In the Study.
"Koenji. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Retsu Katsuragi, the current head of the Katsuragi Family, answered the phone. His tone was cool, masking his genuine surprise.
Calls from the head of the Koenji Family were rare.
"Japan may be a small land, yet it possesses the magnitude to harbor titans."
The Katsuragi Group, deeply rooted in Kyoto, represented the nation's traditional interests. The Koenji Group, backed by foreign capital and American ties, stood as their modern counterpart.
They were old rivals, locked in a perpetual stalemate.
The Koenji Group was a gluttonous beast, an insatiable engine feeding on Japan's economy, crushing opposition with sheer financial weight.
The Katsuragi Group, however, was like an ancient tree. Its roots burrowed deep into the political soil, wrapping tightly around the government and the very authority of the state.
They didn't interfere with each other, but they always watched—keeping each other in check.
"Katsuragi?"
The deep, booming voice of the Koenji patriarch echoed through the receiver, sounding almost shocked that Retsu had actually picked up.
Being enemies didn't preclude contact. In fact, their rivalry had bred a strange form of mutual respect.
Competition and cooperation existed side by side. They fought over conflicting interests, but they united to crush any third party foolish enough to try and take a seat at their table.
In Japan, there was only room for Katsuragi and Koenji.
"It's me. Speak," Retsu said, cutting through the pleasantries. He wanted to get straight to the point.
"Advanced Nurturing High School. My son, Rokusuke, will be enrolling."
The Koenji head didn't waste time.
"Your family's 'Young Dragon' is of age as well, isn't he? It's time they met."
He made his intentions clear: he wanted to measure the Katsuragi heir against his own flesh and blood.
Comparisons between their subordinates were common, mere proxy wars. But this? This was about the future. The Koenji head was keenly interested in the next leader of the Katsuragi family.
The Katsuragi Family guarded their heir's privacy with paranoid intensity. Aside from his name and a basic physical description, Ren Katsuragi was a ghost.
"You want to pit your 'Golden Lion' against my Dragon?" Retsu saw right through him.
Unlike Retsu, who hid his son behind walls of secrecy, the Koenji head flaunted Rokusuke like a trophy. He openly displayed his son's profile—a young man whose personality was as loud as his family's reputation.
"Exactly. Are you interested?"
"I understand the proposal. I'll ask him."
Retsu didn't agree immediately. He simply acknowledged the challenge and hung up.
The temptation was there. He, too, wanted to see whose bloodline was stronger. But this wasn't a decision he could make unilaterally.
Ren was the cherished prince of the family. No one could force him to do anything—not even his own father.
If Retsu dared to order Ren to attend that high school just to test Koenji, he wouldn't survive the night. The elders—and worse, his wife, Yue—would likely skin him alive. Cane or no cane.
Retsu took a sip of the cold tea on his desk, sighed, and walked out of the study.
"Master."
The old butler, who had been standing sentinel outside the door, placed a hand over his heart and bowed deeply.
"Has Ren returned yet?" Retsu asked, gazing out the window at the manicured gardens.
"Not yet, Master. Ren-sama is still on the Summer Hunt."
"Still hunting... very well. Inform me the moment he returns."
Retsu gave the instruction and retreated back into his study.
In ancient times, the seasonal hunts were sacred rituals. In modern society, such customs had largely been abandoned as barbaric relics.
However, Ren had a penchant for hunting, and in the Katsuragi household, what Ren wanted, Ren got.
...
Hokkaido.
"Did we hit the target count?"
"Yes, Ren-sama. Quota met."
Perched on a high ridge, a maid spoke crisply into her headset. Her eye never left the scope of her sniper rifle.
Through the lens, she watched a scene that defied modern logic.
A well-built young man with raven-black hair and piercing red eyes was sitting casually atop a massive brown bear. The beast, which would have stood nearly three meters tall on its hind legs, now lay slumped in the dirt.
A silver spear was driven clean through the back of its skull, pinning it to the earth. Blood soaked the vibrant green grass, turning it a dark crimson.
Roar!
A massive white tiger leaped onto the bear's carcass, nuzzling its large head against the young man's hand like a house cat.
"Then let's wrap it up, Roberta."
Ren Katsuragi gave the order to the maid, Roberta, and cut the comms without waiting for a reply.
He stroked the tiger, Koharu, with his left hand. With his right, he gripped the shaft of the silver spear.
With a sharp, fluid motion, he ripped the weapon free. Blood sprayed across the grass.
He hopped off the corpse, looking down at the dead apex predator, its eyes frozen wide in shock.
Ren chuckled. "That makes five."
Koharu jumped down with him, falling into step by his side, her tail swaying rhythmically.
"Ren-sama."
Roberta was waiting for him at the rendezvous point. She was dressed in a classic maid uniform, complete with a frilled headpiece and round glasses, her hair tied in two long braids.
In her hand, she held a sleek black instrument case. She had already disassembled and packed her rifle the moment the order was given.
A proper maid never keeps her master waiting.
"Let's go, Roberta. Time to go home," Ren said, resting the bloodied silver spear casually on his shoulder.
"Yes, Master."
Ren Katsuragi. The only son of Retsu.
He was the sole heir recognized by every branch of the family. The prodigy known in the whispers of the underworld by a single title:
The Black Dragon of the Katsuragi Family.