold Medallion gleamed under the fluorescent lights. The serpent's ruby eye seemed to glare at Ms. Mai.
Ms. Mai froze.
She recognized it.
It was from the Old Files. The ones redacted in black ink. The ones that caused wars.
"Where did you get this?" she asked, her voice dangerously calm.
"A guy gave it to me last night," Noah said honestly. "At the warehouse."
The class whispered.
Warehouse? At night?
Is Noah dealing?
"He said it was payment," Noah added. "But honestly, I think I got scammed. It doesn't even work in the soda machine."
Ms. Mai stared at him.
He thinks the Seal of the Serpent King is a scam because it doesn't buy soda.
She felt a migraine coming on. A massive, national-security-level migraine.
"Put it away," she said, turning around before her composure cracked. "And never show it in public again."
"Okay," Noah muttered. "Useless coin..."
[LUNCH BREAK – ROOFTOP]
Noah sat on the bench, poking his bento box.
"I'm broke," he announced.
Lilly sat next to him. She was checking her phone. The dark web forums were exploding.
[ALERT: THE SERPENT SEAL HAS BEEN CLAIMED.]
[NEW LORD: UNKNOWN.]
[LOCATION: SHINOHARA DISTRICT.]
"Noah," Lilly said carefully. "Do you know what that coin represents?"
Noah chewed his rice. "Yeah. Disappointment."
"No. It means... authority."
Noah looked at her. "Authority?"
"It means people have to listen to you."
Noah paused. His eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Like... anyone?"
Lilly hesitated. "Technically... yes. Anyone connected to the Network."
Noah stood up. A look of intense determination crossed his face.
"I have an idea."
Lilly panicked. Is he going to mobilize an army? Take over the city?
"I'm going to the cafeteria," Noah declared.
[CAFETERIA]
The lunch line was long.
The popular kids—the jocks, the rich students—were cutting in front.
Noah walked up to the back of the line. He sighed.
Nana said never cut lines. But Lilly said this coin gives me authority.
He tapped the shoulder of the massive senior in front of him. A guy known for being a bully.
"Excuse me," Noah said.
The bully turned around. "Beat it, freshman."
Noah pulled out the Gold Medallion.
He held it up.
"Does this mean anything to you?" Noah asked hopefully.
The bully looked at the coin.
His father was a low-level yakuza associate. He had seen drawings of this symbol in his father's "Do Not Touch" files.
The bully went pale. His knees knocked together.
"T-That..." the bully stammered.
"I just want a melon bread," Noah said. "But they always run out."
The bully grabbed the student in front of him and shoved him aside.
"MOVE!" the bully screamed. "MAKE WAY! VIP COMING THROUGH!"
The cafeteria fell silent.
The bully bowed to Noah—a perfect, ninety-degree angle.
"Please, sir! Go ahead! Take all the melon bread!"
Noah blinked.
"Whoa," Noah whispered. "Lilly was right. It works!"
He walked to the front of the line, bought three melon breads, and walked out.
As he passed the bully, he flipped the coin to him.
"Here," Noah said. "Thanks for the spot. You can have it. It doesn't work in the machine anyway."
The bully caught the Serpent Seal.
He stared at it.
He held the power to rule the underworld in his sweaty palm.
And Noah walked away, happily eating his bread.
[CONTROL ROOM – PANIC]
"HE GAVE IT AWAY!?" the Commander screamed.
"He transferred leadership!" an analyst yelled. "To a civilian student!"
The President rubbed his temples.
"No," the President said. "He didn't give it away."
"Sir?"
"Look at the bully."
On the screen, the bully was trembling. He ran after Noah.
"Wait! Boss! I can't take this!" the bully cried, trying to give it back. "It's too much responsibility!"
Noah waved him off. "Keep it. It's just a token."
The bully fell to his knees, clutching the coin to his chest, tears streaming down his face.
"I pledge my life to you!" the bully shouted. "I will guard this treasure until death!"
Noah turned the corner, oblivious.
The President sighed.
"He didn't transfer leadership," the President said. "He just recruited his first lieutenant."
"With a melon bread?"
"With a melon bread."