Six months turned into three years after the gleam in his eye turned into plausible wonder. He was free to move about his home with wild abandon,and spoke with a sense of exploration and adventure. But, to keep his adventure to a minimum, his favorite maid was always at his heels.

She was thrilled to have these little toddler moments with him. She was even more enthralled with the idea of having taught basic knowhow. He even looked to be enjoying the basic chores she sent him on and soaked up all the practical knowledge needed to take care of one’s self. However, something stewed on the inside.

The spirit of Tillerson, the dark, dejected, being that was him, burnsed with a blue fire. And this fire enlarged a few times in his first few months as a three-year-old.

These instances of dark tendencies started when he noticed a strange insect land on his thigh, and instead of capturing it, he simply smashed it with his right hand. What solidified this tendency was the fact that he showed the squashed insect to his maid, who then looked visibly annoyed by this and told him to clean up his hand.

Another, more notable, instance was when he went on his first play-date with a child who was the son of a colleague of his mother. The two, at first, were having a great time, but the son, named Kiyoshi, took a toy away from Kuma. Kuma, in a fit of temper, struck Kiyoshi with swift pain to the skull with a connecting block. Kiyoshi collapsed to the floor moments later, but instead of giving the child mercy, Kuma proceeds to continue his onslaught; forcing the child further into submission. The only reason the child did not die on that day was because a maid from the Ryuu Household walked in on the situation and immediately had put a stop to it.

Kuma, after that, was “grounded.” A concept that was further exemplified by having one of the maids spank him which, clearly, Kuma did not take kindly to. However, these acts of corporal punishment were signs that Kuma was understanding that he should not indiscriminately lash out at those that did him wrong. He now knows better than to stoop to such a degree of violence. Violence would, equally, be met with violence.

. . .

Aside from the clear disposition in the matter of his violent tendencies, Kuma was given basic education. This kind of education, according to the Itsumori Code of Ethics, is to be demanded of all children at the age of 3 to suffice the growing demand for a competent workforce. By this education alone, Kuma, finally, gained a sense of where and when he was.

According to his lessons, the current year is 2567 C.E, and Earth (otherwise known as Terra to the humans on this world) is a relic of a far forgotten past. Kuma’s world, Akeda-3B, is part of the Egi Cluster, approximately 7.53 light years from the nearest jump station.

While not exactly an independent world, the Akeda-3 System lies just on the border between the Hideyoshi Family and the Kouki Family. Although technically, the Akeda-3 System belongs to the Hideyoshi Family. Thus, while under Hideyoshi Family occupation, the Planetary Shogunate, heralded by Shou Hideyoshi (15th Son to the Hideyoshi Throne), speaks directly to them and vice versa.

Another breath of his lessons talks about how the citizens of Akeda-3B take a fancy to the shogun and have been in proud service of that very shogun for fourteen years. It appears that, to Kuma, the citizens of Akeda-3B have a strict code of ethics and have very strict way of doing things. They appear to have a means for respecting superiors, colleagues, friends, and family. Just about everything about the citizenry bleeds respect, honor, and duty.

Of course one could not forgot the breadth of knowledge when dealing with math, science, arts, social studies, and the occasional study of the Universal Common (which was English).

He was also given physical education as well, and this came in the form of weight training (for toddlers), cardio, combat training, and various dives into sports. The reason behind this, according to the Code, is that all children, as they grow, must be physically fit to handle the G-forces while in transit in space, as space-travel is particularly taxing on the body.

So, Kuma, in his physical education, seemed to respond rather positively to these exercises, especially so when involved in combat exercises. Compared to his instructor, whom he has one-on-one training sessions with, he seemed to be relatively in step with him. Even his instructor was a bit surprised by this, it was like the young boy had this kind of muscle memory stored in his body from birth.

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Time and again, Kuma fell to his instructor who reminded him that “winning against your opponent isn’t about who can inflict the most damage, but who can inflict the least damage.” This saying resonated with Kuma, because the spirit of Tillerson remembers that inflicting the most damage on your opponent was the best way to ensure they either stay dead or talk. This line of thinking was being systematically destroyed, and replaced with a line of thinking that it doesn’t take much to win over your opponent. In this case, striking at the right parts of the body can yield the most results.

Having this line of thinking be built into him over a period of several lessons kept his mind from wandering into a territory he labels as, “Berserker Territory.” He wanted to train himself to be cool and collected, and so that’s what he planned to do for himself. But there was a bit of a problem with that...he wasn’t able to keep himself cool and collected…

Everytime he gotten into a sparring match with his instructor, he’d experience tunnel vision and lose himself to his deepened bloodlust. His instructor, named Juurou Hiroto, kept reiterating that he shouldn’t rely on his own bloodlust in that he should rely on his skills to keep his head out of the blood of his enemies.

These sayings echoed in young Kuma’s mind, and continue to resonate with him. Even after these sessions, Kuma sat down with his instructor and spoke for a few hours behind the meaning of his sayings, and Juurou would always repeat the same thing: “The meaning isn’t what I say, but what you understand.”

This same point also echoed in the mind of Kuma who then thought of the meaning behind that point. “If the meaning isn’t what he says, but what I understand then how in the hell do I make sense of any of it?!” These sayings, and the point, continue to plague him.

. . .

Three years of homeschooling past with more knowledge, sayings, and whatever else jammed down Kuma’s throat. And by this time, he was admitted into the Takatsu School for Advanced Learning at the age of six (2570 C.E) much like other children at his age.

Starting with departure from the Fukumoto Household, he was being escorted out of the home by his maid who was distressed to see that the Fukumotos’ baby bird was finally ready to leave the nest. She had coddled him several times as he walked through the halls, each time reminding her that he’ll come by every now and again to visit her.

“But Young Master,” she said with a soft tone, “You must know that you’ll be desperately lonely without my knowledge!”

Kuma thought about her constant nagging about studying, keeping up with chores, and what-have-you. “I think I can handle it, heh.”

“But Young Master~!!”

“Haruka-san please..”

The maid puffed her cheeks and settled her hands on her hips, “Well at least you’re going to teach those kids what I’ve taught you so at least I have that in mind.”

Another maid, one who seemed too refined for her own good, came from the shadows of the small foyer and bowed to Kuma. “Young Master, the cab is waiting for you outside.”

Kuma nodded in response, “Then I should be going. Bye!”

Kuma, without a second thought, turned his back to the two maids and ran out the front door where he was met with a hovering black car. Although a bit surprised by this, he stepped into the cab, and moments later it was off towards the school.

. . .

While in transit, Kuma noticed that he was not alone in the cab. Just across from him was Hideyoshi. He looked to be a more timid now than he did three years ago. “Maybe, perhaps, it was the incident three years ago that did him in? I guess? And another thing, why is he even here? I didn’t know he was coming to the same advance learning school as I was..? Was this my parents doing? Or something more?”

“Kuma-kun,” spoke Hideyoshi with a soft tone.

Kuma raised a brow to the honorific.

“Look,” Hideyoshi paused for a moment to gather his thoughts, “I know we weren’t the on the best of terms these last three years--”

“--seeing as I nearly killed you with a jumbo brick,” Kuma interjected.

“Y-Yes,” Hideyoshi seemed to be ball his fists that were in his lap, “That is true.”

“Then why did you decide to ride with me, especially seeing as we’re going to the same school?”

“Because,” Hideyoshi looked down for a moment before looking back with determined eyes, “I want to make amends!”

“Eh...?”

“I’m sorry if I caused any discomfort for you in the last three years, and I want to make sure that there was no hard feelings between us..”

“Is this kid’s mind warped beyond measure!?”

There was silence as the vehicle experienced a bit of turbulence. However Kuma broke this silence.

His very expression deepened with a sinister look that was equals parts cold and lethal.