September 1, 2026. 3:00 PM. Approx. 9 hours remaining. UCIA Japan Branch Investigation Base, Ground Base. Cafeteria.
In the end, I couldn’t sleep much last night, and I feel like I finally managed to fall asleep towards morning. Perhaps because of that, I’m incredibly sleepy today…
The red-black ring fitted on my finger. Its glow was bright, clearly shining differently than it did at first. As if telling me to hurry up and make a wish, its glow was suspiciously tempting my heart…
I had been thinking about it all last night. Whether I should make a wish, or not…
“You must not make a wish. If you proceed any further, you will undoubtedly be swallowed by the darkness.”
I feel like I already have one foot stuck in it and can’t get out. Thinking back, I can’t help but feel that the abyss began gazing into me the very moment I decided to transfer to UCIA…
The more I think about it, the deeper the mysteries get… About Kamikura. The AWs. And the Pentagon, which is likely moving with a full grasp of everything…
Today is my fifth day since being assigned to UCIA. Over the past four days, I feel like I’ve caught a glimpse of the underside of this world. It is reality, yet the phenomena are unrealistic… An illusion as if I had wandered into the entrance of another world…
What… should I do…? Even while I’m agonizing over this, time is ticking away moment by moment. If what Asagiri said is true, the ring will disappear in about 9 hours, and I will be unable to have my wish granted…
Kamikura’s blank one year… I want to know the answer to that. What happened to him, what changed him… I feel like all the mysteries converge on this point.
None of my colleagues from my FBI days knew of Kamikura’s whereabouts, and I feel like they were avoiding the topic. It shouldn’t be my imagination that everyone was indirectly advising me not to pry.
The FBI and CIA haven’t been informed about CODE:AW. Kamikura had said that. That means it can be deduced that the agency Kamikura was in is a higher-ranking agency than the FBI or CIA. When I was first assigned here, I was somewhat half-in-doubt about AWs, but considering that I am secretly being contacted by one, AWs definitely exist. And they are causing incidents all over the world. In other words, it’s safe to make this assumption.
Kamikura was in an anti-AW agency believed to be under the direct control of the Pentagon. And in some operation, Kamikura confronted them and sustained heavy injuries.
Now that I am convinced of the existence of AWs, thinking of it this way makes everything add up.
“–Himemiya. What if, hypothetically. A UCIA overseas branch was located on some frontier, was attacked by a single unknown human, and the branch was driven to annihilation… If there was such a story, what would you think of our current structure?”
Kamikura said “human” at the time, but he was wrong. The one who attacked was an AW. With their overwhelming power, they must have driven the anti-AW agency’s facility to annihilation. The reason this Ground Base also has a formidable security structure and exists deep underground…
that finally makes sense.
The anxiety and fear I’m feeling right now… Thinking about that, even this much security isn’t enough…
“Himemiya-san. Thanks for helping with the work this morning. You were a lifesaver.”
At that moment, Hayama came in smiling cheerfully. This morning, I was helping Hayama with material orders and warehouse management. Though to be honest, I had almost nothing to do…
“Stephen! It’s time for our 3 o’clock snack. Make it for three. Prepare some cold gelato and warm tea.”
Hayama requested this toward the kitchen in the back.
UCIA’s budget is abundant. The facilities, equipment, environment. I have no complaints whatsoever. It’s been on my mind since I was first assigned, but I feel like the technology being used is also state-of-the-art, or even beyond that. The official members of the UCIA Japan Branch are the Director, Kamikura, Hayama, Chris, and me—five people. Even including Stephen, that’s only six. Aside from us, there are special forces and teams handling security and other duties, but they are strictly positioned as external squads.
All these resources given to this extremely small number of people. This implies that the investigation into AWs carries that much importance. Above all, we are even collaborating with the Japanese Public Security Police. Considering this, I wonder if some globally critical incident is about to happen behind the scenes…
“Hayama, Himemiya. Good work.”
The Director walked in. That explained why he asked for three portions.
“How was it? Were you able to let your wings loose yesterday?”
The Director smiled faintly.
“Thank you for your concern. Thanks to you, it was a good refresh.”
It was strictly a vacation in the name of escorting Chris. I am grateful for the Director’s consideration.
“Regarding your one-month suspension, well, try not to let it bother you. No one thinks it was an error in your judgment, Himemiya. Myself included.”
“Yeah, yeah. I think Himemiya-san did her best. Still, that woman named Kamijo did something terrible. Of all things, slapping Himemiya-san in the face and then landing a backhand with enough force to blow her away…”
“Thank you for treating me after that…”
After that, Hayama had treated my face in the infirmary. I didn’t have internal bleeding or anything, but I think my face was swollen for a while.
“Well, taking the hit so obediently is probably part of your good-naturedness, Himemiya. If it were me, I would’ve grabbed the opponent’s wrist instead. You need to take better care of your pretty face.”
The Director said so with a small laugh.
“The old Director would’ve at least put her in a joint lock right after that, but you’ve really mellowed out, Director.”
Hayama said this while laughing. However, the Director’s gaze sharply shifted.
“Oh, would you like me to put you in a joint lock and call the medic? You’ve been slacking off a bit lately, haven’t you, Hayama?”
Stephen brought over the cold gelato and warm tea. Hayama’s expression froze as well.
“B-but, just who are that Kamijo and Asagiri? If they can put pressure on Public Security, they must be connected to some pretty important figures…”
“–Ritsuko Kamijo. According to our investigation, Asagiri is effectively Kamijo’s adopted daughter. Her parents passed away in a traffic accident when Asagiri was in kindergarten. After that, Asagiri lived in an orphanage until the third grade of elementary school. Then it seems Kamijo took Asagiri in from the orphanage. Although, since her last name hasn’t changed, it seems she isn’t officially adopted.”
(I see. So that’s what she meant by “Aunt”…)
“After Kamijo joined Kirimine Heavy Industries as a regular employee, she steadily climbed the ranks and finally reached the position of Executive Secretary to the CEO. She seems to be quite the go-getter. In fact, since Kamijo assumed the position of Executive Secretary, Kirimine Heavy Industries’ business performance has been on an upward trend. Their new military-related division seems to be achieving considerable results.”
Hayama continued after the Director’s words.
“Well, in terms of scale, they can’t compete with LMT or BA in our home country, but Japanese military manufacturers, starting with Kirimine Heavy Industries, are incredibly advanced in cutting-edge materials and metallurgy. There are many things that can only be made in this country. Whether it’s due to domestic circumstances or not, it’s a real shame that inventing things from scratch is so difficult. They have excellent people and technology, but the higher-ups don’t understand their value and won’t put up the money. They can’t back them up.”
Hayama is right. The six years of middle and high school I spent in Japan. There, I learned about the greatness of this country, as well as the darkness of its occupation policies.
The Japanese people. Their rich spirituality that values harmony. No matter how terrible the politics get, there are no riots, and everyone lives kindly, valuing morality, almost like a perfected socialist state. My parents are also Japanese. I inherited that blood.
Everyone says that since the founding of the United States, Japan is the only country that genuinely clashed with our home country and made it feel threatened. They launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, sinking numerous battleships and causing immense damage. We managed to go on the offensive at the Battle of Midway, but depending on the Japanese military’s strategy, it’s highly possible our carrier fleet could have taken a devastating blow as well.
If that had happened, Hawaii and Guam would have become Japanese territory, and the world would be vastly different from what it is today.
The sublime spirituality of the Japanese. And their highly advanced technological capabilities. That is what our home country feared. That is precisely why, in the subsequent occupation policies, they banned the manufacturing and research of aircraft, pushing for thorough demilitarization and democratization. Then, they shifted their occupation policy to use Japan as a bulwark against communist blocs like China and Russia. As a second phase, by largely reviving the economy, they succeeded in turning it into an economic and military colony.
However, at the same time, spies from South Korea, China, and Russia also took advantage of this, with many maneuvering behind the scenes. They encroached upon education, the media, and politics, and now education and the media are completely hijacked by foreign powers.
The masochistic view of history instilled by the occupation policies and those targeting Japan…
War is bad… Nukes are bad… The military is bad… Fighting is bad…
Blindly fueling the fear of war and abandoning the fight is the path to peace…
The Japanese citizens were relentlessly showered with that rhetoric…
“Listen up, everyone. Himemiya’s essay is saying that we should make Japan a country capable of waging war again. Having military power will provoke other countries, resulting in war. War is scary. And it’s tragic. Well, Himemiya was born in America, so she probably likes war, but—”
I still remember that time clearly… For an independent study project in my second year of middle school, I did my own research on the importance of national defense and presented it as an essay, only for those heartless words to fly out of my homeroom teacher’s mouth… Having experienced the simultaneous terrorist attacks in my home country right before my eyes, that hellish scene is still burned into my memory, and I didn’t want something similar to happen in Japan. Shouting for peace alone cannot protect peace. I had merely spelled out those feelings, but…
From the very next day, a fair number of students began to avoid me… I still can’t forget that a very good friend of mine was among them…
“…What’s wrong, Himemiya? Lost in thought?”
“No, sorry… I’m just a little sleep-deprived today… Probably because I messed around too much with Chris yesterday.”
“It seems Chris was absolutely delighted. I’m counting on you to keep looking after her. Despite how she looks, she can be quite sensitive in some respects. She’s grown very attached to you.”
“Chris is a girl who needs time to decompress. What she does is that highly specialized and demanding, after all. I’m asking you to look after her too.”
“Yes, she feels like a much younger sister to me. I’m happy about it too.”
“Man, nice, nice. The birth of beautiful sisters, huh?”
Hayama’s words had a subtle hint of sexual harassment. Just then, Chris came into the cafeteria.
“Ah, Stephen-san! Four gelatos, please! With lots of caramel sauce!”
That Chris was going to eat all of them by herself was an unspoken understanding among us…
Same day. 11:32 PM. Approx. 30 minutes remaining. UCIA Japan Branch Investigation Base, Ground Base. Residential area private room.
After that, I performed my chat-partner duties supporting Hayama again until 5:00 PM, and then sweated through shooting practice and training. With my investigative authority suspended, I am prohibited from entering the operation room. It was fortunate that I could secure a large amount of time to train myself.
I thought about it. Whether to make a wish… And I think I’ve reached a conclusion.
Hypothetically, if I don’t have my wish granted, this ominous ring fitted on my right hand will likely disappear, and I doubt any harm will come to me for a while.
However, if that happens, it’s conceivable that the AW will move on to their next target.
- All victims are female.
- Their ages are limited to those 15 and older up to their 20s.
The person in UCIA who fits these conditions—yes, Chris.
According to the Director, she also has a sensitive side. I agree. While Chris is strong in information technology, she also has delicate parts. She is the youngest in UCIA.
The Director, Hayama, Kamikura, and me. We have likely received a corresponding amount of mental training, but what about Chris? The incident during her Space Force days—if that was exactly as Kamikura had told me, I can deduce that her resistance to mental stress isn’t strong.
Above all, I don’t want Chris to experience this same kind of anxiety and fear… A way to protect that girl from being contacted by an AW.
That leaves me no choice but to make a wish and confront the AW directly.
I thought about the reason why the opponent contacted me…
Hypothetically. Even assuming there are good AWs like Asagiri, why was I the one they contacted? I have absolutely no idea what the opponent’s goal is. If they wanted peaceful negotiations, it would make more sense to contact the Director.
However, there is a possibility that the reason for contact in the first place was the cry of my own heart. Making a natural deduction, it might be correct to think that they contacted me in response to my strong feelings.
“Kamikura’s blank one year. I want to know what happened. As long as I don’t know that, I feel like he cannot be saved. —I want you to lend me your power.”
Assuming I were an AW, if I could hear that inner voice, I would bestow a ring upon me.
The AW’s purpose for bestowing a ring in a dream… I was wondering what that could be.
The rumors say that not everyone meets an unfortunate end. There are also stories of people becoming happy.
“It is said that… if you make a wish beyond your means, your soul will be taken as the price…”
Hojo-san’s words. If this is true, is the AW testing the other person’s heart by bestowing a ring that grants wishes?
If it’s a small wish within their means, they grant it and release them, and if it’s a wish beyond their means, they take their soul as the price…
Thinking of it that way explains those who became happy and those who became unfortunate. Depending on the degree to which a wish is beyond one’s means, the price also changes. The bigger the wish, the more one must offer their soul as the price. In other words, they meet their death.
However, I simply cannot understand the reason why AWs do this…
My wish. Whether it is a trivial wish or one so large that it demands my soul depends on the AW’s judgment, but…
I have to do it. Tetsuya, Chris, Hayama, the Director… I don’t want to drag any of my precious people into this…
And, I will save him. Kamikura. My precious person.
I stood in front of the bed. I raised both hands up, then slowly lowered them in front of me.
(I don’t know how it’s done, but if ordinary people are getting caught up in it, there shouldn’t be anything ritualistic. If I can just feel strongly and chant my wish.)
I recall Shinto rituals. Two claps, one bow.
(Witch of Dreams who grants wishes. Please grant my wish. Illuminate the past figure of Hisamune Kamikura in my eyes. Witch of Dreams who grants wishes. Please grant my wish.)
I pray in my heart. Finally, one bow.
As for the rest, I have no choice but to leave what happens next to the heavens. Just like that, I collapsed onto the bed…